Testing Is A Form Of Testing Used By Our Educational System

Standardized testing is a form of testing used by our educational system to measure the success of a school’s students and faculty. A typical student takes 112 mandated standardized tests between PreKindergarten and twelfth grade. The use of these tests became mandatory in 2002 as part of the No Child Left Behind Act. Although there are some individuals who support these tests, many parents, students, and teachers experience the negative effects year after year. Standardized tests impact students emotionally and do not provide accurate results of a child’s education level or teacher’s performance. They take away from students learning new things for months prior to the test date as teacher’s focus primarily on this one test to satisfy our government. Standardized testing has been used for many years, but has not always been mandatory and there was little emphasis put on it. Previously, the test was used to see where a student was at with their education, but did not dictate the level of their education or their teachers performance. During this time, the school atmosphere was more enjoyable and there was an array of curriculum opportunities. Students were able to discover what they were good at as well as discover, explore, and play in a relaxed atmosphere and most children loved to attend. Teachers worried about how they could reach children through their teaching and incorporate important knowledge and skills in hopes to make the students viable active members ofShow MoreRelatedStandardized Testing : A Gateway Of Opportunities And Successes For Many Scholarship Bound Students821 Words   |  4 Pages Ogechi Nwokonko Mr. Marshall English 1301 11/12/2014 Researched Argument Although standardized testing was a gateway of opportunities and successes for many scholarship bound students, it was also the downfall in the educational system today. How can we define standardized testing? According to the Edglossary, state testing can be defined as a test that: â€Å"requires all test takers to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions from common bank of questions, in the same way, and thatRead MoreThe Pros And Cons Of Standardized Testing1511 Words   |  7 PagesOver the years the educational system has faced various controversial issues, but the most recent one making a negative impact on students, is standardized testing. Standardized testing is a type of testing used to evaluate students academic abilities . It is a way to measure if standards are being met but does not provide a variation in the type of administration based on the students needs (Sacks, 2000). In other words, all children are provided these test to track their learning progress basedRead MoreEssay about Assessment Choices in the Classroom954 Words   |  4 PagesEducational accountability in the United States has a great impact on public s chool assessment practices. There is a tremendous amount of pressure on schools to demonstrate academic progress; this pressure is mainly in the form of standardized testing. Currently the assessment practices that are used are traditional and non-authentic forms of assessment that reveal only if a student can recognize or recall what they have learned. In an effort to redefine learning in our schools, emphasis needs toRead MoreThe Effects Of Standardized Testing On Minority Students1376 Words   |  6 Pagesevidence proving a bias in standardized testing towards minority students. In this paper I will argue in favor of those supporting the idea of a bias in standardized testing. A bias in standardized testing would not only effect the students it is biased against, but the public and other students as well. This is why it is important that we take the time to educate ourselves with the evidence provided. In order to make a decision as to whether or not standardized testing is ind eed biased, we must educateRead MoreThe Pros And Cons Of Standardized Testing850 Words   |  4 Pages and standardized tests monitor how well the process is going† (Brady). Standardized tests have become an educational routine. This testing limits the teachers ability to teach creatively to the students. As a college student, I have undergone ten years of standardized tests and have experienced many different teacher’s opinions towards them, from this I believe have endured enough testing torture to give a valued opinion. Standardized tests are created to compare a student to an unrealistic standardRead MoreThe Flaws of Standardized Testing Essays1416 Words   |  6 Pagesbed at a decent time, eat a healthy breakfast, and to not forget their number two pencils. It is TCAP testing time. Standardized testing has been a norm for over seventy-five years in almost every first- world country. From state regulated tests, to the â€Å"college-worthy† ACT and SAT, standardized tests have become a dreaded rite of passage for every student. The earliest record of standardized testing originates from China. It was created to test knowledge of Confucian poetry and philosophy for menRead MoreStandardized Testing Is Defined By Standardized Test Definition1083 Words   |  5 PagesStandardized Testing is defined by Standardized Test Definition as, â€Å"any form of test that (1) requires all test takers to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions from common bank of questions, in the same way, and that (2) is scored in a ‘standard’ or consistent manner, which makes it possible to compare the relative performance of individual students or groups of students.† This formality of testing was introduced in 1845 by educational pioneer, Horace Mann. Mann’s vision for theseRead MoreStandardized Testing Should Not Be Banned Essay1585 Words   |  7 PagesStandardized testing has been used in the United States for years while its role in education has expanded by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Standardized testing was created to promote equality within the education system; to treat and teach all students the same. The use of this test was also meant to measure the students progress in math and reading, as well as to determine a student promotion to the next grade; but at what cost? Preparation for standardized tests is almost twenty-four-sevenRead MoreSmarter Ways And Test Our Potential Youths Essay1587 Words   |  7 PagesSmarter Ways to Test Our Potential Youths Standardized testing has been used in the United States for years while its role in education has expanded by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Standardized testing was created to promote equality within the education system; to treat and teach all student the same. The use of this test was also meant to measure the students’ progress in math and reading, as well as to determine a student promotion to the next grade; but at what cost? Preparation forRead MoreEssay on Standardized Testing in Schools1399 Words   |  6 PagesViews on Standardized Testing Standardized testing has long been a controversial method of assessment in our schools. Such tests are important indicators of student achievement and aptitude. However, some standardized test scores have been misused as a manner in which to track students, allocate school funds, and even determine teacher pay. Standardized tests, when used appropriately and for the right reasons, can adequately determine a students present level of strengths and weaknesses and his

Human Resource Management And Business Strategy Essay

Increased integration between human resource management and business strategy is one of the most m important demands that are placed upon modern strategic human resource management. In both the management and the academic literature, it is generally acknowledged that the strategic deployment and management of personnel can contribute to the success and continuity of the firm. Some go even further by stating that a firm’s human resources form the basis of the firm’s competitive advantage. In this view, the human resources are the most important assets of an organisation. At the same time, in addition to the importance of the human resources as such, it is believed to be impora tant that the management of the human resources should be in perfect fit with the management of the organisation as a whole and its strategic plans. However, despite these optimistic accounts, it is clear that the implementation of strategic human resource management is difficult and to date, has diffused only to a limited extent (Rowland Summers, 1981; Lorange Murphy, 1984; Nkomo, 1984; Golden Ramanujam, 1985; Mills, 1985; Buller Napier, 1993). The literature often refers to a relatively small number of success stories. In other instances, the literature provides rather normative models of strategic human resource management, models which are still in need of being the subject of practical experiences and empirical e testing. Also, in general, most literature is mainly concerned with ‘what’Show MoreRelatedHuman Resource Management and Business Strategy5165 Words   |  21 Pages| Human Resource Management and Business Strategy | | | Abstract Human resource strategies of the group Sun City International have been identified and analysed for purposes of this report. While reviewing the different related literature this report attempts, through an analysis of external and internal factors, to examine how strategic management may help to deal with challenges and changes in a company, closely linked to the human resource department of the group. Finally, the impactsRead MoreCase Analysis: Zappos Human Resource Management and Business Strategy673 Words   |  3 Pagesapplied to all new employees, regardless of position. Passing the training is a prerequisite for retaining ones position as a Zappos employee. During the first week of training, new hires are offered a maximum $2,000 for leaving the company. This strategy is used to weed out uncommitted new employees. Generally, there are very few who accept the offer in favor of their jobs at the company. 3. What is unique about the hiring and orientation practices is the emphasis the company places on ensuringRead Moreâ€Å"Critically Assess the View That Human Resource Management Practices Should Be Designed to Fit the Business Strategies and Objectives†Ã¢â‚¬Æ'1310 Words   |  6 PagesQuestion: â€Å"Critically assess the view that human resource management practices should be designed to fit the business strategies and objectives†Ã¢â‚¬Æ' Dynamism is increasingly becoming a feature of the business environment, so what can businesses do to attain and sustain a competitive advantage? They need to set out clear goals and objectives and then ensure that all internal processes and activities are designed in a manner to attain these goals and objectives. Furthermore, some of these practicesRead MoreHuman Resource Management Policies and Practices That Can Support Business Strategies and Contribute to Improved Performance of the Organization4241 Words   |  17 PagesHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT POLICIES AND PRACTICES THAT CAN SUPPORT BUSINESS STRATEGIES AND CONTRIBUTE TO IMPROVED PERFORMANCE OF THE ORGANIZATION PREPARED BY: ROLAND GBENGA STUDENT NUMBER: 0075DSDS1011 MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINITRATION CARDIFF METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY MARKETING MANAGEMENT DR. GEORGE KOSHY 6TH DECEMBER, 2011 Table of Contents Table of Figures 4 1.0. INTRODUCTION 4 2.0. LITERATURE REVIEW 6 2.1. Recruitment and Selection (Toyota) 6 2.2. Training and ProfessionalRead MoreResearch Proposal: Strategic Hrm1623 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Perspectives on Human resource strategy: A key role contributing to organization performance in Cambodian Context† By Chit Uys Stevexo July 21, 2011 The strategic management of an organization s human resource has been recognized as one of the keys to business success. This particular strategy generally involved the optimization of the employees potentials mainly through training and performance assessment. This organizational strategy has been integrated in several businesses mainly toRead MoreStrategic Human Resource Management : Marks And Spencer1208 Words   |  5 PagesBusiness environment is facing a rapid change that reminds the business management to focus on its core competencies to survive and sustain in the competitive environment. The core competencies can be developed by strategic human resource management. According to Armstrong (2006) employees are the valued assets for a company. The strategic human resource management is mainly developed in accordance to the fact that human resources need to be managed strategically for the company to enjoy sustainableRead MoreStrategic Human Resource Management1738 Words   |   7 PagesSTRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Strategic human resource management is the process of linking the human resource function with the strategic objectives of the organization in order to improve performance. Strategic management The word ‘strategy’, deriving from the Greek noun strategus, meaning ‘commander in chief’, was first used in the English language in 1656. The development and usage of the word suggests that it is composed of stratos (army) and agein (to lead). In a management contextRead MoreHuman Resources : A Fundamental Department Of An Organization913 Words   |  4 PagesHuman Resources is a fundamental department of an organisation; this is because it focuses on the management of the personnel within the company. Human resources has been identified as ‘the source of sustainable competitive advantage and success, this is true when human resources management policies and practices are implemented with the main strategies and objectives set by the company itself. Strategic human resources management emphasises the successfulness of combining policies, strategies andRead MoreEssay on Training and Development and Performance Management1616 Words   |  7 Pagesord er to define Human Resource Strategy, one must first understand the concepts behind an organisation’s business strategy and its HRM practices. Various definitions of ‘strategy’ exist, almost all of which boil down to the simple fact that it is the general direction of an organization, which it must strive to go in the long term. The responsibility of adhering to the business strategy falls on the managers, who must use the resources at hand, keeping in context with the business environment theirRead MoreHuman Resource Management And Human Resources1243 Words   |  5 Pages Human resource management Introduction As storey (2001) explains that human resource management concept is typical approach to business which quest to achieve competitive advantage through the strategic disposition of dedicated and committed human work force using array of values, culture, personnel and structural techniques. In simple word Human resource denotes to employees that help to run and drives an organisation which is also the main workforce of any organisation

