Medicalisation of Childbirth

The concept of medicalisation Originally, the concept of medicalisation was strongly associated with medical dominance, involving the extension of medicine's jurisdiction over erstwhile ‘normal’ life events and experiences. More recently, however, this view of a docile lay populace, in thrall to expansionist medicine, has been challenged. Thus, as we enter a post-modern era, with increased concerns over risk and a decline in the trust of expert authority, many sociologists argue that the modern day ‘consumer’ of healthcare plays an active role in bringing about or resisting medicalisation.Such participation, however, can be problematic as healthcare consumers become increasingly aware of the risks and uncertainty surrounding many medical choices. The emergence of the modern day consumer not only raises questions about the notion of medicalisation as a uni-dimensional concept, but also requires consideration of the specific social contexts in which medicalisa tion occurs. In this paper, we describe how the concept of medicalisation is presented in the literature, outlining different accounts of agency that shape the process.We suggest that some earlier accounts of medicalisation over-emphasized the medical profession's imperialistic tendencies and often underplayed the benefits of medicine. With consideration of the social context in which medicalisation, or its converse, arises, we argue that medicalisation is a much more complex, ambiguous, and contested process than the ‘medicalisation thesis’ of the 1970s implied.In particular, as we enter a post-modern era, conceptualizing medicalisation as a uni-dimensional, uniform process or as the result of medical dominance alone is clearly insufficient. Indeed, if, as Conrad and Schneider (1992) suggested, medicalisation was linked to the rise of rationalism and science (ie to modernity), and if we are experiencing the passing of modernity, we might expect to see a decrease in med icalisation

Write a comprehensive note on the role of a teacher in the Montessori classroom

The teacher in a Montessori classroom takes on a completely different role to a teacher in a traditional classroom. So much so, that directress or guide are preferred over the word teacher. The reason for this is that it is the teachers main role to guide the children and help the children in their learning. The teacher isn't a person who pushes the child to learn when & what she wants them to learn. The teacher doesn't cause the child to learn. They aren't the conduit for knowledge that than flows into the child's mind. The child's active mind will do the learning on its own.Being a guide doesn't just consist of just talking to the children. A guide must be aware of each child's personality, how they work,what they are interested and which stage of development that are at. They must also understand child development and growth. The guide must also be aware of her behaviour and attitudes as well. The teacher is responsible for putting Montessori principles into practise in the classr oom. The environment in a Montessori classroom is also vitally important. It is the role of the teacher to prepare the environment to allow the learning process to happen naturally.A full understanding of the Montessori method is vital so she she can use the correct classroom materials and techniques to encourage the child's learning. A teacher shouldn't be the focal point in the environment she is creating. The learning materials very important and must cater for the needs and interests of the children in her class. She will usually be found working with an individual child or a couple at at time. It is very rare that the teacher will present a large group lesson. She may present a new lesson and observe and advise the students, as the priority is the child's learning.She needs to meet as many needs as possible for as many students as possible each day. This is a big part of planning the environment because each child is an individual with different needs and are all at different d evelopmental stages. Interests, desires and learning styles also differ immensely. It is important that all these factors and all students are considered when preparing an environment. When an enviroment is set up correctly students should be able to easily choose their own activities and find their own answers to problems with their teacher there to mentor and guide them.Students will be scattered through out a peaceful classroom, individually or in small groups of 2's and 3's, totally absorbed in working on appropriate activities for their stage of development. Often it can be difficult to pick out the teacher in the type of environment. A teacher in a Montessori classroom would normally be involved in the following activities through the course of a day. Preparation of the environment. This needs to be in line with the students in her class, the activities they are interested in and the stages of development they are at.She is the link between the environment and the child and is engaged actively between the two. The teacher is also responsible to keep the classroom in perfect condition. It is important that the children can make their own choices easily. The environment needs to be changed and updated whenever required. At times things will need to be added and at other times, things taken away. The teacher will experiment with the environment to work out what is needed to meet the needs of her children. Observing the child is vital in the Montessori classroom.By constantly observing the children, the teacher is able to understand their interests and tailor the environment to suit. All observations should be done in a systematic way and all observations must be noted. Through these observations the teacher is always aware of the children's sensitive periods, their progress, needs & interests. She is always carefully noting the outcomes of her observations. A Montessori teacher will give only brief lessons. She does this with the simplest information needed to entice the child to work alone on the project that he is curious about.Her presentations need to be demonstrated in a clear and interesting fashion which is relevant to the child. The way this all comes about is, the teacher will be watching the child as they explore the shelves & equipment to make their choice. She will go to the child and take consent to work with that particular material or piece of equipment. She will get the child to help take the material to an area where he will work and specify its place on the shelf. The teacher gives the child the rules for using that piece of equipment and gives a brief, precise demonstration of the things that can be done with that equipment.This demonstration is a brief introduction and an initial exploratory procedure. The child is encouraged to explore further on their own. The goal of Montessori is for the child to become independent and self disciplined. Presentations let the child investigate, work autonomously and at their own pace, moving on to the next step when they have achieved their objective, therefore helping to achieve independence as the child learns to use the materials & the classroom with a minimum amount of supervision and no interruptions.The main purposes of a Montessori guide are to focus on the child rather than the lesson. She evaluates the child and his progress each day. Through these evaluations she is also discovering whether her preparation of the environment has been effective too. The teacher nurtures the child and inspires him to ask questions and be a thinker so he can discover and keep exploring for himself. She does all this in an atmosphere of warmth, safety, stability and friendship. She is the child's mentor & coach.She learns when it is appropriate to offer help or set limits and when it is best to leave the child to himself. She needs to communicate with the child and encourage him to communicate with her. She is a role model for the children in the area of behaviour an d consistency and also follows the classroom rules as an example to the child. It is her responsibility to report to parents and other staff on the progress of each child. The roles of a Montessori teacher are wide & varied and one where the child's best interest is of the highest value.

Legalities related to sexual harassment policies for the workplace Research Paper

Legalities related to sexual harassment policies for the workplace - Research Paper Example Before filing a case against the offender, a victim must remember the place, date, and time of the sexual harassment besides any witness if possible. The harasser needs to be blatantly made clear by the victim to behave and mend ways. If there is no sign of amending ways, a warning needs to be made of the repercussions in legal terms through filing a case at EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commotion), which can help the victim. An employer cannot be held responsible if no such policy is in practice at the workplace to tame the bad conduct but once a complaint has been made, taking action against the offender becomes mandatory for the employer to save the employer’s skin (Bhatnagar, 2007). Employees at state and federal level are also protected under the sexual harassment law. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 under the federal law provides remedy for workplace harassment. This law is applicable to firms with fifteen or more employees. Where employee strength is less than fifteen the state anti-discrimination law comes to the aid of discriminated employees. Regarding single-gender harassment, there is provision to file a case against the employer whereas there is no unanimity over single-gender harassment in state laws (Larson, 2003). Basically, there are two simple types of workplace sexual harassment, Quid Pro Quo Harassment and Hostile Work Environment Harassment. In Quid Pro Quo type, the employee has to bear the gender based discrimination to remain in the job, avail routine benefit, salary hike or promotion. A hostile work environment affects the job performance of the employee by making the environment abusive. For inquiring into the workplace environment, we need to analyze the factors responsible for the conduct of the offender. It is crucial to confirm whether the offender’s behavior is verbally or physically wrong, how random the occurrence of the offence is, whether the behavior is just unfriendly or undoubtedly objectionable , what is the rank of the offender, whether the offence is committed taking along others by the offender in the league of perpetuators’ aiming at the victim singularly or including others as targets (Larson, 2003). Sexual harassment of verbal type can be judged on the overall happenings, depending on factors such as: The type, frequency, context, and specific aim of the remarks; Whether the comments were unfriendly and mean; Whether the alleged harasser pointed towards the victim while making a hostile comment; Whether the victim reacted by participated through return comments; and The level of kinship between the victim and the alleged harasser. To initiate action for sexual harassment, the plaintiff must prove that: 1. The plaintiff found the behavior to be hostile, abusive or offensive; and 2. Any person of balanced attitude in the same situation would consider the behavior hostile, abusive or offensive. It is to be noted that the plaintiff need not be necessarily a victim of the ordeal to file a claim against workplace sexual harassment. As stated above the federal cases can be filed with the EEOC, but it first requires case filing against the behavior of an administrative agency; state and local bodies also listen to such complaints under the state law. There is possibility that a state

Fast Food vesus Home Cooked Food Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Fast Food vesus Home Cooked Food - Essay Example The fact of the matter remains that the fast food culture has brought about a paradigm shift, which is incremental yet quite revealing in the most basic sense, and much thought and consideration needs to be paid towards such ranks as far as the future undertakings of the society are concerned. One of the most attractive things about fast food is its convenience. A person can walk into a fast food store, or take their car through a drive through fast food outlet and, within five minutes they can have their hot, strong tasting meal ready for them to eat. As a nation, people are generally more busy today than ever before, at least in terms of the speed of their lives. As people are constantly rushing around from one place to another, it makes sense that fast food would be more popular. People who work long hours may not find time to cook a proper meal at home, whereas they can visit a fast food store easily between their other tasks of the day. Furthermore, fast food is convenient as there are so many outlets. Where ever a person is, they usually aren’t far from a fast food restaurant or drive through. Conversely, home cooked food takes time to prepare. Cooking a meal can be time consuming, as can the shopping for ingredients before the actual cooking commences. Also, some ingredients may not be available in one shop and several shops may need to be visited in order to gather all the required ingredients. This, of course, adds to the time taken to prepare the home cooked meal. Unless a person employs a personal chef in their home, preparing a meal at home is not as convenient as a fast food (Myers). A similarity between home cooked food and fast food is that, depending on the individual’s preferences, both can taste very nice and can be satisfying to eat. However, scientists have revealed that the high sugar and salt content in fast food can actually

