Patriarchy Essay

Societies around the globe have a traditional set of protocol as to who is supposed to the head of family, clan, or even a bigger societal group than these ones. Among the African societies, the man is a de facto head of the family and the larger society, and the woman just serves the role of subordinating him. This is a true reflection of the early religious societies, for example the Israelites and the Muslims of the eastern societies, which recognized the fact that the work of the prophets belonged to the males and that women were no longer to appear as public leaders or role holders. In Western Europe and indeed much of the continent this was the case before the middle ages and in the renaissance period. This defined societal leadership of the early days was referred to as the patriarchy, and the family heads themselves as the patriarchs. Now, according to the Webster’s new collegiate dictionary, patriarchy is a social organization marked by the supremacy of the father in the clan or family, the legal dependence of wife and children, and the reckoning of descent and inheritance in the male line (Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, 1977). With time, given the rapid changes the society was going through, especially in Western Europe the principles and the core values of patriarchy began to be faced out. In Britain where the process was sudden, patriarchy suffered its biggest blows in the period between late 17th century to late 18th century (precisely 1689-1789). This process that brought in all these changes was described as the reconfiguration- the change in the roles of men and women. We are going to discuss the effect of this process on the society during the century stated above. The reconfiguration of patriarchy in Britain. (1689-1789). During the early times, the British society just like any other society of ancient times was composed of large families, and included members from across relations. However, desire for privacy and compatibility began growing. Couples who intended to marry desired not only the formal romantic love but also an overhaul change in the relationship once married. The changes following these developments resulted into smaller family sizes. The married couple could now spend a lot of time together, in addition to developing common interests and pastimes. Furthermore, these developments meant that personal live of this married couples changed, with houses built to develop privacy from children, house servants and guests. Rooms were set aside for specific purposes and were partitioned by hallways from one another. Couples were now spending more together and had more time for themselves, this coming as a result of limited family sizes. The bearing of few children had an advantage for women because maternity deaths reduced, also reduction of disablements at child birth that were common in the early times and above all women had an added time to pursue domestic chores. Although attempts of birth were not successfully (because birth control methods of this time- withdrawal and coitus interruptus- are not reliable) families managed to succeed in the child spacing. There was the idea of commercialization of childhood. A child born of a family in ancient Britain had to undergo a torturous procedure that was referred to as wet nursing. Therefore the child had to spend most of the time away from the mother. By mid 17th century children were receiving a lot of attention from their parents. A family expecting a child had to purchase all the toys necessary for the comfort of a child. Books full of pictures (and also helpful to the parents) to entice the child were bought. It was emerging that mothers wanted to nurse their children themselves by obviously breast feeding and also figuratively teach them in the process. This new found relationship between women and their children meant that children would now become companions to the outings involving visits to the museums and comp sites that were also emerging with a lot of speed. Another development coming in the 18th century was the emergence of bourgeois as a culture. This culture worked on the idea that home life was the fulfillment of an individual lifestyle, and included more spending on leisure pursuits and literary programs. Unfortunately, this privileges associated with this culture could not be associated with every member of the society. For example, working women could not afford the cost of instructional materials for their children or even the time to use these materials. In response to these some women employed wet nurses, an irony for this age. This group of women enjoyed little privacy in their places residence because they still had to consent living with large families in single rooms. House wives were still being beaten by their husbands and children too suffered beatings in the hands of their fathers. Consequently, by late 18th century two distinct family classes were emerging- one based on companion marriage and the other o patriarchal dominance of husbands. In the eighteenth century a rigorous transformation in family life was underway, one that bourgeoisie shared with the nobility: the celebration of domesticity. The image and indeed reality was that of the happy home life, where love was the bond between husband and wife and between parents and children, and both men and women came to dominate both the literary and visual arts. Only those who were wealthy enough to afford to dispense with women’s work could partake of the new domesticity, and only those who had been touched by enlightment ideas could attempt to make the change. Indeed where it occurred, the transformation in the nature of family life was one of the most profound alterations in the eighteenth century. Consequently; the most important step that had an impact towards transformation of family structure was in the centering of the conjugal family in the home. Conclusion:Â  We have seen that eighteenth century Britain was a society of orders that was transforming itself into a society of classes. That is to say that official ranks such as noble and commoner were giving way to ranking by wealth or poverty. The rise of science and enlightment ideas highlighted the contradictions. Enlightment ideas looked to the future, to a new world that was ruled fairly to the benefit of all human beings, male and female alike. Authority, society and the individual had the chance to improve but if the odds and the rubble of the past was forgotten.

