Monday, September 30, 2019

The Secrets to Raising Smart Kids

The article titled â€Å"The Secrets to Raising Smart Kids†, by Carol S. Dweck has many key concepts and interesting points. Most of the people presume that outstanding and superior intelligence or ability is a key to success. More than three decades of research indicates that exaggeration on talent or intellect, and the idea that such traits are inborn, leaves people susceptible to failure, and uninterested to learn. (Scientific America: Psychology Reader, 2008, pg 69) According to a survey conducted by the author Carl S.  Dweck in the mid-1990s, â€Å"85 percent of parents believed that praising children’s ability or intelligence when they perform well is important for making them feel smart. However, the author’s work shows that praising a child’s intelligence makes a child fragile and defensive. † (Scientific America: Psychology Reader, 2008, pg 72) In a study published in 2007, the author and the two psychologists Lisa Blackwell and Kali H. Trzesniewski monitored 337 students for two years during the transition from junior to senior to determine how their mind- sets might affect their math grades. As what the researchers predicted, â€Å"the students with a growth mind -set felt that learning was a more important goal in school than getting good grades. The students who held a fixed mind -set were concerned about looking smart with little regard for learning. † (Scientific America: Psychology Reader, 2008, pg 72) The author suggests that if we encourage a growth mind-set in our schools and homes, we will give our children the support to succeed in their goals and to become a responsible workers and citizens. Teaching people to have growth mind-set, which encourages a focus n effort rather than on intelligence, produces high achievers in school and in life. Myers Discussion Chapter 10 of the textbook posted some questions about intelligence: Does each of us have an inborn general mental intelligence, and can we quantify this intelligence as a meaningful number? To what extent does it result from heredity rather than environment? According to David Myers, intelligence is a mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations. Since the mid-1980’s, some psychologists have sought to extend the definition of intelligence beyond Spearman’s and Thurstone’s academic smarts. â€Å"Howard Garner views intelligence as multiple abilities that come in packages†. (Myers, 2010, pg 407) Robert Sternberg agrees that there is more to success than traditional intelligence, and he agrees with Gardner’s idea of multiple intelligences. â€Å"However, he proposes a triarchic theory of three, not eight. They are analytical intelligence, creative intelligence, and practical intelligence†. (Myers, 2010, pg 411) The author David Myers discussed that intelligence test scores maybe misinterpreted as literal measures of a person’s worth and potential. He argued that we must remember the competence that general intelligence tests sample is important, but it only reflects one aspect of personal competence. Our practical and emotional intelligence are important too, as do the other forms of creativity, talent and character. Genetic and environmental influences shaped our intelligence, and thus there are many ways of being successful, our differences are variations of human adaptability. (Myers, 2010, pg 439) Relevance in My Life This article has a great relevance in my life. I took an advance math class last year on site, and I thought I will have a hard time with the subject. However, I realized my mind-set affected my math grade. I belong to a student with a growth mind-set. I believed that learning is more important in school than getting good grades. I was praised by my professor for my effort in asking questions after class, and I did not lose confidence when faced with the harder questions. I was not surprised that I got an A better than my classmates who have fixed mind-set. After all, I believe that I can expand my intellectual skills. According to David Myers, â€Å"challenges are energizing rather than intimidating. They offer opportunities to learn. Students with such a growth mind-set were destined for greater academic success and were quite likely to outperform their counterparts†. I am glad that I took this psychology class because I am learning a lot from this subject. I am planning to transmit a growth mind-set to my four-year old daughter by telling stories about achievements that result from hard work. I could also help my child provide explicit instruction regarding the mind as a learning machine. In this way, she will learn that intelligence can cover a wide area of things, and thus it can be earned, just like respect.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Breakthroughs in Modern Deep Sea Treasure Hunting

Modern deep sea treasure hunting and/or modern marine archaeology have benefited greatly from two technical breakthroughs: (1) side scanning sonar and; (2) remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). These two breakthroughs have made the largest financial impact on the profession than any other modern breakthroughs in the same field. Before side scanning sonar and ROVs were developed for practical use, deep sea treasure hunting professionals and marine archaeologists have to contend with human limitations on the vast three-dimensions of the sea.Two dimensions involve covering the length and width of the water surface or coastline (Smith). The third involves exploring the depths. The first two dimensions challenge the luxury of time. Unlike sunken cities (â€Å"Port Royal†), shipwrecks have occurred in random places over a very wide area. Tracking the exact location of sunken ships could take years through the investigation of historical records (Handwerk), (Australian Broadcasting Corp oration [ABC]), sample dives and other traditional methods. Moreover, since shipwrecks have occurred at random periods in history (Burke), pinpoint accuracy is an issue (â€Å"Outer Continental†).Deep sea explorers need to choose one shipwreck from a choice of many (Barrett). UNESCO estimates that there are more than 3 million shipwrecks in the world (Raja). Exploration costs a lot of money too. Bills fetch as much as â‚ ¬500 Thousand (â€Å"Italy†) or even US $6. 25 Million (Reuters) for one shipwreck alone. Hence, most deep sea explorers try to get financial backing from investors (Dennis) and concentrate their resources on just one shipwreck. With side scanning sonar, deep sea exploration companies can now cover larger areas at shorter periods of time.Odyssey Marine Exploration for instance covered 3,700 square miles and detected 2,100 possible shipwrecks in a period of less than four months (â€Å"Outer Continental†). Compare this with Mel Fisher’s 16-year search of Nuestra Senora de Atocha, a 1622 Spanish galleon wreck off the Florida Straits (Illingworth). Maybe even with Howard Collingwood’s use of archival research and a translator of historical texts as preliminaries to his cesium magnetometer scan of his target coverage (â€Å"Interview†). The third dimension challenges the forces of nature.Divers have to contend with these: (1) great water pressures; (2) strong undersea currents; (3) murky and sometimes polluted waters; (4) hostile sea creatures like sharks, eels, and crabs; (4) razor-sharp corals and other hard, pointed objects under the sea; and (5) moving heavy debris under water (â€Å"Port Royal†). In this dimension, ROVs have already accomplished many great things. The deepest deep sea treasure recovery has been made by ROVs at a depth of 170 meters (Reuters). ZEUS, a ROV, visually inspected 400 possible shipwrecks in a record-time of four months (â€Å"Outer Continental†).Moreover, wi th James Cameron’s filming of the Titanic (â€Å"Florida†), ROVs have been popularized and have become most financially-rewarding, Hollywood-style (â€Å"Master†). ROVs did not only address the forces of nature and provided safety to divers, ROVs also provided a new kind of treasure to deep sea professionals—royalty income from films. Works Cited Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). â€Å"Australia. † ABC Regional Online – Australia 14 July 2005. . Jordan 2. 7:17. Barrett, Helen. â€Å"Australia. † 24 Hour Museum – UK 17 July 2005. . Jordan 2. 7:17. Burke, Alan. â€Å"Massachusetts. † Gloucester Daily Times – USA 26 July 2005. (article no longer available). Jordan 2. 7:9. Dennis, Jan. â€Å"Dreams of Sunken Treasure Lure Ex-Hostage Back to South America. † Associated Press 26 Sep. 2004. . â€Å"Underwater. † â€Å"Florida. † Jacksonville Business Journal – Flordica, USA 27 Sep. 2 005. . Jordan 2. 7:9. Handwerk, Brian. â€Å"North Carolina.† National Geographic News – USA 12 July 2005. . Jordan 2. 9:10. Illingworth, Montieth M. â€Å"The Treasure Hunters: Before You Invest in a Search for Sunken Treasure, Find Out What You are Diving Into. † Cigar Aficionado Online. 1995. 6 Jan. 2006. . â€Å"Interview with Treasure Hunter. † CNN. com – Transcripts. Video transcript aired on 20 June 2004. CNN. 6 Jan. 2006. â€Å"Italy. † ANSA – Rome, Italy 27 Sep. 2005.. Jordan 2. 9:14. Jordan, Brian, MAC. Marine Cultural and Historic Newsletter 2. 7, Silver Spring, MD: National Marine Protected Area Center, July 2005. —. Marine Cultural and Historic Newsletter 2. 9, Silver Spring, MD: National Marine Protected Area Center, Sep. 2005. â€Å"Master of the Deep. † New Scientist – Interview. . â€Å"Underwater. † â€Å"Outer Continental Shelf and International Waters. † Tampa Bay Business Journa l 26 Sep. 2005. . Jordan 2. 9:12. â€Å"Port Royal – The Sunken City. † Book Review. 6 Jan. 2006. UK: AquaPress . Raja M. â€Å"Shipwreck Salvors See Treasure for the Taking. † Asia Times Online 17 Sep. 2004. . â€Å"Underwater. † Reuters. â€Å"Norway. † MSNBC – USA 20 Sep. 2005. . Jordan 2. 9:15. Smith, Helena. â€Å"Greece. † The Boston Globe 11 Sep. 2005. . Jordan 2. 9:13.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

The decline of US hegemonic power Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The decline of US hegemonic power - Essay Example However, this theory has been under strong criticism from emerging theories such the power transition theory which views parity among a great nation which is a challenger and the dominant nation as the cause of war rather than peace and stability. According to this theory, peace can only be achieved when a greater power surpasses the dominant nation (D’Anieri, 2009). Since World War II, the US has been the dominant or hegemonic power owing to its enormous wealth and influence in the global scene. However, according to Witkopf (1997) hegemonic periods last approximately 60-90 years. So could America be on the decline owing to the fact that it has been a hegemonic power for over 60yrs? This is what this paper will try to find out. In doing so, it will utilize the levels of analysis in international system to explain the decline of US hegemonic power. These levels of analysis include the individual, state-level and system-level analysis but first, the power transition theory will be expounded further in order to understand how the international system works as opposed to the balance of power theory and levels of analysis. ... The balance of power theory would tell us that the system would be stable as long as the strong nations are at par or are satisfied with the system. The dominant nation influences how the international system operates and makes the rules of the game (D’Anieri, 2009). For example, the US determines the rules in the system and other nations follow. However, emerging nations may feel left out of the system despite having the capability to be involved in making rules and defending their interests. As such, they challenge the status quo to get a place in running the system. This leads to war as the strong nations defend their status and stability is only achieved when parity is achieved (Wittkopf, 1997). For power transition theorists, stability is impossible when nations are at parity, meaning they have capacity and resources to fight each other. If the challenger nation which is a great power does not have the capacity to fight the dominant nation, it cannot wage war against it u ntil such a time it will have equal power. If it gains more power than the dominant nation, then it has no business waging war against it since it has already acquired the superpower status. The danger is therefore when the transition is taking place. War is inevitable to determine who governs the international system (Tammen, 2000). Since the nations get weary after a power transition, they remain at peace for some time before thinking of engaging in conflict. The status gained after the transition does not last for long as evidenced by previous wars. Rome, Britain and Mongols were once superpowers but their power and dominance declined and US attained the status (Hamraie, 2013). The US is no exception and has

