Based on recent events, discuss whether the stock markets are Essay

Based on recent events, discuss whether the stock markets are efficient according to the EMH - Essay Example Whether the market is efficient or not remains a debatable topic among the stock market investors. Secondly, according to this hypothesis, a single investor is never able to get higher profitability than another investor by investing the same amount of fund. Lastly, EMH asserts that no investor would be able to surpass the average annual returns that all the funds and investors are able to achieve cumulatively. Discussion A competitive information market would allow private gains from producing private information, and tests of competition would require estimates of the cost of private information production. According to the efficient market hypothesis, stock market participants tend to form rational expectations of the future in the aggregate by comprehending all the information available in the market. Assuming the stock market efficiently discounts the rational expectations of investors, the prices of stocks accurately reflect an assessment of the intrinsic value based upon the r elevant information available (Gorda, 2005, p. 234). Thus, only the unexpected new information is likely to affect a movement in stock prices. A close look at stock prices sometimes reveals day-of-the-week effects wherein stock prices tend to rise on Mondays and fall on Fridays; time-of-the-year effects wherein stock prices tend to rise in January; and small firm effects wherein the prices of small firms’ stocks may rise by a more difference than those of large companies. But there is no evidence that an average market investor can follow these effects to earn super normal profits after the transaction costs are considered (Forbes, 2013). According to Fama (1970, p. 72), an efficient market is one in which the prices are always reflective of the information available, and the sufficient conditions for a market to be efficient are: the information is available without cost to all the market participants; there are no transaction costs involved in trading of securities; and all market participants agree on the implications of the current information. In practice, the information generated in the market has a significant effect on the stock prices of related companies. For example, after Microsoft announced that it would acquire Nokia, the share prices of Nokia almost doubled, increasing its value to about 22 billion Euros. Also, as a series of lawsuits occurred between Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics over the design of smartphones and tablets, the share prices of both companies declined in the stock market. The stock market has been inefficient in recent times because of the substantial frictions that the market has been experiencing (Beechey, 2000, p. 57). Efficient market is not likely to exist even when there is complete absence of frictions and irrationality in the market. The central bank plays an appropriate role in the intervention in the financial markets with the objective of stabilising the asset prices. The market shows patterns of inefficie ncy due to the financial instability majorly driven by human myopia and imperfect rationality. The market does not show such quick adjustment to the receipt of new information as is stated in the efficient market hypothesis. The market is not efficient considering that the stocks with lower price to earnings ratios have higher risk adjusted returns than the stocks with higher price

Marketing Promotes Product Awareness To The Public Marketing Essay

Marketing Promotes Product Awareness To The Public Marketing Essay Managers face an endless challenge to create unique strategies that will enable them provide positional advantage in an effort to achieve superior financial or customer performance. A companys pecuniary success largely depends upon prudent marketing efforts along with financial, operational, accounting and other business functions. Piercy (1992) identi ¬Ã‚ es marketing as focusing on strategies concerning the critical decision of market de ¬Ã‚ nition and market segmentation as well as the identi ¬Ã‚ cation of potential bases for differentiation. Sometimes, people ask why marketing is important in the financial success of a company. The answer to this question is, assume you have a product to offer with excellent features, best quality and amazing packaging but no one knows about your product? There will be no demand in the market for your it, the company will make no sale and eventually no profit. Here comes the importance of marketing. The most important function of marketing, along with others, is to create awareness about products/services and make loyal customers. Through marketing customers get an opportunity to know what you are offering them and you get the opportunity to convince them to buy your products/services. The overall marketing umbrella covers advertising, public relations, promotions and sales. Marketing is a process by which a product or service is introduced and promoted to potential customers. Without marketing, your business may offer the best products or services in your industry, but none of your potential customers would know about it. Without marketing, sales may crash and companies may have to close. Production and distribution depend largely on marketing. Many people think that sales and marketing are basically the same. These two concepts are different in many aspects. Marketing covers advertising, promotions, public relations, and sales. It is the process of introducing and promoting the product or service into the market and encourages sales from the buying public. Sales