In The Heat Of The Night Essay

Choose a character from To Kill a Mockingbird, to write about. Here are some suggestions: *Scout Finch *Boo Radley *Atticus Finch *Jem Finch *Tom Robinson *Mayella Ewell *Dill Harris **Note†¦. All examples from In the Heat of the Night. Step 1 – Pre-Writing/Outline Brainstorm for several character traits, using the sheet(s) provided. Then, try to narrow down your search to THREE good traits. How do you pick the best three? Ask yourself the following questions: **Do the traits explain the character’s round personality overall? **Do the traits show the character’s dynamic personality (how they were at the beginning versus the end, for example)? In your outline, explain, reference, and analyze each of the traits from your brainstorming. You must use direct references from the text (quotations). Step 2 – Thesis Paragraph Grab the reader’s attention with a solid opening: †¢Ask a question †¢Use a good historical or literary quote †¢Make a bold statement Discuss what the story is about and give a bit of the plot. Introduces the character (write as if the reader has not read the novel): †¢Position in the story †¢Related to whom or friends with whom or enemy of whom †¢Protagonist/antagonist †¢Importance/significance Include a thesis statement which states the 3 traits you chose for you character. Albert Einstein once said, â€Å"You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else.† Virgil Tibbs, the protagonist in the novel, In the Heat of the Night, by John Ball, must learn the rules of a small town in order to be heard and survive. The plot of In the Heat of the Night revolves around the murder of a well-known maestro in a small southern town, and also includes the many underlying human conflicts between the two main characters. Tibbs, a black investigator from California, and his relationship with the small town’s residents, including Sherriff Bill Gillespie and police office Sam Wood, create a subplot that becomes essential to the development of the story. The clash of ethnicity, personality and method of investigation becomes the essence of the story and creates an intense level of interest that compels the reader from beginning to end. It is through this intensity that Tibbs’s personality as a determined, intel ligent, and compassionate person shines through. Step 3 – Body Paragraphs For EACH Body Paragraph, you are going to carefully describe how each trait suits the character. Be aware that the order of the traits is critical. All of your traits should be strong, but you want to end your essay with the strongest. In addition, you may find that your traits seem to follow the  story chronologically. If so, then, you want to discuss the traits chronologically. Each body paragraph should looks like a SERAERAC paragraph. That means you will have two reasons to support each trait. S – States the character trait. E – Explains the character trait and how it relates to the character. R – Explicit reference supporting your explanation effectively integrated. A – Analysis of how the reference supports your statement. T – Transition E – â€Å"† R – â€Å"† A – â€Å"† C – Profound statement and/or transition to next body paragraph. Don’t forget to introduce new characters. Don’t just mention a character and expect the reader to know who you are talking about. Don’t forget to use good transitional devices at the beginning of the paragraph AND within the paragraph. Use the sheet provided to help you with this. Use a good transitional word or phrase to begin the subsequent paragraphs (body paragraphs 2, 3). From the moment Virgil Tibbs sets foot on soil of Wells, South Carolina, he shows his determined personality. After Bill Gillespie discovers the murder of Maestro Mantoli, he happens to stumble across Tibbs who is sitting at a train station waiting to catch a train and return home to California. At this point, both Sam Wood and the reader are unaware of Tibbs’s occupation as a police investigator. All we know is he is a â€Å"negro† and completely out of place in the predominantly white, racist town of Wells. But that does not stop him from being determined to prove his innocence to Gillespie back at the police department: â€Å"Where did you get all this dough?† [Gillespie] demanded, and rose just enough from the seat of his chair so that the prisoner could see his size. â€Å"I earned it,† [Tibbs] replied. â€Å"And what do you do in Pasadena, California, that makes you money like that?† The prisoner took the barest moment before he replied. â€Å"I’m a police officer,† he said. (19) In this particular scene, Tibbs does not show Gillespie or Sam any insincerity. He cuts right to the chase. A little later in the novel, he shows just how determined he is when he is resolved to find out who killed Maestro Mantoli. When Harvey Oberst, a 19-year-old man initially jailed for the murder because an officer found him with Mantoli’s wallet, is brought in, Tibbs is determined to convince Gillespie he has the wrong man because he analyzed the murder scene in detail and can decisively draw a conclusion: â€Å"How much more do you want?† Gillespie asked, his voice somewhat closer to a normal level for a change. â€Å"It eliminates the superficial motive,† Tibbs replied, â€Å"it means digging a little deeper. I expected it, but it is an advantage to see it confirmed.† â€Å"†¦Don’t tell me you bought [Oberst’s] story. I thought you were supposed to be a hotshot cop†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"He’s innocent of the murder†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . (34) Unlike the officers around him, Tibbs digs deep to find the true meaning. Even when Tibbs is scrutinized by men like Gillespie, he refuses to back down, showing the importance of having a determined personality. Step 4 – Concluding Paragraph Sum up your ideas and say something poignant! Explain how the character traits benefitted or hindered the character (or both). Ultimately, how did the trait impact the character? Explain how the traits make the character admirable or detestable. Should we strive to be like him/her? Double space your work. Use 12 point, Times New Roman. Indent each paragraph. Do not leave an extra space between paragraphs. Have someone edit your work.

Establishment of responsibility Essay

While at the counter, the customer can see other employees making the pizzas and the large ovens in which the pizzas are baked Instructions: Identify the six principles of internal control and give an example of each principle that you might observe when picking up your pizza. Note: It may not be possible to observe all the principles. ) 1st Principle – Establishment of responsibility * Only one person is responsible for a given task. * For example, the cashier that exchanges the pizza for cash would be the principle of establishment of responsibility. 2nd Principle – Segregation of duties. Accounting employees balances books * Another personnel has custody of cash on hand (making deposits) * In this principle- segregation of duties one cannot observe this principle in this scenario. th Principle – Documentation procedures * Pre-number documents or invoices * For example, the cashier has pre-number receipts for each order that is picked up by the customer. At the end of the clerk’s shift these invoices are forwarded to accounting to timely record each transaction. 5th Principle – Physical mechanical and electronic controls * Consist of having safes, deposit boxes, and time clocks for time worked. * The clerk has a cashier that controls and safeguards the assets to enhance the accuracy and reliability of the accounting records. th Principle – Independent internal verification * Employees review, compare, and reconcile data that was prepared by them. Three measure are recommended: * An example cannot be provided for this principle because a customer cannot identify if: * 1st – Org. should verify records periodically or on a surprise basis. * 2nd – A manager should make the verification of an employee * 3rd – Discrepancies and exceptions should be reported to mgt. to make appropriate corrective action. Chapter 7: Problem Set B: P7-2B The board of trustees of a local church is concerned about the internal accounting controls pertaining to the offering collections made at weekly services. They ask you to serve on a three-person audit team with the internal auditor of the university and a CPA who has just joined the church. At a meeting of the audit team and the board of trustees you learn the following: A) Indicate the weaknesses in internal accounting control in the handling of collections. There are a few weaknesses in internal control in the handling of collections for the church, such as there is no supervision when the ushers take money. There is a chance that the ushers can take money from the collection plate. In addition, the financial secretary manages three tasks like bank reconciliation, has control and has custody of the cash, and maintains the church records. Moreover, the financial secretary holds out cash ($150-$200) per week; different withhold amounts for cash expenditures. There is not a witness when the head usher or the financial secretary count the money. Last, checks are made payable to cash (Kimmel, Weygandt & Kieso, 2007). B) List the improvements in internal control procedures that you plan to make at the next meeting of the audit team for: Ushers: How churches handle usher operations varies from congregation to congregation, but a consistent set of controls protects the fiduciary integrity of the church, and creates confidence among donors. One problem in the collection process is that only the head usher counts the collection without any accountability to ensure his count is accurate, or that all of the funds donated are transferred to the safe. This can be resolved by having the other ushers count the donations and sign off on the report, so that more than one set of eyes have verified the donations. Additionally, volunteers will need to take a course familiarizing would-be ushers with standard operating procedures, and reporting standards before being qualified to volunteer for usher position. This will help solidify controls for the ushers. Head Usher: While the church may not be currently experiencing anything wrong with the usher selection and volunteer system at the church, some improvements might be considered. The church might consider making the head usher a year-long term, elected by church members to create continuity, but also impose term limits – possibly every 3-4 years a head usher must take a sabbatical. Additionally, because the head usher role is so pivotal in the collection process, and it is a place where mistakes or malfeasance can easily take place; it would be helpful for the ushers and the financial secretary to be present in the collection counts, the day of, so someone outside the usher department can verify tithe counts. Financial Secretary: The most glaring issue, which opens up easy access for, would be embezzlers in the congregations check policy. All checks being written to cash basically enables anyone to cash out the check, the church, a rouge employee or volunteer, or otherwise. All checks need to be made out to the church, not to cash. It would be even better if the church went the route of many churches by allowing donors to have donations processed monthly (or weekly depending on donor preference) through e-commerce, allowing debit or credit payments to be made automatically to the church account. This will add a layer to the recording process, but it also increases security for donors. The financial secretary also needs to stop pulling cash from weekly donations for cash expenditures as cash transactions are harder to track and thus are more easily abused. Instead a petty cash account needs to be started, and cash allocated as needed based on historical records of cash expenditures. Additionally, a church credit/debit card, or reimbursement policy greatly will diminish the need for high levels of cash in the petty cash account. Finance Committee: The first thing the finance committee needs to do is to follow its own policy, and conduct annual audits. The church’s 501 (C)(3) nonprofit designation demands this. Often the most â€Å"trusted† employees are the ones who are found to have committed improprieties. Regardless of trust, regular audits, and reporting is essential. The second major priority is for the financial committee to purchase a fidelity insurance policy that will protect the church in the case of financial impropriety or massive fraud on part of those who handle finances. In addition to the need for an overhaul in policy (discussed below), the financial committee needs to inculcate a culture of financial vigilance and rigor to keep the church from even the perception of financial impropriety. C) What church policies should be changed to improve internal control? The church board of trustees is responsible of make sure that the church runs smoothly, from assigning the right ministers to the right ministries and making sure that the tithes and offerings are accounted for after each service. The first and most important thing that the church needs to do is getting some fidelity insurance. This type of insurance will protect the church of losses that may result of fraudulent acts by specified individuals. Protecting the church of any dishonest employee or member who may steal money, securities, and other property that once belong to the church. The second thing is to have an audit conducted because there has not been an audit performed in 15 years. Highly recommend using an outside source of performing the audit, this way every rock and stone will be turn over. The church financial management department should be responsible for counting and recordkeeping of the tithes and offering received but in separate offices, one office for counting the money and the other office for recordkeeping purposes The head usher responsibility should be making sure that the tithes and offering plates are accounted for and immediately delivering the plates (with one member from the board of trustee) to the financial management office (the financial office manager, and one individual from the board of trustees are the only ones with keys to both offices). The financial management recordkeeping personnel and the financial secretary should first come to an agreement on how much cash is needed for the week expense. Also the two will count the money with the intention to be deposit along with a deposit slip; the financial secretary will be responsible of making the deposit and afterward returning the deposit receipt to the recordkeeping office for recording purposes.

