Friday, November 29, 2019

A Day In The Life Of An Ancient Athenian Essays - Women In Greece

A Day in The Life of an Ancient Athenian jenn neff A day in the life of an ancient Athenian Welcome to Athens, the marvel of Greece! The city which is the fountainhead of beauty, wisdom and knowledge. Even as your ship approaches the Athenian harbor Piraeus, you can see the marble monuments of the Acropolis and the shining golden edge of the spear, which belongs to the gigantic statue of the goddess Pallas Athene. This is one of the greatest works of the sculptor Phidias, and symbolizes both the power and justice of the "violet city" as it was called by his contemporaries. Athenian women had virtually no political rights of any kind and were controlled by men at nearly every stage of their lives. The most important duties for a city dwelling woman were to bear children preferably male and to run the household. Duties of a rural woman included some of the agricultural work: the harvesting of olives and fruit was their responsibility. Since men spent most of their time away from their houses, women dominated Athenian home life. The wife was in charge of raising the children, spinning, weaving and sewing the family's clothes. She supervised the daily running of the household. In a totally slave based economy, plentiful numbers of female slaves were available to cook, clean, and carry water from the fountain. Only in the poorest homes was the wife expected to carry out all these duties by herself. A male slave?s responsibilities were for the most part limited to being doorkeeper and tutor to the male children. Athenian women had very limited freedom outside the home. They could attend weddings, funerals, some religious festivals, and could visit female neighbors for brief periods of time. In their home, Athenian women were in charge! Their job was to run the house and to bear children. Most Athenian women did not do housework themselves. Most Athenian households had slaves. Female slaves cooked, cleaned, and worked in the fields. Male slaves watched the door, to make sure no one came in when the man of the house was away, except for female neighbors, and acted as tutors to the young male children. Wives and daughters were not allowed to watch the Olympic Games as the participants in the games did not wear clothes. Chariot racing was the only game women could win, and only then if they owned the horse. If that horse won, they received the prize. . Women spent much of their time in the courtyard of the house, the one place where they could regularly enjoy fresh air. Athenian cooking equipment was small and light and could easily be set up there. In sunny weather, women sat in the roofed over areas of the courtyard, for the ideal in female beauty was a pale complexion. Women?s clothes underwent relatively few changes in style. Greek clothing was very simple. Men and women wore linen in the summer and wool in the winter. The ancient Greeks could buy cloth and clothes in the agora, the marketplace, but that was expensive. Most families made their own clothes, which were simple tunics and warm cloaks, made of linen or wool, dyed a bright color, or bleached white. Clothes were made by the mother, her daughters, and female slaves. They were often decorated to represent the city-state in which they lived. The two most commonly worn garments were the chiton or tunic and the himation or cloak. The chiton came in two styles. Its earlier Doric version, preferred by Athenian women until the end of the 6th century BC, was called the peplos and was made of wool. Cut into a simple rectangle measuring half again the height of the person wearing it, it was folded over, wrapped around the body, and pinned at the shoulders and side. It was sleeveless, with large arm openings. Expensive versions were decorated with elaborate woven figures or designs. The Ionian chiton was made of linen that fell into more elaborate vertical folds than its heavier wool counterpart. The sides were sewn up to create a long cylinder, which was then caught, by a girdle or cord at the waist. Short sleeves were added to the sides. Athenian houses, in the 6th and

Monday, November 25, 2019

A Microcosm of the American Te essays

A Microcosm of the American Te essays An Analysis of Two Editorial Sections; The San Francisco Chronicle and the Daily Review While The San Francisco Chronicle focuses on national security issues, the Hayward paper, The Daily Review is looking around at the fall out of September 11th as well as at other national issues. B. The security issues as seen in the San Francisco paper C. The more general national issues as seen in the Hayward paper a. Between the two most of our national issues are covered, but there is a distinct difference in the tone of voice of each paper. While The San Francisco Chronicle focuses on national security issues, the Hayward paper, The Daily Review is looking around at the fall out of September 11th. The Chronicle has a tone that is altogether more serious than that of the Hayward paper; they both show the mark left on us all by the terrorist attacks. The San Francisco paper wants us to remain attentive to the worldwide implications and what we need to do in the coming days. The major focus of the Opinion pages of the Chronicle is terrorism and what we should now do to combat future attacks. This Weeks Issue is firearms in the cockpit. The paper printed four short responses, both agreeing and disagreeing with arming pilots. There is also a great debate surrounding Barbara Lee and her vote against giving Bush all out power. While most readers thought that she should be seen as a strong black woman and someone to be proud of, still there were others who thought she was an embarrassment. The opinion pages of the Chronicle differ from those of the Daily Review due to the focus. The larger paper, the Chronicle, focuses o ...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Servant leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Servant leadership - Essay Example He left the journal publishing business and eloped to New York and from this city he moved on to Philadelphia city where he arrived in October in the year 1723. He was able to secure a job as a printer the work that he did for a very short period of time before he was carried away by the promises of Governor Keith to go to London (Franklin, 2001). The promises of Governor Keith did not materialize and he had to work as a compositor in London city until he was rescued by Denman who was a merchant and he was able to come back to Philadelphia. Back in Philadelphia, Denman was able to secure for him a job in some of his businesses until his sudden demise upon which Benjamin had to make a come back to his earlier business of printing journals (Franklin, 2001). He was able to set up The Pennsylvania Gazette and through this journal he was able to write numerous essays which he later used for agitating reforms in the local politics, Benjamin died at the age of 84 in the year 1790. Accomplis hments Benjamin was able to successfully issue an article by the name â€Å"Poor Richard’s Almanac† through which he managed to utter pithy messages and wise sayings and from these utterances and sayings he built his reputation (Franklin, 1959). Some of the pithy utterances and wise sayings were borrowed while others were composed and this publication was established in the year 1732. In the year 1758, Benjamin was able to momentarily stop publications of the Almanac articles and instead he converted most of these publications into â€Å"Father Abraham’s Sermon† which later emerged as a famous literature during the era of the Colonial America (Franklin, 1959). Major successes Through his involvement with the public affairs, Benjamin was able to set up an Academy which was later repossessed and upgraded into Pennsylvania University. He was also able to establish American Philosophical Society and the purpose of establishment of this society was to enable m en who were considered as scientific to be able to share with one another their various discoveries (Franklin, 2001). He was active in politics and was able to secure a seat and later introduced postal system reforms in the home politics. Major failures Benjamin was stained with nepotism since he used his position in politics to advance most of his relatives. He was also able to lose his Assembly seat and in the year 1764 he was sent to England on a mission as the colony agent and during service as an agent he was able to oppose the establishment of the Stamp act, but he lost his petition on the basis of securing a favor for his friend in one of the stamp offices back in the USA as an agent. Leadership approach of Benjamin Franklin In his leadership approach Benjamin is considered as a social innovator and this is evident during the year 1727 and 1757 in which he was able to champion seven leading social innovations and these innovations later changed the nature of the two cities na mely Pennsylvania and Philadelphia (Mumford, 2002). Between the era of 1727 and 1757, Benjamin’s social innovations are most evident and some of the areas of innovations include development of the Pennsylvania Stove, gas lamps, and improvement of the various gutters in the streets and the general society welfare (Mumford, 2002). In the year 1727, Benjamin was able to establish Junto club and through this club he was able to pass his intellectual and monetary

