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

Precis - Essay Example This article throws light on a critical issue of which I had very little knowledge earlier. It opened my eyes to the negative side of globalization that basically triggered deforestation of the Amazon. Though the author has partially blamed the local people that are involved in logging and cattle ranching; but in my opinion, the government is solely responsible for not keeping its laws strict enough for people to avoid committing environmental crimes. The government has introduced Plano Amazonia to develop the Amazon forests which would further increase the rate of deforestation. Loggers and cattle farmers work together and keep moving the agricultural frontier upwards after having deforested some parts of the Amazon. At the cost of deforestation, Brazil has become the largest beef exporter in the whole world. With the efforts of environmentalists, the big exporters of soya bean and beef have pledged not to buy from growers in the Amazon, which is commendable and would save the Amazo n forests to a great deal. The congress has approved a land reform bill that claims to end illegal farming and environmental crimes but environmentalists are wary of it. Illegal land holdings are prevalent in the Amazon. The new law aims to introduce land regularization and eventually stop deforestation but it is very difficult for the weak Brazilian state to enforce it. Environmentalists have proposed commercializing the products of the forests, which would benefit the local people as well. Amazon fund have been set up by the Brazilian government and many countries, the UN and private companies shall donate to put an end to deforestation. Building roads through the forests to connect far off areas is essential for economic development, despite the effect that it would contribute to deforestation. Efforts are underway to preserve the forests as a

Child soldiers Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Child soldiers - Research Paper Example This paper looks into the causes behind using children in warfare, as well as the various brutal techniques employed by the authorities to recruit or make use of them (War Child; UNICEF). First of all, the reason why children are being used in war is because of the increasing trend in the prevalence of HIV/AIDs. As more and more years go by, the number of adults dying from this disease causes majority of the children to lose at least one or both of their parents. This happens mostly in countries hardest hit by HIV/AIDs. Consequently, there are millions of orphans in these countries with only a few options available for survival. The situation is made worse by the fact that only a few of these countries contain orphanages. Moreover, numerous of these orphans have watched their parents die right before their eyes, and have thus been driven to fend for themselves. As a result, these orphans think that they have nothing more to lose by participating in war (Singer, Peter W 42). In addition to this is the continuous prevalence of global conflict. The number of internal conflicts going on the world today has approximately doubled ever since the Cold War ended. In such violent environments, children have grown up surrounded by bloodshed and have accepted it as a ‘permanent way of life’. Such children are always seen as potential soldiers. Besides seeing all the violence and fighting around them, many children are not provided with life’s basic necessities (education, health care, adequate housing, food, and water). This is especially true for those children who grow up in the middle of war. This is because such environments make it impossible for communities to provide its children with proper care and education. Thus, the weak social structures of such places cause children to turn towards war as a means of escaping these problems (Singer, Peter W 43). Besides this, the manufacture of light weapons contributes to the prevalence,

Downsizing: Corporate Restructuring Strategy

Downsizing: Corporate Restructuring Strategy Downsizing or layoff is a widespread strategic decision and change practice since 1970s and during the economic downturn in the year 2007 it became a more common phenomenon. In 2001 alone fortune 500 companies reportedly cut a total of 1040466 jobs and one predicts that by 2015 a further 3.3 million jobs will be outsourced. Changing patterns in reasons cited for job loss support this impression of the rising importance of restructurings. Differences in factors such as the state of the economy and the signal sent by job loss could make the process of downsizing and the effects of job loss differ between restructurings of healthy organizations and downsizing due to financial distress. Recent companies to pursue downsizing include American Express, Alcoa, Motorola, HP, Dell, Lucent to name a few. DOWNSIZING APPROACHES There are many kind of approaches in downsizing. The reasons for the firm to undertake such approaches also varies. As documented by Palmer et al,. they include restructuring, closing or selling of a business unit, cost reduction, cost savings, increased productivity through greater efficiency and effectiveness and coping with external pressure including recessions and economic downturn, economical change, increased competitive pressures through greater globalization of business and technological change. Multiple strategies may be associated with downsizing beyond the simple cost cutting approach. For instance, after the terrorist attack on united states on September 11,2001, Praxair Inc. a supplier of speciality gases and coating the United States, experienced a downturn in productivity. They announced the need to reduce their worldwide workforce by 900 employees as well as the need to restructure their business to cater to products where demand was increasing. To this end they simultaneously downsized and invested in two new product plants. Sometimes employees are the last resort for cost cutting and thus the company follows downsizing. For example, in the end of the second quarter of 2001 Charles Schwab company was hit by a major economic downturn in commission based revenue. This company has hired a lot of workforce during the boom period of the business cycle. So they had an overabundance of staff and finally realised the need to restructure and downsizing was their last resort of cost cutting. As a result by the end of 2003, the company has reduced nearly 25% of its workforce and significantly decreased the staff bonuses in a move to save the company from its declining profit. But downsizing will not necessarily lead to gains in productivity unless and until its complemented with other business strategies. For example , a research in 1990 showed that expected increase in profits did not increase in two out of three cases through cost cutting by downsizing. This research showed that share prices may initially rise with the announcement of cost cutting by downsizing but often fall, trading at or below the market over a two year period. TYPES OF DOWNSIZING There are mainly three types of downsizing. They are as follows: Retrenchment Downscaling Downscoping The above three strategies are further elaborated below: (1) RETRENCHMENT: it is a corporate strategy by which the firm centralizes or specializes its operations to maintain and improve the productivity and profit. It can brought about by removal of unnecessary jobs and amenities or reengineering process. This finally helps in gaining competitive advantage and improve the economies of scale. If a company or government follows the process of retrenchment, it decreases the money which is outgoing and the expenditures or have a new focus so that they can become more solvent financially.Retrenchment is a general strategy of cutting back the cost and a useful approach towards the layoff process. Companies usually use the strategy of retrenchment through two approaches. One of them being reducing the overall expenditure by decreasing the workforce, closing of offices and branches which are not performing according to expected profit, freezing hiring and cutting salaries. As the firm centralizes the operation it may move its head quarters to a favourable place where the operating cost is lowered or easy availability of raw materials is possible. It can also streamline its process and decreasing the quality of materials used in production. The other approach of the company is by downsizing in non profitable market, i.e. following the process of downsizing in the market segment which is not performing well currently and in turn building upon its operations in market which has proved to be profitable in long run. This usually happens when the non profitable market becomes saturated or obsolete for the sole reason of new and improved technology and modernization. There are basically five major activities that take place for retrenchment: Turnaround: there are two strategies to do it. Firstly the company can consolidate the operation and secondly it can contract its operations by cutting cost of labour and marketing. Captive company : for a captive company to perform well they can be an exclusive supplier to a giant company. Its future is held by another big company Divestment : it mainly involves in removal of a portion of the business. It may sell, close or spin-off any strategic business unit, a product line or any operating division. They actually downsize their scope of business functioning. Liquidation: The process is simple. It is done by Taking the book value of assets, subtracting depreciation and selling the business. There can be potentially viable assets which are lost in the process. Bankruptcy: this is when the company looses its total profit. It is a legal protective strategy. There can at least be a possibility of turnaround if the company declares itself bankrupt to its loyal customers. (2). DOWNSCALING: the process of downscaling involves permanent alterations to employment and tangible resource capacity. The decrease in resources decreases the necessity of workforce operating them and thus the process of downsizing is easy and viable for sustaining the company. It improves the competitive advantage of the company and reduces the firms economies of scale. It can also involve improvement in the competitive market share of the firm. This strategy is actually followed by firms who are facing increased competition in the market place and wants to improve the efficiency by implementing changes in the workforce. (3). DOWNSCOPING: when the form divests operations and activities or markets in which it operates. This is usually achieved by decreasing the vertical and horizontal integration. If a firm has over diversified its operations it can use the corporate strategy of downsizing to improve its performance. The strategy helps in refocusing the organizations core business. It involves two main processes. Firstly reducing the level of diversification by divesting the business which are not related to its core competency. Secondly selectively removing workforce units and employees who do not contribute to the strategic objective of the organization. The assets of the firm which are unproductive are spun-off or sold. It helps the firm to achieve the optimal level of diversification. The process of refocusing also reduces the information processing requirement of the top management. The emphasis of the firm is more on strategic control rather than financial control. It is reducing the diversity o f business in its portfolio. European firms use more of downscoping as compared to the United Statess firms. One of the best examples of downscoping can be the Tata group who have restructured its business to retain only 91 of its 250 business. The company has tried to build a more focussed approach without actually abandoning the best traditional manufacturing process. CHALLENGES IN DOWNSIZING There are certain challenges the organization has to face while the process of downsizing is being implemented. They are explained as follows: Survivor syndrome : this is mainly observed in employees who are retained in the organization after the downsizing process has been done. They feel guilty that they are still in the organization when their valued work colleagues are and employed. They suffer from low morale and feel that they also can get laid off in future. Particularly when they are not involved in the organizations restructuring process they feel left out and dissociated. Managing such survivors effectively is a major challenge Due diligence: there can be questions in the organization regarding the necessity of the downsizing in the organization if the process is unplanned or non selective. This may lead to damage of the employee-employer relationship in the organization. Employee retention: loss of important and skilled employees can occur due to unplanned downsizing. Sometimes the retained employees become unsure about their future in the firm and reconsider their decision to stay back with the firm. Loosing these employees can greatly affect the productivity of the firm. Cultural adjustments: downsizing leads to significant cultural change. For example the subcultures of the firm may be broken down by restructuring and downsizing and disruption of informal networks may occur. So the management must pay more attention to reintegrate the culture and formulate new strategic decisions Communication: the company should make sure that they convey and communicate the future of the present employees and also the market situation they are presently in. they should communicate their future strategy and vision to the shareholders, employees and the customers. Choice of restructuring technique: downsizing is not always the most viable technique for restructuring. Many companies do not seek initial alternative to it. The decision of using any substitute method should be analysed properly before carrying on the process of downsizing. DOWNSIZING IN THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY There has been major downsizing and lay off in the pharmaceutical companies over the last few years. From the year 2007 when the recession started nearly 80,000 jobs in pharmaceutical industry is lost. The recent consolidation of the industry, e.g., Merck-Schering, Pfizer-Wyeth and Roche-Genentech suggests that many more biotechnology and pharmaceutical jobs may be lost over the next year or so. Companies like of Amgen, Genentech, Gilead are lacking funds to maintain its operations in the down economy. There is a lack of venture and private equity capital which is ultimately leading to cost cutting by reduction in work force. Xenoport, a San Jose based pharmaceutical firm has announced that it will downsize 222 person from its existing workforce in the next few months. The company executives claim that this downsizing is necessary as the US Food and Drug Administration failed to grant approval to the leas drug candidate. The move will help the company save nearly $15.6 million annually and in turn invest them on future drug development. Another firm named Exelis which is based in San-Francisco will cut down its workforce by 40% to have more focus on development of the late stage drug candidate. This biotechnology firm wants to reduce their cash expenditure by nearly $90 million in the year 2011 and wants to focus on anti cancer drugs like XL184, XL147 and XL765 development. It has been less than a year when the company has announced a $1.0 billion deal with Sanofi-Aventis in which $140 million was invested by Sanofi in order to license two of its major oncology drug candidates. Finally, BNET compiled a top biotech layoff list for 2009. The notables that made the list are shown below. Sepracor (530). The layoffs represented 20 percent of Sepracors workforce, and another 410 contract sales reps also got the axe. The restructuring apparently worked and Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma the company later in 2009. Allergan (460). This represented a five percent reduction in the companys workforce. Genmab (300). Arzerra (ofatumumab) the companys leukemia drug won FDA approval a week before layoffs were announced (go figure). But Genmab wanted to cut manufacturing and late-stage clinical work to refocus on antibody discovery. Oscient Pharmaceuticals (280). Oscient cut about 100 jobs in February, 2009 to entice acquisition partners. When that didnt work, the firm cut another 180 in June as it dumped the sales force for its two marketed products. Cornerstone Therapeutics later picked up Oscients antibiotic Factive during bankruptcy. Amylin Pharmaceuticals (200). After cutting 340 jobs at the end of 2008 amid declining diabetes drug sales and regulatory delays, Amylin eliminated 200 sales reps in mid-2009. The above represents one of the largest lay offs in 2009. It was earlier considered that life science wont be affected by the downturn of the economy. But contradictory to the popular belief it is one of the hard hit sectors. Most of the companies are following the downsizing with the mixture of junior and senior employees. But during major lay-offs most of the downsized employees are not experienced. Entry level employees are also downsized for the process of cutting cost. Pharmaceutical companies require nearly 15 years for the drug development process. There may be many critical decisions to be made during the process. For taking such decisions more experienced and expert employees are required and without their suggestions they can not actually render the drug development process to complete. The ability to take proper decision and the corporate knowledge is not observed in the entry level employees. It might take those years to understand the complexity of the process. So mostly the sales level employees are suffering from the downsizing effects. To summarize it, the fact that choosing the employee to be laid of is very crucial in pharmaceutical industry. They should not loose experienced workforce a s it might lead to their loss of efficiency of operations and competitive advantage in the market. The current lay-offs of the industry can increase the drug stock prices for short term period but the future of such measures in the long term is still uncertain and cannot be predicted. CONCLUSION: Downsizing can be fairly costly strategic decision. For example it has been calculated that the total cost of the retrenching of a single employee who earns around $ 30,000 is around $7,000. the process of downsizing can have major pschycological and emotional effect on the employee. The employee may loose his/her morale and efficiency to work better elsewhere. There can also be social effect on both those who remain in the organization and those who leave. For these reasons the smartest companies make sure that they address the right issues in right ways before they jettison jobs and further explore alternatives for their operations before they restore to downsizing as their corporate strategy.

