Chitizenship Coursework

On the Monday 19th January we decided to go to Meadow Primary School, which is mine and Katie's old primary school, to talk to a class of year 4 children about why we need trees. The group of children where specially selected by the Headmaster as they had recently been on a trip that had a lot to do with nature and involved many nature based activities. Our presentation included a short PowerPoint presentation on the topic we had chosen which was â€Å"Why we need trees†, and asking the children to answer some questions at the end on the topic, using the information that was provided in the presentation and some booklets that we had also made and provided. These included some information, questions and other activities, as well as a web site where they could get more information. We where originally going to plant a tree with the children as well, but because of unfortunate rainy weather we where not able to as the ground was to muddy and slippery. Describe your Role As my part I introduced who we where, why we where here and what we had come to talk about. I also talked about the contents of slides 1-8, as we decided to talk about the slides that we made, mine being about why trees are important to our and other animals survival. The slides did not only have information on but also some questions that I asked them to see how much they knew already and to get them involved to interests them more as I did not think they would be to interested with us just talking for about half an hour as the children between ages of 8 and 9. As we where early finishing I also took part in quizzing the children on the presentation, which was actually quite a good method to find out what they learnt, which in turn helped see how interesting and helpful our presentation was. Planning Stages We decided to do our presentation when we where looking through a booklet in our PSHCE lesson, that had suggestions in of what we could do for our coursework. We decided this could be fun for both the children and us and be an opportunity to see how well we can interact with children. We discussed a school that would be appropriate for us to go to and then got in contact with the head master by writing a letter. After he replied saying he would like us to go and see him, me and Katie went to see him to tell him in more detail about our intensions. After he said we would be allowed, we started preparing our presentation. We told him about the woodlands trust, and asked them if it would be ok to set up a school planting program. This would mean they would get tree, plants, and shrubs sent to them, which they could plant on the school grounds. This was also, where we got the trees that we would be planting from. After we finished the presentation and booklets, Katie and I went back to Meadow to arrange a date when we could go, and the group of students we would be presenting it to. Many different factors affected this as we where hoping to do it on a Monday afternoon when we had PSHCE as then we would not have to miss any of our other lessons, but it also had to be appropriate for the school, as we could not do it before Christmas as they had school plays and where doing other activities. The Headmaster also had important meetings, and wanted to see us do the presentation as well. My Contribution My contribution to the planning was helping to write the letter to the headmaster of Meadow Primary School telling him of our intensions and asking if we could go and see him to explain in more detail and hopefully get his permission to prepare and give a presentation on our chosen topic. When he replied I went to see him along with Katie to explain in more detail and get permission to give the presentation, and to arrange a group of children who we would be giving our presentation to. Once we knew this I started making slide 1-8 of the presentation. To do this I looked on the tree for all website to get some ideas and information about what I could include, along with various other websites that provided information about our chosen topic. Contribution of Others The rest of my group done very similar work to me as we wanted to make sure the work was split equally between us, and that we where all happy with what we where doing. As I mentioned before we all contributed to helping write the letter as we knew it would be important to get a reply. Katie came with me to see the headmaster to organise dates etc and explain in more detail about what we wanted to do. She also created the next part of the power point which was slides 9-16 which where about what problems where being caused due to there being less trees, and why they where being cut down. She also researched information on the internet a created slides 17-22 which where about what we could do to help and also a slide on the woodlands trust website as they played an important part I our talk. Kelly made the booklets that we gave to the children using the information that we put on the power point, and also finding pictures and activities that would help make the booklet more interesting. As we also wanted to plant a tree we got together to talk about where we could get one from, and decided that we talk to the headmaster of meadow about getting involved with the tree for all program which meant they would be sent boxes of trees, hedges, shrubs etc that would be at a suitable size to plant. He said that they where interested in doing this and was sent the box of plant life, and allowed us to plant one of them each instead of having to buy our own. Activity Log Activity Group/Individual Date Writing a letter to the headmaster Group 3/11/08 Meeting the headmaster to organise details Group 14/11/08 – 9/01/09 Researching information for the topics we where doing Individual 14/11/08 -06/12/08 Creating slides in the PowerPoint or booklets Group/Individual 14/11/08 -06/12/08 Talking about the presentation Group/Individual 19/01/09 Asking questions Group/Individual 19/01/09 We thought educating children about the value of trees would be a good idea because there where lots of things to talk about especially as issues such as global warming are now becoming a problem. We decided to talk to a group of younger children as we felt it would be more interesting for them and they would be more likely to listen and get involved. I also feel it is important to educate the children at an earlier age, so they will interested in helping by recycling, turning of lights etc at an earlier age, and get into a routine of it so it will carry on when they are older. Even though there was quite a bit of work involved I am still glad I decided to do the project because both the group and the children found it fun, although it was a bit disappointing that we did not get to plant the trees. When the headmaster replied to our letter, me and Katie went to see him which although was a bit daunting, it was also very helpful as he gave us some ideas and tips that could help us prepare the presentation and improve our work, which soon made us feel much better about going to see him again. Going to see the headmaster also helped me to see what it would be like in the future going to see an employer as I now know what its like to be questioned about what I want to do. I was so relived when he said yes because it was a school I was familiar with and also one of the easiest to get to, which made everything a lot easier to organise. It took quite a long time to prepare the presentation as we had to fit it all together, and find times when we all could get together at the end to edit the power point and make sure we all thought it was informational, yet not to complicated for the children to understand. We also had to make sure the booklets where informational yet fun so the children will take interest in them. A lot of the information we included we thought of ourselves, but researched facts that we could include to show them more clearly how bad problems like global warming and deforestation where getting, but telling them other things like what we can do to help we came up with ourselves from things we already knew. Team work played an important part in our project as we had to all do equal parts in order to make it fair, but we also had to be happy with the part we where given which we where. On my own it would have taken me much longer to do and also would have been more scary to do the presentation, so I'm glad I was able to work in a team as it made the experience more enjoyable. List of Supporting Evidence We have kept a copy the letter we wrote to the headmaster as proof of our visit, and we have also kept copies of the power point presentation and booklets. We where also given some copies of the letters that the headmaster sent out to the parents of the children to make them aware of our visit and our intentions, which has his signature and contact details of the school. There where also other documents that where created whilst organising dates etc which the headmaster, but we have not included them as they where just notes as a reminder of the date and time and other details like what age the children where. The power point was really just a background that would help us to give our speeches by showing facts and other details, and it also make the talk more interesting for the children, as we used bright colours and pictures. We choose a green theme as we thought that would be the most appropriate colour, and included pictures of animals as we told of how they could be affected if all the trees where cut down, because I think it is important the children know the effects global warming and deforestation has on the animals, as well as ourselves. I think creating the power point was the hardest part, because we had to make informational, but complicated to understand, which meant we had to be careful about what we talked about and our vocabulary, because if we mentioned something or said words that the children did not understand they would become confused, so we asked other people like our parents what they thought before we went back to tell him it was finished. The booklets where something we made as an extra for the for the children and consisted of activities like dot to sots and bullet pointed some information and facts that where mentioned during the presentation. We made them as an encouragement for children to do something more, like convincing their parents to recycle more etc, as they would be able to remember facts and what they can do to help better. We also included the Tree for All website on them, so they will be able to go on there and get more information