All Teachers are Reflective Teachers

All Teachers are Reflective Teachers While there is agreement among education researchers that reflective teachers are effective teachers, there very little evidence in recent research to recommend just how much reflection teachers need to do. There is also very little evidence in past research that outlines just how a teacher should reflect on his or her practice. Yet there is undisputed evidence that suggests that teaching without reflection can lead to bad practice, imitation in instruction  Lortie (1975). So how important is the use of reflection  to a teachers practice? The research suggests that the amount of reflection or how that reflection is recorded is not nearly as important as when the teacher has had the opportunity to reflect on his or her teaching. Teachers who wait to reflect may not be as accurate in their reflections about what happens during the swampy lowlands of practice. In other words, if a teachers reflection is distanced by time, that reflection may revise the past to fit a present belief.    In an article titled Teacher Reflection In a Hall of Mirrors: Historical Influences and Political Reverberations (2003), the researcher Lynn Fendler makes the case that teachers are already reflective by nature as they continuously make adjustments in instruction.   ...the laborious attempts to  facilitate  reï ¬â€šective practices for teachers ï ¬â€šy in the face of the  truism expressed  in the epigraph of this article, namely, that there is  no such  thing as an unreï ¬â€šective teacher. Teachers spend so much time preparing for and delivering lessons, that it is easy to see why they often do not spend their valuable time to record their reflections on lessons in journals unless required. Instead, most teachers reflect-in-action, a term suggested by researcher Donald  Schon   (1987). This kind of reflection-in-action  is the kind of reflection that occurs  in  the classroom in order to produce a necessary change at that moment. This form of reflection-in-action is slightly different than reflection-on-action. In reflection-on-action,   the teacher considers past actions relative soon after instruction in order to be ready for an adjustment in a similar situation.   So, while reflection cannot be packaged as prescribed practice, there is a general understanding that teacher reflection-in-action or on-action results in effective teaching.   Methods of Teacher Reflection Despite the lack of concrete evidence supporting  reflection as an effective  practice and the lack of available time, a teachers reflection is required by many school districts as part of the  teacher evaluation  program. There are many different ways that teachers can include reflection as part of their own path towards professional development and to satisfy evaluation programs. A daily reflection is when teachers take a few moments at the end of the day to debrief on the days events. Typically, this should not take more than a few moments. When reflection is done over a period of time, the information can be illuminating. Some teachers keep a daily journal while others simply jot down notes about issues that they had in class. Consider asking, What worked in this lesson? How do I know it worked? At the end of a teaching unit, once assessments have all been graded, a teacher may want to take some time to reflect on the unit as a whole. Answering questions can help guide teachers as they decide what they want to keep and what they want to change the next time they teach the same unit. For example, Overall which lessons worked and which didnt?With which skills did students struggle the most? Why?Which learning objectives seemed the easiest for students? What made those work better?Were the end results of the unit what I had expected and hoped for? Why or why not? At the end of a semester  or school year, a teacher may look back over the students grades in order to try and make an overall judgment about the practices and strategies that are positive as well as areas that need improvement. What To Do With Reflections Reflecting on what went right and wrong with lessons and classroom situations is one thing. However, figuring out what to do with that information is quite another. Time spent in reflection can help ensure that this information can be used to produce real change for growth to occur.   There are several ways teachers can use the information they learned about themselves through reflection: Teachers can reflect on their successes and find reasons to celebrate. They may use their reflections to recommend the actions that lead to success for students in next years lessons.Teachers can individually or collectively reflect on areas that need improvement and look for areas where lessons did not have the desired academic impact.Teachers can reflect on any housekeeping issues that arose or areas where classroom management needed some work.   Reflection is an ongoing process and someday, the evidence may provide more specific guidelines for teachers. Reflection as a practice in education is evolving, and so are teachers.

