Hindus Practice Many Rituals Collectively Known As Sansakaras Religion Essay Essay Example

Hindus Practice Many Rituals Collectively Known As Sansakaras Religion Essay Essay Hindus pattern many rites jointly known as Sansakaras. These rites or sanskaras depict events in the life rhythm of a Hindu individual. Harmonizing to the ancient texts in Hinduism, most important events in the life rhythm include Birth, Marriage, and Death. These Are Explained as Follows: Mix Christianity presentation Initiation Birth: In Hinduism, birth of a kid is considered a spiritual ceremonial, and involves many rites. Some of the common rites, practiced by about all Hindus at the clip of birth of a kid, and their significance are discussed below. These rites initiate a kid into Hinduism and are jointly referred to as birth rites. We will write a custom essay sample on Hindus Practice Many Rituals Collectively Known As Sansakaras Religion Essay specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Hindus Practice Many Rituals Collectively Known As Sansakaras Religion Essay specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Hindus Practice Many Rituals Collectively Known As Sansakaras Religion Essay specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The first 1 is Garbhadhana or Impregnation rites. This ritual includes a planned sexual intercourse, between a hubby and his married woman, performed in a certain manner, to gestate the best possible babe. The sex during Garbhadhana is non for pleasance but for developing a good or godly psyche in the uterus of the married woman. Garbhadhana is strictly religious, and is considered to be really indispensable. It is required to dwell the universe with good psyches. This is explained by Lord Krishna in Bhagavad Gita, Sexual activity aimed at making godly kids is every bit good as God Himself. balam balavatam caham A kama-raga-vivarjitam A dharmaviruddho bhutesu A kamo smi bharatarsabha I am the strength of the strong, devoid of passion and desire. I am sex life which is non contrary to spiritual rules, O Godhead of the Bharatas ( Hindu ) . Jatakarma is the ritual performed to welcome the babe into this universe. It is performed right before the umbilical cord is cut. In this ritual, male parent of the kid feeds honey to the babe and chant supplications or mantras in babe s ear. This ritual is supposed to increase the aptitude of the kid and spiritually assist him or her to take a long and healthy life. In add-on, it represents that the presence of the kid is desired and appreciated in the household. Namakarana, intending to give a name, is the rite in which the kid is given a name, which is meaningful and animating. A good name is really of import for the kid because its significance reminds him of a intent or an aim in life and inspires him to carry through that aim. By and large there is a get-together, in which, Sweets are distributed among household and friends after a name has been given to the babe. Mundan is the ritual where, first haircut of the kid is performed. In this ritual, all the hairs on kid s caput are removed and poured into the nearest holy H2O organic structure. The remotion of these hairs signifies the remotion of any lacks in the kid, and is considered to excite growing of the nervous system. Another induction rite, called as Upanayana, is performed for male childs in Hinduism. It is carried out right before the pubescence starts. This ritual marks the 2nd birth of the kid as he begins his journey of religious self-construction. In this ceremonial, the male child acknowledges his responsibilities towards his faith and his privileges ensuing from Hinduism. During Upanayana ceremonial, a sacred yarn is tied around the waist of the male child. This thread consists of three separate symbolic togss intending to, worship God, show love and regard to parents, and learn from the spiritual instructor ( Hindu ) . Although, a kid is born into Hinduism by assorted birth rites, a male child kid is once more initiated into the faith through Upanayana ritual. Christian religion on the other manus, has few important specific rites for birth. One common pattern in Roman Catholics is where the female parent goes to the church, certain yearss after giving birth to a kid, to thank God for a successful birth. By making this, she re-enters her spiritual community after gestation, and therefore this pattern is sometimes referred to as a purity rite. The most important ritual associated with birth is baptism of the babe. It represents the babe s beginning into Christianity. It is by and large performed from 0 to 6 months after the birth of the babe. It is by and large performed by the curate of the church, when he pours the holy H2O and says, I baptise you ( or, The retainer of God ( name ) is baptized ) in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit ( see Matthew 28:19 ) . Harmonizing to bible, baptism is a demand for redemption ( Mark 16:16 ; Titus 3:5 ) . Baptism pictures the decease and entombment of our old ego and our Resurrection to a new life in Jesus Christ as Romans 6 Tells us: Or do you non cognize that every bit many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His decease? A Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into decease, that merely as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorification of the Father, even so we besides should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the similitude of His decease, surely we besides shall be in the similitude of His Resurrection, cognizing this, that our old adult male was crucified with Him, that the organic structure of wickedness might be done off with, that we should no longer be slaves of wickedness. For the decease that He ( Jesus ) died, He died to transgress one time for all ; A but the life that He lives, He lives to God. A Likewise you besides, reckon yourselves to be dead so to transgress, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. ( Romans 6:3-6, 10-11, NKJV ) ( biblestudy ) . This poetry and its description in biblestudy.org clearly demarcates that the wickednesss of a individual are forgiven and washed off by acquiring baptized because through baptism, the individual symbolizes that he is sorry for all his wickednesss but now he has complete religion in Jesus, and is willing to populate a good life under the shadow of Jesus Christ. Although, infant baptism is performed shortly after the birth of a kid, it can be compared to the Hindu induction rite of Upanayana because of the similar intents of the two rites. After baptism, a Catholic kid is regarded as a member of the church and a complete relationship is established between the kid and the church. Therefore, it is clear that like Upanayana, Baptism marks the beginning of spiritual instruction. Confirmation to baptism occurs when the immature individual can knowingly and freely choose Christian religion, ( 21 cite this ) . This happens at an age similar to the age of Upanayana ritual in Hinduism. For both these rites, a cardinal alteration takes topographic point in the life of the individual undergoing the ritual, and this alteration is considered a metempsychosis as a fresh individuality with new religion, responsibilities, and privileges. Harmonizing to Christianity, a individual can non achieve redemption without being baptized, and baptism can be considered as an induction towards redemption by taking a good life and following the way of righteousness. Likewise, Upanayana ceremonial in Hinduism is the induction on the route to spiritual instruction that finally leads to salvation through good karma. However, unlike baptism, Upanayana rite is performed merely for male childs. In add-on, if an grownup wants to change over to christianity Marriage Death Beliefs Hindooism Christian religion Decision Hindu Child Birth, Rituals Related to Hindu Birth, Hindu Birth Samskars. Hindu Religious Portal, Hinduism, Hindu Religion. Web. 08 Nov. 2010. lt ; hypertext transfer protocol: //www.religiousportal.com/HinduChildbirth.html gt ; . What Does Baptism SYMBOLIZED? BibleStudy.org: You Have Questions. The Bible Has Answers! Web. 02 Nov. 2010. lt ; hypertext transfer protocol: //www.biblestudy.org/question/what-does-baptism-symbolize.html gt ; .

