Greek and Roman Contributions to Modern Society

Both Greece and Rome made significant contributions to Western civilization. Greek knowledge was ascendant in philosophy, physics, chemistry, medicine, and mathematics for nearly two thousand years. The Romans did not have the Greek temperament for philosophy and science, but they had a genius for law and civil administration. The Romans were also great engineers and builders. They invented concrete, perfected the arch, and constructed roads and bridges that remain in use today. But neither the Greeks nor the Romans had much appreciation for technology.The technological society that transformed the world was conceived by Europeans during the Middle Ages. Greeks and Romans were notorious in their disdain for technology. Aristotle noted that to be engaged in the mechanical arts was â€Å"illiberal and irksome. † Seneca infamously characterized invention as something fit only for â€Å"the meanest slaves. † The Roman Emperor Vespasian rejected technological innovation for fear that it would lead to unemployment. Greek and Roman economies were built on slavery. Strabo described the slave market at Delos as capable of handling the sale of 10,000 slaves a day.With an abundant supply of manual labor, the Romans had little incentive to develop artificial or mechanical power sources. Technical occupations such as blacksmithing came to be associated with the lower classes. With the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century AD, a Dark Age in philosophy and science descended upon the Mediterranean region. But the unwritten history of technological progress continued. In northern and western Europe, there was never a period of regression. As early as 370 AD, an unknown author noted the â€Å"mechanical inventiveness† of the â€Å"barbarian peoples† of northern Europe.The Christian ethic of universal brotherhood slowly spread through Europe, and slavery began to disappear. Tribes and peoples became united under a common creed. Euro peans not only embraced technology, but they also developed the idea of a universal society based upon respect for the dignity and worth of the individual human being. From the sixth through the ninth centuries AD, Europeans adopted new agricultural technologies that dramatically increased productivity. One of these innovations was a heavy wheeled plow that broke up the soil more efficiently than the Roman â€Å"scratch† plow.Formerly unproductive lands were transformed into arable cropland. The Greeks and Romans had harnessed horses with a throat-and-girth harness that consisted of a strap placed across the animal's neck. As soon as the horse began to pull, he would choke himself. In the ninth century, Europeans began to use a padded horse collar that transferred the load of a draught animal to its shoulders. Horses harnessed with collars were able to pull four to five times more weight than those with throat-and-girth harnesses. Horse power was also facilitated by the intro duction of the iron shoe.With fast-moving horses harnessed efficiently, it became possible to transport goods up to 35 kilometers in one day if a sufficiently good road was available. There was now a way to dispose of agricultural surpluses and create wealth that could be used for investment in technology and infrastructure. Thus, the introduction of the lowly horseshoe and collar fostered commerce, civilization, and the growth of towns. Under the Roman system of two-field crop rotation, half the land was left fallow and unproductive at any given time. In the eighth century, Europeans began to practice three-field crop rotation.Fields lay fallow for only a third of the year, and grains were alternated with legumes that enriched the soil with nitrogen. The cultivation of legumes such as peas and beans added valuable protein to European diets. In the tenth century, the climate began to warm, and Europe entered the High Middle Ages. By the thirteenth century, the new agricultural techn ologies had doubled per acre yields. Population surged; architecture and commerce flourished. Europeans began a program of aggressive territorial expansion. They reclaimed Sicily in 1090 and systematically drove Muslims out of Spain.The First Crusade was launched in 1095, and Jerusalem was captured from the Seljukian Turks in 1099. The prosperity created by the new agricultural technologies subsidized education and the growth of knowledge. In the late eighth century, Charlemagne had revived education in Europe by setting up a general system of schools. For the first time, not just monks, but also the general public were educated. As the European economy prospered, students multiplied and traveled, seeking the best education they could find. Christian Cathedral Schools evolved into the first universities.The Universities of Paris and Oxford were founded c. 1170, Cambridge in 1209 AD. The harnessing of water power began around 200 BC with the invention of the quern, a primitive grain mill consisting of two rotating stones. The Romans had been aware of water power but made little use of water wheels and mills. In contrast, by the tenth century, Europeans had begun a wholesale conversion of their civilization from human and animal power to water power. The water-mill came to be viewed not just as a grain mill, but as a generalized source of power that could be adopted for many uses.This new approach was to fundamentally alter the fabric of human civilization. By the thirteenth century, water power was being utilized in sawmills, tanning mills, and iron forges. Mechanical power derived from moving water was used to process beer mash, to turn wood lathes and grinding stones, to power bellows, to drive forge hammers, and to manufacture paper. Because water power was available only where streams were located, Europeans developed other sources of mechanical power. Tidal power was used in Dover and Venice in the eleventh century. The first windmill in Europe appeared in 1085 AD.Over the next hundred years, windmill technology spread rapidly over the plains of northern Europe. Windmills provided power in the cold of winter, when water mills were shut down by frozen streams. The utilization of mechanical power in these many forms required that Europeans develop methods for transferring and redirecting power, crucial technologies for the Industrial Revolution of the late eighteenth century. Most important of these was the crank. The crank is a device that allows rotary motion to be converted into reciprocal motion, or vice-versa.For an industrial or technological civilization, the importance of the crank is second only to that of the wheel itself. Without the crank, â€Å"machine civilization is inconceivable. † Water clocks had been known since ancient times, but they were notoriously inaccurate and inconvenient. Near the end of the thirteenth century, it became possible to construct the first mechanical clock when some unknown genius invente d a device known as the verge escapement. The verge escapement enabled the power delivered by a falling weight to be modulated and delivered evenly at a constant rate.The techniques developed in clockwork for regulating and transferring power were essential for the complex machinery of the Industrial Revolution. The introduction of mechanical clocks also made it feasible to adopt standardized timekeeping. This was a necessary step for the eventual development of a technological civilization that needs to coordinate complex administrative and commercial interactions. Modern science traces its roots to the natural philosophy of the ancient Greeks and the pre-Socratic enlightenment c. 600-400 BC.The Greeks began the evolution of what became modern science by introducing naturalism and rejecting supernatural explanations. Describing epilepsy, a Hippocratic author noted that the disease was â€Å"no more divine nor more sacred than other diseases, but has a natural cause from which it o riginates like other affections. † But neither the Greeks nor the Romans ever hit upon the experimental method. Greek philosophers favored the deductive logic used in geometry. They had several reasons for being skeptical of a science based on observation.The world was in state of continual flux, different people observed things differently, and the only data available to them were anecdotal. Modern science began in the thirteenth century when Christian theologians such as Robert Grossesteste became seduced by Aristotelian logic and the Greek principle of demonstrative proof. But when Grossesteste and his student Roger Bacon contemplated the mysterious properties of the magnet, they were forced to conclude that logic alone could never uncover the secrets of the cosmos.Magnetism was a phenomenon that could never be predicted by logical reasoning. It could only be observed. Thus the need for a systematic experimental method. Gunpowder originated in China, but firearms were a Eur opean invention. Cannon date from the first part of the fourteenth century in Europe, and they were common by 1350. The use of cannon in particular helped break up feudalism, as it made central fortifications obsolete. Even the strongest structures were now vulnerable. The protection offered by a stone castle was eviscerated.The possession of personal firearms gave individuals more political power and was an engine for social and political change. The firearm was also the first internal combustion engine and demonstrated the enormous potential power that lay in confined and controlled combustion. Like gunpowder, many of the technologies developed and utilized by Europeans originated in China. But the Chinese were never able to fully develop the promise of these inventions because their economic development was strangled by a â€Å"bureaucratic, state controlled economy. â€Å"In Europe, the leaders in developing medieval technology were not philosophers, but craftsmen, merchants, and businessmen — in a word, entrepreneurs. There were profits to be derived from the new technologies. A water-powered mill required a considerable capital investment, but the investment was likely to return a significant profit. Inventive, free people looked for ways to improve their productivity. Individuals profited, and society prospered. Thus, the Industrial Revolution that began in England c. 1760 was the inevitable outcome of a thousand years of European technological progress fostered by economic freedom.During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the technological innovations pioneered in Europe began to spread throughout the world. This process continues today, most notably with the transformation of the world's most populous countries, China and India. The most undeniable benefit of the technology that Europeans bequeathed to the world was a dramatic increase in life expectancy. Before the Industrial Revolution, average life expectancy at birth was only 25 year s, no higher than it had been in Roman times.But as of 2009, life expectancy in the world had reached 69 years. And Japanese women now enjoy a record life expectancy at birth of 86 years. Thus the world was transformed — not by philosophers, scientists, or politicians, but by engineers, craftsmen, and entrepreneurs. Writing in 1768, Joseph Priestley predicted that â€Å"whatever was the beginning of this world, the end will be glorious and paradisaical, beyond what our imaginations can now conceive. † Thanks to European inventors, Priestley's prediction was fulfilled.

