Network Management Tools Scholarship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5750 words

Network Management Tools - Scholarship Essay Example The big burst through that enabled the streaming revolt was the implementation of a new Internet protocol called the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) and new indoctrination modus operandi that compressed audio files into tremendously small packets of data. UDP made streaming media reasonable by transmitting data more resourcefully than prior protocols from the host server over the Internet to the client player or end listener. More up to date protocols for instance the Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) are making the transmission of data even better at your job (Tenenbom, 1996).UDP and RTSP are idyllic for audio dissemination given that they place a high precedence on unremitting streaming rather than on utter document sanctuary. Disparate TCP and HTTP transmission, when a UDP audio packet drops out, the server keeps sending information, reasoning only a brief malfunction as an alternative of a massive gap of silence. TCP, on the other hand, keeps trying to resend the lost packet befor e distributing anything more, cause greater delays and breakups in the audio broadcast (Brenton, 2003). Former to UDP and RTSP transmission, data was sent over the Web for the most part via TCP and HTTP. TCP transmission, in difference to UDP and RTSP transmission, is planned to constantly transfer text documents, email, and HTML web pages over the Internet while enforcing maximum steadfastness and data veracity rather than correctness. Since HTTP transmission is based on TCP, it is also not complementary for transmitting multimedia presentations that rely on time-based...UDP and RTSP are idyllic for audio dissemination given that they place a high precedence on unremitting streaming rather than on utter document sanctuary. Disparate TCP and HTTP transmission, when a UDP audio packet drops out, the server keeps sending information, reasoning only a brief malfunction as an alternative of a massive gap of silence. TCP, on the other hand, keeps trying to resend the lost packet before distributing anything more, cause greater delays and breakups in the audio broadcast (Brenton, 2003). Former to UDP and RTSP transmission, data was sent over the Web for the most part via TCP and HTTP. TCP transmission, in difference to UDP and RTSP transmission, is planned to constantly transfer text documents, email, and HTML web pages over the Internet while enforcing maximum steadfastness and data veracity rather than correctness. Since HTTP transmission is based on TCP, it is also not complementary for transmitting multimedia presentations that rely on time-based processes or for large-scale broadcasting (Brenton, 2003).