Trueblood Case

SUBJECT: Deciding the Appropriate Extent of Audit Performed for Billy’s Beats for Asset Valuation Billy’s Beats Inc. , an SEC registrant, is a new audit client with a fiscal year-end of December 31, 2010. Billy’s is a manufacturer of musical instruments. Billy’s acquired Little Drummer Boy Inc. in 2010 for $575 million in cash. Significant assets acquired included property, plant, and equipment totaling $865 million and other assets totaling $145 million. The useful lives assigned to the property, plant, and equipment acquired were 30 years for the plant and 15 years for the equipment.The useful lives for the plant and equipment already owned by Billy’s are 20 years and 10 years. Other included assets of acquired customer lists, were assigned a useful life of 15 years. To test the useful lives of the operating assets, the engagement team asked management why the number of years assigned to the plant and equipment acquired differed from the years ass igned to the assets which Billy’s had already owned. Management stated that the useful lives for the acquired assets were the amounts used by Little Drummer before the acquisition.The engagement team discussed the useful lives of the acquired property, plant, and equipment with the plant manager of Little Drummer. The plant manager stated that 30 years and 15 years for the plant and the equipment, respectively, were the useful lives used before the acquisition. This discussion was documented in the audit working papers. The valuation specialist allocated the plant fair value of $865 million to each asset class based on the percentage of the seller’s total original cost applicable to each asset class. These percentages were provided by management of Little Drummer and relied on by the valuation specialist.The engagement team compared the percentage of total costs to a client prepared spreadsheet listing each asset class, asset ID, and percentage of total cost. No errors were noted and, accordingly, no further testing of the client-prepared spreadsheet was performed by the engagement team. In addition to its drum manufacturing business, Billy’s also wholly owns RockOut Inc. , which is the largest manufacturer of guitars in the United States. RockOut grew through the acquisition of other guitar companies and completed five acquisitions durng 2012, eight acquisitions during 2009, and four acquisitions during 2008.As a result of the acquisitions, RockOut reported approximately $90 million, which was 15 percent of total assets and 60 percent of total intangible assets, of customer lists as of December 31, 2010. RockOut amortizes its customer lists on a straight-line basis over 25 years, which management believes reflects the pattern in which the economic benefits of the customer lists are used up. During 2010, management revised its estimate of the customer list economic life, and began assigning an amortization period of 15 years to newly acqui red national customer lists.Amortization expense for the year ended December 31, 2010, was $3 million. To test the economic lives of the customer lists, the engagement team asked management what the reasoning was for the change in the assumed economic life this year. Management provided a memorandum that discussed the rationale for using the 25-year economic life to amortize the various customer lists, as well as the rationale for the current-year change in management’s estimate of the newly acquired national customer lists lives.According to IAS 16, The cost of an item of property, plant and equipment comprises, its purchase price, including import duties and non-refundable purchase taxes, after deducting trade discounts and rebates, any costs directly attributable to bringing the asset to the location and condition necessary for it to be capable of operating in the manner intended by management, and the initial estimate of the costs of dismantling and removing the item and restoring the site on which it is located, the obligation for which an entity incurs either when the item is acquired or as a consequence of having used the item during a particular period for purposes other than to produce inventories during that period. Because this in not how the company decided on the value and useful lives of the assets in question they should have follows IAS 36 to determine if there was an impairment. The audit procedures for determining if there was a valuation problem could also be addressed using FASB Statement No. 142.

Criminological Theories in Crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Criminological Theories in Crime - Essay Example The criticism of the theory is mainly based on the claim that there is nothing like a criminal gene. However, certain evidences have been put forward in recent times to show that genetics are a source of criminal behavior. This paper will explore the merits of the idea that genetics are a source of criminal behavior. It will also examine the strengths and weaknesses of the evidences surrounding genetics and crime. The essay will then look at whether the police departments should consider or dismiss the findings. Finally, the paper will explore the dangers of believing in the existence of a criminal gene, as well as the consequences the existence of the gene may have in the field of criminal justice system. Namazi (2010) notes that there is a divided opinion regarding the role of genes in criminal behaviors. However, some research conducted in the past has suggested that genes contribute largely to criminal behaviors among individuals. What these studies suggests is that, a child whos e farther happens to have been a criminal, is most likely to become a criminal in the future due to genetic influence. Despite having been refuted by some theories that maintain that there is no criminal gene, the twin and adoption theories provide a good connection between genetics and criminal behaviors (Cassel and Bernstein, 2007). ... For example, a study conducted by Christiansen in Demark, found out that genetics plays a vital role in influencing the criminality (Cassel and Bernstein, 2007). In conducting the study, Christiansen surveyed a population of 3,586 twin pairs. From the study, Christiansen found 52% of the twins concordant for criminality for male-male identical twin pairs and 22% concordant for male-male fraternal twin pairs (Cassel and Bernstein, 2007). This evidence suggested that identical twins inherit some biological characteristics, which increases their risk of being registered for criminal behaviors. A similar study conducted in the United States and Sweden showed a higher concordance for criminality amongst MZ than DZ twins did (van Dusen and Mednick, 1983). This studies support the claims that genetics influence criminal behaviors amongst individuals in society. Several adoption studies conducted in 1970s and 1980s have also provided convincing evidence that genetics influence criminal behav iors. According to adoption studies, having a parent who have been imprisoned at one time increases an individual’s risk of getting a criminal conviction when the person grows up regardless of whether the person is brought up by pro-social, law-abiding, and genetically unrelated relatives. The adoption studies established that genetic effects on criminality are important for both sexes. However, the genetic risk was found to be higher for female than male offenders were (Mednick, Gabrielli and Hutchings, 1984). Regarding an adoptive study conducted in the U.S., Mednick, Gabrielli, and Hutchings (1984) noted an increased rate of criminality in 42 Iowan adoptees with criminal biological mothers. Another study conducted by Mednick, Gabrielli and

Hospitality Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 9

Hospitality Management - Essay Example All the team members are always willing to participate and contribute ideas when setting goals, objectives, targets, policy and procedures of the team. They also rely on and trust one another such that a member can share and value different ideas of other members. The team encourages effective communication, consideration of other viewpoints, and tolerance to confusion. The motto of the team is to seek alternatives that all members can agree, support and implement the decision of the team. The team uses a democratic leadership style that includes and engages all members of the team. It also employs a blend of intuitive and rational decision making approaches to have effective decision making. The team encourages valuing of a diversity of background and experience in the team, and contributions of a diversity of viewpoints to enable it have sound decisions and better solutions. In the case of a conflict, the team handles it openly and transparently to prevent grudges from building up and destroy team morale. Responsibilities and roles are clearly defined to help the team members fathom what they are supposed to do. This creates members commitment to the team that supports it success. The bond among members of the team allows them faultlessly to coordinate their work to achieve effectiveness and efficiency. The culture of the team inspires members to be open, positive future-focused, and transparent. With all these, the team can create a positive atmosphere that helps i t deliver success (Schermerhorn. 170). However, members have gone through some team dynamics and challenges that try to demotivate and demoralise them. For instance, a year after the team started a new team member caused friction with the established members and as a result, they tended to oppose any changes the member tried to introduce. Later on the wrangle was cleared up through communication of roles and responsibilities of each member. Also, at the

