The dramatic impact of Scene One in the Glass Menagerie Essay Example For Students

The dramatic impact of Scene One in the Glass Menagerie Essay Tennessee Williams uses a vary of dramatic techniques in Scene One, to encourage the audience to engage in what is truly behind this spectacular play. He uses mood music, lighting, symbolism, language and gesture, contrast in characters and also a screen device. These are very visual to the audience and help them understand what is going on in certain scenes and important moments. The audience see a change in Toms role at the beginning of the play. Williams uses him as a character and also the narrator of the play. He transfers us from real-time back into his memory of the past events and a good director would choose to do this smoothly in order to give maximum effect. All these techniques that Williams uses form a plastic theatre, which emphasizes the exaggerated props used on the stage. The first dramatic impact the audience receive from the opening scene is the fact that the play starts at the end. Tom has left the household and has become a merchant sailor. Even though he has achieved the life he has wanted, he still has that emotional attachment to the past and to Laura. We will write a custom essay on The dramatic impact of Scene One in the Glass Menagerie specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now The play demonstrates the unhappiness that Tom is feeling and how hard it is for him to let go of the past events. The stage directions in The Glass Menagerie give the audience a focus on what detail the play has. It helps them imagine what the setting would be truly like in real life. It also allows the director of the play to set the stage and give the play the proper feel that Williams intended. The dark alleys mentioned in the stage directions give the setting a claustrophobic environment. This relates to Laura and how she feels outside the apartment. She does not like being in crowds and is very shy. The director of the play may set the stage as having the dark alleys surrounding the apartment, to make it look as if it is closing in on the family, heightening all the tension and locking the anger and frustration in. The overall impression of the stage will be highly effective if the director uses the stage directions in the right manner and concentrates on the important symbolic props, such as Lauras glass collection. Williams also uses music to enhance the dramatic impact of the play at important points. It emphasizes the moods and feelings of the characters when they are acting and it lets the audience begin to feel themselves what the characters must be feeling. The characters themselves do not hear the music, only the audience does so Williams brings in the music from outside the play and not from within it. In Scene One, the piece The Glass Menagerie was specifically written for this play and it heightens the emotion at the end of the scene when Lauras character becomes the subject of that moment. The audience engage in the emotion with her and it shows that Laura has a delicate and fragile character and her vulnerability, which will be shown more clearly during the play. Even the title of the music piece itself, The Glass Menagerie suggests it is fragile and has an important meaning to the play. In the interior setting, effective lighting is used to also emphasize certain emotions during a scene. In scene one, the lighting is dim, reflecting Toms memory. He is remembering the past, which is not a happy one and so bright lighting would not be suitable for this effect. Referring to the stage directions, the lighting is not realistic. This gives the play a slightly surreal feel, as it is in Toms memory, which he exaggerates slightly. At the end of scene one, a shaft of very clear light is thrown on face. This underlines the fact that she cannot cope with her mothers attitude towards her and the gentlemen callers. Laura feels pressurised, leaving an even more distressed character showing. By placing spotlights on the characters at certain times, it expresses their thoughts better and it wants the audience to focus on that character. .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 , .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .postImageUrl , .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 , .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1:hover , .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1:visited , .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1:active { border:0!important; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1:active , .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1 .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ud7473172f1ce4432fcde193b7e6af7c1:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The Taming of the Shrew Essay PaperIn scene one, but also throughout the play, there are several symbolisms. These include objects, colours and also characters. One of the main symbolic props is the fire escape. It expresses the fact that Tom wants to leave the apartment and live his own free life away from Amanda and her tormenting ways. He feels restricted in the confined space and at that present time, the only escape he really has is the fire escape balcony to their apartment, where he regularly goes out to smoke a cigarette. When we see him here, it creates the impact that he is anticipating his escape from the apartment. On the other hand, the fire escape shows that Laura wants to escape into the apartment. She does not enjoy being in crowds because she is shy and over-exaggerates her slight limp. It relates to her collection and shows that it is her only escape. She turns away from the outside world, as at the end of scene one, she believes that she is going to be an old maid. Amanda also tries to re-create the past in scene one. She talks about her gentlemen callers and how Laura will receive them too, but Laura is convinced she will receive none. We see Amandas Southern-living style as she is already preparing for a gentleman caller. One of the most symbolic pieces of prop there is on the stage is the picture of their father. The director may wish to heighten the importance of it by making it large scale compared to the rest of the stage props. In the Toms soliloquy, he says, There is a fifth character in the play who doesnt appear except in this larger-than-life size photograph. Toms tone here is cynical and he also includes a pun to make the fact of his father leaving more comical for the audience. The size of the picture expresses to the audience how big a part he played in the families lives and how they have been left with a saddened memory of him, filled with anger. Amanda, in scene one, says, But I picked your father! This affects Laura and we then know it is a sore point to touch on. When Amanda says this, Laura rises and begins clearing the table, making it obvious that she wishes not to talk about the subject. Later in the play, we see how the dramatic impact of the father abandoning them has when Tom also leaves. The audience also get a dramatic impact when they see the language used by Tom and the other characters. In Toms soliloquy at the beginning of scene one, he describes himself as the opposite of a stage magician. He paints a picture for the audience to set the tone of the play. It is a memory play, so Tom has to use different to contrast between memory and real-time. There is a big contrast between Toms language and Amandas. Tom sees the real world and tends to be sarcastic towards Amanda. He says at the table in scene one, Its you that makes me rush through meals with your hawk-like attention to every bite I take. He is not afraid to show what he feels towards his mother, even though he loves her dearly. Whereas, Amandas language tends to be fantasised and exaggerated in her own little world. An example of this is when Amanda is talking about her gentlemen callers: -seventeen! Gentlemen callers! Why, sometimes there werent chairs enough to accommodate them all. By Amanda expressing this, it makes Laura feel even more insecure about herself and it is Amanda, who I think, is driving Laura to this shyness and low self esteem. Lauras language is very different to Tom and Amandas. .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 , .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .postImageUrl , .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 , .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22:hover , .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22:visited , .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22:active { border:0!important; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22:active , .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22 .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ufb08ab593e8f88a0f2082180e6ea9b22:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: A Modest Proposal Essay IdeasIn the first scene, the audience see that Laura does not say very much and likes to keep out of the light. We can sense her nervousness and her gestures suggest her low confidence even in her own home. There is a strong contrast between all three characters behaviour. In scene one, at the table, there is tension between Amanda and Tom, which highlights their unique characters and beliefs. Laura has a very shy character contrast to the others and during the first scene, she says very little. When Tom and Amanda argue, we see Laura get slightly uncomfortable and frightened of confrontation. We see her as the person in the middle of arguments as she does not know which way to go and does not want the family splitting up even more. We also see her in this scene get uneasy when the father is mentioned. This triggers the audience to believe that she is still trying to get over the fact that he left them and how big the emotional scar is that was left. A screen device is also included in the stage directions of the play. This has several good dramatic impacts to the play. In scene one, we see the unique effect it has on how the audience can interpret the characters emotions and how it all relates to the past. This comes from a 15th century poet and it praises beautiful women. The title means Where are the snows of yesteryear? and it reminds the audience of Amandas younger past. Overall, the first scene of The Glass Menagerie has a good dramatic base and sets a good tone for the rest of the play. We get a sound viewing of each of the characters and how they behave, and also the audience get some background knowledge prior to actual acting of Toms memory. With this, the audience can then settle into the play well and understand what is happening at certain points.

Consumerism and Morality in Fight Club Essay Example

Consumerism and Morality in Fight Club Essay Example Consumerism and Morality in Fight Club Paper Consumerism and Morality in Fight Club Paper Essay Topic: Fight Club Novel America was an industrialized nation, many people lived in smaller communities, cared for one another, had a shared sense of value, and truly wanted to contribute to the greater good of the world. After Industrialization, however, Americans began competing with other nations in terms of technology and fashion. Now more than ever, material items seem to define us. America has become a consumer nation, and its people are more preoccupied with owning expensive luxuries and rather than focusing on the more important aspects in life. Whereas love and compassion were old values, we now tend to neglect moral ethics in attempt to pursue unimportant and materialistic objects. In the novel Fight Club, Chuck Palanquin addresses the modern experience of consumerism as well as morality As defined by absolutenesss. Com, consumerism is the equation of personal happiness with consumption and the purchase of material possessions. We as a nation are fooled into the belief that money can buy happiness. In Fight Club, the narrator tries to cure his depression and loneliness by creating the perfect home. After years of carefully selecting and accumulating the perfect home furnishings, he was still void of happiness. He tries warning the readers of that truth: You buy furniture. You tell yourself, this is the last sofa I will ever need in my life. Buy the sofa, then for a couple years youre satisfied that no matter what goes wrong, at least youve got your sofa issue handled. Then the right setoffs dishes. Then the perfect bed. The drapes. The rug. Then youre trapped in your lovely nest, and the things you used to own, now they own you (p 44). After he learned of the explosion of his condominium, he was not saddened that he lost his home along with memories and photographs, but he was devastated that his collection of home furnishings was destroyed. By continuously buying everything that society tells us, we are becoming by-products off lifestyle obsession. We arent concerned with the betterment of others or trying to end murder, crime, and poverty, but we are instead concerned with celebrities and name brands. Because we are constantly purchasing, we create an enormous amount of waste and pollution, but encouraging ourselves ND others to end consumption alone does not work. As the narrator says, For thousands of years, human beings had screwed up and trashed and crapped on this planet, and now history expected me to clean up after everyone (pig 124). While some people try to recycle and conserve energy, advertisers seize this opportunity to market echo-friendly products, which still results in consumption. As Fight Club acknowledges, there is more that must be done to end consumerism and consumption. In efforts to end consumerism, Tyler Turned created Project Mayhem. While an outsider may view what they did as immoral, there may be some morality in their message. Project Mayhem attempted to free the world and better society by destroying what we see as Important. Although their destructiveness may be to the extreme, they do not actually have intentions of physically hurting others; they made sure that the Parker Morris building was empty prior to demolition. By destroying corporate America, teen essentially treble to make people see can toner Tort won teen were and not by what they own. While it could be seen that Project Mayhems actions are a result of their skewed set of morals, there may be some understanding in the big picture of Tellers plan. As technology and industry progresses, so will consumerism. Fight Club may be one attempt to force society to question their values and how they live their lives, but we as a nation must come together to end consumerist beliefs so that America can become the nation it was set out to be; the land where anything is possible and citizens can fully express themselves as they please.