Management in a early years setting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Management in a early years setting - Essay Example Introduction Evidently through research, it is clear that in an early setting there are certain guidelines that manager should adhere to in order to enhance correct management. There are diverse guidelines in the setting and so manager’s attitudes shape the form of program. In any given business, management is something which should be done in the right manner possible, and this should be able to integrate all elements of management and functions as well. This becomes a defining application which has the capability of improving performance and ensuring that business goals have been realized within the shortest time possible. For instance, within any strategies of management, it should be appropriate to adopt a number of practices, theories and organizational adoptions which have the capability of improving performance of business. In early year setting, management is considered to be significant since this determines several aspects in the running of the business. With this un derstanding, this paper critically presents a discussion in management in early year settings from a broad point of view. This is enhanced through covering several different topics related to management and responding to different questions succinctly. Critical Analysis of the Management of Provision of the Setting The setting followed through early year’s management stage-offset and the attitudes at the same time as can be set on the subject of specific documents outside the setting. Documents in the settings, it is significant to note down that not every expert that is working in the setting have an identical attitudes and beliefs in place (Harrison, 2003, P. 38). In that sense, they can differ appreciably between individual, and there is no incorrect value, attitude or belief. In this section, the roles of a manager will be highlighted clearly. The Manager’s Roles and Responsibilities Essentially, the main role of a manager is to supervise and ensure that the settin g is been run in accordance to the set guidelines (Laura, 2008, P. 48). The manager therefore, becomes responsible to supervising staff when required and ensuring that the staff is always organized in order to accomplish their tasks. There are innumerable ways through which change in an early management can be achieved. This is through the role played by managers as well as their responsibilities. It is evident that members of staff do not have the accountability to deal with management. Their responsibility in the organization is to do what is most excellent for the benefits of the entire organization (Wang, 2010, P. 18). Therefore, the accountability for dealing with management in early year setting is the role of managers. Managers should cope with the change in a manner that workers can get by it. The role of the manager is to keep up to date with registers and other important data files, for children in their early setting. Managers should play the role to smooth the progress a nd facilitate change, and all this is disguised in that declaration in order to comprehend the circumstances from

International Business & Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

International Business & Strategy - Essay Example When starting a banking business, the investor should consider various factors related to the environment where the business is to be established. Factors such as political, economic, social, technological and legal aspects of a country have direct and indirect effects on the performance of the business. Denmark is the smallest Scandinavian country in the Northern Europe (The Local DK, 2014). It has a pollution of about 5,613,706 million people, and 93% of the populace are Danes while immigrants account for 7% (Pakarinen, 2012). There is no bureaucracy and bribery in Denmark hence this offers a stable business environment. It has good ethical framework and inflation policies (The Local DK, 2014). The country is politically stable (Pakarinen, 2012). Therefore, because government initiatives and fast growing economy it becomes apparent that opening a business provides the best chance for companies such as BBVA retail banking to enjoy government support. Small and medium enterprises SMEs) are the main forms of business characteristics in Denmark. It is active in foreign trade and supports liberal trade policy. It has a mixed economy. It has a relatively high-income rate, Gross National Income (GNI) per capita stands at $61,110 and has a budget surplus (The Local, DK, 2014). Therefore, such stable nation with a fast-growing economy has a high potential for running a business. The Danish economy is one of the most prosperous and stable across the entire world with studies suggesting that by 2017 it will be worth $353.1 billion with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 1.9%. The Foreign direct investments account for about 2.5% of the GDP (The Local, DK, 2014). The government policies protect financial institutions such as ensuring careful lending, minimizing the aftermath of financial crisis through increasing government spending, tax cut, infrastructure

APA Help Center Analysis Essay Example for Free

APA Help Center Analysis Essay The website APA Help Center from the American Psychological Association (http://apahelpcenter. org/articles/topic. php? id=2) is all about articles and information focusing on family and relationship. It is demonstrated by a picture of a father and son on the upper right part of the webpage. In the center, the main heading â€Å"Family and Relationships† covers 49 subheadings that vary from disorders, parenting, stress to sexual orientation. The website is particularly useful and functional to me in a sense that it offers helpful advices with regards to certain family relationships such as parenting and psychological disorders such as mental health, emotional wellness and anger management. It also offers a number of tips on specific issue. If I want to have knowledge on how to help a friend who is suffering from chronic illnesses, the website is indeed of great help. It bestows me a realization that I, as a friend and loved one, need not be afraid because chronic illness is not contagious, instead, I must help my friend deal with it by offering support and care. The website itself is divided into seven parts namely about the APA Help Center, featured topics, articles and information, find a psychologist, request information, for reporters and home. However, I focus on the articles and information because of some reasons I have stated earlier. Moreover, the mentioned part of the website provides enormous information and knowledge. It serves as a virtual psychologist to me. There is no need for me to go and see a psychologist just to be informed on some things of utmost importance such as coping with stress, how to control anger, how to deal with back-to-school blues, and a lot more. Nevertheless, if I desire to talk to a psychologist, the website has already done a template on finding one nearest to my area. I greatly recommend the site to everyone I know because it is indeed useful. If there are issues with regards to particular things that are not on the list, a person can still find some useful information by using the search template on the uppermost right part of the page. Reference American Psychological Association. (2004). Family and Relationships. APA Help Center. Retrieved March 2, 2009 from http://apahelpcenter. org/articles/topic. php? id=2.

