How Mass Media Affects Youth Culture

â€Å"Educators are challenged more seriously than ever before to teach young people to evaluate media more critically and to grow in taste and discrimination as they use media in school and at home. † What is it like to grow up in today's world? How are children and young adults affected by the movies and television programs they see, the radio programs and recordings they hear, the newspapers, magazines, and books they read? Modern technology has made possible a wealth of shared experience undreamed of even 50 years ago. This environment reflects fully, though sometimes in a warped fashion, life itself  including good and evil, beauty and ugliness, charity and violence. It is difficult or impossible to shield young people from experiences reflect ing the adult world when communications sys tems infiltrate our homes and become so much a part of everyday living. The concerns of thoughtful adults as to the possible effects of media on young and old citi zens range from the mo re obvious ones to those more subtle. There are fears as to the content of media: violence, lawlessness, breakdown in moral values, and tawdry and explicit sex, for example. There are other fears as to the general effect of a  television-dominated society in which viewers tend to be passive and nonassertive, young people have little time for other experiences, and parents use television as a â€Å"safe† baby-sitter.A proper assessment of the influence of mass media on young people continues to be one of the significant challenges to educators and parents today. Research in this area invariably reveals the difficulties in arriving at sound conclusions due to the complexity of causal relationships. One critic has questioned the findings of all experi mental research in this area because of the impossibility of ever having a defensible control group. The influence of mass media on adults is closely related to their influence on young peo ple, and just as difficult to study. Th e positive values in today's mass media are also significant.Young people today, without leaving home, can hear the world's best music and witness superb musical performances, see outstanding drama and dance programs, hear EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP political and governmental leaders of the nation and the world analyze major issues of the day, and learn of scientific advances and problems. Mass media bring information, inspiration, and  enrichment that potentially improve the quality of our living. Nicolas Johnson, formerly of the Federal Communications Commission, has studied the media environment for many years.In 1971, he concluded that television is â€Å"the single most powerful intellectual, social, cultural, and political force in history. † He also found that most Amer ican families use television as â€Å"the major source of knowledge and values. † Dorothy Broderick, a library educator, has written that media do much more than provide information. She says, â₠¬Å". . . they do have an im pact and influence upon behavior and attitude  formation, even though it is still impossible to isolate in research the precise nature of such influence. â€Å"Access to Television Has Increased While all forms of communication affect learning and living, the influence of television seems most challenging. Television most nearly represents real experience and is clearly a part of the environment of most young people in the United States. Access to television has increased remark ably. Breslin and Marino reported that while less than one percent of all American families owned television sets in 1948, by 1976, 98 percent of  American homes had at least one television set, and 25 percent had two or more.The facts about usage of these sets encourage serious consideration of television's influence. The average child in this country will have used 22,000 hours in viewing television by the time he or she enters high school. Gerbner and Gross re ported that nearly half of the 12-year-olds stud ied averaged six or more hours a day viewing television.Summarizing research on the impact of television, George Comstock wrote in 1975 that children typically view television for several years before entering first grade, that the time spent  with television increases during elementary school years, and that young black people, those from lower socioeconomic levels, and those lower in â€Å"While all forms of communication affect learning and living, the influence of television seems most challenging. † Photo: Michael D. Sullivan academic achievement and I. Q. spend more time viewing television than do other young people. In 1971, it was reported in B roadcasting Yearbook that the average TV set was on six hours a day in the United States. The number of viewers using each set during these hours was not determined.Wilbur Schramm reported in 1965 that by the sixth grade children spend 79 percent of their viewing time watching adult progra ms. Many adults are known to spend time viewing cartoons and adventure programs intended for children. To determine the experience that children or young adults have through television, one must con sider the whole range of television programs, in cluding those intended chiefly for adults: news shows, comedies, variety shows, cartoons, motion pictures, documentaries, serious drama, sports events, music, advertisements, and other types shown on commercial, public, and political pro  grams.The current concern about effects of violence and crime as depicted on television was highAPRIL 1978 527 reality and fantasy, use of violence to sell prod ucts, and censorship. † Dr. Richard E. Palmer, a president of the American Medical Association, has said that tele vision violence is â€Å"a mental health problem and an environmental issue. † He feels that large ex posure to violent content may distort a child's perceptions of the real world and adversely affect his psychological development. Action for Children's Television (ACT) is a national citizens' organization to upgrade the  quality of children's T. V.In 1976, among their â€Å"Bent Antennae Awards† were the â€Å"Getting Away with Murder Award† to broadcasters who use violence to attract child viewers and the â€Å"Nero Fiddles While Rome Burns Award† to broadcasters who talk about the need to reduce TV violence while continuing to air brutal and sadistic programs. While there is serious concern about the in fluence of television on young people, there is much controversy over what to do about it. One person with a plan for action is Richard E. Wiley, who, as Chairman of the Federal Communica tions Commission (FCC), spoke to the National  Association of Secondary School Principals in 1976.Wiley rejected the idea that a high level of TV violence can be justified because it presents a realistic view of the world. He said, â€Å"Few, if any, of our citizens in the real world w ill be ex posed to the levels of violence comparable to those which appear on television almost every week. † Wiley feels that specific governmental regu lations in this â€Å"highly sensitive First Amendment Citizens Demonstrate Concern Area† would not be desirable. Instead, he sug that the FCC â€Å". . . can play a constructive While research goes on, many citizens have gests  and more appropriate role at this point by focus recently demonstrated their concerns.The Na ing increased industry attention on the issue and tional P. T. A. ‘s Television Commission has held a by encouraging the consideration of self-regula series of eight regional â€Å"hearings† on â€Å"Television tory reforms. † and Violence† that encouraged parents and teach as well as ers to consider seriously the content usage of television. Based on these hearings, in Family Viewing Plan which 505 persons testified, the Commission has The â€Å"Family Viewing Plan† is an example of warned that concerned citizens may propose eco  nomic boycott of TV products advertised on the type of self-regulation suggested.The three shows that feature violence. Other concerns were major networks and The Television Code Board â€Å"stereotyping both by race and sex, inferior role of The National Association of Broadcasters models for youth, reduced discrimination between adopted the plan to set aside the first three hours lighted recently in the trial in Miami, Florida, of 15-year-old Ronney Zamora, accused of robbing and killing his 82-year-old neighbor. The defense attorney presented the unusual defense that the  boy is innocent because his addiction to television violence has caused insanity.How may violence on television affect young people? What should be done about it in a coun try that believes in freedom of communication and the rights of its citizens to the free flow of information and ideas? Based on years of research, Albert Bandura has conclu ded that â€Å"children can and do acquire new response patterns through observation and imitation, without the need for external reinforce ment or even rehearsal or practice. † The SurgeonGeneral's Advisory Committee on Television and Social Behavior supported the view that â€Å"†¦Ã‚  a steady stream of brutality on television can have a powerful adverse effect on our society and particularly on children.†This report represents a significant effort to discover the effect television has on children today. Thoughtful researchers have raised such questions as these: Are young people who are unusually attracted by the violence and aggres sion on television generally abnormally aggressive personalities themselves? Is it only those young people who are disordered themselves who tend to imitate or â€Å"act out† the violent acts depicted on television?Does the content of television ser  iously affect young people s perceptions of the world they live in, its ch allenges, satisfactions, problems, and values? 528 EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP (6 to 9 p. m. ) of evening prime time' for material suitable for the entire family to view together. Wiley feels that his recommendation of such a plan, as Chairman of FCC, does not constitute governmental censorship, since he was only rec ommending voluntary action and making sugges tions for program improvement.He feels the new policy encourages those involved in the industry to develop exciting and worthwhile programs  Ã¢â‚¬Å"without the needless concomitant of violent and sexual excess. † Wiley's speech was criticized by many in his audience, among them Joseph F. Lagana, Super intendent of Northgate School District, Pitts burgh, Pennsylvania and George lannacone, Su perintendent of Vernon Township Public Schools, Vernon, New Jersey. They wrote â€Å"an opposing view† that was published in NASSP Bulletin, January 1977. They felt that the position of the FCC and the Family Viewing Plan â€Å" are not com patible with the social conditions of our modern society, fragmented families and institutions, and  the post-industrial youth culture.† They said that the Family Viewing Plan inaccurately assesses the status of parent-child relationships so that it will have little impact on our â€Å"youth viewing popula tion. † Lagana and lannacone suggest that most par ents are not aware that the Family Viewing Plan exists. They feel that it is erroneous to assume adults can or want to regulate or monitor tele vision viewing for their children and that parent and youth viewing patterns are often incompat ible because of different interests and schedules and the accessibility of several television sets in  and outside the home. More fundamentally, they challenge Wiley's concept of the role of the FCC as â€Å"socially irre sponsible† because they feel the FCC â€Å"is the reg ulating arm of our government. â€Å"It is their recom mendation that the FCC develo p â€Å"a television council composed of educators, legislators, and behavioral scientists to create programs that are compatible with healthy human growth and de velopment. † In monitoring television programs beyond the Family Viewing Plan, the FCC is seen as a facilitator and moderator and not as a con trolling agency. The National Citizens Committee for Broad  casting ranked programs according to content of violence. As might be expected the â€Å"cops and robbers,† â€Å"private eye,† and action-packed shows ranked very high.But, surprisingly, â€Å"The Won derful World of Disney† ranked fairly high (more violent than â€Å"The Blue Knight† series) and â€Å"Donny and Marie† was around the middle of the scale, more violent than â€Å"Happy Days,† â€Å"Executive Suite,† or â€Å"Maude. † A Gallup poll found that 71 percent of the public in the United States think television is too violent, yet many of the most viol ent programs continue to draw the largest number of viewers.The National Observer reported, â€Å"A lot of peo ple seem to be having it both ways . . . deploring it to the pollsters and enjoying it at home. Most of them will have to turn off TV's gun-play be fore the networks will consider disarmament. † Meanwhile, back to the schools. Clearly, they cannot control the total environment of students. Educators are challenged more seriously than ever before to teach young people to evaluate media more critically and to grow in taste and discrimi nation as they use media in school and at home. The media specialists in the schools should be valuable partners in this endeavor. JTi.