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Reality TV Influence on the Audience Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Reality TV Influence on the Audience - Essay Example As the discussion stresses  during the initial years of the twenty first century, viewers watched reality TV to observe people’s lives, watch them argue, fight, eat bizarre things and reveal personal details of their lives. These reality shows were humored and harmless. But with time, the essence of reality TV has changed. People now participate in reality shows to contest against each other in order to win some prize or gain popularity. This reflects increased competitiveness and materialism prevailing in the society.  This research declares that  as television drama became more violent and sexually explicit, reality TV evolved as a more meaningful genre of TV shows that present viewers with more competitive and bitter versions closer to reality. Psychologists present interesting explanation as to why reality shows are very popular. One of the primary reasons is that viewers can identify themselves with the participants who are initially ordinary people and then become famous. Secondly, they enjoy the competitive nature of such shows since there are always winners and losers.  Reality TV is taking over regular TV and is polluting people’s mind. Violence, distorted pictures of reality, language and stunts are marking a lot of reality TV. These shows are very entertaining but many professionals are expressing concerns over the harmful implications. They point out that negative impacts of reality TV are higher for children and teenagers than adults.

Monday, November 18, 2019

Discuss the relationship between nationalist and anti-nationalist Essay

Discuss the relationship between nationalist and anti-nationalist memories - Essay Example of historians, journalists, and demagogues, NGOs’ ad statesmen in invoking the past in a selective or all inclusive manner is indeed crucial in shaping the public discourse over what the past means. Since the topic of the paper is about exploring the connections between nationalist and antinationalist memories, this introduction is to set the context for the paper by alluding to the myriad ways in which the past can both be a source of inspiration as well as a source of conflict. Hence, memories can be nationalistic for a sect or ethnic group and the same memories can be antinationalistic for another sect or ethnic group. It is only when the shared memories lend themselves to commonality and objective interpretation can there being true peace in the world (Wimmer, 28). The Balkans is often cited by researchers for the prevalence of memories that are nationalistic and antinationalistic. The reason for choosing the Balkans by these researchers can be fathomed from the fact that the Balkans was a place where there were instances of the collective memory of a shared experience giving way to fractious and fissiparous memories mainly due to the internecine civil strife that plagued the region in the 1990’s. The Balkans and the various ethnicities present there are representative of the way in which fragmented memories often take hold when a nation composed of different ethnicities and bound together by slender threads of commonalities give way to strife when the threads cannot hold any more. The way in which some citizens of the erstwhile Yugoslavia remember fondly the times under Tito and the others speak optimistically about the future are emblematic of the memory tricks that the mind can play on people who had a shared past but are now living in divided and fragmented ways (Todorova, 13). Similar is the case with the Partition of India following the exit of the British from Imperial India following World War Two. Once the British departed, there was an outbreak

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Consumer Behaviour In Hotel Industry Marketing Essay