New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico Assignment

New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico - Assignment Example Under the Foraker Law which was established on April 2, 1900, Puerto Rico became the first unincorporated territory of the United States to enjoy a free commerce and civil government relationship with the United States ( Barcelo, Carlos Romero â€Å"Puerto Rico USA: The Case for Statehood† ). As a responsible member of the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico, I feel that it is my duty to help my countrymen make an informed decision about this particular cause based upon facts. Facts that have a direct relation and impact upon the citizens of Puerto Rico. To begin with, I would like to present you all with the fact of Puerto Rican life should we opt to continue without U.S. citizenship. I would like everyone to remember that at this current point in time, Puerto Rico is enjoying the liberties of being a part of the United States without actually losing our status as a commonwealth. Although the United States governs a majority or our nations activities and political decisions, they do so without infringing on our rights as residents and nationals of Puerto Rico. Although statehood has somehow always been on the table, it has not become a reality yet. Statehood is a permanent change from which our nation can never turn back. When we incorporate ourselves into America as a state, we become Americans who follow American law, pay American taxes, and follow American culture. Gone is the chance for secession and our commonwealth status shall be nothing but a part of the past of Puerto Rico (â€Å"Major Disadvantages of Statehood†). Currently, we enjoy the unique relationship that the United states has with Puerto Rico. We manage to have an independent set of governing rules and regulations even as we continue to have a noticeable American presence in our nation. As the legal minds explain it; International and constitutional law arbitrarily collide in the legal arrangement between the United States and Puerto Rico. As a matter of international law, it i s unclear whether this arrangement conforms to customary international treaties and obligations. As a matter of national law, it is unclear that the constitution permits an arrangement between Puerto Rico and the United States ---- short of separation (independence as a state) or integration (admission to the union as a state) -- that could conform to these international obligations (Lawson & Sloane â€Å"The Constitutionality of Decolonization by Associated Statehood: Puerto Rico's Legal Status Reconsidered†). Puerto Rican citizens somehow manage to carry a dual citizenship with the United States under this murky legal loophole which does not allow us to elect American officials if I elect to continue living in Puerto Rico. However, the minute I step onto U.S. soil, I become an American citizen with the right to help elect officials to the local, state, and national levels of political office. We are uniquely American in citizenship, and yet still un-American in governance, culture, and tradition. Without U.S. citizenship and recognition as a U.S. territory, Puerto Rico the economy of Puerto Rico will not manage to survive. My research has shown that as a territory, we do not pay U.S. taxes and yet offer investment opportunities to Americans in the mainland under a tax-free status. Our status as a commonwealth has not protected the country against foreign debt. Rather, we

Summary of On Racist Speech Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Summary of On Racist Speech - Essay Example Unfortunately universities have not been able to provide black and other minority students the protection which the Constitution guarantees them. Racism or racist speech is only tackled when it takes the form of face to face harassment or assaulting speech or acts on an individual or small group of persons. The Supreme Court has held that words which " by their very utterance inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate breach of the peace" are not protected by the First Amendment. Blacks and minorities have to be given recourse to the same education, facilities and security all over the campus from every form of racism, harassment, pain, injury and suffering. Against the backdrop of democracy, we should be sure to strike a balance with our concern, for free flow of ideas and the democratic process dependent on that flow and our desire to further the cause of equality. We have to recognize the fact that racial speech inflicts real harm and then with an equal commitment to equality and free speech can we come to some reconciliation. Debating and arguing we risk making the First Amendment an instrument of domination rather than a vehicle of liberation. Courts have, for example, exempted from the protection of the First Amendment obscene speech, speech that disseminates, official secrets, that defames or libels another person, or that is used to form

Economic Article Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economic Article Analysis - Essay Example Banks, chastened by the recent credit disaster due to the subprime mortgage loan debacle, have refused to take more risks by way of lending. Seeing that the stimulus package did not work as expected, both Treasury and the Fed decided to inject funds directly -- from the helicopter, so to speak -- into the economy by buying distressed assets in order to pump more money into the economy to spur growth. This took the form of programs named Term Auction Lending Facility, Term Securities Lending Facility, and Asset Backed Paper Money Market Mutual Fund Lending Facility. This buyback program had recently reached $2.2 trillion from $950 billion last September 2008. Such an approach sought to stave off a "catastrophic downturn" although some observers think that the recession is already running, the worst since the early 1980s. From the economists point of view the attempt of the US government to intervene is based on what has been learned from the Great Depression of the 1930s when the so-called "invisible hand." was found no longer reliable. A British economist, John Maynard Keynes, proposed that the government should take direct action to stimulate the economy, by way of infusing liquidity through direct spending to stimulate consumption and industrial activity. The injection of cash could be made through the banking system, through low interest rates, or through fiscal policy via a budget deficit, or by a combination of both monetary and fiscal policy. First, the Fed offers low discount rate to the banks, and the latter should be able to to lend the money to borrowers at just a slightly higher interest to account for their income derived from the spreads In the present situation, however, the banks are not extending credit. Consequently, the Fed had to take direct action by purchasing distressed assets . When the economy recovers as widely believed it will, starting --

Research Paper on Why So Many Failed Drug Tests with Athletes in

On Why So Many Failed Drug Tests with Athletes in Professional Sports - Research Paper Example School level education programs are really essential to increase athletes’ awareness of the negative effects of substance abuse and thus to create an anti-doping culture. Please find enclosed my article titled, â€Å"Failed Drug Tests with Athletes in Professional Sports† for your kind perusal. This overview of the alarming issue of drug abuse and falsified performance tendencies among athletes makes an empirical study of the scenario with a list of actual cases and citations for the relevance and accuracy of the material. This article exposes the real facets of the influence of the contrabands at the core of reality with a belief that investigative studies in the field of ethical and health issues may be encouraged for the benefit of a transparent sports world. While being aware of the very fact that complete elimination of performance-enhancing drugs is not practical in the near future, a few recommendations are suggested in the article to regulate the management of global sports for total dope-free competitions. Apart from addressing the issue from a social and individual perspective, for the compilation of this article, names of several prolific sports personalities who have been defamed for having failed tests for doping or substance misuse have been mentioned. Although the references are not deliberate, it is expected that the inclusion of such names will mark a symbolic effect among the readers about the social and professional destruction caused by this evil tendency. Thus, with due humility and appreciation for your excellence, I submit this article before you. I hope the compromises made at meeting the standards at different areas may be excused and this work will be considered for a favorable approval. Professional sports have been a primary area of concern for most of the developed countries since ancient periods because they perceived sport activities as an opportunity to demonstrate their

Applying concepts from SAP to a real world case (business processes in Essay

Applying concepts from SAP to a real world case (business processes in SAP) - Essay Example In essence, rate of production must be done in such a way that consumers do not have the need to wait for supply because there are shortages. This is because in a very competitive market, as soon as there are shortages, consumers fall on substitute products and other competitors to get their demands met. To avoid this situation, Fuji has a number of ways that is fuses technology with the traditional concept of production to ensure that production takes place in a much effective and efficient manner. This means is rooted in the use of SAP enterprise resource planning. This paper therefore discusses one concept of SAP as applies to Fuji and identifies how effectively this is used to bring about the needed competitive advantage that the company requires from its business engagements. Production Planning Concept of SAP Designed to make the general execution of task within the organization easier, SAP can be identified as comprising of several layers, all of which must be together as a co llective force to achieve the goals of the organisation (Cowie, 2003). Despite the fact that there are many different layers, it is advised that the basic system, which acts as the heart of the data operations with the SAP concept, should be kept only for the evidence of higher level managers within the organisation. This is because of the control that the basic system has over the entire organisational processing (Simha & Word, 2012). With this noted, there are other concepts or modules within the SAP that can be customised as implementation tools that can used across all departments of the organisation for the execution of duties. These concepts come in different forms and formats, including production planning. As the name implies, production planning is a very important component of the production process that is used as starting point for all other aspects of production to follow (Baeza-Yates and Ribeiro-Neto, 2009). Specifically, production planning SAP is used to plan and con trol the manufacturing activities that take place within the company (Kania School of Management, 2011). This means that the production planning SAP is necessary not only at the pre-manufacturing stage but also very influential at the manufacturing stage of products and goods. This is because whiles manufacturing is taking place, it is important to undertake production planning processes to evaluation the level of conformity of what is being done to what was planned to be done (Balabanovic and Shoham, 2007). Once SAP is introduced as concept for the production planning, there are several other modules that follows, particularly bills of material. Bills of Material at Fuji Under the broader concept of production planning in SAP, the specific concept of bills of material is related to Fuji, where the need to engage in the manufacturing of sports bikes take place on a constant basis. Notably, at Fuji, bills of material involves and engages several aspects of the production planning pro cess. Specifically, there are two major ways that bills of materials are broadly used in Fuji. The first of this is to identify the list of all input materials needed to make the manufacturing of each set of sports bike complete by use of SAP concept of production planning. As part of the planning phase of the manufacturing that takes place,

