Hope Essay

And when we lose meaning, we lose hope. Nick Vujicic has found his purpose in life. He encourages people all around the world to never give up. It is frame of mind that shapes a person’s future. Nicholas James â€Å"Nick† Vujicic was born 4 December 1982. He is a Serbian Australian evangelist and motivational speaker born with tetra-amelia syndrome, a rare disorder characterized by the absence of all four limbs. As a child, he struggled mentally and emotionally as well as physically, but eventually came to terms with his disability and, at the age of seventeen, started his own non-pr ofit organization, Life Without Limbs. Vujicic presents motivational speeches worldwide, on life with a disability, hope and finding meaning in life. He also speaks about his belief that God can use any willing heart to do his work and that God is big enough to overcome any and all disabilities. Quotes: â€Å"There’s no point in being complete on the outside when you’re broken in the inside. I have the choice to be angry in God for what I don’t have or be thankful for what you do have. † â€Å"When the time comes, I may not be able to hold my wife’s hand – but I will be able to hold her heart. † â€Å"If I fail, I try again, and again, and again. If YOU fail, are you going to try again? The human spirit can handle much worse than we realize. It matters HOW you are going to FINISH. Are you going to finish strong? † â€Å"I encourage you to accept that you may not be able to see a path right now, but that doesn’t mean it’s not there. † â€Å"Life without limbs? Or life without limits? †

Women in the Soviet Union

Women in the Soviet Dictatorship How were the lives of Soviet women affected by the policies of the Stalin era? Document 1 Source: Izvestiia, â€Å"Old Way of Life,† March 8, 1930. Document 2 Source: Pravda, â€Å"On the Path to a Great Emancipation,† March 8, 1929. Today is international communist women’s day, the international day for working women. Today is a holiday in honor of one-half of the international proletarian army and in honor of the women workers of the socialist Soviet Union.In our country, governed by the power of the proletariat, the day of the woman worker has been consciously designated as a political and cultural â€Å"great day. † And outside the Soviet borders, in places where capitalist bondage has not been overthrown, we are certain that conscientious, advanced women workers will today demonstrate their dedication to the cause of the international revolution and their indestructible solidarity with the working women and men of the Soviet Union. Our woman worker in the past . . during the barbaric, savage, and blood stained tsarist regime. The heavy and hopeless fate of the woman worker—as mother, wife, and girl. All of the striving of the woman worker toward the light, toward freedom, and to a human existence were snuffed out by the criminal arm of the autocracy. The exploitation and debasement were tripled: in politics, in factory labor, and in daily life. Working women in capitalist countries. Capitalist â€Å"democracy† has not and cannot give freedom to working and laboring women.Working women in all bourgeois countries are economically and politically enslaved. Middle class conventionality has a tenacious vice-grip on daily life. Advanced women workers and revolutionary women proletarians are persecuted. The most brutal blows of capitalist â€Å"rationalization,† unemployment, and hunger in the midst of plenty descend upon the female half of the proletariat. Fascism, Catholicism, and reformism with increasingly thoroughness exploit the historical backwardness of women orkers in order to split apart the proletarian ranks and strengthen the position of imperialism. The temples of â€Å"national government†Ã¢â‚¬â€what a thing to talk about! —are protected by stone walls which prevent the participation of working women. Only we in the Soviet Union have at hand all of the preconditions and foundations for the complete emancipation of working women. These preconditions were created and acquired in a severe struggle with enemies, at a time when world history passed over the heights of the great October summit.Only our women have been emancipated in practice, acting as conscious builders of a new society and a new governing commune, and speaking out as active citizens with fully equal rights in the socialist family. For more than eleven years, our woman worker has made her way along the path set by the proletarian dictatorship. Together with all the prol etariat she fought for power in October. Together with her working brothers she passed through the crucible of sacrifice and suffering during the civil war. She stands in the most advanced ranks of our working collective in the present-day glorious and productive period of socialist construction.In the factory workshop and at the controls of the state ships, in the cooperatives and at the shooting range, in the nursery school and at the thundering machinery, everywhere the tractors of our increasingly strong state farms and collective farms are plowing the virgin soil of our Soviet land, in the workers’ faculties and in courses for the red sisterhood where the proletariat struggles relentlessly to master science, and everywhere that life is in full swing and the anthills of labor are humming—in none of these places have the working women of the Soviet Union been forced into last place.Everywhere the vigorous stream of activism of our women workers is flowing. With ever more firm and certain steps they are advancing on the path to complete emancipation under the tested leadership of our Party. Needless to say, without the conscious and active participation of the working woman we will not fulfill the tasks defined by Lenin and by the entire development of the October revolution. We will not achieve the rapid tempo of socialist industrialization if the woman worker turns out to be passive.We will not achieve the complete cultural revolution if the woman worker remains â€Å"on the side,† or is somehow pushed off toward â€Å"the second rate plan. † For the successful completion of all these tasks we must mobilize the entire women’s active. Recruitment of the best women into the Party and the courageous and steadfast advancement into the soviets, management and cooperative duties, and the governing apparatus—these measures will ensure the actual emancipation of women who remain backward in comparison with our general leve ls of economic and cultural development.The maximum activism of all women proletarians and conscientious working peasant women is one of the indispensable guarantees of our further successes and our victorious socialist growth. The greatest possible and most inexhaustible activism, the unceasingly creative work of the woman proletarian on all large and â€Å"small† fronts of our life, their rigid and total solidarity with the Party—these are the obligatory conditions for our creativity.The struggle for a new cultured life—is this possible without the creative initiative of the woman worker? The struggle with alcoholism and disgusting drunken debauchery and the struggle to expel the green hydra from the Soviet home—are these conceivable without the will and determination, without the intensive and constant force of the working woman? Could the struggle with such social ulcers as prostitution proceed successfully without arousing and involving hundreds of t housands of working women?And the struggle to overcome difficulties, the struggle with our many-faceted class enemies, the struggle with anti-Semitism, with the priesthood, and with religious stupefication—are these goals attainable if the campaign against these barbarisms does not include the millions of working women and if they are not advanced into the leading positions? All of these tasks need to be accomplished, and they will be accomplished. The path to the complete emancipation of working women is clear. No force has concealed it.And not only today, on the red holiday of March 8, should we take note of and strongly emphasize the great challenges facing the women’s proletarian movement. These should be remembered constantly, they should become part of our everyday â€Å"routine† of socialism. For surely we are talking about one of the greatest tasks that has been set by history: the complete liberation and emancipation of working women from any kind of ex ploitation, from material need, from lack of culture, and from barbarism. Document 3 Source: Minkin, Z. â€Å"The Bolshevik factory still does not have any women-master workers. Rabochii, July 7, 1931. In the past year, in connection with the overall growth in production, new ranks of women workers have flowed into the â€Å"Bolshevik† factory. At the present time, women make up 26. 2 percent of all workers at the factory. A large share of the newly entered women workers are the wives of workers who had already been working at the plant. As a result, the status of mass cultural and political educational work among these workers has clear significance. At the â€Å"Bolshevik† factory, 79 percent of women workers are shock workers.But the Party stratum among women workers is only 9. 2 percent, whereas it has reached 30 percent among all workers at the factory. This clearly indicates that recruitment among women workers is insufficient. The promotion of women into more q ualified jobs and the training of women to take the place of men’s labor within certain limits has been unsatisfactory within this factory. Many older women workers, who have worked for a long time at the factory, have been assigned to work not requiring qualifications and thus have not progressed any further.For example, at jobs near the presses, near the finishing machines, or involving work as planers, the number of women workers can be counted on a single hand. Yet a large share of women workers are assigned to unskilled labor not requiring any qualifications. It is sufficient to note that not a single woman worker can be found among the staff of master workers, despite the presence of a number of women workers who have already worked many years in factory, have sufficient qualifications, and could be assigned to this work.Because of the shortage of master workers, it happens that when the master worker of a particular section or workshop has to be away for several days, no one is available to take his place. Yet if the desire were there, it would not be difficult to train a couple of women to become master workers. It would also be possible to train a large number of women workers for other kinds of qualified positions. The situation is no better regarding the development of mass work among women workers. It is true that 14 percent of women workers received various kinds of awards for their shock work.A group made up of activist women workers is coming together. But inadequate efforts among women workers has meant that only 2 percent participating in rationalization measures. The percent of women workers in all kinds of public organizations is lower than the percent of men workers. The weakness of work among women workers is explained by the â€Å"absence of personal responsibility† in this area. Women’s organizers change frequently, and as a result this work is quite unsatisfactory. Document 4 Source: Pravda Severa, â€Å"Maria Seme novna Requires Assistance from the Party Collective,† September 9, 1932.In its day to day work with women, the Party constantly implements the instructions of V. I. Lenin â€Å"to bring women into public and productive work and to pull them out of ‘domestic slavery’ by freeing them from subordination to the stupification and humiliation of always and forever being responsible for cooking and taking care of the children. † But officials of the Party collective and of the factory committee and the directors of timber mill No. 23 still have not understood this objective.Pravda Severa has already written more than once about Maria Semenovna Abramova, and has repeatedly demanded that the Party collective of the factory committee and directors of factory No. 23 earnestly take up the tasks of eliminating lines at the stores and improving the work of nursery schools and kindergartens, so that Maria Semenovna [Abramova] and all the other housewives of the factory ma y be liberated from the absurd lines and kitchen fumes which wash away all the strength of women, isolate them from production and cultural activities, and undermine the completion of the production plan.Despite the fact that two months have already passed since Pravda Severa raised these questions, conditions at the factory have not changed at all. As before, Maria Semenovna spends her days standing in line for bread, herrings, and milk, and as before she rushes around the kitchen preparing supper for her kids. She tries with all her might to get away from this â€Å"vicious† circle, but she cannot. She tried to work at the factory, but had to quit work after ten days, because the horrible work of the childcare center left her children going hungry and without supervision.As a result, her youngest son became sick, and this tied the hands of Maria Semenovna. The medical assistance was also quite poor. Neither the Party collective nor the factory committee have lifted a finger to improve any of these awful conditions and they have also made no effort to keep Maria Semenovna at work in the factory. The secretary of the Party collective Lukin says that they have decided to reform their efforts in ZRK and have assigned one person in the supply department to eliminate lines at the stores, but in fact nothing has changed in this area.At the present time, the Party collective does not even have a women’s organizer, which is evidence for judging the efforts of the Party collective to organize women and to draw housewives like Maria Semenovna into the public and political life of the factory. We categorically demand that the Party collective and the factory committee immediately turn their attention to issues of women’s work, to freeing housewives from the tenacious grip of lines, to ensuring the consistent work of nursery schools, and to drawing women into socially productive labor.Document 5 Source: Za kommunisticheskoe prosveshchenie, â€Å"Sch ool No. 130 Follows its own Law,† February 6, 1937. In the Soviet Union, the rights of mothers and children are strictly protected by the law. For example, in addition to a four month maternity leave, every working mother has the right to take breaks during work for nursing until the infant reaches the age of nine months. But it seems that the administration of school 130 in the Soviet district of Moscow considers that this rule does not apply to its school.I have worked as a teacher for nine years, and am in my first year at school 130. Returning from maternity leave, I placed my infant in a nursery school. At first, I was able to nurse him regularly, every three hours. But because I could not nurse my infant during the break between classes (20 minutes), I was always late by 10-15 minutes. These minutes of tardiness were not absences, because I have the right to an additional half-hour besides these 20 minutes for nursing my infant.But the head of instruction and the school director, after repeated warnings, have ordered me to either stop nursing my infant or quit working in the school, because they consider that the class (42 pupils) cannot and should not be left without a teacher for even a minute. I completely agree with the orders of the head of instruction and the school director that pupils should not be left without a leader for even the shortest amount of time. But it does not follow from this that I, as a teacher-mother, am not able to lead the children in lessons. This unequal battle has resulted in the victory of the school administration.Despite the orders of a doctors, I had to stop nursing my infant and switch to artificial food, which quickly had a negative effect on the child’s health. I consider that the approach to me taken by the head of instruction and the school director demonstrates an unwillingness to let a teacher-mother have normal conditions for bringing up a healthy infant. It is possible to find a solution to this sit uation that does not harm the children and does not violate Soviet law by providing a substitute during this break or by drafting a schedule so that the pupils have another teacher after three hours.I love the work of teaching and do not want to give it up because of this temporary condition. In the current situation, I demand only that the administration of school 130 provide a little flexibility and human sympathy, so that I can continue working and bringing up my infant normally. Document 6 Source: Chart of â€Å"Women in the Soviet Labor Force: Total Number and Percent of Workforce. † In Zhenshchina v SSSR (Moscow, 1936). Document 7 Source: Chart of â€Å"Women in the Soviet Union and Capitalist Countries. In Zhenshchina v SSSR (Moscow, 1936). Document 8 Source: Pravda, â€Å"International Communist Woman’s Day,† March 9, 1939. In the Bol’shoi Theater, a celebration of March 8, International Communist Women’s Day, occurred yesterday, organized by the Moscow Committee of the All Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), the Moscow Soviet, and the VTsSPS, in conjunction with party and soviet organizations, Stakhanovites, shock workers, and the Soviet intelligentsia of the city of Moscow.The hall was more than filled to capacity, and burst into warm applause when at the presidium appeared the leaders of Moscow party and soviet organizations and the VTsSPS, and the famous women and heroes of the Soviet Union, the heroines of labor and award-winners whose names are familiar to the entire nation. The meeting opened with a welcoming speech by comrade Popov, the secretary of the Moscow city committee of the VKP(b). Places at the presidium were taken by comrades Shcherbakov, Chernousov, Pronin, Shvernik, Marshal of the Soviet Union Budennyi, Nikolaeva, Marina Raskova, Valentina Grizodubova, Polina Osipenko, Zinaida Troitskaia, T.Fedorova, Evdokiia and Mariia Vinogradova, O. Leonova, and others. Comrade Fedorova proposed to elect an hon ored presidium. The first name nominated was comrade Stalin. Shouts of â€Å"hurrah† and exclamations of â€Å"Long live our own Stalin! † and â€Å"We raise our banner to salute Stalin! † rolled through the hall. Accompanied by stormy applause from all participants in the celebratory meeting, the candidates elected to the honorary presidium included the members of the Politburo of the Communist Party led by comrade Stalin, as well as comrades Dimitrov, Tel’man, and Pasionaria.The secretary of the VTsSPS, comrade Nikolaeva, made a speech about International Communist Woman’s Day: â€Å"We have assembled on the eve of historic events. In two days, the voice of the leader of the people, comrade Stalin, will be heard from the tribunal of the XVIII Congress of our party. Comrade Stalin will describe the results of the gigantic victories won by our country, and will set out the path toward solving the even greater tasks set by the third five year plan. Comrade Nikolaeva talked about the rise of the Soviet woman, about the heroic and energetic path taken by women of our country, and about the concern for women shown by the Soviet government and party of Lenin-Stalin. In her speech, comrade Nikolaeva referred to clear evidence that the Soviet woman had secured an honored place on all fronts of socialist development and in all areas of the political and public life of our country. The deputies to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR include 189 women, and the deputies to the Supreme Soviets of the union republics include 848 women.What a clear example of the growth of the political activism and the political maturity of the Soviet woman! Comrade Nikolaeva spoke about the heroism of the Soviet woman and the unforgettable flight taken by V. Grizodubova, P. Osipenko, and M. Raskova. The heroines were located right there, on the presidium, and the hall greeted them with warm applause. Comrade Nikolaeva described how Soviet women had mastered technology and knowledge and had become powerful economic leaders.She cited the example of Zinaida Troitskaia, who successfully mastered the complex craft of driving a locomotive engine, became an engineer, and now is the director of the Moscow regional railway. Zinaida Troitskaia was also located right there on the presidium, and her success was recognized with warm applause. Speakers also talked about the tremendous assistance that had been provided to the woman in our country by the Soviet government and the party of Lenin-Stalin, about the many millions of benefits given to mothers with many children, and about the steady growth in he number of nurseries and kindergartens. Expressing the thoughts and feelings of the entire hall, speakers referred to the warm sympathy felt by Soviet women for the women of China and Spain, who were heroically fighting for the honor and independence of their homelands against fascist invaders. After her speech, Hero of the Soviet Union Marina Rasko va proposed to send a letter of greeting to comrade Stalin on behalf of the assembly. With a warm ovation, the hall approved this heartfelt greeting.