Super Essay

Writing an Essay See also: Super Tips – Differences between Essays, Reports and Journals Super Tips – Writing in an Appropriate Style Essays are usually written: †¢ to inform your reader about your position in relation to a particular issue †¢ to argue for change or recommend action †¢ to analyse problems and present solutions †¢ to present and evaluate research findings Writing an essay is an opportunity for you to develop new ideas and apply concepts and theories from your course. You’ll develop a thesis (or position) and use reasoning and evidence to support your point of view. A tertiary essay is similar to essays you’ve written at secondary school, particularly those written in your last couple of years at school. However, there are some differences you need to be aware of: †¢ Citing all the sources you use is extremely important. If you don’t, you’ll be guilty of plagiarism, which is taken very seriously by the University. You can find out how to cite your sources and write reference lists in the Learning Links – Referencing leaflet. Most essays will be longer than you’ve written at secondary school (most are between 1500 and 2500 words) and will be worth a large percentage of your semester’s marks. You’ll usually be expected to analyse issues at a deeper level than you did at secondary school. †¢ †¢ This resource has some useful hints on how to analyse your essay topic, plan and write your essay. Steps in the essay writing process Although no two writers work in the same way, there is a general system that many good writers follow. This system involves following the step-by-step process outlined below. Skim through the main points now, and when you need to write an essay, check out the extra information about each point. 1. Analyse the question – underline key words – put question into own words – look for hints on structure ‘Brainstorm’ the question – to take stock of what you already know 2. Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 1 – to give you a focus for your reading – to give you the beginnings of a plan 3. Start your research – begin with general reading – look for potential ways to structure your essay – remember to record bibliographical details and page numbers of references as you go Plan the essay – write down the main points/arguments, preferably using a mind map – write any secondary points and their relationship to the main points Continue your research – this is focused research, where you seek further information about each of the main points/arguments Write! most people find it easier to concentrate on the body first, then the conclusion, followed by the introduction †¢ decide on a logical order for your points/arguments †¢ remember that each paragraph should contain one idea, which is stated in the topic †¢ sentence. Other sentences in the paragraph should explain, give evidence for and possibly give examples. †¢ concentrate on one point at a time, but in your final editing, make sure each paragraph is linked to the next †¢ expect to write several drafts †¢ don’t worry about spelling, grammar, sentence structure or finding the ‘right’ word until you’ve finalised the content of the essay. . 5. 6. Analysing the question Once you’ve selected your topic, you need to be sure you understand what it means before you begin any researching or reading. A common problem is to make a quick assumption that you know what it means and what’s expected of you. However, if you’re wrong, even if you write a great essay, you won’t get very high marks if it doesn’t do what the topic says it will do. Here are some strategies: †¢ Underline or highlight the key content words or phrases and direction words (such as discuss, evaluate, analyse, etc. and make sure you understand them. It’s easy to overlook the direction words, but if you just describe something when you’ve been asked to analyse it, your essay is likely to get fe w marks. Check here to make sure you know the meaning of each. Here’s an example of the process: Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 2 Essay topic: ‘Explain the double-binds that managers are faced with in hierarchical organisations. The key content words are: double-bind; manager; and hierarchical organisations. The direction word is explain. You probably think you already know what these words mean, but it pays to make sure you’re not overlooking some part of the meaning. For instance, if you really think about these words, you might come up with these definitions: Explain: to analyse, focusing on the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of a particular issue; to identify reasons, causes and effects; to go beyond describing and summarising. ouble-bind: a dilemma; an argument forcing an opponent to choose one of two equally bad alternatives a person conducting a business or institution; manager: a person controlli ng activities of a person/team hierarchical organisations: an organised system, or set of connected things or parts in some type of order such as order of importance. †¢ Re-write the topic in your own words. This is a useful way of checking whether you’ve really understood the question. For example, for the topic mentioned above, two possible ways of re-writing could be: ‘Analyse why and how the dilemmas come about that are faced by people who lead, guide and direct systems (organised with levels and ranks). Identify the causes and effects of these dilemmas. ’ ‘Analyse the causes and effects of dilemmas faced by persons leading, guiding and directing ranked systems. ’ †¢ Identify what concepts or ideas from your course apply to this topic (refer to your lecture or class notes and any other readings). Think about any controversies or arguments in relation to this topic (your lecturers or teachers will probably have referred to these). Write out a short statement giving your position on the topic. This may change after you’ve done some research and thought more about the topic, but if you do it at this stage it’s easier for you to keep focused. Write down relevant information about the topic. Make notes about the areas of the topic you need to research. †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 3 †¢ Write a possible outline of the essay. This is likely to change as you research the topic but it’s useful to think of the organisation of your essay even at this stage. Brainstorming the question Brainstorming is a useful process to find out what you already know about the essay topic. Get a large piece of paper and let your mind go – write down anything that comes to mind when you think of the essay topic. It’s important that you don’t stop to think about whether what you’re writing is relevant or not. The next step is to look at what you’ve written and look for the beginnings of a plan for your essay. At this stage you can cross out anything you don’t think is relevant and, of course, add other things you think of. Beginning your research Now you need to locate appropriate references. You need to first read widely to get an overview of the topic, problem, issue or debate, then narrow your reading down to a few specific authors or key issues. You should find reference material in the library, in resources or bibliographies from your teacher or lecturer, and on the Internet. A word of warning when using the Internet, however – check to see that the information comes from a reliable and reputable source. Remember, also, that the RMIT librarians can help you. Remember to make notes as you go, and to record all bibliographic information as soon as you make a note or photocopy. It can take weeks of backtracking to find out where you got that wonderful quote you need to use! When you feel confident that you’ve read enough material, you need to develop a thesis statement. This is your position in relation to the topic. It’s the driving force throughout your essay. Planning your essay An essay outline is like the skeleton of your argument. You can do this linearly (writing a list of main points with secondary points indented) or visually (for instance, drawing a mind map or other diagram). Whichever format you use, you’ll need to identify: †¢ the main point †¢ your supporting points or elaborations †¢ the evidence you’ll use to support each point. Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 4 For an example of a linear and a mind map outline for an essay and the sample essay that was developed from them, check out the Learning Links – Sample Essay leaflet. Continuing your research This is the easy part of your research because you know what information you’re looking for. You’ve done your preliminary research and organised this information into an outline, and now your task is to find more information about each of the points on your outline. At this stage, as well as more information about points on your outline, you may find another point or two that you need to add. This is OK – just reorganise your essay outline. Writing your essay Finally, you can begin writing. You don’t have to write your essay in the same order that people read it. Sometimes you might find that writing the introduction first helps you to be clear about the content and intention of the essay. However, at other times you might find that it’s better to write in this order: †¢ †¢ †¢ Write the body first (because this is the most important part) then write the conclusion (so you can sum up while your main arguments are fresh in your mind) and finally write the introduction (because sometimes it’s difficult to write it until you’re clear about what it is you’re introducing). This is the stage when you need to think of the writing style. You need to write in an academic style (check out the Learning Links – Writing in an Appropriate Style leaflet) and you need to write clear paragraphs and sentences. Writing the body of the essay In the body of the essay, all the preparation you’ve done so far comes together. Follow the outline you’ve made already and write paragraphs with: †¢ †¢ †¢ Main Points Supporting Points Elaboration Main Point Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 5 Write down one of your main ideas, in sentence form. If your main idea is ‘private enterprise should not run public utilities', you might say this: The Longford Gas Inquiry revealed to the community the damaging consequences of private ownership of public enterprises. Supporting Point Next, write down each of your supporting points for that main idea, but leave four or five lines in between each point. One of your supporting points may be: Private companies are obliged to run their operations in an entirely different way to government. Elaboration You may find the visual outline useful here. In the space under each supporting point, write down some elaboration for that point. Elaboration can be further description, explanation, examples, support from research or discussion: When the main point of an operation is to make a profit, efficiency and safety can be the first to suffer. A private company is not answerable to the Victorian community in the same way that the government is. Public utilities remain a matter of political importance even when they are privatised. You flesh out your body paragraphs in this way, and use joining sentences and quotations. Once you have fleshed out each of your body paragraphs, one for each main point, you are ready to continue. For example: When the Kennett Liberal government came to power in 1992, it considered that part of its mandate was the privatisation of a number of public enterprises. The first utilities to be sold off were gas and electricity. Although Esso had always operated a gas plant at Longford, (near Sale in East Victoria) it had previously done so in partnership the government through the Victorian Gas and Fuel Corporation. Esso now ran the plant and supplied the gas through Vencorp, a private company that had replaced one of the delivery functions of the Gas and Fuel Corporation. On Thursday 24 September 1998 a series of explosions at the Esso Longford plant left two people dead and eight injured. The explosion left gas supplies at dangerously low levels, with the only gas available for consumers being what was left in the pipes. Victorians faced a crisis in terms of dwindling gas supplies and naturally enough turned to their government for leadership. Whilst the governments was able to invoke special powers to protect gas supplies, it was not in fact responsible for the continuing delivery of gas to consumers. In this paragraph, which would probably be the first body paragraph, we have introduced our main point of privatisation, and sub-points of how that particular example worked. We have fleshed it out with factual information surrounding the situation, and closed the paragraph with reference to the explosion at Longford. In the second body paragraph which follows this one we might include a description of the explosion and its aftermath, and possibly why and how it happened Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 6 Writing the introduction The introduction should be designed to attract the reader’s attention and give an idea of the essay’s focus. You need to set out clearly, concisely and forcefully your approach to, and interpretation of, the question as well as your point of view on it. You might wish to agree with part of the question but disagree with other parts. If so, make sure this is clear in your introduction. The introduction should also include a general broad outline of the more detailed arguments you will write about in the main body of your essay. Most introductions have information organised from the general (broad) to the specific (narrow). Introductions should include: * A general statement introducing the topic * A thesis statement expressing your point of view * A statement outlining the areas and perspectives to be discussed * An outline of the organisation of the topic (optional) * Any definitions necessary for the reader to understand the topic (but if there are many, or if they need explaining at length, it’s better to do this in the next paragraph) Writing the conclusion A good conclusion should draw the arguments together and reinforce points made in the body of the essay. There is more variation in the contents and organisation of a conclusion than there is in an introduction. However, there are some features many have in common. A conclusion should: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ remind the reader of the thesis of the essay provide a summary of the main points and arguments point to the significance of your findings point out the implications of the issues not simply restate the introduction. contain no new material (i. e. it should not introduce any new points). Check the instructions for formatting and style Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. du. au/lsu February 2005 7 When you prepare your final draft, it’s important to follow all of the instructions you’ve been given. Some Departments, Schools and Faculties have a style guide for student writing, or sometimes you’re given a sheet at the beginning of the year with formatting and style instructions. If you haven’t been given any inform ation, ask your lecturer or teacher if they or the department have any style preferences. Here are some style and formatting questions you should find out: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ How big should the margins be? Is there an official cover sheet? What information (eg date, lecturer’s or teacher’s name, course number, etc) must you include? Should I double-space my lines? Should I put it in a folder or plastic sheet? What referencing style should I use? Check your writing This is the stage when you need to review, edit and proofread so you can improve the way you present your ideas. A good way to do it is to read your paper when it’s finished and then put it away for a couple of days. Read it again and answer these questions: †¢ †¢ †¢ Does it make sense? Is there a logical development of ideas? Do the sentences flow smoothly from one to another? If not, add some words to help connect them. Look at transition words you’ve used, such as therefore and however. If you’ve used the same transition words throughout your essay, check out some others you could use. Is your spelling, punctuation and grammar OK? Have you used the formatting requested by your lecturer or teacher? Have you used the referencing style expected by your lecturer or teacher? Have you checked your references list or bibliography to see that it is correctly formatted? †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Once you’ve checked your work, give it to someone else to read (preferably someone who isn’t familiar with your topic). Other people often pick up the simple mistakes or ‘typos’ such as writing and for an. When we read our own work, we often read what we think is there rather than what’s actually there. The final thing for you to do is to make sure you have another electronic copy as well as another printed copy just in case your essay goes astray. Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 8 These materials were produced by the RMIT Learning Skills Unit. For further information or comments please email judy. [email  protected] edu. au Learning Links Super Tips/writing an essay www. rmit. edu. au/lsu February 2005 9

Comparison between Manual Gear and Automatic Gear Research Paper

Comparison between Manual Gear and Automatic Gear - Research Paper Example Such a transmission is made up of a series of gears that are used to produce the rotational force needed to turn the wheels of the vehicle. The transmission unit of a car which is commonly called a gear box has gears which transfer power form the engine of the car to its wheels. The transmission has to be equipped with multiple gears in that the car operates on the proper gear in different situations. The gearboxes are of multiple types with the difference being the determinant factor of how a car will operate. There are two main types of gears; manual gear and automatic gears. Modern cars have been equipped with two major transmission options, namely; manual or automatic transmission. There exist a number of differences between these transmission types with regards to their components, how they operate, the advantages and disadvantages associated with them and their applications. This paper is going to look at the differences evident between automatic transmission and manual transmission. A manual gearbox type is a car transmission which permits the driver to choose gears as he or she wishes with the use of a stick shift. For the driver to select the desired gear, the clutch pedal has to be depressed making it unique to cars with manual transmission (Zheng W. Chung et al 2007). This move disengages the gearbox disconnecting it from the engine. Once the desired gear has been chosen through having the shifter moved to the correct position, the clutch is now free and can be released. This action reconnects the gearbox and the engine. Manual transmission can be classified into two types; the constant-mesh type and the sliding-gear design. In the sliding gear design, its main parts are the cluster and drive gear. On each gear is a dog clutch fitted with a hub, a shaft and an outer ring (Zheng W. Chung et al 2007). Synchronizers are also fitted to prevent clashing of the gears. The hub mainly splines the drive gears while