Time machine Essay Example for Free

Time machine Essay Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space, generally using a theoretical invention, namely a time machine. It has a commonly recognized place in philosophy and fiction, but has a very limited application in real world physics, such as in quantum mechanics or wormholes. Although the 1895 novel The Time Machine by H. G. Wells was instrumental in moving the concept of time travel to the forefront of the public imagination, The Clock That Went Backward by Edward Page Mitchell was published in 1881 and involves a clock that allows a person to travel backwards in time. [1] Non-technological forms of time travel had appeared in a number of earlier stories such as Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol. Historically, the concept dates back to the early mythologies of Hinduism (such as the Mahabharata), Buddhism, and Islam through ancient folk tales. More recently, with advancing technology and a greater scientific understanding of the universe, the plausibility of time travel has been explored in greater detail by science fiction writers, philosophers, and physicistsThere is no widespread agreement as to which written work should be recognized as the earliest example of a time travel story, since a number of early works feature elements ambiguously suggestive of time travel. Ancient folk tales and myths sometimes involved something akin to travelling forward in time; for example, in Hindu mythology, the Mahabharata mentions the story of the King Raivata Kakudmi, who travels to heaven to meet the creator Brahma and is shocked to learn that many ages have passed when he returns to Earth. [2][3] The Buddhist Pali Canons also mention time moving at different pace, in the Payasi Sutta, one of Buddhas chief disciples Kumara Kassapa explains to the skeptic Payasi that In the Heaven of the Thirty Three Devas, time passes at a different pace, and people live much longer. In the period of our century, one hundred years, only a single day, twenty four hours would have passed for them. [4] In Islam, there is some reference to time travel. The Quran tells about several individuals who go to sleep in a cave only to wake up after 309 years. There is also a reference about time variation where it states one day for God (Allah) is one thousand years of what you (human beings) count. Another one of the earliest known stories to involve traveling forward in time to a distant future was the Japanese tale of Urashima Taro,[5] first described in the Nihongi (720). [6] It was about a young fisherman named Urashima Taro who visits an undersea palace and stays there for three days. After returning home to his village, he finds himself 300 years in the future, when he is long forgotten, his house in ruins, and his family long dead. Another very old example of this type of story can be found in the Talmud with the story of Honi HaMagel who went to sleep for 70 years and woke up to a world where his grandchildren were grandparents and where all his friends and family were dead. [7] Statue of Rip Van Winkle in Irvington, New York More recently, Washington Irvings 1819 story Rip Van Winkle tells of a man named Rip Van Winkle who takes a nap on a mountain and wakes up 20 years in the future, when he has been forgotten, his wife dead, and his daughter grown up. [5] Sleep was also used for time travel in Faddey Bulgarins story Pravdopodobnie Nebylitsi in which the protagonist wakes up in the 29th century. [citation needed] Another more recent story involving travel to the future is Louis-Sebastien Merciers LAn 2440, reve sil en fut jamais (The Year 2440: A Dream If Ever There Were One), a utopian novel in which the main character is transported to the year 2440. An extremely popular work (it went through 25 editions after its first appearance in 1771), it describes the adventures of an unnamed man who, after engaging in a heated discussion with a philosopher friend about the injustices of Paris, falls asleep and finds himself in a Paris of the future. Robert Darnton writes that despite its self-proclaimed character of fantasy LAn 2440 demanded to be read as a serious guidebook to the future. [8].

Impact of Lyndon B. Johnson

Impact of Lyndon B. Johnson Discuss the historical significance of Lyndon B. Johnson LBJ, LBJ, how many kids have you killed today? Was one of the principal protest chants of the 1960s in the United States. It was directed at President Lyndon B. Johnson. It was about the war in Vietnam that the American government under the Johnson administration had been steadily become more involved in each passing year after he came to office following Kennedys assassination in November 1963. One can only imagine how this must have hurt for a man of Johnsons pride and character. Being accused of killing children is not something that anyone takes lightly. His reputation as a connoisseur of Washington hid visionary leadership qualities. He knew how to get what he wanted and when. He realized that American society had to change as the first post-World War Two generation was clamouring for a greater voice in society. His election in 1964 was one of the biggest majorities ever. It is hard to find a historical figure that does not have more than one facet or side to their political legacy and life, and Lyndon Johnson was no exception, but in his case, it was so much more pronounced. Yes, he was historically significant. Itis impossible to argue that he was not. This significance is firstly in his ‘Great Society legislation and philosophy, and secondly in his prosecution of the war in Vietnam. Each of these will be discussed in turn. Part A) Visionary: Kennedys footsteps and Great Society. Any president who comes to office following the death, accidental or not, of another president finds himself or herself in that shadow of that person. The position of vice-president is not an easy one in American government and politics. It carries no power and limited stature. One constantly feels second to holder of the office of president. Naturally, the vice-president is part of the cabinet and provides advice, but the political ideals and program belong to the current president. Looking at Kennedy and Johnson, one can only see differences, but the political need of Kennedy for Southern votes in 1960 made him choose Johnson. His victory created the myth of Camelot, which still stands to this date. He believed in civil rights for all Americans and wanted a more peaceful relationship with the Soviet Union. He was young and handsome, which generated a huge amount of charisma. His death robbed the United States of a leader of great potential. On November 22, 1963, Lyndon Johnson step ped into his shoes following his assassination. He lacked Kennedys charisma, but soon showed confidence. His reputation as a master of the Senate was proof of competence and knowledge. These skills would be soon into great demand as he was immediately confronted with the need to resolve multiple societal problems, such as race relations in the South and health care; issues that Kennedy had started looking at in his brief tenure as president. Johnson felt he had to bring the solutions to fruition, both for the country and Kennedy, and lastly for himself, which meant putting his imprint on them. The United States of the 1960s was in the throes of racial tensions and economic retardation. Southern states were resisting and ignoring federal attempts to impose civil rights for blacks. The result of which was the low voting levels and harassment of blacks in the American Deep South. There were periodical racial riots requiring at times the intervention of federal National Guard to quell them. Unemployment was rising and many Americans had no kind of medical coverage. The American constitutional order placed checks and balances on every level of power, but as the source of the racial inequalities was being ignored for very many reasons that are beyond the scope of this discussion, although one of them was that many presidents were reluctant to rock the boat fearing electoral and legislative setbacks. Such fears did not scare Johnson, as he had earned and cherished a Senate reputation of bending and cajoling other lawmakers to his way of thinking. He could be many things to many p eople. His birth in the Southern state of Texas gave him the image of a good olboy, which could be utilized to great effect. This appeal and experience would be highly beneficial as he was able to push through many legislative reforms by the end of 1965. Every January, the current American president gives a State of the Union address during which he or she proposes various ideas and programs for that year. At this point, Johnson declared a War on Poverty  and called for the passing of Kennedys tax cut and civil rights bill; the first easily passed its hurdles, while the second quickly got delayed. Part of his war on poverty involved creating jobs through massive government aid and intervention, very much on the scale of Roosevelts Great Deal in the 1930s, which served as his inspiration as he understood that the state could not stand by while the people suffered. This realization was in stark contrast to his view of the United States as the true representative of freedom in the world, which meant bringing violence and suffering to people around the world as everyone had their own There were two other major legislative elements of the Great Society, namely Medicare and Medicaid, and the Higher and Elementary and Secondary Education Acts in 1965;the former two set up health care funding for the elderly and the needy, while the latter two provided federal aid to schools. Some of his opponents argued that these reforms were federal involvement in state affairs and fought court cases to resist or delay them. A country of the stature of the United States could not claim to be torch bearer of democracy and freedom,  when a quarter of citizens were denied their rights and many governmental institutions either colluded in their denial or stood by while it occurred. Kennedy recognized this horror, although his predecessor Eisenhower had started redressing the ill when he ordered the National Guard to intervene during the Little Rock crisis in 1957. The Civil Rights Act was passed in July 1964, while the Voting Rights Act in 1965. The riots and violence soon became things of the past except when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in April 1968resulting in riots across 100 cities. A new Civil Rights Act was passed later that year. On a more personal level, he was the first American president to nominate a black person to the Supreme Court and the Cabinet, who were Thurgood Marshall previously having served as the solicitor-general of the United States in 1967 and Robert Weaver as secretary of housing and urban development in 1966. Both decisions opened some of the last bureaucratic rooms to racial integration despite the racist cringing of many Southern senators and governors. Part B) Ideologue: Cold War and the quicksand of Vietnam. The war in Vietnam would become Johnsons undoing. Like almost any other project or idea that he had, he wanted to fight and win it. His major pieces of legislation had been passed by early 1965 or were on their way. This freedom permitted him to increase the American presence in Vietnam. He ordered the first combat troops into Vietnam reversing a Kennedy policy of pulling out of Vietnam as he believed in the ‘Domino Theory whereby if one country fell to Communism, others would follow, so a stand had to be made and Vietnam fulfilled that role. This geo-political theory developed in the 1950s and soon became a guiding principle of many elements of American foreign policy, but sadly it was very blinkered way of thinking, because the theory soon became the reality as facts were manipulated, or even created, to fit into it. The inability to grow beyond it would hamper much of Johnsons thinking on Vietnam. The initial American involvement in Vietnam dated from 1955 after the French h ad been defeated atDien Bien Phu when the United States under Eisenhower felt it had to buttress non-Communist forces in South East Asia. The world of the 1960s was in the throes of a cooling-off period in the Cold War after having closely brushed with nuclear Armageddon in Cuba in October 1962, and the growing American involvement was perceived as a renewed hot period. Not everyone believed in this war, as they realized that it was a battle between two opposing ideologies, Capitalism and Communism; both of which had their supporters and critics, and the question was why did someone have to choose between them. Many counties did ignore the two superpowers and formed the Non-Aligned Movement. ‘Unsurprisingly, this act angered both superpowers. The nature of this war was that the United States and Soviet Union never actually fought each other, but used proxies to fulfil their ideological agendas. Ironically, the political nature of many of these proxies was that they were corrupt, repressive and dictatorial; for instance, in the case of Vietnam, the Diem government in the South supported by the Johnson administrati on was suppressing opposition to its rule, while Ho Chi Minh in the North was widely praised and respected. In atwist of irony, the repressive policies of the Diem government led the American government to overthrow him, but this only further destabilized the country and accelerated its slide into chaos. The basic Cold War philosophy meant that the legitimate democratic needs and hopes of millions were ignored, and it can be argued that this fact damaged the United States more than it did the Soviet Union as the United States claimed to be leader in world democracy and freedom. Johnson’s belief in the American mission to bring democracy to the world was one of his justifications to get involved in Vietnam. This argument begs belief. In the end, this contradiction could not be resolved, and it became the source of the American military and political loss. When Lyndon Johnson came to office, there were only about 16000 advisers in Vietnam, but he would raise the number of combat soldiers to almost 50000 by the late 1960s. He increased the number of bomber missions in the hope of crushing the spirit of the Vietnamese. Not only was the cost in lives was enormous, but also in infrastructure, as bridges, dams and building were destroyed. Such destruction put a stop to any development projects by the Vietnamese. One of the consequences of such a massive bombing was the scarring of the landscape whereby huge holes were made across the country creating impediments to agricultural development. One of the more tragic episodes of the Vietnam War was the authorization to use a weed killer to defoliate trees and shrubs in the hope of uncovering supply routes used by the Vietnamese. It was code-named Agent Orange and was sprayed from planes flying over jungles. It was a pesticide and was never thought of as being dangerous to the health of humans. Protests quickly grew as claims were raised that it was causing various forms of cancer in both Vietnamese civilians and American soldiers, and recently studies have slowly tended to support such views. The psychological success but military failure of the North Vietnameses Tet offensive in 1968started the American military withdrawal process. In a major reversal, Johnson stopped increasing troops and thought of ways to extricate himself and his country from Vietnam. The failure of Johnson to realize that the war was based on the desire of independence of a people at all costs meant that regardless of how many military victories were achieved, the war never ended. It has been a standing law in American politics to not bring back soldiers in body bags as it is politically damaging. Every death was a nail in Johnson’s political coffin. The chant How, Ho Chi Minh shouted by American protesters must have been devastating to Johnson as they cheered his opponent in a war that he su pported. In other areas of the gloomy world of the Cold War, Johnson was quite forward thinking and deserved credit. The close call of nuclear destruction during the Cuba Missile Crisis meant that a special red phone line was installed so that the leaders of the United States and Soviet Union could talk to each other quickly. To accelerate communication and travel, a new air route was installed between Moscow and New York City. His meeting with Premier Kosygin in June 1967 was another in a recent line of summits between American and Soviet leaders, and their discussions led to proposals to reduce the development of nuclear weapons, which later grew into the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons ratified internationally in March 1970, but unfortunately as this was passed by the American Senate in 1969 after Johnson had left office, much of the credit went to his successor, Richard Nixon. This agreement was one of the first major limitations of nuclear use and was the father of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, otherwise known as SALT. Conclusion According to ancient Egyptian mythology, the soul of every person was weighed measuring his or her good and bad deeds to decide their place in the Afterword. This view has both negative and positive aspects as every action has a value, but one huge good or bad act can outweigh a lot of small bad or good ones. Depending on whom you ask, both the Vietnam War and the Great Society can be either, but prosecuting an unnecessary war is hard to defend, while programs designed to help the needy is so much easier to do so. The war in Vietnam failed to achieve any of its objectives of liberating people and extending American power in the region, while the Great Society opened American society to new levels and made more people feel part of it. In this regard, a very simple description of Lyndon Johnsons place in history is that he was a divisive figure. He was the author of two great things in American society; firstly the Great Society and secondly the Vietnam War, although the present use of the term great is in its sense of social grandeur and socially revolutionary. He is remembered affectionately and hated deeply for each of them, but not always in the way that some of us might think. It is a mark of this divisiveness, which he himself recognized, that he stepped aside from running again as president in March 1968. His successor as president was Richard Nixon. Bibliography Morris, Errol. The Fog of War. DVD. Columbia Tri Star, 2004. Johnson, Lyndon. The Vantage Point: Perspectives of the Presidency, 1963-1969. Holt, Rinehartand Winston, 1971. Caro, Robert A. Master of the Senate: the years of Lyndon Johnson. Cape, 2002. Bernstein, Irving. Gunsor Butter: the presidency of Lyndon Johnson. Oxford University Press, 1995. Dallek, Robert. Flawed Giant: Lyndon Johnson and his times, 1961-1973. Oxford University Press,1998.

