Integration Efforts in Latin America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Integration Efforts in Latin America - Essay Example Considerably, several Latin American countries were successful after the World War and established scientific, industrial and technical infrastructures, in generating organizational and managerial capacities, training workers and in developing multinational industrial structures. The Latin American countries’ economies grew spontaneously and soon they were competing with the strong economies in the world (Balasa et al. 1986, p. 34). Regional integration has had a momentous responsibility in the design of global and prolific policies in Latin American states. Balasa et al (1986, p. 36) notes that the conception of unity and integration among the Latin countries has existed since the wave of independence movements that swept the continent in the early 19th century. Spanish Empire Leader, Simon Bolivar, had dreamt of a united Latin America. Today, notable advances have been made towards regional integration. The success of the European integration prompted the Latin American coun tries to merge to form a regional block. This move was faced with development challenges (Iglesias, 2000, p. 24). The discussion on integration is a deep process delineated by efforts to harmonize policies between countries and yield dominion to a supranational body. Integration is described as an incessant learning and approximation process susceptible to crisis. Capannelli et al (2009, p. 10) notes that integration is typified by more integrated political, economic and social policies. Because of the colonial rule, dependency and underdevelopment, Latin American countries have been economically susceptible. Reliance on the exports of primary export products and the importation of manufactured goods resulted to competition to the domestic industries which prevented their development. The integration efforts made emerged to curtail the impacts of the unequal global economy relationship. In spite of the momentum for integration, diverse objectives among countries, vulnerability to in ternational crisis and lack unity and trust among the member states have inhibited the integration process (Tiefenbrun, 2012). The Latin American Integration emerged after the great depression after the World War. These countries wanted to liberate themselves from the world superpower countries. With industrial subsidies and lofty tariffs, the Latin American countries believed that domestic companies and industries would have an opportunity to develop and reduce the over dependence on manufactured imported items (Hughes & Singh, 1991, p.78). To some extent, Latin American integration succeeded and failed. This paper outlines the failures and successes of the Latin American integration and the factors that caused them. Failures of Latin American Integration and the causes Because of the pressures of the first evolving world, Latin American countries have come up with many sub-regional integration organizations (Balasa et al 1986, p. 34), fundamentally to promote economic integration and trade liberalization. Unfortunately, most of them could not go beyond rhetorical political statements. For this reason, most of the regional integration processes failed. The primary argument is that the different goals and political systems by different Latin American countries brought about economic failure (Fishlow, 1991, p. 36). This is attributed to domestic causes other than international economic forces.

An Influenced Life Essay Example for Free

An Influenced Life Essay An Influenced Life As people grow and develop in their lives, many factors influence their trajectories. These factors manifest themselves in many ways, but some are more prominent than others. I believe that every person, depending the factors that influenced them most strongly, would place more importance on some factors than others. In other words, my essay will be different than other classmates, because I was raised differently than most of them and different things had impacts on my development. Individuals also probably think some are more important factors than others, and these viewpoints depend solely on their lives and their development thus far. My personal view is that some of the most important factors that influence an individual’s development are their innate temperament, the parents they are born to, the consequent family role they possess, the anxiety they bear in life, and the relationships they make – both forced and by their own volition. Read more: Essay explain how children and young people’s development is influenced by a range of personal factors. Although I believe these are some of the most important factors, they are by no means the only things that influence a persons’ development over time. Also worth noting is the fact that these all impact each other as well as singularly influencing an individual. When combined, many factors cause other factors and all influence a persons’ development trajectory. One of these influences is inborn, not decided by outside forces. Temperament is something every human is born with, and it is shown from the moment they start breathing. My sister and I, for example, have somewhat opposite temperaments. As a child I was very loud and loved to talk (which hasn’t changed), and my sister was much quieter and listened much better than I ever could. She was more patient from birth than I will ever be. This chasm between our personalities provides some definition for our life development. Her calm, quiet manner led to little misbehavior and consequent punishment. My quick, sarcastic temper led to much conflict with parents and occasionally teachers, and required containment. This put me in a different trajectory than my sister, as she became easy to deal with, and easy to please. My parents had to take a different approach with me, as my temperament led me to be harder to discipline, please, and control. The temperament of any individual greatly influences a person’s future life development. It influences the way a person reacts and relates to other people, the way they act alone and in company, and their view on the world. Parents are one of the influences I think most would agree impacts development most. Even people who had parents that were not present might agree that the absence itself influenced their life and development. The techniques parents use vary and are quite different from family to family, and occasionally even within families. Parenting impacts development and views of the world because they restrict or allow activities, and provide moral ideas and values in differing strengths, passing on much to their children. As we grow out of childhood, impressions of our parents from a young age remain with us and impact the way we live, act, and interpret others’ behaviors. The two spectrums for parenting styles measure how demanding a parent is, and how responsive a parent is. To me, these can make or break a child’s development. If either is too low, the child will have problems later in life, but if either is too high, there will also be consequences. High responsiveness may produce a needy, incapable adult, while low responsiveness will result in anxiety about love, and mattering. High demanding parenting may result in a high-strung, over-achieving stressed adult, while low demanding will produce an adult with little motivation and drive. Clearly, parenting impacts development and, if possible, should be controlled in order to help children develop correctly and well. As parents begin to treat children differently due to temperament, and children learn more about their parenting styles, the kids in the family begin to learn their roles in the family. These roles can range from simply the â€Å"quiet one† to â€Å"loud one,† or from â€Å"instigator† to â€Å"peace-maker.