Role Of The Sexes Essays - Human Sexuality, Gender, Human Behavior

Role Of The Sexes Essays - Human Sexuality, Gender, Human Behavior Role Of The Sexes Roles of the Sexes The submissive role of the female in a marriage or relationship is a common problem in many societies, including our own American society. This role has become so common that in fact it is now expected of the female. This male dominance goes as far back as the human race, to the beginning of relationships and marriage between the female and the male. Then, the physical prowess of the male led to his dominance in all situations and thus formed these roles. Even presently, with all our advances in equal rights and womens advances in the work fields, this role of submission and passivity is still present among our society. Why do women accept this role? Why hasnt it banished with the right to vote and her expansion into the male-dominated workplace? These roles are inbred into our society. The men are raised to lead and take charge. Women, on the other hand, are taught that their place is to keep peace, and in most scenarios that means conforming. There are many reasons women accept or allow this role. For many women, they find safety in allowing the male to dominate the relationship. The submissive role is familiar or so expected that the women fear changing the situation. Many authors illustrate this role of the sexes and portray some reasons and situations that are common in our society, such as Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette, in her story The Hand, and James Joyce, in Eveline. These two authors both, even though each describes a woman in a very different, yet remarkably similar, situation, discuss one of the major reasons women succumb to males. Colette was a significant feminist in the early 1900s when the womens right movement was in full swing. She fought for equal opportunities for women and proved it was possible when she was the first woman to be admitted to the Goncourt Academy. As a novelist, she used her writing to illustrate the assumed roles society has developed. The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature remarks, Her professional life and three marriages helped to shape her keen insights into modern love and womens lives. (Compact Bedford, 196). Colette understood the expected submission role because she had lived the role of the wife several times. Also, as one of the few women in the workplace, she was subjected to even more male supremacy. She could write about the reasons why women comply because she understood and had been a victim herself. In The Hand, Colette relates a story of a young bride. From the beginning of the story, she sets up the role of submission in the woman, and the domination in the husband, this unbalance of power. The husband is asleep, yet he still holds the power. While he sleeps comfortably, the wife is awake, supporting his head so that he may be comfortable. She won t even move because she fears waking him. He may not have consciously forced this authority over her, but he or she created it in her mind. When he twitches, the young wife believes it is her fault. She says guiltily, Im so heavyI wish I could get up and turn the light off. But he is sleeping so well. (Colette, 197). She does all she can to satisfy him and to comfort him, even at the expense of her comfort or any other luxuries. For example, the arm twisted again, feebly, and she arched her back to make herself lighter. (Colette, 197). Here, she is succumbing to him, even if it is through his unspoken wishes and through his actions. Even though this is a minute example, she is giving in to his desires. She gives up what she would rather in order to keep him content. Colette uses the description of the characters to emphasize the unbalance of power. Not only does the husband outweigh the wife in power in the relationship; he is physically dominant as well. The young wife is described as slim and adolescent. The husband, on the otherhand, is described as having physical, not only mental, prowess. He is handsome, athletic, and physically dominant. He has very big arms, hands larger than the wives whole head,

Human visual system Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Human visual system - Essay Example However, for one to see, the human eye has to convert the visible light energy into neural activity, a process that usually takes place in the retina part of the eye (Atchison and Smith 2000, P.11). The retina contains neurons, enabling it to transduce light energy into neural activity. However, the process does not take place in a vacuum, rather with the help of rods and cones found in the retina according to Atchison and Smith (2000, P.11). Rods and cones are photoreceptors that are responsible for the conversion of visible light energy into neural activity (Bernstein et al. 2007, P.45). These photoreceptors usually contain chemicals, which are sensitive to light energy. As such, when light strikes the retina, the chemicals in the rods and cones immediately break apart, generating signals, which are relayed to the brain for interpretation. However, Bernstein (2010, p.91) notes that the process of rebuilding the chemicals broken apart in the rods and cones usually takes some time, w hich explain why a person usually find it hard seeing when entering a dark room when coming from a bright light. Nonetheless, as one continues to stay in the dark, the rods quickly build up the chemicals thereby enabling the person to start seeing things normally. This process of adjusting to darkness overtime is usually referred to as dark adaptation where one becomes approximately 10,000 times more light-sensitive after being in the darkness for quite awhile according to Atchison and Smith (2000, P.12). Cones, on the other hand, contain three light-sensitive chemicals that help in determining the color being seen by an individual. Cones are usually found at the middle of the retina in an area known as the fovea. The fovea is the area where the incoming light is focused. Bernstein (2010, p.91) notes that the density of cones in the fovea differs from one person to another, which explains the differences in visual acuity among different people. What is noted that cones usually works best at high light intensities, where the ability to differentiate colors become active (Bernstein et al. 2007, P.46). For instance, it is possible for one to pick two different socks in a dark room thinking that they resemble each other and only learn later that the socks are actually different in color. From the retina, signals are transferred to the brain, where the information is translated before an individual is able to see something. However, as Bernstein (2010, p.91) points out, the eye does not just transfer the images it focused on the retina directly to the brain as this will make one see blurred pictures. Instead, the visual images are first sharpened by the eye, a function, which hugely depends on the interaction between the rods and cones, found in the retina of the human eye as noted by Atchison and Smith (2000, P.12). Bernstein (2010, p.91) reveals that rays of light usually pass through numerous structures of the retina before striking the cones and rods. Once the rods and cones have been struck, they generate signals that are again relayed back to the surface of retina, thereby allowing the ganglion cells and the bipolar cells to connect enabling the eye to start the process of information analysis. Bipolar cells are part of the neurons capable of sending either positive or negative signals

