Definition of Literacy

Depending on context, literacy can be defined in different ways. First, it is the ability to know, understand, interpret, create, communicate, and compute using information written in any form and under varying contexts. It can also be defined as the ability to write coherently, think critically, and read not only for knowledge, but also to acquaint oneself with the environmental context (Gordon Gordon, 2003).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Definition of Literacy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Literacy can also be defined as the ability to make and communicate meaning by use of a variety of socially identifiable contextual symbols. In various levels of developmental ability, a literate person can gain and convey meaning and use their knowledge and judgment to achieve a desired objective or goal that requires the use of language skills either in writing or in writing. A literate person can arbitrate their worl d by obtaining meaning from one knowledge base and apply or connect it to another knowledge base intentionally and flexibly (Brace, Brockhoff, Sparkes, and Tuckey, 2006a). For instance, knowing that letters represent sounds and that those sounds form words to which the audience can attach meaning entails literacy under this context. The definition of literacy is dynamic, evolving, and reflects the continual changes in our society (Kress, 2003). Literacy can be achieved by establishing a reading culture which involves the development of skills and this process begins with ability to comprehend both spoken and written words. To be fluent in reading and comprehension, one has to be familiar with speech sounds, spelling patterns, word meaning, grammar and patterns of word formation (Elaine and Edward, 2003). Once these skills are acquired, the reader will have attained full language literacy which includes the capability to interpret printed material from an informed perspective and und ertake a detailed analysis and to write with accuracy and soundness. Literacy involves continuity in learning and enabling individuals to achieve their goals, to develop their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their community and wider society. Literacy can also be defined as set of practical tools to facilitate work on the job, at home, and around the community (Gunther, 2003). There are different types of literacy and they give us a wide definition of literacy. To start with is prose literature which measures how well one understands and uses information found in various written materials. Second is document literacy which assesses how well one finds and uses information in a number of pictorial representations. The third is quantitative literacy which assesses how well one can use numbers found in printed and othenr visual media. Quantitative literacy is a little different from prose and document literacy because apart from using text to find a meaning, one mus t add, subtract, multiply, divide or perform any other mathematical computation to obtain the required information.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The final type of literacy is health literacy that evaluates how well one can comprehend and use health-related information to make health-related decisions. These include actions that involve health promotion and protection disease prevention, and all other aspects that relate to the healthcare system. The ability to read and write is fundamental to a successful education, career, independent living, and quality of life in today’s world (Street, 1984). With the evolving world, one has to be literate for almost every aspect of today’s environment requires some form of literacy. Reference Brace, J., Brockhoff, V., Sparkes, N., and Tuckey, J. (2006a). First Steps: Speaking and listening map of development (2nd ed.). Port Melbou rne, Vic: Rigby Gordon, E. H., and Gordon, E. E. (2003). Literacy in America: historic journey and contemporary solutions. New York: Praeger Kress, G. R. (2003). Literacy in the new media age. New York: Routledge Street, B. V. (1984). Literacy in theory and practice. Cambridge University Press Cambridge. This essay on Definition of Literacy was written and submitted by user Bo B. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Marxism and Crime essays

Marxism and Crime essays In formulating an appropriate and adequate response to any question or topic, it is almost essential for one to come to a thorough understanding of not only the question asked but also any other issues that might emanate from the topic. In the answering of the issue at hand, analysing the challenge of labelling approaches, Marxist/new criminology, and feminist approaches upon common sense assumptions about getting tough on crime, one must not assume their own knowledge is adequately suffice, but instead look to broader definitions and understandings of the topics surrounding the issue. Additionally and most importantly draw upon the conclusions and responses of suitably extended and established research from a maximum variance of sources. In examining the validity of how common these debates on tougher prison sentencing and more police powers actually are, the representation and stances of those claiming to represent the publics view in criminal law and order, being those running for state election, seem to be a sensible and even ideal position to commence queries. State election time in New South Wales is undoubtedly the time where prominent questioning of criminal and justice systems of the state is most frequent. From the start of the examination and probing of the Australian criminal justice systems at public state election this year up until the present continuance of inquiries, one common aspect continues to be asked and beckoned a call for tougher sentencing and tougher laws for those convicted of crimes. A dominant aspect of this call is the concept of zero tolerance. Young (1999) suggests that zero tolerance aims on a policing or executive level to flag an intolerance of incivilities, to sweep the streets clean of deviance and disorder, to deal with aggressive beggars, loiters, drunks and prostitutes. Young additionally suggests there are five specific elements to this concept, w...

The Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Portfolio - Essay Example complaining letters, cover letters, and other forms of letters helped me distinguish between different forms of letters and the elements required for each form of letter. This knowledge will be essential when I apply for future jobs and the skills gained will be beneficial in future. Although the class covered many things that will be helpful to me in future, I feel there are some things that we should have learned writing about in the class. However, the most important of the things that would have made learning better include writing various forms of short plays that we could act during class. This way, we could achieve a lot us a class in terms of learning about the differences in culture and we would have a chance of improving on the quality of our writing. By exchanging the scripts that we will have written, our classmates can correct grammatical mistakes and styles of writing in our work. Consequently, this approach will not only help us gain self-confidence, but it will also help us in improving out proficiency in