† Some of the roles can make children feel guilty, unworthy, or bad about themselves, while others make childr en feel proud, confident, and pleased. These differences start at a young age and continue through their lives, even into adulthood. This will also influence relationships and life plans, causing each person to have a different filter per say, which they view the world through. If an individual follows these family roles into adulthood, individuals follow whatever mold they were shaped into as a young person. This can obviously impact development in frightening ways. One can imagine a forty year-old still following his instilled role of a meek, rule-following, shy six year-old, or a twenty-one year-old still behaving as a reckless, authority defying teenager, but with much more damaging and dangerous rebellions. The types of anxiety that a person deals with on a frequent  basis derive from many sources. These factors come from both developmental sources and environmental sources. While environmental sources are inevitable and cannot be avoided, like natural disasters and wars, the developmental sources can be somewhat traced to other developmental factors. If a person carries too much anxiety, they can then begi n to develop harmful relationships and tendencies. Some anxieties that can hurt a persons’ development are worrying about trust, competence, and mattering. All three of these concerns can come from the way an individual is treated and affected by people close to them, and society as a whole, along with some of the traits they were born with. These main three concerns make or break relationships, another developmental factor. However, they also impact the way we develop in all strains of life, especially cognitive development. If someone has anxiety about not mattering or being competent, and this anxiety is reinforced by their relationships, they may truly begin to believe these things. This will begin to impact their work and productivity, starting to truly render them incompetent. Relationships also play a large role in development over time. Of all the factors discussed, I think this may be one of the most obvious, but also one of the most influential. Depending on the individual someone is relating to, and the impacts other developmental factors have on them too, relationships are the dynamic culmination of influences on human devel opment. Relationship models range from secure to insecure, and someone who forms insecure relationships is unlikely to trust anyone, and consequently bear even more anxiety than what led to the insecure relationship. I think relationships influence development because relationships give us friends, role models, and comfort. Relationships make life worth living, but if they are not healthy and secure relationships, the zeal for life may degrade. There are many factors that impact development in many different ways. These influences can have physical, social, cognitive, and emotional consequences, and help us to become the adults we do in life. They eventually all do interrelate and combine to influence each other and our development in many ways. This being said, it is crucial to development to have consistent, good, controlled factors. Although temperament cannot be controlled, parenting styles, family roles, and relationships can be objectively considered and helped, in order to ensure proper development and a productive, competent adult. If every child had these factors controlled  and watched, in order to help them develop the best they could, there would be much less anxiety, unhappiness, and idleness in our society.

Leadership As Construction Of Meaning Philosophy Essay

Leadership As Construction Of Meaning Philosophy Essay As human beings it seems necessary for us to try to put meaning on things to have a better understanding of our world. This process of making sense fulfills our fear (conscious or not) of not controlling our life. Sensemaking is a natural, ongoing and endless process. It implies trying to structure the unknown (Waterman, 1990, p.41) or making something sensible (Weick, 1995, p.16). Sensemaking requires three basics elements: frame, a cue and a relation between these two. Frame of references represents the past moments of the socialization whereas cues are the present moments of experience. The relation between these two must be plausible to extract meaning. Because sensemaking is not just a process as understanding, interpretation or attribution, it requires grasping the seven properties of sensemaking. Indeed, Weick sees sensemaking as a process that is grounded in identity construction, retrospective, enactive of sensible environments, social, ongoing, focused on and by extracted cues, and driven by plausibility rather than accuracy (Weick, 1995, p.17). Identity is a dynamic concept in continual redefinition. In fact, depending on the situation, we adapt our identity. For instance, my identity with my teachers is not the same than the one that I adopt with my friends. As a result, my identity is different according to the different sensemaking of the situation. However, all of those adjustments develop my frame of references. We extract meaning from cues by regarding our frame of references. In this way, sensemaking is a retrospective process: how can I know what I think until I see what I say? (Weick, 1995, p.18). If I take for example the situation where I hear the ambulance siren on the street, I will suppose that there is an accident in the neighborhood. Thus, I understand this stimuli (the siren) by isolating the cue and put off meaning from it. Nevertheless, it is only because I have already experienced it (and so it is on my frame of references) that I can make sense of it. Despite of it, we have to be also conscious that our attention of past events is influenced by what is occurring now, by the new situation and what I am now. This process is reinforced by social interactions. Human being is social so we need a common understanding to interact with each other. Those interactions influence our frame of references because we need a shared meaning to understand each other. One other interesting fact on Weicks theory is the role of interruptions. Since sensemaking is an ongoing process, we always find ourselves in the middle of complex situations which we try to disentangle by making, then revising, provisional assumptions (Weick, 1995, p.43). Consequently, we need interruptions on our projects to understand. Interruption is a signal that important changes have occurred in the environment (Weick, 1995, p.46). So, it forces and facilitates a time of reflection. A focus on environment is also