A World Without Books Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

A World Without Books - Essay Example Books have been among the greatest inventions of the human race and it has been through them that human civilization has been able to advance. Books have become so essential that it is difficult to envisage humanity without them. Books have been the way through which the history of the human race has been transmitted from one age group to another. In addition, they have been the through which official records have been kept, and without them, all the great civilizations of the past would not have been able to blossom and flourish as they did. Throughout history, scholars and those people who could read have been greatly revered by their fellow men because they were believed to be the carriers of and transmitters of knowledge. Before the modern times, books were extremely rare and were intensely sought after by those who could read them. In the Western world, books were so rare that the only book that many of those who could read had read was the bible, a book that certain priests cou ld not even read. The ownership of and the ability to read books were therefore a source of great prestige for those who had the privilege of having them. This privilege eventually came to be spread all over the world as more people became literate and books became commonplace. However, there has recently developed a trend where people have come to prefer other forms of entertainment at the expense of books, which are slowly, but surely, being viewed as relics of the past. A world without books is a concept that many people are yet to comprehend because a majority of the literate people in the world today at some point enjoys reading. While this is a fact, one has to consider that there have developed newer and seemingly more interesting forms of entertainment, which many of the younger generation is adapting to instead of books. This is creating a situation similar to that in the novel Fahrenheit 451 where books are of no value and any that are found are destroyed. In the world of this novel, books are considered by society to be useless and due to popular demand, it has become the duty of the firemen to destroy every available copy that is found. The influence of other media such as soap operas has become so great that the population prefers it to books, which are looked upon as being too strenuous to read. Books, mainly because of the conflicting information that is found within them, have disillusioned many of the characters in the novel. Beatty, the boss of the main character, is said to have once been an avid reader, but his disillusionment with books soon led him to get involved in their destruction as a firefighter (Bradbury 61-62). His disillusionment with them seems to be so great that he makes Montag, the main character, destroy the book that he realizes that the latter has in his possession. One would say that a world without books would be a dreary place within which to live because books have traditionally been the means of transmitting knowledge from one generation to another. Through books, issues are discussed more deeply and in the process, the reader gets to have a better understanding of the issues being discussed. This is not true of other sources of information, because these sources are scarce in content and this creates a situation where individuals get only a shallow understanding of the subject matter. In Fahrenheit 451, it is seen that because of the destruction of books, knowledge has become static, not being able to grow as it should (Bradbury 87). Those people who possess books are completely ostracized from society and are put in mental asylums because of their intellect. This makes it extremely difficult for knowledge to be transmitted and the lack of this knowledge has made the people in this society disillusioned with life. Because of their hatred for books, the society in Fahrenheit 451 is not equipped to deal with the issues of day-to-day life and they have instead become artificial. The world would fa ce this

Patriot Act Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Patriot Act - Research Paper Example According to this act, US law enforcement agencies have the access to the privacy of USA citizens and/or foreigners without justifiable cause or public knowledge. However, with the special powers, the act violates the fourth amendment of the USA constitution in regard to the rights of privacy (Etzioni, 2004). The act has been hurriedly passed by the congress due to the panic emanating from the terrorist attack and subsequent anthrax attacks in 2001. The main aim of the enactment of the act was to strengthen security. Terrorist attacks have also led to the introduction of the Homeland Security Act. This act has been passed on the 25th of November, 2011. The act brought together several federal agencies to form the US Department of Homeland Security (Steffof, 2010). The agencies included were the US Secret Service, the US Coast Guard, the US Custom Service, the Naturalization and Immigration Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The aim of this act was to assist in detec tion and elimination of terrorist threats by the removal of information barriers between the named government agencies. The act also provided for the centralizing of surveillance data, which arose from the enactment of the USA PATRIOT Act (Polseno, 2005). ... Title I of the PATRIOT Act seeks to enhance domestic security. This title specifies measures for domestic security services to enhance terrorism prevention. It established a fund to counter terrorist activities and also a further rise in funding for the FBI. The title also disapproves of the prejudice shown towards Muslim and Arab Americans after the terrorist attacks (Polseno, 2005). Title II of the Act aims at enhancing surveillance procedures. This deals with surveillance of those suspected in terrorism activities and those involved in computer fraud and abuse. This title allocates powers to government agencies to collect information about US citizens and non-citizens in regard to terrorism. The title stipulates the disclosure of counter intelligence or foreign intelligence to appropriate government officials (Etzioni, 2004). The third title of the act castigates against money-laundering in order to prevent terrorism. The act provides authority to the treasury secretary to regulat e financial transactions, especially those involving entities and foreigners (Polseno, 2005). The act aims at strengthening measures to prevent and detect international money-laundering and financing of terrorism. If detected, such cases are to be prosecuted in the United States through the PATRIOT Act. The act also requires all appropriate United States financial institutions to report about potential money-laundering schemes (Marcovitz, 2008). The act seeks to strengthen the financial system of the USA and thus to prevent it from being exploited by individuals for their personal gain. It also assists in transferring stolen assets to countries where they belong. The act allows for

