Thursday, December 26, 2019

Critique Of The Truth About Leadership - 1358 Words

Running head: CRITIQUE OF THE TRUTH ABOUT LEADERSHIP 1 CRITIQUE OF THE TRUTH ABOUT LEADERSHIP 5 Critique of The Truth about Leadership Renan Daghistani MAX ELLZEY, Ed.D, MBA, M.Div BSCI 635.25 LEADERSHIP and ETHICS Spring2016? Critique of The Truth about Leadership Introduction Kouzes and Posner provide ten universal truths of leadership. They posit that whereas the leadership context has changed since the commencement of their research, successful habits and behaviors have remained the same. The book is different from the authors? other books because it is bolder and makes claims about leadership practices founded on all the research they conducted. Arguably, they have achieved their aim of writing an accessible book with ten quite robust truths regarding leadership (Kouzes Posner, 2010). Despite the achievement, this comes at the expense of creating a book that appeals to all audiences and encompasses all the leadership experiences. In this regard, it can be argued that the book is an informative text that reveals the truth about leadership through a vivid account of the ten fundamentals of leadership, but the books universality is questionable. Summary The book provides an insight into the leadership fundamentals by breaking them into ten truths. These truths form the backbone of the leadership fundamentals. The first issue they address is that leaders make a difference. In this perspective, they argue that before one can lead others, they have to leadShow MoreRelatedPaper: Belief, Truth, and Positive Organizational Deviance806 Words   |  3 Pagesï » ¿Parks, G. S., Jones, S. E.,   Hughey, M. W. (2011). Belief, Truth, and Positive Organizational Deviance.  Wake Forest Univ. Legal Studies Paper  . This research paper, Belief, Truth, and Positive Organizational Deviance,  is published  in the Wake Forest University School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper Series  and available in most online academic databases using the title or the authors names or the keywords, deviance Organizational Behavior, Social Psychology, Empirical Legal Studies. Summary Read MoreA Critical Analysis Of Citizen Life In Platos The Republic1552 Words   |  7 Pagesclass hierarchies, yet the Philosopher King and the tyrant are extreme version of this similar application of monolithic leadership. The experiences of the worker/producer will provide a critique on the similar nature of singular leadership under these highly divisive living conditions. In essence, a comparison analysis of aristocracy and tyranny will be examined through a critique of the life of the citizen in Plato’s The Republic. The role of the aristocracy in Socrates’ â€Å"just city† is defined throughRead MoreBecoming A Feedback Focused Leader1036 Words   |  5 Pagestaking the feedback of peers and their own leaders, a leader can become a masterful giver of feedback and critique. Meaningful, well received provision of feedback comes through understanding that it is a gift (Friedrich, 2012, p. 72), that feedback may set off emotional and psychological triggers in the recipients mind (Heen and Stone, 2014, p. 109), that 360? feedback requires additional leadership skills and attention (Peiperl, 2001, p. 142), and that recipients may need coaching for the ?sortingRead MoreCritique on Kingdom Education Essay893 Words   |  4 PagesCritique on Kingdom Education Summary Kingdom education is a process that begins with a child accepting Christ as their Lord and Savior and continues with the goal of that child reaching maturity in Christ. As such, evangelism and discipleship are part of a kingdom education that will train children to know God and have a biblical worldview. This worldview is taught through Bible stories, but is also incorporated into every subject and into educational methods that reflect a biblical philosophyRead MoreWhy We Hate HR: Article Critique and Recommendations1282 Words   |  6 Pagesevery facet of a business, in fact, there are no particular areas in which HR does not (or should not), have at least some input. Throughout the critique and recommendations of the Why We Hate HR article, some of the focus will be on the roles and responsibilities of HR as well as the importance of a good HR management philosophy. Article Critique In the article, Why We Hate HR one can see that the author points out the flaws in the HR concept repeatedly. They are able to support their assumptionsRead MoreBaroque Art Depicted the Religious Tensions During that Period801 Words   |  3 PagesAngel Leaving Tobit and Tobias (Open University of Kaohsiung). His success was based on the fact that his work did not go out of fashion. The spiritual life of Holland during the Baroque period required him because he was relevant in presenting ideas about the period in his work. Some of the most successful works of Rembrandt were depictions of biblical stories that he presented in highly relevant detail. The painter represented the scriptures from the Bible in the minutest detail by integrating it withRead MoreLeadership As A Genre For Arguments Essay1440 Words   |  6 PagesOver the course in history philosopher’s has scientifically continues to refine their dialogue in leadership as a genre for arguments, ideals in religious te aching, terms, and rules. Based on theories of their own, visions, skeptics, beliefs and values. As enlightens of reaching the mindset and comfort for satisfaction of their own and for their followers. By revising general rhetoric, it strategies to conform unity in communication as an interconnection for various theories of the world. It offersRead MoreBook Report on Charles Spurgeons Lectures to My Students Essay861 Words   |  4 PagesLIBERTY UNIVERSITY Charles Spurgeon Book Report Lectures to my Students Submitted to: Dr. R. Scott Pace Pastoral Leadership 635 By: Johnny F. Gail (ID# L24543560) Lynchburg, Virginia 07 April 2013 Table of Contents Introduction †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦....1 Summary †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.1 Critique †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦3 Evaluation †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..5 Bibliography †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦7 Summary Lectures toRead MoreWikileaks : A Wholesome Political Environment919 Words   |  4 Pagesenvironment, the existence of a ‘healthy, vibrant and inquisitive journalistic media’ is imperative – WikiLeaks is therefore established to enhance public scrutiny. (WikiLeaks.org, 2006) As creator Julian Assange himself proclaimed, the organization is about putting scientific journalism into practice. This leads to the discussion of how journalists today ought to shoulder the responsibility of the Fourth Estate by means of investigative reporting. The conventional idea of investigative journalism comprisesRead MorePerformance Appraisal Critique1536 Words   |  7 Pagesfrom within the Orthodox and radical management frame work. This essay outlines the orthodox and radical critiques respectively and suggests whether 360ââ€" ¦ feedback offers a means of overcoming the traditional limitations of appraisal system. The essay is organized into the following: Orthodox critiques, radical critiques, 360ââ€" ¦ feedback appraisal, conclusion and reference. Orthodox Critique These critisms do not challenge the underlying managerially defined purpose of appraisal, but rather they

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Steroids And Other Performance Enhancing Drugs - 1407 Words

Steroids in Sports Introduction The debate over athletes using steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs has always been a hot-button issue in the sports world. From major league athletes in baseball and football; to track stars and bicyclist in the Olympics, the use of steroids in sports has been a wide-range problem. Those who disagree with the use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs say that the athletes who use them are breaking the rules and getting an unfair advantage over others. Opponents of steroids say the athletes are endangering not only their own health, but also indirectly encouraging youngsters to do the same (Katz, 2008). On the opposite side, supporters of steroids say that the risk to athletes using†¦show more content†¦What are Steroids / Are they Addictive? To begin, I would like to explain what steroids are and why they are so appealing to athletes. Steroids are a type of drug that increases the body’s mass and ability to perform well in certain things. According to an ESPN article, Drugs and Sports, anabolic steroids -- or more precisely, anabolic-androgenic steroids -- are the synthetic derivatives of the naturally occurring male anabolic hormone testosterone. Both anabolic and androgenic have origins from the Greek: anabolic, meaning to build, and androgenic, meaning masculinizing. The need and drive to be the very best at your sport, is a craving (like a drug). Some athletes think that using steroids helps them to perform better than the other person. The harms of using steroids are bad and could get you kicked out the sporting league you are in or worst According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, individuals who abuse steroids can experience withdrawal symptoms when they stop taking them—including mood swings, fatigue, rest-lessness, loss of appetite, insomnia, reduced sex drive, and steroid cravings, all of which may contribute to continued abuse. One of the most dangerous withdrawal symptoms is depression—when persistent, it can sometimes lead to suicide attempts. Research has found that some

Monday, December 9, 2019

General Electric And Joint Ventures

Question: Why do you think that GE has come to prefer joint ventures in recent years? Do you think that the global economic crisis of 2008-2009 might have impacted upon this preference in any way? If so, how? Answer: General Electric And Joint Ventures General Electric (GE) never really considered the option of joint venture with any of the local company when it wanted to make entry in the foreign market. The viewpoint of the company was not to confirm deal with any company in which the GE did not possess full control. Since the year 2000, one of the most crucial strategic tools for the General Electric was joint ventures. For example, GE money, the financial service provided by the GE by retail lending, formed a joint venture with the Hyundai which is a South Korean automotive manufacturer, by offering auto loans, credit cards, and even mortgages. GE thus entered the South Korean Market but with 43 percent stake in the venture. GE had numerous reasons to prefer joint venture and change its strategy. (Carew, 2014) One of the reasons is that GE had always successfully acquired the majority ownership in any business but sometimes the price for the possession were too high for GE and so it would become reluctant to acquire that compan y and prevent overpaying. GE then took the decision that it is better to enter a joint venture than to acquire expensive companies which may create problem in the future. (The Key Benefits Of Forming A Joint Venture, 2015) Another reason that enabled GE to prefer joint venture is that it helped the company to extend to foreign markets where it does not have any local knowledge. GE is of the opinion that with the formation of the joint venture it can get the benefit from the local political contacts, expert advice from the locals, and expand and improve the business relationships that the partner brought forward. GE finds the joint ventures an added advantage in terms of building a business in areas where it does not have sufficient knowledge. Under the guidance of the CEO of GE, Jeffrey Immelt, the goals of aggressive growth was adopted by the company. He was of the philosophy that forming joint ventures with companies and entering such foreign markets where it had no access would help to attain the growth goals. GE also found the joint venture beneficial in those countries where other types of entry are prohibited and with the joint venture it can easily enter that foreign market. (Hill, 2005) The global economic crisis of 2008-2009 had impacted the GE. For the GE the economic crisis played a very important role in accelerating the rate of future investment and its decision by the company. Through the joint ventures, GE could not acquire full control of the business or full ownership of the business what it established during economic distress is that it was able to reduce the shared cost and risk regarding the global venture. Thus we see that GE was initially reluctant to enter joint venture with any local company but with lower amount of risk and cost, the joint venture became one of the most important strategies for GE to attain growth in the company. With the economic crisis of 2008-2009, the preferences of GE changed in favour of the company. (Nytimes.com, 2015) References: Carew, R. (2014).GE Weighs Stake Sale of Korea Finance Joint Ventures. [online] WSJ. Available at: https://www.wsj.com/articles/ge-weighs-stake-sale-of-korea-finance-joint-ventures-1414645677 [Accessed 17 Mar. 2015]. Hill, C. (2005).International business. Boston: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Nytimes.com, (2015).GE bringing joint ventures to life - The New York Times. [online] Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/business/worldbusiness/04iht-venture.5.7759031.html?pagewanted=all [Accessed 17 Mar. 2015]. The Key Benefits Of Forming A Joint Venture. (2015). 1st ed. [ebook] Available at: https://www.gibsondunn.com/publications/Documents/La-Lande-Key-Benefits-Joint-Venture.pdf [Accessed 17 Mar. 2015].