necessary. In fact, we often forget that we are a part of our environment. Of course our environment influences our sensemaking but there is no single fixed environment. In other words, we also influence our environment by our actions. More than that, we create environment when we try to adapt ourselves to it. It is a mutual influence. To conclude, what is extracted as cues is not pre-given, but is contingent on context, frames of reference and actions. However, sensemaking is not about truth; sensemaking is about the embellishment and elaboration of a single point of reference or extracted cue (Weick, 1995, p.57). We just need something plausible, that makes sense for us. What is necessary in sensemaking is a good story (Weick, 1995, p.61). question 2: Management of meaning Leaders are entrepreneurs of meanings (Popper, 2011). This expression illustrates the main leaders role in the organization; leader must be a sensegiver. Also called the management of meaning, this activity consists in trying to influence followers understandings. Leader must convince his or her followers to embrace a new vision. In order to fulfill this mission, the leader should first provide directions, which could disconfirm the existing understanding. Consequently, the leader has to create a picture, as inspiring as possible, to motivate them. It is necessary that the followers integrate that the current position is wrong or not enough, and that they need to move in another direction. The leader would personify the guide to this desirable future. In spite of it, the leader could also use the bracketing process in order to enhance the followers perception of the organization. This could take the shape of labeling which convey the meaning of competition with other organizations. This strategy will improve the team spirit within the followers. The other solution for the leader could be using symbolic actions. In other words, by the management of meaning the leader legitimate his or her position. However, the main purpose remains to communicate a message to the followers. Those who succeed are the one who frame and define the reality of followers. As a result, those who fail are the one who did not communicate effectively. Several raisons could be mentioned. First of all, the leader and the vision are interrelated. That implies that if something goes wrong, that is the leaders responsibility. Nevertheless, in this particular case, the leader did not fail in sensemaking, just in business decision. So the real failure in management of meaning occurs when followers do not accept to be led by the leader or when they abandon him or her. The main mistake in this situation comes from the communication of the message. Indeed, the leader did not embody correctly the story that she or he relate to his or her followers. Moreover, it could also stem from that the new vision is too much in opposition with the collective frame of references. Consequently, there is no more shared meaning, necessary for a shared action. Indeed, all organizations depend on the existence of shared meanings and interpretations of reality, which facilitate coordi nated action. The actions and symbols of leadership frame and mobilize meaning (Bennis and Nanus, 2004, p.37). In those circumstances, it is quite impossible for the followers to extract the meaning of this new vision. As Bennis and Nanus express: the management of meaning, mastery of communication, is inseparable from effective leadership (2004, p.31). More than that, you lead by voice (Bennis and Nanus, 2004, p.137). If nobody could hear you, nobody will follow you; that is why management of meaning is necessary to lead effectively. question 3: Role of the followers in leadership The relationship between the leader and followers is dynamic. This relation illustrates an implicit contract between these two; the leader assumes all responsibilities if followers accept to be led and the other way round. This contract cannot exist without the mutual consent of both parts. Each of them needs the other to exist; and consequently each of them influences the other. Both are active sensemaker and sensegiver. As a result, leadership comes out as the product constructed by the leader and the followers. Though followers are often underestimated in the leadership, according to this dynamic relationship, they seem to have a role to play. Followership appears as an active role of followers play in shaping the interdependency of leader/followers interactions (Crossman Crossman, 2011). Any leader could exist without followers and no action is possible without followers. The role of leader is, in this way, to influence followers to move into action; but to reach this goal, lead ers need to make sense. This process is called the management of meaning. An essential factor in leadership is the capacity to influence and organize meaning for the members of the organization (Bennis and Nanus, 2004, p.37). As consequence, leaders are responsible to manage meanings into the organization, express it. Since followers have their own frame of references, they will not follow any type of vision. They require finding meaning in the leader vision. In other words, followers influence the way of the leader makes sense and so the leadership. Consequently, the leader has to adapt himself or herself to the collective frame of references; and so fit to followers expectations. To be in harmony with followers expectation, the leader should reflect about the main motivations of the followers to be led. Three principal explanations are formulated: the search for safety, someone responsible of the consequences, and/or someone as a prototypical of the group. As a result, the leader must shape structure to comfort followers, enunciate goals to motivate them and finally take all the responsibility (and so the risk) to fulfill the requirement of safety. In other words, leader has to act as a guide. The only way to embrace this role is to create a picture as inspiring as possible. Leader has to provide a plausible meaning in a complex environment and so he must make sense of an uncertain situation that initially makes no sense (Weick, 2009, p.9). To reach this goal, leader owns several supports as symbols, using cues and bracketing them or fit with the collective frame of references. Those will help him or her to get going the collective action. Indeed, since sense making is social, shared understanding is required to a shared action. To conclude, followers practice an important influence on the leadership. In fact, leader has to convince followers to be led. Consequently, followers appear as the judge of the leadership and allocate the legitimacy of the leader. As a result, leader has to remain in harmony with the collective frame of references in order to provide a common meaning and so to enhance the collective action. Leadership involves just three things a leader, followers and a common goal (Bennis and Thomas, 2007 p.137). qUESTION 4: Leadership as a multi-communicative activity We are living in a complex world where any situations could support a multiplicity of meanings and counter stories. The circumstances are the same in an organizational level. (FACE A) Face to this condition, leaders create meaning out of events and