26 Unit 1 Your Development and Relationships
when your grades are poor and you rarely do homework, your parents may feel you
are not responsible enough to set your own study schedule. Instead, they may feel
that they must require you to study a certain amount each evening.
Responsibilities at School
You have many responsibilities at school. Your most important
responsibility is to learn. You are expected to attend school on a regular basis
and arrive on time each day. Teachers expect you to complete work and take
part in class projects, 1-18. Teachers also expect you to bring needed supplies
to class. Many rules are necessary for a school to run smoothly. It is also your
responsibility to follow these rules.
Your responsibilities at school help prepare you for future ones. Failing
to fulfi ll some of your school responsibilities may not seem to matter much.
Failing to meet the future responsibilities they are preparing you for, however,
may have greater effects. For instance, doing homework teaches you to
complete tasks on time. You may see no harm in turning in some of your
homework assignments after they are due. In the future, however, turning in
projects late at work could cause you to lose your job.
Responsibilities in the Community
A citizen is a member of a community. For instance, you are a citizen of a city,
state, and country. As a student, you are a member of a school community. You are
also a member of the community in which you live. Citizenship is your status as a
citizen with rights and responsibilities.
Your responsibilities to your
community are much like responsibilities
in other areas of your life. You can
display good citizenship and fulfi ll many
of your community responsibilities
simply by obeying laws. In other cases,
you must make a special effort to carry
out responsibilities to the community.
One of your responsibilities as a
citizen is to respect authority fi gures.
Authority fi gures are people who help
guide the behaviors of others in the
community. They create and enforce
rules designed to help and protect you
and all other citizens in the community.
Your principal, teachers, and any
other faculty are authority fi gures in
your school. You can show respect for
authority by following the rules.
Police offi cers and government
leaders are authority fi gures in larger
communities such as your city or
country. Their duty is to create and
enforce rules that protect the rights
1-18 Helping your classmates shows responsibility.
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