Love In Todays Society Essay -- essays research papers

Love In Today's Society A key to understanding Sociology and the Social Sciences in general is to evaluate subjects through time and compare and contrast characteristics that have changed and those that have remained the same. For this assignment I have elected to access three sources dealing with love; in three distinct time periods in the modern era. First we will survey one of the first popular mediums for the expression of love; that of poetry. I have chosen a poem by W.H. Auden to represent the early portion of this century- specifically the 1930s and 1940s. I knew I had to include a song from my idol Jim Morrison. Not only is he the perfect voice of the volatile sex revolution of the 1960s and 1970s; his work captures the profile of a rock star who undoubtedly acquired his domineering attitude from the endless worship of submissive women. Lastly we enter the modern era with a article from my favorite magazine Men's Health on the mistakes a man must avoid in order to please his lover. As we shall see, the increased freedom is very interesting in our first representation to the last. My goal is to show how love has changed. I hope to show what is accepted in our society today, compared with only several decades ago. Application My sources run the gamut of ideas in the subject of love. I think Auden's poem is the best representation of what has been termed â€Å"courtly love.† This seems logical, since this Romantic Era type of love was a pre-cursor to what we know as modern love. The author takes the troubadour role in his crooning style of praising his love's qualities. He idealizes his mate and is satisfied just being in the same room as she. There are not any ulterior motives evident. Auden would be categorized as a â€Å"heavenly lover,† in that his love is more lofty and sacred. There is definite contrast to this idealism though. In his last lines the author, without reservation tells of his sorrow at his loss of her to another. Morrison's Love Her Madly could almost be interpreted as a form of limerance. He has this extreme fondness for his subject: â€Å"Don't ya love her madly?† Anyone who knows the story of Jim Morrison knows that the topic of love and all that comes with it was an integral facet of his being. He is a good example of love in the context of a super-star entertainer. Morrison's songs, and most others found... ...an work their difficulties out before they explode. Conclusion It is definitely true that attitudes on love have changed in the last decade. Social structures and norms have fluctuated and have influenced people's decisions in their own lives as well as their perceptions of others. Many people would rather return to the innocent times of Auden where love seemingly was true and carried no strings. There does seem to be a problem with the increased fragmentation of society in regards to finding love today. Gone are the days when you married your high school sweet-heart and lived happily ever after. Increased mobility and the ease of travel has left love more available and open. People need more help today from outside services like dating hotlines and the help of marriage counselors and physchologists to sort out their troubles. It follows though that society is more complex and therefore better. Women have more rights and more say in society. There is no doubt that females were exploited more in the past than today. While society's attitudes have changed over the years and will continue to change, one thing remains the same: love is a driving force in our lives.