relationships that devastate nonleaders (Bennis and Thomas, 2007, p.17). Leaders are expected to give sense in those situations; we see them as sensegivers. To reach this purpose, leaders have to bracket the experience. In other words, they isolate small piece of experience (called cues) and put off meaning from them. After that, leaders can suggest a meaning. Leaders articulate and define what has previously remained implicit or unsaid; then they focus for new attention (Bennis and Nanus, 2004, p.37). To reach this purpose, leaders own a toolbox to convey effectively this new meaning. The most common tool remains speaking. Most of the great leaders that we know were famous for their ability to speak. In fact, leader and orator are often confused. Linguistic intelligence (Gardner, 1996) appears as a necessary skill. However, master rhetorical speech allows leaders to convince people with words but also with the way of delivering the speech. In fact, in this type of speech, the ton of the voice fit the state of mind of the leader and so attention of the message. The aim is to convey emotions and feeling in order to give life to the leaders vision and so motivate followers in their way. To be as convincing as possible, leaders have to embody the story. That implies relating personal stories, full of example and illustrations. Because they truly believe in what they say, leaders are authentic and so more convincing. They are a prototypical of the group and an exemplification of the message which suppose a strong identification to them. This would increase leaders legitimacy. Leaders could be seen as an actor who embodies perfectly the story. In fact, a lot of comparisons are made between performing leadership and theatre. This tool of performing is often assimilated to drama. In this way, metaphors are required to create stronger meaning. Indeed, metaphors highlight certain interpretations and in the same way hide others. Consequently, theories, building on unspoken metaphors, guide our perception and understanding. Performing also suggests enactment of leaders. Moving, use gestures, screaming but also use the silence is required to create emotions to the audience. Performing is a co-production between leaders and followers; each of them has a special role to play. So, highlight the main points of the message makes the audience react to it. Consequently it will improve the audiences involvement. Finally, using symbols adds power to the message. In fact, the message must be clear and easily understandable in order to touch everyone. Pictures, illustrations and symbols make it more shareable; and collective action is only possible with a shared meaning. All things considered, leadership is a multi-communicative activity. Leaders have choice concerning the way they want to convey their message. However, one important thing needs to be kept in mind: communication leads to community, that is, to understanding, intimacy (Rollo May). question 5: Frames of references both enables our sensemaking but in the same time restricts our sensemaking Frames enables people to locate, perceive, identify and label occurrences in their lives and world. Frames of references are shaped by experiences, values, education, knowledge and interaction with others. Sensemaking is an endless process because of the continuous flow of experiences. Thus, our frame of reference is modified and developed all the time. More you see, more you know express that frames of references enable our sensemaking. In fact, as I have said before, sensemaking is a retrospective cognitive process. More you experience, more developed is your frame of references and so more you put meaning off different situations. In the organizational life, frame of references has several functions. It could act as unwritten rules. It is a way of control because it implies all the shared assumptions about expected norms of organizational behaviour. But it could also be a cognitive structure which shapes theories of action, the appropriate way of doing business. Moreover, frame of reference in the organization could reflect the tradition and consequently bring the vision of the society and its values. All of these aspects of organizational frame of references enable our sensemaking because of a shared meaning. It allows order and to work efficiently within the organization. But, on the other side, frames of references could also restrict our sensemaking. In fact, it directs our attention. The way we percept stimuli appears biased. So, frames of references influence how we bracket cues and how we extract meanings from it. In short, frames of references limit our search for alternatives which constraint our expectation; and so restrict our sensemaking. Plus, our frames of references are more often reinforced than reformed. Indeed, more your frame of references is developed, harder is to question your behaviour and so think differently. Unfortunately, it works exactly the same on an organizational level. That explains why a lot of companies are afraid of taking risks. Risks imply change in the frame of references and so could decrease the legitimacy of the leader if it goes wrong. However, in our complex world, companies have to think different. Nowadays, the aim is not just profit anymore, but more stay competitive. In fact, the competition is harder than ever and crushes the ones who did not adapt themselves quickly. As Porter said: the firms must take out a distinct position from its rivals. Imitation almost ensures a lack of competitive advantage and hence mediocre performances. But, in so many cases, leaders forgot that they could also influence their environment. In short, by thinking different (and so make the difference) companies influence their environment and so their competitors behaviours. As a conclusion, frames of references are essential and necessary for order and clarity in any type of organizations. They represent shared, relatively coherently interrelated set of emotionally charged beliefs, values, and norms that bind some people together and help them to make sense of their worlds. Frames of references enable our sensemaking but, on the same time, can restrict it. To avoid it, we have to learn thinking outside the boundaries. We have to keep in mind the Albert Einsteins quote: Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. question 6: Clintons Human Rights Day Speech Rhetoric in the most general sense, is the energy inherent in emotion and thought, transmitted through a system of signs, including language, to others to influence their decisions or actions (Kennedy, 1991, p.7). Based on this concept, I will proceed to a rhetorical analysis of Hilary Clintons Human Rights Day Speech. Nevertheless, I want draw attention in the fact that it is a personal analysis. In fact, because of my own frame of references, I have particular expectations and interpretation of this speech and its subject; and it must bias the meaning that I could extract from it. I have also to take into account that is a celebrative speech. The point of it is to celebrate a special event, so it will influence the style of arrangement. However, Hilary Clinton has decided that is a good occasion to go over a simple celebration and argue also for the LGBT rights. In