Monday, December 2, 2019

Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance Essay Example

Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance Essay Please note that this content is based on the Skills for Life Assessment and Learning guidance booklet Initial and diagnostic assessment a learner-centered process. The original booklet can be found at: http://sflip.excellencegateway.org.uk/assessment/assessmentguidence.aspx. This adapted version is part of the Being functional resource which builds on effective practice to support the planning and delivery of functional skills. For more information, go to www.excellencegateway.org.uk/beingfunctional. What is an initial and diagnostic assessment? Initial and diagnostic assessment begins the process of getting to know learners and building a relationship with them. Initial assessment happens at the time of a learnerâ„ ¢s transition into a new learning programme. It is a holistic process, during which you and the learner start to build up a picture of their achievements, skills, interests, previous learning experiences and goals, and the learning needs associated with those goals. This information is used as a basis for negotiating a course or programme. Diagnostic assessment helps to identify specific learning strengths and needs. It determines learning targets and appropriate teaching and learning strategies to achieve them. This is important because many learners have higher-level skills in some areas than in others. Diagnostic assessment happens initially at the beginning of a learning programme and subsequently when the need arises. It is related to specific skills needed for tasks. We will write a custom essay sample on Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The two processes are closely linked: diagnostic assessment adds to the information gathered from initial assessment. Together they help you and the learners to use this information in order to: * personalise learning; * develop individual learning plans; * begin the process of assessment for learning that will continue throughout the learnersâ„ ¢ programme; and * make links to progression routes and prepare for the next steps. A positive experience Initial and diagnostic assessment can be among learnersâ„ ¢ first experiences of your organisation and will influence their early impressions. If the experience is positive, active and involving, this will help to create a climate in which learners are able to negotiate and take responsibility for their learning. You can help make the experience positive for learners by: involving them â€Å" do the assessment with themâ„ ¢ not to themâ„ ¢; helping learners to take an active part will encourage motivation and independence; building their self-esteem and sense of self-worth; recognising their strengths and achievements, not just their weaknesses; linking initial and diagnostic assessment to their own aspirations, such as their career choices or aspects of their everyday lives; taking the opportunity to discuss issues such as cultural perceptions, learning difficulties or disabilities that might form barriers to success and lead to career stereotyping; using active listening skills to foster an atmosphere of mutual respect, build relationships with learners and make each learner feel valued; encouraging and establishing a level of trust so that issues for learning can be discussed openly, in context, and dealt with constructively; and making the assessment relevant to their specific context for learning, which will enhance their confidence and self-esteem. Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approaches Initial and diagnostic assessment should involve a range of methods and approaches, none of which is sufficient on its own. It is important to evaluate the quality of information obtained from particular methods. Once you have begun to get to know the learners and their learning preferences, you will be better able to select the appropriate assessment methods. The diagram below shows a range of possible methods. Adapted from The initial assessment toolkit (Key Skills Support Programme, 2007). Documents and records give evidence of achievements and include qualifications, records of achievement, references, non-academic certificates and awards. Self-assessment gives learners some idea of where their strengths and weaknesses lie. It is vital to take learnersâ„ ¢ own views into account and to make the most of this knowledge. Discussions and interviews allow teachers and learners to get to know each other. They also provide an excellent opportunity to feed back the results of other assessment methods and to probe more deeply. Assessment tools can play an important role in objective initial and diagnostic assessment of functional skills. Tools are also sometimes used to assess occupational skills and learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Structured group or individual activities during induction and early parts of the programme allow learners to apply specific skills. A free writing task, for example, gives a rounded picture of how someone actually writes. Such a task also helps to put learners at the centre of the assessment process because they can write about themselves and their interests. Observation gives a broader picture of the whole person and how they perform in a range of contexts. This will give insights into learnersâ„ ¢ strengths, how they work with others, how they think, how confident they are and how willing they are to ask for help. Try this: 1.Make the assessment relevant to learnersâ„ ¢ context and interests. This may mean planning activities or using assessment tools related to learnersâ„ ¢ vocational areas or everyday interests. Providing a context for the assessment helps the learners to see how skills can be transferred. 2.Gather information from activities that learners carry out in other parts of their programme. For example, you can: a.observe them on a work placement; b.use examples of their writing to assess their skills. 3.Select a blend of assessment methods to suit individual learners and their circumstances. Tools for assessing functional skills/Skills for Life Tools that have effectively supported the assessment of Skills for Life could be adapted to provide support for assessing functional English and functional mathematics and incorporate functional ICT. It is important that the following points are understood. Functional skills standards should be applied and adhered to. For more information on functional skills and the standards, go to www.qcda.gov.uk or the Ofqual website at www.ofqual.gov.uk/. It is important to recognise that the levelâ„ ¢ of a functional skill is determined by a combination of factors: familiarity of the situation or problem to the learners; independence of the learners in identifying and selecting the skills they will need, and in tackling the situation or problem; complexity of the situation or problem the learners are tackling; and technical demand of the skill required. Learners whose functional English, functional mathematics or functional ICT is being assessed should be able to: consider a problem or task; identify the functional skills (whether English, mathematics or ICT) that will help them to solve it; select from the range of skills in which they are competent (or know what help they need and who to ask); and apply their skills appropriately. Any terminology used should be consistent with that of functional skills (for example, LLNâ„ ¢ should be replaced with functional Englishâ„ ¢ and/or functional mathematicsâ„ ¢, as required). Assessment may highlight areas of individual support learners may need which could enable them to achieve goals and targets agreed as part of their individual learning plans. Initial assessment tools provide information about learnersâ„ ¢ current levels of functional skills, measured against national standards. They are useful in helping to match learners to an appropriate learning programme and in directing further, more in-depth, assessment. Diagnostic assessment materials assess all aspects of functional skills. There are also materials that can be used to explore whether learners would benefit from further assessment for specific learning difficulties (such as dyslexia). Specific diagnostic tasks should be selected and used at the start of a learning programme but also regularly throughout the programme to assess particular skills as further needs are identified. Diagnostic materials help you to discuss and agree with individual learners: learning targets for both consolidating existing skills and developing new ones; recommendations about how the learner will tackle new learning; and their own priorities: for example, skills needed at work. For details on functional skills standards and tools built specifically for the assessment of functional skills, see the Want to know moreâ„ ¢ section on page 8. Who carries out initial and diagnostic assessment What skills are needed Staff who carry out initial assessment are able to: understand the whole assessment process; present it to learners in a positive and constructive way; value and engage with learners; use a variety of approaches appropriate to individual learners and their context for learning; interpret results appropriately and give professional feedback to learners; recommend learning programmes; and refer learners for further expert assessment. In addition to the above, staff who carry out diagnostic assessment can also: use the outcomes to plan individual and group learning; and monitor progress. It is important that staff involved in initial and diagnostic assessment are well trained and able to use professional judgement. A team approach ensures consistency and reliability and increases staff confidence and skills. If tools are used as part of the assessment process, staff need to have training in using them effectively. Feedback from assessment Giving timely, constructive feedback to individuals is crucial to effective initial and diagnostic assessment. Try this: 1.Stress the positive. Always celebrate what learners have done well. This helps to build confidence. 2.Seek learnersâ„ ¢ views and value their contribution. This will help them to get better at assessing their own work, which is vital to their becoming independent learners. 3.Frame questions carefully and use prompts such as Would you like to say more about thatâ„ ¢. 4.Pause for a few seconds after questions have been posed or responses have been given, to encourage learners to carefully consider and expand on what they say or have said. 5.Be specific. Avoid generalisations such as There are a lot of inaccuraciesâ„ ¢ and instead focus on individual points which you can discuss with the learners. This will enable them to set their own individual short-term targets with guidance from assessment as evidence. 6.Focus on things learners can change, and avoid overloading them with too much feedback at once. 7.Look for ways forward together. Share ideas and explore solutions rather than always putting forward your own suggestions. 8.Agree what you will both do as a result. This could include agreeing new targets or planning learning opportunities. Feedback is not a one-way process. Invite learners to comment on what you do as well. Using the data from initial and diagnostic assessment For you and the learners Information from the initial and diagnostic assessment process should be used to develop individual learning goals and targets and to inform appropriate teaching and learning strategies and use of resources. It should be recorded in the individual learning plans, session plans and schemes of work. Effective use of assessment data: makes sure that planned learning is grounded in the learnersâ„ ¢ needs and priorities; avoids learners wasting time by going over old ground unnecessarily; and reduces the risk of learners being frustrated by tasks that are beyond them. Data should be shared with all staff supporting the learners so that all learning can be differentiated to take account of their strengths and needs. It is important that where learners are following vocational pathways, vocational and functional skills staff work together to plan learning in response to the findings from initial and diagnostic assessment. This ensures that learners have opportunities to develop functional skills in their vocational context. For managers and the organisation Good initial and diagnostic assessment make a significant contribution to the overall quality of provision by: ensuring that learners are on the right course or programme; maintaining motivation; and improving learnersâ„ ¢ achievement and progression. Your organisation should require you to record assessment results on the Management Information System (MIS). Assessment data should be collated and analysed to ensure that programmes offered are appropriate for learnersâ„ ¢ skills profiles. Key messages from the assessment data relating to particular programmes should be fed back to curriculum teams to inform the development of appropriate teaching and learning strategies, so that all learners are provided with suitable opportunities to develop and progress. How initial and diagnostic assessment fit in with other assessment processes Want to know more To find out more about functional skills: www.qcda.gov.uk For support with functional skills: www.fssupport.org/ Rethinking induction (cross-curricular): http://tlp.excellencegateway.org.uk/tlp/xcurricula/index.html Rethinking induction (Engineering): http://tlp.excellencegateway.org.uk/tlp/eng/resource/rethinkinginduc/index.html Motivational dialogue: http://tlp.excellencegateway.org.uk/tlp/personalisation/md/resource/#content.php Top tips introduction If you are a manager or teacher with responsibility for teaching and learning, the curriculum or quality assurance, using these booklets will support you in planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluating high-quality assessment practices for functional skills provision. Just as in other programmes, your assessment practices for functional skills need to align themselves to the needs of learners and to help deliverers to provide the best possible advice and feedback, so that the learners are able to develop English, mathematics and ICT skills and become more aware of their skills and how they select and use these skills to achieve their educational, employment and life goals. Everything we know about good assessment can be transferred to assessing functional skills. In particular, the assessment for learning principles, which encourage learners to take a role in their assessment as a way to develop awareness and independence, are very useful to functional skills managers and practi tioners. This resource allows you to benefit from best practice in assessment using lessons from assessment for learning. The following practical tips can be used to address particular issues or development needs in your organisation. The booklets contain key messages, checklists and flowcharts that can be adapted for a wide range of audiences and purposes, such as staff/team development, working with learners, guidance notes or handouts. The booklets can be used together to support improvement at each stage and type of learner assessment: initial, diagnostic, formative and summative. The Top Tips leaflets listed below offer some practical suggestions for getting the most out of the information and guidance contained in the accompanying booklets. 1.High-quality assessment processes â€Å" guidance for managers 2.Using skills checks 3.Initial and diagnostic assessment 4.Individual learning plans 5.Assessment for learning All the leaflets can be downloaded as Word documents and customised with your own logos and text to suit your individual purposes. Please note that in the resource Being functional, numbers 2, 3 and 5 accompany CPD activity 1: Assessment for learning and numbers 1 and 4 accompany CPD activity 3: Whole organisation approach. Initial and diagnostic assessment Top Tips â€Å" some practical suggestions For staff Use the leaflet as a staff development tool, together with the initial and diagnostic assessment checklist which can be downloaded from: http://sflip.excellencegateway.org.uk/assessment/assessmentresources.aspx Tailor this to your organisation to provide a focus on what is well-developed practice and practice that needs further development. The Feedback from assessmentâ„ ¢ section on page 5 provides an effective checklist for staff involved in assessing learners. This good-practice guidance applies to giving all feedback, and you could use it in staff training â€Å" perhaps using role play. Remember that functional skills focuses on how learners select and apply their skills in context. So ensure that your initial and diagnostic assessments look at how well, how confidently and how independently learners use their skills. Allow them to comment on their confidence and how well they feel they used their skills. For learners The information can be adapted for learners to explain the assessment processes that will happen, often during induction sessions. This will enable you to tailor the information to your own organisationâ„ ¢s assessment processes. For example, the information from page 1 may be adapted to speak directly to the learner: Initial and diagnostic assessment begin the process of getting to know you and working together. Initial assessment happens when you move onto a new learning programme and helps us to build up a picture of you and your skills, interests and achievements ¦ Ask learners to comment on their skills and confidence themselves, allowing you to note their speaking skills and self-awareness while promoting their ownership of their skills and of their learning. For managers You could adapt the Using the data from initial and diagnostic assessmentâ„ ¢ section on page 6 as a memo or notice to staff, particularly at key points during programmes. The information could be used to develop staff practice in effective information sharing and underline the importance of completing and reporting such data in an accurate and timely manner. It can also raise awareness of the importance of this information in enabling managers to make decisions and to monitor systems. The Information Mapping Action Plan, which can be downloaded from http://sflip.excellencegateway.org.uk/assessment/assessmentresources.aspx provides additional resources for identifying who needs what information from assessment processes and why. The visual representation of how initial and diagnostic assessment fit with other assessment processes (page 7) could be adapted to make a poster for display in staff workrooms and resource centres. Information For staff The text of the leaflet or relevant sections e.g. Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approachesâ„ ¢ on page 2, could be customised to your particular organisation so that staff involved in assessment have access to up-to-date and focused information about the processes in place. Changes to systems and processes (such as data collection or use of specific tools) can then be made easily and speedily. For learners Information about your vision to ensure a positive experience of assessment for learners could be adapted from the A positive experienceâ„ ¢ section on page 1. This could be used in course brochures and programme information for parents and learners to promote understanding and good practice. This could also be used in learner feedback, allowing you to judge how positive the experience has been for learners. For managers You could adapt information on approaches, tools and data management from the following sections: Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approachesâ„ ¢ (page 2); Tools for assessing functional skills/Skills for Life (page 3); and Using the data from initial and diagnostic assessmentâ„ ¢ (page 6). Use these sources to create a brief summary for managers to use with a range of audiences such as governors, inspectorate, programme funders and cross-organisation sharers of information (such as diploma consortia). Used together with information from other leaflets in the series, specifically High-quality assessment processes: guidance for managers, this could provide a comprehensive overview of assessment to support effective practice and disseminate these approaches more widely. Sections on Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approachesâ„ ¢(page 2) and Tools for assessing functional skills/Skills for Life (page 3) could be used to develop an audit and review process for assessment materials currently in use in your organisation. This could also include protocol for evaluating potential new materials and methods supported by a reflective cycle (which might include processes support by the IfL: www.ifl.ac.uk/cpd). Examples of key prompts: What Establish key definitions and main priorities. Agree on what this means to you and your organisation and identify both positives and negatives. So what Reflect on why this is important and the impact that it could have, both on your practice and, ultimately, on your learners. Now what Explore opportunities to improve and agree next steps. Record and reflect on the steps as you take them.