War on Drugs and Prison Overcrowding Free Essays

The War on Drugs and Prison Overcrowding David Turner CCJ 1020 October 06, 2012 Overcrowding is one of the most difficult challenges that prison administrators face in the United States. There are many factors that that affect the constant flow of people being processed into today’s prisons. The â€Å"war on drugs† has led to more arrest and convictions that any other crime. We will write a custom essay sample on War on Drugs and Prison Overcrowding or any similar topic only for you Order Now The money spent on the prohibition of drugs and the law enforcement presence to stop drug trafficking raises high into the billions of dollars. The cost to care for these individuals while incarcerated has cost taxpayers billions over the years. When looking at today’s statistics of the â€Å"war on drugs†, the supply and demand is greater than it has ever been. From 1995 to 2003, drug offenses accounted for 49% of the growth in prison population in both state and federal institutions (McVay, 2011). According to the Department of Justice, in 2004, almost 30% of drug offenders in state prisons were serving time for possession, while close to 70% were serving time for trafficking. There is a strong following across the United States from state groups and services rallying against sentencing and pushing for drug counseling programs. Legalization for marijuana has resurfaced in the November polls in some states. In many prisons, marijuana convictions fill the cell blocks more than any other drug offense. In 1933, America re-legalized alcohol, and the 21st amendment re-legalized its production, distribution and sale. Alcohol consumption and violent crimes fell instantly (Goelman, 2011). As a result, the American criminal justice system felt slightly organized. Crimes that were being committed due to alcohol smuggling and manufacturing had almost came to a complete halt. President Richard Nixon’s first budget for the â€Å"war on drugs† was $100 million dollars (Associated Press, 2010). If only that was the budget these days. Published reports state that the Obama Administrations budget for 2011 was $15. 1 billion dollars. Most of the money is budgeted for law enforcement and drug interdiction purposes. When Nixon first started this movement to find drugs, it was for counseling and for drug treatment programs. President Reagan reinvented the â€Å"war on drugs† phrase by changing the goal from rehabilitation to a law enforcement presence (Jane, 2011). Since the early 1980’s, the number of people being sentence to state penitentiaries have double, even tripled in some areas. The idea of, if you lock them all up, then the crimes will stop approach has not worked over the years. The numbers have consistently gone up in both the budget and those being incarcerated. Many states have lowered drug crimes from felonies to misdemeanors and resorted to longer, more structured probationary terms. Though this is a step in the right direction, it is not enough to put a dent in the budget or free up space to house more dangerous offenders in our prisons. Businesses around the globe use simple business practices to figure out supply and demand. If there is a demand in an area, then a store is opened and the goods are sold. If the business is not doing well in sales, then the store closes. If we (America) can stop the urge, the addiction, or demand for certain drugs, then the business owners will go elsewhere. Drugs have powerful, addictive properties and our brains are just as powerful. Addiction is a powerful word and is an even a more powerful feeling. Not everyone locked up in prison is addicted to drugs, but the ones who are enable these same people to sell them drugs. If we focus on counseling and fighting addiction, we will see the budget and prison overcrowding drop. I am a firm believer in what might have worked 20 years ago, might not work in today’s society. With prisons being filled on a daily basis, the budget for fighting the â€Å"war on drugs† growing larger, and the demand for drugs is â€Å"higher† than ever, America has got to start a new approach for this fight. Since this is being called a â€Å"war on drugs†, then we need to change our attack strategy and try something else. Through drug treatments and counseling, we can lower numbers in all major categories and put the money in other areas where it is needed the most. References McVay, D. A. (2011, January 26). Drug War Facts: Common Sense for Drug Policy. Retrieved from http://www. drugwarfacts. org/cms/ Shane, James, Rich, Rob. (2010) Losing Effort: The United States â€Å"War on Drugs†. Retrieved from http://visualeconomics. creditloan. com/losing-effort-the-united-states-war-on- How to cite War on Drugs and Prison Overcrowding, Essay examples

What I Learned from my Autistic Brother free essay sample

When I was young, I knew my brother was different. It didn’t seem important to me until some of my friends asked, â€Å"What’s wrong with him?† At first I didn’t understand what they meant because I didn’t think there was something â€Å"wrong† with him. I asked my parents, and they told me that my brother had autism and cerebral palsy. When I went to kindergarten, my brother had already been at the same school for several years in the special education program. When he saw me in the halls, he always wanted to hug me, and I was incredibly embarrassed. I didn’t want to feel this way because I loved my brother, but I thought others would laugh at me for displaying any connection. If I saw him, I would try to hide behind friends, or walk down a different hallway. I felt ashamed of my behavior, but I couldn’t help it. We will write a custom essay sample on What I Learned from my Autistic Brother or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Sometimes I wished I had a normal brother, but I never told anyone. I felt regret when I found myself thinking this way. Eventually, we parted ways when I went to middle school. We weren’t enrolled in the same facility again until my junior year at high school. Since the school didn’t want to pay for a special education bus to bring Gabriel to school, I was responsible to get him on and off the bus and bring him to his classroom in the morning. My past selfish thoughts resurfaced when I had to chaperone him onto the bus. My first thoughts were â€Å"I don’t want to do this; I’m not responsible for him.† But reluctantly, I said yes because I don’t like arguing with my parents. However, after the first couple of bus rides, I realized I enjoyed taking Gabriel off the bus and bringing him to his class. It was a game for both of us. I spent the first six weeks teaching him how to simply get to his classroom; telling him which direction we were he ading and when we should make a left or right turn. Later, I asked him directional questions and he would answer them. Sometimes he would get them wrong, but I would gently correct him and tell him the proper direction. By the third month he had two routes memorized. I would still get him off the bus to make sure he was taking one of the two correct routes. Later in the year, I didn’t have to watch him anymore, because I knew that he knew his way. Eventually I started finding my own way. I saw myself emulating the same patterns of persistence that my brother portrayed in the hallway. With my school work, I’d ask myself more questions and work harder in order to achieve the results I wanted. These experiences made me become more compassionate and encompassing of people who are different than I am. I can see myself taking on more challenges in college. Now I am less fearful about trying something new. I thank my brother Gabriel for teaching me these lessons.

Affirmative Action In Higher Education A Solution To Structural Racis

Affirmative Action In Higher Education: A Solution To Structural Racism It seems as if the roaring debate over affirmative action has again emerged. Much of the debate centers about education. Critics appear to believe that a policy to aggressively counter discrimination against minority groups is no longer necessary and, further, serves only to create unfair privileges. My paper will investigate the question of affirmative action in schooling for minorities in order to address the issue of affirmative action in college admissions. What is the evidence that supports arguments for or arguments against affirmative action policies in college admissions? Affirmative action is defined in Webster's dictionary as a policy or program for correcting the effects of discrimination in the employment of education of members of certain groups. There are many different types of advantage policies that no one seems to question. For example, there are many students who get privileges at universities because their parents or relatives are alumni. No one pickets or rallies against this practice. Minority groups are trying to keep affirmative action in order to compensate for the lack of demographic and economic balances within the population of educational systems. A major crisis facing American higher education today is the rapidly declining number of Blacks successfully graduating from institutions of higher education at all levels-- 2-year and 4-year colleges, graduate schools, and professional schools. Many educators, political leaders, civil rights' groups, and other concerned organizations have expressed alarm in recent years about the drop i n the percentage of Black high school graduates who go on to 4-yeart colleges and beyond. Although more Blacks are obtaining high school diplomas, the number of Black high school graduates, ages 18 to 25 years old, who enrolled in college fell from 33.5% in 1976 t 26.1% in 1985 (Lang, Barriers to Blacks, p.510; U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1987). To some extent this decline in Black college enrollment reflects an overall national decline in college enrollment. Yet, the enrollment of the traditionally underrepresented minorities has been increasing. Even more devastating is the fact that the graduation rate of Blacks from 4-year colleges, graduate schools, and professional schools has dropped drastically as well. What are the reasons for this situation? What can or needs to be done in order to change these trends? What are the potential consequences if these trends are not changed? Part of the problem is encouraging Black youths to make the transition from high school to college. The more crucial concern, however, is getting Black youths through college to graduation and into and graduate from graduate and professional schools (Wilson, The Black Community in the 1980's, p.459). To begin addressing these pertinent questions, it is necessary to examine some factors that are affecting Blacks in higher education in recent years. Recent research clearly shows that the higher attrition rates of Black students are largely attributable to their socio-economic background and to certain peculiar characteristics of higher education institutions. Yet, it has also become clear that when socio-economic factors are controlled, the attrition rate of Blacks after enrolling in college is not strikingly different from that of Whites (David, Achievement and Ascription in Admission to an Elite College, p.371). This points directly to the significance of institutional factors on the attrition of Black Students after college enrollment. The research literature (Astin, 1975, 1982; Christoffel, 1986) further provides specific explanations for the disproportionately large attribution for Black students. Those factors include the academic preparation of Black students for higher education, the availability of family resources and access to institutional financial-aid resources, and the institutional barriers to access, enrollment, and retention. Why does equal opportunity in higher educational institutions continue to be a problem for minorities? Why do the retention and graduation rates for Blacks continue to decline? And, what are viable options for improving the access and retention of minorities in institutions of higher education? These are some of the major questions that must be addressed in a systematic research agenda. The Civil Rights' Movement of the 1950's and 1960's was in part a struggle to gain for minorities equal access to the nation's institutions of higher learning (Lang, Barriers to Blacks, p.514). Yet, over a quarter of a century later, minorities are still underrepresented, as students, faculty,