Reverse Innovation Is Completely Different Marketing Essay

Reverse Innovation Is Completely Different Marketing Essay Large multinational companies traditionally considered deriving revenues in their home turf, and sought most of their growth opportunities within their home country. As markets saturated, they moved on to other rich countries targeting consumers from those market segments that they were able to secure in their home country. As competition from businesses both large and small increased, corporate strategy included expansion into emerging markets. Multinational companies have the capital to leverage their expansion into these emerging markets. This method allowed companies to obtain a foothold in these fast-growing economies, however, their current product offerings were too expensive to cater to the bottom of the pyramid consumers, which is sometimes the bulk of the population. Western multinationals found themselves capturing a small segment of the market, due to the unavailability of cheap products so eagerly sought by these bottom of the pyramid consumers. As done previously in ric h foreign countries, the western multinational could cater to the rich in the developing country. Unfortunately the number of consumers fulfilling these criteria is quite small compared to the entire population. Traditional strategies of globalisation later included local innovation, which together was termed as glocalisation. These local innovations were fuelled by the need to address differences in the demand structure of the current consumers. Existing products of the multinational was slightly tweaked to appeal to the locals, through various ways (include from literature). This process carried out well until local competition from emerging countries, with their superior local market understanding started developing products aimed at meeting the needs of the bottom of the pyramid consumers. These products as identified by Vijay (XXX) share some unique characteristics (low price, etc.) and are much readily accessible by this consumer base. They products created for these consumers by local businesses were highly innovative, often performing the same functions as the western multinationals product offerings, at a much lower price point. It fulfilled the need of these consumers of being of good enough quality but at the same time being easy to use. Cheap products performing the same function attracted the attention of consumers in higher income segments in the emerging countries, and gained popularity through to neighbouring countries with low GDPs per capita. Multinationals were seeing their markets slowly being taken over by these local innovators. To tackle this problem, western companies, not familiar with the demand needs of the locals created local innovation teams to create a clean slate approach towards innovation. Aside from altering current offerings, they also focused on creating completely new products sharing those factors such as low price, ease of use and good-enough quality. These products saw good responses from the local markets, bringing about increased learning of market needs to the Western multinational. The step following this original local innovation was the export of products back to the developed world. This process was coined by Vijay as Reverse Innovation in his book. The latest step for expansion of firms, this stage brings about a large number of research questions mentioned by Vijay and Trimble in their book. However, one aspect not considered was the target market in the developed country for these products. It is clear to recognize that there exists, even in the developed world, a number of consumers, especially in the bottom of the income groups, who prefer products sharing the features of low price, ease of use and good-enough quality. However, it is not clear who exactly these consumers are. With moderate success of the few successful examples of reversely innovated products in the western world, it creates the need to find out the perfect consumer profile for these products. This becomes more apparent during current recessionary periods, causing consumers to tighten t heir budgets. We analyse in this paper, from a consumer standpoint, behaviour towards these reversely innovated products. We ask whether the current economic climate will cause the purchase behaviour of those consumers, who would not necessarily have considered purchasing products sharing such features, to change or not. Literature Review Introduction Guided by the research objectives, the literature review can be broken down into three major parts; 1. Reverse Innovation and related topics, 2. Consumer behaviour and its influence on market segmentation and 3. Consumer behaviour towards reversely innovated products in western societies. Within stated topics, the literature review, first, describes briefly respective theory, its composition and provides distinct definitions, vital key models and perspectives. Thereby, research objectives of this dissertation and related theories can be clarified and explicitly distinguished from irrelevant literature available. This is specifically applicable to the topic of consumer behaviour and market segmentation with its vast amount of diverse scopes and research areas. Second, it helps to define clear definitions of different innovation models, especially those generating from emerging countries, or the bottom of the pyramid (BOP), etc. Defining Reverse Innovationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Definition History Theory (models, frameworks) Critique in contrast with other theory Analysis = hypotheses (if required) Innovation in general Brief introduction to innovation in general (including history or necessity for business?) Definition of innovation with some scholars explaining it and most popular frameworks (if available) Explanation of reverse innovation Brief introduction to reverse innovation (including origin and necessity) Definition of the theory behind reverse innovation In our paper, we focus solely on developed country multinationals, and this also sets the backdrop for the definition of reverse innovation. Indeed the term stands true only if innovations are brought back to the home (developed) country. Introducing the model of reverse innovation (4 stages of RI) (by vijay) Briefly describe all four stages (maybe I can find another model that can be described as an alternative to vijays model although probably not possible) Explaining the four stages in detail: Chris Trimble defines innovation as any project that is new to you and has an uncertain outcome (1,25). US President, Obama, talks about the need for innovation by US scientists to outdo global competition. However, Vijay argues that this can only be done when scientists stop focusing on innovation in the USA and look elsewhere for dynamic ideas based on consumer needs. Innovation can occur anywhere and Mehmood Khan, chief scientific officer of PepsiCo found that Western doctors discovered in Bangladesh the use of century old local treatment for diarrhoea by cholera. What is innovation? Sustaining Disruptive Incremental Radical Reverse Strategic Architectural Modular Competence Enhancing Competence Destroying Globalisation: Definition -43, 45 History Theory (models, frameworks) (ted levitt) Critique in contrast with other theory 51, 54 Analysis hypotheses (if required) transition to glocalisation 48 unused 33, 46, int., ghamewat Phase 1 Globalization -Multinationals built unprecedented economies of scale by selling products and services to markets all around the world. Innovation happened at home, and then the new offerings were distributed everywhere. Globalisation theory was initially developed in 1817 by David Ricardo in his Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, where he suggests that nations should specialise in the production of those goods and services in which they are most adept. However, this would benefit both trading partners only if certain conditions stayed constant, namely: There should be a balance of trade between the 2 nations so that one does not become indebted or dependant to the other in any way Capital investment should take place in home country and not allowed to move from high wage to low wage country In a sophisticatedly connected information network prevalent in todays world, these conditions do not hold, invalidating Ricardos definition. It is not possible for countries to rely on themselves alone based on their competitive advantage. Global economics is dominated by export intensive countries, thus necessitating the need for increased exports to the rest of the world as the only method for expansion. Reverse innovation, however brings back the learning from foreign countries back to the home country to strengthen the foothold in current established markets of the MNC. The bi-polar world economy dominated by USA and Europe (also Japan), has now become tri-polar with the inclusion of East South East Asia. In terms of market size, USA, Japan, Germany, France, Italy and the UK still dominate, by 2020, China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Thailand and Taiwan will move up to the top ten. It is easy to see their success already in a multitude of industries (Steel, Consumer electronics, Food, etc. ). This new tri polar world economy suggests the high importance companies must place to these emerging regions. diagram (447886) can be included to underline the change in globalisation Globalisation is one of the most popular buzzwords around not only in the world of business but a term to define the processes of international integration arising from increased human connectivity and interchange of ideas, products and other aspects of culture. Beerkens, 2006, summarises the different definitions and perspectives prevailing on the matter from Marx Engels, 1848 to his own definition in 2004. He postulates that the process of globalisation causes acceleration, massification, flexibilisation, diffusion and expansion of transnational flows of people. It accelerates basic social arrangements (like power, culture, markets, politics, rights, values, norms, ideology, identity, citizenship and solidarity) to become disconnected from their spatial context (mainly the nation state) to create a worldwide interconnectedness between nation states.(beerkens, 2004). This also means that the development on one side of the globe will have consequences on the other. Som prominent exa mples of globalisation include Coca Colas presence in over 200 countries (1, 43) or the restructuring of the automotive industry to adjust to cost differences around the world through relocation of competitive advantage regarding manufacturing, assembling, etc., to the rise in prices of oil in the Western world due to shooting up of demand for it during 2004 and 2006 in India and China. Globalisation benefits XXXXXX. (1, 43) argue that the effects of globalisation are yet to see any slowing down. With standardised national income, media and technology authors adopt the view that consumers would have similar needs and behaviours. For example, communications development (Bradley, 1991:384) and technology development (Ronkainen 1993:167) will bring convergence in consumer markets. McLuhan (1964) talks about a Global Village, where global media and increased travel will bring about convergence in consumer behaviour, values and lifestyles. This is supported by Ted Levitt (1983) who suggest that new technology will cause consumer needs to become consistent, based on his view of consumer rationality and price sensitivity or profit maximising intentions. However, this assumption of nationality is inherently flawed as it does not incorporate cultural contexts (Antonides 1998; McCracken 1989; Sà ¼erdem 1993). There is also small empirical evidence of consumer behaviour convergence based on universal price-minded customers in the micro level (Usunier 1996). Macro level hypotheses is al so disregarded by (Craig, Douglas and Grain 1992, Hollanders, Soete and Ter Weel 1999, Sarkar 1999). As can be easily understood, the scope of this topic is huge, and we shall look at only from an international business point of view. CONVERGENCE but in reality DIVERGENCE XXXXXX Given the ease of controlling expansion possibilities, cost reduction, resources and logistics, MNEs can now strategically disperse activities, including innovation functions in different low cost geographic locations. The motivations for conducting international business include market motives, economic motives and strategic motives. Market motives can be offensive or defensive offensive being the motive to seize market opportunities in overseas countries through trade investments, and defensive being the motive to protect the companys market power or competitive position in contrast to the domestic rivalry or changes in government policies. Economic motives apply when firms capitalise on the inter-country differences in costs of labour, natural resources and capital and taxation, to achieve economies of scale and subsequent higher revenues. E.g. Motorola establishing production facilities in Chinas special economic zones offering lower taxation rate than applicable in the US. Stra tegic motives lead firms to internationalise, capitalising on distinctive resources or capabilities developed at home (e.g. technologies and economies of scale). Firms can increase their cash flow by deploying these capabilities overseas. Firms may also wish to exploit first mover advantages, e.g. Volkswagen which was the second automaker in China, was the first to locate in Shanghai, gaining a monopoly in the market for years. Firms also gain advantage by integrating both vertically and/or horizontally involving different countries. (1, 43) There are several papers suggesting the heterogeneity amongst different markets in the global sphere. Bakhtazmai (2011) postulates that there is a decentralised regulation of markets, and while cosmopolitan nations move towards globalisation, they also reach down to the social local organisations. According to J.H. Mittelman, globalisation is a historical transformation in economy and cultural diversity. Hofstede postulated different dimensions could be used to understand and tackle cultural differences. Differences in product usage and buying motives are correlated with these dimensions (De Mooij 1998, 2000, 2001). Since peoples attitudes related to consumption are based on their values,the differences become more stable and stronger over time. Conventionally international business interprets the term culture to mean national cultures exclusively, but Hofstede (1991:253) has warned against applying national culture dimensions to subnational levels. Bakhtazmai concludes that the pace , magnitude and direction of change caused by globalisation will continue to progress rapidly through technology transfer. Dynamic management (Dowbor, 2001) requires constant adaptation to different segments of social reproduction. Benefits from globalisation may include design, purchasing, manufacturing operations, packaging, etc. making possible standardised facilities, methodologies and procedures across countries. Companies may only tweak a little bit in each area to achieve profits. The process of combining both global and local operations has become known as glocalisation. Yip and Coundouriotis (1991) argue that global strategy usage can possibly help achieve reduced costs, improved quality, enhanced customer preference and combined