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Discuss and Evaluate the Importance of the fight scene in Romeo and Juliet Essays

Discuss and Evaluate the Importance of the fight scene in Romeo and Juliet Essays Discuss and Evaluate the Importance of the fight scene in Romeo and Juliet Paper Discuss and Evaluate the Importance of the fight scene in Romeo and Juliet Paper The fight scene in Romeo and Juliet is a very important set piece. This scene is very much used be William Shakespeare as a way to connect to the reader viewing it. He tries to allow the reader to have mixed emotions. Some of the emotions the fight set piece is trying to display are Hate, Horror, Excitement, fear and tension. The reason why the reader feels these emotions are because there are many points in the fight scenes where the main character could have and almost does get killed.The context of this set piece is very much heading towards the dramatic time in which William Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet (1595). This is because the why that all the characters would carry swords around with them and it was seen as the norm. There are many things that make us accept this. One is the way that Mercutio calls his sword a Fiddlestick.The main reasons which make us anticipate the fight between Tybalt and Romeo; one thing is that Mercutio shouts before he die s:A plague on both your houses.Three times and this really changes the mood of the scene. Also Tybalt returns and taunts Romeo about Mercutios death.2William Shakespeare sets this scene at the beginning to really make the reader sense that there is going to be s fight of some sort between the Montague and Capulet. He does this by having the characters saying things like:And if we meet, we shall not scape a brawlFor now, these hot days, is the mad blood stirringThis concludes to us that Benvolio is anticipating a fight. But Mercutio seems to ignore this with witty puns and play on words.Thou! Why,Thou wilt quarrel with a man that hath a hair moreOr a hair less in his beard than thou hastAnd this means that Mercutio is saying to Benvolio that, he will fight with anything or anyone about anything. By this time the reader is sure about the fight, because Romeo has just got married to Juliet and is yet to tell Tybalt.3The two characters Mercutio and Tybalt have very different personaliti es and also act in very different ways.The two are very good swordsmen and are considered Duellists.One the one hand Mercutio is a witty person who puns a lot and the people around him enjoy his company but may not understand what he is feeling. Mercutio is one of the most unique characters in Shakespeares Romeo Juliet. His language is always powerful and imaginative. He represents many different things in the story and holds an important role. Where as Tybalt, will find it a rare occasion that he tells a witty joke of any sort and often seems very serious. His appearance also seems to show off a strong and bigger body that Mercutios. He is also a very willing duellist. Yet before their all important fight scene they act different to each other yet stereotypical of their personalities. First of all when Tybalt arrives on the scene he acts like he just wants to lash out on someone and as Mercutio is the there he start to pick on him.On reason for this would be that the name Mercutio comes from the word Mercury. So this could mean that Mercutio has a temper that rises quickly, just like Mercury rises when it is hot and it just so happens to be very hot that day.But before Tybalt approaches Mercutio and Benvolio, Benvolio notices them coming and says to Mercutio and tells him that they should leave. But Mercutio simply responds by saying:By my heel, I care notBut when Tybalt comes over Mercutio still seems not to care. Even when Tybalt is over (A strong and powerful man) and yet still seems to joke about Tybalt and in front of his fellow Capulets and friends. Tybalt seems to have the lower status in this conversation because things like this happen:TybaltMercutio, thou consorts with Romeo-MercutioConsort! What, dost thou make is minstrels? AndThou make minstrels of us, look to here nothing butdiscords. Here my fiddle-stick;Tybalt after this forgets about Mercutio as soon as Romeo enters and says:Well, peace be with you, sir. Here comes my man.The reason why Tyba lt says this is because earlier on in the story he saysWhat, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word,As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee:Have at thee, coward!So when Romeo arrives on the scene of course Tybalt is going to change his attention towards Romeo. Also we find out that Tybalt sends Romeo a Challenge, This challenge is to a Duel.When Romeo confronts Tybalt, he is trying to tell him that he cannot fight it him because he is now part of the same family. But strangely Romeo seems to try and tell Tybalt in some sort of code. Tybalt really doesnt pick up on this code and sees it as Romeo is insulting him and shows even more hatred towards him. Seeing this Mercutio stands up for Romeo, yet he may not be a Capulet but he is still very loyal to Romeo and will always defend him no matter what. The way that Mercutio stands up for Romeo is very much the style that you would expect him to, he really uses his wittiness to make fun and make a fool of Tybalt and knowing Tybalt, he g ets outraged at this and this is how the whole fight between him and Mercutio starts.4When the story of Romeo and Juliet is staged the directors of the productions dont always stick to the script when staging the fight between Mercutio and Tybalt. I personally would stage the fight as an honourable one. In which the fight have their honour at stake. Both fighters will be using the Duel as a way to show off to their friends. So they will be showing off and using all their skill to make themselves look good. During the fight they should be showing sportsmanship towards the competitor. The two duellers will be laughing and seeing the whole thing as a chance to express themselves.This fight however would stick very close to the rules of fencing. In which the winner would be the first on to hold the opponent to the ground. When fighting the two fight would not intend to hurt each other in anyway apart from their morals and credibility. We can understand this at one point when Tybalt thro ws back Mercutio sword.I feel that the song should really go on for too long before Romeo steps in and causes the fight to change path. When Tybalt stabs Mercutio, I think that this should be an accident and not deliberate as showed in some versions of the story display. The stabbing should happen when Romeo moves to the side and Tybalt lunges towards him, in a sportsmanship manner and accidentally stabs him.This is very much like Zeffrelli version of Romeo and Juliet. However this varies from the Baz Lurman version of it. When the fight is very intense and Mercutio falls onto the blade of glass.5When Romeo arrives on scene the audience feel relived because they think that Romeo has come to sort every thing out between the two families.During the fight between Mercutio and Tybalt. Things get a bit heavy hand between the two Duellers. So Romeo steps in too stop Mercutio, he does this by standing between the two fighters facing Mercutio. But while this is happening Mercutio is trying to get past, and Tybalt keeps lunging towards Mercutio. But after a while Romeo notices this and moves to one side and Tybalt stabs Mercutio. The audiences reaction to this is that Tybalt has stabbed Mercutio and gone against the fencing rules. However after we see Tybalt face and he looks at the end of his sword and sees the amount of blood, and you can tell that, that wasnt necessarily meant to happen. So the audience feel that something quite tragic has just happened and will effect the whole story and characters.The reason why the audience feels this is because when the sword is removed from Mercutio the facial expressions on all of the characters change to concern.After Mercutio is stabbed he plays the game a bit by sayingAy, ay, a scratch, a scratch; marry, tis enough.Where is my page? Go, villain, fetch a surgeon.The people around think that he his alright but when he actually does die; this causes Romeo to change his behavior in an angered human-being who is raring to hunt d own and destroy Tybalt. But once Romeo does get to Tybalt and kill him this starts a revelation in the story. First of all Romeo gets banished and cant see Juliet anymore. This totally changes Romeo and Juliets outlooks to life.6It is a very crucial point in the story when Romeo cries outI am fortunes foolWhen considering the destruction of Romeo and Juliet the most significant fact you must think about is fate. Fate, above all, destroyed Romeo and Juliet. Many instances in the play reveal that the love of Romeo and Juliet would end in death. Pair of star-crossed lovers take their life. From the very beginning it is evident that they were destined by the stars to bad fortune. Some people may think that there is no way to control fate or change what is in the stars. It could be that the love of Romeo and Juliet was destined for death so that their parents feud would be over. Also, in the prologue it states that the dreadful course of their love was destined for death. The fearful pas sage of their death marked love. Both of these quotes show us that the love of these two was destined to end tragically. The masquerade party was above all the most important aspect of fate. The fact that Romeo was wearing a mask and his face was hidden allowed Juliet to fall in love with him before she saw who it was. If Juliet had known who Romeo was she would probably have not fallen in love with him. Fate could not have been changed whatever was meant to be would happen and no one could change that.7There are many reasons why William Shakespeare places the fighting set piece in the middle of Romeo and Juliet and all of them are very important.One of the reasons is that the story Romeo and Juliet is a love story and most love stories have plot twists. Now this scene is a major plot twist because two of the co-main characters are killed off. Having this scene is very, very important because it affects pretty much the rest of the story.First of all with the death of Tybalt, Romeo g ets banished and is not allowed to see Juliet and with this Juliet fakes her own death and then sends Romeo a letter telling him about how she isnt really. But Romeo doesnt get the not in time and finds out from his friend that Juliet is dead. So kills himself just as Juliet wakes up. So she kills herself, and all of this happens because of Tybalts death. If that wasnt Romeo also losses his best friend Mercutio.Not only that but Juliet also losses her cousin Tybalt which causes even more heartache.8ConclusionIn conclusion this scene is important really because of the way it was designed by William Shakespeare.A lot can be said about the dramatic effect this scene has on both the story and the reader. First of all the scene shows the hatred of the feud between the Montague and the Capulet really well, with both families fighting for what they believe in and as you see they fight till the death. This is very dramatic and changes the mood of all the remaining characters.This scene effe cts the audience a lot because the see Mercutio a very unique and likable character meet his death. This can really upset the reader. Not only has this but we see Romeo change his attitude towards fighting and take on Tybalt. The reader may not like this Romeo a lot and may well find it very dramatic.When the story first starts to unfold we discover that the two people Romeo and Juliet are in love and it leaves the audience feeling that in the end it will all end in happiness or as the saying goes Happy Ever After and then all of a sudden, this terrorizing and tragic fight scene comes along and totally changes the plot in almost every single way possible. This scene on its own is a major plot twist.When William Shakespeare wrote this play you can see that he wanted to create a real big feeling of tension between all the characters featured in the fight scene and suspense is used a lot in this scene to create atmosphere. However the tension in the scene is very good at illustrating t he Conflict between the two families, in how when the arguing is going on the stand on their own side never, near the others.The main themes that can be used to describe are Terror, Tragedy and action with excitement. Mainly because of all the fighting and killing which all adds you to what the scene represents.After the moment when Romeo kills Tybalt the reader braces themselves for what is going to happen after. At the time the reader is most likely to believe that Romeo will be executed because of the fighting. Because earlier on in the story the prince saysIf you ever disturb our streets again,Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace,But never the less the prince decides not to punish Romeo by death but banish him so the reader does feel relived at this.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Diegesis and Diegetic