Vocabulary Words for Vegetables in Spanish

Vocabulary Words for Vegetables in Spanish If you were a botanist, you might call vegetables vegetales in Spanish. If you were a culinary expert, youd probably say verduras or, less commonly, hortalizas. But whatever you call them, knowing the names of vegetables can come in handy if youre poring over a restaurant menu or  want to eat a balanced diet where Spanish is spoken. Talk About Vegetables in Spanish Here are the names of the most common vegetables (and some foods that are often thought of as such, even if they technically dont fit the definition), along with a few of the uncommon ones: A-B artichoke: la alcachofa arugula: la rà ºcula, la rà ºgula asparagus: los esprragos (The singular form esparrago is used to refer to asparagus as a plant, while the plural is used for asparagus as a food.) avocado: el aguacate, la palta (The English word comes from the Spanish avocado, which is no longer widely used.) bamboo shoots: los tallos de bambà º (In other contexts, a tallo is a stem or stalk.) bean: la judà ­a, la haba, la habichuela, el frijol beet: la remolacha bell pepper: el pimiento, el ajà ­ bok choy: la col china broccoli: el brà ©col, el brà ³culi Brussels sprouts: la col de Bruselas C-G cabbage: la col, el repollo (Many of the Spanish names for cabbage-related vegetables include col, which comes from the Latin caulis and is a cognate of the cole in coleslaw.) carrot: la zanahoria (The Spanish word can also refer to the plant itself, not just the root.) cassava: la yuca, la mandioca, la casava, la casabe cauliflower: la coliflor celery: el apio chard: la acelga chickpea, garbanzo: el garbanzo, el chà ­charo chicory: la achicoria chives: cebollino, cebolleta, cebollà ­n corn (American English): el maà ­z cucumber: el pepino (Pepino can also refer to various types of small melons.) dandelion: el diente de leà ³n (The word literally means lions tooth.) eggplant: la berenjena endive: la endivia, la endibia (Because the Spanish b and v have the same pronunciation, the two variations are pronounced alike.) escarole: la escarola garlic: el ajo ginger: el jengibre green pepper: el pimiento verde, el ajà ­ verde J-P Jerusalem artichoke: el tupinambo, la pataca, la papa de Jerusalà ©n jicama: la jà ­cama kale: la col crespa, la col rizada, el kale leek: el puerro lentil: la lenteja lettuce: la lechuga mushroom: el champià ±Ãƒ ³n, el hongo mustard: la mostaza okra: el quingombà ³ onion: la cebolla parsley: el perejil parsnip: la chirivà ­a, la pastinaca pea: el guisante, la arveja, el chà ­charo potato: la patata, la papa pumpkin: la calabaza R-Z radish: el rbano red pepper: el pimiento rojo, el ajà ­ rojo rhubarb: el ruibarbo, el rapà ³ntico rutabaga, swede: el nabo sueco (literally, Swedish turnip) shallot: el chalote, el ajo chalote sorrel: la acedera soybean: la semilla de soja (Semilla is the word for seed.) spinach: las espinacas (The singular form espinaca is used to refer to spinach as a plant, while the plural is used for spinach as a food.) squash: la cucurbitcea string beans: las habas verdes sweet potato: la batata tapioca: la tapioca tomatillo: el tomatillo tomato: el tomate turnip: el nabo water chestnut: la castaà ±a de agua, el abrojo acutico watercress: el berro yam: el à ±ame, el boniato, la batata, el yam zucchini: el calabacà ­n Vocabulary Notes Not all vegetables are classified identically in the two languages. For example, not all the coles are thought of by most English speakers as cabbages, and not all beans would be thought of by Spanish speakers as habas. Also, as in English, names of some vegetables can vary with region or because of how theyre prepared. A vegetarian diet can be referred to as a rà ©gimen vegetariano or dieta vegetariana, and a vegetarian is a vegetariano or vegetariana. A vegan is a vegetariano estricto, although the term may not be  understood in all places without an explanation. Preparing Vegetables Following is a selection of verbs used in discussing methods of preparing vegetables. Also, the verbs cocer and cocinar can be used generically to refer to many methods of cooking. boil: hervirbraise, stew: hervir a fuego lento, estofarfry: freà ­rgrill: asar/hacer a la parrillapickle: encurtirroast, bake: asarsautà ©, stir-fry: saltearsteam: cocer/cocinar al vapor

Guy de Maupassant, Father of the Short Story

Guy de Maupassant, Father of the Short Story French writer Guy de Maupassant (August 5, 1850–July 6, 1893) wrote short stories such as The Necklace and Bel-Ami as well as poetry, novels, and newspaper articles. He was an author of the naturalist and realist schools of writing and is best known for his short stories, which are considered highly influential on much of modern literature. Fast Facts: Guy de Maupassant Known For: French author of short stories, novels, and poetryAlso Known As: Henri Renà © Albert Guy de Maupassant, Guy de Valmont, Joseph Prunier, MaufrigneuseBorn: August 5, 1850 in Tourville-sur-Arques,  FranceParents: Laure Le Poittevin, Gustave de MaupassantDied: July 6, 1893 in Passy,  Paris,  FranceEducation: Institution Leroy-Petit, in Rouen,  Lycà ©e Pierre-Corneille  in RouenPublished Works:  Boule de Suif, La Maison Tellier, The Necklace, A Piece of String,  Mademoiselle Fifi,  Miss Harriet,  My Uncle Jules,  Found on a Drowned Man, The Wreck, Une Vie, Bel-Ami, Pierre et JeanNotable Quote: If I could, I would stop the passage of time. But hour follows on hour, minute on minute, each second robbing me of a morsel of myself for the nothing of tomorrow. I shall never experience this moment again. Early Life Its believed de Maupassant was born at the Chà ¢teau de Miromesniel, Dieppe on Aug. 5, 1850. His paternal ancestors were noble, and his maternal grandfather Paul Le Poittevin was the artist Gustave Flauberts godfather. His parents separated when he was 11 years old after his mother, Laure Le Poittevin, left his father Gustave de Maupassant. She took custody of Guy and his younger brother, and it was her influence that led her sons to develop an appreciation for literature. But it was her friend Flaubert who opened doors for the budding young writer. Flaubert and de Maupassant Flaubert would prove to be a major influence on de Maupassants life and career.  Much like Flauberts paintings, de Maupassants stories told the plight of the lower classes. Flaubert took young Guy as a kind of protege, introducing him to significant writers of the day such as Emile Zola and Ivan Turgenev. It was through Flaubert that de Maupassant became familiar with (and part of) the naturalist school of writers, a style that would permeate nearly all of his stories. De Maupassant Writing Career From 1870-71, Guy de Maupassant served in the French Army. He then became a government clerk. He moved from Normandy to Paris after the war, and after leaving his clerkship in the French Navy he worked for several prominent French newspapers. In 1880, Flaubert published one of his most famous short stories Boule du Suif, about a prostitute pressured to provide her services to a Prussian officer. Perhaps his best-known work, The Necklace, tells the story of Mathilde, a working-class girl who borrows a necklace from a wealthy friend when she attends a high society party. Mathilde loses the necklace and works the rest of her life to pay for it, only discovering years later that it was a worthless piece of costume jewelry. Her sacrifices had been for nothing. This theme of a working-class person unsuccessfully trying to rise above their station was common in de Maupassants stories. Even though his writing career spanned barely a decade, Flaubert was prolific, writing some 300 short stories, three plays, six novels, and hundreds of newspaper articles. The commercial success of his writing made Flaubert famous and independently wealthy. De Maupassant Mental Illness At some point in his 20s, de Maupassant contracted syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease that, if left untreated, leads to mental impairment. This is unfortunately what happened to de Maupassant. By 1890, the disease had started to cause increasingly strange behavior. Some critics have charted his developing mental illness through the subject matter of his stories. But de Maupassants horror fiction is only a small portion of his work, some 39 stories or so. But even these works had significance; Stephen Kings famous novel The Shining has been compared to Maupassants The Inn. Death After a gruesome suicide attempt in 1891 (he tried to cut his throat),  de Maupassant spent the last 18 months of his life in a Paris mental home, the celebrated private asylum of Dr. Espirit Blanche. The suicide attempt was believed to be a result of his impaired mental state. Legacy Maupassant is often described as the father of the modern short story- a literary form thats more condensed and immediate than the novel. His work was admired by his contemporaries and imitated by those who came after him. Some of the best-known authors for whom Maupassant was an inspiration include W. Somerset Maugham, O. Henry, and Henry James. Sources Dumesnil, Renà ©, and Martin Turnell. â€Å"Guy De Maupassant.†Ã‚  Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica, 1 Aug. 2018.â€Å"Guy De Maupassant.†Ã‚  Short Stories and Classic Literature.Guy De Maupassant.†Ã‚  Guy De Maupassant - New World Encyclopedia.

Environmental Compliance and Safety Research Paper

Environmental Compliance and Safety - Research Paper Example This was evidenced by lack of coordination between the various agencies and companies involved in oil drilling operations during the disaster. This paper examines corrective mechanisms employed to control the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and agencies involved in the exercise. In addition, the paper explores the compliance regulations violated during the exercise. The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was triggered by an explosion in the British Petroleum (BP) operated Macondo well on April 20, 2010. The explosion killed eleven crewmembers of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and several others suffered various levels of injuries (Ramseur, 2011). The blowout destroyed the drilling platform and it sunk two days later. Following the explosion, oil leakage was discovered on the sea floor and it continued discharging crude oil until its containment on July 15, 2010 (Uhlmann, 2011). According to Ramseur and Hargety (2011), over 4.9 million barrels were discharged into the water during the period. However, the exact volume of crude oil discharged remains unknown. The oil discharge was so voluminous that it contaminated the beaches of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida (Ramseur, 2011). The oil spill caused significant environmental and economic damage to the region. Commercial activities in the Gulf of Mexico especially commercial fishing and tourism were disrupted. Consequently, livelihoods of many people depending on these sectors were adversely affected. The impact on aquatic life was equally disastrous, killing numerous animals and plants in addition to polluting their habitats. The exact environmental, economic and social effects of the oil spill remain unknown up to date. However, the adverse environmental effects are expected to continue being felt in the affected region for many years, as demonstrated by the earlier Exxon Valdez oil discharge in 1989 (Uhlmann, 2011).

