Merit for motivation Essay

JOHN: John has always wanted to be a professional footballer and loves playing the game. This is the main reason why he keeps himself motivated and participating in sport. He has a high achievement motivation as he really wants to succeed in football. If it wasn’t for these reasons he would probably stop playing football or play for a team where there is lower pressure to win. One of the reasons why he may only participate in sport for a short time is that he internally attributes failure. He thinks of himself as being a bad defender and is not quick enough. This will mean that he has low confidence in himself so he may want to stop participating in football. As the coach is not telling him otherwise he really believes it is true. This is the next reason why he might not participate in sport for very long as he receives no verbal persuasion. His coach does not tell him that he values John and it makes him feel like he is not wanted in the team. As he has no self confidence this will make him feel like he is not good at football. Instead of giving praise the coach also shouts things like â€Å"that’s not good enough† which makes him feel even worse. The final reason that he may not participate long in sport is that his coach always blames the results on unstable factors instead of addressing the problems. He tells John and his team mates they only lost because of bad refereeing or bad pitches. This will give them a false sense of confidence as they will think hey can continue playing like they are until luck goes on their side. JULIA: Julia has a high achievement motivation as she loves her sport and loves winning races. She has been winning lots of races recently so is very confident. This will help her to carry on participating as she is pleased with the achievements that she is getting like winning races. Her coach is always giving her verbal persuasion and telling her she is good at running. He praises her before and after each session so that she will always be confident. This will help her to continue participating in running as her confidence is high. Julia has plenty of opportunities of success as not only does she enter lots of races she also reaches goals when she is training which success is. While she is gaining success she will want to continue running. The coach does this on purpose so she will no that she is capable of gaining good times as she will have done so in training. Julia has plenty of vicarious opportunities. This is where she gets to see other people and how they run. As she runs on her own she needs someone else to watch. Her coach is still an active runner and wins races some of which are televised. Julia will be able to watch her coach and see how he performs and trains and then try and follow his example. If he is putting in the training and winning big races then she will be able to see the benefits of her training. Her only downfall is that she sometimes exhibits internal failure. She gets nervous before a race so her coach tells her to relax before a race but she finds this very difficult. This could be something she needs to conquer to gain more success. JOHN: The first way in which John could be motivated so that he will continue participation is by getting verbal persuasion. John is a player who does not believe he is good enough so it is essential that someone tells him that he is. This person should be the coach who needs to let john no what he is good is. As john does not think that he is quick enough the coach could tell john the things that he is good at so he can use the attributes he has got. If john is playing badly then the coach needs to explain what he is doing wrong and not just shout at john for playing badly as this will make his confidence even lower. If johns coach is not telling him this then other team mates or a parent could help him to start playing better. The coach will also need to find out how to motivate John. To do this the coach will need to work out why John is laying for the team like weather it is to be a professional or because he really likes to win. After the coach has found this out he will be able to motivate john better. The coach could do this by arranging an interview with john and asking him about his problems at the club. After he has found out about Johns problems he could set goals at training for him to aim for. Another method that could be used to motivate john would be to give him some vicarious experience. This is experience from watching another player. From this he would be able to pick up lots of pointers and it could help to improve johns game which would in turn would improve his confidence and make him want keep participating. The coach could arrange for John to watch an older boy playing at right back and let him take notes on how he plays. Or the coach could get John to watch a professional full back on the television and gain take notes on the player. This method is very good for people of a younger age like John as it can help them to develop there game in later life. JULIA: Julia’s coach uses goal setting in training for some things. In order to keeps Julia staying motivating he could introduce lots of goals. Goal setting is good for Julia for two reasons. The first is that she will realize her potential so if she is getting her goals in training then she will know that she will be able to get the goals in the real race. This will help her confidence as she will believe in herself. The second reason is that it gives her success which will make her confidence high. Julia loves success so her gaining her goals in training will make her very confident and happy. When she is confident and happy she will want to keep participating in her sort. The second motivation strategy that can be used to keep Julia participating in her sport would be to offer her extrinsic rewards. This could be of her coach or off her parents. Extrinsic rewards are things such as money or items that can be offered to Julia if she wins a race. For example her parents could say if you break our personal best of one and a half hours we will buy you the running shoes that you wanted. This will make Julia want to train very hard so that she can get the new running shoes. It will also make her keep participating as she knows that if she stops participating she will not get the shoes that she wants. The coach can offer different types of rewards. For example he could say if you win the county race I will get you a trial for England running team. He can do this as he is head of the England Juniors. This will make Julia want to carry on participating as this reward would be a dream come true. The main reason that Julia keeps training hard for eight hours a day is because her coach gives her lots of verbal persuasion. This is the main reason for Julia participating as it makes her feel good about herself. This means that for Julia to continue to participate in running her coach needs to continue to praise Julia when she does something good.

What are the main features of child directed speech and how does it help language acquisition?

The language traits that characterise child-directed speech tend to facilitate the acquisition of language. Children start their lives without language and are faced with the challenge of emerging into a world in which they cannot effectively communicate. From the time a child is born, however, they will begin to associate what happens around them with meaning. As time passes, they will begin to associate unknown verbal forms to known meanings. Parents show a unique type of speaking that is referred to as child-directed speech, motherese, or, more commonly, baby talk for example â€Å"moo-cow†.This speech has many unique characteristics that distinguish it from adult-directed speech. One feature of child language acquisition is that children master language by making mistakes until they fully acquire the skills. This ‘trial and error’ approach shows that learning is taking place, however, phonological development seems also to depend on physical ability to produce sounds. Some phonological errors used by children are deletion in words such as â€Å"do(g)† and â€Å"cu(p)†. Although some add on extra vowels, for example â€Å"doggie†.A lot of young children change one consonant or vowel for another, known as an assimilation such as â€Å"gog† instead of â€Å"dog†. These errors show that as a child learns a word is substitutes the sound of a letter for a different one. In phonology there are a variety of features used by parents for language acquisition such as higher pitch in the parents voice, a greater range of frequencies in the tone, a slower speed of speech, clearer enunciation, emphasis on one or two words in a sentence, and special pronunciations of individual words.This is more common from the mothers as it comes naturally to them and is done in order to allow infants time to process the information being conveyed to them. Rhythm is also emphasized when talking to a child and is used closely with th e emphasis of various syllables. One children can produce sounds effectively they can use these skills to form real words that others can recognize. Proto-words have meaning for the child and the parents so a child needs to acquire the vocabulary that will help them be understood by a wider audience. Also achild needs to learn the meanings of words in order to link objects and ideas. The rate of lexical development in children at 12 months is that they know 50 words which increase to 2,000 at 36 months which shows that language is aquired in the early stages. Parents also tend to use some lexical features in speech such as â€Å"mama† and â€Å"dada† to encourage the child to start speaking, as these words are usually the first two the child says in their early months. As the child starts to progress, the parent uses diminutives like â€Å"doggy†, â€Å"kitty†, â€Å"potty† for the child to understand easily.Children can link a word and the referen t easily as they can usually see it, or see a visual representation in a book. The social and interactive nature of many words also indicate the importance of interacting with others, suggesting that pragmatic awareness is vital to language development. The reduplicative such as â€Å"quack quack† and diminutives like â€Å"mummy† show the bridge between phonological and lexical development. Child directed speech features a unique syntax. Parents usually use short utterances rather than full sentence structures in order to convey meaning to their child.They are often repeated so children have practice in a particular concept. Child directed speech helps infants to detect syntactic boundaries and makes linguistic patterns easier to recognize. Children begin to understand word order through child directed speech which slowly expands into a deeper understanding of sentence structure. However, communicating with children can be difficult if you can’t maintain their attention, so you need to talk about a topic that interests them.For example if you are washing them you could talk about all the different body parts whilst washing them, if they splash talk about the splash. Ask a lot of questions and let them reply as this speeds the acquisition of verbal auxiliaries by the child. Parents should use lots of names for things and many words for actions as they play an important role in later language development. Conversations with children are mostly about the present, here-and-now, rather than topics pertaining to another time, past or future.Regarding grammar, in the first three or four years there is not much point in correcting them as it will just confuse them and may do harm to their confidence and self-esteem. It is best to let the child correct themselves spontaneously when they are ready. However you could drop hints to help them out in correcting what they are saying. In order to relate to a child during â€Å"baby talk†, a parent may deliberately fabricate some words, and may pepper the speech of non verbal utterances. The parents might refer only to objects and events in the immediate surrounding area, and will often repeat the child’s utterances back to them.Children employ a wide variety of phonological simplifications, usually assimilation or reduplication, in learning speech, where the child seizes on a stressed syllable, and repeats it to form a word. Within the context of normal conversation with their children caregivers use a variety of techniques to encourage the continuance of that conversation. Repetition is one of the most frequently used methods of prolonging conversation, as well as one of the particular traits of child-directed speech.Frequently heard words for objects will be better remembered and better articulated than other words once the child begins to develop a productive vocabulary of real words. The more times a child hears a sentence clearly modeled, the more that child†™s language learning is facilitated. The expand and recast technique serves as an alternative to repetition, and, is a method parents often use as it gives children new ideas and helps with the formation of grammar, as well as prolonging the conversation by recasting the prior topic into a new form.Turn-taking is another technique used in child-directed speech. Used early in the child’s development, turn-taking provides infants with the opportunity of learning the structure of conversations. The parents use cues such as exaggerated pauses to help infants learn to take their turns. Routines of turn-taking also serve other functions in linguistic development. Babies gain experience in vocalizing, and participate in situations in which that vocalizing becomes more language-like.