Race and Race Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Race and Race Theory - Essay Example It is also difficult to determine what characteristics of human beings need to be considered for racial discrimination. The concept of categorizing human beings according to their blood and kinship is a newer theory. Towards the end of the Middle Age, this concept took concrete form when anti-Jewish feelings were evolved as a manner to express resentment towards the religious beliefs of the Jewish community. These kinds of antagonism towards Jewish blood and kinship paved the reasons for hatred towards a community instead of an individual. Baptism among the Jews caused threat to the Christian community as the former could not prove their purity of blood to the Inquisition. The concept of racism had its roots in the Mediterranean slave trade during the Middle Ages when the Western world equated the blacks with slavery. In the modern time the concept of distinguishing human beings based on social, physical and intellectual features has proved to be unsound. This notion has generated fo r ages and is more specifically a social and historical process. Race cannot be confined to the physical or biological traits cultivated by an individual. The genetic inheritance of human beings that contribute towards those traits does not form the concept of â€Å"race†. ... There is a continuous inclination to regard race as an essence that is concrete and objective. There is also a contrasting view of the non-racist society that race is merely an illusion created purely by some ideologists. It was with the growth of political economy in the global arena and the advent of seaborne empire that race began to take a concrete shape. During economic crisis it is often the ethnic minorities who endure discriminations in the labour market. They even have limited access to proper education and health care facilities and this happens even during economic well-being although to a lesser extent. Although racial prejudices exist all over the world, the racial discrimination of human beings was originated by the Europeans. The era of European imperialism suggested that only those people belonging to the highest social rankings must govern the earth and it is they who should get access to all kinds of facilities for their development. It is however not correct to sta te that the European’s attainment of imperialism gave rise to race, but on the contrary it can be stated that race has created sociopolitical discriminations and has shaped the international economy: â€Å"this is not to say that the European attainment of imperial and world-encompassing power gave rise to race. Indeed it is just as easy to argue the opposite: that the modern concept of race gave rise to, or at least facilitated the creation of, an integrated sociopolitical world, a modem authoritarian state, the structures of an international economy, and the emergence over time of a global culture† (Winant, 172). What I find interesting about the article is that it discusses about the theoretical elements of race with the advent of the twenty first

Culture shock Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Culture shock - Research Paper Example Even if a student is not aware of the culture shock, he or she is always aware of the differences in culture and social setting. A student in this context is basically a sojourner who stays temporarily in another social setting. So is a worker or the missionaries or armed forces. In order to perform efficiently it is important for these people to adapt to the new culture. This adaptation might be costly to them in terms of both individual and physical health conditions. The United States has been witnessing the largest inflow of foreign students. The exchange of education provides a very useful instance to reflect this phenomenon. In 1955 the number was around 34000 from the overseas and it grew to 450000 in 1996. As a result of the rising levels of migration from the economically backward nations to the wealthier ones, the societies are moving form predominantly mono-cultural to multicultural setting. Societies of US, Britain and Canada are eventually transforming themselves into cu lturally diverse ones. As the ambience of an individual changes or as the person relocates to a different cultural background, he or she needs to build some new perspectives or thoughts along with behaviors in order to fit into the new surroundings. A culture shock is basically a process instead of being a particular event and its impact grows weaker as it recurs in the life of the same person. This is because the individual learns new strategies to adapt to these changes once he faces the new situation. (Pederson, vii) The paper will emphasize upon the culture shock related experiences encountered by students who move abroad to earn a foreign degree and eventually work there or return to their home country. Culture Shock – theoretical frameworks A culture is referred as the collective psychological plan formation of the human mind. While the time one takes his food is decided by his human nature driven by hunger, the way the food is eaten is decided by one’s culture ( using fork or using hands). Again whether an individual is going to choose the fork and knife to eat i an individual decision irrespective of what the cultural programming suggests or what the society infers.(Nunez, Mahdi, and Popma, 5) The theoretical setting of similarity attraction hypothesis is applicable in this circumstance. This hypothesis states that an individual tends to interact, feel comfortable with and trust people with whom they share something common in the cultural settings. This might include religion, values and beliefs apart from interests and other characteristics. Cross cultural communications occur between the people who tend to differ in terms of these essential characteristics. Another theory which might be studied in this respect is the cultural distance hypothesis. In this theoretical setting, the geographical distance plays a major role in understanding the cultural differences. For instance Australia and New Zealand are comparatively more similar in term s of cultural setting compared to India and USA. The more the cultural distance is, the greater is the probability of experiencing cultural shock. In fact empirical evidence can prove that Australian executives are more comfortable working in Auckland than at Taipei (Ward, Bochnan and Furnham, 9). The experience of a student who moves aboard for his studies usually undergoes five stages of culture shock. Peter Alder