Action research

Action research ACTION RESEARCH, ITS BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION Action research in English Language Teaching is relatively a recent development which has been predominant in the literature in late 1980s and early 1990s. This essay explores the definitions, literature, benefits and challenges of action research as a method of teacher research in teacher education and development. It concludes by a critical assessment of the application of this research methodology and its sustainability in ELT. 1. INTRODUCTION There is a plethora of definitions of action research just as there is myriad literature on the subject by many scholars in many fields of human endeavour. Burns (2005) in her seminal paper on action research has explored definitions of action research by extensively highlighting the views of educators such as Denzin Lincoln (1998), Rogers (1961), Grotjahn (1987), Freire (1970), Schutz (1967) among others. She sums up that action research is a part of a quiet methodological revolution towards qualitative research approaches which impacted on the social sciences and emerged in reaction to scientific, experimental and quantitative paradigms. It encourages participative, naturalistic enquiry with its exploratory-interpretive underpinnings (Burns, 2005:57). Action research, since 1940s, and its related branches such as action science, action learning, practitioner research, participatory research, and collaborative/cooperative enquiry have been part of the new revolution towards change in human social and economic situations. Burns further explains that action research is a general movement that attempts to create meaning and understanding in a problematic social situations and improving the quality of human interactions and practices within those situations. The relevance of action research to English Language Teaching and teacher education, as we can deduce from the foregoing, is that it cuts across many disciplinary fields which include the field of applied linguistics. It is seen as a flexible research methodology suitable for research that supports change. According to Hopkins (1985: 32) and Ebbut (1985:156) the combination of action and research presupposes action as a form of disciplined inquiry in which personal attempt is made to understand, improve and reform practice. Cohen Marion (1994:186) see action research as small-scale intervention in the functioning of real world thus a closer examination of the effects of change of such intervention integrates social research with exploratory action to promote development. Lisa (2008:4) states action research involves fluid and overlapping cycles of investigation, action planning, piloting of new practices and evaluation of outcomes incorporating at all stages the collection and analysis of data and generation of knowledge. She maintains that the outcomes of action research are both practical and theoretical. The knowledge it generates has a direct and ongoing impact on changing practice for participants and on a wider audience through its publications, and application. This essay, however, focuses on educational action research (teacher action; as in Borgs paper on Conditions for Teacher Research; Condition 9: Community) with inclination to English language teaching. Thus the essay explores educational action research, its processes, purposes and characteristics in line with the views expressed by Burns (2009). The essay draws its conclusion from the challenges, status and how action research can be encouraged, maintained and promoted in English language teaching. 2. THE ORIGIN OF ACTION RESEARCH The popular belief is that Kurt Lewin is the originator of action research in the 1940s. His work was intended to change the life chances of disadvantaged groups in terms of housing, employment, prejudice, socialization and training. The combination of action and research has contributed to the attraction of this method of research to researchers, teachers, academic and educational community. Kurt was a psychologist, influenced by the work of the social philosopher, J. L. Moreno, in group dynamics and social movements in early 20th century Germany. Kurt conceived of research as leading to social action, and saw action research as a spiral of steps each of which is composed of circle of planning, action and fact-finding about the result of the action (Lewin, 1948:206, cited in Burns, 2009:58). Zuber-Skerritt (1996a) suggests emancipatory action researchis collaborative, critical and self-critical inquiry by practitioners into a major problem or issue or concern in their own practice. They own the problem and feel responsible and accountable for solving it through teamwork and through following a cyclical process of: strategic planning; actions, i.e. implementing the plan; observation, evaluation and self-evaluation; critical and self-critical reflections on the results On the basis of points 1-3 decisions could be made for the next cycle of action research. Earlier, Zuber-Skerritt (1996a:3-5) argues action research is emancipatory when it aims not only at technical and practical improvement and the participants better understanding, along with transformation and change within the existing boundaries and conditions, but also at changing the system itself or those conditions which impede desired improvement in the system/organization There is no hierarchy, but open and symmetrical communication. The emancipatory interest is based on the notion of action researchers as participants in a community of equals and as improvement to professional practice at the local, perhaps classroom level, within the capacities of individuals and the situations in which they are working. Action research is part of a broader agenda of changing education, changing schooling and changing society. A review of action research frameworks reveals several common features. An action research project seeks to create knowledge, propose and implement change, and improve practice and performance (Stringer, 1996). Kemmis and McTaggart (1988) suggest that the fundamental components of action research include the following: (1) developing a plan for improvement, (2) implementing the plan, (3) observing and documenting the effects of the plan, and (4) reflecting on the effects of the plan for further planning and informed action. New knowledge gained results in changes in practice (see also, Fullan, 2000a). Action research is often conducted to discover a plan for innovation or intervention and is collaborative. Based on Kemmis and McTaggarts (1998) original formulation of action research and subsequent modifications, Mills (2003) developed the following framework for action research: Describe the problem and area of focus. Define the factors involved in your area of focus (e.g., the curriculum, school setting, student outcomes, and instructional strategies). Develop research questions. Describe the intervention or innovation to be implemented. Develop a timeline for implementation. Describe the membership of the action research group. Develop a list of resources to implement the plan. Describe the data to be collected. Develop a data collection and analysis plan. Select appropriate tools of inquiry. Carry out the plan (implementation, data collection, data analysis). Report the results. This deductive approach implements a planned intervention, monitors its implementation, and evaluates the results. A more inductive approach, formulated by Burns (1999), is to carry out action research to explore what changes need to be made or what actions need to be taken in a specific instructional setting. Burns suggests the following interrelated activities: Explore an issue in teaching or learning. Identify areas of concern. Observe how those areas play out in the setting of the study. Discuss how the issue might be addressed. Collect data to determine the action to be taken (e.g., student questionnaires, observation reports, journal entries). Plan strategic actions based on the data to address the issue. Kemmis and McTaggerts approach focuses on implementing an action plan, whereas Burns focuses on planning for action. Commonly used data collection tools in action research projects include existing archival sources in schools (e.g., attendance reports, standardized test scores, lesson plans, curriculum documents,), questionnaires, interviews, observation notes and protocols, videotapes, photographs, journals and diaries, and narratives (e.g., stories told by teachers, see Hartman, 1998). ACTION RESEARCH IN EDUCATION Burns (2009) points out that the modern seeds of AR in educational contexts can be found in the work of John Dewey (and can be traced to Aristotle). Dewey had argued against the separation of theory from practice, and this had profoundly influenced educational enquiry in the first part of the 20th century to the present time. This has been the basis for future research by educators, academics and social scientists into their various fields with the aims of improving the human conditions. Nevertheless, in recent years a great body of literature in language teacher education has focus on teacher beliefs and reflection. Movement such as the teacher as researcher and teacher as reflective practitioner have been trying to promote the benefits of empowering teachers to take control of their professional development and curriculum development through reflection on practice. The new trend encourages teachers to carry out systematic rigorous enquiry into problematic areas of teaching, learning and curriculum in their classrooms, devise plans of action, carry out these plans of action and collect data to evaluate the revised plan in a cyclic pattern(Denny,2005:59-60). It is however noteworthy to understand that the movements teacher as researcher and teacher as reflective practitioner developed in different forms by different proponents of AR in UK, the USA and Australia, though they have much in common and strongly influenced by teacher education(Zeichner,2001 in Denny, 2005) . After all the polemics, it is obvious and important that teachers need support in order to carry on AR, streamline the research process, understand and imbibe group research ethics, ability to learn fast and become familiar with the literature on the theme of the research. Teachers on training like us, and practicing ELT/ESL with less experience or even completely unfamiliar with AR should be enlightened, given guidance on background reading in research methodology before any assignment or to initiate AR project. Where resources are available, there would be the need to organise a workshop at the beginning for a group with a varied and differing experiences to teach the principle of action research, methods of finding a focus which is realistic, selecting and designing the data gathering tools and planning the research timeline(Denny,2005). Also in line with Dennys (2005) suggestion, I feel that teacher researchers involved in group project should be also be involved in organising initial workshops and dissemination of the results of the workshop through publication. The group should include a researcher experienced in AR and with experience in applying for grants, presenting and publishing research reports. 