and ideas. Use of Supporting Evidence I think writing the letter to the headmaster was the most important part of our work, because without it we would not have been able to do our presentation, and may have ended up doing something else, which would have been really disappointing. The power point was also important as it helped keep the children from getting bored, as well as reminding us what to say by showing facts and information, as without we would have had to memorise a speech which would have been hard to remember and probably quite boring for the children, which would have made it quite nerve wrecking and probably not as enjoyable. I also think it was better that we made booklets for them even thought they where not necessary, as it meant the children would be more likely to get involved as they had something that could tell them how, and them doing something like, turning of lights, recycling, etc would still be and achievement as our aim wasn't just to inform, but to try and convince them to get involved. Once we finished the presentation we questioned the children on what they had learnt, and this proved that we where successful in capturing their interest, as we where afraid of none of them getting involved and putting their hands up, but many of them did which was very pleasing as it meant our visit has had some kind of effect. Doing this presentation has also taught me some new things, especially when we where creating the power point, for example I now know that the Amazon Rainforest gives us more than 20% of our oxygen, and that nearly half of it has been cut down. I found this quite shocking, and it made me realise just how bad things are getting environmentally, and made me think more about what could be drastic effects that these damages could have, like more illnesses due to less trees removing the air pollution. I am really disappointed that we did not get to plant the trees as it would have been nice to give them and example, and it would have been a new experience for me, and a lot of the children who have never planted a tree before, although hopefully they will get chances in the future now that the school is getting trees to plant from the woodlands trust. I hope that they will enjoy doing this and that our visit will encourage them to do things outside of school and suggest ideas to any outer school clubs they go to, or get involved with activities and events that go on within the community. Evaluation of my Own Contribution I think I done my role within the group well because I created my faire share of slides for the power point, and helped organise the presentation, which meant going to meadow primary after school, as well as working on the slides. I also helped put the power point together and improve other slides that may have been a bit complicated. I think the amount of work we done was all fair and equal and I think we done it quite well, and I was especially pleased with how the presentation went as I was really nervous in case they found us boring or would not listen and where badly behaved, but luckily we managed t interest them as they where eager to answer the questions, although they could sometimes get a bit chatty when we started discussing things, although I am still really with how well behaved they where. Evaluation of Others Contribution I think everyone in my group worked really well, and I think we functioned well as a group, as we shared the work equally and had now arguments or disagreements about what we where doing , or over who was doing what. I think it was our good teamwork and cooperation that made everything go so well. I think Emma and Katie done a really good job of creating their slides for the power point and explained them in a calm yet interesting way. Kelly also did a really good job with the booklets and finding and creating activities for them. She was also very good with her timing during the presentation as she gave us enough time to do each slide, and also made sure we switched at the right point and stayed within time. I really enjoyed working with my friends and am really happy that everything went so smoothly because of our hard work and motivation. For my PSHCE project, me and my friends Kelly, Katie and Emma, wanted to do something to help the environment. We choose to do a project based around trees, as they are an important part to the survival of living things as they provide us with oxygen. They also provide homes and food for animals and resources for us. Due to the air pollution that is given off from transport vehicles, burning fossil fuels to make electricity, etc, as more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, and traps heat emitted by the sun. This is called the greenhouse effect, and trees reduce the problem as they take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and give off oxygen. Cutting down the trees therefore speeds up the process and can lead to devastating effects like flooding that will be caused by the sea levels rising from the polar ice caps melting from the hotter temperatures. We thought the best way to help, would be to inform younger people as hopefully it would interest them at an early age to recycle, turn off lights and electrical appliances when there not being used, etc, and they would also encourage their parents and brothers and sisters to do the same. We decided the best way to do this would be to go to a primary school and give a small presentation and give out some booklets about trees, why they are important, what is happening and what we can do to help. We also thought that planting a tree with them would be a fun example and reminder of what they can do to help, as they would then see the trees everyday. The school we decided to contact was Meadow Primary School because it was near by and mine and Katie's old primary school, so we already knew the headmaster and the contact details. We decided the best way to contact him would be through a letter so we wrote one together explain what we wanted to do, why and what it involved. I put my phone number on the letter, and a couple of days later, he phoned us saying that he would be happy to let us give our presentation, and that we should go and see him after school to arrange some details. Me and Katie went because it was inconvenient for Emma and Kelly as they lived quite far away. Once there we talked about the details like when we should visit, which was preferably Monday afternoon as that is when we have PSHCE and so we would not be missing any of our other lessons. We also discussed which class we would be talking to and decided that our talk would fit in best with a group of year fours who had recently been on a school trip which had involved them learning about nature. Over the next week we created a power point presentation and some booklets. We decided to split the power point presentation into three sections, and we would each speak about the part that we done. I would be talking about why trees are important and where they are being cut down. Katie was talking about the problems cutting down trees was causing, and why they where being cut down, and Emma talked about what can be done to help. I got information of various websites which helped me to include some facts and figures, like who the Amazon Rainforest gives us 20% of our oxygen. As we where talking to children between the ages of we had to be careful of the language we used and how we phrased things, as they would not know as many words as us, and so may not understand if we said something that we had been taught in our lessons at school. I found this a bit difficult as when I am usually describing something, I like to use a wider vocabulary and try to make it very detailed, but as I had to do the opposite of this, I found I had to keep asking people for their opinion of whether the children would be able to understand, as although we did want to teach them something new, we thought it would be difficult and confusing for them to learn too many new words. When everyone had finished their part, we fitted the power point together and changed everything so it matched. We also read through it editing and adding in bits, like questions each part offered ideas from all of us making it better. When we where finished we gave Kelly the presentation so she would have the information she needed to create the booklets, which I think she done really well, as she found and created lots of activities for the children to enjoy. When we where happy with our final editing, me and Katie went back to Meadow to arrange a date for our visit, but due to the time we had some trouble, as we where doing exams, and they had Christmas plays, so we went back after Christmas and arranged the date for the 9th January. On the day we left our fourth lesson early, to get to Meadow before half two so we could prepare the presentation. While we where talking, the children where very quite and didn't talk at all, which although this was really good as showed they where listening, I did worry that they may be too shy or uninterested to answer the questions, but this was not the case. We found the children answered the questions with a lot of enthusiasm which was really pleasing as it showed they where interested in helping the environment, and capturing their interest was something we wanted to achieve. As it was to wet to plant the trees, instead we decided to spend the last 15 minuets questioning the children about the presentation, which I think went really well as like before, the children where all enthusiastic to answer the questions we asked, and gave us many of the points that where included in the power point. This was great as it showed that they had been listening and showed they where interested in the environment. I think that everything was really well although it was really disappointing that we did not get to plant the trees as it would have been fun and a great experience for us and the children, but we did get the satisfaction of knowing that they would be planting them some other time, and that they had learnt something. They also seemed to be really interested in the booklets that we made which was pleasing as hopefully they will have taken them home and done the activities and even tried some of the activities we recommended. I also hope that they will have tried to influence their parents and their siblings to help by turning of lights and recycling, as this could spread out through out the community and encourage many more people to start helping, which could have an impact on the amount of trees that are being planted and cut down.