global resources. To understand the global consumer culture, (1,54) offers an categorization approach by integrating Roschs categorization theory into the discussion of whether consumer cultures globalize, glocalize or localize. The authors suggest that arguments for global consumer culture are made at the superordinate level. Levitt (1983) predicted the demise of local consumer culture, causing debates about viability of globally standardised marketing. Proponents of global consumer culture argue that cross border tourism, labour mobility (Holt et al. 2004) lead to standardisation of consumer demands (Alden et al 1999, Jain 1989). Advocates of local consumer culture argue that LCC remains resilient against such global forces (Jackson, 2004;Watts, 1996). However, meanings associated with the consumption factor are primarily functional or symbolic, causing the strength of the argument for a global consumer culture to vary between glocal and local consumer culture. Ghamewat, P (XX) also argues that the world today is not as globalised as many strategists believe. The world is not flat, he says, his view significantly differing from Thomas Friedman (XX)  [1]  Companies must find ways to manage differences and similarities within and across regions. Globalisation is relatively recent term, starting usage in 1960, however really starting to realise prominent existence since the 1990s. McLuhan, 1964 talks about a global village where people on earth live in a single social place. The local, however has to come to terms with the global. The mutual relationship also means that global is just plural versions of local. Hence, globalisation is always glocalisation (Robertson, 1995) captured as being global, but acting local. Glocalisation Phase 2 Glocalization In this phase, multinationals recognized that while Phases 1 had minimized costs, they werent as competitive in local markets as they needed to be. Therefore, they focused on winning market share by adapting global offerings to meet local needs. Innovation still originated with home-country needs, but products and services were later modified to win in each market. To meet the budgets of customers in poor countries, they sometimes de-featured existing products. Think Globally Act Locally (Glocal) is the at the core of international marketing departments and this defines the portmanteau word glocalisation. Early critics for global standardization talk about consumers needs and interests becoming homogenous, people willing to sacrifice product features, functions and designs, for high quality at low prices and huge economies of scale can be achieved through internationalisation. (1, 34) (1,37) (1, 37) glocalisation as a linear expansion of territorial scales should we include or not? Can also be included in globalisation (motives for globalisation, but we do not mention glocalisation in that stage yet, so unsure) Standardisation versus Adaptation, Homogenisation versus Tailoring these company activities are optimised when a company goes glocal. (1, 38) The term originated from the Japanese word dochakuka meaning global localization (do land, chaku arrive at, ka process of) (1,42) and came into existence with Japanese business practices as they brought their services in the 1980s to the USA (Japanese cars) (1,39; 1,40). The idea was applied to the marketing of products and affects all the Ps of the marketing mix. (1, 40) (1,36). The word glocal was coined by sociologist Ronald Robertson (1995). The erroneous assumption regarding homogeneity has led to firms to believe that their products will be accepted by international consumers. As studies show, their sales get saturated after a point, indicating the differences in consumer behaviour patterns. Company executives have started to innovate locally through learning of the intricacies of the foreign environment where they operate, understanding that this is the only way to leverage their global scale and reach (1, 43). Although most companies follow the notion Think Global, Act Local Glocalisation is more complex (Medeni 2004). Glocalisation was developed as a more holistic solution to globalisation and localisation, which is more sociological. (1, 41) (also glocalisation as a three level system; 1,37) In his paper, Vignali (2001) (1,36) differentiates between globalisation and internationalisation, defining the former as involving developing marketing strategies as if the world is a single entity, through full standardisation. He describes internationalisation however as incorporating customisation of marketing strategies for different regions of the world based on cultural, regional and national differences. This is in line with Levit (1983) who suggest multinational companies and global companies engage in internationalisation and globalisation respectively. (1, 38) Grune (1989) (1, 38) argues that multinationals pursue independent strategies in each foreign market and subsidiaries are essentially autonomous operations generating their own profits whilst finance and marketing efforts being coordinated by headquarters. Global companies operate as integrated systems with each subsidiary depending on the other for operations and strategy. Therefore multinationals localise while globals globalise (!) Globalisation and localisation may seem contradictory, however this mix of strategies are bound to coexist in the future. It takes into account the vast differences in practices, values, standards of living and taxation across the globe. At the core of the standardisation debate stands the argument to what extent, if at all, is it applicable to design, market and deliver existing offerings across national market boundaries (1, 34). The arguments set forth in this paper for glocalisation suggest that a distribution infrastructure is available for realisation of potential economies of scale, through successful global strategies since global market segments exist, as does global economies of scale. Tiplady (1, 35) adds that the situation is a bit complex and that globalisation does not only travel one way from the West to the Rest. The interconnected world allows ideas to transfer between nations and as they get to their new destination, they are adapted to fit the situation, meaning multinationals also learn within emerging country presence. It can be argued therefore, that reverse innovation is a type of glocalisation. Local realities shape these tweaks, for example Wal-Mart in China sells chicken feet and Chinese branded stewed pork ribs, also an indication of utilising local suppliers (tax breaks). (1, 35) Under the set of assumptions that developing countries are engaged in a slow and evolutionary process of catching up with the rich world, both economically and technologically, and they will import what they desire from the rich world, a strategy of glocalisation makes perfect sense. Firms can tap emerging markets by simply exporting lightly modified versions of global products developed for rich world customers mainly lower end models with fewer features. Glocalisation is essentially a simulation of the process of hybridization A process whereby cultural forms literally move through time and space where they interact with other cultural forms and settings, influence each other, produce new forms, and change the cultural settings. (Lull, 2000. P.242). Businesses not engaging in the process can be rejected by host country consumers, as the process of growth within these countries is organic and must happen through integration with the host culture e.g. Wal-Mart in Germany tried to naively reinforce American culture onto Germans, which led to unfavourable results. (1, 40). (1, 41) points out the important role of cutting edge technologies in advanced products and especially consumer electronics in glocalisation. Good for our reverse innovation hypotheses. When Wal-Mart tried entering Central and South America, it discovered it could not sustain by exporting only its existing formula it had to innovate. In his paper, Immelt (2009) (1, 17) suggests that the business model of adapting global offerings to local needs will not be sufficient given the slowdown of growth in rich countries. He suggests companies start reverse innovating, i.e. involve themselves in local innovation and then distributing them globally. He recognises that multinationals can adopt both strategies, there are some conflicts which must be resolved, and otherwise, emerging country multinationals, with good local knowledge will destroy giants like GE. Reverse Innovation As lastly described, due to the increasing potential of the consumer market within the poor people of emerging markets, MNEs have to start focussing more on these groups of customers. However, because of the drastic divergence in preferences Vijay argues that adaptation will not be sufficient anymore to cover the resulting differences. He defines the following gaps as the main reason of differentiating preferences. Performance Gap Customers in emerging countries have lower incomes than their contemporaries in the developed world. This causes them to demand products that deliver a lower performance from products, however at a much lower price/performance ratio. Infrastructure Gap The developed world has superior infrastructure, e.g. power, water supply, logistical solutions, political institutions, etc. These are all still under construction in the developing world and require some time to reach (or even surpass) the levels in the developed world. This means that consumers in poor countries require products that do not rely on dependable infrastructure. The implication for improved innovation from this gap is that these poor countries will adopt technologies that have either been proved to be useful in the developed world, and also technologies that are better. For example, wireless technology in India is sometimes more sophisticated than developed countries. Sustainability Gap Poor countries face stringent sustainability constraints, for example, India faces the threat of increased carbon emissions from its numerous industries. Problems such as these necessitate environmentally friendly products, which are often innovated locally, e.g. electrical cars in China, biodegradable energy (reference). Regulatory Gap Regulatory structures in developed countries are more sophisticated and require companies to go through a lot of bureaucracy before they may establish new innovations. Thus, emerging countries see regulatory hurdles quickly being passed through. This may also be due to the fact that emerging country governments want more solutions to solve their problems of high population, low education, poor healthcare, etc. Preferences Gap Tastes and preferences are different based on values and culture. Companies must be innovative to address these needs, and this requires a clean state assessment of the customers needs. Vijay argues that it becomes almost impossible to fill these vast gaps with the strategy of adaptation and essentially glocalisation. Thus, MNEs have to start from scratch utilising a clean slate approach for innovation, which is essentially part of the stage local innovation. The first out of two stages within the reverse innovation process. Mentioned gaps inhere the differences in views, traditions, cultures and experiences between the western rich world and the developing world with lower average income (Gobble, 2012). A good example of failing in an emerging market due to a glocal strategy, provided by several scholars (reference), is the failure of General Electric in the medical equipment sector. Describe book example_international business_page 28. Local innovation, as described by Vijay, functions as a bridge to overcome these differences. Immelt (2009) suggests companies to start the process with a multinationals focus on developing countries, innovating products in the country, for the country. They take a zero-based (or a clean slate) assessment of customer needs, as opposed to the notion that consumers will adopt the companys products which have been slightly altered for them. In this stage, the company can pool together its resources from around the world to innovate the most appropriate product for the local customer. This approach is into contrast to the existing glocal strategy where products are being globally standardized and designed from home and only marginally adapted to the local customers needs afterwards. Local innovation requires changes in the organisational structure, to include board of directors with individuals with superior understanding of emerging market needs. Leaders must understand that Stage 1: Local innovation Starting to realise that their glocal strategy was not suitable for the Chinese market anymore, GE created a low cost, portable ultrasound machine called the GE MAC 400. GEs conventional ultra sound machines were sophisticated, but very bulky and quite expensive, affordable by a select few in the emerging world. In 2002 GE launched this product in China combining a regular laptop with sophisticated software, selling for $30000. In 2008, this product was re-engineered and the new model sold for $15000.This new product is less than 15% of GEs contemporary offerings, and it was highly successful in emerging economies. This caused the mental map of GE to shift from the Triad (USA, Europe Japan) to the rest of the world  [2]  , and also initialised the idea of reverse innovation (taking learning back to the developed world)- Although local innovation might indicate an ultimate strategy to capture the entire potential customer population from BRIC countries like China and India, it does fulfil its role only partially. Vijay defines his theory being applicable to the middle- and especially low-end segment in the emerging markets. In the past, they have been neglected by western MNEs due to their focus on the high-end customer segments in emerging markets when utilising glocalisation. The low-end segment is providing an increasing opportunity for MNEs as it consists out of 4 billion people world-wide. Prahalad (2007) defines them as the bottom-of the pyramid with a purchasing power parity of approxamitely 5$ trillion dollars. Bottom-of the pyramid articles To meet the differences in customer preferences, different authors have identified similar theories about the product specifications needed. One theory isà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.(different theories such as inclusive innovation, catalytic,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦) explain inclusive, catalytic, grass roots innovation, below the radar innovation, appropriate technology, inclusive business, jugaad/ frugal innovation (focus on the last for our first major hypothesis) Factors identified by Prahalad: Affordable Products Emerging nations cannot afford goods priced for the US and Western Europe, which pushes companies to find inexpensive materials or manufacturing options. 2. Leapfrog Technologies Developing countries lack 20th century infrastructure and so have fast- forwarded to newer technologies such as mobile phones or solar energy. 3. Service Ecosystems Entrepreneurs in emerging markets often must rely on natural conditions and, therefore, should aim at building more eco-friendly products and services. 4. Robust Systems Emerging markets require products that work in rugged conditions. A gadget sturdy enough to survive monsoons in India is most likely to handle weather conditions in western countries also. 5. Newer Applications Customers in eme

