EducationNews.org

By Robert Archer
Columnist EducationNews.org
My wife and I needed a night out the other evening. Dinner, dancing, a movie—whatever; we wanted to do the whole date thing. A quick call to a neighborhood teenager brought good news—yes, she was available Saturday night to serve as the much-needed babysitter for our two young children. We had used her before and knew we could trust her; plus, her rate of four dollars an hour per child seemed pretty reasonable, especially when my sanity was involved.

By Robert Archer
Guest Columnist EducationNews.org
Words are powerful; more specifically, the connotative meanings, or attached emotional responses behind words, are powerful. For example, which one of each pair sounds/feels better to you—“Secretary” or “administrative assistant”? “Garbage man” or “sanitation engineer”? “Fat” or “plump” (when describing a person)? “Emaciated” or “lean” (also when describing a person)? “Estate tax” or “death tax”? “Iraqi War” or “War on Terror”? “Global warming” or “climate change”? “Lied” or “misspoke”? “Hunger” or “very low food security”? “Invasion” or “pre-emptive counter-attack”? “Disabled” or “physically challenged”? “Hyperactive” or “behaviorally impaired”?