Brief History of Saudi Arabia and Malaysia Essay - 108

Brief History of Saudi Arabia and Malaysia - Essay Example Malaysia, whose capital city is Kuala Lumpur, is approximately 50 years old. It occupies the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia. Its port cities of Malay Archipelago have facilitated spice and silk trade for a long time. Malaysia is located at a trading junction. This position has for a long time, brought trade and foreign influences such as multiculturalism involving Hindu and Buddhist. It has a population of approximately 28 million citizens, with a monarchical form of government (Hooker 2).Given that since the ancient times, Malaysia has comfortably accommodated different cultures with business interest, ours will not be exceptional, and this can also be backed by the economic indicators to be discussed below. According to statistics of 2013 from global edge website by World Bank API, Saudi Arabia has an annual growth rate of 3.798%, which is a positive indicator of the economic performance within the country. The GDP per capital of Saudi Arabia as per 2013, according to World Bank API in global edge website is $53,780 as per the current international rates. This clearly shows that the population has the required purchasing power, hence a good hub for the business opportunity. The population of Saudi Arabia, as given by World Bank API of 2013, stands at 28,828,870 people. 82.702% of this population resides in the urban centers. This urban population represents the potential target market for our restaurant venture. In addition to this, the annual urban population growth rate is pegged at 2.144% as per World Bank API 2013. Looking at the consumer prices statistics of 2013 by World Bank, the inflation rate is pegged at 3.506%, indicating that ideally, consumers are in a position to afford a number of commodities. Similarly, import of goods and services statistics of 2013 reports a remarkable amount of $ 229,291,466,666.

Suicide Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Suicide - Assignment Example However, there are many scientifically acceptable means of addressing emotional tribulations without ending life. For example, counseling, strong familial relations, engaging in activities to eliminate thoughts of suicide are proven to work. In addition, egoists indicate that it is honorable for an individual to act in a manner that makes him happy rather than conform to the societal pressures. However, I believe that one’s happiness is dependent on persons around her. It is impossible to attain complete happiness in a solitary state. Consequently, an individual should consider the effect of his actions on close relations and friends. In the event that a person feels significant pain, that makes his life unbearable, doctors often show mercy by ending life. They often forget to engage in medically acceptable means of addressing pain such as induced coma. My position compares to virtue ethics because it motivates an individual to rise beyond individual and societal needs. It prompts them to focus on the ultimate goal that entails improved health and happiness in the society and entire world. Committing suicide creates an unwanted society that violates stipulated moral ideals. My position is better because it offers alternatives to suicide such as strong societal relations. It also intends to instill discipline and different attitude in the society to view suicide as an existing phenomenon that can be prevented. Yang, as I understand your argument, suicide is acceptable. It appears that your ideas conflict with virtue ethics. It is important that death is bad and evil based on research conducted. One can either choose to preserve the hurt and pain experienced in life or decide to commit suicide. In such a case, one decides to shape his destiny rather than rely on God. It is important that the argument mention the pain that one experiences in case of a medical issue. In such a case, it becomes difficult to foresee any possible solution. The personal example

Rhetorical Analysis Macroeconomic Policy and Diversity Conservation Research Paper

Rhetorical Analysis Macroeconomic Policy and Diversity Conservation - Research Paper Example The article may not be emotional in its tone due to the nature of the literature which is academic writing that follows the formal rules of writing, but the topic nevertheless touched on our concern about the environment. It appeals to our sense of responsibility that we have to do something to save our environment from degradation and to do that we should regulate the pollutants emitted by industry. The topic has emotional significance to the readers because the reader is aware how ruined our ecosphere is and how it contributes to global warming. Considering the source of the journal which is EBSCOhost, the article has the assurance of the integrity of its argument to be grounded on sound scientific study having been scrutinized by the stringent academic standard. This was evident with how the author argued on how to regulate the industry by using the government’s macroeconomic tools to regulate the emission of industrial pollutants from an economist point of view. The author wrote with authority to convey that she is an authority on the subject.Being an academic journal, the article posed its appeal to the readers using logic or logos. It reasoned that by taxing heavily industries which pollute, it could encourage business to be ecologically responsible. The variations of the government’s macroeconomic policy which are the fiscal and monetary tools were argued from the point of the reason how the author’s proposal is feasible in controlling industrial pollution.

Western Civ Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Western Civ - Essay Example However, this failed because the powers of the Europeans were limited. The New Imperialism occurred between the periods of 1870 to 1914. This followed the increasing interests of the industrialized European nations to venture more into other nations and colonize them. The New Imperialism majorly focused on Africa as well as Asia (Canterbury, 2010). During the period of New Imperialism, these two continents were faced with several political challenges involving decline in empires as well as wars. These left them so vulnerable thereby enabling the superior nations to colonize them. New Imperialism was caused by several reasons. These causes can be categorized into economic causes, social causes and political causes (Canterbury, 2010). Economically, there was need for the superior nations to access more natural resources and exploit them from such colonies. This meant that such countries with such resources had to be colonized in order for such countries to gain access to those resources. The other economic reason that led to New Imperialism is the need to create new markets for the goods from the colonizers (Canterbury, 2010). This aimed at expanding the market bases of the colonizers thereby contributing to strong economies back in their countries of origin. The colonies were to provide this market to the colonizers thereby informing the rise of New Imperialism. The New Imperialism also arose due to the need for the growing population in the superior countries to get places for settlement (Canterbury, 2010). The population pressure back in their countries of origin forced them to colonize other countries thereby expanding their territories. This follows that as a population increases, the place to accommodate such increases become limited. Therefore, there was need to expand the territories to accommodate the increase in population. The colonizers had massive and superior weapons that aided them in conquering the

My Account of Second Language Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

My Account of Second Language Learning - Essay Example The course I undertook at King Khalid University for four years was a specialization in English. Much of skills on both pronunciation and writing at this level were acquired due to the interaction with a lot of people from various parts of the world who communicated mostly in English. Similarly, I put my own effort and did personal studies. I got employed as an English teacher in a primary school in Al Jubail Industrial City. This was a good opportunity for growth from the basic level with the primary school children, most of whom depended on visual aids for understanding. This being an industrial city, many inhabitants came from different parts of the world and would interact with the students outside of school. English being a common language among most of them, learning English among these students was not a major challenge. After a year, I moved on to teach adults from varied technical faculties in a technical college. It is here that I got the opportunities to improve my teachin g skills through the regular training sessions organized by the institution. Through this process of learning, there are two factors that greatly influenced my personal outcome; these are motivation and my learning strategies. Learning of the second language varies from one individual to another (Slevc & Miyake, 2006). One of the factors that influenced my proficiency in learning English as a second language is my motivation since my experience with my Bangladeshi teacher who could converse only in English.... One of the factors that influenced my proficiency in learning English as a second language is my motivation since my experience with my Bangladeshi teacher who could converse only in English. According to Csizer and Dornyei (2005), motivation refers to the desire for achievement of an ideal language through reduction of the variation between the actual and the ideal states. It encompasses the subject that provokes action in a person, the period that such a person is willing to sustain it and the effort put towards its pursuance. This could be instigated by the desire to later attain some reward which pushes the learner towards the attainment of the anticipated reward. In my case, the desire was in reducing the gap between the actual incompetence in English language and the ideal state of being proficient in the language so as to communicate well with my teacher. There was a desire in me to excel academically through achievement of English proficiency which made me proceed to even spe cialising in the language at university level. Dornyei (2002) also points out that there is a reward that sustains motivation. Some of the rewards that second language teachers could use include encouragement and applause for achievement, which in general push the inner self of the learner towards attainment of the set goals. Having observed the close ties that Saudi Arabia had with the Western world, it was obvious that English would be an advantage to me when interacting with the people from those nations even in learning institutions. The Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia was introduced in 1942 and since then, English language has been taught among its citizens (Al Sadan, 2000). This language has been given a second priority after the

Infrastructures Of The Information Technology And Systems Research Paper

Infrastructures Of The Information Technology And Systems - Research Paper Example The studies at postgraduate level ought to be difficult and absorbing, especially when research methodologies and techniques are involved therein. They demand a systematic approach to be employed in order to overcome the complexities and difficulties of ‘adding’ something to human knowledge base. Such complexities and difficulties ought to come across and you have to exercise the tested skills and expertise to address these difficulties aptly and promptly. We were lucky to have these skills and expertise taught in the beginning of the course which helped a long way in our studies. The targeted content taught in the initial phase of the course proved quite useful in understanding and applying the different aspects of theoretical and perspective studying skills and various approaches that can be helpful in getting around the tricky parts of the course. The framework provided in this part was tailored to fit the course specific requirements. Other than the taught contents a host of online resources for organizing and managing the studies were introduced to further assist the learning process, theories and the perspectives. The best part of this short initial session was instilling a will to succeed and excel in the career of strategic business information technology. It is all the more important for any study that you are aware of the benefits attached to the set of expertise that the study targets and to know how this may help in the career-building process. building process. The better you know about the study objectives the better you can perform to achieve th ese objectives. The major skills that were induced at this initial phase include time management skills, presentation skills, skills related to listening and learning effectively, team and group management and