Whole Food Nutrition vs. Vitamin Supplements

Whole Food Nutrition vs. Vitamin Supplements Whole Food Nutrition vs. Synthetic Vitamins which is healthier? Ever since I can remember my mom has been a health nut. We have always taken nutritional supplements and eaten organic food as much as possible. Over the years of taking vitamins supplements, I didn’t notice a change in my health. I did notice when I ate whole foods I felt better than when I ate chemically manufactured fast food. The fast food made my stomach burn. I can also remember not eating meat until I went to school. I think that vitamins are a waste of money. All they do is make my pee turn yellow. Whole food nutrition, which consists of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, seeds and nuts, is the only way to live. Fruits and vegetables contain essential vitamins, minerals and fiber that protect us from chronic diseases. Compared with people who consume small amounts of fruits and vegetables, those who eat more generous amounts as a part of a healthful diet are likely to have reduced risk of chronic disease (â€Å"Fruit†). Americans want to believe in vitamin and mineral pills. We spend an estimated $10 Billion on them in 2008, according to the Nutrition Business Journal (â€Å"One a Day†). Major health organizations for cancer, diabetes, and heart disease all advise against supplements in favor of healthful diet rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains and legumes. Unlike pills, those foods contain fiber plus thousands of health protective substances that seem to work together more powerfully than any single ingredient can work alone (â€Å"One a Day†). Eating whole food is the safest way of getting nutritional support for our bodies and immune system. Since food is not a pill, over dosing is never a problem. Over eating can be a problem, causing weight gain and other health issues. On the other hand over dosing on vitamins can be toxic if taken in high doses for a long time. For instance, beta-carotene can increase the risk of lung cancer in smokers. In addition, a government surveys found that more than 11 percent of adults take at least 400 units of vitamin E a day, a dose that has been linked to heart failure, strokes, and increased risk of death (â€Å"One a Day†). There are foods that provide nutrients that our bodies need instead of having to swallow so many expensive pills. There are foods that provide natural energy for our bodies, foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and beans. People who want to spice up weight loss add cayenne and other spicy peppers and salsas to their diet. Studies show that very spicy food temporarily increase that rate which fat is burned (â€Å"Total†). So instead of taking a fat burning pill, eat fat burning foods. Here is so information on how to spot whole food. Look for foods as close to their natural state as possible. For an example think of the continuum from whole apples to applesauce to cider to apple juice. Be sure you can identify the real food in a product. If you can’t tell what the original source is, then a product has probably strayed too far from its natural state. Experts believe that nutrients likely act differently when they exist in the unique combinations that occur naturally in foods. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds contain a virtual symphony of vitamins, minerals and fiber that likely work together to shore up health and help protect against chronic disease. When you ingest whole food instead of a single nutrient, it’s like walking through an entire forest rather than looking at a single leaf (Palmer). Vitamins have lost their sheen, and there are more doubts than ever about taking them in pill form. Large doses of single vitamins aren’t a good idea, the benefit is doubtful, and some can cause harm (â€Å"Vitamins†). It’s so funny when I walk into a vitamin store and the sales associates run up and offer all the latest vitamin supplements that help this part of the body and that keep you from contracting this disease. I wasn’t looking for vitamins in the first place. I go to vitamin shops for protein powder. Here are some other reasons why I’m not interested in beefing up on vitamin intake. The Physician’s Health Study II, which followed more than 14,000 male physicians for 10 years, found that supplementing with vitamins C and E did not reduce the risk of prostate cancer, cancers in total or major cardiovascular events. And the Women’s Health Study, which evaluated nearly 40,000 female health professionals for 10 years, showed that vitamin E supplements did not prevent cardiovascular disease or cancer (Palmer). Scientist believe that folic acid protects the body from developing cancerous tumors by repairing errors in DNA. Yet too much may actually nurture the growth of tumors once they form. What’s important to note is that this delicate balancing act is mostly a problem with supplemental folic acid, the form of the vitamin added to supplements and fortified foods. Not with foliate, the natural form of the vitamin found in foods. Whole foods first! Manufacturer’s of vitamin supplements make us think that food doesn’t have all the nutrients we need. So they push vitamins for all kinds of things to make us healthy, so they like us to think. After researching, I have found out that B vitamins don’t prevent heart attacks. Vitamin E doesn’t benefit people with Alzheimer’s disease. Vitamins A, C, and E do not offer any cancer protection. But nutrition experts say that getting crucial nutrients from food, when possible, is better than popping pills. The American Dietetic Association, in fact, has updated its guidelines on nutrient supplementation and now stresses that eating a wide variety of nutrient-rich foods is the best way to get needed nutrients and reduce the risk of chronic disease. The update comes at a time when nutrient supplementation continues to be a growing trend in the United States. Americans spent more than $23 billion on dietary supplements in 2007, according to the association's report, and one-third of adults use a multivitamin and mineral supplement regularly. Others