Thursday, October 31, 2019
Multilingualism in new york Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
Multilingualism in new york - Essay Example If these current trends are not reversed, then the endangered languages are soon going to be extinct within the next century (Welcher). Attempts to prevent the extinction of endangered language have resulted to the formation of the Endangered Language Alliance. Therefore, a student at The City University of New York with basic linguistic fieldwork who wills to take part in documenting the endangered language should join the group and together with the members. The student should also develop an interest in learning those languages that are almost facing extinction. Grenoble & Lindsay (85) asserts that vast knowledge of the endangered language will act as a security incase the language becomes extinct. This will ensure that all facts regarding the language do not disappear all at once. Secondly, the student may visit the speakers of the endangered languages and conduct interviews. While conducting the interviews, the student is expected to make audio tapes and videotapes, as well as make written records of the endangered languages used in informal and informal settings (Davis 76). The translations of the endangered language are also included in the recordings so as to preserve the data in the best appropriate manner to avoid confusion in the future. Analysis of the vocabulary and rules of the endangered language is an initiative that helps significantly preserve the endangered languages. In addition to that, the student should write grammars and dictionaries of these languages that they wish to preserve (Grenoble & Lindsay 45). Working hand in hand with other linguistsââ¬â¢, the student should visit neighboring communities within the city of New York to meet speakers who are willing to preserve their language. While visiting the endangered language speakers, the student should offer practical and technical help with language maintenance, teaching and revival. The assistance comes about while working on the grammars and
Monday, October 28, 2019
Assess the Significance of Henry Viii as a Renaissance Monarch Essay Example for Free
Assess the Significance of Henry Viii as a Renaissance Monarch Essay Henry Viii was crowned in the early 16th century, during the renaissance period. The renaissance period reflects back on the 15th century Florence, Italy where the rise of religious philosophy, nationalism and interest in the arts, humanities and architecture was dominated in pop culture. Henry Viii reflected these aspects as a renaissance monarch. However his significance to the world today was his influence in the birth of the Church of England. ââ¬Å"In 1534 Henry Viii released the atomic bomb he had been brandishing for several years at the popeâ⬠as said by Imperato. This atomic bomb is in reference to the Henretian Act of Supremacy, a milestone of how Henry viii is conjugated as a Renaissance Monarch when looking at religious Philosophy. The Act of Supremacy was the act which officially turned the church in England to the Church of England (as stated by Morrill). Henry was named supreme head of the church, and England became a protestant nation. However religious philosophy wasnââ¬â¢t properly explored until later when the Tyndale Bible was handed to the king. Tyndale had translated to bible from Latin to English, which was a distinct maxim of Martin Luther, the reformer. Henry sentenced Tyndall to be executed for heresy. It was later that Thomas Cranmer; Henryââ¬â¢s self-appointed archbishop of Canterbury said that the bible should be written in English and that all church services should be celebrated in English also. So when the Matthew Bible which was another English written bible arose it was quickly adopted by the Church of England. , this was Henryââ¬â¢s first action in realising religious philosophy. Jones states, ââ¬Å"at first the church didnââ¬â¢t change, by all but name it was still Catholicâ⬠. Jones continues,â⬠Tyndall was sentenced to death for heresy although it wasnââ¬â¢t until Cranmer said that English bibles were acceptable that another English version, the Matthew bible was adoptedâ⬠. Morrill argues that, it was Anne Boleyn who convinced Henry to allow English bibles to be used. She used her influence over him to legalise such bibles. However in contrast Imperato states that it was a mix of the two members seeking conference about Martin Lutherââ¬â¢s 95 thesis and its benefits on England. It is acknowledged that Henry VIII didnââ¬â¢t really want the church to reform as much as members of his court did at the time. Where religious philosophy is a key fundament to a Renaissance monarch so is the rise of a sense of Nationalism. Henry VIII explored the rise of nationalism in the form of the Act of Absolute Restraint of Appeals. This act was used to allow Henryââ¬â¢s marriage to Catherine of Aragon to be annulled, as it was a National ââ¬Ëissueââ¬â¢ not a papal ââ¬Ëissueââ¬â¢ and therefore should be dealt with at a national level. The act absolutely annihilated any other courtââ¬â¢s jurisdiction or influence in an English court case. And so, England seceded from Romeââ¬â¢s power, becoming its own Nation with its own secure jurisdictional court. Hence Henryââ¬â¢s renaissance monarchy rose with a sense of individual Nationalism. The rise of Nationalism was also explored In The Field Of Cloth Of Gold (1520), which was a very expensive meeting between Francis Iââ¬â¢s court of France and Henryââ¬â¢s English court in the area of Calais, Englandââ¬â¢s only occupied area on the mainland of Europe. The field was supposed to be an exciting set of fun competitions to initiate an alliance between England and France. Among the land lay tents decorated with Cloth of Gold, which was a cloth of silk and cloth, but most importantly it was expensive as both monarchs were trying to best the other and very soon the meeting turned into a grandeur match between the two monarchs. The meeting did not result in an alliance being agreed to. However when Henry returned to England, he signed to an alliance with the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V who, two weeks later opened war with France. The alliance between England and Spain was in itself a rise of nationalism as a military alliance was established in 1520 to strengthen the impact of England in the Renaissance world. Anderson states, ââ¬Å"The act in restraint of appeals really plugged the already fuming relationship between Rome and England (1534)â⬠Davis agrees by stating, Englandââ¬â¢s secession from Rome really was the beginning of a new nation, with its own jurisdictional powers only appeared to itself. From this it can be said that Henry used to Act to raise England into becoming a nation with its nationalist maxims and powers. On the matter of the Field of Cloth of Gold Shelly states, Henryââ¬â¢s attempt at an alliance with France was abruptly called to an end when the Field gave no results to what Henry was trying to achieve. Johnson continues Henry VIIIââ¬â¢s attempts may have failed with France, but Charles V was more than ready to open an alliance with England. The rise of nationalism is conjugated here by the fact that Henry extended his kingdomââ¬â¢s power by linking with the Holy Roman Emperor in 1520. Another important fundamental component to a renaissance onarch is an interest in art and architecture which Henry upheld, an example of this is the Field of Cloth of Gold itself. The Field of Cloth of Gold was named after the grand tents made of such fabric which were flamboyant, expensive but most importantly was an expression of interest in modern (renaissance) art. The tents were made with jewels and gold thread to give it a more grandiose appearance. As previously stated, the Field was i ntended to be the birthplace of an alliance between France and England, however such never occurred. The Field was where dignitaries from the English and French courts operated for 3 weeks. The entire occasion was one where each monarch would take his turn at beating the other on things that ranged from jousts to poetry and everything in between; even the clothing that each king wore was a contest, each day both of them would be wearing clothes that out-did the clothes they wore the day before by tenfold. So instead of being a fun occasion where a real friendship between Francis I and Henry VIII it was simply a back and forth competition to show how rich and powerful each king was. The humanities and arts were explored in the Field by both monarch; plays were showed daily, poetry was recited publically, chess was played and songs were written. Henry even payed an esteemed composer and orchestra to play during the kingââ¬â¢s dinner feast, inside Henryââ¬â¢s temporary palace, made of wooden beams with painted canvas that gave the full illusion of a brick interior and exterior. Jones states, The Field (oCoG) was simply a besting competition of who was the better renaissance monarch, judged on what they presented in the artistic region of renaissance maxims. From this it can be concluded that the Field of Cloth of Gold was just an expression of each kingââ¬â¢s grandeur and how integrated their courts were with the renaissance and how wealthy they were. In conclusion, Henry VIII can be seen as a significant renaissance monarch by the expression of the rise of religious philosophical reforms shown in the Church of Englandââ¬â¢s creation. Alongside the rise of nationalism and the development of the \ of the Arts and Humanitarian concepts. All of which were fundamental components of the renaissance. However the main significance of Henry VIII today was his influence in the rise of the Anglican Church.