Misleading Ads Essay

To establish that an advertisement is false, a plaintiff must prove five things: (1) a false statement of fact has been made about the advertiser’s own or another person’s goods, services, or commercial activity; (2) the statement either deceives or has the potential to deceive a substantial portion of its targeted audience; (3) the deception is also likely to affect the purchasing decisions of its audience; (4) the advertising involves goods or services in interstate commerce; and (5) the deception has either resulted in or is likely to result in injury to the plaintiff. The most heavily weighed factor is the advertisement’s potential to injure a customer. The injury is usually attributed to money the consumer lost through a purchase that would not have been made had the advertisement not been misleading. False statements can be defined in two ways: those that are false on their face and those that are implicitly false. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1124853/ deception (bedrog) deceptive (bedrieglijk) http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/False+Advertising Effects of the 2003 advertising/promotion ban in the United Kingdom on awareness of tobacco marketing: findings from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Four Country Survey http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2593060/ Lanham act cases http://www.kelleydrye.com/practices/advertising_marketing/lanham_act/42 critics aimed at drug industry for misleading ads http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1124853/ FDA overview: misleading claims in ads http://www.bvsde.paho.org/bvsacd/cd57/gahart.pdf misleading drug ads (ethics in pharmaceutical advertising) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8477540 a limit to the advertising misinformation effect on memory http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.1086/383438?uid=3738736&uid=2&uid=4&sid=21101534852463 the cognitive processing of misleading advertisements in young and old adults http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2489241?uid=3738736&uid=2&uid=4&sid=21101534852463

Armco Inc. †Midwestern Steel Division Essay

Armco Inc is a steel manufacturer that used to be the sixth largest in its industry in United States in 1990. The Kansas City Works within its Midwestern Steel Division was hit by the decline in the business in the US steel industry. The firm produces grinding media and carbon wire rod. The first one has been successful in the industry with its great durability compared to the competitors. Carbon wire rods on the other hand were non profitable and covered only some of its fixed costs through its production volume. The old performance measurement system used by Armco Inc did not work properly because it had some problems. First, it did not provide information on the product mix being produced while it provided data on total tonnage produced but didn’t breakdown what was produced. Second the measurement system compared actual to objective but didn’t provide data on what factors exactly caused variance. Third, the costs were not broken down by fixed costs, variable costs a nd relevant range. Also the reports were generated on the 15th day following every month ending so I think managers could not take immediate corrective actions which would have been sometimes very necessary. In my opinion, also the fact that the system did not measure Key Performance Index for each department such as the new system, is one important reason why the old system was inadequate. Even if the operating managers liked the old system, the new system was necessary. The operating managers may have liked the old system probably because it is understandable that no one likes to be moved out of their familiar comfort zone after many years. In my opinion the greatest weakness of the old system is that the data it provides isn’t clear enough and it is quite difficult to read and understand properly. The new system for instance proposes to focus on ten different measures. The measures have exact â€Å"goals† which is positive. It is also good point that with the new system production managers were no longer held accountable for all costs incurred. It has to be said that the implementation of the process of the new system was done so fast that the top managers could not train other managers to use the new system. I think this was quite a problem. Some actions or changes could be recommended for the new system. For example in my opinion it would probably be good to specify the fixed and variable costs so that managers could have an idea of the differences of each type of costs. Also the proper training supply for the managers would be more than important thing to do. Because there were some uncontrollable factors which affected significantly the production process I think Armco Inc could try to ask some energy companies to diagnose the transformer failures and figure out if there were any other ways to fix the problem permanently. They also could consider having some generators to back up the possible power failures so that the production would not stop suddenly. I read the documentary twice and made some notes about the key points. Then I tried to figure out the problems and the possible conclusions to them. I learned about the importance of proper measurement system and the importance of the functional training program for the managers if there are any changes in the important practices of the firm.

Cardiac Catheterization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Cardiac Catheterization - Essay Example In 1947, Louis Dexter expanded the clinical use of right heart catheterization with studies in patients with congenital heart disease and identified the pulmonary capillary wedge pressure as a useful clinical measurement. By this point, the value of homodynamic measurements was being fully realized, and further developments came rapidly" (Roger, 2008). The technique and safety profile of the instruments used for bringing homodynamic stability though has been evolving over the time. Initial there used to be compression techniques to stop the vessels from bleeding which was and still is the main complication of angiography and angioplasty. Post op bleeding from the intervention site is the main reason of keeping patients in bed for a couple of hours which is very cumbersome for the patients. Cardiac catheterization can be done through different access points but the window to work in becomes an issue. Using upper extremity vessels will be a very good alternative to have a controlled bl eeding because of the diameter of the vessel and their easy access but the window of access gets compromised and the choice of catheters for maximum access and manipulation becomes a problem so, the preferred access rout is still femoral arty and mainly the common femoral artery neither above non below it. "The main advantages to this method are its ease and substantial safety record. The main disadvantage is the need for an extended (2-6 h) period of bed rest after completion of the procedure. Several types of arterial closure devices now are available that provide rapid homeostasis and shorten the period of bed rest considerably. However, complication rates with these closure devices are similar to conventional manual compression". (Roger, 2008). "Reductions in sheath size, intensity and duration of anticoagulation with heparin, and procedure time were observed. Adverse outcomes of major femoral bleeding included prolonged hospital stay, and increased requirement for blood transfu sion. Major femoral bleeding and blood transfusion are both associated with decreased long-term survival, driven by a significant increase in 30-day mortality" (Brendan, 2007). Manual or mechanical compression as the name itself explains it is to be done by the surgeon or any other volunteer in the surgical team to provide compression with the pressure through the pulp of three or four fingers in the downward direction without releasing it for a microsecond for at least for 10-15 minutes at the site of the intervention. (Shaffer, 2005).Vascular closure devices are a very nice and safe alternative to the mechanical compression methods in terms of vascular complication, surgeon's factors and patient's factors. In percoutaneous intervention intra vascular complication which includes "ecchymosis (37%), hematoma (20%), and oozing (15%)" are major complications. These complications occur more frequently with mechanical and device assisted compression. The main reason for these complications is the way mechanical or device assisted compression is applied and unless it is applied exactly the same way it does not fulfill the purpose. Apart from these commonly happening but comparatively less dangerous issues there is a another major complication of leg ischemia which occurs due to prolonged deprivation of blood supply. Post-operatively some patients do

Italo calvino and Artist Thomas hirschorn both indicate an interest in Essay

Italo calvino and Artist Thomas hirschorn both indicate an interest in open systems.Compare and account of this shared interest - Essay Example For example there are the so-called "time-based media" of film, performance, dance and theatre which demand a particular kind of investment from the viewer, both in concentration and in the amount of time that is needed to experience them. However, as one study showed, the average amount of time that a viewer spends in front of a painting is about four seconds. Can this brief exposure to the work of art be compared to, for example the four hours that it takes to view The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Also, different kinds of Art involve contrasting investments of time from the artist. Thus a painting is an essentially solitary creation that may take many hours, days or even months to complete - all for that four seconds viewing time. The artist in this case is distilling a particular experience of vision of the world into a picture that will only be seen for a few seconds. Paintings outside of museums will obviously be seen by their owners more often than this four seconds, but an image on wall becomes a part of their life, floating in and out of perception as the person goes about their life from day to day. Such a painting is constant work of art within the context of the viewer as compared to the temporary work found in the museum painting or even the longest film. One major question is whether the discrepancies of our experiences of time can be put down solely to the shortcomings of perception or whether it is the common, but incorrect, assumption that time is measurable that is the source of the confusion. Thomas Hirschhorn has been a leader in exploring the relationship between time, perception and space within the work of art. Within the group of artists called Grapus he was concerned with politics and culture, displaying what were essentially impromptu posters, paintings and collages on the streets using both the form and language of advertising. This was Art that was not tied to a particular place, and thus which did not demand to be "looked at" in the way that a traditional painting is. His early works could (and often were) seen by people who were just casually walking down the street, not expecting to indulge in the heightened expectations of Art. This was art as a commonplace part of the environment, designed to take it away from the rarefied atmosphere of the art gallery or museum. Leaving Grapus he moved to the hyper-saturated installations that he is known for today. These use a variety of common materials such as cardboard, duct tape, foil and plastic wrap. The use of common materials within art is hardly unique to Hirschhorn of course, but he manner in which he places his works of art outside of the gallery, making them site-specific implies a kind of double removal from the normal "time" and "place" of art. These works of art are thus open systems that are limited by neither time nor space. He has commented upon his work in the following manner: I do not want to invite or oblige viewers to become interactive with what I do; I do not want to activate the public. I want to give of myself to such a degree that viewers confronted with the work can take part and become involved, but not as actors. (Buchloh, 2004) He has also stated his