Time Value of Money Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Time Value of Money - Essay Example Therefore, to make a certain investment, the opportunity costs should be low (David, 1984). Time value of money shares a direct relationship with the prevailing interests in a market. As the interest rates rise, the value of a dollar today will rise accordingly. When the interest rates follow the decreasing pattern, the value of money also sees a down sliding. This is because the interest rates play a very important part in determining the future value of a lump sum or the present value of a future lump sum; it is dependent on the interest rate. Therefore, they are directly related to each other. There are many other aspects which are related to the time value of money. The future value of an amount of money can also be calculated keeping in mind the time value of money. Making it simpler, the future value of a dollar is the dollar or any other amount that it earns with the help of an interest over a period of time (David, 1984). For example, if $1000 are invested today for an year at 5% interest rate, after an year it will give us $50 dollars and the total received would be $1050. However, if the same amount is invested in the long run for years, compounding will take place and at the end of second year, the interest will be earned on $105. This compounding will go on for the number of years the investment is made. If P is considered the principle amount of money that is invested, i is termed as the interest rate at that time, then the future value of a dollar would be given as P(1+i). When compounding for two years, the equation changes to P(1+i)(1+i) or, FV=P (1+i)n Where P is the principal amount, i is the interest rate and n is the periods for which the investment is made. With increasing interest rates, the future value also keep on increasing. With changing interest rates, the above formula would be applied separately for the different rates. Present Value The present value of a future investment can also be calculated keeping in mind the time value of money. The present value of a future investment is the current value of that payment that is to be received in the future. Discounting is the process that is employed in this case. This is the opposite of finding the future value of a present sum (Gary, 1978). Simply, it is calculated by dividing the future value with the same interest factor which was multiplied in the first case. PV=FV/(1+i)n Where FV is the future value, PV denotes present value, and (1+i)n is the interest factor. In finding out the present value, discounting is being done, therefore, this concept shares and inverse relationship with the time value of money. As the interest factor that determines the time value of money is divided, the value of the present value decreases resulting in the inverse relationship. Opportunity Costs Opportunity costs are the benefits that a person is giving away in spending the money in a certain kind of way. In other words, it is the benefit lost in choosing one alternative over another alternative. For this to be true, the opportunity costs should be really low for an alternative to be chosen. Higher the opportunity costs, lesser are the chances that the alternative may be chosen by a risk aversive personality. It can be termed as the basic relationship that exists between shortage and selection. Rule of '72 Rule of '72 is a simple mathematical shortcut that is used in finance in order to find out when

Children and Video Games Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Children and Video Games - Essay Example Therefore, parents should be vigilant on this particular issue since it could be detrimental to the health of their children. It is in the best interests of the parents to ensure the children have limited time in playing video games. This will be a prudent approach in ensuring the children are not adversely affected by the video games. However, neglecting such an approach could be detrimental to both the children and their parents. Video games are practically indoor games. The children have to gather in a room and start to play. This clears out any instance where the children will participate in outdoor games. This reduces the physical contact with other children. As such, their physical muscles are not enhanced. This acts negatively towards a growing child. Apparently, children need to exercise frequently and run during outdoor games. This clears out any chances of fat concentration in the body. According to research, obese children in the United States have increased in numbers. Th is is an issue that has been affecting many families in the United States. When in physical play, children burn out excessive fat in their bodies. This reduces the chances of becoming obese as the children are frequently engaged in activities that burn out excessive fat in their bodies. This goes to greater heights in reducing other conditions that are brought by excessive fat deposits in the body. For instance, the children will have reduced the risks of getting heart diseases. On the other hand, children that engage in video games rarely run and make physical contacts while playing (Vorderer and Bryant 14). This increases the chances of having fat deposits in the body as they are not burned out. Therefore, the children will continue to have fat deposits in... Video games are practically indoor games. The children have to gather in a room and start to play. This clears out any instance where the children will participate in outdoor games. This reduces the physical contact with other children. As such, their physical muscles are not enhanced. This acts negatively towards a growing child. Apparently, children need to exercise frequently and run during outdoor games. This clears out any chances of fat concentration in the body. According to research, obese children in the United States have increased in numbers. This is an issue that has been affecting many families in the United States. When in physical play, children burn out excessive fat in their bodies. This reduces the chances of becoming obese as the children are frequently engaged in activities that burnout excessive fat in their bodies. This goes to greater heights in reducing other conditions that are brought by excessive fat deposits in the body. For instance, the children will hav e reduced the risks of getting heart diseases. On the other hand, children that engage in video games rarely run and make physical contacts while playing (Vorderer and Bryant 14). This increases the chances of having fat deposits in the body as they are not burned out. Therefore, the children will continue to have fat deposits in their body, which is a threat to a healthy living. Therefore, they will have increased chances of developing health conditions, which include obesity and other related issues.

Leadership. Two Occasions of my Lidership Personal Statement

Leadership. Two Occasions of my Lidership - Personal Statement Example In its first year, firm has been able to close out four successful deals suggesting that new and nascent firms, in an industry which is dominated by giants like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, can succeed too provided they take into account reality. I am a proactive person and realize that in order to succeed in this industry; we must evolve into a company and grow ourselves as leaders in our chosen segmented market. This idea was floated by me to our co-founders but relying on their success in first year; they were resistant to change however I decided to carry on with this idea and called a brainstorming session with our employees. During that session, we come up with many issues which we believed were restricting the growth of our firm. I also further decided to bring my former boss, who was once, one of the successful leaders with a very well developed firm serving a niche market which however could not have survived and was sold merely for US$5 million only. That meeting proved one of the catalysts for my partners to think more strategically because the kind of competitive landscaped we faced were such that it demanded a comprehensive overhaul of our current thinking.

Air Force Careers and Benefits in Military Aviation of Canada Essay

Air Force Careers and Benefits in Military Aviation of Canada - Essay Example The air force also supports the Canadian interests in the foreign lands outside North America. This includes providing support to the organizations like UN, NATO and also other contingency operations where air force involvement is necessary. The military organization also provides assistance on humanitarian gronds to the other countries. Now the basic research question that remains is whether the military aviation of Canada and America should operate together or not. In the national level the military organization (Air Force) assists other government bodies in enforcing the Canadian law and regulation and also provides a national level air search and most importantly plays a big part in the rescue operations. Being one of the major military unit in North America as it is, the air force of Canada influences the domestic and international operations of the government in a huge way. For that reason when an individual gets into the system he or she has to undergo rigorous training schedu le. The primary training is the trade and technical training where the individual is informed about the technical complexities of the operations and gradually they get well acquainted with the technical details.