To what extent does the ending ensure a sense of closure to the film Essays

To what extent does the ending ensure a sense of closure to the film Essays To what extent does the ending ensure a sense of closure to the film Essay To what extent does the ending ensure a sense of closure to the film Essay Director Paul Haggis successful debut Crash (2005) tells the individual stories of a seemingly unrelated group of individuals in the story space of two days; it immediately begins with the result of a car crash, but the story stems from the shift back in time to the day before the incident. By doing this Crash skilfully and deliberately reaches beyond the conventions of narrative film, as it does not begin with a balanced equilibrium; it is this and numerous stylistic effects that makes for an increased sense of closure as each interweaving story is summed up individually yet also in the wider context of the film and the issues it presents.In this short period of time in fast paced Los Angeles and through the chance encounters of the characters- for example, when a racist police officer is forced to save the life of a white woman whom he had previously black mailed and violated out of racial discrimination- the films underlying morals and themes come to the fore. As the film takes th e audience slightly back in time, we engage with the almost parallel lives of the characters and their problems encountered out of bigotry and fear, and it is as these interweaving stories become connected that the pace of the film slows down and closure hinted at.Through plot- which is defined by Bordwell and Thompson as all the events that are directly presented to the viewer in a narrative film1- for example in its parallelisms and through stylistic effects, particularly in the closing five minutes which I will focus on, Crash successfully brings its narrative to a subdued close and reveals the underlying key themes. The ending is satisfying to the viewer in that individual stories are resolved- not necessarily within themselves but in the wider context of the film- thus ending with an emphatic moral note as opposed to a stable situation and happy ending.This closing five minute sequence offers insight into the lives of the characters once they have crashed into each other one wa y or another, as the camera watches over them individually at a distance. Through style- notably non-diegetic sound which plays throughout the whole sequence and ties together the various lives of the characters- the audience is presented movingly with each of the characters reflections in hindsight to their actions and their experiences. The audience is thus encouraged to identify with characters and understand the story and its underlying messages.The sequence begins with the story of Jean Cabot (Sandra Bullock): the audience sees her embracing her house-keeper as she says: do you know what? Youre the best friend Ive got. This marks her poignant revelation of her unfulfilled and unhappy life, which had been for so long masked by lavish lifestyle and her career-obsessed husband. Complete focus is on her character as a close up of her face in the centre of the frame begins the sequence; as the slow non-diegetic sound slowly builds up, the camera slowly tracks into her face, allowing for extreme close up. The combination of the reflecting music, the slow tracking of the camera and the intimate close up of her face gently reinforces her emotion and signifies, almost dramatically the turning-point in her life. As the close up focuses on her sad emotional state, the touching music (In the deep, by Kathleen York)- which happens to eventually cosmically relate all the intertwining stories- begins on the line thought you had all the answers. This serves again to emphasise her disillusionment with life, resulting in this emotive realisation, thus in many ways closure to her character. Mise-en-scene here is working as part of the plot as it signifies and mostly heightens the significant realization of this named character.After a relatively long take, the camera jump cuts to the story of another character and an establishing shot of Officer Tom Hansen (Ryan Phillipe) burning the car -where out of subconscious racial discrimination he fatally shot an innocent teenager ( Larenz Tate). We see him at a distance angrily throwing rubble onto the fire out of grief; the distance the camera allows for emphasises his helpless state at a significant time in the story, conveying the underlying consequences of his racial prejudice. Again by using an establishing shot here the audience now has a sense of time and space, as they have already been introduced to this storyline through plot.The jump shot might usually serve to create a disjointed or abrupt change in plot, yet through continuation of the same slow non-diegetic sound- which completely takes over synchronous sound- it almost seems to act as reflection, to sum up the story line rather than to expand on it. A balanced, almost symmetrical frame follows as the camera cuts to a medium close up of Officer Tom Hansen now in the middle of it. As the camera remains static however he walks slowly forward and to the right of the frame; this allows the balance to be disrupted, thus subtly emphasises his vulnerabi lity in the frame.2 This relates to his weakness in the story, as his position in the frame becomes vulnerable at a time in the story when his previous position of power and success has been substituted for a position of regret, reflection and shame. By showing his character in this way, the tone of the scene is extremely toned-down and as the story allows for the characters reflection, so the mood and mise-en-scene allows for audience reflection of racial prejudice.As the Officer walks forward in a few more frames of the shot, it is also noteworthy to point out the objective camera angle. By employing this camera angle the audience happens to look in as opposed to involving themselves in the action. This distances the audience somewhat and forces them to empathise with this character.Lighting works together to connote sadness; the predominant darkness and orange filter used suggests that all the light comes from the background fire, thus selectively lighting parts of the characters face and not much else. This slightly dappled light falling onto the characters face remains even throughout this shot and so slight changes in his harrowing expression of emotion are easily registered by the viewer; this again serves to emphasize his emotional state over actions or setting. And so the almost sombre tone of the scene is intensified. Through subdued lighting his emotional state is heightened to the audience who can now build an identification with him in his sadness. The plot merely shows the Officer walking away from the scene of the crime, yet through non-diegetic sound- connoting sadness and a poignant atmosphere- , through intimate close ups of his face and also through shallow depth of field created- by selectively focusing entirely on his face- the plot infers successfully his feeling of remorse and realisation.As the non-diegetic music and the calm paced shot length continues into the next sequence- as it were into other final accounts of the characters stori es- the audience is able to relate the characters, thus identify feeling of sadness and a sense of closure in all the accounts. After several shots of these various characters in their states of reflection in the closing five minutes of the plot the music begins to slow to a close; as it does this the audience sees Anthony (Ludacris) letting the Chinese immigrants go, after previously agreeing to sell them. This part in the plot signifies his revelation in looking beyond money for the greater cause. Yet, it is at this exact point of the music ending that we hear him say to one of the immigrants: dopey fucking Chinaman. Here- mainly through the combining of sound and plot- the films message and story is presented effectively; that moving at the speed of life even after having crashed into one another the issue of prejudice will always haunt in the world todaybla bla bla.In the closing sequence of the plot the audience is again encouraged to relate the different characters, thus bring ing messages of the film to the fore; it shows that our actions although they may seem insignificant, actually relate to the wider context and serve to affect others in undesirable ways. This is also possible through the rhythmic relationship of the shots in the sequence; although this sequence employs numerous jump shots to signify a change in sub-plot, through continuity editing and continuation of the non-diegetic sound, the viewer is not left disorientated, but instead is able to follow the interweaving plot. Through continuity editing- particularly continuation of asynchronous music and rhythmic relations of shot length in this sequence- the individual stories of the various characters come together and form the wider narrative of the film. By doing this the audience is able to understand the plot in its successful attempt to relate each individual to its wider context, and show the often subconscious effects of racism on society as a whole.As the sequence comes to an end and a s the individual stories of the characters are given room for contemplation and reflection by the characters and the viewer, the mood of the scene becomes much more upbeat; with jerky guitar riffs contrasting with the previous sombre piano sound. By doing this the viewer can at this point look beyond the emotional stories of the individual characters and think more closely about the messages presented in the film. It allows a less serious light to be shone onto the subject, but at the same time leaves it in our minds for contemplation, as the scene closes with a car crash resulting in one of the drivers saying what the hell is wrong with you people?As the various drivers are left on the road fighting with each other, the camera slowly pans out of the action, leaving a birds- eye shot angle looking down on it. This remarkable angle combined with lively yet reflective music- as it reads these little black clouds keep walking round me- humorously presents the audience with a finality t o the story, yet keeps the actual issues unresolved. It realistically produces closure to the plot and story, as it has successfully addressed various issues so that they are understood by the audience; yet it is presented as an ongoing problem- as the narrative goes full-circle- thus leaving the audience with room for reflection themselves.By looking at the closing five minutes of Crash, through style and plot the story and essential issues of post 9/11 America are presented unflinchingly to the audience. To reveal the wider issues in the story, Crash has effectively depicted the every day life of a diverse group of characters, who as it turns out have more in common with each other than they initially thought. By the interaction of mainly sound and editing with the plot, Paul Haggis story is told with force, allowing the audience to contemplate and reflect on various issues- namely racial prejudice in the world today- along with the narrative characters.