The Role of Men in Adrienne Richs Of Woman Born Essay -- Adrienne Ric

The Role of Men in Of Woman Born  Ã‚   Adrienne Rich, via Of Woman Born, has created a wonderfully complex description and analysis of the condition of being a woman in our patriarchal American culture, or at least in the middle-class, white portion of it, as she acknowledges in the introduction to the 1986 edition of the book. Since I happen to fit into this category, I find this book to be very personally satisfying, although I can certainly imagine that Rich's writings wouldn't be completely applicable to all women in America. Rich examines the various issues surrounding multiple aspects of being a woman -- motherhood, relations with men, relations with children, relations with the patriarchy at large, etc. -- with a thoroughness that I find enlightening, honest-yet-hopeful, and refreshing. There were passages throughout the book that I found exciting because they confirmed or bolstered many of the ideas I've had about being a woman in this culture. I have long suspected that women and children are often fearful simply because they are the vulnerable members in a mal...

British Author Research Paper Essay

Lord Bryon once said, â€Å"Fools are my theme, let satire be my song†. A satire is a literary composition, in verse or prose, in which human folly and vice are held up to scorn, derision,or ridicule (dic.com). A well recognized satire is George Orwell’s Animal Farm. Orwell wrote this allegorical novella in England when the wartime alliance with the Soviet Union was at its height and Stalin was held in highest esteem in Britain both among the people and government. George Orwell wrote Animal Farm to fuse political purpose and artistic purpose into one whole, thus addressing the downfall of the Russian Revolution which was caused by its corrupt leaders and ignorant citizens. George Orwell was born Eric Arthur Blair. He was born on June 25th 1903 in Bengal, India to a British colonial civil servant. About a year after his birth, Orwell was brought back to England by his mother along with his older sister. He began writing poems at the age of four, ultimately getting one of his poems published in a local newspaper. In 1911 he went to St. Cyprian’s, on a partial scholarship, in the coastal town of Eastbourne, where he got his first taste of England’s class system. There he began to read the works of Rudyard Kipling and H. G. Wells. He was exceptionally intelligent that he received a scholarship to study at Eton college. After graduating, Orwell joined the India Imperial Police Force in 1922. After five years, he resigned his post and returned to England. He wanted to try his luck as a writer. He would spend his time between England and Paris, thus writing his first major work Down and Out in Paris and London. He felt that it would embarrass his family, so he published it under the pseudonym George Orwell. He was not successful and began to take up any job offer just to make ends meet. He later published Burmese Days, which offered a dark look at British colonialism in Burma, then part of the country’s Indian empire. Orwell’s interest in political matters grew rapidly after this novel was published. In 1937, Orwell traveled to Spain, where he joined one of the groups fighting against General Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War. He was injured and left back for England. For years, Orwell had periods of sickness, and he was officially diagnosed with tuberculosis in 1938. Later, he landed a job with the BBC as a producer and in 1943 he became the literary editor for a socialist newspaper. Orwell is best known for two novels, Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, both of which were published toward the end of his life. Animal Farm was published in 1945 and Nineteen Eighty-Four was published in 1949. Orwell, however, was not able to enjoy his success due to his battle with tuberculosis. He died on January 21, 1950, in a London hospital. England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, while the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separate it from continental Europe. It has a population of 53,013,000 inhabitants. The official language is British English. Christianity is the most widely practised religion in England. The major form of Christianity practised is Anglicanism. English folklore is big part of English Culture. Some of the characters and stories are present across England, but most belong to specific regions. Common folkloric beings include pixies, giants, elves, bogeymen, trolls, goblins and dwarves. Since the Early Modern Period the food of England has historically been characterised by its simplicity of approach and a reliance on the high quality of natural produce. Traditional examples of English food include the Sunday roast, featuring a roasted joint served with assorted vegetables, Yorkshire pudding, stuffing and gravy. Other prominent meals include fish and chips and the full English breakfast. Various meat pies and sausages are consumed by the British. Lancashire hotpot is a well known stew. Frequently consumed alcoholic drinks include wines, ciders and English beers, such as bitter, mild, stout, and brown ale. England has a strong sporting heritage, and during the 19th century codified many sports that are now played around the world. Sports originating in England include association football, cricket, and rugby. The basic political system in England is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary system. Today England is governed directly by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II and the prime minister is David Cameron MP. Animal Farm was published by Orwell on August 17th , 1945. This novel shows how potential ignorance and indifference to problems within a revolution could allow horrors to happen if a smooth transition to a people’s government is not achieved. The novel starts out with Old Major, a prize-winning boar, gathers the animals of the Manor Farm for a meeting in the big barn. He tells them of a dream he has had in which all animals live together with no human beings to oppress or control them. He tells the animals that they must work toward such a paradise and teaches them a song called â€Å"Beasts of England,† in which his dream vision is lyrically described. The animals greet Major’s vision with great enthusiasm. When he dies only three nights after the meeting, three younger pigs—Snowball, Napoleon, and Squealer—formulate his main principles into a philosophy called Animalism. Late one night, the animals manage to defeat the farmer Mr. Jones in a battle, running him off the land. They rename the property Animal Farm and dedicate themselves to achieving Major’s dream. At first, Animal Farm prospers. Snowball works at teaching the animals to read, and Napoleon takes a group of young puppies to educate them in the principles of Animalism. As time passes, however, Napoleon and Snowball increasingly quibble over the future of the farm, and they begin to struggle with each other for power and influence among the other animals. After chasing Snowball away, Napoleon assumes leadership of Animal Farm and declares that there will be no more meetings. From that point on, he asserts, the pigs alone will make all of the decisions—for the good of every animal. Napoleon orders the animals to construct a windmill, and the animals devote their efforts to completing it. One day, after a storm, the animals find the windmill toppled. Napoleon claims that Snowball returned to the farm to sabotage the windmill. He uses this as an excuse to rid the farm of various animals who have allegedly participated in Snowball’s great conspiracy by giving them instant death at the teeth of the attack dogs. With his leadership unquestioned, Napoleon begins expanding his powers, rewriting history to make Snowball a villain. Napoleon also begins to act more and more like a human being by sleeping in a bed, drinking whisky, and engaging in trade with neighboring farmers. The original Animalist principles strictly forbade such activities, but Squealer justifies every action to the other animals, convincing them that Napoleon is a great leader and is making things better for everyone even though the other animals are cold, hungry, and overworked. Mr. Frederick, a neighboring farmer, cheats Napoleon in the purchase of some timber and then attacks the farm and dynamites the windmill, which had been rebuilt at great expense. After the demolition of the windmill, a pitched battle ensues. Napoleon then sells his most loyal and long-suffering worker, Boxer, to a glue maker in order to get money for whisky. Years pass on Animal Farm, and the pigs become more and more like human being by walking upright, carrying whips, and wearing clothes. Eventually, the seven principles of Animalism, known as the Seven Commandments and inscribed on the side of the barn, become reduced to a single principle reading â€Å"all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.† Napoleon entertains a human farmer named Mr. Pilkington at a dinner and declares his intent to ally himself with the human farmers against the laboring classes of both the human and animal communities. He also changes the name of Animal Farm back to the Manor Farm, claiming that this title is the â€Å"correct† one. Looking in at the party of elites through the farmhouse window, the common animals can no longer tell which are the pigs and which are the human beings. The story is meant to symbolize the downfall of the Russian Revolution and the corruption of Stalin. Old Major represents Karl Marx, as he originated Communism, hence Animalism. Napoleon represents Joseph Stalin, while Snowball represents Leon Trotsky. The attack dogs represent the Red Army, while Boxer represents the soviet workers. The rise of Stalin after the Russian Revolution inspired Orwell to write Animal Farm. It is satire on equality, where all barnyard animals live free from their human masters’ tyranny. Inspired to rebel by Major, an old boar, animals on Mr. Jones’ Manor Farm embrace Animalism and stage a revolution to achieve an idealistic state of justice and progress. A power-hungry pig, Napoleon, becomes a totalitarian dictator who leads the Animal Farm into â€Å"All Animals Are Equal / But Some Are More Equal Than Others† oppression. As an English author, Orwell traditionally used fictional characters to represent actual humans. The novel is an exceptional work of satire and meets its purpose of portraying the truth about the Soviet Union and turning point of the Russian Revolution.