Quantitave methods informal in-depth interviewing Essay

Quantitave methods informal in-depth interviewing - Essay Example It should also be noted that there are different methodologies which are applicable in research methods. The issue of central interest in any matter is always to find a better solution than the existing one; this means that there are some issues that emerge as new in the society and therefore no information exists about them while on the other hand, better approaches are also being studied about issues that are already exist. In other words, the core reference point in any research study is the literature review. Research can either be from primary sources or secondary ones. Primary source research is obtained from initial findings from an original work while secondary are obtained from published materials. Research has never been perfectly done by man due to many challenges and this means that any research work assumed done perfectly still bears some information gap. It should be noted that these issues that have not been captured by past research studies may be vital in providing a lasting solution. Various concepts of research have always been under use but their effectiveness varies from one use to another. The Qualitative Interview Design is the latest research concept which is gaining weight especially in the business world. Informal interviews are a concept of qualitative research. It accords the same opportunity to acquire information just like in any other research method. Its applicability comes even in business management. In normal business operations, the daily occurrences that characterize business operations entail gathering and collecting data. This data is usually relevant in determining the fate of a business in terms of market survey and related factors. Consequently, it is always important to have concise information on the targeted market on what needs to be done in order to succeed in a particular market. Such is a predicament that would warrant carrying out of research. In view of this, informal interview would provide a relatively easier way of evaluating the market before making any business decision. In-depth interview entails asking of questions, listening to the answers and recording them. The researcher can also pose additional questions to clarify or expand on particular issues. In most cases the questions are open ended and this is meant to explore the ideas of the respondents without restriction since this is likely to give a true picture and their real perceptions. This concept is aimed at understanding the clear view of the beneficiaries of a program, there judgement and terminologies. The extent by which the three approaches in in-depth interviewing differ is basically dependent on standardization of the questions and how they are determined. These methods are semi-structured interview, the informal conversational interview and the standardized open-ended interview. Each of these approaches has different instrumentation requirements and preparation besides serving different purposes. Qualitative research design requires in-depth experience with methodology and one of its most important components is the concept of informal interview. Qualitative Interview Design is one of the sources of research in academics where the interviews provide wide information base pertaining to a participant's first hand experience and viewpoints on a specific topic of study. This research methods concept makes the best literature review base since the qualitative interviews provid

Students with Exceptional needs Essay Example for Free

Students with Exceptional needs Essay I observed a student with delayed developmental milestones in One Tree School. The student has very slow catching up capacity and according to her teacher she is left behind most of the time by the class. Her teacher ensures that before presenting lectures in class, he make a simplified copy of lecture notes which is given to the student. The teacher assures me that the teaching standards offered to the class are understandable to the student with delayed developmental milestone. In addition the student is given tape recorded material to assist her in re-evaluating the lectures after classes. The class environment is very favourable for this student because there are other three students with exceptional needs in the same class room. The school administration has established policies which ensure that all students with exceptional needs are served well and accorded quality standardized education. Other students in the classroom, who have no exceptional needs have been advised on how to handle, cope with, and assist this student to increase her understanding abilities. I asked to read the child’s Individual Education Plan (IEP) and her teacher was very cooperative. The IEP of this student has been well designed based on her disability and knowledge capacity. It has included all the knowledge and skills which the students need in order to progress to the next grade. The IEP of this student has specifically included her educational program which is English language arts program. The IEP analyzes her current performance in class based on the examination and test results given by teachers, parents and other school staff. According to the individual education plan her disability has not affected her class work much because she is a bright student who is willing to learn. The IEP shows the annual goals and objectives which she is required to accomplish in terms of academic or behavioral needs. She has made measuring progress in her previous grades according to the achieved objectives. All special education services are included in the IEP and provided to the child. However, she is not allowed to participate in academic contests which involve arithmetic and geometry studies. She picks up very slowly both academically and socially. She has difficulty catching up with teachers in class especially when the presentation is very fast. She has a problem in finishing her class work assignments on time due to a slow speed of understanding. The student experiences difficulty in socializing and making friends with classmates and schoolmates. She spends most time in isolation and has developed low self esteem and lack of confidence. Teachers and the girl’s parents have collaborated to initiate measures which ensure the student’s needs are met. The girl is given extra tutoring after school and assessed using individual tests to update her academic level. Support groups are put up in place in the school to assist her in developing social and interpersonal skills. I would change the instructional delivery system by ensuring that the child is allowed to participate in challenging events such as geometry contests and taking arithmetic assignments to improve her overall understanding level. This will increase her self esteem and level of confidence. It will allow her to adapt in any kind of environment, despite her delayed developmental milestones. The student should be widely consulted and assessed to create instructions that will be effective in providing all required knowledge and skills. Grade Four English-language Arts Content Standards. Reading 1. 0 Word Analysis, Fluency, and Systematic Vocabulary Development Students understand the basic features of reading. They select letter patterns and know how to translate them into spoken language by using phonics, syllabication, and word parts. They apply this knowledge to achieve fluent oral and silent reading. Word Recognition 1. 1 Read narrative and expository text aloud with grade-appropriate fluency and accuracy and with appropriate pacing, intonation, and expression. Vocabulary and Concept Development 1. 2 Apply knowledge of word origins, derivations, synonyms, antonyms, and idioms to determine the meaning of words and phrases. 1. 3 Use knowledge of root words to determine the meaning of unknown words within a passage. 1. 4 Know common roots and affixes derived from Greek and Latin and use this knowledge to analyze the meaning of complex words (e. g. , international). 1. 5 Use a thesaurus to determine related words and concepts. 1. 6 Distinguish and interpret words with multiple meanings.