Diegesis and Diegetic Diegesis and Diegetic Diegesis and Diegetic By Maeve Maddox This summer I enlarged my vocabulary while participating in an online film course. Among the words new to me are diegesis [DYE-uh-JEE-sis] and diegetic [DYE-uh-JET- ik]. The terms are barely a blip on the Ngram Viewer until the 1970s, when they were introduced into the context of film studies in 1973 by an essay written by a French film critic in the journal Screen. Diegesis does have an OED citation previous to 1973, but only one, dated 1829: The Diegesis, being a Discovery of the Origin, Evidences, and Early History of Christianity. Diegesis comes from a Greek word meaning narration or narrative. In the context of film studies, diegesis denotes the story of the movie. The diegesis includes the fictional time, place, characters, and events that make up the universe portrayed. Diegetic is an adjective that means â€Å"pertaining to diegesis.† The most frequent use of diegetic that I’ve seen so far is in the term â€Å"diegetic sound.† Sound that originates within the action of the story is diegetic sound. For example, when Spock plays his Vulcan harp in a Star Trek episode, the sound of the harp is diegetic. The characters in the story can hear it. The spooky music that signals something bad about to happen to the landing party is non-diegetic sound. It exists outside the story. The viewer hears it, but not the characters. Here are examples of the use of diegesis and its forms in critiques of film and written literature: In the film [Children of Men], sound supports this vision by remaining for the most part diegetic, emerging as everyday sounds of street noise, chaos, sirens, conversations, overheard music, and so forth. During After Hours, Scorsese appears diagetically in Club Berlin wearing a military uniform. Like the diegetic appearances by Scorsese in Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and The King of Comedy, the moment works reflexively in terms of Scorsese’s extra-diegetic role as director. The embedded worlds may be more or less continuous with the world of the primary diegesis, as in Wuthering Heights, or they may be subtly different, as in the play-within-the-play of Hamlet. I’ve even seen the term used in reference to a video game in which the â€Å"non-diegetic element† is a line of informational text that pops up on the screen, interfering with play: The non-diegetic elements fade in and out, out of the players control, which of course results in a complete lack of control for the player. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:30 Synonyms for â€Å"Meeting†50 Types of PropagandaList of 50 Compliments and Nice Things to Say!

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Nursing assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Nursing assignment - Essay Example This confusion poses certain problems in the practice of critical care nursing. The nurse working in the hospice environment has a clear understanding of palliative care in allowing for natural death. But in the critical care area, this understanding is clouded and misinterpreted. The aim of this study is to investigate the lived experience of critical care nurses in relationship to their understanding and implementation of care based on their assumptions. Nurses, the primary caregiver to patients, are infrequently involved in the decision to terminate life saving measures. Many nurses question why a patient with a DNR order should be admitted into the critical care area, and what care is appropriate in light of a patient’s DNR status. The current economic crisis in health care is a very real and publicized problem. Hewitt & Marco, 2004, report that intensive care unit (ICU) costs have continued to climb and now total 20% of all hospital charges in the United States (p.19). Moreover, the growth rate of hospital beds has been 1.4% per year versus 6.2% for ICU beds (Hewitt & Marco, 2004). This issue is particularly relevant in patients with terminal illnesses where the goal of care and suffering are increasingly important issues. And should a DNR order influence other aggressive interventions that are only available to a patient in the ICU? Moreover, the term DNR has different meanings to different health care professionals, fostering a broad range of interpretation. The legal term DNR, indicates that cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) not be initiated at the time of cardiac or respiratory arrest (Thibault-Prevost & Hodgins, 2000). However, there is confusion among nurse’s to interpret DNR as a measure to withhold all treatment (Puntillo, Benner, Drought, Drew, 2001). Critical care nurses are particularly affected by DNR orders because they aim to

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

The Methodology of Three International University Ranking Systems Essay

The Methodology of Three International University Ranking Systems - Essay Example The three major international ranking systems that are used for this purpose are The Times Higher Education World University Rankings, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Rankings of World Universities as well as The CHE ExcellenceRanking 2010 (Gallagher, 2011). The essay will start off with a definition of the university league tables and how they work, reasons for their popularity and the substantial growth in their use over the past years. Next, it will explore various areas in relation with the league tables such as critical analysis of the three ranking systems to gauge their strengths and weaknesses, debate on the evidentiary basis of league tables to explain the criteria upon which the universities are ranked and criticism as well as the limitations to the validity of university ranking systems. Lastly, it will single out the methodology that stands out. The need for and growth of ranking systems: The world is in the process of getting preoccupied with rankings more and more every d ay. Just like scarcity, having access to the ‘finest’ as well as prestige more or less mark the purchase of almost every commodity in our daily lives, so are the customers of the tertiary sector continuously looking out for pointers that improve their capability to know and access the best in the tertiary sector (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007). Criteria for measuring the rankings: In most of the university ranking tables, the criteria used to measure the rankings is: To be distinct about what the ranking will measure. To use a variety of indicators and multiple procedures rather than a single, weighted ranking. To associate comparable programs or institutions. At the institutional level, use rankings for planned preparation and quality enhancement purposes. At the government level, use rankings to kindle a philosophy of quality. Use rankings as one of the tools available to notify and update students, families and employers and encourage public debate (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007) An alysis of the ranking systems: Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) rankings were formulated in 1998 and were more formally known as ‘The Academic Rankings of the World Universities’ (ARWU). Universities that have field medallists; highly cited researchers as well as Nobel laureates are included in the ranking. According to this criterion, ARWU is not trying to compare all the universities throughout the world; instead it is targeting the world’s top research universities only. ARWU initially picks out around 1000 universities from throughout the world, of which only 500 are later on ranked in the league tables. For all ARWU indicators, data is usually collected from third parties that include the official site of the Nobel Prize as well as numerous Thomson Reuters websites in order to access citation and publications (Rauhvargers, 2011). Moving on to ‘The Times higher Education World University Rankings’, it is apparent that, published in 2004, it w as an ‘answer’ to the Shanghai ARWU rankings. The indicated drive of ‘The World University Rankings’ is â€Å"to recognise universities as the multi-faceted organisations that they are, to provide a global comparison of their success against the notional mission of remaining or becoming world-class† (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007). This ranking separates 300 in each of the five faculty areas as well as about 600 universities and uses sources such as incorporate surveys from individual academics and researchers, employer organisations, third-party data as well as university information (Salmi & Saroyan, 2007). Lastly, The CHE Centre for Higher Education Development that designed an ‘

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Islam †Annotated Essay Essay Example for Free

Islam – Annotated Essay Essay The article explains the way Islam views life after death. It clearly describes the various tenets that this religion follows when it comes to life on earth and life after death. Islam believes that life on earth has no purpose except to prepare oneself for life after death. The life after death typically consists of three phases: Death, the intermediate and the phase of resurrection. Death is considered to be the first gateway to reach the Garden or Fire. Importance of the custom of singing various verses at the time of death and till the body is buried and the custom of proper ablutions before burial is given due space. The second phase is the most controversial phase for which lot of explanations exist. This is the period when the soul is separated from the body but is not yet resurrected. What the soul does in this in-between phase has many theories, most common being, the souls embarks on a journey similar to the journey made by Prophet Muhammad where He was taken through the seven layers of heaven and made to look down at the tortures of hell. Another commonly accepted theory is the visit of angels Munkar and Nakil, who question the souls about the Quranic verses and their faith. The third phase, that is, the day of Resurrection is believed to be quite spectacular with the destruction of the whole world and the souls entering either the garden or the fire according to their virtues. It is also believed that after resurrection and the destruction of the whole mankind, a new age will begin and justice and righteousness will return to the earth again with a new leader. The idea of punishments or rewards after death, like the author mentioned, do seem having lot of physical attributes. All that has been mentioned seems a bit too dramatic like the tree in hell, Zaqqam which has demons as flowers! It seems, to capture a proper picture of the horror of hell, physical attributes like fire, demons, swords, etc. have been used. This would probably make humans understand better the tortures that they are to undergo if they do not live a life of righteousness. The editor’s note also briefs about the various contributions Islam as a religion has made to the world like ban on liquor, gambling and other vices. It also mentions the equality that Muslim women are credited with in the religion. However, in this present world, they seem to be the most bounded ones. The images of burqa-clad women with no freedom tell quite a different story. The religion, which has beautiful and just tenets to its credit like equal property rights to women, no race and color discrimination, seems to be misunderstood and misinterpreted by the religious heads and the followers for short term benefits. Because of such acts, Islam today is demonized and its contributions to the society are being passed unnoticed. Finally, the article was a comprehensive note of the beliefs in Islam regarding death and after and gave a very brief yet informative idea about the various customs and views on important aspects like fate of non-believers and reincarnation. It did make me a lot wiser about this religion!