refer to the act of buying or the actual transaction of customers purchasing the product or service. Some important reasons why marketing is important include: Getting the Word Out For a business to succeed, the product or service it provides must be known to potential buyers. Unless your business is known in the community and communication with your customers is readily available, you have to use marketing strategies to create product or service awareness. Without marketing, your potential customers may never be aware of your business offerings and your business may not be given the opportunity to progress and succeed. Using marketing to promote your product, service and company provides your business with a chance of being discovered by prospective customers. Higher Sales Once your product, service or company gets on the radar screen of your prospects, it increases your chances that consumers will make a purchase. As awareness becomes a reality, it is also the point where new customers start to spread the word, telling friends and family about this amazing new product they discovered. Your sales will steadily increase as the word spreads. Without employing marketing strategies, these sales may not have ever happened; without sales, a company cannot succeed. Company Reputation The success of a company often rests on a solid reputation. Marketing builds brand name recognition or product recall with a company. When a company reaches the high expectations of the public, its reputation stands on firmer ground. As your reputation grows, the business expands and sales increase. The reputation of your company is built through active participation in community programs, effective communication (externally and internally) and quality products or services, which are created or supported by marketing efforts. Healthy Competition Marketing also fosters an environment in the marketplace for healthy competition. Marketing efforts increases awareness and gets the word out on pricing of products and services, which not only reaches the intended consumers, but also reaches other companies competing for the consumers business. As opposed to companies that have a monopoly on products and services that can charge almost any price, marketing helps keep pricing competitive for a business to try to win over consumers before its competition does. Without competition, well known companies would continue to sell while lesser known companies or new companies would stand little chance of ever becoming successful. Marketing facilitates the healthy competition that allows small businesses and new businesses to be successful, enter and grow in the marketplace. As there is high competition in the market and you are not the only one to offer that product, certain issues need to be considered, issues like; how is this product diff erent from that of competitors? What do I have better to offer than my competitor? And why should a customer buy my product rather than my competitors? All this is achieved through intelligent marketing campaign and is self-evident of the significance of marketing. It enables an organization to capture maximum market share, make a big brand name, make loyal customers and retain them. Marketing Promotes Product Awareness to the Public It has already been mentioned in the previous paragraph that getting the product or service recognized by the market is the primary goal of marketing. No business possibly ever thought of just letting the people find out about the business themselves, unless you have already established a reputation in the industry. But if you are a start-out or an average company, the only means to be made known is to advertise and promote. Your business may be spending quite a lot on advertising and promotional  programs but the important thing at the end of the day is that product and company information is disseminated to the buying public, they get interested and purchase it and as a result increasing sales and revenue for the company. Various types of marketing approaches can be utilized by an organization. All forms of marketing promotes product awareness to the market at large. Offline and online marketing make it possible for the people to be educated with the various products and services that they can take advantage of. A company must invest in marketing so as not to miss the opportunity of being discovered by potential consumers. If expense is to be considered, there are cost-effective marketing techniques a company can embark on such as pay-per-click ads and blogging. Marketing Helps Boost Product Sales Apart from public awareness about a companys products and services, marketing helps boost sales and revenue growth. Whatever your business is selling, it will generate sales once the public learns about your product through TV advertisements, radio commercials, newspaper ads, online ads, and other forms of marketing. The more people hear and see more of your product, the more likely it would be for them to want to try it. Its this basic principle that makes firms spend millions on marketing activities. If your company aims to increase the sales percentage and double the production, the marketing department must be able to come up with effective and strategic marketing plans. Marketing Builds Company Reputation In order to conquer the general market, marketers aim to create a brand name recognition or product recall. This is a technique for the consumers to easily associate the brand name with the images, logo, or caption that they hear and see in the advertisements. For example, McDonalds is known for its arch design which attracts people and identifies the image as McDonalds. For some companies, building a