Saturday, October 26, 2019
Stakeholder their importance and engagement
Stakeholder their importance and engagement Introduction Stakeholder is someone who has interest in any organization, project, or business institute. Stakeholder analysis is critical. Stakeholder analysis is a tool or a set of tools. This uses for generating knowledge about individuals and organizations. The main aim is to understand their behaviour, intentions, interactions and interests. This also helps to assessing the influence and resources they bring to bear on decision making or implementation processes. In general these stakeholder included staff, shareholder, owner, government, media, community, customer, supplier, creditor, trade union. Stakeholder analysisà used to identify constrain and conflict inà project management andà business administration. This information is used to assess how the interests of those stakeholders should be addressed in aà projectà plan,à policy, program, or other action. Stakeholder analysis is a key part ofà stakeholder management. Define the terms Terms of stakeholder refers to individual or groups who can effect or effected by a corporation activity. (Sevendsen, 1998) People who have direct or indirect effect on any project can called stakeholders. Stakeholder analysis is analyzing the attitude of stakeholder towards something (business, project, government). Stakeholder could be a person or group and they can react positively or negatively towards the project or business, government. According to their impact there are three types of stakeholders. Primary stakeholder: the person or group, who ultimately affected by the project .It could be negatively or positively. Customers, owners, employees, associates, partners, contractors, suppliers, people that are related or local people are normally the primary stakeholders. Secondary stakeholder: mainly the intermediaries, the person or group indirectly affected by organisation action. Secondary stakeholder could be the community. Key stakeholders: this group can be part of first two groups as well. They have significant influence upon or impact within any organisation. This happened when secondary stake holder got influence. For example community some time could create pressure if they are on legal ground. There is some suggestion by different writer about the method of stakeholder mapping According to Mitchell, et al. (1997) stakeholder is classed based on power to influence. However, according to Johnson and Schools (1993) Stakeholder analysis or stakeholder mapping has evolved in recent years as at method for analysing the likely interests and actions of stakeholders. Stakeholder analysis means assess the stakeholder according to their interest and influence. Stakeholders are categorised on a graph rating their level of interest against the power they possess to exercise those interests. The stakeholders in this way are broadly divided into four groups; low interest/low power (A), high interest/low power (B), low interest/high power (C) and high interest/high power (D). Stake holder mapping is strategic business tool, this identify deferent level of power and influence acquire by stake holder. It also examined the power stake holder can exert, the relative likelihood of them using the power, and their level of interest regarding the companys activities. The objective of this analysis is to find out which potential group or individual stakeholder is more likely to affect the company. Then the company need to decide how to attend those group or individual stakeholders. Stakeholders are divided in four groups.Presentation1.jpg Figure According to figure 1 section has low level of interest and low level of power. To explain this diagram the writer use Manchester united football club. So for Manchester United (MU) in section A would be press, government, UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) they all got little effort on MU. They also got low interest in MU fuctions.MU can informed them after any decisions made. Section D is included fans, player, staff, FA (Football Association), supplier. This group need to inform. They got low power on decisions make, but got high interest on MU events. Section C is lenders, sponsor they need to satisfy on any change or decisions made. As they got high power MU need to care full of any warning sing for them. Finally section D is the key players the owner (Glazer), who got the high interest power and high interest. They can make any strategic choice. Benefits Stakeholder analysis has been used as management and strategic tool identifying optional strategy and managing other stakeholder , identifying current and future opportunity and threat and how best to handle them (Blair and Fottler, 1996) the main aim is to how much and what kind of attention need pay to stakeholders. For any project knowing the stakeholder interest is vital. This could lead to project success and also the failure of any project. It is very help full to know stakeholder interest. This allows the project manager to become proactive. For example if there is project of building of gym .Then the project planer can implement the customer interstate(modern gym instruments) the same time they can think of government interest ,fire exist .Both stakeholder preference can prevent future implication. These possible could be losing customer and accuse by health and safety. This analysis helps to bypass the future complication. Moreover it saves cost of future change and penalty. Project often get failure, because of protest from stakeholder. Stakeholder can be motivated by the managers. There is a mechanism to influence these stake holders. The information about stakeholder can be used by the managers to make mechanism to influence stakeholders. Stakeholder analysis is a great tool to bypass any possible risks. This risk can come from any stakeholders. Recently BT took some steps to increase its share price. It establishes a telephone exchange in Hong Kong and did some more investment in telecom industry. This all increase their share price. But at the same time BT make huge dept. This was not expected by the shareholders. So BT needs to sell some of its assets to reduce the debt. This happened, because of not considering shareholder expectation. BT could easily bypass this risk by pre- assessment of the full stakeholder analysis. Key stakeholder need to be informed about the project during the implementation stage .GMPTE building the metro link train service in team side area. It is long time project and creates a lot of traffic jam in this area. GMPTE is giving update in press or internet to keeping all stakeholders inform about the project condition. This giving them the support against the complication faces by the traveller and complains. This lets them do the project without any interruptions. By getting the most powerful stakeholder opinion, project planer can shape their project at early stage. Moreover, there is possibility to have support from them. All combine input can improve the total quality of the project. By gaining support from the powerful stakeholder will give access to more resources for project. This can make project successful. Advance and continues communication with the stakeholders will insure the stakeholders the activity of the project and their benefits. This will lead them to give every support when necessary. By capturing people reaction can let the project planer to build the project and put action plan to win people support. Stakeholder analysis helps to set the parameter of CSR (corporate social responsibility). Early stakeholder analysis can give sufficient information about the project. Moreover it can help the managers to take decision in future as well, like CSR .Stakeholder analysis gives detail information about all kind of stakeholders, which they can use in future. CSR is one of the elements of core competence and it is easily gain by the stakeholder analysis. It happened mostly in retail sector .They use all stake holder data for marketing communication and assesses them as potential buyer. Stakeholder mapping classify stakeholders and recognize groups possibly can influence and be affected by corporation decisions. Stakeholder mapping helps to develop the interaction between stakeholder and organisation. This is base on the stakeholder interest. For example when any new Tesco store open they send newsletter to the local community to keep them inform. Because they got high interest, but contribute little power. Disadvantage A big limitation on this analysis is the environment change. According to Vrvasovszky Brugha( 2000) the environment, the context of analysis, stakeholder interest, position, alliance and influence change over time. Political context can change over time. There are more likely to sudden transformation in developing countries .Therefore stakeholder analysis is time prospective. If the analysis takes too long to finish, the situation can change. This change is mainly happened in political position and legislation. As they both can change suddenly. The analysis result could go wrong on the basis of meaning of validity. This is because the respondent stakeholder answers are base on his or her position. If the changes by the project are on their favour, they will give a positive opinion about the project. Alternatively if the project can harm their desire, they could do the opposite. In Bangladesh a government own organization the National Telecommunication Board was converting to private sector. This project was faced huge protest by its employee. It was because the change will harm their current position (Und, 2009). Analyst could be influenced by their own value, prospective and understanding the policy issue, which is essential to do the analysis. Most of the time the analysts are from stakeholder, or acting on behalf of stakeholders .They could think about their interest and use the analysis to picture their aim. Sometimes it is impossible to shape the project, as to satisfy different stakeholder. This happened when different staked holder has different interest and each oppose other. For example Tesco chain store is expanding all over UK. Recently they open a new store in Middleton, Manchester. When they built the store they need to build a leisure centre, to satisfy the council. This extra constriction cost was not accepted by shareholders. According to Tesco official (2011) to build a new store it takes about à £10 million for each supper store. This types of cost may be oppose by the shareholder and bring a conflict between stakeholders. This also encourages the project planer over budgeting and could lead to project failure. Analysing for big project, need to consider different level and different kind of stakeholders. It is very complicated to that, as it is hard to consider which stakeholders might have power and who do not. Conclusion On the base of discussion from different scholar, the writer comes up the summary of the report. Stakeholder analysis is vital for any project. Because it bring the fundamental thing of project constrain, success factor and risk. Moreover, it shows the stakeholder engagement with the project and brings their interest. In this report it also seen that it has some limitation. But those limitation can be overcome easily and have perfect analysis of stakeholder. The analysis can build right project plan and that is the major thing in project success.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
crime and punishment Essay -- essays research papers
Critical thought #1 Compare and contrast the philosophies of punishment. In the philosophies of punishment, we have retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, isolation, incapacitation, reintegration, restitution, and restoration. Iââ¬â¢ll define these philosophies of punishment. Retribution: It refers to revenge or retaliation for harm or wrong done to another individual. This was an unearthed written code dated back more than 3500 years that clearly spell out a retribution approach by the Archaeologists. ââ¬Å"If a man destroy destroys the eye of another man, they shall destroy his eye. If he breaks a manââ¬â¢s bone, they shall break his bone. If a man knocks out a tooth of a man of his own rank, they shall knock out his tooth. Deterrence: This philosophy is made to discourage criminals from committing future crimes. Deterrence include prisons, or execution. If you send a criminal to prison, or executing them, this will discourage the other criminals from committing the same crime. Rehabilitation: In rehabilitation, we provide psychological or educational assistance or job training to offenders to make them less likely to engage in future criminality. This philosophy says that these offenders are human being, no matter what, they are changeable. This means that we could change them from being criminal. Isolation: This philosophy is a very old correctional philosophy that really had served two purposes throughout recorded history. This first is the simple incarceration of people in...