Current issues in human rights - War, genocide, mass human rights Essay

Current issues in human rights - War, genocide, mass human rights violations - Essay Example ted Nations (1948), this document has provided a blueprint for the development of various international laws and criminal courts against individuals who have the high genocide responsibilities. Countries such as Serbia, Guatemala, the former Soviet Union and even Rwanda have experienced genocide in the 20th century and such crimes have been punished based on the provisions of this convention. The convention has various articles which highlight the level of responsibility of each and every country’s leadership in ensuring that genocide and crimes against humanity are prevented at all costs. For example, chapter 4 states that every individual, state or non-state actor shall be held individually responsible for abetting, financing, directly and indirectly participating and being complacent in genocide activities. Such provisions have assisted in ensuring that individuals are brought to book for allowing and participating in activities that are equivalent to genocide in different parts of the world. The international tribunal for Kosovo and Rwanda were all constituted on the premise of the genocide convention to try various cases of genocide against religious and tribal groups. This document is a conclusive documentation of the articles of the convention that has defined genocide and abuse of human rights as we know it today. Though changes have been done to the convention, the United Nations (1948) is an important document that has informed the decision of other international bodies and help in reducing incidence of abuse of human rights in the presence or absence of crisis. In the study of human rights and genocide, the United Nations (1948) provides an accurate historical encounter of how a convention that has defined international behavior of those in power was developed. This document has significantly contributed to the development of various tribunals aimed at providing justice to victims of genocide in countries such as Rwanda Kosovo where rampant human

Negotiations - Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Negotiations - Case Study - Essay Example Lack of management skills makes the firm not to be at par with advances in technology (Hastings, 2009). Technical support makes it possible for the business to be aware of modern technologies. With this can be able to understand the operations of the industry resulting to familiarity with clients. Therefore the industry can provide reliable services and appropriate solutions to the client problems. Lieutenant observed that the company suffered from insufficient training because of one stenographer who was in charge of five semi-skilled workers. This is due to ineffective management of the company. The firm is the only one producing the special machine but has very complex production processes that have made the employees to be resistant to new innovations (Vanden & Consulting, 2008). These employees basically resist new training because top managers have not been fully trained. Ineffective management also results in high expenses as a result of ignorance over security measures. Contingency are the allowances that help the management in addressing risks within the firm. The contingency allowance ensures that managers are able to account for all the errors and omissions made in the firm. Lieutenant Early should ensure that all the company operations and activities are performed perfectly. This calls for changes in the operations of the company (Hastings, 2009). This will reduce the amount of money paid as contingency allowance because there will be an improvement in the efficiency of organizational processes. The changes will also ensure that the organization is able to address risks accordingly. The entire unknown amount should be paid for in order to reduce the contingency allowance. This makes the payment to be in time hence reducing the accumulation amount. The Trustworthy equipment company should be principled enough to pay for all the known and unknown expenses. This eases the future budget of the firm making a similar contingence allowances (Steams,

Film and memory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Film and memory - Essay Example The reaction is one which builds an emotional response among viewers to associate specifically with different events in history. The concept of form and genre in trauma films for history is defined as the type or kind of film that is able to relate to a given culture. When one uses a specific form, it is able to associate with a specific identity or connection to those who are watching the film. The category of mainstream film is one which can be used to identify specific categories and events which have occurred and which many relate to. When relaying mainstream events within the genre of drama or trauma, there is the need to create a specific relationship to an event in which every individual is already aware of. The message of the historical event also has to link with concepts such as patriotism or the main identity of the culture, specifically which creates a level of appeal to the public. The experimental or avant – garde depictions; however, can move into events with a different form of trauma or replication of history that is more historical and aesthetically fitting to a given event. However, this attracts a different group of individuals who are interested in a different perspective to the film (Langford, 2005). The depiction of history as one which creates a sense of appeal to the crowds then leads into different types of spectatorship by viewers. As the spectacle stands out with different effects and aesthetics, there is the ability to create a different sense of history that is remembered by the audience. For instance spatial definitions that take place, such as longer perspectives or close up shots, create a direct relationship to the viewer. The spectator is then able to create a specific understanding of a given event. For instance, if there is an individual who was well – known in history, then personal and close shots with the use of space are given, all which define the

An Ancient Tragedy Oedipus King Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

An Ancient Tragedy Oedipus King - Essay Example This is because; it utilizes the universal literary devices in a very effective manner. As will discuss, in this paper. The play is about a young boy, and his parents. The boy’s name is Oedipus. He was the son of a king (Laius). The king finds an oracle, which was predicting the fate of his son. The oracle was foretelling that the king’s life would be taken away by his own son, who would then take over his wife. The son’s sole intention of killing his father was to marry his own mother; due to this, when Oedipus was born, the king tied his legs and discarded him on a mountain, with a hope that nature would take over the role of eliminating him from the world. This was a strategic manner, of preventing the oracle’s prophecy from taking place. Unfortunately, the young boy did not die. He was saved by a shepherd and landed on another king’s palace (King Polybus). Polybus was the king of Corinth. When the shepherd handed him Oedipus, the king took him i n whole heartedly, as he did not have a son of his own. Oedipus grew up believing that Polybus was his real father. However, as time passed, Oedipus began questioning his parentage. He decided to consult with Delphic god and heard some word leading him to Laius. He fled from his foster father’s house. During his flee; he unwillingly murdered his real father. Coincidentally, when he went to Thebes, he answered a riddle correctly. This earned him a ticket to the bereaved king’s house. He took over the kingship and married the king’s wife. They were very successful in life and bore children. However, there came a great calamity in the town. On consulting the oracle, it was realized that he there was blood guiltiness. Oedipus denounced the crime, as he was not aware of it. He puts his foot forward to track the person responsible for the crime. Gradually, the play reveals that Oedipus is the man responsible for his own father’s death. One of the major themes o f this play is the theme of fate. To begin with, the oracle to Laius states clearly Laius’ fate; â€Å" he would demise a victim, at his son’s hands.† (711-714). In addition, Oedipus says â€Å"I was destined to sleep with my mother†¦I was fated to take the life of my father† (791-793). Both oracles show that fate was the determinants of the main characters life, and so they could do nothing about it. The theme of fate and fortune recurs in many parts of the play. For instance, fortune made it possible for Oedipus life to be saved from the mountains. Fate made Oedipus start questioning his parentage and made him flee away from his foster father’s house. The killing of his real father was an act of fate. The manner in which Oedipus came to sleep with his own mother can only be explained by fate. It is also fate that led Oedipus, to his real father’s kingdom. Most incidences in the play are beyond human understanding and can only be expla ined as destiny. Fate is a common theme amongst many Greek writings. The writer of this play was not an exception and utilized this theme perfectly. This theme helps explain things that are beyond human understanding, and hence is considered as a very strong literature device. Another theme of the play is that of freewill. The play reflects that human’s freewill has its own limit. As much as human beings have a desire for things to go according to their own wish, it is not always possible to accomplish this. For

SSK 12 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

SSK 12 - Essay Example Speaking specifically of education and learning, I can once again safely say that I have a very diverse understanding and this is simply because, although the most significant years of my life were spent in Lebanon, I am Australian born and I did choose to continue my education here once I came back. So, even when it comes to education and learning, I have two very varied perspectives. My world view has touched every part of my life, especially my perspective on education and learning. In order to understand how the world view affects us we must first understand what the term signifies; Hobson puts it best when she says, â€Å"†¦ a set of beliefs that we hold and through which we organise our understanding of ourselves and our understanding of others.† (Hobson, p. 2). Try thinking of it this way: throughout our lives we collect values and experiences and place them in a box. At a later point when we come across an obstacle, event or any situation as such, we open that box and relate our past perceptions to the new situation. How we deal with the situation is directly related to how our world view has been previously shaped. It can be further described as a kind of â€Å"overreaching philosophy† that is used to construct social worlds. There is no deliberate attempt on anyone’s part to create a world view of their own liking. This is something they unconsciously learn throughout their lives (Samovar & Porter, p.103). Education and learning is thus no different; our view of this is also intertwined with world view. A person’s emotions, cultural affinity, beliefs, locality etcetera, all affect learning in some way or the other. A guide to learning independently further addresses this aspect when it talks about the concept of the self and in particular the physical and emotional self, the cultural and social self, and one’s surroundings and