Think 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Think 3 - Essay Example judged the government was in welcoming a technology that allowed human beings to produce androids which resemble human beings in every way only that they lacked bone marrow and empathy. "Emigrate or degenerate! The choice is yours!" (pg. 6). This indicates that the government believed that the American government disintegrated after WWT and a new society could only be created in a new land. However, as the novel progresses, the new glimpse of life seen on earth are deem and incomparable to the attractive life in Mars. The question of what makes us human is evident when the author states "...ultimately, the empathic gift blurred the boundaries between hunter and victim, between the successful and the defeated" (Dick 29). It is empathy that differentiates us from androids. However, technology is challenging this inordinate ability and the continual use of technology is making us isolated and might soon challenge our very existence. Living a false life is currently the order of the day as evident through social platforms such as Twitter and Facebook which makes us highly connected yet very isolated. â€Å"The electric things have their life too. Paltry as those lives are† (Dick 239). The technological devices invented by human beings have a life of their own, but we increasingly find ourselves attracted to ‘their’ life, forgetting our life. Reading Philip Dick’s novel, one realizes how the present world is actually experiencing the situation that was foreseen decades ago. It is an outstanding masterpiece to every student who believe in the destructive nature of

Should teens be allowed to drive at 16 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Should teens be allowed to drive at 16 - Essay Example However, processing a drivers license is one of the biggest status symbols among the teenager particularly the high school students. Getting a drivers license is not only a social asset but it makes the teenager feel more independent than ever before. According to the American Automobile Association, teenage drivers account for only 7% of the driving population but are involved in 14% of fatal crashes. Traffic crashes are the number one cause of death and injury for the teenagers between the ages of 15-19 (AACAP, 2005). According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for young people between the ages of 15 and 20. These deaths account for one-third of all fatalities in this age group. The NHTSA says three factors work together to account for these statistics for teen drivers: inexperience, risk-taking behavior and immaturity and greater risk exposure. Young drivers start out with little knowledge or under standing of the complexities of driving a car. Peer pressure and adolescent impulsiveness can result in poor driving judgment and participation in high-risk behaviors such as speeding, inattention and not using a seatbelt. Teens often drive at night with other teens in the vehicle. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) says that 43 percent of teenage motor vehicle deaths occurred between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. In addition, two out of three teen passenger deaths occurred when the driver of the vehicle was also a teenager (Eldridge, 2005).

Modernism and Conceptual Art Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6500 words

Modernism and Conceptual Art - Thesis Example The essay "Modernism and Conceptual Art" discusses relationships between modernism and conceptual art. Conceptual art is widely regarded to have begun in the ‘dada’ movement that occurred in Switzerland, Germany, France, America, and other countries during the early 20th Century. Dada artists like Marcel Duchamp enshrined urinals on pedestals, signing them with an alias in parody of the authoritative time stamp and signature which was already equated with monetary value in the fame or status driven art, gallery, and collectibles trade at the time. Similarly, Rene Magritte famously inscribed â€Å"Ceci n'est pas une pipe† across a painting of a pipe, to inspire many who studied art to question the nature of artistic representation in an era where formal abstract painting was being developed as a valid method of self-expression. In the modern perception of the artist, his or her personal views, theories, conflicts, psychology, and philosophy of life are all assumed to be summarized and expressed through the process of art, completely or in fragments, creating objects of appreciation with symbolic social messages and embodying a personal commitment to an aesthetic, beauty or truth. Yet, the viewer or audience may ultimately interpret a work outside of its original intended context, just as art history elevates some artists and themes to make them canonical, collectible, valuable, and teachable on a social level of shared subjectivities. Conceptual Art is inherently critical.

Marketing segmentation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Marketing segmentation - Assignment Example ifferent segments of a business’s target market will need different products, and this means that the management should ensure that there are strategies in place to see that need s of all consumers are met. Consumers will also be willing to pay different prices for products, and this means that segmentation will help in determining the right price for the right target group. Consumers can also be reached through different medium in different places and segmentation will help in deciding the outlets that best suits the different customers. Lastly, consumers will react differently to promotion and the management should know the right promotion strategies to capture specific target groups. Segmenting characteristics are important as they will help the business in knowing how to segment their target market. Behavioral segmentation enables an organization to determine the benefits consumers want from the product and how they use the product. Demographic segmentation will help an organization is determining the how factors such as age, ethnicity, gender and other demographic features affect consumer choices (McDonald & Dunbar, 2004). Geographic segmentation will help in determining where consumers are located, how to reach them and what products they will need based on their location. Psychographic segmentation will enable an organization to know what consumers think, what they value, and how they live their lives, and this will help in determining the right product. Market segmentation is crucial as it will enable organizations to focus their products on a group that is predicted to bring maximum profitability. Target segmentation will enable a business to distinguish itself from competitors by attending to a group that other competitors have not yet established. This in turn translates to increased revenues because resources are not wasted on unproductive