use a variety of supplements, which prompts worry among health experts about the potential negative effects of mega doses (Healthday) . So what makes it better to get nutrients from foods rather than pills? â€Å"Foods are special,† said Andrea P. Boyar, an associate professor of dietetic foods and nutrition at Lehman College of the City University of New York. Foods are complex, and the nutrients within them interact in different and more beneficial ways than they would in supplements. Also, many foods contain healthy dietary fiber, which isn't part of a multivitamin supplement, she said. â€Å"Food is still the ideal,† Boyar said, stressing that she means â€Å"whole foods† — those that are not processed or are as minimally processed as possible. Yet Boyar and other nutrition experts concede that supplements can often fill dietary gaps. That's particularly true, she said, for vitamin D and calcium, especially as people age. She also cited iron, which is often needed by premenopausal women, who lose it with their monthly periods. And, for women of childbearing age, folate supplements have been shown to help prevent birth defects. Overuse of supplements, though — and particularly megadoses — worries health experts. Mega doses of vitamin E, for instance, are particularly hazardous, Boyar said. As for the ideal food-supplement balance, Penny M. Kris-Etherton, a nutrition professor at Penn State University, said that â€Å"ideal† depends on the individual but, in general, think healthy whole foods first. â€Å"Food does not just provide one nutrient but a lot of nutrients and collectively helps individuals meet their nutrient needs,† Kris-Etherton (Healthday). Whole Food Nutrition vs. Vitamin Supplements. That’s what medical scientist and research professionals are trying to determine. More and more, medical doctors are seeing individuals who practice whole food nutrition maintain a lifestyle of health, healing and vitality. Medical doctors, medical scientist and research professionals want to know why and how whole food nutrition accomplishes this. They also want to know what effect whole food nutrition has on improving the health of individuals with certain diseases, such as cancer. Medical/Scientific research is presently being conducted at various hospitals throughout the United States to see what, if any, health benefits whole food nutrition, (i. e. fruits, vegetables, berries) has on individuals with certain types of cancer. This is being done through the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute. This medical research is â€Å"gold standard†, that is, peer reviewed and will be published in medical journals. This research is exciting and the results are highly anticipated. As shown, we as a nation, spend a great deal of money trying to improve our health with vitamin supplements, when, what we might just find from this research is what Hippocrates, (300 BC), the Father of modern medicine, said: â€Å"Let medicine be your food, and food be your medicine. Words: 1,598

Female Offenders

Aarron Eilers February 22, 2010 Female Offenders The number of women incarcerated is growing at a rapid pace. This calls for a reevaluation of our correction institutions to deal with women’s involvement in crime. Increasing numbers of arrests for property crime and public order offenses are outpacing that of men. The â€Å"War on Drugs† has a big influence on why our prisons have become overcrowded in the last 25 years. Women are impacted more than ever because they are being convicted equally for drug and other offenses. Female criminal behavior has always been identified as minor compared to Male’s criminal behavior. Over the years women have made up only small part of the offender populations. There is still only a small portion of the inmate population that is female but it is increasing at a high rate. Women are participating in more violent crimes and being convicted of crimes that were historically reserved for men. The Bureau of Justice Statistics which reports a yearend report of number of females incarcerated reported that there were 26,300 females behind bars for violent crimes after the year of 2002. Violent crimes in women prisons accounted for thirty-three percent of the population. The overall female population also increased 2. 9 percent from 2003 to 2004. People have recently started paying much more attention to women who commit violent crimes. Women most times have a plan and a target when committing a crime like murder. The target is usually someone very close to them such as a spouse or their children. The reasons for committing the murder range from jealously to self defense. The female usually has been a target of violence somewhere in her past as well. Research that has been done shows that a female who commits murder tends to be older than a one who commits a petty crime. The Bureau of Justice Statistics indicated that most women who commit such a crime as murder did so while they were alone with the victim. Only eight percent of the time was another female or male present during the offense. The Bureau also reports that forty percent of the time the female was under the influence of some type of drug or alcohol. Most women who have spent time in jails or prisons have a lifelong connection with the justice system. Estimates done in the United States show that fifty-eight percent of women are rearrested, thirty percent return to prison within three years, and thirty-eight percent are reconvicted. In Kruttschnitt and Gartner’s review of the literature they suggest that the demographic plays a major part in a female’s recidivism. Females who have a history of property crime, drug use, and a lengthy criminal history are more likely to recidivate. Deschenes and colleagues study of the cohort recidivism dataset revealed similar findings. They did note that the effect of drug abuse and institutional programs were absent from the report. Some questions have surfaced when looking at the general recidivism literature. Scholars argue that the study of recidivism should have a broader range of study. It needed to add the whole life perspective not just a short period in