How occupational stress affects mental health Essay Example for Free

How occupational stress affects mental health Essay Stress is a normal condition that affects many people. However too much stress leads to both mental and physical health. When a person has, too much stress there is a high probability that a person will stop functioning normally. Severe stress also can also lead to breakdown. This can be observed through the behavior that a person exposes. This means that a person changes the set of patterns of behaviors. Their performance in day to day duties are also affected and become worse as days pass. A person tends to lose interest and the ability of functioning as a normal person. These are obvious signs of nervous breakdown. Severe stress cause mental disorders in people. This happens especially if the stress becomes severe. It is good for one to deal with stress because of the effects it has on the mental health. This is because some of the factors that lead to stress are complicated for the mind to handle. Stress compels one part of the body against another part of the mind. This leads to pulling and pushing against the positive forces. This then leads to compression of emotions and thoughts. This makes a person to have feelings of loss of control of life. If a person dwells on the negative feelings this makes the person to have high possibilities of being subject to mental illness. The mental health is affected as stress leads to change of the equilibrium in the brain, which applies pressure to the mind. Lack of reinstatement of the equilibrium leads to chemical imbalances and diseases. In case the mind has some faulty areas, this makes a person have difficulty in coping with stress. This leads to more negative thinking including suicidal thoughts (The British Psychological Society, 1993). There are several symptoms of stress and anxiety caused at work. Stress at work is caused by work pressure, relationships, at6 work or issues related to finances. The nature of work has changed over the last century and is still undergoing change drastically. With these drastic change, stress is inevitable as workers try to cope with the changes. Stress by the workers is dangerous as it affects not only their health but also the health of the organization. The symptoms of work stress vary from person to person depending on the situation or how ling a person is subjected to the stress and the stress intensity. Some of the typical symptoms of work stress include lack of concent6tartion in one responsibility, frequent absenteeism without valid excuses, some workers turn to substance abuse and one show some signs of frustrations and extreme anger, which is usually directed to fellow workers (Tetrick, 1987). Workers who are at high risk of getting stress and anxiety are the ones who are experiencing job insecurity as a result of the metamorphic changes that may be occurring in the work place. Reorganizations, downsizing and takeovers are some of the changes that occur in organizations that lead employees to have stress and become anxious, as sometimes they do not understand where future in the organization lies. High demand for performance also leads to stress and anxiety for instance increased workload, long hours of working and intense pressure to perform at peak levels but without increase of the pay. Workers who are faced with these kinds of p-pressures have possibility of getting anxious and stressed. People who their believes conflict and those who are unable to cope with workplace culture also have high possibilities of getting stress and anxiety (Tetrick, 1987). Example of workplace cultures that may lead to stress include adapting to dress code, communication pattern, hierarchy and the behavioral patterns. If a person experiences stress and anxiety as a result of the above and does not seek help the stress and anxiety may be worse leading to mental and physical problem. There are various ways in which individual can deal with stress. It is necessary for one to be able to change with time so that to prevent stress. Being able to change with time makes a person feel more secure. Foe example, in work places it is important for an individual to be continually prepared for any change that might arise so that to survive and avoid stress. It is also good for one to find emotional and moral support from friends and family members. It is good to find time to remotivate and reenergize whenever one feels down. This prevents the stress from escalating to more severe problem. Individuals who turn to substance abuse, as a way of relieving stress should also avoid this because substance abuse acts as way of increasing the stress. It important to develop positive attitude towards every situation in life including stressful situations. This is done to prevent situations such as fear anger and negative thinking, which leads to stress. This can be done by employing personal growth techniques such as exercises, breathing and meditation. Work place stress can also be reduced by celebration of accomplishment of other people’s accomplishment. In case of stress that is chronic, it is advisable to seek assistance from a health profession (Koeske, Kirk Koeske, 1993). This knowledge regarding stress and anxiety and the ways to handle them is important as it help me understand that in some cases they may not be inevitable in the workplace. By understanding this, it is important to understand the way to prevent them from occurring and way I can do to stop them from affecting my performance. The knowledge is also helpful as it make me understand ways I can help my colleagues whom I find with the problem in the future.

Othello Essay Example for Free

Othello Essay There is no doubt that whatever Shakespeare wrote found its way to the top as a literary piece of genius. His command over language and ability to portray emotions and thoughts through mere words has made him immortal in English literature. Shakespeare uses a variety of aides to make his play the flawless specimen it is. The most striking symbol in Othello is Desdemonas handkerchief that circulates throughout the play. Because Othello gave it to Desdemona as a first gift, the handkerchief functions as a token of his love, which Desdemona cherishes (3. 3. 1). Iago convinces his wife to steal it from Desdemona because he knows that it has a lot of sentimental value and that Othello will be angry when he finds out his wife no longer has it. Iago also knows that, for Othello, the handkerchief symbolizes Desdemonas fidelity. When it shows up in Cassios possession, Othello is convinced of Desdemonas infidelity. The white napkin, as we know, is spotted with red strawberries and Othello tells Desdemona that the strawberries were hand stitched with thread that has been dyed with blood from maidens hearts or, virgins blood (3. . 10). [1] In this way, the handkerchief resembles a white wedding sheet thats also been stained with a virgins blood. So, in Othellos mind, Desdemonas handkerchief represents her chastity and the moment she loses it, she looses her chastity. The handkerchief also seems to function as a symbol of Othellos mysterious past and his exoticness. He tells Desdemona that an Egyptian charmer gave it to his mother and that it would keep his father faithful and under her spell (3. . 9). That such a small object has such enormous weight in the play testifies to the sensitivity of jealous minds, and the way that small incidents can be magnified psychologically into proofs of love or betrayal. Animalistic imagery also presents the impression of animal behaviour coming out of the seemingly civilized humans. Animalistic references are made often by Iago reflecting his beastly thirst for vengeance and blood. He uses animalistic references while referring to desdemona and Cassios supposed affair,burning the image in Othellos head so much so that by the end of the play Othello himself drops the beautiful speech which was adorned by references to gardens and exotic creatures and instead begins using these crude references without appearing to notice the change within himself. A literary device called Peripeteia is found in Othello. Peripeteia is a reversal of circumstances, or turning point. The term is primarily used with reference to works of literature. The English form of peripeteia is peripety. Peripety is a sudden reversal dependent on intellect and logic. In modern Greek means adventure. In William Shakespeares tragedy Othello, the peripety occurs in the mere middle of the play, act III, scene 3. Othello is slowly deceived by Iagos rhetoric, persuasiveness and imagery, yet in this scene the transition occurs. Iago says Indeed with emphasis, whereafter Othello replies: Indeed? Ay, indeed. Discernst thou aught in that? Is he not honest? . Iago keeps using rhetorical emphasis to corrupt Othello: Honest, my lord? ] Think, my lord? . Othello who is of weak character and easily persuaded replies: Think, my lord! By heaven, he echoes me, / As if there was some monster in his thought / Too hideous to be shown. The corruption continues until the peripety. There are two stanzas indicating this change. Othello has just got married to the beautiful Desdemona, whom he seemed unlikely to marry because he is a Moor (of North African descent), nevertheless he has been very lucky. Yet the peripety arrives and Othello exclaims: Why did I marry?  This honest creature [Iago] doubtless / Sees and knows more, much more, than he unfolds. [III, 3, 243-4]. Othello concludes that: This fellows of exceeding honesty / And knows all qualities with a learned spirit / Of human dealings [III, 3, 260]. The peripety has happened and Othello degrades mentally and the transition can be observed in his usage of language. Othello is very eloquent and uses subtle imagery (Keep up your bright swords, for the dew will rust them [I, 2, 59]. After the peripety his language degrades to the usage of diabolical and physical imagery. Following the confirmation of his absolute belief in what Iago has told him he remarks: I had rather be a toad / And live upon the vapour of a dungeon [III, 3, 272]. Paul Yachnin (1996) and Andrew Sofer (1997) concentrate on the symbolic and thematic resonance of another device used Shakespeare to further his play,specifically Desdemonas handkerchief in Othello. Stolen by Iago and later produced as proof of her infidelity, the handkerchief is a fetishized commodity in Yachnins reading, capable of eliciting wonder and ultimately violence. For Sofer, the handkerchief embodies a broad spectrum of thematic functions in the play, designating an interlocking chain of signification that includes witchcraft, sexuality, jealousy, revenge, murder, inconstancy, and falsified evidence. A prop as metaphor, the handkerchief ties together the dramas leading motifs as well as drawing attention to its own theatricality, Sofer concludes[2]. Linguistic signification is the subject of Lucille P. Fultzs (1997) essay, which considers Iagos skillful manipulation of language to orchestrate the deaths of Othello and Desdemona. For Fultz, verbal seduction—a desire for power achieved through language—is a basic thematic component of the drama, one embodied by Iago in each of his relationships with fellow characters. Othello is considered to be a prime example of Aristotelian drama; it focuses upon a very small cast of characters, one of the smallest used in Shakespeare, has few distractions from the main plot arc, and concentrates on just a few themes, like jealousy. As such, it is one of the most intense and focused plays Shakespeare wrote, and has also enjoyed a great amount of popularity from the Jacobean period to the present day. Othello takes place in Venice (in northern Italy) and Cyprus (an island in the eastern Mediterranean about forty miles south of present-day Turkey). The time is between 1489 and 1571. It is interesting to note that Venice is the setting for both major Shakespeare plays dealing in part with racial prejudice, Othello and The Merchant of Venice. As one of the world’s leading sea powers, Venice was the center of commercialism and materialism and, therefore, corruption and conflict arising from avarice, social status, and fierce competition. Cyprus–as a strategically located island which yielded substantial harvests of olives, grapes and various grains–was much prized throughout its history. Assyrians, Greeks, Egyptians, Romans, and Byzantines all fought over and occupied it. England’s King Richard I, the Lion-Hearted, conquered Cyprus in 1191 but later ceded it to the French. Venice seized the island in 1489 and in 1571 the Ottoman Turks brought Cyprus under its control. From the eleventh to the fifteenth century, Catholics battled to re-conquer Spain from the Islamic Arabs and Berbers, or Moors, who had successfully occupied it since the 900s. The struggle inspired intense prejudice and suspicion that lasted well after the Moors were overthrown. Philip III of Spain expelled 300,000 â€Å"Moriscos† from the Iberian (Spanish) peninsula not long after Shakespeare finished Othello, in 1609. In England during Shakespeare’s time, views regarding â€Å"Moors† were slightly more comple x because of strong anti-Catholic sentiment in England and English fears of invasion by the Spanish. In fact, England maintained independent trade relationships with â€Å"Moorish† Northern Africa, despite Spanish and Portuguese protest. The English slave trade also brought blacks to Europe, from mid-sixteenth century onward. Queen Elizabeth herself founded The Barbary Company, formally institutionalizing this trade; in addition, she received a delegation of Moroccan diplomats in 1600. However, the English still felt a strong suspicion of Islam: Elizabeth issued a degree expelling Moors from Africa and Spanish â€Å"Moriscos† from the boundary of England in 1599 and 1601.