Understanding the negative attitude of the public towards police

Understanding the negative attitude of the public towards police As chief of a medium size city in the United States, you are aware that the citizens in your community have a lower than expected opinion of the effectiveness of the police department. Design a research proposal that will provide for a randomized public survey in an attempt to understand the nature and extent of the negative public opinion. Include in your plan a sample survey instrument that would be used in the research. Include in your plan, proposed hypotheses and how these hypotheses will be tested. The researcher will attempt to design a research proposal by using a randomized public survey in an attempt to try and understand the negative attitude of the public toward the police department. With this method prospective participants are chosen by chance rather than by choice. The researcher will also include in the research proposal a proposed hypothesis, an explanation of how this hypothesis will be tested and a sample survey. INTRODUCTION The researcher is always amazed to see that there are many individuals who are more than willing to serve their community in ways that are many times without thanks and dangerous. Among these elite individuals are law enforcement officers. In general many of us are not aware that they are present until some news headline shows up saying that there is a problem or that something or the other went wrong. We as a society need to understand the stress and strain of the law enforcement community that serves us and it is important that we support them. The researcher for one cannot imagine an individual running toward danger when for the most part many of us will choose to run away. So what really happens in law enforcement when there is a less than favorable story and the community begins to focus their entire attention on the incident? It is the researchers belief that from the perspective of individual officers there may be a lot of is a lot of concern and assumption of what is going to happen. There may be a lot of pressure, especially if the individual(s) in question end up in front of a Grand Jury or other court proceeding, not to mention the fact that if there is a civil action it can go on for years. So in essence, does this have an impact on how these law enforcement officers approach their job and or their community? When one really thinks about it, often times the entire enforcement department is suspect when there are a few officers in question. Many believe that there is always some concern that depending on the situation the impact could be negative. There could be a lack of focus. It could be very distracting. It could create doubt about ones supp ort or role. The individual or organization could be hesitant to engage or be proactive in the work they have been challenged or asked to do in the service to their community (Rice, 2010). Its not very often that the publics opinion of police departments is positive. Corruption, unethical behavior, Police brutality, and excessive use of force are all part of the negative views that the public have about law enforcement officers. These types of behavior of law enforcement have had a huge impact on the manner in which the public view law enforcement and the opinion that they have of them. Because of the tactless lack of judgment of some law enforcement officers, the uprightness of the profession of law enforcement officers has become a bit shaded. Lets face it; it is not always news-worthy when the good guys are doing a good job, its really that simple. The media has great influence on the interest of public opinion because they make the determination of what will be seen and what will not. The researcher has seen the good, the bad, and the ugly with the law enforcement department in my city. It is the researchers personal experience with law enforcement officers has been nothing but stellar, helpful, professional, and informative. The researcher do however think that law enforcement departments have their fair share of good and bad, but its the bad that gets the attention and when the public grabs a hold of it they take it and run. Studies have found that the characteristic of a neighborhood and the interaction that they have with law enforcement are factors that have the most influence of the opinion that the public have on law enforcement. The study, conducted in Los Angeles, found that residents from neighborhoods perceived to be crime ridden, dangerous, and disorderly were less likely to approve of the police. In contrast, residents who had informal personal contact with police were more likely to express approval. Race and ethnicity, factors cited as influential in other studies, were not found to be as important as community disorder in determining the publics satisfaction with police (Maxon, Hennigan, Sloane, 2003). HYPOTHESIS If a civilian review board is put in place there will be a change in the opinion of the public regarding law enforcement and there will be less complaints from citizens on a whole. There are major differences between the number of citizens who convey that they are dissatisfied with law enforcement and those who officially make complaints. Many will argue that a lot of citizens do not go on to the next stage in lodging a complaint because they are of the belief that a full investigation will not take place and nothing will happen. Some citizens also may fear retaliation from law enforcement. Supporters of civilian review boards is of the strong belief that the public will be more likely to have more confidence in a process when a complaint is made to a group of civilians rather than by forwarding their concerns to a unit in a police force, and this in turn could increase the number of complaints (An examination of, 2006). AREA DESCRIPTION The sample for the study will be taken from four of the New York Citys Police Departments (LAPDs) 18 geographic areas. The areas will be chosen to reflect comparable rates of reported property and violent crimes and demographic profiles, in particular income and race/ethnicity. Included in the survey will be one delegate from each of the four (4) administrative bureaus. On the other hand, the four chosen areas are not, and are also not intended to be representative of the entire city. Area A will be in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. This area has one of the highest rates of violent crime in the city, and it is estimated that it is more than four times higher than any of the other areas that would be included in the survey. In census taken in 1995, area A consisted of about 120,000 residents, of that number sixty percent (60%) were black and thirty-five percent (35%) were of Latino descent. Latinos have shifted into this area that was traditionally black in large numbers. Household incomes were reported among residents as follows: Eighty-five percent (85%) had household incomes below $45,000 and forty-three percent (43%) below $15,000 (U. S. Department, 2003). Area B will be the Brownsville area of Brooklyn. The violent crime rate in this area is the second, and is infested by the biggest population of gang in the city, comprising of more than 8,000 gang members, consisting of about 45 gangs. Area B, nonetheless, has a below average rate for property crime between the four areas chosen for the. Area B is mainly comprised of eighty-four percent (84%) Hispanics with low income and many of its residents live in households that are multigenerational. In the census done in 1995 eighty percent (80%) of these residents reported household incomes as follows: thirty-two percent (32%) below $45,000 and thirty-two percent (32%) below $15,000 (U. S. Department, 2003). Area C will be on the west side of the city. It has a somewhat violent crime rate that is low but among the areas to be surveyed, the rate of property crimes is the highest. Area C has an estimated 220,000 residents and is culturally mixed. Whites account for sixty-one percent, Latino twenty-two percent, Asians ten percent, and Blacks six percent. In the census done in 1991 residents reported the following incomes: Fifty-eight percent (58%) had incomes under $45,000 and seventeen percent (17%) had incomes below $15,000 (U. S. Department, 2003). Area D will be in the Chelsea Piers area. The violent crime rate in this area is very low and the property crime rate is the second lowest (higher than area B). This area comprises of seventy -three percent (73%) whites, seventeen percent (17%) Latinos and eight percent (8%) Asians. The incomes of residents in this area is higher that the other