Roddy Doyle :: essays research papers

Roddy Doyle is an amazing writer and is seen by his friends as a studious-looking and down-to-earth kind of guy. He is one of the new breed of young Irish artists who came of age in the 1960’s and 1970’s.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Roddy Doyle was born in May of 1958 in the northern Dublin suburb of Kilbarrack, Ireland. From Roddy Doyle’s point of view, he seemed to have had a happy childhood, especially when he told an interviewer, â€Å" There are memories of my own childhood, running through a field and seeing pheasants fly up, balls of dust under the kitchen table, and my parents happily married.† He also said talking about his childhood that â€Å"The place was mine, and the time was mine.† He was raised in a middle-class family, quite different from the gritty, working-class characters in his books. He attended St. Fintan’s Christian Brothers School in Sutton and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts. He continued his education at University College, Dublin, where he achieved a Bachelors degree in English and geography. He undertook teacher training at Greendale Community School, in Kilbarrack, and after getting certified, he became a member of that schoolâ€⠄¢s faculty. He taught fourteen years at Greendale, where he was known to his students as â€Å"Punk† Doyle because of the earring and the Doc Martens boots he wore. Doyle is currently married to Belinda Doyle and has two sons, Rory and Jack Doyle. Since 1993, Doyle has been dedicated to writing full time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Doyle’s first novel came in the 1980’s. The novel was titled Your Granny’s a Hunger Striker; Doyle said it was â€Å"brilliant,† but after that it went completely downhill. Later in the 80’s, approximately 1986, he published the first successful novel of his writing career. The name of it was The Commitments, which, with the help of a friend, he published himself under the â€Å"King Farouk† imprint, and sold himself. One copy of his book landed at William Heinemann, a London-based publishing house. Heinemann enjoyed the book so much he decided to publish it himself in 1987. Two years later, Random House published the book in the United States. This was Doyle’s big start. After his success he wrote two more novels, The Snapper, and The Van. The Van was such a well written novel that it was a finalist for the 1991 Booker Prize Award. Finally in 1993, success struck again.

Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man Essay

I found the novel Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man very difficult to read at first, and could make very little sense of it. After doing some background research I have some to understand some of the motives of Joyce, from which it seems that the difficulty was not due to any shortcoming on my part, because I know that that even the most sympathetic critics have faced the same difficulties. Joyce does not intend to offer a conventional narrative. Indeed his motive is to deconstruct convention. The protagonist of the novel is described as relinquishing all forms of convention, in his effort to forge for himself a new existence in the capacity of a true artist. But Joyce does not want to offer this theme in the conventional mode either. Not only the substance, but the means and the language must also be suffused by the same theme. In its effort not to depend on any cultural norms, it employs the method of â€Å"stream of consciousness†. This is the technique where raw consciousness of thought is seen as the basis for truth, and it is meant that these thought patterns be transposed directly onto the page. It is not to effect realism, as might be thought at first hand. Realism is art is a very conscious and calculating mode. The underlying philosophy is better described as existentialism. It recalls the existential philosopher Jean Paul Sartre’s epithet â€Å"existence precedes essence† (22). The existentialists aim to understand pure existence, which is yet without essence, or form. It describes exactly the passages in the Portrait which employ the stream of consciousness method. From this point of view I found that a second reading was much easier, only because I was more aware of the motivations of the writer. Another mode which comes to mind is modernism. T. S. Eliot is said to be the instigator of modernism with his 1922 poem â€Å"The Wasteland†. This poem presents us with fragments from the literary cultural tradition of the West, but in a haphazard way, without any seeming coherence, as proclaimed in the poem itself, â€Å"These fragments I have shored against my ruins† (Eliot 69). Eliot himself admitted that he wrote the poem as a reaction to catastrophe of the Great War, and tried to convey its impact on the Western psyche in general. He believed that conventional art forms had become meaningless in â€Å"the immense panorama of futility and anarchy which is contemporary history† (qtd. in Sigg 182). The modernist genre that sprung from this poem can be said to be characterized by futility, and the search for transcendental meaning. Despite various points of similarity is it wrong classify Joyce as a modernist. Not only does the Portrait appears well before the publication of â€Å"The Wasteland†, it is also composed well before the onset of the Great War, and therefore cannot have been motivated in exactly the same way. Neither is it fragmentary and incoherent in the way Eliot’s poem is. It is framed by autobiography, and therefore possesses overall coherence. Eliot’s is a despairing cry of futility. The protagonist of Joyce also comes across the futility of all conventional norms, but in the end the novel is not characterized merely by despair. The protagonist discovering himself as an artist represents hope in the end. The novel describes the several stages by which it protagonist Stephen Dedalus discovers himself as an artist. In the process he takes refuge in the conventional identities provided by society in the various stages of his growing up. But Stephen is meant for greatness, and the conventional identities are only refuges for mediocrity, and this is what he discovers time and time again. The transiton from one stage to the next is marked by epiphanies – sudden bouts of realization that transform the inner self. Apart from the many minor epiphanies that accompany the growing young man, there are two major such occasions. The first is his discovery of conventional faith. The second occurs when he comes to realize that the Church is a restricting influence, and that he must escape if he is to express himself as an artist. It occurs when he must make a choice between training to be a Catholic priest, or to enter the secular domain of university. He opts for the second choice. It is a major decision, but does not yet entail that he is free to become an artist. University opens up to him a diverse array of ideologies. Stephen comes to realize that none of the ideas that academia has to offer are able to address his inner longing towards creativity. His goal, as he expresses at the very end of the novel, is to â€Å"to forge in the smithy of [his] soul the uncreated conscience of [his] race† (276). His final realization is that the conventional mode of Irish existence is lacking in conscience. And as an artist he has understood his role as to make up for this fundamental lack. It is a role of heroic proportions, and which only the artist is able to undertake. So the creativity which Stephen intends in not mere self-expression, it is towards creating a conscience for his race. There are many occasions while he is growing up in Dublin when he comes to realize that there is something fundamentally lacking in what society has to offer him. In school it appears as if the appreciation of his peers is the highest goal, and he is in awe of the bullies of the classroom who command attention. On one occasion he is dealt with a caning from a teacher which he didn’t really deserve. He classmates challenge him to take action, and to report the teacher to the headmaster. Up to this point he seems unable to stand up for himself, yet he takes on the challenge of his peers to go up to the headmaster’s room all alone, and puts his case forthrightly. To his peers he is instant heroes, and they hoist him up in the air together. The striking aspect of this incident is that the glory does not register with Stephen. Even while he is being hoisted, he wants to escape their grip, and when the cheers have died down he feels himself to be an outsider just as before. On the occasion when he is first allowed to attend Christmas dinner with the adults, he observes a vicious argument taking place with politics and religion mixed in. It centers on the Catholic Church’s demonizing of Charles Stuart Parnell, who had led the movement Irish independence from the British. Parnell’s fortunes reversed when it was found out that he was involved in an affair with a married women, which was considered sacrilege in the strictly Catholic society that Ireland was. In the argument Stephen’s aunt is on the side of religious authority, while Stephens’s father and the outsider Mr. Casey argue for politics. However little Stephen understands of this argument, if gives him a foretaste of corruption in high places. But more than this he comes to realize shallowness and brittleness of family life that can be unsettled by cheap religious and political talk. It marks the beginning of Stephen’s moving away from family and tradition. He comes to realize later on that his father is totally unconnected to modern life, and merely engages in nostalgia, drunkenness and superficiality. Stephen renouncing of his family is the first step towards the rejection of convention as a whole. As be becomes more alienated from his family he starts to visit prostitutes, and in general gives himself up to a life of secret sin, even though he is wracked by guilt inside. Another moment of epiphany takes place when he is overcome by a sermon delivered by the college rector. In the meantime he had become strangely drawn towards the Virgin Mary, and when the rector delivers fiery and graphic accounts of hellfire and damnation, Stephen is genuinely terrified from the depth of his soul. None of the other college students are effected at all, and here his outsider status impinges on him once more. The upshot is that he surrenders himself to the austere religious existence, so much so that when the time comes for him to leave college he is nominated for a scholarship for priesthood. By this time Stephen has come to realize that conventional religion does not answer his quest for inner harmony, and so he decides to turn down the offer, and to enter university instead. Shortly after he experiences another moment of epiphany on the beach, when he observes a young lady wading in the water, and he is overcome by a sense of natural beauty. He realized that his true quest is for aesthetic beauty, and that he must carry it on â€Å"among the snares of the world† (Joyce 175). He has not yet realized himself as an artist, and at university he is accosted by the secular ideologies that go up to make convention. In his discussion with his friends he tries to emphasize the importance of leaving all forms of convention behind, but they are far too immersed in the established mode to take his point. He is close to Cranly, to whose sympathetic ear he divulges his artistic longings. Cranly warns him that he is destined for loneliness, but this does not deter Stephen. In this phase he gradually becomes aware that his true identity is contained in his latter name ‘Dedalus’, and not his first ‘Stephen’ (linked to the first Christian martyr). Dedalus is the mythical ‘great artificer’ who uses his art to escape from confinement by King Minos. The myth says that he learnt to fly, and he allowed his son Icarus to fly first, who became too venturesome and flew close to the sun, which it melted his waxed wings and he fell to his death. Joyce is comparing the previous existence of Stephen to Icarus, and his tenure with religiosity is compared to Icarus’ foolhardy ascent. The person who has survived is now compared to Dedalus. He sees in the name a â€Å"symbol of the artist forging anew in his workshop out of the sluggish matter of the earth a new soaring impalpable imperishable being† (Joyce 163). There are two striking points that emerge from this novel. First there is the innovative use of language regarding the â€Å"stream of consciousness† technique. Writers who followed in the footsteps of Joyce enthused in this new technique, which reflected so well the fragmentary character of modern existence, and its emphasis on existence above outmoded forms. Virginia Woolf says, â€Å"Let us record the atoms as they fall upon the mind in the order in which they fall, let us trace the pattern, however disconnected and incoherent in appearance, which each sight or incident scores upon the consciousness† (qtd. in Zwerdling 14). Other critics stress the symbolism, which occurs at many levels and suffused throughout the novel. Apart from the Dedalus connection, Tindall discovers identification with Christ on the one hand, and with Lucifer on the other (Stephen is made to utter Lucifer’s words â€Å"I will not serve†) (10). But such analyses must not allow us to lose sight of the original theme, which is that of nonconformity to convention. In fact, Joyce message chimes with that of Ralph Waldo Emerson: â€Å"Whoso would be a man, must be a nonconformist† (21). Emerson was voicing the ethos of the modern age, whereas Joyce is presenting it as the sublimation of artistic endeavor. In conclusion, though difficult to read, Joyce’s Portrait is a novel worth making the effort for. Through his novel literary techniques he is trying to redefine literature so that it becomes relevant to the modern age characterized by fragmentation and alienation. Apart from the strained techniques, the novel is also worthy for its rich symbolism, which exists on many planes, and for the significant allusions to literature and culture. It is not only an autobiographical and ‘coming of age’ novel, but it also makes a noble attempt to diagnose and correct the fundamental malaise of the modern age.