Prime Ministers of India Essay

The Prime Minister of India, as addressed to in the Constitution of India, is the chief of government, chief advisor to the President of India, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament. The prime minister leads the executive branch of the Government of India. The prime minister is the senior member of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. The prime minister selects and can dismiss other members of the cabinet; allocates posts to members within the Government; is the presiding member and chairman of the cabinet and is responsible for bringing proposal of legislation. The resignation or death of the prime minister dissolves the cabinet. The prime minister is appointed by the president to assist the latter in the administration of the affairs of the executive. Current Prime Minister – The incumbent prime minister is Manmohan Singh, in office since 22 May 2004. Role and power of the prime minister The prime minister leads the functioning and exercise of authority of the Government of India. He is invited by the President of India in the Parliament of India as leader of the majority party to form a government at the federal level (known as Central or Union Government in India) and exercise its powers. In practice the prime minister nominates the members of their Council of Ministers[3][4][5] to the president. The prime minister represents the country in various delegations, high level meetings and international organisations that require the attendance of the highest government office[9] and also addresses to the nation on various issues of national or other importance. Selection process Eligibility A prime minister must: * be a citizen of India. * be a member of the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha. * be above 25 years of age if he is a member of Lok Sabha or above 30 years of age if he is a member of the Rajya Sabha. * not hold any office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any State or under any local or other authority Oath The Prime Minister is required to make and subscribe in the presence of President of India before entering office, the oath of office and secrecy. Prime Ministers of India 1. Jawaharlal Nehru (15th August 1947 – 27 May 1964) 2. Gulzarilal Nanda ( 27 May 1964 – 9 June 1964) 3. Lal Bahadur Shastri (9 June 1964 – 11 January 1966) 4. Indira Gandhi (24 January 1966 – 24 March 1977, 14 June 1980 – 31 October 1984) 5. Morarji Desai (24March 1977 – 28 July 1979) 6. CHaran Singh (28 July 1979 – 14 January 1980) 7. Rajiv Gandhi ( 31 October 1984 – 2 December 1989) 8. Vishwanath Pratap Singh ( 2 Decemeber 1989 – 10 November 1990) 9. Chandra Shekhar (10 November 1990 – 21 June 1991) 10. P.V. Narsimha Rao ( 21 June 1991 – 16 May 1996) 11. H.D.Deve. Gowda (1 june 1996 – 21 April 1997) 12. I.K. Gujral (21 April 1997 – 19 March 1998) 13. Atal Bihari Vajpayee ( 19 March 1998 – 22 May 2004) 14. Manmohan Singh ( 22 May 2004 – till now)

Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen: Perspective on Religion

In the 1920s, the somewhat genteel world of American poetry was shaken to its foundations when the Harlem Renaissance started. During those times, all over the United States, there was an outburst of strong black voices, writing with African-American cadences and rhythms. Moreover, during that period, generally different and diverse subject matters and styles subsisted in poetry. Furthermore, the blues and jazz clubs in Harlem served as an opportunity for the up-and-coming Black writers who wrote to increase the awareness of the Negro people and inculcate pride in their African heritage. Among these writers were Countee Cullen and Langston Hughes. These writers employed the political, religious, and social facets of the African American happenings as springboard for poetic illustration. Nevertheless, these two writers differ in their life influences, style, and language usage. A proclaimed poet of the Harlem Renaissance, Countee Cullen, uses his poem, Yet Do I Marvel, to send a very strong and passionate message. The poem is a first-person monologue in which a Black poet, indistinguishable from Cullen, voices doubt and confusion about the world, about the relationship between God and man, and about this particular poet's place in the world. No audience is addressed directly. The poet begins by professing his belief in a God who is all-good, good-intentioned and almighty. He also affirms that God has reasons for everything that happens in the world, even if these reasons are often difficult for humans to understand. In particular, the poet wonders why such an all-good Supreme Being could allow things like physical disabilities and death. In the two quatrains the poet observes several examples of worldly imperfection. He mentions the blindness of the mole and the mortality of human flesh. He also refers to the never- ending punishments of two figures from Greek mythology: Tantalus, plagued by unquenchable hunger and thirst in the midst of unreachable food and drink; and Sisyphus, faced with the impossible task of rolling uphill a rock which ontinuously slips back to the starting-point before the task is finished. In the sextet the poet wonders whether there is any way to explain the blindness of the mole, the punishments of Tantalus and Sisyphus or the death of human beings and decides that only God has a satisfactory explanation for these worldly imperfections. The ways of God are beyond understanding and human beings are too distracted by the everyday cares of life to see reason behind the migh ty hands of God. The poet does not mention that he is Black until the final couplet. The â€Å"I† at the beginning of the poem is an anonymous human. At the end of the poem this â€Å"I† proudly reveals himself to be not only a poet, but a Black poet. This revelation transforms the poem from a general comment upon the human experience to personal reflection. Of all the incomprehensible actions of God, the most amazing for the poet to understand is that God made him both a poet and Black. The strong mood of religious reflection in this poem stems in large part from the central position of the Christian church in the culture of Afro-Americans. Intensity of religious fervor and a vivid sense of divine anthropomorphism are common themes in the poetry of Black American poets. A second important theme for Cullen is his race. Blackness is a focal point of the poem. It is the last of a series of imponderables in the human condition. On the one hand, the poet's black skin is included in the same category as the blindness of the mole or the punishments of Tantalus and Sisyphus. It is another example of the mysterious ways of a God who inexplicably made humans of different skin color. On the other hand, the blackness of the poet is a source of pride, a gift of that Almighty Creator whose ways are always right. Thus Cullen, a poet of the Harlem Renaissance in the early part of the twentieth century, was asserting the mysterious beauty of black skin long before the Civil Rights movement made Black pride fashionable later in the century. At the same time, Cullen's experience as a Black man is set in the context of his role as a poet. He is a poet made Black, not a Black made a poet. Like his black skin, Cullen's poetic talent is a mysterious source of both pain and joy. This poet who fashions a highly polished poem filled with sophisticated allusion is, at the same time, a member of an oppressed race often denied the opportunity to acquire such erudition and poetic skill. Indeed, Cullen emphasizes the involuntary nature of his poetry. He did not choose to be a poet any more than he chose to be Black. It was God who made him both a poet and Black. It is God who commands him to sing. The poet cannot help himself anymore than he could change the color of his skin. The source of his poetic power is divine and lies outside him. While some poets find this source in nature or in the personal subconscious, Cullen attributes this power to the Supreme Being who dominates this poem. Cullen's insistence upon the divine inspiration of the poet is appropriate in a poem which combines themes from Classical and Biblical sources, for both traditions affirm the ability of supernatural beings to speak through humans. The Greeks called these deities of inspiration Muses while the Biblical God inspires prophets with warnings for humans. A similar God bids Cullen to sing. In the end, the poem offers more than the personal perspective of a Black poet. It speaks not just of the Black condition but of the human condition. All humans feel the irony of a life filled with petty cares, with mysteries, with struggle and with death, but a life brimming with the marvel of God's great deeds, with the excitement of divine inspiration, and with an appreciation for the beauty of a poem well made. Langston Hughes was one of the first black men to express the spirit of blues and jazz into words. An African American Hughes became a well known poet, novelist, journalist, and playwright. Because his father immigrated to Mexico and his mother was often away, Hughes was brought up in Lawrence, Kansas, by his grandmother Mary Langston. Her second husband (Hughes's grandfather) was a fierce abolitionist. She helped Hughes to see the cause of social justice. As a lonely child Hughes turned to reading and writing, publishing his first poems while in high school in Cleveland, Ohio. The speaker in â€Å"The Negro Speaks of River† delivers his claims in a cosmic voice that extends throughout all time and space. This voice includes all peoples. Hughes' ancestry included three major race groups; he lived as an African-American (Hughes referred to himself as â€Å"colored† or â€Å"Negro,† because he was writing before the term â€Å"African-American† was accepted widely); his parents were African-Americans. But Hughes' interests far exceeded racial limitations. He embraced all of life. He suffered the color-line, when racism was strong in early twentieth-century America, but he rose above racial hatred and felt love and compassion for all races. His acceptance is especially evident in â€Å"The Negro Speaks of River† spoken by a cosmic voice that includes and unites all people. The poem begins, â€Å"I've known rivers: / I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the / flow of human blood in human veins. † The river symbolizes the linkage of all human life from the earliest time to the present. He continues naming rivers that represent the history of Western culture. From the Euphrates to the Mississippi, the history of mankind from Biblical times to the period of the American Civil War is represented. The Euphrates is considered the cradle of Western civilization. The speaker of the poem claims to have â€Å"bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young. Thus the cosmic voice begins at the origin of civilization. The speaker then moves westward to the Congo claiming, â€Å"I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep. † Here he focuses on the African experience, as he does in the following line, â€Å"I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it. † Neither claim limits the voice to a black voice, becau se the white and yellow races have lived along the Congo and were among the slaves employed by the ancient Egyptians in constructing the pyramids. Hughes' cosmic voice unites the races in one cosmic person. He highlights the American experience claiming, â€Å"I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln / went down to New Orleans . . . .† Lincoln reminds us of the process of emancipation of slaves, and the Mississippi River symbolizes the human blood of all races. The speaker repeats â€Å"My soul has grown deep like the rivers. † Because the soul is the life force of the body, the stream of energy, the person who recognizes that his soul has grown deep recognizes his own identity. In this poem the river symbolizes the link of mankind as the blood in the body is believed to be linked because we are all children of God, and thus we have the common ancestry originating with Adam and Eve, the symbolical first parents. The cosmic speaker portrays selfhood and recognizes his roots, his identity as a child of not only one set of biological parents but as a child of the cosmos (or of God), and he is linked with all humanity, all races, all creeds for all time through the depth of his own soul. Susan Glaspell lived in a time where the most evident social issue was the inequality between men and women, and that women greatly relied on men in order to live. Glaspell, as a budding writer and feminist, tried to prove them wrong by writing plays regarding the freedom of women against the gender roles that the society dictates. With the help of her husband and friends, she started the Provincetown Players, where they are able to experiment on new plays which explores sensitive social issues like gender inequality. Glaspell’s Trifles is a good example of these plays. This play depicts the role of women in the society during the time it was made. During that time, men are still considered to be superior to women. It is also the time when men usually undermines the capabilities of women, as well as question their decision-making ways . The play showed how women were usually ruled by their emotions and intuitions, which they used to successfully unmask the case . The story revolves around the case of the murdered John Wright, who was strangled with a rope while he sleeps in his farmhouse. The main suspect was his was wife, Minnie Wright, who was already arrested and is not portrayed in the play anymore. The problem of the characters would be to prove whether Minnie Wright was really guilty of murdering her husband. Susan Glaspell was born on the late 19th century, where women are not yet recognized as equals of men. Her writing style is influenced by her Midwestern background. The first career she took after graduation was a reporting job for a daily newspaper. The play Trifles was based on an actual murder case that she has worked on during her days as a reporter. After she quit her work as a reporter, she began writing fiction novels. Susan Glaspell became open to radical ideas when she met George Cook, a married man from Davenport. She was able to work on the traditional gender roles, just like what is being tackled on Trifles. Glaspell and Cook developed an affair, and were married afterwards. With Cook being a nonconformist, Glaspell was able to freely do what society restricts her to do because of her gender and class. It was also through Cook and some of her friends that she was able to exercise her literary freedom and come up with plays that talk about societal issues of her time. Charlotte Perkins Gilman was a self-proclaimed philosopher, writer, educator and an intellectual activist of the women's movement from the late 1890's through the mid-1920's. She demanded equal treatment for women as the best means to advance society's progress. She was an extraordinary woman who waged a lifelong battle against the restrictive social codes for women in late nineteenth-century America. â€Å"The Yellow Wall-Paper†, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, reflects women's role in the Nineteenth Century. Women were controlled by their husbands and other men. Women did not have much social life. Women did not have any. Gilman uses many complex symbols, such as, the house, the bedroom, and the wallpaper to forces on the major theme of the story. The story is an interpretation how women are oppressed by males in society. Gilman attempts to reveal this oppression through her use of male imposed confinement. One woman's struggle with both mental and physical confinement represents the greater battles between women and men. Confinement represents classic male oppression and the woman represents all women and their struggle to break free from male dominance. The significance of the confinement is seen in both the vivid descriptions which symbolize the male dominance and the woman's subsequent reaction to this incarceration. The yellow wallpaper paints a distinct picture of confinement in both the physical and symbolic sense. Physically the house itself serves to lead to feelings of isolation. It represents the classic institution, that part of society which attempts to constrain the individual. Symbolically the narrator being confined to the room by her husband is representative of opportunity to see the oppressive society in its truest light. Within the pattern the narrator sees nursery complete with â€Å"rings and things† in the walls and a bed nailed to the floor. It is in this men had over women, the ability to ensure a woman's dependence on a man through exerting the began to tear down the walls of female oppression that exist to this day. She broke free from the confinement that suffocated her and for a moment showed society its greatest flaw, inequality. Completely in the end as her insanity dominates her, she does begin the process, a process which his wife to the nursery John exercised this dominance over his wife. The story â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† is about a woman who fights for her right to express what she wants, and fights for her right for freedom. The story also shows the uneven balance of power between husband and wife in the Nineteen Century. Gilman uses many symbols to show the readers women's social condition, lives, and all unfair treatment they had in the Nineteenth Century at different level of scopes. By using symbols, Gilman represents the effect of the oppression of women in society in late the Nineteenth Century. This story is primarily existential in nature. Gilman believes that with the fight, she can be free; all women can get freedom from the male dominated world. From her story, she does not agree women have to accept the unfair truth. She believed women can change their own situation. Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois, both early advocates of the civil rights movement, offered solutions to the discrimination experienced by black men and women in the nineteenth and twentieth century. Despite having that in common, the two men had polar approaches to that goal. Washington, a man condoning economic efficiency had a more gradual approach as opposed to Du Bois, whose course involved immediate and total equality both politically and economically. For the time period, Washington overall offers a more effective and appropriate proposition for the time whereas Du Bois's approach is precedent to movements in the future. Both have equal influence over African Americans in politics. Washington's proposal excels in reference to education while Du Bois can be noted for achieving true respect from white Americans. Du Bois urged African Americans to involve themselves in politics. Gaining this power would be essential to immediate beseeching of rights. Political association would prevent blacks from falling behind because â€Å"when the Negro found himself deprived of influence in politics, therefore, and at the same time unprepared to participate in the higher functions in the industrial development which this country began to undergo, it soon became evident to him that he was losing ground in the basic things of life† (Doc I). Du Bois also directly challenged Washington when he stated â€Å"that the way for a people to gain their reasonable rights is a not by voluntarily throwing them away and insisting that they do not want them† (Doc E). W. E. B. Du Bois goes on to criticize that â€Å"that the principles of democratic government are losing ground, and caste distinctions are growing in all directions† (Doc F). All of these political demands are comprehensible but Du Bois desired a radical change; â€Å"Negroes must insist continually, in season and out of season† (Doc E). This is close to nagging, which was surely unfavorable among primarily white politicians. The effectiveness of perpetual complaining would steadily decrease. Washington avoids political involvement which in general is a neutral action neither promoting nor causing defacement of the Negro population. In 1880 the percentage of 5-19 year olds enrolled in school for whites was approximately 60% while the percent of blacks was roughly half that, which was a vast improvement over just thirty years before when black enrollment was around zero (Doc A). Although black students appear to be bettering themselves, it is still quite unfortunate; there may be more black students enrolled but their education system was still below that of white folk. This in effect explains why the illiteracy rate of the white population was at 10% while the percentage of the black population unable to read sky-lined at 60% (Doc B). Both Washington and Du Bois recognized the gap but took completely different approaches to achieve a remedy and also had differing views of what necessary education was. Washington believed that if blacks focused their attention on striving economically they would eventually be given the rights they deserved. To do this, he encouraged attending trade schools like the ones which he worked with. The Tuskegee Institute of Alabama, which he founded, was where â€Å"no time [was] wasted on dead languages or superfluous studies of any kind†. Then he proposed working either industrially or agriculturally since their education would be based on â€Å"what is practical† and â€Å"what would best fit [the] young people for the work life† (Doc G). Du Bois, on the other hand, had grown up well rounded culturally. A historian specializing in the history of blacks and a renowned sociologist, at the age of 93 he became a member of the communist party and exiled himself to Africa. Du Bois had high hopes for the â€Å"Talented Tenth†: after thorough education they could succeed. The fight for first class citizenship could be earned through the university educated Negro through the court systems. Although it is a well thought out solution, the number of black college students enrolled was still quite low at the time. He believed along with others, â€Å"that industrial education [would] not stand [African Americans] in place of political, civil, and intellectual liberty† (Doc H). It is true that being cultured is important but for the time, labor was the necessity and would bring supposed status. W. E. B Du Bois, however, is able to surpass Washington in the area of overall respect and morality concerning white folk. Booker T. Washington made a point that if blacks could prove themselves useful, they could achieve their rights. Washington stated, â€Å"No race that has anything to contribute to the markets of the world is long in any degree ostracized. It is important and right that all privileges of the laws be ours, but it is vastly more important that we be prepared for the exercise of those privileges. The opportunity to earn a dollar in a factory just now is worth infinitely more than the opportunity to spend a dollar in an opera house†. In theory, Washington concluded that in order for African Americans to succeed, it was imperative for them to befriend the white men. Only then would the struggle for blacks end. He continually sounds of begging when stating to the white men: â€Å"Casting down your bucket among my people, helping and encouraging them as you are doing on these grounds and to education of head, hand, and heart†¦ While doing this you can be sure in the future, as in the past, that you and your families will be surrounded by the most patient, faithful, law-abiding, and unresentful people that the world has seen†. All this had been said in his Atlanta Compromise Address in 1895 (Doc D). It was also apparent to everyone African American who did not totally agree with Washington's idea that this was a sign of submission for the black race. The submissive part was, if none else, the fact that we were to accept that black people were going to continue to use their hands as a means to be productive to a white society. Many blacks turned away from such a statement and this is where W. E. B. Du Bois came to relieve them. Although Fortune stated, â€Å"It is impossible to estimate the value of such a man† (Doc G), Du Bois rejected the philosophy of Booker T. Washington declaring that he was â€Å"condemning their race to manual labor and perpetual inferiority†. He argues â€Å"that the way for a people to gain respect is not by continually belittling and ridiculing themselves† (Doc E). The De Facto segregation, such as a separate water fountain â€Å"for colored only† (Doc J) proposed by Washington did alleviate white and black tension but nonetheless was degrading. He presents that â€Å"the wisest among my race understand that the agitation of questions of social equality is the extremest folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all the privileges that will come to us must be the result of severe and constant struggle rather than of artificial forcing† (Doc D). Barnett criticized that â€Å"[Washington], one of the most noted of their own race should join with the enemies† (Doc H). Such attitudes from Washington could truly be appreciated by Southern whites who in no way would want to be equivalent to a Negro. Although both men approached the topic differently, the advancement of civil rights would not be as far along today if it were not for both simultaneous views. Each needed the other to achieve his agenda. However, the most experienced in dealing with the sensitivity of the prejudices was Washington. He seemingly knew what buttons to push and how far he could push them. Curiously, the year Washington gave his Atlanta Compromise Address in 1895, the number of blacks lynched dropped from 170 the previous year to just above 120. It is also interesting to note that after Du Bois gave his speech about The Niagara Movement in 1905, the numbers began to steadily increase again (Doc C, D, F). Du Bois' approach of â€Å"ceaseless agitation, unfailing exposure of dishonesty and wrong† (Doc F) was not ready for the time where Washington is more rational in his gradual approach.