Information Engineering Analysis and Design - Medical Center Essay - 1

Information Engineering Analysis and Design - Medical Center - Essay Example The Delauny’s Medical Centre System project primarily represents an information system that avails booking services on an online friendly platform. The service will enable the prospected patients to make appointments with doctors on the online system. The main features of the services that the online Medical Centre platform entails registration of new users, making appointments, scheduling and cancelation of appointments. The writing in this report predominantly highlights on the descriptive processes utilized in designing and developing the system. The methods used in planning the project development cycle and the management criteria also highlights in the paper. Scheduling, forecasting and achieving project goals are vital activities that have to be undertaken by team members to accomplish job portions. The business strategies and market analysis for the proposed product looks into to determine the economic viability for carrying out the development of the tech system. A SWOT and Pestle analysis of the professional environment is also made and the subsequent effects determined for the project management of this particular system requirements, analysis and design. The challenges faced by the end users using the current Delauny’s Medical Centre system are listed in the report content. The report also demonstrates approaches and methods used in designing and implementing the new system. The new concepts of intended for improving the current system operation are aimed at make certain there is a growth in consumer(patient) satisfaction through better service delivery. The new system is intended to offer dependable and professionalized services accomplished by automating the manual processes in the current information system. The only sensible option for the Delauny’s Medical Centre is to upgrade their current manual information system to a more modern information system that utilizes technology to deliver its appointment booking services to the patients.

A critical review of one article relating to aspects of transformation Assignment

A critical review of one article relating to aspects of transformation of work - Assignment Example By year 2002, 2.3% of the working population of UK was working in the call centers. A call center is defined as an operation in which employees who utilize computers receive inbound calls or make telephone calls which are outbound. Those calls are processed by a call distribution system which is automated. Technological growth and innovation have led to the production of change and organizational form continuity. The paper relates to employment relations and organization at work. It also relates to the process of labor and control, gender, practices of human resource management, emotional labor and unionization. It aids to the understanding of the nature of work in call centers. The article recognizes one theme in that, despite the common aspects that integrate telephone and visual display unit technology, call center’s work organization is not uniform. This necessitates the need to take account in relation to differences in a number of variables. The article focuses on work which embraces call centers which are within the parameters of work knowledge. Operators’ perception is examined regarding exercise of control, pace of undertaking work and breaks determination. This tests the validity of regimentation as call center work description. Employees satisfaction levels are also examined relating to performance of tasks at work. Dedicated teams at two surveys which were conducted, engaged in observation of the processes of work. Observations from notes from the fields, containing accounts of interviews with staff, formed the initial qualitative data set. Questionnaire schedules were conducted in both surveys. Observations and interviews led to the provision of background knowledge which aided in the construction of employee questionnaire. Questions were also formed based on consultations between human resource, call center managers and employees. The first survey was a telephone questionnaire conducted by managers. This was done to determine

Comparison My Uncle Thomas and Theseus Research Paper - 1

Comparison My Uncle Thomas and Theseus - Research Paper Example My uncle Thomas is my real life hero. He is my mothers’ cousin and when he was young, there were several problems, he had to overcome. His father had to work far from his family in another country. Being the first son of the family, uncle Thomas, had to protect his family when the father was away. Later after his father came back and got a good position, Thomas has got great opportunities, he studied in the University and finally occupied a very good position in the local bank. Now he is the head of the office, moreover, he has his own business. Uncle Thomas has a good family, he a loving father and husband, at the same time he is a good specialist and has many friends. The paper talks about two bright personalities giving a comparative analysis between the two, in character attributes (â€Å"Greek Myths & Greek Mythology† Web). When Theseus gives out himself to go out and be sacrificed to the Minotaur monster, meets the daughter of the powerful leader who had threatened to destroy Athens if no young men are sacrificed to Minotaur. The paper talks about two sons of influential societal leaders giving a comparative analysis between the two, in character traits. Uncle Thomas, the real-life hero, overcame a monster of poverty and many difficulties he faced in his childhood when his father had to leave the family for a while. He made many friends among the enemies and acquired so much love and respect from them. Theseus also overcame the greatest threat- Minotaur that was unsettling his father’s peaceful rule. His father would forever be on the threat if this beast did not get killed.

THE EFFECTS OF MOTOR PROCESS ON REACTION TIME Essay

THE EFFECTS OF MOTOR PROCESS ON REACTION TIME - Essay Example Consequently, it has been postulated that the principal anatomic structures affected by these disorders, namely, the cerebellum and basal ganglia are important in the effective running of the timing apparatus for these functions. The involvement of the cerebellum and the basal ganglia in the motor and perceptual timing has been documented by imaging of brain while performing various timing tasks, such as, repetitive and tapping maneuvers. This involves other parameters such as duration discrimination, velocity discrimination, rhythm discrimination, temporal discrimination, and time production and reproduction. Voluntary movements are prepared before they are executed. If there is an instruction stimulus, before the go cue, there would be a delay. With this concept, the reaction time can be defined as the latent period or time interval from the go cue to time of onset of movement. Reactions times are shorter when the delays are longer, suggesting there is some time-consuming preparatory process that is given a head start by this delay. Delay-period activity is typically tuned for the instruction and is therefore predictive of reaction time, and it is suspected that delay period activity is the substrate of motor preparation occurring at that time. A neural activity, if at all it is designed to generate movement must rise above a threshold to trigger the motor activity (Akkal, D., Escola, L., Bioulac, B., Burbaud, P., 2004). If there is an instructed delay, that could allow activity to attain threshold leading to reduction in the subsequent reaction time. If the motor system takes some time to rise to threshold, as is expected, higher firing rates would lead to shorter reaction times. Alternatively, the produced movement is a function of the state of preparatory activity after the trigger. For each probable movement, it is necessary that there would be a firing rate in the subspace that is optimal, optimal in the sense that it would be appropriate and sufficient to generate a sufficiently accurate movement. The time given for motor preparation thus therefore essentially is optimization that brings firing rates from their initial state to the appropriate subspace. This allows for a wait time for execution of the movement, and this wait time may lead to subtle drifts in the activity, but as long as firing rates remain within the optimal subspace, the motor preparation would remain complete. It can be predicted consequently that the delay period firing occupy a smallish subspace that is different and unique for each instructed movement. The reaction time is the time between the onset of a stimulus and the motor response to it. As a result, there would be a perceptual latency that is denoted by the time from stimulus onset to time of stimulus detection as well as in the motor time, which is the time it takes to perform the motor task. The motor process can vary from one to another individual depending on type, intensity, and the background of the stimulus. Subjective variations in motor process have been observed between individuals based on subject age, sex, educational levels, socioeconomic status, affective state, and attentional and arousal states (Doherty, J.R., Rao, A.,

Woman Crouching and Pollard Birches Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Woman Crouching and Pollard Birches - Essay Example Since Van Gogh used a special ink in his drawing, an iron gall ink, the artwork got through a deterioration due to the decaying of the ink. This made the paper of his artwork consume itself. â€Å"The drawing is 34 x 54 cm in size, produced in Nuenen of March 1884. The artwork is displayed in Van Gogh Museum at Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Europe†1. The â€Å"Woman Crouching† by Egon Schiele. This drawing is a 70 x 100 artwork pencil drawing on a durable vellum paper, 1918. His artworks were known for distorted nude and semi-nude drawings that transpires eroticism and suffering. Schiele was sometime imprisoned due to immortality and during his arrest he was able to create a number of drawings and watercolors that really showcased his artistry. â€Å"He was able to produce around 3,500 artworks during his lifetime (1890 – 1918)†2. ______________________ 1 Van Gogh, Vincent. â€Å"Pollard Birches† 1884. Online, http://www.vangoghgallery.com/catalog/Dra wing/1395/Pollard-Birches.html 7 November 2011. 2 Schiele, Egon. â€Å"Crouching Woman† 1918. Online, http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Woman-Crouching-1918-Posters_i8065143_.htm 7 November 2011. 2. Comparison The first point to compare is the aerial or the atmospheric perspective of the two images. Image number one showcases great distinctive intrusion as it transpires better depth than image number two. It gives beating of contrast and element as it draws farther in view which illustrates its depth and illusion of space. â€Å"The partial overlapping of one object from the other also brings about heightened emphasis and greater perspective to the image which supersedes its focus and identity†3. The shades, shadow, brightness and texture bring in life to the first image than the image number two. Thus for the point of foreshortening, image #2 is better than image #1. It appears that the objects emerge compacted which therefore takes in an effect on its perspective that li ves out distortion as what has mostly seen in the works of the artist in image number two. â€Å"Consequently, it makes the foreshortening of the image to be an artistic medium that brings about volume and dimension†4. It has successfully executed drama and emphasized greater space. The first picture emphasizes depth while image number two alleviates it artistry through the volume and dimension of the picture. Lastly is the value of the drawing. The aim is to make your drawing realistic. In this case, image #1 was able to create value to the drawing through shading and focus between areas. â€Å"Building up the bare surroundings and lightly shading the focus areas is the approach given to this that therefore creates an illusion of dimension†5. Image #2 thus on the other hand fails to give a value drawing for it has distinct lines which made it a linear drawing than a value one. 3 N.p. â€Å"Atmospheric or Aerial Perspective† 2004. Online, http://studiochalkboard .evansville.edu/ap-aerial.html 7 November 2011. 4 Helen South. â€Å"Foreshortening†. Online, http://drawsketch.about.com/od/drawingglossary/g/foreshortening.htm 7 November 2011. 5 Helen South. â€Å"Drawing Value – Shading Tonal Values with Graphite Pencil†. Online, http://drawsketch.about.com/cs/pencilgraphite/a/tonal_drawing.htm 7 November 2011. 3. Conclusion Taking into consideration the three bases of comparison in this paper which includes; Atmospheric Perspective, Foreshortening and Value we can now therefore conclude that image number one (Pollard Birches) is better than image number two (Crouching Woman). To support this conclusion, here are other artworks made by the two artists (Right by; â€Å"Vincent Van Gogh† 6 and Left by; â€Å"Egon Schiele† 7). It can be clearly seen that the drawings of Van Gogh are more in-depth that the works of Schiele. Though they are beautiful in