Consumer Behaviour In Hotel Industry Marketing Essay Understanding of customers as well as customer behaviour is the key success factor in marketplace, either nationally or internationally. Consumer behaviour refers to the study of individuals, groups, or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, use, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society (Hawkins et al., 2010). Hawkins et al. (1992) defined it as a process of a study of economic, social psychology, sociology as well as cultural anthropology in order to endeavours to understand the customer purchasing and lifestyle. The basic requirement for operating a business is to build, retain and satisfying customers. Lack of understanding consumer behavior will lead to difficulty in retain and satisfying (Kim et al., 2001). For instances, a new chain hotelier need to has the capability in understanding the current as well as future behaviour of consumers. It is essential for a new chain hotelier to expect the prospective increase in customers demanding for future, food and beverage services in certain area and the number of rooms. 2.8 Consumer Behaviour in Hotel Industry Hospitality is a unique industry provides a range of substantial products as well as insubstantial services, for example accommodation, atmosphere, food and drink and spa service. Thus, consumer behaviour is predominantly complicated and significant towards hotel industry. Prominently, hotel industry is highlighted on customer experience and customer experience in great extent straight influence customers feelings, attitudes, and buying intentions. Consequently, lead to a subsequent behaviour (Whitford, 1998). Hospitality experience is particularly broad and diverse. It will be different from customer to customer for instance leisure guests behaviour is different from business. Hotel tends to develop and monitor visitor understanding to make positive relative relationship with consumers as potential guests spill major consideration on satisfaction and experience when decide on a hotel. According to Zeithamal et al (2003), customer satisfaction could give rise to guest loyalty. However, Kotler et al., (2003), Reid Bojanic (2009) argue that customer not necessarily will revisit again due to the variable of customers expectations even though when a customer is satisfied with high hotel experience quality delivered. For example, a customer is prefers to look for something new and fresh as he or she is bored of the hotel he or she used to stay. Besides, customers expectation most likely influence by pre- purchased form of hotel industry in some extent. Hence, hotel customers have valid reasons and right to select the hotel rather than the hotels competitors and revisit over and over again only if the hotelier understanding customers behaviour and providing constant satisfaction (Keller, 1993). Customer is a key player for an organization. Every successful business is customer driven. Therefore, marketing is the method to build long term relationship with customers. This is the key intention of the organization towards the customer (Kotler, 1983). In other words, profit maximisation is the fundamental objective to run a business, whilst customer is the key source of profit, thus with the purpose of achieve competitive advantage in market place, the organisation should position customer in priority place, which to great extent based on understanding customers and their behaviour. An organisation will find hard to sustain if they ignore the important of understand customer behaviour (Kim et al., 2001). Hawkings et al., (2010) defined customer behaviour as the study of organisations, individuals, or groups also the procedure they employ to dispose, secure, use and select of services, experiences, products, or ideas to satisfy requirements as well as the consequences on the cus tomer and society that result from these processes. As stated previously, customer behaviour is particularly complicate in hotel industry because of some natures of hospitality. Vitally, customers understanding are given by both intangible services and tangible products. The example of intangible services such as spa treatment or atmosphere while tangible products such as food and beverage or accommodation. The feelings, emotion and purchase intention of customers could affect the quality of consumers experience whereby can be variable also different from one to another. As a result it increase difficulties of monitoring and control (Whitford, 1998). Meanwhile, customers satisfaction may shattered by the advance payment approach of hospitality industry due to the expectation gap in their psychological value. On the whole, customer loyalty could be vitally affected by consumer satisfaction but this interrelation is not typified in hospitality industry (Zeithamal et al., 2003).That is a chance that customers may decide not to revisit al though the hotel meet their requirement and achieve satisfaction. This is due to the same products or services provide. For the reason, customers are desire for new environment and they might tire with the hotel they often stayed with (Kotler et al., 2003, Reid Bojanic, 2009). As a result, Keller (1993) claimed that customers are motivated with valid reason to faithful to some hotel, which possibly will enhance profitability for the hotel company provided that they presenting constant satisfaction by clearly understanding consumersbehaviour (Bowen Shoemaker, 1998). Profitability would accelerate approximately 100% if that is given rise of five percent consumer retention. Furthermore, the cost of obtaining new consumer is much more expensive (Reicheld and Sasser, 1990). Primary data Primary data is the first- hand experience collected from the research. Primary data has the greatest originality characteristic where hardly to be modified by human beings and has not been published yet which is including observations, interview and questionnaire (Sekaran and Bougie, 2010). Besides, primary data has it owns greater validity in which it is generally right when the secondary is unavailable or insufficient to respond the research question (Ghauri, 2005). However, it is time consuming and costly to collect primary data due to the limitation of sources for primary data. Secondary data Secondary data is the second-hand data which is collected by someone else others for some other purposes instead of the researcher including both raw data (such as, organisationsdatabases, payroll details) and published summaries (such as, journals, periodicals) (Saunders et al, 2003). The advantages of secondary data are the variety of sources and it is easy to access. The reliability and validity of secondary data are lower than primary data due to it can be easily obtained and manipulated by human beings. Having judged advantages and disadvantages of the two types of data, and according to the purpose of the study, primary data will be collected through a questionnaire to investigate customers opinion about their which can attract them come back to the hotel. In spite of many difficulties may faced when collecting primary data, it is still perceived as the most reliable and authentic source of data (Ghauri, 2005). The questionnaire is deemed most frequently used strategy in busine ss and management research as it enables the researcher to economically collect a large amount of data from a sizeable population as well as easily explain and compare. As for the question design, according to Saunders (2003), close question is usually quicker and easier to answer, as minimal writing required; hence all questions in this survey are close-ended designed. Two types of closed question are employed the questionnaire: category and rating questions. For one thing, category questions are used for the first part of the questionnaire to ask personal information including gender, age, occupation, nationality, as well as income. In the mean time, having considered the age and income relate to individual privacy, the question is only asking the age group and income range instead of specific figures. Individual information is necessary simply because these attributes will significantly affect their hotel choice and preference. Also, category questions still applied to the second part which about respondents behavior towards hotel choice and reasons, since category question are suitable for behaviour or attributes (Saunders et al., 2003). The thi rd portion is in regard to respondents opinion and suggestion towards the special reason or some advice for the Jingdu Hotel. Therefore, the Likert-style rating scale with five point are appropriate for third section, as what Saunders (2003) suggested, opinion data is most frequently collected by rating questions, especially Likert- style rating scale, in which the respondent is asked their agreement level. A ranking question will not be taken into account, as it usually takes relatively longer time to finish by asking the respondent to place thing in rank order. Additionally, a covering letter will be accompanied to explain the solo academic purpose of the survey and express gratitude for their kind corporation. Dillman (2000) suggests the covering letter could to some extent improve the respondent rate. According to Sekaran and Bougie (2010), sampling is the process of selecting a sufficient number of the right elements from the population. It is to great extent influence the effectiveness of the research. This research is concerned with the customer loyalty strategies in Jingdu Hotel, and the questionnaire aims to investigate customers preference towards the Jingdu hotel. Hence, the population would be all customers who have experienced or attempt to have an experience in this hotel. According to Saunders (2003), non- probability sampling is most practical for exploratory research when the sample size is ambiguous and unsuitable for probability sampling. In this study, in order to improve the effectiveness of the survey result, the sample size has been limited to customers who have stayed with international hotel chains, since those customers may better understand the international hotel companies than those people have no international hotel experience. At the same time, the conve nience sampling will be employed to conduct the survey, as it can quickly and easily obtain the sample (Saunders, 2003). Specifically, questionnaire will be sent to these customers who are already joining this hotel when they are checking-in or checking out to ensure the validity and reliability of the answers. 3.5 Reliability and Validity It is critical to evaluate the reliability and the validity to minimise the error when carrying out the research (Saunders et al., 2003). Since this research will collect primary date through questionnaire, factors may affect reliability and validity will be the questionnaire design, structure of the questionnaire, sampling, and the respondents. 3.5.1 Reliability According to Joppe (2000), reliability often refers to the extent of the results are stable over time, whether the procedures of collecting data, as well as the findings are consistent. Kirk and Miler (1986) identify three factors of the reliability in quantitative research, which related to: repeatability, stability, and similarity within a given period of time. Moreover, there are four threats towards reliability mentioned by Robson (2002) that: subject or participant error, subject or participant bias, observer error, as well as observer bias. 3.5.2 Validity According to Saunders et al., (2009), validity is concerned with whether the quality of the research measurement and the research results are trustworthy and scientific. Three types of validity have been defined: construct validity, content validity and criterion-related validity. Wainer and Braun(1988) assert the main validity in quantitative research is construct validity, which refers to the initial concept, notion, question or hypothesis that determines which data is to be gathered and how it is to be gathered. In this research, in order to enhance the validity, the questionnaire was tested carefully to avoid errors owing to ambiguity or misunderstanding. The researcher uses clear instructions and simple wording to ensure that the responses will be valid. At the same time, all questions are close- end type to ease respondents in order to maintain the objectiveness and validity, as according the suggestion from Foddy (1994), closed questions can be relatively easy and efficient to answer from respondents. Additionally, the length of the questionnaire has been controlled to 15 questions to ensure participants who can complete within 5 minutes and hence to avoid the low respondent rate. The covering letter accompanied with the questionnaire to explain the only academic purpose of the investigation and guarantee the confidentiality at the same time. The questionnaire has been improved by a pilot test to ensure the feasibility and avoid ambiguity.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