Microeconomics :: Papers

Microeconomics This paper will attempt to examine microeconomic structures in relation to technological advances. The impact of increasingly available technology is a major economic force. Prior to 1975, for example, viewing a first run movie at home was technically possible but economically infeasible. Only the wealthy chose to view moves at home. VCR's became available in 1976, with a typical price tag of $2000.00 Even at such a high price, that invention slashed the price of home viewing. Today a VCR can be purchased for $200.00, a fraction of its' initial cost. Videos can be rented for approximately a dollar or purchased for around $20.00. Home viewing has become common in a few short years, where formerly it had been available only to the very rich. In what other ways has technology changed the way of life and can microeconomic mechanisms accurately predict future economic outcomes? What is Economics? The simple answer to the question, "What is the economy?" is to state that the economy is the means by which resources are allocated. A more accurate portrayal of economic process is to view it as a machine that produces three distinctly different results: ï‚ · First, the economy determines what goods and services will be produced and in what quantities. ï‚ · Secondly, it indicates how various goods and services will be produced. ï‚ · Thirdly, it resolves the question of distribution. Markets for goods and services, and markets for production of those goods and services -- command mechanisms --directly correlate with the choices made by households, firms and governments. The US economy relies mainly on markets but to a degree on command mechanisms. The US economy is an open economy and has become highly integrated with the global economy. This is a fairly recent development, with foreign investment into US business outstripping US investments in foreign enterprises shifting the balance in the mid-1980s. Economists study these financial movements in order to determi ne the underlying principles driving the economy. This approach utilizes the same rigor and objectivity of natural scientists. Economic science, like natural science, is an attempt to discover a body of laws. All sciences use the same criteria in the investigative process: careful and systematic observation and measurement, and the development of a body of theory to direct and interpret observations. That theory is a general rule or principle that allows economists to understand and predict the economic choices that people make.

A womans choice :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The abortion debate in America has been framed by something known as â€Å"A Women’s Right To Choose!† But of just what does the Women’s Right To Choose consist of ? It is premised, we are told, on a â€Å"right to privacy.† But exactly what is included in that right to privacy, and what excluded? I hold my own opinion to this subject as being Pro-Choice (Pro-Choice is defined as having the ability to choose).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Opponents of choice have been using inflammatory rhetoric about â€Å"infanticide† and â€Å"partial-birth† abortion in a nationwide strategy to further their goal of eroding women’s reproductive options. However, bans on abortion procedures are unconstitutional in at least three ways. First, the definition of what methods of abortion would be banned is vague and overboard – it would ban a variety of safe and common abortion procedures, not just the unsafe procedures. Second, by banning a variety of safe abortion procedures, the bans impose an undue burden on women seeking access to abortions by forcing them to rely upon less safe medical options, or even non-medical options. Finally, these bans are unconstitutional because they do not allow a women to obtain a banned procedure when it would preserve her health. The Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v.s. Wade is often misrepresented by those who oppose safe, legal abortion. It is o ften portrayed as giving women the right to terminate their pregnancy for any reason through all nine months of pregnancy. But contrary to the arguments of many abortion opponents, Roe does not provide for â€Å"abortion on demand.† The court held that a woman has the right to choose abortion until fetal viability – the time at which it first becomes realistically possible for a fetus to live outside the woman’s body – but that the states interest outweighs the woman’s right after that point. So what happened to our â€Å"right to privacy†?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Except in the story of the Emperor’s New Cloths, I cannot think of a more startling example of mass refusal to see the obvious than is presented by the current attitudes toward the population problem on the one hand and abortion on the other. The government continues to maintain strict antiabortion laws on the books of at least four fifths of our states, denying freedom of choice to women and physicians and compelling the â€Å"unwilling to bear the unwanted.† Yet as Dr. Christopher Tietze and Sarah Lewit point out in the Scientific American (January 1969), â€Å"Abortion is still the most widespread method of fertility control in the modern world.

Hiroshima, The World Is No Lon :: essays research papers

Ideas of creating this first nuclear fusion reaction had been around for quite some time. Wanting to explore new levels of advancement in science technology were scientist all around the world, working to create, what was termed â€Å"Nuclear Fusion†. There had been a few attempts at making, if possible, the impossible dream come alive. The idea of splitting an atom, which contains neutrons, electrons, and protons, had been floating around in the scientists’ minds for as long as the realized existence of an atom had been there. When this great and unimaginable feat was overcome, the world shuddered and wept at its magnificence and it power. On August 2,1939 Albert Einstein wrote a letter to the President of the United States of America warning him of the advancements that him and his fellow scientists were coming upon. In his letter he described the possibilities of what they were about to create. He described all of his thoughts to the president, about what great things their dream could be used for, and what horrible things it could bring in its development. The first three physicists to create a nuclear chain reaction were Enrico Fermi, Italian-American; Leo Szilard, Hungarian; and Frà ©dà ©ric Joliot-Curie, French. Enrico Fermi was born in Rome on September 21, 1901. He contributed in the creation of the first controlled nuclear reaction. For his efforts he was awarded the 1938 Peace Prize. Being a skilled and intelligent man in his field of nuclear science, he was one of the many scientists selected to work on Loa Alamos, New Mexico on the American project to construct the first atomic bomb. Leo Szilard, born February 11, 1898 in Budapest. He encouraged and aided Albert Einstein to write the letter to FDR about the potential military use of atomic energy. Szilard also contributed to the creation of the first controlled nuclear reaction in 1939. Frà ©dà ©ric Joliot-Curie, born in Paris France, March 19, 1900. He ended up sharing the 1935 Peace prize with Irene Joliot-Curie, his wife. They were given this prestigious award for their work in the field of chemistry. During World War 2, Frà ©dà ©ric Joliot-Curie became part of the Communist party. In 1951 he was awarded the Stalin Peace Prize for his work in the field of chemistry. He Later died in 1958, only a few years later. There had been a secret rush in America to create a nuclear bomb.