fact, just the first part of her speech is about celebration. Generally speaking, this speech is well written and arranged. In fact, it follows the fundamental aspects of rhetoric with differentiate parts as the exordium, the narratio, the probation, the refutation and the peroratio. Moreover, she decides to appeal to the audience by using pathos which awakening the emotions of the audience by employing the violence vocabulary and the protection and progress vocabulary. Hence, her speech is based on opposition. First of all, I could observe the introduction (or exordium) at the beginning of the speech. This part must be shortly and create sympathy to the audience. Here Hilary Clinton expresses it by some salutations as good evening and with humbleness deep honor and pleasure. She also explains the reason of her speech: the anniversary of one of the great accomplishment of the last century. It is a direct introduction since it is not a sensitive subject to talk about, just a celebrative speech. Consequently she has no need to present the subject in a more subtle way, nor introduce herself because she is already known by the audience. Secondly, her statement of facts (or narratio), remains the background of the speech as a story chronologically ordered and strongly based on the WWII. She also employs some metaphors as step by step or barriers and some illustrations full of details to make it spirited. This war is the collective symbol of a real trauma concerning the Human Rights, so she uses it to arouse the interest of the audience and emphasize the importance of the subject. Furthermore, everybody recognizes how terrible some people were treated during this period and sees it as a violation of Human Rights. Thirdly, there is the opinion and proof (probatio). I find it interesting how she changes her way of speaking. Indeed, I can see that she speaks more directly because she now uses I and no more speaks about the past (the word now is often used). She is no more subtle and she expresses clearly her point. From now on, the vocabulary used is stronger and the ton more convincing. She also uses a lot of comparison which is a good way to bring out arguments. She adopts an inclusionary vision, in other words she wants to demonstrate that everyone should join the movement: this challenge applies to all of us. I have noticed some particularities in her probatio. First, she divides it with five strong arguments, clearly identifiable thanks to catchphrases as the first issue, the third or a fifth. But the most surprising point is that she mixes the probatio and the refutatio (refutation). Though it does not disturb the general comprehension, some extracts of the refutatio are too much accusing according to me and can reverse the expected effect of it because it goes against her request of tolerance, in some extent. Another important aspect of this part is situated at the end of this part. The last three paragraphs of the probatio are addressed to a certain part of the audience: to the leaders, to people of all nations and to LGBT men and women. In each paragraph, Hilary Clinton acts as a real leader and gives special directions. The point of that is to show that everyone has a particular role to play in this fight. None the less, I find it regrettable that she seems to reduce the implication of the LGBT population. In the last paragraph of her probatio, Hilary Clinton tries to comfort them with people around the globe are working hard to support you and to bring an end to the injustices and dangers you face. However it is unfortunate that she does not motivate them as she motivated the other parts of the population. Because of that, the LGBT must feel considered as powerless although it is mainly their fight, even if they need help from the others. Finally the conclusion (or peroratio) is one of the most important parts of a rhetorical speech. It is the occasion to sum up the arguments and request the audience to do something. As it is the crescendo of the speech, the way of speaking must be more dramatic. Hilary Clinton does not respect totally this aspect of the peroratio. One the one hand, she asks the audience for acting in favor of Human Rights and do not stay immobile. Plus, the fact that she employs us during the latest sentences highlights that it is a collective fight, and that team spirit is required. But on the other hand, the explanation of the implementation of current policies disturbs the rest of her speech. She requests for fight but also explains that a lot of policies adopted, as the situation is almost fixed now. To my personal point of view, this part of the speech would be more effective on the narratio, just after the background history. She could express after it that a lot of progress should be necessary to a full achievement. Moreover, her way of speaking appears a little confusing. In fact, she is now using an exclusionary vision by repeating several time right side as if there existed a wrong side on this fight. This change of vision obscures her message and what she expects from the audience. Essay: Based on the description of the two leaders as persons and their leadership, what I have learned myself that I would like to bring with me in my following career as a potential leader?

The Acts Of The Apostles A Book Report Religion Essay

The Acts Of The Apostles A Book Report Religion Essay INTRODUCTION In this book report, I am going to write on the Acts of the Apostles written by, Marshall I.H. I am also going what view point and character Marshall used to write on the Acts of the Apostles. THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES In this book, Marshall presents the Acts of the Apostles through the eyes of Luke, who was travelling companion of the apostle Paul. Lukes desire in writing the book of acts is to give a true historical account of the events, that took place in the early church. Marshall, states that acts has been confirmed as a source to be depended on historically. EYE WITNESS The book of acts, and the acts of the Apostles were written by an eye witness. Marshall, notes that from Acts 16:10 onwards, Luke writes in the first person plural form. Marshall, mentions in his book, that Lukes mention of individuals, their positions in society, their tittles and surrounding have been proved to be true archaeologically. ACCURATE INFORMATION There is a reference, in Acts 12:12 of a prayer meeting place in the house of Marks mother, it is assumed thats where the believers and the apostles met for prayer. Luke, also writes about the life of Paul, from Pauls position as a Pharisee to an apostle of Christ. Luke, in his writing would often give a good account of the events that were taking place in the lives of the apostles and because the information is so accurate and has been proved to be true, Luke being present to watch and learn from the Apostles. Therefore, Lukes writing proves that it was not imagination or fiction but true and significant. Marshall, notes that even Mark new a lot about the growth of the church and the council of Jerusalem, Mark also was a travelling companion of Paul. Since the writer of acts is Luke, who knew the disciples from their positions in society before they called to be apostle. When Luke interacted with