Issues faced in BHP billiton and infosys

Issues faced in BHP billiton and infosys BHP Billiton and Infosys, though both successful in their own right, have emerged from different industrial sectors, and hugely contrasting geopolitical environments. BHP Billiton is the worlds largest mining organisation, and was formed in 2001 by the merging of the Australian Broken Hill Proprietary Company, and Billiton of the UK. The companys primary interests are in Iron ore, Manganese, Petroleum, Aluminium, Base Metals, Metallurgical Coal, Thermal Coal, Stainless Steel resources, and Diamonds/Speciality materials. BHP Billitons scale and diversity appear to have cushioned it from the worst ravages of the contemporary economic downturn, although, as will be discussed, this has not necessarily helped all of its employees and stakeholders. Unconcerned by such vagaries, Chief Executive Officer Marius Kloppers has recently judged that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Commercial market mechanism will ensure that developing nations raw material demand is met, that suppliers obtain sufficient investment to meet demand and that new deposits of raw materials are discovered. (Smith BHP chief 2009) However, as other reports concede, BHP expects the majority of this demand to come from developed, rather than developing economies. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Despite the low metals inventories in developed economies, there is little evidence yet of sustainable demand for metals emerging post the northern [hemisphere] summer. (MacNamara 2009) 2009 has seen mining profits depressed by the fall in commodities prices: however, BHP has confoun ded this trend by paying a final dividend which matched its interim payment, i.e. 41 cents. As MacNamara points out, BHP has been à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦one of the more successful players in the sector, bigger and better able to handle difficult market conditions than rivals such as Anglo American and Xstrata, which have suspended their dividends until further notice. (2009) Uniquely amongst British mining concerns, BHP has the advantage of a petroleum division, which is now its third most profitable business. (MacNamara glass 2009) During 2009, BHP also abandoned plans to create a joint marketing company with Rio Tinto, which was to sell up to 15 per cent of Western Australian iron ore production. (Smith BHP Rio 2009) Infosys is another company which has made comparatively good progress during the economic downturn, and claims to have emerged from it already. Infosys is Indias second largest software services exporter, reporting a 17 per cent rise in first-quarter profits during 2009. Its UK clients include the UKs Waitrose supermarket chain and many leading international banks. Its business has now developed to the point where it is a viable competitor to long established IT providers, such as IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and Accenture (Fontonella-Khan 2009). Along with other Indian-based outsourcers, such as Wipro, Genpact, and Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys has a macro-economic significance far beyond its own industrial sector, having helped power the Indian economy to 9 per cent growth prior to the 2008-9 financial crisis. (Lamont 2009) London School of Economics analysts attribute this partly to the status of English as an official language in India, making the industrys services highly scaleabl e in western markets, and constituting a competitive advantage over new entrants such as China. As Ilan Oshri of the LSE Outsourcing Unit observes, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦India is not a powerhouse because it is cheap but because it is smart. Thats not the same with Chinaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦We dont see Chinese vendors emerging to be powerhousesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦China is much cheaper than India. But the game is not about cost, its about accessing talentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.(Lamont 2009). Section 1: Similarities and Differences. Mitchell et al. identify three possible themes within stakeholder saliency: power, legitimacy, and urgency. (1997: p.853) Both of the companies in question have extended stakeholder chains, but they are rather different in character. It is this contrast which has determined the behaviour of each: altered in one case, unaltered in the other. Of the two, the company which has moved most swiftly to change and signal that change is Infosys, a series of events which may be interpreted according Mitchell et al.s saliency model. Infosys power is intrinsically linked to its legitimacy, and this in turn rests squarely on its relationship with important stakeholders. In the first instance, the companys fortunes are interdependent with the Indian government in its role as an economic facilitator and arbiter of structured growth: significant investor cooperation is contingent upon this relationship. If the emerging Indian economy wavers, the latter will worry about the skills base, infrastruct ure, and political stability which is necessary to grow Infosys shareholder value. Moreover, in a globalised economy, influence of investors upon customer attitudes cannot be underestimated. Infosys is an exemplar business to business operator, so its corporate responsibility profile impacts directly on that of its corporate customers. For example, Waitrose of the UK, which markets itself as a profit-sharing, employee friendly, ethical retailer, could not maintain its own CSR status whilst in cooperation with a pariah multinational. Infosys, therefore, must avoid such status at all costs. Things are different for BHP Billiton, whose corporate responsibility effort, as will be discussed, rests on engagement rather than action. The most striking recent fact pertaining to BHP Billitons social responsibility profile is its dismissal of six thousand employees and contractors in 2009 alone. (Smith axe 2009). However, for complex reasons, its stakeholder profile can accommodate such crises relatively comfortably. Section 2: Responsible business approach, has it increased/decreased, and why? As it is the worlds principal extractive company, it is not surprising that the areas of contention surrounding BHP Billitons operations span the environment, ecosystem, climate change, human resources, community disruption, land rights, political lobbying, and financial malpractice, to name but a few. It is far beyond the scope of this discussion to engage meaningfully with the empirical circumstances of all of these issues and concerns. It may be argued however, that its strategy is one of maximum engagement, and minimum change, a dynamic whose provenance lays in the nature of its stakeholder networks. The important point here is that BHP Billitons is not a unique position. As Brewster reports, an ever higher proportion of blue-chip organisations are joining the ranks of those who publish regular CSR reports. (2007). However, the only thing which this signals in absolute positivist terms is the willingness to open a dialogue with concerned stakeholder groups. At the same time, it can usefully reassure less concerned stakeholders i.e., conventional or unethical investors that the corporate responsibility issue is being fielded in an acceptable way. This is not to say that such reports merely convey a facile dialogue of inaction: however, as will be discussed, they do define and confine responsibility within certain manageable parameters. It may be argued that Infosys has adopted the same kind of logic in its corporate social responsibility effort: its 2008-9 report states that We understand the implications our business has on the economy, environment and society. We also recognise that there is much to learn and engage with our stakeholders to improve our performance in all areas. (Infosys 2009) It goes on to remind the reader that its board members participate in advisory councils, governments and not-for profit organisations à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦to formulateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦policies on topics such as corporate governance, healthcare, education, climate change, and other key sustainability areas. (Infosys 2009: p.9) The over-arching message is clearly that Infosys is representing itself as a learning organisation, in the defined sense of that term. As Lane et al. point out, each organisation, whether formally constituted or otherwise possesses its own learning culture, subsumed within compatible norms and values, operatio nal priorities, or dominant logics. (2001: p.1143). Of the two organisations however, Infosys has exhibited by far the greatest degree of change in its behaviour. Along with Tata Consulting Services and Wipro, are at the centre of a controversy concerning the importing of non-EU IT workers into the UK: Infosys has itself brought in 3,030 of these employees. The transfer route is, as a consequence, being tightened by the UK Home Office, with the result that temporary workers will no longer have any rights of settlement: in addition, employees will have to have been with a company for a minimum of one year, before transferring to the UK branch (Boxell 2009). However, as both companies as the government are aware, such transfers are sometimes the only means by which specific human resources shortages may be addressed: as Phil Woolas, the immigration minister, concedes, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.Intra-company transfers are an important part of making the UK an attractive place in which to do business, and therefore keep industry and the economy mov ing. (Boxell 2009). The point here is that Infosys extended stakeholder chain implies pressures which must be balanced out through this, and other, important structural issues. It cannot afford to be less competitive than its rivals in terms of corporate responsibility, or it will simply lose business. Conversely, BHP Billiton will not. Its stakeholder chain is wider, more diffuse, and far less responsibility-dependent: in short, the world knows what kind of organization it is, and it grows no poorer. Section 3: Contrasting Viewpoints. There are various theoretical frameworks which might be employed to assess the relative corporate responsibility efforts of BHP Billiton and Infosys, despite their intrinsic differences. These range from the extreme Kantian ethical position, which argues that a corporation can have no duty other than to shareholder, or the virtue or Confucian ethical position, which argues that innately good practice will eventually ensure rewards. Two modified positions which might allow a more measured assessment are Tinged Shareholder theory, as posited by Moore and others, and utilitarian ethics. As Moore has argued if tinged shareholder theory were to become a normative model , there would be a greater concentration on the ideal type virtues required of a good manager, and a good organisation. Consequently, a focus on the area of virtue ethics might prove central to the visualising of a corporate responsibility ideal (Moore 1999: p.126). Meanwhile utilitarian ethics arguably provides a useful pe rspective because of its outcome-focused, bottom-line orientated assessment of events. As Fisher and Lovell point out, utilitarianism, combined with cost-benefit analysis, tends to focus on a good rather than the general good, and is therefore very valuable to organisations who wish to manage corporate responsibility, rather than be managed by it. Infosys has indicated a heightened awareness of its stakeholder responsibilities and potential vulnerability by hastily re-constructing its corporate governance image in the aftermath of recent problems. Principal amongst these has been the financial scandal at Satyam Computer Services, its main rival in the software outsourcing sector. As the Financial Times reports, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦B. Ramalinga Raju, the former chairman of Satyam who is now in police custody, undermined confidence in the sector when he confessed to manipulating the companys accounts last week, including by inventing a cash pile worth more than $1bnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦'(Leahy reassures 13.1.2009). Acutely sensitized to the negative fall-out from this, Infosys CEO S. Gopalakrishnan has reportedly judged that the entire IT outsourcing sector needs heightened transparency, adding that he himself had been receiving increasing requests for fiduciary details from clients and investors. As he put it, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The reason we need to take some confidence measures at this point is that some queries have come in from customersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ If you look at our disclosures, we have listed every single bank account and the amount of money we have in the bank so if investors are interested they can check and call the banksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. (Leahy reassures 2009). The important point here is that Infosys is attempting to avoid a utilitarian, outcome-orientated model of stakeholder analysis, by adopting a position informed by virtue ethics. It has not been accused of any wrong-doing yet and is attempting to avoid that contingency by exhibiting transparently good behaviour. It has sound business reasons for doing so: as western companies reconstruct themselves following the recent economic downturn, they are downsizing by outsourcing, and Infosys is well placed to capture such business, if it is untainted by corporate responsibility problems. As Chief Executive Officer, S. Gopalakrishnan explains, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦You want to be cautious because its not completely out of the woods but we clearly see some growthà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Leahy 2009) Like that of many similar Indian companies, the stability and expansion of Infosys is contingent upon the expansion of outsourcing from client companies in the developed world. Infosys itself added a further 35 companies to its client portfolio in the second quarter of 2009. These combined factors have resulted in the addition of 1,548 new employees in the same period, bringing the total on its books to 105,500. As well as reassuring its direct stakeholders, Infosys has also proved itself attentive to the needs of the wider social and political constituency. One example of this lays in the denouement of the Tata Nano car plant dispute, in which protesters alleged that the rights of farmers had been usurped in order to facilitate the development in West Bengal. Orchestrated by Indias principal opposition party the Trinamool Congress, the movement physically besieged the Singur site, drawing down foreign media attention and threatening to dampen foreign investment. CEO S Gopalakrishnan was initially à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦impressed with the efforts of the state government in attracting such investments: however, he now concedes that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.Singur has created fear in the minds of India Inc and like all other companies we are watching the developments very closely We will rethink and re-examine our proposed investment if need be.. The bottom line is that Infosys may not proceed with its own Wes t Bengal development plans if the situation is not resolved (Leahy nervous 2009). BHP Billitons needs in terms of communication and responsibility are quite different, and it has arguably opted for a utilitarian, relativist interpretation of good. This approach allows it relative freedom to pursue its vast portfolio of extractive activities in way which might be more difficult if it took a more obstructive stance. In its detailed deposition on BHP Billiton, the Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility reported that it felt, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦in general, with a few exceptions outlined below, the company has developed a relatively advanced set of policies, which give consideration to many of the issues that our partners have raised in the Bench Marks document. (ECCR 2004: p.7) Moreover, an important part of its dialogue with ethical regulators such as the ECCR lays not in the discussion of specific or practical acts of corporate responsibility, but the demonstration of stakeholder awareness in the abstract. As it explains, The company provides regular reports to all stakeholders that are independently verified on a plan detailing how the company and the suppliers have shared responsibility for complianceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦adopts a transparent policy and reports publicly to all stakeholders on its compliance programme, the findings, and what changes have been made at the factory level. (ECCR 2004: p.63). This is central to BHPs entire CSR strategy: monitoring bodies are left facing a multi-headed hydra of good, bad, or indifferent practice across the companys vast array of activities and geographical reach. As one area of neglect arises, another is dealt with, a process through which the dialogue of engagement and improvement is maintained. The other constant is shareholder value: as the regulators succeed in limiting less equitable practices in one area, less ethical investors may take comfort from the fact that more profitable centres elsewhere retain their potential for dividends. As Moore points out, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦it is a common feature of theories of the firm that they regard the firm as a nexus of contracts. Theà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦theories differ as to the extent of these relationships, with shareholder theory restricting this to legal and implied contracts, while stakeholder theory takes a broader definition to include social/moral as well as legal and implied contracts. (Moore 1999: p.122) The point here is that the utilitarian approach adopted by BHP Billiton has, for the time being, balanced these two forces. Conclusion A common theme in the fortunes of these two different companies lays in their successful emergence from a difficult economic period. BHP has recently asserted that there are à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦signs of stabilization in the developed economies, with positive signs of improvement in industrial production. (MacNamara 2009) Moreover, BHP will soon be free to refresh its takeover bid for Rio Tinto, under the terms of the UK takeover code. (Smith BHP and Rio 2009) BHP also told shareholders that market conditions had improved since it held its annual meeting in London. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The velocity of the recoveryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦has indeed been surprisingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ CEO Kloppers said, whilst cautioning that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦BHP was expected to emerge from the downturn less strongly than in previous cycles. (Smith 2009). This may be interpreted as a restraining hand upon corporate responsibility: things are OK, but dont interfere. Meanwhile, Infosys has also benefited from its more public, virtu e-driven responsibility stance. Research by the London School of Economics indicates that western executives in western companies opted for outsourcing à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦on quality of service more than price. It also pointed out that Egypt, Hungary and Romania were most likely to join the shared service centre sector as key players in the near future (Lamont 2009). Infosys has of course already laid the foundations for such diversification, stating that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦As we grow further, we have to make sure our workforce reflects the regions from where we derive revenue to whatever extent possibleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Leahy 2006). In conclusion, it seems reasonable to argue that corporate responsibility and stakeholder concerns are at their most harmonious -for better or worse when the hegemony of liberal economics prevails. As Collier points out, In the modern world of globalisation there are some fabulous ladders: most societies are using them. But there are also some chutesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (2007: p.5) If classical economics is afforded hegemony, then any expectation which does not implicitly recognise that snakes can swiftly become ladders -and vice versa  ­- is inherently flawed. The collection of papers on globalisation edited by Timmons Roberts and Bellone incorporates commentary by some rather older commentators, who observed that, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the bourgeosie cannot exist without constantly revolutionising the instruments of production, and thereby the relations of production, and with them the whole relations of society. (Timmons Roberts and Bellone, 2007: p.27) As unfashionable as they may be, Mar x and Engels may have distilled an essential truth here, regardless of the fact that they did so through observation of an earlier period of structural economic change. The unavoidable function of companies, including Infosys and BHP Billiton, is to serve shareholder value. When they cease to do so, they will also cede their position to other who will.