Working Environment of Lloyds TSB

Working Environment of Lloyds TSB Introduction: Lloyds TSB group is the UK‘s biggest organisation. More than 66000 are working for this organisation in UK and in 27 countries around the globe. The business serves around 16 million customers operating in a range of financial markets, including personal and private banking, corporate banking, insurance and mortgages. Lloyds TSB is working globally and competes within rapidly changing markets for the delivery of financial services to personal and business customers. Customers expect a high range of services to be available 24 hours a day and delivered with first class customers service. In order t remain top in this demanding market, Lloyds TSB has acquired the services of innovative human resource management policies to ensure Lloyds TSB is a great place to work and that its staff are happy, motivated and committed to give highest levels of performance to the organisation and its customers. In 1998, the Group conducted reseach with employees, which showed that one of their main concerns was being able to balance a demanding job with outside commitments, such as family life, hobbies and leisure activities. This led to the Group designing and introducing a unique flexible working policy, called Work Options one year later. This gave a chance to workers to structure their working arrangements in a way that helps them to achieve a better Work Life Balance. According to this policy all staff has got the right to request a different working pattern form standard 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lloyds TSB is widely recognised as one of the best employers for providing flexibility for its staff. Because of this positive and flexible approach, Lloyds TSB is able to attract, appoint, motivate and retain the best staff available, which in turn keeps customers happy and keeps the organisation at top of the financial services field. The Changing Work Environment Lloyds TSB has always given importance to change in work environment and this proves the key to drive the bank out from the crises Lloyds TSB has rejected the traditional. Work routine of the 20th century. Lloyds TSB has offered flexible work options to all of its staff and put into place it own procedures to allow every member of staff, not just with young children, the right to request to work flexibly. This Lloyds TSB stands out from other employers. By 2010, it is estimated that 85% of the growth in the UK workforce will be women. 62% of the Lloyds TSB workforce is female and around 2,000 staff takes maternity leave each year. Of these, around 87% return to work for the company after their leave. This is an important statistic. In a tightening labour market, business must attract high calibre staff and then retain their services. Lloyds TSBs reputation on flexible working is a very important factor in achieving this. The Business case for Flexibility Flexible working is not merely of benefit to staff but it makes excellent business environment too. Lloyds TSB believes its ability to deal efficiently and effectively with the need for flexibility strengthens its position as an employer of choice and enables the group to deliver levels of service that differentiate Lloyds TSB from its competitors. Customers take advantage by getting to deal with professional, friendly enthusiastic and well knowledgeable persons. In an increasingly competitive market place where retailers, supermarkets and other companies can also offer financial services. Lloyds TSB needs customer service excellence around the clock to stay in competition. Lloyds TSB developed its own flexible approach in 1999 to help attract and retain the best staff. The Group‘s own leaver surveys (questionnaires completed by people leaving the business) showed that flexibility was the main reason for them joining them initially. This is also supported by a national survey which showed that flexible working was a more important factor that pays for graduates in choosing an employer. Employees need motivation and commitment. Research shows that people are more productive and experience less stress when they have control over the hours they work. So flexible working helps Lloyds TSB to gain the long term commitment and motivation of well qualified and experienced staff. It is far more expensive to recruit and train new staff than to retain existing ones. Flexible working generates cost savings too. Traditional work patterns usually involved fixed hours between 9.00 am to 5pm. Work beyond these hours was paid by employers overtime rates like time and half or more driving up staff costs. With the introduction of flexibility, Lloyds TSB has been able to extend staff cover at no added cost. In todays world, people with lifestyles require financial services at any time. Peak customer demand does not follow a traditional 9.00 am to 5pm working day either. For Lloyds TSB flexible arrangements allow employees personal benefits to suit their own lives and deliver a more complete service to customers. So from the above it is clear Lloyds TSB was ahead of the game when it came to introducing flexible working patterns. The Group was aware that economic and social changes meant that people often live complex lives in and out side of work. Far sighted management at Lloyds TSB saw the benefits to the business of recruiting and keeping excellent people, who would be willing to build a career in the Group. The impact of credit crunch on Lloyds TSB The phase means a severe shortage of money or credit and this comes about when banks and other lenders lose confidence and are no longer wiling to lend to each other or to other borrowers. According to report published at Yorkshire Post dated 06 May 2008, Lloyds TSB revealed a further  £387 million hit from the credit crunch but signalled there would be no need for a cash call to investors. In a another report published in Herald Scotland dated 30 July 2008, writes that credit crunch hammers Lloyds TSB as bank profits drop 70 % But Lloyds TSB has worked according to a certain plan faced the situation well. Continuous Improvement and Lloyds TSB Lloyds TSB believes in excellent customers service and smooth and transparent banking. Lloyds TSB has introduced online banking, provided numerous ATM machines to their customers and made the banking relatively easy and convenient. Lloyds TSB and IT transformation Realizing that the effort to improve its IT capabilities would require faster, deeper change than it could manage in-house, Lloyds TSB partnered with Accenture to create an IT competency that aligns IT delivery with the banks strategic priorities. Processes, tools and methodologies were brought closer to best practise, and the skills and experience of IT staff were improved. Lloyds TSB is making significant progress towards creating a high performance IT environment that aligns IT delivery with the banks strategic priorities. The Accenture/ Group IT team is confident that the improving IT initiative will help Lloyds TSB create a high performance business propelled by consistent increase in customer satisfaction and competitive differentiation.

The Beak Of The Finch :: essays research papers fc

The Bogus Logic of The Beak People who have served in the Armed Forces may be familiar with the expression, "If you can't dazzle then with your brilliance, baffle them with your baloney." The Beak of the Finch uses such laughable logic, it is remarkable that anyone would believe it. The book does such a terrible job of presenting a case for evolution and history, that the only logical conclusion is that the book's true intent is to disprove it.   Jonathan Weiner, The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1994. ISBN 0679400036.   "It is never too late to give up our prejudices. No way of thinking or doing, however ancient, can be trusted without proof." --Thoreau, Walden This book claims to be about evolution, centered in the location made famous by Charles Darwin, the Galapagos Islands. I read this book on the recommendation of a good friend who knows I am interested in birds and thought I might get something out of it. Indeed, the few parts of the book actually about the Gouldian Finches of the Galapagos Islands are fascinating. The book records in detail some of the trials the Dr. Peter Grant family endured in studying these birds on a hot volcanic rock. However, the writers and editors of the book avoid simple logic and put a spin on history that is misleading. The facts and logic presented in The Beak of the Finch really make the book's author out to be a closet creationist.   It just so happened that at the same time I read this book, I was reading The Storm Petrel and the Owl of Athena by Louis Halle. Half of The Storm Petrel is on the bird life of the Shetland Islands, another isolated natural system. Halle, though an evolutionist, devotes a whole chapter on how the Shetlands and other islands conserve species. (Halle. 1970, 155ff.) Where species have changed their habits, it is most often due to adaptation to humanity. He compares the wild starlings, house sparrows, and rock doves found on the Shetlands with the more domesticated versions of these birds found on the continents--and to some degree even in the main village of the Shetlands. The island birds are more like their original wild forebears. I mention this now because it will come back to haunt us later.   Logical Fallacies By the first thirty or so pages I had found two logical fallacies and at least one historical inaccuracy in The Beak of the Finch.