Music in the Roaring Twenties

MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT IN THE ROARING TWENTY’S [pic] ? Introduction The 1920s known as the â€Å"Roaring Twenties† were a time of great change, economic growth, mass production, urbanization (farmers moved to larger industrial cities), cars, telephone, radio, record players and prohibition. It was a period of a new freedom for women. It was for Americans and western Europeans, a break period from the first world, a time for happiness and peace. Finally the Wall Street Crash of 1929, ended this period as the Great economic depression set in worldwide.The Roaring Twenties were the first golden age of the American music and often known as â€Å"The Jazz Age†. This â€Å"movement† in which jazz music grew in popularity, also influenced other parts of the world. However prior to the Jazz, dance was to dominate all forms of music. ? America export Music to the world When the American dancer Josephine Baker visited Berlin in 1925, at the time when Francis Scott Fitz gerald published the Great Gatsby in the US, she performed at the â€Å"Theater Des Westens† and found it dazzling. The city had a jewel-like sparkle,† she said, â€Å"the vast cafes reminded me of ocean liners powered by the rhythms of their orchestras. There was music everywhere. † Eager to look ahead after the crushing defeat of World War I. The music played in Berlin, Amsterdam, London, or Paris, mostly originated from small towns in America. ? Origins of music in the ‘roaring twenties’ Following World War I, around 500,000 African Americans in search of better employment opportunities moved to the northern part of the United States.They left their home towns of New Orleans, (Louisiana), or Saint Louis (Missouri), Kansas City (Missouri)†¦ With them, they brought their culture to the North in places like Chicago (Illinois), Detroit (Michigan), Cincinnati (Ohio), Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), and York City (NY) which became the place for the â₠¬Å"Harlem Renaissance† During this period of time, the works of African Americans in fields such as writing and music escalated. Styles of music including Dixieland and blues became popular as well.Throughout the 1920's many people took an interest in music and in dance. They owned pianos, trumpets, saxophones, drums, bass, guitars, clarinets, trombones and played sheet music, listened to records and visited theatres, and dance clubs. With the help of radio broadcasting, new artists become famous all over the United States and for some around the world. ? Dance clubs in the 1920’s Dance clubs became enormously popular in the 1920s. Dance music came to dominate all forms of popular music by the late 1920s. Classical pieces, operettas, folk music, etc. ere all transformed into dance music in order to please young people much as the disco phenomena would later do in the late 1970s. For example, many of the songs from the 1929 Technicolor musical operetta The Rogue Song (st arring the Metropolitan Opera star Lawrence Tibbett) were rearranged and released as dance music and became popular club hits in 1929. Dance clubs across the U. S. sponsored dance contests, where dancers invented, tried, and competed with new moves. Professionals began to perform in tap dance and other dances across the United States.With the advent of talking pictures (sound film) musicals became the main attraction. Film studios flooded the box office with new musical films, many of which were filmed in ‘Technicolor’ ne of the most popular of these musicals, ‘Gold Diggers of Broadway’ became the most known film of the decade. Harlem played a key role in the development of dance styles. With several entertainment venues, people from all walks of life, all races, and all classes came together. The ‘Cotton Club’ featured black performers and catered to a white clientele, while the ‘Savoy Ballroom’ catered to a mostly black clientele . Popular dances & Musicians The most popular dances throughout the decade were the: foxtrot, waltz, and American tango. From the early 1920s, however, a variety of eccentric novelty dances were developed. The first of these were the Breakaway and Charleston. Both were based on African-American musical styles and beats, including the widely popular blues. The Charleston dance became popular after appearing along with the song, â€Å"The Charleston,† by James P. Johnson in the Broadway musical Runnin' Wild in 1923.Although the origins of the dance are obscure, the dance has been traced back to blacks who lived on an island off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina (which is why the dance is called â€Å"Charleston†). A brief Black Bottom dance, originating from the Apollo Theatre in Haarlem (NY), swept dance halls from 1926 to 1927, replacing the Charleston in popularity. By 1927, the Lindy Hop, a dance based on Breakaway and Charleston and integrating elements of tap , became the dominant social dance. Developed in the Savoy Ballroom, it was set to stride piano ragtime jazz.The Lindy Hop would later evolve into Swing dance. These dances, nonetheless, were danced by small groups of people. The majority of people continued to dance the foxtrot, waltz, and tango. On the singing side, top singers were Nick Lucas, Scrappy Lambert, Frank Munn, Lewis James , Gene Austin, Franklyn Baur, Johnny Marvin, and Ruth Etting. Leading orchestra leaders included Bob Haring, Harry Horlick, Louis Katzman, Leo Reisman, Victor Arden, Phil Ohman, George Olsen, Ted Lewis, Abe Lyman, Ben Selvin, Nat Shilkret, Fred Waring, and Paul Whiteman. ? All that jazz in the 1920’sHowever, despite all these trends and forms of music, the most known would remain the Jazz. Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in black communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. One name, o ne of the most famous jazz musicians of all time, is worth mentioning. Louis Daniel Armstrong (1901 – 1971), from New Orleans, Louisiana, displayed his amazing talents as a trumpeter, cornet player, and singer during the Jazz Age. He studied and played with a famed cornet player named Joseph â€Å"King Oliver† Oliver (1885 – 1938).In 1925, â€Å"Satchmo,† (his nickname) who had learned to play cornet at the age of twelve, started The Hot Fives. The band would later gain two more musicians and was appropriately renamed The Hot Sevens. He did not restrict his talents to just music, however. He also starred in films such as Pennies from Heaven. He continued working in the last three years of his life, most of which was spent in hospitals. He died at home on July 6, 1971. Some of the many artists of that time also included Duke Ellington (1899 – 1974), Joseph â€Å"King Oliver† Oliver (1885 – 1938), Bessie Smith (1894? 1937), Benny Goodma n (1909 – 1986), and Ma Rainey. ? Conclusion: The Roaring Twenties: a golden age for American Music and dance The Roaring Twenties period has long been considered a golden era of American society; the standard of living was rising, morality was being re-defined, innovation and business was soaring, and the general public perceived that times were good. It has been considered also as a golden age for the music and entertainment industry such as dance, theatre and film industry. Definition: The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s. At the time, it was known as the â€Å"New Negro Movement†, named after the 1925 anthology by Alain Locke. Though it was centered in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City, many French-speaking black writers from African and Caribbean colonies who lived in Paris were also influenced by the Harlem Renaissance. PICTURES [pic] New York Dance Club 1923 [pic] Jazz Orchestra Houston Tx. [pic] Fashion models l istening to radio [pic] News [pic] Dance club  : Cotton Club [pic]

Free Essays on Reform In The Khrushchev Era

Soon after the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953 Nikita Khrushchev positioned himself as the new leader of the communist party in the Soviet Union. Khrushchev’s rise to power was well executed and had strikingly similar characteristics to that of Stalin’s rise to power. â€Å"Like Stalin he climbed to power on the back of a party and proved himself a master of political infighting† (McCauley 216). Khrushchev saw a nation suppressed by the years of fear and terror inflicted through the dictatorship of Stalin. He wanted to improve all aspects of the Soviet Union and would attempt to accomplish this through a series of reforms. Although he showed great political power in his rise to power his political insecurities were exploited once he was at the top. â€Å"His personal style of leadership was acceptable in an underdeveloped country but the Soviet Union of his day had outgrown him† (McCauley 220). His inability to thoroughly evaluate and foresee consequences led to the ineffectiveness of his reforms. He simply tried to do too much too fast with little knowledge of the fundamental problems. Martin McCauley states in his book Khrushchev and Khrushchevism, â€Å"Khrushchev could not grasp the root causes of the deficiencies he was attempting to eliminate. Since his conceptual grasp was faulty his solutions were also flawed† (28). As a result, his lack of political savvy when dealing with reform led to great opposition within the system. In order to fully understand the limitations of Khrushchev’s efforts it is beneficial to look at his major reforms in agriculture, industry and his administrative reorganizations. When Khrushchev took power it was clear that his major concern was geared towards the improvement of the agriculture sector. Khrushchev viewed the best way to improve living standards was to focus on food production. He believed the best way to increase output was to expand the area to be cultivated. The Virgin Lands campaign wa... Free Essays on Reform In The Khrushchev Era Free Essays on Reform In The Khrushchev Era Soon after the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953 Nikita Khrushchev positioned himself as the new leader of the communist party in the Soviet Union. Khrushchev’s rise to power was well executed and had strikingly similar characteristics to that of Stalin’s rise to power. â€Å"Like Stalin he climbed to power on the back of a party and proved himself a master of political infighting† (McCauley 216). Khrushchev saw a nation suppressed by the years of fear and terror inflicted through the dictatorship of Stalin. He wanted to improve all aspects of the Soviet Union and would attempt to accomplish this through a series of reforms. Although he showed great political power in his rise to power his political insecurities were exploited once he was at the top. â€Å"His personal style of leadership was acceptable in an underdeveloped country but the Soviet Union of his day had outgrown him† (McCauley 220). His inability to thoroughly evaluate and foresee consequences led to the ineffectiveness of his reforms. He simply tried to do too much too fast with little knowledge of the fundamental problems. Martin McCauley states in his book Khrushchev and Khrushchevism, â€Å"Khrushchev could not grasp the root causes of the deficiencies he was attempting to eliminate. Since his conceptual grasp was faulty his solutions were also flawed† (28). As a result, his lack of political savvy when dealing with reform led to great opposition within the system. In order to fully understand the limitations of Khrushchev’s efforts it is beneficial to look at his major reforms in agriculture, industry and his administrative reorganizations. When Khrushchev took power it was clear that his major concern was geared towards the improvement of the agriculture sector. Khrushchev viewed the best way to improve living standards was to focus on food production. He believed the best way to increase output was to expand the area to be cultivated. The Virgin Lands campaign wa...