the apostles, he found out a lot of information about the apostles and their individual life stories. Luke, also mentioned the names and positions of different people governing Israel and the surrounding areas, people like Gallio who governed Greece. Luke also writes about Agabus, who prophesied about a great famine, that would take place all over the world and this prophecy was fulfilled during the reign of Claudius Caesar. COMMERCE Lukes writing, also shows that commerce was truly present in the days of the apostles. Acts16:11-15 tells us of Paul and his companions, sharing to a woman by the name Lydia who was a purple merchant from the city of Thyatira. Lydias name is a reminder that Thyatira was located in the ancient kingdom of Lydia, a place that manufactured purple dyes. ANALYSIS Any examination of the book of Acts is incomplete without some reference to Lukes original purpose for writing as recorded in Luke 1:1-4. Lukes first volume, the Gospel of Luke, is actually the real preface to Acts as well as the Gospel itself. The first thing that should be observed is that Luke does indeed claim to be writing an accurate historical account of the life of Christ in the preface to his Gospel, and there is general agreement amongst scholars that Luke intends this statement to extend to his second volume. Carson, Moo and Morris have observed how some scholars say that those who claimed to be historians in ancient times were well known for writing from their own biased agenda and therefore cannot be trusted to give an accurate historical account, but it should be noted that although it is true that some historians did write more fiction than fact, the best ancient writers were careful to give an accurate presentation of the facts in much the same way that would be expec ted of modern historians. Luke deserves to be placed amongst these ancient historians and only differs from modern historians because he does not set out to present every historical detail but is deliberately selective, choosing to concentrate only on events relevant to the growth of the Church. Like the Gospel, the second volume of Lukes history is dedicated to Theophilus who is addressed as most excellent 1:1-3. Bruce observes how it has been suggested that because the name Theophilus means dear to God, it is simply being used by Luke to refer to the Christian reader in general, and not to a specific historical individual as such.10 However, Bruce continues to point out that this is unlikely for two reasons. Firstly, the use of the title most excellent suggests an individual c.f. 23:26; 24:3; 26:25, and secondly, the literary style in which Luke writes his dedication bears striking resemblance to other historical documents of antiquity. Those who regard the book of Acts as non-historical often point to the difficulties between the council of Jerusalem in Acts 15:1-29 and the writing of Paul in Galatians 2:1-10.19 Although Lukes account of the council is straightforward, the main difficulty arises when it is compared with what appears to be the same event as described by Paul in Galatians.20 In Galatians Paul is speaking about his second visit to Jerusalem after his conversion, but in Acts Luke says that it was his third.21 This difficulty has long been recognised by biblical scholars and there are several explanations offered to resolve it.22 Bruce considers that the difficulties arise because the authors are actually speaking about two entirely different occasions. He arrives at this conclusion by observing how the discussion reported by Paul in Galatians differs from Acts because it centres around missionary activity; the issue of circumcision is only marginally alluded to; and no mention is made of appeasing tabl e fellowship amongst Jews and Gentiles.23 Probably the most significant difference between the conference of Galatians 2:1-10 and council meeting in Acts 15:1-29 is that the former was held in private while the latter was held publicly, before the Jerusalem Church.24 Wainwright also agrees with Bruce in these differences and recognises a more consistent pattern with Galatians 2:1-10 in Acts 11:27-30.25 CONCLUSION In my report of this book by Marshall I H, I agree to what the book says about the author of the book of acts that the author was Luke. I also agree to the fact that the information Luke gave about the lives and events surrounding the apostles is true and because he was a travelling companion of Paul, he knew a lot about the apostles from their position in society to their positions in the church.

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s All the Sad Young Men Essays -- Fitzgerald Sad Y

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s All the Sad Young Men F. Scott Fitzgerald’s All the Sad Young Men was his sixth book. The work was composed of nine short stories that had been published in magazines such as the Saturday Evening Post over the course of the previous year. The work was Fitzgerald’s third short story collection and followed the Great Gatsby in publication on the 26th of February 1926. To most, this book signaled Fitzgerald’s staying power as many of his seniors had believed that his initial success as a writer was lucky. They did not take Fitzgerald seriously as an author. On the whole, critics valued the work and praised some of the stories as the best Fitzgerald had written to date. The collection of short stories in All the Sad Young Men included: â€Å"The Rich Boy,† â€Å"Winter Dreams,† â€Å"The Baby Party,† â€Å"Absolution,† â€Å"Rags Martin-Jones and the Pr-nce of W-les,† â€Å"The Adjuster,† â€Å"Hot and Cold Blood,† â€Å"The Sensible Thing,† â€Å"Gretchen's Forty Winks.† Of these, â€Å"Absolution† was widely considered to be the best as it was an artistic piece as opposed to the ones that the critics claimed Fitzgerald wrote to sell. â€Å"Absolution† is a story about an eleven year old boy and a priest; even those who did not like this collection wrote favorably about this story. One critic said of â€Å"Absolution,† â€Å"Yet, it must be said, immediately, that ‘Absolution’ is a penetrating and profound effort to articulate life in primal and dark conflict. It is simple and stripped of all artifice. The poet and humanist in Fit zgerald is in this counting of the search of a boy and an elderly priest for absolute truth, in the conflicting presence of the demands of daily life with its common everydayness of people and trivial affairs.†[1] ... ...cal jazz age mold and reached new audiences. Fitzgerald also received the common criticism that he was writing to sell; many critics felt that â€Å"Absolution† and â€Å"The Rich Boy† with a few others from the selection were the only works of merit. Bibliography ed. Bryer, Jackson R. F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Critical Reception. Burt Franklin & Co., Inc. 1978. http://www.people.vcu.edu/~bmangum/asymcr.html. (This site is not very informative.) http://www.sc.edu/fitzgerald/collection/dustjackets/sadmen.html. (Dust jacket) [1] Bryer, Jackson R. Pg. 258. [2] IBID. Pg. 259. [3] IBID. Pg. 253 [4] IBID. [5] http://www.georgetown.edu/tamlit/collections/fitzwrks.html#dreams [6] IBID. Pg. 260. [7] IBID. Pg. 258. [8] IBID. Pg. 259. [9] IBID. Pg. 261. [10] IBID. Pg. 261. [11] IBID. Pg. 270. [12] IBID. Pg. 269.