Femininity In Greek Myth Essay -- essays research papers

Is femininity in mythology? Yes because there is a division between men and women in mythology. Biology tells us that we are two different people. Men and women see the world in different ways. Women are passive, intuitive, submissive, and subjective. Women value love, communication, beauty, and relationships. Men are aggressive, rational, dominant, and objective and they value power, competency, efficiency, and achievement. The ways we see the world are different because we are either man or women. We are also similar as well as different. This paper will discuss the how women/goddess are viewed in the works of â€Å"Works and Days†, â€Å"Theogony† and â€Å"Hymn to Demeter.† And see that these women/goddess similar to real life women. In the Works and Days, women are seen as beautiful things and men strong and fighting creatures. Zeus, the king of gods, had Hephaestus fashion a woman endowed with everything, which he called Pandora. Pandora is described as a sweetly seductive female and her name refers to the gifts that all the gods give to mankind. She is made as a tempting snare for Epimetheus. She was sent with an urn full of plagues as a gift to Epimetheus. Pandora opened the jar and out came all the plagues and finally hope. This woman reminds men that not all-beautiful things are good and can be a pain in a man’s side. This lesson can be true for the world today. Women are not all sweetly seductive but they can be a real pain in the ass, especially for their boyfriends. In the Th...

Do You Have What It Takes? A Breakdown Of The Educated Person Essay

Do You Have What it Takes? A Breakdown of the Educated Person An educated person is a well rounded person. To be educated is to knowledgeable in many areas. Diversity is essential in the sense that many different things inspire thought, which then derive permanent conclusions from these experiences. Anyone who has the audacity to call themselves educated needs to have a firm grasp of many different areas. These categories span through Science, Technology, Language, Art, Feelings and Values. All of these are building blocks that help make up an educated person, but just as important, these are the same qualities that form an individual. One of the most important concepts that a person learns from Science is a fundamental thinking process. This process starts with curiosity, asking the question," Why does that work?" It then moves on to theorizing or guessing. Next, this person takes his or her theory and puts it to the test by conducting various experiments. Finally this individual will draw a final conclusion from those findings. Science also helps a person look at things objectively, which means there is no feelings influencing experiments that can lead to fraudulent conclusions. This can be a double edged sword however, because in many instances when a scientist is emotionally removed from the experiments performed, the question, "Should I?", is never asked. For instance under the reign of Hitler many cruel medical experiments were preformed. In The Medical Experiments by William Shirer the author states,"Prisoners were placed in high pressure chambers and subjected to high-altitude tests until they ceased breathing. They were injected with lethal doses of typhus and jaundice. They were subjected to 'freezing' experiments in icy water or exposed naked in the snow outdoors until they froze to death." This also deals with the subject of values and will be discussed detail later. Probably the most positive way to utilize Science would be to take it to the next level, Technology. This is were an educated person takes what laws and theories he learns in science and integrates them into everyday life, finding ways to make life easier and arguably better. I say arguably because many educated people are against technological advancement. These... ...m any language. Susanne K. Langer in her article The Cultural Importance of Art states,"There is, however, an important part of reality that is quite inaccessible to the formative influence of language: that is the realm of so-called "inner experience," the life of feeling and emotion. All of these attributes lose power without an individual set of values to focus this energy. Adolf Hitler influenced millions by being a masterful orator. Hitler also was very innovative in science and many other areas. However do to his grossly warped sense of personal values he was labelled by leaders and peers as a madman. It is very difficult for any person to be a master of all of these categories, but to be truly educated, there needs to be at least a small concentration of everything in that individual's background. For the one reason that it is so difficult to posses all of these traits, it is also that same reason that makes all of the truly educated people of our past stand out in history as heros and leaders. This is also the biggest reason that so many people admire them and strive to be like them.

Julius Caesar Play Essay

In play, Julius Caesar, it has strength that makes the play a famous play. In the play, we could understand characters emotion and behaviors clearly since it is in their own words instead of a narration. From the text from Cassius’s dialogue,† For my part, I have walked about the streets, submitting me unto the perilous night.† we could emphasizes how Cassius is showing off to Casca the braveness he has. Another point would be the speeches that are introduce in the play. Another example would be in Act 1, scene 2 where Antony comments, â€Å"When Caesar says, do this, it is performed. Sometimes not only the characters dialogue could be recognize as his or her personality and characteristics. In this text by Antony, we could feel the powerful leadership from Caesar. Speeches help a better understanding of each character thought towards different people. Such as the speech that Antony gave where it begins with â€Å"Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your earsâ⠂¬ ¦..† In this speech Antony keep repeating â€Å"Brutus is an honorable man†, this shows sarcasms that Antony is speaking out. While reading this speech, you will find confusions where Antony is criticizing Brutus action but on the other hand he keeps stating that Brutus is an honorable man that opposites other facts. This kind of passage grabs the reader attention to think profoundly. The weakness would be the organization of the plot. I believe the play is moving in a speed what I believe is fast. Fast play makes it difficult to recognize clearly with each scenes and acts. For example from the meeting of conspirators to the death of Julius Caesar flows quite rapid. Between those two scenes, I feel a bit empty cause no way that these conspirators did not planned in a way that they could successfully without any obstacles kill Julius Caesar. The play might improve if the process of planning would be added between those two periods. We might absorb characters; personality and perspective towards this event during their planning. Another example would be the death of Calupurnia. The death news was interrupted abruptly during before the war. Calpurnia played such an important role when comforting Brutus and place a spy on him. This shows the role of women played in Roman however she had passed away in a second where no one has expected. Overall the organization is pretty flow and vivid enough. I like how each scene was isolated by the characters in the play where one side is mainly characters that dislike Caesar and the other side would be characters that supports Caesar. The only error would be the speed of the play that gives no time for readers to vividly understand the story. The descriptions of different characters are the best element in the play. Characters were vividly described as I stated earlier. One more example would be when Cassius stated, â€Å"The torrent roared, and we did buffet it with lusty sinews, throwing it aside and stemming it with hearts of controversy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..or I sink!†Ã¢â‚¬  In this dialogue we could understand two characters’ thoughts and history background. Cassius put up this fact show that he believes Caesar is not as capable as he should be. Another would be the background of Caesar where he was such a weaker. The diaglouge is very interesting because we could see through what each character wanted to express. One of the interesting dialogues was between Antony and Octavious. Octavious argued to refuse the instruction from Antony. Antony begins to realize the similar power between Octavious and Caesar when Octavious insist to follow left instead of right, so Antony called Octavious as Caesar after the argument of the formation.

Expressionism

I drove to SST Louis with a couple of friends on a warm day ND when we got to the ml_Assure, all I could say was ‘WOW'. â€Å"Is this a white house replica kind of a building' asked one of my friends. It was so beautiful, never seen or have never been in a building so huge like that. It was quite an honor and would have something to share with people back in Africa. I might not have been a big fan of art but since that day all has changed. We went in and were given a museum map to locate specific areas we wanted to visit. Modern art section was our main priority.We took the elevator to the upper level of the museum where modern art painting was displayed. We walked around sections 327, 335, 334 and 333. The painting that mostly caught my attention was that of Marc Chloral, a French man born in 1887 and died in 1985. The Temptation painting was painted by Marc the cubist in 1912. He painted Adam and Eve flanking the tree of knowledge. He painted Eve as a green figure holding th e forbidden fruit that she was about to offer Adam, who poses in blissful ignorance of the consequences to come.The cubism concept of split face allows Eve to look at both the apple and its destination. Marc paints this picture in relations to what we have always been reading bout in the bible. He also painted animals around staring at them, he did this to really show and tell how the fruit changed the world today. Another painting just on the other wall on my left as I turned to my left, there hanged an amazing piece of art called the blue Mandolin, 1 930 by George Baroque. He was a French man born in 1882 but died in 1963.He used oil painting with sand on canvas. This painting looked so real unlike the ones I saw in class on slideshows. He used a paint comb that created imitation wood grain to which he added a heavy application of sand in order to set off the eel effects of texture against artificial ones. The use of sand here really gives this painting a very strong texture. I ev en felt like I could touch it but could not do so. He conveys his love for music here by painting the blue mandolin very closer to the eye.As moved around exploring the beauty Of art, then came across the Picasso painting of his wife. Pablo was a Spanish cubist born in 1881 and he died in 1973. His painting of a seated woman dated July 1 953 portraits his lover Francoise Gilt. He shows of his skills and extreme exploration of pubis by using facets of creamy grays, whites, pinks, and browns form mosaic of color and tone across the body of Francoise. In this painting the young woman's face contains a strong right profile as well as a left eye that gazes forward.He also uses a dark background to show the viewers exactly what his painting is all about. The painting looks more like 3 dimensional because of the use of mosaic concept. It's really one of the greatest pieces of art by Pablo Picasso. As was walking around I then saw this other two paintings that looked like I child was playin g With a paint brush, but as I paid more attention to them hen I realized how some people were talented. These were paintings by Emil Molded, a German born in 1867 but died in 1956.