Educational Issues on the Internet Essay

Fundamentally this term education is a Latin word which means â€Å"to bring up†. It is the most significant sense with respect to experiences as education is the finest way of effecting one’s mind, it can revolve the characteristics and can produce unique ability in individuals as well. In year 1966 United Nations recognized and formed right to get education which was for the entire world and highlighted the concept of education as well. In the same year different ways and techniques of education were also presented in which it was defined that this is basically a process in which students are involved in order to learn numerous things. Besides this the words instruction were also illustrated that it is the procedure of delivering and conveying information by an instructor. (R. A. Malatest & Associates Ltd. , 2002) In early days education was not very much common in all areas and with every class of people, as initially there was only elementary education which consists almost five to seven years. At that time the general approach was that education should be given at primary level and should be structured in a way that the phase of schooling should be started at the age of six. But this thinking was almost instantaneously changes when UNESCO had taken an initiative and launched an educational program and declared it as Education for All. (Blurton, 1999) After the formation of above mentioned program the concepts of education taken a next step towards success and the concept of primary and secondary education was presented. But in this era, numerous technologies were developed and designed which revolved around the approaches of teaching and education. Technology has a great influence on education as these days computer and cell phones are used to present innovative ideas of learning. This unique way of learning was declared as online education or virtual education system. By these approaches, the concept of distance learning was also presented in front of us. In year 1969 the first distance learning university was established which was named as The Open University of the United Kingdom. Similarly, after the success of this university numerous other universities were also established. (Roblyer, 2006) But with the emerging concepts, styles and innovative approaches of education on computer and internet, numerous sorts of issues were seen as well. The most important issue of education on the internet is that there are numerous sites available for different subjects having endless number of resources but all these sites did not cover every age group issues as their level of education is same for all the users that log in to that specific website that confuse the students as their mental level did not match. Other then this we often noticed that education on internet is again a big issue in such case where sites are designed in such an order that all the lesson plans are available, along with lessons references are also provided for the students but the issue arises at the point that such websites are not as much effective as no source of direct interaction with teachers and authors are available. (Roblyer, 2006) Internet sites are offering numerous tests based web sites and they are also providing sample test papers so that students can have complete and deep knowledge of subjects and the pattern of exam questions. (Leland, 2002) Besides the above mentioned issues, one more point that proves that education over the internet is a big hurdle is that the distance learning users and clients have to consider the point that their computers are upgrade according to the latest software, hardware requirement. Similarly connectivity over internet and telephone line, maintenance, support supplies are the things that should be upgraded and maintained in order to get uninterrupted education on internet as these days numerous websites and software are designed according to new technologies which required great and appropriate configuration and protections. Along with such issues plagiarism is another big hurdle in education as there are number of students who when have a desire to study some unique and fine material then for this they have to be aware of numerous sites as education on internet is not as much fair and fine in every manner. There are numerous sites that students should avoid like Genius papers, a web named as Lazy students, Research assistance and some other sites as well. Beside this there are other sorts of fraud also notified as students over internet are asked to access the different documents by paying some amount, this fees started from almost $10 per page. (Schevitz, 1999) In addition with the issue of plagiarism there other problem of education on internet is that there are numerous authors and writers who does not go through the upgrading theories and approaches and just presented their work on the basis of their previous researches. So in order to avoid such issues students should look careful their reference page so by this they can came t know that either the author has utilized new technique by following innovative approaches and methods or not. (Roblyer, 2006) Beside these issues one more thing that should be noticed is students cannot work as team over internet when team work when needed. Although internet users can collaborate on the internet using different tools, however the direct and face to face communication and effort on projects are missing over education on the internet. (Leland, 2002) According to a research it has been notified that education on the internet does not provide good reading skills to the students, this sort of problem got a solution by providing learner-controlled sort of things that contains picture menu as well, linear sequencer and some other solutions as well but the problem remains unsolved as the students are still fail in developing better reading skills. (Blurton, 1999) In a nut shell, we can conclude that the internet is providing a great number of sources and opportunities for the students. Among them social networking is the significant one which have been rapidly accepted by the students of every age group as all of them is extremely much fascinated by this sort of new opportunity which enhance their self presentation, self learning skills, managing numerous things and other facilities as well. The biggest advantage is that their networking will increase. Along with this numerous authors and writers are still of the idea that only innovative approaches over internet education and development of new technologies is not the only way to provide better learning system, managements of things have its significance as well. References Blurton, C. (1999). New Directions of ICT-Use in Education. Retrieved May 1, 2010, from UNESCO: http://www. unesco. org/education/educprog/lwf/dl/edict. pdf Leland, B. H. (2002, January 29). Plagiarism and the Web. Retrieved May 1, 2010, from Western Illionois University: http://www. wiu. edu/users/mfbhl/wiu/plagiarism. htm Potashnik, M. and Capper, J. (2007, February 6). Distance Education: Growth and Diversity. Retrieved May 1, 2010, from World Bank: http://www. worldbank. org/fandd/english/pdfs/0398/0110398. pdf R. A. Malatest & Associates Ltd. (2002, May). The Council of Ministers of Education. Retrieved May 1, 2010, from Best Practices in Increasing Aboriginal Postsecondary Enrolment Rates: http://www. cmec. ca/Publications/Lists/Publications/Attachments/49/malatest. en. pdf Roblyer. (2006). Integrating Educational Technology Into Teaching. New York: Pearson Education. Schevitz, T. (1999, November 5). Point, Click, Plagiarize / Web site nabs UC Berkeley students stealing from Net. Retrieved May 1, 2010, from SF Gate: http://articles. sfgate. com/1999-11-05/news/17705570_1_uc-berkeley-plagiarism-science-students

History of Photography †Humanities Essay

History of Photography – Humanities Essay Free Online Research Papers History of Photography Humanities Essay The Early Days Photography was first used by Sir John Herschel in 1839. This was also the year the photographic process was made public. Prior to 1839 about ten individuals had tried to make a photograph, however only four were successful. They were: Joseph Nicephore Niepce, Louis J.M. Daguerre, Hippolyte Bayard and William Henry Talbot from England. All of them used techniques which had been known for some time but hadn’t before been successful. The first technique was optical. Scientists had previously discovered that light passing through a small hole in a darkroom projects an inverted image on the opposite wall. The hole was replaced by something which makes the image sharper and brighter. This was called a lens. By the eighteenth century the dark room was replaced by a portable box. The next technique was chemical. During 1727, Johann Heinrich Schulze found out that the right chemicals turned dark when exposed to light. The first attempt to use these chemicals to make the image was unsuccessfully made by Thomas Wedgwood in the 1800s. The Daguerreotype which was bought by the French and made public on 19 August 1839, produced a picture on metal. In comparison the Calotype, which was invented by Talbot in 1840, produced a negative photo on paper. A positive of the picture was made on a sheet of chemically sensitized paper. This was an advantage because any number of positives could be made from the one negative. MASS PRODUCTION Frederick Scott Archer’s process substituted glass for Talbot’s method. The mass production of Albumen Prints of very fine detail was possible. Until 1880 this method was in popular demand for portraits and strange places. Most of the 19th century photographs were in this category. THE MODERN CAMERA The Kodak camera which was first introduced in 1888 caused huge changes to the world of photography. The camera was preloaded with film for up to 100 photos. When you finished the film, the whole camera was returned to the factory were the film was developed, printed and the camera was reloaded. The camera cost just $1.00, while each roll of film was only 10 cents. The first optical range finder came onto the market during 1916. The Super Kodak 620 was introduced in 1938. This was a very expensive snapshot camera because the exposure control method was fully automated. World War II however stopped production of these cameras. The process of automatic functions on most cameras was completed in the late 1970s. This was when the first generation of â€Å"point and shoot† cameras appeared to the general public. These cameras were so easy to use even a beginner photographer could take decent pictures. Imaging with photographs began with the invention of a large box where light could produce images. Photography itself began with photographers inserting silver coated glass plates into large boxes. They discovered that chemicals reacted with the silver plates that could create an opposite image when treated with other various chemicals. Using specialized paper with more chemicals could produce the positive photographs. Many of the pictures of Abraham Lincoln were produced through this time-consuming process. It became necessary for many photographers to find a simpler process. The next major step in photography was the invention of film. A lot of the early processes still used today employed the loading of large cameras with large amounts of film. During World War II cameras became more like they are today. The single lens reflex allowed photographers more opportunity to focus and choose images that were in the distance. The Polaroid camera was invented around the 1960s and this made it even easier for the hobbyist by having one sheet of paper, which could be pulled out and developed instantly after the photo was taken. Silicon chips were added to the cameras and this automatically controlled the shutter speed, focus and lighting. Around the 1980s nearly every home had at least one camera. Today, the choices of camera for both the amateur and professional are endless, from expensive for the professionals to the disposable camera. Digital cameras are also available. They produce images ready for web sites and are also instant so you can view the photo you just took on the LCD screen. Most photo developers offer a choice of either prints, slides or on a CD-Rom so you can edit your photos taken with a digital camera. Research Papers on History of Photography - Humanities EssayRiordan Manufacturing Production PlanWhere Wild and West MeetMind TravelBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductAnalysis Of A Cosmetics AdvertisementGenetic EngineeringIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into Asia

Comparison between the two movies of essays

Comparison between the two movies of essays Comparison between the two movies of The author of the written version of The most dangerous game was Richard Connell and that story is interested and very exacting. This story occur one of series of details which give a little of suspense but in fact that is not enough. During the story in every part present a little kind of suspense but the suspense is manipulated at the price of consistency. Actually exist many movies which are related with these story and maybe our life also will be outline as a very dangerous game. Both movies which I see, old version and other most recent movie, present some different between, but in both we can see the important action which I call, the real life-and-death struggle, thats the mean of the title, The most dangerous game. In the old version movie start when the yacht is destroy and the passenger treat to reach a desolate island but only one reach them. These man calls Rainsford see some light in looks like a castle. When he arrive to a castle the action start and also the different between both movies star here. In the castle had four addition people and one of them was dump and he was the first person which Rainsford see. The actions are increasing up to Rainsford, with the help of the women; see which he is in the wrong place. He and the women find the place which the General Zaroff commits the murder. The other movie which I see, the actions occur in the forest. In these part had more people than the other movie. During this movie Rainsford had to run to keep alive, that because General Zaroff and their group will be hunt with rifle, arc and arrow, and this group own four tracks, one of the disadvantages of Rainsford has in the second movies which not present in the first. The Rainsford run he decide to turn again to the house and break the padlock of one of the door and then he see human part in small bottle and ther ...