3. MERITS AND BENEFITS OF ACTION RESEARCH Action research has made some significant positive impacts in language teaching field, especially ELT/ESL and on teachers involved in it, individually and collectively, however, the precise nature of these impacts on language teaching and learning may be difficult to ascertain in tangible concrete terms. This may not be unconnected to the argument that AR is not a research method can be sustained and replicated, because of lack of formal unified theory and training its conduct. Nonetheless, scholars such as Kemmis and McTaggart (1982:2-5, in Burns, 2005:68) claim that AR has enable teachers to develop skills in:  ¨ thinking systematically about what happens in the classroom  ¨ implementing action where improvements are thought to be possible  ¨ monitoring and evaluating the effects of the with a view to continuing the improvement  ¨ monitoring complex situations critically and practically  ¨ implementing a flexible approach to school or classroom  ¨ making improvements through action and reflection  ¨ researching the real, complex and often confusing circumstances and constraints of the modern school  ¨ recognizing and translating evolving ideas into action. Many more claims concerning the benefits of AR are made, Burns (1999: 14 15) states that the Australian teachers collaborated with her had experienced:  ¨ deeper engagements with their own classroom practices  ¨ a better understanding of research and methods for carrying out research  ¨ less sense of isolation from other teachers  ¨ a personal challenge, satisfaction and professional growth  ¨ heightened awareness of external factors impinging on their classrooms. 4. ARGUMENTS AGAINST ACTION RESEARCH Action research as a form of research is not without problems; articulation, conception and application. It has attracted a lot of criticisms; one major criticism is that research is an activity best left to academic specialists who have the training and capacity. Thus AR has no academic prestige and finesse. Jarvis (1981) is one of the proponents of this line of thinking in the language teaching field and similar views were expressed in TESOL Newsletter (2001), (see Burns, 2009:66-67). However, scholars like Borg (2002) feel differently, and reject the traditional boundaries between teachers and researchers. In fact Borg is championing the cause for teacher-researcher, has written extensively on this topic; Borg (2006) Conditions for Teacher Researcher. There is therefore need to address views such as Jarvis, if AR is to be considered as a research methodology. Many more criticisms against AR that deserve our attention are that it:  ¨ has not developed sound research procedures, techniques and methodology  ¨ is small-scale and therefore not generalizable(has low external validity)  ¨ shows low control of the research environment and therefore cannot contribute to causal theories of teaching and learning  ¨ exhibits strong personal involvement on the part of the participant and therefore is overly subjective and anecdotal  ¨ is not reported in a form that conforms to a recognisable scientific genre (Burns,2009:67). In addition to above criticisms AR has been criticised as messy, informal, and structurally unformed involving imprecise cycles of research and action. 5. CURRENT TRENDS IN ACTION RESEARCH Despite the arguments and counter arguments for and against AR as a methodology in language teaching fields, its range of activities has impacted on the participating teachers who have been engaged in it. It is now being accepted as a movement in the language teaching field, though it is not internationally widespread. This is because some essential conditions that promote AR, such as motivation, support, research knowledge, skills, and the potential for dissemination of findings are not readily available. This is in contrast to where AR has taken room, teachers are well supported, teaching in instructional contexts, such as in Australia and North America (Borg, unpublished, cited in Burns, 2009). Most ELT/ESL professional are still uninvolved in AR and despite the enthusiasm in favour of AR interest and involvement in it is on the decline. Most ELT and especially ESL teachers are not exposed to AR, and may not even have an idea of how it works. Some extensive workshops and conferences where teachers are involved in practical demonstration of teaching planning and presentation may result into AR. A case in point is my personal experience in Alfaisal International Academy, Riyadh. The Academy in collaboration with British Council organised a Training Workshop on the Teaching of Composition between the months of September and October, 2007. All participating teachers were given papers with spaces, and were asked to freely express the problems they encounter in the teaching of composition. The teachers were asked to present their views in groups and discuss the problems which include the choice of topic, sentence and paragraph development, logical arrangement of ideas, styles and soon. At the end of the month-long training most of the participating teachers were able to improve upon their composition class. The composition training was highly contextualized and localized in its attempt to investigate a situation in a specific school. We were able to convert tacit knowledge of student progress in composition writing to explicit knowledge that could be communicated clearly to other constituents, such as board members and parents. The training confirmed our individual opinions, observations, and intuitions based on investigation of our inputs in the training. If our observations were taken into considerations, it would provide impetus for changes in practice and curriculum, based on information that was systematically collected and synthesized. This information would lead to the expansion of the language capacity of the Arab ESL students through a revised curriculum that involved storytelling, sentence-level production of the language, and the use of content-based discourse-level speaking tasks. The research was participatory and collaborative, involving all of the international community English as second language teachers in Alfaisal International Academy, Riyadh Saudi Arabia. The problem is that such workshops are once-in-a-blue-moon events, wide apart and hardly sustainable. Moreover, we did not call it AR. However, it has all the features of action research. 6. CHALLENCES FACING ACTION RESEARCH AS A PRACTICE One of the major challenges of action research is to create awareness about its nature, scope, benefits in language teaching fields. Besides its inclusion as a certificatory requirement course, it should be encouraged through conferences and worldwide professional body where contacts can be maintained. Dissemination of individual and cooperative research findings would ensure the growth expansion of AR. Despite AR impacts in the language teaching learning field, more interesting challenges and tensions are still prevalent. I share Burns (2009) concerns that there are differing understandings, of ARs purpose, scope, and practices in various contexts. We should really consider finding answers to questions concerning the future directions of AR in a number of broad areas, such as: How should we envisage the primary purposes and outcomes of AR? Is it mainly a vehicle for practitioners personal and professional development, or can it also have a role in the production of knowledge for the field? Is AR simply an accessible version of research for teachers, or does it also denote an emerging paradigm with its own epistemology, methodologies and investigative practices? If so, how should standards of quality be addressed? In what ways can AR open up opportunities for collective forms of knowledge about teaching and learning that are inclusive of academic and teaching communities? What kinds of relationships between teachers, teacher educators and researchers will need to emerge to facilitate collective knowledge production? (How) can AR activity in language teaching also address broader issues of curriculum development, social justice and educational political action, thus contributing to the greater sustainability of effective educational practices? 7. CONCLUSION This research methodology, despite many contentions, criticism, arguments and counter arguments on the nature, scope and processes, is used in many fields of human endeavour such as social and health services, community development and education, to address a long history of difficulties in successfully transferring research knowledge into changes in practice. It is a means of combining the generation of knowledge with professional development of practitioners through their participation as co-researchers. It also serves as a barrier breaker between policymakers and practitioners, giving them richer insights into practice and an active role in policy development as well as its implementation respectively. This is clear in a research where teachers are involved in the identification of problem, plan on how to solve the problem in a participatory, collaborative, cooperative way. The various inputs of individual teacher researcher and all participating teacher researchers are the data t hat would inform the policy of change. Thus when teachers are part of the planning of policy and designing curriculum, its implementation and improvement would better and easier. The essay has been able to critically explore action research, teacher research, meaning, arguments and processes as a research methodology. Some suggestions have been proffered to more rigorous method of research in teacher action research in language teaching field. Altrichter, H., Feldman, A., Posch, P., Somekh, B. (2008). Teachers investigate their work: An introduction to action research across the professions (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. Burns, A. (1999). Collaborative action research for English language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Burns, A. (2005). Action research: An evolving paradigm? Language Teaching, 38(2), 57-74. Kemmis, S., McTaggart, R. (Eds.). (1988). The action research planner (Third ed.). Victoria, Australia: Deakin University Press. Wallace, M. J. (1998). Action research for language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Burns, A. (2009). Action research in second language teacher education. In A. Burns J. C. Richards (Eds.), The Cambridge guide to second language teacher education (pp. 289-297). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Burns, A. (2010). Doing action research in English language teaching. A guide for practitioners. New York: Routledge. Elliott, J. (1991). Action research for educational change. Milton Keynes: Open University Press. McNiff, J., Whitehead, J. (2002). Action research: Principles and practice (2nd ed.). London: RoutledgeFalmer. Rainey, I. (2000). Action research and the English as a foreign language practitioner: Time to take stock. Educational Action Research, 8(1), 65-91. American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (1998). ACTFL performance guidelines for K-12 learners. Yonkers, NY: Author. Burns, A. (1999). Collaborative action research for English language teachers. New York: Cambridge University Press. Fullan, M. (2000a). Change forces. The sequel. Philadelphia: Falmer Press. Fullan, M. (2000b). Leadership for the twenty-first century: Breaking the bonds of dependency. In The Jossey-Bass reader on educational leadership (pp. 156-63). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Hartman, D. K. (1998). Stories teachers tell. Lincolnwood, IL: National Textbook. Kemmis, S., McTaggert, R. (1998). The action research planner. Geelong, Victoria, Australia: Deakin University Press. Mills, G. E. (2003). Action research: A guide for the teacher researcher. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Prentice Hall. Stringer, E. (1996). Action research: A handbook for practitioners. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Wallace, M. J. (2000). Action research for language teachers. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man Essay -- Ralph Ellison P

Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man The Invisible Man is not a story of things that go bump in the night, but of those in society who people refuse to â€Å"see†. The essay was written by Ralph Ellison, an African American writer of the 20th century, whose stories tended to focus on racial issues. The main character of this story’s prologue is anonymous and unseen. He resides in a basement and lives off stolen energy in Harlem New York. Throughout the essay it is hard to determine whether he prefers to be this way or not, but he does describe that he loves light and warmth. He is a character that most audiences can easily feel sympathetic for. Although the essay is a narrative story, on a more critical level it tells of the flaws of society, and how some people go unnoticed and unloved. It is also tells of the power and will of human spirit. Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man is an effective essay because audiences can easily relate to it through its use of informal tone, subje ctive point of view, and its appeals to pathos. With the use of informal tone Ellison is able to relate the story to the audience better. The prologue is written in the first person, everything in the essay is being told from the storyteller’s point of view. This makes the reader feel as though the character is personally talking to them and telling of the events. Ellison also personally addresses the reader as â€Å"you† this also enables the audience to relate to the story. One particular quote form the story that was very effective was â€Å"You ache with the need to convince yourself that you do exist in the real world, that you’re a part of all the sound and anguish.† It as though Ellison was truly talking with his audience in ... ...n so emotionally, readers are able to easily associate themselves with it, and this allows the message of the paper to convey itself to the audience. Ralph Ellison’s â€Å"Prologue from The Invisible Man† is a very successful and effective essay. By reading this it is possible to tell that Ralph Ellison is someone who may have first-handedly experience racism and unjust experiences. His essay tells of the negative aspects of society to generally overlook certain people of different races. However, on a more positive note, it also tells of the strength and everlasting hope of the human spirit. This text does indeed raise important issues and concepts to an audience. Due to its appeals to pathos, use of informal language, and subjective point of view, audiences are able to relate to Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man, making it a successful essay.