La Traviata :: essays research papers

La Traviata A Commentary The film â€Å"La Triviata† displayed a fundamental romantic attack on conventional bourgeois morals, arguing that a good heart is more important than social acceptance, that the distinctions which split the beau monde (socially elite) from the demimonde (courtesans) are harsh and hypocritical, and that true love must triumph over all. Alfredo’s father destroyed this relationship when he pays visit to Violetta and request she break off the relationship with his son. Alfredo’s sister is engaged to be married, but if word of his affair with Violetta were to get out, the engagement would be terminated. During this time even the most respectful families would not even want to associate with another family in which one of the members was entangled with such a sinful person. This demonstrates that marriage is viewed as a business arrangement put together by families, rather than by the love between two people. Like the characters in the film, women in the 19th century didn’t have many choices in life. They were expected to get married and be supported by a husband. For those few who didn’t sometimes became prostitutes or if they were lucky, courtesans. Any woman who slept with a man before marriage was thought to be â€Å"ruined† (unfit to wed), and should be shunned as a social outcast. For many such women prostitution was a means of survival. Violetta represents the extent of female independence in the 19th century. She uses men to ‘survive’ by accepting gifts and money, but she is not trapped in the legal repression of marriage. Violetta’s life is filled with parties and wealthy male companions provide her with far more excitement in life than would the traditional role of marriage. However, Violetta’s choice is misleading, for she knows that a woman in this time can’t go against tradition without facing severe repercussions. Contradictions and hypocrisy was prevalent between the lives and values of the bourgeois gentlemen. Prostitution and gambling were extremely popular and widespread, at the same time they were being publically condemned. Men were expected to have mistresses whom they supported financially; but they were expected to conceal that fact, and they were expected not to fall in love with them.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Marketing Mix Cafe Coffee Day Essay