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Bestimmtheit in Short Film :: Movies History Time D.W. Griffith Papers

Bestimmtheit in Short Film Short film has been around for longer than many of us think. The very first films made in the early 1910s were not feature-length by any stretch of the imagination, and never more than 15 minutes long. D. W. Griffith, well-known for experimentation in cinematography, was the first director to venture into films longer than 15 minutes. These first films were short films (or "shorts"), these pioneer directors experimenting with what they could or could not do with a moving camera. Early shorts involved filming people boarding a train, or some similar mundane act. People reacted to this, and flocked to watch these movies, simply because of the novelty of watching reflections, instead of shadows, on screen. But as the audience got more sophisticated, filmmakers began to see the need to innovate. In the 1920s, experiments in surrealism occurred, with people, such as Salvadore Dali, dabbling in the "new" art of filmmaking (Cooper, ii). Despite great advances made in the field of technologi cal expertise and film technique, short films of today still suffer from the same limitation that their predecessors had: time. For a single narrative to be compressed within 15 minutes, the director and scriptwriter have to be sure that every single object within the mise-en-scà ©ne is of absolute relevance, thus maximising the use of screen-time (also known as "story-time", or histoire). This essay uses a contemporary short film and an 18th century text to discuss Chatman's concern of bestimmtheit in films. I hope to address certain concerns such as the extent to which a film can "specify" a particular object and what this specification does with regards to our understanding of the text. In addition, I will relate the compression of information into imagery to the limitations of time, given that a short film has a limit of 15 minutes. To do this, I shall analyse the cinematography of the short film, and show how relevant they are in bringing out certain scenarios described in Defoe's text. The short film in question is The Periwig-Maker, a clay-animated film directed by Stephen Schaeffler and narrated by actor Kenneth Brannagh, and it will be analysed with relation to the text it is based on, A Journal of the Plague Year by Daniel Defoe. To clarify certain misconceptions regarding the origin of The Periwig-Maker, let me first add a disclaimer. Stephen Schaeffler had based the events that

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

What Makes a Good Psychology Essay?

Words: 525 â€Å"What makes a good Psychology essay? † When writing an essay it is important to explain what the essay question is asking for. This helps when it comes to understanding what information is required from the essay. Before starting the essay the topic area that the essay question refers to must be recognised and well-understood, so researching topic areas before beginning an essay is essential. There are many modules in psychology such as cognitive psychology, individual and abnormal behaviour, biological psychology, social and development psychology and so on.It is important to determine which of these modules the essay question is relating to. Once the essay question has been understood the next step is deciding in what information to include. The information must be valid and relevant to the question. The content of the essay could be either descriptive or analytical; a descriptive essay, for example, needs to be factual and concise describing a specific area of psychology. An analytical essay on the other hand, requires you to compare and contrast different methods or models.A psychological essay involves specialist vocabulary, the content of the essay is written using psychological terminology in a clear and concise manner. To be able to write this way technical terms and definitions must be understood. An essay must be precise and also be able to distinguish between fact, opinion and argument. There are other factors that affect the quality of a psychology essay such as clarity and grammar. An essay must be easy to understand but yet use complex psychological terms. The point of a psychological essay is to convey relevant information in an academic manner.It also helps to know what information gains mark, as to avoid the inclusion of any irrelevant information. Academic English must be used to ensure that the person writing the essay is not misunderstood by the essay marker, academic English is more formal than â€Å"normal† En glish as it creates a sense of professionalism and confidence. Psychological essays have a generally accepted structure. They are written in continuous prose. The first section is an introduction providing the reader with background information about the topic area also includes the hypothesis or aim of the essay.The main section or discussion provides accurate descriptions of the topic area and the theories or research related through it. Essentially the main section attempts to answer the hypothesis or the title of the essay. Any relevant statistical information would be discussed in this section but still using a formal English style. The last section is a conclusion to the essay; this contains a summary of the discussion or main section, an evaluation will also be included and any sources or references would be cited here.Good psychological essays always have supporting data or evidence; the inclusion of these would make a reliable and precise essay. Psychological essays cite so urces using a specific method where the name of the author is written with the date of the supporting publication following in brackets. The Harvard system of referencing is used in psychological essays, both direct and indirect forms of referencing can be used. I have concluded that a good psychological essay would follow the processes I have discussed. Source – (www. psy. gla. ac. uk)

Sunday, November 10, 2019

How does Wordsworth portray real people in The Lyrical Ballads? Essay

Lyrical Ballads, and in particular the Preface to Lyrical Ballads, is considered a central work of Romantic literary theory. In it, Wordsworth discusses what he sees as the elements of a new type of poetry, one based on the â€Å"real language of men† and the work itself avoids the poetic diction of much eighteenth-century poetry, whose most famous exponent was John Milton in Paradise Lost, which benefitted from drastic overuse of verbose Latinate vocabulary. He felt this wasn’t an accurate reflection of real people, and sought to portray them through using language which they used. In the Preface to Lyrical Ballads, Wordsworth famously described poetry as the â€Å"spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings from emotions recollected in tranquility†, and wrote to justify – in theoretical terms – his practice of writing a new and â€Å"experimental† poetry, one whose language is â€Å"fitting to metrical arrangement a selection of the real lan guage of men in a state of vivid sensation.† He rejected the Miltonic approach to poetry, and instead favoured much more Anglo-Saxon words, for their gritty implications – appropriate for a publication in which most of the poems are focused around everyday people and situations. Unsurprisingly, these are very pastoral poems, many of which solely include narrative. Although this may seem mundane for such a famous poet, this was Wordsworth’s statement of protest against the style of the time, and his digression instead led to a new style of poetry in which living language is valued highly, as it allows a sense of man speaking to man, and is a more accessible style of poetry than his predecessors’. In Michael, a poem about a father and son who form an eternal bond (Michael, an eighty-year old shepherd, and Luke, his son), Wordsworth portrays the relationship between the two. The first indication we receive of the tight-knit paternal bond is the use of language when describing Michael’s care for Luke. On two occasions, Michael’s affection is emphasised by using particularly matriarchal language: â€Å"[Michael] had done him [Luke] female service† and â€Å"†¦ female hand† . Wordsworth tries to convey the strength of the bond between the two in an ordinary working family; a clear diversion from the traditional poetry of the time. Michael is evidently a plain, hard-working, content and fulfilled man, but the land he has worked and lived on has to be sold on when his brother defaults on a loan that Michael had guaranteed. From line 236 († â€Å"Isabel,† said he, †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ), Wordsworth uses dialogue for the first time to instill the sense of a soliloquy in the poem. Michael speaks with a Shakespearean dignity; he is more upset that he is soon to lose his land, and his family will be affected, than that his brother has betrayed him. The nature of the poem itself is something which concentrates itself around the ostensibly ordinary; it is, by definition, a pastoral poem. It describes the life of a shepherd and his family, but even this varies from the traditional meaning of the word, as the country scene is far from idyllic. After hearing that his land will have to be sold, and sending off his son in order to make enough money for the family to still be comfortable, Michael goes about constructing a sheepfold, of which Luke lays the cornerstone. This is, again, a seemingly unimportant detail, especially given the content of contemporary poetry, but in the context of a shepherd’s life, this is more than a mere detail, and within the context of the poem, it is critical. Firstly, it provides us with possibly the best example of typically Wordsworthian language in the whole poem: the building materials are described as a â€Å"Straggling heap of unhewn stones†, a phrase which exemplifies the fricative consonants and drawn-out vowels of inherently Anglo-Saxon vocabulary. The pile of stones is also crucial to the poem as it signifies the transient impermanence and brevity of life, which leads us into thinking of Michael’s life – he has worked for â€Å"70 years† for everything he owns, and it is to be taken from him in a relative instant. The sheepfold itself is never finished, as Michael learns that Luke has become a criminal and must flee â€Å"beyond the seas† – every day for the rest of his life, Michael goes to mourn the ‘death’ of his son at the pile of stones, and, seven years later, he dies. The poem’s obvious purpose is to support his notion that a pastoral life is pure, moral, and happy. Wordsworth believed that living close to nature, living an uncomplicated, spiritual life devoted to honest labor was the ideal. His narrative suggests that if Luke had remained in the natural valley with his parents and continued to live the pastoral life, he would have retained his moral character and would have later saved his parents from years of grief. Although Michael is the prime example of Wordsworth’s portrayal of real people in The Lyrical Ballads, several other poems display his wish to convey the lives of real people through techniques such as language and routine situations.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