SAT Mathematics Level 2 Subject Test Information

SAT Mathematics Level 2 Subject Test Information The SAT Mathematics Level 2 Subject Test challenges you in the same areas as the Math Level 1 Subject Test with the addition of more difficult trigonometry and precalculus. If youre a rock star when it comes to all things math, then this is the test for you. Its designed to put you in your best light for those admissions counselors to see. The SAT Math Level 2 Test is one of many SAT Subject Tests offered by the College Board. These puppies are not the same thing as the good old   SAT. SAT Mathematics Level 2 Subject Test Basics After you register for this bad boy, youre going to need to know what youre up against. Here are the basics: 60 minutes50 multiple-choice questions200-800 points possibleYou may use a graphing or scientific calculator on the exam, and just like with the Mathematics Level 1 Subject test, youre not required to clear the memory before it begins in case you want to add formulas. Cell phone, tablet, or computer calculators are not allowed. SAT Mathematics Level 2 Subject Test Content Numbers and Operations Operations, ratio and proportion, complex numbers, counting, elementary number theory, matrices, sequences, series, vectors: Approximately 5-7 questions Algebra and Functions Expressions, equations, inequalities, representation and modeling, properties of functions (linear, polynomial, rational, exponential, logarithmic, trigonometric, inverse trigonometric, periodic, piecewise, recursive, parametric): Approximately 19 – 21 questions Geometry and Measurement Coordinate (lines, parabolas, circles, ellipses, hyperbolas, symmetry, transformations, polar coordinates): Approximately 5 – 7 questionsThree-dimensional (solids, surface area and volume of cylinders, cones, pyramids, spheres, and prisms along with coordinates in three dimensions): Approximately 2 – 3 questionsTrigonometry: (right triangles, identities, radian measure, the law of cosines, law of sines, equations, double angle formulas): Approximately 6 – 8 questions Data Analysis, Stats, and Probability Mean, median, mode, range, interquartile range, standard deviation, graphs and plots, least squares regression (linear, quadratic, exponential), probability: Approximately 4 – 6 questions Why Take the SAT Mathematics Level 2 Subject Test? Because you can. This test is for those of you shining stars out there who find math pretty easy. Its also for those of you headed into math-related fields like economics, finance, business, engineering, computer science, etc. and typically those two types of people are one and the same. If your future career relies on mathematics and numbers, then youre going to want to showcase your talents, especially if youre trying to get into a competitive school. In some cases, youll be required to take this test if youre headed into a mathematics field, so be prepared! How to Prepare for the SAT Mathematics Level 2 Subject Test The College Board recommends more than three years of college-preparatory mathematics, including two years of algebra, one year of geometry, and elementary functions (precalculus) or trigonometry or both. In other words, they recommend that you major in math in high school. The test is definitely difficult but is really the tip of the iceberg if youre headed into one of those fields. To get yourself prepared, make sure youve taken and scored at the top of your class in the courses above. Sample SAT Mathematics Level 2 Question Speaking of the College Board, this question, and others like it, are available for free. They also provide a detailed explanation of each answer. By the way, the questions are ranked in order of difficulty in their question pamphlet from 1 to 5, where 1 is the least difficult and 5 is the most. The question below is marked as a difficulty level of 4. For some real number t, the first three terms of an arithmetic sequence are 2t, 5t - 1, and 6t 2. What is the numerical value of the fourth term? (A) 4(B) 8(C) 10(D) 16(E) 19 Answer: Choice (E) is correct. To determine the numerical value of the fourth term, first determine the value of t and then apply the common difference. Since 2t, 5t − 1, and 6t 2 are the first three terms of an arithmetic sequence, it must be true that (6t 2) − (5t − 1) (5t − 1) − 2t, that is, t 3 3t − 1. Solving t 3 3t − 1 for t gives t 2. Substituting 2 for t in the expressions of the three first terms of the sequence, one sees that they are 4, 9 and 14, respectively. The common difference between consecutive terms for this arithmetic sequence is 5 14 − 9 9 − 4, and therefore, the fourth term is 14 5 19. Good luck!

Vies Assertion About Technology and Society Essay

Vies Assertion About Technology and Society - Essay Example When I get up in the morning, the first thing I do is check the skype messages on my mobile phone to see what my dudes had to say to me overnight. I don’t leave the bed until all messages have been attended to. In the school, I discuss latest Apple apps with my friends. My connection with friends remains open full time in the school because one of the sites that always remains browsed on my computer screen is facebook. When I get back home, I remain in contact with my friends and brothers upon massively multiplayer online games. They consume most of my time. An insight to my daily routine suggests that my social relations have been enhanced because of the 24/7 use of digital technology, though only to a certain group of people i.e. my friends. In my childhood, when I did not have a computer and there was no such thing as skype or facebook, I used to spend more time with mom, dad, grandpa and granny. I used to sit with them, have lunch, dinner, tea and coffee with them. My grandma narrated me stories and I went jogging with dad. I discussed with mom what happened in the school. But all these golden moments have been swiped away from my life by the technology. Digital technology has also changed the way I perceive myself. This is unfortunate but the change has occurred for the worse. Before, I used to feel that my blood relatives have more right upon me but with the passage of time, I have become more independent. I don’t want to think like this but I have become more of a public property than my family’s. Digital technology has increased my social networking with people of my age and distorted my social network with people elder or younger to me. Digital technology has particularly promoted my relations with people, who I am not related to by blood and weakened my tied with my blood relatives.

Congenital Hypothyroidism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Congenital Hypothyroidism - Essay Example Those causing the latter are the thyroid peroxidase and thyroglobulin genes. These genes were initially described, but, most recently PDS (Pendred syndrome), NIS (sodium iodide symporter), and THOX2 (thyroid oxidase 2) gene defects were also published. Figure2: Cartoon of the TSH receptor showing the positions of all the loss of function mutations reported to date. Missense mutations are shown in the circles, frameshift and deletion mutations are indicated by arrows, and splice site mutations aremarked. Chatterjee) Figure 3: A proposed algorithm for investigating the genetic basis of congenital hypothyroidism. AHO, Albright hereditary osteodystrophy; CH, congenital hypothyroidism; GNAS, stimulatory G protein a subunit gene; NIS, sodium-iodide symporter gene; PAX-8, human Pax-8 gene; PDS, Pendred syndrome gene; TFTs, thyroid function tests; TG, thyroglobulin gene; THOX2, thyroid oxidase 2; TIOD, total iodide organification defect; TITF-1, human TTF-1 gene; TITF-2, human TTF-2 gene; TPO, thyroid peroxidase gene; TSHR, TSH receptor gene; USS, ultrasound scan. (Chatterjee) Figure 4: The Hypothalamic -pituitary thyroid axis and known genetic defects associated with CHT. (Vono-Toniolo and Kopp) Figure5.Mitogenic pathways in the thyroid. Data from the thyroid cell systems are integrated into the present general scheme of cell proliferation cascades. (CONTROL OF GROWTH AND DIFFERENTIATION ) Figure 6: Overview of gene therapeutic approaches for thyroid cancer (Spitzweg and Morris) Table: 1 Phenotypes of TR knockout animals. (Brent) Bibliography Brent, Jung-Hsin Hsu and Gregory A. "Thyroid Hormone Receptor Gene Knockouts ." Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism (1998): 103-111. Chatterjee, Park SM and VKK. "Genetcis of Congenital hypothyroidism." J.. Med Genetics (2005): 379-389. "CONTROL OF GROWTH AND DIFFERENTIATION ." Thyroid Manager. 06 04 2008 . Spitzweg, Christine and John C. Morris. "Gene Therapy for Thyroid Cancer: Current Status and Future Prospects." Thyroid (204): 434-434. Vono-Toniolo, Jussara and Peter Kopp. "Thyroglobulin gene mutations and other genetic defects associated with congenital hypothyr

Macroeconomic Situation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Macroeconomic Situation - Essay Example As a result there are lesser incentives for the manufacturers to increase the production and so reduced industrial production is anticipated. The consumer spending, on the other hand, has increased rapidly (especially for food items), despite the fact that the household incomes had been reduced in the last quarter of 2009. Meanwhile, the inventories for the consumer goods and business supplies have reduced considerably in contrast to the inventories of different materials and equipment. Further, the inflation rate was anticipated to increase recently because of the increase in the oil prices. However, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) inflation has remained more or less the same as the previous year. (FRB, 2010) The overall GDP has risen 14204 billion dollars after an increase of 5.6% in the last quarter of 2009. At this rate of economic expansion the economy can easily recover within a few months. But that is not quite likely. Despite the fact that the economy has improved considerably since the last quarter of 2009, it is still important to consider the fact that the US economy has grown only 0.1% over the last one year. (Fedec, 2010) Since the percentage by which the output worsened in 2008 was 1.9%, a lot of economic growth is needed to cover up for the loss. Also it is pertinent that the government gives importance to the strong expansion of the economy. Out of the 5.6% of the increase in the GDP over the last few months, 3.9% has been due to the rebuilding of inventories. (Fedec, 2010) Once the inventories are created the production is likely to fall. As a result the overall output production may fall. Although the labor market has improved considerably, the unemployment rate still is the highest that has been recorded in the last 26 years. (Fedec, 2010) If nothing is done by the government in this regard the situation can worsen. The

English colonization on the indigenous peoples of the New World in the Research Paper