The Thinker by Auguste Rodin Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Thinker by Auguste Rodin - Essay Example One of them is Franois-Auguste-Ren Rodin, popularly known as Auguste Rodin. He was a French sculptor, an artist with a sharp eye. His arts echoed until these days. He fashioned his works meticulously and looked at the details. Thus he was honored as the leading sculptor of the late 19th and early 20th century. He combined and artistically manipulated his works with detailed textures and modeling associating the vast emotions of man. The following year he decided to delve into doing decorative stonework. And in 1862, her sister Marie died, which caused him great troubles and afflictions. He tried to enter the church but it was fate that brought him to met Rose Beuret in 1864 who became his life companion. Formally they were not joined by the matrimony of marriage until a few weeks before her death in February 1917; she was 53 years old then. The same year when he met Rose Beuret, he became an apprentice to the sculptor A.-E. Carrier-Belleuse. His first submission to the official Salon exhibition in 1864, The Man with the Broken Nose, was rejected. In 1871, he went with Carrier-Belleuse to work on decorations for public monuments in Brussels. Carrier-Belleuse was not satisfied with his work thus dismissing him. Soon, Rodin collaborated on the accomplishment of decorative bronzes, and Beuret joined him in Brussels. The rejection probably had made hi... Carrier-Belleuse was not satisfied with his work thus dismissing him. Soon, Rodin collaborated on the accomplishment of decorative bronzes, and Beuret joined him in Brussels. The rejection probably had made him to realize he needed to develop a style of his own. It was consummated after four years; he developed his own styles because he was urged to produce innovative and decorative works. In the midst of this innovation, He toured to five cities of Italy: Genoa, Florence, Rome, Naples, and Venice before returning to Brussels. Italy has been the cradle of Renaissance art. He saw the works of Michelangelo and Donatello, amazed with their works; he was inspired to create such fine works as Michelangelo and Donatello, bringing the emphasis on the muscle works and human emotions. He produced his first original work molded in bronze, The Vanquished, depicting painful expressions of a physically overpowered man seeking for rejuvenation. Scandals arose in his exhibition in Brussels and at the Paris Salon of The Age of Bronze in 1877. People did not believe that he made such realistic work and he was charged of casting it from a living person. His former master heard that he went back to Paris in 1879, Carrer-Belleuse asked him for designs. After much controversies and rejections, he was granted a payment and appointed to make a statue for the City Hall in Paris. He gained his reputation as a sculptor in 1880 with the success of his sculptures: The Age of Bronze and St. John the Baptist Preaching. The same year he modeled The Gates of Hell, the sculptured bronze door for the Muse des Arts Dcoratifs in Paris. The door incorporates scenes from The Inferno. It was made through the inspiration of Dante Alighieri's The

Rule of Law within the United Kingdom Constitution Research Paper

Rule of Law within the United Kingdom Constitution - Research Paper Example Dicey posited the following propositions. Firstly, no man could be punished or lawfully interfered with by the authorities except for breaches of the law. In other words, all government actions must be authorized by law. Secondly, no man is above the law and everyone, regardless of rank, is subject to the ordinary laws of the land. Thirdly, there is no need for a bill of rights because the general principle of the constitution is the result of judicial decisions determining the rights of the private person. Criticized by many for the undue haste in its passage, with concerns of political pressure being raised, the law in its original form contained passages that human rights groups deemed to be violative of established human rights principles. Amidst the outrage surrounding the 911 attacks, the Anti-Terror Law was heralded as a measure to combat the worldwide phenomenon of terrorism and to arrest its spread and development. Legal scholars and free speech advocates, however, unite in condemning the law for trampling constitutionally-protected liberties. There is also the possibility that the law might give rise to or at least encourage racial profiling, particularly the provisions on the prescription of terrorist organizations. It might further alienate minority groups and exacerbate the political violence by radicalizing "moderate" groups.Human rights advocates scored a victory when the Law Lords ruled that a provision in the Law allowing the indefinite detention of foreign terrorist s uspects was contrary to human rights principles. Lord Nicholls of Birkenhead, in his ruling, said: "Indefinite imprisonment without charge or trial is anathema in any country which observes the rule of law." This decision was reached when nine detainees lodged their appeal before the Court. However, concerns on free speech and freedom of association still remain.Notwithstanding these concerns, valid though that they may be, this paper will argue that the rule of law is still very much flourishing in the United Kingdom.  

Supply chain management in the uk construction Industry Essay

Supply chain management in the uk construction Industry - Essay Example According to the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP), â€Å"supply chain management encompasses the planning and management of all activities involved in sourcing and procurement, conversion and all logistics management activities† (Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals, n.d.). In addition to these, SCM also includes collaboration and coordination with channel partners which includes suppliers, customers as well as intermediaries. The council also says that the supply chain management also plays a crucial role in integrating demand and supply management across and within the companies. According to James B. Ayers, supply chain management is all about â€Å"designing, maintenance and operation of supply chain process, including those that make up extended product features, for satisfaction of end-user needs† (Ayers, 2000). Over the past few decades various techniques regarding supply chain management (SCM) have been used successfully in different industries like manufacturing and food. In these industries, the supply process encompasses all those activities that are associated with the processing – from raw materials to the finishing of the final product. The entire process involves procurement, production scheduling, inventory management, order processing, storage, customer service, transport and all the supporting information systems. Roy Morledge, Mohieddin Grada and Andrew Knight opined that in manufacturing industry, supply chain management strategies are adopted assuming that it is â€Å"an ongoing process where supplier and customer experience involves frequent transactions for the same or similar products† (Pryke, 2009). SCM strategies are considered as the key in maintaining quality and making the innovation process easier. Each of the aspects through which SCM is integrated wit h the manufacturing and food industry can be discussed in the

Buddhist Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Buddhist Art - Essay Example According to the research "Buddhism art" findings Buddhism art has been one of the prominent forms of art in areas traditionally known as Western Central Asia and Eastern Central Asia and it had an important relationship with the artistic traditions of Ladakh, Tibet and Nepal. The historical evolvement of the movement was mainly due to the various essential aspects of the movement which influenced the progress of art in the future. Analyzing the nature of this art movement, it becomes lucid that in its first, essentially Indian, the aniconic phase of development, Buddhist art avoided direct representations of the Buddha and its iconic phase was characterized by the direct representations of the Buddha. â€Å"Anthropomorphic representations of the Buddha started to emerge from the 1st century CE in northern India. The two main centers of creation have been identified as Gandhara in today’s Punjab, in Pakistan, and the region of Mathura, in central northern India.† (Buddh ist art) One of the major influences on the art of Gandhara was the interaction with Greek culture due to the conquests of Alexander the Great in 332 BCE and it led to the development of Greco-Buddhist art. Thus, there are clear evidences of Greek artistic influence in the Gandharan Buddhist sculptures and the Gandharan school of sculpture has, artistically, contributed to the wavy hair, drapery covering both shoulders, shoes and sandals, acanthus leaf decorations, etc in Buddhist art. Buddhist art sprang from the religious tradition of Buddhism. ... Analyzing the nature of this art movement, it becomes lucid that in its first, essentially Indian, aniconic phase of development, Buddhist art avoided direct representations of the Buddha and its iconic phase was characterized by the direct representations of the Buddha. "Anthropomorphic representations of the Buddha started to emerge from the 1st century CE in northern India. The two main centers of creation have been identified as Gandhara in today's Punjab, in Pakistan, and the region of Mathura, in central northern India." (Buddhist art) One of the major influences on the art of Gandhara was the interaction with Greek culture due to the conquests of Alexander the Great in 332 BCE and it led to the development of Greco-Buddhist art. Thus, there are clear evidences of Greek artistic influence in the Gandharan Buddhist sculptures and the Gandharan school of sculpture has, artistically, contributed to the wavy hair, drapery covering both shoulders, shoes and sandals, acanthus leaf de corations, etc in Buddhist art. In a profound analysis of Buddhist art, one recognizes that several important artists from the early stages of its development have contributed to the evolvement of this art tradition. Significantly, Buddhist art sprang from the religious tradition of Buddhism and this art tradition is closely related to the practices of the religion. Thus, the major works in paintings of this tradition depicted dragons, flowers, and Buddha himself, while other forms of Buddhist art include statues, shrines, tapestry and various other forms and textures of art. It is important to note that very little is known about the major ancient Buddhist artists who have contributed to the development of this art tradition. Two of the major Buddhist artists in the 18th and

Communication Technology And Its Impact On Social Interaction Research Paper

Communication Technology And Its Impact On Social Interaction - Research Paper Example Employees spent most of their times on computers using emails to pass information from one part to the other, rather than with their fellow colleagues. With the concern of social welfare within a work field, communication technology has led to poor communication within the workers. In addition to this reduction of face-to-face social interaction, the level of social support and belief also goes down. As the result, it leads to an exceedingly poor worker-to-worker relationships.3 This is because most people prefer using emails on their personal computers rather than face to face communication. Social Networking sites, such as MySpace, Twitter and Facebook, have taken over social networking industries for the past few years. Both young and old people have become captives of this bubonic plague used differently by people to satisfy their needs. Some people use them as advertising sites, keeping in touch with friends and relatives and updating others on what is going on in others minds t o help reach out to the public. Yes, we are the members of these social networking sites, and we can not run from the truth. What concerns people most is the way this sites have got themselves involved in the use of emails. It is evident that even this sites use email to help reach their addressee, and they also have their web pages that can be accesed via Emails. With the sites, through either emails or information displayed in the emails, one has no way of confirming that the information posted on their walls is inaccurate. This is because individuals post what is in their minds. These posts are open to be seen by all of the people one befriends. The information posted might paint either a negative or positive... This essay stresses that diffusion innovation is theoretical perspective that focuses on the adoption of new ideas, practices and technologies. According to Rogers, perception about the attributes can facilitate the rate at which a new idea is adopted. To be specific, innovation is adopted by people with positive minds if they believe that they offer an advantage over what exists; if they are compatible with the potential users’ existing values, experience, and needs; if they are perceived as being fairly easy to understand and use; if users can try them before they commit to purchase; if users can easily observe their use. Communication channels only become effective if they are efficient and convey many different type of information such as visual, verbal and non-verbal. This paper makes a conclusion that as the technology changes, it creates a greater importance of work knowledge. Communities face varying experiences. Technology has undoubtedly shaped the social interactions of people. Thus, it is beneficial if we keep ourselves updated with the manifestations about the social interactions and create opportunities to interact with others, too. This is because the world is dynamic and we have to keep pace with it. It will be good if we try to look at both positive and negative effects of what we do over those social sites, especially via the use of emails, and focus on how technology affects us a whole since the technology can kill or build individuals’ dignity at places of work or any other place.