Friday, September 27, 2019

Comparative study two companies in the same area with regard to their Term Paper

Comparative study two companies in the same area with regard to their innovation activity - Term Paper Example Comparative study two companies in the same area with regard to their innovation activity This paper look at the companies history in relation to innovation, their respective time of entry, the path-dependencies, factors that influenced their optimal entry timing, transition process, and their motivation and management of the companies resistance. To achieve this, the study is going to employ different concepts such as types of innovation model, BCG Growth-Share Matrix, technology S-curve, SWOT analysis, and Porters 5 Force model. Grunfos A/S is a firm that manufactures pumps with its representative companies distributed across the world having more than 20,000 employees. The three major products produced by the company include submersible pumps, circular pumps and centrifugal pumps producing over 19 million pumps annually. The company’s white paper on its measures on changes in climate indicates that innovation remains the core of Grundfos. Dong Fang Turbine Co.ltd on the other had is an enterprise owned by the state with approximated over 13,000 employees and it has over the years developed to become among the top three leading power equipment companies. To get to this position, innovation has been key to the company’s development leading to the coming up of new wind turbine, thermal power and solar power. Self regulation in Grundfos has been appreciated as being remarkably exercised and it is deeply committed to the sustainability of the company. Following the fact that the kind of business run by the company remain relevant to the water resources of the world, its innovations have to take into consideration the Corporate Social responsibility. (Keeley and Doz 76). The company has committed itself to cut down on their carbon foot print and reduce their emissions of carbon in the entire cycle of both the services and products they produce, cut down on their water consumption using their value chain, produce pumps that are energy efficient, assist the world in adapting to the changes in climate, low carbon economy and water scarcity and facilitate the awareness linking energy, water and climatic changes. This implies that the main challenge to Grundfos innovation strategies is the state environment thus is has to come up with ways of ensuring that all the environmental regulations have been observed at the same time maximize on its profits. The company has adapted well to this challenge and this can be attributed mostly to its traditional proactive to take part in global environmental concerns such as being part of the establishment of A to G energy labeling that was a voluntary exercise, facilitating the production of educational material as well as funding and running researches and campaigns on environmental issues in the media (Keeley and Doz 120). Companies Endeavors Grundfos innovation strategies have been coupled with organizational adjustments, environmental management systems, and endeavors implemented one after the other. It is the Central Service Department of this company that is responsible for the coordination of environmental issues concerns as well as management of the external collaborations. Chain management of environmental products, environmental management in relation to production and the responsibility of corporate social remain the responsi bility of this department. In an effort to improve its operation and coordination within different departments within the

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Discuss the impact of fear and anger (in patients) when caring for Essay

Discuss the impact of fear and anger (in patients) when caring for clients in the health care setting - Essay Example â€Å"Anger is a HEALTHY EMOTION. It is a WARNING SIGNAL that something is wrong† (Middelton-Moz, Ph.D., 2009) Fear and anger even though are common in most of the living things and also in normal cases it may not create much harm to the person who was afraid of something or feeling angry at something, it’s effect is not the same as far as patients are concerned. Fear and angry can complicate the conditions of a patient because of the psychological and physiological changes it can develop among the patients. Patients irrespective of their nature of disease definitely need a peaceful mind for the speedy recovery from the disease. Fear and anger can worsen the conditions of a patient. Frustrations can creep up among the minds of the patients because of their inability to lead a normal life which they may demonstrate in the form of fear or anger. Nurses who are taking care of the patients often confused with, how to deal with such patients in order to settle them and to regain their lost mental balances or psychological equilibriums. â€Å"Fear of not being in control, fear of uncertainty and the unknown, fear of pain and change, fear of not being able to meet your obligations to family and job. Fears can mask themselves in anger and hostility, which is often directed at those youre closest to, as well as doctors, nurses, and technicians† (Schimmel, 2009) Dry Mouth, Heart Palpitations, Numbness, Heightened Senses, Breathlessness, Feeling Dizzy, Muscle Tension, Hyperventilation etc are the most visible symptoms of fear and anger (Duffey, 2009) First and the foremost thing the nurses must concentrate in dealing with such emotionally distracted patients are to develop strategies to regain the patient’s normal mental condition. Nurses must know that medications alone may not yield 100% recovery of such patients and psychological approaches also required to

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Exxon Mobile Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Exxon Mobile - Research Paper Example Its large production operations reserves and diversity, possession of one of the largest E&P portfolios and its technological superiority are some of the benefits attributed to its efficiency. Exxon Mobile markets its products under three brands including Esso, Mobil, and Exxon. The company also owns smaller subsidiary such as Sea River Maritime and Imperial Oil Limited. The biggest cash flow is, however, dominated by the upstream divisions, which account for about 70% of the total revenue (Exxon Mobile Corp, 2011). Company and industry characteristics Primary products Exxon mobile’s primary products include fuels, chemicals, natural gas and lubricants and special products. The fuel products, which is its core activity, is produced in a variety of types including gas oil for industrial applications, heavy fuel oils for power stations, domestic fuel oil for heating in buildings and houses, LPG and diesel for cars and gas oil for industrial applications and heavy fuel oils for p ower stations. Exxon also manufactures lubricants and fuels for the aviation industry. Lubricants and special products are sold under the Mobil brand, which comes in a wide range of amounts and types. The chemicals are classified as petrochemicals, which are produced from petroleum and include the common chemicals that are used in everyday life, such as synthetic rubber, packaging materials, solvents, plastic bottles and other consumer products. Lastly, ExxonMobil produces natural gas, which is in pure form of LPG used as a propellant for manufacturing cosmetics. Competitiveness of the industry The oil and gas industry is operating under a challenging and a dynamic global marketplace and a progressively more adamant group of participants. The regulatory demand is increasingly putting pressure on the operations, and the demand growth is becoming sluggish, while the existing reserves are more expensive and difficult to generate. As the demand to meet future demand builds up, worldwide alliances are becoming more significant. Over the recent years, oil price fluctuation has become the order of the day. In spite of this, the companies in this industry have a challenging task of ensuring they focus on the medium to long-term conditions if they are to make credible decisions and achieve their growth targets. Investing in people, technology and R&D are critical in ensuring a lasting competitive edge. Exxon Mobile’s primary competitors include Chevron Corporation and BP. Chevron is an American multinational energy Corporation with the presence in more than 180 nations. Its operations cover all aspects of gas, oil, and geothermal energy industries that include mining; refinement, marketing and transportation; sale and manufacture of chemicals; and also generation of power. Chevron is among the top 6 major oil companies. (U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2011). Financial statements and ratio analysis Financial statement analysis In financial statements ana lysis, we have used year 2008 to 2011 comparatives. Total revenue reported in year 2008 amounting to $ 433,526,000 dropped to $ 275,564,000 in 2010 (Exxon Mobile Corp, 2011). This significant decline in revenues could be attributed to the effects of global economic depression that had just started to bite and due to sharp rise in prices of fuel products - this forced many people and businesses to use alternative sources of energy. To guard against losses occasioned by reduced economic activity, the

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Legislative Issues Paper-reimbursement for Nurse Practitioners Research Paper

Legislative Issues -reimbursement for Nurse Practitioners - Research Paper Example According to Frakes and Evans (2006), in 2003, the federal government spent 13% of its budget on Medicare services. This means that the federal government spent as much as $271 billion on providing health care services to the needy citizens (Frakes and Evans, 2006). As a result of the increasing allocation on health care programs and policies, the federal government has put significant interest in managing and controlling its costs on implementing these health care programs. In doing so, the federal government has used the legislation to control health care costs by creating a regulatory structure that will regulate resultant costs and prevent fraud within the health industry (Frakes and Evans, 2006). Because of these regulatory policies and programs, health care providers in both patient care and practice are affected (Frakes and Evans, 2006). Of the health care providers that are very much affected of the regulatory efforts set by the federal government, the advanced practice nurse s (APN) are among them. Nurse practitioners (NPs) and clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) make up APNs (Frakes and Evans, 2006). According to (Hamric, Spross, and Hanson, 2009), the roles of APNs include nurse practitioners (NPs), certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs), clinical nurse specialists (CNSs), and ), certified nurse-midwives (CNMs). ... uently, health providers such as physicians and registered nurses are reimbursed under the Current Procedural Terminology system which is created by the American Medical Association (Frakes and Evans, 2006). In this system, which was developed in 1966, reimbursements for a service are determined through the individual provider’s relative value scale (Frakes and Evans, 2006). Subsequently, the value scale, according to Richmond, Thompson, & Sullivan-Marx (2000), is thereby established based on the professional liability insurance cost, practice expense, and work done of the provider, and then multiplied by a geographic expense adjustment modifier. Incidentally, under the reimbursement system, APNs can receive reimbursements from the government’s Medicare and Medicaid programs, commercial insurers, self-insured institutions, and managed care organizations for the services they provide (Frakes and Evans, 2006). With the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Acts of 1989 and 1990, APNs are able to receive reimbursements; however, Richmond, Thompson, & Sullivan-Marx (2000) maintain that the limitation of this Act is that reimbursements are confined to those who practice inside skilled nursing facilities and rural areas. Another restriction to the reimbursement rights of APNs is that APNS can reimburse only for services billed as â€Å"incident to† a physician’s care but requires that the APN be employed or contracted with the physician (Frakes and Evans, 2006). Through this set-up, physicians enjoy reimbursements at 100% of their rates. Clearly, the disparity between APNs and physicians is manifested through these reimbursement policies. In a study of Ruchlin, Levey, and Muller (1975), they define the function of reimbursement programs. In their study, they utilize the

Monday, September 23, 2019

To what extent does leadership research support the idea that there is Essay - 1

To what extent does leadership research support the idea that there is one best way to lead people in organisations - Essay Example This paper touches upon these key areas to establish where leadership reigns supreme, be it a democratic form of leadership or autocratic one, and how that ‘one best way’ to lead the employees within organizations is made proper. Both democratic and autocratic forms of leadership can give rise to motivation which is the basis of knowing that employees will time and again fall down and then get up to make sure that they are positively driven to achieve the organizational objectives through research, analysis and evidence. This is bound to happen because there are times when frustration runs high and people need support from a number of directions. However, on the same token, what is most important is the self-motivation construct that wins many favors for the employees who are looking to solve a problem (Axley, 1996). Motivation is therefore dependent on the people for whom it is coming into play. An employee who is not motivated enough will perform worse off than a person who is motivated to go out there and do something on his own (Fulton, 1998). Under leadership, the seniors also enforce their say through different programs and teamwork exercises. When employees feel that they are being properly led by, jo b satisfaction is bound to happen. When job satisfaction is ensured, leadership comes about in full circle and hence the leaders are able to lead people easily. When employees are satisfied with their jobs, the task of the leader becomes easier. The leadership knows where to instill confidence and in what quantity this has to be done to derive sound results. Also what needs to be understood is the fact that more productivity will be achieved once leaders are able to do their jobs well (Butkus, 1999). Leaders are inclined to exercise restraint over employees who are motivated enough to perform their respective tasks, thus coming directly under the authoritative leadership realms. What this implies is the fact that since they