Personal statement for university approval Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

For university approval - Personal Statement Example ering developed from the position of mechanical trainee at Qatar Petroleum and also at Qatar Petrochemical Company as mechanical technician subsequently. The diploma in mechanical engineering which I acquired from Bradford College enabled me to get a promotion. The position is from mechanical technician to mechanical specialist as I was now able fully to understand the technicality of the rotating section in the company. The enhancement was further made by attaining a position in bagging and logistic area after attaining a degree in mechanical engineering from North Umbria University for two years. It is my inclination to gain more skills and hopefully secure high rank in my employment in the oil industry by completing the degree course in mechanical engineering which I had already started. The reason to this is that the course provides more relevance in the whole process in the oil industry from rotational section to logistics

Tornadoes - Failures of Leadership Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Tornadoes - Failures of Leadership - Case Study Example There were 1000 deaths as a result of weather related calamities and 550 of those were a result of tornadoes (IEMA, 2012). While severe weather cannot be prevented, there is much that can be done with respect to being prepared and taking action to safeguard the public. The tornadoes of June 1, 2011 showed the lack of preparedness and failure of leadership at various levels. There had been many tornadoes which had had devastating effects on more than 6 states including New York, Oklahoma, Alabama and Georgia prior to June 1, 2011. There were gaps and failures witnessed in emergency preparedness systems in the prior tornadoes and still the June 1 tornadoes were no different (Smilowitz, 2011). This case study focuses on the June 1 tornadoes where in most of the communities struggled from miscommunication and chaos. This case study highlights the failure of leadership at numerous levels and lack of preparedness during the June 1 Tornadoes. It also makes various suggestions to overcome th ese failures. There were numerous areas where leadership was found wanting. There were communication issues between emergency responders and government officials and the collective communication system, of emergency responders and government officials, with citizens. The emergency personnel lacked the training and preparedness to handle a catastrophe of such nature and magnitude. The lack of preparedness of the emergency management was best put forward by Monson's Emergency Management Director, Evan Brassard when he said: â€Å"I think that emergency management had been on the back burner because it had been so long since a response of that nature was needed†. (Meiler & Russo, 2012) This statement clearly summarises the state of the emergency management program. The emergency management teams in place were unprepared for such an event. Emergency management teams and personnel need to train for such an event in foresight so that they can respond in the best possible way and no t wait for the need for such a response to arise in order to prepare. The following paragraphs will identify various aspects of emergency management that failed during the June 1 tornadoes. The first and foremost reaction or response to such a disaster is search and rescue. The responders at ground zero who are the most effective and the first to respond to a disaster did not have proper information that defined their capabilities and roles. These local responder teams consisted of numerous specialists who are experts in their own fields but lack the understanding of their role in the search and rescue team. Secondly, there was no proper co-ordination between the different teams. The inspection markings on structures were not consistent with different teams. Each team used its own structural marking systems that indicated the condition of the structure and its habitability. This lead to a lot of confusion as there were numerous agencies and teams working at once and each of them had their own marking system (WRHSAC, 2012). This could have been overcome if the leaders had taken initiative and be prepared for the situation. In future, this can be avoided by ensuring that the team members are briefed prior to the disaster about their capabilities and roles in search and rescue teams. Also a unified marking system must be put in place and ensured that all agencies and teams taking part are familiar with the unified system. Tornadoes of June 1 were not a single region event but a multi-regional and

Self Evaluation Essay Example for Free

Self Evaluation Essay I was quite confident about my writing style and had the impression that I am competent enough. But when more than one of my projects got remarks like ‘improve your writing skill’ and ‘work hard on your writing style’, I was shocked and was unable to look for my faults. I had to discuss with one of my teachers who explained that I was using parallelism in my writing style, which was quite boring and repetitive. Then I noticed that I was using some of the words quite a lot of time and they were even repeated quite a lot of times in one single sentence. When I read my story I found that lots of characters were created which either confused the reader or left them bewildered. I had to really work hard so that I make my essays or stories interesting for the reader. While analyzing my early essays I found that most of the time I got diverted from the main stream of discussion and wasted my pages on not so important issues. I now understand it was because I need to draw on outline of my essay before finally writing it. I should deal the objectives and organize them according to the preferences required hile writing it. Repetitive use of words or phrases spoils the charm of writing and fails to make story interesting. Even if the plot is good and organized, it needs to be appealing so that the reader finds it out of the ordinary. I had the idea that repetitive use of words and phrases add weight to your work but it is not in essays or stories. It gives the impression that the writer is using same words just because he is lacking original ideas for the story. This gives a bad impression and cuts your marks eventually. I was always against plagiarism and had the idea that it is just copying word by word of some other writer’s work. But even if you use some facts by changing few words with their synonyms is also categorized under plagiarism. It was quite difficult to understand this issue but I will have to work on it so that my essays are not remarked as ‘plagiarized’. I use sources from Internet or some times related books to research on any matter. I have written different essays on numerous subjects and all I was able to find on Internet. I researched and then collected the matter, read and organized them and wrote iving my opinion on the issue. I have been getting experienced in different types of essays dealing personal as well as public issues. I worked on various writing styles like MLA format, APA format, Chicago style and many more. Initially these were quite new for me but as I worked cautiously and followed the instructions it has become quite easy for me now. To mesmerize the reader it is important to maintain the charm of your topic and suspense of the story till its end. For a good writer it is important that the reader has lots of quarries hile reading the story so that he is not in a position to leave reading it until he ends it. It is an ongoing process and one needs to improve a lot to become a good writer. Lots of practice and a good guidance will help you improve your writing skills. When I was first pointed out with my mistakes I thought I would never be able to improve these things as they come in flow of my natural way of writing. But I was wrong because during the course I was not only able to get rid of my drawbacks but also improved and made my writing style interesting from the point of view of readers. Now this is the most important thing for a writer and he/she can get rewards only when his work gets appreciated by his/her readers. There are lots of things to be taken in to consideration when you research on writing skills and you will feel that you need to learn quite a lot of stuff on the art of writing. It is actually a vast area and there are things that are required to learn and some areas get developed with your experience too. I found that the areas, which used to involve me for hours while writing an essay is now engaging me for remarkably less time. These all happened because of correct learning procedure and practice also. As far as parallelism is considered it is not completely useless but you will find it very useful while writing employment documents. Here you need to put stress on some person or his qualities and it is effective only when you repeat words and phrases. So avoiding parallel style of writing entirely is not right. There are times when you need to echo some facts and there you will need this style along with balance and rhythm so that you are able to convey your actual meaning and intention.

Mother and Twin Brothers Eli Essay Example for Free

Mother and Twin Brothers Eli Essay In The Droughtlanders, by Carrie Mac, Twin brothers Eli and Seth, both Keylanders, live inside a privileged and protected city surrounded by huge walls to protect them from the filthy, sick Droughlanders. Eli’s mother teaches him to view Droughtlanders sympathetically and Eli changes his opinion about them. As a result Eli joins a rebellion group against the Keylands. Initially Seth is furious about Eli’s decision and attempts to hunt Eli and kill him but ultimately realizes the truth and joins his brother. At the beginning Eli and Seth have a bitter hate for each other which intensifies due to their different view points regarding the Droughtlanders. In the end, they make up and the hate they had between them fades away. Right from the start Eli and Seth do not get along, this relationship soon turns into hate and distrust between them. Near the end Seth also changes his mind about Droughtlanders and they get along. From the beginning Eli and Seth dislike each other because of Seth’s constant harassment. Seth is constantly making harsh jokes about Eli’s bladder problem, â€Å"do you have to sit down like a girl?† (36). This quote shows how Seth bullies Eli. Seth and Eli get in a lot of fights and Seth says mean thinks like â€Å"If father wasn’t in the room I’d kick your face in† (44). Seth bullies Eli because he thinks that he is weak and pathetic. After getting in yet another fight Seth says to Eli â€Å"You really are a baby. Get a diaper, Eliza† (55). Eli hates Seth’s bullying and they never get along. They have always had a poor relationship, but it becomes worse once Eli sympathizes with the Droughtlanders. Seth and Eli’s relationship and distrust gets even worse. When the explosion goes off where their mother is, Eli cries â€Å"Maman. She was in there, Seth† (45). Eli had a very strong connection with his mom, but Seth not so much. Eli tells Seth how their father killed their mother and Seth whispers into his ear â€Å"Say that one more time, or to anyone else, ever, and I will kill you† (54). This quote demonstrates how seriously angry they are with each other. Eli tries to tell Seth that their mother was a rebel but Seth responds â€Å"That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard you say† (56). This quote illustrates how much distrust they have between them. When Eli secretly leaves to look for the Droughtlander rebels, Seth views him as a traitor and this betrayal leads to Seth hunting Eli. When Seth finally catches up with Eli, he tells Seth the truth about their mother’s death and how their father was responsible. Seth also comes to accept the Droughtlanders for the decent and ill-treated people they are. Eli and Seth find each other in a forest. â€Å"When Eli heard the name he’s not been called in so long, he felt some thing snap with a sharp, invigorating pain. Keenly aware of his intentions, he brought out his own knife and in one fluid motion flicked the wider blade open, turned and plunged the knife through Seth’s pants and as deep as it would go† (300). It is this moment that Seth gains respect for Eli and starts to question his own beliefs. After Seth is captured he does his sin inventory and comes to realize how horrible of a person he was. Although Eli is still very angry with Seth, Seth says, â€Å"I’m sorry, Eli, for being such a terrible brother† (317). This is the start to their relationship reuniting. They discuss and finally agree about the tragic events that lead to their mother’s death. Sabine, their triplet sister, is also there and for the first time they all connect peacefully. During the circus they all collapse and are sent to the infirmary. â€Å"They speculated on why only now they felt a connection† (323). They figured it was because this was the first time they were all happy together. In the end, Seth and Eli are no longer enemies and can be happy. The relationship between Seth and Eli started with mutual hostility and ended in admiration. It is a unique relationship between Seth and Eli in search of the truth. Eli pursues the truth of his mothers legacy as Seth searches for the truth about Eli’s defection.