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Succubus Blues CHAPTER 22
ââ¬Å"You faked itâ⬠¦ faked being affected by me,â⬠I realized, shock making my words come out thick and faltering. Still chuckling, he took a step toward me, and I cringed, frantically trying to find a way to run, to get out of my own apartment. What had moments ago seemed safe and inviting now became close and stifling. My apartment was too small, the door too far away. I couldn't breathe. The amusement on Roman's face shifted to astonishment. ââ¬Å"What's the matter? What are you afraid of?â⬠ââ¬Å"What do you think I'm afraid of?â⬠He blinked. ââ¬Å"Me?â⬠ââ¬Å"Yes, you. You kill immortals.â⬠ââ¬Å"Well, yeah,â⬠he admitted, ââ¬Å"but I'd never hurt you. Never. You know that, don't you?â⬠I didn't answer. ââ¬Å"Don't you?â⬠I backed up farther, not that I had anywhere to go. I was faced in such a way as to only keep moving toward my bedroom, not toward the front door. That wasn't likely to do any good. Roman still seemed floored at my reaction. ââ¬Å"Come on, I can't believe this. I would never do anything to you. I'm half in love with you. Hell, do you know what a wrench you've already thrown into this operation?â⬠ââ¬Å"Me? What have I done?â⬠ââ¬Å"What have you done? You've wrapped my heart around your little finger, that's what you've done. That dayâ⬠¦ when you solicited me at the bookstore? I couldn't believe my luck. I'd been watching you all week, you know, trying to learn your habits. Christ, I'll never forget the first day I saw you. How feisty you where. How beautiful. I would have gone to the ends of the earth for you right then and there. And laterâ⬠¦ when you wouldn't go out with me after the signing? I couldn't believe it. You were originally going to be my first target, you know. But I couldn't do it. Not after I'd talked to you. Not after I'd realized what you are.â⬠I swallowed, curious in spite of myself. ââ¬Å"What ââ¬â what am I?â⬠He took a step toward me, a rueful half-smile on his handsome face. ââ¬Å"A succubus who doesn't want to be a succubus. A succubus who wants to be human.â⬠ââ¬Å"No, that's not trueâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ââ¬Å"Of course it is. You're like me. You don't play by the rules. You're tired of the system. You don't let them push you into the role they've dictated for you. God, I couldn't believe it, watching you. The more you seemed interested in me, the more you tried to back off. You think that's normal for a succubus? It was the most amazing thing I'd ever seen ââ¬â not to mention the most frustrating. That's why I finally decided to call you out today. I couldn't decide if you'd really cut me off for my own good or were just interested in someone else now ââ¬â like Mortensen.â⬠ââ¬Å"Wait ââ¬â that's why you arranged that stupid little game today? For your own fucking ego gratification?â⬠Roman shrugged haplessly, still looking self-satisfied. ââ¬Å"It sounds so shallow when you put it like that. I mean, okay, it was pretty stupid. And maybe a little childish. But I had to know where your affection stood. You can't imagine how touching it was to see you so worried about me ââ¬â not to mention the fact that you checked on me first. That was the real kicker: I got priority over the others.â⬠I almost protested that I'd actually worried about Seth first, having only called Roman beforehand because I thought Seth was already accounted for. Fortunately, I had enough sense to keep my mouth shut on that issue. Better to let Roman think he'd proven his point. ââ¬Å"You have issues,â⬠I said instead, perhaps unwisely. ââ¬Å"Making me jump through hoops like that. Me and the other immortals.â⬠ââ¬Å"Perhaps. And I am sorry for any discomfort I caused you, but as for the others?â⬠He shook his head. ââ¬Å"It's good for them. They need it, Georgina. I mean, doesn't it piss you off? What they've done to you? You're obviously not happy with your lot, but do you think the folks in charge are going to let you change things? No. No more than they're going to give me or my kind a break. The system is flawed. They're locked in their fucking ââ¬Ëthis is good' and ââ¬Ëthis is evil' mentality. No gray area. No mutability. That's why I go around and do what I do. They need the wake-up call. They need to know they aren't the be all and end all of sin and salvation. Some of us are still fighting.â⬠ââ¬Å"Go aroundâ⬠¦ How often do you do this? This killing thing?â⬠ââ¬Å"Oh, not that often. Every twenty to fifty years or so. Sometimes a century. Doing it sort of cleanses me for a while, and then, over the years, I'll start getting pissed off at the whole system again and stake out a new place, a new set of immortals.â⬠ââ¬Å"Is it always the same pattern?â⬠I remembered Jerome's symbols. ââ¬Å"The warning phaseâ⬠¦ then the main attack phase?â⬠Roman brightened. ââ¬Å"Well, well, haven't you done your homework. Yes, it usually works that way. Take out a few lesser immortals first. They're easy targets, even if I always feel a little guilty about it. Really, they're as much victims of the system as you and I are. Still, messing with them freaks out the higher immortals, and then the stage is set to move on to the main attraction.â⬠ââ¬Å"Jerome,â⬠I stated grimly. ââ¬Å"Who?â⬠ââ¬Å"Jeromeâ⬠¦ the local archdemon.â⬠I hesitated. ââ¬Å"Your father.â⬠ââ¬Å"Oh. Him.â⬠ââ¬Å"What's that supposed to mean? You don't sound like he's a big deal.â⬠ââ¬Å"In the grand scheme of things, he's not.â⬠ââ¬Å"Yeahâ⬠¦ but he's your fatherâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ââ¬Å"So? Our relationship ââ¬â or lack thereof ââ¬â doesn't really change anything.â⬠Jerome had said almost the exact same thing about Roman. Baffled, I sat down on the arm of a nearby chair since it appeared my imminent destruction wasn't quite so imminent after all. ââ¬Å"But isn't heâ⬠¦ isn't he the ââ¬Ëreal target' ââ¬â the higher immortal you're here to kill?â⬠Roman shook his head, face turning serious. ââ¬Å"No. That's not how the pattern works. After I move on from the lesser immortals, I focus in on the local bigwig. The real powerhouse in the area. That tends to unsettle people more. Better psychological effect, you know? If I can take out the big man on campus, then they worry no one is safe.â⬠ââ¬Å"So, that would be Jerome.â⬠ââ¬Å"No, it's not,â⬠he countered patiently. â⬠Archdemonor no, my illustrious father is not the ultimate power source around here. Don't get me wrong; I'm getting a nice bit of satisfaction from pissing in his territory, so to speak, but there's someone else who dwarfs him. You probably don't know him. It's not like you'd have reason to hang out with him or anything.â⬠Stronger than Jerome? That only left ââ¬â ââ¬Å"Carter. You're going after Carter.â⬠ââ¬Å"Is that his name? The local angel?â⬠ââ¬Å"He's stronger than Jerome?â⬠ââ¬Å"Considerably.â⬠Roman gave me a curious look. ââ¬Å"Do you know him?â⬠ââ¬Å"Iâ⬠¦ know of him,â⬠I lied. ââ¬Å"Like you said, I don't hang out with him or anything.â⬠In reality, my mind raced. Carter was the target? Mild, sardonic Carter? I could hardly believe he was more powerful than Jerome, but then, I knew almost nothing about him. I didn't even know what he did, what his job or mission in Seattle was. Yet, one thing that was obvious to me ââ¬â and only me, apparently ââ¬â was that if the angel really did outclass Jerome, then Roman couldn't do anything to him, not if the rule about nephilim power not exceeding parental power held true. Roman shouldn't technically be able to harm either angel or demon. I chose not to mention this to him, however ââ¬â or the fact that I knew Carter better than Roman believed. The more delusional he was, the more of a chance we had to do something about him. ââ¬Å"Good. I didn't really figure a succubus would be too friendly with an angel, but with you, it's hard to tell. You may have a sharp tongue, but you still manage to gather a lot of admirers.â⬠Relaxing slightly, Roman leaned against a wall, crossing his arms over his chest. ââ¬Å"God knows I've already gone out of my way to avoid your friends.â⬠Anger helped me overcome my fear. ââ¬Å"Oh really? What about Hugh?â⬠ââ¬Å"Which one's he?â⬠ââ¬Å"The imp.â⬠ââ¬Å"Ah, yes. Well, I had to keep setting an example, didn't I? So, yeah, I messed with him a little. He'd been impertinent to you. But I didn't kill him.â⬠He looked at me in what I supposed was meant to be an encouraging type of way. ââ¬Å"That was for your benefit.â⬠I stayed silent. I recalled how Hugh had looked in the hospital. Impertinent? ââ¬Å"And what about the others?â⬠he pushed. ââ¬Å"That annoying angel? The vampire that threatened you? I wanted to break his neck on the spot. I got rid of them for you. I didn't have to do that.â⬠I felt ill. I wanted no deaths on my hands. ââ¬Å"Most considerate of you.â⬠ââ¬Å"Come on, give me a break here. I had to do something, and really, once I'd met your vampire friend at the dance lesson, I couldn't bring myself to do anything to him at all. You put me in a really tight spot. I was running out of victims.â⬠ââ¬Å"Sorry for the inconvenience,â⬠I snapped, ire rising at his pathetic show of compassion. ââ¬Å"Is that why you took it easy on me that night?â⬠He frowned. ââ¬Å"What do you mean?â⬠ââ¬Å"You know what I mean!â⬠Thinking back to my attack, it all made perfect sense. It had occurred after I'd been to Krystal Starz, the day after I'd run out on Roman at the concert. A perfect excuse for him to be angry and seek retaliation. ââ¬Å"Remember? The day after Doug's concert? After I'd been with Seth?â⬠Understanding washed over Roman's features. ââ¬Å"Oh. That.â⬠ââ¬Å"That's all you have to say?â⬠ââ¬Å"It was a bit juvenile, I admit, but you can hardly blame me. It wasn't easy watching you cozy up to Mortensen after freaking out on me like that. I'd watched you go home with him the night before. I had to do something.â⬠I sprang up from my seat, old apprehension returning. ââ¬Å"You had to do something? Like beat the crap out of me in an alley?â⬠Roman raised an eyebrow. ââ¬Å"What are you talking about? I told you I would never hurt you.â⬠ââ¬Å"Then what are you talking about?â⬠ââ¬Å"I'm talking about that ice cream place. I'd followed you two around earlier in the day, and when I saw how cute you were getting over dessert, I got jealous and blew the door open. Juvenile, as I said.â⬠ââ¬Å"I remember thatâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ I trailed off stupidly, recalling how the door had blown open at the parlor, letting the outside wind wreak havoc in the small store. Wind like that was certainly uncharacteristic here, yet I had never suspected supernatural influence. He was right; it had been juvenile. ââ¬Å"So what's the alley thing you're talking about?â⬠he prompted. I snapped out of my memory. ââ¬Å"Laterâ⬠¦ that night. I'd been running errands, and youâ⬠¦ or someoneâ⬠¦ attacked me on the way home.â⬠Roman's face turned cold, his eyes sharpening to aqua steel. ââ¬Å"Tell me. Tell me everything. Exactly what happened.â⬠I did, explaining my lead to the Harrington book, subsequent trip to Krystal Starz, and walk home in the dark. I edited the part about my rescuer, however. I didn't want Roman to know I had more than a casual acquaintance with Carter, lest the nephilim think I might be a deterrent to his plans. The more he thought I had no interest in the angel, the more likely I would be able to get out some kind of warning. Closing his eyes, Roman leaned his head against the wall when I finished, sighing. Suddenly, he looked less like a dangerous killer and more like a tired version of the man I'd come to know and nearly love. ââ¬Å"I knew it. I knew noninterference was too much to ask.â⬠ââ¬Å"Whatâ⬠¦ what do you mean?â⬠A strange feeling crawled down my spine. ââ¬Å"Nothing. Forget it. Look, I'm sorry about that. I should have taken precautions beforehand to protect you. I knew tooâ⬠¦ the next day? When I came by and you cut things off between us? I could tell you had been hurt, even through your shape-shifting. I could tell it was supernaturally inflicted too, but I never suspectedâ⬠¦ I thought it was some other immortal ââ¬â one of your own circle ââ¬â you'd tangled with. You had sort of a residual effect on youâ⬠¦ the faint traces of someone else's powerâ⬠¦ like a demon'sâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ââ¬Å"But that's not ââ¬â oh. You mean Jerome.â⬠ââ¬Å"Daddy dearest again? Don't tell meâ⬠¦ don't tell me he did something to you too.â⬠Roman's brief lapse into mildness faded, replaced by something more sinister. ââ¬Å"No, no,â⬠I said hastily, recalling Jerome's psychic slap, pinning me to the couch. ââ¬Å"It wasn't like that. It was more of a show of power that I caught the edge of. He wasn't the one who hurt me. He'd never hurt me.â⬠ââ¬Å"Good. I'm still not happy about what happened in the alley, mind you, but I'll have a little chat with the guilty party and make sure it never happens again. When I saw you that day, I had half a mind to take out all the immortals in the area. The thought of someone hurting youâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ Closer and closer he came to me. Hesitantly, he squeezed my arm. I didn't know whether to recoil or reach out to him. I didn't know how to reconcile my old attraction with this new terror. ââ¬Å"You have no idea how much I care about you, Georgina.â⬠ââ¬Å"Then howâ⬠¦ in the alley ââ¬â ââ¬Å" Before I could follow that thought to completion, another suddenly poked its head up at Roman's words. When I saw you that day. He had visited me the day after the attack, coming over while Carter investigated a nephilim signature. But that was impossible. I couldn't remember where that particular signature had occurred, but it had not been close by. Roman could not have flashed Carter and then made it over to my apartment so quickly. Iknew noninterference was too much to ask for. I'll have a little chat with the guilty party. I understood then why Roman felt he could take on Carter, why having less power than the angel would pose no concern. The realization sank into me like lead, heavy and cold. I'm not sure what look crossed my face, but Roman's suddenly softened with compassion. ââ¬Å"What's the matter?â⬠ââ¬Å"How many?â⬠I whispered to him. ââ¬Å"How many what?â⬠ââ¬Å"How many nephilim are in the city?ââ¬
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
The Lifestyle of Attention Deficit Dissorder essays
The Lifestyle of Attention Deficit Dissorder essays The Lifestyle of Attention-Deficit Disorder Have you ever been around someone with ADD You may have been and never known it. People with this disorder are mostly like you and I. There are several things involved in having ADD. To have a good understanding of this disorder, you need to know the cause of it, the observational characteristics, and the impact it has on the child. Scientists have researched this disorder for years. They still dont know the cause of attention- deficit disorder. It has been regarded to be a biological disorder caused by some abnormalities in the brain. Studies have shown that areas of the brain that controls the attention span and limit impulsive behavior are less active in people with ADD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). Other studies have a theory that this disorder could be hereditary. Most often, ADD is found in more males Than females. One study showed that about one- third of fathers with ADD in childhood have children with the disorder as well (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).There are several medications that are out there that can help the brain work normally. ADD children and adults show various observational characteristics that are evident to people with the disorder. The characteristics include various levels of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness. Inattention, for people with ADD, causes them to have difficulty with keeping their mind on one thing. They tend to have trouble with certain tasks after a few minutes, make careless mistakes, and have trouble listening. On the opposite side of the spectrum, people with ADD sometimes can focus on and complete several things at one time. Hyperactivity is involved more with ADHD. This is ADD with the factor of hyperactivity more present. It involves almost constant motion. Children may not be ...