African American History Essay Example for Free

African American History Essay Introduction The America that was there after the conclusion of the civil war is nothing like the America we recognize presently. Significant events have occurred since 1865 that have shaped our understanding of what America is today. Major industrialization and urbanization, equal rights for all citizens and the two major world wars that have shaped our understanding of what America is today. While, there are numerous events that have shaped America, there are few events that have served as markers of change for the entire society, particularly for the African Americans. From 1619 to 1865, a significant number of African American immigrated to the United States as slaves. Ever since the arrival of the first African Americans in Point Comfort, currently known as Fort Monroe in Hampton, the African American community has made significant strides in the community. However, the major event that occasioned this strikes transpired in 1865: the abolishment of slavery. This marked as a single major event that catapulted the African American society to where it is today. This article will examine the history of African American from 1865 to today. In 1865, the civil war between the north and south, or civil war as it is known came to an end. This was a time of great upheaval in the American society. The entire American society was attempting to integrate, and become part of the union. The south had agreed to integrate and become part f the union (Feagin, 2014). The South had consented to join the union. In the same year, President Lincoln was assassinated. The conclusion of the Civil War occasioned the beginning of the period of reconstruction. This period was characterized by upheaval, and the AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1865 3 country attempted to reintegrate itself, and also integrate the southern. This was a period of new beginning for the entire nation (Gates, 2012). The Constitution 13th amendment was ratified, abolishing slavery in the United States of America. This phase is edged in history as one of the most imperative event in the African Americans history (Feagin, 2014). During the era of reconstruction, which lasted from 1865 to 1876, significant events occurred that shaped the lives of African Americans. The African Americans begun the process of reintegration, and they found themselves with a system that they were not used to. This period was not just a period of reintegration for the white people, but rather for the entire nation (Feagin, 2014). During this time, it was particularly challenging to the African Americans because they were attempting to integrate to a society that was heavily biased against them. During the reconstruction period, there was little political and social agreement, especially over the issues of who should be permitted to vote (Gates, 2012). There were disagreements as to whether confederates, ex-slaves or those slaves that fought during the war should be allowed to vote. The death of President Lincoln and the establishment of new administration under President Andrew Johnson made the process of reintegration more complex for African Americans (Feagin, 2014). In 1866, legislation known as the Black Codes was overwhelmingly passed by every white legislator of the former confederate States. The black codes greatly hampered the ability of African Americans to be reintegrated into the society (Gates, 2012). During that same year, the Congress passed the Civil rights act, which conferred citizenship rights to all African Americans, and giving those equal rights and liberties as to those of the white-American people (Feagin, 2014). The 14th amendment was ratified, in 1868, which defined citizenship for the African Americans, and also which overturned the Dred Scot decision (Gates, 2012). The 14th amendment strengthened the civil and legal rights of the African Americans, elucidating among other things, AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1865 4 that no state in the union shall deprive any African Americans their due process in law and the equal protections provided in the law (Feagin, 2014). The 14th amendment ensured, to some extent that the African Americans civil rights were protected. The 14th Amendment reversed the United States Supreme Court ruling in Dred Scott v. Sanford, which ruled that African Americans were not truly United States citizens (Feagin, 2014). The 14th amendment had several profound impacts on the lives of African Americans. First off, the amendment integrated African Americans into the society, by overruling the previous ruling that African Americans were not truly American citizens (Gates, 2012). Secondly, the 14th amendment prohibited the national and state governments from depriving any person, including African Americans, liberty, life and property without due regard and process as established in law. By guarding the civil liberties and rights of African Americans, the law inflicted a penalty, which entailed the loss of electoral votes and the loss of congressional seats, on states that dispossessed African Americans of their voting rights. Thirdly, the 14th amendment guaranteed all Americans, regardless of their racial affiliations protection under the law (Feagin, 2014). This clause serves an essential foundation for the decision to repeal the ruling in Brown v. Board of Education that overturned segregation. The 15th amendment was ratified in 1870, which gave African Americans voting rights. As the third and final amendment to be ratified in the reconstruction period, the 15th amendment forbids the national and state governments from refusing a citizen the voting rights based on that citizens color, race or servitude (Feagin, 2014). The adoption of the 15th amendments was greeted with extensive celebrations in African American communities and other abolitionist societies. The sense among African Americans is that their rights had been offered protected and secured. The adoption of the 15th Amendment completed a series of civil change, and it was one of the most significant events African American historical events. The 15th amendment meant AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1865 5 that the African American communities did not require the protection they were being offered by the government (Feagin, 2014). Towards the end of the reconstruction era, the south recognized that it would no longer be conceivable to hold on the perspective of recreating itself out of the North. In spite of this, there was still lingering tensions between the North and South (Feagin, 2014). Although equal rights were granted to African Americans, they did not fully enjoy them. While African Americans enjoyed expanded freedoms, it would not be till nearly a hundred years later, during the Civil rights movement that the entire fruits of reconstruction would be seen. The period of reconstruction ended in 1877, during which, a deal was struck with Democratic leaders from the south, to make Rutherford B. Hayes the U. S president, in exchange for the withdrawal of federal troops from the south, and which stops the efforts to protect the Civil liberties of African Americans. In the period after the reconstruction era, rapid industrialization followed. During this period, African Americans on the south started escaping to the North to run away from oppression (Gates, 2012). In 1879, thousands of African Americans moved to the north. In the industrialization period, rapid industrialization and development ensued in big cities in the United States. Construction of railroads spread across the country. Railroads encouraged the growth and expansion of cities (Gates, 2012). Many Africa Americans migrated to the cities to work in the processing and production companies. In 1881, Tennessee ratified the first of the Jim Crow segregation rules, which segregated stated railroads. Over the next 15 years, similar laws were passed throughout the southern States. The segregation laws caused African Americans to migrate to the northern States (Gates, 2012). The Jim Crow segregation laws conferred a separate but equal status to all African Americans. In practice, the separation led to circumstances for African Americans that were second-rate to those offered to white Americans. AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1865 6 systematizing several of economic, educational and socials disadvantages. The southern states had De jure while de facto applied in the northern states (Feagin, 2014). The Jim Crow segregation laws inflicted segregation in housing, which was imposed by covenants, job discrimination, and loan lending discrimination in banks, and also African Americans were also discriminated in labor unions (Gates, 2012). During the industrialization era, companies came up across various cities. African Americans were increasingly becoming urbanized, and left their farms and homesteads, and moved to big cities to get jobs. In 1887, the standing Lincoln statue was unveiled at Augustus Saint gardens in Chicago (Feagin, 2014). The Plessey v. Ferguson case was a milestone ruling in the United States. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Jim Crows separate but equal segregation policies to be legal, and begin being implemented. These laws barred African Americans from equal access in all public facilities. The 1900s marked the rise of civil rights movement across the United States. In 1954, the court in Brown v. Board of education case, ruled that segregation in education facilities to be unconstitutional and this measure strike down segregation in education facilities (Feagin, 2014). In 1955, Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery Alabama, for refusing to give up her seat to a white man. Her defiance offered the start of a momentum to the civil rights movement that spread across the United States. She was not the first black person to refuse to wake up for a white person, but by the time of her action, there was growing resentment and anger in the African American society for being treated as second-class citizens. Word went around about Montgomery mistreatment and arrest (Feagin, 2014). The Womens Political Council resolved to protest Rosa Park’s ill-treatment by arranging a bus boycott to start on the day of Parks’ trial, December 5th. Martin Luther King Jr. and the African American community established an association, the MIA (Montgomery Improvement Association) to carry on boycotting until the AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1865 7 Jim Crow segregation laws were altered (Feagin, 2014). The key objective was to stop segregation in the public transport system and other sections of the society, and also to employ African-American drivers in Montgomery. The public unrest ensured for 382 days, costing the Montgomery bus company he sums of money, however the city declined to give in (Feagin, 2014). The Montgomery protest leaders filed a national lawsuit in opposition to the city’s segregation rules, claiming that Montgomery desecrated the 14th Amendment. In 1956, a national court stated that the Montgomery segregation rules were unlawful, but lawyers for Montgomery County appealed. On November 3rd, 1956 the Supreme Court ruled that the segregation laws in Montgomery were illegal. During the protest, the Montgomery authorities made many arrests (Feagin, 2014). At one time, the police detained a group of African Americans waiting for carpool pick-ups. A court jury acknowledged the boycott unlawful, and 115 protest leaders were detained. In 1957, Martin Luther King, Jr. established the Southern Christian Leadership conference, which served as the forefront engine of the civil rights movement. The conference served as the main council for organizing civil rights protests across United States. The civil right movements were against discrimination of any kind and the fair treatment of all people, regardless of their color across United States. The civil right movement characterized main campaigns and protests of civil resistance (Feagin, 2014). The civil rights movements lasted between 1955 and 1968. The civil rights movements were characterized by civil disobedience and non-violent protests. In 1964, the civil rights act was ratified, and it prohibited all acts of discrimination. In 1965, The Voting Rights Act was ratified, and it outlaws the carried out in the South to disenfranchise black voters. In 1967, the first African American senator, Edward W. Brooke, was elected, and he served for two terms (Feagin, 2014). Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Tennessee, which was one of the sad moments in African American AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1865 8 history. The election of Barack Obama served as a significant milestone for United States, particularly the African American community. President Barack Obama was elected the first African-American president, in 2008. President’s Barack Obama’s election served as one of the most significant milestone for the African Americans community (Feagin, 2014). A racial divide that was there between the African Americans and white Americans was erased, and it was erased for all eternity. President Barack Obama was elected for a second term in office, which signaled the apparent rise of the African American community to the top (Feagin, 2014). In his second term in office, President Barack Obama has shown that there are things that seem more possible for the African Americans, than they were in his first term. He has made African Americans realize that they can achieve anything if they want to, and made their expectations realistic. Conclusion From the shackles of slavery in the 1800s, the African American community has risen to take full advantage of their civil liberties and freedoms. For over 300 years, African Americans fought for their civil rights and freedom. The African Americans struggles have been a major issue in each juncture of United States history. In 1776, when slave-holders were revolting in opposition to the menace of British abolitionism, the African Americans formed part of the American Revolution. During the civil war, the African Americans were also part of the struggles. African Americans have endured as much as any other community and have fought for the rights and liberties of all people in the community. From the attainment of freedom, and the struggle to get equal rights and civil liberties, the election of Barack Obama as the first African- American President, the African American community can gladly say that the racial divide between the Blacks and white Americans has been completely erased. AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1865 9 References Feagin, J. R. (2014). Racist America: Roots, current realities, and future reparations. London: Routledge. Gates, H. L. (2012). The Oxford Handbook of African American Citizenship, 1865-present. London, UK: Oxford University Press.

Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything MASS COLLABORATION CHANGES EVERYTHING? A Book Report on Wikinomics Executive Summary Tapscott, D. Williams, A.D. (2008) introduced a new concept of Wikinomics in the book WIKINOMICS: HOW MASS COLLABORATION CHANGES EVERYTHING. It was proposed that in the contemporary world, any individual or commercial enterprises cannot realize fast and sustainable innovation on its own. Collaboration with consumers, suppliers and business partners, as well as collaboration within an enterprise or organization is of great importance to its success. Wikinomics envision that in the future all survival enterprises will have to accept rapid globalization and embrace the science and art of mass collaboration. The report is aimed to take a detailed look at the book and discuss why Wikinomics work, how it works and the possibility of it being embraced by all enterprises eventually. At the end of the article, a conclusion is drawn to summarize the research results of this paper. Introduction The boundary of traditional companies is generally thought to be clear and rigid: balance sheet illustrates all properties the ownership of which belongs to a company while the list of members of corporate organizations indicates all employees hired by a company. At the same time, enterprises can manage their boundaries in accordance with expanded production scale and increased organization cost. According to pure theoretical analysis of micro economics, the intersectional point of an enterprise’s production possibility boundary and its organization possibility boundary is the enterprise’s optimal external boundary, where the enterprise’s marginal production revenue equals to its marginal oganization cost. At this point, further expansion of its boundary will lead to situations of losses outweighing gains whereas contraction of its boundary will result in non-maximum profitability. Of course, on the other hand real life situations are much more complex than theor etical analysis – marginal revenue and cost are both theoretical concepts and cannot be accurately measured. Otherwise, operating a calculator at office alone can solve the problem of determining the best size of a company. Meanwhile, due to the diversity of organization forms, organizational costs are not necessarily bound to increase along with the expansion of the organization. Organization forms such as virtual organization, strategic alliance, outsourcing, etc. are gradually being invented throughout enterprises’ development process. The birth of each new organization form can mean a new possibility of organization expansion. But none of these new forms have had the kind of revolutionary influences comparable to that of mass collaboration which involves coordination and collaboration with the mass, partners and even competitors outside an enterprise’s boundary in terms of enterprise production and innovation. This trend has transformed the previously hierarchical, closed workplace into a self-organized, distributed, collaborative human capital network. The new phenomenon is characterized by reporters with the Wired magazine as Crowdsourcing; people in the software industry compared the model to OSB, Open Source of Business; and, Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams, research fellows of New Paradigms think tank, dubbed it â€Å"Wikinomics†. Wikinomics, according to the book Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything by the two research fellows, is a new economic production paradigm based on mass collaboration and open platforms, which is a new economic production model that features all characteristics of â€Å"mass input, common creation†, including such new phenomena as content generation with user participation, external RD activities of an enterpriseà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’ large scale collaborative production, integration of production and consumption, and establishment of sharing platform etc, The authors use a great number of enterprises cases to prove the superiority of the new economic paradigm. However, mass collaboration, at least has not changed everything or even become a business mainstream with more and more entrepreneurs getting doubtful or simply reject. Gold Mines outside of Enterprises Boundary In the book of Wikinomics, the authors choose to begin by citing a case in the mining industry which is actually very thought provoking. A small sized gold mining company in Canada, whose future is almost entirely dependent on whether the company can dig sufficient more gold at low cost on mineral deposits of which it has ownership. The geologists working for the company cannot accurately locate the gold in the short period of time. Facing this situation, the CEO, Rob McEven made a decision that was very unconventional in mining industry: he launched a gold company challenge contest, publishing all geological information the company already had to the whole world via its website and offering a prize of $575,000 to the contestant who provided the best estimate and mining method. The open source prospection resulted in amazing returns more than 1,000 virtual prospectors from 50 countries participated the challenging match and found 110 target locations on the company’s mineral deposit, 50% of which were not found by the company previously. More than 80% of the new target locations were proved to contain great amount of gold and since the launch of the contest more than 8 million ounces of gold was found. According to McEven’s estimation the contest shortened the time needed for conventional prospecting by two to three years and the value of his company also skyrocketed to $9 billion from merely 100 million. The gold company is not Wikipedia, but an enterprise that is engaged in a extremely closed, conservative industry. Here the authors implied that enterprises in any industries can benefit from Wikinomics. But why Wikinomics can enhance enterprises’ business performance? We can consider the gold company as a highly simplified enterprise model. Prospection cost and cost for unearthing the gold are the only input, while the gold is the output and the condition needed for the company to earn a profit is the two categories of cost cannot exceed the value of the gold to be unearthed. The essence of the challenge contest launched by the gold company is that McEven changed the conventional prospection cost which was uncertain and very hard to control and threatened to bring down the company, to a fix amount of money needed for attracting the best bid from outside. The nature of the company’s success is it reduced its cost significantly by taking advantage of external resources. It seems the â€Å"gold† that made the company rich was lying in its mineral deposits, but actually it was in the â€Å"outside†. Take the Lessons Further If we think deeper about the case of the gold company, prospection fees actually can be considered research and development costs of an enterprise. In an enterprise’s cost structure, fees put into research and development (RD) is similar to venture investment. Whether the RD activities can succeed or not, the company has to pay for all the costs. If RD activities prove successful, the enterprise makes economic profit; if those activities prove failures, then the enterprise’s investment will go waste. Yet in the RD models described by Wikinomics, risks and costs of RD activities are jointly shouldered by the enterprise and external specialists. On one hand, participation of outside resources can bring more ideas in and increase the possibility of success of RD programs; on the other, the gold company’s practice of soliciting the best prospection plan is tantamount to inviting bids that can ensure the success of RD programs; the company only needs to pay for RD programs that are successful while the costs of failed RD programs are spread among all bidders. The rise of benefit, or revenue, and the drop of costs both expand the enterprise’s profitability. Then why bidders outside of the enterprise are willing to shoulder the cost of its failed RD activities? Firstly, the cost spread onto each individual is already trivial; the RD cost invested by each individual may be just like lifting one’s fingers; on the other hand, outside bidders that participate in corpora te RD activities may have a mindset that is similar to that of lottery buyers – though the average benefit expectations maybe negative, they are still excited by the possibility of winning a huge amount of prize. A phenomenon I would like to mention is, actually Wikinomics have had its use in much earlier times, long before the human kind has developed so many dazzling technologies and devices. The listing of criminals as wanted by police authorities, or posting ads that offer some kind of incentive to find a lost relative or something value, are both effective use of Wikinomics. The searching cost is huge to should for a police department and is way beyond what a person or family’s can afford. By doing so, the enormous searching cost will be shouldered by the public and the police authorities or a family trying to locate someone or something will only need to pay a much smaller amount of money as an incentive. We can now see from a series of cases of enterprises cited by the authors of Wikinomics that the nature of the secret of Wikinomics is that an enterprise can make use of resources outside its boundary to increase benefits or reduce cost. However, to utilize resources outside of its boundary, a enterprise must do what the gold company had done, that is, disclosing some internal knowledge of the company such as RD platforms and technical standards. If an enterprise follows the logic of Wikinomics, it will inevitably take on the four characteristics that are central to mass collaboration: openness, peering, sharing and acting globally. Mythology and Reality Though Wikinomics has displayed a extremely attractive prospect for enterprises and many enterprises indeed have obtained the â€Å"gold† outside of their boundaries. Yet in reality, we can see still there is only a very limited proportion of enterprises that have chosen to make a change to their traditional prices of running their businesses within their boundaries. Consumers and producers are considered two categories of people that have little in common; openness is deemed as will eventually cause an enterprise to lose its competitive advantage. And more importantly, those enterprises which do introduce into themselves â€Å"mass collaboration and common creation† are considered miracles, rather than normal cases. The book Wikinomics will very likely be read by enterprises managers and owners as a set of mental gymnastics that can spart inspirations, rather than a research report on the trend of changes and reform of enterprises. To what extent has the new economic paradigm of mass collaboration influenced the trend of business operation model? The open source operating system Linux was deemed by many commercial analyst to be the terminator of Microsoft, however, till this day, Microsoft still holds firmly its considerable share in the operating systems market. Open source softwares are still considered by many as a business model that cannot last long. An IDC report indicates (Internet Data Center), the market share of Linux servers slumped to less than 10% last year from its 45% market share in 2012 (Hertel et al, 2003). Many enterprises which intended to switch to Linux from Unix have also slowed their pace down and begin considering Windows Servers provided by Microsoft. The major concerns of enterprises about open source softwares like Linux are security and subsequent assurance, which have also been the two issues where Microsoft attacks open source softwares. As for innovations made with users’ participation, Apple Inc.’s attitude may be representative of that of the majority of enterprises. The iPod and digital set top box Apple TV were cracked and expanded after they hit market, creating many new functions. The official attitude of Apple is, whatever users do with those devices is their own business, but Apple will not provide quality warranty anymore. â€Å"We will not interfere with these behaviors by users, yet once you cracked your Apple devices, they will not be warranted by us anymore†. Put it in a simple way, Apple’s approach toward these activities is â€Å"no blame, no encouragement†- Apple never wants to offend these fanatic consumers, nor it wants to encourage and lead this trend of users participating in innovation. If the Wikinomics success stories are so attractive, then what makes it hard to be taken as a mainstream choice? â€Å"Better to deal with a familiar demon than to stay with a strange angel† is a belief upheld by many entrepreneurs, which shows their hatred against uncertainties, especially situations over which they feel hard to control. Many business owners are adapt at managing relations with stakeholders and do not fear colliding with parties with whom they have conflict of interests, yet they tend to have a hard time dealing with neutral parties due to the fact the their behaviors are hard to encourage or constrain through benefits. A sharp criticism on Linux and Wikipedia is the negative impact they leave on the legitimate rights of private property owners and enterprises to secure profits. When resources are located inside the boundary of enterprises, calculation of cost and profits are a part of enterprises’ consideration. More importantly, these inside resources bear different rights and obligations from that of outsider resources, for example, enterprises’ employees are restricted by explicit or conventional rules and contracts. The traditional task driven model that is based on instructions and control will make corporate managers feel secure. Wikinomics use the movement style of Tarzan of the Apes as a metaphor of the mindset of this kind of enterprises: only when they hold firmly the next tree branch will they feel safe to loose the tree branch in his hands already. The first step of attracting outside resources to invest and participate in common creation is exactly the same situation as loosing the tree branch in hands while not grasping firmly the next one. Thus this step becomes a great barrier that many enterprises always cannot overcome. Organizational Reform Toward Wikinomics In order to realize Wikinomics, it is required not only to have theoretical books, but also practical action. If we realize that Wikinomics indicates the vague and open enterprise boundaries, then internal organizational structure must first make a change before the business open arms to greet resources outside because the traditional hierarchical system is unfit to this new change. For example, Linux community is not like Microsofts management as to manage the project team. And British Encyclopedia editorial department cannot run like Wikipedia management team. Therefore, traditional company organizations are unable to take advantage of a large number of resources that cannot be commanded. In fact, even like the Linux and Wikipedia, the world well-known open source community is not as boundless and unrestrained as we imagine. Linux’s highest decision-making authority rests in its original inventor Linus Torvalds who is supported by a ten-person core team. Below them is the hu ge and categorized Linux application developer community and community part-time administrators. In Wikipedia, Jimmy Wales manages five full-time employees and there are about 5,000 maintainer who manage the 100 million registered users and more than 200 million entries (Eric Raymond, 1999). Both Linux and Wikipedia or other open source communities have a similar internal organizational structure in terms of the company hierarchy system, like a round periphery diffusion from the core layer. The source of power is not primarily from higher authority, but from the knowledge and contribution of members. And the formation of such organizations can provide great opportunities to run in-depth study about wiki organization. Robert Stevens create the geek squad, showing us how to keep the vitality of a small team in a traditional hierarchical organization and to stimulate bottom-up organization ability to innovate. â€Å"Geek squad† was originally an independent electronic equipment services company. When it achieved its original success, it is acquired by the consumer electronics retail giant Best Buy. At the beginning, many people worried about geek squad would have the infected disease of large enterprises. However, under the support of Best Buy CEOAnderson, Geek squad established a set of internal corporate culture which is totally different from Best Buys. (Durman, P., 2007) Geek squad is actually free in Best-Buys organizational boundaries. It first took a network of self-organization and management model before the overall organization. For those reluctant to fully reach beyond traditional boundary, they can try to develop a small team within the organization in order to bridge some gaps wi th Wikinomics. Outsourcing and Crowd-sourcing Outsourcing, has long been a hot topic in business realm which is the contracting out of a business process to a third-party. The major motivation for outsourcing/off-shoring is to reduce cost and improve efficiency and to give full play to its core competitiveness. As previously mentioned, the phenomenon of mass collaboration is also dubbed Crowd-sourcing. A major difference between outsourcing and crowd-sourcing is, outsourcing stresses high professionalism while crowd-sourcing is exactly the opposite and values individual users’ active participation. Therefore here we see another restrictive factor of mass collaboration, or crowd-sourcing: some tasks require professionals to complete and little meaningful individual participation from the â€Å"crowd† can be realized. Conclusion As we look back at analysis throughout the whole passage, we can see many real life constraints on the practical use of Wikinomics. Many enterprise owners and managers are fearful of uncertainties; enterprises’ internal organization structure is not ready for embracement of Wikinomics’ requirements; and many business processes need to be handled by highly trained professionals. However, the concept of reducing cost and improving efficiency through bringing together the strength of a group of people is right all the time. We may boldly introduce the concept of â€Å"Sub-Wikinomics†, a business management model somewhere between outsourcing and crowd-sourcing. Reference Hertel, G., Niedner, S., Herrmann, S. (2003). Motivation of software developers in Open Source projects: an Internet-based survey of contributors to the Linux kernel. Research policy, 32(7), 1159-1177. Eric Raymond, 1999, â€Å"The Cathedral and the Bazaar,† in the Cathedral and the Bazaar: Musings On Linux and Open Source by an Accidental Revolutionary. Sebastopol CA: O’Reilly Publishing, pp. 30. Peter Schwartz, Peter Leyden, Joel Hyatt, 1999. The Long Boom: A Vision for the Coming Age of Prosperity, Cambridge, MA: Perseus Publishing. O’Farrell, P. N., Hitchens, D. M. W. N. (1988). Alternative theories of small-firm growth: a critical review. Environment and Planning, 20(10), 1365-1383. Durman, P.(2007) Geek Squad Comes to Britain.The Times of London. Fuchs, C. (2008). Don Tapscott Anthony D. Williams: Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything. International Journal of Communication, 2, 11.