Raising Awareness for Health Equality

Raising Awareness for Health Equality The District health unit and Sudbury SDHU has established numerous plans/ initiative to enlighten and raise alertness towards health equality. The video Lets Start a Conversation about Health†¦ and Not Talk about Health Care at All. This video diverts attention from what society perceives health care problems are- doctor scarcity, hospital wait times, nurse scarcity, health care expenses/ cost- and prominences a new point of view. Awareness is drawn towards public health, fostering healthy demeanors, sustaining healthy environment and advocating for approaches to make health choice a simple one (Health Equality, n.d). In general the aim is to emphasize on equity and health prevention and this is achieved using analysis from the collective determinants of health indicated in the video and also from text book Countless findings check listed in the video aligns with textbook. There are numerous health issues that our community is accosted with like: diabetes, cancer, asthma, heart disease, obesity and many more, countless of us are in poor health (Health Equality, n.d). We are   educated that if we maintain healthy diet, a dynamic lifestyle, stop smoking as well as decrease excess drinking-we can stop ourselves from getting sick ( Health Equality, n.d ). There are many other elements that cause ill health that we mostly do not consider. There is a strong connection between an individuals socioeconomic status and their health. Recent statistics reveal the higher your income levels the less you will get ill and the video does a substantial job in bringing that view forward. When you receive less income you are usually more stressed.   Stressed about accommodation payment, family needs, transport, food and the checklist can go on. Stress is one of the principal cause of sickness. On an individual level there are numerous forces that influence ones health- activity, family, food, health care access, coping etc. health is the outcome of the lifestyle choice we make, the residence we can afford   and the social aggravation we face. These elements are internally connected to the education we acquire, our gross pay, and employment we hold and our perception of community. And these elements are also impacted by external elements such as culture, public strategies, and economy (Health Equality, n.d). This is connected to what we have been taught in class.   The video does a great job in communicating these health problems but they fail to be comprehensive with each factor stated. The video examines health income through a materialists view. This is the viewpoint that stress that social determinants of healths end results and how they are involved with social living conditions. The video does not indicate anything about the social comparison theories that are in the textbook. This is where   persons contrast their living condition to others   and if they sense they are wanting in any way they   encounter levels of stress, envy that impact their health ( Raphael .D, n.d ) . The video indicates that the preferable your socioeconomic status the healthier you are and this is accurate. However, there are also conditions where individual have everything at their disposal to be healthy and earn a good income yet have poor health. This can be induced by poor lifestyles choices, genetics but can be linked with the social collation theories. In the situation of Nadia from the video she was deeply suffering from asthma and got taken to the E.R again, she got taken to the E.R as a result of her smoking again, she began smoking again because she was stressed out about her accommodation molding, and she cant manage to fix it because the company she is working for made some cutbacks and she was affected. Nadia is not educated enough to do anything else. This is a chain response. The ending in the video concerning what Nadia would require for her health were that she requires low-cost housing and food, the power to make healthy   choices and efficient   coping skills. The video additionally explains how she would require healthy lifestyle modifications, education to get a better employment, enough money for clothing and food, good work benefits and a secure community with good family and friends. Also, what the video did not mention that is in the textbook regarding Nadias case is that she could encounter race, gender and ethnicity inequalities. Perhaps even with the good education she got, she may not be able to have immense income because of income inequalities as a result of ethnicity and race. Which will be a worse situation because she will have to repay her educational loan and take her maintenance expenses from that income (Raphael.D, n.d). Or maybe examine this through another point of view and view the negative style in workplaces at the moment. The individuals making the higher incomes tend to overwork themselves, prompting stress as well and even if Nadia acquires a good education and better paying job she too might get overburdened and overstrained by the task responsibility (Raphael.D, n.d). The average person watching the video would get it because the video does an excellent job in looking at the bigger idea of public policy issue. However, they would ignore that a video under the health equality resources do not mention   anything regarding race, income and ethnic inequality neither does it cover individuals with high incomes overworking themselves   causing elevated stress level as well. The information the video presents is concise and to the aim thus causing audience to feel like no information is lacking from the truth presented.

Rituals in Everyman and Endgame :: Comparison

Comparing Rituals in Everyman and Endgame "Why do you do that?" "Do what?" "Make the symbol of the cross--you must be Catholic--I see them doing that all of the time." I was eager to know what my friend's response would be. "Yeah," she replied, "I am. It's holy, respect for Jesus and Mary. Sometimes we have to do it as penance after confession." Inquisitively I asked, "I don't get it. So you perform this ritual for different reasons? What are you trying to accomplish when you do it, get into Heaven or just avoid going to Hell? Or could it be that it's just to do the same thing Catholics have always done?" Rituals, no matter how major or minor they seem, can be found almost everywhere. Some are of a religious context, and some are not. Some are performed for specific reasons, and some are performed simply to avoid change. The presence of rituals and their importance are very evident in the plays Everyman, written by an anonymous writer, and Endgame, written by Samuel Beckett. Everyman tries to prepare for death and attain his ultimate goal of gaining entrance into heaven by changing his life through the ritualized acts of scourging himself and performing the seven blessed sacraments. In Endgame, Clov ritualistically looks out of the window to make sure that nothing has changed and that death, or anything else that may disrupt the character's repetitive cycle of life, is not on the "horizon." Hamm also resists change and attempts to avoid death by having Clov continually make sure that his chair is in the proper location so that death cannot find him in the wrong place and sneak up on h im. The rituals are very different, and the major contrast between those performed is that Everyman realizes that the coming of death is inevitable and he wants to do whatever necessary to prepare for it, but the characters in Endgame fear death, and rather than prepare for it, try to avoid it by resisting any change to their daily routines. Everyman does not resist death and even prepares for it by performing the religious rituals of the seven blessed sacraments and scourging himself. Through the performance of rituals Everyman is trying to attain the ultimate goal of reaching Heaven. He finds that the only character that will accompany him on his journey is Good Deeds, but she is weak. This represents the idea that he has not done enough good during his life and must now do something to change.