Implementation Of Child Friendly Schools

Implementation Of Child Friendly Schools This article explores the contribution of Comparative and International Research in the successful implementation of Child Friendly Schools in Kenya. Emphasis will be placed on the background of CFS, current practices and emerging critics, success stories, problems and pitfalls and what CIR can do to subjugate some of these challenges. In the introduction section, the essay will start by examining literature surrounding the concepts of CIR and CFS in relation to global agendas; explore how CFS came into existence and the driving forces behind it. We then go on to focus on a case study of CFS in Kenya, discussing the role of CIR in the Kenyas CFS, arguing that CIR is used as a political tool in creating educational policy, rather than a research method or an intellectual inquiry. The article will further critically analyze challenges facing CFS and how knowledge on CIR can contribute to achieving the aims and objectives of CFS. A conclusion based on the literature and authors experien ce will then be drawn. Throughout the article we build a case in favour of CIR arguing that the strength of voices of comparative researchers lie on uncritical transfer of policies and practices from one context to another which could otherwise open a Pandoras Box. Introduction Perhaps, one of the growing fields in education in the modern age is comparative and international education, judged by the volume of studies reported in the literature. Central to this is that many countries around the world have formulated some of their educational policies based on findings from CIR. With the current wave of globalization, researchers and experts, especially in the field of education, are always trying to find ways of streamlining their educational policies with the global trends. According to Giddens (1990:64), globalization is the intensification of worldwide social relations which link distance localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles away and vice versa. Global forces therefore have an impact on shaping local practices with global trends. In order to do this tactically and critically, comparative and internal research remains cutting edge in informing people about the realities, the challenges and the possible ef fects of uncritical transfer of ideas. Interestingly, global agendas in matters related to education are prioritized towards basic education as opposed to adult education or higher education. In Africa, this would be probably because, as Oketch (2004) points out, basic education yields higher rates of returns compared to higher education. This has subsequently caused government and non-governmental organizations to focus more on improving the quality of basic education. Child-friendly schools (CFSs) in Kenya is an example of a non-governmental initiative sponsored by UNICEF with the aim of not just providing children right to education but the right to the right education. In other words, CFSs are more concerned with the quality of basic education in addition to its access. The emergence of CFSs in Kenya was catapulted by the forces of agendas 1 and 2 of Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) which emphasizes on the provision of basic education. The term quality in education is dynamic because of the social, political and eco nomic context at which it is used. Because of differences in contexts, it is imperative that knowledge of comparative and international research be used in designing policies and pedagogy in CFS that fit that particular context. But the question is: how can CIR be helpful in successful implementation of CFS in Kenya? To answer this question, this essay hinges on two broad concepts: Comparative and International Research and Child Friendly Schools. Literature Review In this section, the author will look atà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Concepts of Comparative and International Research (CIR) and Child Friendly School (CFS) CIR is a fusion of two broad areas of research: Comparative Research and International Research. To understand its full meaning, it is important we define the two areas of research separately. In his definition of comparative research, Mills et al (year) argue that: Comparative research is a broad term that includes both quantitative and qualitative comparison of social entities. Social entities may be based on many lines, such as geographical or political ones in the form of cross-national or regional comparisons. (p. 621) A similar perception was echoed by Noah and Eckstein (1969: 127), who described comparative education as an intersection of the social sciences, education and cross-national study [which] attempts to use cross-national data to test propositions about the relationship between education and society and between teaching practices and learning outcomes. In light of this definition, comparative research in the context of education can be defined as a study of two or more entities or events (Crossley Watson 2003) with the underlying goal of searching for similarity and variance. Cross-national or regional comparisons may include comparing educational policies, pedagogy, educational leadership and so on. According to Mills et al (2006: 621), the search for variance places more emphasis on context and difference in order to understand specificities. International education, on the other hand, can be defined as the application of descriptions, analyses and insights learned in one or more nations to the problems of developing educational systems and institutions in other countries (Wilson 2000a: 116). Thus, international research is concerned with research carried out across two or more countries, often with the purpose of comparing responses between them. This might be done in order to devise strategies that work well across both or all these cultures or to suggest local adjustments to a global strategy There is a close relationship between comparative and international education. Epstein (1994: 918) points out, that international educators use findings derived from comparative education to understand better the processes they examine, and thus, to enhance their ability to make policy. We can therefore draw from the above two definitions that CIR in education as a method of comparing both qualitative and quantitative entities in education across different countries, societies or cultures with the aim of identifying similarities and differences. It is however important to note that not all international research is comparative, and not all comparative research is international or cross-national. According to UNICEF, a child-friendly school is both a child seeking school and a child-centred school: It is child seeking because it actively identifying excluded children to get them enrolled in school. It is a child-centred school because it acts in the best interests of the child leading to the realization of the childs full potential, is concerned about the whole child: her health, nutritional status, and well-being and concerned about what happens to children before they enter school and after they leave school. A CFS system recognizes and respects childrens right and responsibilities; it provides the enabling environment to realize childrens right not only in schools, but also in childrens home and their communities. These include children from conflict zones, street children and children with disabilities. The Child-Friendly Schools model (see fig 1) is based on simple, rights-based concepts that would have all schools be: Safe, healthy and protective; Staffed by trained teachers; Provided adequate resources and the appropriate physical, emotional and social conditions for children to learn, develop their talents and reach their potential. Fig 1: Model of the Child-Friendly School Source: UNICEF, 2009. The CFS model provides a framework for planning (and monitoring the effectiveness of) strategies for increasing access to quality basic education with the specific focus on the development of strategies to include those children hitherto excluded from education (UNICEF, Global Education Strategy, 2007). International and Local Pressures and their influences to formation of CFS in Kenya Education in sub-Sahara Africa, and indeed in Kenya, is crafted from both influences by global trends in education and the legacies of colonialism. Chisholm and Leyenderker (2008) observe that: Since 1990, the goals and purpose of education in sub-Sahara Africa has been reshaped by four interconnected developments: globalisation, the changed focus of international aid agencies towards development assistance, the adaptation of sub-Sahara African countries to the new world order with its new political emphases, and the spilling over of new pedagogical ideas from the USA and Europe into sub-Sahara Africa. (p 198) Kenya is a signatory to a number of conventions in education, including the Convention to the Rights of the Child (1989), the World Declaration on Education for All (Jomtien, 1990), the Dakar accord and the Millenium Development Goals (2000). In achievement of education development goals, Kenya is bound to, among other things, quality education by MDGs. The Jomtien call for access for access, equity, quality and democracy in education appeared to promise both social and economic development (Chisholm and Leyenderker, 2008). Social and economic development, and continues to be believed, requires educational change and educational change is necessary for social and economic development (ibid:). Educational change, in turn, is perceived to depend on, amongst other things, the input from relevant development assistance projects. These projects, in the arena of education, are typically formulated with reference to internationally negotiated development agendas (like the MDGs) and priority (Crossley Watson, 2003). An example of these projects in Kenya is CFSs which are supported by United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF). The Education Section of UNICEFs Programme Division introduced the Child Friendly Schools (CFS) framework for schools that serve the whole child in 1999 (Chabbott, 2004). Theoretical underpinning of introducing CFS framework in Kenya The increased reliance of foreign aid to support education reform in Kenya has been accompanied by a transition, from understanding education as a human right and the general good to viewing it primarily in terms of its contribution to national growth and well-being through the development of the knowledge and skills societies are deemed to need. (Arnove Torres 2007:359). Occasional voices continue insisting that education is liberating, that learning is inherently developmental (ibid: 359). With the global concern that Sub-sahara Africa countries may not achieve Universal Primary Education (UPE) by 2015 unless the progress is accelerated (Carceles et al., 2001; Bennel, 2002), Kenya responded by introducing Free Primary Education (FPE) policy in 2003 with both local and global pressure. The rationale behind introducing FPE was (apart from the pressure from global and international agendas) to alleviate poverty attributed to lack of literacy skills. The success story behind implementation of FPE policy is the increased enrolment at primary schools by nearly 50%, from 5.9 million in 2003 to 9.38 million pupils according to the Kenya Economic Survey 2011. One of its standout achievements was the enrolment of the late Kimani Maruge, the worlds oldest person to start primary school, he enrolled in the first grade in 2004, aged 84, he holds the Guinness World Record for this. Besides the enormous enrolment rates resulting from free primary education, there are concerns about t he quality of schooling in primary schools in Kenya. There are not enough textbooks, classrooms are overcrowded and the infrastructure in many schools is inadequate for the numbers of pupils attending. Many of the schools do not have sanitation facilities. The teacher-pupil ratio is quite high: according to UNESCO there are more than 40 pupils per teacher, on average. All of these factors militate against the provision of quality teaching. There is no magic wand for fixing this problem of quality in education. In response to this CFS were introduced in Kenya by UNICEF. According to UNICEF (2006): The challenge in education is not simply to get children into school, but also to improve the overall quality of schooling and address threats to participation. If both quality and access are tackled, children who are enrolled in primary school are likely to continue, complete the full cycle, achieve expected learning outcomes and successfully transition to secondary school. (p. 1) The CFS framework (see appendix 3) aims at promoting child-seeking, child-centred, gender-sensitive, inclusive, community-involved, protective and healthy approaches to schooling and out-of-school education with a general goal of improving the quality of learning. Since CFSs are concerned with the quality of learning, it is important we look at the meaning of quality. The national examinations to obtain the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) at the end of primary cycle and the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) at the end of secondary cycle are designed to evaluate the extent to which the primary and secondary graduates master the curriculum content. In other words, the national test scores are used as the indicators of quality. The limitation of this indicator is that it does not take into account the context at which learning takes place i.e. the learning environment, learners unique characteristics etc. There are many definitions of quality but one of the descriptions of quality which emphasizes on the context was by Coombs. In his definition, Coombs (1985) suggests that quality: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ pertains to the relevance of what is taught and learned to how well it fits the present and future needs of the particular learners in question, given their particular circumstances and prospectsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ in the nature of its inputs (students, teachers, facilities, equipment, and supplies); its objectives, curriculum and educational technologies; and its socioeconomic, cultural and political environment. (p. 105) From his definition, Coombs puts context into consideration i.e. needs of the learner, cultural and political contexts. In addition, he emphasizes on the relevance of what is taught and learned and how it fits the nature of particular learners in question. The fact that CFS emphasizes on learner-centered pedagogy and puts the child at the centre or focal point in the learning process raises the idea of what is regarded as valuable knowledge and how this knowledge is acquired in this particular context. This leads us to the inquiry on the school of thought or paradigm behind introducing a contextualized CFS framework. CFS as an approach to education is premised on constructivism, a theory of knowledge arguing that humans generate knowledge and meaning from interaction between ideas and real experiences. According to constructivists, the notions of reality and truth are socially constructed and in different context with the understanding that knowledge is subjective and embedded in mul tiple realities. Thus, quality of learning should be viewed in the context in which it is occurs. Mainstreaming CFS model into the Kenyas educational system: Whose voice Matters? Challenges in implementing CFS in Kenya Access and Quality Dilemma: Which one should be first priority? As I mentioned earlier, one of the role of CFS in Kenya is to improve the quality of learning. But the access to education is still a challenge in Kenya and there is fear that Kenya will not have achieved EFA goals 1 and 2 by the year 2015. As we near the 2015 set deadline for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, at a time when hopes should be high, universal access to primary education in Kenya seems to be slipping away. Many comparative researchers argue that different countries have different educational problems and it is the countrys obligation to identify what should be the priority and why. Aksoy (2008: 218) insists that: While developed countries are mainly engaged in activities to increase the quality of education, or they practice and seek new techniques and methods of learning and teaching, developing countries struggle to provide equal opportunities for education, trying to increase the rate of participation of all citizens in basic education, which is actually compulsory. To deal with its educational problems, each country works out countrywide or local solutions, depending on the nature of the problem. The tone of such statement is more closely allied to the question of priority. Priority in one country may not be a priority in another. In Kenya, the major problem basic education is facing is of access while higher education is facing the problem of quality. CFS focus more on quality, but in the Kenyan context, access to education is still a problem in basic education even after the introduction of FPE. The CFS concept of quality can however suit very well in small state commonwealth countries which have almost universal access to basic education. It has been noted that small sates have now shifted education priorities towards focus in school effectiveness, quality and inclusion (Crossley Watson 2003) and CFS in Kenya should learn from small states that the priority should now be on access to basic education before shifting to quality. Atomizing the child: is child-centred the solution to quality CFS? A key feature of a right-based, CFS system is that it is linked tightly to the child-centred learning process. CFS advocates for child-centred learning where a child is treated as a single entity or an atom in learning processes. The idea of atomizing a child has its drawbacks derived from child-centred learning. First, there is an oversight on early year development behaviour of the child. Psychologists believe children undergo various levels of development and their learning behaviours are different at each level. For instant, Vygotskys (1978) concept of the zone of proximal development (ZPD) implies that a child cannot ordinary create ZPD by himself; he needs the more expert individual to bridge the gap between his current development level and his proximal level of development. Secondly, a child-friendly, democratic learning environment may not work successful in overcrowded classrooms and school with limited resources like it is the case in Kenya. Thirdly, child-centred learning weakens the role of the teacher. The idea that a child must be active in construction of knowledge is often understood to imply a diminishing role for the teacher in learning process who now becomes a coach or a facilitator. A call for paradigm renovation, from an exclusively child-centred learning to a combination of both child-centred learning and teacher-centred learning approach is important so that the weakness of one method is complemented by the other method. Several comparative studies concur with this blended approach. What Lessons can Kenya learn from other Countries in Implementing CFS? A Review on the Contribution of Comparative Research The term that is commonly used in Kenya and indeed many Africa countries in the initial processes of designing an educational policy is benchmarking. Essentially, this is usually a comparative study which is carried out either locally and/or internationally in trying to compare different models of policy framework with the aim of critical adaption or adoption. Lessons are well learnt when a comparisons are made, and this underscores the strength and significance of comparative research. Moreover, since problems transcend national borders, it is prudent to seek possible solutions from a similar experience in another country, and this explains why international research is important. Kenya can learn from other countries that are either progressing or failing to implement CFS because lessons can either identify opportunities or gaps, based on comparative analysis. The first lesson to be learned is that documenting the emerging good practices and lessons learned within the regions is useful in informing evidence based programming and advocacy to enable us to achieve better results. For example, a Global Evaluation Report published by UNICEF in 2009 on comparative studies of how to six countries (Guyana, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand) with different experiences implementing CFS, demonstrated the following: CFSs in varying contexts successfully apply the three key principles of CFS models-inclusiveness, child-centredness and democratic participation. Schools operating in very different national contexts, with different levels of resources and serving populations with different needs have succeeded in being child-centred, promoting democratic participation, and being inclusive. Schools that had high levels of family and community participation and use of child-centred pedagogical approaches had stronger conditions for learning, that is, students felt safer, supported and engaged, and believed that the adults in the school supported the inclusion and success of each student. (UNESCO, 2009) Kenya can use this success report to assist in providing a broader perspective on the ways in which CFSs can contribute to quality in the countrys unique context. The caution should however be that any steps taken should have hindsight of the current context in the country to avoid uncritical transfer of practice which may end up opening a Pandoras box. Secondly, through CIR, studies of educational systems that share similar problems can provide information for learning possible consequences. A recent comparative evaluation research conducted by UNESCO in Nigeria, Gunaya, Thailand and the Philippines on CFS pedagogy gave different findings. While teachers in Nigeria and Guyana mainly focused on meeting basic instructional material needs (textbooks, paper), many teachers in Thailand and the Philippines focused on having greater access to information and communication technology (UNESCO 2009). Kenya experiences the same challenge as Nigeria and Gunaya, and data from these countries can be used to learn how they coping with inadequate basic instructional material. The caution here should be, that common problems may prevail in different countries, but common model cannot be applied because each country has different culture/context (Crossley Watson, 2003:39). This provides invaluable information of what to adopt, modify or avoid. Conclusion It is worthy reiterating Crossley'(2003) emphasis that context matters and different countries have different needs and priorities even if they are faced with the same challenges. The value of CIR is studying foreign systems of education in order to become better fitted to study and understand our own (Sadler 1900, reprinted 1964:310). Thus, this essay has not provided, and has not sought to provide, solutions to empirical problems affecting CFS, but has presented an overview of the contribution of CIR in improving successful implementation of CFS in Kenya. As such, the essay acknowledges the role of CIR in stimulating critical thinking and reflections about CFS system, its success and failures, strengths and weaknesses. This critical reflection facilitates self evaluation in our own context and the basis for determining appropriate courses of action. The article also hints that CIR helps us understand global agendas and how they shape educational development projects from organizati ons and development agencies like UNICEF. Recommendations and Way forward for Comparative and International Research in Education While policy borrowing and cross-national educational comparison have been central concerns of the field of comparative education since its inception, political, economic, and cultural changes worldwide have challenged comparativists to consider new questions of power, politics and relevance in relation to educational policy transfer and diffusion processes. First, it has been argued that politicians who talk about educational development or economic development talk less about education and its role in economic development. This means that if comparative researches are to have their voice heard, then it should focus on strengthening multidisciplinary directions both in vertical and horizontal orientation. Secondly, in 1980s, comparative education focused majorly on the issue of policy, but it has now been shifted to qualitative research with an aim of gaining information at grassroots level. This has been catalyzed by the fact that culture is a complex phenomenon and understanding i t requires researchers to focus more on specific, small-scale contexts.