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Ford Motor Company Business Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Ford Motor Company Business - Case Study Example Vertical integration strategy is adopted by Ford and it provided them competency in the industry. Along with the success report, unresolved problems existed with the company. In the beginning of 1990s, Ford automotive-focused on the North American region made huge success whereas, at the same time, the business sector focused on the European Car market recorded greater losses and break even. Since the year 1999, the company showed greater developments through different operational strategies. In between 1999 and 2001, the newly appointed CEO of the company implemented consumer services sector as a part of the Ford Motor business. It was affected by the challenges aroused from safety issues related to the rollover accidents of Ford Explorer Sport. The business relations of the company with the tire manufacturers Firestone was broken from these issues. Nearly 20 million defective tires were required to be returned to Firestone. Operating loss faced by the company after September 11, 20 01, due to the requirements of sales incentives on the recalled tire on the ground of aging of the product. â€Å"Ford now encompasses many global brands, including Lincoln and Mercury of the US, Jaguar, and Land Rover of the UK, and Volvo of Sweden. Ford also owns a one-third controlling interest in Mazda. Ford also recently purchased the Rover name to keep others from using it to capitalize on Land Rover.† (Ford Motor Company Production File Archive for Stock Certificate Design – 1951 2009).... The tax application seems to be the main default with the conversion of profitability in greater stock market return. Vertical integration strategy is adopted by Ford and it provided them competency in the industry. Along with the success report, unresolved problems were exists with the company. In the beginning of 1990s, Ford automotive focused on the North American region made huge success whereas at the same time, the business sector focused on the European Car market recorded greater losses and break even. Since the year 1999, the company showed greater developments through different operational strategies. In between 1999 and 2001, the newly appointed CEO of the company, implemented consumer services sector as a part of the Ford Motor business. It was affected by the challenges aroused from safety issues related to the rollover accidents of Ford Explorer sport. The business relations of the company with the tyre manufacturers Firestone was broken from these issues. Nearly 20 million defective tyres were required to be returned to Firestone. Operating loss faced by the company after September 11, 2001 due to the requirements of sales incentives on the recalled tyre on the ground of ageing of the product."Ford now encompasses many global brands, including Lincoln and Mercury of the US, Jaguar, and Land Rover of the UK, and Volvo of Sweden. Ford also owns a one-third controlling interest in Mazda. Ford also recently purchased the Rover name (which is no longer in use) to keep others from using it to capitalize on Land Rover." (Ford Motor Company Production File Archive for Stock Certificate Design - 1951 2009). In the year 1999 the company attained position among the world's ten largest corporations by revenue and one of the world's most profitable

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Linking and Illegal Trespassing Essay Example for Free

Linking and Illegal Trespassing Essay Bidder’s Edge was different than EBay normal customers for a few reasons. Bidder’s Edge searched for bids on EBay to compare with bids from other bidding sites to find the best bids for customers. Bidders Edge could have potentially slowed the access to EBay’s actual customers on EBay’s site directly (The Recorder, 2000). I feel EBay gained concern because this process could have lost them potential or current customers. For example, if EBay was being compared to other bidding websites with low bids, then it would be obvious that EBay would not be chosen by bidders. Bidders Edge for me seems a lot like Amazon. Amazon compares several stores prices to find their customers the lowest price. The difference with Amazon is that they only search stores that have granted them the permission to do so. Also unlike a bidding website, all prices are as is. Traditional trespass to personal property is entering a premise without permission, misusing or damaging the owner’s property and also preventing the owner of said property from using the property as the owner intended (Bick, 2000). The difference between traditional trespassing and to personal property differs from the California definition of trespassing to computer services is vastly. Where with the traditional trespass to personal property is easy to prove, the California definition of trespassing to computer services is not. California definition of trespassing to computer services states that the owner of web site has to prove that the use by trespasser has caused injury to web site or owner. Being that a majority of the internet is public access, it can be hard to not allow access to certain individuals and companies while considering themselves a public website. Also an internet site is much easier to access than a physical property and harder to prove.