Understanding Good Customer Service Essay Example for Free

Understanding Good Customer Service Essay This is when they ask for something and they expect a certain level of service Customer satisfaction- This is when customers feel like you’ve given them a good service Main characteristics of typical customers- Typical customers purchase goods/services, make queries and ask for advice. Exceeding customer expectation- Providing good value for money, giving advice and information quickly, providing additional help and support and good discounts. Falling short of customer service- Being unable to meet customers’ expectations, unable to deliver services/goods and being rude. Different responsibilities in customer service Supervisor- training, day to day responsibilities, supervision and a source of advice Line manager- more supervision, more responsibility, and auditing. Customer service roles- Receptionist, shop assistant, delivery driver and accounts manager. Different kinds of information- Informative, instructive, directive, warning and safety. Common sources of information- Brochures, leaflets, internet, press reports and from your customers. Customer’s service experience is affected by the behaviour they receive from customer service practitioners Showing concern- Sympathy Listening- Nodding, saying yes Positive body language- Keeping eye contact Indentifying the reason for dissatisfaction- Faulty goods, no delivery. Apologising- Saying sorry, explain the reasons Remaining calm and in control- Not losing temper Typical customer service problems- Complaints, faults, deliveries and not fit for purpose Reporting customer service problems- To your supervisor, to your manager and to the supplier. Teamwork: To customer- Consistent service and effective cover for absences To organisation- Consistency and effective cover for absences To self- Help, support and an impact on motivation Organisational practices and procedures- Keeping accurate records, answering phones, staff appearance and dress, refunds policy and complaint handling. Importance- Ensuring consistent and reliable service, customer satisfaction, efficient operation and corporate identity. Reffering to someone in authority when? Outside own expertise, outside own authority, seeking advice and unable to deal with customer. Reffering to someone in authority how? Face to face, in writing, over the telephone and via text or email. Security of customer and their property- Compliance with health and safety laws, ensuring hygienic work practice and having a security alert. Security of customer information- Data protection laws and credit and debit details. Health and safety- Compliance with health and safety regulations, control of substances hazardous to health regulations 1994 and fire safety regulations. Treating customers equally- equal opportunities, racial and gender discrimination and compliance with regulations act. Importance of confidentiality to customer- making sure name, address, debit and credit card and details of purposes are secure. Importance and confidentiality to staff- making sure names, address’s are secure. Also making sure it is compliant with the data protection act- access limited to authorised personnel and computers need a password to be accessed. Legislation- Working time directive 1999, working with computers, equality act 2010 and the disability discrimination act. Effect of external regulations- organisational procedures and the trade body codes of conduct.

Henry David Thoreau and Resistance to Civil Government Essay Example for Free

Henry David Thoreau and Resistance to Civil Government Essay Henry David Thoreau was the most active participant in the Transcendentalist movement. He was a student and mentee of Ralph Waldo Emerson. While Emerson had transcendental ideas, Thoreau would act on them and fully practice them. Hence, he felt that he and others should resist America’s Civil Government. I heartily accept the motto, That government is best which governs least; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. (Thoreau) Thoreau starts out his famous essay with the statement that government should be weak and the people strong. He was a strong advocate of the individual the rights of the individual. To him, a person should be self reliant, as Emerson taught. He felt that the more citizens relied on their government for their needs, then the stronger the government would become and that could be dangerous. He felt that being controlled by a government, or anything else for that matter, was a tragedy in a person’s life. The main reason that Thoreau wrote Resistance to Civil Government was because he was completely tired of a government that could allow slavery to exist. Slavery was an institution in the Southern states where people actually owned African Americans. He felt that if it was wrong for a government to have to much power over the individual and his/her rights, then surely it was wrong for another human to own another. In the institution of slavery, the slave has no rights at all. Slaves were made to work extremely hard. Thoreau had nothing against hard work for an individual’s own self-reliance, but the slave did not benefit from his/her work. The owner reaped all of the profit. They did not get to choose their profession, it was illegal to teach them to read or write, many owners beat them, and they could be sold away from their families at any time. The owner controlled everything about them even life and death. Slavery went against everything that Thoreau believed about government and the individual. If it was true that it government should have as little control as possible, then it was an abomination that this kind of power could control another. Thoreau was so appalled that a government that claimed in its constitution that all men were created equal, could turn a blind eye to the institution of slavery. He decided that since his tax dollars went to a government that supported such an institution, he would no longer pay his taxes. He hoped that he could inspire others who proclaimed abolitionist thoughts would do the same. However, they did not. In fact when Emerson came to the jail to post his bond, he asked Thoreau why he was in jail. Thoreau responded by asking Emerson why he was not in there with him. Thoreau’s idea of civil disobedience to a government that is not of the people has been successful for several generations after Thoreau’s death. He impacted the lives of such great men as Ghandi and the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. King used Thoreau’s method and turned a nation around and forced it to recognize the civil rights of all people by Resistance to Civil Government. Thoreau and his idea of peaceful protest will remain an affective way to change governments for generations to come.

Ways Models May Help Or Hinder The Search For Knowledge Philosophy Essay

Ways Models May Help Or Hinder The Search For Knowledge Philosophy Essay A model is a simplified representation of some aspect of the world. In what ways may models help or hinder the search for knowledge? Q10. A model is a simplified representation of some aspect of the world. In what ways may models help or hinder the search for knowledge? The search for knowledge is an ongoing process through which certain humans intend to find answers and confirmations to questions and statements which continually arise in our society. The use of models as representations may help this task; however these may come in many forms. Different people will have a different opinion on what can be considered a model. I believe the word model implies people as role models of a community, recreation of happenings, exemplary of ideas and any possibly fitting set of information which can be made to represent something. These may be divided into categories such as physical, conceptual or mathematical amongst others depending on the way they have been brought together, what they represent and when and how they are used. An Area of Knowledge in which models may be thought to help is in the Natural Sciences. Scientists try to prove laws and theories with them but there is a great jump between a model and the real life situation. For example, a few months ago I was doing the capture/recapture method estimating population size of an organism. In order to do this we used boxes to represent habitats and beans to represent specie. We tried to prove that the smaller the habitat the less percentage error as well as the greater the habitat the more specie found in it. This was the result expected, nevertheless we all had different ways of looking for the beans, some students did not follow the rules and others had their boxs sides flop out. Consequently, our data was not accurate. The environment had been controlled and human fault made results less realistic. This model helped understand the concept and attain knowledge from its simulation but also hindered the latter as there was room for error. Another example is maps. These are a representation of the world on paper; they transmit geographical information and specific characteristics. Maps guide and help to understand the placement of things on earth. They help the search for knowledge as they are easy to comprehend; they show clear and important objects through which an individual can know where he is standing or going to next visually. However, maps also hinder as roads may be added or changed and information is limited as if absolutely everything was to be drawn on them things would overlap each other and make the search for knowledge difficult rather than clear and easy. Interpreting symbols may be confusing, scales may not be accurate and maps may not always be updated. All these factors alter the quality of knowledge that this model provides. Another example is when a company is to manufacture a product to launch onto the market. Before the real product is made, a prototype is produced. This is the closest representation to the final product. It may be used to change functions or features like shape and colour. It is a base which offers knowledge on how the final product will be like and therefore allows people to work on it to achieve the desired result. This however can be limited by technology, scarcity of adequate resources or perception in the sense that it may not come across in the same way to different people. Some may think the prototype is perfect while others may argue it is not exactly what they wanted. Another important area of knowledge where models are used is in history. Historians try to reconstruct the past with sources such as books written at the time, pictures or other documents. They create models for events to acquire knowledge from an earlier period of time. Here we should question to what extent are models accurate and therefore reliable. For example, the plane crash into the Twin Towers on September 11th was not perceived by everyone in the same way. People who were inside the building and survived will give a different account to that of someone who just witnessed the event on the street or on the news. Based on perspective and emotion, these two people would provide a different re-enactment of what they claim to know. How do we know which one to trust? In this case the accuracy of media and its manipulation of language will also have to be an important factor in the search for knowledge for what really happened and how. In addition, the use of ways of knowing is fairly important when attaining knowledge from a model. Are we using reason or emotion and whether this reason is deductive, Everyone who eats chocolate is fat. John eats chocolates. Therefore, John is fat. Or inductive, All of the Spanish girls we have seen are brunettes. All Spanish girls are brunettes. The latter implies a generalization in which assumptions are problematic because truth is suggested but not ensured. Consequently, the conclusion reached may not be right and result in misleading knowledge which then may be preceded by a wrongful model. Models are created by humans who are led by either language, reason, emotion or perception which make them somehow biased. Models have an input, a processor and an output. Hence, the way we intake information is vital as it will vary our way of seeing the model and detecting to what extent our findings are being hindered or helped. The language in relation to models is also significant. We must examine whether professionals in each field of the areas of knowledge would refer to models in the same way. Would an artist see a model and the information it provides with the same eyes a mathematician would? The same model may not be equally useful to both and the extent to which it hinders or helps what they are looking for may be different to each. This may depend on what they are seeking and what they already know. Take for example Mozarts music. If a mathematician and an artist where to listen to it, a mathematician may be finding a mathematical structure in terms of notes, beat or rhythm whereas the artist may be looking at the emotion the harmony provides. The model is the same, but they both look into it differently. We could think that if they were both to find the same specific information from it which was more inclined to one area of knowledge than the other; one would obtain better results as he is more of an expert in it. Another example of models helping the search and understanding of knowledge is in economics. Graphs, for example, help students understand trends and social behavior. However, these may not always be right as they tend to generalize. Not all people concerned with the study represented may have had a say in it so assumptions have been taken. When thinking of models we should consider whether there are any for resolving ethical situations. Is there a model we can look at for moral direction? For example, if someone comes up to you and asks what they should do if a ship were sinking and they had to save either a relative on one side or a newborn on the other, Is there a model to which we can refer to, to solve this dilemma? We should consider whether models can tell us how to behave, if so, who is to design such models and can they really be universally trustworthy to lead us to a right decision. A table of results may be considered a representation of a community in some aspect. Take for example a set of data which shows a survey on whether the death penalty should be adopted in a country or not. This would help the search for knowledge of peoples opinion on this. Similarly, it would hinder it as different people would have based their answers on different principles. How do we know that the methods used to obtain the results are precise? Can we be certain that it is a true reflection of the countrys view on this topic? Have we considered peoples backgrounds, culture or religious beliefs and if this affects the answer given? Likewise, stereotypes may be seen as role models. For example, Homer, a character from The Simpsons may be seen as a white American stereotype. He is a negative example of what some people may think is the typical American; fat, lazy and not very bright. This may help to understand the qualities and characteristics an American may have, but is it right for people to prejudice a group of individuals on the image a series gives of them? Does this mean they are all like that? How do we know to what extent the series portrays the real American or provides a misleading view of it? In conclusion, models are an important part of our daily life. They may be treated differently in the distinct areas of knowledge and may help or hinder to different extents. When looking at models some of the key factors are baring in mind assumptions, limitations, perspectives and reliability. Can we define the accuracy of knowledge? Probably not, but models do help attain a close representation of reality which contribute significantly to the search for knowledge.