Island of the Sequined Love Nun Chapter 46~48

46 Beans and Succubus Tuck's other partner showed up at his bungalow that evening as he was sitting down to a plate of pork and beans. She didn't knock, or call out, or even clear her throat politely to let him know she was there. One minute Tuck was studying a gelatinous white cube of unidentifiable carbon-based life-form awash in a lumpy puddle of boiled legumes and tomato sauce, and the next the door opened and she was standing there wearing nothing but a red scarf and sequined high heels. Tuck dropped his spoon. Two partially used beans dribbled out of his open mouth, tracing contrails of sauce down the front of his shirt. She executed a single flamenco heel stomp and Tuck watched the impact move up her body and settle comfortably in her breasts. She threw her arms wide, struck a pose, and said, â€Å"The Sky Priestess has arrived.† â€Å"Yes, she has,† Tuck said with the glassy-eyed stupifaction of a newly converted Moonie. He'd seen something like her before, either on the hood of a Rolls-Royce or on a bowling trophy, but in the flesh the image was much more immediate, awe-inspiring even. She pirouetted and the tails of the scarf trailed around her like affectionate smoke. â€Å"What do you think?† â€Å"Uh-huh,† Tuck said, nodding. â€Å"Come here.† Tuck stood and moved toward her in the mindless shuffle step of a zombie compelled by the promise of living flesh. His brain stopped work-ing, his entire life energy shifted to another part of his body, and it led him across the room to within an inch of her. It wasn't the first time this had happened to him, but before he had always retained the power of speech and most of his motor functions. â€Å"What's wrong with you?† she said. â€Å"Bolts in your neck too tight?† â€Å"My entire body has an erection.† She took him by the front of the shirt and backed him across the room to the bed, then pushed him down and pulled his pants down to his knees. She vaulted onto him in a straddle and he reached up for her breasts. She caught his wrists. â€Å"No. You'll fuck up my makeup.† And he noticed – like an accident victim might notice a butterfly in the grille of the bus that is running over him – that her nipples had been rouged to an unnatural pink. He tried to sit up and she shoved him back down, then took him in her hand, nicking him with a red fingernail, making him wince, and guided him inside of her. He reached for her hips to drive her down and got his hands slapped for the effort. And she fucked him – precise and mechanical as a machine, a single pounding motion repeated and lubricated and repeated again – until her breath rasped in her throat like hissing hydraulics and she arched her back and stalled, and misfired, then dieseled for a stroke or two, and she climbed off. Somewhere in all that he had come and she had looked at him once. He lay there looking at the remnants of torn mosquito netting over the bed, breathing hard, feeling a little dizzy, and wondering what had just happened. She went to the bathroom, then returned a few seconds later and threw him a towel, which she had obviously used herself. â€Å"We're flying in three or four hours. Be ready.† â€Å"Okay.† Was he supposed to say something? Didn't this signify some sort of change that should be acknowledged? â€Å"I want you to watch me, but you can't let them see you. Wait a few minutes and go out by the hanger where you can see the airstrip. It's a great show. Theater makes it all possible, you know. Ask the Catholics. They survived the Middle Ages by putting on performances in a language that no one understood on grand stages that were built by the pennies of the poor. That's the problem with religion today. No theater.† This must be her version of cuddling. â€Å"Performance?† â€Å"The appearance of the Sky Priestess,† she said as if she was talking to a piece of toast. She walked to the door, then paused and looked over her shoulder. Almost as an afterthought she said, â€Å"Tucker,† and when he looked up she blew him a kiss. Then she was out the door and he heard her shout, â€Å"Cue the music!† A big band sound blasted across the island, sending a shiver rattling through Tuck's body as if a chill ghost from the forties had jitterbugged over his spine. 47 Grand Theft Aircraft The Shark men were breaking into their second jug of tuba when the music started. They all looked to Malink. Why hadn't he told them there was going to be an appearance of the Sky Priestess? Malink thought fast, then grinned as if he had known this was coming all along. â€Å"I wanted it to be a surprise,† he said. Why hadn't this been an-nounced by the Sorcerer? Was he still angry because Malink had not pro-duced the girl-man on demand? Was Vincent himself angry at Malink for something? Certainly Malink's people would be angry at him for not giving them the time to prepare the drums and the bamboo rifles of Vincent's army – and the women, oh, the women would be shitting coconuts over not having time to oil their skins and paint their faces and put on their ce-remonial grass skirts. As Malink trudged to the airstrip he tried to formulate some explanation that would work with everyone. As if it wasn't difficult enough being chief with no coffee to drink in the morning – he'd had a headache for two weeks from caffeine withdrawal – now his role as religious leader was giving him problems. Leading a religion is tough work when your gods start stirring for real and messing up your prophecies. And what if he did come up with an explanation, only to have the Priestess of the Sky say something that contradicted him? She was supposed to be Vincent's voice, but that voice had been angry lately, so he didn't dare ask her for help as he had in the past. Not in front of his people. He came out of the jungle just in time to see the flash of the explosions. The Sky Priestess walked out of the smoke and even from a hundred yards away, Malink could tell by her step that she was pleased. Malink breathed a sigh of relief. She was carrying magazines for them. If his people were happy with what she said, then he could use the old â€Å"will of Vincent† argument for not preparing them. He could have never guessed the real reason the Sorcerer had not forewarned him of the appearance of the Sky Priestess. At the time when he normally called the warning, the Sorcerer had been watching through the window as the Sky Priestess pumped away on Tucker Case. Tuck waited five minutes before he pulled up his pants and slid out the door of his bungalow, nearly running into Sebastian Curtis. The doctor, normally cool, was soaked with sweat and looked past Tuck to the clinic. â€Å"Mr. Case. I thought you'd be preparing the plane. Beth did tell you that you have a flight?† Tuck fought the urge to bolt. He hadn't had enough time to build up any remorse about having sex with the doctor's wife, and he didn't excel at remorse in the first place. â€Å"I was on my way to do the preflight. It doesn't take long.† The doctor didn't make eye contact. â€Å"You'll forgive me if I seem distracted. I have to perform major surgery in a few minutes. You should go watch Beth's little show.† â€Å"What's all the music and explosions?† â€Å"It's how we retrieve our donors. Beth will explain her theory of religion and theater to you, I'm sure. Excuse me.† He pushed past Tucker and looked at his shoes as he walked toward the clinic. â€Å"Aren't you going to watch?† Tuck said. â€Å"Thank you, but I find it nauseating.† â€Å"Oh,† Tuck said. â€Å"Then I'll go check out the Lear. Great game today, Doc.† â€Å"Yes,† Curtis said. He resumed his stiff-armed walk to the clinic, his fists balled so hard at his sides that Tuck could see them shaking. The guards were gathered at the edge of the hangar. Mato looked up quickly and made eye contact long enough for Tuck to see that he was nervous. Tuck wished he had asked him if the other guards spoke English. â€Å"Konichi-wa, motherfuckers,† Tuck said, covering his linguistic bases. None of the guards responded. Except for Mato, their eyes were trained on Beth Curtis dancing across the airstrip to Benny Goodman's â€Å"Sing, Sing, Sing.† One of the guards hit a button by the hangar and the music stopped as Beth Curtis stepped onto a small wooden platform on the far side of the runway. With the speakers silenced, Tuck could hear the drums of the Shark People. Some were marching around in formation holding lengths of bamboo painted red as rifles. Beth Curtis raised her hands, a copy of People in each, and the drums stopped. Tuck couldn't hear what she was saying, but she was waving her arms around like a soapbox preacher, and the crowd of natives moved, and flinched, and hung on her every word. She paused at one point and handed the magazines down to Malink, who backed away from the platform with his head bowed. Tuck didn't find anything about her performance nauseating, but it was nothing if not strange. Why all the pomp and circumstance? You have six guys with machine guns, you can pretty much go rip a kidney out anytime you want to. He needed to think, and he didn't particularly want to see whom she would pick. Whoever it was, their face would be in his head all the way to Japan and back. He went into the hangar, lowered the door on the Lear, climbed into the dark plane, and lay down in the aisle between the seats. He couldn't hear the sound of the Sky Priestess or the natives oohing and ahhhing, and here among the steel and glass and plastic and upholstery, it felt like home. Here he could hear the sound of his own mind; here in his very own Learjet, the weirdness was all outside. But for the lack of a key he would have taken the plane right then. The guard kicked Tuck in the thigh much harder than was needed to wake him. Tuck looked up to see the face of the guard who had beaten him on the beach. He had a scar that ran up his forehead tracing a bare streak into his scalp and Tuck had started to think of him as Stripe, the evil little monster from the movie Gremlins. Tuck's anger was immediate and white-hot. Only the Uzi stopped him from getting his ass kicked again. The guard dangled the key to the Lear's main power cutoff. It was time to go. Tuck limped to the cockpit and strapped himself into the pilot's seat. Stripe inserted the power key into the instrument console, twisted it, and stepped back to watch as Tuck started the power-up procedure. The other ninjas pulled the Lear out of the hangar by a large T-bar attached to the front wheel. When the plane was safely out of the hangar, Tuck started to spool up the jets. Stripe remained with the Uzi at port arms. Tuck made a big show of going though the checklist, testing switches and gauges. He frowned and clicked the radar switch a couple of times. He looked back at Stripe. â€Å"Go check the nose. Something's not right.† The guard shook his head. Tuck mimed his instructions again and Stripe nodded, then he motioned through the window for another of the guards to join them on board. Evidently, they weren't going to leave him un-guarded in the plane with the power key in. Stripe turned over the guard duty to the other ninja and appeared at the front of the plane. Tuck mo-tioned for him to get closer to the nose. Stripe did. Tuck turned on the radar. â€Å"And a lovely brain tumor for you, you son of a bitch.† Stripe seemed to actually feel the microwave energy and he jumped back from the plane. Tuck grinned and gave him the okay sign. â€Å"I hope your tiny little balls are boiling,† he said aloud. The guard behind him didn't seem to understand what Tuck was saying, but he nudged him with the barrel of his Uzi and pointed. Beth Curtis, in her dark Armani, was coming across the compound with briefcase and cooler in hand. She stepped into the plane and nodded to the guard. Instead of leaving, he took a seat back in the passenger compartment. Beth strapped herself into the copilot's seat. â€Å"We taking him in for shore leave?