A World of Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

A World of Art - Essay Example 2). On the other hand, there were complaints about the materials used to build it because it clashed with the park. They viewed the metals as being â€Å"an intrusive violation of the natural landscape† (Sayre, 2007, p. 2). Not only did the artwork symbolize emotions of the public, but it also encapsulated the park because its name The Gates goes along with the original creators of the park who envisioned gates at every entrance (Sayre, 2007, p. 3). The point of these examples is to show how an artist may intend for their artwork to be received in one way since it is how they see it, but it is not. Every artist, every individual differs from one another and he or she absorbs, views, creates the world in his or her unique point-of-view. There are as many meanings in art as there are a variety of personalities and beliefs in people. 2. Abstract, or nonobjective, artwork is defined as a nonrealistic illustration that does not portray an established, familiar part of the universe like person, place or thing. In order to classify it, it has to be viewed in terms of brush strokes, color, etc. For example, Westerners find it hard to assign Erna Motna’s painting to landscape because it is abstract (Sayre, 2007, p. 8). Representational, or realistic, in terms of art is defined as describing a work of art that is a universally recognizable dictation by everyone. An example of this would be an illustration of the Empire State Building. Everyone understands this to be a famous part of New York City just by viewing the artwork. The association between the art and a real landmark, person or thing is what makes it representational. Form and content’s meaning can be described as a vital definition of the term art. Form is an element of art, the rules of intention and even items, or tools, an artist uses. It takes on a physical form. Content differs from this in that it is an idea, or expression by the artist. Both function as two parts, or halves of art. A n example of this is Malevich’s painting (Sayre, 2007, p. 11). The term ethnocentric, or ethnocentrism, revolves around the belief that one’s own culture is superior to all others, and this pertains to art in that the artist creates an illustration with the intention of portraying his or her own culture in the best possible light. It is also about how â€Å"different cultures possess different visual conventions and do not easily understand each other’s conventions† (Sayre, 2007, p. 28). Iconography is the science of determining, classifying and understanding specific factors or themes in a piece of visual art. It maintains the artwork’s original meaning rather than it be reaffirmed by current society because current society may not understand the reasoning behind specific elements in the artwork. Iconography studies the visual or symbolic images in the time it was created like in Jan van Eyck’s painting The Marriage of Giovanni Arnolfini an d Giovanna Cenami (Sayre, 2007, p. 31). Photorealism evolved from American Pop Art and it can be defined as art that has been reproduced to mimic photography, or the way a camera captures images. Art by Chuck Close pertains to photorealism. Surrealism was an artistic movement that means using art to portray an expression of the unconscious mind. â€Å"Surrealism is a style of art in which the reality of the dream, or the subconscious mind, is seen as more ‘

Web Accessibility Standards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Web Accessibility Standards - Essay Example These standards provide the parameter, to make a place, website etc more easily accessible to people with disabilities. However, the standards are not same for every aspect of life that is to be made more accessible. The accessibility standards are different for physical structure and for the electronic structure like websites because the accessibility need for both is different. The focus of web accessibility is primarily on two issues first being the means of assessing electronic information by disabled users and the second being the good collaborative function of assistive devices on the web pages (Moss, pp. 23-25). In this regard, â€Å"Web Accessibility Initiative† provides guidelines known as â€Å"Web Content Accessibility Guidelines† (Moss, pp. 22-23). To date, two guidelines have been published known as â€Å"WCAG 1.0† in 1999 and â€Å"WCAG 2.0† in 2008 (Moss, pp. 24-26). The latest set of guidelines i.e. â€Å"WCAG 2.0† is an improved version, which unlike the previous version uses simple language and real-world examples so that the guidelines are simple to understand. This document has eliminated some previous out of date version guidelines like: Although no development has been made in term of accessibility, considerations and they represent old issues. However, the five most important accessibility considerations, which the web developer is to keep in his mind while designing and modifying any website are: Rich media content accessibility: Rich media like audio and video content is to be made accessible to all. Addition of transcripts and separate narrative track to the rich media help in it to be more accessible. Navigation: As mostly navigation system is based on graphics, making the image accessible will make navigation assessable right away. Use of access key and table index helps improve keyboard navigation.

The Tell Tale Heart Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Tell Tale Heart - Essay Example The writer of irony here is Poe, of course, and not the narrator since the narrator appears to be entirely oblivious to the ironic component of his monologue. Or is he While convention critical analysis of "The Tell-Tale Heart" engages the story from the point of view that the narrator's attempt to prove his sanity is an exercise in irony, his clearly deluded state of mind can just as easily be interpreted as a brilliantly conceived plot to escape extreme punishment for his crime by convincing the people that he is insane when he is not. In a sense, "The Tell-Tale Heart" contains the nugget of an idea that would be fleshed out to novel-length status in Joseph Heller's Catch-22. The catch-22 in the narrator's case is that he would clearly be sane if he attempted to prove his innocence, but if he doesn't try to prove his innocence he will most likely receive capital punishment. One of the fascinating aspects of this story is that it remains unclear to whom the narrator is addressing his appeal to be found sane. It might be the police; it is more likely a judge; the most likely consideration of all is that is the warden of the prison or even a group of people gathered to watch him hang. The question of the direction of the narration is left open to interpretation, but one thing is clear. Instead of attempting to prove his innocence, the narrator's long monologue becomes a case of trying to prove his sanity. The lack of a concrete explanation of the person or office to which the narration is addressed leaves much room for interpretation. The only aspect with even a close approximation of certainty is that the story is not being addressed to the police officers since he mentions that they were satisfied. The climax of the story is the revelation of the dead body and the story is told as a remembrance, so the most likely estimation is that the narrator is addressing some kind of court official or personage who may influence over the judgment of the narrator. The story that the narrator is telling, therefore, is most accurately realized as an appeal for mercy rather than merely an appeal to be thought sane. After all, if the exhortations to be found sane are accepted, then the judgment cannot help but be merciless. It is only if this obsessive quest to be considered sane results in the ironic reversal of being declared insane that the narration makes any sense whatever. "The Tell-Tale Heart" can thus be said to work on two levels of dramatic irony at once. The most obvious level of irony, the one that most readers recognize and that forms the crux of so much literary analysis, is that the narrator's obsessive devotion to proving his sanity undermines that devotion to the point that it is impossible to designate him as anything other than psychotic and at least semi-delusion. The irony in this reading of "The Tell-Tale Heart" is based upon the traditional reading that irony is produced by the contradiction of what is actually being said and what is actually meant. When a reader peers closer and brings into context the potential for whom the narrator is addressing and why he would choose to prove his sanit

How to Write an Essay Essay Example for Free

How to Write an Essay Essay Writing a good essay is what any human being can do but writing an exemplary essay only some can achieve. Learning and comprehending what you learn is completely different then just interpreting it and not putting that hard work into work. People always struggle with the beginning of the essay and getting started. To begin an essay you must always have an introductory paragraph. This paragraph consists of a thesis statement and a tone. The thesis statement should tell a reader what you will be writing about. Your tone will help the reader understand why you’re writing what your writing and for what. In other words, are you informing the reader, or persuading, or even trying to amuse them? You want to make sure that the tone suits the topic of your essay. Now, the essay will provide us with what is next in writing an essay. Once you begin an essay with your introduction you want to keep a reader entertained with your writing. By doing this you then follow with your body paragraphs which contain from three being the very least to as many as you need. The body paragraph is your main part in the essay. These paragraphs provide the support to your introduction paragraph and also to your thesis statement. They fill the essay with details and examples. However, each body paragraph should have one topic sentence and possibly a concluding sentence. You also want to improvise by showing the writing of elements such as parallelism, definition, description, contrast, analysis, repetition, summary, amplification. Understanding your essay is also a major factor. Make sure you review your work closely and repeatedly. Although, your essay should understand you must also stay on topic, remembering to focus on your thesis statement. Your essential focus of your essay should be expressed in the thesis statement. While writing you want to provide transition between each paragraph that will guide your reader to a conclusion that will sum up the essay. Amplification in an essay is adding more detail to the word itself. Such as, â€Å"The professor gave a presentation in which he showed us different slide; music slides, text slides, illustration slides, chart slides, video slides, just too many slides.† An example of parallelism would be â€Å"Whether at home or at work, he was always busy† this element is using the same pattern of words to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance. Definition would be best defined as elucidating a word into greater detail so it could give a better view of what you’re writing about to the reader. Description could be another use of using many adjectives in your essay, describing a noun into depth. For example â€Å"The sky is remarkably beautiful today with blue skies, no clouds and the sun beaming onto your skin making you warm but not hot.† Accomplishing everything that has been instructed in the past paragraphs leads you to one last thing to do. Reviewing your essay from grammar mistakes, punctuation mistakes or lack of transition words is an important task you want to complete. You would also want to make sure that there are no run on sentences. These sentences basically are statements that have already been said. For example a run on sentence would be â€Å"Adam is a sweet boy he really loves animals.† The correct way to write that would be â€Å"Adam is a sweet boy. He really loves animals.† You want to make sure that you are able to speak to your reader as if he or she were sitting in front of you. In other words, instead of writing the essay, try talking the essay. Proofread your essay until it reads just how you want it to sound. With this in mind your concluding paragraph comes last. In the conclusion you want to recap your idea in a clear summarizing manner. You want to make sure that after your reader is finished reading the essay the message you intended to communicate was understood. You need to keep in mind that the last paragraph should be short and avoid any extra information that would discredit anything you said. One last element of writing would be the summary. The summary is the whole essay being put into account and re reading it to make sure you stayed on topic and kept the whole essay organized for your reader to understand. All you’re trying to do is make a benevolent exit, and most probably all the really important points have been made previously in your essay. However, you should not repeat your thesis either. Once you’ve done all that’s been elucidated you should have a strong essay and be able end your essay without any difficulty.