Dollars Rule and Life Changes

Dollars Rule and Life Changes Free Online Research Papers Money rules everything and it allows you to overcome all other hardships, or atleast that was what I had naively believed since I was a little boy. My impression of life, however, was shattered with the death of my cousin Tommy. Tragic and horrific as it was, Tommy’s death was my epiphany, making me realize that contentment and a love for life- rather than wealth- is the most important thing in life In the small town where Tommy lived, his father was the wealthiest man around. Unknown to the family, they had attracted the attention of hoodlums who were on the look out for the right time to strike. One day, Tommy was on his way to the bank to deposit a huge sum of money when six hoodlums accosted him and assaulted him with clubs. Hit viciously on the head, Tommy bled profusely, lying on the street in a pool of blood. The hoodlums took off with the money, leaving Tommy for dead. Fortunately, some passers-by saw him and rushed him to the hospital. The doctor’s grim look said it all. Tommy was in a critical state with a huge blood clot in his brain. The doctor recommended that Tommy should undergo an extremely delicate and highly risky procedure which involved drilling a hole through his brain to remove the clot. That was his only chance of survival, although the doctor also cautioned that even with the surgery, Tommy might still not survive. I will never forget the expression on the face of Tommy’s family- the total shock, the paralyzing fear and the utter despair. Without any hesitation, Tommy’s family agreed to the surgery. Unfortunately, the thread of hope that Tommy’s family was cling to snapped- the surgery failed. Tommy spent his last few agonizing days of his life at home. In the midst of all wailing as he breathed his last, questions began to race through my mind: Would Tommy’s life have ended so miserably if he hasn’t been a rich man’s son? Would he have been unscathed if he had left the money on the ground and ran? Would I end up like Tommy if I am rich? That night, as I lay in bed, I continued to ponder: what is more important in life- money or happiness? As the image of Tommy’s last moments kept flashing before me, it struck me that it is more important to be happy than wealthy. Without happiness, wealth and possessions are meaningless. It was then that my perspective on money changed. Tommy’s death marks the beginning of my maturity, making me realize that that contentment with what I have is far more important than wealth. Life is transient; everyday is a gift I learned to cherish because in the final analysis, what does he gain for being wealth if he is dead? Research Papers on Dollars Rule and Life Changes19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayThe Hockey GameArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS)Analysis Of A Cosmetics AdvertisementThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsWhere Wild and West MeetStandardized TestingPersonal Experience with Teen Pregnancy

Learning to Edit News Stories Quickly

Learning to Edit News Stories Quickly Students in news editing classes get plenty of homework that involves - you guessed it - editing news stories. But the problem with homework is that its often not due for several days, and as any experienced journalist can tell you, editors on deadlines must usually fix stories within a matter of minutes, not hours or days. So one of the most important skills a student journalist must cultivate is the ability to work fast. Just as aspiring reporters must learn to complete news stories on deadline, student editors must develop the ability to edit those stories quickly. Learning to write rapidly is a fairly straightforward process that involves building up speed by banging out stories and exercises, over and over again. There are editing exercises on this site. But how can a student journalist learn to edit more quickly? Here are some tips. Read the Story All the Way Through Too many beginning editors try to start fixing articles before theyve read them from start to finish. This is a recipe for disaster. Poorly written stories are minefields of things like buried ledes and incomprehensible sentences. Such problems cant be properly fixed unless the editor has read the entire story and understands what it SHOULD say, as opposed to what it IS saying. So before editing a single sentence, take time to make sure you really understand what the story is all about. Find the Lede The lede is by far the most important sentence in any news article. Its the make-or-break opening that either entices the reader to stick with the story or sends them packing. And as Melvin Mencher said in his seminal textbook News Reporting Writing, the story flows from the lede. So its no surprise that getting the lede right is probably the most important part of editing any story. Nor is it surprising that many inexperienced reporters get their ledes horribly wrong. Sometimes ledes are just very badly written. Sometimes theyre buried at the bottom of the story. This means an editor must scan the entire article, then fashion a lede thats newsworthy, interesting and reflects the most important content in the story. That can take a little time, but the good news is that once youve created a good lede, the rest of the story should fall into line fairly quickly. Use Your AP Stylebook Beginning reporters commit boatloads of AP Style errors, so fixing such mistakes becomes a big part of the editing process. So keep your stylebook with you all the time; use it every time you edit; memorize the basic AP Style rules, then commit a few new rules to memory every week. Follow this plan and two things will happen. First, youll become very familiar with the stylebook and be able to find things more quickly; second, as your memory of AP Style grows, you wont need to use the book as often. Dont Be Afraid to Rewrite Young editors often worry about changing stories too much. Maybe theyre not yet sure of their own skills. Or maybe theyre afraid of hurting a reporters feelings. But like it or not, fixing a really awful article often means rewriting it from top to bottom. So an editor must cultivate a confidence in two things: his own judgment about what constitutes a good story vs. a real turd, and his ability to turn the turds into gems. Unfortunately, theres no secret formula for developing skill and confidence other than practice, practice and more practice. The more you edit the better youll get, and the more confident youll be. And as your editing skills and confidence grow, so too will your speed.

Analysis of the Source Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Analysis of the Source - Essay Example Lowen particularly contends that the information provided therein is misleading and does not reflect the actual scenario on the ground. The authors present the Californian education sector grappling with innumerable complaints from the public. The public is generally furious because of the fact that the curriculum does not exhaustively address all the historical aspects of the American people. They feel that this is manipulative and has detrimental lasting implications on the holistic wellbeing of the population. At this point in time, it cannot be disputed that the efforts that the authors have made in underscoring the contentious issue are immense. However, they have not been exhaustive and have provided minimal information about measures that can be undertaken to address the issue in a sustainable manner. The most important issue that the texts highlight pertains to the lack of inclusion of the historical background of the minorities in the education curriculum. The current texts place undue emphasis on the European culture and the weaknesses of the minority culture. This is not reflective of the current cultural scenario on the ground. Undoubtedly, the effects of this exclusion can have far reaching implications on the holistic wellbeing of the minorities. ... To a great extent, it also influences their decision making and related tendencies. The authors need to have clearly indicated that the need to align the curriculum to the expectations of the learners. This goes a long way in enhancing sustainability. An important issue is that the new educational framework demanded that the curriculum accurately portray the cultural and racial diversity of America’s society while emphasizing the â€Å"centrality of Western civilizations as the source of American political institutions, laws and ideology† (Reinhold, 26). According to the two authors, History and Social Studies do not reflect the students’ origin and background, but it depicts that of America. Certainly, America, which has been represented by the European culture, is given an upper hand. Arguably, the European culture is considered superior to the culture of the minorities. This is irrespective of the fact that minorities comprise a higher percentage of the Americ an population. The arguments provided by the authors would have been more insightful if this aspect was highlighted. As indicated earlier, the books purport stereotypes and overt biases of minorities (Reinhold 27). This is ironical of the purpose of education whose role needs to center on promoting the positive attributes of the minority populations. The government in this regard should take practical steps to address the issue. In particular, minority populations need to be also well represented in the education sector. Sadly, authors of the books and their publishers are out to maximize their profits in the writing and publication of the books (Ehman 96). The books are generally based on stereotypical

PROJECT and investment report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

PROJECT and investment report - Essay Example This trend is majorly visible in China. In India, although there are strong government regulations against the practice of consuming wine, the young generation of the country are increasingly showing greater interest towards wine drinking. This paper presents a comparative study of the social-economic, political and financial conditions of two countries, India and China. Based on the information revealed, a particular country is chosen in which an Australian wine producing firm might invest for making international expansion. 2. Market Research Market size and potential growth Country China India Potential demand Drinking wine is one of the oldest traditions in China. This tradition can be dated as long as 5000 years back in the history of the country to. Brewing was a dominant industry in China. Wine made from food grains (such as rice) and grapes are the most favourite drinks for the people of China. This shows that the potential demand for wine in the country is quite high. Recent studies reveal that wine consumption by the population of China is showing an increasing trend over the period of last ten years. According to various researchers, consumption of wine by the Chinese would almost become double of the current figure (UPENN, 2012). Pattern of changes in the society as well as the economy has been the major thrust behind the changing trends in wine consumption in China. The market for wine in India is changing. The rise of the retail industry and the growing middle class in India acts as a catalyst to the growth of wine industry in the country. According to recent research, wine consumption in India reflects tremendous growth since the beginning of the 21st century. Wine market in India has increased by almost 30 percent between 2003 and 2010. As a result of globalization, India has been exposed to western culture. The middle class in the country is fast accepting and adapting to the western fashion. Although India does not have a heritage of drinking wine, practice of wine consumption is increasing, particularly, in social occasions. In the past, only the males in elite class used to patronize wine drinking culture. However, presently, the high income middle class is gradually becoming a loyal customer base for wine sellers. Costs Cost of the product is determined by the cost of the raw material used in the production of the good and cost of other inputs. Grapes are one of the major ingredients used in wine production. China has grape vines covering 1.25 million acres. Half of the produce is dedicated for the production of wine (G. G. Brostrom and J. Brostrom, 2008). Since there is adequate availability of grapes in China and cheap labour is also available, costs of producing wine in China is not very high. In India, the government protects the domestic wine industry against competition from foreign producers. Although cheap labour is available in abundance, other ingredients, such as grapes, are costly. This makes cost of produ cing quality wine quite high in India. Sellers often discriminate among the target customers with regard to pricing policies. While prices of certain products are lowered to attract more customers, while prices of premium brands are kept high. The premium products are generally consumed by the rich customers, who have a taste for wine developed through consuming wine over a long period of time. Degree of competitiveness China is emerging as a super market for global