The Truth About Government Grants

The Truth About Government Grants Contrary to what books and TV ads say, the U.S. government is not giving away free grant money. A government grant is not a Christmas present. According to the book American Government Politics, by Jay M. Shafritz, a grant is, A form of gift that entails certain obligations on the part of the grantee and expectations on the part of the grantor. The key word there is obligations. Getting a government grant will get you lot of obligations and not fulfilling them will grant you a lot of legal troubles. In fact, the tantalizing but false lure of â€Å"free† money from the government has spawned some potentially disastrous government grant scams. Few Grants for Individuals Most federal grants are awarded to organizations, institutions, and state and local governments planning major projects that will benefit specific sectors of the population or the community as a whole, for example:   A neighborhood street paving projectA state-wide program to re-train displaced workersA project to attract new businesses to a depressed downtown areaA regional water conservation programA state or county-wide flood control project   Organizations that get government grants are subject to strict government oversight and must meet detailed government performance standards during the duration of the project and funding period of the grant. All project expenditures must be strictly accounted for and detailed audits are conducted by the government at least annually. All granted funds must be spent. Any money not spent goes back to the Treasury. Detailed program goals must be developed, approved and carried out exactly as specified in the grant application. Any project changes must be approved by the government. All project phases must be completed on time. And, of course, the project must be completed with demonstrable success. Failure on the part of the grant recipient to perform under the requirements of the grant can result in penalties ranging from economic sanctions to prison in cases of improper use or theft of public funds. By far, most government grants are applied for and awarded to other government agencies, states, cities, colleges and universities, and research organizations. Few individuals have the money or expertise necessary to prepare adequate applications for federal grants. Most active grant-seekers, in fact, employ full time staffs to do nothing but apply for and administer federal grants. The plain truth is that with federal funding cutbacks and competition for grants becoming more intense, seeking a federal grant always requires a lot of time and potentially a lot of money up front with no guarantee of success. Program or Project Budget Approval Through the annual federal budget process, Congress passes laws making money lots of it available to the various government agencies for doing major projects designed to assist some sector of the public. The projects may be suggested by the agencies, members of Congress, the president, states, cities, or members of the public. But, in the end, Congress decides which programs get how much money for how long. Finding and Applying for Grants Once the federal budget is approved, funds for the grant projects start to become available and are announced in the Federal Register throughout the year. The official access point for information on all federal grants is the Grants.gov website. Who is Eligible to Apply for Grants? The grant’s entry on the Grants.gov website will list which organizations or individuals are eligible to apply for the grants. The entry for all grants will also explain: How  the grant money can be used;How to apply including detailed contact information;How applications will be reviewed, judged and awarded; andWhat is expected of successful grantees including reports, audits, and performance standards Other Types of Federal Government Benefits While grants are clearly off the table, there are several other federal government benefit and assistance programs that can and do help individuals with many needs and life situations Beware the ‘Free’ Government Grant Scams The illusion that government grants are somehow â€Å"owed† to taxpayers and are thus available for â€Å"free† has inevitably led to numerous dangerous grant-getting scams. Consider the following offer. â€Å"Because you pay your income taxes on time, you have been awarded a free $12,500 government grant! To get your grant, simply give us your checking account information, and we will direct-deposit the grant into your bank account!† So compelling! But as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency warns, such money for nothing† grant offers are almost always scams. Some ads will claim that just about anybody will qualify to get â€Å"free grants† to pay for education, home improvements, business expenses, even credit card balances. Along with email ads, grants scammers often make telephone calls claiming they work for a â€Å"government agency† that has â€Å"discovered† you qualify for a grant. In either case, the claim is the same: your application for a grant is guaranteed to be accepted, and you’ll never have to pay the money back. No matter what the offer’s bait is, the hook is always the same. After congratulating them on their eligibility, the scammer asks their victim for their checking account information so the grant money can be â€Å"deposited directly† into their account or to cover a â€Å"one-time processing fee.† The scammer may even reassure the victims that they will get a full refund if they are not satisfied. Of course, the reality is that while the victims never see any grant money, they do see money disappear from the bank accounts. As the FTC advises, consumers should never give out their bank account information to anyone they don’t know. â€Å"Always keep your bank account information confidential. Don’t share it unless you are familiar with the company and know why the information is necessary,† warns the FTC. Persons who suspect they have been a victim of a government grant scam should file a complaint with the FTC online, or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Languages of Spain Other Than Spanish

Languages of Spain Other Than Spanish If you think that Spanish or Castilian is the language of Spain, youre only partly right. True, Spanish is the national language and the only language you can use if you want to be understood almost everywhere. But Spain also has three other officially recognized languages, and language use continues to be a hot political issue in parts of the country. In fact, about a fourth of the countrys residents use a tongue other than Spanish as their first language. Here is a brief look at them: Euskara (Basque) Euskara is easily the most unusual language of Spain - and an unusual language for Europe as well, since it doesnt fit in the Indo-European family of languages that includes Spanish as well as French, English and the other Romance and Germanic languages. Euskara is the language spoken by the Basque people, an ethnic group in Spain and France that has its own identity as well as separatist sentiments on both sides of the Franco-Spanish border. (Euskara has no legal recognition in France, where far fewer people speak it.) About 600,000 speak Euskara, sometimes known as Basque, as a first language. What makes Euskara linguistically interesting is that it has not been shown conclusively to be related to any other language. Some of its characteristics include three classes of quantity (single, plural and indefinite), numerous declinations, positional nouns, regular spelling, a relative lack of irregular verbs, no gender, and pluri-personal verbs (verbs that vary according to the sex of the person being spoken to). The fact that Euskara is an ergative language (a linguistic term involving cases of nouns and their relations to verbs) has caused some linguists to think that Euskara may have come from the Caucasus region, although the relationship with languages of that area hasnt been demonstrated. In any case, it is likely that Euskara, or least the language it developed from, has been in the area for thousands of years, and at one time it was spoken in a much larger region. The most common English word that comes from Euskara is silhouette, the French spelling of a Basque surname. The rare English word bilbo, a type of sword, is the Euskara word for Bilbao, a city on the western edge of Basque Country. And chaparral came to English by way of Spanish, which modified the Euskara word txapar, a thicket. The most common Spanish word that came from Euskara is izquierda, left. Euskara uses the Roman alphabet, including most letters that other European languages use, and the à ±. Most of the letters are pronounced roughly like they would be in Spanish. Catalan Catalan is spoken not only in Spain, but also in parts of Andorra (where it is the national language), France, and Sardinia in Italy. Barcelona is the largest city where Catalan is spoken. In written form, Catalan looks something like a cross between Spanish and French, although it is a major language in its own right and  may be more similar to Italian than it is to Spanish. Its alphabet is similar to that of English, although it also includes a Ç. Vowels can take both grave and acute accents (as in and , respectively). Conjugation is similar to Spanishs. About 4 million people use Catalan as a first language, with about that many also speaking it as a second language. The role of the the Catalan language has been a key issue in the Catalonian independence movement. In a series of plebiscites, Catalonians have generally supported independence from Spain, although in many cases opponents of independence boycotted the elections and the Spanish government has contested the legality of the votes. Galician Galician has strong similarities to Portuguese, especially in vocabulary and syntax. It developed along with Portuguese until the 14th century, when a split developed, largely for political reasons. For the native Galician speaker, Portuguese is about 85 percent intelligible. About 4 million people speak Galician, 3 million of them in Spain, the rest in Portugal with a few communities in Latin America. Miscellaneous Languages Scattered throughout Spain are a variety of smaller ethnic groups with their own languages, most of them Latin derivatives. Among them are Aragonese, Asturian, Calà ³, Valencian (usually considered a dialect of Catalan), Extremaduran, Gascon, and Occitan. Sample Vocabularies Euskara: kaixo (hello), eskerrik asko (thank you), bai (yes), ez (no), etxe (house), esnea (milk), bat (one), jatetxea (restaurant). Catalan: sà ­ (yes), si us plau (please), quà ¨ tal? (how are you?), cantar (to sing), cotxe (car), lhome (the man), llengua or llengo (language), mitjanit (midnight). Galician: polo (chicken), dà ­a (day), ovo (egg), amar (love), si (yes), nom (no), ola (hello), amigo/amiga (friend), cuarto de baà ±o or baà ±o (bathroom), comida (food).

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Computer R us case study Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Computer R us case study - Assignment Example siness in particular the Computer R Us where as the customer satisfaction deals with the experience of the customer who use the products provided by Computer R Us and services of Complete Care. The division of Computer R us (Complete Care) is recently facing some issues that results in customer dissatisfaction and therefore will lead to an impact on the satisfaction of the customers of Computer R Us that will result is loss of revenues. It is important for the company to take proper measures to adopt effectiveness wit in the operations that will result in customer satisfaction and hence the company will earn above average returns and customer loyalty. The research is quantitative in nature; the tools that will be used are the descriptive analysis, cross tabulation, questionnaire and regression analysis. The research approach is deductive and the analysis method would be running tests on SPSS (statistical analysis tool). Descriptive statistics provides with a descriptive coefficients that are brief, these summarize the given data; these coefficients can either be representation of the defined population or the sample used in the research. The determinants describe the central tendency and the measures of changes/variability or dispersion of the data. The descriptive analysis will give the idea of the means standard deviation of different variables/statistics used in the questionnaire and regression analysis. Cross tabulation is used to identify and compare the relationship between two variables. The cross tabulation will depict the variations of different responses with regards to the frequencies and year of association of customers with the company (Computer R Us). The questionnaire is designed in a way that all the important elements of customer satisfaction and effectiveness of services are covered. The identified elements of Customer Satisfaction selected are: The customer perceived image of the product and service is important. The customer’s

Friday, November 1, 2019

Criminology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Criminology - Assignment Example Department of Justice. 2008). Approximately 73% of rape victims know their assailants which will be discussed in more detail later. For now let’s just add few numbers concerning rapists who are, as mentioned, familiar with their victims, 38% being friends, 28% intimate partners and 7% relatives (RAINN 2007). When looking through data displayed on RAINN website, although with exceptions, we can say that a rapist is a married man, already having criminal record, often under the influence of alcohol and drugs. The crime usually occurs in victim’s home, during evening hours and involves mostly the use of physical force. As the list of numbers grows, so is the dual feeling of disgust and disbelief after facing these facts. How is it possible that today, in the 21st century, in the western, modernized world, when animals have rights and get treated with dignity, rape persists as a phenomenon in these proportions. Explanations are abundant and diverse, but for the purpose of this paper we look into Lee Ellis’ book â€Å"Theory of Rape: Inquiries into the Causes of Sexual Aggression". Ellis devoted separate chapters of the book to three distinctive theories dealing with rape. Feminist theory claims that rape is largely the result of male domination in sociopolitical and economic affairs and subsequent use of sexual intimidation and exploitation by males to maintain their supremacy. Supporters of this theory assert that rape is simply a crime of power and has very little to do with actual sex. â€Å"Women are often seen as little more than property for which men compete† (Ellis 1989). Women have never been seen as equal to men, therefore there is a need to dominate them, and, as Ellis observes, the incidences of rape will rise as women increasingly defy the status quo in the society. Every new little victory for women as gender could mean more attempts of male population to continue domination. Ronald Akers and

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Explaining a Concept Research Paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Explaining a Concept Research Paper - Assignment Example rism because there were differences in believes and opinions amongst its members because of the liberation movements that were occurring all over the world, and the right to self-determination. Because of the emergence of these differences, it was very difficult for the UN to come up with a single definition of the term terrorism. A term that is acceptable to all the countries forming the United Nations, and one that is legally binding to all the states that form the United Nations. Despite the inability of the UN to come up with a single definition of the term terrorism, the International Community has developed a series of definitions to depict the various forms of terrorism, criminalizing them in the process. In condemning terrorism attacks in various parts of the world, the UN General Assembly usually use a political description to the term terrorism (Fisher, 15). According to this political description, terrorism is a criminal act whose intention is to create a situation of terror to the public, a particular individual, or a group of individuals for political reasons. These acts are unjustifiable, no matter the philosophical, political, religious, or ethnic reasons given to justify the terrorist act under consideration. Scholars denote that it is possible to define the term terrorism by analyzing its var ious characteristics. The following are the various characteristics of terrorism; A definition by Fisher (26) stresses the importance of tactical and psychological aspects of terrorism. According to this definition, terrorism is a political violence, which occurs in an asymmetric conflict, designed to create psychic fear, and terror. This will occur by violently victimizing and destroying non-combatant areas/ targets. Through such activities, the terror group will be sending a message to the government or relevant agencies concerned about their demands and desires. On this note, terrorists aim at exploiting the media, with the intention of achieving maximum

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Environmental Degradation Due To Tourism: A literature review