Monday, October 21, 2019
20 Argumentative Essay Topics Ideas to Write about in an Essay about Medicalization as a Social Concept
20 Argumentative Essay Topics Ideas to Write about in an Essay about Medicalization as a Social Concept If you have to write an argumentative essay on medicalization as a social concept, you need a topic. There are twenty potential topics listed below which might help. Remember though that these are only a smattering of potential topics available to you and should be viewed in relation to your instructions. Social Construction of Illnesses in Medical Sociology Social Constructionist Tradition of Medicalization Understanding Social Constructionism as a Counterpoint to Deterministic Illness Approaches The Study of Medical Sociology as Revealing Medicalization Trends Illnesses and Their Cultural Meanings Throughout History Social Construction of Illnesses Based on How Individuals Learn about Their Illnesses The Social Construct of Illnesses at the Experiential Level Social Construction of Illnesses Based on How Individuals Learn to Live With Their Illnesses Medical Knowledge about Illnesses Constructed by Pharmaceutical Companies The Medicalization of Natural Inflammation Processes in the Body Medical Knowledge about Illnesses Constructed by Policy Makers Negative Ramifications of Treating Aging Process as a Medical Issue Negative Ramifications of Treating Emotions as a Medical Issue Negative Historical Impact of Treating Homosexuality as Mental Illness Historical Treatment of Sexuality as Health Illness or Disease The Trends in Medicalization as a Social Concept Historical Influencers and Parties in Medicalization as a Social Concept The Link Elements between Pharmaceutical Profits and Medicalization as a Social Concept The Linking Elements Between Pharmaceutical Research for Medicalized Illnesses Compared and Other Illnesses The Current Growth Levels of Medicalization as a Social Concept Sample Argumentative Essay ââ¬Å"The Medicalization of Natural Inflammation Processes in the Bodyâ⬠Comprehensive and widespread lack of education has led to the medicalization of fitness. There are many facets to this which have suddenly become a medical issue in spite of the fact that they are natural biological responses. If people truly understood the nature of their bodies and how each system within the body worked, something which could be taught in remedial educational courses, there would be no need to treat these processes medical ones.à The ideas of weight gain, weight loss, muscle gain, and the natural responses of the body. Various aspects of these states have been viewed as inflammation and have brought a great deal of medicalization, especially on anti-inflammatories. When the body and the muscles within the body are worked as they often are in regular exercise or in response to agents within the body which are not meant to be there, the natural response is inflammation. This is not a bad thing and yet many people view even the slightest bit of inflammation of something terrible. When muscles are worked in the form of exercise in order to increase the muscle mass, they the muscle fibers are literally teared which leads to inflammation and then repairs. The muscle fibers are becoming larger. But for many people the idea of any inflammation becomes a cause of great fear. The medicalization of simple bodily processes has led to a handful of anti-inflammatory agents available from over the counter. No longer do people need a prescription or even to pay a visit to a doctor. When the slightest bit of inflammation becomes evident they would medicate it to immediately rectify the situation. That being said, inflammation is a natural response, a natural process which does take a few days to be completed. To medicalization of the muscle or any other part affected body part which can lead to improper repairs. With medicalization, people are socially brought to believe that they should get rid of inflammation because it is bad. Today people take diet pills that help reduce inflammation. These pill simply contains foods that reduce inflammation. But rather than removing these foods from their diet people turn to pills. Rather than allowing the body to go through its natural repair face and to work the magic it has to bring about improved health, people will stop the process in its tracks by taking medicines that they dont need. Because it is now the established social concept many people are socially brought up to believe that inflammation is bad in any form. Unfortunately the exact opposite is true. As mentioned, inflammation is a natural response of the immune system and it is something which has to be allowed to run through its course. When people use the medicalization of such elements to their advantage the only ones benefiting are the companies producing the anti-inflammatories. On rare occasions are anti-inflammatory medications necessary due to the fact that the body systems are no longer responding properly to a situation and the current level of inflammation could lead to permanent damage. But this is not something which would ever happen to individuals who are taking the anti-inflammator y medications. Simple headaches, simple growing pains, are simple muscular reactions to pools or tears or heavy exercises are just that. They are nothing more and they are nothing detrimental to the health of peoples bodies and yet the medicalization such facets has led to regular use of anti-inflammatories by citizens around the United States.à It is imperative that changes be made to the current understanding of the bodily systems and body responses such as inflammation. References: Inderbitzin, Michelle Lee, Kristin Ann Bates, and Randy R Gainey.à Deviance And Social Control. Los Angeles: SAGE, 2013. Print. Miah, Andy, and Emma Rich.à The Medicalization Of Cyberspace. London: Routledge, 2008. Print. Mukherjea, Ananya.à Understanding Emerging Epidemics. Bingley: Emerald, 2010. Print. Rubington, Earl, and Martin S Weinberg.à The Study Of Social Problems. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989. Print. Szasz, Thomas.à The Medicalization Of Everyday Life. Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, 2007. Print. Yip, Lorraine Hor Kar.à Transgender Jurisprudence, Identity And The Law: An Equality And Categorical Analysis. 2009. Print. Zardini, Mirko, Giovanna Borasi, and Margaret Campbell.à Imperfect Health. Montreà al: Canadian Centre for Architecture, 2012. Print.
Sunday, October 20, 2019
Convert Frequency to Wavelength Worked Example Problem
Convert Frequency to Wavelength Worked Example Problem This example problem demonstrates how to find the wavelength of light from the frequency. Frequency vs Wavelength The wavelength of light (or other waves) is the distance between subsequent crests, valleys, or other fixed points. The frequency is the number of waves that pass a given point in one second. Frequency and wavelength are related terms used to describe electromagnetic radiation or light. One simple equation is used to convert between them: frequency x wavelength speed of light à » v c, when à » is wavelength, v is frequency, and c is the speed of light so wavelength speed of light / frequency frequency speed of light / wavelength The higher the frequency, the shorter the wavelength. The usual unit for frequency is Hertz or Hz, which is 1 oscillation per second. Wavelength is reported in units of distance, which often ranges from nanometers to meters. Conversions between frequency and wavelength most often involve wavelength in meters because thats how most people remember the speed of light in a vacuum. Key Takeaways: Frequency to Wavelength Conversion Frequency is how many waves pass a defined point per second. Wavelength is the distance between successive peaks or valleys of a wave.Frequency multiplied by wavelength equals the speed of light. So, if you know either the frequency or the wavelength you can calculate the other value. Frequency To Wavelength Conversion Problem The Aurora Borealis is a night display in the Northern latitudes caused by ionizing radiation interacting with the Earths magnetic field and the upper atmosphere. The distinctive green color is caused by the interaction of the radiation with oxygen and has a frequency of 5.38 x 1014 Hz. What is the wavelength of this light?Solution:The speed of light, c, is equal to the product of the wavelength, lamda;, and the frequency, à ½.Thereforeà » c/à ½Ã » 3 x 108 m/sec/(5.38 x 1014 Hz)à » 5.576 x 10-7 m1 nm 10-9 mà » 557.6 nmAnswer:The wavelength of the green light is 5.576 x 10-7 m or 557.6 nm.