EBusiness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

EBusiness - Essay Example The primary methodology of e-Business is to present high quality content on shared exchanges, integration of relevant content of business sites of the suppliers (example, SONY, SAMSUNG, LG, etc. product details documented at a high quality and presented through an exchange site where customers visit for products of a particular type, say monitors; the exchange site in turn is integrated with the databases of these companies), RSS Feeds, Search Engine Optimization and Customized Web marketing (like Google Adwords or Structured Mass Mailing). The infrastructure that needs to support the front-end marketing framework comprises of backend On-Line Transaction Processing, Content Integration Platforms and Enterprise Application Integration. The primary challenges are to first ensure that Customers visit the exchange site and then to present absolutely current information of product specifications, product availability, product pricing and backend supply chain management (like delivery mech anism - online as well as via courier services). The transactions occur very fast and completely online and hence the organization cannot afford to have sluggish approach to updating content pertaining to the marketing information. Processing of queries by Customers again need to have a very robust backend system to cater to accurate content mapping, appropriate presentation of content, ad-hoc queries, high availability & performance, etc. Clients are invited to create their personal profile through the mechanism of personalization whereby such accounts can be used to communicate with them regularly with accurate and up to date information pertaining to the product details, pricing, availability, dispatch and services/warranty. (Stonebraker, Michael and Hellerstein, Joseph. M. 2001. p1-7; Osterwalder, Alexander and Pignuer, Yves. 2002. p3). What are the Similarities and Differences in marketing for traditional business as compared to e-Business The primary objectives of marketing (stated in the section above) and the fundamentals of marketing in any business viz., market research, segmentation, product positioning, schemes, customer identification, customer engagement, supply chain, delivery mechanisms, support & warranty system etc. remain the same in both traditional marketing and e-Business. However, the competency modeling of an organization as per the competitive advantages described by Porter's Diamond (Recklies, Dagmer. 2001. p1) varies in both models of business. Businesses can reach Customers (and Suppliers) across regions, continents, cities, cultures, mindsets, etc. by virtue of a well established global computing framework for e-Business. An organization that may not have done well in traditional marketing in a continent, city, culture, segment, etc. might do very well there through e-Business. The fundamental difference that supports this theory lies in the Customer's own choice of purchases whereby the custom ers preferring e-Business mode of purchasing are normally different from the customers preferring purchases from physical outlets, like shopping marts. However, it is mandatory that a company divulged into e-Business should "get it right" in the first attempt because probability of getting a second chance is very low. This means that the risk of brand dilution in e-Business is very high. The marketing research, customer buying behavior, presentation of a product, branding style, marketing

Profitability Measures Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Profitability Measures - Case Study Example On the other hand, return on assets will show how efficiently and effectively the company’s assets have been used in increasing the company’s returns. From the analysis, it will therefore be feasible to rank the companies in terms of their performance. Q2. Return on equity is a better premise of evaluating the performance of firms than the return on sales. Shareholders who are the providers of capital will only get interested if they get value for their resources. Return on equity is therefore in line with the firm’s objective of wealth maximization. Return on sales shows the proportion of sales that constitutes the profits to the company. It can be subject to manipulation by the management and therefore not a reliable way of assessing management efficiency (Freberg & Boland, 2000). Managers can alter their revenue sources to include only profitable products and customers rather than all its activities. Margins also depend on the capital base. Q3. It is possible that firms, which are profitable, offer negative returns to their shareholders. To a nonprofessional this might look ridiculous though it is possible. Profitable firms may have high obligations on repaying their debts or the directors could enjoy high compensation at the expense of the shareholders. Moreover, the large profits could be retained hence making shareholders fail to feel the profitability of the company. All the criteria used in assessing company’s performance have limitations. The best way of ranking effectiveness should be based on the shareholders wealth

Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 12

Memo - Essay Example It is during this time that the company was confirmed to have increased its earnings in a profit margin of 50% as compared to 25% in the previous years. As a result, the CEO rewarded me for the contribution I had made for the two years through my hard work and diligence while working with the company, affirming that the company had a tremendous increase in profit during my tenure. Needless to say, this is one of the achievements I am still proud of to date. Moreover, before I came to the U.S from Saudi Arabia I used work with one of the biggest Oil Companies (Saudi Aramco) in the country. My job description was a manager, with the responsibility of overseeing 65 employees out of the total 300 working under my supervision. Consequently, I would like to retaliate that the responsibility of supervising 65 employees particularly in the production department of an Oil company is not easy but requires patience, understanding and motivation of the employees in order to increase productivity and maximize on profit. Finally, I have engaged myself in a number of community services in the last few years since I completed grade school. To begin with, I am a member of ‘Keep it Clean’ initiative which has over a hundred volunteering members who clean recreation parks and public amenities around busy cities in San Diego three or four times a week depending on the weather. Secondly, I belong to a very young youth initiative known as ‘Clear the road and save time’ that began three months ago with the aim of assisting the few traffic personnel present on the roads in easing traffic jams on major roads in Washington D.C. Since it is volunteer work, I ensure that I dedicate two hours of my day to the initiative. Similarly, I have strictly dedicated my free time to assisting lost people and locating their intended destinations. This idea came up after I realized that

Ancient Dance References Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ancient Dance References - Essay Example Ancient Dance References Dance is a pastime and a ritual that, while historical, has very little traceable history. There is plenty of evidence to show that it has existed for many millennia, perhaps even since the dawn of mankind, but there are great gaps between the dance that we know now and the dance that existed back then.Dance, being a physical activity, is unable to leave behind concrete proof of its presence. As such, it is only a guess that dance has been around since the beginning of human beings. We are able to rely on the few bits of historical evidence to accompany this assumption, even though it still remains to be just an assumption. Likewise, the questions of where dance originated from, why it was started, and how it was originally practiced are only able to be answered with educated guesses. Descriptions of ancient dances are few and far between, but they do exist. This allows us a glimpse into the past of dancing. One of the first greatest descriptions of dance com es from India and was written by Bharata Muni, a man who lived approximately between 500 BC and 200 BC. The textbook that he wrote, which was called the Natya Shastra, outlined many things in regard to theatre and music, but the majority of the book was based on dance. Bharata wrote in great detail about a variety of dances, focusing a lot of pages to every movement in each of the dances. He also divulged into descriptions of the social contexts that these dances would be used in. This book is considered to be the first detailed account of dance.

Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 12

Memo - Essay Example It is during this time that the company was confirmed to have increased its earnings in a profit margin of 50% as compared to 25% in the previous years. As a result, the CEO rewarded me for the contribution I had made for the two years through my hard work and diligence while working with the company, affirming that the company had a tremendous increase in profit during my tenure. Needless to say, this is one of the achievements I am still proud of to date. Moreover, before I came to the U.S from Saudi Arabia I used work with one of the biggest Oil Companies (Saudi Aramco) in the country. My job description was a manager, with the responsibility of overseeing 65 employees out of the total 300 working under my supervision. Consequently, I would like to retaliate that the responsibility of supervising 65 employees particularly in the production department of an Oil company is not easy but requires patience, understanding and motivation of the employees in order to increase productivity and maximize on profit. Finally, I have engaged myself in a number of community services in the last few years since I completed grade school. To begin with, I am a member of ‘Keep it Clean’ initiative which has over a hundred volunteering members who clean recreation parks and public amenities around busy cities in San Diego three or four times a week depending on the weather. Secondly, I belong to a very young youth initiative known as ‘Clear the road and save time’ that began three months ago with the aim of assisting the few traffic personnel present on the roads in easing traffic jams on major roads in Washington D.C. Since it is volunteer work, I ensure that I dedicate two hours of my day to the initiative. Similarly, I have strictly dedicated my free time to assisting lost people and locating their intended destinations. This idea came up after I realized that

REAT Task 11 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

REAT Task 11 - Essay Example Pre-testing can be administered at every stage of learning process to cue students to the concepts to be mastered. Instructors use pre-testing to invoke students’expectation, which is an important ingredient in concept learning. Instructors use post-testing to monitor the leaning progress for students. Post-testing is also a useful tool to determine the differences in learning process between students. It reveals fast learners and slow-learners. This helps the instructor to adjust accordingly to accommodate all types of learners, (Kormos, 2008). At administrative level, curriculum developers monitor the effectiveness of their programs using post-testing results. The results also help them adjust their curriculum to improve individual student performance. By adjusting their programs, they can develop model curriculum used to develop other programs. Cognitive Domain of Bloom’s Taxonomy is a sequence of recognition learning process that involves six stages in the order of increasing difficulty. The stages imply that the learning process cannot begin at an advanced stage before the preceding one is mastered. The stages are knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and finally evaluation, (Price & Nelson, 2010). At knowledge level, the learner is expected to have the ability to remember and state previously learnt information or data. Other learner’s abilities that characterizes learners at this stage include ability to describe, to define, to identify, to outline, to reproduce, to label, to list and to know. At comprehension stage of learning, a learner is expected to understand and infer problem or concept and to express given information in one’s own terms. The abilities that characterizes learners at this stage include being able to paraphrase, to infer, to interpret, to rewrite differently the same concept, to explain to convert and to predict. The third stage is the application of the concept. It involves the