† Tuck said. â€Å"No. He's just along for the ride tonight.† â€Å"Oh, right.† Tuck powered up the jets and eased the Lear out of the compound onto the runway. Beth Curtis was silent until they were at altitude, cruising toward Japan. Tuck did not engage the autopilot, but steered the Lear gradually, perhaps a degree a minute, to the west. â€Å"So what did you think?† â€Å"Pretty impressive, but I don't get it. Why the whole show to bring in someone for surgery? Why not just send the guards?† â€Å"We're not taking their kidneys, Tucker. They're giving them.† Tuck didn't want to give away what he had learned from Malink and Sepie about the â€Å"chosen.† He said, â€Å"Giving them to who? A naked white woman?† She laughed, reached into her briefcase, and brought out an eight-by-ten color photograph. â€Å"To the Sky Priestess.† She held the photograph where Tuck could see it. He had to steer manually. If he hit the autopilot now, the plane would turn back toward Japan, the only preset in the nav computer. The photograph was in color but old. A flyer stood by the side of a B-26 bomber. On the side of the bomber was the painting of a voluptuous naked woman and the legend SKY PRIESTESS. It could have been a painting of Beth Curtis as she had looked when she arrived at Tuck's bungalow. He recog-nized the flyer as well. It was the ghost flyer he'd been seeing all along. He felt his face flush, but he tried to stay cool. â€Å"So who's that?† â€Å"The flyer was a guy named Vincent Bennidetti,† Beth said. â€Å"The plane was named the Sky Priestess. All the bombers had nose art like that in World War II. We found the picture in the library in San Francisco.† â€Å"So what's that got to do with our operation? You're dressing up like the picture on an airplane.† â€Å"No, I am the Sky Priestess.† â€Å"I'm sorry, Beth. I still don't get it.† â€Å"This is the pilot that the Shark People worship. The cargo cult that ‘Bastian told you about.† Tuck nodded and tried to look surprised, but he was watching his course without seeming to do so. If he had figured it right, they would be over Guam in fifteen minutes and the American military would force them down. The Air Force was very cranky about private jets flying though their airspace. â€Å"The natives on Alualu worship this Vincent guy,† Beth said. â€Å"I speak for Vincent. They come to me when we play the music and I give them everything. In return, I choose one of them for the honor of the mark of Vincent, which, of course, is the scar they get from the operation.† â€Å"Like I said, you've got armed guards. Why not just take what you want?† She looked shocked that he would ask. â€Å"And get out of show business?† Then she smiled and reached over and gave his crotch a squeeze. â€Å"When I met Sebastian in San Francisco, he was drunk and throwing money around. One minute he was so dignified and erudite, the next he was like a little native child. He told me about the cargo cult and I came up with the idea of not just doing this to support the clinic, but to get really filthy rich. We had to keep the people happy if we were going to do this in big numbers.† â€Å"So you thought all of this up?† â€Å"It's the reason I'm here.† â€Å"But Sebastian said you were a† – Tuck caught himself before he said â€Å"stripper† – â€Å"surgical nurse.† â€Å"I was. So what? Did I get any respect for that? Did I get any power? No. To the doctors I was just a piece of ass who could handle surgical instru-ments and close a patient when they needed to get to the golf course. Did Sebastian tell you I used to strip?† â€Å"He mentioned something about it in passing.† â€Å"Well, I did. And I was good.† â€Å"I can imagine,† Tuck said. A few more minutes and they should be joined by an F-16. She smiled. â€Å"Fuck nursing. I was just a piece of meat to the men I worked with, so I decided to go with it. I was pushing thirty and all single women my age were walking around with a desperate look in their eye and a bio-logical clock ticking so loud you thought it was the crocodile from Peter Pan. If I was going to be treated like meat, I was going to make money at it. And I did. Not enough, but a lot more than I would have made nursing.† â€Å"Do tell,† Tuck said. He couldn't remember ever saying â€Å"Do tell,† and it sounded a little strange hearing it. She looked out the window as if she had fallen into some reverie. Then, without looking back, she said, â€Å"What's that island?† Tuck tensed. â€Å"I couldn't say.† She sighed. â€Å"Islands are amazing.† â€Å"I always say that.† She seemed to come out of her trance and looked at the instrument board. Tuck acted as if he was concentrating on flying the plane. He glanced at Beth Curtis. Her mouth had tightened into a line. She reached into the briefcase and came out with the Walther automatic. â€Å"What's that for?† Tuck said. â€Å"Get back on course.† â€Å"I am on course.† â€Å"Now!† â€Å"But I am on course. Look.† He pointed to the nav computer, which still showed the coordinates of the airstrip in Japan, although it wasn't engaged with the autopilot. â€Å"No, you're not.† She pointed to the compass. â€Å"You're at least ninety degrees off course. Turn the plane to Japan now or I'll shoot you.† Tuck was tired of it. â€Å"Right. And you'll fly the plane? There's a difference between being able to read a compass and making a landing.† â€Å"I didn't say I would kill you. I'm good with this. You'll still be able to fly with one testicle. Now that would be a shame for both of us. Please turn the plane.† Tuck engaged the autopilot and let the Lear bring itself around to the course to Japan. â€Å"Sebastian said you might try something like that,† she said. â€Å"I told him I could handle you. I can, can't I? Handle you, I mean.† Tuck was quiet for a minute, berating himself for overestimating the efficiency of the military. Then finally he said, â€Å"You are a nefarious, diabolical, and evil bitch.† â€Å"And?† â€Å"That's all.† â€Å"I'm impressed. ‘Nefarious' has more than two syllables. I am a good influence on you.† â€Å"Fuck you.† â€Å"You will,† she said. 48 Too Many Guns Back at the drinking circle, Malink opened a copy of People reverentially and read by kerosene lamp while the other men huddled to get a look at the pictures. â€Å"Cher is worst-dressed,† Malink announced. â€Å"Too skinny,† said Favo. â€Å"I like Lady Di.† Malink cringed. In the picture Lady Di was wearing a string of pearls, obviously the reason for Favo's preference. Malink turned the page. â€Å"Celestine Raptors of Madison County is number one movie in country,† Malink read. â€Å"I want to see a movie,† Favo said. â€Å"You must tell the Sky Priestess to tell Vincent to bring a movie.† â€Å"Many movies,† said Abo. â€Å"And many delicious light and healthy snacks with NutraSweet registered trademark,† he added in English. â€Å"Vincent will bring many snacks.† Malink was turning to the moving story of a two-thousand-pound man who, after being forklifted out of his house, had dieted down to a svelte fourteen hundred when the sound of a machine gun rattled across the is-land. Malink put down the magazine and held up his hand to quiet the men. They waited and there was another burst of gunfire. A few seconds later they heard shouting and looked down the beach to see Sarapul running as fast as his spindly old legs would carry him. â€Å"Come help!† he shouted. â€Å"They shot the navigator!† The Uzi was pressed so hard into Tuck's side that he felt as if his ribs were going to separate any second. The guard crouched behind him in the cockpit hatchway, while out on the tarmac Beth Curtis exchanged the cooler for another manila envelope. She seemed to be in a much better mood when she climbed back into the copilot's seat. â€Å"Home, James.† Tuck tossed his head toward the back of the plane where the guard was taking his seat. â€Å"I guess you weren't taking any chances about me taking off while you were out of the plane.† â€Å"Do I look stupid?† she said. A smile there, no hint of a challenge. â€Å"No, I guess not.† Tuck pushed up the throttles and taxied the Lear back out to the runway. Again Beth Curtis reached over and gave him a light squeeze to the crotch. She put on her headset so she could talk to him over the roar of the engines as they took off. â€Å"Look, I know this is hard for you. Trust is some-thing you build, and you haven't known me long enough to learn to do that.† Tuck thought, It would help if you weren't changing personalities every five minutes. â€Å"Trust me, Tucker. What we are doing is not hurting the people of Alualu. There are people in India who are selling off their organs for less than the price of a used Toyota pickup. With what we make, we can be sure that these people are always taken care of, and we can take care of ourselves in the meantime.† â€Å"If people are selling their organs on the cheap, then how are you – we – making so much money?† â€Å"Because we can do it to order. Transplant isn't just a matter of blood type, you know. Sure, in a pinch – and usually it is a pinch – you can go on just blood type, but there are four other factors in tissue typing. If they match, along with blood type, then you have a better chance of the body not rejecting the organ. Sebastian has a database of the tissue types of every native on the island. When there's a need for an exact match, the order comes in over the satellite and we run it through the database. If we have it, the Sky Priestess calls the chosen.† â€Å"Don't the people have to be the same race?† â€Å"It helps, but it seems that the people of Alualu have a very similar genetic pattern to the Japanese.† â€Å"They don't look Japanese. How do you know this?† â€Å"Actually, it was figured out by an anthropologist who came to the island long before I did. He was studying the language and genetics of the islanders to determine where they migrated from. Turns out there are both linguistic and genetic links to Japan. They've been diluted by interbreeding with natives from New Guinea, but it's still very close.† â€Å"So you guys opened up Kidneys ‘R' Us and started making a mint.† â€Å"Except for the scar, their lives don't change, Tucker. We've never lost a patient to a botched operation or infection.† But bullets, Tuck thought, are another matter. Still, there was nothing he could do to stop them, and if he had to do nothing, a great salary and his own jet were pretty good compensation. He'd spent most of his life not doing anything. Was it so bad to be paid for what you're good at? He said, â€Å"So it doesn't hurt them? In the long run, I mean.† â€Å"Their other kidney steps up production and they never notice the difference.† â€Å"I still don't get the Sky Priestess thing.† She sighed. â€Å"Control the religion and you control the people. Sebastian tried to bring Christianity to the Shark People – and the Catholics before him – but you can't compete with a god people have actually seen. The answer? Become that god.† â€Å"But I thought Vincent was the god.† â€Å"He is, but he will bring wonderful cargo in the Sky Priestess. Besides, it breaks the boredom. Boredom can be a lethal thing on a small island. You know about that already.† Tuck nodded. It wasn't so bad now. The fear of being murdered had gone a long way toward breaking his boredom. Beth Curtis leaned over and kissed him lightly on the temple. â€Å"You and I can fight the boredom together. That's one of the reasons I chose you.† â€Å"You chose me?† In spite of himself, he was thinking about her naked body grinding away above him. â€Å"Of course I chose you. I'm the Sky Priestess, aren't I?† â€Å"I'm not so sure it was you,† Tuck said, thinking about the ghost pilot. She pushed away and looked at him as if he had lost his mind.