Hockey and Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Hockey and Culture - Essay Example The weight of capitalism as it diminishes the value of the sport is palpable in the discourse of hockey and how the same has become an industry manifested through capitalist agendas. For example, the strict traffic regulation in Gananoque which prohibits informal sports in the street indicates to the stifling of grassroots sport. â€Å"The push is on towards organization and commercial interests: join the league, pay a fee, buy this equipment, consume! If you won’t cooperate: pay a fine! (Genosko, p.239). Furthermore, an appreciation of hockey would be amiss without reference to its history which is marked by discrimination. â€Å"Hockey was, in fact, the last North American sport to have Black athletes enter its ranks (ibid, p.235). The references to the white culture and the masculine stereotypes generally endure and prevail in hockey. But while there is not a shortage of informative and astute considerations in the essay, there remains the uniting factor that appeals to the emotional requisites that reasonably make sports endearing. Though athletes use their position while at the height of fame to maneuver into more lucrative endeavors after their hockey stints, Genosko does not fail to see how this is woeful rather than contemptible. â€Å"Round, tepid, greasy food sitting in pools of fat, like pucks on melting ice† (Genosko, p. 233). The trend that inclines players to fast food has become evident. The same perception goes to the prohibition on the streets. This did not stop young people but instead fuels their imagination to create new landscapes and find other ways and venues to continue an immemorial tradition of stripped-down sports. The flow of the information was well developed and incorporates a number of aspects without going overboard by exhausting every detail.