the female’s life. Now that women are committing crimes at almost the same rate as men the question arises, should men and women receive the same treatment in the criminal justice system. This issue has sparked debate in the last few years. The current law states that the defendant should not receive any special treatment due to characteristics such as race, gender, or age. These are considered extralegal and should not be considered during the sentencing process. Gender was ignored until the early 1980’s, but when it was given attention it focused on sex differences and sanctioning instead of questioning the crimes of men and the criminal justice system’s response to men’s crimes. Most research done on sentencing and gender goes as far back as 1934 when Martin concluded that females were no more likely than males to be sentenced to prison terms. One of the most recent studies by Spohn in 2002 stated that the odds of receiving a prison sentence are two and a half times greater for male offenders than for female offenders. For numerous years, prison officials applied the same type of treatment for men and women. In the last decade with the increasing number of women incarcerated, research shows that women have different physical and emotional needs. For example, women are more attached to their children that they are leaving behind, and some have histories of physical and mental abuse. The creation of two programs, Key Crest and Forever Free were created to help with women specific issues. Recent studies done by National Institute of Justice studies found that participants in these two programs stayed drug and arrest free for over three years. Participants were tested and interviewed once a year for three years. The studies also showed that the programs provided aftercare and treatment in areas that were not addressed in previous years. Even though both varied in their approach, they both recognized the many ways there were to treat the needs of women and how they differ from men. The studies also show that gender specific programs do help inmates reenter into society. There are many factors that inhibit women to commit violent crimes. Most women suffer from substance abuse, spouse abuse and mental issues. The most common risk is being previously being abused earlier in life. A survey conducted in 2002 reported that thirty six percent of all female inmates in United States jails had been abused at some point. Twenty-six percent reported that they were abused by someone of their immediate family. Another possible reason for a rise in women’s crime may be due to an idea created by sociologists called â€Å"liberation hypothesis†. In this hypothesis due to the lack of access to certain areas in society women in the past were committing crimes such as shoplifting, fraud, and prostitution. As women start to gain access to more avenues in society they are able to commit more serious crimes. The murder rate, crimes against property, and street crimes have increased significantly. Women used to be just the drug smugglers but now they are the dealers. Dr. Chishom of the Southern Region Violence & Substance Abuse Prevention Center stated that â€Å"Quite frankly women became more daring†. Now they compete with men for the same crimes that once were dominated by men. Society also may be a reason for the rise in women’s crime rate. Society over the last 30 years has changed dramatically and has become more violent. Women feel that they may have to protect themselves more than ever. Dr. Barbara Scott of Northeastern Illinois University suggests that society has an increased acceptance of violence. Violence is portrayed in the media as a way of dealing with frustration and aggression, not only in women but in men as well. Women are no longer scared of doing things that once were deemed unacceptable. They are carrying weapons, being involved in shootings, and committing child abuse. One trend that is related to women committing crimes is drug dependency. The rising rate of drug dependency has a major impact on women’s crime trends. Women who rely on drugs must have a constant income to acquire these drugs on a routine basis. This is where women tend to be involved in burglaries and robberies to fund their drug habits. Drug use also tends to sink women into the underworld of a criminal subculture. It exposes them to violence and dangerous situations. This is where they meet men that are also connected to drug dependency. Most men that are drug dependant exploit women to feed their own habits. When studying the career of a violent female criminal research shows substantial gender variations. Most women’s careers start and end much earlier than one of a man. Females are more likely not to repeat violent crimes. Females are also more likely to shy away from any future crimes. Long term involvement as a career criminal by a woman is very rare. Case studies and interviews show a weak commitment to a life of crime. When explaining the female offending process most theories were created by men. Most theories have been challenged because they were created for men, and people wonder if those theories can be used to explain female crime. Some criminologists argue that traditional theories are male specific and are not designed to explain female crime. Approaches such as the anomie theory and conflict theory suggest that factors such as poverty and inequality underlie much of the basic crime. Consistent between the two approaches, both male and females show that they come from the poor and disadvantaged. These approaches help explain the gender gap as a consequence of the lesser relevance of success goals compared to men. The social processes such as differential association and labeling theory tend to explain common crime in terms of different opportunities for learning female values and skill sets. These theories would explain the gender gap as a consequence of lower access by females to learning criminal activity. The Control Theory suggests that poor social bonds account for much of the crime. This theory argues that most criminals come from a disproportional and dysfunctional family. Their