reputation to the public may take time but there are those who easily attract the people. With an established name in the industry, a business continues to grow and expand because more and more customers will purchase the products or take advantage of the services from a reputable company. Advertising Marketing plays a very essential role in the success of a company. It educates people on the latest market trends, helps boost a companys sales and profit, and develops company reputation. But marketers must be creative and wise enough to promote their products with the proper marketing tactics. Although marketing is important, if it is not conducted and researched well, the company might just be wasting on expenses and time on a failed marketing approach. Hobb (2012) stated that; for entrepreneurs who aim to bring new and innovative products to market, the acquisition of customer and competitor information is an early activity that could bring about future opportunities. Hence, it could lead to a more effective organization of the founding process and, therefore to a higher probability of success. Therefore, through marketing, a can manager discover new opportunities for business expansion and growth. The successful execution of such new opportunities brought to light through marketing depends essentially on the acquisition of information. Collecting information from customers and/or about potential competitors is necessary to derive practicable contingencies or strategic planning and to revise and adapt marketing plans. Hobb (journal of strategic marketing ) quoting Gruber (2007) further points out the value of marketing planning for new venture development and highlights the role of information sources in developing marketing plans. As a result of information from customers, managers are able to revise previous plans and create a yardstick for new projects. Accurate information is neededto tailor the marketing mix to other potential customers. When information is collected through marketing, managers and executives are more able to fully realize the potential of the corresponding marketing activities. Acquiring customer and competitor information could in ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡uence a new business adaptability and subsequently give more room to maneuver and adjust to the particular market environment. One aspect of marketing that is indispensable in any firm and can assist managers with tools on how to better position their brand, out do competitors, improve productivity and increase profits / sales is market orientation. Kohli and Jaworski (1990) defined market orientation as  the organization-wide generation of market intelligence, dissemination of the intelligence across departments and organization-wide responsiveness to it   Wikipedia explained further by stating that, the marketing concept is a business philosophy, whereas the term market orientation refers to the actual implementation of the marketing concept. They added that a market orientation appears to provide a unifying focus for the efforts and projects of individuals and departments within the organization. Furthermore, Cass, Vada, Ngo and Sharvti (jounal of strategic marketing) said Market orientation has the ability to enhance a  ¬Ã‚ rms success. They further quoted Slater and Narver (1998) saying that at its core, market orientation places signi ¬Ã‚ cant emphasis on the pro ¬Ã‚ table creation and maintenance of superior customer value, and those supporting its impact endorse it as the conduit for staying close to customers as well as for its ability to enhance  ¬Ã‚ rm performance. Market orientation is a culture rather than an individual process. Its the norms, mindsets, values and behaviours of employers; alongside the structure, systems and control of the organization. Marketing oriented businesses define their activities as service activities carried out towards the satisfaction of their customers. In other words they define their operation as a service business with customer service being the most important activity. They are driven by customer needs which are identified in their objectives. For instance, a car company might say well make your car in whatever colour you choose. A marketing orientated approach means a business reacts to what customers want. The decisions taken are based around information about customers needs and wants, rather than what the business thinks is right for the customer. Most successful businesses take a market-orientated approach. Most markets are moving towards a more market-orientated approach because customers have become more knowledgeable and require more variety and better quality. To compete, businesses need to be more sensitive to their customers needs; otherwise they will lose sales to competitors. When to use it?  Use market orientations when you want to understand, anticipate and satisfy your customer needs. You may already be operating somewhere in-between orientations. Companies can be anywhere on the spectrum as well as having different products at different orientations.   What does it achieve? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ A sense of what customers want à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Links customers needs to company capabilities à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Builds relationships à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Creates vision à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Greater internal marketing and communications à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Tracking and information systems for further research and evaluation   OCass, Ngo, and Siahtiri (2012) designed an empirical study to collect data from manufacturing  ¬Ã‚ rms in Australia to show that market orientation improves productivity and market capability. According to them, Australia has been ranked 20th overall in the worlds most competitive economies according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012 (Sala-i-Martin, 2011). In2011 Australia recorded a GDP of US$925 billion and GDP per capita of US$66.984.SMEs contribute signi ¬Ã‚ cantly to economic growth, national development, innovation and employment in Australia (ONAO Audit Report, 2011). There are around 175,000 SMEs inAustralia, which operate in a broad range of industries, including the construction,  ¬Ã‚ nance, insurance, wholesale and retail trade industries, and employ 28% of Australias workforce. In the course the study, 300 responses from 500 Australian  ¬Ã‚ rms, which constituted a 60% response rate in Australia were received. All participants who reported their positions indicated that they held the most senior marketing positions within their respective  ¬Ã‚ rms. In the survey, 85% of the respondents agreed that general information about market participants (customers, competitors and suppliers) is of paramount importance to them. Since market orientation gets this job done, this proves its importance to an organization. Considerations With so many messages bombarding the consumer in the marketplace today, it is now more difficult than ever to get your product noticed, so marketers have learned to be creative. Knowing what your clients expectations are, exceeding them, and building a reputation based on that is the key to success. Pay attention to your customers, and they will come back time and time again. Ignore them, and they will disappear faster than you can spend your marketing budget to try to bring them back. There is the belief that the marketing staff is a burden on the company and they do not justify the money spent on them. However, the fact is that sincere marketing efforts never goes to waste. When you invest in good marketing related activities, you are sure to reap benefits. Well run marketing campaigns can help you earn good profits. Some people have misconceptions about the term marketing, they feel that it is an easy task and anyone can do it. They couldnt be more wrong. As a manager, you have to get rid of this view point and employ professional marketers who will device your marketing strategy and help you execute it as well. Although marketing is really important for the success of a business, the reality is that it can also be very expensive. A marketing budget can reach as much as 30 percent (sometimes more) of the annual sales. As a result of the huge expenditure marketing/marketing programs incur, it is paramount that it is done right. The tools and campaigns used to improve the success of a brand or re-position it must be researched into deeply, tried and tested to ensure that they would get the job done. A marketing program that gives a company the best chance in a market environment that is as competitive as it is today is a healthy mix of different forms of marketing, such as website development, public relations, print and broadcast advertising, design and printing for all print materials, trade shows and other special events. PART 2: THE PERSUASIVE PAPER Brief: The manager of Pico fruit juice (hypothetical name) company has decided to rebrand the drink (Pico juice) by changing the packaging because he feels the old packaging is not flashy or attractive enough. He believes it is a little bland. However, the product seems to be doing very well in the market and has achieved a lot of recognition. I think re-packaging the brand might spell disaster and it is therefore my job as a marketing consultant to warn him against it. Muzellec and Lambkin (2006) defined rebranding as a change in an organizations self-identity and/or an attempt to change perceptions of the image among external stakeholders. Rebrand is a company image revision and it can assist a company in updating its message, appealing to new audiences or even signaling a complete change in direction. The reasons behind identity change are usually bad press, new target market, new product, merger, or aspiration to gain a competitive edge. However, these reasons do not apply to Pico fruit juice, When considering rebranding, we should ask ourselves the crucial question- why? If we are not changing what the company stands for, if our customers like what we stand for now, and if they associate our current packaging with what the company stands for, then why should we rebrand? Why waste the time, money and the priceless brand equity we have tried to build up? We would be much better served creating some really effective marketing campaigns to increase the strength of our brand and increase its consumer base. According to consumer surveys done, our customers already like our product the way it is, therefore rebranding can change their preconceived perception of the product thereby making them lose interest. Rebranding could cause confusion among current customers, potential customers and other key players in the industry. This could lead to a loss in client base. They (consumers) could also see it as being inconsistent and an inconsistent brand is an untrustworthy brand. Our packaging, colours,  company name, and everything else that represents us should not be changed without an extremely good reason. Product rebrands are perceived to be a good way of invigorating a brand, but they sometimes end in failure. According to Datamonitor (2009), in the past three decades, there have been many examples of brands attempting to rebrand themselves, either through a new logo, labeling/packaging, formulation or other means of re-identification. While some have been successful and others less so, the companies behind these brands all have one aim: to re-ignite a passion in consumers for a brand which has lost some of its magic. Examples of companies/brands that tried to rebrand include: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ A recent rebranding effort that caused controversy was Krafts Australian savory spread brand Vegemite, which undertook a brand extension in 2009. The original name of the extension, Vegemite iSnack 2.0, was designed to appeal to younger consumers but caused widespread derision, so much so that it was almost immediately withdrawn and renamed Cheesybite instead. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Tropicana packaging was completely overhauled in 2009 and the picture of an orange with a straw in it, which had featured on its label for decades, was removed and replaced with a picture of a glass of orange. After consumers derided the new packaging for looking too generic, the old style was brought back. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Cadbury introduced Dairy Milk as a megabrand across many of its chocolate bars in 2003 as a way of implementing unity and brand strength. However, it has gradually lost its potency over the past two years. In 2007, Cadbury reintroduced the Wispa brand to market after it had been dropped in 2003 in favor of Dairy Milk Bubbly, while the packaging of Cadburys Dairy Milk Caramel, known as Cadbury Caramel before 2003, has changed so that it resembles more its old style of imagery. The decision to rebrand is very serious and it is much more than just a change of package or name. Although rebranding sometimes seems as a reasonable step it should not be taken without due consideration. Changing a product name or package is seemed sometimes as an easy task, but to make it work to the business advantage is a difficult one. A decision to rebrand a product is wrong if done just for the sake of doing it or because competitors did so. Rebranding should always have a clear purpose and should not be taken lightly, as it is a massive overhaul of brand images and identity. No rebrand is possible without adequate research, repositioning the image without studying consumer demographics and psychographics is dangerous and I dont believe all these have been done yet, therefore, there is no reason to rush into a decision to change the package of Pico fruit drink. It should be noted that change for the sake of change is risky, especially if the results of the transformation are uncertain as in this case. Therefore we should be trying to consider long-term strategies and aims, and then updating brand identity to fit the changing goals if and if only it is absolutely necessary. A change of identity which includes package should always be considered and well-planned. And it is also important to think about the end result of the change, including negative elements. Rapid and extensive changes are harmful in most of circumstances. Therefore the most effective and safe strategy is to evolve slowly by updating the current image to modernize an existing, well-trusted brand, in order to keep the established customer base A change in name will not turn a company around, neither will it revitalize a dying product and as much as a rebranding can seem exciting at the time, there is a real risk that it is a waste of money and time. A brand is the sum total of an organizations reputation. When building your brand, the look of the product (package) does matter. It is most times what captivates a costumer and makes him or her reach for your product on the shelf. Once they become used to the look of a particular product or brand, changing it can confuse or even make them lose interest thereby spelling disaster for the product. However, you should rebrand if: Your target customer has changed. Your product has changed. Your competition has changed. Or if you cannot answer these questions: Do people no longer understand what you can offer Do people understand what makes you different? What is your client engagement? Do they spread your message and continue coming back for more? Do people trust what you say, your products and your services? Is there constant decrease in sales Can your employees/clients articulate what your brand stands for Are you are embarrassed to give away your business card  either due to unattractiveness or to the fact that its rather plain compared to that of competitors? Are all your communications are not consistent and in sync with the brand message and brand voice? If we have doubts about the answers to the above questions, then we would need to rebrand urgently. However, these cases do not apply to Pico fruit drink, so I see no reason for us to spend so much time and money doing something that may very well backfire in the long run. A reason we do not need to rebrand Pico fruit drink is because it has all the qualities of a good brand which according to Uche (2012) Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review (OMAN Chapter) Vol. 2, No.3; Oct. 2012 are: 1. Confirms Credibility: A good brand is a signature of credibility, a symbol of trust, an image of consistency. It must therefore always espouse and exhibit a credible personality, which strengthens and compensates its clienteles/consumers for their sustained loyalty (brand equity). So far, consumers seem to like Pico fruit drink. They seem to like its personality, its quality and what it stands for which is trust and responsibility. Responsibility to the environment by producing safe recyclable packages, responsibility to our customers by producing delicious, healthy and hygienic fruit drink and responsibility to the brand by ensuring it never falls below standard. 