Is Google Making Us Stupid Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Is Google Making Us Stupid - Essay Example Is Google Making Us Stupid? The particular article in question which this brief analysis will discuss is that of Nicholas Carr’s †Is Google Making Us Stupid?†. The pervasive paradigm shift that Carr discusses has occurred over the past 20 to 30 years has been hailed by many as a great move forward with regards to the overall capabilities and development of the human race. However, there is an alternate view as well; one which warns against the fact that many individuals within society are slowly but surely becoming addicted to the very technology that was initially intended to aid them in accomplishing tasks of different varieties. It is the belief of this author that neither of the sides to this debate has all of the facts or is utilizing them to the correct degree. Rather, technology, although a definite aid in accomplishing tasks that would otherwise take quite a while has become something an addictive aid that threatens to reprogram the way in which the human mind and creativity are evide nced. Firstly, it does not take a great deal of analytical or scientific discovery to realize that the way in which technology has reshaped and classified our world is without question. Moreover, a sociological increase into the way in which technology has shifted interpersonal dynamics, relationships, and communication has been conducted by a variety of researchers and convincingly pointed to the fact that the current era of texting, instant messaging, Facebook et al has significantly decreased the amount of time that individuals spend in face-to-face communication and has moved society convincingly towards something of a more introverted nature. (Carr 1). Although, as Carr discusses, introversion in and of itself is not necessarily a poor character trait, it must be noted that the overuse and reliance upon these technological tools which have already been discussed has created a dynamic by which formerly extroverted individuals are merely introverted and carrying out a great deal of inte rpersonal communication that one might otherwise carry out face-to-face via the Internet or other technologically enabled means. However, communication is not the only thing that suffers from an overdependence upon technology. As Carr discusses next, memory recall and the perennial knowledge that any and all information can be readily retrieved has created a situation in which memory and the ability to recall tidbits of information are placed at a much lower premium than they might have been in an era in which the likes of Google or other prominent technological means by which data can be retrieved had existed. Again, it does not take a great deal of imagination to envision an era in which it was necessary for the schoolchild, or even societal shareholder, to be nominally familiar and remember such information as capitals of states, a rough understanding and appreciation for the order and number of presidents, how many chromosomes exists in human DNA, who the first woman in space wa s, for the year in which the state of Israel was created (Cottler 24). As can be seen, there is something to be said for the amount of memory recall that individual can possess and leverage as a means of readily interjecting key understandings and tidbits of fact, data, and history into conversations and pertinent situations. However, with an overdependence

Unit 7 Application 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Unit 7 Application 2 - Essay Example This is the plan not so taxing in terms of starting salary while also provides opportunity for participation in the annual bonus plan. Additionally, the 10% starting salary below market average can easily be offset by benefits in the annual bonus plan. The bonus range is also 0% to 20%, which is way above the difference between salary offered for this plan and the market average. Yes, the HVP plan will most likely increase the job offer acceptance rate. Rejection or acceptance of a job offer by a candidate depends solely on terms and conditions, and that is an area well addressed by the plan. Other than offering flat and uniform terms for all positions, the HR comes with variations in job categories for different jobs, and the three categories allow applicants alternatives from which to choose.The high risk plan is ideal for the first category of applicants ready to assume risks given that their starting salary if way below the market average with a difference of 10%-30%. Nonetheless, such people can participate in the annual bonus plan and they have the highest bonus range, 60% of the current salary. Whatever they miss in their basic salary will most likely be offset by benefits in bonuses, and this makes the plan suitable for just a certain line of people, hence increasing acceptance in that regard (Gully & Phillips, 2010). On the other hand, the low risk plan is ideal for applicants who take no chances with regards to starting salary, and their salary is 5% above the market average even though they do not participate in the annual bonus plans. The offer acceptance rate will then be high for this class of applicants following increase in salaries, and further because they have no interest in annual bonuses (Hayes et al, 2009). Yes, the HVP program will reduce turnover in the short run while it will most likely increase it once offer acceptance is done. The plan will reduce turnover because

Ad Appeal Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ad Appeal Analysis - Essay Example In this advertisement, Guess uses the appeal to sex because they want to create an impression that wearing their jeans is sexy. This appeal is also selected for this advertisement to give a clear idea their target markets are the adults. Wearing Guess can also be a symbol of sexy lifestyle. Guess makes jeans for male and female adults who want to feel sexy while wearing this brand of jeans. I think using this appeal can be effective only to those people who want to have sexy image. It can also be effective because it catches the attention of men and women. However, there are also some rational ones who might not find this advertisement convincing at all because the only benefit that they can see is the feeling of sexiness.Appeal to fear is commonly used by marketers in advertisements on health, hygiene, and home security. Usually, it communicates its message indirectly. Just like the advertisement below, it is about taking care of one's heart. It doesn't show the audience what really is happening with their hearts. Instead, it used a scary scene and a line that would make one think. By looking at the picture, I would say that the ad's target markets are those people busy with their work or others who are busy with satisfying their lifestyle that they forget to have their heart checked-up. Appeal to fear is used in this kind of ad because people are afraid to die. Since it is about health, this appeal could make its target segment act immediately. I think the use of appeal to fear is the most effective when it comes to this kind of messages. Heart problems are serious matters that are commonly taken for granted. This kind of ad will serve as a wake up call to the target market. Top of Form Humor Pepsi always comes up with bright ideas on their advertisement. The image below is a very humorous advertisement of Pepsi. It shows that even the straw chooses what soda to sip. Pepsi uses the humor appeal to make retention in consumers' minds. If the audience will see this kind of advertisement, they will take a moment to laugh or smile about it. It just means that it got their attention and it can easily be remembered. This advertisement does not show any particular target segment. I think this kind of appeal is not quite effective. It can be remembered by the consumers but it does not mean that they are convinced to buy this product. Rational The image below is an advertisement of L'oreal that uses rational appeal. If you can take a closer look at the picture, you can read at the right side the enumerated benefits of using this product. One cannot get the message of this advertisement by just looking at the picture. You should take time to read the texts included in the advertisement. Hair issue is quite scientific. That is why rational appeal is used in this kind of advertisement. No one will believe the reliability of the product until they know the chemical ingredients of it. L'oreal used this kind of appeal to clearly tell the consumers what they can benefit from this product and to explain why this product will really work. The target segments of this advertisement are the women who want to have beautiful and healthy-looking hair. I think this advertisement is quite effective because it can tell the market what it really wants to say. It can also be effective in convincing people because of the benefits and scientif ic information laid out in the ad. However, some people are too lazy to read and will just look at the image. References Guess, Inc. (2008). Guess: Advertising. Retrieved November 24 2008 from http://www.guess.com/Advertising.aspx

Learner-to-Educator Ratio and its Impact on the Quality of Education Thesis

Learner-to-Educator Ratio and its Impact on the Quality of Education in South African Primary Schools - Thesis Example Though the number of educators has also increased but not at the rate desired to keep pace with student enrolment. Presently there are some 400,000 teachers employed in primary schools. The success of the primary school system is judged by academic performance based mainly on the level of passes in the systemic evaluations that take place in Grade 3 and 6. In 2001 the learner achievement results showed low achievement in numeracy and literacy. There are a number of determinants of academic success such as socioeconomic background of learners, learning facilities, resources, quality of the teachers and learner-to-educator ratio. In 2004 the grade 6 national systemic evaluation indicated that although a new curriculum and learning materials was developed and instituted throughout the primary school system learning achievement was still below par. A great majority of learners scored at the ‘non-achieved’ level (lower than 40% overall) with 41% in natural sciences, 38% in languages and some 27% in mathematics. Only 31% in natural sciences, 28% in languages and 12% in mathematics were functioning at or above the required grade 6 level (scores above 50%) and outstanding (scores over 70%) combined (Bulunga, Daniel, Southall, Lutchman (2006). With the increasing number of learners entering primary school and the low rate of increase of the number of educators it is prudent to note that the disparity between the two will eventually become large and its effects far reaching. As one of the determinants of academic performance the learner-to-educator ratio defined as the average number of pupils per educator at a particular level of education in a given school year becomes important to the delivery of high educational standards. There is a view amongst some researchers and educators suggesting that smaller classes has the benefit of allowing teachers to have the opportunity to devote much more time to every student in an effort

Module one discussion board Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Module one discussion board - Essay Example The research design and field work must be conducted properly so as to address the problems accurately. Hence, enforcing strict code of ethics becomes very important part of market research (Hunt and Vitell,1986). The companies can enforce ethics in market research by getting feedback directly from the participants and double check their responses to check the authenticity of data that is to be analyzed. Special precaution must be adhered so as not to influence respondents’ responses. The manipulated responses generate misleading results that could jeopardize the actions of the clients in addressing their problems (Sales and Folkman, 2000; Sparks and Hunt, 1998). The personal interview schedule is most susceptible to crossing ethical boundaries. The covert and overt dimension of the research is major element that blurs the distinction between the subjects’ right to privacy and the public’s right to know. As such mutual trust needs to be developed to elicit right responses which would accurately reflect respondents’ views. Stringent punishment must be enforced when trust is violated between respondents and researcher or between researcher and

Article Summary for MacroEconomics 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Article Summary for MacroEconomics 4 - Essay Example The money provided by the package was almost over and the state’s police, firefighters and teachers were going to lose their jobs. President Obama is once again going to appear before the Congress for another $300 million to create jobs and help the economy. Three rounds of stimulus aid have already been provided by president Obama. The round one was openly and fully criticized by the republicans, in round one $200 billion were used to support tax cuts, $300 billion were used or the support of those who did not have jobs and $300 billion were used for direct investment in different projects. The spending on various projects contributed the most in creating jobs. The round two mainly contributed to the bailout of the auto industry of United States and helped a great deal in creating jobs. The money spend on bailout of auto industry was recovered and returned by the auto manufacturers. The step of helping the auto industry was the most successful one as this helped the auto manu facturers in solving their financial issues, this step alone helped in saving more than 1.5 million jobs. Before the bailout program, the auto manufacturers were in very bad shape and were on the verge of being forced out of the market. The bailout of auto manufacturers has a long term positive impact, these firms are currently doing very well and even employing more employees and posting higher profits. The use of stimulus money in other arenas had very little impact and an overall view suggests that stimulus money invested in other sectors was wasted. The round three of stimulus help was quite effective as huge amount of jobs were created because people had money to spend and due to increase in demand for goods and services there was increase in demand for more workers. More than $858 billion was spent as a part of the stimulus package; money was spent on unemployment assistance provided to those who were out of jobs. During summer, the economic growth and employment growth once a gain stopped and jobs created in the private sector decreased. It is even estimated that president Obama will continue providing unemployment assistance to employees. In my opinion, the president could have dealt with the stimulus package in different ways. The stimulus money was used in certain areas that did not turned out to be quite productive. For example: the tax subsidy, the unemployment benefit was of no great help in creating jobs. Whereas certain developments made with the stimulus money were quite helpful in decreasing unemployment in US. For example: investment in projects and bailout of the auto industry. Instead of giving money directly to the unemployed individuals and providing them unemployment benefits, stimulus money could have used to finance and bailout other sectors of the economy. This would have helped businesses with their liquidity issues and they would have saved themselves from being bankrupt. If businesses would not have closed and money would have been used to help these businesses, employment would have increased. Thus the unemployment assistance would not have been important and neither the tax cuts. The businesses that would have been saved with the help of stimulus money would have made money and they would have paid taxes. Taxes are revenue for the government and are necessary for the development of the economy. The taxes