Importance of the Student Council and Student Voices

Importance of the Student Council and Student Voices It is being widely recognized that young people have the tight to be heard and also to speak out about their school experiences. International policy makers are urging the contribution of young people to todays and tomorrows world. The U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child included the right of children to be heard as one of their four basic principles. How to listen and learn, as well as to teach and lead, is the challenge for teachers, schools and their communities (TEACHING AND LEARNINIG, JUNE 2003). A study by Helen Demetriou showed that consulting the young people could be a way to responding to the needs of teachers and also the pupils. It shows that pupils voice have the potential to harness the thoughts and feelings of pupils which will ultimately lead to effective teaching and learning. The study carried out interviews on 11 secondary school science teachers to ascertain the quality of their teaching and the extent to which they felt they were successful in communicating with the students. Thus the research highlighted the merits of consulting children in both primary and secondary schools about their teaching and learning (Helen Demetriou, university of Cambridge). What must the students be consulted about? Firstly the students must be consulted about the School-wide issues Like revising school mission statements, system of rewards and sanctions, revising school rules, what qualities are needed in a new teacher, and how to get the school council to work well the contribution of pupils as researchers. Secondly they must be consulted about the Year group issues like the induction plan for next year, parents evenings, qualities in a year tutor, suggestions for timetables and organizing homework. Thirdly students must be consulted on issues in their class like their preferences in learning styles, way f understanding, peer support, improving group works and way of catching up so that you dont miss work. Consultations at all these three levels have a similar purpose but are shaped differently i.e. in the context in which they occur. In the classroom teachers must always consult pupils and check whether theyve understood the module or need help in their learning. At school level the consultation is based on a different set of condition, skills and sensitivities (TEACHING AND LEARNING, JUNE 2003). ADVANTAGES FOR THE PUPIL It develops in them a stronger sense of membership. They feel more positive about school and the organizational dimension. They will also build a stronger sense of respect and self worth, making them feel positive about themselves. It also creates a sense of self-as-learner and enables them to better manage their own learning. It gives the a sense of agency making them feel like a part of the school matters which will contribute in the improvement of  teaching and learning. ADVANTAGES FOR THE SCHOOL It helps build a practical agenda for a change which the pupils can identify with. The changes can lead to enhanced engagement with school and school learning. It helps in building a deeper relationship between the pupils and the teachers. It also creates a sound basis for developing democratic principles and practices. It will also enhance the capacity of the school as a learning organization. SCHOOL COUNCIL A school council is thus built on this foundation of student consultation, making their voice heard, and thereby integrating them as a part of the organizational system. A school council is a group of students who are elected to represent the views of all pupils and also to improve the school. The term means collectively stands for all kinds of school-based groups run by students, which includes student forums and youth parliaments (Newsround, school councils, retrieved on 28th April).The functions of the school council are to organizes meetings; usually with a teacher present, on topics such as school lunches, behavior or ideas for fundraising events. The members of the school council are also responsible for carrying out the final ideas that have been agreed at the end of each session e.g. planning discos, writing newspaper articles, or meeting with catering staff. The important features that will enhance the working of a school council are firstly it should not be too big. Secondl y they must conduct regular meetings and representatives with strong communication skills must be chosen. Training should also be provided for the members. The council can be again spilt into smaller sub-committees that will work on specific events. The council must also carry out annual evaluations and also decide their curriculum time so that they dont miss out on their lessons. The concept of School Councils has been around for around for almost 40 years, but now with citizenship being taught, there are many more around. The government acknowledges that school councils are important; but still they will not force schools to have one. In some countries there however there are laws which state all secondary schools must have councils. Eg:- Ireland, Germany, Spain, Sweden (Newsround, school councils, retrieved on 28th April). Every school council is a legal entity in its own right i.e. they are a group of people who are given the power to set the key directions for the school. This means that a school council can directly influence the quality of education that the school provides to its students. They endorse the key school planning, evaluation and reporting documents which also includes the School Strategic Plan, the school budget and the Annual Report to the School Community. School councils make sure the schools running effectively in terms of how it spends its money. The council is accountable to the Minister for Education in respect to how it fulfills its functions. (Introduction to school council, retrieved on 28th April). Objectives of a school council A school councils objectives must include assisting the schools in their efficient governance, ensuring that decisions affecting students of the school are made keeping in mind first and foremost the students interests. It must also include, enhancing the educational opportunities of the students at the school and ensuring that the school and council comply with all the legal requirements. Functions of a school council (Introduction to school council, retrieved on 28th april) The 3 critical functions of a school council are to firstly participate in the development of the School Strategic Plan. Secondly it is to approve the annual budget and the monitor the expenditures. Thirdly they must be involved in developing, reviewing, updating and monitoring of the school policies Drawbacks of a school council The drawbacks of a school council includes that firstly it does not manage day-to-day functioning of the school. It also does not discuss the individual issues that relate to teachers or staff or parents. Thirdly school councilors are not appointed to represent specific interest groups. Also school councils do not renew the principals contract or recruit or dismiss the principal. The school Council is also not allowed to grant license in terms of land; purchase a motor vehicle or plane etc. Co-operative forces in school councils In order for school councils to operate effectively, its important that the school council is able to work in a team. An important relationship is that between the principal and the school council president. They need to co-operate and work together, and when necessary, be prepared to acknowledge any personal differences so as to be able to work in partnership for the good of the school. Even the school council president and the conveners of the subcommittees must maintain respectful and cooperative relationships. Subcommittees are advisory bodies to school council and do not make decisions by themselves. Therefore its important for subcommittee to remember this. School council members need to work as a team, which means respecting the different skills, knowledge and experience that each member brings to council, sharing the workload and responsibility. School council also needs to be able to work cooperatively with the parents and staff at the school. This does not mean that counsel ors have to like everyone, rather they need to be able to listen and ask the school community, about their views on various topics; example: uniform policy or dress code. The school council needs to discuss and document a process for consulting with its community. Role of school council members For the school councils to operate effectively, its very important that its members respect each others opinions, even with the ones with whom they disagree with. Its very important that after a council reaches a decision, the school counselors must support that decision in the school community. Parent members who are on the school council can share their experiences as parents at the school, thereby bringing a wider school community to school council meetings. If any community members are on a school council, they can introduce a particular skill to school council like accounting , building skills or some other skill that the school is looking for at that time. To be on the school council one must be keen, not necessarily an expert. Its helpful if one likes to interact with people, because of the need to be able to work as a team. One also needs to be prepared to commit time and effort to ensure the work of council gets done. School councils work best only when they have people from different backgrounds with different experiences. Being on the school council is thus a great way to get involved and have a say in what the school does for its students. It is also a very good way to help the present and future students. One important role of the school council is to help set the future direction for the school. The school council must meet at least 8 times every school year, and at least once per school term. Its a good practice to have 2 meetings per term. The meetings should be restricted to approximately 2.5 hours duration at most. Most schools require that all school counselors are expected to sit on at least one subcommittee. Subcommittees also meet at least twice each term (Introduction to school council, retrieved on 28th April). School council elections The principal arranges and conducts these elections according to the procedures that are outlined in the schools council. The Elections are held each year. If one decides to stand for election, they must arrange for someone to nominate them as a candidate or they can nominate themselves. The nomination form must be returned within the time stated on the notice of election and call for nominations. Ballots are held only if more people are nominated as candidates than there are positions to fill. Every student must vote and even encourage the parents to do the same. The details of the election process are available from the school. To find out more about what a school council involves, one can talk to the principal or the school council president or the past and present school counselors. Officer Roles in school council The School Councils have officer roles such as the Chairperson whose duty is to has to draw up an agenda at least two days before a meeting. He/she has to take views of the other Council members. Second officer duty is that of a Vice-Chairperson who takes the Chairpersons place if he/she is not available. A vice chairperson has to assist the chairperson. The third officer position is that of a secretary who has to take down the minutes of the meeting, write any letters/communicate with others. If a member seeks election as Chairperson, and proves unsuccessful, they automatically go forward for election as Vice-Chairperson. Need for a School Council To help children develop responsible attitudes, improve their behavior; give children hands-on experience of issues in the National Curriculum. It also creates a feeling of belonging, encourages listening to others and develops self-confidence. And above all to improve pupil/teacher relationships (SCHOOL COUNCIL, retrieved on 28th April). NSPC SURVEY (School Councils, retrieved on 28th April) In 1989 NSPCC ran its first Listen to Children week with an aim to encourage parents and professionals to listen to children. The underlying message was that a child who is heard is more likely to turn to a parent or other adult if she/he needs help. And the schools have a particular role in encouraging and empowering young people. In a previous research conducted by NSPCC, pupils across the Midlands and Wales were consulted about their school life. The major recommendation from this research was that schools must find effective ways of consulting pupils. School councils have been an essential feature of the British education for many years but very little was known about how effective teachers and students believed they were (School Councils, retrieved on 28th April 2011). The previous NSPCC activities and research have reinforced the importance of listening to children as part of their protection. Schools in particular have an important part to play in supporting this process of empowerment. NSPCC believes that school councils must encourage children and young people to be more resilient and better protected. NSPCC did this research as a first step in the process of attempting to learn more about school councils and how they were perceived by those who participate in them, as well as collecting the views of the staff and students who dont have school councils (School Councils: the Views of Students and Teachers). NSPCC conducted a survey of school councils in partnership with School Council UK and the Advisory Centre for Education (ACE). A questionnaire was sent to a random sample of teachers approx in 200 state primary schools and students and teachers in 600 state secondary schools in England and Wales. The findings were as follows (School Councils, retrieved on 28th April) The staff from 294 secondary schools and 89 primary schools responded; 226 of 240 secondary schools with councils also submitted a student response. Student replies were from 30 of the 54 secondary schools without councils. Three quarters of the council meetings were attended by a senior member of the schools management team. In 92% of the school councils in secondary schools and in 12 of the 16 councils in primary schools the student members were elected. The frequency of meetings varies enormously. In 4% of schools, meetings were held every week; in 9% they occurred once a month; and in the other 9%, three times a term; in 45% twice a term and in the remaining 