three (3) areas to be surveyed. In the census done in 1991 the reported incomes were as follows: fifty percent (50%) had incomes above $45,000 and twenty-six percent (26%) had incomes above $75,000 (U. S. Department, 2003). METHODOLOGY The researcher will conduct the survey via mail and face to face interviews. Residential addresses will be acquired from lists at the citywide utility service and will be coded to allow the collection of addresses inside the four (4) geographic regions. The survey will comprise of a random sample of five hundred and seventy (5,570) addresses. The procedures for the survey will be taken from Dillmans Total Design Approach (Hoddinott, Bass, 1986), in addition to five contacts with possible survey respondents. A postcard notice will be sent in advance, four survey mailings of which two will contain an incentive of $1.00, and a thank you and or reminder notice will be sent following the mailing of the first survey. All survey materials mailed will include Spanish translations. The researcher will offer other languages in the event that one is needed. Mail surveys let the respondent answer at their own leisure, rather than at the habitually inconvenient instant they are contacted for a phone or personal interview. Because of this, mail surveys are not considered as intrusive as other kinds of interviews. The downside is time! Mail surveys take longer than other kinds. The researcher will need to wait several weeks after mailing out questionnaires before he or she can be sure that they have gotten most of the responses. The face to face method will include personal interviews which have the ability to let the interviewee see the respondent face to face, it also has the ability to find the target population, and longer interviews may be tolerated by the respondent. Particularly with in-home interviews that have been arranged in advance, people may be willing to talk longer face-to-face than to someone on the phone. The down side to this is that personal interviews usually cost more per interview than other methods. This is particularly true of in-home interviews, where travel time is a major factor. The survey will summarize two (2) types of contact that the public has with law enforcement officers: formal contact and informal contact. The formal contacts will include residents calling the police departments in an attempt to ask for service, when residents are questioned by law enforcement officers about a potential crime that was committed. The informal contacts that residents has with law enforcement will include conversations with police officers who are on patrol and interactions that residents have with law enforcement at community meetings, youth activities sponsored by the police, and fairs about community and public safety. The measure of job approval will be based on a six-question scale which will be transformed from Skogans work in Chicago, which will ask residents how well police in their neighborhood and solve problems, help victims, and prevent crime (Skogan, 1998). The measure of the demeanor of law enforcement officers will be formed from five questions that asked respondents whether police were trustworthy, fair, helpful or respectful, and whether or not they seemed concerned. The study will focus on four issues that appeared to have an influence on the opinion of the public on police departments. The four issues will include the following: The perceptions that residents have about the amount of crime, chaos and confusion in their neighborhood and the sense that neighbors have of common trust and responsibility. The formal and informal contacts that residents have with law enforcement and their previous experience as victims of property and violent crimes if any. The demographic characteristics of residents; and The role that the media play in the perception that the public has on law enforcement. TREATMENT OF THE DATA The data received from the survey will be presented in pie charts, and rating scales which will show the percentage of individuals in each group and their opinion regarding law enforcement. Based on the results received it could show that there may be a need for more surveys to be done in order to understand the publics opinion of law enforcement because the acceptance of law enforcement authority by the public is essential for the maintenance of public order. Also, when the public has confidence in law enforcement it could lead to cooperation between law enforcement and the public at large, and this in turn can increase the effectiveness of policing. It is important for the public to trust and support law enforcement because this will be crucial when it comes to law enforcements expansion and maintenance. STATEMENT OF LIMITATIONS In order to measure the activities of local law enforcement, the sensitive measurement of public opinion is important. When law enforcement and the community exchange information it can foster a law enforcement-community partnership that can be tailored to specific concerns of the community (Maxon, Hennigan, Sloane, 2003). The publics opinion of law enforcements activities, fear, crime, and identifying strengths and problems in the community is an important representation of law enforcement. Surveys need to be done on a regular basis in order to further understand these issues. Independent organizations are the ones who should be responsible for conducting these surveys in order to prevent responses that are biased. If these surveys are conducted over a number of years then this will allow for a better understanding of the publics opinion of law enforcement. When community residents are surveyed, this can provide important information regarding the publics opinion of the activities of law enforcement. As the above survey will show, this kind of survey will provide a surprising amount of valuable information regarding the relationship between the public and law enforcement. This information can assist in directing both law enforcement and the public alike and assist in monitoring the effectiveness of law enforcement interventions. CONCLUSION Data from research shows that the public will have more trust in citizens like themselves rather than law enforcement and that they will be more than willing to file a complaint; Citizens will be more unprejudiced when it comes to assessing complaints from other citizens; Their impartiality will bring into being a higher percentage of valid complaints that will discourage and aid in reducing instances of misconduct by law enforcement; and because of these actions the public, will have more confidence in law enforcement. Many law enforcement officers accept having a citizens review board as something to be anticipated and stated their willingness to work with members of the public (An examination of, 2006). The predicament for civilian review boards is that a good number of them do not have the clout and authority or the funds to make the first move on independent investigations of law enforcement nor to deliver judgments on complaints. For the most part all they can typically do is evaluate an investigation that was performed by law enforcement and put together commendations about punishment. Very rare do they have any final say over the decisions of law enforcement management (An examination of, 2006). All in all, the majority of research studies suggest that if civilian review boards are given enough funds there is a much superior possibility that their work will have an impact on the conduct of law enforcement officers and this will in turn increase the publics confidence in the police. Even as there appear to be a broad-spectrum agreement that civilian review is a necessity in order to set up boundaries for law enforcement in a society that is democratic, this technique of citizens becoming engaged in law enforcement needs, to a greater extent, to be developed further if it is to be proven successful (An examination of, 2006). Three of the most important issues are: Instituting and simplifying the level of authority that civilian review boards will hold and their level of independence from law enforcement; Making sure that they get enough resources to Ensuring they obtain adequate resources to accomplish their goals; and Investigating ways of addressing the numerous facets of racism by law enforcement. The main goal of civilian review boards is to accomplish a better balance between the publics participation in law enforcement so that they are held answerable to the public, and enhancing the independence of the police so that public order can be preserved in a peaceful and democratic society (An examination of, 2006).