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Economic freedom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Economic freedom - Essay Example The essay "Economic freedom" concerns the concept that called economic freedom. Studies have shown that human beings operate more efficiently when not under pressure. Freedom allows individuals to practice and fully exploit their creativity. Sociologists have linked human freedom to human creativity and have found it to be working hand in hand. The Sociologists argue that it allows for greater risks taking that would generate better ways of doing business. Economic freedom has three classical viewpoints, institutions, political and indices of economic freedom. This paper presents a discussion on economic freedom. For there to be a smooth flow of trade between parties, there are institutions of economic freedom set to achieve it. The first is the observance of the rule of law. In the application of the law, all parties are equal, and none is superior. The rule of law has obligations that ensure equality of individual in spite of any form of difference between them. Observance of the l aw protects traders from unfair completion. In law, two kinds of parties exist, the one with power and the other one who is governed. Both parties should act in a manner that is required of them and feel protected by the law. In as much as there is the observance of equality, it is not logical for every party to earn the same income. Equality comes in the sense of treatment of one another and not in the distribution of private resources. It is illogical for the government to redistribute earned resources. from citizens in the name of equality (Asafu-Adjaye 78). The next institution is a clear outline for the rights to own private property. A free market allows for the right for people to control their property and benefit from them. In addition to this, the individuals have a right to transfer their property at their own will. Therefore, an individual cannot be prevented from doing whatever he or she likes with the property. With this kind of system, traders are motivated to pursue their goals and continue adding value to their property. The traders are confident that they are capable of transferring their income anytime without the fear of having to leave anything behind when they opt to leave. Studies show that areas with well-defined property rules have a faster economic growth as compared to the areas without. Most research argues that this property rule is the main reason for poverty in third world countries since they do not have well spelt out systems. The third is the freedom of contract, which refers to the right of choosing whom to trade with, or not. The individual parties choose the form of contracts to get into and establish an agreement. However, once establishing the contract they both have to fulfill the terms and conditions and see it through whether one realizes that he will incur losses. In as much as most of the contracts are fair, some are not especially when the parties are unequal. An example is in the case of workers and employers when negotiating a number of working hours. The employer would be looking at maximizing the hours while the worker will be looking at minimizing it. However, since the employer has an upper hand, he tends to win the negotiation (Noyes 43). Economical freedom has come hand in hand with political freedom. Since the market is free, it has prevented politics to dominate trade. This has reduced the threat of suffering because of a political affiliation. It is a point worth noting that economical freedom has grown with the coming of political freedom.
Friday, October 18, 2019
Questions Pertaining to Mega Mountain and Columbia Food Company Essay
Questions Pertaining to Mega Mountain and Columbia Food Company - Essay Example Acting on inside information, Franklin gained an illegal advantage over other stockholders and profited from their losses. His actions were in direct violation of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. In order to prove its case, the Securities and Exchange Commission will need to secure the testimony of the executive secretary who shared the takeover information with Franklin. However, this testimony alone will not be sufficient to prove the case. If, as the scenario points out, the SEC has filed suit against Franklin and others, someone must have known about Franklin's entry into the executive offices to obtain information about the object of Mega Mountain's takeover. Using the testimony of both the executive secretary, and an informant who brought Franklin's activities to light, the SEC will be able to prove its case against Franklin for violation of the 1934 Securities and Exchange Act. Liuzzo and Bonnice (2006) define easement as "a right or interest in land granted to a party to make beneficial use of the land owned by another" (p. 321). Once an easement has been recorded, it cannot be sold or otherwise transferred. The question to be determined here is whether an easement was mentioned in the earliest available deeds of the two properties.
Industrialization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Industrialization - Essay Example Development is a vast phenomenon that involved more than increasing per capita output. Real development can only be harbingered by eliminating poverty, unemployment and inequality. The theory calls for reviewing structural issues like dualism, population growth, inequality, urbanization, agricultural transformation, education, health, unemployment and many other unanswered issues that must be reviewed on their own merits, and not merely as appendages to an underlying growth thesis. Industrialization on the other hand is a process of social and economic change where human societies are transformed from a pre-industrial (an economy where the amount of capital accumulated is low) to an industrial state. (Industrialization). This social and economic change is closely related to the technological innovation, particularly the development of large-scale energy production. Industrialization may also be related to some kind of philosophical change, or may be to a different attitude in the perception of nature, though if these philosophical changes are caused by industrialization or vice-versa is a subject often debated. Industrialisation has generated its own health problems, like noise, air, water pollution, malnutrition, dangerous machines, impersonal work, isolation, poverty, homelessness, and even substance abuse. Health problems in industrial nations are caused by economic, social, political, and cultural factors also. Industrialisation has become a major medical issue around the world, and hopefully will become less of a problem over the period to come. Psychology of Soviet Economists: Soviet economists were primarily of the opinion that those factors of production that are relatively plentiful have a low marginal productivity and hence a low price as compared with factors that are relatively scarce. Consequently those lines of production or those technical forms of production, which use relatively more of the plentiful factors and economize on the scarce ones, would have the lowest costs. This lead to a drop in labor rates, as a country like Russia had more labor. The strength of the above mentioned factor theory is undoubtedly its strong appeal to common sense, it is apparent common sense to adapt your development plans and methods so as to make the most use of those economic factors that are most plentiful, like labour in this particular case, but there can be a humanitarian argument added to it that to do this will create the maximum employment in conditions where there is a large reserve of unemployed. The immediate objection to it that strikes the mind is th at the factor proportion theory, in common with any comparative cost doctrine derived from it, is a static theory, which refers to a particular factor endowment at a given date. It will be inappropriate to derive there from a criterion of development, since we are dealing with dynamic situations, where the factor endowment is subject to change the essence of development for example, is a growing accumulation of capital and hence a change in the capital-labour ratio. ( Dobb Maurice, Was Soviet Method of Industrialization Really Contrary to Economic Principles) The choice between the factors of production depends on the
Post Employment Benefits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words
Post Employment Benefits - Essay Example 2. We have been provided with what would be "amortized" this year (2007) towards Unrecognized Prior Service Costs, but we have not been provided with what is the actual amount pending towards UPSC. 3. We have been told that the employer's contribution would be 3% of payroll. But we do not know as to what are the company's expenses on salaries and wages. 4. We have no information regarding the number of employees involved in the scheme, their retirement dates, etc. All this information can influence the answer. So, where ever required, we have made suitable assumptions relating the above missing information. Answer 1: From the given information, if the company decides to go on with its existing (DBP) post employment benefits plan, from the information available, we can draw up an approximate pension worksheet, as follows: Items General Journal Entries Memo Record Annual Pension Expense Cash (Prepaid) / Accrued Cost Projected Benefit Obligation Plan Assets Unrecognized Prior Service Cost Balance, Dec. 31, 2006 810,000 Cr 340,000Dr (a) Unrecognized Prior Service Cost Balance, Jan. 1, 2007 --- (810,000+) Cr 340,000 Dr (b) Service Cost 88,000 Dr 88,000Cr (c) Interest Cost 81,000 Dr 81,000 Cr (d) Actual Return 34,000 Cr 34,000 Dr (e) Amortization of UPSC 21,000 Dr 21,000 Cr (f) Contributions X Cr X Dr Journal Entry for 2007 156,000 Dr X Cr (156,000 - X) Cr Balance, Dec. 31, 2007 0 (374,000 + X) Dr Note: In the above table, 1. Interest / Discount / Settlement Rate = 10% 2. Opening and closing balance of Unrecognized Prior Service Cost is unknown. (Shown as '') 3. Since the amount contributed by the employer...They do so by letting the company switch over from its existing 'defined benefits plan' to a 'defined contribution plan' to save costs. 3. The employees give up their claim on every other liability, like whatever is pending towards Unrecognized Prior service costs, what ever would be this years service cost, interest burden on what ever is pending towards 'Projected Benefits Obligation', etc. 5. Employer will contribute 3% of the payroll towards the 'retirement fund' or the 'plan assets' hence forth regardless of whatever has been accumulated in the fund, whether it is sufficient, insufficient or in excess. 6. AND hence forth, since the company moves on with a 'defined contribution plan', employer doesn't have any more liability other than payment of his annual contribution towards the fund and what ever post employment benefits are to be derived would be out of the balance in the 'fund' kept aside for that purpose. From the given information, if the company decides to go on with its existing (DBP) post employment benefits plan, from the information available, we can draw up an approximate pension worksheet, as follows: While, if the employer decides to switch over to a 'defined contribution plan' where the employer pays 3% of payroll as his contribution, the agreement being that the employees get to keep what is already in the defined benefit
Thursday, October 17, 2019
GLOBAL CHANGE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
GLOBAL CHANGE - Essay Example He argues that some of these skeptics are using a lot of money in their goal to attract scientist to come up with findings that favor their argument. This serves as a precaution on whoever takes these skeptics serious in their arguments on global warming. These skeptics, majority who are non scientist also set up some obscure arguments trying to defend the causes of global warming. They are shamelessly claiming out that the current global warming experienced is usually as a result of increase in the amount of radiation coming from the sun (Dixon& Weaver, 2009). This clearly shows their hidden agendas on why they are opposing the scientific facts on causes of global warming. Facts stand that the sun only warms the earth surface only a third of a watt per square meter. This effect is minimal compared with the impact of the green house gases that human beings have emitted. It is estimated that these green house gases warm the earth about three watts per square meter. This simply means that these green house gases emitted by human beings are three times detrimental to the climate as opposed to the sun effect (Dixon& Weaver, 2009). The arguments brought out by these skeptics in their attempt to counter scientific facts and findings are so vague. So the world should be extremely careful when dealing with the arguments of these skeptics on global warming. Majority of the skeptics are out to cause confusion on the attempt by scientist to address the problem of global warming; thus they should be entirely
Ethical and Moral Principles in a Business Environment Essay
Ethical and Moral Principles in a Business Environment - Essay Example Wal ââ¬â Mart is one of the biggest retailers in the world and stands at the first position in the list of the fortune 500 companies. Wal-Mart has been in the industry since 1962. Wal-Mart has wide operations spread across 14 markets, 7390 Wal ââ¬â Mart stores. The company employees over 2 million associates. It is the largest employer in the US. The company was started with a vision of becoming the world leaders in retailing. Over the past years, the company has been able to gain the position of the worldââ¬â¢s largest retail company and is thrice as big as its closest competitor. The companyââ¬â¢s mission has always been to provide the customers with best products and services at reasonable prices. The companyââ¬â¢s main values and beliefs are ââ¬â respecting individuals, service to the customers and striving for excellence. The companyââ¬â¢s signature for almost five decades has been Everyday low prices.The company has been said to keep a watch on the repor ters and critics as well. This is not a good idea as it cannot repair the reputation of the plaguing company. Wal Mart has a serious health issue and the thug-like tactics only create a bigger scope for the critics of the company. The company has been known to take a lot of interest in the spy toys and the criticism of their business is not well received by the company. The company has also led up the extent of recording the calls of the employees to spy on them. The company has highlighted that this is mainly in the case of extreme cases.