27% once a term. 44% of schools meetings were held in that curriculum time; 35% were during the lunch break; 25% after school, and 2% before school and 2% in assembly time. In 91% cases students contributed to the agenda and in 66% the staff did. But there was, however, considerable variation in the consultation processes aro und these agendas. About 54% of council specific topics could not be discussed. (School Councils, retrieved on 28th April 2011). They were matters relating to members of staff (44% of councils) or individual pupils (19%). Areas other than that included uniform, the length of the school day, curriculum content and disciplinary matters. Most frequently mentioned agenda items were the matters related to canteen, uniforms and toilets. Twenty percent of the responding councils had discussed staff appointments, and majority of them had been involved in some way in the interviewing process. Comments from both staff and students indicated that most of them thought that councils played an important role in communicating. Student respondents in schools with councils rated the performance of their councils in relation to certain criteria. And the ratings showed that they were more optimistic about their potential for improving relationships between students (73%) than for securing an improvement in the relationships between staff and students (50%). The main advantage identified by the staff and students was that the cou ncils gave the students a voice, providing the link between staff and students, and also allowing the students to have a role in the management of school (School Councils, retrieved on 28th April 2011). The areas in which the staff wanted to see councils develop was in developing of a proactive student council, improved communication between councils and all other sections of the school community, particularly governing bodies, and student involvement in the development of school policies. Students placed more emphasis on raising the profile of councils in their schools, on contributing in areas where a student perspective was seen to be extremely important, such as the development of anti-bullying or discipline policies, and on obtaining appropriate training for student representatives so they could be more effective partners. The staff identified two main issues standing in the way of the development of some council, which were time constraints and staff resistance. The obstacle identified by students was to establish a higher level of trust between students and staff in many schools before real progress could be made. A third of the schools which responded did not have school cou ncils although the majority of them were willing to see one established. Staff and students alike viewed them as a way of giving the students a greater stake in their schools. Only few of the respondents opposed the introduction of a council in their schools. In the primary sector this was mainly because teachers thought their pupils were too young to participate effectively or because they felt staffs in these schools are already operating under extreme pressure which should not be augmented. Only a quarter of the staff respondents in schools without a council identified disadvantages in having one and that was related to the time that a staff would have to the council, if it were to develop into an effective force within the school (School Councils, retrieved on 28th April 2011). HISTORY OF SCHOOL COUNCIL Prior to the 1960s, political education was in the form of hard academic learning about constitutions and institutions especially for the high status students; or they were reminders of observing the rules by the low status students. Then with the introduction of the Program for Political Literacy (Lister 1987), procedure values and skills were being encouraged. (Ian Davis school council, retrieved on 28th April) During the 1980s a new era of education became prominent. Education based around global peace, gender, anti-racist etc were being emphasized upon. The focus was now on political literacy and specific political issues. In early 1990s citizenship education had was developed emphasized on voluntary activity by individual young people in the context of a declining welfare state. However the current version of citizenship education (from Cricks notion) is about social and moral responsibility; and also the community involvement and political literacy. A number of key thinkers have outlined the importance of school councils (Palmer; Davies, Gregory and McGuinn 2002). A few of them are mentioned as follows- Dewey postulated that thinking is the instrument for solving problems and that knowledge is the process of accumulation of wisdom gained in the problem solving process. (Westbrook 1993, p. 279). Rousseau outlines a number of key ideas like childhood is not just a preparation for adulthood but rather a stage of life in itself; individualization of education and also that children learn by discovering (Ian Davis, school council, retrieved on 28th April). Vygotsky argues that culture plays an important role and one cannot talk about learning as such, but has to judge the nature of learning in relation to the culture that produces it. Individuals can also develop their own learning by interacting with the environment and not waiting for learning to be imposed on them. (Ian Davis, school council, retrieved on 28th April). Rowes arguments for and against school councils FOR The students have the right to be heard and live in justice. They also learn how to serve each other. The council promotes citizenship learning and social confidence that will enable decision making in challenging situations. Its a democratic process which is effective and efficient in developing a consensus. AGAINST The Schools must not deceive the children into thinking that they have more power; its important that teachers exercise their professional responsibilities. It emphasizes service rather than rights. The councils create a low status and cynicism. ROWES CONCLUSION He concluded that its rather easy to underestimate the obstacles that come in between a good communication between teachers and students. The size of the council does matter. Momentum also is necessary because counselors will lose interest if nothing is happening. Also the staff needs to be responsible and make the students feel worthwhile. The head and administrative staff must make the counselors feel valued. The Staff must also be aware of vulnerable times of the year. SCHOOL COUNCILS IN OTHER COUNTRIES Danish Education Act 1996 requires that the secondary schools must create and maintain pupil councils when the majority of the students want to have one. The Irish Education Act (1998) The school board has to establish and maintain procedures for the purpose of informing students about the activities of the school. A procedure thats been established under section 1 will enable the involvement of the students in the operations of the school having regards for the age and experience of the students in association with their parents and teachers. A board of a post primary school should encourage the establishment of a student council and facilitate by giving assistance to The students who want to establish the council Councils when they have been established Australian secondary schools have a student representative council and in USA the National Association of Student Councils is active. DIFFERENT TYPES OF PARTICIPATION IN A COUNCIL Levels of participation (Hart 1992). Manipulation- The children are engaged for the benefit of their own interests, formulated by adults, but the children themselves do not understand the implications. Decoration- The children are called in to embellish adult actions. Adults do not pretend that all this is in the interest of the children themselves. Tokenism- Children are given a voice, to serve the child friendly image adults want to create, rather than the interest of the children themselves. Assigned but informed- Adults take the initiative to call in children but inform them on how and why. Only after the children understand the intentions of the project and the point of their involvement, the children decide whether or not to take part. Consulted and informed- Children are intensively consulted on a project designed by adults. Adult initiated shared decisions with children. In the case of projects concerned with community development, initiators such as community workers and local residents frequently involve various interest groups and age groups. Child initiated and directed- Children conceive, organize and direct a project themselves without adult interference. Child initiated shared decisions with adults Its up to the school to choose what they prefer (IAN DAVIS, SCHOOL COUNCIL, retrieved on 28th April). Methodology In order to investigate the functioning of the school council, a multi-method approach of gathering data (triangulation) is used to ensure maximum reliability and accuracy. The purpose of this is to ensure validity of data and ensure that the results of the research are a true a true representation of the school. INTERVIEWS All members of the school council are interviewed (one class at a time-two members per class-one male and one female providing all participants agree to participation). An interview of the person setting up the council was taken to find out what the aims for the council were. Also an interview of 3 staff members who are present at school council meetings was taken Pupils are approached during break time or lunch time, and are asked to answer if they agree or disagree with a series of statements. And depending on their answers, the questionnaire for further investigation is developed. The advantage of this method is that it yields good results and the researcher can be assured that he/she knows exactly what the pupils mean. Additionally the researcher can also notice the students reactions to the questions. The disadvantage however is that not so many results can be gathered by using only the interview method. For the interview to be successful, the children must have the freedom to describe their views; they must feel comfortable so that they answer accurately. (misconceptions in science education, retrieved on 28th April). OBSERVATION Observational techniques are a very important aspect of several research and case studies. In a way we all are already well versed in the art of observation. We all observe human behavior and tend to draw conclusions based on that. In research however its important to go beyond the subjective approach and eliminate bias. Also its important to be systematic and open about the procedures of the study, so that others can check the bases on which the conclusions have been reached. (ANDREW HANNAM,2006) Non-structured observations are used in this study because the aim is to measure staff influence in meetings and council agenda and this can be best measured only without the constraints of structured and semi-structured observation methods. PUPIL QUESTIONNAIRES A questionnaire provides a pool of questions that can be used to explore the barriers and supports for the pupils in school. It uses open and closed questions. It can use symbolic faces to rate their experiences or more conventional response options. It also helps explore a pupils feelings of the different events and happenings in the school. Therefore this method of data collection will help to find out a students problems. Even though the students complete the questionnaire by themselves, they still must be briefed initially about why they are being asked these questions; and who will have access to the information and how will it benefit in bringing about a desirable change. The questionnaire can be designed in an online format as pupils are more engaged with an online format and it also adds a feeling of anonymity. Whereas a black and white photocopy is completed as compliance without any personal thought or reflection. An important advantage of questionnaires is that the pupils responses are not influenced by an adult ( pupil questionnaire, retrieved on 28th April). This questionnaire that has been made for this study is anonymous with the option for pupils to write their name, especially if they wish to have a follow up conversation with an adult. QUESTIONAIRE 1. How many times did your school council meet during the current school year? 2. Does your school council meet the minimum membership requirements outlined by in the provincial regulation? Yes No 3. What efforts has your school council made to ensure that it has met the school council membership requirements? 4. What kinds of consultation and activities was your school council involved in during the current school year? (tick against the options you feel right) Consultation Activities Local school year calendar Fundraising School code of student conduct Workshops and/or seminars for parents Preparation of the school profile Extra ­curricular activities in the schools Input to the principal profile School community communication strategies School budget priorities Reporting to parents/guardians and the community Curriculum and program goals and priorities Local coordination of services for children andyouth Responses of the school/Board to achievement School ­based services and community partnerships, In provincial/Board assessment program such as social, health, recreational programs lunch/nutrition Development, implementation, and review of Community use of school facilities Board policies at the local level Others, please list below Others, please list below: 5. How does your school council seek input from parents and the school community? i- School council meetings ii- Sub ­committees iii- Casual Discussion iv- Parent e ­mail list v- Surveys 6- What were the top three priorities/goals for your school council for the current school year? a)Addressing School Transfer Procedures and winter line ­up problem. b) Investigate School Transfer Policy options. c) Establishing better communications (via more frequent Lisgar Links e ­newsletters and a new web site). 7. Were you successful in achieving these priorities/goals? Yes No 8. Why/why not? 9. How could we best communicate with school councils? 10. What are your school councils top three priorities for the coming year? 11. What are top three biggest challenges facing your school council for the coming year ? 12. Any additional comments or suggestions to improve our efforts to support school councils? 13. What should the focus of School Council be for the upcoming (year) school year? 14. We would like to increase involvement in the school and need new members of School Council. (OTTAWA CARELTON SURVEY)