The leading coffee chain across the world, Cafe coffee day has several products which appeal to the Indian audience and it has a price which is very much affordable for the upper middle class of India. The promotions are amazing and it has numerous retail outlets which are growing in number across India. This article discusses the marketing mix of Cafe coffee day. Product: Cafà © Coffee Day product mix constitutes a wide range of products that appeal primarily to Indian coffee and snack lovers. Products have a decided Indian taste to it – be it food or coffee. Most of the eatables have been adopted to meet the Indian taste buds like samosa, biryani, masala sandwich, tikka sandwich etc. Thus they have been trying to capture the Indian taste along with classic coffee.The best selling item in summer is frappe, which is coffee and ice cream blended together. The young people favor it. In winter it is cappuccino. Their merchandising includes funky stuff like t-shirts, caps etc. Price: Considering that Cafà © Coffee Day knows its major customer lies in the bracket of 15- 29,it has tried to derive a policy whereby it can satisfy all its customers. The price for a cup of coffee ranges from Rs.45 to Rs 80. From the time it first started its operations, therehas been only minor changes in the pricing policy of Cafà © Coffee Day. The changes havebeen mo re due to the government taxes than any thing else Place: The strategy CCD has adapted is to place a cafe in every possible location where some business can be generated.This is a prime factor in determining the success of a retail chain. Cafà © Coffee Day looks to cater to their target market with strategically located outlets. Their outlets are generally located in High Street/ Family Entertainment Centers, gas stations, near Collegesetc . Promotion: CCD is involved in all the areas of serious consumer passion like: Television:Cafà © Coffee Day held a contest around a very popular programme on Zee English calledFriends. All the six lead characters are shown often visiting a coffee shop.They have tied up with Channel [V]’s Get Gorgeouscontest. Tie-ups:Besides that Cafà © Coffee Day also tie up lot of the youth brands. So they have a contest going on with Levis,another one with Scooty, Liril, latest one with AirtelFriends. Association with movies:CCD can be seen in movies like Khakhee and Mai Hoon Na Sales Promotion:Cafà © Coffee Day uses special ‘Cafà © Citizen Card’ for rewarding Cafà © Coffee Day’s customers. It is a loyalty program to gain new customers and retain the existing ones. Process: The ordering and delivery process in CCD was earlier based on self- service. But now in most its coffee shops the waiter comes and takes away the order and delivers the order on table. Physical evidence: a)Logo , image, brand: Cafà © Coffee Day has used bright red and green colors in its logo. RED stands forleadership , vitality,passion for coffee. The GREEN stroke harks back the coffee plantations that they own.Cafà © is noticeably larger in the logo to denote that Cafà © Coffee Day pioneered thecafà © concept in India way back in 1996.The font looks as though the letters have congealed out of a liquid. b) Architecture and Decor:Largely wood and granite based interior with young colours of today,like limegreen, yellow, orange, and purple predominate. c) Literature:The literature provided by Cafà © Coffee Day is indicative of its youthful image. Themenus, posters, pamphlets are all designed to attract young and young at heart People: People at Cafà © Coffee Day believe that â€Å"People are hired for what they know but fired for how they behave†. Motivation and personal skill are laid emphasize upon. Their employees are like friend to the customer but at the same time th ey know about the international standards of hygiene and cleanliness and personal grooming.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