4 short anwser for beyonce HBR case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

4 short anwser for beyonce HBR - Case Study Example Provide a chance for uplifting marketing collaboration in all areas of entertainment for the fans seeking the best quality production in the entertainment industry through the reporting of positive news in entertainment, fashion and art as well as fresh experience in live social events. Parkwood Company plans to use its independence in assembling able teams that can execute decisions precisely. The company uses its strategic placement in the American music industry to form joint ventures with some of the big recording firms in the world such as the Columbia Records. This makes the fans want to feel the unique piece and talent display emanating from a dual origin. The company uses brand partnership and makes use of sponsors in promoting her content. Additionally, the company organizes strategic launches through the assistance of big communication companies like Apple. This strategy draws many fans to like Beyoncà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s music and videos on the go. In addition, the intensive use of social media such as Facebook, Instagram, and others draws a good portion of the public attention. The approach used by Parkwood Entertainment Company is in line with the contemporary trends and competitive strategies. Just as other entertainment fans embrace collaboration in marketing, the firm maximizes in the strategy through engaging some of the world’s best corporations such as Pepsi and Apple to establish a significant competitive advantage. In addition, Beyoncà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s capitalizes on the online social network marketing which draws the useful and youthful fans whose loyalty cannot waiver easily. This marketing trend conforms to the dominant online marketing that currently gives a competitive edge to (Krstic and Becic

Accreditation Audit Essay Example for Free

Accreditation Audit Essay With all of the possible problems that could occur during surgery, a wrong-site, wrong-patient mistake is one that should never arise. Nightingale Community Hospital (NCH) fully understands the importance of doing away with these errors and has set up protocol to work towards this goal. While the protocol is in place, it is not fully compliant with Joint Commission (JC) standards. Standard: UP.01.01.01: Conduct a preprocedure verification process. Nightingale Community Hospital has a Site Identification and Verification policy and procedure. Within this policy, and Preoperative/Preprocedure Verification Process is addressed. There is also a Preprocedure Hand-Off form present. This form is a bit misleading as it is essentially a hand-off form in general with a few extra boxes possible for check-off. To prepare for inspection and audit, NCH should create and implement a form for use within the Operating Theater or wherever procedures are performed, such as bedside procedures. This form needs to be more specific in addressing at least the minimum requirements by JC. The form needs to cite that all relevant documentation is present, such as signed consent form, nursing assessment, preanesthesia assessment, history and physical. The form also needs to specify that the necessary diagnostic and radiology test results, rather they be images and scans, or biopsy reports, and properly displayed and labeled. Finally, to fulfill the minimum requirements by JC, any and all required blood products, implants, devices, and special equipment needs to be labeled and matched to the patient. Standard: UP.01.02.01: Mark the procedure site. NCH covers the procedure site marking standard fairly well within their Site Identification and Verification Policy. It mentions that site marking is needed for those cases involving laterality, multiple structures, or levels. Several times in their policy NCH mentions that it is best to have the patient involved, if at all possible. If the patient is unable to mark the site, the policy states that the physician will be called to mark the site. The policy states that the mark shall be made in permanent black marker so it will remain visible after skin preparation, and also in a location that will remain visible after sterile draping is in place. The policy also  includes circumstances in which the marking will be unable to be performed based on the location of the surgery being in an area that is unable to be marked. Standard: UP.01.03.01: A time-out is performed before the procedure. Nightingale Community Hospital has an adequate procedure in place for the time-out performance. Within the Site Identification and Verification Policy, the Time-Out Procedure complies with JC standards. A time-out is to be conducted immediately prior to performance of the procedure, it is initiated by the nurse or technologist, it involves all personnel involved in the procedure, the team members agree to a minimum of patient identity, correct site, and correct procedure to be performed, and all of this information is documented in the record, including those involved and the duration of the time-out. The only issue not addressed fully is the possibility of multiple procedures occurring on the same patient by different practitioners, and in that case, an additional time-out needs to be done for every new procedure. The Communication priority focus area is an extremely important area for any hospital. This is a common sense area that should be able to reach complete compliance. A wrong-patient, wrong-site issue should never arise and is completely avoidable. In 2010, Joint Commission reported that wrong-patient/site surgeries continued to be the most frequently reported sentinel event(Spath 2011).Jay Arthur states that JC reports between four and six wrong-site surgeries per day(2011). The World Health Organization believes that at least 500,000 deaths per year could be prevented if the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist was correctly implemented. These numbers, when compared with the possibility of 100% compliance, are astounding and completely avoidable. Nightingale Community Hospital is well on their way to avoiding these types of sentinel events through usages of proper protocol, procedures, and policy as is seen by the upward trend from their last year of self-checks. With continued diligence and appropriate modifications made, this can be an area that NCH, and any other hospital can be fully compliant in. References Arthur, J. (2011). Lean six sigma for hospitals: Simple steps to fast, affordable, flawless healthcare. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Spath, P. L. (2011). Error reduction in health care: A systems approach to improving patient safety (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Jossy-Bass. WHO (2013). WHO | Safe surgery saves lives. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/patientsafety/safesurgery/en/ [Last Accessed November 5, 2013].