Religion and Spirituality Integration in Therapy: Ethics

Religion and Spirituality Integration in Therapy: Ethics Ethical Issues for the Integration of Religion and Spirituality in Therapy Danelle J. Hollenbeck Abstract Psychologists are professional who have undertaken a code of ethics mandatory in practicing psychology. Ethical issues arising from religion and spirituality that is integrated into therapy requires psychologists to undertake a moral and ethical view on treating these clients. This paper addresses the codes in which psychologists adhere to when undertaking secular-theistic therapy, avoiding bias, multiple relationships, imposing religious views, and competence, and informed consent. This paper discusses relevant ethical dilemmas when providing psychotherapy to clients. This paper also reviews ethical circumstances in which American Association of Psychologist Codes (APA) applies to these ethical and moral situations. It will also briefly discuss ethical consideration of the codes at intake, assessment, treatment, and over-all accountability of clients in regards to religion and spirituality. Introduction Psychology (as well as science in general) has embraced spirituality and religion more and has used rigorous scientific methods such as double-blind randomized clinical trials to examine important questions related to psychology and religion integration (Plante, 2007). Many individuals are more religious and spiritual than previously and therefore are requesting that health professional integrate this into their professional work, in particularly psychology, as well as psychologists have become interested in the same and look for ways to integrate this into their practice (Plante, 2007). Discussion The American Psychology Association (APA) supports religious diversity and states that  psychologists are aware of and respect cultural, individual, and role differences, including those  based on age, gender, gender identity, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, sexual  orientation, disability, language, and socioeconomic status and consider these factors when  working with members of such groups (American Psychological Association, 2015). This focuses on Principle E, Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity (Fishers, 2013, pg. 13), which ensures fair treatment of all people regardless of ethnicity, gender, culture, religion, disability, etc. We may not agree with our client’s religious beliefs, but we are asked to respect them and the traditions of others (Plante, 2007). We are to avoid bias and according to Standard 3.01 we are to avoid discrimination based on other qualities and religion (American Psychological Association, 2015). Psychologists must be competent in the services provided. We must adhere to Standards 2.01b Boundaries of Competence, and 2.03, Maintaining Competence. According to Gonsiorek et al. (2009) â€Å"Competence in the services providing regarding spirituality and religion is a fundamental ethical requirement†. Just because we might be of the same faith or have a similar interest in our client’s religious practices does not make us to be experts in the field, therefore we must adhere to Standards 2.01b and 2.03 and have the appropriate training and experience necessary to provide services. We must also remember that psychologists trained as theologians may not satisfy the ethical code, even if dually trained and could face potential challenges (Gonsiorek, Richards, Pargament, McMinn, 2009) therefore standard training is the key. The Ethical Code also avoids secular-theistic bias. It’s important to refrain from perceiving a client’s faith as low intelligence just as it’s important to refrain from viewing a client from a different faith as misguided or as second class (Gonsiorek et al, 2009). Principle D: Justice and Principle E: Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity, and Standards 2.06, Personal Problems and Conflicts and 3.01 Unfair Discrimination are applied towards bias. Positive biases can also be just as destructive as the negative biases. Gonsiorek, et al. (2009) states positive biases can result in serious problems being misconstrued as diversity and in behaviors with significant mental health implications being ignored (2009). Standard 3.04, Avoiding Harm applies as such we must take reasonable steps to avoid harming clients when possible (APA, 2015). Biases of any type interfere with the therapeutic relationship and diminish psychological services, thus psychologists are expected to have self-reflection and examination to screen biases (Gonsiorek et al, 2009), Assuming a client has sought a psychologist who is trained in theistic therapies or is not  aware that a psychologist offers religious modalities such as Mindfulness, Ho’oponopono, or  prayer would be incorporated into treatment; therefore Standard 10.01 A B, Informed  Consent is mandatory in any treatment offered, yet also in disclosing and discussing the  psychotherapist’s qualifications, background, theoretical orientation, and specific areas of  expertise; specific goals of treatment; and reasonably available treatment options and alternatives  are included in informed consent (Barrett Johnson, 2011). A psychologist also needs to  address concerns or issues that have arisen during intake regarding deep-seated sectarian beliefs,  and their levels of comfort and practice, as well as how this may impact their goals and process  of treatment (Barrett Johnson, 2011). Before embarking on any effort to challenge  troubling or discordant aspects of rel igious belief, it is essential that the psychotherapist  evaluate his or her competence in this area, provide appropriate informed consent, and consider  seeking consultation from clergy or other professionals with expertise in this area (Barnett Johnson, 2011). The risk of multiple relationships provides many challenges for psychologists who are also clergy members. Multiple relationships may raise boundary concerns, specifically if a client requests his or her religious aspect of the same church in which the psychologist attends be implemented into their treatment. In this case, psychologists must adhere to Standard 3.05B, Multiple Relationships, which states a psychologist finds that, due to unforeseen factors, a potentially harmful multiple relationship has arisen, the psychologist takes reasonable steps to resolve it with due regard for the best interests of the affected person and maximal compliance with the Ethics Code (apa.org). These ethics codes (and their understanding) join psychologists to respect each client’s  religious/spiritual beliefs and practices reducing any harmful effects on the client’s own biases when formulating treatment for each individual client. References American Psychological Association. (2015). Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/ Barnett,J.E., Johnson,W.B. (2011). Integrating Spirituality and Religion Into Psychotherapy: Persistent Dilemmas, Ethical Issues, and a Proposed Decision-Making Process.Ethics Behavior. doi:10.1080/10508422.2011.551471 Fisher,C.B. (2013).Decoding the ethics code: A practical guide for psychologists. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Gonsiorek,J.C., Richards,P.S., Pargament,K.I., McMinn,M.R. (2009). Ethical Challenges and Opportunities at the Edge: Incorporating Spirituality and Religion Into Psychotherapy.Professional Psychology-research and Practice. doi:10.1037/a0016488 Plante,T.G. (2007). Integrating spirituality and psychotherapy: Ethical issues and principles to consider.Journal of Clinical Psychology. doi:10.1002/jclp.20383 Burj Khalifa: The Worlds Tallest Building Burj Khalifa: The Worlds Tallest Building On 4th of January, 2010, Dubai, where there was only wind-blown litter a generation ago, witnessed the opening ceremony of the worlds tallest building,Burj Khalifa. A brilliant work of art with difficult structural problems took 1,325 days to completion since the start of the excavation work in January,2004. Burj Khalifa has returned the name of the Worlds Tallest Structure back to the Middle-Eastern structures where the Great Pyramid of Giza claimed that honor for millions of years before the construction of Lincoln Cathedral in England in 1311. It is amazing to know that the triple-lobed foot print is inspired from the desert flower Hymenocallis which is common in Dubai. Being located in Dubai, UAE, the tower was influenced by Islamic and middle-eastern architecture.This influence resulted in the tri-axial geometry of Burj Khalifa. The tower consists of three wings arranged around the a central core in the shape of Y.As the tower rises from the flat desert ground, setbacks occur through the 26 helical levels decreasing the cross-section of the tower as it spirals skywards. The Y-shape plan is ideal for residential and hotel usage maximizing outwards view and inward natural light.Plus,it allows maximum view of the Arabic Gulf. As a super-tall structure, there were many difficult structural problems.To ensure safety and effectiveness of the selected design,a model of the building was subjected to extensive peer program. Designers used the buttressed core in Burj Khalifa consisting of a hexagonal hub buttressed by three wings bracing each other forming the Y-shape. Not only bracing each other but acting as a tripod base which is more stable than a four-cornered base. The corridor walls of the wings extending from the central core to the end of each wind terminate in a thickened hammer head walls. The main purpose of the Y-shape is to reduce the wind effects as well as keeping the structure simple, safe and foster constructability. The result is a stiff tower that can support itself laterally and overcomes twisting. Setbacks in each tier occur in a spiral stepping pattern up the building. These setbacks confuse the wind as the wind vortices never get organized because at each tier the building has different shape. The hexagonal core provides the essential torsional resistance like a closed tube. The wing walls and hammer head walls behave as webs and flanges of a beam resisting wind shears and moments. Specific strength of concrete walls ranges from C60 to C80 cube strength using Portland cement and fly ash. The C80 concrete used in the lower portion of the building has a specified Youngs Elastic Modulus (E) of 43,800 N/mm2 after 90 days. Wall and column sizes were determined using Virtual work/LaGrange multiplier methodology which results in very efficient structure. Wall thickness and column sizes are adjusted to reduce the effect of concrete creep and shrinkage. To reduce the effect of differential column shortening between perimeter columns and interior walls,the size of perimeter columns were adjusted such that the self-weight gravity stress acting on it is equal to that stress on the interior walls. As shrinkage in concrete occurs faster in thinner elements ,the perimeter columns had the same thickness of interior corridor walls(600 mm)to ensure that both columns and walls will shorten by the same rate due to concrete shrinkage. That super-structure had foundations consisting of a reinforced concrete raft of thickness 3.7 meters supported by 194 piles. Pouring the raft was divided into four separate pours. Self consolidated concrete (SCC)of C50 cube strength was used. Each pile is 1.5 meters diameter; 43 meter long buried more than 50 meters deep. Piles were designed to support 3,000 tons each and while load tests, they supported over 6,000 tons. Unfortunately, the towers substructure is constructed in a groundwater having chloride and sulfate concentrations higher than those in sea water! Having these aggressive conditions, a strict program of measures was required to ensure the durability of the foundations. Measures applied specialized waterproof covers, increasing concrete thickness, addition of corrosion inhibitors to the concrete mix and a cathodic protection system using titanium mesh. To get higher strength and lower permeable concrete cover to the steel bars, a controlled permeability formwork was used. Besides, a special concrete mix was designed to resist the attack from the groundwater. The concrete mix for piles having 25% fly ash, 7% silica fume and a water to cement ratio of 0.32, was designed to be fully self consolidating concrete having slump of 675 ±75 mm to avoid defects during construction. For that unprecedented height of the building, it was essential to compute wind forces and resulting motions in the upper levels as they became dominant factors in the structural design. Wind tunnel tests were undertaken under the direction of Rowan Williams Davies and Irwin Inc. The wind tunnel program included rigid-model force balance test, a full multi-degree of freedom aeroelastic model studies, measurements of localized pressures, pedestrian wind environment studies and climatic studies. Models used was of scale 1:500. The wind tunnel data was then combined with the dynamic property of the tower to get the full towers dynamic response to wind and the overall effective wind force distributions. The tower has six important wind directions. The principal three wind directions are when the wind is blowing into the nose of each of the three wings. The other three directions when the wind is blowing between the wings. The orientation and setbacks of the tower were selected relative to the most frequent strong wind direction for Dubai. A several round of wind tunnel tests were undertaken during the construction of the tower. After each round of tests, the geometry of the tower as well as the number and spacing of setbacks changed to minimize the effect of the wind forces on the tower by confusing the wind. As the design reached its end, a more accurate aeroelastic model was made. The aeroelastic model is as elastic as the building. The results of testing the aeroelastic model showed that the predicted towers motion was within the ISO standard recommended values without the need of any auxiliary damping. At the tallest point of the tower, it sways a total of 1.5 meters. Special concrete mix design having compressive strength of 10 MPa at 10 hours for the vertical elements to permit the continuity of construction cycle and a design strength/modulus of 80 MPa/44GPa. The concrete tests indicated that the compressive strength of used concrete used was much higher than the required one. One of the most difficult issues in concrete design is to ensure pumpability of concrete to reach world record heights especially in high summer temperatures. Four basic separate mixes were developed to enable reduced pressure pumpability when the building gets higher. A horizontal pumping trial was conducted in February 2005 having the same pressure losses equivalent to height of 600 meters to determine the pumpability of these mixes .The concrete mix used contained 13% fly ash and 10% silica fume with maximum aggregate size of 20 mm. The mix is virtually self consolidating concrete having slump of 600 mm and used for pumping pressure exceeding 200 bars. After the level 127,a less strength concrete is required(60 MPa compressive strength) having maximum aggregate size of 10 mm. High quality control was required to ensure pumpability to the highest concrete floor considering the severe conditions of weather which vary from a very cool winter to a very hot summer with temperature exceeding 50 °c. Pumping concrete was executed using Putzmeister pumps which are capable to pump concrete up to 350 bars through high pressure 150 mm pipeline. To convert the dream of Burj Khalifa to reality, the latest advancements in construction techniques and material technology were used. The walls forms were made using Dokas SKE 100 automatic self-climbing formwork system. Steel forms were used in the circular nose. Columns and the floor slabs are poured on MevaDec formwork. The construction sequence for the structure began with the central core and slabs being cast in the three sections, followed by the wings walls and slabs and then the nose columns and slabs. To ensure the verticality of the structure, a special GPS monitoring system was developed to monitor the verticality of the building as it gets higher. This was due to the limited convential surveying techniques in the site. When completed, Burj Khalifa has become the worlds tallest structure. Being a magnificent achievement in using the latest technologies and materials, able to integrate the architectural design concept with the structural design, Burj Khalifa will always be a special case to study. N.B: Highlighted sentences are from (Engineering the Worlds Tallest Burj Dubai)