Beautiful Mind Essay

Based on what I have watched from the movie of â€Å"A Beautiful Mind†, which is a biography based on the true life story of a math prodigy, John Forbes Nash Jr., is an incomparable math genius student from Princeton University who definitely amazed the minds of people he meets. For me, he is an extraordinary person having a broad and an odd imagination as well. Unfortunately, he suffers from a mental illness called schizophrenia which he doesn’t even know himself. His friends find him weird or likely a nerd, but still they try to make friends with him. Nash tried to communicate and interact with them but in the end, it’s like there’s something that bothers him, some kind of paranoia that leads him to stay away and find himself alone and unconsciously creating things that aren’t really there (hallucination) and believing things that aren’t really true (delusion). Like for example, an imaginary friend which is known to be Charles (his room mat e) and Charles’ niece. It’s odd but I strongly believe that all the things kept from his subconscious mind releases through Charles and other delusions his mind creates. I believe more than anything else, this movie focuses on perceptions of life. Perception of what is reality and what is imaginary, not only his perception but also people’s perception of him, and of the situation. Yet he was a brilliant man, although at times to people he seemed a bit unorthodox he was eventually accepted. Ironically enough I believe that it was his problems of not liking people, but wanting to be accepted and acknowledge that aided his mental state, however by the time he had become accepted his imaginary world was out of control. As years passes without knowing that he has such mental illness, Nash have invented some kind of Mathematical formula (equilibrium) which become popular and it startled me. He graduated and become a professor in Mathematics and romantically involved with his hard working student named Alicia and they even got married. But his illness turned out to be worse than I thought; his delusions become rigorous and more uncontrollable by his mind. He even believed that he’s been hired to work to the government to break codes. His other delusional product named Parcher, keeps on haunting him to work and to work which have caused him so much stress that made the symptoms worse. He keeps on believing that there’s a conspiracy, a mission by the government that will lead him to honor, but all of these are only in his mind. Nash continued his medication and deal with his delusional state. And it made me wonder, because according to my belief, â€Å"real mentally abnormal person doesn’t even know that he/she is not normal†. But in Nash’s case, how come he realized that he’s suffering from this illness and he can even stay away from his delusions? I don’t know but all I know are risks that may happen if you pay no attention to this illness. Without medication and therapy, they are unable to function in the real world. If they fall victim to severe hallucinations and delusions, they can be a danger to themselves and those around them. Schizophrenia usually develops gradually, although onset can be sudden. These were the symptoms that Nash have: Confusion, Inability to make decisions, Hallucinations, doesn’t eat regularly and lack of sleep, Delusions, Nervousness, Indifference to the opinions of others, A tendency to argue A conviction that he is better than others, or that people are out to get him. Fortunately, he was able to cop with his Paranoia and lived a simple life, he even got the Nobel Prize he ever wanted because of his genuine mind.

Root Square Mean Velocity Example Problem

Root Square Mean Velocity Example Problem Gases are made up of individual atoms or molecules freely moving in random directions with a wide variety of speeds. Kinetic molecular theory tries to explain the properties of gases by investigating the behavior of individual atoms or molecules making up the gas. This example problem shows how to find the average or root mean square velocity (rms) of particles in a gas sample for a given temperature. Root Mean Square Problem What is the root mean square velocity of the molecules in a sample of oxygen gas at 0  °C and 100  °C?Solution:Root mean square velocity is the average velocity of the molecules that make up a gas. This value can be found using the formula:vrms [3RT/M]1/2wherevrms average velocity or root mean square velocityR ideal gas constantT absolute temperatureM molar massThe first step is to convert the temperatures to absolute temperatures. In other words, convert to the Kelvin temperature scale:K 273  °CT1 273 0  °C 273 KT2 273 100  °C 373 KThe second step is to find the molecular mass of the gas molecules.Use the gas constant 8.3145 J/mol ·K to get the units we need. Remember 1 J 1 kg ·m2/s2. Substitute these units into the gas constant:R 8.3145 kg ·m2/s2/K ·molOxygen gas is made up of two oxygen atoms bonded together. The molecular mass of a single oxygen atom is 16 g/mol. The molecular mass of O2 is 32 g/mol.The units on R use kg, so the molar mass must al so use kg.32 g/mol x 1 kg/1000 g 0.032 kg/molUse these values to find the vrms. 0  °C:vrms [3RT/M]1/2vrms [3(8.3145 kg ·m2/s2/K ·mol)(273 K)/(0.032 kg/mol)]1/2vrms [212799 m2/s2]1/2vrms 461.3 m/s100  °Cvrms [3RT/M]1/2vrms [3(8.3145 kg ·m2/s2/K ·mol)(373 K)/(0.032 kg/mol)]1/2vrms [290748 m2/s2]1/2vrms 539.2 m/sAnswer:The average or root mean square velocity of the oxygen gas molecules at 0  °C is 461.3 m/s and 539.2 m/s at 100  °C.

