Slavery in American and the Declaration of Independence Essay

Slavery in American and the Declaration of Independence - Essay Example The promise found in the Declaration of Independence that are men are created equal must today be viewed with the caveat that those who conferred legitimacy it was convinced that blacks held no claim to the same rights as whites and so there was no necessity to qualify the promise of universal equality within the document. The draft of the Declaration of Independence that was handed over by Jefferson, Adams, and Benjamin Franklin go the Continental Congress for approval originally contained a quite long passage directly calling to question the very institution of slavery. "He has waged cruel war against human nature itself, violating its most sacred rights of life and liberty in the persons of a distant people who never offended him, captivating and carrying them into slavery in another hemisphere or to incur miserable death in their transportation thither" (Higginbotham 381). This passage is not to be found on the official Declaration, of course, because representatives to the Conti nental Congress from the southern slaveholding states quickly colluded to express objection to its potential harm to their economic interests once the shackles of British rule had been successfully thrown off. In the final version of the Declaration, references to the institution of slavery are still expressed, but only in a manner that specifically accuses the British of inciting the slaves to revolt against their owners. Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and most of the members of the Continental Congress had historically expressed in no uncertain terms before it came to write a declaration for independence based on the radical concept that all men were created equal their belief that a righteous difference existed between the rights of whites and the rights of blacks. John Adams went so far as to write the God Himself has "never intended the American colonists 'for Negroes and therefore never intended us for slaves" (Breen 202). When the phrase "all men are created equal" is found in the Declaration, therefore, it is actually is truer than it may at first glance appear. The intention of the Declaration of Independence was to spur not blacks to fight for independence and equality, but for whites to fight for the suspension of the class rule that had dominated European civilization for centuries. Jefferson and the other founding fathers did not write or approve the Declaration as a means to give hope to slaves that the American Revolution was going to bring them freedom, or that it would endow freed blacks with anything even approaching equality. Jefferson's incitement of the proposition that all men are created equal was at the time sheer propaganda directed specifically toward white colonists whom the revolutionaries needed to buy the idea that business as usual in Europe for millennia was not the future of the coming new country. Jefferson's use of the words "all men are created equal" can actually be seen more a threat to the grounded ideals of the aristocrac y.

National Science Teachers Association Standards Essay

National Science Teachers Association Standards - Essay Example The NSTA standards are mostly for the teachers who teach science. These standards make sure that the teachers of all levels who teach science should have the capability and the ability to teach science to the students and they (teachers) have the ability to understand the subject as well. These standards also work as a measurement against the teacher's performance. The teacher has to give a satisfactory performance of his or her skills and knowledge about the subject in the science teacher preparation program. There are about 10 NSTA standards and they are Content is the first standard of NSTA standards. In content the teachers of science must be able to understand the subject the matter and its practices thoroughly. It is important that they understand the concepts and grasp the ideas and applications of the subject. The teachers must be able to convey the important concepts and the ideas and the applications of the subject to the students. The teachers are able to use mathematical calculations successfully that they can generate reports and process data and solve problems related to their field. It is very important for the teacher of science that they have a very strong content background in the field of science. Content standard basically includes the knowledge and the skills that learned by the teachers in their teacher's science curriculum. The content standard ... The teacher must have the grasp of their related field and have the capability to make the students understand the chemical kinetics, the physical and chemical properties, mole concept, fundamental concept of atoms and molecules, fundamental biochemistry and organic synthesis. The teacher should make the subject they are teaching interesting so that learning can take place. It can be done with taking field trips, teaching in such a way that it connects to real life, or through videos etc. Nature Of Science is the second standard of NSTA standards. The teachers, who teach science make the students learn how to differentiate between what is science and is non-science, make them understand the practice of science and the origins of science. The teachers themselves should also understand the goals and the values that are important in the development of scientific studies as well if they plan to teach the nature of science. The nature of science standard can be used in the school curriculum. The teachers should have the skill to engage students in the classroom to participate in the analysis of the scientific assumption and claims. The professors or teachers should be able to show that they can make the students participate in the study of nature of science. The teachers can provide the students with case studies, through seminars on the nature of science or through assignments or projects etc. Inquiry is the third standard of NSTA standards. The teacher who are teaching science engage the students in classroom discussions and make sure that the student takes an active participation in the learning through scientific inquiry. The teachers have to make sure that they can teach through inquiry, they have to