A Formalistic Analysis of The Fatal Sisters Essay -- The Fatal Sisters

A Formalistic Analysis of The Fatal Sisters  Ã‚      In â€Å"The Fatal Sisters† Thomas Gray has created a monologue pregnant with references to history, geography, and mythology. These reappearing references and allusions enrich the text, as they allow a closer look at the political situation surrounding eleventh century Britain.   The poems’ sixteen stanzas exhibit an ABAB rhyme scheme, which provides for systematic organization and positive aesthetic effects.   Closer examination of the setting, tone, and imagery of the poem permits insight into the text’s content and artistic genius. The setting for â€Å"The Fatal Sisters† is an eleventh century, war-ridden Ireland.   The nation’s fate appears to rest upon the shoulders of a few bloodthirsty monarchs who are entangled in a never-ending conflict.   Their massive armies wage battle after battle and therefore tint Britain’s outlook upon society and its future.   It is at such a troublesome time that twelve mysterious women are observed to â€Å"weave the web of war† and in such a way create the future of their nation.   This very day is ironically...

Undoing Stereotypes in the Movie, Dances With Wolves Essay examples --

Undoing Stereotypes in the Movie, Dances With Wolves Hollywood has helped create and perpetuate many different stereotypical images of the different races in the world. Those stereotypes still continue to affect the way we think about each other today and many of those stereotypes have been proven to be historically inaccurate. The movie Dances With Wolves, directed by actor Kevin Costner, does an excellent job in attempting to promote a greater acceptance, understanding, and sympathy towards Native American culture, instead of supporting the typical stereotype of Native Americans being nothing but brutal, blood thirsty savages. The film Dances With Wolves focuses mainly on one man named Jon Dunbar and his growing relationship with the Lakota Sioux Indian tribe. The Lakota Sioux Indian tribe migrated in the 1700's to different areas in South Dakota. For over one hundred and sixty years, the Lakota tribe held a massive piece of land in the plains to support their numerous herds of bison, which they also hunted in order to survive. They lived in the typical teepees and were exceptional horsemen, hunters, and warriors. They culture contained no written language and their heritage was trusted upon storytellers and drawings made on the bison hides. One bison hide could represent over fifty years of Lakota history. The film, Dances With Wolves, was very cleverly written in my opinion. For most of the introduction, before John Dunbar begins to get friendly with the Sioux Indians, you are given an emotional expression of hatred and dislike towards the Native American Indians as they are slowly introduced into the script. There were a few scenes of brutality and savagery that triggered these emotions. For example, there was a... ...ed along with many soldiers of the U.S. 7th cavalry at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, on December 29, 1890. As the years went on, many of the Indian tribes began to die away due to the lack of food, and the harsh winter conditions. I believe that Dances With Wolves did an excellent job of undoing the stereotypes that have been given to the Indians. Through this movie we realize that they did what they had to do in order to survive and provide for their family. They did what any other person would have done if they were put into the same situations. This movie did help us to understand, accept, and sympathize with the Indians. I hope that we as a people truly learn to observe a culture or a race before they actually start to criticize or stamp stereotypes on them. Works Cited: www.cabrillo.com.cc.ca.us www.wsws.org/arts/1998/jun1998/afi-j18.shtml      

Character of Iago

Shakespeare employs a variety of language, dramatic and theatrical techniques in shaping my understanding of the rather enigmatic yet definitely Machiavellian, character of Iago. Shakespeare reveals him to be a cunning and conniving exploiter and manipulator of other characters who become caught in his web of lies, deceit and evil schemes. Iago is forever the cold, calculating pragmatist who is cynical about anything associated with goodness, such as love, virtue, reputation and honour. Iago constantly plays the role of ‘honest Iago’, which is shown by Shakespeare’s constant dramatically ironic use of this phrase over twenty-three times. All characters have no hesitation in trusting every word Iago says, and taking everything he tells them to be true. The duplicitous nature of Iago is shown in conjunction with the symbolism of the Roman God, â€Å"By Janus†. Janus is a two faced God, who perfectly represents the nature of Iago, the two sides, one he only displays to the public and Roderigo and one only displayed to everyone else. This nature is further emphasised by Iago through his dialogue, â€Å"I am not what I am†. Similar to this includes the dialogue, â€Å"I serve him to serve my turn upon him†. The honesty that the other characters believe Iago has, allows him to adapt the personality of cunning, conniving manipulator of people, allowing him to exploit their emotions for his personal uses. He achieves his aims under the pretence of acting to help individuals but really he is egotistical and serves only for himself. He plays on Othello’s â€Å"free and open† nature, on his mission to prove Desdemona’s infidelity and create the metaphor of the â€Å"green-eyed monster†, which both Othello and Iago will nurture. Iago’s also gives Cassio â€Å"free and honest† advice about asking Desdemona for his position back after his fall from grace, showing again the dramatic irony Shakespeare portrays. Iago also continues to assure Desdemona that Othello’s sudden change in mood has nothing to do with Desdemona herself, but instead to do with state business. This further serves him in his plan for Othello’s downfall. Poison imagery by Shakespeare refers to the poisonous effect of words that Iago has caused seen in â€Å"The Moor already change with my poison†. The Machiavellian villain of Iago is constantly portrayed through the symbolism of hell or Satan throughout the play. â€Å"Hell and night/Must bring this monstrous birth to the world’s light†. While this shows Shakespeare’s symbolism of white being equivalent to good and dark to evil, it also references the fact that only Iago can bring about this action, or so he believes, and show the world of a crueller Othello. In the intertextual temptation scene, to that of the Garden of Eden, Iago is playing the traitorous and evil snake convincing Othello to do something which he would have never though of before. For Iago women are simply a means to an end. They are only needed to fulfil men’s sexual appetites and serve the various needs of men. He believes that women are not as intellectual as men and hence their opinion should not be valued nor asked for. It is of Iago’s opinion that emotions can leave one weak and rash decisions come about from those who think with their hearts rather than their heads shown in this dialogue, â€Å"If the balance of our lives had not one scale of reason to poise another of sensuality, the blood and baseness of our natures would conduct us to most preposterous conclusions†. Any man that becomes corrupted by their feelings or the heart in a fool, hence Iago does not believe in love of another person. He does however believe in self-love, that is to say Iago is the epitome of selfishness. Iago is unable to love another male or female, as a friend or lover. He describes the act of lovemaking with continuous reference to distasteful and crude animal images such as â€Å"Goats and Monkeys† or â€Å"Black ram† and â€Å"White Ewes†. Iago also employs the use of the symbolism of sexual ‘appetites’, suggesting that just like food they are something that needs to be regular or often. As seen with Emilia’s dialogue â€Å"They eat us hungrily and when they are full/ they belch us† The racist Iago is also obvious throughout Othello. He feels resentment and hatred towards Othello because, not only is Othello a general or commander of the Venetian Navy, he has managed to win such a prize as the lovely Desdemona. This is shown through Iago’s dialogue and comparison of Othello to a â€Å"Black ram†, â€Å"Barbary horse† or having â€Å"Thick lips†. He also constantly refers to Othello as â€Å"The Moor†. While this may not have been considered racist at the time, Iago does it in such a way that he wishes to alienate Othello from white society. He rarely says the name Othello, and if he does he mentions it with venom and anger towards him. Finally in the last scenes the real Iago is revealed. Through dramatic irony in Emilia’s dialogue, Shakespeare shows how the other characters innocence in regard to the man who has convinced Othello to believe such horrible tales, â€Å"I will be hang’d if some eternal villain/Some busy and insinuating rogue/Some cogging, cozening slave to get some office/Have not devis’d this slander. I’ll be hang’d else†. It appears that â€Å"honest Iago† no longer exists but instead has been transformed into a â€Å"villainous knave†. As the situation worsens and the culprit is identified the insults develop into â€Å"demi-devil†, â€Å"damned slave†, â€Å"Spartan dog† and â€Å"notorious villain†. All these terms are juxtaposed to the constant positive emotive terms that have been used to describe Iago throughout the rest of the play. Throughout Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello, we see the cunning and manipulative character that is Iago. Each scene, through Shakespeare’s use of theatrical, language and dramatic techniques, as more of Iago’s cunning plan s revealed, more evil within Iago is exposed and left goodness or virtue within him. Even in Iago’s final lines he offers no remorse but only self-satisfaction for the deed he has caused.