French King Pie Traditions and Vocabulary

French King Pie Traditions and Vocabulary On January 6th is the Christian holy day of Epiphany, when the three kings, also called the three wise men, guided by a strange star in the sky, visited baby Jesus. On that day the French eat La Galette des Rois, a delicious puff pastry pie. The lighter version is just the puff pastry, eaten golden out of the oven and then topped with jam. But there are many scrumptious versions, including various fruit, cream, apple sauce filings and my personal favorite: frangipane!   In the South of France, they have a special cake called le gà ¢teau des rois which is a brioche with candied fruits, shaped in a crown, and perfumed with orange blossom water. French King Pie Secret Now, the secret of la galette des rois is that hidden inside is a little surprise: a small token, usually a porcelain figurine (sometimes plastic now...) called la fà ¨ve. The one who finds it is crowned the king or the queen of the day. So, when you eat this delicacy, you have to be extremely careful not to break a tooth!   The French King Pie is sold with a paper crown - sometimes, kids do one as a project for their home, or sometimes they do two since a king gets to pick his queen and vice and versa. French Galette des Rois Traditions Traditionally, the youngest one at the table will go under the table (or really close his/her eyes) and designate who gets which slice: the one serving asks: Cest pour qui celle-l ? For whom is this one? And the kid answers:Cest pour Maman, Papa... Its For Mom, Dad... Of course, this is a very practical way for the grownups to make sure one of the kids gets the porcelain figurine. Another tradition dictates that you cut the pie according to the number of guests plus one. Its called la part du pauvre (the paupers slice) and was traditionally given away. I dont know anybody who does this nowadays however.     So, the person who finds la fà ¨ve proclames: Jai la fà ¨ve (I have the fava), s/he puts one the crown, then picks someone at the table to be crowned as his king/queen, and everybody yells Vive le roi / Vive la reine (long live the king / long live the queen). Then everybody eats their slices, relieved that no one broke a tooth :-) French Kings Pie Vocabulary La Galette des Rois - French King Pie Puff PastryLe Gà ¢teau des Rois - South of France King CakeUne fà ¨ve - the little porcelain figure hidden in the pieUne couronne - a crownÊtre Courronnà © - to be crownedTirer les rois - to draw the king/queenUn roi - a kingUne reine - a queenPuff pastry - de la pà ¢te feuilletà ©eCest pour qui celle-l ? For whom is this one?Cest pour... - Its for...Jai la fà ¨ve ! I have the fava!Vive le roi - Long live the kingVive la reine - long live the queen I post exclusive mini lessons, tips, pictures and more daily on my Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest  pages - so join me there! https://www.facebook.com/frenchtoday https://twitter.com/frenchtoday https://www.pinterest.com/frenchtoday/

Describe and critically assess Epicuruss argument that we are not Essay

Describe and critically assess Epicuruss argument that we are not harmed by our own death. (Note, the question asks you about Epicuruss argument, not Lucretius argument.) - Essay Example Majority of the people approaches their end of life situations with lot of concerns and discomfort because of the uncertainty about the life after death. At the same time many others accept death with pleasure and dignity. Epicurus was ancient Greek philosopher who argued that the worries about death are meaningless. In his opinion, since as long as we exist, death is not with us, but when death comes, then we do not exist". This paper critically analyses the arguments of Epicurus with respect to life, death, pleasure pain etc. â€Å"Death does not concern us, because as long as we exist, death is not here. And when it does come, we no longer exist† (Epicurus quotes, n. d). The above argument seems to be logical when we analyse it in a layman’s point of view. In other words, there is no point in worrying about something which may happen in future. Human lives in present and therefore past and future may not be significant in his life. What happened in the past and what is going to happen in future are unimportant when we consider what is taking place at present. Moreover it is unwise to sacrifice the pleasure in present life for attaining future glory or happiness. At the same time, when we analyse Epicurus’s argument in depth, we may face many other questions. We have to answer the mind-body problem clearly before supporting or opposing Epicurus’s argument. It is a fact that human body is driven by a force or energy called mind or soul. Even science has no doubt about the existence of mind or soul in the body of human. Science already proved that in order to perform certain works, force or energy is required. In other words, in order to make the human body functional, mind or soul in necessary. In other words, mind or soul is the driving force of human body which is an accepted scientific fact. If that is correct, the question of what happens to mind or soul after death is

Comparative planetology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Comparative planetology - Essay Example * "Negative values of rotation period indicate that the planet rotates in the direction opposite to that in which it orbits the Sun. This is called retrograde rotation". From the above table it can be implied that retrograde rotation is followed by Venus, Uranus and Pluto in the whole solar system (Windows to the Universe, UCAR, 2000-2005). "The eccentricity (e) is a number which measures how elliptical orbits are. If e=0, the orbit is a circle. All the planets have eccentricities close to 0, so they must have orbits which are nearly circular" (Windows to the Universe, UCAR, 2000-2005). As it is obvious from the table 1 above that the number of moons varies from 0 for Mercury and Venus to 60 for Jupiter. Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are denser, rocky and called Terrestrial Planets in contrast to Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, which are less dense, gas-rich and are called Jovian Planets. Rings are present around Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune with the exception being Pluto. No rings are present around the terrestrial planets Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. ... e above table it can be implied that retrograde rotation is followed by Venus, Uranus and Pluto in the whole solar system (Windows to the Universe, UCAR, 2000-2005). "The eccentricity (e) is a number which measures how elliptical orbits are. If e=0, the orbit is a circle. All the planets have eccentricities close to 0, so they must have orbits which are nearly circular" (Windows to the Universe, UCAR, 2000-2005). All the planets orbit the sun in nearly circular pattern, same direction and lie in the same plane (Bennett, J., et al., 2004, The cosmic perspective, Chapter 8.2). As it is obvious from the table 1 above that the number of moons varies from 0 for Mercury and Venus to 60 for Jupiter. Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are denser, rocky and called Terrestrial Planets in contrast to Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, which are less dense, gas-rich and are called Jovian Planets. Rings are present around Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune with the exception being Pluto. No rings are present around the terrestrial planets Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. But the atmosphere ranges from none on Mercury, Carbon dioxide on Venus and Mars, Nitrogen and Oxygen on Earth, Hydrogen and Helium on Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and lastly Methane on Pluto (Bennett, J., et al, 2004, The cosmic perspective, Chapter 10.3). The interiors of the earth can be broadly categorized on the basis of layering by density and layering by strength. In layering by density the earth has three layers called Core, Mantle and Crust and in layering by strength of the rock. The strength of a rock depends on its composition, its temperature, and the surrounding pressure. (Bennett, J., et al, 2004, The cosmic perspective, Chapters 10.2). The inner layers of a planet by rock strength appear to be