John Updikes A&P :: essays research papers

Bathing Beauties   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   John Updike’s â€Å"A&P† is a short story about a nineteen year old boy during the 1960’s that has a summer job at the local A&P grocery. The main character in the story, Sammy, realizes that life isn’t always fair and that sometimes a person makes decisions that he will regret. Sammy sees that life doesn’t always go as planned when three young girls in bathing suits walk in and his manager Lengel gives them a hard time, and he comes to term with that sometimes you make bad decisions. Sammy is astounded by three young girls that walk into his store in their bathing suits. He follows their every move as they peruse over the cookies and other goods. The first thing this typical nineteen boy recognizes is the one girl’s â€Å"can†. But then he goes on to say that this girl is one that other girls seems to think has potential but never really makes it with the guys. One girl though especially catches his eye. He starts to call her â€Å"Queenie† because of the way she carries herself and that she seems to be the leader of the pack. Sammy does nothing but watch her every move as they parade about the store. He even daydreams about going into her house with her rich family at a cocktail party. He notices everything about her and thinks there was nothing cuter than the way she pulls the money out of her top. His immature infatuation with this girl is one of the reasons Sammy makes the hasty decision to quit in the end. Lengel, the manager of the store, spots the girls and gives them a hard time about their dress in the store. He tells them, â€Å"Girls, this isn’t the beach.† He says that they are not dressed appropriately to come into this grocery store. Lengel’s words cause Queenie to get embarrassed and start to blush. Sammy cannot believe this and gets frustrated at his boss. He doesn’t believe that it is right to prosecute these innocent girls for the way they are dressed. He also states at this point that the sheep are piling up over in Stokesie line trying to avoid all the commotion the scene has caused. I believe Sammy takes this as the last straw in a long string of aggravations. Sammy confronts Lengel and tells him that he didn’t have to embarrass them like that, but it does no good.