Greek Male Sculptures and Todays Advertising Essay -- Kouros Krytios

Greek Male Sculptures and Today's Advertising Freestanding sculpture that decorated the early Classical Period of Greek Art consisted of predominantly male nude figures. The male body was used in seeking to create "more realistic ways to portray the human figure in painting and sculpture and to place figures in more realistic settings"(Stokstad pg 178). This portrayal of young men through freestanding sculpture revealed a sort of obsession with the male body in which society took on as the norm. As opposed to the Greek society, the one of today might associate nudeness with aspects of profanity and vulgarity because of the view that certain parts of the body are not to be seen by public eyes. A nude body of today may also be seen as sexy or provocative. This allows the public art form of yesterday to be replaced by the controversial art form of today. The Krytios Boy of 480 BCE is an example of this Greek glorification of the young male body. The quest to create this figure into a realistic form proves to accomplish itself in the figure's contrappasto stance, the curved spin...

Teaching Evolution in Public Schools Essay -- Essays on Teaching Evol

Many groups have tried to push their ideas on the public through schooling. Public school students, numbering in the millions, seem a perfect, captive audience for the promulgation of the ideas of a few self-righteous groups. These groups have tried to influence national thinking by promoting their views in the classroom, but this is not an acceptable method. A public school classroom is a place for the passing of accepted knowledge from an instructor to a student, not the place for the ideas of the ignorant few to influence the thinking of the many. The local and state school boards serve as the check on the vocal few and determine the curriculum to be administered to the throngs of students attending class. Current science curriculum is widely accepted. Parents and communities have no complaints over their students learning about the classification of animals and plants, chemistry, gravity, cells, and body processes. The complaints are focused around the teaching of evolution, but for the many educated people in the field of biology, evolution is a basic principle. Public school students must be exposed to this fundamental concept and be familiar with it. Evolution must be taught in schools since it is a scientific model that cannot and should not be ignored. All other alternatives—creation science, intelligent design, creationism, and others—are religious and have no place in the public school classroom. Looking at the historical precedent and scientific acceptance, evolution is the only model of life origins and progression that should be taught in public schools. The battle regarding evolution in public schools has been going on for over a century. Charles Darwin published his book On the Origin of Species by Means o... ...[17] â€Å"Science.† Webster’s Dictionary. 1042. [18] Moore 133. [19] Harbaugh, M.J. Fundamentals of Biology. 450. [20] Harbaugh 403. [21] National Science Education Standards. 201. [Emphasis added.] [22] Appleman, Philip. Darwin. 592. [23] â€Å"NSTA Position Statement.† [24] â€Å"Academic Standards for Science and Technology.† http://www.pde.state.pa.us/k12/lib/k12/scitech.pdf. 15-17. [25] The National Science Education Standards. 185. [26] Burlingame, Leonas Lancelot. General Biology. 381-2. [27] â€Å"Science and Creationism.† http://books.nap.edu/html/creationism/appendix.html. [28] Moore 135. [29] Moore 135. [30] â€Å"NSTA Position Statement: The Teaching of Evolution.† [31] National Science Education Standards. 184. [32] Brandwein, Paul. Teaching High School Science: A Book of Methods. 255. [33] Brandwein 254. [34] Brandwein 255.

Introduction to Culture and Imperialism

Introduction to Culture and Imperialism Edward Said Culture is one of the things that elude an accurate definition. Some of the various well-known definitions are cited by Said in his various works. For instance: â€Å"Culture is the learned, accumulated experience of the communities, and it consists of socially transmitted patterns of behavior. † The final analysis of definition boils down to â€Å"socially transmitted patterns of behavior†, and makes more sense, though like other definitions, it too cannot be taken as exact and conclusive. Said also cites anthropologist Clifford Greety’s definition, An ordered system of meanings and symbols in terms of which social interaction takes place, and social system is the pattern of social interaction itself. † This definition too, has partial relevance to what culture amounts to. Said seems more in agreement with Matthew Arnold who regards culture as, â€Å"each society’s reservoir of the best that has b een known and thought†. Edward Said’s entire professional life was devoted to the teaching of literature. As his critical outlook was influenced by his colonial social background, he could not help looking for imperialistic implications in literature.Imperialism too does not lend itself to a complete conclusive definition, though it is more easily comprehensible than the word culture. For a meaningful discussion, Solomon Modell’s definition of imperialism makes a good promise. He says, â€Å"Imperialism is a policy of extending a country’s power beyond its own borders for the purpose of exploiting other lands and other people by establishing economic, social and political control over them. † Said gives an updated version of Modell’s definition in the following words† Imperialism means the practice, the theory and the attitude of a dominating metropolitan centre that rules a distant territory. † It is obvious that the interaction in imperialism takes place between the dominating and dominated nation. That interaction never develops in friendship, because of distrust and contempt on either side. The dominated nation never accepts the ideology and attitude of dominating nation. The best example is the Indo-Pak Sub-Continent, for instance, about 200 years of British rule could not bring friendship between Indians and British government.Literature not doubt is the mirror of culture. Said deplores the general attitude of the critics and readers who never care to look at the cultural aspects of the works of fiction, like the works of Carlyle, Ruskin or Even Dickens. On the other hand, he admires Conrad’s persistence as he forecasts the unstoppable unrest and misrule of the Latin American republics and singles out North America’s particular way of influencing conditions in a decisive, yet barely visible way. He praised â€Å"The Heart of Darkness† by Conrad.Speaking of the interaction between i mperialistic regime and colonized nation, he conceives culture as a protective enclosure where imperialist should stop to check his politics before he enters the door. â€Å"I found it a challenge not to see culture in this way†, says Edward Said. Since the culture includes ideology and attitudes of a nation, any effort on the part of imperialist to subdue the culture of a nation invokes violent resistances. Palestine, Kashmir and Iraq are apt illustrations of the resistance, which results in blood acts of fighting and terrorism.Education, is the field, through which imperialist finds easiest access to the culture of the subjugated nation. As most of the third world countries are backward in education, imperialists launch so-called programs for educational development, to achieve their goal. British did this by setting up state-governed schools and colleges, the curriculum was designed to produce minor officials in cheap English dress, speaking shaky English. Introduction to culture and imperialism is an accurate appraisal of current world scenario around us. It is a warning for people of the world against imperialistic approach of US.Cold War has made US the sole power, being unprecedented. During the Cold War, US had to contribute for the socio-economic development of the third world countries. Its attitude was soft and plaint. It had to respect the mandate of the UNO. In the case of US aggression, the victim state could invoke the intervention of USSR, which US could afford to ignore. With the engineered fall of USSR, US emerged as the self-appointed lord of the world. Muslim militants groups were created, trained, organized and financed to cause the fall of USSR. These groups were made to believe that it was the war between Islam and communism.Heavy consignments of sophisticated arms were supplied to those warriors. Pakistan also had to pay a heavy price by playing a major part in the downfall of USSR. Islam came to be the next target of the sole Su per Power of the world, as a potential challenge in the years to come. The oil-rich Iraq has already been laid waist in the ruthless hunt of WMDs. Afghanistan that spearheaded the war against communism, is now main target in the hunt of Osama. But the power-drunk Super Power does not bother about justifications for whatever it does, so long as it remains at the top. UNO is also helpless in this regard.US adopted the preemption policy. Even terrorism is the exclusive prorogation of the sole Super Power. The prorogation includes defining nuclear proliferation, and therefore Iran is presently on the hit list, whereas Pakistan likely to be the next target, gets an occasional growl from US administration. During 19th century immense power was concentrated in Britain and France as a result of industrialization. It was unprecedented and more formidable than power of Rome, Baghdad, Spain and Constantinople. In the later years, US also came up with Britain and France and that was peak of Wes t domination.The rise was so fast that rate of acquisition of foreign territory had risen up to 247,000 square miles per year in 1914. During this time, US was forwarded as an empire. After annexation of North American territory, Plans were set afoot through intervention to Philippines, the Caribbean, Central America, the Middle East, Vietnam and Korea. Edward Said clearly labels as Imperialism whatever US is doing around the world. He says, â€Å"The goal of the US policy is to bring a world increasingly subject to the rule of law, and it is the United States, which organizes the peace and defines the law.United States imposes the international interests by setting the ground rules for economic development and military development across the planet. † Edward Said pins his hopes on a gradual development of awareness, culminating in a formidable, well-organized resistance that would eventually force US to think wise before meddling with sovereignty of other states, but this so lution depends upon the numbers of factors which may or may not come together and it may take ages before they come.