What makes an effective learning environment in a Primary Classroom

What makes an effective learning environment in a Primary Classroom Education is the most important shared experience of our livesit is so important and so all pervasive that it is almost impossible to define (Aldrich, 1996) The role of the teacher is an ever changing one; however the proposed goals of teaching have always been the same in relation to bringing about intended learning goals from pupils of all abilities. Berliner (1978) suggests that the effective teacher is one who is able to demonstrate the ability to bring about intended learning goals, the two critical dimensions of effective teaching being intent and achievement. Without intent, the pupils achievements become random and accidental rather than controlled and predictable. The Oracle Study provided a framework for what its research concluded to be the traits of an effective teacher, a high number of interactions with pupils and higher level questioning required of pupils was just two of the behavioural patterns consistently displayed by effective teachers. Branching from the same study Rutter (1979) stated that for a teacher to be considered effective they should consistently give praise to pupils and hold them in high regards, which is especially important for younger pupils in terms of emotional development and self-efficacy. Rutter also pointed to the ability to provide stimulating educational programmes that would challenge pupils and which requires high expectations from them. Requiring high expectations from pupils is a theme that is common in the Hay Mcber Report (2000) which gives an insight on setting the attainment target high for the increase of motivation in pupils who may find their current level of work below their level. According to the report effective teachers set these high expectations of pupils and communicate them directly to the pupils in a clear and consistent manner so as to broaden their knowledge and interpretation of concepts. The teacher therefore must take into account the differentiation of a mixed ability group when setting such high standards so as to deal with the needs of the less able students, however the effective teacher must be relentless in their strive for high standards expected from all pupils regardless of differing and mixed ability. David Miliband MP during his role at the time as Minister for Schools stated that High expectation of every child, given practical form by high quality teaching based on a sound knowled ge and understanding of each childs needs. It is not individualised learning where pupils sit alone at a computer. Nor is it pupils left to their own devices which too often reinforces low aspirations. Setting such high expectations can also reverberate in a negative manner as it provides students with the need to compete with others in their class which will inevitably affect other pupils self esteem and create a competitive atmosphere in which some pupils will progress or fail under the pressure. Requiring such high expectations provides a counter-argument in relation to what Jean Piagets child development theories detailed. The basis of his philosophy was that all children are only capable to learn new concepts at set stages in which they reach at certain ages and that there are limits on their capacity to learn, meaning that pupils cannot be expected to conceptualize new ideas until they reach a certain stage as postulated by the theory of intellectual development. Alexander et al (1992) suggested that Piagetian theories about developmental ages and stages led to chronologically fixed notions of readiness which depressed expectations and discouraged teacher intervention. Jerome Bruner stated that it was possible for children to learn new concepts at any age in a suitable and intellectual manner. Unlike Piaget, Bruner postulated that learning derives from a pupils ability to actively engage with an interested adult through communication/speech and as such is renowned as a co nstructivist theorist. This model of learning takes a firm assumption that by using connected schemas, knowledge is gained, and that the child is an agent of their own learning. In contrast the transmission model oversees the teachers role as instructor in which the child is seen as a recipient of transmitted values from the teacher. The latter form of teaching is associated with more of a formal didactic model whilst the constructivist theory applies to a more open and active model of teaching. Although the latter theory may still be in its infancy it has proven challenging to develop any form of sustainable pedagogy deriving from its structure in which primary school teachers can use on a large class of 20-25 pupils. In relation to the former, Vygotsky has also given several applicable theories in connection to how children learn. Vygotsky (1978) first showed how speech can be a direct expression of thought, otherwise meaning that children at this particular age (3-7) find it help ful to develop conversational speech with themselves, what Vygotsky labelled as speech for oneself. Whilst Piagets view of this stage would be to explain the withering away and the progression of the next stage, Vygotsky suggested that this speech becomes internalised which develops into inner speech and lastly into internal thought. As Britton (1989) says, if speech in childhood lays the foundations for a lifetime of thinking the implication for pedagogy is enormous, and verbal communication should have a major role in classroom life, particularly at infant level. Vygotksy also postulated the theory involving the zone of proximal development. This refers to The gap that exists for children between what they can do alone and what they can do with help from someone more knowledgeable or skilled than themselves. Vygotsky emphasises the role of the social environment and how the role of the teacher is of vital importance, the effective teachers role to make the learning environment as interactive as possible and through language to lead children into new zones of proximal development (Edwards and Mercer 1989). The learning environment can also refer to the emotional environment that the school provides in ensuring that pupils feel valued and accepted for themselves, without this children will not feel sufficiently secure to take risks and make mistakes which are crucial in the creative process of learning, Mckellar (1957) explains that the arrangement of the physical space can aid concentration, create a mood conducive to creativity and increase motivation. In support of this Jean Piaget explains how interaction with the environment impacts upon progression in learning and it is only through individual interaction that progression will take place; he showed how it is the adults role to provide a stimulating environment and to identify the stage of development individual children have reached so that appropriate materials can be presented, rather than to actively intervene in the learning process. It is therefore the teachers responsibility to select a learning environment which will encour age curiosityto focus the pupils attention on enquiries which will lead to useful discovery (Learning styles and Inclusion p.98). The learning environment takes into account the people and the space in which pupils will progress and be nurtured, a purposeful learning environment is one in which children feel safe, cared for and relaxed. These similarities are summed up by the DFES who explained that an appropriate physical environment offers access to an outdoor as well as an indoor space and should provide a place where children have opportunities to explore, learn and develop with the support of sensitive and knowledgeable adults. Self-esteem can be a critical factor in determining how a child perceives themselves and others, high self-esteem can give a child a sense of security and competence and because esteem is all about perception it can change on a regular basis. The environment of the school and learning environment plays a pivotal role in harbouring self-esteem, the learni ng environment is a seriously underrated concept in the way it shapes pupils learning, for many pupils the learning environment is what is situated inside the classroom, however it can also refer to outside agents such as the library and the pupil home. In terms of behaviour in the classroom and the classroom environment, children cannot feel safe and secure if adults caring for them do not provide boundaries. Learning is thus considered to be significantly determined by an individuals self-esteem, self-belief, expectations and the quality of school-based relationships with adults and peers. These models support a transactional theory of learning as proposed by Vygotsky (1962) and implies that pupils and teachers need to develop appropriate affective, cognitive and social behaviours for effective learning to take place in school contexts. These boundaries that are to be provided take the shape of class rules which are to be enforced by the teacher and act as an important reminder to keep social contexts in order, however rules could hold a negative connotation as it creates a constricted feeling of powerlessness and conformity. The idea behind rules is to make the environment safe and consistent which is important in learning enviro nments. The teacher controls the flow of the classroom and will often use non-verbal language, even when not intentionally meaning to convey a message through non-verbal ways a smile to an individual pupil could increase their self-esteem more than that teacher will know, in contrast a fixed stare could have the desired effect on a misbehaving pupil and evoke a sense of shame. In contrast, the giving of rewards and punishments in a more physical manner can create a more conscious feeling within the pupils as it more obvious of how the teacher is reacting to their behaviour. Furthermore it is important to acknowledge that when discussing the behaviour that it does not simply apply to a pupil who is rated as good or bad but that it materializes into other concepts of a pupil who demonstrates being of a shy nature or who withdraws themselves from activities due to confidence issues. Teachers can sometimes contribute to the causes of bad behaviour. Unfairness, impatience and poor lesson preparation can create the conditions for resentment and discontent to occur. The end result is deterioration of the atmosphere, control problems and a negative impact on learning. When difficulties arise trainee and some experienced teachers tend to blame the children (Jacques 2007). Florian (2005) suggested that inclusive education is not a denial of individual difference, but it is an accommodation of it within the structures and processes that are available to all learners. Inclusion is an ever changing process rather than a sudden change and a process that will take time to achieve, all too often the term inclusion is often associated and linked with the term Special Educational Needs, however inclusion is a broad concept and takes into account not only pupils with special educational needs but those students with additional educational needs also, which may take into account pupils with social and economic issues and also pupils who exceed their set targets e.g. Gifted and Talented pupils. Great emphasis is placed on tailoring education to reflect childrens individual needs, interests and aptitudes. In order for children to thrive and to reach their full potential it is essential that they feel secure, valued and settled. Learning opportunities need to be pl anned that reflect the diverse learning needs of the pupils in the class. The national curriculum inclusion statement outlines how school will be able to alter the National Curriculum programme for the purpose of providing all students with substantial and suitably challenging work at each stage of learning. This statement acknowledges that schools have an accountability to ensure a broad and balanced curriculum is provided for all students. Although the National curriculum initially sets out a structure for teachers to enable them to know what pupils should know at each stage, all pupils need to experience success and achieve their individual potential. Pupils with learning difficulties are no exception, even though their individual potential may be different from others of the same age. Expecting all pupils always to do the same work means that some will find the task too easy, whereas for some the challenge will be about right. There will still be a significant group in any class that will not understand the task, and which will fail. If failure occurs regularly pupils stop caring and begin to lack motivation, become disillusioned and are more likely to be disruptive. It is a teachers responsibility to ensure that all pupils succeed, and a test of their professional skills is to modify activities and resources to that end. A childs sense of belonging in the school community is a vital element of inclusion; belonging is fostered by attitudes of staff and other pupils to individual difference and additional learning needs (Gray 2002). According to the DFES website a Pupils social development involves pupils acquiring an understanding of the responsibilities and rights of being members of families and communities and to work with others for the common good to display a sense of belonging and willingness to participate. They develop the knowledge, skills, understanding, qualities and attitudes they need to make an active contribution to the democratic process i n each of their communities. http://curriculum.qcda.gov.uk/key-stages-1-and-2/learning-across-the-curriculum/spiritual-moral-social-and-cultural-development/index.aspx. Published in 2005 the Every Child Matters paper documented 5 outcomes as being important to a childs well being in school and later in life. Two of the proposed headings were to Be Healthy and Enjoy and Achieve. These sums up of the true meaning of education, a child cannot learn to their potential unless they feel safe on an emotional and physical level and the effective teacher should ensure that every child reaches their full potential regardless of their ability in class.

Love And Marriage In Restoration Comedy

Love And Marriage In Restoration Comedy A comedy is usually a light, rather amusing, play that deals with contemporary life and manners. Such a drama often has a satirical slant, but ends happily. Among the many sub-genres under comedy, one can find the comedy of manners, which originated in France with Molieres Les Precieuses ridicules (1658). Moliere saw this comic form as a way to correct social absurdities. In England, the comedy of manners is represented by the plays of William Wycherley, George Etherege, William Congreve, and George Farquhar. This form was later classed Old Comedy but is now known as Restoration Comedy because it coincided with the return of the Charles II to England. The main goal of these comedies of manners in the period of Restoration is to mock society, or in other ways lift up society for scrutiny, which could cause negative or positive results. In the end, audience will laugh at themselves and society. The definition of comedy and the background of the Restoration Comedy help to explain the themes that run throughout these comedies of manners. One of the major themes is marriage and the game of love. However, if marriage is a mirror of society, the couples in the plays show something very dark and sinister about order. Many critiques of marriage that we see in the play are devastating, but the game of love is not much more hopeful. Although the endings are happy and the man invariably gets the woman, one can see marriages without love and love affairs that are rebellious breaks with tradition. This study will focus on two plays of Restoration comedies, William Wycherleys The Country Wife (1675) and William Congreves The Way of the World (1700), to show how dramatically society has progressed. A dramatic change, in moral attitudes about marriage and love has taken place. In Wycherleys Country Wife, the marriage between Pinchwife and Margery represents a hostile marriage between an old (or older man) and a young woman. The couple, Pinchwife, is the focal point of the play, at least as couples go, and Margery affair with Horner only adds to the humor of the play. Horner runs around cuckolding all of the husbands, while he pretends to be a eunuch. This pretension brings the women swarming to him. He is a master at the game of love, though he is emotionally impotent. He cannot love, which makes him an interesting character for analysis. The relationships in the play are dominated by jealousy or cuckoldry, with the exception of the gay couple, Alithea and Harcourt, but they are really pretty boring. The element of jealousy in marriage seems to be especially prevalent in the play. In Act IV, scene ii, Mr. Pinchwife says, in an aside: Mr. PINCHWIFE. So, tis plain she loves him, yet she has not love enough to make her conceal it from me; but the sight of him will increase her aversion for me and love for him, and that love instruct her how to deceive me and satisfy him, all idiot as she is. He insults her, not to her face of course, but hes serious. He wants her to be stupid, not able to deceive him. But even in her obvious innocence, he doesnt believe she is innocent. To him, every woman came out of natures hands plain, open, silly, and fit for slaves, as she and Heaven intended em. As he says, No woman can be forced. But he also says, in another aside: Mr. PINCHWIFE. Why should women have more invention in love than men? It can only be because they have more desires, more soliciting passions, more lust and more of the devil. Mr. Pinchwife isnt especially bright, but in his jealousy, he becomes a dangerous character. He becomes passionate in his mad ravings, thinking Margery had conspired to cuckold him. Little did he know that he was correct, but if he had known the truth, he would have killed her in his madness. As it is, when she disobeys him, he says: Mr. PINCHWIFE. Once more write as Id have you, and question it not, or I will spoil thy writing with this. I will stab out those eyes that cause my mischief. He doesnt ever hit her or stab her in the play (such actions wouldnt make a very good comedy), but Mr. Pinchwife continually locks Margery in the closet, calls her names, and in all other ways, acts like a complete jerk (to put it nicely). Because of his abusive nature, Margerys affair is not a surprise. In fact, it is accepted as a social norm, along with Horners promiscuity. At the end, the whole scene with Margery learning to lie is also taking in stride because the idea has already been set up when Mr. Pinchwife voiced his fears that if she loved Horner more, she would conceal it from him. And with that, social order is restored. In Congreves The Way of the World, the trend of restoration continues, but marriage becomes more about contractual agreements and greed, then about love. Millamant and Mirabell iron out a pre-nuptial agreement before they agree to marry. Then Millamant, for an instant, seems willing to marry her cousin, Sir Wilful, so that she can keep her money. It is a battle of the wits; it is not a battlefield of emotions. In that way, The Way of the World can be likened to Shakespeares Much Ado About Nothing, where Beatrice and Benedict play at love in their battle of wits. Its comical to see the two wits going at it, but, when we look deeper, there is an edge of seriousness behind their words. After they list conditions, Mirabell says: MIRABELL. These provisos admitted, in other things I may prove a tractable and complying husband. Love may be the basis of their relationship, as Mirabell appears honest; however, their alliance is a sterile romance, devoid of the touchy, feely stuff, which one should hope for in a courtship. Mirabell and Millamant are two wits perfect for each other in the battle of the sexes; nevertheless, the pervading sterility and greed reverberates as the relationship between the two wits becomes much more confusing. But then, that is the way of the world. Confusion and deception are the way of the world, but compared to The Country Wife and other earlier drama, Congreves play shows a different kind of chaos, one marked with contracts and greed instead of the hilarity and mix-up of Horner and other rakes. The evolution of society, as mirrored by the plays themselves is apparent. Sources 1. Drabble, Margaret , The Oxford Companion to English Literature 2. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, The Major Authors, Sixth Edition 3. Abjadian, Amrollah, Dr., A Survey of English Literature (II) 4. Patterson, Michael, The Oxford Dictionary of Plays 5. Abrams, M.H., A Glossary of Literary Term, Eighth Edition 6. William Wycherley, The Country Wife, 1675 7. William Congreve, The Way of the World, 1700