Studies on Employee Satisfaction

With the increased competition, fast-paced environment and globalization efforts, companies are finding that they need the support of their employees more than ever. However, the new breed of personnel wants more than pay as a benefit. They are increasingly being motivated by other factors such as greater involvement with business decisions. Recent studies are researching ways that successful organizations are encouraging positive employee morale despite ongoing business changes. Full employee participation is required for any organizational change to succeed. Joint development of programs gives people ownership and the motivation to ensure the support of the change process. At SmithKline Beecham and Levi Strauss, for example, the strategy is view employees as business partners (Reid, 2004, p. 40). Some of the ways that Beecham and Strauss are instituting change include: 1) An emphasis on values as well as goals, since employees want to know how the organization expects to meet the desired results; 2) Along with #1, encourage joint goal setting that leads to greater involvement and dialogue. Joint goal setting can be a powerful motivator (Reid, 2004, p. 40). 3) Support anonymous real-time feedback through the Internet or the traditional suggestion boxes. 4) In tandem with #3, respond to feedback to let employees know their ideas have been heard. 5) Test and reward new ideas and response to challenges; 6) See employee involvement as an ongoing process that builds over time, rather than a one-shot deal; and 7) Continually review the goals established to see what headway is being made and changes needed. Survey employees regularly to measure whether needs are being met and the degree of interest in the company's success. Employee specialist Joel Schettler also notes the importance of updating training that in many cases still treats personnel as â€Å"grist for the mill† (2003, p. 56). Training programs should be cast as enhancing a right rather than negating a wrong. Employee motivation and incentives and training programs must go hand-in-hand to become an effective tool in today's environment. Training should also develop teamwork and foster pride in one's work. Pay-for-performance approaches bring only short-term, skin-deep results. When an employees' emotional involved, unexpected positive results occur. Arnett (2002, p. 87) stresses that companies are always putting an emphasis on external marketing programs when they should be marketing their internal customers, â€Å"the employees,† as well. He argues that a successful internal-marketing strategy can enhance both job satisfaction, organizational pride and positive employee behavior that is characterized by a commitment to customer service, cooperation with other employees, and to the company. Looking at the research that has thus far been conducted on employee motivation, Arnett (2002, p. 88) says that the effects of employee satisfaction have been researched extensively, but not the effect of pride. In a study, he hypothesized that both job satisfaction and pride are important variables that managers can use to encourage employees to engage in desired behavior. Further, developing a good relationship with employees is a precursor to building a good relationship with customers. Specifically, the study looked at job satisfaction, or an employee's general affective evaluation of his or her job; pride, an emotion that is crucial to understanding human behavior that is derived from both self-appraisals and others' opinions and represents a belief that one is competent and viewed positively by others; role clarity, where employees are clear about the scope and responsibilities of their job; a reward system where employees know they will be measure on how well they perform their duties and that positive performance brings rewards; work environment that is pleasing and offers rewarding experiences; managers that provide the proper training, listen to employees and are fair; an organization that promotes its performance to employees so they know they are a part of that performance; and activities that foster positive employee behavior and the well-being of the organization. Arnett (2004) developed a questionnaire that was responded to by 860. The majority of the respondents had been with the organization for between 1 and 5 years, 26 percent had been with the corporation less than one year, and the remaining 3 percent had been with the company for over five years. Most respondents were hourly employees, 9 percent were supervisors, 4 percent were salaried non-management employees, and 4 percent were managers. The results showed that job satisfaction and pride have the desired goal of promoting positive employee behavior. Three factors seem especially critical to building job satisfaction among employees–role clarity, the work environment, and employees' evaluations of managers' performance. Employees who believed they had a clear understanding of what it took to do their job were more likely to be satisfied. Therefore, employers should try to ensure that employees have a clear understanding of their responsibilities and expectations. Interestingly, the employees' evaluation of the reward system did not influence their job satisfaction. However, the researchers feel this is not an indication that employees do not care about the reward systems in their organizations. Instead, it may be an indication that other factors are more important for changing employee behavior. The results do support the proposition that the work environment affects job satisfaction. Therefore, organizations should not focus solely on the guests' environment, but should also examine that used by their employees as well. Employee evaluations of managers is related positively to job satisfaction, so managers should monitor the perceptions that employees have of the management team and make changes as necessary. In fact, the workers' evaluation of managers is most important to job satisfaction; role clarity is the next most important, followed by work environment. The study also showed that job satisfaction effected pride positively. Employees who were the most satisfied with their jobs exhibited the most pride in their organizations. Therefore, we suggest that job satisfaction influences employee behavior. Second, it affects positive employee behavior indirectly by encouraging, pride in the organization, which then leads to positive employee behavior. The results support the fact that employees' evaluation of managers has a positive effect on pride in the organization, as well. The Arnett research concluded that both job satisfaction and pride in the organization are important factors that influence employee behavior. Therefore, organizations that wish to promote positive behavior in their employees should focus on both of these factors. Although many organizations have specific programs and procedures designed to improve employee satisfaction, fewer organizations make a concerted effort to increase employee pride. Our results suggest that more organizations should focus on improving employee pride. What these above studies demonstrate is that if a company wants to encourage positive change and employee behavior, they need to look at other factors than pay and other material incentives. Although these will always continue to part of an employee incentive package, it is also necessary to reward personnel with the knowledge that their feedback and involvement are important to the company's success.

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647 W2D "Three main reason projects fail" - Essay Example I believe that Newton MessagePad was an impossible project since it could not withstand the stiff competition in the market. Besides, it turned to be too expensive, too big and much difficult to use than earlier expected. So, it had to fail and bring such a bid loss to the company. On the other hand, Webvan’s online grocery supply project failed because of mismanagement. Although the project was launched at the beginning of the Dot-Com Bubble, it had to fail. Having keenly followed the events at this company, I concluded that the internet grocery supply project failed because it was poorly managed. This was evidenced in 1999 when the company hired George Shaheen as its new head. After his appointment, Shaheen did not help in developing the company. Instead, he came up with expansionist policies of building branches in 26 cities without considering market and strengthening the already existing outlets. At the same time, he did not establish an effective communication between the executive management, project managers and team members (Gomez-Mejia et al., 2008). As a result, the project tremendously failed in 2001 only after managing to reach up to 10 cities. Last, but not least, IBM’s IBM 7030 (Stretch) Project failed in 1964 after it was launched in 1961 because it was over constrained. Although the management of IBM had planned to invent the world’s fastest supercomputer, it could not manage to achieve this goal because the project was seriously challenged. Its experts could not make such a computer because they lacked the required resources and skills. This explains why they were able to build a computer with a speed of only 40 times faster, not 100 times as anticipated. Hence, the project failed after selling only 9 computers. Had it not been over constrained, the company would have accomplished its goal (Flyvbjerg,

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The Value of Educational Research - Essay Example Educational research could be related to scientific analysis or could also be on teacher's role in setting and changing curricula, and on the extent to which individuals have access to high quality education. Educational research thus encompasses general issues on education as well as specific issues on scientific discovery and use of new and advanced technology in education. The value of educational research would be directly related to what lessons are drawn from analysis of general and specific issues on education, both in terms of scientific advancement and administrative policies related to education. A recent debate on educational systems and the evaluation of the national curriculum in the UK has moved from general discussions to specific standards of education along with highlighting the role and status of the teacher in promoting education. The teacher is considered a professional and an innovator and reducing them to followers or implementers of certain educational curricula is seen as a mistake. Osborne et al (1988) pointed out to the centralisation of the educational system and the rigidity of the curriculum, funding and assessment against the projected freedom of choice and parental involvement in education planning. Osborne et al suggest that curricula do not develop according to a set of objectives and procedures and behavioural sequences, but that educational objectives are set in accordance with what has already been done and the decisions made on the curricula. Schooling has been criticised as being too focused on offering teacher proof knowledge and packaged rather than what it should be. Of course what education should project is debatable and some have considered it as a moral and ethical activity that would prepare moral agents of society and developing value systems would be one of the important aspects of education. The role of education is to prepare a morally responsible society although it is also true that its effects cannot be predicted. Educational change could be described as an objective planning procedure although issues of morality and ethics would make it less objective and that is how educational systems become loaded with values and is not exactly value free. Osborne et al (1988) suggest that it is important for curricula of schools to be different as all kinds of educational standardisation would make the system too rigid although the value systems and ethical standards followed will have to be similar between schools. However this essay is not particularly focused on value systems within education but the inherent value of research on education. Value systems in education are related to issues of planning and objectives although any research in education would go beyond value systems and ethics or morality to include training, technology, innovation, teacher's role, educational st andards, socioeconomic activity, cultural factors and theoretical models of educational change and development. This essay being focused on the values of educational research, the mission or objectives of any educational research institute could be understood in terms of the following conditions laid down by the National Centre for Educational Research in the US MISSION.-The mission of the Research Center is- (1) to sponsor sustained research that will lead to the accumulation of knowledge and understanding of education, to- (A)