Marilynne Robinson’s Housekeeping

In Housekeeping (1980), Marilyn Robinson provides a sense of women and the space and the domestic constraints of society. The story crosses several generations of women and their lives in a single house in a town named Fingerbone. Ruthie is the main protagonist. She is a young woman who grew up in a household of women, beginning with her grandmother, then her great aunts, her aunt, and her only sister. But the house in which they were all trapped in one way or another was built by and for a man. He was a child of the plains who longed for the mountains, and the site of the house was his dream, not theirs. The isolation of the house physically paralleled the emotional isolation of all the characters. Indeed, the tone of the narration by Ruthie is emotionally flat. Despite the level of tragedy which is continually visited on the family, the language and the flavor of the conversation is highly unemotional and detached. From the perspective of showing an important characteristic of the narrator, her lack of emotion in general, it is rather a boring effect for the reader. It keeps the protagonist distanced from the very audience which should be sympathetic to her. The story is a simple downward progression. Ruthie and her sister Louise came to live in the house after first her grandfather died in a train wreck which pitched the train into a local lake, then her mother committed suicide after dropping the girls off with their grandmother. No reason for this action is given, nor do the characters seem to particularly care. Five years later, their grandmother, who had little emotional connection with the girls also died, leaving her two older sisters-in-law in charge. They equally had no idea what to do with young girls. The first intrusion on the blandness of life was the return of Sylvie, Ruthie's mother's sister who was itinerant and mysterious. Certainly the aunts did not approve of her. But she was a convenience, for when she came the aunts were free to go home and leave matters entirely in her hands. Sylvie is the first person in the novel to show any emotion, and she does show love toward the girls. Sylvie is the breath of fresh air in an otherwise stagnant world. But it quickly becomes apparent that she will probably not stay forever. Lucille is a child who is likely to stay put, but Ruthie responds to Sylvie's suppressed wanderlust. At last they have a source of information about their mother, about the larger world. Sylvie was the opposite of the oppressive atmosphere of the town and the house. Both closed in on a person, making them small. But Sylvie had broken away before, and neither the town nor the house had any real power over her. When spring came shortly after Sylvie's arrival, the town flooded, again cutting the three of them off from other human company and stranding them in the house. With this development, the girls find that they are becoming dependent on Sylvie and for the first time learn that they have something to fear in being separated from her by the state. As always, there is a sense of loss, of the fear of abandonment. The reaction by the local townspeople to the women revealed much of the character of the family and of themselves. Robinson describes them as standoffish, knowing hardly anyone in town. They were self sufficient to themselves, and the house was a symbol of this. It was built alone on a hill so that it did not suffer as the rest of the town did in times of flood. The townspeople came and made sure they were all right and then left to put the town back in order unaided by Ruthie, Sylvie and Lucille. The primary social contact for the girls was the school they attended. But even there, they were isolated. Because of some unpleasantness for Lucille in which she was accused of cheating, both girls played hookey for an extended period of time. It was while they were hiding out that they saw Sylvie try to walk across the narrow, dangerous railroad bridge that spanned the lake. This was the same bridge where the train derailment which killed their grandfather occurred. As a result, both girls were very fearful of the loss they faced if something happened to her. It is at this point that housekeeping comes into the plot. Sylvie talked a lot about it and even did some. But she was very eccentric about the meals she prepared and the cleaning that she did. Lucille was not content with Sylvie, but Ruthie was for Ruthie was a kindred spirit. Lucille began to turn her attention to the town and the more conventional life it held out. By summer, it was clear that Lucille's loyalties lay elsewhere. But for the summer they both stayed out of the house most of the time and hid in the woods. Lucille increasingly found things to dislike about Sylvie, especially her housekeeping which was erratic. She offended Lucille's sense of propriety. By implication, Ruthie lacked one for she and Sylvie seemed to be similar in tastes and goals, or rather lack of goals. Essentially, Sylvie was a transient in the settled world, and Lucille was one who would voluntarily stay put. With time, the girls began to separate, and there arose an us versus them mentality, with us being Ruthie and Sylvie. Lucille invented a mother who was a meticulous housekeeper and a traditional mother. Ruthie had no such illusions, nor did she care. With time, the house under Sylvie's management became increasingly more disheveled, and full of papers and other rubbish. Ruthie adapted and was comfortable with it, as was Sylvie, but Lucille moved out to pursue a more normal life. The climactic series of events which ended up tearing the family apart truly was Ruthie's joining Sylvie in an overnight jaunt which started with a stolen rowboat for a chance to look at the train submerged in the lake holding her grandfather's remains and the eventual ride back into town on a freight train. That set the ladies of the town to trying to see that Ruthie did not herself succumb to being a transient. Under the threat of having the state take Ruthie from Sylvie, both decided to flee together. They first tried to burn down the house, but it did not burn. They escaped by walking at night across the railroad bridge, and were subsequently presumed dead. For the rest of their lives they wandered from place to place, rootless. Ruthie took up the life that Sylvie led, and both drifted around, never seeing Lucille again. There is a great sense of loss and sadness in this book. There is little in the way of close human connection, sympathy, or love. Overall, it is both ghostly and depressing. However, its strength is in the perceptive description of people and places. Robinson is especially vivid with the sense of place, whether of the house or the place in Seattle where the girls lived with their mother before coming to Fingerbone. Her descriptions of people were clear portraits that told as much of their character as their appearance. What the book lacked emotionally was made up in the artistry of the language.