Is the Watch Industry dominated by an Oligopoly*, which is beneficial E

Is the Watch Industry dominated by an Oligopoly*, which is beneficial to both firms and consumers? *= See glossary for meanings. Hypothesis ========== I believe that the watch industry is dominated by an oligopoly, which is beneficial to both firms and consumers. The watch firms are both price makers*, which is good for the watch firms, and price takers*, which is good for consumers. Aim In this investigation I shall be examining the watch industry. I will use a Mintel report of the watch industry produced in 1995 and information worksheets to test my hypothesis. Findings and Application of Theories Five companies, or the 'C5 ratio', dominate the watch industry. They have 40% of the market share* (see fig.1.). Zeon Ltd. is the market leader*. There have been no recent take-overs or mergers in the watch industry, so the market leadership is slight. The growth of the industry has been organic*. GRAPH This representation makes the watch industry an oligopoly, as opposed to being perfect competition*, imperfect competition, or a monopoly*. There are a number of reasons why the watch industry is an oligopoly. Firstly are there barriers to entry* as opposed to free entry*. One barrier to entry for other prospective watch manufacturers is economies of scale*. The larger, more established firms have a number of cost advantages, such as being able to buy raw materials in bulk or borrow large sums of money. Their production costs are therefore cheaper and therefore they will probably be able to sell their watches at a lower price than smaller, newer firms. Another barrier to entry is branding. All of the firms in the oligopoly have very established names in the... ...a novelty/ luxury item. The success of this strategy depends on maintaining low costs at low volume on a high quality image with few or no competitors. - Price Makers: In a monopoly situation where there is only one, or very few suppliers. The industry can set its prices at whatever level they want without the chance of being undercut by competition (because there is none). - Price Takers: In an industry where there is a lot of competition (ideally perfect competition), the sellers must have the prices of their product low in order to sell them. If they did not have low enough prices, customers would go elsewhere as there will be many substitutes that are cheaper. Bibliography 1) The Watch Industry Mintel Report- 1995 (obtained from Sheffield Hallam University's 'Adsett's Centre') 2) Business and Economics class worksheets Is the Watch Industry dominated by an Oligopoly*, which is beneficial E Is the Watch Industry dominated by an Oligopoly*, which is beneficial to both firms and consumers? *= See glossary for meanings. Hypothesis ========== I believe that the watch industry is dominated by an oligopoly, which is beneficial to both firms and consumers. The watch firms are both price makers*, which is good for the watch firms, and price takers*, which is good for consumers. Aim In this investigation I shall be examining the watch industry. I will use a Mintel report of the watch industry produced in 1995 and information worksheets to test my hypothesis. Findings and Application of Theories Five companies, or the 'C5 ratio', dominate the watch industry. They have 40% of the market share* (see fig.1.). Zeon Ltd. is the market leader*. There have been no recent take-overs or mergers in the watch industry, so the market leadership is slight. The growth of the industry has been organic*. GRAPH This representation makes the watch industry an oligopoly, as opposed to being perfect competition*, imperfect competition, or a monopoly*. There are a number of reasons why the watch industry is an oligopoly. Firstly are there barriers to entry* as opposed to free entry*. One barrier to entry for other prospective watch manufacturers is economies of scale*. The larger, more established firms have a number of cost advantages, such as being able to buy raw materials in bulk or borrow large sums of money. Their production costs are therefore cheaper and therefore they will probably be able to sell their watches at a lower price than smaller, newer firms. Another barrier to entry is branding. All of the firms in the oligopoly have very established names in the... ...a novelty/ luxury item. The success of this strategy depends on maintaining low costs at low volume on a high quality image with few or no competitors. - Price Makers: In a monopoly situation where there is only one, or very few suppliers. The industry can set its prices at whatever level they want without the chance of being undercut by competition (because there is none). - Price Takers: In an industry where there is a lot of competition (ideally perfect competition), the sellers must have the prices of their product low in order to sell them. If they did not have low enough prices, customers would go elsewhere as there will be many substitutes that are cheaper. Bibliography 1) The Watch Industry Mintel Report- 1995 (obtained from Sheffield Hallam University's 'Adsett's Centre') 2) Business and Economics class worksheets

Cadmium :: essays research papers fc

Cadmium, symbol, Cd, is a silvery white metallic chemical element with a faint blue tinge to it. It is the fifty-seventh most commonly found element in the earth. It was discovered by F. Stromeyer, in 1817, in Germany. Stromeyer was studying a sample of zinc carbonate which separated into a the new element ultimately called cadmium. The only cadmium materials, greenockite (cadmium sulfide) and otavile (cadmium carbonate) are found in zinc oxide and zinc carbonate. Cadmium, which is usually associated with zinc has some differences; some of which are that cadmium is softer and has a lower melting and boiling point than zinc. There are five basic states of cadmium. First, there is the regular raw metal cadmium. Then there is cadmium oxide which is formed by burning the raw metal in the air producing brown smoke. Cadmium oxide can also be formed by heating cadmium carbonate in acid or ammonia producing a brown powder. By doing this, cadmium and oxygen are being mixed. Cadmium carbonate is made by absorbing carbon dioxide into the raw metal or mixing cadmium salts with ammonium carbonate, forming a salt-like substance. Cadmium sulfide is made by mixing hydrogen sulfide with a solution of cadmium ions, resulting in a range of colors from lemon yellow to a deep red. Cadmium halides are compounds with complex cadmium ions in them to form varied structure solutions. The regular structure of a cadmium atom is that it has four electron shells with a total of 48 electrons in it. The main use for cadmium is to plate iron, steel and other metals, protecting them from corrosion. This method has been used since 1919. The use of cadmium has to be limited because it gives off large numbers of toxins into the environment. The use of cadmium has gradually decreased in order to help the environment. It is not used to plate food processing parts or ovens because of this. Cadmium may be found in some cereals, nuts and vegetables, but scientists doubt that, if taken is small quantities, it would prove harmful. Cadmium is also used for nickel-cadmium batteries and nuclear control rods. It is used in compounds, for example, with copper to harden them. Since the color of cadmium sulfide varies it is useful for

Philosophical Perspectives on Music Education Essay

Music is one subject that is very rarely given attention in the academe. The most controversial issue that is attached to this is whether or not music should be taught in schools, or why music should be taught, for that matter. Contrary to what most people believe, music education is an imperative part of student growth (Davidson, 1932). This issue has resulted to the perceived need to change public opinion. Several â€Å"music advocacies† which come in many forms were established, seeking to change this mindset that people have about music education. Most music advocacies are based on legitimate findings and scientific arguments, although many others rely on unconvincing and rather controversial data. It should be noted that students should be exposed to music so that they are able to communicate and understand their own feelings (Zbikowski, 2002). Arts, whether it be visual or audio allows us to have an insight to our emotional self and cultivates the growth of intrapersonal and interpersonal intelligence. In colleges, music education is usually one of the densest subjects. Although some schools and organizations encourage incorporation of arts in classes, such as music with other subjects such as Math, Science, or English, people still fail to see the importance of arts in the academics (Zbikowski, 2002). For many people, academic subjects should go beyond what is best for the students to learn. It should also incorporate things that will help students cultivate the need to learn. Music has taken the biggest cut on the academe—it has not been given importance as it should be. In this paper, the philosophical perspectives of three authors will explain why music is among the most important subjects that should be taught in schools and why there is a need to do so. Charles Fowler Charles Fowler believes that through artistic representations such as music, people are able to share, at some point, a common humanity. In the same manner, life would be meaningless without shared expressions which make people understand one another. He also very firmly believes that Science is not the only conveyor of what we may consider true. Science may be able to explain how flowers bloom or how humans are conceived, but it fails to convey its emotive meaning and impact, as the Arts does. He emphasizes that both are important, and that both should be given importance (Fowler, 1996). He considers Arts such as music as an act of intelligence and should be treated no less compared to other subjects as it is a form of thought that is every bit as important as science and mathematics when it comes to what these subjects convey. Inasmuch as the pyramids of Egypt, the Statue of Liberty, and the Hanging Garden of Babylon can be mathematically or scientifically explained as to how they were built, a musical piece can also show people many other evenly important aspects of its existence. Arts allow us to create our own representation to concepts, ideas and feelings as perceived by people. In the same manner, music was created for us to be able to react to the world in the form of music, to record our impressions and to analyze things and share them with other people. Like science and mathematics, music needs to be studied before being fully understood (Fowler, 1996). Because today’s schools are understood to be concerned as they should be to teaching literacy, it should be noted that literacy also includes understanding of music. This is because music allows us to fully express, represent, and communicate the full scale of human life, which is a pre-requisite to understanding the real essence of language, mathematics, science, economics, philosophy, and the list could go on and on. If one is asked, â€Å"What constitutes a good education? † one is expected to hear an answer which would mention about a full knowledge about Sciences and Math. True enough, this is very critical in a person’s life if he aims to have a place in the work force. Very few would also argue with that. However, this idea should not and never make us overlook how important music is and what it can do for the mind and spirit of people (Fowler, 1996). Fowler believes that school administrators, teachers, professors and educators should be reminded that one obligation that a school has for their students is to inspire them, in whatever way, and ignite their minds for them to be better individuals. Music often ignites that goal and serves as the fuel. It is one way to apply one’s imaginations, thoughts and feelings. In relation to the reform movement of America which focuses on improving the quality of education by inspiring them, introducing self discipline, discovering the joys of learning, the uniqueness of one’s being, the possibilities and wonders of life and the achievement and satisfaction, Fowler believes that arts can be used to attain these goals (Henry, 1958). He also emphasizes that the world does not need better and more arts education simply because the world needs more artists. He believes that there are far better reasons for schools to provide a healthy and in-depth education in Arts. Quite simply, this is one way people communicate with each other, although not generally verbally, but emotionally. Music is the language of the world which helps people express fear, anger, anxiety, curiosity, hunger, hopes, dreams and so on. Music is the universal language by which the world is able to express itself to its constituents; the world speaks through music. Music is not just important—Fowler believes that it is a center force of human existence. Arts in school should never be isolated from any other subjects in the academe. It should be included in the framework of general education and should be part of the curriculum of all American schools, or all schools in the world for that matter. Arts should at all times be related to general education because it is essential in establishing a strong curriculum. Every person should then be given the opportunity to learn as much as they can about arts (Fowler, 1996). Charles Leonhard  Leonhard believes that although it is an easy task for educators to make their students love music, they should still consider finding ways to make music education more effective and enjoyable. He discussed that there is a raising concern for higher standards of music education. For instance, students nowadays are more informed about music, which is why educators should also adapt to this by teaching higher standards of musical literature and musical performances, and using better musical instruments that will best fit the taste of students and will thus inspire them to learn more about music. By doing so, he stresses out that school administrators all over the world will be inspired to make music education as an equal part of the general education (Elliot, 1995). He was also concerned about music being part of everyone’s lives. As the motto of music educators has for years been â€Å"Music for every child and every child for music†, this applies that every child and youth should be taught to love music, regardless the degree of understanding or talent in music they have. Just as this is important, he also believes that the music teaching should be on the same footing to that of the regular academic subjects and should be made functional, instead of treating it like a fad. Leonhard feels that now is the time to firmly establish music in the school curriculum, to gain increased acceptance of the idea that music should be an essential part of general education for everyone. Achievement of this ambition requires an expanded range of communication between music educators and all other educators, plus the interested public. It is only by a wider sharing of ideas that changes can occur. To achieve this, a very sensible approach has been used. This approach is placing ideas about the values of music education in a broader context of ideas about education in general and of building relationships between the intellectual resources of music educators. This is surely advisable, even necessary. Nevertheless there are difficulties in this kind of operation. Estelle Jorgensen Estelle Jorgensen contested many philosophers who treated music as a â€Å"difficulty†, and who considered music not to be part of the general education. Jorgensen sees the importance of having people be aware of the need to understand, appreciate and use music for one to apply it in his or her everyday life. The arts then have a potential contribution to the general education, as it has in general life. While school subjects often included music, arts were not always present. She believes that most people fail to see the importance of arts in the reality of life, and what difference it does to the world. For instance, love in itself is art; the human body is an art; everything around us is an art, yet many fails to understand and realize this fact. In American schools where there is willingness on the part of the authorities to accord a reasonable amount of time to music, she believes that work in appreciation is sometimes undertaken. But to accomplish anything systematic and lasting, teachers would have to be content to attack the problem in a less spectacular manner than commonly maintains in our schools. In view of the experience which precedes this work, the study of music appreciation in the high school should begin at the beginning and be satisfied to cover comparatively little ground. There are, moreover, three requisites without which any course of this kind would be practically worthless. First, the teacher must be a reasonably well-educated musician, possessing knowledge of the subject far more extensive than that required by his immediate work, and an acquaintance with other branches of education such as would enable him to draw parallels between music and other fields of learning. He should have, too, a highly cultivated taste, and a faith in the capacity of youth to perceive and enjoy beauty without the aid of sugar-coated musical palliatives or sensational devices which are calculated to enhance interest, but which, in reality, distract attention from the music itself. And last, the illustrations should offer as nearly as possible a true presentation of the work under discussion. She believes that music should be thought in an ideal way for it to be appreciated (Rogers, 1998). Conclusion Like other subjects in the curriculum of American schools, the arts provide an opportunity for children to realize certain talents and potentials. Particularly in their creative modes, the arts ask students to reach inside themselves to explore their own fascinations and perceptions and to give them suitable and precise representation. In the process of translating their inner discernments and revelations into a symbolic form, children discover and develop their capabilities and uncover some of their human possibilities. Because they are so personal in what they require of each would-be artist, the arts can disclose important insights and impart crucial–and practical-habits of thought that are generally not taught as well through other subjects (Swanwick, 1996). Among the three philosophers, Charles Fowler had much to say about Arts being an essential part of a school’s curriculum. It is precisely because the creative act flows from the inside out rather than the outside in that it helps youngsters discover their own resources, develop their own attributes, and realize their own personal potential. Education generally does not do this. That is, usually students are told, â€Å"Here is the way the world is,† rather than asked, â€Å"What do you think the world is or might be? † Through the process of refining their own personal visions, students discover and develop their own intellectual resources. Because the arts ask students to determine their own abilities, they are self motivating. They propel and stimulate, fascinate and captivate because they engage students personally with their true inner selves, not some concept of self imposed from outside. All human beings want to know what they can do. By having to draw on their own ideas, students discover and explore their own cognitive capacities (Swanwick, 1988). All three authors, Fowler, Leonhard and Jorgensen had similar views on music education. The three agreed that music should be treated as a vital part of student education. Just who is responsible for educating the next generation in the arts –the schools, other agencies, or a combination of both? Each community is responsible for providing opportunities to its youth to ensure that they will be adequately educated in the arts. How those responsibilities are carried out differs from one community to the next. In those communities with few cultural resources, the schools must assume the primary responsibility. In urban and suburban communities that have access to museums, arts centers, and living artists of all kinds, the responsibility can and should be shared between the schools and the community.