Humorous Wedding Speech by the Father of the Groom -- Wedding Toasts R

Humorous Wedding Speech by the Father of the Groom Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen - I am the groom's father, Ken, and I have the great privilege of being best man. I have recently found out there are two reasons why J W asked me to do this job. 1) To make him look younger and slimmer in the photos. 2) Because he didn't want to burden any of his friends with the terrible prospect of having to give this speech. It's the speech that no one wants to do. The best man doesn't really know what he's expected to say and yet his speech is supposed to be humorous - but it might not be. It's supposed to be short - but it probably won't be. It should be original - but it seldom is. It should not offend - and most do. And finally, it's supposed to be sincere and I certainly intend mine to be. In fact, I cannot be more sincere than to say to my son what an honor you have done to me by asking me to be your best man today. That said, while you are all here to enjoy yourselves, the poor best man has to work for his supper - not that he is able to enjoy his food for the thought of making that speech. He is so nervous he can hardly eat his meal. J W, seeing how nervous I was, arranged for me to have the best seat in the house - namely cubicle 3 in the Gent's toilet. There's even a sign behind the door which reads 'the best man inspects these toilets at 15-minute intervals. If you have any complaints please report it ... ...come so fond of Kathy and we looked upon her as a daughter that we had gained. I can but wish the new Mr and Mrs Wilson every success in the future. As I said at the start I'm not very sure what a best man is supposed to say in his speech. I do know he really has only one thing he must cover and that is to say to the groom 'J W, on behalf of the matron of honour and the bridesmaids thank you very much for all that you said. I can only but agree with your comments. I would like to finish my speech by making a toast to the two most important persons here today - Ladies and gentlemen - a toast to the Chef and the Barman. Thank you. Only kidding, the toast is to J W and Kathy - the Bride and Groom.

Gun Control Essay -- Second Amendment The Right To Bear Arms

Since the early days, gun control has been a never-ending debate. It is because of the fast increase in crime, the fight for the right to own a hand gun, the introduction of legislation for gun control in order reduce the crime in the United States, that this issue has been hotly debated in recent years. The streets of America are now a war zone especially right here were we live. ?Florida has the highest crime rate of any state and the sixth highest homicide level?(www.guncite.com). A sad fact but true. Many people feel that gun control violates their right to own a gun the second amendment says so: ?the right to bear arms?. I personally share that point of view for it would not be in the constitution to begin with. However, there is no doubt that something must be done in order to reduce violence and to make America a freer country to live in. I believe that gun control should not take place for it does not reduce crime, it only increases the debates and as an alternative there sho uld be a stronger education. First, gun control does not reduce crime. After doing my research I was impressed to find that guns and violence are not as linked as much as people think they are. Curtis Lovelace confirms that Both Australia and England have already banned personal ownership of guns, but violent crime is not down in either country. In fact, in Australia violent crime is up in every category. From 1997 to 1999, murders were up 6.5%, and attempted murders rose by 12.5%. Increases w...