Advantages and disadvantages of holding World Cup Dissertation

Advantages and disadvantages of holding World Cup - Dissertation Example The Federation International de Football Association since then has been playing an important role in the development of the world football and holds the responsibility of organizing the greatest competition in the field of football the ‘FIFA World Cup’. Mega events like the FIFA World Cup have serious effects on the economy of the host countries. Proper Scrutiny of the effects could reveal a handsome growth of the country’s economy as an impact of the World Cup and other similar international events. However there may be some adverse effects too for the economy of the country because of the huge depletion of the resources of the country in organizing such a mega event. Thus the paper aims in studying the scope of the advantages that the host country could enjoy as well as the adverse incidents that may occur as an impact of the World Cup. The impact of the FIFA World Cup of the year 2022 on the economy of the host country, Doha has been discussed in this context. Aims and objectives To find out the positive as well as the negative impacts on a country and its people in holding and organizing a huge event like the World Cup. To find out and identify the main factors that can create a threat to the success of the event as per the arrangement of the country and remedies for preventing those problems. Studying whether such a huge event in the country will ultimately be able to improve the economic conditions of the country, help in achieving the process of development faster. Any positive help in the handling of issues related to the overall health system, the security issues of the country and the poverty level of the country is an important aim of this paper. Identifying the ultimate financial gainer of this event in the country. To analyze the advantages and disadvantages of hosting the World Cup in Doha with the help of a primary survey. Research Hypothesis It is assumed that the overall impact on the host country is likely to be good, cons idering every aspect of the cultural, social as well as economical features of the country. Literature review The international events like the World Cup have huge impact not only on the cultural and the entertainment of the country, but also on the economic environment of the organizing nation. By attracting more and more tourists in the country the tourism departments of the country also experience a growth with the organization of the event by the country. Moreover the amount of the foreign direct investment in the country also experiences certain boost with the holding of an international event like the World Cup. These facts have been established by the reports as published by the country of South Africa that hosted the Football World Cup of the year 2010. The host country of the FIFA World Cup has experienced a massive growth of their economy by revealing properly the best sides of the country’s culture. They have also ensured a successful trade of the cultural presence of the country. The country invested an amount of about ten billions on an approximate basis for hosting the event in the year 2010, about 40 billion in the country’s currency for infrastructural development and urgradation in the country. The gross domestic product expected a 0.5 percent increase in the year as the impact of the month long event in the country. Moreover approximately three lakh seventy thousand visitors from foreign countries visited South Africa during the period that facilitates the tourism of the country. It may work as an inductive force in attracting more tourists in the near future. South Africa is a country with huge racial inequalities in the society. There is several millions of the black population of the country that resides in immense poverty. The people of these different races have been drawn

Business Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Business Law - Essay Example This can be done through the name and address certification of the agent who is resident in the state. The company can also certify the name, address of the agent in the state, and acquire a certification of satisfactory standing from the concerned state or county where the business s set up. The advantage of using a branch is that there are no legal formalities associated with setting up a business and the only requirement is the qualifications to carry on business. A disadvantage of this approach is that, in case of liabilities by the activities of the branch office, the exposure of the assets of the parent company to such liabilities is not avoidable. A foreign company can also use a subsidiary in the U.S to carry on its business and carry on its operations. The subsidiary must be organized through the relevant legislation of the state the subsidiary operates in. The major advantage of operating through a subsidiary is that, in case of a liability, only the assets of the subsidiar y are at risk and not the parent foreign company assets. The other advantage of a subsidiary is that the formation of a subsidiary in the U.S enables the clarification of the portion of income subjected to either foreign or U.s taxation. The use of a subsidiary also limits the liability of the shareholders, directors and officers of the corporation in terms of liability in terms of the debts of the corporation. It is more convenient to use a subsidiary than to open a branch of the company as most benefits and advantages lie in the use of a subsidiary. The employing of the new federal imposed tax on branch profits brings to an equal level the branches amount of tax and that of the subsidiaries. The taxation works in limiting the advantage of branch tax liability as compared to subsidiaries. Partnership with a local firm The other form of entry of the company into the U.S market is by entering into a partnership with a U.S based company. This is a situation where there is a contemplat ion of a joint venture in a situation. In this case, the foreign company enters into a relationship with a company already located in the U.S where they share resources. The entry into a partnership done by the foreign company by contributing capital with the US based company to a newly formed corporation in order to obtain a subsidiary. The other form of partnership is where the foreign company can enter into a general partnership with the U.S based company and carry on business in common. The partnership is subject to various legal and taxation rules as per the relevant state statutes. Procedure of forming an entity The formation and the running of a business enterprise in the United States require compliance of a number of various registration standards. The basic requirement is that the company must comply with the rules of the registration and regulating authorities. Employment issues Foreign companies and their subsidiaries doing business in the U.S should comply with the empl oyment and labor laws of the United States. In some situations, the foreign parent companies become liable for omissions or actions of the subsidiary companies operating in the United States. The labor laws in the United States are more comprehensive and pose some technicality in operation especially if a foreign employer does not understand the laws. The dangers associated with non-compliance of these laws include

How Does Intensive Care Unit Nurses' Work Become More Efficient Essay

How Does Intensive Care Unit Nurses' Work Become More Efficient - Essay Example Scholars and researchers have been involved in research activities, to examine and gather literature on the role of the human factor in ensuring better patient outcomes. This paper makes a critical analysis of one research conducted on a similar issue. The research titled †How Efficacy Beliefs predict Collaborative Practice: a Two-wave Study among Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Nurses† was conducted by a team of researchers namely Pascale M. Le Blanc, Raoul E. Nap, Marisa Salanova, Susana Llorens and Wilmar B. Schaufeli.   In the research, LeBlanc et al (2010) sought to find out how efficacy beliefs i.e. professional competences and work team commitments among intensive care unit nurses affected the quality of collaborative practice between these nurses and physicians (Le Blanc, Schaufeli, Salanova, Llorens, & Nap, 2010). The study was conducted on the foundation that past research has shown the existence of a relationship between professional efficacy and superior work behaviors. However, these observations were not specific to the healthcare industry. Hence, upon this background, the study by LeBlanc et al (2010) aimed to integrate these findings into the healthcare industry, particularly in the intensive care unit. The research was intended to add to the already existing knowledge that efficacy beliefs are jointly correlated to work resource and positive work behaviors and that the level of affective commitment to work team among nurses is correlated to superior intensive care unit performance outc omes. Particularly, the study hoped to strengthen efficacy beliefs among intensive care unit nurses which would, in turn, lead to improved collaborative practice (Le Blanc, Schaufeli, Salanova, Llorens, & Nap, 2010). According to the researchers, the study has significant implications in the healthcare industry since it encourages institutions to provide appropriate resources to the ICU nurses, in order to improve both patient and organizational outcomes.

Speech And Language Disorders In Children Young People Essay

Speech And Language Disorders In Children Young People Essay An amazing experience in every parents life is hearing their child speak for the first time. The first utter of dada or ma-ma is remarkable. This is the first step in a childs life to be able to verbalize with the world and explain his or her needs. The extraordinary part is how fast a child grasps language and the grammar that goes along with it. The normal age for children to start using words in the correct context is 12 months. Then there is an exponential growth in vocabulary and by 24 months children are stringing three or four words together to create sentences. By the age of three, children have the ability to ask questions, answer questions, and express themselves. This of course is for a normal developing child. For children with a delay in speech capability these milestones take a much longer time to reach and make it difficult for children to communicate their needs. This becomes problem if it goes untreated because of difficulties with school and social situations, the c hild also has difficulty asking for what he or she needs. There are many explanations to why this happens, hearing loss, bodily trauma such as traumatic brain injury, and apraxia are just a few of the multitude of reasons a child can be delayed in speech. Having an evaluation by a speech pathologist is the best way to see if a child has a speech delay or a learning disability because some of the same symptoms can mean either or both. The sooner the speech delay is recognized the better because the best treatment can be assessed and the delay can be monitored, and evaluated to see if treatment is necessary. If treatment is necessary the speech pathologist can decide the best method for the child depending on the severity and age of the child. This gives the child the best opportunity to recover from this either speech delay or speech impairment. Statement of the Problem Being able to understand young children can be challenging because their language skills have not fully developed. This is difficult, but what is more difficult is when a child has a delay in language and speech development. This is frustrating for the speaker and for the listener to understand what the speakers needs and wants are. This makes learning difficult and if these language problems are not eradicated many children go into special education because of their inabilities to use their language skills correctly. McCormack. McLeod, McAllister, and Harrison (2010), found that both the young people and their significant others acknowledged the importance of appropriately understanding and responding to communication needs in order to create a positive QOL (p. 386). The children are aware that their speech impairments or disorders can affect how they live their lives and the opportunities that they can lose it their speech issues go unattended as well. The methods used to correct s peech issues usually include working with a speech pathologist and doing different exercises to help with the speech issues. Parents or teachers are the first to take notice that the child needs to be tested for speech and language delays. McCormack, et al. (2010) state, The decision to seek and receive intervention for young children with speech impairment typically is made by parents or teachers on behalf of the children, as opposed to adults with communication impairment who make this decision of their own accord (p. 381). These children are not necessarily aware they need help, but they are aware that they speak differently and this can create issues with making friends and being able to communicate needs successfully to people that are not close to them. Without help these children can grow up without having the same opportunities as children with normal speaking patterns. The earlier these problems are addressed the sooner therapy can begin and the more likely these children w ill grow up having a regular life with normal prospects at school and at jobs. Beginning list of Terms Apraxia- The inability to perform complex movement like those used for speech, this usually occurs following a brain trauma or damage. Morphology- The use and understanding of minimal units of meaning. Phonology- Language manipulation of sound according to the rules of the particular language being spoken. Semantics- The study of language meaning with the use of words and phrases. Specific Language Impairment (SLI)- is a diagnosis when a childs speech is delayed because of no other apparent physical or mental reason. Speech Pathologists- Someone who specializes in speech and language disorders. Syntax- The principles, grammar, and rules for assembling sentences in language. Telegraphic Speech- The use of one verb and one noun that toddlers sometimes use to ask for things they want. This speech pattern begins around age two. Limitation of Study In recent years there has been many studies done on speech delays and speech abnormality in children. Before the 1970s there was not much information on were speech impairments came from. There were many theories on hearing loss and substandard parenting but not much on genetics at the time (bishop, 2006). Currently the studies on speech impairment are limited to studies that are updated after a few years to see progress. The advancements on speech therapies and modern techniques are not old enough to do studies on children that have gone through these sessions and become adults to see if these therapies are life changing or if some symptoms return with age and if sessions are stopped. This information will only become available with time to see if any of the problems arise with age. Theoretical Foundation Two theorists that have studied how children discover speech are Albert Bandura and Noam Chomsky. These men did not study delays in speech but they did theorize how children learn to speak so these theories can be applied to how delays and impairments can happen in children. Chomsky felt when children are in-between two and three, they start putting three words together, creating simple sentences. While it is true that children learn rules of adult language, they often over generalize language at first. If they hear something is plural, such as cats, then they are likely to put s on other words were it is not appropriate to make it plural, like moose or fish. With children with speech impairments these overgeneralizations with language do not always disappear like they do with children with normal language skills. After three and between six children have a language transformation (Crain, 2005). They start rearranging the sentences almost perfectly. At about the age of seven children start to understand the use of passive voice (Crain, 2005). With a child with a speech impairment of delay this transformation can take much longer to accomplish, or not at all without the proper treatment. Bandura theorized that children learned through observation. They model after what they hear their parents say. They cannot model identically but usually the language rules that go along with the language they are immersed in are mimicked and learned (Crain, 2005). This can be a cause of speech impairment such as a stutter if their parent stuttered. If Banduras theory was solely then only true theory about speech the only children that would be impaired in speech would be those with parents that were impaired in speech. Speech impairment can also influences cognitive behaviors. This can create anger and embarrassment if the speech impairment is not corrected as the child gets older and becomes more aware that they way they speak is different then those around them. The psychological distress that children can go through when they have speech impairment can be seen when they have problems socializing. Speech impairments make it difficult for children to socialize with other children because children with normal speech can be unaware of the delicacy of the situation. They can say things that can be hurtful and this can make it tough to build relationships. It can also be difficult for these children to go to school because they usually need speech therapy and this can be embarrassing for some. Having a speech impairment or delay as a child can be mentally difficult because it affects not only verbal but also emotional parts of their life. Literature Review Definition of speech and language delay The most basic definition of speech and language delay is when children do not start speaking and using language skills the approximate age of the majority of other children. Without treatment by a speech pathologist or therapist the symptoms can continue or become worse. This can lead to difficulties in learning and cognitive development as the child ages. These speech and language delays can be attributed to a number of different causes which include, hearing loss, brain injury or retardation, and commonly specific language impairment when no other issue can be found with the childs other physical or mental capacities. Symptoms of speech delays The symptoms of speech and language delays are vast and can vary from child to child. While one child can have difficulties with sentence structure and omitting words, another child can have a problem with deleting letters from single words in sentences spoken. Deletion