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Post Employment Benefits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words
Post Employment Benefits - Essay Example 2. We have been provided with what would be "amortized" this year (2007) towards Unrecognized Prior Service Costs, but we have not been provided with what is the actual amount pending towards UPSC. 3. We have been told that the employer's contribution would be 3% of payroll. But we do not know as to what are the company's expenses on salaries and wages. 4. We have no information regarding the number of employees involved in the scheme, their retirement dates, etc. All this information can influence the answer. So, where ever required, we have made suitable assumptions relating the above missing information. Answer 1: From the given information, if the company decides to go on with its existing (DBP) post employment benefits plan, from the information available, we can draw up an approximate pension worksheet, as follows: Items General Journal Entries Memo Record Annual Pension Expense Cash (Prepaid) / Accrued Cost Projected Benefit Obligation Plan Assets Unrecognized Prior Service Cost Balance, Dec. 31, 2006 810,000 Cr 340,000Dr (a) Unrecognized Prior Service Cost Balance, Jan. 1, 2007 --- (810,000+) Cr 340,000 Dr (b) Service Cost 88,000 Dr 88,000Cr (c) Interest Cost 81,000 Dr 81,000 Cr (d) Actual Return 34,000 Cr 34,000 Dr (e) Amortization of UPSC 21,000 Dr 21,000 Cr (f) Contributions X Cr X Dr Journal Entry for 2007 156,000 Dr X Cr (156,000 - X) Cr Balance, Dec. 31, 2007 0 (374,000 + X) Dr Note: In the above table, 1. Interest / Discount / Settlement Rate = 10% 2. Opening and closing balance of Unrecognized Prior Service Cost is unknown. (Shown as '') 3. Since the amount contributed by the employer...They do so by letting the company switch over from its existing 'defined benefits plan' to a 'defined contribution plan' to save costs. 3. The employees give up their claim on every other liability, like whatever is pending towards Unrecognized Prior service costs, what ever would be this years service cost, interest burden on what ever is pending towards 'Projected Benefits Obligation', etc. 5. Employer will contribute 3% of the payroll towards the 'retirement fund' or the 'plan assets' hence forth regardless of whatever has been accumulated in the fund, whether it is sufficient, insufficient or in excess. 6. AND hence forth, since the company moves on with a 'defined contribution plan', employer doesn't have any more liability other than payment of his annual contribution towards the fund and what ever post employment benefits are to be derived would be out of the balance in the 'fund' kept aside for that purpose. From the given information, if the company decides to go on with its existing (DBP) post employment benefits plan, from the information available, we can draw up an approximate pension worksheet, as follows: While, if the employer decides to switch over to a 'defined contribution plan' where the employer pays 3% of payroll as his contribution, the agreement being that the employees get to keep what is already in the defined benefit
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Ethical and Moral Principles in a Business Environment Essay
Ethical and Moral Principles in a Business Environment - Essay Example Wal ââ¬â Mart is one of the biggest retailers in the world and stands at the first position in the list of the fortune 500 companies. Wal-Mart has been in the industry since 1962. Wal-Mart has wide operations spread across 14 markets, 7390 Wal ââ¬â Mart stores. The company employees over 2 million associates. It is the largest employer in the US. The company was started with a vision of becoming the world leaders in retailing. Over the past years, the company has been able to gain the position of the worldââ¬â¢s largest retail company and is thrice as big as its closest competitor. The companyââ¬â¢s mission has always been to provide the customers with best products and services at reasonable prices. The companyââ¬â¢s main values and beliefs are ââ¬â respecting individuals, service to the customers and striving for excellence. The companyââ¬â¢s signature for almost five decades has been Everyday low prices.The company has been said to keep a watch on the repor ters and critics as well. This is not a good idea as it cannot repair the reputation of the plaguing company. Wal Mart has a serious health issue and the thug-like tactics only create a bigger scope for the critics of the company. The company has been known to take a lot of interest in the spy toys and the criticism of their business is not well received by the company. The company has also led up the extent of recording the calls of the employees to spy on them. The company has highlighted that this is mainly in the case of extreme cases.
Significance of Literacy Essay Example for Free
Significance of Literacy Essay Good afternoon my fellow students, and to our beloved teacher, Mrs. Leny Ibon. For you, what is literacy? Is it really important in oneââ¬â¢s life? How can it help everyone? Well these questions will be answer by this speech. So please, lend me you ears in just a few minutes. For me, literacy is all about possessing the skills of reading and writing. Reading and writing is the right of everyone. By studying, people upgrade their mind about literacy with the help of the teachers. Reading and writing are the basic skills discussed and developed by the teachers because these are the major part in studentsââ¬â¢ life. In reading, the instructor or teachers teaches first the alphabet. They are training the children to read perfectly. In writing, the teacher train the students to write beautifully and legibly. Literacy is important in oneââ¬â¢s life. Because, by reading and writing you can know what is good or bad. Based on the second paragraph, literacy is the basic studies of the students. If you donââ¬â¢t know the basic, you canââ¬â¢t go to the next topic because it will cause a suffering on you in the reason of it is hard. If you know about this, you can also understand how to use languages properly. When youââ¬â¢re knowledgeable, you can easily get job after you finish your studies that will lead you in a better life. It is also important in our life because if we know about literacy we will also know the right of everyone, the laws and the freedom of speech. Reading and writing can help us to get many information. As I said, if we go to school, the faculties will teach us the good manners and attitudes. After we graduate from high school and college, of course we will look for a job. When we get a job, we can moderately show our good attitudes based on what your parents and teachers teach you. All of these starts on literacy. Thatââ¬â¢s how literacy helps everyone. As I conclude, literacy is important and it can help us everywhere and everything. For me, literacy has good effects depends on the person if he or she doesnââ¬â¢t think of being lazy. It also has a good effects if weââ¬â¢re going to use it in a right way of living. God gave us knowledge ang wisdom to live in accordance to His will. Thatââ¬â¢s how literacy is so important. So we need to pay more attention on this matter. We also need to pursue our studies and reach our goal. Literacy is the key to our success.à thanks ..