Friday, September 20, 2019

The implications of the notion of the Big Society

The implications of the notion of the Big Society The Big Society was officially launched by the Prime Minister David Cameron in July 2010 (see NCVO, 2010). However, this was not the first we had heard of the Big Society. The notion was first discussed within the Conservative Party from mid 2009 (see Conservative Party, 2010), with the terminology associated with the Big Society coming to the fore in the weeks and months before, during and after the 2010 General Election campaign. At the core of David Camerons vision for revitalising both the UK and the Conservative party is what he describes as the Big Society. The concept calls for a restructuring of the relationship between state and society, with a substantial movement of power and responsibility from the former to the latter (Pattie Johnston, 2010, p2). Some view the Big Society as a positive move with the potential to transform society and address many of its problems through community led action. Others are more sceptical and resistant, viewing the Big Society as an ideologically driven move towards a do-it-yourself society, leading to further social polarisation and disadvantage. This paper will briefly explore the theoretical and political background to the Big Society before moving on to look at the potential implications and the role of Sheffield City Council in supporting the delivery of this agenda in three key areas. What is the Big Society? Put simply, the Big Society is a Government agenda that seeks to shift power from politicians to people (NCVO, 2010, p2). It represents an approach that seeks to give increased power to people to solve problems closer to where they live (Cabinet Office, 2010). Three interlinked agendas and questions are seen as key to building an understanding of the notion of the Big Society (see GOYH, 2010). Firstly, the idea of social action is seen as an important building block of the Big Society. Examples of this include supporting volunteerism and philanthropy, in an attempt to answer the question what can we do for others?. Secondly, public service reform is seen as an important element in moving towards a Big Society. This is not only about reducing red tape and bureaucracy, but importantly about increasing transparency and accountability across public services. Key to this is identifying what the state can do, and coming to some level of consensus about what role the state can and should play in key areas of public life. Finally, community empowerment and creating communities in charge of their own direction is seen as a key part of the Big Society. This will help individuals work together to identify what we can do for ourselves as a result of c ollective endeavour and action. The Big Society moves from a default position of central design and governmental provision to citizen-driven partnership across all sectors (Cabinet Office, 2010). In order to achieve this, Government envisage an approach built around a broad ecosystem made up of three levels (see figure 1), where no one player dominates another (Cabinet Office, 2010). In addition, figure 2 shows the three priorities which Government feel need to be focussed on in order to build the Big Society ecosystem and reconfigure how policy is developed and delivered (Cabinet Office, 2010). Figure 1 Figure 2 1Neighbourhood groups comprise a broad range from those with an explicit social or activism mission to those focused on local participation, engagement and community building whether informally through sports and interests or more informally in conjunction with local anchor institutions (Source: Cabinet Office, 2010) Before going on to look at the implications of the notion of the Big Society in Sheffield it seems relevant to briefly pause and examine the theoretical and political background to the notion of the Big Society. The Big Society and public policy Although closely associated with the Conservative Party, the General Election campaign of 2010, and more recently a number of policy areas developed by the Coalition Government, the Big Society idea is far from new. In some ways, the idea is as old as democracy itself. From ancient Athens on, a recurrent normative image has been that of the engaged citizen playing an active part in his or her community (Pattie Johnston, 2010, p4). Each new British government since the late 1970s has put its own spin on this idea (as evidenced in Sheffield First Partnership, 2010). David Camerons support for this idea follows this general trend, however it is a view that has not always sat comfortably with the Conservative Party. It is important to acknowledge that in rejection of Margaret Thatchers 1987 declaration that there was no such thing as society, David Cameron used his first speech as Conservative Party leader (in December 2005) to announce his belief that there is such a thing as society, its just not the same as the state (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Historically within Conservative thought the idea of the Big Society can be traced back to Edmund Burkes championing of the little platoons. These are the intermediate organisations families, communities and so on between the individual and the state. For Burke, these little platoons were a bulwark against two sources of tyranny: on the one hand, the overweening power of the state and on the other the uncontrolled demands of the mob (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Although initially the Big Society can be viewed as the opposite to Labour statism it contains distinct echoes of New Labours agenda. New Labour had intended, for instance, greater involvement of citizens and voluntary groups in decision-making and provision of services. But intentions were sidetracked somewhat by external events and by internal disputes within the Labour government (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Outside of political debate the idea of the Big Society draws on a number of social and political trends. It taps into a growing anti-politics mood among the public (Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5) and ideas surrounding politics for an anti-political age as highlighted in the work of Mulgan (1994), Stoker (2006) and Hay (2007) (cited in Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p5). Finally, it seems worthwhile to highlight the strong links between thinking on the Big Society and the concept of social capital. Putman argued that communities rich in social capital were more efficient, happier, better-run, safer, healthier just downright nicer places to live in than communities in which social capital was lacking (Putman, 2000 cited in Pattie and Johnston, 2010, p6). Many of the positive elements of social capital are the very things that a Big Society seeks to create and sustain. The current context for the Big Society As the Conservative Liberal Democrat Coalition Government took shape in May 2010 the Big Society notion once again came to the fore. The Coalition Agreement (see HM Government, 2010) specifically makes reference to the Big Society as part of a wider focus on social action. Significantly, the Big Society was the first major policy announcement of the new Coalition Government. The Government sees the Big Society as being developed within the three-fold wider national context of; a lack of trust in politics, longstanding social problems and unprecedented challenges to public finances (see Cabinet Office, 2010). The aim is to build a society with much higher levels of personal, professional, civic and corporate responsibility; a society where the leading force for progress is social responsibility, not state control (Conservative Party, 2010, p1). What does this mean for Sheffield City Council? As set out earlier in this paper, the key principles and context for the Big Society are relatively easy to engage with and think about at a general level. The difficult questions arise when thinking about its implementation. What is clear though is that in the context of increased localism, the role of the local authority will be fundamental to its success, and to turning the Big Society rhetoric and vision in to reality (Office for Public Management, 2010, p1). The following sections build on the analysis already carried out and go on to set out the potential implications of the Big Society for Sheffield City Council in the following three main areas of; laying the foundations for the Big Society, the potential implications for the Council itself, and finally the implications for the relationship between the Council and the Voluntary, Community and Faith (VCF) Sector. Laying the foundations for the Big Society Whatever ones political persuasion, its possible to envisage how the Big Society agenda, with its emphasis on more involvement of local communities in social outcomes, could support the creation of positive change (Office for Public Management, 2010, p2). In many cases the Big Society is already happening in Sheffield. Sheffield can lay claim to innovation and best practice over a number of years in public sector reform, community empowerment (e.g. through the use of a Community Assemblies to set local priorities and allocate funding) and in its relationship with the VCF Sector. When setting the context for how the Big Society may impact on a city as large and complex as Sheffield it is important not to lose sight of what is already happening at an organisational, community and individual level. The analysis in previous sections has gone some way to setting out the varied political roots and philosophical ancestry of the Big Society notion. However, in its current form it is closely linked to the policies and ambitions of the Coalition Government. In addition, Big Society initiatives coincide with a period of austerity in public spending. Any changes in services and service delivery will inevitably be linked to cuts in much of the media and in the eyes of the public (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p3). These are both important points, as if the perception of local politicians and the wider general public is that the Big Society is driven by a particular political party or philosophical viewpoint this could present a barrier to the universal acceptance of any initiatives or legitimate outcomes that result from Big Society action. Within the local political context of Sheffield this is a particularly important point. The Council is currently in no overall control, with a Liberal Democrat Leader. In addition, many of the national issues around government policy and funding are played out in the City and receive increased media attention due to Sheffields connections with the Deputy Prime Minister. With this in mind it is important for any approach to the Big Society in Sheffield to be genuinely built from the needs of the community whether directly (e.g. through social action) or indirectly (e.g. from information collected by service delivery organisations) in order for it to be aligned to the needs and aspirations of the local community and to avoid it becoming overly politicised. For the Big Society to work, all local authority staff and stakeholders need to understand the Big Society. Local authorities will need to ensure that they effectively communicate a locally specific Big Society vision to their own staff, members and stakeholders to motivate people to work towards a common goal (Office for Public Management, 2010, p3). Implications of the Big Society for Sheffield City Council A number of factors are currently impacting on the role, nature and size of local authorities such as Sheffield. This presents a number of challenges and opportunities as the implications of the Big Society are thought through at an organisational and political level. It is clear from the limited information from central Government surrounding the Big Society that local government will be central to creating and engaging with the Big Society ecosystem, it will also have a clear role to play in delivering a number of the priorities of the Big Society. However, it is important to acknowledge that local government is part of the state (Tizard, 2010) and therefore it will be subject to continuing reform whilst also trying to engage the local community in debate about what any reforms should look like. The Big Society represents a different relationship between citizen and the state. In some ways the Big Society can replace the state but in other ways it merely represents a nudge towards a greater emphasis on the citizen, community and third sector (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p3). In many instances (and in some service areas more than others) this will require a change in mind-set, with a move from a corporate to mutual philosophy, a redefinition of the role of elected members and democracy, and in some instances giving up power and demonstrating listening (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p3). This creates a number of challenges for local Elected Members and from a theoretical perspective raises a number of interesting questions around the ideas of representative and participatory democracy (see Pearce, 2010). This in itself is not a new concept or dilemma for Elected Members. However, the Big Society agenda potentially adds a further level of complexity to this dynamic. National Government has already announced a number of Big Society policies which set the context nationally. These include, the Big Society Bank, a national Big Society day, the Localism Bill, and a new right for public sector workers to form employee-owned co-operatives and bid to take over the services they deliver. Local Elected Members and local authority managers will be called on to deliver a number of policy goals and expectations encouraged by central Government. A key role for Sheffield City Council will be in transforming government action from top-down micromanagement and one-size-fits-all solutions to a flexible approach defined by transparency, payment by results, and support for social enterprise and cooperatives (Tizard, 2010). One concern is that through devolving power down to the local level different outcomes in different localities will lead to rising inequalities not only geographically, but amongst different sectors of society. With this difference, it must be ensured that there is a consistency of opportunity (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). Key to ensuring that everyone benefits from the Big Society is focused activity to identify how to support complex communities or those with low social capital. Citizens with less time, resources, or quieter voices such as children and the vulnerable are in a worse position to take advantage of the new opportunities provided by these changes (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p5). With this in mind a key role for local authorities is managing any risks that may arise from new forms of provision. One view of the role of a Local Authority in the Big Society is not for control, but for quality control protecting core and essential services; protecting values and principles (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). Within the wider context of the Big Society a key role for Sheffield City Council as an organisation will be to create the conditions that safeguard the wellbeing of all citizens and communities, providing protection for the most vulnerable. This is already a key role for local authorities but it may become increasingly important in offsetting any disadvantage or unintentional outcomes of the Big Society. Implications of the Big Society for Sheffield City Councils relationship with the VCF Sector Within Sheffield a large amount of successful activity is already led or supported by the VCF Sector. In some instances this is wholly independent of the local authority and delivers vital services to the citizens of Sheffield. However, a substantial amount of VCF Sector activity in the City is publically funded. Over the coming years this will need to change as the pressure on public funding intensifies. There is a challenge for the VCF sector to change their funding base from grants from the public sector to a greater use of social enterprise, cooperative and mutuals. In addition, Philanthropy and increased charitable giving are regarded as key parts of the Big Society, yet it is unclear how they are to be increased and better directed (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). The Big Society idea sets out a larger role for social enterprises, charities and voluntary organisations in the provision of services, it also plans for a substantial transfer of control to ordinary citizens, coming together to provide for their own communities (Pattie Johnston, 2010, p2). This sets an interesting context for the relationship between Sheffield City Council and the wider VCF Sector, with local authorities having to consider how best to align their activity to and support the work of community groups, both current and emerging (Office for Public Management, 2010, p2). The relationship with the VCF Sector is integral to all three of the agendas and questions of the Big Society set out earlier in this paper. The VCF Sector is one of the key ways in which Sheffield City Council can allow local people to participate more effectively in the governance, design and delivery of services in their communities (helping to identify what the state can and should do). Through supporting community empowerment and drawing together social action the VCF Sector has a valuable contribution to make in focussing activity and providing a framework which helps individual citizens and communities identify what they can do for themselves and what they can do for others. Within local authority areas such as Sheffield the VCF Sector will need to adapt and change to the increasing responsibility placed on it by Big Society. It is widely acknowledged that there will be a need for new initiatives to emerge, but also a need to recognise the valuable resources and good practice that is already in place. Chanan and Miller (2010, p2) argue that most of the Big Society policy does not rest on the idea of communities taking over mainstream public services, although this is a view that has been caricatured by the media. It is acknowledged that few communities would want to take over statutory public services, and where they did there are no guarantees that existing problems would not exist. In many instances, where community groups want to or are able to effectively run specialist non-statutory elements of public services they are able to do so through social enterprises or by bidding for such work through established processes. Chanan and Miller (2010) go on the state that where services are statutory it is right that a certain level of accountability, standards and bureaucracy are attached to them. They do however set out an important role for the VCF Sector in complementing and co-producing public services. The underlying principle is not the state offloading public services but the state and people working together to ensure maximum value either from a public service or from a voluntary service initiated by a community group. It is this that will make public services more efficient and economical and communities more capable (Chanan and Miller, 2010, p3). However, Tizzard (2010) and NCVO (2010) have an alternative view and believe the very essence of the Big Society will lead to more social enterprise, third and community sector public service delivery. So, at one end of the potential continuum of involvement of the VCF Sector in the Big Society is the taking over of or co-production of public services. Although this may seem unlikely in the short term it is a possibility that needs to be considered and will increasingly be part of political debate. Developing ways to open up debate on this issue in Sheffield is clearly a responsibility of the democratically accountable local authority. However, at the other end of this continuum is developing an approach and local mindset where people have the power and confidence to take action where they feel it is necessary. This could be through volunteering to support local projects, causes or initiatives (existing or new), or maybe through schemes to recruit community organisers. Some infrastructure for this to take place already exists within Sheffield, but it is not consistent across all geographical areas and does not necessarily appeal to all social groups. Furthermore, it is not clear how much capacity and willingness there is for people to engage in this type of activity beyond the small army of people who are already involved (see Pattie Johnson 2010). It is acknowledged that Increased volunteering will need a framework and incentives to widen recruitment and increase the volunteer base. It should be recognised that volunteers are not a stable workforce and cannot replace aspects of the public sector like-for-like (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). Within Sheffield the VCF Sector needs to be supported in building their response to Big Society and building capacity to deliver the Big Society agenda is essential. A number of commentators set out the important role that Local Authorities can play in helping to ensure that the VCF Sector have the relevant skills and capacity to deliver the Big Society and in helping to build consortia that can deliver local priorities. Outside of funding, providing assets and working with partners to set up volunteer schemes, the Office for Public Management (2010) set out a number of ways in which local authorities may support the VCF Sector in working towards the Big Society. Examples include initiating and incubating new ideas, providing support and advice, sharing knowledge in order to support community initiatives, and helping to remove some of the barriers that the VCF Sector may experience when trying to do things differently. In addition, the Office for Public Management (2010) also set out the important role for local authorities in managing risk and reducing inequalities (both points discussed earlier in this paper). Above all, there needs to be an acknowledgement that the approach and involvement of the VCF Sector in the Big Society will look different in different places. These differences will be due to the different choices and decisions made by people in these localities, different levels of service need and service provision and the ethos of any new schemes that are introduced (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p2). This difference can be viewed as positive as it has the potential to deliver increased levels of competition and choice where appropriate, allowing local services to reach and support local people more effectively. However, an important point to consider is what happens in those communities and neighbourhoods where there is little or no VCF infrastructure or where people are not willing or able to engage in the Big Society. If this is just small pockets then the hope is that the enthusiasm and energy from neighbouring areas will drive activity. However, where lack of engagement is widespread and shows little evidence of developing organically what resources and mandate will local authorities have to intervene? Will it be politically and morally acceptable to allow nothing to happen in some areas, whilst others thrive in the Big Society? This is also an important consideration given that in some areas it may take longer to build the Big Society than in others. With this in mind, there is clearly a role for the local authority to work with the VCF Sector to ensure that such potentially negative aspects of the Big Society are reduced and to unite people from all sectors and parts of the community to ensure that everyone benefits. Conclusion There is still much confusion surrounding the notion of the Big Society, which remains a potentially complex and controversial area of emerging public policy. Many commentators, politicians and academics have concluded that the Big Society can be what you want it to be and that success depends on applying the principles and ideas most appropriately and effectively at a local level. This paper has only focussed on three elements which are of direct relevance to Sheffield City Council as it starts to develop its thinking around the Big Society. However, many of the issues raised will be relevant to other areas. Much is already happening which could be defined as the Big Society. The question is not if this activity and commitment will continue (as I am sure it will), but if the terminology of the Big Society will still be with us in 12 months only time will tell. The opportunity of the Big Society is surely around harnessing the new and alternative sources of ideas, energy, capacity and challenge which the current focus on the Big Society brings. Importantly, this needs to work with existing capacity, resources, enthusiasm and political will to deliver on shared outcomes that impact positively on individuals and communities. For the reasons discussed earlier in this paper some degree of oversight over Big Society initiatives is essential. The public sector, the state, and the VCF sector have important roles to play here (Sheffield First Partnership, 2010, p4). In addition, there needs to be an acknowledgment that certain approaches (e.g. volunteering, social action) will be better suited to delivering certain types of Big Society activity. However, there is still a need for the development of long term strategic approaches and the maintenance of statutory services. The Young Foundation (2010, p20) set out a useful distinction between services that can be tailored or devolved to communities, with service standards shaped or set locally and services that require central planning, delivery and oversight, with service standards set by the local authority. Where this line falls will vary locally and will be dependent on a range of factors such as need, community capacity and political will, however this is a useful way of framing the wider Big Society debate. Within the current climate of public sector cuts and reforms it is important to understand that creating a smaller state wont necessarily (or automatically) lead to a Big Society. In some areas there will be a role to play around directing resources, leadership, nurturing, support, encouragement and enabling. In the majority of cases an organisation such as a local authority has the governance and democratic accountability to carry out this role, and importantly ensure fairness and equality. However, for the Big Society to work the overall approach needs to remain fluid, dynamic and responsive. It is only through adopting such an approach that the needs and aspirations of individuals and communities can be best met. This in itself may be a challenge for large organisations such as local authorities, but it is arguably one that they need to rise to in order to make the most of the Big Society opportunities.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