What Is A Blog?

In recent years, we have been hearing a lot about blogs and how they can become a tool to generate income, to advertise a product or an idea, to pass information, to destroy other people’s reputations, or to express genuine human emotion. But what is a blog, in its very basic sense? Blog is actually a derivative from the words: web log. And that is actually the best description of a blog. It is a log of everyday events and occurrences published on the web. It is usually maintained by somebody with intent to regularly update it with commentaries, videos, pictures, essay, and graphics; much like a diary. However, unlike the usually diary, blogs follow a reverse-chronological order. So when you open the web page, you actually see the newest entry and will actually have to track back to view older entries. People who write, maintain and manage blogs are called bloggers and all bloggers, and everything that is written in any blog in any part of the web is encompassed in the term: blogosphere. This word is used to suggest that blogs and bloggers are connected through some kind of social network. Blogs are complicated and many, they fall under every and any category imaginable, the most popular being Personal Blogs which are much like diaries, where the blogger puts in anything s/he feels like sharing to the world. However, some other blog types are more organized and focused like a Corporate Blog which is usually used for marketing a product. You could also define a blog by its genre and the topics it focuses on. There are Political Blogs, Travel Blogs, Fashion Blogs, Party Blogs, Music Blogs, Education Blogs, Entertainment Blogs, Law Blogs and even Sub-Culture Blogs. Whatever topic one chooses for his/her blog, it still remains true that the Blog is one of the most ingenious inventions of our time. It allows us to talk to the rest of the world by sharing everything we want to, and much like a diary, fulfills our need to be heard.

The Second Coming Analysis

Between the symbolism and allusions, the poem covers the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelations. In the first stanza, â€Å"mere anarchy† refers to the flood in Genesis. The last stanza refers to the anti-christ and the time of the apocalypse. In the final lines Yeats describes the sinners as â€Å"rough beasts† dragging themselves to Bethlehem for the second coming of Christ. The body of the poem describes the decay of society. It refers to the non-believers, or atheists and the real problem, the sinners. However, he does point out that even Christ was tempted in the desert, hell on earth.He uses a metaphor to allude to the Great Sphinx (The body of a lion and the head of a man), which symbolizes the devil’s home. Furthermore, this is also a reference to the Book of Exodus, which describes the morphing of locusts and scorpion’s tails. These layers of meaning make it difficult for high school students to interpret the poem. I suggest that a teacher star t with eight vocabulary words: gyre, vexed, anarchy, revelation, falconer, Spiritus Mundi, reel, indignant. Denote the text. Then discover all the metaphors and symbols. It takes quite a bit of research to connote â€Å"gyre†.The dictionary definition is simple, but Yeats uses gyre in many of his writings. He uses a double-helix to symbolize the spiraling decay of society through â€Å"blood-dimmed tides† or wars. Then he uses the upward spiral to symbolize the times of peace. For Yeats society was a never-ending cycle of war and peace. From there he takes us to medieval times, to a violent, but orderly sport of hunting, until the falcon cannot hear the falconer and it turns into chaotic, unreasonable violence. Is you use the Bible to interpret the rest of the poem, it will be clear: Yeats is a pessimist who saw the underbelly of society.

Horror Film and Halloween Essay

Halloween is the one time of year when it okay to dress up as anything you want to be and it’s also when you can be celebrating all things horror and dead. Halloween started out as the celebration of the dead but has now grown into a wonderful time of costumes and decoration of scary fictional creatures. Dressing up as a scary character or a character you adore is one of the many perks of Halloween. Going to costume parties with friends and celebrating Halloween together. Watching horror movies and television specials about Halloween is exciting and it feels like more the holiday mood. Halloween is a celebration of the horror genre, dressing up and enjoying this holiday with people. Costumes are very important when it comes to celebrating Halloween. Children enjoy going out on Halloween and trick-or-treating with their costumes to celebrate (Halloween). For an older and mature get together some adults enjoy going to costume parties with their peers. In the olden days it was typical for costumes to be scary but nowadays people tend to dress up as their favourite pop star or a favourite character from a movie. Costumes are enjoyed by many people to be something scary or someone they admire. Going to a party or throwing a party is always expected to done during Halloween. This holiday celebration is enjoyed by everyone in certain countries. Many people attend a Halloween party to enjoy the costume their friends are wearing. The snacks and drinks are shaped and decorated as creepy creatures for the effects of Halloween. Even the music is themed to make the effects to feel realistic. People are attracted to Halloween and going to parties and enjoying it with friends is one of the many perks of this holiday. Enjoying the Halloween and getting into the spirit of this holiday makes it more enjoyable. The Halloween episode of a favourite T.V. shows really adds effects to the enjoyment of the season. This celebration is mostly about the mood of being scared and watching a lot of horror movies. The media has a huge influence on Halloween from movies, television specials and even themed music. Halloween is celebrated widely in certain countries. Halloween is a wonderful and exciting celebration made up by traditions and is enjoyed in certain countries. People enjoy dressing up as a favourite fictional character or someone real like a favourite role model. Going to parties and enjoying your costumes and celebrating this holiday with your friends. Most media like T.V shows will often make special episode for Halloween. People are attracted to Halloween because it is a unique Holiday that celebrates the dead.

Germany Before 1848

Before 1848 Germany DBQ The political, economical, and social order of the Germanic states in the nineteenth century was in a state of chaos and disarray. Politically, the states had the desire of becoming unified and had the possibility to do so if it had not been for fear and neglect to follow through. Economically, the states were in a time of hardships with poor growth development in the fields and were also going through the time of the Industrial Revolution with changes to their everyday lives. Socially, the Germanic states were divided into a feudal system that was determined by birth status and wealth.The middle class, made up of scholars and students, and aristocracy had shared the same fear of the commoners’ revolt due to the political failure in attempt to unify the Germanic states, and had wanted to maintain their rights as well as becoming unified without giving the lower class any more power. The economic structure was poor and resulted with unemployment and high er food prices, which enabled the peasants to be outraged in anger towards the government for lack of action to make the necessary changes causing them to revolt in hopes of more stability financially while also desiring a unification of the German states.The middle class of the Germanic states were educated persons with an interest on their society. Politically, they were concerned about the development of unity between the states. Some questioned what was so difficult about this unification, such as the professor Ernst Moritz Anndt whom had also written poetry on the matter n the mindset that a Father land or a single body would be the best way to be (doc. 1). Others were in high hopes that the unification would take place as soon as possible with faith in the armies and nobility to do so.One of these individuals was Goerres who was excited about this notion as clearly portrayed in his pamphlet in 1819 that a republican constitution was underway (doc. 2). Economically, the middle class was concerned with how the lower class would deal with the current hardships from the crop failure. An economist Fredrick List was one that was concerned with the health of the lower class and the availability of bread in his pamphlet in 1834 describing how the body would deal with the poor health in which they were receiving (doc. ). Others took less concern with the lower class situation and were in a state of new inventions and discovering which had created confusion. Riegel was a book seller who had written an essay discussing the economic changes that the Germanic states were going through and how they would possibly cope with these changes (doc. 6). The middle class was sufficient with their social status where they did not have to pay taxes. They also did not want the lower class to receive more power than they deserved.The middle class believed that the actions of the lower class were not deserving of more power due to their actions such as the riots depicted in Prussi a (doc. 9). The middle class was experiencing the changes along with the aristocracy. The aristocracy had many of the same views and opinions as the middle class. They lived in fear of the revolt of the lower class. They however needed the courage to fight for politically they too wanted unification with dependency on the princes and soldiers (doc. ). Economically, aristocracy had money in a time where most did not. They survived in better comfort than most but still managed to struggle when it came to providing for family members. In a women’s perspective, the labor of spinning wool was endless with little compensation due to the fact that they were still required to pay taxes and rent to the government and landowners (doc. 7). The aristocracy found this to be an issue that was to be fixed by the king, for it was his responsibility.However, they still believed everyone should be in high spirits and have good attitudes, because if the economy is weak but the public is strong it depicts overall power of the states (doc. 10). Aristocracy was socially towards the top of the feudal system and looked down on all others below. The lower class was surviving in anger towards the governmental state before the revolutions in 1848. They were experiencing many struggles in which made it difficult for survival without necessary changes of the king.The commoners were emotionally a wreck and the economy was so poor that they would potentially do anything for food alone. During the bread distribution in Stettin in 1847, lower class citizens were tumbling over one another, pushing and fighting just to get a piece or loaf of bread to feed their families (doc. 9) which simply goes to show lack of organization and a deeper need for change in order to provide these citizens better economic stature. Socially, the commoners were miserable at the bottom of the social classes with little possessions and higher prices.Some people revolted and others wrote down their anger as see n through a hateful pamphlet in disgust of the work of the princes and governmental confidence to make changes (doc. 11) found in 1847. The lower class revolted in anger of the government because of their situations they were dealing with at home and the lack of acknowledgement from the government aside from taking the only money they had in their pockets, but essentially these actions did little to their overall aspirations of achieving recognition and better rights.Despite the poor political, economic, and social order of the Germanic states before 1848, they still attained potential to change and become a unified nation. The political issue of becoming unified was spoken by the middle class, aristocracy, and commoners all in view that there should and potentially could be done. Economically, there was little to be done and socially the classes remained the same with equivalent powers as the start of the time period. The feelings and actions of the classes were in response to thei r individual status and power.