Marijuana: a Gateway to Self Destruction

There has been substantial research which provides information on how Marijuana is not addicting itself, but the way it sakes you feel can be the breaking point to trying other addictive drugs. Research shows, adults who are addicts admit their first time of use and first drug of choice was when they were an adolescent and smoked Marijuana. Until today, many argue for or against legalizing marijuana throughout the united States, and it is still a struggle for some to overcome. As of 2011, Marijuana became legal in 16 States in the united States (Anabas & Cohen, 2011).According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy (OWNED, Bibb there has been Increasing efforts to legalize marijuana which can cause marijuana to rope In price and Increase the use of the drug (OWNED, 2013); keeping It Illegal keeps the price of marijuana up keeping the use rates low. According to Carbon. Org, (Bibb marijuana can be purchased In almost any neighborhood In any city or state In the U. S. , thus con tributing to the pervasive nature of the drug. It is also considered a drug of convenience because it is easily concealed, both for transport and use.This is why it has become widely popular with adolescents or young adults who have a lot of authority figures involved in their lives. Most marijuana users or those with Arizona in their possession do not go to prison. According the OWNED, a survey by the Bureau objectifies Statistics showed that . 7 percent of all state inmates were imprisoned for marijuana possession only because they had pleaded down from a more serious crime (OWNED, 2013). By States legalizing medical marijuana, it makes marijuana more easily obtainable for teens and normalizes It making It seem okay to use.Between the ages of preteen and teens, any disruptions In normal brain development, including chemical disruptions and/or changes can make physiological and psychological changes that can last a lifetime. According to Anabas & Cohen (201 1), early-onset drug use is the single best predictor of future drug problems in an individual (P. 8. 13). Children, whom experiment with any drugs or alcohol, including marijuana, before the age of 12, are four to five times more likely to have major addiction problems than those who wait until after 18 years of age (P. . 13). Adolescents contain less body fat and water content than adults and have immature enzyme metabolism systems. They also â€Å"manifest the condition shortly after beginning use if genetically vulnerable to addiction,† (8. 13). Adolescents are more vulnerable to environmental stress and drug availability and had less time to develop life skills and healthy coping mechanisms (8. 13). Marijuana can have negative effects on the body and makes a person more susceptible to colds, flu, and other viral infections.ETC can lead to â€Å"enhanced growth of tumors, including those response. Marijuana smoking also damages the lungs and other respiratory tissue (Anabas & Cohen, 2011). The legalization of marijuana is making the drug easier to acquire and because of this more and more adolescence are using this drug. With he vulnerability of the young human brain the impact of marijuana can be extremely sever. Legalization is making the use of marijuana a social norm which is slowly leading users to try other drugs, causing marijuana to be a gateway drug.