English colonization on the indigenous peoples of the New World in the 16th and 17th centuries - Research Paper Example In ancient times the concept of colony is found in Greek city states. According to Toynbee apart from Athens and Sparta, all the Greek city states established their colonies on different parts. Greek city states developed colonies in order to fulfill the needs of their growing population1. Modern era of colonialism is normally associated with the discovery of America in 1492 by Columbus. Spain established its colonies in the New World and shortly afterwards other European countries followed the suit. The fall of Spain gave place to England and France to fight for the new found world along with already known world of India and Africa. In this fight between the two European powers, England prevailed. English colonies were established worldwide and they boasted that sun never set on the British Empire. American history begins with the clash of Europeans and Native American people. The above statement is true for modern times, which ignores the past of New World. Archeology has revealed the old world of America but normally it is ignored and least discussed. For current purpose the focus will be on the 16th and 17th centuries. The Native Americans, who first came into contact with Europeans, had their culture and values. They used to speak some 300 to 350 distinct languages and different ways of living. The Aztecs and Incas were two great empires of this New World and their remains testify the greatness achieved by these empires. These native people first faced Spanish settlers. The sheer power and brute force humbled the indigenous population and this was the method, which was to be used by later colonial powers. English settlers tried their luck at the East and there the indigenous population despite its variation lived in similar ways. They depended on agriculture, which was done by female population. Indigenous population did not keep herds of domestic animals and Male population used to hunt and fish. They used to live in family groups but loyal to larger kin and clan. There used to be one chief, who ruled by consent. The first major impact of colonialism on indigenous population was epidemic diseases. The life style of local population was different as they never kept herds and never lived with animals. On the other hand Europeans and Asian used to live near their domestic animals. The diseases, which were spread in the local population, resulted in the death of countless people. Mann says that "what happened after Columbus was like a thousand kudzus everywhere." "Throughout the hemisphere," he wrote, "ecosystems cracked and heaved like winter ice."2 Estimates of the population of the Americas at the time Columbus arrived have varied enormously. Some have argued that existing estimates of a high pre-Columbian indigenous population are rooted in a bias against aspects of Western civilization and/or Christianity. The indigenous population in 1492 was not necessarily at a high point, and may have already been in decline. Indigenous populat ions in most areas of the Americas reached a low point by the early twentieth century, and in a number of cases started to climb again. Native Americans suffered profoundly because of their remoteness from the rest of the world. Europe, Africa, and Asia had been trading knowledge and technologies for centuries. Societies on all three continents had learned to use iron and kept herds of domestic

Gender Inequlaities Response Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gender Inequlaities Response Paper - Essay Example In early South Africa, for instance, services of male nurses were unimaginable as discussed by Burns2. Differential application of rules for men and women in historic societies promoted gender inequality. In history, women and men were subject to different sets of rules. Rules set by societies regarding marriage, for instance, were harsh on women compared to men. Reilly3 highlights the differences in rules concerning marriage fidelity in historical communities, based on gender. The Hammurabi’s code, for example, widened the gender gap between men and women. Lerner4 maintains that historical law codes, such as the Hammurabi code, promoted patriarchy in historical societies. Laws codes in historical societies were representative of social conditions. Some viewpoints dominant held during historical ages rendered women as misfortunes in the society. According to Aughterson5, historical viewpoints of women as imperfect creatures promoted gender inequalities. Religion also promoted gender inequalities in historical communities. Glickl Leib’s story6 of women empowerment reveals that Jewish women had freedom compared to their Christian counterparts. Jewish women had freedom to engage in business, for instance, compared to Christians. Colonialism promoted gender inequalities in historical societies. In England, for instance, emigration was a common practice to eliminate redundant women. In addition, women in colonial period had insignificant contribution and roles in governance. This promoted the viewpoint that women are incapable of holding leadership positions in the society7. They had no authority to question the racist nature of colonialism. Women did not question the patriarchal norms that were deterrent to their rights, as well. Different factors promoted gender relations in modern society and enhanced women empowerment. Offering women the opportunity to share their rights changed the perception about them as

Government Effects on Global Trade Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Government Effects on Global Trade - Essay Example Currently the two arrangements do not exist. The STA only lasted for a period of one year which was from October 1961 to September 1962 (Kar 2015). The LTA which substituted STA managed to last for five years from October 1962 under continuous re-establishments. Its prime role was to prevent rapid penetration of textile imports into markets that were already developed (Kar 2015).   That way any domestic producer would never be threatened. Despites all the efforts made by Kennedy’s government on the arrangements, the importation of textile into the US never stopped, in fact, it grew more serous (Rivoli 2015). This further led to other arrangements as the Multi-Fiber Arrangement (MFA). Since several bodies were established by different global leaders to control the global trade and yet no encouraging results were obtained, there are doubts in progress in resolving the issues. This can further be attributed to the fact that almost all of these leaders speak out different messag es to the public from the actions they take during private phone calls. This can be summarized by the free trade rhetoric expressed by Rivoli (2015). Censoring Rivoli (2015), the global leaders make promises about controlling the textile and apparel import issues then fail during their reign. Apparently this is a routine insinuating failure to handle the issue at hand. For better leadership to come from the leaders in this particular industry, the authorities must stop deceiving the public in front of cameras then acting contradictorily during their private phone calls.

Gender Inequlaities Response Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gender Inequlaities Response Paper - Essay Example In early South Africa, for instance, services of male nurses were unimaginable as discussed by Burns2. Differential application of rules for men and women in historic societies promoted gender inequality. In history, women and men were subject to different sets of rules. Rules set by societies regarding marriage, for instance, were harsh on women compared to men. Reilly3 highlights the differences in rules concerning marriage fidelity in historical communities, based on gender. The Hammurabi’s code, for example, widened the gender gap between men and women. Lerner4 maintains that historical law codes, such as the Hammurabi code, promoted patriarchy in historical societies. Laws codes in historical societies were representative of social conditions. Some viewpoints dominant held during historical ages rendered women as misfortunes in the society. According to Aughterson5, historical viewpoints of women as imperfect creatures promoted gender inequalities. Religion also promoted gender inequalities in historical communities. Glickl Leib’s story6 of women empowerment reveals that Jewish women had freedom compared to their Christian counterparts. Jewish women had freedom to engage in business, for instance, compared to Christians. Colonialism promoted gender inequalities in historical societies. In England, for instance, emigration was a common practice to eliminate redundant women. In addition, women in colonial period had insignificant contribution and roles in governance. This promoted the viewpoint that women are incapable of holding leadership positions in the society7. They had no authority to question the racist nature of colonialism. Women did not question the patriarchal norms that were deterrent to their rights, as well. Different factors promoted gender relations in modern society and enhanced women empowerment. Offering women the opportunity to share their rights changed the perception about them as

Audience Analysis Essay Example for Free

Audience Analysis Essay Many of us may know that Breast Cancer is a real prominent disease. With breast cancer being one of the top five killers of man-kind, I wanted to give information in regards to what the disease is. This disease is Cancer of the Breast; one of the most common malignancies in women in the US. This topic means a lot to me being that I’ve watched two grandmothers die from the disease and currently watching a auntie battle from it, not to mention my mom being a survivor, so in my opinion this topic felt extremely suitable for this informative speech. The purpose of my speech being on Breast Cancer, is simply to inform my audience about what Breast Cancer is, who/what it effects and its early detection. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), breast cancer is the most widespread cancer in U.S. women, it is very severe that women/men become aware of this disease. More than two million women are living with breast cancer, and more than 40,000 deaths are expected this year. The death rate has dropped steadily since 1990 (averaging a 2.3% decrease per year) due to improvements in early detection and treatment; the 5-year survival rate has risen to 88% (ACS, 2005). The type of organizational pattern I plan on using is being able to inform; I want to be able to educate my audience about my topic. I want to include some facts and statistics based on my research in regards. The information I plan to provide to my audience will be useful and interesting to help them develop their own questions and thoughts about breast cancer. References: American Cancer Society (ACS) . ( 2005 ). Breast cancer facts and figures, 2005–06 . Atlanta : Author .

Industry Interaction And Placement Committee Commerce Essay

Industry Interaction And Placement Committee Commerce Essay I got selected in LT power through campus placement after completing my Graduation from Nirma University, Ahmedabad. I worked in business development department of LT power for 4 years and 11 months. My global exposure involves the interaction with global vendors of energy sectors, corporate partners, consultants and government agencies, which mainly involved SIEMENS, ABB, MHI, SKODA, Schneider, Wartsila, GE, NTPC, MAHEGENCO, GSECL, TCE, Fichtner, EIL, GMR etc. I was interacting and negotiating with different companies simultaneously for the techno commercial offers of different equipment of the power plant including Gas turbine and steam turbine. My position provided me the opportunities to interact with sales manager to managing director of the different companies. This experience helps me to be a confident individual while dealing with the people who are having experience equal to my age. I managed to increase my vendor support portfolio for almost 5 times in business development department of LT Power by developing more vendors and keeping fruitful relationship with every vendor. I had represented my companies in international market and created business relationship with many international vendors. I am confident that my experience and working philosophy will help me to bring many companies for placement and industrial experience sharing purpose in our college. I maintained relationship with all the global vendors throughout the year during my professional period, which was more than just at professional level. This relationship helped me a lot to get the work done at critical point of time during submission. I am confident that I will create the fruitful interaction with all the companies while dealing with them for placement purpose. I was part of a team, who were dealing with more than Rs. 1000 Cr bidding gas based power plant projects. My exposure in this team helped me to understand the criticality of the confidential matters and deadlines of the submission. My experience will help me to work under tremendous amounts of pressure and help me to take decisions in order to ensure a smooth recruitment process at Great Lakes IEMR. I had organized various events for more than 500 people in my college period which helped me to be a good team member and event co-ordinator. I will use this rich experience to organized placement activities in our campus. I believe in small initiatives to achieve larger goal. Working beyond the call of duty, I actively participated in Employee engagement initiatives at LT power, an initiative to make LT power a better place to work by incorporating hobbies of people in professional ambience. With this positive attitude, I hope to add value to placement committee. 2.If you were selected, what would be your action plan for the committee? I will start with preparing placement brochure for the companies, whom we are approaching for the placements. This brochure involves the details of all students like academic background, experience, professional and personal achievements, faculty details, course provided, institute values, details of expert lectures etc. I prepare pre placement interaction meeting with the companies on one to one basis to highlight the values of our institute and our expertise in energy sector. I will arrange one workshop of CV building and GD/PI/Case, Personality development program for the students to sharpen their interview skills especially by professionals if possible. I will arrange mock interviews to build up the confidence of the student and work on the area of improvements of all the students. I will arrange alumni meet wherein our alumni not only shared their experiences vis -a-vis the realities of the corporate life but also help our juniors to make them understand the growing expectation of the corporate world so that students can mould themselves as per the recruiters expectations. I will be in touch with all the companies throughout the year by sending development news, monthly address of the senior people and festival greetings. I will try to help every student define his/her career interest through individual expert counselling. This will eventually help me to call companies from whom students get the maximum benefit. 3.Draft an official mail to a Senior HR Manager of one of our preferred  recruiters (say XYZ  corp) introducing Great Lakes IEMR (class of 2014, Institute, its  uniqueness etc) and thereby inviting the company for a student  Ã‚  interaction. Great Lakes IEMR, Gurgaon 815, Udyog Vihar, Phase V, Gurgaon, India 122016 Tel: +91-124-4934000, Fax: +91-124-4934001 www.greatlakes.edu.in/gurgaon Date: 27th July, 2012 SUBJECT: Invitation for the Student Interaction program at Great Lakes IEMR, Gurgaon   Dear Sir, I would like to take this opportunity to invite you for the Student Interaction program at Great Lakes Institute of Energy Management and Research (IEMR), Gurgaon. This is the time for us to expose the best talent in energy sector we have, to the industrial world that waits to apply and absorb the talent developed by each student. In spite of being the less experience of Great Lakes IEMR in educational sector, I am confident that your requirement will not just be met by Great Lakes IEMR students, but will be surpassed your requirement substantially. The students of 2014 mix in the batch have come under one roof from the most diverse milestone of industries. This diversity in students profile like business development, Consultancies, EPC, Project management, Software development etc. helped students to understand varied backgrounds of business and culture. The domain specific curriculum here has been specifically aligned to the needs and aspirations of the energy industry through an extensive case-study based pedagogy simulating real-life decision-making to ensure that students not just imbibe academic concepts but develop the analytical and decisionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœmaking skills to be the leaders in the everà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœchanging world of business. Their diversity and specialization will give you varied options as you look forward for bright young men and women to be a part of your industry. The master key amongst the best organizations of today is Knowledge and domain expertise. In line with this requirement,  we have guided Students to developed their expertise in functional areas like Finance, Marketing, Operations, Human Resources, Organizational Behaviour and given them a unique opportunity to choose an area of specialization from a set of fast growing industry domains both in India and globally like Power, Oil Gas, Renewable energy and Sustainability Environmental Management. Domain Expertise this word itself has a lot of meaning and purpose for all of us at Great Lakes IEMR. It is the premise on which the academic programs are developed. The distinguished faculty at Great Lakes IEMR and session of industry interface, which forms the most dynamic part in academic and consulting circles, have taken the pains to make sure that the student of today is constantly acclimatised to the dynamics of change and takes his rightful place amongst the future prime movers of the Energy industry. I welcome you to experience this domain specialization. Having stamped its class in academic and corporate circles, the alumni of Great Lakes IEMR today are doing the most challenging and demanding roles in power industry. This is testimony to the trust and belief that the power industry has bestowed in us for the initiative taken by Great Lakes IEMR to develop the best minds in Energy Sector with domain specialization. This journey from darkness to light for the students would not be possible but for the strong believe that Great Lakes IEMR shares with the energy sector. I feel privileged to invite you to be a part of student interaction process this year. I am confident that your organization and the industry will benefit immensely from your choice of domain specialized graduates at Great Lakes IEMR. With best regards and good wishes, Placement Co coordinator Great Lakes IEMR 4.Prepare a SWOT( Strengths , Weakness , Opportunity , Threats ) analysis for GLIEMR as an institution  wrt placements . STRENGTHS: Domain specialization (Flexibility to specialize and gain domain knowledge in key emerging sectors) Industrial exposure (Almost 26 Domain specific industrial lectures and site visits) Outstanding placement response by industry players in first year itself Prestigious brand of Great Lakes Institute of Management Location of the college (In Corporate hub) Unique and proprietary Conscientious Leadership Development Program Distinguished Faculty with PhDs or MBAs from top business schools Leadership initiatives taken by students to develop different committees Energy sector provides enough entrepreneur opportunities WEAKNESS: Lack of institute experience in educational sector, past record Lack of international footprints AICTE, government approval is not available for the course which is necessary for the government companies to take part in placement process Energy domain is highly policy driven market, Government policies may affect the market in negative way Concentration of the people on renewable energies may affect the future scope of OilGas sector and thermal power plants Past placement record is not strong enough Lack of alumni team Not well established network with energy sector companies No tie up with global educational energy centres, energy research institutes (ECN, Nanyang Technological University  Energy Research Institute, CERI) Our course structure is design for the Indian market, which doesnt provide international opportunities OPPURTUNITY: Lack of best education institute which provides PGPM domain specialization courses in India. This provide us the opportunity to develop ourselves and become number one in domain specific courses Demand growth is exponential in energy sector. Approx. 1,00,000 MW is planning to get added in 12th year plan, which provides tremendous growth opportunities for the energy sector Energy trading is gearing up in India, specialization in energy trading provides tremendous growth opportunities in India Our campus is located in Gurgaon, Corporate Hub of India. This provides us enough opportunities to bring maximum multi-national companies located in Gurgaon for the campus placement THREATS: Government interference in Energy Sector. Energy sector is highly policy driven market. Change in government policy may affect the sector badly Lack of fuel resources affect the market in negative manner because of force major activities Chinese equipment may affect the Indian power sector negatively, which will reduce the employment opportunities in energy sector of India