The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks Essay -- The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks

â€Å"The Wedding† by Nicholas Sparks The novel â€Å"The Wedding† by Nicholas Sparks is a sequel to the love story, The Notebook. The characters in this novel are facing pretty much one big problem. The setting in this story is taken place in the year 2003 in a little place called New Bern, where the lives of the Lewis family would change in many ways. Wilson and Jane Lewis; a married couple for many years, are the main characters in this novel. They are facing a very difficult time in their lives. It seems as if Jane has fallen out of love with Wilson. Wilson is the kind of guy who spends far too much time at work. He knows he should be spending more time at home, but just never could find the time to do so. During the course of their life, they had kids and did everything a normal f...

Gene doping: the hype and the reality

Genetic manipulation has produced some potential advantages to be able to alter the cells in animal models of human diseases, which may make disease as a thing of the past and help with the development of better pharmaceutical products in order to extend the human life spans, however, there are still major technological obstacles that require further research to ensure the methods and effects of genetic manipulation. The gene therapy products may not only be beneficial to human diseases, but also to athletes in sports. Some potential targets for gene doping include the induction of muscle hypertrophy, increasing oxygen delivery, and the induction of angiogenesis. Some of them may be undetectable by using current tests. Therefore, in order to prevent athletes from benefiting from novel treatments for diseases, it is important to improve the technology of gene doping and the methods of detection. For some potential targets of gene doping, insulin-like growth factor 1 is an example, which is a protein that can stimulate the proliferation of cells, somatic growth and cellular differentiation. And myostatin is another protein that negatively regulates the muscle mass. Therefore, overexpression of insulin-like growth factor 1 along with the blockade of the action of myostatin may induce the hypertrophy of muscle. Moreover, increasing oxygen delivery is also important for endurance events. In order to increase the delivery of oxygen, erythropoietin can be used to raise the hematocrit because the expression of erythropoietin leads to an increase in the production of red blood cells and hence an increase in the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. As a result, it might improve the athletic performance, particularly for endurance athletes. Personally speaking, as a guy, I would like to manipulate the insulin-like growth factor 1 because it can increase the muscle mass and induce the hypertrophy of muscle which can make me look more muscular. Also, it can stimulate the proliferation and differentiation of the cells, which can escape age-related muscle atrophy and retain to be young. That is what everyone wants to be! For gene delivery, the genetic material is transferred into the target cell by using a delivery system called vector. Gene transfer can be divided into ex vivo and in vivo gene transfer. In ex vivo gene transfer, the cells are taken from the individuals to be treated, and then they are genetically modified in the cell culture by using the viral vector, which is more complicated and expensive. For in vivo gene delivery, the vector is prepared with the gene of interest, so this prepared vector can be used to treat many individuals, which costs less. Actually, both methods of gene delivery have their own benefits and limitations; therefore, a comprehensive gene transfer protocol is required to make sure that there is no risk to the individuals.

Particular audience Essay

It is confidence building to remember that all experts were at one time students and entry-level members in their career fields. With this in mind it will help to alleviate some of the stress and anxiety you might feel when you first make contact with them. There are many possible avenues to locating and interviewing an expert. However, there are key tactics that can be utilized in order to increase your chances of landing your first choice. This brief essay will outline a plan of action in order to increase the odds of finding success with your expert interview. To begin, make a list of possible experts relevant to your subject. Some of the best ways to find these experts are in calendar of events in newspapers, magazines and on television. By keeping your options open you can rest assured that if for some reason one of the experts does not wish to participate, you will at least have back-up options. The next key, after locating your expert and establishing a method of contact – whether online of offline – is to establish your credibility. Tell them or send them a link to where they can find examples of your work, or of the institution that you represent. This will show them that you are legitimate and that your will reach a particular audience. Once you have established a working relationship you need to set a date and time. Remember that you are asking for their time, so be as flexible and accommodating as possible without compromising your deadline. When the interview comes, be prepared. Have your recording equipment ready and make sure you have done your research so that you can ask insightful questions. The more prepared you are, the more relaxed you will be. At the conclusion, let them know you will send them a copy of the interview for their records and thank them for their time.

Novel “Parvana” Essay

Deborah Ellis novel Parvana explores how human can survive in near to impossible situations and misfortune, however Parvana not only survives but thrives. The novel is set in Afghanistan at the height of the theocracy where her father has lost a leg her brother has been killed by a mine and her mother is undergoing extreme stress. However things take a turn for the worst when they thought nothing else could happen, and her father is taken away by the Taliban so she is forced to dress up as a boy and provide an income for the family. Parvana is chosen to do the work for the family then why didn’t her mother dress up as a boy instead or her older sister? It is true that she supported her father every day at the market but is it really right to pick a girl that isn’t even a teenager? Well the answer in quite simple yes the reason being this being her family believes that she is the only family member able to undergo the transformation in gender as well as the mental transf ormation. Once Parvana father is taken away by the Taliban nothing will ever be the same even if he does come back. So Parvana is forced to give up certain aspects of her and her family’s lives in order to insure the family survival an example of this is when she dresses up as a boy in order to go outside, this is a major change to Parvana life because she most definitely did not do this previously, however the differences don’t just stop at family routines if you like and visual differences but also effects the family mentally for example as time goes by Parvana becomes braver and stroner however her mum does not benefit as much and becomes disheartened and depressed.

Nicholas Carr vs Steven Pinker Essay

There is no doubt about it that in today’s generation the Internet is one of the best phenomenal creations invented. By simply having a computer, cell phone, tablet, ect, anyone and everyone can access the Internet. But can this powerful yet simple creation have a drastic effect on how the new generation operates today? The entire world is rapidly becoming obsessed; everywhere you look you’re bound to see something related to the Internet. Search engines, texting, twittering, blogging; to name a few. We have all heard of at least one of those internet friendly applications. But can those applications become too friendly to the point where they are a distraction to the young mind? Can those applications hinder how the human brain functions? There are numerous arguments, views and statements regarding such an important question. Two writers that I researched share their opinions and views based off of how the internet has affected others intelligence today. These two writers go by the name of Nicholas Carr and Steven Pinker. Without having any knowledge of what the articles are about one only needs to read there titles to distinguish the differences between the two. Where as Nicholas Carr’s article is titled, â€Å"Does the Internet Make You Dumber? † Steven Pinker’s article is titled, â€Å"Mind over Mass Media†. Both writers have completely different types of titles but one can assume that they are responding to the same subject. After thoroughly reading both articles, Nicholas Carr and Steven Pinker have completely different views when it comes down to how the internet influences others. Firstly, Nicholas Carr addresses heavily how in fact the internet does make you dumber. All throughout the article he gives examples of studies aimed at showing how the internet doesn’t positively contribute to the brain at all. As stated from the article Nicholas Carr explains how â€Å"People who read text studded with links, comprehend less than those who read traditional linear text. How, people who watch busy multimedia presentation remember less than those who take in information in a more sedate and focused manner†. All of which are pretty apparent that the effect that the internet has on the mind is quite drastic. On the other hand, Steven Pinker’s article strongly disagrees at the fact that the internet affects the human brain. His defensive points primarily explain how without the internet a lot of today discoveries and new inventions wouldn’t be possible. Also he defends the fact that distraction or addiction is not a new phenomenon. Regardless of whether the internet is a popular utility or not, distraction would still be an occurring issue. It is quoted: â€Å"If electronic media were hazardous to intelligence, the quality of science would be plummeting. † Also, â€Å"Yes the constant arrival of information packets can be distracting or addictive, especially to people with attention deficit disorder. But distraction is not a new phenomenon. The solution is not to bemoan technology but to develop strategies of self-control as we do with every other temptation in life. † Steven Pinker is trying to get the reader to understand that the internet doesn’t essentially make you dumber but it does hinge at one’s attention span. Outside of the internet distractions are common everywhere. One can become distracted by their job, parents, work, internet, ect. Because of these interruptions Steven Pinker’s makes it known that all distractions require self-control. If one doesn’t have self control over an issue they will become addicted. Lastly my research wasn’t over. It wouldn’t be right if I didn’t get a third opinion to help provide some extra study. A third writer that I came across was a woman named Sherry Turkle. Sherry Turkle has written a popular novel titled â€Å"Alone Together†. In the novel Alone Together author Sherry Turkle explains a third completely different concern on how technology affects the average American. This concern is in regards to how individuals will end up alone together because technology has distanced face to face relationships. That society expects more from technology and less from each other. Over the years Sherry Turkle has examined how technology has jeopardized the true meaning of hands on communication. Although she does not mention how the internet may interfere with learning or brain capabilities she does still presents other exceptionally important factors. In conclusion, in comparison of the two primary articles that I researched I would ultimately have to agree with the Nicholas Carr piece. I feel as if the Nicholas Carr piece will convince more people. His article compared to Steven Pinker’s has a lot of legitimate studies and facts. His studies included one conducted at Cornell University, where they conducted the laptop experience, which compared the effect of students who studied utilizing the traditional method of the library and those who studied using the laptop for research, with the conclusion that those who studied using the library grades were higher; studies from Stanford where they conducted a multi-tasking trial, also, studies from the University of California in San Francisco where they conducted a brain experiment. Where, Steven Pinker’s article comes off as an opinion piece with little to no background information or supporting references. I would want to believe that the mind is in fact over mass media but Steven Pinker’s article doesn’t defend his title strongly at all. Thus, leaving me with the conclusion that the internet is a major distraction, can hinder how I use my brain properly, and can jeopardize my in person communication skills that I have available.