What Is the Common Core A Straightforward Guide

What Is the Common Core A Straightforward Guide SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Have you heard about the Common Core? Are you asking, "what is the Common Core, exactly?" Don't worry. This post will explain what the Common Core is, why it was adopted, and how it could affect you as a student. Why should you care? The Common Core has driven some pretty major changes to big-name standardized tests like the SAT and ACT, as well as curriculum changes within schools. So read on to discover what you’re being tested on and why! Common Core 101 In this section, I'll explain what the Common Core is, why it was implemented, and what some common opinions about it are. Later, I'll discuss how the Common Core could affect your high school classes and standardized testing. Why Does Common Core Exist? Who Uses It? The Common Core is a set of educational standards for American schools, from kindergarten through 12th grade. It was designed so that education is consistent between each state and district. The first official adoptions of the Common Core were back in 2010, which means it has only been implemented during the 2013-14 school year and beyond. Since it has only been used the past two years, it’s hard to say how effective it’s been so far. It will take a few more years of Common Core before we have a decent sense of how useful it's been. It’s currently been adopted or partially adopted by 40 states. Four states never adopted the standards, and six initially adopted them but later repealed the standards. Or to put it another way, every state except Alaska, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia has adopted the standards. (Minnesota has adopted the English standards but not the Math ones). In the 44 states that have adopted the standards, school districts still design their own curriculums, and teachers create their own methods for instruction. In other words, the Common Core is not a day-by-day curriculum teachers have to follow – instead, it’s easiest to think of it as a series of basic benchmarks for each grade. So what exactly are these benchmarks? What do the Common Core Standards Do, Exactly? The Common Core sets specific learning goals for students in each grade from Kindergarten through 12th grade in two subjects: Math and English. Broadly speaking, the standards emphasize critical thinking and real-world problem-solving skills as opposed to rote memorization, reading obscure texts, and packing in tons of math concepts each year. The English standards rely on a mix of literary, historical, and informational texts – everything from Huck Finn to the Declaration of Independence to scientific articles. The Math standards focus on problem-solving and modeling as opposed to just moving through dozens of math concepts. You can expect to see more complex problems, including story problems, in math classes that are following the Common Core. We'll dig into the high school Common Core standards in depth later in this post. The Pros and Cons of Common Core There has been a lot of debate over the Common Core since it was first adopted by many states in 2010. We’ll leave it up to you to decide if the Common Core is a good thing or not, but these are the basic arguments for and against the standards. Supporters of the Common Core say the standards will better prepare students for college and their careers. By focusing on having students explain their thinking and come up with new ways to solve problems, they hope to help students be better college students and moreeffective workers. One high-profile supporter is current US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who said Common Core may be "the single greatest thing to happen to public education in America since Brown versus Board of Education." Current US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is a big fan of the Common Core. Critics say the standards are vague and might not be easy for many schools to adopt. Some believethey won’t lead to a marked improvement in school performance, especially since they come with harder state testing. Others are worried that the standards weren’t tested before they were adopted, so there is no way to know how’ll useful they’ll be. If you want to read more, one of the most thorough arguments against Common Core comes from Diane Ravitch, an education historian and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education. How Common Core Could Affect Your High School Classes Common Core was designed specifically for Math and English, so those are the classes where you can expect to see the biggest changes as a high school student. While your social studies, history, and science classes may incorporate some Common Core-like elements (more open-ended questions, problem solving, and real-world applications), it’s likely that your Math and English teachers will be responsible for the biggest curriculum changes. This article focuses on the high school Common Core standards, so if you want to see a guide to the Common Core at all grade levels, K-8, check out this guide put out by the national PTA. Common Core Math Experts have mostly agreed that in the past, American math classes have tried to cover too much ground each year. This means students know a little bit about many topics,but don’t have a solid understanding of the main ideas that would help them in more advanced math classes. In response to this issue, the Common Core math standards tackle fewer topics in more depth. The goal is for students' math fluency (their ability to perform basic math functions and work through problems) to be strengthened. You'll still spend time memorizing and practicing formulas and working through math problems, like you're probably used to doing in math class. But you’ll also do a lot of modeling to understand concepts you're learning about. For example, instead of just learning that y = mx + b is a linear equation and drawing it on a graph, you might model a linear equation with a real world situation, like in this example problem from Khan Academy: The problem still requires students to know the basic y = mx + b formula and what it means. But it goes a step further by requiring students to apply that formula to a real-world situation. You can see another example of how Common Core standards aim to promote more critical thinking below, courtesy of Foundation for Excellence in Education: For the problem on the left, you could just tackle it by manipulating the equation until y is alone. As the analysis notes, if you can follow a series of mechanical steps, you can get the right answer. For the problem on the right, not only do you need to find out what y is, but you also need to make your own equations, which requires you to have a stronger conceptual understanding of what equations are and how to write them. Basically, Common Core is trying to create a balance between math fluency (working through problems, memorizing formulas) and the ability to solve tougher problems using critical thinking skills. The Common Core High School Math Standards This is a basic summary of what the Common Core math standards will look in high school. Notice that these aren’t incredibly detailed, and focus on developing key skills in each area. They're less focused on moving through the traditional math sequence and getting through a bunch of concepts (Beginning Algebra, Geometry, Intermediate Algebra, Trigonometry, etc). Also notice these standards only go up through Statistics, so if you’re an advanced student aiming for calculus, these standards might not apply to you in your upper-level courses. Concept Description Example Number and Quantity Work with rational and irrational numbers, including exponents, solve problems with a wide range of units and solve problems by thinking about units. The Trans Alaska Pipeline System is 800 miles long and cost $8 billion to build. Divide one of these numbers by the other. What is the meaning of the answer? Algebra Solve real-world and mathematical problems by writing and solving nonlinear equations, such as quadratic equations, interpret and manipulate algebraic expressions to solve problems. Solve a problem about a loan with interest rate r and principal P by seeing the expression P(1+r)n as a product of P with a factor not depending on P. Functions Analyze functions algebraically and graphically, and work with functions presented in different forms. Given a graph of one quadratic function and an algebraic expression for another, say which has the larger maximum, working with function families and understanding their behavior (such as linear, quadratic, and exponential functions). Modeling Analyze real-world situations using mathematics to understand the situation better and optimize, troubleshoot, or make an informed decision about a problem or issue. Use volume formulas and graphs to find an optimal size for an industrial package. Geometry Prove theorems about triangles and other figures; use coordinates and equations to describe geometric properties algebraically. Prove that the angles in a triangle add to 180 degrees; write the equation for a circle in the coordinate plane with a specified center and radius. Statistics and Probability Make inferences and justify conclusions from sample surveys, experiments, and observational studies. Work with probability and use ideas from probability in everyday situations. Compare the chance that a person who smokes will develop lung cancer as compared