artful dublin Essay -- essays research papers

Someone has crafted a dense, human-size spider web in a 17th-century baroque chapel. At the center of the swarming thread, a longhaired woman lies in a hospital bed, sheet to her chin. Silence, light filtering from stained glass, and her stillness trapped in the maze reminds the viewer of some old dada wisdom -- any work of art that can be completely understood is the product of a journalist. Down the hall, in a large room, a young German is rushing around in a white jumpsuit. He alternately plays with toy airplanes and bakes cakes in a microwave, which every hour on the hour he blows up. These exhilarating works of art from Chiharu Shiotta and Frank Werner were at the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin recently, part of a show called "Marking the Territory." The images were compelling enough, but the real strangeness was that they were happening in Dublin at all. For centuries, the visual arts in Ireland ran a distant second due to the superiority of the Word. But no longer. "This is an ideal place for an artist to be," Paolo Canevari said. The young Roman was represented at IMMA by "Differences," seven people on a bench on whose foreheads he methodically rubber-stamped religious denominations. "The Irish aren't jaded. There's no boredom with art." Even Dublin's stinging humor, a style that is distinguished by an urchin's allergy to the sentimental and a duty to bring everything down to street level, has softened toward the public art of the city. The statue of the River Liffey, personified as a woman in a fountain, is still known as "The Floozy in the Jacuzzi," and a realistic sculpture of two middle-age women taking a rest from shopping will forever be "The Hags With the Bags." And what else could a giant metal spike proposed for the north side be called but "The Stiletto in the Ghetto?" These days, however, all street titles are said with affection and pride. Every nation prizes creativity. But countries such as Ireland, which for so long had little but creativity, revere it. It is now museums, galleries and artistic work that are embraced, and not just the theater, pub wit and the writer. One of the engines of Dublin's artistic boom is IMMA, only 10 years old yet housed in one of the most magnificent 17th-century buildings in the world, the Royal Hospital, Kilmainham. Formerl... ...ight to $1,725 for the penthouse suite. Full service, excellent restaurant and a great bar for people watching. The Pembroke Townhouse (90 Pembroke Rd., telephone 011-353-1-660-0277,www.pembroketownhouse.ie) is a marvelous, immaculate Georgian house in Ballsbridge, close to everything on the south side, with a cheerful and efficient staff. Rates run from about $90 to $120 per night. WHERE TO EAT: Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud (21 Upper Merrion St.) has spectacular art on display along with the best French cuisine in Dublin. Appetizers run from $14 to $30, entrees from $35. Trocadero (3 St. Andrew's St.) -- "the Troc," near Temple Bar -- is a great old-time theater restaurant, with late suppers and superior bar food until midnight. It's recently been refurbished and crisped up, but they left the sense of fun intact. Two can have a memorable Italian meal and a bottle of red for about $60. INFORMATION: For more information, contact the Irish Tourist Board, 800-223-6470, www.ireland.travel.ie; or, in Dublin, the Bord Failte (Gaelic for "board of welcome"), Baggot Street Bridge, telephone 011-353-1-602-4000. -- Ambrose Clancy  © 2002 The Washington Post Company

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Henrik Isbens A Dolls House :: A Dolls House Essays

Nora received supernatural aid in the form of self awareness of her own value/worth. Some could say her ignorance, ignorant as to what her actions would cause to happen if they where known publicly. Innocently she thought there was nothing wrong with saving her husbands life, but his pride, his ego would be hurt and society would outcast them. Another form of aid was Linde who served as a mirror like character who showed Nora what she had done in a way, and how an independent woman could The long and winding road was quite harsh on Nora, even a close friend such as Dr. Rank proved to be an obstacle she had to hurdle when he professed his love to her. All the time Krogstads blackmailing her, having to raise money, working at nights and the like where constant torments. The constant secrecy and stress accumulating and building up never giving her space to catch her breathe. To top it all off, Helmer continually restricted her, molded and sculpted her like a toy. Any other character would have cracked under this enormous burden but Nora just kept on going, with the hope of a â€Å"wonderful thing† keeping her going.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Stumbling upon the realization that the â€Å"wonderful thing† was but a mere fantasy that did not exist marked her final encounter with the ultimate dragon, Torvald. She had already had to tolerate his restrictions and lack of freedom that he imposed on her tyrannically. Also, there is the blackmailing by Krogstad whose hunger for a second chance to redeem him self is great. However, he does not plan on relinquishing the bond, which gives him the leverage over Nora. Her encounters have been plentiful with these two dragons that daunt her.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ultimately Nora vanquished the supreme dragon Torvald. After the Tarantella, which did not stall for enough time, Helmer discovers the truth by mail. Because of his jealousy/sexual urge that made him decide to come down to early he discovered this in such a fashion that showed his true character. Nora then proceeds to tell him that she cannot stay with him anymore, in essence slaying him. Torvald is helpless and dazed, and utterly defeated though his ignorance, of how to treat Nora.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Democracy And Democratic Education Education Essay