How evil is presented throughout the play Essay Example for Free

How evil is presented throughout the play Essay Show how Shakespeares sense of theatre supports the presentation of evil in Macbeth. Shakespeare was born in 1564 at Stratford upon Avon, he was an English poet and playwright. He wrote 38 plays 154 sonnets. He began his successful career in London as an actor and a writer, and later became known as what many say to be the greatest writer in the English language. One of his most successful plays is Macbeth it was written at the time king James I was on the throne at the time that the Gunpowder Plot that took place in 1605, and plotted against king James I and tried to blow up the houses of parliament. This is quite significant to the play as it links to people plotting against the king, as Macbeth does. In the end Guy Fawks is burnt, and at the end of the play Macbeth is also murdered. Shakespeare received patronage from the current monarchy if they were pleased with the play he had produced, so he made it appeal to the king or Queen he was writing it for. He did this when he wrote Macbeth, as he Put witches in the play and also based the play around witches and portrayed them as personifying evil this would have appealed to King James I as he wrote a book about witches called Demonology in this book he confirmed his conspiracy about witches being evil supernatural beings that made bad things happen. Shakespeare set the play in the 12th century when it was the17th century so that he could twist the facts of what happened to get across what he wanted to say, about the plot of the witches. Shakespeare tried to make things relevant in the play to King James I. He did this at the start of the play where he used Thunder and Lightening, before the three witches came on this would have appealed to King James I as he expressed very strongly that witches conjured up storms in the book he wrote. Another thing that portrayed evil at the start of the play is that the chant that the witches do ;Fair is foul and foul is fair, this shows that evil is about good being bad and bad being good. This links to Macbeth because when he first talks, he says so fair and foul a day I have not seen. He is echoing the words of the witches, and this alerts the audience and makes them think he is connected to them or of the same nature (also evil). Also when the witches say when the hurlyburlys done, when the battles lost and won it makes you curious to think that they may know what is to happen in the future. It also gives you the feeling that the witches are peculiar and supernatural if they can make predictions with such certainty. Shakespeare is also trying to show the power the witches have to make evil happen, that their presence or their words can effect people make them think evil and then become evil, as Macbeth does throughout the play. Macbeth as a victim of supernatural conspiracy as its the witches who put the essence of treason in his mind.This is shown when Banquo asks Macbeth Good sir, why do you start and seem to fear. This shows Macbeth is not innately good because seeing the evil of the witches made him fear and a noble man was not to let evil get to him, like Banquo didnt. This also shows he is susceptible to evil. He also started to have evil thoughts that even started to scare himself he says I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair, and make my seated heart knock at my ribs. Macbeth knows it is a sin against God to Murder or even hurt the Lords anointed King. At the start of the play he was honourable and favoured greatly by Duncan who gave him the titles Thane of Cawdor and Thane of Glamis for winning the battle and defeating the king of Norway, but Macbeth above all was a man of action and wanted to know how he could make the prediction of the witches come true and so he didnt let his evil thoughts get in the way .He says in act 1 scene 4 Stars hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires, he wants the stars to stay dark so that he can hide his murderous thoughts. Also dark is associated with bad and evil and light with good and noble. He doesnt want a starry night so that he can hide his evil thoughts in the darkness away from the light. Macbeth had lots of imagination but he lacked a strong will, when lady Macbeth allures him into Duncans murder he went along with the plans although deep down he knew it was morally the wrong thing to do., on the other hand lady Macbeth had a strong will persuading and brainwashing Macbeth, but has no imagination, she is the one who persuades him to commit the ghastly deed but is the one who goes mad. Another aspect of Macbeths imagination is when he sees daggers and apparitions before he goes to kill Duncan. Macbeth even Hallucinates when he sees the ghost of Banquo. When Macbeth goes to see the witches they make him feel invincible, they tell him no man of woman born can touch him hearing this he goes and kills all of MacDuffs family (his innocent wife and children) that is because he has descended to evil, he has reached the depths of evil and because evil never triumphs the audience knows he is going be caught, this is when he finds out that the witches tricked him but he does die a noble death because he is brave. Lady Macbeth is portrayed as an evil person in the play but also the source of all the evil from Macbeth. She personifies evil to Macbeth making him do wrong and she guides him into all that he does. This play is written to relate to the biblical story of Adam and Eve where God allows them to eat the fruit from all the trees except the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. A serpent persuades Eve to eat from that tree; she does so but also persuades Adam to eat from it. This relates to the story of Macbeth because Lady Macbeth persuades Macbeth to do evil. This is another thing that would have appealed to king James I as he was a religious man who strongly believed in what the bible said. When lady Macbeth reads the letter he has been sent by Macbeth she gets excited and starts having fantastical thoughts, yet she thinks her husband is too kind to do such a thing when she says It is too full o th milk of human kindness to catch the nearest way. She knows she will have to persuade him and she knows just how she will do this that I may pour my spirits in thine ear, and chastise with the valour of my tongue. She is saying she will use her language of persuasion and guide him into the evil to do what she wants him to do. She is the one who induces him and leads him to do it, at first he is reluctant but then she wins him over by saying that he should do it for the love of her, she also challenges his masculinity by doing this so in the end after arguing a won battle because lady Macbeth isnt backing down, Macbeth finally goes to murder Duncan. Later she entices him by saying that the blame of the murder could be put on the kings guards, so their crime wont be discovered. Throughout the play Macbeth goes from noble and good with people referring to him as noble Macbeth and valiant cousin to evil led by the witches. Macbeth was a victim of an evil plot with the witches tricking him and leading him to evil and sin, but the blame can not be put entirely on the witches because although they lead him he was the one who choose to kill Duncan witch was the start of all the bad things that came from it. Macbeth comes to die a noble death, because of his bravery and of this and then the rightful order has been restored and the rightful king is on the throne. This makes stronger the belief that people have that the king is the lords anointed and nobody can do anything about it. The play justifies the position of James I as he is a noble and righteous king . Shakespeare ended the play this was to show that no good comes from witches and from evil and it is a lot better to be noble as you will get a better outcome, Banquo was noble and his son became the king in the end.