The Rattler

Eva Wambura 8/29/12 Period 2 The Rattler Rough Draft In the passage â€Å"The Rattler† the writer uses details about the man, details about the snake, and details about the setting to lead the reader to feel sympathy for both the man and snake. The detail that shows sympathy for the man is when he’s out for a walk and he unexpectedly comes across the snake. The man’s first instinct was to â€Å"let him go on his way† and he would go on his. This shows that the man wasn’t really aggressive and really did not want to hurt the snake. The man then goes on to decide if he should kill the snake or not.But he â€Å"reflected that there were children, dogs, horses at ranch, as well as men and women† and his â€Å"duty, plainly, was to kill the snake. † His indecision leads you to have more sympathy for the man because he came on to his decision only because he thought it was his duty and if it wasn’t for that he would have let the snake go. Even after killing the snake the man didn’t â€Å"cut off the rattles for a trophy† and imagined seeing the snake â€Å"as he might have let him go, sinuous and self-respecting† showing that he felt guilty of taking the life of the snake.The details of the snake show more sympathy for it than for the man. When the man first comes upon the snake the â€Å"head wasn’t not drawn back to strike† and â€Å"was not even rattling yet, much less coiled. † This was a sign that the snake wasn’t going to attack the man but was merely watching to see what the man was going to do. When the man got his hoe to attack the snake with it â€Å"shot into a dense bush†. The snake’s action shows his nonviolent behavior by defending itself another way then just attacking the man. Then the snake â€Å"shook his fair but furious signal, quite sportingly†.It’s warning the man that if he continued further he has no choice but t o attack. But soon the man â€Å"hacked about, soon dragged him out of it with his back broken. † The details of the setting show sympathy for both the man and the snake. The man was just having his â€Å"first pleasant moment for a walk after long blazing hours† and thinking he was the â€Å"only thing abroad† encountered the snake and thinks that it’s endangering his people. In sympathy for the snake the man is the one who stepped into the snake’s habitat. The man not only trespassed but also ended up killing the snake in its own home.When the man and snake crossed paths the â€Å"light was thinning† and â€Å"the scrub’s dry savory odors were sweet on the cooler air†. The beauty of the setting makes you think that the snake was on its own walk through the desert. Even though man killed the snake for the good of others you can’t help but feel sympathy for both characters due to the details of the setting, the man, and the snake. The man doesn’t want to kill and doesn’t take satisfaction in taking life but goes on instead and kills the snake because of his duty even though the snake was minding its own business and wasn’t bothering anyone.