BESCO Measurement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

BESCO Measurement - Essay Example The unit used for the y-axis as well as the and x-axes is 1. On the x-axis, each unit is used to represent 10 years. The time period covered in the graph runs from 1950 to 2010. On the y-axis, the rate of development runs from 0 to 700,000. Each unit is used to represent 100,000 units of development. The markings on the line of the graph are used to show series of development. For the first 10 years, which is between before time in record to the mid 1950’s, there was no much change and hence it can be said the development then was constant. Moving on further towards 1960, there was a very slight increase in development. The time period between 1970 and 1980, the rate of development of the fad rose higher by a few units. The rate of development was gradual from the time data used to fill the graph started being collected till the mid 1980’s, the rate of growth recorded according to the graph was a bit gradual, since the line graph remains constant during this time period. However, rapid development started being recorded as from the mid 1980’s and onwards. 1990 marked the beginning of another series and from then, rapid rates of development can be seen from the graph. Between 1990 and 2010, the rate of development in the ten years alone rose from 50,000 to 290,000. This was one of the highest rates of development recorded in the time period. This sharp can be due to a number of factors. However, this is something that we cannot be able to tell from the graph. The year 2000 marked the beginning of the final series on the graph. Between 2000 and 2010, a sharp increase was recorded according to the graph. The steep line shows this high rate of development of the fad. The actual figures of the development increased from 290,000 in 2000 to 610,000 in 2050, which was the end of the time period under

Continuos Professional Development for Nurses Essay

Continuos Professional Development for Nurses - Essay Example Increasing recognition of the need for continuing professional development or CPD for health professionals has created an inevitable expansion in course provision (Hicks & Hennessy, 2001). For a course to be successful, the particular CPD course must be able to meet the local health service needs, as well as the personal and professional development of the participants (Hicks & Hennessy, 2001). CPDs should also design methods and strategies that would encourage participation of professionals especially nurses for it to be successful. In the study conducted by McMullan, Jones and Lea (2011) entitled, â€Å" The effect of an interactive e-drug calculations package on Nursing Students' Drug Calculation ability and self-efficacy†, aimed in comparing an interactive form of CPD and the traditional type of providing hand-outs. Using the PEDro Scale Rating, the said study was good in terms that it was able to determine the significance of CPD in the life of nurses. Nurses need to be c ompetent and confident in performing drug calculations to ensure patient safety (McMullan, Jones & Lea, 2011). The study utilized a cluster randomized controlled trial comparing the e-package with traditional hand-out learning support (McMullan, Jones & Lea, 2011). The author of this paper believes that Randomized Controlled Trials or RCT should be conducted in determining the essence of CPD in the Nursing Profession for the reason that it limits bias and therefore provides reliability and validity of the findings. Moreover, the factors that may alter the validity of results are also given focus so as to promote precision and accuracy of results that will be obtained. Lastly, RCTs typically provide a clear picture of the answers to the inquiries posed by the issue regarding Continuing Professional Development or CPD for nurses. As a nurse, the said study was beneficial for it had proven the importance of undergoing Continuing Professional Development Courses in order to improve the skills and knowledge of nurses which is crucial in fulfilling the endeavor of providing quality care to patients. This study challenged nurses that they must continue to update themselves in order to keep at pace with the different demands or needs of their patients. It can also be concluded that learning does not stop after one has obtained his or her nursing license instead it is a continuous and lifelong process for one cannot learn everything in an instant. Moreover, a variety of updates and new discoveries are being divulged everyday in the field of nursing and for a nurse to competently play his or her role, he or she must continue to grow and mature in the profession by means of learning not only for professional enhancement but also for holistic development as an individual. II. Studying comprises a set of skills that can be learned, practiced and combined together as an overall procedure, and that this method will ensure the success of an individual (Mason-Whitehead & Mason , 2008, p. 1). Subsequently, being a student necessitates a mental attitude and a set of behaviors mandatory for the process of studying to be enjoyable and at the same time successful (Mason-Whitehead

Factors of Optimizing Performance Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Factors of Optimizing Performance - Assignment Example This essay explores the benefits of time management that include: an individual or group becomes more productive; feels less stressed, individuals are able to do the things they want, ability to relate more positively with others, individuals and groups get more things done. In order to be a good time manager, an individual needs to have strategies or understand methods that will help him or her manage time effectively. Different scholars have come up with various principles and methods of effective time management. There are ten methods of effective time management and these include the following: know what you want to achieve, focus on activities that add value, get a life, plan it out, stay focused, work expand to fill allotted time, do similar tasks together, say ‘no’, work in your prime time and lastly prioritize. Cole identified these ten principles and said that they act as the basis for an effective time management strategy. In knowing what you want to achieve it is imperative for an individual to set goals so as to be able to work towards the attainment of the set goals. It is important that you set the major goals first because these give your personal and work life a structure and purpose. After setting the major goals it is important to set the minor goals and these are important because they lead to the attainment of the set major goals. For example, for the author's case had begun as an operator of Grade two at ANZ and aspiring to be the operation state manager, my small goals are to be proficient in one job, gain experience, go for further learning before applying for the Job. All these will contribute to my attainment of the position as a state manager.

The Relationship Between Domination and Resistance Essay

The Relationship Between Domination and Resistance - Essay Example The absolute power of the monarch was then displayed to all in the (punishing of the) body of the prisoner. In later centuries, systems changed. Prisons were introduced, and prisoners were subject to strict discipline and control. Discipline meant that almost every bodily movement of prisoners was sought to be controlled - the space they used, the movements (exercises) they did, the food they ate and even their sleep. The panopticon, a circular design for prison houses (designed by Jeremy Bentham in the 18th century) with the warder's room in the center, allowed the warder to view a prisoner at any time; this made the prisoner feel that he was constantly being watched. This drill of prison life led to the transformation of people into obedient zombies, which facilitated the exercise of control by the state. The way the death penalty is administered in many countries of the world, including the US, is evidence that state sanctioned violence still exits. Such violence is orchestrated in a bizarre, ritualistic manner to make it appear as a necessary tool of the state justice system. But when we consider that capital punishment does not deter crime in any way, it becomes evident that it continues as a throwback to a primitive and uncivilized way of treating fellow humans. Dwight Conquergood gives some horrifying facts about the administration of the death penalty in the US. For instance, the US is one among a handful of countries, which allows the death penalty for a minor. Besides, a greater part of those who are on death row are minorities; a large percentage of women charged for serious crime are lesbian; one in seven persons are wrongly executed (!); and all this, though capital punishment is much more costly to administer than a life sentence. (Conquergood 2002)Power is thus used by t he state to reinforce the viewpoint of the majority. An impression of humaneness is sought to be created through the sanitation of the whole process of killing by the state. Prisoners are made to participate in their own annihilation. When a person on death row accepts the fact that he has no way to escape his fate, he is 'persuaded' to go through silly rituals of stating what he wants for a last meal, articulating his 'last wish' before death and so on. (Conquergood 2002)In the face of the exercise of such raw and violent power by the state against those who dare to express opinions contrary to what the state sanctions, political prisoners in Turkey have refined hunger strikes as a way of expressing their dissent. Patrick Anderson chronicles the longest lasting such strike, which started in Oct 2000 in Turkish prisons as a protest against shifting of prisoners to solitary cells. The strike has been carefully managed by the strikers so that they do not die of starvation soon. The st rikers have developed methods to see that their emaciated bodies survive - by drinking more liquids, by using potassium chloride instead of sodium chloride and so on. (Anderson 2004). Moving from the details of the narration, what is horrifying is the fact that in almost all countries of the world, including those which claim to be developed, the legal and justice system exists for the privileged class.Power operates outside prison gates too - through the mechanism of the market economy. An 'upper' class

History of Pharmacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

History of Pharmacy - Essay Example We now have vaccines to prevent our children from contracting fatal diseases that use to plague us in the earlier times. Had the break though of science been far fetched an idea, then population would not be a problem now and perhaps we would not live up to the days where we see our off-springs bear their own. We would not be able to see the world become highly technical through the science of major discoveries. Such, to me is the importance of learning the history of pharmacy, thus making me marvel at its relevance and importance. Without this branch of medicine, doctors would not have access to measure and solutions and therefore there would be no medication available to sick people. The study of what and how pharmacy evolved enlightens me into a realization that pharmacist play an imperative aspect making the world a better place to live in. When the world searched for drugs to cure illness, we became the answer to it. Along with the advancement of science, people learned to embrace the importance of the discovery of drugs. Those who made this possible were the people who painstakingly studied the pharmacologic aspect of the drug are the heroes of the modern world, with out them there would not be pain relievers or antacids and management of these medications wouldn't be known and practice had there been not enough knowledge imparted to significant people assisting sick individuals become well. If there were no pharmacies around, where would we get our medicines prescribed by our physician Without pharmacist, who would do cross check of the prescriptions issued by doctors Pharmacy is made available because there is a need for drugs to become available to ordinary individual, to assist them with their queries relative to the drug's potency, dosage and uses. Questions which they perhaps failed to ask their general physicians, or possible instructions that were not clearly discussed to them due to ti me constraints. Through out the years, the practice of pharmacy and its management has been clearly affected by cultural diversity, this is because culture plays a significant role in the way interactions happen. Culture dictates the manner with which we relate to one another even when the most obvious need arise. The obvious need I am referring to may reflect in our hesitation to ask or make clarification, or this can be due to language barrier. Most often, the practice of pharmacy management is highly similar to establishing relationships with others; highly critical and full of emotion, simple put, characterized with to human nature. Certain beliefs are thus answered through the science of pharmacology, just like in the manner with which ordinary fever used to be perceived as punishment of the gods in the olden times but in the present, fever is a significant indicator that there is an infection which your own body is fighting against through the efforts and mechanism of your own white blood cell s. Doctors may not have time to explain this to