IntroductionWhen I worked in the Affiliated High School of National Chengchi University and observed the Forest School and The Seeding Experimental School in Taiwan, I found that in their specific acquisition atmosphere, the pupils can believe and move more creatively and critically. We can ever see their originative merchandises in the campus, such as verse forms, postings, pictures and statues. Furthermore, the schools are full of freedom, regard, trust and grasp, it is common to see their pupils spontaneously singing and dancing in campus. Due to these interesting findings, I started to inquire myself a inquiry: ‘are there any connexions between the democratic ambiance and the student ‘s creativeness? ‘ Further, ‘to what extent can the democratic attack to education support more originative acquisition? ‘ I later searched for the literature about the two constructs ; as a consequence, I found some valuable information about the connexions between demo cratic instruction and creativeness. However, it is rare to see the surveies that are straight look intoing the connexions between the two educational attacks ( democratic instruction and originative instruction ) , the motive to carry on this survey has hence emerged. In order to turn to the issue, this essay is designed to foremost research the nature of democracy, democratic instruction, and so creativeness and originative instruction. After researching those constructs, this survey turns to look into the connexions between democratic instruction and originative instruction, besides replying the inquiry that ‘how can a democratic attack to education support more originative acquisition? ‘ This paper is organised into the undermentioned three subdivisions: the first subdivision discusses democracy and democratic instruction, whereas the 2nd high spots the constructs of creativeness and originative instruction. In the 3rd portion, I chiefly use Rhodes ( 1961 ) Four Ps Model ( Person, Place, Process and Products ) of creativeness to analyse/ compare the two sorts of attacks to instruction, complementing with a treatment of two democratic schools in Taiwan – the Forest School and the Seeding Experimental School.Democracy and Democ ratic Education‘Two innovations of adult male must certainly be viewed as the most hard: the art of authorities and the art of instruction ‘ – Immanuel Kant, Kant on Education ( Ueber Padagogik ) Translated by Annette Churton ( 1992, p.12 ) Democracy can be applied to many contexts, from narrowly political position to loosely personal life. In political degree, Danziger ( 1998 ) stated that democracy is the leader of a state who is elected by all eligible citizens, as echt options to do some political determinations for the populace. Vanhannen ( 1997 ) further argued that as a political signifier, democratic society should hold different groups or parties every bit viing for power, every bit good as to be responsible to the people, through the manner of elections. John Calhoun ( paraphrased by Roper 1989 ) besides mentioned that democracy itself is non a bulk regulation but stand foring the public involvements and at the same time recognizing the minorities. On the other manus, sing democracy as an facet of life, Dewey ( 1916 ) stated that ‘Democracy is more than a signifier of authorities: it is chiefly a manner of associated life, a conjoint communicated experience ‘ . It is just to state that democracy ca n be regarded as a regulating power for a state, and all the people can fall in for doing its corporate involvements. In the same manner, holding the rights to do determinations would perchance impact their lives every bit good. Sing democratic instruction ( hereafter DE ) , it is believed that to set up, keep and develop of a democratic society, citizens ‘ engagement is needed, and taking to make this end citizens should be equipped with the cognition and therefore understand the values of democracy, and instruction has ever been regarded as a good mode. John Dewey, the male parent of progressive instruction, placed DE the premiss of his work in the early 20th century, as he claimed that in order to advance a state that genuinely valued democratic rules, all of its citizens must be empowered to prosecute in a democratic discourse. Greene ( 1995 ) mentioned in the book ‘Releasing the Imagination ‘ , proposing that the impression of instruction is to link with others, enabling people to develop high quality of democratic behaviors and to be communicative in their societies. Nussbaum ( 1997 ) stated that people should be antiphonal to others in order to raise their democratic achievements as citizens. Therefore instruction and schooling, in order to further future citizens the sense of democracy, is taking an of import function ( Dewey 1916 ; Gutmann, 1987 ; 1999 ) . In the tendency of prioritizing DE, many have attempted to do clear definition and happen its embedded aspects. Since DE is full of pluralism and complexness, after a long argument throughout the past decennaries, a by and large agreed definition has non been reached. However, I found that DE inherits most of the characteristics of democracy[ 1 ]and have been mentioned invariably, including a. freedom of pick, b. equal entree, c. shared duty, d. regard and trust, and e. student-centred acquisition. Sing the understandings made by DE related administrations, the 13th International Democratic Education Conference ( IDEC ) in Berlin 2005, clearly stated their understanding on DE that ‘in any educational scene, immature people have the right: 1. to make up one's mind separately how, when, what, where and with whom they learn, and 2. to hold an equal portion in the decision-making as to how their administrations – in peculiar their schools – are run, and which regulations and countenances, if any, are necessary ( www.idec2005.org ) . ‘ On the other manus, the European Democratic Education Community ( EUDEC ) stated that DE is ‘self-determined larning ‘ and ‘a larning community based on equality and common regard ‘ ( www.eudec.org, 2012 ) . As the facet of equality, in other words, equal entree, the instruction for low category of the society did non have public attending and go something for the Commonwealth until the nineteenth century, when Leo Tolstoy founded a school: merely for the peasant kids, where students are allowed to make up one's mind whether to come to school or listen to the instructors ( trans. Leo Wiener, 1967 ) . Sing the concluding facet of student-centred acquisition, Moswela ( 2010 ) pointed out that it is a good manner of democratizing their school and schoolroom acquisition: ‘placing the pupils in the Centre of learning embodies the rule of democracy ‘ . Learning is meaningful when subjects are relevant to the pupils ‘ involvements, the thought that pupils can take what and how to analyze is that merely when they have motive, they can actively build their ain cognition. Some basic democratic experiences are important in back uping pupils to show their ideas and thoughts Democra tic attack enables pupils to find their manner of lives and demands, which should be regarded every bit granted as a intent of instruction. In order to implement these thoughts, the democratic schools have been established in over 30 states. The UK has long been regarded as the innovator of democratic schooling, it is undeniable that the earliest democratic school that we have known, and still be, is Summerhill School.[ 2 ]It was founded in Germany in 1921, and moved to England subsequently on. The laminitis is A. S. Neill, a Scots pedagogue, who has written several books about the subject of democracy and democratic instruction, such as That Dreadful School ( 1937 ) , and Hearts Not Heads in the School ( 1945 ) . In fact, most of his books have later influenced many of the democratic schools founded subsequently on. The school tally as a democratic community, which means that the running of the school is conducted in the school meetings that every individual individual in this school are available to go to every bit good as to vote for the issues they addressed in the meetings. Sudbury Valley School, on the other manus, is another sort of democratic school that founded in the United States in 1968, which has been the theoretical account for a figure of Sudbury schools loosely around the universe. The theoretical account has three basic dogmas: a. educational freedom b. democratic administration, and c. personal duty. Students are allowed freely to set up their acquisition agenda, they believe that larning should be a personal attempt that based on single involvements, but non necessary to be experienced through classs or standard course of study ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www.sudval.org/index.html ) . In drumhead, there are assorted sorts of definitions of democracy and DE, nevertheless, five subjects have been found to be indispensable to both constructs, including a. freedom of pick, b. equal entree, c. shared duty and d. regard and trust. And, it should be noted that all the elements can lend to a more student-centred acquisition.Creativity and Creative EducationAlbert Einstein one time said that ‘Creativity is intelligence holding merriment ‘ , it is believed that creativeness is something instead absorbing and graphic, something kids ain since the really first twenty-four hours they were born. ‘All kids are creative persons. The job is how to stay an creative person one time he grows up. ‘ , said Pablo Picasso. Although many creative persons, authors and bookmans advocated the importance of creativeness, it is still a instead elusive one to trap down for research workers. Creativity, similar to democracy, is full of pluralism and complexness ; hence, b ecause it is highly hard to do clear definitions, some even argue that it has been unsuitably overused ( Abinun, 2012 ) . Therefore, it is suggested that creativeness should be explained in a clearer mode, and sometimes it varies in different contexts. However, most scholarly works agree that creativeness has two characteristics, viz. originality/novelty and usefulness/valuable ( Boden, 1999 ; Feist, 1999 ; Gruber & A ; Wallace, 1999 ; Lumsden, 1999 ; Lubart, 1999 ; Martindale, 1999 ; Nickerson, 1999 ) . Csikszentmihalyi, in add-on to originality and utility, advanced the construct and asserted that there is another indispensable characteristic of creativeness – execution ( Csikszentmihalyi & A ; Wolfe, 1995 ) . He suggested that it is of import to convey the advanced and utile thoughts into being. Similarly, Edwards stated in her book Pulling on the Right Side of the Brain ( 1979 ; 1989 ; 1999 ; 2012 ) that creativeness is ‘ †¦ the ability to happen new solutions to a job or new manners of look ; therefore it brings into being something new to the person and to the civilization. ‘ Rollo May ( 1975 ) besides had a similar account on creativeness, claiming that creativeness is the procedure of conveying new things or thoughts into world. Creativity can be invetigated by using many attacks. For illustration, Mayer ( 1999 ) asserted that it can be investigated through psychometric, experimental, biographical, biological, computational, and contextual ; whereas Ivcevic ( 2009 ) summarised that the attacks of single traits and beliefs, biological temperaments, interactions with environment, societal groups, situational elements, and inexplicit state of affairs are normally used. However, more bookmans agreed that the major methodological attacks, which have been employed from 1950s, are the undermentioned: a. personality ; b. knowledge ; c. ways to excite creativeness, and d. creativeness and societal systems ( Craft, 2001 ; Ryhammar and Brolin, 1999 ) . Research refering personality in creativeness embracings assorted facets, such as personality appraisal, personal traits, and personal motive. Two major attacks lending to the field are biographical and biological methodological analysiss. While the biographical attack has particular involvement in analyzing personal traits, biological methodological analysiss chiefly focus on the biological features of originative or non-creative individuals. Another attack, knowledge on the other manus, pays more attending to an person ‘s cognitive procedures, such as intelligence, unconsciousness, and mental procedures. Psychological and psychometries are the two major attacks of creativeness probe under the knowledge umbrella. Mayer ( 1999 ) concludes that while psychological research workers efforts to depict cognitive procedure involved in originative and non-creative thought, psychometries attacks try to develop creativeness related measurings or appraisals. The most well-known psychomet ries work is arguably Guilford ‘s attempts in 1950 and 1967 in mensurating to prove divergent thought. This is regarded as the starting point for all psychometric steps of creativeness. The 3rd major attack to creativeness research is to research the ways to excite creativeness. For illustration, knowledge psychologists advocate assorted signifiers of programmes for exciting participants ‘ thought procedures, whereas behaviourism research workers believe that creativeness is something that can be learnt from environment, something which like all other behaviors can be explained in footings of support, and be trained for in the stimulating-responding procedure. In contrast with these earlier developments, research into creativeness in the 1980s and 1990s became rooted in a societal psychological model, which recognises the of import function of societal constructions in furthering single creativeness ( Rhyammar & A ; Brolin, 1999, Jeffrey & A ; Craft, 2000 ) . This has been described as being a 4th, consistent country of survey ( Jeffrey & A ; Craft, 2000 ) : creativeness and societal systems, which is a more consistent model to transport out a co-ordinated set of surveies therefore is needed for switching focal point from one â€Å" specific dimension † such as personal traits to a â€Å" system † . Some research workers such as Csikszentmihalyi ( 1988, 1996, 1998, 2000a ) , Amabile ( 1983, 1996 ) , and Sternberg & A ; Lubart ( 1991, 1995 ) , hence advocate the survey of creativeness in the societal context. To the bookmans above, irrespective of whether creativeness is considered as a personal trait, originative behavior, co gnitive procedure, or something that can be trained, creativeness should be finally linked to societal contexts, and be understood through interaction procedures. Amabile was the first bookman to develop a theoretical account within a societal context. Amabile foremost published the Componential Model of Creativity in 1983, discoursing the societal influences on originative behaviour. The theoretical account can be regarded as the first one to comprehensively take into history cognitive, personality, motive, and societal influences on the originative procedure, and is besides the first to look into how these factors influence the different stairss in originative procedure. In Amabile ‘s ( 1983, 1996 ) theoretical account, creativeness is the originative production that emerges in a five stairss procedure, viz. : ( 1 ) job or undertaking designation ; ( 2 ) readying ; ( 3 ) response coevals ; ( 4 ) response proof ; and ( 5 ) result rating. Further, the procedure interacts with undertaking motive, domain-relevant accomplishments and creativeness relevant accomplishments. Figure 1.3 Amabile ‘s ( 1983 ; 1996 ) Componential Model Beginning: Amabile, T. M. ( 1996 ) . Creativity in context: Update to â€Å" The Social Psychology of Creativity. † ( p. 113 ) . Boulder, CO, US: Westview Press. Another societal context creativeness research worker Csikszentmihalyi investigates the relationship between creativeness and cultural development. Inspired by the procedure of species development, Csikszentmihalyi developed the DIFI[ 3 ]model in 1988. The DIFI model has three subsystems: person ; sphere ; and field, each of the subsystem interacts with others. Csikszentmihalyi revised the DIFI model and named it Systems Model of Creativity in 1999, and harmonizing to the theoretical account, creativeness can be best understood as a â€Å" meeting † of three subsystems[ 4 ]. The sphere includes a set of regulations and practises. Any civilization is composed of 1000s of independent spheres, and most human behavior or activities are affected by regulations of some spheres. An person is the most of import one from a psychological position. An single makes a fresh fluctuation in the content of a sphere and the fluctuation will be evaluated by the 3rd portion of the system, which is the field. The Fieldss are held by assorted gatekeepers, such as experts and bookmans, who have the right to take which fluctuations can be reserved in the spheres. McIntyre ( 2007 ) refers to Csikszentmihalyi ‘s analysis of creativeness as an synergistic system. Merely as air, kindling and a flicker are all vitally necessary to make fire. Csikzentmihalyi ( 1999 ) takes the place that creativeness means â€Å" the ability to add something new to the â€Å" civilization † . The creative activity by an single must be â€Å" sanctioned by some group entitled to do determinations as to what should or should non be included in the sphere † ( Figure1.4 ) . Figure 1.4 Csikszentmihalyi ( 1999 ) System Model of Creativity Beginning: Csikszentmihalyi ( 1999 ) . Deductions of a systems position for the survey of creativeness. In R. J. SternbergiEd. ) , Handbook of Creativity. United kingdom: Cambridge University Press. Sternberg and Lubart besides investigate creativeness in societal contexts, and hence developed the Investment Theory of Creativity in 1991. Unlike research workers like Csikszentmihalyi or Amabile who focus on depicting the subsystems and its interactions, Sternberg and Lubart have investigated the different factors that might act upon creativeness. The factors include intelligence, believing manners, personality, cognition, motive, and environment. Nonetheless, compared with other theoretical accounts suggested by Amabile or Csikszentmihalyi, Sternberg ‘s and Lubart ‘s Investment Theory of Creativity is simply a heuristic theoretical account, and it falls short on many elements. The inside informations of the operation and how different factors interact with each other still need to be clarified. â€Å" Buy low and sell high † is the nucleus construct of the investing theory, and originative people are those willing and able to purchase low and sell high in the k ingdom of thoughts[ 5 ]. Due to the word bound of this essay, I merely articulate the two more related attacks for current survey, including the ways to excite creativeness, aboard with creativeness and societal systems.Ways to Stimulate CreativitySince the 1950s, there has been a strong concern that instruction should prioritize the development of creativeness. Implicit in this is the premise that creativeness can be so influenced. Since so, a scope of efforts to excite creativeness have been developed, although there is, as Ryhammer & A ; Brolin ( 1999 ) point out, a serious deficiency of systematic, controlled ratings of such programmes. It is besides the instance that the methods and standards for measuring these are underpinned by differing theories of creativeness. In add-on, whether looking at efforts by cognitive psychologists, psychodynamicists, humanists or behaviorists, there is no grounds of transportation into new contexts. See the subdivision on patterned advance and development for farther tre atment of transportation issues. There was besides work done in the 1980s which suggested that early household duties and chances for independent action promote originative accomplishment and that creativeness developing programmes in schools are more effectual when teacher engagement is high ( Benjamin, 1984 ) .Creativity and Social SystemsBy contrast with these earlier developments, research into creativeness in the 1980s and 1990s became rooted in a societal psychological model which recognises the of import function of societal constructions in furthering single creativeness ( Rhyammar & A ; Brolin, 1999, Jeffrey & A ; Craft, 2000 ) . This has been described as being a 4th, consistent country of survey ( Jeffrey & A ; Craft, 2000 ) : creativeness and societal systems. Some important theories have been put frontward in which creativeness is seen from a systems position ( Cziksentmihalyi, 1998, Sternberg, 1998, Sternberg & A ; Lubart, 1991a, 1991b, 1995 ) , where assorted elements of the overall societal and cognitive context are seen as extremely relevant to the activity of making. Three major surveies were undertaken – 1 in Europe ( Ekvall, 1991, 1996 ) and two in the USA ( Amabile, 1988, Isaksen, 1995 ) – which explored the organizational climes which serve to excite creativeness. The consequences from these three programmes have converged at several major points, proposing that, in a originative clime, the participants in the administration: feel challenged by their ends, operations and tasksfeel able to take enterprises and to happen relevant informationfeel able to interact with othersfeel that new thoughts are met with support and encouragementfeel able to set frontward new thoughts and viewsexperience much argument within a prestige-free and unfastened environmentfeel uncertainness is tolerated and therefore risk-taking is encouraged.In add-on, Amabile ‘s ( 1983, 1996 ) theoretical account suggests that single creativeness may be affected by even really minor facets of the immediate societal environment ( relevant theoretical account please refer to appendix ) . For illustration, creativeness may be impeded where wagess are determined in progress, where there is undue clip force per unit area, over-supervision, competition or where picks are restricted in footings of attack or working stuffs, or where rating is expected. The function of the context or capable sphere has been progressively emphasised since the early 1990s. In 1970s, arguments on creativeness within doctrine regarded creativeness as traveling off from merchandise results and being connected with imagination ( Elliott, 1971 ) . During the 1980s a new line was developed, born of societal psychological science and systems theory, where environmental conditions were taken into history. Within these four lines of development, ( personality, knowledge, exciting creativeness and societal theories ) there were specific focal points such as the individ ual who creates, the originative procedure, environmental factors, and the result ( a fourfold set of focal point, originally proposed by Mooney in 1963 as indicated above ) . Later on, during the 1990s, due to the development of the attack from societal psychological science, research into creativeness became more comprehensive, incorporating these specific focal point. Research began to concentrate more on the creativeness of ordinary people within facets of instruction. At the same clip the methodological analysis for look intoing creativeness in instruction besides shifted, within a general tendency, from rationalist, large-scale surveies taking to mensurate creativeness, toward ethnographic, qualitative research concentrating on the existent site of operations and pattern, every bit good as philosophical treatments around the nature of creativeness. In instruction in the United Kingdom, for illustration, Beetlestone ( 1999 ) focused on creativeness in the early old ages ‘ schoolroom, Woods ( 1995 ) and Woods & A ; Jeffrey ( 1996 ) explored teacher creativeness, and Craft ( 1996 ) looked at how to nurture the originative instructor. Beetlestone paperss practical schemes for furthering creativeness within the early old ages course of study, utilizing illustrations from a big assortment of early old ages contexts. Woods & A ; Jeffrey work through in-depth instance surveies to document ways in which a little group of instructors operate creatively in the face of a wider context which arguably suppresses the creativeness of the instruction profession. Craft explores in deepness the positions of 18 pedagogues involved in a holistic graduate student class specifically designed to foster their ain creativeness. There are, of class, some convergences in these periods. For illustration, from the applied instruction context, Fryer ( 1996 ) undertook a large-scale study of instructors ‘ attitudes towards creativeness in their day-to-day professional work. Creative Education There is a strong principle for researching creativeness and acquisition and instruction: they are cardinal, interdisciplinary issues. Within instruction, creativeness is normally associated with invention, synthesis and doing connexions in the procedure of acquisition and instruction, ( Reid & A ; Petocz, 2004 ) . Robinson ( 2001 ) positions creativeness and originative drama as a planetary educational precedence, indispensable to effectual acquisition and instruction, the modernisation of our educational systems, employability, and concern success and economic prosperity. Howard Gardner defines creativeness as the ability to ‘knit together information from disparate beginnings into a consistent whole ‘ and believes that ‘the head most at premium in the 21st century will be the head that can synthesise good ‘ ( Gardner, 2006, p.46 ) . The penetrations and deductions in developing creativeness through instruction can be scrutinized into three facets. The first facet is concerned with ‘teaching ‘ , including how to supply originative and advanced patterns which stimulate the development of multiple intelligence ( Armstrong, 2000 ; Chen, 1997 ; Torrance, 1963 ; Torrance & A ; Myers, 1970 ; Woods, 1995 ) , possibility thought ( Craft, 2000, 2005 ) , and higher-level thought ( Cropley, 1992 ; Fryer, 1996 ; Yeh, 2006 ) , or how to affect the chance of researching and work outing jobs ( Cropley, 1992 ; Fryer, 1996, 2003 ; Torrance, 1963 ) . The 2nd facet of the deductions suggests making an ‘environment ‘ , both external and societal, that is exciting and supportive to scholars ‘ motivation/enthusiasm ( Collins & A ; Amabile, 1999 ; Hennesay, 1995, 2007 ; Woods & A ; Jeffrey, 1996 ) and originative behavior ( Craft, 2001a ; Esquivel, 1995 ; Lucas, 2001 ; Torrance, 1995 ) . The 3rd concern of fostering creativeness is about ‘teacher ethos ‘ , which includes keeping an unfastened attitude towards originative thoughts or behaviors, demoing a humanistic student control political orientation ( as opposed to being autocratic ) , being flexible, and valuing independency thought ( Chen, 2008 ; Craft, 2001a, 2005, 2007 ; Cremin, Barnes, & A ; Scoffham, 2009 ; Esquivel, 1995 ; Hennessey, 1995 ; NACCCE, 1999 ) . Many states have hence launched several programmes advancing invention and creativeness, such as the European Union embarked on a undertaking called European Year of Creativity and Innovation 2009[ 6 ]. In the specific country of instruction, Burnard ( 2006 ) mentioned that in the United Kingdom there have been an extended figure of creativeness enterprises in instruction during the past decennary, and important public deliberation and promotion around the creativeness. Significant sum of attempt and support devoted to gestating and developing creativeness in both acquisition and teaching method. Some creativeness instruction programmes can besides be found in other states. It should be noted that many believe the developments of creativeness instruction programmes in the UK ( including England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland ) have to a great extent based on the NACCCE ‘s ( National Advisory Committee on Culture, Creativity, and Education ) study to OFSTED in 1999, viz. â€Å" All our Futures, Creativity, Culture, and Education † . Similarly, in Taiwan, the Chinese Ministry of Education ( MOE ) published the ‘White Paper on Creative Education[ 7 ]‘ in 2002, aimed at steering the populace to endeavor toward a ‘Republic of Creativity ‘ ( MOE, 2002, p. 1 ) . Taiwan accordingly launched creativeness programmes in instruction at primary, secondary, and third degrees. The MOE proposed 10 rules so that creativeness instruction could be implemented more strictly and efficaciously. Harmonizing to the 10 rules, 20 schemes were developed, which can be categorised into four wide dimensions-School, Societal, Industrial, and Cultural. In order to implement these schemes more expeditiously, the MOE proposed that six action programs be initiated to actively advance creativeness instruction in our society. For illustration, the Creative High School Programme and Intelligent Ironman Creativity Contest are executed at secondary instruction degree, whilst the Local Creative Education Programme is performed in primary schools. Reviewing the ‘White Paper on Creative Education ‘ , it is found that Taiwan has complex aims refering schools and instructors. There are six action programs stated in the paper ( p.16~p.19 ) as follows: a. Nurturing trips for originative scholars ; B. Professional development for originative instructors ; c. Comprehensive direction for originative schools ; d. Creative life in action ; e. Online acquisition via a originative intelligence bank ; and f. Ongoing consolidation of creativeness cultivation. Ultimately, the MOE purposes to make a user-friendly environment and clime for the publicity of participants ‘ divergent thought and motive for invention, every bit good as to promote them to bask the making procedure. Alongside with the outlook on po sitive alterations in the attitudes or behaviors of all instructors, students, and originative practicians, the MOE besides wants to see some merchandises come out from its intercession. With respect to the effectivity of the creativeness enterprises, some publications in Taiwan revealed that the publicity of related programmes have brought important benefits to pedagogues, pupils, parents, schools, and even for our educational system and society.Dancing with Democracy and Creativity: How can a democratic attack to education support more originative acquisition?By using Rhodes ( 1961 ) Four Ps Model and the creativeness theories suggested by Csikszentmihalyi ( 1999 ) and Amabile ( 1983, 1996 ) , this subdivision critically analyses the connexions of democratic attacks and originative acquisition. The two instance schools of Taiwan- Forest School and Seeding School will besides used to back up the statement. The Four Ps Model was foremost claimed by Rhode ( 1961 ) that creativeness can be understood by Person, Place/ Press, Process and Product. I found that, based on the theoretical account, there are a broad scope of similarities between the two sorts of instruction. First, sing Person, people are ever the most of import portion in instruction, particularly in democratic and creativeness attacks. It is reported that many personality features are typically associated with creativeness, including brave in strong beliefs ; funny, seeking ; independent in opinion ; independent in believing ; intuitive ; going preoccupied with undertakings ; airy, idealistic ; willing to take hazards ( Torrance, 1965 ; Csikszentmihalyi, 1976 ; Simonton, 1984 ) . Interestingly, most of the features are someway, to some extent, related to the purposes of democratic instruction. For illustration, the intent of democratic instruction is to fit people with the ability to understand their nature involvements, and to hold the ability to separate right from incorrect, so that they can keep the democratic society every bit good as the system. It is about furthering kids with the ability to believe independently and critically. Last, ‘student-centred ‘ instruction is both pursued by the two attacks, which can be described as the displacement in power from the instructor to the scholar, driven by a demand for a alteration in the traditional environment ( Rogers, 1983 ) . Nonetheless, until now there are still many schoolrooms which are seen as teacher-directed ( Young, 1984 ) , and this seems to be harmful to pupils ‘ creativeness. Place/ Press refers to the relationship between you and your environment – those things pressing on you, including physical, psychological, societal and emotional safety and comfort in your environment, which besides help or impede your creativeness. In originative acquisition, it is suggested that a alimentary environment should be constructed for stimulating and back uping scholars ‘ motivation/enthusiasm ( Collins & A ; Amabile, 1999 ; Hennesay, 1995, 2007 ; Woods & A ; Jeffrey, 1996 ) and originative behavior ( Craft, 2001a ; Esquivel, 1995 ; Lucas, 2001 ; Torrance, 1995 ) . Furthermore, in Csikszentmihalyi or Amabile ‘s theories, motive is suggested to be indispensable for creativeness. Similarly, democratic instruction besides advocates the publicity of scholars ‘ motive, particularly the intrinsic 1, as they can follow their ain inner counsel in finding what and how they are traveling to larn. More than the physical scenes, the ethos – a common respected and trusted clime is indispensable to both originative and democratic attacks. Merely as pointed by Inter American Children ‘s Institute ( 2009 ) and Hanson & A ; Howe ( 2011 ) , it is needed for a civics instruction to demand of its pupils to be reciprocally respected, besides grownups and kids are more likely to develop common regard and learn to treat struggles. In originative acquisition, to keep an unfastened attitude towards originative thoughts or behaviors, demoing a humanistic student control political orientation ( as opposed to being autocratic ) , being flexible, and