Comparisons Between Araby and A&P Essay

Araby is a story about a young boy who has an intense attraction to this girl. He goes out of his way to watch her every morning, and eventually talks to her. She says how she wants to go to the bazaar but cannot due to the fact that she’s going away on some church related trip. He wants nothing more than to impress this girl so he offers to travel to the bazaar himself and get her something. His uncle is late returning home on the day the boy is to go shop, so the boy ends up having to pay more to get into the bazaar. After looking around for a while, a lady that works there asks if he is interested in anything, and he responds saying no. As he turns to leave, the bazaar is beginning to close for the night, the light shuts off on him as he walks back to return home. A&P is a story about a boy names Sammie who works in a supermarket. In this story Sammie is telling the readers what he sees with an elaborate devotion to detail. One day while he is working, three girls walk in with swimsuits on. He is shown to have some sort of instant attraction to one of the girls. He sees the most attractive girl to be the leader of the three nicknaming her â€Å"Queenie†, and while he goes in to detail of how beautiful her features are, he tells of how her â€Å"followers† were chubby and unattractive. When Sammie’s manager spots the girls, he scolds them about their attire. Sammie wanting to come to the rescue of the girls quits. His manager is a friend of his parents and tells him he is making a mistake, but Sammie doesn’t care. He walks out the store hoping to see â€Å"his† girls, but when they are nowhere in sight he realizes he’s made a mistake that was foolish. In these stories Araby by James Joyce and A&P by John Updike, there are many similarities and at the same time, these stories contain many differences. One of the many similarities between these two stories is that both these boys are seriously intrigued with someone of the opposite sex. While they go in to detail on the appearance of the girls they are interested in, they never give a name. This can be seen as the boys being obsessed with the female species. Another trait these boys share would have to be that they will go out of their way to impress these girls. The boy in Araby offers to go to the bazaar to spend his own money and purchase her a gift. Sammie tries to impress the girls by quitting his job. He feels as if he is defending their honor. Another similarity between these two boys is they failed in impressing the girls in their stories. Sammie quits then goes outside to look for the three girls that he quit for, but they were nowhere in sight. After discovering that they are not outside he feels regret, not only for quitting his job and not impressing the girls like he intended to do, but because he let his manager and parents down, and realized how foolish and rash his decision was. The boy in the Araby story felt foolish after he went out his way to go to the bazaar for this girl, and ended up paying just to leave empty-handed. When the lights turned off on him as he was walking out made it seem as if he was taking a walk of shame. He felt unwise because he was blinded by beauty and wasn’t using his brain. Just as there similarities, there are differences between the two stories Araby and A&P. One difference between the two stories is that in A&P when religion was spoken about it was mentioned briefly. In Araby, religion was mentioned a lot, and whenever it was mentioned it was usually in a negative way. In A&P Sammie mentions how his manager works in the church and has many jobs. In Araby the first time they mention religion, they mention the death of the boy’s family’s tenant, who was a priest. Another difference between these stories is that the boy in Araby only described the girl as being a beautiful object, while Sammie made the girl in his story seem more like a sexual object. Sammie made observations on how her top strap would hang off her shoulder, making her look naked from the neck down to her shoulder. The boy in Araby made comments on how graceful the girl in his story’s hair was.

West Jet †Strengths & Weakness

WestJet Airlines is one of the low cost air carriers of Canada. In a very less span of time WestJet had gained the position of market leader in domestic airlines in Canada. The main reason behind this success could be the strategies being followed by the management while providing services to the customers. Providing excellent customer satisfaction seems to be the motto of the firm. Besides holding its position as the market leader Westjet proactively maintains its standard as a leader of environmental policy in the airline industry through corporate and individual responsibility. As well as adhering to all of the local, national and international standards, West Jet takes hands on accountability approach where no guidelines exist to ensure that the corporation remains responsive to current environmental issues and to prevent new environmental concerns from arising. WestJet strives to use and develop technologies that are environmentally sound. It also recycles and supports the use of recycled materials where possible. Employees are also advised and encourage to make health – conscious and environmentally sound decisions. This is ensured through proper training and the adequate funding needed to aintain a high standard of environmental responsibility. (West Jet Annual Report, 2003, p. 39). Strengths of WestJet Airlines: Concerning strengths and weaknesses of the firm, a SWOT analysis is require to assess the extent to which the strategies of the airlines have been successful. SWOT stands for strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats. Strengths and weakness are the internal factors while opportunities and threats are the external factor. Here we would be considering only the internal factors. The strengths of WestJet are obvious. The airline is a profitable organization. The success of WestJet could be credited to the different management strategies being implement in the firm. These strategies especially the customer retention strategy are formulated and well implement considering the competitive environment in today’s world. The strength of WestJet Airlines lies in the below mentioned factors: ? Emphasis on customer service and customer service relationships. ? WestJet’s no frills strategy does not only mean a cut in cabin crew, but also allows a faster pre-flight preparation, thereby reducing the time grounded as well maintaining low fare. Better passenger services compared to the competitions, especially Air Canada. ? High aircraft utilization. ? Minimization of operational costs on the board which is obtained by optimally utilizing the man power resources. ? Strong focus on cost leadership and benchmarking. It is highly environmental friendly which is reflected on the activities being carried on under recycling. WestJet fully supports recycling of waste de-icing fluid. West Jet contracts to use propylene glycol wherever possible instead of ethylene glycol for aircraft deicing in most of its routes and wherever it is logistically available Weaknesses of WestJet Airlines: Too much dependence on the business ravel market segment. ? Increased dependence on passenger revenues rather than having a diversified source. ? Domestic airline with no exposure in the regional – international segment. ? Limited viable expansion possible into newer destinations over and above currently served. ? Strict competition from Air Canada. The weaknesses are obstructing as barriers in the further growth of the firm. In order to overcomes these weaknesses and retain its position as market leader, it becomes highly essential fro WestJet to utilize the different opportunities and convert the different threa ts in to its strengths.

Free Essays on School Size

â€Å"Is Size Crucial to School Improvement?† School size is a major issue in the educational environment across the country. Ranging from 100 to 5,000, all high schools are different in matters of how many students attend the school. Many people think that small schools are a better environment for students to learn in, but then there are those who feel that there is more of a chance for the student to find what they are interested in at a bigger school. There are many sub-issues in the main issue of the size of the school such as class size, extra curricular activities, a larger choice of classes in bigger schools, the relationship between the student and the teacher, among many other issues. The size of a school is made out to be one of the most important issues in the field of education, but the size of the school should not matter, the quality of the education the students are getting while they are in the classrooms is the most important issue dealing with education. If you have 200 teachers or 35 teachers, they should all give 110% to their students. I think Irwin Kurtz said it best, â€Å"It’s better to have one good teacher then two crummy teachers any day.† By this he means that having one good teacher teach 35-40 students in a class then have two bad teachers teaching 15-20 students in a class, those students in the 35-40 kid size class will learn more and better. Those who support small schools feel that the students attending the smaller school, with no more than 600 students in the school, will learn more, learn better, and have a better relationship with the faculty in their school. In small schools it is more likely to have a low student/teacher ratio. In smaller classes there can be more individual instruction and the teacher can center more on the children that need the extra help. This is especially good for those types of students who are slower to learn material and students with learning disabilitie... Free Essays on School Size Free Essays on School Size â€Å"Is Size Crucial to School Improvement?† School size is a major issue in the educational environment across the country. Ranging from 100 to 5,000, all high schools are different in matters of how many students attend the school. Many people think that small schools are a better environment for students to learn in, but then there are those who feel that there is more of a chance for the student to find what they are interested in at a bigger school. There are many sub-issues in the main issue of the size of the school such as class size, extra curricular activities, a larger choice of classes in bigger schools, the relationship between the student and the teacher, among many other issues. The size of a school is made out to be one of the most important issues in the field of education, but the size of the school should not matter, the quality of the education the students are getting while they are in the classrooms is the most important issue dealing with education. If you have 200 teachers or 35 teachers, they should all give 110% to their students. I think Irwin Kurtz said it best, â€Å"It’s better to have one good teacher then two crummy teachers any day.† By this he means that having one good teacher teach 35-40 students in a class then have two bad teachers teaching 15-20 students in a class, those students in the 35-40 kid size class will learn more and better. Those who support small schools feel that the students attending the smaller school, with no more than 600 students in the school, will learn more, learn better, and have a better relationship with the faculty in their school. In small schools it is more likely to have a low student/teacher ratio. In smaller classes there can be more individual instruction and the teacher can center more on the children that need the extra help. This is especially good for those types of students who are slower to learn material and students with learning disabilitie...