Transportation Safety Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Transportation Safety - Research Paper Example Notably the numbers can reduce only if more people took the initiative to drive safely. The commitment towards this should not be a one-person affair, but all persons involved in the transport sector from the top. Human life is sacred, and employers should make sure that the precautions on transport safety that they take are geared towards its preservation. Transportation safety greatly reduces accidents that would lead to loss of human life. Another advantage is that transportation fatalities are costly to the employer. During an accident involving an employee, there are going to be medical expenses on the part of the employer. Another thing is that there will be a loss on the capital: your employees are part of your capital, and when they are not at work, there are going to be losses incurred. There are also legal requirements for worker’s compensation, disability insurance as well as social security costs that the employer will have to cater for. On average, the U.S employers incur about $60billion annually as a result of this (Dhillon, 2011). This money would instead have been invested elsewhere to grow the economy. It is the concern of the government too that transport fatalities that may be avoided do not happen. The American National Standards Institute has written down guidelines for use when it comes to motor vehicle use so as to preserve lives. These safety guidelines are voluntary, but every employer should acquire them so as to ensure the safety of those persons he or she has entitled his employees to. There is also the 10-step program by Network of Employers for Transport Safety. This program is meant to guide the employers in minimizing the crash risks. These guidelines help the employers in hiring only competent drivers. These ten guidelines are: Having written procedures and policies is important for documentation and reference purposes. These policies should be widely available and accessible to all. The

Definition of Market Leader Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Definition of Market Leader - Essay Example There are three major types of Market Leaders. Market leaders that are concentrated highly on operational brilliance comes under the first category. Wal-Mart is the best example of a company that focuses more on its operational excellance. It is a company devoted to provide low to reasonable prices with high class services. Corporations that zilch in on product leadership comes under the second category of Market Leaders. Firms like Intel, Microsoft, and Nike deals with the finest products in their target markets and continue to improvise their originality to keep themselves on top of their competitors every year (Delery, Doty, 1996, 802). Customer intimacy is another tool to attain a top ranking in the market. Firms that emphasize on customer intimacy works exhaustly to provide best possible solutions to their customers on. Nordstrom is a worthy example of a company whose business works over the concept of customer intimacy. Market leaders gets many advantages due to their huge mark et share that their competitors can only dream of. They generally get premium price for their products due to their brand strength. They enjoy lower product costs, longer product cycle and smaller sales cycle due to market responsiveness to their product lines. On the other side, All customers do not have high purchasing power, therefore market leaders’ product lines faces increased amount of market threats. Makrket leaders have to update their products on frequent basis to counter with piracy and their competitors.