Basic Discription Of Microbiology :: essays research papers

BASIC DISCRIPTION OF MICROBIOLOGY They’re out there! You can’t see them but they can see you. Right at this very moment they are living on and in your body, and there is nothing you can do about it! This may sound like the beginning of a horror movie, but it isn’t. It is actually a very basic description of a very broad subject: microbiology. Microbiology is a complex subject that spans out into a variety of areas. I am a person who is entering the health care field, and it is inparitive that I know the subject of microbiology and how if effects the world in which we live. Part one of this essay will deal with defining bacteria, viruses, fungi, microbes, and pirons. Part two of the essay will focus on indigenous micro flora that is on and in the body, and part three will describe the structure and replication procedure of viruses. Part one As stated by Prescott, Harley and Klein (1990) microbiology is the study of organisms that are usually too small to be seen with the naked eye. According to Jenson and Wright (1989) a pathogen is a disease-producing organism. They also describe microbes as organisms that are often too small to be seen without the aid of a microscope. Microbes, also known as microorganisms, can be broken down into four classifications that are bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa. Prescott, Harley & Klein (1990) describe bacteria as prokaryotic cells (cells that lack a true membrane enclosed nucleus). Bacteria are both small and simple in structure; they usually are between o.5 and 5cmm yet they have many characteristic shapes and sizes. Some bacteria are circular or oval shaped, they are known as cocci bacteria. Other bacteria are rod-shaped, they are known as bacilli bacteria, and some bacteria are spiral and coil-shaped and it is know as spirilla bacteria. Engelkirk & Burton (1979) state that bacteria can reproduce asexually by simple division of cells and some bacteria reproduce sexually by conjunction. A bacterium is a waste producer of products and secretions. This allows pathogens to invade their hosts to cause disease some of these harmful diseases are Scarlet fever, an acute illness, characterized by a reddish skin rash, which is caused by systematic infection with the bacterium streptococcus. St. Anthony’s Fire is another bacterial disease. â€Å"St. Anthony’s Fire which is an acute superficial form of celluitus involving the dermal lymphatic, usually caused by infection with streptococci and chiefly characterized by a peripherally spreading hot, bright red, oedematous.

Modules on skills and materials Essay

â€Å"Well prepared teachers have a large repertoire of activities for their classes. They can organise preparation and controlled output practice; they can direct students in the acquiring of receptive skills and organise genuinely communicative activities. This repertoire of activities enables them to have varied plans and achieve an activities balance.† â€Å"The Practice of English Language Teaching† Harmer Which of the techniques outlined in this module, and elsewhere in the modules on skills and materials, would you use in order to achieve genuine communication in the classroom? This task should refer to other areas of the course. You should aim to write about 750 words. The ultimate aim of teaching English to speakers of other languages is to achieve genuine communication by limiting teacher talking time and maximising student participation. Simply standing in front of a class and telling things to the students does not guarantee they will learn them. Students need to be actively involved in the lessons. A vital step in establishing a class of active learners is classroom management. There are many techniques which can be implemented in order to achieve genuine communication within the classroom. Communication should take place the minute the class begins. Getting into the habit of ‘chatting’ to the students at the start of a lesson gives them the chance to take part in natural conversation. This can be achieved by greeting the students and allowing five minutes to go around asking what people did at the weekend, for example. This gets students speaking before they have had a chance to worry about getting involved. In order to create an open learning environment and aid the flow of communication, the furniture in the classroom should be arranged appropriately. Ideally, the furniture should be  arranged in a circle as it allows all the students to be involved and creates a sense of equality. However, if this is not possible, a semi-circle or some form of group arrangement is best. A semi-circle ensures the students are able to see any visual aids clearly and as many students as possible have eye contact with the teacher. A group arrangement allows for a huge degree of interaction and can be useful in mixed-ability classes, where groups of students can concentrate on different communication tasks according to their ability. Another great way of rousing communication is to show interest in the students by getting to know about their interests and backgrounds. This allows teachers to make conversation before and after class using personal information. How is your new cat? Is your husband feeling better? It is encouraging for the students and they are more likely to want to speak about themselves, their families, etc. Getting to know the students also allows teachers to personalise lessons and set up relevant discussions. This increases student involvement by allowing them to express opinions about their environment and personal experiences. A similar technique is to talk about current affairs or news stories. These are subjects that the students are likely to have knowledge of and will be able to discuss amongst themselves. This will encourage students to find interesting stories or anecdotes they can share with the class or to keep themselves informed so they can have meaningful input in class activities. Current newspaper and magazine articles can be cut out and used to prompt discussions. These techniques can allow the students to take control of the conversation, reducing teacher talk time and consequently further their learning. Relevant and realistic practise of language is important in spurring meaningful communication from students. Teachers should focus on elements of language and communication that are necessary for the student’s goals or are of personal interest. The types of activities utilised in a lesson can give more or less opportunities for communication. The most obvious way to get someone talking is to ask them questions, but teachers should really think about the kinds of questions they ask. Closed questions are simple direct questions that can be useful for checking understanding or reviewing language, whereas open questions do not always have a single or