education level is very low and they have a weak chain of conformity. The gender gap in this theory is explained through female socialization towards their bonding behavior. The utilization of the traditional theories is supported by evidence that shows that females and men overlap in their causes for committing crimes. For example, male and females alike tend to have poor education, be in low income bracket, and be of the minority status. Second, there is evidence that shows that there is close relation that females and males respond to the same societal forces. While traditional theories help understand male and female crime levels, they are less accurate at explaining different patterns of crime between the two. Different from male criminals, females are less likely to commit serious crime or lead crime organizations. When linked with males, females tend to be accomplices who help carry out the plan but never are the leader. Females are more likely to commit crime for more traditional reasons such as accomplishment, betterment, and self preservation. Situational pressures such as relationship problems, loss of a loved one, or need for income is a few reasons females turn to offending. The reentry contextual has been a way of understanding recidivism. The neighborhood a women returns to after being released is a main focus. Most women who are released go back to an impoverished environment which is not suited to keep them clear of crime. Most of these areas do not have the proper treatment centers that are needed to make them successful. The job markets in these neighborhoods are slim and sometimes nonexistent. In turn, moral for a woman who is trying to turn their life around becomes very low. Living conditions are also a key factor. Suitable living arrangements provide social and emotional support. Mallik-Kane and Visher found that fifty six percent of women released ended up living with family and friends. Most had been given some sort of financial and emotional support. Over one quarter of these women had not received any support from their families. The Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that there are roughly 2. 1 million female violent crime offenders in the United States. Three out of every four women commit crimes on other women. Two thirds of all violent women had some sort of relationship with their victim prior to committing the crime. Forty percent of these women were under some influence of drugs while carrying out the crime. Over half of these offenses were committed at or near the victim’s house. In 1997, there were 44 known women inmates on death row. This made up about 1. 3 percent of the total on death row inmates. Society itself is always changing and has changed a lot in the last couple of decades. Crime is constant battle here in the United States and around the world. All we can do is hope to contain it and keep it as minimum as possible. As reports have been released and studies have been conducted we can see that the crime rate involving women has increased. The rate of violent crimes as in women has significantly risen every year since the early 1980’s. At the end of 2001, there were nearly 9 times as many men (5,037,000) in prisons as there were women (581,000). However women are the fastest growing population in American prisons. In 2004, men were ten times more likely to commit violent crimes than women. That statistic is now false as women are committing more crime than ever before. Some argue that the reasoning for this is because of the economy and their social conditions. The majority of the females arrested for violent crimes came from poverty stricken neighborhoods where there was little chance for advancement. Over half of the females did not have a stable job when they offended. Females are included in more organized crime than they were ever before. This comes from being exposed to the elements to commit crime. Inhibiters such as the media who says it’s Ok to take anger and frustration out through violence or men who use women to be an accomplice in a crime. Females seem to dig themselves deeper into the criminal subculture until they end up serving a ail sentence. Unlike decades ago there are programs to help females through the incarceration process. Key Crest and Forever Free were created to help females’ obtain the correct tools and support they need to return to a normal life. Due to research done after release, it has been shown that these programs due help females stay off drugs and become a positive member of society. Works Cited Doerner, J. K. , 2007-11-14 â€Å"An Examination of Sentencing Outcomes in U. S. Federal Courts: Does a Gender Gap Exist?   Paper presented at the annual meeting of the AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CRIMINOLOGY, Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta, Georgia Online . 2010-01-24 from http://www. allacademic. com/meta/p201202_index. html Drug treatment and reentry for incarcerated women, (2005, Dec). Retrieved February 22, 2010, http://www. ncjrs. gov/pdffiles1/nij/212776. pdf Hickey, Eric. (2003). Encyclopedia of murder and violent crime. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Why Women Are Committing More Crimes, (2000, July). Retrieved February 22, 2010, http://findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_4_98/ai_63291519/pg_2/? tag=content;col1 Women coming home: long-term patterns of recidivism. (2010, April). Justice Quarterly, 225-254. Retrieved February 22, 2010 from http://www. informaworld. com/smpp/section? content=a910861149&fulltext=713240928 Women & Girls in the Criminal Justice System. Retrieved February 22, 2010 from National Criminal Justice Reference Service Web site: http://www. cjrs. gov/spotlight/wgcjs/Summary. html Women in the criminal justice system. (2007, May). Retrieved February 22, 2010,http://www. sentencingproject. org/doc/publications/womenincj_total. pdf Women offenders, (1999, Dec). Retrieved Feb 21, 2010, http://bjs. ojp. usdoj. gov/content/pub/press/wo. pr Zaplin, T Ruth. (2007) Female Offenders: Critical Perspectives and Effective Interventions, Second Edition Sudbury, MA. Jones.