valuing independent thought ( Chen, 2008 ; Craft, 2001a, 2005, 2007 ; Cremin, Barnes, & A ; Scoffham, 2009 ; Esquivel, 1995 ; Hennessey, 1995 ; NACCCE, 1999 ) . The 3rd facet is Process ; it explains the method and pattern that is used to do people more originative. In school scene, procedure largely uses to mention instruction, includes how to supply originative and advanced patterns which stimulates the development of multiple intelligence ( Armstrong, 2000 ; Chen, 1997 ; Torrance, 1963 ; Torrance & A ; Myers, 1970 ; Woods, 1995 ) , and to affect the chance of researching and work outing job ( Cropley, 1992 ; Fryer, 1996, 2003 ; Torrance, 1963 ) . Fryer mentioned that some instruction ways are helpful in fostering creativeness in schoolroom, including ‘encouraging inquiries ‘ , ‘providing firsthand experiences ‘ , ‘giving some pick ‘ , ‘building assurance ‘ , ‘developing creativeness by non making, and ‘valuing students ‘ thoughts and parts ‘ . I found that four major subjects are every bit of import to both originative and democratic instructions, including freedom an d duty, regard and trust. Sing freedom, it is believed that students have the capacity to ‘developing creativeness by non making ‘ . Fryer ( 1996 ) stated that in the interviews with five instructors, the instructors noted that non-interference aids: â€Å" If you ‘re seeking to develop creativeness in immature kids, you set up tonss of things and you hope they will interact with them, you talk about what they ‘re making and demo involvement, but you do n't make everything for them, there ever has to be an gap left for them. † ( ibid, 1996, p.83 ) Duty, in the portion of giving some pick to kids, instructors believe that if students are given pick, their attitude to a piece of work will be more originative. Some of these instructors even see pick as a agency of giving kids a sense of ownership of their work, which they find additions their engagement in it. In some sense, this is about doing students take duty for their work. They have their ain determination of what to make and how to make it, . Refering Respect and Trust, it is widely believed that promoting pupils to inquire inquiries is one of the cardinal points in development of creativeness ( Torrance, 1965 ) . Young ( twelvemonth ) suggested that instructors should be really careful to every treatment from every pupil in the schoolroom, but non being selective to those, which did non back up their thoughts or statements. Which means, regard. It is, in fact, the same thought which democratic instruction is underscoring, to be respectful, and promote pupils to hold inqui ries is a manner to reflect that how grownups are giving infinites to allow kids show themselves. On the other manus, regard should non merely be between grownups and kids, but should besides be among students. It is believed in instructors who are seeking to advance creativeness in category that valuing students ‘ thoughts and parts is besides indispensable. Teachers should value all of their students thoughts and ideas, every bit good as to learn their pupils to be respectful to others in the category. Merchandise, no affair whether touchable or intangible, originative thoughts, results or merchandises are new to the Godhead, has some degree of usefulness, and has been produced and communicated in some manner. The merchandise could be seen as the least related portion between democratic and originative attacks. No affair how the environment is fostering a student ‘s creativeness, or how the attack in democratic instruction is exciting more originative thought, it is still in demand of specific accomplishments in order to make a merchandise that can be valued by others, for case, one has to cognize some basic music theories in order to compose a vocal, or to larn how to pull in oil pigments before really pigment in oils. Therefore, in order to make more originative acquisition, some other elements should be incorporate into democratic instruction, including originative accomplishments and specific sphere knowledgeaˆÂ ¦ etc.The two instances in Taiwan:The Forest School and The Seeding Experimental School‘Here, instructors, pupils and animate beings are equal. No 1 bullies the Canis familiariss here. ‘ ( Teresa Hong, pupil of FS ) . Because ‘Humans are animate beings excessively, so we ‘re all equal. ‘ ( Ellen Wei, another pupil of FS ) The Forest School ( FS ) in Taiwan offers a different manner of instruction concentrating on creativeness, harmoniousness with nature and independent thought ( Teh, 2006 ) . The school have around 60 pupils in entire, and their town hall meeting ( the meeting that is held to put up school ordinances ) is chaired by the pupils themselves. Bing the really first alternate school in Taiwan, FS has long been confronting a figure of troubles and critics from the society and parents who do non truly understand their rules of schooling. As a school based on humanitarianism, they believe it is merely when schools stop bodily penalty will the childs can bask their survey every bit good as their school lives. Located in a mountain country in Taipei, FS believe that pupils should populate with nature and develop independent thought. ‘We hope that kids in this school can finally go person with the ability to pass on and to populate independently, besides to develop their personality in a more positive and kind-hearted manner. ‘ ( Lin, manager of the FS, 2011 ) . They besides pointed out that it is truly of import for pupils to cognize more about their place state, so one of the one-year classs in FS is to go around Taiwan with instructors. For illustration, in some countryside topographic points pupils really involved in agriculture, this provides them the first manus experience and cognition alternatively of reading them in a text edition. It is besides believed that the existent life experience can broaden their skyline and assist them to be more originative. The Seeding Experimental School ( SES ) locates in a vale surrounded by mountains, which is a school founded by a group of parents who are seeking for a better instruction for their kids ( Currently SES has approximately 90 pupils with 9 instructors in school, which makes their teacher-student ratio of 1:10 ) . Whilst visiting SES, one bookman noticed a miss sitting on the grass entirely. He thought she might hold some issues so he went nearer, but when he stepped following to the miss, he heard she said, ‘Come. Let ‘s bask the sunlight. ‘ Then he saw a smiling with felicity on her face. SES believes that freedom, regard, response, support, openness, trust and democracy should be integrated both into course of study and ordinary life in campus. Merely the topics of linguistic communication and mathematics are mandatory, and pupils are free to take to analyze in an advanced degree if they believe they have the ability. At the last twelvemonth in this school, pupils have to make something before graduating, and they are allowed to make up one's mind their subject or topic ; besides, they will hold to complete a challenge, such as encampment and hike in a mountain, or travel on a trip by siting a motorcycle. Apart from this, there is nil that pupils in SES have to make or hold to larn. They write a composing because they were inspired by the creek in forepart of the campus, or they sing because they were touched by flowers on the trees ; and that is the purpose of the SES: to love, to populate, to larn, to make ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www.seedling.tw/ ) . FS and SES are both categorised as alternate school, and more exactly, democratic school in Taiwan. Hence, it is sensible for them to incorporate all the indispensable elements of democratic instruction, that I came up with on page XY, into their schooling, among them freedom of pick, regard and trust, shared administration and duty, equal entree and pupil centred acquisition ( can be seen on Table x.x ) . However, the thought of equal entree can non be wholly actualised, it is impossible for all the Chinese kids to analyze at that place, as the tuition fee is about 10,000 USD for an academic twelvemonth, in contrast, the tuition to go to a public school is less than 700 USD. In fact, ideally, the school should supply the high quality instruction for a bigger population of pupils ; nevertheless, their budgets do non let them to do it possible. Bing private self-funded schools, the entire tuition fees the two schools received are less than 2/3 of their outgo on schooling. Rather than trying to procure some support from the authorities, the two schools choose to be to the full self-funded to guarantee their independent place without any governmental influence. Sing the student ‘s originative public presentation, it has been reported repeatedly that their schooling can advance creativeness ( Yuan, 1994 ; Chang, 1999 ; Teh, 2006 ) . By utilizing the Four Ps Model to analyze their schooling, I found that the democratic instruction enables the pupil to come out with originative thoughts and merchandises. With respect to topographic point and procedure, the thoughts of freedom, regard and trust, shared administration and duty are employed throughout their schooling. Refering the facet of individual, it is all about freedom of pick, because the pupils can make up one's mind what and how to larn, they become more self-motivated, which is an indispensable component for making. These three Ps, individual, topographic point and procedure work with democratic instruction absolutely, and therefore build a good foundation for the students to do something both advanced and valuable. However, if we use the creativeness theories of Csikszentmihalyi and Amabile to analyze the two schools, some sphere cognition ( such as the cognition of linguistic communication, mathematics, scientific discipline ) and creativeness relevant accomplishments ( such as divergent thought and convergent thought ) are besides needed. Democracy Creativity Freedom Respect & A ; Trust Equal Access Duty Person Students are allowed to find their acquisition that are triggered by intrinsic motive, which has been proved as an of import factor to better creativeness Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’ Teachers and staffs have faith in kids and believe that they have the ability to do the right determinations. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’i?’ Ideally, every kid should hold the equal entree to analyze at these schools Forest i?â€Å"iˆ Seeding i?â€Å" With more freedom in doing determination, pupils are besides holding more duty towards their plants. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’i?’ Topographic point An environment without restrictions halting them from researching anything new. Students are allowed to believe and move freely and go more originative minds. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’ i?’ Adults and kids are mutual-respected in the topographic point that full of regard and trust every bit good as grasp. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’i?’ An environment that opens to everyone. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’i?’ School governed by grownups and kids together, so that pupils can really find something that is act uponing their school lives. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’ i?’ Procedure Teachers provide stimulation and alimentary ethos that facilitate the student ‘s thought. In order to allow the students think more creatively, critically and independently, instructors choose non to make everything for them. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’i?’ Teachers encourage and value every inquiry that has been asked in category, every bit good as every pupil ‘s plants. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’i?’ Children and instructors have equal power in the determination devising for learning and larning Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’ i?’ The manner of sharing the authorization every bit good as duty with kids is one sort of methods to do pupils experience more involved. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’ i?’ Merchandise Students have the rights to make their ain merchandises such as verse forms, Hagiographas, pictures, statues, vocalizing, and dance. Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’i?’ Creative thoughts and merchandises are extremely valued and appreciated. Furthermore, the schools cherish and have willingness to show the merchandises Foresti?’ i?’iˆ Seedingi?’ i?’ i?’ Not applicable Not applicableDecisionIn this paper I wanted to look into aˆÂ ¦ By reexamining the scholarly plants, I found that, although the significances are somewhat different in the constructs of democracy and democratic instruction, some common characteristics have been clearly stated including freedom, regard and trust, equal entree and shared administration and duty. Some outstanding illustrations of democratic schools are the Summerhill School and Sands School in England, and those later established 1s including the Forest School and the Seeding Experimental School in Taiwan. Creativity is full of pluralism and complexness, although it is ‘notorious hard to specify and step ‘ ( Runco, 2004 ) , late many research workers indicate that the cardinal elements of it are novel/originality and valuable/usefulness ( Boden, 1999 ; Feist, 1999 ; Gruber & A ; Wallace, 1999 ; Lumsden, 1999 ; Lubart, 1999 ; Martindale, 1999 ; Nickerson, 1999 ) . For heightening creativeness, a broad sc ope of subjects have been introduced into instruction, demuring the often cited Four Ps Model ( 1961 ) , still others such as cognitive, psychodynamic, humanitarianism and behaviorism attacks. However, a more dynamic attack emerged late, viz. the perusal of creativeness though societal contexts, sing creativeness as the results appear in a status of dynamic interaction, for illustration, the Systems Model of Creativity, which was suggested by Csikszentmihalyi ( twelvemonth ) , claimed that creativeness appears when the three subsystems including single, sphere and field work together. Analyzing the literature of democratic instruction and originative instruction, non surprisingly, there are many overlapping facets. By the employment of the Four Ps Model ( Place/Press, Process, Person and Product ) to analyze their connexions, I found that the most similarities are in the facets of place/press and procedure, for illustration, they both pursue a more broad clime, preferring the more student-centred acquisition, prioritizing more weights on the pupil ‘s freedom, voice and creative activity, furthermore, they both seek for a mutual-respected environment. Broadly talking, when sing creativeness as ‘Mini-C ‘ – novel and personal meaningful reading of experiences, actions and events ( Beghetto and Kaufman, 2007 ) , or merely simple as what Piaget said ‘To understand is to contrive ‘ , or the celebrated citation from Dewey ‘Learning by making ‘ , so, creativeness can be a procedure or merchandise that happens as a consequen ce of a strictly democratic instruction. Similarly, humanist Maslow one time argued that what pedagogues need is supplying a alimentary environment assisting the students to ‘climb ‘ to the highest degree of its hierarchy of demands – self-actualisation, where creativeness, job resolution, morality and democracy appear. That is, democratic instruction can be regarded as a necessary status every bit good as a sufficient status for creativeness. However, when we see creativity as Big-C ( high creativeness ) or Little-C ( mundane creativeness ) , which means that creativeness demands to be evaluated or valued by others. The democratic instruction may non be regarded as sufficient status but a really supportive factor for creativeness. It can be seen as a basis for originative acquisition, for illustration, no affair Csikszentmihalyi, Amabile or Sternberg all suggest that environment is a important factor lending to the successful creativeness, and the democratic environment can work with creativity instruction absolutely. Nonetheless, for the research workers, creativeness is something more directional and functional. It relies on job designation and bring forthing thoughts to its terminal, that is, creativeness still needs to hold some back uping elements such as cognition, domain-relevant accomplishments and creativity-relevant accomplishments. In other words, democratic instruction can be supportive to more originative acq uisition by building a back uping environment and a more student- centred acquisition, but, in order to do more originative merchandises ( particularly those are extremely valued by others ) , the proviso of cognition and relevant accomplishments are every bit of import. Mention