Noras Quest for Justice Essays -- essays research papers

Nora’s Quest for Justice In Henrik Ibsen’s, A Doll’s House, Nora struggles to achieve justice and her rightful place as a woman, mother, and wife, despite the hardships and mistreatment of her husband Torvald and her father. Throughout Nora’s life, she has faced hardships in order to survive as a normal person because of the mistreatment she received from the two men in life she ever loved; her father and her husband. The mistreatment of Nora’s father and husband has caused Nora to become and be an extremely weak individual. Nora is fearful to live the way she wants to because she no longer has an identity of her own. Despite the hardships and mistreatment Nora encounters, she still has extreme hubris. She wants everyone to recognize and believe that she is living a joyous and wealthy life. In search for Nora’s rightful place as a wife, mother, and woman, she must also search for her quest for justice. â€Å"[†¦ ] When her image of herself and her domestic life is sha ttered she does what she feels she must to become a true person.† (Clurman154) Nora encounters many struggles in achieving justice and finding her rightful place in society. Throughout Nora’s life, she has been mistreated and viewed as a doll not as a human. â€Å"Nora’s father, it transpires, an irresponsible spendthrift, brought her up with no sense of social obligations or serious thought for the morrow, while her husband, finding her a delightful companion like this, did nothing to repair the omission and treated her with a playfulness of a teen not a mother.† (Beerbohm147) As a result, Nora realizes that she has been mistreated and treated unfairly. â€Å"Nora, however, protests that she has been treated unfairly in being denied the opportunity to participate in her marriage and in society as an informed adult.† (Gosse219) Torvald and Nora’s father both viewed Nora as if she could not make decisions on her own. â€Å"The transformation from her carefree days as a girl to marriage meant no more to her than a change from a small doll’s house to a larger one.† (Salome226) In the play A Doll’s Hous e, Nora is not oblivious to her mistreatment; she soon becomes very much aware of it. Nora states, â€Å"I was simply your little songbird, your doll [†¦]† (Ibsen230) Nora has never been taken seriously; not by her father and now not by her husband. They do not take her thoughts or her comments in to any considerations what so... ...shielded from all responsibilities throughout her life. â€Å"[†¦] Poor Nora, who cannot understand why a daughter has no right to spare her dying father anxiety or why a wife has no right to save her husband’s life.† (Goldman2) Nora’s quest for justice and finding her rightful place in society ends in triumph when she comes to realize that the love she had for Torvald was never really love and that the life she thought was perfect was not in the least bit perfect. â€Å"She was never happy under his roof, â€Å"only merry.† And now when she looks back, it seems to her as if she had lived like a poor person† from hand to mouth.† She had been impoverished.† (Salome230) Nora’s find act in achieving true happiness, finding herself in society and completing quest for Justice ends with the â€Å"slam of a door† to a life of mistreatment and weakness and â€Å"opens a door† to a new life of independence and true i dentity. â€Å"The woman’s eyes are opened; and instantly her doll’s dress is thrown off and her husband left staring at her helpless, bound thenceforth either to do without her or else treat her as a human being like himself fully recognizing that he is not a creature of one superior species, man.†(Shaw143)

Antigone :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ee cummings once said, â€Å"to be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else—means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight.† That quotation is exemplified in many works of literature, but the opposite is too. No matter what people try to be or not to be, they don’t always succeed. For example, in the play, Antigone, by Sophocles, the character, Antigone displays the idea of being her own person, but Creon displays the opposite of that.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the prologue, Antigone tells Ismene that she will do whatever she wants pertaining to their brother, whether or not Ismene agrees and wants to do the same. Antigone tells Ismene, â€Å"If that is what you think, I should not want you, even if you asked to come. You have made your choice, you can be what you want to be.† Antigone displays ee cummings’ thought. The gods want her to think and act a certain way  their laws  but she has her own belief that her brother, Polyneices, should be buried and his spirit should have the proper life, instead of being punished. Even if he was brave, he should be punished. But Antigone doesn’t believe in that. No matter what the consequences, she fights it and does what she thinks is right.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Creon, the king of Thebes, exhibits cummings’ idea. Kings are always supposed to be these big, mighty, terrors that triumph over all and tell their kingdom what to do. Even if Creon did not want to commit someone to demise, he would, because that’s what he’s â€Å"supposed† to do. Creon may be trying to stray from being everyone else, and be his own person, but he’s not succeeding. He is what everyone else wants him to be: a controller over everyone. Creon believes that, â€Å"this is [his] command, and you can see the wisdom behind it. As long as [he is] King, no traitor is going to be honored with the loyal man. But whoever shows by word and deed that he is on the side of the State, --he shall his [Creon’s] respect while he is living, and [his] reverence when he is dead (Scene 1, line 38).† But he doesn’t follow through on that statement. If Creon were to commit someone to his death, he would not give him r espect when he’s dead.

Effects of Media on Society Essay

The Mass Media is a unique feature of modern society ;its development has accompanied an increase in the magnitude and complexity of societal actions and engagements, rapid social change, technological innovation, rising personal income and standard of life and the decline of some traditional forms of control and authority. There is an association between Media Influence CRITICALLY ASSESS THE WAYS IN WHICH THE MEDIA CAN BE SAID TO INFLUENCE OR HAVE EFFECTS ON SOCIETY. /> The Mass Media is a unique feature of modern society †¦ the development of mass media and social change, although the degree and direction of this association is still debated upon even after years of study into media influence. Many of the consequences, either detrimental or beneficial, which have been attributed to the mass media, are almost undoubtedly due to other tendencies within society. Few sociologists would refute the importance of the mass media, and mass communications as a whole, as being a major factor in the construction and circulation of Media Influence MEDIA INFLUENCE The media play an important role in our lives and influence us in our choices and things we value in life. We definitely live in an information †¦ social understanding and social imagery in modern societies. Therefore it is argued that the mass media is used as ?an instrument?, both more powerful and more flexible than anything in previous existence, for influencing people into certain modes of belief and understanding within society. Read more:  Effects of Mass Media on Society The question of medias influence on society and its cultural framework has often been debated upon from leading theorists to anyone with any form of media connections, but to The Influence Of Media On Basketball Influences of Mass Media in Sport When communication is spread not just between two individuals but rather between tens of millions of people it is known as mass media. †¦ contemplate that a character in Coronation Street or Eastenders can have an influence on an audience members attitude, beliefs or interpretations of society is a very simplistic and debatable version of the truth. The media does influence, but using more diverse and subtle roles of impact. Some theorists suggest that it is even a case of society influencing the media and not the more widespread and presumed version. History In the Media’s Influence On Teenagers Josh Goldstein 4/25/01 DOES MEDIA (TV, radio, magazines) INFLUENCE US TEENAGERS? â€Å"I wake up to the radio, eat breakfast to the TV, drive to school to the radio, use computers †¦ early 1930?s, the Payne Studies study took place into the effects and influences of the mass media on the society as a whole using, at times, theories or beliefs that dated back to the late nineteenth century. This is regarded as one of the first in the area of or notion that the mass media has an affect on the societal attitudes and beliefs of that time.