F. Scott Fitzgeralds The Great Gatsby :: essays research papers

Characters in books can reveal the author feeling toward the world. In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald suggested the moral decline of the period in America history through the interpersonal relationships among his characters. The book indicates the worthlessness of materialism, the futile quest of Myrtle and Gatsby, and how America's moral values had diminished. Despite his newly acquired fortune, Gatsby's monitory means could not afford his only true wish, therefore he cannot buy everything which is important to Daisy. (Fitzgerald, -page 42) What you wish for is not always what you want or not all that glitters is gold. The wild lavishness of Gatsby's parties and the shallowness and purposelessness of the lives of the guests all kills Gatsby on the inside. All Gatsby wants when he chooses to be rich is to get Daisy. Daisy, who is wealthy and beautiful, symbolizes a way of life which is remote from Gatsby's and therefore more attractive because it is out of reach so he changes himself. (Fitzgerald, -page 54) Myrtle and Gatsby both want to be part of the same elite crowd. They play a reflection of each other in the book by wanting the same thing but they have different methods of achieving it. Gatsby wants Daisy, and Myrtle just wants to be higher in society. Gatsby plays the god-like character in this book so his means are good but both him and Myrtle do bad things to get higher in a crowd that will never take them in. To make themselves appear better to the other crowd, they lose some of the moral fiber that was there to begin with. (Fitzgerald, -page 83) Loss of morals in the 1920' in America caused the American dream to vanish. The god-like character of the book was a good person but he did bad things like bootlegging and joining in organized crime. Affairs happened in the elite crowd between Tom and Myrtle. Dishonesty reared its ugly head when Daisy killed Myrtle by running her over then blaming it on Gatsby.

Theatre of the Absurd Essay -- English Literature

Theatre of the Absurd Essay. The Theatre of the Absurd originated from experimental Arts of the avant-garde in the 1920’s and 30’s. It highlighted the meaning of life and came about as a result of the Second World War. It was also a result of absurd plays having a highly unusual, innovative form, aiming to startle the viewers. In the Second World War, in the meaningless and godless post Second World War world, it was no longer possible to keep using traditional art forms and standards that had ceased being convincing. It openly rebelled against conventional theatre. It was very anti-theatre, coming across as surreal, senseless and plotless. Samuel Beckett and Harold Pinter were known as the ‘absurd’ play writers. They both share the views that man inhabits a universe with which he is out of key. ‘Come and Go’ by Samuel Beckett is a very simplified; basic play based on three characters talking of the old days and their friendship. Beckett was born 13th April 1906 near Dublin. He was awarded a Nobel Prize for literature in 1969. ‘Black and White’ by Harold Pinter is the core of a minimalist set with very little communication between the characters. The play bases the two old women in a milk bar. It comes over as a plot less play with very little meaning. These two plays ‘Come and Go’ by Samuel Beckett and ‘Black and White’ by Harold Pinter both seem to carry very little meaning. On a surface level, both plays are short. ‘Black and White’ is a non-trusting play with evidence of emptiness. Both plays send out a message to the audience. This is shown particularly where there are silences throughout the plays. Theatrical techniques used in ‘Come and Go’, show at the start of the play, clearly how the... ...nce to finish the play, here the audience probably feel although the play is referring to an old friendship that maybe once hung about the three characters and they are bringing back memories between them. In the Theatre of the Absurd, the two plays ‘Come and Go’ by Samuel Beckett and ‘Black and White’ by Harold Pinter carry many similarities and differences. They are both plays which carry no meaning and characters have no identities. ‘Black and White’ is much longer than ‘Come and Go’. ‘Black and White’ is set in a more realistic modern way, of two women sat in a bar having a typical talk, watching the day go by. ‘Come and Go’ gives a more 1800’s feeling with the characters having 1800’s names and the setting being very abnormal to a normal more modern play. ‘Come and Go’ is a more atmospherically, tensional play with the characters being more active.

You are what you watch! Essay -- Media, Television Shows

Imagine a distant post-apocalyptic future in which a large silver box has just been excavated from the ruins of what was once Los Angeles, a box that contains stack after stack of DVD’s with titles like Survivor, The Bachelor, Biggest Loser, The Swan, Real World, The Apprentice, and Hell’s Kitchen. What might anthropologists conclude about our 21st century society if these shows were their only glimpse into how we lived our lives? Francine Prose ponders this same question in her essay â€Å"Voting Democracy off the Island: Reality TV and the Republican Ethos,† in which she asks not only what future anthropologists might deduce, but, â€Å"for that matter,† what â€Å"contemporary TV-addicted children and adults† might realize if they were to more closely examine their motivation for watching these shows (22). Salman Rushdie, in his article â€Å"Reality TV: A Dearth of Talent and the Death of Mortality,† suggests that we need to examine rea lity television closely because â€Å"it tells us things about ourselves,† and even if we don’t think it does, it â€Å"ought to,† a claim that suggests that if we merely brush off reality television as a fad, we might be missing something inherently valuable about our nature (16). In her essay, â€Å"The Distorting Mirror of Reality Television,† Sarah Coleman suggests that reality television offers a distorted reflection, a â€Å"dark view of humanity in the guise of light entertainment,† a consideration that asks us to see who we are in this distorted reflection of our values (19). The question then is: what do we see when we see ourselves in this â€Å"dime-store mirror† (â€Å"Reality TV† 16)? Whatever the answer to this question might be, the question itself suggests that there is something inherently human about our fascination with r... ...way and be the winner; that it is okay to betray others because winning is everything; that annoying, conniving, hysterical liars are far more interesting than honest, conscientious, selfless people; and that we are not really a nation of communities but a group of individuals fighting for ourselves—all of which suggests on a very deep level that we feel better when we watch people who we deem to be worse off than we are. The saddest lesson, however, might very well be that we are starved for this kind of inherently cruel entertainment because our own lives seem so much duller in comparison, an observation that suggests that what we can learn from Reality TV does not necessarily only apply to our generation, but to those that came before us and those that will follow—including these hypothetical anthropologists who are watching these shows to better understand us.