buy custom The Educational System and Concern essay

buy custom The Educational System and Concern essay Introduction The educational system and concern Eight years of primary and four years of secondary schooling is offered by the Belize education system. Although the number of preschools has steadily increased over the last decade, preschool education is not compulsory. There are a few post secondary institutions including the NationalUniversity (University of Belize). This institution evolved from the merger of four former government funded tertiary institutions, and the University College of Belize (Longsworth Mason, QADS, 2005). The cost of tertiary education is borne primarily by students and/or their parents, even though government provides support to tertiary institutions. For pupils between 5-14 years old, primary education is compulsory. Moreover, at the secondary level, there were 44 schools with total enrolment of 15, 359 and teaching force of 1,060 of whom 293 or 27.5 percent are classified as graduates with professional training (Longsworth Mason, QADS, 2005). With professionally qualified teachers at this level, this number is a dramatic decline. There are government and grant-aided schools that are fully financed by the government and also a number of denominational grant-aided schools. The Roman Catholics manage a number of schools in the primary school sector. Government pays 100 percent of all teachers salaries, develops curricula and standards, and trains teachers under the church/state partnership. Government also contributes to the cost of capital expenditure and assists with school maintenance for grant aided schools (Longsworth Mason, 2005). Given the substantial level of financing it provides to schools, some have questioned the merits of the government taking over the financing and management. What is often debated is governments ability to fully fund and manage all primary schools. One factor for the low enrolment rates at secondary level is the lack of available space in schools at this level. Additionally, the high private cost of some schools is another factor that was suggested by recent studies. Moreover, in the rural areas, students have to travel several miles to access schools and the transportation cost prevents many from attending. Nevertheless, the most significant factor causing decline in secondary enrolment rates seems to be the socio-economic factors. I tend to agree with Young and Melnicks (1988) account that the impact of poverty and its attendant problems tends to be more severe in inner-city environments than in other geographical settings...(Ainscow West, 2006). For example, in one case in Belize City a government funded secondary school opened approximately three years agostudents pay very little, as such, neighbouring schools that are not fully funded by the government and require the students to pay tuition fees have lost a lot of their students and are at risk of closing down. Therefore, students who were unable to afford these denominational schools are able to participate in secondary education because it is almost free (Longsworth Mason, 2005). Two public examinations are administered on an annual basis at the primary level. To all students completing primary education, the Primary School Examination (PSE) is administered and to all students completing the middle division of primary education, the Belize Junior Achievement Test (BJAT) is administered. As stated by the Quality Assurance and Development Services (QADS) in the Ministry of Education (MOE) Belize Report, the PSE consists of criterion referenced measures in English, Mathematics, Social Studies and Science (2005). Then, the results from the BJAT are provided to schools in a report containing each students scores as well as an analysis of the schools performance compared to other school (MOE/QADS, 2005). External examinations provided by the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) is the only public examinations or regional examination offered at this time. At the completion of the secondary education, one can take these exams but it is not compulsory. For employment purposes as well as matriculation to higher education institutions locally and/or regionally (Caribbean), the results from these examinations are used. More recently, Kerr West (2010), whom I tend to agree with, as in the case of Belize have also argued that in reality, exam success is at best a proxy indicator for educational quality and there is ample evidence that improving scoresdoes little to influence either post-school choices or opportunities (Kerr West, 2010, p. 38). However, Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) and formerly the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC), presently the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC), are two examining boards that offer Advanced (A) level examinations in Belize as international examinations. Belize has always been demanding by trying to narrow the gap as they would usually mean in terms of results (Kerr West, 2010, p. 14) and also by putting pressure on the achievement of examination success due to the rapid competition in the region. Colleges receive awards annually for producing students that show outstanding performance in the regional examinations. Kerr and West (2010) ask a similar question; will this create a more equal system in terms of results and access to resources and opportunities needed to get good results for Belize (Kerr West, 2010, p. 14)? The impact of ongoing challenges and educational priorities Despite some developments in certain areas, there still remain ongoing challenges that cause school failures in relation to accommodating the mechanism of the 1999 Education Strategy. Longsworth and Mason (2005) suggested that there is a need for the following: (i.)Greater commitment by government that can translate into adequate resources and access to funds to address access especially at the preschool level; (ii.)Strengthening of the supervision and monitoring of schools; (iii.)Increasing teacher training to reduce the large number of unqualified teachers that are in the system; and (iv.)Greater involvement and strengthening the roles of parents and communities in educaton, etc. (Longsworth Mason, 2005). Fortunately, Longsworth Mason (2005) articulate a much more positive account that the School Performance and Improvement Plans (SPIP) have made significant improvements in schools that have implemented it; hence SPIP must be a requirement for all education institutions (Longsworth Mason, 2005). In this regard, there would appear to be sound evidence in support of the argument that school improvement interventions should be designed carefully, taking into account what is known about successful school development educational policy needs to focus on those things that schools can have an impact on (Kerr West, 2010, p. 48). Many children, who enter the school system at the primary level, as previously indicated, do not complete the cycle and the difficulty increases. Pupils repeat at various stages of the education system, Infant 1 and First Form in particular. Highlighted below are a number of the factors which contribute to the low completion rates within the school system. 1.1 Institutions modus operandi and policies in education Overall recurrent expenditure per primary and secondary school child has been rising in recent years. Although over the years, official expenditure on education has been somewhat constant. A greater shift of the financing to parents has been the cost-sharing norm between the Ministry of Education and institution contributors. Consequently, education is becoming beyond the reach of many households (most evident at the preschool level). This burden has made it difficult for parents and communities to support education adequately. Poverty-stricken parents are unable to feed their children properly and provide adequate health services even with children in schools fully financed by government. Longsworth and Mason (2005) stated that in these circumstances, children whose parents cannot afford costs of instructional materials, school uniforms, tuition fees, and activity fees tend to go to school irregularly and, in the long run, drop out of school (Longsworth Mason, 2005). In addition, parents are unable but also seem to show little interest to educate their children faced with restricted resources, and uncertain returns from education. It is arguable that these factors have negative effects on pupils school involvement and their accomplishment in the end. However, the efforts to provide universal access to education in Belize have been plagued by the legacy of an elitist education system (Longsworth Mason, 2005). What, then, is the level or readiness of students entering primary and secondary schools? I would be inclined to agree with Longsworth Mason (2005) that this question continues to be answered by the high repetition rate at these levels (Longsworth Mason, 2005). A policy shift by government to provide for preschools has been the requirement for children to have a jump-start for primary school. Likewise, leaving very little to be pumped into early childhood education, the heavy costs for primary education continue to take the lions share of governments expenditure. The efficiency and quality of the schools remains a huge challenge not least because private providers of schools have very little in terms of accountability systems to deal with. Schools supervision has been deficient at numerous levels, and frequently a school would be operating for years without being visited by supervisors. There is a lot that must be done to hold management responsible for the provision of education services. 1.2 School-Based components Regarding the reasons for high drop-outs, several school-based factors have been cited. There are in most Belizean schools, low completion rates among primary and secondary pupils. A major factor is the cost of school-based instruction. Many poor pupils go through the accompanying frustrations that affect their academic performance, and end up losing interest in education; ultimately they drop out of school. Another factor which discourages pupils participation in school is the curriculum. The match of the curriculum to the needs and interests of students is low, and hits at the centre of motivating students, hence, reducing their performance and attainment. Again, in the long run, some children give up on education and drop out of school (Caribbean News Now, 2010). Another problem occurs when teachers lack training and build negative attitudes; studies of school drop-outs indicate that these factors also drive pupils out of school. Some children dislike school because the environmen t is not conducive to learning. Absenteeism, poor performance, and non-completion of the education cycle are obvious results of this. 1.3 Community-Based and Home components Child labour has become vital for family survival as the level of poverty increases. Measures should be set in place and emphasized for the betterment of all the lives of the children involved and the society at large. It has also been suggested that the government and its partners in education must continue to promote early childhood education with viable policy initiatives to salvage the education system from this inefficiency (Longsworth Mason, 2005). How to reduce school failure and what agenda/policy can prevent school failure? It is worth noting that there is no silver bullet when looking at the factors towards reducing school failure. Solutions require a coordinated approach, including resources that go beyond the school. It needs incorporation of efforts from students, teachers, parents, administrators, community-based organizations, businesses, as well as the government. The ministry of education (MOE) Action Plan 2005-2010 (Belize Education Reform Targets, 2005) cites key areas that are guided by current reforms and includes the ongoing and planned strategies for improvement: Early Childhood Education and Development the first and highly prioritized area where there is the urgent need to increase access opportunities. Building the needed foundation for further learning is a critical stage of childrens development. Teacher Training this addressses the large numbers of untrained primary school teachers, also the poor quality and need to create better opportunity for training. Longsworth and Mason (2005) emphasize that the development of the Belize Institute for Teacher Education as an arm of the Ministry of Education will focus on ensuring that while access to training is increased, quality is not lost in the process (Longsworth Mason, 2005). Adult and Continuing Education basically to consolidate and review existing programs, rather than initiating new ones. Curriculum and Assessment the school curriculum must remain relevant at all levels of the education system. MOE has to ensure as well that the plan addresses both curriculum and assessment needs while seeking to reform the current system thus promoting improved educational standards (MOE, 2009). Technical and Vocational Education -for economic improvement and social development, it is clear that a well trained work force is critical. As MOEs action plan states, this realization evidently led the Government of Belize to seek to invest in the development of Technical and Vocational Education Services (MOE Action Plan, 2005). Special Education Longsworth and Mason add that the principle of Inclusion and the principle of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) (Longsworth Mason, 2005) are two main principles that governs the provision of education for children with special educational needs. As a result, maintenance of special schools and classes, resource classrooms and home schooling is an integral part of MOEs plan of action (MOE, 2010). Higher Education this should contribute to the development of knowledge, enterprise, leadership, governance, participatory democracy, and poverty alleviation. Policy Development it is therefore, a great importance that the available documents be reviewed and formalized in the system as one single National Education Policy document used to inform the planning and the delivery of education services (Longsworth Mason, 2005). Longsworth and Mason (2005) mentions that the Ministry must develop one document which will capture the key policies under the title National Policy for Education (Longsworth Mason, 2005). It seems then that the government has some clear ideas about what needs to be done. Now it should find the means to implement it! Other participating Caribbean territories along with Belize have selected to address the problem of school failure by way of developing policies and programs. Evidence shows that in the case of Belize, just a few preschool age children are registered in preschools, as such, educational foundations have been weak, resulting in school failure (MOE Action Plan, 2005). Hence, in collaboration with international organizations such as UNESCO and UNICEF, the unit Quads will ensure relevant quality education through the development and monitoring of the implementation of national standards for the performance of students, teachers and schools (QADS, 2005). This would be a good first step. Conclusion and moving ahead Classroom teachers have pointed to serious limitations in childrens reading, speaking and comprehension of the English language (the official language of Belize), especially with majority of students entering at the primary level. Although it is a challenge, we need to try to understand where young people are coming from and how such understanding can help us with the task of school improvement (Rudduck, Chaplain Wallace, 1996, p. 172). Socio-economic factors have prevented the involvement of many children in various levels. At the district level, training continues, which ensures greater participation. In keeping with the firm belief that It is only through Education that we will provide our people with the knowledge, information, skills, values and attitudes required for personal and national development (MOE, 2010). In some cases children themselves have to cautiously examine the opportunity costs of education in poor households. In my own experience, I was one of eight children in a family with limited means. Nevertheless, I still had the objective of furthering my education. Despite the fact that my father left during my teenage years, I remained positive and stepped in to fill the responsibilities. These hardships helped to mould me into a positive person. I firmly believe that education is the vehicle that will lead to a better life. I also entered the political arena at the tender age of 19 and served three terms in the local government. As a result, I have leveraged the political tools along with my teaching experience to further enhance students life and development at secondary level institutions in Belize. Nonetheless, where parent (s) and children have negative attitudes towards education or do not see its immediate benefits, the consequence is a high drop-out rate in that situation. The level of performance as well as interest of children in school will always be proportional to the circumstances of the immediate learning environment. Children need someone to stand by them and e ncourage them all the time that they can achieve greater things in life (Ministry of Education, 2011). Therefore, when this vital component lacks in the lives of most of the children, their vision is intercepted by other interests such as child labour and early marriages among others. It is worth noting that, among all other stakeholders, parents and guardians and the society at large have the responsibility of encouraging children to develop and preserve an interest in education for the betterment of their future. The Belize government has developed an action plan (2005-2010). This was in consultation with Ministry personnel and experienced educators to improve, support, empower and provide a system of education that represents and produce excellence in Belize (Longsworth Mason, 2005), which is still ongoing presently. Is Belize now beginning to make progress? Greater investment in early childhood education and other levels of education will continue to be the focus on the way forward for Belize. I certainly agree that the government and its partners in education must continue to promote early childhood education and in addition come up with viable policy initiatives, including affirmative action to salvage the education system from this inefficiency (Longsworth Mason, 2005). Buy custom The Educational System and Concern essay