Education foundation Essay

Christian missionaries played a vital role in the introduction and development of Western education in Kenya. These missionaries began their activities here in the second half of the 19th Century. Although their main aim in coming to Africa was to Christianize a ‘dark and savage’ continent, the provision of rudimentary education was found inevitable. Missionaries had found out that, by having the ability to read the Bible and the hymn book, the early convert would be a valuable asset in getting more of one’s neighbours to Christianity. It would then appear, the role of Christian missionaries in providing western education to Africans was not by design but accidental. Should this assumption be correct, the entire phenomenon of western education as introduced and provided by Christian missionaries was flawed. In that case, they were to offer an improper education for as long as they were in control all by themselves. From 1895 Kenya became a colonial enclave of Britain up to 1920. Kenya was referred to as the East Africa Protectorate. The construction of a railway line from Mombasa in 1895 to Kisumu in 1901 was a boom for both missionary and colonial government activities. Missionaries were able to spread out faster by opening more centres in the interior. On the other hand, the colonial administration was able to pacify resistant African groups. Regrettably for indigenous people too, the railway line also saw the in-flaw of European settlers and Asian groups. These aliens were to change the development of events to the disadvantage of Kenyan locals. Missionary spread out Inspired by the desire to embrace as many adherents as they could, Protestant and Roman Catholic missionaries moved to almost all accessible and habitable regions in Kenya. The Church Missionary Society (CMS) led in this ambitious crusade. From 1844 John Ludwig Krapf of CMS began to explore the East African Coast and was joined in 1846 by Johan Rebman. They established their first mission station at RabaiMpya, among the Rabai people, near Mombasa. Later the CMS operated a station in Taita in 1895. Other CMS  centres were started in the following places: Kahuruko (1901); Weithaga (1903); Kahuhia (1906); Mahiga (1908); Embu (1910) etc. A branch of the CMS also entered Western Kenya from Uganda and in 1903 had set up a mission station at Maseno. Holy Ghost Fathers set in at Mombasa in 1890 and a year later was also stationed at Bura. They got themselves a station in Nairobi in 1899. Their counterparts, the Consolata Fathers opened stations at Kiambu (1902), Limuru (1903) and Mang’u (1906). Roman Catholics also entered Kenya from Uganda and soon established centres at Kisumu (1903) and later at Mumias and Kakamega. Other missionary groups that were pivotal in the spread to various parts of the country were: Evangelical Lutheran Mission of Leipzig (from Germany); African Inland Mission; church of Scotland; Friends African Mission (Quakers); Church of God Mission, the Nilotic Independent Mission, the Seventh Day Adventists and the Presbyterian Church of East Africa. Although with other unbecoming consequences for indigenous people the multiplicity of Christian church denominations stirred a rivalry that became a catalyst in the spread of churches and schools. Every other group scrambled for a sphere of influence. On the whole, by 1920 Christian missionary groups had ‘stuck out their necks’ as important players in the spread of western influences among indigenous people. By 1918, there were 16 missionary bodies active in the country. Roman Catholics and CMS had the largest proportion of schools for Africans. Between them, they controlled 46 station schools and 261 village schools. Mission Education Basically, the purpose behind the establishment of mission stations and schools was to spread Christianity. The provision of education for other ends was therefore secondary to missionaries. Education was only used as a facility for evangelisation. The curriculum of mission schools was largely religious. Out of this experience, these schools have been referred to as prayer houses. These institutions only taught Christianity. While strongly inclined to offering religious education, a number of factors forced mission schools to include other curricula. First, Africans strongly resented religious education. In a number of cases, students staged strikes and demonstrations to demand for a more secure curriculum. Boys in Mumias at the Mill Hill Fathers schools staged a strike in 1912. Second, the colonial government urged the missions to include industrial education in their curricula. Third, the circumstantial imperatives of the day necessitated the inclusion of other courses such as industrial education. Missionaries, as well as the colonial administration needed skilled labour to construct buildings, make furniture inter alia. Religious education alone could not produce such manpower. Out of this development therefore, although mission education was largely basic, it had to offer the 3Rs, religious education and industrial training. The method of instruction was by rote learning. Learners were supposed to memorize and recite whatever they were taught. Missionaries, above all, offered an education that was elementary and designed to keep Africans in their subordinate place i. e. being servants of Europeans. Their educational orientation, in general emphasized the spiritual value of hard work and the principles of evangelical Christianity with an aim of producing hard working Christians. There were two types of schools. There was the village/bush/out-schools. These were feeder schools to the second type – the central mission school. Village schools offered very rudimentary education. They were under the direction of African catechists. On the other hand, central schools were intended to offer additional curricula. In this case, vocational training in teaching and nursing etc abounded. Vocational training was largely a preserve of the bright students. All said of mission education, by 1920, though many learning institutions had been established; only a handful would pass the litmus test for quality. In the western part of Kenya, only three centres and developed substantial primary school programmes. These were mission schools at Kaimosi, Maseno and Yala. The same were true of central Kenya with centres at Kabete, Kahuhia, Kikuyu, Tumutumu, Kabaa and Nyeri as main contenders. At the coast full-fledged primary school courses which other elementary schools of the time were not offering. This education did not go beyond six years. The recipients of such a number of years were very few. Whatever missionary activity in education this time, it should be understood that a number of factors influence their orientation, working and results/outcomes. For instance, due to misconceptions by European anthropologists of the nature of Africans, missionaries were prejudiced in their interaction with Africans. Africans suffered in this interaction and so did their education. Africans were of three categories: stupid, average and intelligent. On the part of missionaries, a majority of them were not professional educators and therefore they tried out what they did not know. A look at the curricula during their training reveals no does of professional training in teaching whatsoever (Anderson, 1970: 25). Besides, in their bid to expand educational activities they were always curtailed by meagre financial resources. More-so, the colonial government’s policy dictated certain centres that they could hardly achieve and, in the course of ‘playing the tune of the caller’, stumbled. Regrettably for Africans, they were the ones who received all the results of these missionary education mishaps. The lessons learnt by Africans from this unfortunate state of their education were to be instrumental in advocating for schools of their own, if not government-managed, from the 1920s onwards. THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT IN THE ESTABLISHMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF WESTERN EDUCATION IN COLONIAL KENYA UPTO 1920 Between 1895 and 1911, the involvement of the colonial government in the establishment and development of educational opportunities for the indigenous Kenyans was minimal. At this time, the government was more concerned with the pacification of the ethnic groups and inculcating in them a proper respect for the European interpretation of law and order. However, when the colonial administration got involved in education, this sector was seen as a potential source of a better and more efficient labour force. In this official thinking, through education Kenya would move fast into becoming self-sufficient. The government also wanted indigenous people to be given an education that would help it put into operation its doctrine of indirect rule through chiefs and headmen. These needs of the colonial administration for African education did concur with those of the Europeans settler community. The settlers needed an enlightened labour force that was capable of taking instructions both as house servants and farm workers. But more significantly, settlers relied on both the missionaries and colonial government for African educational development to offer the ‘right’ kind of education, whereas the colonial government was to control its level. Educational progress during the early period of colonial rule was directed more by the force of circumstances rather than be deliberate and well developed policy. In many cases, the policy that was laid down failed to meet practical needs. More often, policy was frustrated by the conflicting interests of the administrators, the settlers, the missionaries and with time, African interests. One can then observe if the development of African education in colonial Kenya, it was an unending struggle between conflicting interest groups. The first worthy involvement by the colonial government in educational development was in 1911. A department of education was set up with a Director, James R. Orr, at its helm. The Director was charged with the responsibility of the formulation of educational policy, its implementation and administration in general. The creation of this department followed a report on education in the East African Protectorate produced in 1909 by Prof. Nelson Frazer, a seasoned Briton on educational matters in India. He had been appointed as Educational Advisor to the British colonial enclaves of East Africa by the colonial office in London. With such an official capacity, Frazer’s report was taken seriously and its proposals followed. One of the lasting legacies of the Frazer Report was the recommendation that education in Kenya be developed along racial lines. African education rested at the bottom of a hierarchy that saw Arab/Asian and European education take prominence in that ascending order. This bottom position  meant that little could be achieved for indigenous Kenyans in terms of educational development. Indeed, throughout the colonial period, African education was treated as an education for the third class citizens. Frazer’s report also encouraged the teaching of technical/industrial education in African school to the chagrin of Africans who saw this as a play to keep them out of mainstream social, economic and political development. But for Frazer, such as education would help the government get more Africans with appropriate technical skills and thereby replace the expensive Asian artisans. Above all, technical education for many Africans was hoped to foster economic development fir the colony. It would then become self-sufficient. The colonial governments thrust into educational development can also be seen in the system of grants to mission schools that offered industrial education. Through the Department of Education, the government gave out grants on the basis of results. In other words, the more the candidates and the better their results in industrial subjects, the more certain a school would be of a government grant. Although for some time this measure was resisted by the missionaries, claiming that the government was overstretching its jurisdiction and that this education was costly, by 1912 industrial training in basic skills in smithing, carpentry, agriculture and even typing had started in many schools. Although the third way in which the colonial government got involved in educational development failed disastrously in its experimental schools at Kitui in 1909 for sons of chiefs and headmen, in 1913 the first official government African school was set up in Machakos. This was a central technical/teacher training school around which a system of village schools developed. The latter served as feeder schools to the former. With the progress of time, into the last half of the 2nd decade of the 20th Century, the government found it imperative to constitute an educational commission. This commission was to collect and collate the various views of the stakeholders on African education. Under the chairmanship of J. W. Barth, the Education commission of East Africa Protectorate of 1918 was required to, among other terms, â€Å"inquire into and report o the extent to which education should immediately be introduced among the native population throughout the protectorate. The report of the 1919 on African education did not offer anything to be applauded by Africans. It was observed that African education continue to emphasize technical/industrial training. This education had also to be religious/Christian but significantly, missionaries were to continue as the main providers of African education. Settler opinion was strongly opposed to the use of English in African schools. On the whole, these recommendations by the Report having been accepted by the colonial government clearly demonstrated where its learning was on the direction that African educations to follow. In general, we can observe, by the close of 1920, the colonial government had become yet another match-maker in the game of African education. Through the Department of Education and subsequently the outcome of the Education commission of 1918, the administration had begun to lay down policy guidelines on which future developments were to be aligned. Note that, this commission was the very first official organ that sought comprehensive information from people on the development of western education in colonial Kenya since 1895. Together with the Frazer Report of 1909, they formed the basis of education until 1949 when the Beecher Report was issued. AFRICAN INITIATIVES IN EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN COLONIAL KENYA Indigenous Kenyans were actively involved in the development of their education during the colonial period. This participation was inevitable given the racial differentiation in educational development recommended by the Fraser Report of 1909. Although Africans began their own initiatives in the development of education as early as 1910, large scale developments were noticeable from the 1930s onwards. African initiatives in the development of their education can be distinguished in two separate approaches. There was the African independent schools movement and the Local Native Councils school movement. Though, by Kenya’s independence, the independent schools had been closed down for political reasons. As part of the African initiatives in the development of education, they had proved a notable success. In many ways, African initiatives in educational development had compelled the colonial administrative to give African education substantial attention. Independent School Movement The origins of the AIS movement began in 1910. This followed the breakaway by African Christians from missionary control. John Owalo, an adherent of various missionary groups in Nyanza and an experienced CMS school teacher, formed the LUO NOMIYA MISSION in 1910. Later on, this mission built churches and schools free from European missionary control. African independent schools movement was more pronounced in Central Kenya. This movement took root in the 1930s. An association KISA was formed in 1934 to run schools. A splinter group, KKEA, emerged soon thereafter and was more conservative and did not favour links with the colonial government. In