Monday, October 14, 2019
TRADITIONAL VERSUS MODERN METHODS OF EFFECTIVE TEACHING
TRADITIONAL VERSUS MODERN METHODS OF EFFECTIVE TEACHING Education is vital to the pace of the social, political and economic development of any nation, so effective teaching is very essential. Effective teaching is important because teaching is based on helping children progress from one level to another in a more sociable interactive environment and to get the approach right to get students to be independent learners (Muijus and Reynolds, 2005). Effectiveness does not mean being perfect or giving a wonderful performance, but bringing out the best in students. My experience comes from a Nigerian background, where traditional teaching method is more widespread than the modern method of teaching. It is in this line that I decided to investigate empirically which of the two methods is more effective in Nigerian primary schools. Primary education in Nigeria refers to the education children receive from the ages 6 years to 11 years plus. A lot of the teaching in primary schools is done with the traditional method especially in the government schools where the teacher is in charge of the classroom. The formal education system is 6-3-3-4, 6 stands for primary school. The primary education in Nigeria is controlled by the state and local government. Traditional method relies mainly on textbooks while the modern method relies on hands-on materials approach. In traditional method, presentation of materials starts with the parts, then moves on to the whole while in the modern approach, presentation of materials starts with the whole, then moves to the parts. Traditional method emphasizes on basis skills while modern method emphasizes on big ideas. With traditional method of teaching, assessment is seen as a separate activity and occurs through testing while with modern method of teaching, assessment is seen as an activity integrated with teaching and learning, and occurs through portfolios and observation (Brooks and Brooks, 1999). Teaching methods are best articulated by answering the questions What is the purpose of education? and What are the best ways of achieving these purposes? for much of pre-history, education methods were largely informal, and consisted of children imitating or modeling the behaviour of that of their elders, learning through observation and play. In this sense, the children are the students, and the elder is the teacher, a teacher creates the course materials to be taught and then enforces it. Pedagogy is a different way by which a teacher can teach. It is the art or science of being a teacher, generally referring to strategies of instruction or style of instruction. Resources that help teachers teach better are typically, a lesson plan, or practical skill involving learning and thinking skills. A curriculum is often set by the Government with precise standards. These standards can change frequently, depending on what the government states. DIVERSITY IN TEACHING IN THE CLASSROOM For effective teaching to take place, a good method must be adopted by a teacher. A teacher has many options when choosing a style by which to teach. The teacher may write lesson plans from other teachers, or search online or within books for lesson plans. When deciding what teaching method to use, a teacher needs to consider students background, knowledge, environment, and learning goals. Teachers are aware that students learn in different ways, but almost all children will respond well to praise. Students learn in different ways, of absorbing information and of demonstrating their knowledge. Teachers often use techniques which cater to multiple learning styles to help students retain information and strengthen understanding. A variety of strategies and methods are used to ensure that all students have equal opportunities to learn. A lesson plan may be carried out in several ways: questioning, explaining, modeling, collaborating, and demonstrating. QUESTIONING A teaching method includes questioning is similar to testing. A teacher may ask a series of questions to collect information of what students have learned and what needs to be taught. Testing is another method of questioning. A teacher tests the student on what was previously taught in order to identify if a student has learned the material. Standardized testing is in about every Middle School (i.e. Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) Proficiency Test, College Entrance Tests (Act and SAT). before that we have to teach how to make questioner. If the question is perfect then this method will be effective. EXPLAINING Another teaching method is explanation. This form is similar to lecturing. Lecturing is teaching, giving a speech, giving a discourse on a specific subject that is opened to the public. It is usually given in the classroom. This can also be associated with demonstrating and modeling. A teacher may use experimentation to demonstrate in a science class. A demonstration is the circumstance of proving conclusively, as by reasoning or showing evidence. Modeling is used as a visual aid to learning. Students can visualize an object or problem, then use reasoning and hypothesizing to determine an answer. DEMONSTRATING Demonstrations are done to provide an opportunity in learning new exploration and visual learning tasks from a different perspective. Demonstrations can be exercised in several ways. Here, teacher will also be a participant. He will do the work with his/her students for their help. COLLABORATING Students working in groups are another way a teacher can enforce a lesson plan. Collaborating allows students to talk among each other and listen to all view points of discussion or assignment. It helps students think in an unbiased way. When this lesson plan is carried out, the teacher may be trying to assess the lesson of working as a team, leadership skills or presenting with roles. TRADITIONAL VERSUS MODERN METHOD OF TEACHING Traditional method of teaching is when a teacher directs students to learn through memorization and recitation techniques thereby not developing their critical thinking problem solving and decision making skills (Sunal et al 1994) while modern or constructivist approach to teaching involves a more interacting, student-based of teaching. Here, the students learn through group participation. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM Nigerian primary education is deteriorating at a very fast rate and this has been a great concern to the ministry of education, parents, teachers and others concerned. It was in this light that the researcher deemed it fit to investigate the varying influences of the traditional and modern methods of teaching on students academic performance. PURPOSE OF STUDY Because education is a vital aspect of society, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of teaching methods (Traditional Versus Modern) on students academic performance. The purpose of this study was also to investigate and determine which of the two major teaching methods was more effective. RELEVANCE OF STUDY The findings of this study would be found relevant to teachers, parents, students and the society at large. The findings of this study would be of great importance to Ministry of Education in drafting the curriculum for primary schools. The parents and the students also stand to benefit greatly if the effective teaching method was used to teach the students. Effective teaching method would improve the performance and learning of the students. And, lastly, the society at large would benefit because the children (students) are the leaders of tomorrow. SCOPE OF STUDY The study is particularly; i. Concerned with the determinants of teaching method effectiveness. ii. Concerned with examining influences of teaching method (Traditional and Modern) and determining which of the teaching methods is more effective than the other. RESEARCH QUESTIONS (1) To what extent if there is a shift in pedagogical practice from traditional methods to modern methods in Nigerian primary school in the classroom? (2) Which approach is more effective in terms of student outcomes and more successful between the traditional methods and modern methods of teaching? RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS (1) Modern Method of teaching is more effective than the traditional method of teaching THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK LEARNING THEORIES OF COGNITION Learning theories were used in this study as the theoretical framework to explaining how children learn. Classical conditioning The typical paradigm for classical conditioning involves repeatedly pairing an unconditioned stimulus (which unfailingly evokes a particular response) with another previously neutral stimulus (which does not normally evoke the response). Following conditioning, the response occurs both to the unconditioned stimulus and to the other, unrelated stimulus (now referred to as the conditioned stimulus). The response to the conditioned stimulus is termed a conditioned response. Operant conditioning Operant conditioning is the use of consequences to modify the occurrence and form of behavior. Operant conditioning is distinguished from Pavlov conditioning in that operant conditioning deals with the modification of voluntary behavior. Discrimination learning is a major form of operant conditioning. One form of it is called Errorless learning. Observational learning The learning process most characteristic of humans is imitation; ones personal repetition of an observed behaviour, such as a dance. Humans can copy three types of information simultaneously: the demonstrators goals, actions and environmental outcomes. Through copying these types of information, (most) infants will tune into their surrounding culture. Play Play generally describes behavior which has no particular end in itself, but improves performance in similar situations in the future. This is seen in a wide variety of vertebrates besides humans, but is mostly limited to mammals and birds. Cats are known to play with a ball of string when young, which gives them experience with catching prey. Besides inanimate objects, animals may play with other members of their own species or other animals, such as orcas playing with seals they have caught. Play involves a significant cost to animals, such as increased vulnerability to predators and the risk of injury and possibly infection. It also consumes energy, so there must be significant benefits associated with play for it to have evolved. Play is generally seen in younger animals, suggesting a link with learning. However, it may also have other benefits not associated directly with learning, for example improving physical fitness. Habituation In psychology, habituation is an example of non-associative learning in which there is a progressive diminution of behavioral response probability with repetition of a stimulus. It is another form of integration. An animal first responds to a stimulus, but if it is neither rewarding nor harmful the animal reduces subsequent responses. Humans have been able to handle certain cognitive tasks due to habituation. One example of this can be seen in small song birds if a stuffed owl (or similar predator) is put into the cage, the birds initially react to it as though it were a real predator. Soon the birds react less, showing habituation. If another stuffed owl is introduced (or the same one removed and re-introduced), the birds react to it again as though it were a predator, demonstrating that it is only a very specific stimulus that is habituated to (namely, one particular unmoving owl in one place). Sensitization Sensitization is an example of non-associative learning in which the progressive amplification of a response follows repeated administrations of a stimulus (Bell et al., 1995). An everyday example of this mechanism is the repeated tonic stimulation of peripheral nerves that will occur if a person rubs his arm continuously. After a while, this stimulation will create a warm sensation that will eventually turn painful. The pain is the result of the progressively amplified synaptic response of the peripheral nerves warning the person that the stimulation is harmful. Sensitization is thought to underlie both adaptive as well as maladaptive learning processes in the organism. Imprinting Imprinting is the term used in psychology and ethnology to describe any kind of phase-sensitive learning (learning occurring at a particular age or a particular life stage) that is rapid and apparently independent of the consequences of behavior. It was first used to describe situations in which an animal or person learns the characteristics of some stimulus, which is therefore said to be imprinted onto the subject. Enculturation Enculturation is the process by which a person learns the requirements of the culture by which he or she is surrounded, and acquires values and behaviours that are appropriate or necessary in that culture. The influences which as part of this process limit, direct or shape the individual, whether deliberately of not, include parents, other adults, and peers. If successful, enculturation results in competence in the language, values and rituals of the culture. Rote learning Rote learning is a technique which avoids understanding the inner complexities and inferences of the subject that is being learned and instead focuses on memorizing the material so that it can be recalled by the learner exactly the way it was read or heard. The major practice involved in rote learning techniques is learning by repetition, based on the idea that one will be able to quickly recall the meaning of the material the more it is repeated. Rote learning is used in diverse areas, from mathematics to music to religion. Although it has been criticized by some schools of thought, rote learning is a necessity in many situations. Informal learning Informal learning occurs through the experience of day-to-day situations (for example, one would learn to look ahead while walking because of the danger inherent in not paying attention to where one is going). It is learning from life, during a meal at table with parents, Play, exploring. Formal learning Formal learning is learning that takes place within a teacher-student relationship, such as in a school system. Non-formal learning Non-formal learning is organized learning outside the formal learning system. For example: learning by coming together with people with similar interests and exchanging viewpoints, in clubs or in (international) youth organizations, workshops. Non-formal learning and combined approaches The educational system may use a combination of formal, informal, and non-formal learning methods. The UN and EU recognize these different forms of learning. In some schools students can get points that count in the formal-learning systems if they get work done in informal-learning circuits. They may be given time to assist international youth workshops and training courses, on the condition they prepare, contribute, share and can proof this offered valuable new insights, helped to acquire new skills, a place to get experience in organizing, teaching, etc. In order to learn a skill, such as solving a Rubiks cube quickly, several factors come into play at once: Directions help one learn the patterns of solving a Rubiks cube Practicing the moves repeatedly and for extended time helps with muscle memory and therefore speed Thinking critically about moves helps find shortcuts, which in turn help to speed up future attempts. The Rubiks cubes six colors help anchor solving it within the head. Occasionally revisiting the cube helps prevent negative learning or loss of skill. LITERATURE REVIEW Interview data from marks, Schrader, and Levine (1999) revealed that paraedsucators perceived that their job responsibilities included: 1) Keeping students with disabilities from bothering general education classroom teachers. 