Literature and Life

The magic of reading is that it brings you to another place and feeling. At times it can make you smile with character, and other times make you cry with him. Sometimes it may even allow the reader to identify with the characters. Reality can often be a lot like a piece of literature, in that a person may be going through the exact same thing, or something similar, and be feeling the same way. It is effortless to view the tough and unspoken racism demonstrated in Nadine Gordimer’s â€Å"Country Lovers† as well as how the girl feels in Patricia Smith’s What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl (For Those of You Who Aren’t).In both readings you get a sense of the hardship the characters faced because of racism, the things that people may do or allow to happen because it is so hard. Racism is something that we see, hear about, and maybe even experience in our everyday lives. It may be something that we do not speak about, just like in the short story â€Å"Co untry Lovers. â€Å" The main characters Paul us and Thebedi were raised together since they were kids, Paulus was a white boy and Thebedi, a black girl. They played together and spent most of their childhood days with one another.As time goes by and they begin to grow up and the distance between the two also grow apart. However, the bond created between them as children is still there. Both Paulus’ and Thebedi’s parents never forbad them from seeing each other but there was always this unspoken knowledge that they knew it was wrong because they always seemed to be hiding the fact that they did spend time together. An example of this would be when Paulus came home from school and brought Thebedi a gift â€Å"She told her father the missus had given them to her as a reward for some works she had done-it was true she sometimes was called to help out in the farmhouse.She told the girls in the kraal that she had a sweetheart nobody knew about† (Clugston, 2010). Bot h Paulus and Thebedi know that it is not okay to hold on to the relationship they had as kids. But they cannot help the feelings that have grown for each other over the years. â€Å"The schoolgirls he went swimming with at dams or pools on neighboring farms wore bikinis but the sight of their dazzling bellies and thighs in the sunlight had never made him feel what he felt now when the girl came up the bank and sat beside him, the drops of water beading off her dark legs the only points of life in the earth-smelling deep shade.They were not afraid of one other; they had known one other always† (Clugston, 2010). They had strong feelings for one another and consummated them by having sexual relations. This went on for a while, and eventually Thebedi became pregnant. At this point her hand was asked for in marriage by Njabulo, since they had already had sexual relations her now husband did not question her being pregnant. â€Å"The infant was very light and did not quickly grow dark as most African babies do. Already at birth, there was on its head a quantity of straight, fine floss† (Clugston, 2010).When Paulus found out that Thebedi had a baby, and that it was his, he didn’t want anyone to find out. â€Å"Don't take it out. Stay inside. Can't you take it away somewhere? You must give it to someone—† (Clugston, 2010). Because in the time period interracial relationships were looked down upon, and were unacceptable, Paulus felt like he had to do something before anyone found out the baby was his. When Paulus came to see the baby the next time Thebedi stayed outside as he killed their baby. The authorities came because they had heard there was a white looking child that was killed and brought charges against Paulus.There was not enough evidence to convict but the fact of the matter is that he killed his child and Thebedi did nothing to stop it. Thebedi could have prevented the baby’s death but seems to feel powerless agains t Paulus. I believe there is also a part of her that feels this way is better for everyone, this way they don’t have to deal with the reality of their baby and how socially unacceptable it is. At the same time, I can’t imagine it being easy knowing her baby, with the man she had extreme feelings for, is now dead and he is the one responsible.I believe even women today sometimes feel powerless against their men. I don’t think it would be taken to the extent of killing a child, but some men dictate the relationship and how things should be. Even though interracial relationships are more socially acceptable nowadays, it is still difficult sometimes for people of different races to be together. Another instance of racism is shown in the poem What It’s Like To Be a Black Girl (For Those of You Who Aren’t) by Patricia Smith. Although this one is shown in a different way.In the poem the author describes what a girl has to do to be acceptable in the world as a black girl. â€Å"Its dropping food coloring in your eyes to make them blue and Suffering their burn in silenceâ€Å" (Clugston, 2010). Because she is a black girl and in certain periods in time white people seemed to reigned supreme she tried to make herself look more socially acceptable, even at the cost of injuring herself. This poem shows the girl desiring to be white and to fit in to that life, where she an walk around without being judged and looked down upon. It's popping a bleached white mophead over the kinks of your hair and primping in front of mirrors that deny your reflection† (Clugston, 2010). Just another example of putting yourself through pain to feel more accepted and not even wanting to see yourself the way you are because you feel ashamed. At the end of the poem, the young girl seems to feel more accepting of the fact she is black, even though she does not feel it is any easier at that point. â€Å"it's flame and fists and life according to Motownâ €  (Clugston, 2010). She has accepted that her life is following the way of her culture.It is not easy though and she must keep her guard, and her fists up. The poem, to me shows the struggles of a young girl because of societies view of people. It makes her life harder than it should be because of peoples ignorance about race and what everyone should be like. Racism is ugly and sometimes makes people feel like they need to change themselves to be accepted. The girl was trying to lead a different life, one in which she was not judged and everyone would accept her. In both of these readings the authors showed the struggles people face because of racism.There are many different ways racism affects people’s lives, in the first story â€Å"Country Lovers† it was in a horrible way where an innocent child was murdered so no one would find out the love two people shared because it was socially unacceptable for the time. In The poem by Patricia Smith, the girl also injured herself to make herself acceptable. Both of these stories show the horrible things people do because of racism. It is not fair that an innocent child, who never knew any better had to die or that a young girl must physically hurt herself to change in order for things to be okay.There are times where life imitates literature, maybe the author used real experiences of people or situations that have happened or what they believe can happen. I am sure that when racism was extremely prevalent people did try to change themselves, all while hurting themselves or others. Nowadays racism is still around, maybe not to the degree of what the readings spoke about but t is definitely here and horrible things happen because of it. Things such s hate crimes and murder, as well as people having procedures to change their appearance. I am sure we will see these things until the day everyone accepts each other the way they are.

Evaluation of instructional materials Essay

Introduction As a teacher, it is your responsibility not just to teach but to guarantee that the students are learning and you must create an active and motivating learning experience for the students. The Worldwide web gives choices of wide variety of instructional resources that you could use as your teaching tool. In choosing instructional materials, the teacher must consider not just its availability or the ease of use but more on its learning outcomes. An instructional resource should meet the purpose and the objectives of the lessons and flexible to the students’ differences such as ability, interests and learning style. The objectives, the students, learning environment and the availability of the resources are some factors to consider in choosing an instructional material (Morton, 2003). Design â€Å"The content is accurate, logical and well organized, objectives are clearly defined, and the content helps to achieve the necessary objectives. † The resource should be well planned and concrete to maximize the available learning materials and to save time. The objectives should be attainable with regards to the students ‘grade level making sure that after the instructional process, learning outcomes are anticipated. It should foster critical thinking, problem-solving and decision-making (Alto). â€Å"Examples are meaningful and helpful, questions are presented clearly. † Ease of communication is important so that the students would easily grasp the information or ideas relayed by the teacher. â€Å"Important points are emphasized, the amount of information presented is comfortable and the instructional material is free of gender, race, religion or ethnicity bias. Media elements fairly represent composition of career fields in terms of gender and race. † It is also important to consider the cultural backgrounds of each student. Each student has the right for equality in learning therefore the teacher should make some adjustments to the students with different customs from the rest of the class. † Information is clear and current, facts come from reliable source which are clearly define. † Instructional technologies should be incorporated in the learning experience to enhance student understanding. Digital libraries, computational tools, virtual environments, modeling and visualization and connectivity are among the up-to-date learning process that students should be familiar of. â€Å"Content moves learners beyond the basics and encourage high level of thinking, students are engaged in applying what they learn. Lay-out is consistent. † The projects should have relevant application that the student will look forward to make after the learning process. â€Å"The Content is culturally diverse; product accommodates unique learning styles and various ability levels. Assessment methods are challenging, appropriate and suitable to learning goals. † The instructional materials should be appropriate to student differences such as interest, ability and learning style. â€Å"Teachers can easily assess students’ progress by evaluating the outcomes provided within the product, reading level is appropriate for target audience and the product is suitable for the age and grade level. † The evidence of learning should be evaluated as to determine the extent to which the goal and objectives are achieved. The development process, the reliability of implementation, the students learning as well as the teacher development should be attained. Procedures Students must make the most of his or her senses such as touch, sight, auditory, and smell in doing activities that will develop not just the intrapersonal learning but the interpersonal development as well. Interaction among students will make the learning process easier and more enjoyable and the teacher must have the means of motivating the students in order for them to finish the activity, instruction or the discussion. Clarity Readings and visual aids should be able to attract the attention and interest of the students. The teacher should have user-friendly visual aid that will further enhance the students’ imagination and thinking. Computer softwares have options for making the presentation more attractive such as colorful backgrounds, animations and sound effects that will be helpful for the students learning process. Efficiency Instructions should focus on the topic to avoid confusions to the students and maximize the time allotted for the learning process. Too much information could lead to â€Å"information overload† that the student will tend to disengage from the learning process. Instructional Material Evaluation. I chose to use the preschool program of the HighReach for they guaranteed that the programs are aligned with the states and federal standards. Moreover, they clearly stated and specified their objectives as to what learning skills they intend to develop upon the students.They also have programs that will develop not just the intrapersonal development but also the interpersonal learning. Works cited: Alto, P. Designing Learning Space Project- Designing a Preschool Highschool [Electronic Version]. Morton, D. J. B. (2003). Selecting and Using Instructional resources to Enhance Instruction [Electronic Version].