Reliability and Validity Matrix

TEST of Reliability | Application and APPROPRIATENESS| Strengths| Weaknesses| Internal Consistency| This measure of reliability is appropriate when trying to determine the difference in reliability from shortening or lengthening a test (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010). Here I am specifically referring to the Spearman-Brown formula being used to determine internal consistency. A researcher could also use other measures of internal consistency meant for heterogeneous test items, such as Inter-item consistency. The reliability of a test increases with an increase in the number of test items. One of the strengths of the Spearman-Brown Formula is that is can determine how much more or less reliable a test is as a researcher lengthens or shortens the test. This measure can also work in reverse and tell a researcher how many items they need to add to reach a certain reliability coefficient. | The problem with the use of the Spearman-Brown formula to determine internal consistency is that it is only affective with homogenous test items, that is items that are the same difficulty and length.Also, tests of reliability are higher for whole-test vs. half-test applications of the formula, which means that lengthier tests work better with this instrument. | Split-half| The split-half form of measuring reliability entails creating two halves in the same test that can be compared in the same manner as the parallel form of reliability testing uses. This type of measurement is appropriate when using odd-even reliability or random assignment splits, but is most applicable when designing mini-parallel forms of the same test.In this instance, each half is, â€Å"†¦as nearly equal as humanly possible—in format, stylistic, statistical, and related aspects† (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010, p. 145). | The strength of this kind of measure is that it is less time-consuming and less cumbersome for test-takers than the parallel form, but is also a good measure of internal consistency. T his type of measurement also help keep in check intermediary variables that might introduce error variance into the analysis, since the both parallel portions of the test are taken at once. However, there are several intermediary variables that are enhanced by this form of measuring reliability: fatigue that is felt during the second part of the test but not the first and variance in the difficulty or content of the items in the first half vs. the second half. It is also not advised to simply split a test down the middle. The different halves should have the same content and difficulty of question for the measure of reliability to be accurate. Test/retest| This type of test is applicable when the construct being measured is relatively stable over time, but is inappropriate for constructs that are not stable over time (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010). This is because test/retest reliability is based on taking the same test, with the same people, at two different times. If the construct being measured is purported to change over time, then the scores of the test would vary because of true variance, rather than error variance—which is the basis of reliability, the latter that is. An example of this principle might be an achievement test measuring grammatical skills.If the test-taker undergoes a series of lessons on grammar between the first test and the second test, then the test will show variance, but not due to error but due to the intermediary variable of education. Test/retest reliability would be inappropriate in this situation. | The strength of this measurement of reliability are in tests that, â€Å"†¦employ outcome measures such as reaction time or perceptual judgment† (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010, p. 143). This is because these types of psychometric traits do not vary greatly over time and are not sensitive to many types of intervening variable. The weakness of test/retest reliability is, of course, that the underlying constructs being tested can change over time, and therefore lower the test/retest reliability due to true variance rather than error variance. In this case, the overall reliability of a test might be seen as lower even though the actual measurement of the construct is stable (it is just that the construct itself varies). | Parallel and alternate forms| Both parallel and alternative forms of test reliability utilize multiple instances of the same test items at two different times with the same participants (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010).These types of measures of reliability would be most appropriate with tests that measure traits that are stable over a long period of time and inappropriate when measuring finite emotional states or anxiety levels. | The strength of this measure of reliability is that it measures the core construct through several variances of the same test item. If equivalent scores are found on multiple forms of the same test item, then the reliability of the test will go up. Moreover, there are wa ys to perform this type of reliability analysis without having the test-taker undergo multiple examinations: internal onsistency estimate of reliability. This type of analysis would save time and money. | Designing these types of measures are time-consuming, expensive, and tiresome for the test-taker who has to take variations of the same test items over and over again. Also, these forms of testing reliability are not dependable for measuring constructs that change over time, such as anxiety levels. Another weakness is that if the tests are taken some time apart, then intervening variables might have an effect on the scores, thereby increasing error variance. Test of Validity| Application and APPROPRIATENESS| Strengths| Weaknesses| Face validity| Face validity is a description of the subjective perception of the test-taker of the test’s validity (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010). This measure is not so much a quantification of the test’s actual validity, but a measure of the te st-taker’s perception of the test’s validity. Face validity is most appropriate when measuring the test-takers confidence that a test measures what it purports to measure. The strength of face validity is that if the test-taker has confidence in the validity of test, then they are more likely to take the test, and further the test user is more likely to administer the test. Without face validity, the test might be perfectly valid, but it is not administered or taken properly because the user/taker does not have confidence in the test. | The weakness of face validity is that it might not measure actual validity. A test can appear to be valid to the user/taker while also being completely invalid for the construct/time/place of the test.A good example might be the inkblot test. Psychologists that adhere to the psychodynamic perspective of psychopathology would say that the test is perfectly valid for determining personality characteristics, but the test taker might not un derstanding how the test applies to personality development, thereby undermining the face validity of the test. | Content validity| Measures of content validity are most useful in situations a test designer is trying to create test items that match the content of the material being tested (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010).For instance, a final course exam should test the content area that the course covered. Further, this measure might not be applicable in situations where the skills that the test designer are looking for in the applicant are not currently part of the skill-set of the already employed, such as in cases of new positions. | One of the strengths of content validity is that it can used to work backwards from job responsibilities to job applicant requirements.First, the test designer would examine veteran workers perform their job, and then design an application process that looks for these qualities in a potential employee. The items that are judge essential for the job are the ones that are most advantageous for the applicant to possess. | The downfall of content validity is that the perspective of the material being covered is culturally and chronologically subjective, meaning that the questions can have different answers in different areas of the world or at different times.Therefore, the test items must be culturally and chronologically accurate for the test-takers for content validity to be used. | Criterion related| I know this is personal opinion, but I think that criterion-related validity is the most powerful of all of the methods of verifying validity—especially concurrent validity. This type of validity is used to verify that the criterion that the test score purports to represent is actually in the sample of individuals being tested (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010).For instance, a group of people who have already been diagnosed with schizophrenia could be tested using a new instruments and if they all score high on the test for schizophrenia, th en the test can be said to have acceptable validity. | One of the strengths of criterion-related validity is that it is a very powerful measure of the actual validity of a test score. This type of validity uses methods external to the test itself to verify that the test covers the subject matter and criterion that it purports to cover. This fact alone makes this measure the most objective and verifiable of the measures of validity. A weakness of content validity is that criterion contaminations can occur, which is when the same predictor measure and criterion measure are used. As an example, if the diagnosis of a mental disorder by a panel of diagnosticians is used both as the test criterion and the measure of test validity. | Construct| Construct validity is the umbrella under which all of the other sub-types of validity fall (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2010). Construct validity is appropriate to use in cases where a test is trying to measure some underlying construct, such as intelligence or anxiety.I suppose this measure of validity might not be appropriate in situations where there is not one clear construct that is being measured, such as generalized achievement tests. | One of the main strengths of construct validity is that the procedures used to verify underlying constructs follow the edicts of the scientific method. A hypothesis is formulated, predicting that if someone possesses in great quantity the construct of intelligences—as verified through other measures—then they will score high on a test purporting to measure intelligence.In this way, a predictions is made based on scientific facts and then the test is used to determine if the prediction holds true. If it does not, then the test items, predictions, or underlying construct might need to be revised. | The downfall of this measure of validity is that if there is not one clear construct or if the construct is vaguely defined, then the validity of the test score is not measurable. So, the va lidity of the test rests on the underlying construct definition and specificity. |