Explain Why the Treatment of Indigenous People Essay Example for Free

Explain Why the Treatment of Indigenous People Essay There were two main concepts that were thought to have motivated European countries to explore and colonize in America: the excitement and the profit of the New World. Throughout the 17th century England and Spain began to fight for control of the North American Continent, with different economic goals in mind. The success in the colonization of the New World depended on many factors one which included the treatment of the natives. Although the ideal treatment of natives within the countries colonies was identical by violently taking the Native American lands and turning them into outpost for their empires; however, their incentive for the treatment was different. The Spanish revealed a more systematic way of mistreating the natives because they intended to colonize America for gold and slaves without any obstacles, and the English colonized for land with no intention or preparation to interfere with the native people intensely until they necessarily had to. Francisco Vasquez de Coronado led a massive expedition bent on finding and conquering Seven Golden Cities of Cibola, while doing so, he embittered many Native Americans toward the Spanish. As the Spaniards trudged through the North American borders in search of gold and slaves, they established a labor system called the encomienda system which helped sustain control over the natives in North, Central, and South America, so they can have certain opportunities to roam the lands in search of gold without any unwanted interruptions. Conquistadors were granted trusteeship over the indigenous people they conquered, in an expansion of familiar feudal institutions, notably the commendation ceremony, which had been established in New Castile during the Reconquista. The conquistadors scrupulously adhered to the Spanish law of conquest by reading the Requerimiento, which ordered defiant Indians, in Spanish, to accept Spanish rule and Christian conversion immediately. If the Indians ignored this order, they deserved the harsh punishments of a just war. For example, as the Spanish encountered swift resistance at the mesa-top pueblo of Acoma, the Indians refused Spanish demands for provisions for an exploring expedition. Spanish troops captured the pueblo, killing eight hundred inhabitants in the process, forcing surviving men to have one foot cut off and along with the women and children, to be servants of the soldiers and missionaries. As for the English and their colonalization, they strived for the land of the Americas, with little rivalry from the natives as possible; therefore, unlike the Spaniards they did not have a systematic way of controlling the natives. At first all went well, the Native Indians eagerly traded and shared their corn. Given such abundance and native hospitality, the colonist wondered why they should work at all. Refusing to grow their own food they expected the Roanokes to feed them. However, the English had outlived their welcome, and fearing that the natives were about to attack, the English soldiers killed the Roanoke leader. Although some settlers were curious and open-minded about the Indians way of life, most assumed that Native Americans would submit to their authority and feed them while they looked for gold. The Spaniards had different ways of conquering the American land treating the indigenous people than the English people however, they each shared the same idea that the Indians needed to be controlled and cater to the needs of those who conquered them. They felt that they did not need to respect the culture, the religion, and the people of the land. The Europeans had a high self respect which they felt overpowered that of the natives. They wanted what was not theirs in order to better their economy without any compromise, while destroying another societys culture. Because of this they were able to come to the same conclusion that they could treat the Natives as they did. To conclude, the Spanish and the English had a similar perspective of how they wanted to treat the natives of the lands they conquered, however they differed in strategy in how they were able to confine them because of the goals they individually had in mind prior to their conquest. The English had a simple idea of coming into America sharing the land and the crops with the natives until they got afraid and too greedy, leaving violence as a resort. With the Spanish, they strategize according to the fact that they wanted the gold and to enslave the native people with no mercy, resulting in striping the natives away from their dignity.

Integrating Ict In Mathematics Teaching Education Essay

Integrating Ict In Mathematics Teaching Education Essay The purpose of this study is to study the barriers preventing the integration and adoption of information and communication technology in teaching mathematics in Bhubaneswar, India. The data were collected by means of questionnaires from secondary school mathematics teachers. Major barriers were identified: lack of time in the school schedule for projects involving ICT, insufficient teacher training opportunities for ICT projects, inadequate technical support for these projects, lack of knowledge about ways to integrate ICT to enhance the curriculum, difficulty in integrating and using different ICT tools in a single lesson and unavailability of resources at home for the students to access the necessary educational materials. To overcome some of these barriers, this paper proposes an e-portal which is a collection of mathematical tools, a question bank and other resources in digital form that can be used for teaching and learning mathematics. Based on these findings, I propose the us e of several strategies that should enhance successful ICT integration. INTRODUCTION Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has changed our daily activities in many ways. One of the goals for integrating ICTs in education is to enhance teaching and learning practices thereby improving quality of education (Higgins, 2003). However, in most developing countries like India, the potential of ICT to support pedagogy is yet to be fully realised. Since these changes are evident amongst younger members of our society, they are evident on primary and secondary schools students. Considering that ICT plays an increasingly important role in society, especially if we take into account social, economic and cultural role of computers and the Internet, it is clear that the time has come for the actual entry of ICT in the field of education. The combination of ICT and the Internet certainly opens not only many opportunities for creativity and innovation, but also for approaching the teaching material to current generation of students. Researchers argued that with the introduc tion of technology, it is possible to de-emphasize algorithmic skills; the resulting void may be filled by an increased emphasis on the development of mathematical concepts. Technology saves time and gives students access to powerful new ways to explore concepts at a depth that has not been possible in the past. ICT enhances efficiency of mathematical thought, enables learners to make conjectures and immediately test them in non-threatening environment (Laborde, 2001). Abramovich (1999)s use of spreadsheets in generalizing Pythagorean Theorem demonstrates how computers may be used to learn concepts in geometry and algebra. Meanwhile researchers (Balacheff Kaput, 1996; Kilpatrick Davis, 1993) have discussed the impact of technological forces on learning and teaching mathematics. Internet is increasingly being used to enhance collaborative and interactive learning (Cazes, Gueudet,Hersant and Vandebrouck, 2006; Cress and Kimmerle, 2008; Resta and Rafferriere, 2007) also (Lavy andLero n, 2004). As the study and practice of facilitating learning and improving performance (Januszewski Molenda, 2008), the field of educational technology attempts to overcome challenges by developing new approaches and frameworks. In this context, information and communication technologies (ICTs) represent a new approach for enhancing the dissemination of information and helping to meet these challenges. For a successful integration of ICT into the mathematics curriculum, it is essential to have knowledge of the existing software that is used by mathematics teachers. A survey carried out by Forgasz Prince (2002) found that 61% of the respondents (teachers) used spreadsheets, 45% used word processing and 30% used Internet browsers. In a separate study, Jones (2004) found that seven barriers existed while integrating ICT into lessons. These barriers were (i) lack of confidence among teachers during integration(21.2% responses), (ii) lack of access to resources (20.8%), (iii) lack of t ime for the integration(16.4%), (iv) lack of effective training (15.0%), (v) facing technical problems while the software is in use (13.3%), (vi) lack of personal access during lesson preparation (4.9%) and (vii) the age of the teachers (1.8%). METHODOLOGY This research deployed a survey method to investigate the barriers of integrating ICT into the teaching of mathematics. A total of 50 responses were received and they were analysed using the SPSS statistical package. A questionnaire was adapted from the Teacher Technology Survey by the American Institute for Research (AIR, 1998). The questionnaire was divided into five areas, i.e., (A) the teachers profile, (B) how teachers use ICT, (C) the teachers ICT experience, (D) the barriers faced by teachers and (E) the proposed solution. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS ICT applications in general In general, a total of 74.3% of the respondents used computers on a regular basis. Table 1 depicts the percentage of usage by teachers in the various ICT applications: word processing packages (76.8%), spreadsheets (50.3%), Internet activity (67.2%), search engines (56.5%) and multimedia (11.2%). These percentages show that the computer literacy rate among secondary school mathematics teachers has been high. TABLE 1: Common ICT Applications by Teachers Application Daily (%) Weekly (%) Monthly (%) 1 or 2 times a year (%) Never (%) NA (%) NR (%) Computers in general 22.3 25.2 26.8 12.5 6.2 4.2 2.8 Word processing packages 20.4 26.3 30.1 13.6 5.8 1.3 2.5 Spreadsheets 9.6 15.4 25.3 22.5 6.3 12.5 8.4 Any Internet activity 20.8 22.5 23.9 28.6 1.2 1.3 1.7 Search engines for Internet 14.4 19.8 22.3 26.9 11.5 3.6 1.5 Multimedia 2.5 3.6 5.1 15.8 40.1 19.5 13.4 NA Not Available NR No Response Uses of Internet The Internet was used for various purposes. 65.5% respondents used it for browsing, 42.3% used the e-mail facility, 5.5% used IRC, 6.3% used chat rooms, and 8.6% used it in discussion forums and4.5% for other purposes. 6.9% respondents did not use the Internet. Table 2: Use of Internet by Teachers Activity Browsing e-mail IRC Discussion forums Chat rooms Others None Response (%) 65.5 42.3 5.5 8.6 6.3 4.5 6.9 Professional development and training needs A total of 40.3% respondents indicated that they had received ICT training.60.2% of the respondents demonstrated that they had found the training to be generally useful while 64.9% said that they had not received training on how to integrate ICT into mathematics teaching. According to 46.3% of the respondents, mathematics teachers require training on how to integrate ICT into their teaching while 59.5% of them stated that they needed a combination of various types of training.. Table 3: ICT Training Needs ICT training needs General use Integrate ICT into Teaching Use of Internet Combination of needs Response (%) 10.1 64.9 5.5 59.5 Barriers faced by teachers during integration The six major barriers identified were lack of time in the school schedule for projects involving ICT (50.3%), lack of knowledge about ways to integrate ICT to enhance the curriculum (49.5%), lack of adequate technical support for ICT projects (41.9%), inadequate teacher training opportunities for ICT projects (41.2%), integrating and using different ICT tools in a single lesson (34.8%) and the absence of access to the necessary technology at the homes of students (31.0%). Perception of mathematics teachers toward the proposed solution There is a very strong positive response to the proposed solution to develop a mathematics portal for teaching mathematics, wherein a collection of mathematical tools, a question bank and other resources in digital form that can be used for teaching and learning mathematics. 70.2% of the respondents considered it to be very useful and helpful and 27.3% viewed it as useful and helpful. Only 2.5% of the respondents considered that the portal would not be very useful and helpful. Table 4: Barriers Faced by Teachers Barriers % Response as not a barrier minor major Not enough or limited access to computer hardware 30.2 50.6 19.2 Availability of computer software 23.8 54.6 21.6 Lack of time in school schedule for projects involving ICT 11.3 38.4 50.3 Lack of adequate technical support for ICT projects 15.3 42.8 41.9 Not enough teacher training opportunities for ICT Projects 18.7 40.1 41.2 Lack of knowledge about ways to integrate ICT to enhance curriculum 10.2 40.3 49.5 ICT integration is not a school priority 31.4 45.2 23.4 Students do not have access to the necessary technology at home 22.8 46.2 31.0 Teachers do not have access to the necessary technology at home 24.9 55.2 19.9 Integrating and using different ICT tools in a single Lesson 16.5 48.7 34.8 Table 5: Perceptions towards the proposed solution % response as very useful and helpful % response as useful and helpful % response as not so useful and helpful % response as not at all Proposed solution to develop a mathematics portal for teaching 70.2 27.3 2.5 0 From this study, the following findings were found: The most popular application packages used by mathematics teachers were word processing packages (76.8%), spreadsheets (50.3%), internet activity (67.2%), and search engines (56.5%). However, it must be noted that the packages that have not been positively considered by the respondents may not be necessarily useless. . Mathematics teachers need more time to learn to use them -programmes like specific Java applets, Flash presentations, graphical applications and simulation programmes have great potential for the teaching of mathematics because they encourage explorations and higher order thinking. It is encouraging to learn that 65.5% of the respondents used the browser to gather information. It is timely that educators encourage mathematics teachers to use the Internet for online demonstrations like using Java applets on mathematics that are only available online. A large proportion (64.9%) did not have any training on how to integrate ICT into mathematics teaching. Such training should be an integral part of professional training. Moreover, 46.3% of the respondents requested to have training on how to integrate ICT into teaching. Some major barriers hindering the implementation of ICT in mathematics teaching were found to be lack of time in school schedule for projects involving ICT, insufficient teacher training opportunities for ICT projects, inadequate technical support for these projects, lack of knowledge about ways to integrate ICT to enhance the curriculum, difficulty in integrating and using different ICT tools in a single lesson and unavailability of resources at home for the students to access the necessary educational materials. Therefore, funding for new ICT resources should be increased in order to provide adequate ICT equipment and resources. It is also recommended that the contents of the subject be reduced so as to integrate ICT. teachers consider that inadequate time is a factor against teaching and learning effectiveness Therefore to encourage more teachers to integrate ICT into mathematics lessons, the devised programme must be user friendly. The e-portal proposed for this purpose is geared towards fulfilling such needs. This e-portal will be a collection of mathematical tools, a question bank and other resources in digital form that can be used for teaching and learning mathematics. CONCLUSION To create an environment of effective ICT integration, hence improving the quality of education for the youth in the province teacher education programs must focus on eliminating barriers. Based on the findings and discussions presented here, the several recommendations are suggested for practitioners. Technology plans for implementing ICT should be prepared and implemented. Training in ICTs for teacher educators should be improved in both quantity and quality. Every classroom should have at least one computer with Internet access and an LCD projector. Course content should be redesigned to acquire more benefit from ICT. More ICT-related courses for prospective teachers should be offered. Teacher educators and prospective teachers should be aware of the benefits of ICTs An e-portal, collection of mathematical tools, a question bank and other resources in digital form that can be used for teaching and learning mathematics should be constructed.