Environmental Degradation Due To Tourism: A literature review Antarctica is certainly most exclusive place on earth. People have travelled and visited almost all the parts of Antarctica for more than hundreds of years. The issue here is whether the frequent visits of tourists have put into question the sustainability of tourism in this area. Antarctica is being used by various scientists to carry out research and experiments to determine climate, weather, and oceanic features in the rest of the world. Even though the expenses to visit this place is very high, people dont mind this factor as it is a lifetime experience for them. The author argues that the increase in tourism in Antarctica has led to the increase in the risk to the marine environment, terrestrial ecosystems and also has affected the national research programs. The species like penguins have started migrating to other locations from their usual spots because of the human species. The main access for the tourists to this place is with ships, which are not properly equipped and some of which have led to accidents resulting in oil spills. The oil spillage has put many species in the threat of being extinct. The problem is that how to make this tourism sustainable with reference to the ecological importance of the area. For this, the author puts forward few solutions, such as there should not be any resorts or hotels constructing on the shores of this area, as it affects the species around. These hotels and resorts dump a lot of wastes into the sea which spoils the water too. The government of Newzealand has made it compulsory for a government official to accompany the tourists ships to check whether they follow proper rules and regulations. As we know, it is difficult to keep an eye on the activities of tourists in these areas, but it is expected that a few more steps like above would make tourism sustainable in Antarctica. Article 2: Engagement with the private sector for sustainable tourism in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (Source: Report for Global Ministerial Environment Forum Dubai, 7 -9 February 2006) The Great Barrier Reefs the worlds largest coral reef system, composed of roughly 3,000 individual reefs and 900 islands that stretch for 2,600 kilometres (1,616mi) and cover an area of approximately 344,400 km ². The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland in northeast Australia. A large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. (www.cia.gov.com) Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) looks after the planning and management of the reef. The GBRMPA plays a critical role in strategically engaging the private sector in supporting research that protects and preserves the Reef. The private sector in Australia has an important part to play, adding its resources and voice to the quest to protect and preserve the Great Barrier Reef. The author explains the purpose of this move was to establish a general framework for both the conservation and the ecologically sustain-able development of the Reef. To do this the Authority brought a wide range of stakeholders into the planning process: tourism, fishing, conservation groups, Aboriginal interests, state and local governments, etc. All participated in discussions of the Reefs future and how to ensure it via responsible management of the Reef. Through its growing project portfolio, the GBRMPA provides a way in for business and philanthropy to invest in the Reefs future. Working in partnership with business, government and philanthropy, a strategic, collaborative and coordinated approach to Reef research and increases the pool of funding available to investigate and address the threats to the Great Barrier Reef. The author explains how private sector jumping in the main interest of the firms to earn from the park and the governments purpose of maintaining the park are both meet. The major hurdle is that there needs to be co-ordination between government, the private sector, local community and other stake holders to find a mutually beneficial outcome. Then the government needs to inform the major effects on the climate of the region. The government is participating in the training of the private sector employees so as to address the basic needs of the Reef including the safety of the marine life. Author argues that government will have to plan a flexible planning and managing approach so that the private sector can undergo innovations and site-specific outcomes. The trade off that the reef will have from this move will be beneficial for the eco system and the tourists visiting the place as well. The government provides incentives for the private sector to their contribution to the reef. The funds available for the government to maintain the place and also to nurture effective tourism are limited and therefore that is also one of the reasons why the government has moved into privatization. The government and the private sector are both striving forward to maintain the heritage of the site as they know the importance of the Reef very well. Article 3: Tourism in developing countries, Journal of Vacation Marketing (Source: Oppermann, M and Chon, KS (1999). Tourism in developing countries, Journal of Vacation Marketing, 5, 3, pp. 301-302) Tourism is probably the only services sector that provides concrete trading opportunities for all nations, regardless of their level of development. In many developing countries, tourism makes a greater contribution to foreign earnings than such other major exports as textile and clothing or agriculture, without encountering the same magnitude of trade barriers.(www.unctadxi.org) Certain countries also view small-scale niche tourism as having greater potential for increasing local multipliers by enhancing links with agriculture and other sectors. Moreover, small-scale niche tourism tends to reduce spatial inequalities through wider dispersal of enterprises. This should, in theory, stimulate tourist mobility and a more even distribution of tourism expenditure (Brohman, 1996). Finally, due to its smaller scale, niche tourism is portrayed as a more environmentally and culturally sensitive strategy for rural development. Rapid tourism development and non-local investment tend to marginalise some segments of local communities by exacerbating the inequalities between the poor and those who have more capital. When the poor benefit from tourism, it is usually as street vendors or casual labourers (e.g., porters or low level assistants in hotels, lodges, and tour organisations). Challenges for developing countries:- Lack of education Lack of marketable assets Lack of accommodation/facilities Lack of financial capital Even though terrorist attacks and global warming are putting some people off from traveling, the global picture is clear; people are traveling more and more every year. Tourism industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. Governments of the developing countries involved in the tourism industry have realized the importance of the industry for social and economic development and for job creation. This approach has led to bigger investments in tourism infrastructure in developing countries and so does the sustainability of tourism industry. It is supposed that Asian countries will be the fastest growing tourism players. The emerging middle class and the higher disposable income are the key factors for the sustainability of Tourism Industry in developing countries. Tourism in developing countries not only provides material benefits for the poor, but can also bring cultural pride, a sense of ownership and control, reduced vulnerability through diversification and the de velopment of skills and entrepreneurial capacity. The developing countries will thus be increasingly important and they will not only be a luring destination for foreigners but they will also become an important source market. Article 4: Environment justice and sustainable Tourism: THE MISSING CULTURE LINK (Source: Blanca Camargo, Katy Lane, and Tazim Jamal (2007), The George Wright Forum, Volume 24 Number 3) San Francisco Peaks in Arizona provides a birth place to many creation stories. Due to global warming resort management developed a plan to convert the sewage water into snow. This is one of the examples where cultural justice is embedded into sustainable development. The mountains were now used as a financial gain rather than living place. Seeing this Ninth Circuit court gave the decision of save the peaks coalition. The basic aim of sustainability tourism is conservation of environment and socio-economic well being. Thus the study of cultural impacts is important so as to focus on various issues such as interpretation, cultural survival, heritage issue etc. The other important aspects and contribution towards sustainability is the tangible (worship of fire, practices at burial sites etc) and intangible (mystical, identity, collective temporary etc) environment. It is a relationship between human and their biophysical world which help to give importance to cultural justice. Cultural sustainability can be said for the groups of people try to retain or adapt elements of culture which are distinguishing them from other people. Attention has been directed towards the sustainability of destinations and their sources. It grows to continue at the international levels which give rise to economic of the country. The World commission on Environment and Development (WCED) distinguished between the public and private spaces in order for sustainable development. It not only meets the demands of present tourist but also enhances the protection of natural resources. It also fulfils the economic, social, and aesthetic need which helps the supports system. Equity is another basic important aspect of sustainability. It starts with addressing people the issues of cultural justice and equity in natural areas destinations giving impact, across different social groups within a destination area. Still, injustices are commonly seen as it affects community labour and natural habitats, which is the major element of society. It is a balance between environment and economic development. The environmental justice movement is mainly concern about environmental risks the low income of people which is the major issue of the society. It helps tourist to identify its destinations and monitoring potential environmental issues. It can act as a good reminder to people to maintain their environment and creating awareness between people for social gatherings for maintenance of ecosystem. For example, the places which are open for tourist should be used for learning the purpose and to enjoy natural areas. While those residential places should be restricted for tourists for performing their cultural activities taking place. In other words, the major aspect of cultural sustainability is to have proper management and planning facilities which will in decision making if various cultural goods. The cultural justice as described earlier may assist in creating various policies and laws by the government and development programs which will help to create awareness between people. It contributes further to an already complex domain. One of the major concerns that researchers have is that many times cultural sustainability is not been taken into account of Cultural and Social Issues as separate phenomena but rather they are treated as either of the two. Then cultural sustainability also takes a lot of time to frame itself and also that the indicators are intangible. Therefore the measurement of cultural factors proves to be a major hurdle in cultural sustainability. Thus it is important for the people to understand that Land does not just represent a physical space, but it also represents various physical, symbolic, spiritual, and social identities of human cultures. Article 5: Sustainable Tourism in Goa (A pictorial view of tourism) (Source: Dr Nirmala De Abreu Conference on Tourism in India Challenges Ahead, 15-17 May 2008, IIMK) Goa is one of the most visited places in India with a large number of international and domestic tourists each year. Goa is renowned for its beaches, places of worship and world heritage architecture. It also has rich flora and fauna, owing to its location on the Western Ghats range, which is classified as a biodiversity hotspot. The state is although one of the smallest state in India but still holds one of the highest FDI received state in the country. The government of Goa has therefore declared Goa as a tourist hub. The place is also filled with rich heritage Portuguese culture which also includes old buildings, churches and even alcohol which is available very cheaply. The beautiful beaches of Goa are the main tourist attraction of the region and therefore there has been an increased concern over the sustainability of tourism in Goa due to its small size and over crowdedness. Tourism is generally focused on the coastal areas of Goa, with decreased tourist activity inland. Goa has two main tourist seasons i.e. winter and summer. In the winter time, tourists from abroad (mainly Europe) come to Goa to enjoy the splendid climate. In the summers (which, in Goa, is the rainy season), tourists from across India come to spend the holidays. Thus at any given time tourists are flooding Goa at all time of the year and is therefore appropriately associated as a Goa- a 356 day holiday. The main types of tourism are Beach tourism, Adventure tourism, Yoga tourism etc. Goa faces the issue of sustainability of tourism on the basis of ecological and cultural sensitivity. One of the issue raised by the author is that the survival of Olive Ridley turtles which are famous in Goa. As tourism increases the turtles are finding it hard to search for places to hatch eggs as resorts or people have taken their nesting places. Due to a wide number of foreign tourists in the area it has become hard to maintain an balance between the local people and the international tourists. The local community is the major Stake holder in the sustainability of tourism in Goa as they have to play an important role for a successful and smooth running of tourism industry. Many cultural biases in the people have created conflict between the locals and the foreigners. Issues like the locals stare are foreigners on beaches or even charge them very high for any local product which they want to buy. Tourists also face a lot of harassment from local vendors as they force tourists to b uy their products. Environmental issues faced by the people are depletion of water due to tourism and also pressure on land as there is limited availability of land in the region and the increasing tourist demand has forced resorts to locate themselves on prime tourist location. There is also an increased number of pollutants that are emitted in the atmosphere due to heavy traffic, plus there is increased concerns over noise pollution as well. A few recommendations have been suggested so as to provide a sustainable tourist environment in Goa. These include diversifying areas for tourists by not just concentrating on the beaches but also on other heritage landmarks and tourists spots across the state. To deal with the issue of local people guides and locals should be trained to hospitality management and also respect other cultures and accept them with an open mind. Also to curtail the issue of raising prices the government should set standard prices for products so as to reduce conflicts. Protection of foreign women has been a raging issue in Goa as there have been frequent issues of rape and molestation on women, this is also largely due to the availability of drugs in the market. Thus