Veterinary Medicine Essays -- essays research papers

Veterinary Medicine For my agriculture report, I chose to do a report on veterinarians. I chose this career field because I like working with animals and learning about them. While doing my report I learned more then I thought there was to learn about animals and becoming a veterinarian. I learned how long it takes to become a veterinarian, what my chances are on being accepted by a veterinary college, what veterinarians do, and much more. Veterinary Medicine is a branch of medical science that deals with the prevention, cure, or alleviation of diseases and injuries of animals. There are about 55,000 veterinarians and of that only 15,000 or so are women. Many veterinarians work for federal, state, or local governments, inspecting food, supervising laws that protect human and animal health, or dealing with environmental problems. Many veterinarians treat all animals, but in recent years and in the densely populated areas of the country, many have limited their practice to pets. Some specialize in the treatment of certian populations such as horses, cattle, poultry, or zoo animals. A small number of veterinarians are employed as managers of large feedlots for beef - cattle, large dairy cattle operations, and many of the increasingly large poultry farms. A few veterinarians are now becoming involved in embryo transfer work, in which fertilized eggs are removed from superior donors and transferred into the uterus of a cow of lesser genetic qualities. A minimum of six years ...

Undercover marketing :: essays research papers

Undercover Marketing Undercover Marketing is an unconventional strategy used to attract consumers. It is where the consumer doesn’t realize they’re being marketed to. The goal of any undercover campaign is to generate a â€Å"buzz† about a new product. The largest appeal of undercover marketing is that it offers free â€Å"word of mouth† that can reach many consumers. There are a few ways to implement this kind of marketing. One way is to hire models or celebrities to be seen drinking a particular new beverage at a bar. Another way is to use fake â€Å"tourists. These fake tourists ask someone to take their picture with a new high tech camera and then they explain the benefits of the new camera they are using. There are a few companies who have done this type of marketing. One company, called Essential Reality, launched a new type of video game glove. With the glove on, you can fly planes and fire weapons all with the movement of your fingers. The idea was to market the glove at coffee shops and crowded places. All the company did to market there new glove was go out and have fun with their latest toy and wait to be approached by consumers. When approached, they would ask other people to give the glove a try. They would also say clever sound bites similar to: â€Å"It’s like you are actually in the game.† The marketers would then tell them how well they are doing with the glove on. No one is trying to selling you anything. The companies just want to get you to want their new product and to tell your friends about it. They want to get you involved with it. They pretend to be your friends and offer information about the products. When Sony Ericsson released its new phone that took pictures, they launched a program called â€Å"fake tourists.† Sixty actors took to the streets in ten cities. They would approach people and ask then to take there picture with their new phone. Once the phone was in the consumers’ hand, the fake tourist would say something like, â€Å"Thanks for taking our picture. That phone is cool, right?† And then they would explain some of the phones features. The companies who employ undercover marketing are feeding off of the â€Å"word of mouth† tactic to sell products and get the word out. The problem is, their â€Å"word of mouth† tactic is not genuine.