essence, the AIS movement in this region spread fast resulting in the establishment of many schools. By 1939 these schools had a pupil population of 29, 964. In fact, by 1952 when the AIS were all closed down, their number was about 200 with a learner population of over 40,000. The epitome of the African independent school movement can be discerned in the establishment of Githunguri Teachers College in 1939. This shows that the movement had itself well entrenched that it was able to train its own teachers among other concerns. It is important to note that, the AIS movement was motivated largely by African aspirations on what type of education they thought appropriate. Africans also clamoured for freedom of choice and preservation of their cultural value. European missionary education was largely religious and vocational. Yet Africans wanted academic education. European missionaries wanted Africans to discard their traditions and this was unacceptable rightfully, to traditional African elders despite the fact that some had been converted to Christianity. Note also that, the African Independent Schools did not necessarily abandon the curriculum existing in the other schools. From 1936 these schools accepted to follow government curriculum. They only tried to fill in gaps. In fact the Government allowed AIS teachers to train at missions and government training institutions. Local Native Councils Schools African initiatives in educational development also received a boost with the establishment of the Local Native Councils in 1924. These councils were empowered among other activities to vote funds for educational purposes at elementary and primary school levels. A door had therefore been opened, so it seemed, for Africans to direct the course of their development in education. The colonial administration guided the LNCs in their endeavour to promote African educational opportunities. The LNCs were required to collect up-to 200,000/= to put up a school and have a further 26,000/= for the institution’s annual maintenance. The LNCs were also advised to refer to the intended institutions as Government African Schools (GAS). The 1930s saw many of the LNCs establish their schools. Kakamega GAS enrolled its first pupils in 1932. Kagumo GAS followed in 1933 and Kisii GAS in 1935. Note that these schools were intended to offer primary ‘C’ level of education i. e. standard IV to VI when they started. However, they had to lower their requirements due to unavailability of candidates. Although the Government desired that the curriculum for these schools emphasize industrial/vocational education, Africans generally supported literary and higher education for their children. Indeed, given the power of the African voice, the 1935 African Primary School syllabus de-emphasized technical/vocational education. African’s seriousness in the development of these schools is clearly seen in the fact that the three K schools were full primary institutions by 1938 i. e.offered PS Exam at end of standard VI. In 1946 they had grown into junior secondary schools. Before 1963, Kakamega and Kisii were preparing students for the Higher School Certificate Examination i. e. the basic university entry requirement at the time. The role of the LNCs in the advancement of African education during the colonial epoch was very prominent. Statistics show that these schools quickly outpaced the mission schools in examination results. For example, in the 1939 PS Examination, Kakamega alone had 8 passes compared to 4 from all mission primary schools in North Nyanza. Kagumo had 15 passes compared to 10 from all mission schools in the region. Many LNCs got encouraged and established their own schools. By 1945 LNC schools were 66. These schools had better terms of service for teachers than most mission schools. Conclusion From these two examples of African initiatives in the development of education in colonial Kenya, we can appropriately claim that Africans played an important role in promoting education. Africans, in the context of political, social and economic imperatives of that period, knew what type of education was necessary. Essentially it is their effort that compelled the colonial administration to institute appropriate regulations for the education sector. By the time of independence, indigenous Kenyans had vividly known the role of western education in their progress. They had also seen what results emerged from collective effort. Indeed through the AIS and LNC schools, the roots of the ‘Harambee movement’ in the development of the nation had found their depth. TECHNICAL/VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN COLONIAL KENYA Introduction Technical or vocational education can be defined in various ways. UNESCO (1984) defines this education as one that involves, â€Å"in addition to general education, the study of technologies and related sciences and the acquisition of practice, skills and the knowledge relating to occupations in various sectors of economic and social life†. Omulando and Shiundu (1992) define technical education as â€Å"instruction in any subject which leads to production in industry, agriculture, trade and commerce†. Whatever definition, any reference to this type of education essentially connotes instruction in subjects that are largely practice/manual, outdoor, equipment-intensive, etc. In Kenya’s main-stream, education today includes subjects such as – Art and Crafts, Home Science, Agriculture, Business Education and Industrial Education. In the classification of the present 8-4-4 education system for the secondary school cycle, these subjects are in groups IV and V. In group IV are Home Science, Art, Agriculture, Electricity, Woodwork, Metal work, Building and Construction, Power Mechanics and Drawing and Design. Group V subjects include: Music, French, German, Arabic, Accounting, Commerce, Typing and Economics. Origins From the onset of Western education in Kenya, technical education was conceived and designed as the most suitable education for the indigenous people. A manual-based education for Africans was deemed appropriate due to a number of reasons. Among these reasons were the following: 1. Africans were of a low human species with a level of learning remarkably different from and inferior to that of the average European. In this case, Africans were well suited to menial and tedious occupations such as farming and unskilled labour provided that they could be taught to overcome their natural laziness. 2. Technical education as seen by the European Settlers would go along way in getting a critical mass of indigenous people with appropriate artisan skills that would render the hiring of the expensive Asian artisans redundant. On the part of Christian Missionaries, such an education for the Africans would lead to their self-sufficiency at the mission centres. 3. Non-academic education for Africans was found most suitable for it would make them passive and thereby being non-rebellious. Literary education offered elsewhere in British colonies had resulted in ‘unfortunate’ experiences for the colonists and this did not need to be repeated. Development Concerted effort by the colonial government to entrench technical education in African schools was begun shortly after 1911. Experimental grants were offered to some mission schools for the teaching of technical/vocational subjects. These grants-in-aid were given on the basis of student results. Through this effort by 1912, industrial training in basic skills such as smithing, carpentry, agriculture and typing had begun to take shape. The colonial government in 1913 set up her first African school at Machakos to offer both industrial and teacher training. The emphasis on technical/industrial education for indigenous people in Kenya received a major boost from the Phelps-Stokes Commission of 1924. This was an education commission set forth by the Colonial Office in London. Although largely reiterating the recommendations of the 1919 Education Commission of the East African Protectorate, the Phelps-Stokes Commission urged that education be adapted to the needs of the individual and the community. It believed that industrial training must provide the basis of African education in Kenya. For a people who were primarily land cultivators and animal keepers, agricultural education was considered an integral component of industrial/ vocational/ technical education. The colonial government found it prudent to establish more schools for Africans with an industrial/technical/vocational bias in this period. Some of the schools established included the Native Industrial Depot – Kabete (1924), Jeanes School – Kabete (1925), Coast Technical School – Waa (1921), Government School – Kapsabet (1925) and Maasai School – Kajiado (1926). Apart from the Jeanes School and Native Industrial Depot both at Kabete, the rest of the schools offered industrial education suited to their location. For example, the Maasai school at Narok emphasized more of animal husbandry and animal skin curing. More-so, the Kabete educational institutions offered technical education to people/learners who already had had exposure to technical education elsewhere. These institutions offered training on a national level. The curriculum of technical education in colonial Kenya, for Africans, was very simplistic. This was largely for reasons alluded to earlier. At the Jeanes school for instance, male teachers were taught songs, Swahili, Physical training and games, Religious and moral education, simple hygiene and sanitation, first-aid on fractures, cuts, burns, dysentery, pneumonia, plague and malaria, simple agriculture including ploughing, curing of animal skins and hides, the silk industry, black-smithing and tin-smithing. In essence, these courses were deemed basic for Africans’ sustenance. No provision was made for thorough in-depth study of the subjects. Although steps were put in place to emphasize technical education in African schools, by 1940 no commendable large-scale progress was in sight. In the case of Agriculture education, for example, whereas a committee in 1928 is on record to have recommended that agriculture be made compulsory and examinable in all rural schools of all grades, nothing was put to practice in this regard by 1940. Instead of Agriculture, Nature study took over as a school subject. This take-over meant that agricultural skills were only to be demonstrated in the school garden. Agriculture thus became non-compulsory in African schools. The Beecher Report (1949), otherwise referred to as the African Education Commission, decried/lambasted the minimal developments realized in technical education. One of the weaknesses noted was teachers’ lack of conviction and knowledge or training to facilitate the inculcation of the right attitude in students towards technical education. Most significant about the Report was its recommendation that, at primary school level due to the tender ages of the learners, no formal agricultural education be taught. Instead, schools were to encourage in learners a correct attitude towards agricultural labour and an appreciation of the significance of land. In order for technical education to thrive, the Report recommended, inter alia, constant supervision of the teachers’ attitude and encouragement of resolute partnership between schools and the relevant administrative departments. Although graduates of this education made an impact in their communities, on the whole, African did not receive this type of education with open arms. Political, educational and socio-economic reasons contributed to this cold  reception. Africans felt that it was a European ploy to teach them practical subjects so that they could remain inferior and their subordinates. This education as seen as mediocre and it hampered African political advancement. It is important to note that, in Asian and European schools in the colony no kind of technical education offered in African schools was taught. This difference concretized the African suspicion of the type of education given to them. Educationally, technical education failed since the syllabus lacked flexibility. More often, the syllabi made little provision for regional variations and thereby some programmes virtually failed. The co-operation sought between departments of Agriculture, Veterinary and Education was inadequate and sometimes contradictory. For example, visits by Agricultural Officers to schools hardly materialized. School calendar was sometimes not in consonance with peak times of agricultural activity. Education officers on their part sometimes lacked the necessary knowledge and even for the specialists they had little or no interest. Teachers often used extra work on the farm or in the workshop as a form of punishment. Some subjects, particularly Agriculture and Carpentry were not examinable at primary school level. This did not motivate learners to show seriousness. Furthermore, in cases where technical subjects failed to feature at secondary school level, learners hardly wanted to study them at the lower level. Technical education also failed due to what African viewed as proper education. Basically, Africans only saw academic education as the epitome of their children going to school. This meant that, nobody was enthusiastic about the success of technical education. Schooling was only meaningful if learners gained literary academic education. Socio-economic problems also hampered the success of technical education. It was not easy to acquire funds for purchase of farm and workshop equipment, leave alone acquiring farming land for schools. Since many schools did not receive government grants, they had to rely on local communities for their day-to-day running. However, the envisaged assistance was hard to come by particularly when the projects were for technical education. Parents decried the inclusion of this education in the curriculum and therefore could hardly contribute money to schools for their development. The colonial government’s policy on the growing of cash crops also served as an impediment to the flourishing of vocational education. Africans were not allowed to grow cash crops. Being allowed to grow subsistence crops alone could not easily lead to the much-needed economic empowerment for Africans. In such a situation, Africans saw no need of giving agricultural educational any seriousness. The lack of demand for people with industrial education skills in the labour market also went along way in curtailing the success of technical education. At this moment, white-collar jobs were more appealing. To secure such opportunities one needed to have had academic education. This scenario quickly reflected itself in learners’ choices of schools subjects. Technical subjects were rarely their priority. From the foregoing, technical/vocational education had very minimal chances for success. As political independence drew nearer in the early 1960s, more emphasis in education shifted towards academic education. Technical and vocational education only got prominence sometime into the independence era. This was mainly after 1970. Post-primary and secondary school and technical institutions sprouted in various parts of the country. Among these institutions were Village Youth Polytechnics and Institutes of Science and Technology. Technical/vocational education today is offered in a myriad of institutions ranging from those in mainstream education system to those organized by government ministries, churches and other NGOs. Conclusion Technical/vocational/industrial education in Kenya was originally conceived as an education of the social inferiors. This conception for a long time guided the development of this education. Policy stipulations for this education were founded on misconceptions. Besides, there was an unrealistic design for this education’s development. Out of this disposition, learners as well as teachers hardly gave the subject serious attention. This scenario meant that even after fifty years or more in operation, little meaningful results had been realized by 1963. The climax of this failure neglect can be discerned in the fact that, technical education was almost entirely disregarded in the education system conceived of immediately after Kenya’s independence.