government should take essential steps to curtail drug circulation and also fix some comeback hours for hotel guests. Thus if appropriate steps are not taken to sustain the ever growing tourist industry in the tiny state it wont be that far when the same industry that has been a boon for the state turns out to be a night mare. Article 6: Ecological footprint analysis as a tool to assess tourism Sustainability (Source: Gà ¶ssling, S., Borgstrà ¶m Hansson, C., Hà ¶rstmeierc, O, and Saggeld., S (2002). Ecological footprint analysis as a tool to assess tourism sustainability, Ecological Economics, 43, 2-3, pp. 199-211) Sustainable tourism is the major issue for the countries who believe in environmental integrated tourism. The article depicts how Seychelles an environmentally rich island has been affected by the increased number of tourism on the basis of ecological footprint. Ecological footprint is a measure of the load imposed by a given population on nature. It represents the area of the Earths surface necessary to sustain levels of resource consumption and waste discharge by that population. Tourism for Seychelles is the second largest source of gaining foreign exchange. To study how sustainable is tourism in Seychelles ecological footprint was calculated on the basis of a few indicators i.e. arable land, pasture, forest, sea space, built-up land and fossil energy land. Arable land, pastures and forests are measured from the statistics which are obtained from the country whereas the other three indicators are stringent to determine as there are many external factors taken into consideration to determine the other three indicators. Fossil fuel consumption for example is not just determined by the islands alone consumption but also by the fact that the consumption of fuels by the incoming and outgoing flights from the region and that too for the sole purpose of tourism. The results of the ecological footprint are quite alarming when the country believes to achieve Environmental Impact Assessment as a key to increasing tourism. On the other hand Seychelles has protected a proportion of its island as restricted area and has thus has shown that tourism development and ecosystem conservation are in balance. Seychelles has a large amount of foreign exchange generated due to tourism and which is utilized for the imports of various commodities which include oil, food supplies, wood etc. Now, considering the amount of land which is unexplored or unutilized it is been argued that this land could be used in order to obtain the above needed resources. Thus the country faces a trade-off between imports and land conservation. The amount of CO2 and other harmful emissions from aircraft has also gained wide speculation on the belief that Seychelles is sustainable to tourism. Energy saving devices and use of renewable energy has just marginally served the purpose b ut the main purpose of sustaining tourism is limit the transport distances of aircraft, as a short distance in the locality might prove ecologically beneficial. The energy distribution or consumption in the island is also not viable as just a single resort in the vicinity of the island consumes much greater energy than the neighboring town. Ecological footprint analysis (EFA) although is a good way to asses tourism sustainability but it is quite difficult to obtain the EFA indicators as many times sufficient data is not available. For example the amount of CO2 or other emissions from the aircraft cannot be measured and as per how much harm it does to the island cannot be measured. Environmental degradation similar to El Nino can be claimed to be due to some natural calamity but similar coral degradation surrounding the island cannot be overlooked. Unsustainable management of the biosphere, for example clear-cutting a rainforest for agriculture would seem to increase the ecological efficiency because the yield factor of cropland is higher than that of forestry. So thus if a few limitations are overlooked then EFA indicators are the best way for Seychelles to achieve sustainability in tourism. Article 7: SUSTAINABILITY INDICATORS FOR MANAGING TOURISM (Source: HwanSuk, Choia, and Sirakayab, E. (2006). Sustainability indicators for managing community tourism, Tourism Management, 27, 6, December, pp. 1274-1289) In this globalised world of capitalism, transportation has played a major role which helps to develop tourism into the worlds largest industries. This tourism has brought a tremendous contribution to the economics of the world. Although it has brought prosperity to the society still it has negative social and cultural impacts and environmental degradation in society. It has damaged all the natural resources and socio-cultural environment of many tourist places. Taking all aspects into considerations World Commission on environment and development (WCED) formed various organisations that will take care of the ecosystem. Basically, it needs tourism planning, management, and development option. This will result in sustainable development to the tradition of neo- classical model. Many individual countries have defined their own national policies and strategys for the development of sustainability. The basic aim of the committee should fulfil the local economic benefits and protect the natural resources. Sustainable tourism has also given rise to the third dimension aspect of literature which includes social, cultural, and ecological dimensions. They also thought of political, and technological. This gave an impact on tourism which led it to the progress for forming a frame work. William Ogburn was the first one to use the term social indicators, which forms a component in sustainable development. The objective indicators act as a central part of monitoring everything. They form the major tool for income, employment, and attract visitors. The efforts were not only seen in micro level but went up to macro level taking all aspects into consideration. It included various methodologies like the survey instrument, data collection/ findings, discussion and conclusion. These four components are the key conditions for sustainable tourism development. These indicators help the local to understand the condition of resources to have a helping hand for the development of the ecosystem. These should be planned and govern by the stakeholders. For maximising the sustainable tourism development residents should have various communication channels which are interlinked with each other to have a better co- ordination between various stakeholders. For example, the sustainability goal of a small region with a large population would differ from that of large communities with a small population. Thus the indicators should satisfy and precept the role of sustainable tourism development, in order to extend the current situation. Though they have different approaches still they have one role in common that is achieving sustainability. In short, the approach towards sustainable tourism development should always be ecological and should be responsible for all social, political, economical, technological aspects. Article 8: TOURISM AS A KEY TO SUSTAINABLE MOUNTAIN DEVELOPMENT: THE NEPALESE HIMALAYAS IN RETROSPECT (Source: S.K. Nepal (2002), Unasylva 208, Vol. 53) Tourism is one of the largest industries in the world. Mountainous tourism plays an important aspect in economic development and environmental conservation. Hector Ceballos-Lascurian has termed this word ecotourism. It can also be defined as Travelling which does not disturb the surrounding and maintains the existing culture (Ceballos-Lascurain,1987). It can also be defined as the last hope preservation and protection of various species and ecosystem (Smeral, 1996). And tourism particularly in Nepal where mountains contribute about 80% of the land mass and 20-30% of total volume of tourism which forms homes of various biological and cultural diversity acts as an incoming source to many people which form the major aspects of the Nepalese Himalayas. Most of the peaks in the Himalayas are promoted as an adventure spot rather than studying point. However such tourism gave rise to both negative and positive points. Several exposures to tourism brought disruption of local culture, traditions etc. Thus it is necessary for the mountain tourism to be based on sustainability which includes many aspects such as sound environmental practices, equality and long term benefits. Basically, sustainability encompasses ecological, economical and social components, giving rise to major three components of mountain tourism in the Nepalese Himalayas those are as follows: Conservation of natural resources Improvement of quality of life of local population Enhancement of visitors satisfaction. Nepal mainly compromises of three major regions the Annapurna, Everest and the Lang tang regions, where Annapurna -conservation area and Everest and Lang tang- national parks. Basically, all these areas were more exploded by foreign mountaineering which has made them more popular and famous. Thomas Cook offered the first tour of Nepal for the Western visitors, which led to prosperity and popularity to intermediate level. This popularity brought both positive and negative points within itself, by changing Nepal from an exotic destination to that of a cheap rugged and dirty destination. Due to lack of regulation and improper management the beauty of Himalayas was leading nothing but landscape degradation. Many things like garbage, pollution, extraction of natural resources came with it in such a way that it lead to destructions of things. Trekking traffic puts great pressure on mountain traits which were more seen in higher altitudes and where the vegetation was poor. Accumulation of g arbage by the trekkers formed the major issue of mountains. Thus the sustainability of tourism industry in Nepal came under sever scrutiny. In 1991 Sagarmath pollution control committee (SPCC) was established to solve these problems. It has collected up to 250 tones of garbage per year. Despite all these problems the Nepalese Himalayas has been a boon to the local economy. It has under wined the difference between the poorer and the rich. New habitats were developed by people giving a new way towards society. It increased the awareness of the effects of tourism and therefore started planning various conservation programs. People are trying to manage their resources sustainably by the means of energy conservation. The government undertook programs where locals and visiting tourists took an active initiation. Without these programs initiated by the government the sustainability of tourism was under threat. Such reforms by the government are not only seen in Nepalese Himalayas but throughout the world. Thus mountain tourism in the Nepalese Himalayas represents the dilemma of conservation and development being debated the context of suitability development. Thus if the mystical, spiritual and wilderness image of the Nepalese Himalayas is to be restored and capitalised on, then there must be concrete efforts towards tourism development that is sustainable in ecological, economic and social terms. Article 9: Sustainable tourism in Maldives (source: Journal by Ron Gluckman in Maldives) The Maldives have got a nickname known as Paradise. This place is being well equipped by natural beauties which make the place equal to the word paradise. But even Maldives is facing issues related to sustainable tourism. The Maldives 70 percent of the GDP comes from their tourism in their country which makes the government regulate many policies to make the tourism in a sustainable way. Now it been seen that the government is not successes by 100 percent. The problems which the Maldives face due to the tourism are global warming and the wastes disposed of by the resorts. A one-meter rise in the sea level can swamp 80 percent of the Maldives. The no of tourists to this spot is being increasing year by year, but the resorts available to accommodate them are very less when compared. And the existing resorts are creating problems with their waste disposal. Summary of Key Findings: Sustainable tourism is an industry committed to making a low impact on the environment and local culture while helping to generate income and employment for local people (Coccossis, 1996). The aim of sustainable tourism is to ensure that development is a positive experience for local people; tourism companies; and tourists themselves. Sustainable tourism can be taken in four different interpretations that include economic sustainability of tourism, the ecologically sustainable tourism, sustainable tourism development with both focus of environment as well as long-term feasibility of the industry and finally tourism as a part of a strategy for sustainable development (Farsari, 2000). In all the articles that have been critically analysed above all the issues regarding the sustainability of tourism is mentioned. Government as a Stakeholder:- Tourism is one of the many external forces influencing the direction and options for national development. The question of whether tourism can be sustainable that is, whether it can contribute to local sustainable development is rightfully addressed in the context of the involvement of Government bodies. A truly practical discussion on sustainable tourism must take place within the government authorities and the communities that are being influenced by tourist industry development. It must create accountability of the tourism industry to locally-defined development visions. Like for example the government of Goa has now put in strict regulation on building of Resorts on beaches as it results in the degradation of precious species. Training local people or industries is also one of the important duties governments should play in order to achieve sustainable development of tourism and therefore in the barrier reef the Private sector industries will initially be directed by the governme nt as per the working of the Great Barrier Reef and only then will it be handed out to them. The articles reviewed shows that profits may be increased simply by adopting some general environmental principles, such as recycling waste, planning for long-term sustainability, and seeking local partnerships for the preservation of a reef. If these actions result in cleaner, less crowded, holiday resorts, then they are in effect sustainable tourism without being labelled so. Strict norms and rules should be setup by the government so as to see through efficiency in the tourism industry. Short-term government focus is no good for the countries as that would lead to short term gains and long term losses. In Nepal, the government is not imposing strict regulations on the garbage dumping carried out by the tourists at high altitudes. Environmental Degradation due to Tourism:- Like other economic activities, tourism consumes resources. Today, tourism is one of the major economic activities in the world. The environmental effects, widely defined, include cultural and social elements and are probably the biggest problem of tourism. Areas, where overcrowding and overdevelopment occur, are often relatively small and possess fragile environments. At peak season visitors can outnumber the resident population. Environmental impact of tourism is most visible in tourist destinations, but effects are also visible at points of origin and transit (McKercher B, 1993). For example, the output of aircraft, ferries, buses, cars equipment and promotional material consumes productive and energy resources and generates waste in origin areas while travelling long distances creates pollution in the atmosphere and adversely effects th