to the chance that a person who develops lung cancer smokes. Via Parents' Guide to Student Success, from the National PTA. Common Core English (Language Arts) The old English (or Language Arts) standards, especially at the high school level, tended to focus mostly on reading and analyzing literature. The new Common Core English standards include a shift to more nonfiction and informational texts, as well as a push for more class discussions and writing that are focused on evidence from the readings (as opposed to the prior experiences or ideas of the students or teacher). Specifically, in elementary school, according to the Common Core, students should be reading a mix of 50 percent literature and 50 percent informational texts. By high school, students’ reading will shift to be 30 percent literary and 70 percent informational. The Common Core also pushes for students to study important foundational documents of the United States, including the Declaration of Independence. The new standards also push students to read harder texts that are matched to their grade level, even if their reading ability is below grade level. In the past, teachers were encouraged to match readings to the students’ current level of skill. To help them keep up, teachers should use techniques like close reading, and not be afraid to spend more than one class period on just one text. Also, instead of asking more general questions about a text, the Common Core encourages teachers to ask more specific questions about details in the text and what you can infer from them. All of this is to help students read and understand complex texts from a variety of subjects, and to prepare them to write strong essays, reports, and presentations. This table has a basic summary of the Common Core English standards for high school students. Just like the math standards, they're mostly skills-based (e.g., be able to "evaluate arguments and specific claims") as opposed to content-based (e.g., "read Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet"). Concept Goal Reading Understand more from and make fuller use of written materials, use a wider range of evidence to support an analysis, make more connections about how complex ideas interact and develop within a book, essay, or article. Reading Evaluate arguments and specific claims, assess whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is sufficient, and as appropriate, detect inconsistencies and ambiguities. Reading Analyze the meaning of foundational U.S. documents (like the Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution). Writing Make an argument that is logical, well-reasoned, and supported by evidence. Writing Write a literary analysis, report, or summary that develops a central idea and a coherent focus and is well supported with relevant examples, facts, and details. Writing Conduct several research projects that address different aspects of the same topic, using more complex books, articles, and other sources. Speaking and Listening Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives; synthesize comments, claims, and evidence made on all sides of an issue; and resolve contradictions when possible. Speaking and Listening Share research, findings, and evidence clearly and concisely. Speaking and Listening Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., animations, video, websites, podcasts) to enhance understanding of findings and to add interest. Language Determine or clarify the meaning of words and phrases, choose flexibly from multiple strategies, such as using context, Greek and Latin roots, patterns of words (conceive, conception, conceivable), and consult specialized reference materials. Language Analyze figures of speech (e.g., hyperbole, paradox) in context and analyze their role in the written materials. Via Parents' Guide to Student Success, from the National PTA. How Common Core Affects Standardized Testing The Common Core will have a pretty sizeable effect on standardized testing – from college admissions tests to in-school exams – in the next few years. This may be the area you see the most noticeable changes in your high school experience, so read closely! First off, it’s important to know that the SAT and ACT were both involved with the creation of the Common Core standards. And in fact, the current head of College Board (the company that makes the SAT) helped write the Common Core. He was on the Language Arts committee. As Diane Ravitch notes in the Washington Post, â€Å"With David Coleman in charge of the College Board, the SAT will be aligned with the Common Core; so will the ACT. Both testing organizations were well represented in the writing of the standards; representatives of these two organizations comprised 12 of the 27 members of the original writing committee.† So it’s not a surprise that the SAT’s 2016 redesign is in large part to fit in with the Common Core Standards. To take just one example, let’s look at how the SAT essay is changing. This is an example of an old SAT essay topic: And hereis an example of a new one: (The prompt also includes an essay, which we won't make you read!) Via Test Specifications for the New SAT, pages 131-3. Notice the old essay question allowed students to draw from personal experience and examples. The new essay is all about working with evidence to make an argument – just like the English standards specify above. (We'll be outlining even more changes in an upcoming post just about SAT and the Common Core.) The ACT’s new features, like the new essay and more complex science questions, also speak to the Common Core standards, even though the ACT changes are less dramatic. In addition, ACT Inc.’s new Aspire testing aligns to Common Core goals. But the changes don’t stop with the SAT and ACT. Recent AP redesigns of Physics and US History have the goal of making the classes more skills-based and involving more critical thinking. Plus, Smarter Balanced, PARCC, and other new state-wide tests have been created to assess students with the new standards in mind. "To get at what's really fundamental in the Common Core, the higher-order thinking skills, we need performance-based tasks," said Derek Briggs, who advised both Smarter Balanced and PARCC (as quoted in US News). Thus,new tests had to be designed. These new tests could make standardized testing take even longer since the performance-based tasks take up much more time than your typical scantron-and-pencil multiple choice test. What Should You Do if Your State is Using Common Core? Even though the Common Core changes might seem intense, the good news is that, as a student, there isn't a lot you have to do to prepare for the new curriculum. Read on for advice on handling Common Core both in the classroom and on college admissions tests. Common Core in School If you’re a student, you don’t need to stress about the changes at the classroom level – your teachers will be the ones integrating the Common Core into their curriculums based on how your school district is adopting the standards. It would be worth talking to your teachers about how Common Core has affected their curriculums, if at all. Math and English teachers are likely to see the biggest changes. If your school is using Common Core, you can keep the standards in mind and work to use more evidence in English class and use real-world examples in math. But again, your teachers are responsible for implementing the changes to their curriculums and you should follow their lead. There is one important point to check up on: check in with your guidance counselor to make sure the sequence of math classes at your high school isn’t changing. If you want to take Calculus by the end of high school, you should aim to have completed Algebra before freshman year. Since the Common Core standards don’t explicitly list Algebra until ninth grade (even though Algebra concepts are included in the middle school standards), some worry that Algebra classes will be bumped to ninth grade, putting students behind. Common Core on Standardized Tests We will have more detailed posts coming up on Common Core specifically on the SAT and ACT. But if you're worried about how the Common Core will change the ACT and SAT and affect how you study for either test, keep the following advice in mind. For the SAT, instead of worrying about how Common Core is changing the test, learn as much as you can about the new SAT and also check out our complete guide to studying for it. On the ACT, the changes are subtler, so you’ll mainly have to worry about being ready for the new essay, as well as theharder reading and science questions. As always, we recommend taking plenty of full-length practice tests to prepare for the test. If your school is implementing Smarter Balanced, PARCC, or ACT Aspire, don’t stress over them, since your performance on those tests doesn’t affect your grades or college prospects. It will be your teacher’s job to prepare you for in-school assessments. What’s Next? If you’re part of the graduating class of 2017, you could take either the â€Å"old† or â€Å"new† SAT. Learn how to decide between the old and new SAT – and whether you should consider just taking the ACT instead! Have you already decided to take the ACT? Learn if the ACT is getting harder, and get a complete guide to ACT Science. Chosen the SAT instead? Get a complete guide to SAT Reading if you're taking the "old" SAT, orread more in-depth about the new SAT if you'll be taking it. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