Characteristics Of High Self Esteem Persons English Language Essay

Characteristics Of High Self Esteem Persons English Language Essay This chapter consists of two parts. The first section describes the theoretical framework. This section explains topics such as English writing, affective factors, self-esteem theories, self-esteem and writing strategy, EFL teachers and their role in building students self-esteem and humanistic approach. The second section deals with the analysis and a comparison between variables. This section outlines issues such as the relationship between self-esteem and writing strategy, and continues to investigate the relation between self-esteem and speaking in English, then the relation between self-esteem and reading in English, and the relation between self-esteem and listening in English in the final turn. Theoretical Framework English is an international language that is used throughout the world. The number of people who use English as a second language or foreign language is much higher than those whose native language is English. Thomas and Collier (2002) believed that until the coming of 2030 the percentage of students in U.S. schools will be over 40% of the border. Al-Sulaimani (2005) states that in some Arab countries, most people who study pharmacy, medicine, computer and science use English as their primary language. Al-Harbi (2010) found that EFL learners (especially beginners) may not be able to read and spell words or have sound-letter problems in pronunciation due to separation, the reason for this difference is that such problems exist in the native language and target language and another reason is the difference in writing in both languages. English Writing Typically, a relationship between reading and writing are combined. Practice in writing in a cross-training can help language learners to enhance the capabilities in reading and writing skills and write their spelling correctly (DuBois, Erickson and Jacobs, 2007). According to Krashen (1984), most teachers were convinced that education should focus on form and follow Krashens Natural Approach which relates to childrens L1 oral acquisition. King (2003) points out that punctuation in our writing is physical and our speech can be seen as non-tangible, if we have no punctuation in written and spoken language, they are chaotic. Then, Allen and Huon (2003) argue that effective and good writing requires a sound understanding of which is considered as a mechanic of writing. For example, the use of punctuation in phrases such as keeping the car moving, stopping, starting in the right place, pausing or at any other time is necessary. In general, Rude (2006) believes that punctuation helps people who simply read the sentences. Commas, semicolons, dashes and so on are making relationship between sentence patterns and phrases. On the other hand, if we use the wrong punctuation we create confusion in the text, knowing how to use punctuation in the text is an important point in writing. King (2003) states that capital letters can be considered as a form of punctuation that guide the eye and mind in the text. Typically, the capital letters use to start sentences and proper names. Affective Factors Cognitive domain, affective domain and psychological domain are very important issues in language learning process. In this regard, Brown (2000) asserts that the affective domain refers to emotions and feelings. Bloom and his colleagues have developed a wide assortment for the three domains on the affective domain. It consists of five levels. The first level is receiving, one person is in contact with others and is exposed to a series of data. He can accept and respond to them or reject them. If he responds, he is entering into the second level which is responding. The third level is valuing. After responding, a person according to his perceptions can be either positive or negative. Level four or organization is when a person organizes the values based on his beliefs and finds the relationship between values and his beliefs. The final level is realizing, which is a persons thinking and behavior into a system based on values (He, 1996). Inhibition Inhibition is an aspect of affective domain that is directly linked to self-esteem. People have a defense system that protects them against internal and external criticism (Brown, 2000). Ehrman (1993) suggests that students with thick, perfectionist boundaries find language learning more difficult than those learners with thin boundaries who favor attitudes of openness and ambiguity tolerance. Inhibition is to prevent people expressing their freedom and comfort. It requires a second or foreign language learning series that mistakes happen and learning from these mistakes often occurs (He, 1996; Brown, 2000). But if the learner afraid of making mistakes and these mistakes affects his ego, from the inside (ones self) who is fallen and from the outside (others) who is threatened. Both are considered a barrier to inhibit. So it can be concluded that students in relaxed environments without threat have the lowest degree of degradation (He, 1996; Brown, 2000; Andres, 2002). Risk-taking Communicate in a second and foreign language needs some competition and guessing. Some students are afraid of answering any questions and respond to a question that is absolutely true. They prefer to be silent all the time to keep from making mistakes or someone does not mock them. Having such a fear of making mistakes provides an opportunity to students who are unable to practice the language. According to Weiten (1989) in conversation, the students do not have enough time to go to the dictionary for finding the exact pronunciation and grammar, whereas in reading and writing, typically the student has enough time to choose the best words and organize sentences. People with healthy self-esteem, do not have any psychological damage with errors and negative feedback. On the other hand, fear of making mistakes can have a negative effect on learning and knowledge of learners. As a verbal exercise, it is necessary the information stored in long-term memory that can be prevented from language learning. Brown (2000) claims that: students who make mistakes out of ignorance in the classroom tend to be silent. It seems that self-esteem is closely related to risk-taking factors: if someone has high global self-esteem and doing something wrong ignorance, has no fear of making mistakes. Anxiety According to Brown (1994) anxiety is a variable that is associated with self-esteem. In general, anxiety has a negative relationship with self-esteem. Anxiety includes feelings such as worry, despair, self-doubt, apprehension and concern. Anxiety is divided into two different levels: Global or trait anxiety Situational or state anxiety (Brown, 1994). Anxiety is in many forms, such as anxiety test. Foreign language anxiety is one of the forms that are filled with anxiety items. Between the years 1968 to 1980 some studies performed by Clement, Gardner, Symthe, Tarampi, Lambert and Tucker about the relationship between different types of anxiety and second language performance. The results of these studies indicate that there are no direct relationships between measures of anxiety and second language anxiety. But in 1975, Chastain conducted a study and found an inverse relationship between anxiety and learners grades in Spanish. However, the same relationship was not found for learners of German and French (Gardner and Clement, 1990). Motivation Motivation is one of the affective factors that is important in success and failure of students. Dornyei (2001) argues that motivation is a vague term that encompasses a wide variety of meanings. Gardner (1985) defining the role of motivation in learning L2 argues that a field that individual deals with his attempts to learn the language because tends to this work and to be satisfactory of the experience of activities. This definition includes: Attempt expended to reach the goal Willingness to learn Satisfaction of learning a language. In general, motivation in the classroom depends on the teachers abilities to maintain interest in the classroom. Many factors affect the motivation as far as Danis (1993) believes these factors include: Interest in the subject Understanding of its usefulness General desire to achieve Self-confidence Self-esteem as patience and resistance. The main model of motivation includes four components that have been designed by Gardner and Smythe (1975). These components include: Group-specific attitudes Learners motives for learning the target language Affective factors (Sterns Generalized Attitudes) Extrinsic and intrinsic motivation (Sterns Attitudes towards the learning situation) You can see the Gardner and Smythes motivation model in the figure 1. Group-specific attitudes Learners motives for learning the target language Affective factors Extrinsic and intrinsic motivation Favourable versus unfavourable attitudes to the users of the target language Motivational intensity Interest in foreign language Anomie Need achievement Ethnocentricism Authoritarianism machiavellianism Integrative motivation Instrumental motivation Motivation Extrinsic motivation provided in self-instruction (i.e. incentives, encouragments and threats): Teacher/counsellor Learning contracts Records of work Self-assessment/peer-assesssment Reality testing Summative assessment Factors from self-instruction promoting intrinsic motivation (i.e. continuing willingness to put learning at a high level of priority): Learners awareness of needs and goals Perceived relevance of the course to achieving goal Maintenance of self-esteem as a person through involvment in decision making Degree of freedom to use preferred learning strategies Membership of a supportive group leading to increased empathy and reduced inhibitions Troble shooting procedures Figure 2.1: Gardner and symthes (1975) model of motivation Self-esteem Self-esteem is a fundamental need in human life. There are some meanings for self-esteem: Bandura (1997) defines self-esteem as an individuals judgement of their own value. Pervin and John (2001) believe that self-esteem is a general attitude to personality traits not any particular individual circumstances; and finally, Barnden (2001) stated that self-esteem is the experience of feeling competent to deal with the problems of life and knowing the life happiness. This competency includes self-efficacy and self-respect. According to Brown (2000), self-esteem includes various dimensions which are: Global self-esteem which means general assessment a person makes of ones self Situational self-esteem which means a specific situation such as foreign language context Task self-esteem that means a particular task within a situation e.g. writing in an EFL context. In addition, self-esteem helps in all aspects of ones life. Self-esteem is essential for a healthy psychological life. This is an important aspect of affective factors because all the affective factors are related to the self-esteem (Brown, 2000). Self-esteem has two different levels, low self-esteem and high self-esteem. Roger found that: children with higher self-esteem compared to children with lower self-esteem are more decisive, more independent and more creative. Also people with self-esteem can easily define their observations are flexible, and able to produce solutions to major problems (Pervin and John, 2001). According to McAdams (2006) Maslow proposed that humans are having a series of abilities that these abilities do not available unless, the basic needs provide for the first time. By paying attention to figure 2, we can understand the importance of positive self-esteem. Figure 2.2: Maslows Hierarchy of needs Low self-esteem is like a person to overcome their own lives and affects on the ones life cycle. Negative thoughts lead to negative attitudes, negative attitudes cause negative behavior, negative behavior may develop negative feelings and finally, all parts affected by self-esteem (Napoli, et. al., 1992). This can be shown as follows: Negative behavior Negative feelings Negative attitude Figure 2.3: Interaction Between Low Self-esteem and Negative Behavior Characteristics of high self-esteem persons A person with high self-esteem has special characteristics. According to Branden (1985) he/she may have some or all of the following characteristics: A person is open to criticism and deals with mistakes comforting. A person can give and receive expressions of feeling, appreciation and so on spontaneously. A persons saying , doing and appearance go in harmony. A person accepts changes in different life aspects without being worried. A person is flexible in responding to situations and challenges. A person can be firm under conditions of stress. A person can speak about his proficiency and lack of it with honesty and without being embarrassed. A person moves and speaks easily and confidentially. A person appreciates his own merits. A person does not consider himself inferior to others. Moreover, according to Napoli et al. (1992) a person who has high self-esteem has the following characteristics: The individual is open to take the opportunity to participate in developing experiences in spite of the risk of making mistakes, He/she takes part in an activity (sports, learning a new skill etc.) just for the pleasure of doing it without feeling the need to prove anything, He/she takes the responsibility of his/her actions without blaming anyone or finding pretexts, He/she accepts his own and others strengths and accomplishments, He/she accepts the personal power of someone without trying to abuse or control them, He/she focuses on the quality rather than the quantity of life experiences (e.g. friendship), He/she enjoys team work and appreciates its value in getting a job done or improving interpersonal relations, He/she finds a balance in life (e.g. work, entertainment, solitude). Internal consistency of high self-esteem may have higher (or lower) range types of psychological processes on the take. According to Schneider and Turkat (1975) possibly some of the people use a high self-esteem as a defensive measure to identify the optimal of society. Characteristics of low self-esteem persons A person with low self-esteem like a person with high self-esteem has a series of characteristics. He/she may have some or all of the following characteristics: A person feels awkward, shy conspicuous and unable to express him/ herself with confidence. A person worries about making mistakes and is always embarrassing to expose him/herself to anything new. A person is hyper sensitive and hyper alert to signs of rejection. A person deals with life in a protective and defensive manner. A person is depressed, unhappy and shows a greater degree of anxiety and aggression. A person does not feel satisfied with his/her life. A person is vulnerable to criticism and has greater social anxiety. A person feels inferior to others or unworthy. A person does not like leadership role or voluntary tasks. A person behaves inconsistently. A person suffers a lot of personal mistakes and sees failure as a result of deficiency in his/her abilities. A person underestimates his/her abilities (Apter, 1998; Timothy et al., 2001). On the other hand, according to Napoli et al. (1992) a person who has low self-esteem has the following characteristics: Note: Deficiency in accepting constructive criticism and making use of it in ones development. Deficiency in taking decisions and realising creative values, need to obey firmly set rules, Deficiency in taking the risks that may give way to mistakes, Deficiency in changing, a fixation on the same food, environment, course of action etc., Deficiency in focusing on others power, Deficiency in focusing on ones own power, A tendency to live others accomplishments vicariously (isolating heroes), Tendency to attach a lot of importance to the outward appearance (like dating the most attractive person on the campus, driving the hottest car, etc.), Tendency to be compulsive about cleanliness, eating, orderliness and the like, Tendency to be overly competitive (to be in need of winning every time and surpassing everyone in order to feel important), Tendency to be a poor loser and to see this position as an approval of their personal value, Tendency to be overly critical (finding fault), Tendency to overwork to prove themselves and to show others their worth. Theories on Self-esteem According to Murk (1999) in his book as Self-esteem; Research, Theory and Practice, take a number of theories that are briefly defined in the following: A historical view with modern relevance William James as a famous American psychologist, believes that the origin of self-esteem involves factors such as history, culture, family and circumstances. These factors are forming the identity of someone. He knows a self-esteem relationship with values, success and competence in the development of level of self-esteem; for example, if a person is able to manage their identity competently or the other side fails to do this. Success increases self-esteem and failure decrease it. The psychodynamic approach White believes that self-esteem is based on the relationship between ego and ideal ego. Here the focus is on efficacy. Self-esteem depends on someones competence and effectiveness. He believes that the relationship between self-esteem and achievement, respect is obtained. Thus, White concluded that the efficacy is taproot of self-esteem. Self-esteem is seen as an evolutionary phenomenon that subject to other processes, force development and deals with them in adulthood. Briefs, White to be exploring the relationship between competence, ego and self-esteem. The sociological approach Rosenberg can be defined self-esteem as positive and negative attitude towards a particular object in the other words ego (as cited in Murk, 1999, p. 122). Rosenberg was focused on the role of social factors on self-esteem. He combined both affective and cognitive processes in judging self-worth. He believes that the person who is evaluated should develop standards and values that including social aspects and compare him/herself with those standards. The smaller gap is between self and those standards and the highest gap is between self-esteem and those standards. Finally, Rosenberg focused on self-worth as a representative of self-esteem. The behavioral perspective Coopersmith defined self-esteem as evaluation that a person had to be done in relation to himself. This reflects the attitude of approval or disapproval, and indicates the extent to which a person believes in himself (as cited in Murk, 1999, p. 124). Under this approach, there is the relationship between self-esteem and behaviors such as anxiety and depression. Coopersmith believes that self-esteem or lack of it can be learned. In short, Coopersmith the first theorized who expressed two components which are included performance and competence as the principle component of the self-esteem. Behavior Informational reinforcement Aversive stimuli Hedonic reinforcement Consumers learning history Current behavior setting Figure 2.4: Adapted from summary of the behavioral perspective model The humanistic vision According to Branden (2001) ones evaluation is the most important key to ones behavior, business process, feelings, desires, values and goals affects him. He believes that the impression that person towards himself affects some responses; for example, if a person believes that is stupid, it has joined to the fact. In the first instance, he would suffer vision of human after self-esteem. Murk (1999) also emphasized self-esteem is an important part of human existence that must be managed throughout to life cycle (p. 130). In addition, Branden views self-esteem as ones having two components: Self-confidence (a sense of efficacy) Self-respect (a sense of competence). Moreover, Branden believes that a student may be damaging his self-esteem based on his notion; for example, when the learner in the learning has some difficulties, maybe he/she thinks these problems due to his/her inability. In summary, all these theorists have paid largely to the self-esteem. James is one of the first scientists who spoke about the foundations of self-esteem. White focused on effectiveness. Rosenberg puts his focus on self-worth and finally, Coopersmith and Branden, both of them focused on self-efficacy and self-worth as an essential component of self-esteem. EFL teachers role in building students self-esteem Teachers have an integral role in building self-esteem. Teachers should make the atmosphere so that students can develop their self-esteem; with this, the level of their success and confidence goes up. Finch (2001) believes that success less depends on the materials, techniques and linguistic analysis and more depends on what happens between people in the classroom. It is the teachers task to create a positive learning environment. They can improve students from the different ways and while students understand that their teacher is watching them out, but they have the sense of freedom and comfort. In this regard, Sano et al. mentioned that friendly relationship between teachers and learners and even learners with each other and this is our opinion that is the most important factor in language learning (as cited in Finch, 2001, p. 135). Students can do work correctly when they feel safe. This event occurs when then teachers behavior modestly, be a good listener, pay attention to his/her students and make them feel that they are efficacious and competent. Dorneyi (2001) offered teachers to create a supportive environment in the classroom in following ways: Establish a norm of tolerance. Encourage risk-taking and have mistaken accepted as a natural part of learning. Bring in and encourage humour. Encourage learners to personalize the classroom environment according to their taste (p. 31). Then, Kirstein (2001) offered more strategies: Create a positive classroom environment. Encourage your learners. Know your learners. Encourage interactions with other learners. Structure learning to be flexible and supportive. Help your learners acknowledge success (pp. 85-89). According to Oxford (2003) a strategy is useful for teaching base on the following circumstances: The strategy relates well to the L2 task at hand, The strategy fits the particular students learning style preferences to one degree or another The student employs the strategy effectively and links it with other relevant strategies. Oxford (1990) believes that strategies which based on these circumstances are make learning easier, faster, more enjoyable, more self-directed, more effective, and more transferable to new situation (p. 8). In short, teachers should encourage students to create positive environments not only for students with low self-esteem but also for students with high self-esteem up to maintain the level of their self-esteem. Review of literature This section includes a preview about self-esteem and various aspects of the performance of students in foreign languages. The following issues are reviewed: the relationship between self-esteem and writing strategy, the relationship between self-esteem and speaking in English, the relationship between self-esteem and reading in English and the relationship between self-esteem and listening. On the relation between self-esteem and writing strategies Many studies on global self-esteem, can be show relationship between self-esteem and writing along the following three strands: In language learning, the role of affective variables, especially self-esteem cannot be ignored. The relationship can be positive or negative. He (1996) studied some of the affective factors, especially the self-esteem. The results of a survey of Chinese students are reported: a questionnaire that was intended for language learning was administrated to 31 Chinese immigrants in Southern California and an interview with 21 Chinese students. He found that self-esteem is one of the important factors that affect learning English as a second language. Similarly, Moritz (1996) conducted a study that self-assessment as a criterion of language skill and a tool used to measure. Factors that may affect the dominance self-assessment of foreign language of students are determined. Participants in this study were 28 college students of French at different levels. Results showed that self-assessment of foreign language impact students self-concept. Anstey (1993) achieved the same results. He studied the relationship between self-esteem and communication potential processes of students in French classes. In this study, the communication potential used for the development of a literature review on the communicative approaches to second language learning. Results showed that students self-esteem depends on a process that is selected by the teacher. Factors, which enable the teacher and other colleagues to increase interaction and negotiation enhance students self-esteem. Battle (1981) developed a questionnaire which was called Culture-Free Self-esteem Inventory. This questionnaire consisted of 60 items that were classified into five sub-scales: General self-esteem, Social/peer related self-esteem, Parent/home related self-esteem, Lie scale, Indicating defensiveness. A score for self-esteem are obtained by totaling the number of items, excluding the lie scale items of 10. So, the highest possible score is 50. On the other hand, Pareek et al. (1976) developed a questionnaire which was called Pre-adolescent Adjustment Scale. This questionnaire consisted of 40 items that included: Home (nine items), Peers (eight items), School (eight items), Teachers (eight items), General (seven items). A score for total adjustment are obtained by totaling of the five areas. In this case, high positive scores indicated high adjustment in the area, while negative scores indicated maladjustment. Both of these questionnaires, Culture-Free Self-esteem Inventory which developed by Battle (1981) and Pre-adolescent Adjustment Scale which developed by Pareek et al. (1976) were used to assess the self-esteem and adjustment among children. Moreover, a study was done by the National Foreign Language for students with the purpose of knowing whether their high self-efficacy of the learning strategies they used or not. Participants were in a group of students of French, Japanese and Spanish. Students grades were fourth, fifth and sixth. Two questionnaires were presented to them: the Immersion Language Learning Strategies Questionnaire and Immersion Self-efficacy Questionnaire. The results show that students with high self-efficacy and self-confidence were using more learning strategies; these strategies were effective in language learning preference of learners to the extent that it effected on the learners self-esteem. Gordnick (1996) randomly selected 50 students of Union County College and studied the relationship between their self-esteem and writing. He used Coopersmiths self-esteem test to measure self-esteem and used their writing grades to measure the writing, then took the correlation between them. The results showed that there is no significant correlation between students self-esteem and their writing. It is worth mentioning that both Gordnicks studies and present study have been about the relationship between self-esteem and writing achievement. It also should be added, participants of this study were students of Saudi Arabia EFL secondary school who formed American students. Hassan (2001) tried to determine the relationship between self-esteem and quality and quantity of students writing. The sample formed 32 Egyptian English major university students. Results showed that there is a negative relationship between students self-esteem and their writing. Low concern students have high self-esteem and high concern students have low self-esteem. Low concern students wrote better than high concern students. Hassans study investigated the relationship between two variables, one of them was the relationship between fear of writing and self-esteem and the other was a relationship between themselves and writing skills, while the present study examine the relationship between self-esteem and writing strategies. Participants in the Hassans study were university students who just studied in the field of English language, however in this study, participants included university students in various fields. Hassans study measured participants writing skills while this st udy examined the writing strategies. Brown (2000) claimed that there is relationship between self-esteem and academic performance however, he posed a question that which one affected the other. Significant changed as the number of researchers (Huang, 1992; Brown, 2000; Lee, 2001) reported. For example, in Huangs (1992) study, he discussed the relationship between biliteracy and self-esteem of Mexican-American students. Participants included 1034 persons who were Mexican and Mexican-American. Students were classified into three categories: biliterates, proficiency in English and proficiency in Spanish or oral bilingual. A set of 13 questions measured self-esteem. The results showed that Mexican-Americans who knew them as biliterates had higher self-esteem than those in English, Spanish or oral bilingual. Sled (1993) conducted a study on 25 patients from the University of Texas in order to provide basic writers confidence. By creating discussion and motivation in his class, he analyzed the students and it was causing that they can overcome their fear of making mistakes. Results showed that students confidence has increased. Koulourianos and Marienau (2001) conducted a study and in this study they used parent intervention strategies and teacher intervention strategies for the third and fourth grade students in the United States to improve their confidence in writing. The results showed that the strategies have had a positive effect on the students writing. Bardine (1995) proposed the guided strategies that included the use of journals in the adult literacy class which was to improve students writing. In this method, the teacher used quotes that increased self-esteem and positive attitude. He taught students from Mia