Education Policy in Two Different Countries Essay

Education Policy in Two Different Countries Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   These refers to the principles and policies made by the government in the field of education, collection of rules and laws that govern the operations carried out in the education system. Education is a form of learning where knowledge, habits and skills of a particular group of people are transmitted from generation to generation through training, teaching or carrying out a research. It occurs in different forms such as formal, informal and non-formal with different purposes from institutions of learning like colleges/universities, professional education and graduate, job training and adult education. When implementing education in a given country, education policies are evidently known that they can affect education that people engage in directly at all ages. They have to be critically analyzed for effective learning under different areas in the field of schools such as; the size of school to be constructed, school choice, certification a nd teacher education, school privatization under education policy(Ball, 2009, 89), tracking, teaching methods, graduation requirements, curricular content, investment in the school infrastructure, and the values institutions are required to uphold and model.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Analysis of education policy is a scholarly study that seeks to give answers of different questions such as; the purpose of education, personal and societal objectives that education is designed to attain, methods to be used in attaining such objectives and tools applied in measuring their failure or success. Intended research of informing educational policy is done in a wide variety of learning institutions and several academic disciplines. Beneficial researchers are affiliated with different departments such as; economics, psychology, human development and sociology, departments and schools of education/public policy. Different countries have different educational policies according to the objectives and goals that education is expected to achieve. This essay critically evaluates issues concerning education policy in England and USA. Education policy in England   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Research shows that inequalities in education (Bunar, 2010: p.10) had erupted before schools were started for the children. The data provided by OECD displayed a higher percentage of individuals finishing tertiary education in many countries if their parents reached tertiary level of education. In many countries, educational inequalities continue to increase where people who have acquired education at higher levels have high possibilities of doing jobs which are non-formal. The question that prevails is whether the existing educational policies are minimizing these gaps. Are they relevant at their level of implementation? The essay reviews the truth about policies at the school level in England; this is due to the number of years one spends in school which is compulsory and plays an important role towards government intervention and it is conducted in a way that affects potentially all students. Recently, England started a good body of eva luating research of policies at school-level. The evaluation of these policies is based on school resources efficacy, market incentives, pedagogical approaches and school autonomy for raising attainment of education in schools.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Since 1988, education system had one key character under The Education Act, which has led to the implementation and designing a number of policies in education with an aim of improving standards of education and achievement. A good number of policies have been introduced at each stage of education, and a number of these policies have been evaluated. This gives an opportunity for a critical appraisal on such evaluations and the scope of different policies that have influenced achievement of education. These evaluations aim at the different ways of enhancing performance and reducing inequalities in education. Educational inequalities in England   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   These inequalities in the achievement of education can be differently identified at some points in individuals’ lives. However, these educational inequalities emerge at an early stage in the lifecycle and widen the gap as progress in education sequence is experienced. This description of the inequalities is aimed at motivating the evaluation of policies in education, which are used to alleviate inequalities in education and minimize achievement gaps, which is an important research in the field of education. Under this description, individual follows an ordered educational sequence which comprises of years in pre-school, compulsory schooling years, post-compulsory level of education and lastly to adult. Gaps in pre-school education   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Initially we focused on the educational achievement gaps being present even before students started going to school. These gaps are created by the environments they grow in, family backgrounds and different non-cognitive and cognitive levels of skills children have when entering school. Studies conducted under vocabulary skills (Lervag, 2010: p. 615) shows there is high dispersion of a number of sizeable gaps existing in gender and ethnic groups at the time of entering school. Compulsory school   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   At the stage of compulsory schooling, the gaps that were there at the school entry evolve. Where some widens while others narrow as abilities of children at school makes them move either up or down the outcomes of the educational distribution. This can be affected by policies of education with the scope of affecting achievement in education. Education at post-compulsory level   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This level of education is strongly impinged by the disadvantages of education acquired during compulsory schooling and the pre-school years. It determines whether an individual continues with education in post-compulsory level or not. This level is strongly determined by the education level of their parents. Adult learning   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Inequalities of education continue to increase even when a student completes full-time education. They extend to adults in their live of working as their training and education occurs and mostly to those who have acquired higher levels of education.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Under those stages of education, it is evident that inequalities in education emerge and exists at all levels in the sequence. Some gaps widen as individuals progresses more through the sequence of education especially those associated with disadvantages of schooling in urban areas are less compared to those in rural areas. This calls for a significant and a careful evaluation of the policies of education designed to affect educational inequalities. The educational policies raft introduced to the England system of education fifteen years ago provides a good setting for evaluation methods and their success and thus provides a better understanding of educational work. Policy evaluation regarding to England school   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although these policies at all levels of lifecycle are important for improving attainment in education and inequality reduction, the policies of school-level ought to be focused on in the England system of education. This is because compulsory years of schooling give an important time for the intervention of the government. It also acts as a good body of evaluation of the research policies in England. This calls for selective areas of policy with a critical appraisal which is rigorous. The following are headings of policy discussion and their methods of evaluation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   School resources refer to perennial debates concerning educational literature of economics of whether if the expenditure of the school is increased will have an effect on improving pupil attainment (Peters, 2009: p.1). Research on whether the implantation of such policies can reduce the types of attainment gaps experienced earlier. The relevance of such implementation is to determine whether additional expenditure can lead to cost effective in developed countries at the typical levels.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   International research indicated that there is no good relationship between student outcomes and resources. However, some puts more efforts on studies particularly with methodological design with positive impacts. The challenge faced in the implementation of this policy is that school resources are always allocated disproportionately to disadvantaged students. If this issue is not dealt with fully in methodological design, the way resources and attainment are related with one another will be easily obscured.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Critical evaluation shows that favorable association between educational disadvantages and school resources is counter-balanced to the unfavorable association between educational attainment and educational disadvantage. This clearly indicates that association between educational attainment and school resources is very low, and there is no true reflection of casual relationship. There is the fact that the implementation of controlled randomized experiments has been impossible, researchers have found it difficult to prove that such a problem has been solved. Being the biggest category of expenditure of the UK government, it calls for a more significant sense of getting whether if the expenditure is either increased or reduced there is the likelihood of having an impact on students’ outcomes. This aspect is very important for the future economy in the country and the future prosperity of individuals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Recent studies have been done concerning this issue in England using national citizen database and all schools expenditure. The national curriculum of the English government is divided into four key levels/stages, then at the end of these stages teachers evaluates the students or they are given national tests that externally and marked at the school when students are the age of 11 and 16. A study done have critically evaluated the relationship between attainment and expenditure in the secondary school level at the age of 14 and 16 respectively, displayed a small positive impact of resources used and on pupil attainment. The challenge behind it is that political control is used as an instrument for expenditure in the school.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Government has initiated better flame work for examining casual effects derived from this context. In early 2000s, a flagship evaluation policy was done on the government labor and the (EiC) program for the secondary schools in England. Under this program, disadvantaged schools mainly located in urban areas were provided extra resources with an effort of improving standards.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Incentives for a period of more than thirty years a concerted effort has been done with an aim of increasing the choice of parents, competition between schools and their accountability for the children performance (Eom, 2011:p.418). If the economy develops well, children go to better schools with incentives of increasing performance. This is because their effort should be strongly linked to pupil information and numbers which is disclosed to parents under the accountability framework.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   School autonomy most government schools function within a given framework based on their jurisdiction concerning terms of teacher conditions and pay, admissions, composition of the body that is governing and the curriculum (Clark,2009: p.760). Since 2000, the England government started academies which led to the emergence of new schools given more autonomy compared to typical government schools in terms of their freedom of operations. The rationale behind this greater emphasis on autonomy is to encourage schools to have more innovative policies and facilitate improvement of standards. In England, the so called academies are managed by any appointed governor or their sponsors who are responsible in recruiting all staffs, freedom over curriculum implementation, agreeing on the terms and conditions of payment and organizational aspects of the school.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Pedagogy although since the year 2000, school autonomy in England seems to have gained popularity, it has not been true to various school organizational aspects (Terenzin, 2010: p.772). The government has put into place prescriptive measures in order to improve standards in numeracy and literacy through pedagogical methods. The national numeracy and literacy strategy rolled out in 1998 and 1999 was aimed at improving teaching quality through introducing more focused effective management of the class and instructions. Both literacy and numeracy did not present an overall time increase that was allotted in teaching some subjects. Both dramatically represented a change on the teaching methods of such subjects.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The above evaluation on education policy in England clearly shows that gaps in educational attainment are evident from earlier times and have been measured along the lifecycle. Various policies have been reviewed at the school level and implemented in England which brought high standards economic evaluation, aiming to see how scope of educational inequalities can be impinged. This has been done under the evaluation of the following educational policies implemented in England such as; incentives, school resources, pedagogical approaches and school autonomy. This issue of reducing educational inequalities and gaps that exist in the sphere of education has been shaped for effective implementation. It enhances positive impacts through the use of the following contextual factors applied in secondary school classroom setting.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Structure and organization of the educational system: this helps in shaping the development of curriculum by considering the society served by the education system. It reflects the aspirations and the needs of the students, function and the nature of learning and statement formulation on the importance of learning. This enables students to know how policies of education are implemented and established, influences the operation of schools and helps them to achieve their educational goals and curricular.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Climate of learning in schools this involves many factors and values such as safety practices, cultures, and organizational structures shaping the school to react and function in a given way (Cohen,2009: p.189). Favorable and positive climate created in school by all stakeholders’ results to higher achievement by students.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Teaching staff: their professional development plays a great important role by attempting to reform or change an education system. The general purpose behind teachers’ evaluation is to ensure that the quality of instructions students receive from teachers are safeguarded and improved. Teachers are evaluated through classrooms observation by the principals, peer review of teachers and checking on students’ performance.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Parental involvement: for a school to be successful there must have a high cooperation among teachers, school administration and parents. A research done indicated that if parents participate in the education of their children, it results to an increase in the academic achievement of the students and an overall attitude improvement towards school.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Classroom environment: instructional activities carried out in school are always influenced by environment in the classroom. This includes classroom size, class composition and instructional time. Research indicates that favorable classroom environment benefits academic development thus helping students to achieve educational goals.Education policy in USA   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In USA, education is provided by both private and public schools. Education in public schools is universally available, funded and controlled by the state, federal and local government. Private schools are set free to come up with their own curriculum and policies of staffing. Educational evaluation plays a significant role in USA as it assesses and distinguishes particular characteristics of the education process. It is a professional process by which incessant review is commenced by independent educators with an aim of improving the learning process. This attempt is done to ensure smooth progress on the whole learning experience. The evaluation process in USA is conducted under the following three routes;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Personal evaluation: this comprises of a legal and an ethical process, the standards behind it are educational, significant and judicious. Personnel evaluation standards are easily implemented, apt in funds and proficient in utility.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Program evaluation: it involves ground standards that provide a guarantee of the demanded information by users. This process of evaluation is based on factors that are prudent, practical, and thrifty and save. It results to an accurate and complete evaluation to the point.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Student evaluation: it is a program carried out ethically and legally which is kept in the students mind while others are affected by it. Its standards are diligently judicious, educational and significant therefore; it is an extremely useful evaluation to students. The process is very sensible, efficient, affordable, feasible, politically and socially.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Education policy in USA has been effectively evaluated with an aim of ensuring educational effectiveness among students at different levels of education. Policy-amenable of the school characteristics are among the factors controlled under school management or national policy of education. It refers to substantive policy measures of education in areas such as governance, curriculum, accountability and development of a professional teacher and other characteristics at the school-level known to improve teaching. This discussion focuses on three main areas of policy-amenable characteristics of a school which shapes educational policy implementation. They include school climate, school resources and school policies. It is also interested in measuring the school context by mean socio-economic students’ backgrounds within the school. Relative impacts determined by school characteristics of policy-amenable and school context on the quality of education has helped policy makers to have a control.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The question under the educational policy evaluation is why some schools are performing better than others. If the policy evaluation can identify the factors causing such deviation in terms of different school performance, better strategies can be implemented to change such performance deviation; that is identifying general characteristics of schools with high performance and use such information to improve performance of a given school. The following are the three main areas according to PISA which shapes education policy implementation and has an effect towards students’ performance.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   School resources comprises of physical resources and materials such as the school size and the quality of physical infrastructure in the school, human resources including number of teaching staff (Peters, 2009: p.1). They have a tertiary qualification and the number of students in the school compared to the available teachers. If the school infrastructure is well constructed and the school has enough teachers the performance of students is likely to increase. This evaluation conducted in schools ensures effective implementation of the curriculum which facilitates achievement of educational goals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   School climate entails different aspects culture of the school including how well teachers and students get along, disciplinary climate (Crul, 2009: p. 1478). In addition, it includes how committed and motivated school’s teachers are and how strongly does the students identify themselves with their school. This factor is implemented well by school principals through ensuring that students are well disciplined and that teachers-students cooperation is improved. It is also well maintained through students’ motivation that results to high performance of students.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   School policies it comprises the level of autonomy enjoyed by the school when making decisions, issues concerning accountability of whether self-evaluation is conducted in the school and students’ progress monitored (Creemers, 2010: p.815). Such policies also determine whether the school gives the parents information concerning the students’ performance or not. Lastly these policies establish the degree of selectivity in the school concerning admission policies and the way low achievers are transferred to different schools. These factors shape the issue of educational inequality and the gaps created in the secondary level, and if well implemented high attainment is achieved.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Conclusively, evaluation of education policy is an important factor in different countries for educational effectiveness. The above evaluation clearly shows some of the challenges experienced in school such educational inequalities, poor performance and non-effective governance among others results to poor performance. England and USA among other nations have developed educational policy evaluation at different levels of education. From the above discussion, it is clear that these policies have improved standards of education shaped under different contextual factors. Comparably, both countries have had almost the same factors such as school resources, school policies among other discussed factors above. The recommendation is that such policies should be improved and well implemented and for who are yet to implement should do it for educational effectiveness. References Anderson, P., Chisholm, D., & Fuhr, D. C. (2009). Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of policies and programmes to reduce the harm caused by alcohol. The Lancet, 373(9682), 2234-2246. Ball, S. J. (2009). 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