Lessons On How To Use Pendulums Environmental Sciences Essay

Throughout history, pendulums have been used for many different things. They have been used as tools for turn uping H2O, gold or other minerals ; they have aided in medical diagnosing or foretelling the gender of an unborn babe ; they have been used in combination with maps in turn uping points or people ; and have been used to reply inquiries or predict the hereafter. Dousing rods predate pendulums in use for some of the above mentioned countries. Dousing rods are normally either L-shaped metal rods or even a Y-shaped subdivision from a tree. Some water witchs prefer one signifier over the other when dousing for H2O, oil, gold or other minerals. However, they can non be used in such a broad spectrum as a pendulum nor are they as easy portable. Let ‘s go back to late 300 CE merely as an illustration of how far back in history there is recorded grounds of pendulum use as a divination technique. It is here that a adult male by the name of Ammianus Marcellinus was known as a baronial Roman historiographer. Among the tonss of texts he wrote on the current occurrences of his clip, you will happen a really interesting blend of heathen enigmas. He tells of many users of â€Å" the black humanistic disciplines † ; of swayers seeking the advocate of diviners who scryed for messages through H2O and fire ; you will besides happen some devising anticipations through astrological agencies. Amongst these recorded historical narratives, you will besides happen Marcellinus state the narrative of a group of plotters. This group non merely plotted the blackwash of a Roman emperor but they besides made usage of a pendulum-like device to happen the name of the following emperor. They did this by suspending a ring on a piece of yar n and utilizing it much like an Ouija board. Interesting, huh? You do n't happen excessively many narratives like that in the wars and events go oning in the universe as we know it now. However, shortly you will detect other interesting events that have happened even in our ain timeline ( or the timeline of our parents ) of pendulum usage. As I mentioned, pendulums are a much more moneymaking tool for the diviner because they can embrace so much more than the capablenesss of a dowse rod. Whether you believe the pendulum is replying a inquiry for you and is playing on your subconscious or if you believe the pendulum is being affected through religious agencies, no one truly knows for certain. All that is known is that it can and does work rather efficaciously. There are many interesting facts and narratives contained in an online book called Pendulums and Dowsing Rods that can be read here: hypertext transfer protocol: //brianstalin-pendulum.blogspot.com/ . Please read through this short but really interesting book! With a spot of diging into history, you will happen the narratives of the Inquisition and the accusals of witchery associated with it. You may besides happen recorded spots of swayers trusting on diviners or visionaries to help them in conflict or in doing determinations of province. You may besides happen the narratives of the alchemists and the hunt for the elusive philosopher ‘s rock. While you ‘re happening all this – you will besides happen assorted in between all those celebrated narratives, the narrative of the water witchs or H2O enchantresss. Sometimes you may even read about gypsy trains and the anticipations made with a ring on a twine. Seek and you shall happen sometimes in obvious topographic points and sometimes in the most pathetic of topographic points, spots and pieces of pendulum history. Assignments Post to Discussion Board Please portion with a few sentences what drew you in to taking this category. In the on-line book Pendulums and Dowsing Rods, name one individual stated in history who used a pendulum that you found interesting and what they used it for. What drew you to this individual? Minimum of 150 word essay ( it ‘s merely a large paragraph – do n't acquire scared ) . Post below Write a 300-500 word essay on pendulum usage in history. It can be on the same individual you wrote about for # 1 or a general â€Å" pendulum usage in history † essay. Please mention your beginnings for this assignment. LESSON TWO Terminology There are several different footings used for the different countries a pendulum can be used. A twosome of the footings most frequently used and will be used here are â€Å" pendulum dowse † and â€Å" pendulum divining. † Pendulum dousing refers to when a pendulum is used to seek for a specific mark or thing such as H2O, gold, or other minerals. Pendulum divining is the proper term when utilizing a pendulum to foretell the hereafter or supply information. Pendulums can besides used for dowse and radiesthesia. Both of these footings refer to dousing with a pendulum or divining rod. While they hold that in similarity, what the diviner is dousing for is rather different. Dowse is the proper term for dousing for concealed objects. These concealed objects can be H2O, minerals or other cherished artefacts. It can be lost points or even locating people. The of import thing to retrieve is this: dowse is the term used to happen things. Radiesthesia is besides used to â€Å" happen things † . It ‘s merely those things it is happening are of a much more delicate nature than that of person utilizing dowse. Radiesthesia can mention to all signifiers of dousing but it normally refers to medical dowse. It gets its name from the theory that all life organisms emit some sort of radiation or other emanation and it is this that can be detected through dowse. In order to utilize a pendulum for medical diagnosing, the diviner holds the pendulum above the patient and easy moves it about above the patient ‘s organic structure. The theory of how this works is this – when the pendulum is above a morbid portion of the organic structure, the pendulum is so repelled from the disease which causes the pendulum to swing or curve to maintain itself off from the illness inside the patient. The larger the cringle the pendulum makes, the more morbid that organ or country of the organic structure. In other words, ra diesthesia is for turn uping medical jobs while dowse is for turn uping objects. What is a pendulum? A pendulum is an object that has many different utilizations as you will larn through these categories. It can be for your ain personal energy work and can be used in enchantment work. It is a tool that can be used efficaciously to link to your subconscious, the spirit universe and for divination. Pendulums come in many different forms and can be made from different stuffs. You can buy a really fancy one or do a really simple one. A pendulum can be an elaborately carven rock or crystal wrapped in a beautiful wire design or merely consists of a stone on the terminal of a yarn. You can besides utilize a watchband with a appeal on the terminal or even a necklace with a pendent. Equally long as it is something that can freely travel, it can be used as a pendulum. I have even heard of person utilizing an ear bud when there was nil else available†¦ and it worked! The chief thing a pendulum consists of is a somewhat weighted object normally at the terminal of a short spot of concatenation that is able to travel freely and is able to swivel. The concatenation can be of varied lengths but the length a individual by and large wants in a pendulum is one where the pivot terminal is held with fingertips, your elbow remainders on a tabular array and the leaden terminal does non make the top of the tabular array thereby leting the weight to swing freely and of its ain agreement. As you can see, the varied lengths of pendulums that can be purchased in a store are due to the different lengths of a individual ‘s forearm – though the concatenation is by and large 6.5-7.5 inches long. If you find utilizing the pendulum works better with the concatenation at a shorter length, you can garner some of the concatenation in your fingers and keep the concatenation closer to the pendulum terminal. Another thing, if you are adept at working with jewell ery, you can shorten your concatenation by taking some links from the concatenation. However, I have seen pendulums for dousing much larger and used for standing instead than in a sitting place. There are besides times the concatenation is somewhat shorter every bit good. It is the ability for motion that is most of import. Assignments Below are the footings and definitions you will necessitate to retrieve to finish the assignment for this category. Radiesthesia – dowse to name medical issues Rhabdomancy – dowse to turn up points Dousing – the pattern of turn uping H2O or other concealed points Divining – the art of seeking to announce future events or detect hidden cognition Pendulum – a leaden object that is suspended from a fixed point yet is able to swing freely ; a tool that can be used to link to the subconscious, the spirit universe and for divination. LESSON THREE Choosing a Pendulum There are several different types of pendulums to take from if you decide to buy one. There is no specific type that is the â€Å" best † to acquire. Travel with what you are drawn to. It may be one made of wood or metal. It may be a pendulum that is a merely cut semi-precious rock. It may be a combination of all of the above or even none of the above. You may even make up one's mind to do one yourself if you are so cunningly inclined. However it happens, you need to acquire to cognize your pendulum merely as you would any other divination object. If you are familiar with the belongingss of rocks and crystals, this can assist you out in taking the right rock for you or for what it is you hope to carry through with your pendulum. If you are non familiar, so get down looking at what pendulum attracts your attending. Make note of what type of rock it is ( if it is made of a rock or crystal ) and look up the belongingss of that peculiar rock. If you happen to be shopping in a metaphysical shop, ask! Opportunities are the individual who works there will either cognize the reply or will cognize where to look it up and can assist steer you to do a terrific purchase! Making your ain pendulum is a really personal experience. It is besides non really hard if you have merely a few little tools and the inspiration. You can utilize either a spot of strong yarn, all right rope or a little concatenation ( this can be from a watchband, necklace or found in the jewelry-making subdivision of your favourite trade shop ) . You will necessitate something with a small spot of weight – it does non necessitate to needfully be heavy – merely heavier than your concatenation so that it will be able to utilize this weight to travel. Anything that weighs between 0.5-2 ounces is perfect. Traditionally, the pendulum is an object that comes to a point that hangs down. However, I have had merely every bit much fortune with a wire-wrapped semi-precious rock or a unit of ammunition ball form. The form and the stuff does non count every bit much as it being something that entreaties to you. You can utilize a bead at the top of the concatenation or a knot at th e top of the rope as a â€Å" grip † for your pendulum. I have made a pendulum by utilizing a hematite ring, set and distorted my ain concatenation utilizing a thin Cu wire and so wire-wrapped a ruddy tiger ‘s oculus rock at the terminal. I have besides made some pendulum watchbands which are nil more than a little spot of concatenation, a rock attached with a bond glued to the top and a clasp so you can have on it and ne'er be without your pendulum. I have used my pentagram necklace as a pendulum at times – I merely need to keep the concatenation in my custodies so it is non excessively long. An old household tradition of mine is to do a pendulum from a nuptials ring and a spot of yarn to foretell the gender of a babe. That was more of a â€Å" goad of the minute † pendulum and besides a reasonably common common people tradition. As you can see, there are many different ways one can be created. Sometimes the rock that you hold at the tip of the concatenation will be different than the leaden rock of the pendulum itself or merely as likely it will be a little rock to keep that is the same as the pendulum. You may besides come across metal or wood pendulums. Do n't dismiss the effectivity of these! Forests and metals have belongingss merely every bit good as different rocks and crystals. The best stake is to seek before you buy. However, if you are unable to be â€Å" in individual † and alternatively make some online shopping – cognition about what you are buying is ever the best stake. Whether you have made, purchased or been gifted a pendulum, delight retrieve to cleanse and bear down your pendulum merely as you would any of your other charming tools. Assignments Post to Discussion Board: Purchase or do a pendulum if you do non already have one. Describe how your pendulum looks. What drew you to this pendulum? How does it experience? How did you cleanse and bear down your pendulum? What do you experience is the most advantageous belongings associated with the stones/metal/wood that makes the leaden point of your pendulum? If there is a rock at the terminal of the concatenation that you hold, what rock is this and make you experience it has belongingss that besides help the pendulum move? Lesson Four Geting to Know Your Pendulum In the past few lessons you have learned a spot about the pendulum, it uses throughout history and you have one in your ownership – it is clip for you and your pendulum to acquire acquainted. This lesson and the undermentioned lesson will concentrate on the relationship edifice between you and your pendulum. You will go familiar with its motions and it will go familiar in reacting to your bids. The undermentioned lessons of exercisings will be important to fostering lessons and working with your pendulum in many different countries so acquire familiar with it and hold merriment! The first thing we have to make to acquire ready is to ready ourselves and our manner of thought. Most of us go through our day-to-day lives utilizing the left side of our encephalon – the analytical side. In order to tap into any kind of divination work ( and this goes for any kind – good beyond pendulums ) we need to cognize how to wake up and exert the right side of our encephalons – the originative and intuitive side. This intuitive side of our encephalon is how we can link to our subconscious, to the spirit universe and to the Godhead. Meditation is normally a good index on exerting this country of the encephalon. Particularly if your speculation pattern is non the â€Å" all must be stillness and quiet † sort but is, alternatively, the kind of speculation chapeau allows for ideas, images and whatever else flow approximately. Using a pendulum can really assist with this by giving the analytical side of your encephalon something to make ( a physical ob ject on which to concentrate ) go forthing the intuitive side of your encephalon to get down to stretch and work its admirations through your pendulum. Using a pendulum is portion you, portion pendulum and can besides include other parts ( liquors, the Godhead, etc. ) which we will discourse much later. Right now it ‘s all you, your subconscious and your pendulum. Subsequently in this series of categories, we will larn how to utilize the pendulum for spirit contact and even reach with the Divine. Many believe that each object, populating or otherwise, gives off electro-magnetic quivers. These â€Å" vibraphones † are what you will be experiencing or turn uping or tapping into along with the spirit world/subconscious/divine when making any pendulum work. Talk to your pendulum. State it you are its new proprietor ; you will maintain it safe and in return it can help you. The first manner it will help you is to let the two of you to acquire to cognize each other. You can even pet it and love it and call it if you like. Some people do call their pendulum because they set up rather an confidant relationship with this little and fantastic tool. Working with Your Pendulum Get yourself in a relaxed province. If you are in a fidgety temper so the pendulum and any exercisings will non work suitably for you. You need to be in a unagitated province. Your energy degree can be high but your organic structure and head can non be all jumpy. Meditate if demand be for a few minutes. Rather than speculation, you can besides take a few proceedingss to merely take a breath ( this works truly good for me ) . Just acquire your ego comfy and think of nil but your breath. Take in a deep breath, easy make fulling your lungs and your tummy. Keep it for a minute and so easy exhale. Breathe in the composure by easy inhaling that composure and so expire the heebie-jeebiess or excitedness or whatever has got you in a non-relaxed temper. Continue this slow deep external respiration. I am normally relaxed after making three good long deep breaths. It may take more for you or less – it is different for different people but as a general regulation, three is reasonably goo d. Keep the terminal of the concatenation between your pollex and index leting the concatenation to swing down with the leaden terminal hanging free and your cubitus resting on the border of a tabular array to maintain you stabilized. Keep the terminal steadfastly but slackly leting freedom of motion for the pendulum and maintaining yourself relaxed. If need be, utilize your other manus to calm the pendulum because you will desire it to be held still and non traveling at this clip. If there is a little shudder, that is all right but do maintain note that a little shudder in the pendulum is non an existent motion. Any motions your pendulum will do will be clear and concise motions whether they are singing or round motions. The little shudder is normally your ain motion impacting the pendulum somewhat. If this is your first clip in utilizing a pendulum or if it has been some clip since utilizing one, you will necessitate to pattern a few exercisings foremost to â€Å" acquire in form † . Practice these exercisings at least one time a twenty-four hours for the following hebdomad. You may go on to pattern these exercisings for longer, every bit long as you feel you are acquiring good responses from your pendulum and you are confident in the motions. Keep your pendulum as instructed antecedently and mentally inquire your pendulum to do clockwise circles. You can voice your bid every bit good if you feel comfy but this is non necessary. Since you are exerting the intuitive country of your encephalon, will the pendulum to make your command. It may non react right off. You may necessitate to wheedle it by gently utilizing your manus to swing it in that round gesture. Then halt it and once more will the pendulum to travel in a clockwise circle. Once the pendulum is responding decently, state it to halt and it should halt. You may necessitate to halt it yourself but so will it to swing once more and acquire it to listen to your mental stop bid. Once this is working satisfactorily, you can so get down to play with it holding it swing in smaller or larger circles and halting. After you ‘ve got the clockwise gesture down-pat, travel onto counter-clockwise circles in the same mode. Again, doing bigger and smaller circles and halting in a counter-clockwise gesture. When you have become successful at holding your pendulum create the round motions, so it is clip to seek a back and forward swing and so to swing from side to side. Use the same mental bids, halting between each new bid and get downing once more as you did when making circles. You can besides do it swing faster and wider