The Popularity of Teachers Essay Example for Free

The Popularity of Teachers Essay Teacher education is a commonly studied predictor of quality in early childhood classrooms and it has been consistently associated with teacher effectiveness in early childhood classrooms (Bowman et al., 2001; de Kruif et al., 2000; Helburn et al., 1995). Teachers can be popular just because they are friendly and helpful, but to be truly professional and effective they need other qualities. Students may not be able to put their finger on just why one teacher is more effective than another but we need to be able to identify the skills and behavior we require in a true professional. Teachers can be popular just because they are friendly and helpful, but to be truly professional and effective they need other qualities. Students may not be able to put their finger on just why one teacher is more effective than another but we need to be able to identify the skills and behavior we require in a true professional. Proper preparation is another crucial requirement of professionalism. When the teacher enters the classroom s/he should have all the required materials and the lesson plan ready. Nothing is sloppier than poor preparation. Interaction with the group needs professional standards of behavior: polite, firm and fair just about sum it up. And in orchestrating the class the teacher must give everyone their chance to contribute and should be flexible enough to modify lessons if they are obviously not going to plan. Indeed a fall-back position is part of good planning. It stands to reason also that teacher must observe punctuality and appropriate tidiness and dress: it is not possible to demand such behavior from students if the teacher doesn’t set the standards. Indeed I can remember occasions on which students have complained to me about â€Å"scruffy† teachers. Since the 1920s, the issue of teachers’ qualifications, which can guarantee their effectiveness, has been of concern for not only the science of Pedagogy, but also for those in charge of staffing schools with qualified professionals. As regards this issue, modern studies have revealed that the way in which a teacher carries out his work is determined by the union of  his personality traits and acquired knowledge. A â€Å"good teacher† should possess a wide range of qualifications, which could, schematically, be classified as follows: ÃŽâ„¢. Personality traits, attitudes and beliefs These include personality traits related to the professional role of a teacher, which can be nurtured and developed through initial education and continuous training (Whitty 1996: 89-90). Specifically, studies have shown that traits such as flexibility in terms of the appearance of students, a sense of humour, a sense of fairness, patience, enthusiasm, creativity, care and interest in the students, all contribute to the effectiveness of teachers (Malikow 2005, Harslett et al. 2000). These also include a teacher’s attitudes and beliefs on teaching, learning, his role, all of which affect the way he chooses, evaluates and comprehends the knowledge acquired, as well as the way he benefits from this knowledge in practice, as this very practice is shaped by that knowledge (Feiman-Nemser 1990, Schà ¶n 1983, Zeichner Liston 1996). The attitudes of teachers affect their degree of commitment to their duties, the way they teach and treat their students, as well as how they perceive their professional growth (Chen Rovegno 2000, DarlingHammond 2000). Specifically, teachers that have high expectations for their students and insist on promoting learning for all students tend to be more effective ( Malikow 2005, McBer 2000). Another factor which contributes to the effectiveness of teachers is a feeling of commitment to the job at hand (Coladarsi 2002) and interest in the personal life of students and their families (Harslett et al. 2000). Lastly, â€Å"knowledge of self† and contemplation are worth mentioning, in that they presuppose critical and careful reflection, on the part of the teacher, on his actions and self (Turner-Bisset 2001: 110-112). McBer (2000), from a series of interviews with teachers, identified 16 â€Å"professional characteristics†, including personality traits and individual attitudes, which she then classified into five groups: a) Professionalism: commitment, confidence, trustworthiness, respect;. b) Thinking: analytic and conceptual thinking; c) Expectations: disposal of achievement of high objectives, disposal for permanent comprehension of reality (e.g. the students, the order), and undertaking of initiatives; d) Leadership: flexibility, accountability, passion for learning; e) Relations with other:  fertile interaction with involved in the educational process, skills of common work, comprehension. ΙΙ. Pedagogical Skills and Knowledge Didactic and pedagogical skills are not only understood as familiarization with techniques that are then used mechanically, but also as the acquisition of routines which, without a doubt, every teacher needs in order to save time and energy for the more significant aspects of his work; at the same time, they refer to a set of theoretical principles and research data that lead to a variety of techniques and strategies which a teacher chooses and shapes, depending on the circumstances (for the discussion on teacher skills as an element of professional competency, see Beyer 2002: 311, Conczi et al. 1990, Oser et al. 2006: 1-7). A plethora of related studies shows specific actions by teachers which can be considered factors for their effectiveness. With regard to the teaching approach, it seems that the more effective teachers (McBer 2000, Jasman 2002, Anderson 2004): set realistic objectives, try and give incentives to students for learning, apply various teaching methods, select participative forms of teaching, test and create didactic material, present information in a clear manner, combine words with pictures, use various teaching aids, maximize teaching time through systematic measures (e.g. planning, reduced disturbances in the classroom), assign work that will stir the interests of the students, monitor and evaluate the progress of students, set evaluation criteria for students and inform the students about them, and provide feedback to the students. Another decisive factor in effectiveness is a teacher’s ability to recognize the diversity of students, to choose the best method possible for each student, and to create incentives for students (Harslett et al.2000). Yet another important factor is teachers’ cooperation not only with the students, but also with the parents of the students, their colleagues and the community at large (Jasman 2002). Lastly, effectiveness, to a great extent, depends on the way problems in the classroom are managed. Research shows that more effective teachers keep all happenings in the classroom in check, that they are constantly on alert, that they swiftly deal with any problem that may arise and that they adopt various ways of working with students (Everston and Randolph 1999, Wang et al. 1999). A basic qualification, whatever the case, is the acquisition of an extended body of  knowledge which contributes to the way the teacher performs in practice (Birman et al. 2000, Hawley Valli 1999). Generally, a teacher’s training is classified into three fields: subject knowledge, pedagogical and didactic studies, and teaching practice. However, what still needs to be defined is what should be taught in these educational fields, especially in pedagogical studies. A way to define the contents of â€Å"professional knowledge† is to provide answers to the following questions: â€Å"What makes up the pedagogical and didactic work of a teacher?† and â€Å"What knowledge type and qualifications are needed for a teacher to cope?†According to Shulman, pedagogical thought and action go through the following stages: a) understanding / perception; b) modification / transformation; c) teaching; d) evaluation; e) feedback; f) reflection. For a teacher to cope with the above, â€Å"professional studies† are required, that is: a) pedagogical content knowledge and b) curriculum studies (Shulman 1986, Shulman 1987: 14-19). Turner-Bisset suggests a course that would instil the necessary qualifications and focus on the following fields (Turner-Bisset 1999: 43-48, Turner-Bisset 2001): â€Å"substantive knowledge†, â€Å"syntactic knowledge†, beliefs about the subject, knowledge of curriculum, knowledge of contexts, knowledge of self, didactic training, knowledge of learners, knowledge of objectives and learning outcomes, general pedagogical knowledge, pedagogical-didactic amalgam and learning subject. This body of knowledge, that can guarantee a teacher’s expertise, is determined by existing conditions and contexts, as well as the personal experiences, beliefs and needs of each teacher, a fact that renders an a prior definition of this knowledge extremely difficult. Nevertheless, there are knowledge fields that constitute a necessary prerequisite for every teacher, or at least for a large part of them, (Meijer et al. 1999, Meijer et al. 2001), and which form the basic part of â€Å"professional knowledge†. These include: a) Subject knowledge: the teaching subject does not coincide with the corresponding science; however, teaching a particular subject requires familiarization with scientific knowledge. The way each scientific field is approached and studied is strongly defined by the job and duties defined in the job description. For such a specific comprehension of scientific knowledge as a way of teaching, familiarization with the science and its dimensions is necessary. A classification of the dimensions of scientific knowledge is the following (Kennedy 1990): i)  science content (opinions, axioms, facts, etc.). It relates to the â€Å"facts† and â€Å"principles† of the science being taught, from which the teacher derives appropriate examples, pictures, etc. for instruction; ii) relations, organization and structure of the contents of a scientific subject. This knowledge on the subject defines the way it is presented to the students, the questions that would pass on the knowledge in a better way, etc.; iii) the research methodology on the scientific field. This knowledge of the methodology contributes to a better choice by a teacher of the methods through which he will approach the subject, the exercises, the questions, etc.; iv) the procedures and ways that contribute to the generalization of the â€Å"truth†, explored in every scientific field and now being acknowledged (syntactic knowledge). Moreover, a teacher should be in a position to approach the subject being taught with specific questions, such as which social norms are connected to the subject, what is its relation to social issues and its value in everyday life (Kennedy 1990). He should also be in a position to diagnose misinterpretations of the knowledge offered by the students and fully comprehend the procedures required for the acquisition of the knowledge and skills connected to the subject being taught (Shulman 1987: 9, Perrone Traver 1996: 395-397, Darling–Hammond BaratzSnowden 2005: 14-16). An extra requirement for a teacher would be knowledge on every subject in the curriculum of the grade he teaches, as this allows him to adopt an interdisciplinary approach to the material, i.e. using pictures, analogies and knowledge acquired by students through other subjects (Ernest 1989). Finally, knowledge of the subject taught is related to a teacher’s beliefs. Research has shown that teachers’ effectiveness is strongly influenced by the opinion teachers have of the subject they teach (Askew et al. 1997, Medwell et al. 1998, Newton Newton 1998). Moreover, teachers with a more â€Å"holistic† outlook on the subjects they teach tend to be more effective (Turner-Bisset 2001: 28-29). b) Knowledge of learners: this comprises knowledge on the biological, social, psychological and cognitive development of students, on issues related to group dynamics and interaction between students as well as teachers and students, students’ behavioral problems, learning motivation, adjustment issues, learning difficulties, etc. c) Teaching methodology: a way to define the necessary qualifications of a teacher is to give a detailed description of the  teaching methodology. A schematic presentation of the specific structural elements of instruction follows: i) lesson planning, i.e. a teacher’s pre-lesson activities and actions (for example, organization of content into thematic units, transformation of teaching material into teachable knowledge, definition of teaching goals, methodological organization of teaching, time planning, selection of evaluation process). Planning can vary, depending on whether it is short-term (weekly lesson planning or unit planning) or long-term (for the entire semester or academic year); ii) teaching performance, i.e. enforcing the choices made during planning (didactic organization, teaching path, application of teaching forms, direct actions of the teacher, use of teaching methods and aids; iii) Evaluation of teaching, i.e. evaluating the results mainly by assessing student performance (e.g. goals, forms, basic principles, assessment techniques). d) Curriculum knowledge: the school curriculum is a tool, which, in a way, determines the didactic choices of a teacher. Teachers should, therefore, know the curriculum, textbooks, the rules and laws of the education system and, as a whole, the state’s role in education (Shulman 1986: 10, Shulman 1987: 9-10). At the same time, however, the demands of society today call for a critical approach to the curriculum and its adaptation to the needs deriving from context. e) General pedagogical knowledge: this field relates to the organisation of the classroom, to motivating and retaining students’ attention, pooling resources, learning theories and pedagogical theories. Shulman refers to â€Å"principles and strategic classroom management and organization, which exceed the knowledge of specific subjects† (Shulman 1986). This type of knowledge is nonetheless acknowledged, as it secures a framework of mental representations necessary for the comprehension and interpretation of the school classroom. Moreover, this knowledge is absolutely essential for lesson planning, as it guides the teacher’s didactic choices (Ernest 1989: 19-20). f) Knowledge of contexts: a teacher is called upon to evaluate the contexts in which he teaches and act accordingly, as his actions are defined by surrounding circumstances; in other words, there are no predetermined attitudes that would suit every occasion. Still, there are certain outlooks on reality, certain principles, research findings, that a teacher can use to interpret the context, as well as a host of techniques and strategies which can be used, depending on the  situation. Hence, knowledge of contexts refers to knowledge of the environment and the circumstances where a teacher is required to work: the school, the region, the state. Specifically, it comprises knowledge of the students and their family background, as well as the entire local community, education system, the organization and management of the school unit, the history and philosophy of education in every state, the institutional framework and administrative structure of education. g) Knowledge of â€Å"self†: a basic qualification of teachers, related to their views on their role, responsibilities, training and qualifications, rights and professional development, working conditions, values, and philosophy, etc. and is mainly connected to their professional development through reflection, to learning through their teaching experience, in relation to their working environment (Lambert 1984, Kagan 1992). The way teachers perceive their role defines not only their options, but also the way they comprehend, interpret and use this knowledge (Clandinin Connely 1987). In conclusion, the qualities that can ensure a teacher’s effectiveness are not the sum of his knowledge, but rather the link between the different types of knowledge he possesses. These types of knowledge do not simply coexist: they should form a complete, inseparable unit of knowledge (Kennedy 1990). The degree of connectivity between these separate types of knowledge sets apart a â€Å"competent† teacher from an â€Å"excellent† one, as a â€Å"competent† teacher manages to combine these knowledge forms in part, whereas an â€Å"excellent† teacher uses the knowledge deriving from each separate field most effectively (Turner-Bisset 2001: 131-141). FOREIGN STUDY A wide range of empirical studies examine the impact of teacher characteristics on teacher effectiveness in order to draw conclusions about the extent to which these characteristics are, in fact, linked with teacher performance. Greater clarity on the empirical evidence can inform the wisdom of current practice, guide state efforts as they struggle with No Child Left Behind compliance regarding teacher quality. The framework for this study includes five broad categories of measurable and policy-relevant indicators to organize the teacher characteristics assumed to reflect teacher quality. It is notable that findings for these characteristics frequently differ for  teachers at the elementary school level and teachers at the high school level and that the body of research on the subject of teacher quality suggests that the context of teaching matters (e.g., differences in grade levels, subject areas, and student populations). A refined understanding of how teacher attributes affect their performance across these different teaching contexts can be helpful in determining the range of potentially effective policy options. The highlights of the empirical evidence include: Teacher experience †¢ several studies have found a positive effect of experience on teacher effectiveness; specifically, the â€Å"learning by doing† effect is most obvious in the early years of teaching. Teacher preparation programs and degrees †¢ Research suggests that the selectivity/prestige of the institution a teacher attended has a positive effect on student achievement, particularly at the secondary level. This may partially be a reflection of the cognitive ability of the teacher. †¢ Evidence suggests that teachers who have earned advanced degrees have a positive impact on high school mathematics and science achievement when the degrees earned were in these subjects. †¢ Evidence regarding the impact of advanced degrees at the elementary level is mixed. Teacher certification †¢ Research has demonstrated a positive effect of certified teachers on high school mathematics achievement when the certification is in mathematics. †¢ Studies show little clear impact of emergency or alternative-route certification on student performance in either mathematics or science, as compared to teachers who acquire standard certification. Teacher coursework †¢ Teacher coursework in both the subject area taught and pedagogy contributes to positive education outcomes. †¢ Pedagogical coursework seems to contribute to teacher effectiveness at all grade levels, particularly when coupled with content knowledge. †¢ The importance of content coursework is most pronounced at the high school level. †¢ While the studies on the field experience component of teacher education are not designed to reveal causal relationships, they suggest positive effects in terms of opportunity to learn the profession and reduced anxiety among new teachers. Teachers’ own test scores †¢ Tests that assess the literacy levels or verbal abilities of teachers have been shown to be associated with higher levels of student achievement. †¢ Studies show the National Teachers Examination and other state-mandated tests of basic skills and/or teaching abilities are less consistent predictors of teacher performance. Given that many dimensions of teacher characteristics matter—preparation in both pedagogic and subject content, credentials, experience, and test scores—the findings from the literature imply that there is no merit in large-scale elimination of all credentialing requirements. Nor are improvements in teacher quality likely to be realized through the status quo. Most of the research does not seek to capture interactions among the multiple dimensions of teacher quality, and as a result, there are major gaps in the research that still need to be explored. Nor does the research fully address evidence about teacher quality at the elementary and middle school levels, in subjects other than mathematics, or among different populations of students (such as high poverty, English language learners, or special education). In opposition to those who propose to eliminate all requirements for entering the teaching profession, this analysis supports a judicious use of the research evidence on teacher characteristics and teacher effectiveness. The evidence indicates that neither an extreme centralized bureaucratization nor a complete deregulation of teacher requirements is a wise approach for improving teacher quality. What holds a great deal more promise is refining the policies and practices employed to build a qualified body of teachers in elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools; for disadvantaged, special needs, and advantaged students; and for math, science, languages, English, social studies, and the arts. Education policy makers and administrators would be well served by recognizing the complexity of the issue and adopting multiple measures along many dimensions to support existing teachers and to attract and hire new, highly qualified teachers. The research suggests that investing in teachers can make a difference in student achievement. In order to implement needed  policies associated with staffing every classroom—even the most challenging ones—with high-quality teachers, substantial and targeted investments must first be made in both teacher quality and education research.