Category Archives: Societies and Lifestyle

Our Perception of Health

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Focusing on stress and our own perception of health was interesting. Personally I have never really thought about my own stress levels. I tend to put others before myself.

As a student teacher it is vital that we understand that other people view things in a completely different way. How we see and feel things may be completely different to others around us. It is also important that we understand how children can experience stress too. There are certain ways that we can help ourselves and others manage stress.

Stress can have a serious affect on our health. It can lead to problems with our heart rate and digestive tract, it can also affect us mentally. We all have various ways of dealing with stress, for example, if I am really stressed I often feel myself close to tears but with support from my loved ones, I get to say out-load what my problem is and talk through the various ways that I can deal with it. I feel that in this country that lately there has been developments in the way that people view metal health and stress. It is important that we take away the stigma surrounding these issues and encourage the people around us to talk about their feelings and issues.

During today’s independent study I completed “The Holmes-Rahe Stress Calculator”. At the end of the test my score was 277. This was a higher number than what I thought I would get. While in my personal life there has been many negative points within the last year and a half there has also been many positives. Being a caring person, I would rather help someone else with their issues than focus on mine. While I realise this is not always a good thing, I know that I have people around me that I can go to for advice and guidance. Getting a score of 277 meant that I fell into the middle category for stress, according to “The Holmes-Rahe Stress Calculator” this implies that I have a “50% chance of a health breakdown in the next two years. I do tend to stress a lot and I understand it affects my health. I feel that I need to do more to combat my stress levels and I am working on doing this.

There are a lot of factors that can negatively affect our health. It is important that we recognise these in order to keep us both physically and mentally healthy.

5 factors are:

  • Stress
  • Life events/circumstances
  • Economic circumstances
  • Risk behaviours
  • Loneliness

While there are various factors that affect our health, there are also methods that can support a healthy lifestyle:

  • Exercise – It has been proven by many studies that regular exercise can help us feel more positive. It can help people who are struggling with stress, depression, body dysmorphic disorder and various other health complications. It can be a release for some people to help them cope with feelings and as we exercise we release endorphins that make us feel happy.
  • Talking to people around us – If we have an issue or problem it can help to talk to someone. This can be friends, family, medical staff or a helpline such as Samaritans. By speaking about how we feel we can get relief as we have finally got it off our chest and said it out loud. Speaking to people also offers us the chance to talk about what to do next or how to combat the issue.
  • Surrounding ourselves with positive people – By being around people that are positive, it offers a happier outlook on life and the struggles that we may face. Situations that may be lowering your mood can be looked at in a more optimistic way.
  • Seeking professional advice and information – In todays’ world we are surrounded by information and many of us have easy access to the internet. Seeking advice on websites such as ‘NHS 24’ may reassure us about our health issues.
  • Touch – offering someone a simple hug can make people feel a lot better. A simple hand on someone’s shoulder to say ‘everything is going to be okay’ can be all it takes to calm someone down.

If we realise what causes us stress, what we can do to combat it and how we can live a healthier lifestyle then we will be able to help the young people that we will be working with to do the same.

 

Society and Lifestyles

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This weeks lecture we focused on the module assessment. As a class we discussed the best ways to tackle the seen question. At first the seen question seemed to be quite challenging but now that I have seen the way that marks are awarded, I feel the question is much simpler to answer. Now I know which areas to focus on and this will help me succeed in my exam.

 

Society and lifestyles – focus on disability

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In this week’s lecture and seminars we worked on how people that have a disability maybe affected by their surroundings and environments. We discussed what can be done to include everyone in all aspects of society. During the seminar we looked at specific scenarios and discussed with our peers if they showed discriminatory practice, once we had decided on an answer we listed our reasons and came up with ideas on what could be done so that no one is discriminated against.

Even though people may have good intentions, the actions they take may not portray the true meaning of what they were trying to get across.

As a group we have agreed that: good practice for one child is good practice for all children.

As future teachers we should be aware and promote anti-discriminary practice.

This is a photo of the work we done in the seminar.

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Inclusion and Equality

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Todays lecture was based around society and inclusion.

Being an open-minded person I find this subject interesting.  I an interested in learning more about how to promote diversity and inclusion within the classroom setting. I am also interested in learning about the history of exclusion and how we have developed as a society. 

I understood the concepts discussed during the lecture and seminars. I built on my pre-existing knowledge. I had a very basic understanding of the Equality Act 2010 through doing Modern Studies at secondary school. I now understand more about the act and how it came to be.

During our seminar we were asked to create a drawing that showed discrimination we had witnessed. My group discussed how the word ‘gay’ was often used to cause offence in school. People did not understand the meaning of the word fully and the did not think of the consequences of what they were saying. Many of my friends are in same-sex relationships. I have always been open-minded to the issue. As a group we discussed how being in a same-sex relationship is more acceptable now.

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This is the group work we produced in class.

Religion and Society – Part 2

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The focus of this weeks lecture and tutorial was: How religion influences culture, how culture influences religion and ‘unchurched’ spirituality.

For many people region and culture come hand in hand. They are part of that persons identity, they influence a persons day to day life.

Religion can give people hope in times of distress and pain. People who are part of a religion are also part of the community that religion can provide. They can work, talk, help and interact with others who are facing the same difficulties. Religious communities sometimes provide material help for those in that religion who are less fortunate. They can provide; shelter, food and advice.

Although religion can provide many benefits to those who believe, there are issues within religion that many see as negative and unethical. Some religions do not accept medical treatment, medication or contraception as it against their religious views. This can impact peoples’ health.

‘Unchurched’ spirituality was also discussed. This is when a form of spirituality is not within an organised religion and outside the church. Throughout the years religiousness has been in decline and this can be seen as a point to why ‘unchurched’ spirituality has arisen. This decline can be seen in the 2011 Scottish Census (National Records of Scotland, 2013). ‘Unchurched’ spirituality can be with or without the belief in a ‘God’ or ‘Gods’.

I am going to work on understanding theorists views and criticisms of religion and spirituality. I find this interesting to learn about and by understanding theorists this will enable me to provide a higher quality of answers in my exam.

As a student primary teacher I can see the importance of learning religion as it will help me to engage better with the pupils within my classroom. We are living in a society where culture and religion is so diverse therefore it is vital that we can have knowledge of the background the children in our classes are from.

While the concepts discussed within the lecture and tutorial were at times challenging to comprehend I now feel that since I have re-read the lecture slides and done further research on the concepts that I have a good understanding of the concepts. I plan on doing more academic reading to cover the concepts covered as this will help me for my exam.

References:

National Records of Scotland (2013) 2011 Census: Key Results on Population, Ethnicity, Identity, Language, Religion, Health, Housing and Accommodation in Scotland – Release 2A [Online] Available: http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/documents/censusresults/release2a/StatsBulletin2A.pdf [Accessed: 25th of January 2017]

Religion, society and Diversity

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Todays lecture and tutorial was very full on. Taking RMPS in secondary school already means that I have an interest in religious studies.

I learned that religion plays a part in todays society wither you as a person finds it important or not. There are many aspects of religion and multiple theories behind them. Todays tutorial enabled us as groups to discuss some opportunities that religion can provide in a society. That religious institutions can provide a place of comfort and care in a community. That religion can guide people through difficult times. Malinowski believes that religion fulfils people biological and psychological needs.

As this was our first religion input, I feel I have grasped the concepts discussed but will need to do more academic reading to gain a better understanding. Speaking in class also furthered my confidence and made me realise that its okay to answer out in class.

I feel that this topic will be useful and important in my teaching career.