Essay --

In today’s society there are a number of issues that may affect a number of Americans. One issue that is a big topic in today’s society is the issue of Illegal Immigration. Whether we should grant illegal’s driver’s licenses, amnesty, deport them, how it affects the U.S. economically, and some might even consider them as terrorists. Those are just a few topics that we may hear being brought up. It is possible to see this touchy subject on television, or it may be a debate at school, or you may read about it in the newspaper. It is a subject that catches alot of peoples’ attention and some might not even care to touch on the subject because of the repercussion. What is Illegal Immigration? †Generally, the term "illegal immigrant" refers to a person from another country who is presently in the United States without authorization to remain here. This includes anybody who is here intending to stay permanently or temporarily. It also includes anybody whose visa is not current. Sometimes people enter without permission (sneaking across a border, for example), but many people do enter with a visa, but then the visa expires and the person continues to remain in the country. There are many reasons why an illegal immigrant would like to come to the United States. It could be to get a better job to support their family or to get a better education. There are pros and cons to Illegal immigration. One of the pros is that Illegal immigrants contribute to the tax system by paying sales tax. Also, Illegal immigrants who purchase real estate properties also pay real estate taxes. In return, this generates commissions for the agents and brokers. In addition, since the illegal immigrants enjoy the banking services of the country, they pay inter... ...t to come legally to do the jobs Americans don’t want, but our broken immigration system does not allow that to happen. If there were legal channels for these migrants to use. The government could concentrate on identifying the real terrorists. Instead, the government is wasting money and manpower trying to keep out the immigrant workers the U.S. economy needs. That makes the job of finding a terrorist like finding a needle in a haystack. Topics such as terrorist threats, DLs, burden on our economy, deportation, amnesty and the term Illegal Immigrant are just a few topics that people often consider when taking on the subject of Illegal Immigration. So whether you are for or against it, that is your opinion. As for me, as long they are not out committing serious crimes or hurting anyone and are trying to do better for themselves and their families, just let them be.

Business Driven Information Systems

1. Do you agree or disagree with Friedman’s assessment that the world is flat? Be sure to justify your answer. I don’t fully agree with Friedman’s vision of the â€Å"flat World†. Though I think we are more connected and informed than ever. According to me I feel Friedman’s views and research is mostly concerning the developed countries focusing on business and targeting the cooperate world. Today technology, telecommunications has definitely helped people around the world to be closer. But Friedman’s does not mention the less fortunate countries where the globalization is still a far dream. I feel Friedman’s analysis is a good fit for the rich and developed countries, where World has changed to a â€Å"global village†. 2. What are the potential impacts of a flat world for a student performing a job search? Today’s educated youth has all the potential and access to the world of technology at their fingertips. They can easily change to the growing job demands and are ready for job changes as needed. They sure got to have good education as the competition is high in today’s economy. I don’t think it’s difficult to find a job; it depends on how open you are to change in the new world of job opportunities and choose the best option. . What can students do to prepare themselves for competing in a flat world? Students can equip themselves for this competitive World by acquiring good education. Be updated in the field of your study and keep yourself open to news and updates. The coffee shop business is mainly framed in 2 mainstreams. Fi rst group is the major players like Starbucks, Seattle's Best Coffee, Dietrich, Brewsters, New World, Gloria Gears, which can be denoted as Specialty Brands. Second group contains One-Store coffee shops like The Broadway Cafe. These are generally local, small businesses. The coffee shop industry possesses a very high intensified competition on all players: both Specialty Brand and One-Store Coffee Shops. The main reasons that contribute to the high competition are †¢ The number of shops is huge (hoovers. com) †¢ Competitors are selling same or similar products, including specialty coffees as well as high quality foods. †¢ The fixed cost portion constitutes a high portion of the cost structure. Companies should sell more products to cover these costs, which increases competition.

Bulimia Cognitive Treatment essays

Bulimia Cognitive Treatment essays Bulimia is a very common eating disorder typically characterized by a person eating large quantities of food then purging usually by vomiting, but also by the use of laxatives diuretics and excessive exercising. The use of cognitive treatment in the treatment of Bulimia is very common and actually very effective. There are several views that I have reviewed in my quest for information on cognitive treatments for Bulimia. People diagnosed with an eating disorder are said to have developed a schematic obsession with body size and eating. The person in question is obsessed with body shape and fatness. They eat a forbidden food and feel bad about doing so. They feel the only way to correct this is to purge the food from their body to rid themselves of the negative feelings. This happens until the person is always feeling this way when they eat and always purging. This occurs as part of the Schema and gives no concern to the physical harm being caused to the person. Everything the person sees and does is a direct link to fatness and their body looking bad until it becomes an all out obsession. Since Bulimia is a learned behavior, using cognition is a great way to correct the behavior. Healthy eating is promoted. Using stimulus control procedures, antecedents of the original abnormal eating patterns are limited. Williamson, Donald A Muller, Stephanie L Reas, Deborah L Thaw, Jean M " Cognitive bias in eating disorders " Behavior Modification 23, no. 4 (Oct 1999). Some things that are used are making the person eat only while sitting at a table no standing while eating Exposure Response Prevention (TERP). ERP is based on the theory that purging produces a reduction of eating-related anxiety; therefore, patients are allowed to eat, but compensatory behaviors are prevented. Anti-depressant medication is recommended along with cognitive treatment or else the outcome may not be ...

Free Essays on Fractions

Abstract on Fractions This game involves concepts about fractions such as identifying fractions themselves, identifying equivalent fractions and improper fractions, performing operations with fractions and reading and writing fractions. The object of the game â€Å"fraction squares† is to make fractions that add up to one whole using certain manpulatives. The version described in this article contained ten ones, ten twos, ten fours, and ten eights to allow for the appropriate fractions. Along with the manipulatives, each player needs a â€Å"fraction kit.† This kit is composed of a white tile to represent the whole, red tiles to represent halves, blue tiles to represent fourths, and yellow tiles to represent eighths. These tiles are used to test the students’ answers by covering the whole with the fractional pieces and seeing which answers work and which do not. The author notes that Cuisenaire Rods can be used in place of the fraction tiles. The game is played as follows: First, each player randomly picks ten game pieces. The player may use as many of his or her pieces to form fractions that are equivalent to one whole. The students use all of their tiles to figure out all of the possible combinations. All students should use the â€Å"whole tile† as a guide and place the fractional tiles on top of it. Players should attempt to find the combination that gives the most points. A player scores one point for each piece used correctly and has the opportunity to earn two, four, eight, or ten points for each problem. The students record their points on a scoring form. Typically three rounds are played and the student with the most points at the end of these rounds is the winner. This activity is extremely effective in teaching fractions. The manipulatives give the students a visual picture so they can better understand the new concept. Also, the competitive nature of the game is great for motivation. The article talks about modifi... Free Essays on Fractions Free Essays on Fractions Abstract on Fractions This game involves concepts about fractions such as identifying fractions themselves, identifying equivalent fractions and improper fractions, performing operations with fractions and reading and writing fractions. The object of the game â€Å"fraction squares† is to make fractions that add up to one whole using certain manpulatives. The version described in this article contained ten ones, ten twos, ten fours, and ten eights to allow for the appropriate fractions. Along with the manipulatives, each player needs a â€Å"fraction kit.† This kit is composed of a white tile to represent the whole, red tiles to represent halves, blue tiles to represent fourths, and yellow tiles to represent eighths. These tiles are used to test the students’ answers by covering the whole with the fractional pieces and seeing which answers work and which do not. The author notes that Cuisenaire Rods can be used in place of the fraction tiles. The game is played as follows: First, each player randomly picks ten game pieces. The player may use as many of his or her pieces to form fractions that are equivalent to one whole. The students use all of their tiles to figure out all of the possible combinations. All students should use the â€Å"whole tile† as a guide and place the fractional tiles on top of it. Players should attempt to find the combination that gives the most points. A player scores one point for each piece used correctly and has the opportunity to earn two, four, eight, or ten points for each problem. The students record their points on a scoring form. Typically three rounds are played and the student with the most points at the end of these rounds is the winner. This activity is extremely effective in teaching fractions. The manipulatives give the students a visual picture so they can better understand the new concept. Also, the competitive nature of the game is great for motivation. The article talks about modifi...

