Cat's Claw (Archer City, Tex.), Vol. 60, No. 2, Ed. 1 Monday, December 12, 2005 Page: 4 of 11
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Archer County Area Newspaper Collection and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Archer Public Library.
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Page 4
December 12, 2005
Video dames:
Students dispute whether they
have good or bad influence
Michael Almon
Entertainment Editor
There are people that would argue
that video games are a waste of time
and money and also cause kids to be
more violent.
To be honest any time someone
says that there has been a study done,
they only do the study on kids from
eight to 13 years old.
I know that kids my age and people
much older play video games and that
these “studies” are biased at best.
I have been playing violent video
games since I was eight years old, and I
haven’t had an outburst of violence that
many parents and politicians say that
video games cause.
Everyone remembers the events five
years ago at Columbine High School.
People tried to blame a popular com-
puter game at the time called “Doom”
for the kids going on a rampage.
Video games didn’t cause them to
do what they did; they were simply
messed up kids.Video games have ben-
efits such as improving hand-eye coor-
dination and making people think hard
to solve puzzles that the game might
have.
There was a study done on people
from 10 to 25 years old that played video
games. Those that played games at least
three hours a day were shown to have
better concentration and problem solv-
ing skills than those that didn’t.
So in the end people will always
find a way to bring down something
that people enjoy, and sadly it’s video
games’ time to be the scapegoat for ev-
erything.
At the end of the day, people play
games to relieve stress. Now would
you rather someone be violent on a
video game or to you?
There will always be a new sys-
tem to buy and better video games to
go with them. That is just a part of
what happens when technology gets
better over time.
People refuse to see just how
much video games can help someone
deal with things in a day.
Politicians say that kids that play
video games do worse in school and
are more likely to fail at their work.
I myself am proof that playing
video games doesn’t have a negative
effect on my school work.
When report cards came out, I
had all A’s in every class but one, and
that class was a B.
I’m in no way saying that games
don’t have a negative effect but the
effect that they have isn’t nearly as
bad as people make it out to be.
It is mind blowing to hear par-
ents say they didn’t know what the
games had in them. There is a rating
on the back of the box that tells you
in detail what kind of content is in
the game.
If you are willing to look into it
enough, you will find that while yes,
there are negative effects from video
games, there are just as many or pos-
sible even more positive effects.
So in reality video games are just
an easy target for people to blame
things on. For the time being, and until
that time passes, we will just have to
bear it.
Serena Staley
Opinions Editor
Video games. When you say
those two simple words, some people’s
hearts jump a few beats and you get
bombarded with useless information
about what games they have and what
levels they’ve beaten.
Now don’t get me wrong; I’m not
totally against video games. They are
fun to play if you play them for an
hour or two. But what I don’t under-
stand is why someone would sit in
front of a TV or computer for six hours
at a time.
It’s okay to buy a couple of game
systems every now and then. But
when you have to have all the new
systems that are coming out and you
stress over not having the money for
this game, then I believe that you have
a problem.
Why spend so much money on
something that no one will want soon?
Think about all the games that you
can buy for your beloved Game Cube
that you can’t anymore because you
had to have that PSP. Your system
isn’t worthless anymore. The com-
panies make so many games for each
game system that it will take you a
while to get bored with all of the games
available
I believe it also promotes violence.
Now I know that some of you are
screaming at your newspaper saying
that it’s not the video game’s fault, but
the parents’.
If you’re in high school right now,
think about all those CD’s, video
games and movies that your parents
don’t know you have because of vio-
lence or profanity.
Not all of it is our parents’ fault.
Video games like “Mortal Kombat,”
“Conker’s Bad Fur Day,” “Man Hunt”
and “Max Payne” have a lot to do with
it.
Profanity is another issue that needs
to be discussed. Video games with the
Playboy bunnies running around ev-
erywhere may give a guy a few mo-
ments of pleasure, but playing the game
for a few weeks or months may cause
him to want to start acting out what he
does in video games. By doing this he
may cause harm to someone or him-
self.
Girls can fight evil wearing a pair
of blue jeans and T-shirt a whole lot
better than she can in knee high leather
boots and short shorts. There’s noth-
ing wrong with a little midrift or some-
thing small, but if the only reason some-
one is playing a game is because the
main character is half dressed, then you
may need to think about what your life’s
all about.
Like I said, there is nothing wrong
with video games and there is nothing
wrong with playing them. I just be-
lieve that it would be smarter if you
tried to think of something more hu-
mane to do that didn’t use up so much
time and money.
Play chess, learn an instrument,
play football, ride a bike, play with that
puppy that you’ve been neglecting be-
cause of that X-Box 360, but get out of
the house and think about what you’re
putting into your head and what you
are taking out of your wallet and time.
The High School and College “Gap”
In October I attended a meeting with area su-
perintendents and the president of VRJC. We were
told there appears to be a “gap” in the areas of math
and language arts between what students learn in
high school and what they need to know to enter
college. In plain words they are saying that many
high school students are not prepared for the rigor-
ous math and language arts curriculum of college.
Recent newspaper articles in the Times Record
News imply that HS students are not being prepared
well enough for college. Students that pass the EXIT
exam in the 11th grade are not necessarily prepared
for the tough college work expected. At both the
meeting with VRJC and in the newspaper articles,
the statement is made that seniors are not making
the most of their senior year preparing for college.
I believe that ACISD students that are serious
about attending college are well prepared. How-
ever, I am aware that some of our graduates have
had to take remedial classes in college. At the regu-
lar board meeting on Nov. 21, the school board
adopted a Mission and Goals statement which in-
cluded a component to encourage students to be-
Superintendent Speaks
come better prepared for college. This represents a
major investment of the school into the future of
our students.
Junior and senior students and parents have
been informed of this opportunity to receive tuition
assistance to take college courses their junior and
senior year. I hope that many students will take
advantage of this opportunity. The critical elements
of the plan follow.
ACISD College Bound Incentive Program
Purpose: To encourage students to be better
prepared for college or advanced skill training.
Description: Juniors and seniors may take col-
lege courses to supplement their high school aca-
demic work via on-line courses, distance learning,
concurrent enrollment or on VRJC campus.
Who is eligible*: Any junior or senior that:
a. Has not exceeded absentee limit
b. Is taking the recommended curriculum
c. Has not been in ISS or AEP in preceding semes-
ter
d. Has maintained at least an 80 average in grades
9-10.
Must maintain an average of 75 or above on
college coursework.
f. *Must also be admitted by VRJC
g. Students must provide their own transportation
to VRJC.
h. Failure to meet ACISD requirements may be ap-
pealed to the HS principal and counselor.
Restrictions: Limited to basic core subjects
(math, science, history, social studies and English/
language arts).
Beginning date: January 2006.
Cost to student: $50 deposit per course. (Stu-
dent may keep any books required.) Some type of
school work opportunity may be provided if finan-
cial aid is needed.
Cost to school: Tuition and books required for
three semester hours at VRJC.
Maximum award: Three hours maximum per
semester up to a total of 15 hours (spring, fall, sum-
mer I and II).
Value to students/parents: $200+ per three-
hour course or approximately $1,000
Limitation of program: May be discontinued at
board discretion for lack of funds.
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Cat's Claw (Archer City, Tex.), Vol. 60, No. 2, Ed. 1 Monday, December 12, 2005, newspaper, December 12, 2005; Archer City, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth836579/m1/4/?q=%22Business%2C+Economics+and+Finance+-+Journalism%22: accessed July 10, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Archer Public Library.