or slower and smaller. This might look silly at first, but it is assisting to make a connexion between you and your pendulum. It is besides assisting to exert that right side of your encephalon and acquiring that intuitiveness fluxing good before traveling on. This will besides assist you at a ulterior clip when you will get down inquiring your pendulum inquiries. How so? Because you will cognize what a commanded swing feels like and when it is a gesture you did non command, but one that comes from another beginning ( your deep subconscious, liquors or the Godhead ) you will be able to experience the difference. It is that â€Å" feeling † that turns it into a â€Å" knowing † . Assignments Post to Discussion Board Practice the exercisings from the lesson with your pendulum at least one time a twenty-four hours every twenty-four hours for at least a hebdomad and maintain path of your consequences. How did you experience when first acquiring acquainted with your pendulum? Did you experience silly or were you comfy? Did you call it and if so, what name did you give it? How many times did you have to try the round exercising before your pendulum responded? Did you have any troubles? How long did it take your pendulum to react to the vacillation exercisings? Did you have any troubles? Which exercising do you experience was easier to finish – circles or swings? Why do you believe that is? Lesson Five More Exercises In the old lesson we got familiar with our pendulums and were able to command their motions. In this lesson there will be more motion bids but these will be done somewhat otherwise and you do n't necessitate excessively many particular tools. What you are traveling to necessitate is yourself, your pendulum, a tabular array or other level surface to work on, three coins and three cups. Two of the coins must hold the same day of the month and they should all be of the same denomination ( pennies are normally truly good for these exercisings ) . Take the two coins that are the same denomination and day of the month. Put them about a manus width apart on your surface. Keep your pendulum as you were taught antecedently with the pendulum hanging over the infinite between the coins. Now, here is the cockamamie inquiry you askaˆÂ ¦ Ask your pendulum to state you which coins are the same. Yes, it is silly but it will do sense shortly. Your pendulum will either swing over the two coins or it will do a round gesture over the two coins. Once it has answered your inquiry right, state it to halt. Following, topographic point three coins on the surface about a custodies width apart in a triangular form. This clip two of the coins must be the same and the 3rd coin is different. It can be a different day of the month or denomination -that does n't count. It merely needs to be different. Again, inquire your pendulum to demo you the two coins that are the same. The pendulum will swing between the two coins that are the same. When it has completed this undertaking successfully, state it to halt. It truly is first-class pattern to acquire into this wont after each and every bid or inquiry. You can go on exchanging out coins and proving your pendulum in this manner until you are satisfied your pendulum is working in this mode decently. The following measure is to convey out the cups and maintain one coin. Put the coin on the surface and topographic point a cup inverted over the coin. Put the other cups inverted on the surface every bit good. Skid the cups around the surface blending up their order until you are diffident which cup has the coin underneath. Now, with your cups in a line and keeping the pendulum so it dangles in forepart of the line of cups but besides doing certain it is several inches off. You will necessitate room for its motions. Ask the pendulum to indicate to the cup with the coin underneath. This is a small trickier and it may take a small while before your pendulum begins acquiring the right reply. Do n't give up! It is a larning procedure non merely for your pendulum but besides for your ego and your right encephalon! Normally, I would state you that your pendulum is a serious divination tools and to non utilize it for playing game. Seriously, it is. You would non utilize your tarot cards to play fire hook, right? Or your set of runic letters for a different kind of balls and knuckleboness game, right? The same holds true for your pendulum. These â€Å" games † we are playing now are exercisings for you and your new tool. They are to be used to better aid you along in farther usage with your pendulum. This will go apparent when we get to that lesson. Your pendulum is a serious tool and should be treated as such. It is non to be used for parlour fast ones. Practice these exercisings every bit frequently as you can or necessitate to in order to set up a good working relationship with your pendulum. These are a little more hard and may necessitate a little more clip – particularly the last exercising. Do non give up hope! You can make it! Assignments Post to the Discussion Board Truthfully, how silly did you experience inquiring your pendulum to demo you the two indistinguishable coins when there truly was merely two indistinguishable coins? Did you have any troubles with any of the exercisings? How many attempts did it take before you and your pendulum were able to right place the coin under the cup? What do you believe these exercisings will take to in making different divining techniques in the hereafter? Lesson Six Divining with Yes/No Questions In the past few lessons you have learned a spot about the pendulum, it uses throughout history, you have one in your ownership and the two of you have gotten a small acquainted. Now it is clip for you and your pendulum to acquire down to some merriment material and a small divination type of work larning the most common manner people use this tool for divination – replying yes and no inquiries. Keep the terminal of the concatenation between your pollex and index leting the concatenation to swing down with the leaden terminal hanging free and your cubitus resting on the border of a tabular array to maintain you stabilized. If need be, utilize your other manus to calm the pendulum because you will desire it to be held still and non traveling at this clip. Ask it â€Å" Show me Yes † . It may non react instantly but it will react. If needed repetition the inquiry. You want it to set up a definite swing and non merely a little small frisson. It does non hold to swing so far or fast that it threatens to take out an oculus – but it does necessitate to demo you a definite motion so you can set up a on the job form. Remember which manner it was singing ( right-to-left or back and frontward ) because this will be established as the reply â€Å" Yes † to a Yes/No Question you ask it. â€Å" No † should swing the opposite manner of â€Å" yes † . In other words, if â€Å" yes † was right-to-left so â€Å" no † will be normally be back and frontward. Be certain to state the pendulum â€Å" Stop † between each different motion and bid. It is good to acquire in this wont now because it is one that will be used ever when working with your pendulum. Sometimes, and this juncture seems pretty rare, a pendulum will travel doesil and widdershins for â€Å" yes † and â€Å" no † . This could even go on for â€Å" possibly † or â€Å" do n't cognize † . However, it will non go on for both or all. Each answer the pendulum will give you is alone to the pendulum but is besides ever the same. If â€Å" yes † is back and forward it will ever be back and frontward. Likewise, â€Å" no † will ever be left-to-right and so on nevertheless your pendulum has made this clear. You can even set up â€Å" possibly † and â€Å" do n't cognize † in the same manner. Be certain between each clip you tell your pendulum â€Å" Stop † . We need to set up these replies of â€Å" possibly † and â€Å" do n't cognize † every bit good because sometimes the reply is non unequivocal. Many times, people will make a board to transport with their pendulum to reply merely such inquiries. The board can be every bit simple or every bit fancy as you want it. It can be a board with the waies painted or wood-burned into the surface ; a piece of cloth with the waies drawn, stitched or painted on ; or even a piece of paper. Here is an illustration of what your board may look like: Establishing this good working relationship with your pendulum will profit you as a novitiate pendulum diviner and will still be a endowment you will go on to utilize as a maestro diviner. You may even go so familiar with the motions of your pendulum that you will no longer necessitate your Yes/No board. Whether or non this is true, the manner your pendulum moves in reply to the inquiries will ever be the same. This holds true whether you are tapping into your ain subconscious ideas and feelings ( as we are with this lesson ) or whether you are working with the spirit universe and the Godhead ( in subsequently categories ) . Be certain when you are inquiring your pendulum yes/No inquiries that you are non concentrating on a specific reply because you will it to be so. If you do this, so your pendulum will either respond to the mental bid you are giving it or it will be confused and non respond at all. Alternatively, inquire the inquiry with an attitude of â€Å" I wonder what the result will be? † Besides, maintain in head the reaction of the reply the pendulum gives you. If it is a full and good swing so you answer is rather definite. If it is a more halfhearted swing, so the reply could be â€Å" yes † ( or whichever manner the pendulum was singing ) but a â€Å" yes † that could be more unequivocal with other factors in topographic point. Another thing, if your pendulum does non travel it could be due to a refusal to reply the inquiry you asked. paraphrase it and see if you can acquire an reply so. Last, stick to your ain ethical motives and codification of moralss. If it is again st your beliefs to be glancing in on others, so make non make it with your pendulum either. Stick to your ain comfort zone and boundaries in ethical motives and moralss merely as you would in any other divination or magickal state of affairs. Assignments Post in the Discussion Board: Print out and/or create a pendulum board ( click nexus below for image with words to cut out if inclined to make so & A ; topographic point in countries ) so you can hold a paper one OR you can acquire more originative and do your ain out of another stuff. Describe how you made your pendulum Yes/No board and the swing of your pendulum swings for each way. PENDULUM BOARD TO PRINT Post below: Ask your pendulum a series of inquiries ( 3-5 inquiries ) . Record the inquiries and replies here. Do you experience your pendulum gave you accurate replies to your inquiries? Lesson Seven Personal Energy Work Now that you have a pendulum and you ‘ve established a good yes/no/maybe/do n't cognize relationship, allow ‘s travel on to research other ways you can work with your pendulum. These following few exercisings in this lesson will assist steer you into making some energy work with your pendulum. As a magickal practician of any kind, you should already cognize that there is energy all around you and within you. This energy is what you use when directing out any kind of enchantment work. There is besides energy within you and environing your organic structure. This is called your energy field. If you have of all time had an aura reading done or an aura image taken, this is the energy the camera or reader is sing – the energy that surrounds your organic structure. When you raise energy either through enchantment work, ritual work or even heightened emotions this energy field is besides raised and spreads out farther from your organic structure. In this first exercising, you are traveling to utilize your pendulum to observe the energy field around you. State your pendulum, â€Å" Show me my energy field. † Remember to utilize a steady manus, rest your cubitus on a tabular array border if need be and let your pendulum freedom of motion. It will get down to swing about in either a doesil ( clockwise ) or widdershins ( counter-clockwise ) gesture. Whichever manner it swings, does n't intend anything. It is the act of the motion itself that you ‘re concentrating on. If your energy field is high, the round gesture of the pendulum will be fast and broad. If your energy field is low, so the round gesture of the pendulum will be little and slower. In this following exercising, we are traveling to concentrate on raising and take downing your energy field through the usage of your pendulum. When your energy field is high and you are holding problem foundation, this simple act can really assist you to anchor. As the pendulum does its round gesture of fast and big, state it to decelerate down. State it to assist convey in your energy field. Sometimes, this will take a few proceedingss and sometimes it is a affair of minutes but finally the pendulum will decelerate down and the round gesture will acquire smaller. Continue with this exercising until you feel the pendulum has helped you to acquire your energy degree to a more manageable province and so state the pendulum â€Å" Stop † . Similarly, you can use your pendulum to assist raise energy if it is low. This is done in precisely the opposite manner of take downing the energy field. You do this by stating your pendulum you want your energy raised. Depending on how low your energy degree was to get down with will depend on how easy your energy degree is raised. Another blocker in either instance will be either your willingness to let the energy field to be raised or lowered. You truly necessitate to be in a province of head of credence of this happening so that you do non acquire discouraged. The elevation of an energy field can sometimes be a small more hard than take downing it. Once your energy field is raised, state the pendulum â€Å" Stop. † Repeat the procedure of take downing your energy field by utilizing your pendulum until you are at a manageable energy province once more and once more state the pendulum to â€Å" Stop. † This will assist you in larning another manner to maintain your en ergies in balance. Continue with this pattern until you are comfy in acknowledging your energy field every bit good as raising and take downing your energy field. Then finish the assignments below. Assignments – Post to Discussion Board When you foremost used your pendulum to observe your energy field, what was the consequence? Was your energy high or low? Make it observe it right or make you experience the pendulum did non accurately observe your personal energy field? Raise your energy field by utilizing your pendulum. How long did it take to carry through this? How does it do you experience? Now lower your energy field to a manageable or comfy degree. How long did it take to carry through this? How do you experience now? Do you experience comfy utilizing your pendulum in this pattern for your ain energy field? Lesson Eight More Energy Work The old lesson we learned how to make balance in the energy field for ego by raising and lowering/speeding up and decelerating down the round gesture of the pendulum. This was accomplished through many different channels. It was through your bid of the pendulum and its motions. It was besides through utilizing your right encephalon and tapping into your subconscious to command your energy field. I told you that those earlier gestures lessons were traveling to stop up paying off – and we have hardly even scratched the surface! These following energy field exercisings will necessitate the cooperation of another individual. For this following 1 we will be turn uping border of another ‘s energy field/aura. First, you ( the diviner ) will stand following to another individual. Right following to them. Keep out your pendulum and inquire it to demo you their energy field. Your pendulum should get down to swing broad and fast or travel in a big round gesture. As you slowly travel off from your spouse, the pendulum ‘s swing should decelerate until it becomes smaller and Michigans when you are at the border or merely outside the boundary of their energy field. If you take a measure near them once more, the pendulum should so pick up its impulse once more. Try this either with different people or with different degrees of energy. Emotions can play a big portion in the size of a individual ‘s energy field. Angry emotions tend to be held tighter and closer to a individual as do feelings of apprehensiveness. Happiness tends to make big nergy Fieldss around a individual. Have some merriment and laugh, so seek this exercising once more. If your spouse is a practician of the trade, they can seek some things as you approach or travel off with your pendulum. They can seek to screen themselves and see how that affects your pendulum. They can seek to raise energy in other ways ( similar to raising energy during ritual or for spell work ) and see how that affects your pendulum and how it reacts to their energy field. In this following exercising, you ( the diviner ) will hold your dorsum to your spouse. Keep your pendulum out in forepart of you. Now have your friend move easy and softly towards you but you truly necessitate to be incognizant of their propinquity to you. If need be, someway hold your ears plugged so you can non hear their attack. At the beginning of this exercising, state your pendulum it is to travel when your spouse stairss into your energy field. When your spouse comes to the border and/or crosses the boundary line line of your energy field, your pendulum should swing to alarm you of their attack. This exercising can be a spot more hard and sometimes does non work ab initio. A batch depends on the working relationship you have established with your pendulum. Stick with it and shortly you can go an unstoppable divinatory brace! Decision This full category is a basic lesson in how to run your pendulum, use it for some simple energy work and some really basic divination techniques you can make by inquiring yes/no type inquiries. Those types of inquiries can truly pay off in the long tally. You merely necessitate to inquire several of them and through the different replies you can find a batch. You can even believe of it as a game of â€Å" 20 Questions † where you need to inquire a batch of inquiries in order to come to a decision. Working with your pendulum in this mode can be rather good in many different ways – far excessively many to even get down to advert here. I hope you have enjoyed this category and in going acquainted with your new tool and friend! Assignments Post to the Discussion Board How good did the energy exercises with a spouse work for you? What difficulties did you face, if any? What ways can you believe of to utilize a pendulum in working with energy that was non mentioned in this category? How frequently do you believe you will now be utilizing your pendulum? Did you bask this category? What is so far your favourite portion of utilizing your pendulum? What was your favourite exercising? LESSON ONE – Mentions: hypertext transfer protocol: //penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Ammian/29*.html hypertext transfer protocol: //www.pendulums.com/history.htm The Little Big Book of Magick by DJ Conway LESSON TWO – Mentions: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.experiencefestival.com/radiesthesia hypertext transfer protocol: //www.pendulums.com/dowsing.htm hypertext transfer protocol: //www.azuregreen.net/Pendulums/products/85/ hypertext transfer protocol: //www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary LESSON FIVE – Mention: The Big Little Book of Magick by DJ Conway