Terrorism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Terrorism - Research Paper Example d political fractions), motivation is based upon global jihad, its goals are based on political and religious supremacy of Islam, threat is related to the rapid spread of religious fundamentalism and terrorism, and anti-terrorism policies can save Somalia from the negative influence of this terrorist organization. First of all, the origin of the jihadist group, named as Al-Shabaab, is indebted to the military aims of political Islam in Somalia. To be specific, Al-Shabaab originated as a military subsidiary of the Islamic Courts Union or ICU. When the ICU lost influence and support during its clash with Transitional Federal Government in Somalia (TFG), Al-Shabaab gained momentum and began to exert its influence in Africa. Besides, this terrorist organization was formed in the year 2006. One can see that the origin of this terrorist group is deeply rooted in the Islamic concept of jihad. For instance, the masterminds behind the origin of this terrorist group served in Afghanistan during late 70s. Hansen (2013) states that, â€Å"A proper exploration of the history of Al-Shabaab should start with the origins of this network, which are amongst the Somalis travelling to Afghanistan in the wake of the Soviet intervention, during the Afghan war of 1979-89† (pp.19-20). To be specific, those wh o (say, Somalis) served during this time returned to Somalia and helped the ICU while fighting against the TFG. The defeat of ICU by the TFG resulted in the fragmentation of ICU into different groups. During this time, Al-Shabaab (say, one among these fragmented groups) declared its aim, i.e., the leadership of jihadists in Africa or the fight against the foes of political Islam. One can see that Al-Shabaab amalgamated the idea of political Islam to the core of religious fundamentalism. To be specific, the leaders of this jihadist group gained the confidence of the mass by proclaiming their ultimate aim, the superiority of religion beyond the government. As pointed out, Al-Shabaab

Were Westernization and modernization of a piece Or were there Essay

Were Westernization and modernization of a piece Or were there distinct forms of modernity that incorporated Western elements to different degrees - Essay Example For the sake of a common starting point, a definition will be supplied here - one that will be developed as the paper continues. The terms, first of all, are not synonymous. In examining a number of discussions on the subject, however, it appears that some do not have a developed view of the two terms - thus resulting in general confusion - and, for them, there will be no clearer understanding than what they have, until such a clarification is made. In short, McNeil defines it as change, one that is "incessant," and a "self-transformation," one that is based upon a constant influx of ideas - that came from within. The change is both technological, and ideological. This change, in the Western world, had no model from which to pattern its changes - there was no external force prompting it. Modernization, on the other hand, may not be as complete as was Westernization - which was a complete and, as of yet, an unending transformation. It is merely going from a more historically stagnant position (whether it be caused by lack of resources, technology, education, political theory - or all four), to a position that is more in line with levels of other cultures surrounding them - not necessarily Western cultures. When a nation awakens, and finds itself in the proverbial Dark Ages, unequal to, and incompatible with cultures outside their own, then there is often an awakening of the heart of that nation to possess what others have - for advantage, and sometimes out of fear. Westerners often have the opinion that, because we (the West) are among the most modern nations on earth, that any modernization is necessarily a Westernization. Because of our often outspoken voices, other nations, not as technologically advanced, often parrot that view, too. They are, however, separable upon closer examination. Now comes time to bring in the historical transformation of Japan, which came immediately following the arrival of

Strategic Control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Strategic Control - Essay Example Therefore, the assertion that strategies are aimed at accomplishing the future aspiration of a business organization is true (Jeyarathnam, 2008). It is important to explain that strategies are always enacted continuously for a given period of time, or until the time when it is able to meet its objectives. Because strategies are developed for a long period of time, there is a need of creating controls for purposes of ensuring that the strategy under consideration is able to meet its objectives. Of the four types of controls, premise and strategic surveillance controls are the most efficient in the identification of the different needs of the company, and that of its customers (Jeyarathnam, 2008). For instance, under premise control, an organization would analyze the basic assumptions of a strategic plan, for purposes of finding out whether they will be effective when there are changes in business operations, customer’s needs, and competition. This is important because a strategic plan will only be enacted and implemented if it would manage to steer the company when changes occur in its operations. On the other hand, the surveillance strategic plan helps an organization to collect the necessary information that affects the internal and external operations of the business (Pearce and Robinson, 2013). A business organization that develops its strategies based on accurate information will most definitely come up with a relevant strategy that will meet its objectives and needs. Implementation and special alert controls are also important (Pearce and Robinson, 2013. Implementation controls helps in the identification of failures, in the manner which a strategy is implemented. On the other hand, special alert controls involve an in-depth analysis for purposes of identifying unforeseen and immediate threats that an organization

Cover Letter Essay Example for Free

Cover Letter Essay I would like to apply for the role of Intermediate Support Developer in your organization as the details of the job role and company itself are very appealing to me. I have enclosed my resume for your consideration. I am an enthusiastic and high-achieving IT professional with a Masters of Computer Science. I have exceptional technical and analytical skills, with over 3 years’ experience in providing application support at level 1 and 2 for critical business applications with additional duties of unit and integration testing, technical documentation and prioritising and allocation of user tickets. I possess the ability to take initiative with a positive and friendly attitude. My excellent communication skill helps me understand user’s requirements to provide them with an excellent customer service. Working in a highly dynamic work environment, has given me the sound knowledge of interacting with business users and external stake holders, finding technical solutions, answering questions quickly, and leaving a mark of satisfaction in customer’s mind. You will find me to be positive, ready to learn and hardworking who has ability to multitask and communicate effectively with non-technical users. I believe my attitude, expertise, skills, and excellent time management skills will prove to be an asset to the organization. Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you.

Andrew Carnegie Essay -- Biography Biographies

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie always thought reading was one of the best ways to learn. He was also a very generous person in the industrial revolution. To be very generous in donations you do need money, and he definitely had a lot of money to be generous. This generosity completed the industrial revolution. He made most of his money with his steel company called the Carnegie Steel Company. The Carnegie steel company then changed to the United States Steel Corporation. In one year,1900, his company made forty million dollars, in which twenty-five million went to him alone. He capped off all of his money making by selling his huge Steel Corporation to J. P. Morgan. For selling this company Carnegie made over two hundred fifty million dollars. He was very generous with all of his money, mostly by funding free libraries. One of the first things he gave was free public baths in Dunfermline, Scotland, where he was born. He funded free public baths as early as 1869. The first library he funded was built in Scotland in 1881. He funded libraries mostly because he was a big reader himself. He self-taught himself by reading books, and he knew that books brought him all the way to the top. He wanted other people to have the same opportunity as he had by reading books themselves. One of Carnegie’s legendary saying was "Free to the People," which is carved in stone over the doors of The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. Andrew Carnegie would not live for...

Urban Legend of Bloody Mary at Camp Tonikanee :: Urban Legends Ghost Stories

Bloody Mary Version 4--Bloody Mary at Camp Tonikanee One night, around 1:00 a.m., my roommates and I were sitting in the common room, and I asked the group if they knew of a compelling ghost story. My one roommate, a 20 year old from Pennsylvania, said she had heard a ghost story at the summer sleep-away camp she had attended when she was younger. She heard the story around a campfire in the woods of Camp Tonikanee, which is in Quakertown, Pennsylvania. She described her story as one that the counselors would tell the campers to convince them the camp was haunted. The camp was really, really old and many of the buildings had once burned down because of a big fire. Supposedly the camp was haunted by this woman named Mary, who was a witch. But, no one ever saw her, just weird things would happen. Little girls would disappear at night if they were out wandering around by themselves. It scared everyone because parents want their daughters to come home. So every time someone would disappear, people would go out looking for her but would never find her. But after a girl would disappear, it would get especially strange for a while. People thought Mary haunted other buildings, like the barn. Well, [lowers voice] one night one of the camp directors heard strange sounds coming from a little cabin in the woods where Mary supposedly lives and went to investigate. He found Mary with one of the campers, giving her an herbal potion. But the girl was already in a trance and hypnotized and they couldn’t bring her back. They took Mary and they tied her u p and put her on trial. As she was standing there, she put a spell on everyone and killed herself with the spell. It was said that anyone else who said her name three times in the mirror would die. My roommate told the story in a low, solemn tone, except raising her voice once or twice in the beginning to give the sense of her being unsure of her story. The story was told effectively with hand gestures and vocal inflections. There were a few occasions where she had to stop and think out what happened next, which is understandable because she hadn’t heard the story since she attended summer camp over ten years ago. Besides these instances, she used dramatic pausing to emphasize important events, and the dim lighting of the apartment helped to set the mood.