The Importance of the Cloak in Homer’s Odyssey :: Homer, Odyssey Essays

The Importance of the Cloak in Homer’s Odyssey      Ã‚   Near the end of the fourteenth chapter of Homer's Odyssey, the main character, Odysseus, announces that he is about to tell a story to his swineherd, Eumaeus, and several other workers inside the swineherd's hut. Odysseus warns the men that his story is the result of his drinking with them, but the story is actually a test of his swineherd's character. Disguised as Castor's son, a rag-wearing beggar with no possessions, he tells the men a story about fighting alongside the man who, secretly, he really is. Homer emphasizes Odysseus' great mind when he acts the part to its entirety even when his own story is twisted to today's reader. In the tale, his fellow soldier at Troy, Odysseus, is able to manipulate another soldier into taking a request for reinforcements so that Castor's son can sleep under the departing messenger's cloak.    Both in his story and within the hut, Odysseus is the manipulative character, and the ultimate outcome of both is the temporary use of a cloak for Castor's son to sleep under. Knowing the limited resources of the swineherd and his own abundance of cloaks at home, Odysseus frames his story so that the swineherd would consider lending his guest the use of a cloak rather than telling a tale with a moral of being generous and gift giving. The swineherd is able to show his guest hospitality yet face no loss by the lending of a cloak. This insight shows the maturity and development that Odysseus has experienced along his journey home; a younger and less experienced Odysseus may not have considered the importance of the difference between lending and giving when the host is a man he employs.    For twenty years Odysseus was away from his home of Ithaca, and in this time he faced several events that would change the way he would see the world. Witnessing such events as the breaking open of six of his innocent soldiers' skulls by a Cyclops (Homer 132) and the feeding of another six of his men to a six-headed beast (Homer 186) played a large part of the changed man that returned. Though a changed Odysseus awoke on the beach of Ithaca, he would have to force all the lessons of two decades out of his personality and into the efforts to regain his life; he would need to use the strength he gained from his experiences to conceal his identity behind a mask of weakness.

Education Essay -- essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Most controversies over education are centered around the question of how strictly standards should be upheld. The concern over whether or not flunking students is appropriate or even in the best interest of the student is a widely discussed topic. The argument often begins with students just starting school where the question of standardized testing for kindergartners arises. The majority of people are actually against such testing because they feel that a child who is labeled as a failure at such an early age may be permanently damaged (Bowen 86). The worry over the failure issue is further traced to educators who feel children just entering school are not fully prepared. Teachers are faced with kindergarten students who do not know their addresses, colors, and sometimes even first and last names (An ‘F’ 59).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another reason why the assignment of failing grades has decreased is the influence of the self-esteem movement, which promotes the assumption that children who do not have a positive self-image cannot learn or develop properly. Although this theory is widely accepted, it has been discredited by several studies. Recent research shows that, although American students felt more confident about themselves and their work, they were outperformed by several Asian countries on tests of elementary skills. American schools and teachers tend to worry more about the student’s self-esteem than the actual academic performance (Leo, â€Å"Damn† 21). Mary Sherry, a teacher of adult literacy programs, does not believe such theories. Her view is that students become motivated by the threat of failure, and that not failing a student not only shows lack of confidence on the teacher’s behalf, but also hurts the society as a whole. Employees are becoming highly dis appointed with so-called â€Å"graduate† students (8).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In a letter to columnist Ann Landers, a college professor wrote about his views of the education system. He feels that universities have turned into businesses where teachers are just looking for money and students are just looking for a piece of paper with a title on it. He says that the students of today think they are automatically entitled to a degree because they pay tuition (Depressed Old Prof. 3-B). Adding to the profit motive for schools is the government which, for the p... ...ressed Old Prof. â€Å"Ann Landers.† Times-Picayune [New Orleans] 4 Sep. 1995: 3-B. â€Å"An ‘F’ for the Nation’s Kindergartners (Education).† Newsweek 16 Dec. 1991: 59. Goldstein, Andrew and Ann Blackman. â€Å"No SAT Scores Required (Education).† Time 11 Sep. 2000: 52-53. Hendren, John. â€Å"Ex-English Professor Creates Corporate Prose Police.† Courier [Houma LA] 25 Aug. 1996: 4D. Leo, John. â€Å"The Answer Is 45 Cents (On Society).† U.S. News & World Report 21 Apr. 1997: 14. ---. â€Å"Damn, I’m Good! (On Society).† U.S. News & World Report 18 May 1998: 21. Morse, Jodie et al. â€Å"Does Texas Make the Grade? (Education).† Time 11 Sep. 2000: 50-54. Mulcahy, Fred. â€Å"No Free Rides for Dumb Students (My Turn).† Newsweek 15 Aug. 1994: 12. Pedersen, Daniel. â€Å"When an A Is Average (Education).† Newsweek 3 Mar. 1997. Ravith, Diane. â€Å"In Defense of Testing (Education).† Time 11 Sep. 2000: 52-53. Roberts, Paul. Modern Grammar. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, 1968. Sherry, Mary. â€Å"In Praise of the F Word (My Turn).† Newsweek 28 Aug. 1990: 8. Wilkes, Paul. â€Å"The First Test of Childhood (My Turn).† Newsweek 14 Aug. 1989: 8. Winters, Rebecca. â€Å"From Home to Harvard (Education).† Time 11 Sep. 2000: 55.