Distributed Leadership Essay

Leadership is the important activity that motivates an individual to achieve the predetermined objectives. This motivation nurtures inspiration that boosts us towards the goal. Now, comes the discussion of whether the leadership can be centralized or it can be distributed among various people. Once we start the discussion of distributed leadership, it should also be known whether it is a horizontal or vertical distribution. Horizontal distribution means distributing the leadership among the same level of people whereas vertical distribution again forks into top-down distribution and bottom-up distribution. Exploring these different approaches we identify two dimensions along which to consider the knowledgeable changes they raise about measuring how school leadership is distributed across school staff – data source and data focus. We should also observe the variations between schools and between activities that are adapted for distributing the responsibilities of leadership. Let us also consider different ways of studying how the work of managing and leading schools is distributed among people in schools and the methodological and philosophical pros and cons involved in this work. If we closely observe the daily lives of schools, we can think from a distributed perspective which has the potential to provide useful insight into how management and leadership unfold themselves. In the process of distributing the leadership, we can identify numerous entities in the school across which leadership can be distributed, including people in the aspects of the situation such as routines and imaginations. While there have been recent advances in articulating the conceptual frameworks for distributed school leadership, the empirical research base in this area is less developed. With a few exceptions, most empirical work has involved small samples of schools. While performing this study of distributed leadership, we come across two important observations to be made: Across which school actors do researchers hypothesize leadership and management is distributed? What aspects of leadership and management work are hypothesized to be distributed across people? These two questions lead to many sub questions like: Who should provide evidence of distributed leadership? Leaders, followers, or both? Among leaders, should researchers seek evidence on formal leaders, informal leaders, or both? Should the proof on distributed leadership come from self-reports or from more objective measurement plans such as the reports given by others through surveys? How do these various methodological choices about measuring the distributed leadership affect the validity of data? We can use multiple ways of identifying actors within schools among whom the work of leadership and management might be distributed. A distributed perspective serves as a new conceptual frame. It helps us understand leadership practice and how leadership practices might work more effectively in the context of schools. It is not a type of leadership or a style of leadership. It’s not a model of leadership. It’s not something you place on top of a school and say, ‘Now you are doing distributed leadership. ‘ A distributed perspective is thinking about the situation as an integral part of the leadership context; it is an integrated view of leaders’ thinking, their activity and behaviors, and the situation. The distributed perspective focuses on leadership activity. In an organizational context, leadership activity might be trying to sell a vision in the context of the school or trying to transform the instructional practice in particular classrooms within a school. It is the activity that we are trying to understand. Think about the constellation of people who are involved, how the context shapes what happens with that activity, and how artifacts might be an integral part of that activity. The distributed perspective is integrative thinking about all of those pieces and on leadership activity itself. The roots of distributed leadership is an outgrowth of activity theory and distributed cognition. Activity theory is about how an activity system works. Think of the cockpit of an airplane – the people in the cockpit, the instrument panel, the people who are trying to help the plane land – and try to think about the activity of landing the plane not as something an individual person does, not as something the instrument panel does without the people, not as something a pilot could do without the air traffic controller. Try to think about the whole activity system. This is comparable to what is meant by leadership activity. With distributed cognition, we are trying to think about how sense making is stretched over social interaction and artifacts in an environment. The context and social system matter. Distributed cognition suggests that people’s thinking and actions don’t happen in a vacuum. Thinking happens through social interaction and interaction with the environment. These impact how the leadership activity happens. Distributed leadership integrates these central ideas from activity theory and distributed cognition. We think of leadership as an influence relationship – the ability to influence the practices of others in ways that bring about a ‘major change in form, nature, and function of some phenomenon. But distributed leadership moves beyond trying to understand leadership through the actions and beliefs of single leaders. It is constituted through the interaction of leaders, teachers, and the situation as they influence instructional practice. Distributed leadership is a powerful way to understand leadership activity in schools in more complex and interconnected ways. Distributed leadership can also be called as ‘dispersed leadership’, ‘collaborative leadership’, ‘democratic leadership’ and ‘shared leadership’. ‘Dispersed’ appears to suggest leadership as an activity that can be located at different points within an organization and pre-exists delegation which is a conscious choice in the exercise of power. The idea of dispersed leadership is captured by David Green’s term ‘leaderful community’ which involves a community in which people believe they have a contribution to make, can exercise their initiative and can, when relevant to the task in hand, have followers. The Collaborative leaderships operates on the basis of ‘alliance’ or ‘partnering’ or ‘networking. ’ Network learning communities, sponsored by NCSL are an expression of collaboration across the boundaries of individual institutions. Collaborative leadership may also apply to an ‘inter-agency context’, expressed in schools’ joint work with community agencies, parents, teacher groups, and other external stakeholders. Leadership as ‘democratic’ is by definition antithetical to hierarchy and delegation. Elsbernd suggests four defining characteristics (i) a leader’s interaction with, and encouragement of others to participate fully in all aspects of leadership tasks (ii) wide-spread sharing of information and power (iii) enhancing self-worth of others and (iv) energising others for tasks. Democratic leadership can either take the form of consultative (where a leader makes a group decision after consulting members about their willingness) or participative decision-making (where a leader makes the decision in collaboration with the group members – often based on majority rule). Shared leadership is best understood when leadership is explored as a social process – something that arises out of social relationships not simply what leaders do. It does not dwell in an individual’s qualities or competencies but lies between people, within groups, in collective action, which defies attempts to single out ‘a leader’. A common message that runs through these definitions is that leadership is not the monopoly of any one person, a message that is central to the notion of distributed leadership. In distributed leadership, it is not only the headteacher’s leadership that counts but also the leadership roles performed by deputy heads, substantive teachers, support teachers, members of school councils, boards or governing bodies and students. Leadership is ‘dispersed rather than concentrated’ and does not necessarily give any particular individual or categories of persons the privilege of providing more leadership than others. In this light ‘distributed leadership’ cannot be said to be a new leadership technique but rather an intellectual label that seeks to re-enforce the fact that leadership needs to be a shared activity in schools. It should therefore be conceptualised, not simply as another technique or practice of leadership, but, just as importantly as a way of thinking about leadership in post-heroic terms rather than a heroic phenomenon. In this way, we can distinguish clearly between delegation – as a heroic phenomenon – in which distribution is initiated solely from the top (headteacher) and distributed leadership – as a post-heroic phenomenon – in which distribution does not solely depend on the headteacher’s initiative. Everyone in the schools should have the opportunity to exercise leadership from the youngest child through out and not just a selected few (Secondary head) and problems in the schools should be dealt openly and honestly with the involvement of other people (secondary head). Staff who have only been in the school for a short time could also be school leaders in that they show by their personality, by their vision, by their jobs, commitment, expectations and values that they have got the capacity to lead. In a sense, anyone can be a leader. It is a process that a lot of staff can demonstrate. Formally, the process of distribution is initiated by the headteacher who identifies and delegates leadership responsibilities to individual teachers. Schools, in some places are structured in terms of designated leadership and managerial roles through which the headteacher delegates responsibility. Such delegations may be driven by a headteacher’s recognition that others have expertise that he/she does not have. Distributed in this way, there is an expectation of delivery and the headteacher’s role is to ‘support and provide’. The formality characterising the distribution process gradually leads unto a less formal or informal approach as headteachers develop trust in their teachers and become more confident in teachers’ leadership capabilities. As headteachers become more comfortable with their own authority and feel more able to acknowledge the authority of others they are able to extend the compass of leadership and to ‘let go’ the more. This is evident in one headteacher’s comment: ‘I think initially from top-down through delegation and as it progresses it becomes both bottom-up and top-down. People who show willingness to take some levels of initiative from any direction are really encouraged. And I love to see it really happen and that’s when I become happy’.

Analysis using Porter’s five forces model in Marketing

On analyzing the case we will seek to look at two relevant barriers to entry; namely, product differentiation and economies of scale. The economy of scale refers to the decline per unit in product cost as the volume of production increases. Levi’s could have exploited opportunities to outsource their production facilities where labour is cheaper, in order to mass produce and have a cost advantages. Volumes of jeans have been produced in this market because other labels such as Arizona Jeans have exploited the opportunity. If they exploit the opportunity it means that they could produce for less and sell at a higher cost to their profitability. The Levi’s brand has product differentiation because there is a history of brand loyalty; the product carries enough clout to justify a reasonable price premium. They had embarked on a project to create a niche market to attract higher income customers who were willing to pay a premium for a perfect fit. In this case the threat would be brand loyalty because there are a lot of producers of jeans. Threat of Rivalry Threat of rivalry includes all distributors and stores that sell jeans. Example of stores is the likes of JC Penny stores who were once a business alliance, they have sought out cheaper alternatives such as the Arizona brand of jeans and have become their competitor; there is also Gap, Lee and Wrangler. Each of these brands has their own market or customer base. With all of these competitors in the market there is likely competitive pricing for the product. Threat of Substitutes There are other forms of clothing that can substitute for jeans example cotton, linen and other forms of material that makes clothing. In this case though Levi’s has created a â€Å"personal pair for a perfect fit† this proposal has created the niche market for Levi’s through a jeans customization program with their strategic alliance partner Technology Corporation. With this partner they will be able to achieve a competitive advantage. Threat of Suppliers Threat of suppliers all depends on the amount of raw materials. Since Levi’s now has a strategic partner, Technology Corporation they are the ones who take the orders and manufactures the customized jeans at their location. The threat is that they have to rely on another organization to complete the process at a separate location. The benefit though is that this company is a joint venture where each partner has a vested interest in the success of the business thus minimizing risks. However; on the other hand the partner may decide to cheat if they see a more valuable venture for themselves in starting their own line of business. There is also the threat of an increase salary and benefit for employees as well as retention of trained personnel in the area of sales and manufacturing. Threat of Buyers Threat of buyers relies on the marketing of the brand. If Levi’s has a good marketing strategy then customers and suppliers are more likely to purchase their goods. The company has begun to engage in a joint venture with another company therefore once they start receiving orders they will be able to meet the demand to supply stores and retail customers alike. According to the case, the brand Levi is one of the most recognizable brands worldwide since the 1950’s. The jeans had established a political and ashion statement as an American icon. Levi’s has become synonymous with the term â€Å"authentic,† â€Å"genuine,† and â€Å"original. † They are the largest brand-apparel company in the world and the number one purveyor of blue jeans. Levi’s has an image of quality and durability. The image of the company is valuable and rare. Perhaps no other firm has been able to duplicate the Levi brand and the firm uses this image to their competitive advantage as not many firms are able to imitate that image. Despite competetition from low cost rivals who are able to produce more cheaply at overseas facilities, Levi has organized its cost structure and business by using technology and joint venture to their advantage. They have established value creating activities by way of market revitalization and have established a corporate reputation, established links with their suppliers and buyers and invested in high technological equipment and information support systems.