Big Skinny

In 2010, Big Skinny CEO Kiril Alexandrov was looking to transcend from retail distribution and print advertising to the world of online marketing to achieve maximum growth. The retail sales pitch was an easy one, as Alexandrov focused on the value of the wallet and the impulsiveness of consumers (Benjamin & Kominers, 2012). Unfortunately, translating this type of sales pitch was much harder to do in the world of cyberspace. Big Skinny centered their online marketing efforts around display Ads, keyword searches, social media and relationships with online distributors and deep discounted sites such as Amazon and Groupon respectively.The expansion caused much hardship, as Big Skinny received negative feedback on the review website Yelp that stemmed from their Groupon experiment. They also faced a glitch in their online promotion that allowed 4,000 people to order free wallets from their online store. Big Skinny needs to refocus their online marketing strategy by getting rid of display A ds, refining keyword searches and severing ties with deep discounted sites. Big Skinny can create value for their product and manage their orders better by being more selective with who distributes their product and by keeping the price steady.A more seasonal approach surrounding keyword searches can create new revenue from those who are looking to make quick and impulsive purchases. Lastly, by being responsible for who distributes their products, Big Skinny can deliver their product in prompt and timely manner, which will resolve the majority of customer complaints against Big Skinny. Problem Statement Despite successful in-person sales campaigns, Big Skinny struggled to find an effective online marketing platform that would grow and connect them to their consumer base.Big Skinny also ran into glitches with their current online marketing campaigns that brought unwanted negative attention and resentment towards the company. Data Analysis When Big Skinny transcended into the world of online marketing, it had to develop a way to attract visitors to the website while attempting to convince these visitors to buy wallets. Since most of their wallets were being sold at trade shows or retail stores that centered on a straight-forward approach regarding impulse and value, the translation of this strategy to the internet proved to be a tall task.Big Skinny looked at various means of advertising such as display ads, algorithmic search, sponsored search, A/B Testing and social media. Display ads offered a two-frame animation; however, the click-through rate of general display ads in 2009 was only . 1% (Bejamin & Kominers, 2012). Algorithmic searches use algorithms that the search engine deems most relevant to the user’s query. The websites that most resemble the query appear the highest on the search engine’s list. Sponsored searches use keywords that the advertisers specify that they want to target.These are mostly sold on a â€Å"per-click† basis; however the company loses money if the clicks aren’t converted into sales. A/B testing is a marketing technique that shows different advertisements to different users to compare the response rates between the two. Lastly, social media utilizes websites such as Facebook and Twitter to try and create an interactive relationship with consumers. Alternatives 1. Big Skinny could eliminate their means of online distribution and paid online marketing, only utilizing social media and their website to conduct advertising and business transactions. 2.Big Skinny could be more selective in their selection of online distribution, while tailoring their paid sponsored searches to generate interest and sales. 3. Big Skinny could scrap their online marketing plans, with the exception of social media, and reallot their advertising money strictly on deep discounted sites like Groupon and Living Social. 4. Big Skinny could focus their efforts on expanding in more brick and mortar retail stores b y target marketing towards different demographics. They could use traditional media such as TV and radio to drive these efforts. Key Decision Criteria 1.Increase customer satisfaction and corporate image 2. Increase sales and market share 3. Improve (or at least maintain) profitability 4. Ease or speed of implantation 5. Be consistent with corporate mission or strategy 6. Within our present resources or capabilities 7. Within acceptable risk parameters 8. Minimize environmental impact 9. Maintain and build employee morale and pride Alternatives Analysis 1. By limiting their online marketing to free social media sites such as Twitter or Facebook, Big Skinny can greatly reduce their marketing costs. With display advertisements only getting clicked through .1% of the time the money is essentially thrown away. Investing in A/B testing requires the hiring of a permanent person and huge overhead. Getting rid of online distributors allows Big Skinny to eliminate the 7-15% commission they p ay to Amazon and eBay while being able to manage their order load. Social Media is more than enough because 71% of social media participants say they are more likely to purchase from a brand they follow online. 91% of local searchers say they use Facebook to find local businesses online (Bennett, 2013). The cons of this are that they are missing out on a lot of potential customers by eliminating Amazon and eBay.While online paid marketing can be expensive, there is still benefit to sponsored searches. Some of the cost per conversions are profitable and by completely eliminating these searches would be throwing away potential opportunities. 2. The pros of Big Skinny being more selective with their online distributors allows for a happy customer base. There have been several negative reviews on the Yelp site regarding slow delivery and non-existent customer service. By eliminating deep discounting sites such as Groupon, Big Skinny can manage their order load and keep customers happy.B ig Skinny would also keep the revenue from the top paid sponsored searches rather than eliminating them all together. The negatives of this are that Big Skinny could miss out on a lot of revenue by not using Groupon or Living Social. They could also miss out on the repeat customers that are generated by these sites as well as missing out on the people who want to try their product without having to pay full price. 3. Instead of eliminating sites like Groupon and Living Social, Big Skinny could embrace the huge influx of customers that it brings.According to the customer satisfaction and analytics company ForeSee, 91% of customers have already or plan to conduct business with the merchant since buying the deal (Bedigian, 2013). This strategy generates a large influx of customers in a short time while attempting to generate residual income by repeat customers. The cons of this are that company’s often lose money during the initial Groupon. The product is discounted by 50% or mo re and then Groupon takes a 50% commission on the sale price, which leaves the seller receiving only 25%of the original selling price of the item (which in some cases is less than the cost of the item). Forbes has found that 1/3rd of businesses have lost money on a Groupon deal and there is no guarantee that the customers ever return to pay full price from the merchant again (Gleeson, 2012). 4. The pros of using a more traditional advertising medium such as TV or radio would bring brand recognition for Big Skinny. Big Skinny has always had success selling in retail stores because they market their products based on value and impulse.By putting the product in more retail stores, there is a greater chance people will put it in their hands and buy on impulse. Instead of targeting just one big audience, Big Skinny should advertise by target market such as Big Skinny Sport or Big Skinny Women. By doing this they could partner with big retail chains to get into more stores and generate mo re revenue the old fashioned way. The average time an American spends watching TV is 5 hours compared to just 1 hour browsing the internet, which leads for greater exposure.The cons of doing this are that TV advertising is much more expensive than online marketing (Nielsen, 1997). Another con is Tivo allows people to record their favorite shows and then fast-forward past the commercials. The last con is that TV advertising seems to be a thing of the past, as the amount spent on TV advertising was only up 4. 5% in 2011 as compared to 21. 7% via online marketing (Gleeson, 2012). Recommendations Based on the data, it is best for Big Skinny to be more selective of their online distribution, while tailoring their paid sponsored searches to generate interest and sales.In regards to online distribution, Big Skinny should keep eBay and Amazon, however, should drop deep-discount sites such as Groupon or Living Social. To offer a Groupon deal, Big Skinny is guaranteed to be taking a loss. To be eligible to offer a Groupon, Big Skinny must discount the price of their wallet by at least 50%. This turns a $20 wallet into a $10 wallet. Groupon takes a commission of 50% on the sale price, which leaves Big Skinny walking away with only $5 for every wallet sold (Bice, 2012). Essentially, they are taking a loss with every wallet they sell on Groupon.The goal of a Groupon is to try and get repeat customers; however, the people that use Groupon are bargain-hunters. They won’t return to Big Skinny, but rather, they will return to Groupon again looking for another bargain deal. By using Groupon, Big Skinny also decreases the value of their brand (Gibbard, 2011). Why would a customer pay full price for a $40 wallet when they just bought it on Groupon for $15 or $20 just a short time ago? In addition to dropping Groupon, Big Skinny needs to manage their online distribution better because of customer satisfaction issues.On the review site Yelp, Big Skinny’s wallets are o nly receiving a rating of 2. 5 out of 5 stars. A lot of the reviews include gripes about not receiving their order for 3-4 weeks or non-existent customer service (most of the negative reviews are from users who bought a Big Skinny wallet on Groupon). If the online distributor doesn’t ship your product in a timely manner, your company risks a tarnished reputation. Whether Big Skinny didn’t have enough stock to fulfill orders or whether Groupon didn’t ship the products in a timely manner, Big Skinny is taking the fall and abuse from customers.When people do research for a product they are going to see Big Skinny’s products with poor ratings. These poor ratings can scare potential customers away. Big Skinny should only use Amazon, eBay and their website to sell their wallets. This allows them to manage their inventory, not get behind on orders and make sure their product gets shipped in a timely manner. Big Skinny has excellent Amazon ratings and should cont inue to grow their product through the sterling reputation of Amazon. They should sell the product for a higher price on their website so that people are encouraged to buy through Amazon.This is a win-win for Big Skinny because if people buy through Amazon then Big Skinny doesn’t have to waste time and effort fulfilling and shipping orders. If they choose to buy direct than Big Skinny receives a larger profit on their wallets. Lastly, Big Skinny needs to tailor their sponsored keyword searches. They need to eliminate the term â€Å"leather wallet. † They don’t manufacture a true leather wallet and the cost per conversion for this keyword is a sky-high $20. 26. Big Skinny should also bid less for the term â€Å"thinnest wallet. † The cost per conversion for â€Å"thinnest wallet† also has a high cost, which is $10.53.After replacing leather wallet and lowering the bid for thinnest wallet, Big Skinny should add keywords centered on holidays. Wallets are popular gifts on occasions such as Father’s Day and Christmas. Big Skinny should add season keywords such as â€Å"Father’s Day Wallet,† â€Å"Wallet for Dad,† â€Å"Best Wallet for Gift† and â€Å"Wallet for Christmas. † This will bring seasonal shoppers into the mix who are looking to spend quickly and impulsively. Action and Implementation Plan CEO Kiril Alexandrov will be responsible for delegating the following tasks.The Director of Marketing will pull any promotions or future plans with deep discounted sites such as Groupon or Living Social. The Director of Marketing in combination with the Director of Product Management will reach out to all of those who left negative reviews on Yelp to satisfy the customer complaints and retract the negative ratings. The Director of Sales will carefully select the online distribution channels which Big Skinny will sell through. Big Skinny will only sell through Amazon, eBay and any online outlets of the retail stores that they are currently featured in.The Director of Sales will also raise the prices of wallets on the Big Skinny Website by 10-15% to create value for the product and promote customers to purchase through the select online distribution. Doing this saves Big Skinny the time it would take to fulfill and pack orders, however, if a customer decides to purchase direct, then Big Skinny recoups the 10-15% it would pay Amazon or eBay to sell and fulfill the order. This new price point will be conveyed in a message from the Director of Sales to Big Skinny’s distribution channel.