right answer and get the students thinking. Both types of questions are useful in the classroom and teachers should establish a good balance between  the two. Furthermore, questions should be directed to the whole class initially, rather than a named individual, as this ensures all students are alert and thinking about the answer should they be chosen to respond. Another technique to keep students focused is avoiding asking questions in a fixed order. Teachers should mix it up by darting around the classroom, keeping the students on their toes. Asking questions can be rather limiting in the degree of communication it fosters and it involves a lot of initial input by the teacher. In order to encourage genuine communication between students so they get the most out of the experience, teacher talking time needs to be limited. Group or pair-work activities are a great way to do this. They generate conversation and communication flows more naturally. Well prepared group or pair-work activities should require students to maintain communication in order to complete the task. They dramatically increase the amount of speaking time each student gets in the class and allow students to interact independently without guidance of the teacher. This promotes learner independence and more spontaneous communication. Role-plays, dialogues, sketches, etc. can be a great way to reduce anxiety about speaking. Students may be embarrassed at first, but become less self-conscious as they concentrate on the character or role they are required to carry out, thus produce more natural language. In addition, prompts, such as role cards and realia can be provided as an aid for the students to use during their performance. It is important for the teacher to continue monitoring groups during fluency tasks to ensure English is being spoken. It is imperative that the use of the mother tongue language is limited in the class. If the class are of differing nationalities, this aids communication as the students have no choice but to use English to communicate. Thus, there are many techniques that can be adopted to ensure genuine communication is achieved in every lesson. It is important for teachers to really think about all aspects of the lesson, including the introduction, seating arrangement, the delivery of activities, materials used, etc. prior to teaching in order to maximise student talk time so that each individual gains the most out of their experience within the classroom. TASK FOR SUBMISSION TO YOUR TUTOR TASK 2 You are working in an ESOL school with class sizes of 14-18. Your boss does not like your school’s current way of testing spoken English. At the moment it is tested in a one-on-one, 2 minute speaking test at the end of course with a mark from 0-10. It does not seem to be working well and takes up a whole lesson from the course. He has asked for suggestions as to how to change the system. With reference to what you have studied in this and other modules, and to your own experience and reading, make some suggestions to your boss as to how the school could assess the spoken English of the students in a more accurate and less pressurized way. You should write about 400 – 500 words to send as an email setting out your ideas. Dear ______, In light of your recent request for ideas as to how to change the current way of testing spoken English, I would like to propose the following suggestions. Rather than a one-on-one end of year speaking test, we could adopt a task approach and assess the students speaking ability in a variety of ways throughout the duration of the course. We could create tasks that require the students to use the language in ‘real-life’ communicative performances. This type of testing is advantageous as it can be conducted with more than one student at a time, reducing the amount of time dedicated to the testing. It allows the students to use their language knowledge and competence in ‘real-life’ communications with their peers. It is a more realistic and accurate measure of their abilities. Not only do these tasks test accuracy and fluency, they also test how creatively the students are able to use language and whether they are able to communicate effectively with each other . It is likely to reduce the pressure they feel about a single ‘interview’ with the teacher, particularly if they get to perform the  tasks with other students so the focus isn’t solely on them. Adopting this kind of testing approach will allow us to carry out a number of different oral tests throughout the course, assessing a variety of skills. There are a number of different tasks that could be used such as role plays, debates and presentations. Role Plays: We can give them a specific situation and roles to play that utilise the language they have learnt. Role plays can be used informally throughout the course so the students get lots of time to practice for a formal assessment. Debates: We could split the classes into groups and have each group debate an argument relating to different topics they have studied. Each group would be split into two smaller groups, one to represent each side of the argument. The students can be given time in or out of class to prepare their side of the debate. Each side could be allocated a specific time for giving their initial argument in which each student has to contribute the same amount of time. Again, debates can be used informally throughout the course to practice language, allowing students ample of practice before the formal assessment. Class Presentation: We could assign group projects for the students to carry out in or out of class. The students will have a deadline to complete the project, at the end of which they will be asked to give a group presentation. We can provide them with guidelines of what to include and what skills they will be individually tested on. Another way to test students individually that takes away the pressure of ‘performing’ in front of the class is to ask them to make a recording. In a previous school, we had students read a short story and then asked them to imagine they were one of the characters. They had to record themselves giving an account of what happened according to their {the characters} personal experience. The students were allowed time to think about what they wanted to say before making the recording. After assessment, the students listened to each other’s recordings and gave constructive feedback to their classmates. This type of assessment was carried out a number of times throughout the course, with notable improvements across the board. Although this approach is less realistic, it gives the students a chance to hear themselves speaking and pinpoint their own mistakes which they can work on in the future. I hope these suggestions are of use and we are able to implement a more successful way of testing the oral skills of the students.