geronimo pratt essays

geronimo pratt essays geronimo ji Jaga (preferred capitalization), also known as Geronimo Pratt, a former Black Panther leader, was wrongfully convicted 24 years ago for the murder of a woman in Santa Monica, California. geronimo has always maintained that he was 400 miles away in Oakland, California, at the time of the killing at a Black Panther meeting, and that he was a victim of the FBI's Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO). Represented by Stuart Hanlon, Johnnie Cochran, Robert Garcia, Julie Drous, Valerie West, David Bernstein and other members of his defense team, geronimo had his conviction and life sentence vacated on May 29, 1997. He was released from prison on June 10, 1997. Judge Everett W. Dickey, Superior Court Judge, held that the prosecution denied Mr. Pratt a fair trial in violation of his constitutional rights. The prosecution suppressed material evidence relating to the question of guilt and to the credibility of a material witness, in violation of the 1966 United States Supreme Court ruling in Brady v. Maryland. The evidence that the prosecution withheld about prosecution witness Julius Butler could have put the whole case in a different light and the failure to disclose it undermines confidence in the jury verdict, according to Judge Dickey. Butler engaged in informing activities on behalf of the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, the Los Angeles Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution was required to provide this information to the defense in order to allow the jury to assess his motives and credibility as a witness. The information would have permitted potentially devastating cross-examination or other impeachment of Butler. Throughout the first eight months of 1970, Geronimo Pratt spent much of his time in court, defending himself against the charges arising from his Panther activities. On August 17 he was ordered by Huey Newton to "go underground" to build a "revolutio ...

Monday, November 4, 2019

Answer following questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Answer following questions - Assignment Example Those who showed no slight interest in the human rights that it as largely purported that they were abusing. However, they carried themselves out with great discretion and prided itself in privacy (Barnett 143). In time the group soon became a dreaded entity that was only whispered about with nobody admitting full responsibility for the spread of the terror that the people felt. But within time given the effectiveness of the operations, the amount of illicit guns held by the civilians reduced immensely thereby reducing the levels of crimes in the country. A young man was later arrested and charged in court with the murdered of the president John F. Kennedy which were steps made in the right direction towards an effective justice system thanks to the act. Routine activity theory and differential association theory are all theory that try to explain why people behave in particular ways thereby committing crime. While differential association theory believes that criminal behavior is learnt, routine activity theory asserts that criminals have a tendency of committing crimes again well out of routine. Differential association theory states that criminal behavior is learned. As one stays with others that are of ill behavior, he gets acclimated to the weird lifestyle and what is wrong begins to seem right. He espouses to the principles of the new group and is willing to die protecting them. The first crime is normally as a test of the understanding of the lessons taught and its success determine what more is taught. On the contrary, the routine activity theory claims that the first crime normally hap[pens as an accidents and is normally unplanned. However, its success or failure will most definitely determine the future of the criminal. A successful first time crime results in the engagement of a series of a lot others while the failure may lead to an arrest which may also serve to change perception and the criminal may

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Strategic Planning (Southwest Airlines) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Strategic Planning (Southwest Airlines) - Essay Example Strategic management has been defined by Meyer as â€Å"the process by which managers understand organisational goals; examining the future threats to, and opportunities for, an organisation; identifying strategies for dealing with these threats and opportunities; ensure organisational capability to implement these strategies; and continually monitoring the entire process to provide direction and support for accomplishing the strategic management objectives† (Tyndall, et al., 1990, p.9). The strategic management practices of Southwest airline have been discussed in the later part of this project. Strategic planning Southwest Airline has its unique business model that has been planned after considering the corporate strategy and business environment. The company has a strategic planning committee whose members possess an in-depth understanding of different functional activities. These members are responsible for analysing the business environment in the local market. They also use different business reports to analyse the core competency of the business. On basis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, this committee formulates the business strategy for Southwest Airline. The activity system formulated by the strategic planning committee is as follows: Figure 1: Southwest Airlines’ Activity system (Source: Hitt, Ireland & Hoskisson, 2009, p.104) The above given plan resents the factors like low profit margin, attraction and retention of local passengers, point to point routes and limits customer services. These are some of the core strategies on which whole of the Southwest Airline’s business model is based. Strategic implementation The responsibility of the strategic planning committee does not end only by formulating the strategies; it is also responsible for implementing these strategies. As for example, to achieve the strategy of limited passenger services, the management under guidance of the planning committee has list ed out the process to active this goal. The company decided not to offer free meals, no baggage transfer facility, just 15 minutes for gate turnaround and limited use to travel agents. All these actions assist the company to achieve the objective of low customer service. The company’s vision statement reflects that Southwest Airline is highly focused on its employee base. The strategic planning committee has planned to enhance productivity of the employees. For this the company is implemented higher play structure for the work force. Flexible union contracts have been developed to meet specific requirement of the employees. The company also offers high level of employee stock ownership. All this is done to motivate the employees as this will not just enhance their performance but will also reduce the employee turnover rate. Again, the company has identified business travellers as the target customer group because this group travels t a higher rate and prefer to go by low cot airline. With time the size of their customer group will increase and it will assist the airline to expand its market share. Strategic control The process of strategic management often fails in spite of a well developed strategic plan and a successful implementation process. This is because often the company fails to control the change introduced in the business process for long run. As a result, whole of the capital and the managerial time