Effects of Merger on Employee Morale Essays

Effects of Merger on Employee Morale Essays Effects of Merger on Employee Morale Essay Effects of Merger on Employee Morale Essay 2000). MA’s have become a more integral part of business life. Frank (2002) acknowledges that the idea of a megadeal continues to haunt floors of the world’s largest companies. Therefore for companies involved in mergers or acquisitions, in an effort to prevent the hangovers that strike the majority of MA’s, management must manage their post-merger integration more consciously and professionally. The integration phase plays the most integral part in the success or failure of the merger (Bruner, 2005). One of the most important factors in how well two companies integrate depends greatly on how well the integration is managed (Meschi, 1997). Fisher (1994) asserted that the most success and best mergers were those where managers of both companies took the time to thoroughly understand what they were getting into. The leaders must be willing to create a new culture that makes use of the best parts from both partners. In order to convince all company members, it is essential to be honest with employees about all aspects of agreements and to take time to reassure valuable workers that their jobs are safe. HRM ?tr?tegie? History shows that only 30–40% of all mergers and acquisitions are successful, despite companies stating that their merger has been successful but have been unable to derive the kind of benefits that were expected, triggers the question what is stopping these companies from achieving complete success (Ajjarapu, 2004). Ajjarapu reported that one of the main reasons for failure of a merger or acquisition is based on human resources neglect. Companies which have failed to recognize the significance of human assets in their associations and their function in the success of integration have failed to come to success. Dixon and Nelson (2005) reported that HR professionals are not included as part of the MA team, which is typically comprised almost entirely of people from finance, IT and other disciplines seen as essential to making the deal work. Unsuccessful merger activity is fast becoming the norm and one of the main reasons behind this is the underestimating impact culture has on merger success. Cartwright and Cooper (2000) accepted that the premier functions of up to date human assets purposes are to be dynamically engaged in the association and perform as a enterprise colleague and advisor on business-related issues. Gaughan (2005) stated: Human resource departments in today’s organizations are practical and strategic. As such, they can add significant value for companies through development, managing personnel conflict, reinforcing the new HR system and corporate culture, and providing leadership and communication to reduce turnover. (p. 20) This is particularly critical in the locality of amalgamations and acquisitions. People issues have been the most sensitive but often ignored issues in a merger and acquisition (Giles, 2000). When a decision is taken to amalgamate or come by, a business analyzes the feasibility on the business, financial and legal fronts, but falls short to identify the significance adhered to the human assets of the associations involved. Organizations fail to realize that people have the capability to make or break the successful union of the two organizations involved. Ajjarapu (2004) reported that it is important for organizations on the verge of integration to analyze the feasibility of the integration of key players from the human resource side of the house. Research showed that only 35% of senior HR executives were involved in MA activities (Giles, 2000; Liberatore, 2000). Other research reported that 80% of combinations failed at the implementation stage as a result of the following factors; an inadequate road map, senior HR professionals brought in too little, too late; senior HR professionals lacking in business experience; an inadequate skills base overall; and ultimately, failed organizational change (Charman, 1999; Greengard, 1999). Anderson (1999) reported that it is imperative that human resource professionals are key in pre-merger discussions and the strategic planning phase of mergers and acquisitions early as to allow them access to the corporate cultures of the two organizations. Being engaged in the pre-merger stage permits HR to identify areas of divergence which could hinder the integration process. HR plays a vital role in addressing any communication issues, compensation policies, skill sets, and company goals that need to be assessed (Deal Kennedy, 1999). Deal and Kennedy (2000) reported that it is imperative to involve HR to handle other issues such as addressing employee concerns, developing a detailed integration plan for merging the people of the two organizations, conduct talent audits, manage downsizing with care and most importantly motivate employees (Deal Kennedy, 2000). A study conducted by The Society for Human Resource Management revealed that more than two-thirds of the senior managers interviewed had been involved in three or more mergers, acquisitions or joint ventures within the past 5 years. Key results of the survey indicated that, while the experience level in corporate America is deep, the quality of such MA activities has gone missing. The findings included: [1. ] Only 43% of respondents reported success in achieving the expected pre-deal results. [2. ] Of the 82% of respondent companies that listed growth in market share as the most important expected result of the merger, only 49% reported achieving the goal. [3. ] Companies for whom the drivers were leadership in a consolidating industry and enhanced brand strength reported similarly disappointing results. 4. ] Respondents reported that the major obstacles to MA success were: [a. ] Inability to sustain financial performance (64%) [b. ] Loss of productivity (62%) [c. ] Incompatible cultures (56%) [d. ] Loss of key talent (53%) [e. ] Clash of management styles (53%) (p. 5) Dixon and Nelson (2005) asserted: These outcomes give a clear suggestion and supply a cornerstone for healing the MA persevering or at least begi nning the remedy with the right prescription. After all, three of the five obstacles listed above fall squarely within the human resource arena. p. 5) Most of these senior HR leaders were not included in the pre-deal planning activities by their own companies. With so much to offer and a general consensus of the positive correlation between HR involvement and the success of mergers and acquisition, the question remains as to why HR does not play an integral role in the MA proceedings (Dixon Nelson, 2005). ?te F?r ?tr?tegy Im?lement?ti?n Mergers and acquisitions represent change, and it is this change that generates different emotions among different employee groups. While employees from an acquiring company may feel excited about the new challenges that the integration brings to them, employees from an acquired company may have very different reactions, such as feeling anxious, uncertain, or even intimidated as they go through major changes (Machiraju, 2003). In the face of organizational changes from MA’s, employees tend to be worried with issues such as job security and their future careers with the organization (Daniel Metcalf, 2001). According to Wasserstein (2001) when uncertainty drags on without being addressed, or when employees do not have a good understanding about the change process or new work roles and standards, it impedes productivity and performance. The rumor mill begins and employee morale not only decreases, but many employees do not wait around: they jump ship and leave the company. For example, when Hewlett Packard (HP) broadcast its merger with Compaq, employees became concentrated on protecting their occupations rather than of assisting customers. Consequently, HP lost customers to other competitors (Nguyen Kleiner, 2003). Given that change is inevitable when two organizations are combined, communicating upfront about what will happen can help prepare employees for these changes. Each stage in a MA is a stressful time for both employees and managers, and each have to work together to avoid many of the disempowerment and mistrust that often comes with it. This is mostly because of today’s environment which seems to survive on rapid change and a great deal of uncertainty. It is very important for a company to maintain the trust of its employees when the change is taking place, this will ensure that as few employees as possible are â€Å"injured† and you retain much of the loyalty of the workers that remain (Brockner, Konovsky, Cooper-Schneider, Folger, Martin, Bies, 1994). When employees are treated well, they can survive any type of future crisis that an organization will go through. The surviving employees of the MA will work to build a better a better stronger company in the future. How management deals with these employees affects their morale and can either positively or negatively affect their productivity. MA’s are becoming a fact of life. They are something that will continue to happen unfortunately with no end in sight. As long as the economy continues to rise and fall, so to will the concept of merger, acquisitions, restructuring, streamlining and downsizing. References Abrahamson, E. (2004). Change without pain: How managers can overcome initiative overload, organizational chaos, and employee burnout. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Ajjarapu, N. (2004). Mergers and acquisitions: Managing the HR issues. Anderson, J. E. (1999, August 9). Making operational sense of mergers and acquisitions. The Electricity Journal, 12(7), 49–59. Banal-Estanol, A. , Seldeslachts, J. (2004). Merger failures. Unpublished manuscript, University of Western Ontario (Canada) and Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (Spain). 5. Berenson, M. L. , Levine, D. M. , Krehbiel, T. C. (2006). Basic business statistics: Concepts and applications (10th ed. ). Chicago: Prentice Hall. Bohl, D. (1989). The effects of mergers and acquisitions. New York: American Management Association. Brooks, I. Dawes, J. (1999). Merger as a trigger for cultural change in the retail financial services sector. The Services Industries Journal, 19(1), 194–206. Bruner, R. (2005). Deals from hell: MA lessons that rise above the ashes. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley. Borland, J. (2002). Despite breakup, ATT continues to reshape telecom landscape. Cartwright, S. , Cooper, C. L. (1994). T he human effects of mergers and acquisitions. In C. L. Cooper D. M. Rousseau (Eds. ), Trends in organizational behavior (pp. 47–62). New York: Wiley. Cartwright, S. , Cooper, C. L. (1996). Handbook of coping: Theory, research and applications. New York: John Wiley. Cartwright, S. , Cooper, C. L. (2000). HR know-how in mergers and acquisitions. London: Institute of Personnel and Development. Charman, A. (1999). Global mergers and acquisitions: The human resource challenge. Alexandria, VA: Society for Human Resource Management, Institute for International Human Resources International Focus. Daniel, T. A. , Metcalf, G. S. (2001). The management of people in mergers and acquisitions. Bridgeport, CT: Quorum/Greenwood. Deal, T. , Kennedy, A. (1999). The new corporate cultures: Revitalizing the workplace after downsizing, mergers and reengineering. Cambridge, MA: Perseus Publishing. Deal, T. , Kennedy, A. (2000). Corporate culture: The rights and rituals of corporate life. Cambridge, MA: Perseus Publishing. Dixon, I. , Nelson, N. (2005). SHRM case study: Culture management and merger acquisitions. Dooney, J. (2005). Communicating HR’s business impact. The morale and satisfaction of midlevel administrators: Differentiating the constructs and their impact on intent to leave. Feldman, M. L. , Spratt, M. F. (1999). Five frogs on a log: A CEO’s field guide to accelerating the transition in mergers, acquisitions, and gut-wrenching change. New York: HarperCollins. Fisher, A. B. (1994). How to make a merger work. Fortune, 129(2), 66. Frank, R. (2002, June 25). Where have the masters of the big mergers gone? The Wall Street Journal, p. C1. Gaughan, P. (2005). Mergers: What can go wrong and how to prevent it. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley. Habeck, M. M. , Kroger, F. , Tram, M. R. (2000). After the merger. London: Prentice Hall. Haspeslagh, P. C. , Jemison, D. B. (1991). Managing acquisitions: Creating value through corporate renewal. New York: Free Press. Huselid, M. (1995). The impact of human resource management practices on turnover, productivity and corporate financial performance. Academy of Management Journal, 38(3), 635–672. Jansen, S. A. (2001). Mergers and acquisitions (4th ed. ). Wiesbaden, England: Gabler. King, D. (2004). Meta-analyses of post-acquisition performance: Indications of unidentified moderators. Strategic Management Journal, 25(2), 187–200. Leedy, P. D. , Ormrod, J. E. (2005). Practical research: Planning and design (8th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Luecke, R. (2003). Managing change and transition. Boston: Harvard Business School. Machiraju, H. (2003). Mergers, acquisitions and takeovers. New Delhi, India: New Age International. Rend cultural management. Human Relations, 50(2), 211–228. Munck, B. (2001). Changing a culture of face time. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing. Nguyen, H. , Kleiner, B. H. (2003). The effective management of mergers. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 24(8), 447–454. Picot, G. (2002). Handbook of international mergers and acquisitions: Preparation, implementation and integration. Houndmills, England: Palgrave/Macmillan. Reed, S. , Lajoux, A. (1998). The art of MA: A merger acquisition buyout guide. New York: McGraw Hill. Wasserstein, B. (2001). Big deal: Mergers and acquisitions in the digital age. New York: Warner Business Books.