Teaching Vocabulary to Young English Learners

A crucial component of learning a foreign language is the acquisition of vocabulary. For young learners, the very first words that they acquire could lay the profound basis for a better later learning of the children. This study is intended to investigate the specific application of techniques in teaching English vocabulary to young learners. I strived to investigate the current techniques in teaching vocabulary to young learners and studied the difficulties that teachers encounter during this process. Oral interviews, questionnaire and observation schemes were used as useful instruments for data collection. The questionnaire-based survey aims to scrutinize teachers’ common techniques in teaching vocabulary to young learners, general difficulties that they meet in teaching. Oral interviews and observations serve to elaborate on the information gathered from questionnaires and discover teachers’ opinions on how to solve arisen problem in language classroom, especially during vocabulary section. The result of this survey indicates that using flashcards in presenting, sorting tasks in practicing and sentence completion in revising vocabulary are three most preferably common techniques in teaching young learners the English vocabulary. The exploitation of combining different techniques is considered rather limited; in conclusion,, this study provides some suggestions for teachers to realize the benefits of having available activities and games in young learners’ classroom. 1. Introduction I chose this topic for my research study because I consider that for young learners, vocabulary and grammar are two essential units that require them to master at early stage. It was once claimed that â€Å"experienced teachers of English as a Second Language know very well how important vocabulary is. They know their students must learn thousands of words that speakers and writers of English use. † (Allen, 1983). The well-known linguist Wilkins, one of the leaders in language learning and teaching, indicated that â€Å"without grammar, very little could be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed† Teaching vocabulary is considered to be an add- on to teaching grammar or simply a by-product of language teaching and communicative functions. The reasons are: firstly, too many words in one sentence are believed to break its grammar structure and spoil children in learning systematic grammar; secondly, it is thought that vocabulary can be learned through experience only and therefore, there is little need for the teachers to focus much on teaching their students vocabulary; and thirdly, they put the emphasis of teaching grammar on priority to vocabulary are already taken too much of any lesson in the classroom. The basic concept of how important teaching vocabulary in class is, was not recognized until late 1970s and 1980s when people realized the necessity of vocabulary in reading comprehension (Allen: p. 5) Learning a new language with native speakers can provoke learners’ motivation and boost their confidence in quickly obtaining language step by step, native teachers, in many circumstances have to face the obstacle of slow or misbehaved students, particularly in vocabulary section. This study therefore was conducted, aiming at reviewing common techniques in teaching vocabulary to young learners. . An overview of Vocabulary 2. 1. 1. Definition In order to find the best and most easy-to-understand definition of the vocabulary, is such an unfeasible task. Each linguist or scholar, in his specialized field, with his own set of criteria has found out for his own a way to define vocabulary. However, in the most popular way, Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary has applied a meaning for vocabulary as â€Å"all the words which exist in a particular language or subject. † In the context of learning English as a Foreign Language, the vital role of vocabulary is inevitable. This has been claimed by many linguists and experts in the field. Wilkins (cited in Thornbury, 2002) clearly stated that â€Å"without grammar, very little can be conveyed; without vocabulary, nothing can be conveyed† (page 13). Coincidentally, H. Dellar and D. Hocking indicated that progress made from learning grammar most of the time would be much less than that from learning vocabulary. To be short and concise, when comparing the importance of grammar and vocabulary, both mentioned statement above show that most of learner’s improvement was created when the learner himself learned more words and expressions. It was also emphasized when it came to communicate that â€Å"you can say very little with grammar, but you can say almost anything with words† (Thornbury , p. 13). 2. 2. Young learners 2. 2. 1. Definition The term â€Å"young learners†, according to the author of the book An A-Z of ELT, Thornbury , â€Å"is used to describe children of pre-primary and primary school age, although it is sometimes used to include adolescents as well† (p. 250). In the same way, â€Å"young learners† as defined by Sarah Phillips (1993) are â€Å"children of formal schooling (five or six years old) to eleven or twelve years of age. † (p. 4). Teaching English to young learners, therefore, has a long history: in many multilingual countries, primary school children are taught English as preparation for secondary school, where it is the medium of instruction. In recent years, there has been a phenomenal increase in the teaching of English to young learners, in EFL context as well as in ESL, and in state school as well as in private ones (Thornbury, p. 251). 2. 2. 2. Characteristics of young learners Vocabulary knowledge is a major building block in children's early literacy development. It provides the foundation for learning to decode and comprehend text. Many children, especially English language learners, need support in acquiring the substantial vocabulary they need to become good readers. Reading books to children is one way to introduce them to a wide range of vocabulary that they may not hear in their everyday conversations with adults and peers. Young learners need to be able to transfer their understanding of words to new contexts, so that when they see or hear those words in other places they understand what they mean. Talking about words from book to book is one way of showing children how words are used in other contexts. Another way to help them see how words are used in other contexts is asking them to think about how the words apply to their own knowledge and experiences. In explaining the word freight, for example, a teacher might say, â€Å"Have you ever seen a train on the tracks? Did you notice the cars of the train? Inside of those train cars, there are lots of things that are being taken from one place to another. The stuff that is being brought from one place to another is called freight. What are some things that you think could be freight on a train? † 2. 3. Vocabulary teaching . 3. 1. Stages in teaching Vocabulary Basically as proposed by Gower (2005) and Thornbury (2002) there are three stages in teaching vocabulary namely presenting, practicing and revising. In this research, I am going to list each stage with its typical features to have a better review for further techniques followed that. 2. 3. 1. 1. Presenting The title of this very first stage has indicated clearly its funct ion in introducing new lexical items to learners. As suggested by Thornbury, learners need to learn both the meaning and the form of a new word. Therefore, as he claimed, it’s worth pointing out that both these aspects of a word should be presented in â€Å"close conjunction in order to ensure a tight meaning-and-form fit† (p. 75). If the co-writers of Teaching Practice (p. 146) immediately referred to the effectiveness of using visual aids in presenting new words, Thornbury specifically emphasized the importance of cutting down â€Å"the gap between the presentation of a word’s form and its meaning† so that learners could possibly be at ease to make a â€Å"mental connection between the two†. He also stressed some major factors, subject to which the number of words should be presented. . 3. 1. 2. Practicing Suggested by Gower, students often need a little time for the new lexical items to â€Å"sink in† (p. 148). He pointed out that learners may recognize new item but often delay putting it into active use. In this case, is of pure necessity the use of planned activities for recyclin g and reactivate the new vocabulary. This kind of practice, as implied by Thornbury (2002) underlines the popular belief that â€Å"practice makes perfect† (p. 93). He additionally emphasized the action of moving words from short-term memory into permanent memory. He emphasized that â€Å"new knowledge – i. e. new words – needs o be integrated into existing knowledge – i. e. learner’s existing network of word associations, or what is called the mental lexicon. † (p. 93). Words or lexical items need to be put to work, or into practice as it is often understood in many other contexts, in order to ensure the long-term retention and recall. Vocabulary needs to be placed in â€Å"working memory† and subjected to different operations which would be mentioned intricately in the later part of techniques in practicing vocabulary. 2. 3. 1. 3. Consolidating and Revising Checking students’ comprehension and revising those words are a final important stage in teaching this specific field. In this stage, students are advised to complete high-level tasks namely production tasks. The author of many famous books for English language teachers grouped decision-making tasks into the second stage when learners needed to decide and make their choice in facing up with already learnt items. 2. 4. Techniques in teaching vocabulary There are three main parts or namely stages in teaching vocabulary, as they are mentioned above. . 4. 1. 1. Techniques in presenting vocabulary Proposed by Doff (1988, cited in ELT Methodology II, 2009) and Thornbury (2002) and Nation (1994) a variety of techniques can be used or combined in introducing vocabulary. 2. 4. 1. 2. Techniques in practicing vocabulary Identifying tasks, involving tasks of finding words in texts. â€Å"Listen then tick the words you hear† can be one obvious example of this type. Identification is the first step in recognizing words and requires learners do easy task as counting, ticking or a bit difficult is to unscramble words as in anagram. Selecting tasks are â€Å"cognitively more complex than identification tasks†. For selecting tasks, learners will have to do recognizing words and making choices amongst them at the same time. Finding and odd one out is a common task that teachers may often use in class for checking comprehension. Learners are also requested to do matching tasks, apart from recognizing and making choice amongst words. In this kind of task, learners may need to pair a set of given words to a â€Å"visual representation, for example, or to a translation, a synonym/antonym, a definition or a collocate. (p. 97) Learners are being asked to do sorting tasks, by grouping words into different categories. It should be noted that the categories can be given in advance or learners have to guess what the categories are. 2. 4. 1. 3. Games Games are one indispensable advice for many teachers not only in English teaching but also in the field of language teaching. Instead of listing common word games, I wil l discuss the function and effectiveness of using games in teaching vocabulary as a major topic. Drawn upon the characteristics of young learner, one typical characteristic of them is moving around almost all of the times and cannot be sitting quietly for more than five minutes. Yet they can be often keen on word games with a variety of options and movements. Especially in the context of teaching English to Romanian learners who are often labeled as inactive and afraid of risk-taking learning, games are said to be an extrinsic motivation for them to participate actively in the lesson. Games bring in relaxation and fun for students, thus help them learn and retain new words more easily. Secondly, games usually involve friendly competition and they keep learners interested. These create the motivation for learners of English to get involved and participate actively in learning activities. Thirdly, vocabulary games bring real world context into the classroom, and enhance learners’ use of English in a flexible, communicative way. Advantages of using games in learning vocabulary were indicated by showing that games not only helped and encouraged learners to sustain their interest but also gave teachers a helping hand in creating contexts. This is particularly true when learners need useful and meaningful contexts to better their understanding of new words or in general, lexical items. 2. 5. Difficulties in teaching vocabulary This study, concerning the issue of constraints encountered by teachers, deliberately focuses on finding external factors, that is to say factors related to teachers themselves are spared for a larger scale research. In this case, difficulties in teaching vocabulary are said to often arise from the nature of vocabulary itself. The very first difficulty recognized in teaching words is the matter of whether to teach form first hen meaning or meaning first then form later. Another matter deterred by many researchers is about the mistakes that learners often make when learning vocabulary. External factors can be seen from the different levels of learners in one class; class size can grow to unexpectedly big; learners keep using their first language and more importantly students appear to be uncooperative. Those factors once happen in class can negatively hinder the efficiency of both presenting and practicing new words; additionally badly affect teacher’s plan and demotivate many activities performed by him/her (Harmer: p. 27). 2. 5. 1 Proposed activities and games in order to make a lesson vivid 2. 5. 1. 1 Proposed activities: Bingo: is useful for checking students’ comprehension and pronunciation of the old vocabulary. Teacher gets the class to brainstorm a list of ten or fifteen new words and puts them on the board. Students choose any five and copy them into a piece of paper. Teacher reads out the words. Each time having one word that teacher reads, students put a tick or cross that word. The one to have five ticks or crosses shouts â€Å"Bingo† and the game can continue. Word associations: Teacher writes a topic in the middle of the board and gets students to think about words that associate with it. In case students cannot think of as many words as expected, teacher can ask question to provoke answers that may enlighten students’ ideas. Half a crossword: this activity is to get students to use sentence for asking the meaning of a word. Students work in pair, each receives half a crossword. One student, in order to get the answers for the missing half has to ask the other either to act or give a definition of the word. Pictionary: Teacher can utilize it as a fun activity in class. Class can be divided into two big groups. Each time, one person in the group, after receiving one word/phrase from the teacher has to turn to his/her group to draw so as to get the group guess correctly the word. Members take turns to draw and the activity can be played twice but should be not too long. 2. 5. 1. 2 Proposed games: Board sentence making: the rule is quite easy to follow and it is specially created to increase team work as well as the acquisition of words. The class is divided into two teams; each team is given six to seven small white boards. Teacher writes a word on the big board, each team has to make a sentence using the given word. Each word of the sentence must lie in each small board that the team is provided. Categories: Young learners work in pairs or small groups. On a piece of paper, they draw up a number of columns, according to a model on the board, each column labeled with the name of a lexical set: e. g. fruit, animals, transport, clothes. The teacher calls out a letter, B for example, students write down as many words as they can beginning with that letter in the separate columns (banana, bus, blouses, bat, †¦). The group with the most correct words wins. Drawing/ miming or explaining: this is a game played with the dice. Each time, representative from one of the two teams in the class has to throw the dice to know whether they have to draw (if throw 1-2), mime (3- 4) or explain (5-6) the word that teacher gives them. It can create a fun learning environment when students really don’t want to explain but they throw 5 instead. Hammer: the aim of the game is to get students quickly operate words that they have learnt in class. Students stand in a circle, teacher stands in the middle of the circle, holding the paper hammer. Teacher can give a topic himself or ask students to choose one topic in which every one in the class has to take turn call out a word belonging to given topic. Anyone who cannot give one word will be hit on the head with the hammer. The last person to stay is the winner. Pronunciation race: In this game, class is divided into small groups. Each group sends a representative to the board. The teacher gives the rest of the group a small grid of words which they use to pronounce to the member at the board. Once hearing the word, that member has to write down the word he/she gets. The team with most of the correct words wins. Spelling race: Class is divided into two teams. For each time teacher writes a scrambled word on board and two representatives from each team have to race to the board and write the correct spelling of the word. Each correct word wins the team a point. The team with the most points wins. Stop the bus: In the same way as Categories, students write labeled column. When teacher calls out a letter, C for example, students have to find one word which starts with letter C and belongs to provided category. The first group to find all words shouts â€Å"Stop the bus†. The other teams have to stop. Teacher checks accuracy and spelling. Word Bang: This game can be used best to check students’ understanding of old vocabulary in class. The class stands in a circle and teacher stands in the middle holding a set of flashcards (make sure that students know all the cards in advance). Each time, two students compete each other to shout out loud the name of the card that teacher shows in front of them. The quicker is the winner. The game continues until there is only one student left, who is also the winner of the game. Word snap: It has the aim to get as many pairs of words as possible. Divide class to work in pairs or small groups. Each pair/group receives a set of words and pictures which correspond to the words. Each time one student face up two cards, if they match he will take them, if they don’t, he has to put them face back down. Turn goes to the next person. The one who gets the most pairs win. 3. Conclusion As the title of the paper suggests, this study has its focal point in investigating the current implementation of techniques used in teaching vocabulary to young learners, accompanied by difficulties and solutions. As a conclusion, common techniques in teaching vocabulary to young learners can be divided into three groups. For presenting new words, using flashcards and miming are preferred by most of teachers. In getting students to practice the words they have learnt, grouping words into certain categories preferably outnumbers the other techniques. For the final stage in teaching vocabulary – revising, most of the teachers say that they have been familiarized with sentence and text completion rather than that of creation. Finally, this research proposes some compiled games and activities that might be helpful for teachers’ repertoire. 4. Summary: Scopul acestui studiu este acela de a sublinia importanta invatarii vocabularului, de catre tineri, inca din faza incipienta. Am incercat sa prezint cateva idei, despre ceea ce inseamna predarea vocabularului si implementarea tehnicilor folosite in predare, alaturi de dificultatile intampinate cat si solutii pentru reusita. Definirea vocabularului poate fi inteleasa prin, totalitatea cuvintelor ce alcatuiesc o limba. Prin elev tanar ne referim la acea categorie de copii cuprinsa intre 5-12 ani. Ca si concluzie, cele mai folosite tehnici in predarea vocabularului tinerilor elevi pot fi impartite in trei grupe(prezentare, exersare si recapitulare). In prezentarea noilor termeni( cuvinte), folosirea cartonaselor ilustrate si mima este cel mai des intalnit procedeu. In a-i face pe elevi sa exerseze cuvinte invatate, gruparea cuvintelor pe anumite categorii este cea mai de succes metoda folosita.. In ceea ce priveste etapa finala in predarea vocabularului –recapitularea, majoritatea profesorilor spun ca au fost obisnuiti cu finalizarea propozitiilor si a textelor, decat cea a crearii. Spre finalul lucrarii am incercat sa descriu cateva jocuri si activitati care ar putea fi de folos in alcatuirea portofoliului unui profesor.