2) Creating all modifications and adaptations for the child, and 3) Maintaining responsibility for all aspects of the childs education. These findings indicate that paraeducators perceived their duties to be actions that are not considered ethical (Heller, 1997): National joint committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD), 1999). Marks et al, reported corroboration of these perceived job duties by another group of paraeducators, but no observation were conducted and no comparison made to job description. French and Chopra (1999) conducted interviews with parents who reported that they believe inclusion without paraeducators is impossible. The parents cited reasons of health and safety, social and academic engagement in support of their assertion. Actually, these parents believe that paraeducators are more important than teachers to their childs inclusion. But parents also emphasized that paraeducators should stand back a little, too and to become invisible in a very calculated way (French and Chopra, 1999 p. 264). In Scotland, more than 4,400 classrooms were appointed between 2000 and 2001 in an effort to improve adult-to-student ratios. The program was federally funded and evaluated in three phases. All data sources verified that the amount of time students were engaged in active versus passive tasks increased as a result of the presence of the assistants, and that the presence of the assistants permitted teachers to improve the quality of their teaching time and to engage in more small group and individual work with students. Scottish teachers also reported that their expectation of students has increased because of the added support available to them. Students liked working with classroom assistants and appreciated the extra support. Student clearly distinguished between classroom assistants, whom they saw as helpers and teachers. This evaluation study did not disaggregate findings for special education students (Wilson et al 2002). Storey et al 1993, conducted a study using a multiple-probe across settings design to examine the effectiveness of a peer-mediated intervention conducted by classroom assistants on the social behaviour of socially withdrawn and socially skilled preschoolers in public school classrooms. Two socially skilled students were matched with one socially withdrawn student, and the group of three became the unit of study. The results demonstrated that all of the withdrawn preschoolers increased their social interactions with peers during the instructional triads studied. Social validation findings also indicated improvement in the students behaviour. Hall, McClannahan, and Krantz (1995) observed that paraeducators were reluctant to Step away from students in classroom interactions. Although they did not inquire as to the paraeducators beliefs about their roles, the researchers assumed that the paraeducators believed their primary role to be that of providing support and assistance juts as Marks, Schrader, and Levine later reported Hall et al, however, provided training for paraeducators on how to reduce the number of verbal and gestural prompts given to students and to use physical prompts were absolutely necessary. Observations subsequent to training revealed a significant reduction in the number of verbal and gestural prompts, indicating that the concepts the paraeducators had learned during training were being applied on the job. They then observed the amount of engagement and initiative on the part of students and found that both increased significantly. Young et al (1996) examined in elementary education classroom, each of whom as assigned a full-time paraeducators. Researchers assessed the on-task, in-seat, self-stimulatory and vocalization behaviours of the students as a function of paraeducators proximity, recording activities, and behaviours at 20-second intervals. They considered three conditions: Close proximity? Less than 2 feet away; More than 2 feet away; and Out of room. Teachers initiated contact with the target students occurred most often when the paraeducators was more than 2 feet away from students or when out of the room, but the teacher initiated contact with student less than 1% of the time when the paraeducators was closer than 2 feet away. This finding suggests that paraeducators proximity effectively reduced student opportunities to engage with the classroom teacher and could be used to support the argument that the presence of a paraeducators allows the argument that the presence of a paraeducators allows the classroom teacher to be relieved of responsibility for the child. At the same time, observations showed that the issue of gestures or cueing occurred less than 1% of the time a problem because all students had difficulty with verbal direction and needed cues and prompts. Nevertheless, students were on task, appropriate amount of time most often when working with a peer. Similar to the earlier conclusions of Storey, Smith and Strain (1993) regarding preschoolers, those authors concluded that the most appropriate role of the paraeducators working with elementary-aged children with autism is to facilitate peer interaction, and they did not recommend discontinuing the sue of paraeducators. Giangreco (1997) observed classrooms where students with significant needs were included and reported that dedicated paraeducators serving children one-to-one hovered over their charges, which limited opportunities for the students to benefit from the teachers instruction and interfered with social interactions among students. These findings were published in a widely read article that served as the wake-up-call for those who had rushed to provide every child with an individual dedicated paraeducators. At variance with these findings, Hill (2003) observed paraeducators working in classrooms where students with disabilities were included. Their observations focused on: 1) The activities in which the instructional assistant was involved; 2) Participants in the interactions; and 3) Whether the interaction occurred in or out of the classroom. Hill concluded that assistants facilitated inclusive practices by interacting more frequently with both exceptional and typical students together, rather than with the exceptional student alone, and that they spent significant time assisting in activities that did not include exceptional students. Hill also concluded that paraeducators promoted independence by limiting the amount of direct instruction they provided to exceptional students, so that students would attend to the classroom teacher for their instruction. Other reported benefits of employing paraeducators included improved student behaviour (Kotkin, 1998). In a series of well designed, quasi-experimental studies, Kotkin reported consistent improvements in the behaviour of boys with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (1998). In one study, Kotkin (1998) tested the effects of social skills training versus the effects of combined social skills training and continued support a trained classroom aide. This study showed that the majority of students receiving the combined set of practices (Social skills training plus classroom aide) improved over the course of the year, whereas less than half of the students in the control group or the social-skills-only group improved (in terms of disruptive behaviour in class). Kotkin also examined the effects of social skills training and school-based token reinforcement components on response to provocation and frustration in aggressive boys. Repeated measures included direct observation of the boys participants role-plays of target skills, and teacher ratings. The data showed that boys receiving social skills training alone were able to perform in role-play but showed little improvement in natural settings. Token reinforcement improved the behaviour in boys prior to social skills training, but adding a trained classroom aide resulted in greater improvement. Moreover, the improved behaviour was maintained at follow-up (Kotkin, 1998). Werts et al (2001) considered the academic engagement of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. This quasi-experimental study examined those effects of paraeducators proximity to students. The findings showed that close proximity yielded higher levels of academic engagement, while greater paraeducators distance promoted social interaction. Others have noted positive student attitudes toward learning and school. For example, Mclntyre (1999) found that 9th and 10th grade students had improved attitudes and self-concept regarding math because of readily available assistance from a teaching assistant. The inference that may be drawn from these studies is that improved student achievements is related to the presence of paraeducators because improved student behaviour, positive attitudes toward subjects, and better self-concept are all known to be highly correlated with student achievement. Although none of the research on the impact of paraeducators on attitudinal factors, or on social or academic engagement factors compared the data to student-achievement data, one might extrapolate that increased student engagement and independence, as well as a higher adult-to-student ratio would be associated with increased academic achievement, given the ell-established findings about the positive effects of student engagement (Marzano , 2003) and small class size (Glass and Smith 1979): Shavelson and Towne, 2002). Yet, such extrapolation remains unconfirmed by empirical information. Harrington and Mitchelson (1986. 1987) interviewed teachers who worked with paraeducators. The teachers reported improved morale, reduce stress, and improved school-home-community relations. French and Chopra (1999), from interviews with parents similarly reported improved school home relations. The parents reported that paraeducators served as connectors between the schools and themselves and that the most frequent contact with the school came through the paraeducators. Parents spoke of many ways in which paraeducators connect their children and created connections between their children and teachers. Other reports describe paraeducators as a vital link to parents and the community, noting that they often live in low-income neighborhoods near their schools and are more familiar with their schools diverse enrollments (Chopra, 2002 and Jennings, 2000). Various anecdotal reports tell of paraeducators who assisted families in numerous ways. For example, in one case a family ran out of food stamps and had nor eaten and the paraeducators helped the family access a local food bank (Sack, 1999). At the conclusion of a study of school district policies regarding the employment of paraeducators, Policy Studies Associates (1997) reported to the U.S. Department of Education with recommendations that districts should tend to programmatic aspects of their school before deciding to invest in hiring or training paraprofessionals. Although this report did not recommend against employing paraeducators, the authors intent clearly was to focus on instruction that engages students in hard work and challenging curriculum. This perspective puts the role of paraeducators in a defined subordinate role to the program and asserts that measuring the effectiveness of paraeducators is of merit only if the program in which they work is sound. To date, only one of the reported attempts at measuring the effect of paraeducators on student achievement has considered the curricular and instructional program. Sam String-filed led a team of researchers in a complex study of paraeducators effectiveness funded by the American Federation of Teachers Schools were selected or participation only if they demonstrated high student achievement by students living in poverty and employed paraeducators in instructional roles. Therefore, the correlation between student achievement and paraeducators employment was the antecedent of the study. The research team found that effective programs generally included whole-school reforms and professional development involving the entire staff. The paraeducators held clear task assignments, both academic and managerial, and provided intensive instruction to children under the close direction of classroom teachers (AFT, 1999). In Scotland, a nationwide evaluation of a major initiative to put classroom assistants in every elementary classrooms in the country showed that, at the end of two academic years exceeded or met targeted levels. Researchers at the Scottish Council for Research in Education noted that job descriptions varied by district, and that supervision and training also varied considerably. They concluded that classroom assistants had an indirect impact on student achievement although they were unable to define the precise contribution the classroom assistants made to improving student achievement because multiple curricular initiatives had been implemented simultaneously (Wilson et al, 2002). Like the Scottish study and in contrast to the AFT study, the Tennessee STAR study attempted to answer the question of paraeducators effectiveness relative to student achievement but ignored the curricular and instructional program factors (Boyd-Zaharias and Pate-Bain, 1998). Moreover, Boyd-Zaharias and Pate-Bain (1998) reported that teachers provided no direction, that untrained paraeducators did whatever they wanted to do or only routine paperwork, and, significantly, that many teachers resented the paraeducators presence because the paraeducators employed during the study were political hires in an economy where jobs were precious. Those authors also noted that the teacher-with-aide and teacher-alone group were confounded by students moving between those classes during the experiment. In spite of flaws in the Tennessee study, groups with aides consistently performed slightly better than groups with teachers alone, but the differences were too small to show statistical significance (Institute for Educational Inquiry, 2000).further analysis of the Tennessee data showed a small improvement in reading scores for students who attended a class with a teacher aide for 2 or 3 years (Gerber et al 2001, pp. 123). Gerber et al admitted that other benefits that might be associated with employing paraeducators were not considered in the study. RESEARCH METHODS Research Setting The study was carried out in two primary schools in Lagos, Nigeria. Participants The sample was drawn randomly among the primary school students in Nigeria. Due to the limitation of time, only 20 participants were used for this study. 10 participants were selected from the public schools and 10 participants were also selected from the private schools. The rationale for this was to have 10 students that had been used to the modern teaching method and 10 students that were used to the traditional teaching method. The 10 students selected from the public schools were assumed to have been taught with traditional method of teaching while the 10 students chosen from private schools were assumed to have been taught with modern method of teaching. Research Instruments The researcher used 2 classrooms for this study. The first class used for the study was a classroom in a private primary school, where the classroom setting wore the look of modern classroom. And, the other classroom used was a classroom in a public primary school, where the classroom setting wore the look of the traditional classroom, where learning is individualistic
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