Summary and Analysis of introduction to the Scarlet letter essays

Summary and Analysis of introduction to the Scarlet letter essays Semi-fictional, this chapter explains how the romance of The Scarlet Letter came to presented as a story to the audience. Having always wanted to be a "literary man," the writer talks about his three-year stint as a Surveyor in the Salem Custom House. Mostly filled with older gentlemen, the workplace was a very political (Whig) environment and charged with Puritan history. After brief character sketches of the personalities in the Custom House, the writer then explains how he came upon a special package among the piles of papers. It contained a red cloth with "A" embroidered in gold thread and a manuscript by Jonathan Pue (the man who once held the writer's job). Finding the story extremely interesting, the author thus retells the story of Hester Prynne from Massachusetts' Puritan history. This section helps to position the voice of the narrator since we are going to hear comments throughout the rest of the novel. It reveals insecurities that the narrator has in pursuing a writing career. When he imagines that his "great-grandsire" Puritan ancestors are looking down on him, saying, "A writer of storybooks! What kind of business in life - what mode of glorifying God, or being serviceable to mankind in his day and generation - may that be? Why the degenerate fellow might as well have been a fiddler!" he dramatizes the anxiety he feels about writing for a living. His religious forebears think that it is a ridiculous profession, not at all useful to elevating God or anything else. Because he feels he has something to prove to his great-grandsires and to history, he wants this chance to show off his literary skills. Hester Prynne's story gives him the perfect opportunity since it does deal with God and piety (although his take on the story is not one his ancestors would be likely to agree with). His ambivalent attitude towards the "patriarchs" appears again when he speaks of a permanent Inspector of the Custom House. Though the man has "n...

Effect of Color Vision on Foraging and predatoe detection skills in Research Paper

Effect of Color Vision on Foraging and predatoe detection skills in New World Monkey - Research Paper Example 657) and has been attributed to be influenced by chromatic signals which are usually produced by the leaves (Dominy and Lucas 363) and fruits (Regan et al. 229). Research has also revealed that trichromatics have the capability of identifying fruits from a background that is leafy and that though fruits have the ability to protect themselves especially during their ripening process, the trichromatics are also able to tell apart the ripe from unripe fruits. Majority of research has been conducted to investigate the foraging ability of trichromatics but less research has been done illustrating the effect of color vision on predator skills. This evidences a loop hole in research that this research proposal seeks to answer by investigating the effect of color vision not only as pertains to foraging but also on predator detection skills and especially among New World Monkey. Proposed research hypothesis There is a positive correlation between color visions among trichromatic species and t heir preference for predator detection and foraging. Methods used for collecting genetic and other types of data Genetic data will be collected using amplification and sequencing of the opsin X linked gene which is responsible for the trichomatic genotype hence the vision phenotype. This will include extracting DNA from the monkeys by using their hair strands, saliva or blood samples for evaluation. Sequence analysis and PCR will also be used so as to identify the four amino acids that are present in the heterozygous females that present with the trichromatic vision allele as evidence in other studies (Surridge and Mundy 2157). Behavioral method of collecting data will be employed where the behavior of monkeys will be observed so as to distinguish trichromatics from dichromatic behavior in feeding. This will be aimed at assessing if there is a positive link between the behavior of trichromatics in feeding on ripe fruits and in their predation, compared to dichromatic monkeys. Moreov er behavior of dichromatic and monochromatic monkeys that make them unable to distinguish the ripe from unripe fruits will also be assessed (Smith, et al. 3162). Morphological method of data collection will be used at evaluating the morphology of ripe fruits that makes them more predisposed to foraging by trichromatic compared to dichromatic. Consequently, the morphology of leaves will also be used to assess the role played in camouflaging the unripe fruits and the effect on color vision it has on trichromatics compared to dichromatic monkeys (Smith, et al. 3162). Methods of analyzing the data Data will be analyzed by use of software by the name SPSS: Statistical Package for Social Sciences where raw data will be collected, cleaned and coded. After coding into dichromatic and trichomatic as the independent variables and foraging and predator detection as the dependent variables, data will be entered into the computer and analyzed. Results will be presented in the form of tables, cha rts and figures for easier interpretation and discussion. Justification Color vision discrimination is important for the survival of any animal especially in the wild. Not only do the animals benefit from the study, results generated pertaining to foraging will aid enhancing the growth of fruits to maturity. This is since it will ensure that the unripe fruits

Television Media Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Television Media - Research Paper Example d technological advances, the gradual expansion of the television networks westward; the drop in set prices caused by mass production; increased leisure time; and additional disposable income. It is said that the golden age of television in USA was from 1953-1960. 2 Around the globe, broadcast television is financed by either: government, or advertising, or licensing (a form of tax), or subscription or any combination of these. To protect revenues, subscription TV channels are usually encrypted to ensure that only subscription payers receive the decryption codes to get the signal. Unencrypted channels are known as  free to air  or  FTA. The information conveyed through television media is controlled to a great extent by the corporate giants, as they have invested billions of Dollars in sponsoring television programs. The corporate sector does not only market its products through television media but its multilayered agendas as well. The way and the objectives of influencing television media by corporate stake holders are really complex. However, it is clear that television media is used as a powerful tool to endorse the ideas and agendas of the corporate investors in the minds of the consumers. As huge investments by the corporate sector in television media is economically beneficial for the television industry, therefore the ethics of television media are easily manipulated by its interests and agendas. A great number of corporate giants own and run television networks and thus propagate their national, political or corporate agendas through this medium. Television media has to abide by corporate social responsibility according to which it must be careful with the information being presented to the world. It also bases its strategy according to the feedback and responses of the consumers. Sustaining consumerism is one of the greatest challenges of television industry on one end; while at the other end, it must establish and provide opportunities for the