Free Essays on The Rattler

Though most people have never experienced an actual encounter with a snake, they are given to understand that snakes are fearful creatures. We tend to believe that if we cross paths with a snake, it spells doom. We think of the fangs, the venom, and the sprightly nature of the snake as being the cause of fatalities. However, the author of â€Å"The Rattler† provides a totally different opinion of his encounter with a snake. In this case, the snake is coy and appears to be harmless; contrary to one’s expectation. The author of â€Å"The Rattler† leads the reader to believe that animals possess admirable qualities which humans can learn from; the author does this by describing the gestures, and feelings of the snake through the man’s point of view, causing the reader to compare them to those of the man. In describing certain gestures of the snake, the author pinpoints certain qualities and traits of the creature which are unassuming ; these gestures are then contradicted by the man’s contrasting actions. One particular lack of an action comes much to the surprise of the reader’s preconceived ideas of snakes. That is, when the man approaches the snake, it’s â€Å"head was not drawn back to strike.† This detail tells the reader that the snake does not wish to harm. It is merely staying away from others, and not provoking anger or fear from anything around it. Another gesture provided by the author, is when the man returned with the hoe, the snake had not moved. This detail depicts the snake to be confident, and bold, yet in a harmless manner. Just because the much larger man spotted it, this was not going to intimidate it or scare it off. Most of the time when one sees a wild creature of any species, that creature scurries away, in an attempt to esca pe possible harm. But the snake in the passage showed courage and fearlessness without using any of his defensive traits. And lastly, the author writes that the snake â€Å"... Free Essays on The Rattler Free Essays on The Rattler Though most people have never experienced an actual encounter with a snake, they are given to understand that snakes are fearful creatures. We tend to believe that if we cross paths with a snake, it spells doom. We think of the fangs, the venom, and the sprightly nature of the snake as being the cause of fatalities. However, the author of â€Å"The Rattler† provides a totally different opinion of his encounter with a snake. In this case, the snake is coy and appears to be harmless; contrary to one’s expectation. The author of â€Å"The Rattler† leads the reader to believe that animals possess admirable qualities which humans can learn from; the author does this by describing the gestures, and feelings of the snake through the man’s point of view, causing the reader to compare them to those of the man. In describing certain gestures of the snake, the author pinpoints certain qualities and traits of the creature which are unassuming ; these gestures are then contradicted by the man’s contrasting actions. One particular lack of an action comes much to the surprise of the reader’s preconceived ideas of snakes. That is, when the man approaches the snake, it’s â€Å"head was not drawn back to strike.† This detail tells the reader that the snake does not wish to harm. It is merely staying away from others, and not provoking anger or fear from anything around it. Another gesture provided by the author, is when the man returned with the hoe, the snake had not moved. This detail depicts the snake to be confident, and bold, yet in a harmless manner. Just because the much larger man spotted it, this was not going to intimidate it or scare it off. Most of the time when one sees a wild creature of any species, that creature scurries away, in an attempt to esca pe possible harm. But the snake in the passage showed courage and fearlessness without using any of his defensive traits. And lastly, the author writes that the snake â€Å"...

Build Your Author Website in Four Simple Steps

Build Your Author Website in Four Simple Steps If you are an author, building your website will not only help you reach wider audiences- its also a great resource to promote your work and build your online presence. While social media might reach audiences easier than an author website, its also a third-party service that doesnt give you total creative control over how you are presented. Your website, however, can be something that you have complete creative control over and build over time exactly the way you want it.Step 1: Buy a domain nameThe URL or web address of your site is also known as its domain name. For example, StephenKing.com is Stephen Kings personal author website, and most writers choose their first and last name as their URL. However, [yourname].com might not be available, so be sure to consider .org and .net, as well. Another thing you can do is add author to the end of your name on the URL (for example, stephenkingauthor.com) or books (stephenkingbooks.com).There are several services available online to help y ou find and purchase a domain name. Google is one and most top-level domain names (.com) are $12 annually going this route. GoDaddy is another popular domain name purchasing site, and advertises domains as low as .99 cents annually.Keep in mind, however, that if you plan to choose managed hosting, which well cover below, many of the hosting plans offer a free domain name with purchase of premium hosting services. This means step one and step two would be combined in your purchase of hosting services, so dont buy the domain name separately.Step 2: Select a hostYour sites host will be the servers that contain your website, and can vary from free hosting, fee-based self-hosting, and managed or premium hosting. Most authors- particularly those who have never built a website before- will want to go with the managed or premium hosting option because these types of services offer full customization, site data backup, and technical support.If youre just starting out as an author and dont ha ve a lot of money to spend on building and maintaining an author website, it might be a good idea to start with free hosting. Sites like Wix and WordPress are great places to start, although if you want the freedom to move your content to a paid service, be careful that you choose a host that will allow you to do this. Below, we look at some of the most popular options used by authors for their author website and what you can expect from each.WordPressOne reason WordPress is so popular is that it is a free, open-source content management system that is used for approximately 20% of websites that are online. Its free option includes a WordPress.com subdomain, community support, multiple free themes with basic design customization, and 3GB of storage space, although there will be WordPress.com ads on your page. For just $4 per month (billed annually), youll get a custom domain name, email and live chat support, several free themes to choose from with basic design customization, 6GB of storage space, and all WordPress.com ads will be removed from your site. Their $8 per month (billed annually) package tends to be the most popular choice for authors, and includes a custom domain name, email and live chat support, Unlimited Premium Themes, Advanced Design Customization, 13GB Storage Space, options to monetize your site and all WordPress.com ads will be removed.SquarespaceSquarespace is another highly popular hosting and website building site thats easy to use and offers a built-in selling platform. For $18 per month (billed annually) or $26 per month (billed month to month), you can have a fully customizable website with unlimited pages, galleries and blogs. This price also includes unlimited bandwidth usage and storage, so is perfect for an author who already has a sizeable following and is ready to integrate e-commerce (for example, books sales) into their website. Squarespace boasts mobile optimization for all websites, which means that visitors will see a profe ssional, well-designed website, even if they are looking at it on their mobile phones or other portable devices. The site also offers a free custom domain name with any purchase of a hosting package and 24/7 customer support.WixWix provides an extremely easy-to-use website-building interface that creates gorgeous websites, although the heavy use of flash might make optimizing your website for SEO a bit trickier. For $17.50 per month ($14 per month if you pay annually), Wix offers hosting, unlimited bandwidth, 10 GB of storage, a free domain, and $300 worth of Ad vouchers to promote your site. There are cheaper and more expensive plans offered on the site, as well, depending on what you need and whether youre willing to have Wix ads show on your website. They also offer mobile optimization for when visitors view your website on a mobile device and a logo maker which can come in handy if you are starting fresh and need to build your author brand identity from scratch.Step 3: Design yo ur siteIf youve chosen one of the managed hosting sites listed above, there are templates available where youll simply replace the photos and text with your custom content. These templates are great ways to get a site up and running quickly without spending a lot of time learning the ins and outs of website development and HTML coding. However, in the process of designing your website, keep in mind these website design best practices:Keep it clean (from a design perspective)Cluttered, overly wordy websites are not only annoying to be on and look at- theyre highly ineffective. Dont just take our word for it, either, because there is data showing that most users spend 10-20 seconds on a web page they visit. They will stay for up to a minute if they feel there is a clear value proposition being offered in what theyre reading/seeing on the site. But put simply: few people are going to read a lot of cluttered copy or sift through a bunch of images on your website, so just dont do it. Kee p the design clean, let there be white space, and avoid too many words (just leave those for your creative writing efforts).Keep it simpleWeve all been to websites that are difficult to navigate. Your author website should include a page that has your bio, a link to your blog (if you have one), your social media account links, and a way to contact you for press inquiries or representation. If you are planning to use your website for e-commerce, your pages navigation might be slightly more complicated, but ultimately- the simpler it is to navigate, the more people will want to be on it.This same rule of simplicity applies to your website copy, as well. Since your visitors will initially scan a page for headings, use them often and wisely by choosing important keywords and/or hooks as headings for your text. Along with having multiple headings to break up long sections of text, keep in mind the following best practices for simple copy:Use short sentences and short paragraphs – This doesnt mean your sentences should all be five words or less, because then your copy will be monotonous and repetitive. This just means that you should have more short sentences than long sentences and your paragraphs shouldnt regularly be more than five sentences in length.Dont be wordy – Remember the data above about how long your websites audience is likely to stay around? It should be a consideration for writing copy, as well. If you have 10-20 seconds to get someones attention, long paragraphs are a bad idea. Your audience will likely skim the headings (which is why you should have them) and decide from that if the page is worth reading more in-depth.Dont use language your audience wont get – The word choice, voice and tone of your website copy should reflect your writing. If it sounds like someone else wrote the copy, your website wont have the same appeal.Keep it credibleThe easiest way to lose credibility as an author is to project an unprofessional, lazy i mage. With websites offering freelance editing services- and even free proofreading programs available online- there is no excuse to have any of the following on your website:Spelling/grammar errorsFalse factsInflated credentialsStep 4: Keep it updatedEstablishing a reputation as an author is a long and complicated process. Its not something that will happen overnight and a website needs to be updated and tweaked to stay relevant and professional. Your website is a significant marketing opportunity for you to sell your work and attract a larger audience, so put some time into creating it, updating it, and getting the word out about it (through social media, guest blog pieces, etc.). This is especially true if you are a self-published author and it could make a significant difference in the success of your book(s).