Benifits of introducing children to books at an early age and Reading Aloud

Educational researchers praise the practice of parents and teachers reading to children. In a book aimed at helping parents provide their children with useful learning experiences, for example, Butler and Clay (1999) asserted: â€Å"There is no substitute for reading and telling stories to children, from the very earliest days† (p. 17). Based on his review of the literature on reading to children, Teale (1991) concluded that â€Å"reading to preschool children . . .Is an activity through which children may develop interest and skill in literacy† (p. 902). And in Becoming a Nation of Readers, Anderson, Hiebert, Scott, and Wilkinson (1995) cited reading to children as â€Å"the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading† (p. 23). Moreover, a number of correlational studies have linked activities in which adults and preschool children share book reading to the children's beginning reading success in school (Hew ison & Tizard, 1990).Such unabashed praise for reading to children is intriguing because it begs for elaboration: Why is reading to young children thought to be so beneficial? What knowledge do children acquire from it? Although asserting the value of the practice of reading to children, researchers have given little attention to what children learn from it. Interactive story reading is a joint use of picture books to talk about the pictures, read the text, and discuss the story ideas.Central to this definition is the notion that the adult and child (or group of children) construct an understanding of the book together. It is because of this emphasis on the joint construction of meaning that we prefer this term over others, such as shared reading, story reading, reading aloud to children, and guided reading that have been used in the research literature to label the event of reading to children. When adults read stories to young children, they usually do more than read the words alo ud.They ask meaningful questions about the stories. To make sure children understand the story, they paraphrase or interpret as needed, and they answer the children's questions about it. From the research that has examined parent-child story reading, it is possible to explain the social nature of the event and to make deductions about what young children learn during it. The research on parents reading to children is based primarily on middle-class mothers reading to their preschool children at bedtime.Moreover, the studies are often descriptions given by highly educated mothers reflecting on their practices with their children. A seminal work of this type is the Ninio and Bruner (1998) study in which it was found that highly ritualized discussion sequences between parent and child occur during story reading, and that these sequences are the primary means through which toddlers learn to label pictures.Ninio and Bruner found that mothers interpret children's smiling, babbling, vocali zing, reaching, and pointing as either requesting or providing labels. For example, a baby reaches toward one of the pictures in the book, and the mother extends that gesture by saying the name of the picture. Moreover, if the baby vocalizes or gestures toward the picture when the mother gives a label, the mother assumes that the baby is attending to the name she gave, furthering the likelihood that she will continue to provide labels.These parentchild interchanges are orchestrated into turn-taking sessions, with parent or child initiating a communication. At about the same time that Ninio and Bruner were reporting their work, Snow (1993) began reporting her analyses of mother-child discussion during book sharing. She posited that the features of the interactions that support oral language acquisition are the very same features that promote beginning reading and writing development.She highlighted four such features: (a) semantic contingency, or the adult continuing a topic introduc ed by the child's previous statement through expansions, extensions, clarifications, or answers; (b) scaffolding, or the steps the adult takes to minimize the difficulty of the activity; (c) accountability procedures, or the way the mother demands the task be finished; and (d) the use of highly predictable contexts for language use that help the child move from the concrete here and now to the remote and abstract.Elaborations on these four features illustrate how children learn about reading through social interactions during interactive storybook reading. The use by adults of semantic contingency, or meaningfully extending a child's comment to facilitate oral language acquisition, has been well documented (Cross, 1998). Snow (1993), however, argued that when adults expand on or clarify text during storybook reading, they facilitate the development of literate behavior.For example, adults can answer children's questions about letter names and words, they can clarify story meaning, a nd they can extend children's understanding of story concepts such as what direction one reads print or where a word begins and ends. Not only is the discourse during interactive story reading expansive in nature, Snow argued, it is scaffolded. Drawing from Bruner (1998), she defined scaffolding as the â€Å"steps taken to reduce the degrees of freedom in carrying out some task, so that the child can concentrate on the difficult skill he is in the process of acquiring† (p. 170).Scaffolding occurs in oral language development. For example, although young children often say only one word for a whole sentence when they are learning to talk, parents respond by treating the word as a complete and sophisticated statement. In story reading, scaffolding might include parent reminders to the child about the name of the story, who the important characters are, or what the story problem is. The parent might point to a picture and then its printed label, hesitate to see if the child fill s in a story word or phrase, or encourage the child to help tell parts of a story.Snow also argues that parents challenge their children during reading sessions by holding them accountable for what they do to help construct the session. Snow and Ninio (2006) proposed seven tenets of literate communication from the interactions during the reading event that, although not explicitly taught, help children become literate. These tenets are (a) that a book is for reading rather than manipulating, (b) that a book controls the conversation, (c) that pictures are events, (f) that book events occur outside of real time, and (g) that books are an independent fictional world.It is clear that parents help children take over storybook-reading talk, and that this practice encourages children's later strategies for talking about and interpreting books. The descriptive research shows clearly that children experience opportunities for learning from engaging in interactive story reading with parents, and that the interactions have characteristic patterns that children imitate and that could promote literacy development.The nature of the dialogue that occurs during interactive book reading is affected by factors that include the size of the group, the competency of the participants, and the familiarity and type of the text. Yet a basic framework can be seen. When parents or teachers model, read, and talk to children about a text, they provide a structure that helps children understand and remember the story content.By promoting socially interactive story reading in which both reader and listener actively participate and cooperatively negotiate what is important and what things mean, teachers engage children in a process of learning through social interaction. It appears that, not only do children internalize the social conventions of stories when they talk with adults about them, they take away specific knowledge from hearing stories, such as the syntax, organization, and word f orms used in written language, and knowledge of its elements – words and letters themselves.Explanations of how children move into independent word reading have assumed a strong relationship among letter knowledge, phonological awareness, and reading (Ehri, 1999). Reading requires children to attend to the sounds in words and to the letters that symbolize those sounds. New evidence from interactive reading studies suggests that interactive reading may be another way to draw children's attention to print and to the ways that letters sound in words. through interactive reading, children begin to remember the story dialogues.In the process, they acquire written language structures and new vocabulary and then begin to focus on print and letter concepts. The research documents that these aspects of literacy learning can appear both at home and in the classroom. Therefore, both parents and teachers can promote young children's literacy acquisition through interactive story reading. At home, children can learn at a fairly optimal level because most parents are sensitive to their children's developing abilities in language.Parents can connect book information with their children's background experiences, and they are better attuned to the children's interests and level of understanding. At school, teachers achieve similar effects if they organize the story reading to elicit maximum participation from all students and if they repeatedly read stories. The theoretical construct posited by Vygotsky helps to explain how learning occurs. When reading to children is a social event, children's book explorations are refined through the verbal and nonverbal interactions that take place during the reading.During the reading, adults highlight and interpret the reality of the book, its written language features, vocabulary, and print forms, and the children mimic and modify the language to fit their understanding. Structured interactions enable children to add these underst andings to their current viewpoints through play with the language, questions, comments, and attempts to extend their understandings by making sense of new situations with the book language and print.From this theoretical perspective, it becomes obvious that reading to children without allowing discussion is not likely to be sufficient for developing the ability to use written language. If the goal is to teach literacy, an adult should mediate the ideas in books by keeping within bounds of children's understandings and by using an interactive story reading approach. Then, story reading becomes a way for young children to acquire knowledge about written language at new levels of understanding.Their face-to-face communication with adults provides a way for them to ask questions, comment about what makes sense, and use book language and book ideas. Although picture books provide essential picture and story line context, the language is without intonation, gestures, and pitch until an a dult reads it to the child. But, through mediation of this language, the child learns to interpret, apply, and transfer the sophisticated written language to their own oral language. Thus, literacy learning opportunities abound in interactive reading sessions.The process takes place through highly structured social interactions, interactions that involve routine joint participation sequences, in which the adults help children make connections to their own knowledge, and in which children make known their old understanding and practice their new understandings. Although this approach is easier for parents who are reading to one child, sufficient evidence now exists that teachers can read to small groups of children in a similar way, particularly in situations where teacher-group interactive language structures are fairly routinized, such as in rereading stories.Children learn about three aspects of literacy when they engage in interactive reading. First, they acquire knowledge about written language structures from the stories that they read interactively with an adult on a regular basis, and that they can talk about, act out, and use to play with story language. This suggests that teachers need to provide opportunities for children to hear and talk about stories. Second, they acquire new vocabulary from listening to stories.Children's oral language is embellished with new words and book phrases that are drawn from the book they hear read, particularly those they hear read repeatedly. Their attention to story information thereby becomes more focused and their listening comprehension improves. Finally, children learn about the form of print, that is, about how language is graphically represented, when they have opportunities to memorize texts and recite them as though they were reading. Their learning can be heightened when the print in the stories is salient, and when they hear repeated readings.Repeated reading is an activity particularly well suited for presc hool and kindergarten classrooms and will foster development of children's letter knowledge and phonological awareness, which can be connected to later word and letter recognition and to decoding. It is clear from more than a decade of research that interactive story reading is a powerful social avenue for developing language and literacy, and that it can be used as an influential literacy tool both in the home and in the school; that is, as Cochran-Smith (1984) has said, the child and adult bring to life books, and books enrich children's lives.Works Cited Anderson R. C. , Hiebert E. H. , Scott J. A. , & Wilkinson I. A. G. (1985). Becoming a nation of readers: The report of the Commission on Reading. Champaign, IL: Center for the Study of Reading; Washington, DC: National Institute of Education. Butler D. , & Clay M. (1999). Reading begins at home: Preparing children for reading before they go to school. London: Heinemann. Cochran-Smith M. (1984). The making of a reader. Norwood, N J: Ablex. Cross T. G. (1998). â€Å"Mother's speech and its association with rate of linguistic development in young children†. In N.Waterson & C. Snow (Eds. ), The development of communication. London: Wiley. Bruner J. S. (1998). â€Å"Learning how to do things with words†. In J. S. Bruner & R. A. Garton (Eds. ), Human growth and development. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. Ehri L. C. (1999). â€Å"Movement into word reading and spelling: How spelling contributes to reading†. In J. M. Mason (Ed. ), Reading and writing connections (pp. 65-82). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Hewison J. , & Tizard J. (1990). â€Å"Parental involvement and reading attainment†. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 50, 209-215.Ninio A. , & Bruner J. (1998). â€Å"The achievement and antecedents of labelling†. Journal of Child Language, 5, 1-6. Snow C. E. (1993). â€Å"Literacy and language: Relationships during the preschool years†. Harvard Educational Re view, 53, 165-189. Snow C. E. , & Ninio A. (2006). â€Å"The contracts of literacy: What children learn from learning to read books†. In W. H. Teale & E. Sulzby (Eds. ), Emergent literacy: Writing and reading (pp. 116-138). Norwood, NJ: Ablex. Teale W. H. (1991). â€Å"Parents reading to their children: What we know and need to know†. Lrnguage Arts, 58, 902-912.