2. Attracts Potential opportunities: Any brand that lacks a sustained ability to attract and exploit potential opportunities is not a good one. Not just opportunities in terms of brand extension, but opportunities in terms of innovative marketing strategies and advertising mix like exploiting the social media to create buzz which Pico has done in the past and is still doing to attract attention, organizing promotional offers, giving discounts and so on. The existing clientele base of a brand must not only be maintained, but also expanded, through the exploitation of whatever opportunities are present in the market, especially in a competitive environment, where the life and continued existence of the entity or product, is dependent on its ability to maintain and expand its clientele base. 3. Delivers clear and precise information: The message delivered by a brand must at all times be concise, consistent, and clear, and must not be packaged in such a way that it confuses consumers. Pico as a brand has tried to avoid ambiguity in all its messages and promotion materials in order not to cause confusion among customers thereby damaging the brand. Since a brand is a statement or commitment to quality, improved value and service delivery, advertisements, jingles, and other interfaces with which a product or entity connects with clients and prospective clients should be consistent, concise, and must be coherent with the actual performance of the brand, if the brand is to be defined as good. Otherwise, the brands identity, franchise, awareness, equity, image, and recognition will be adversely affected. In this view also, there should be strong brand differentiation, to enable customers correctly identify their choice of brand, and this means that the logo, image, mark, and ot her items affiliated with a brand should be distinct, to dissuade confusions that sometimes arise from inability of customers to distinguish one brands image or logo (identity) from another. Failure in this regard can lead to a brands untimely demise. 4. Ability of the Brand to Procure, Protract, and Preserve a Relationships and a Titanic Clientele base: Following a pragmatic viewpoint, a good brand should be able to foster a cordial, mutual, and self-sustaining relationship with its clienteles, which is continually expanding. For a brand to be classified as being good it must exhibit an inherent aptitude and propensity to secure and conserve existing relationships, while striving to build new ones, through its commitment to connect and establish workable and healthy relationships with old clients from whom fresh and prospective clients are fetched, to swell the clientele base of the brand. EXCELLENT BRAND MANAGEMENT PRCATICES EVERY BRAND SHOULD FOLLOW Building a brand that enjoys patronage and respect requires the establishment of a scheme, which ensures longevity of the brand in the market. Simple guidelines like the ones below which are in no way exhaustive, should be initiated: 1. We should always make sure that at no point in the lifespan of a product/brand should we introduce ideas and market strategies that alter the name, logo, symbol, or other aspects of a brand that makes it unique and different from other brands in the same product category, unless there is an extremely good reason for doing this. The name, package or distinct logo of a brand is a symbol that is universal and understandable by consumers, who not only attach sentiments to the package or logo, but are quick to employ it as a reference point of satisfaction and quality. While positive changes in other aspects of a brand are recommended, even during mergers, utmost care must be taken to preserve the distinctive identity of a brand, as this is the brain behind successful brands like Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Mobil, which have introduced various products, but still employ or affiliate their names to such products, to retain its clienteles. 2. In successfully managing a brand, a manager should always strive to generate and establish an indelible and positive impression of the brand in the mind of its consumers, especially where the market is characterized by competition. The brand equity of a product must be on the positive side, and this is attainable only when positive and indelible images of a brand is created in the mind of its patrons or customers; this is an undeniable formula for success in a competitive market, where consumers taste and choice varies. 3. Fulfilling the brand promise or contract is one practice that should never be neglected by a brand manager or owner, if a brand is to prosper and be sustained in any competitive market. A subconscious contract exists between a producer and the clients, to the effect that the brand must meet and surpass a mark of quality that is appreciable to its consumers, if the loyalty and patronage of the consumers is to be sustained. To this extent, if managers fail to meet or surpass the standard of quality that is obtainable and attained by competing brands in a market, especially when it fails to meet the expectation of consumers, a negative brand experience ensues, which could lead to the decline and possible death of the brand. 4. Giving adequate protection to a brand is an option that should be given adequate attention to by a manager and his team, if they want their product to do well in the market. A brand and its unique identity should not only be given legal protection in the form of copyright and patent cataloguing, which prevents dubious replication by fraudsters and even competition but should also be protected by maintaining an appreciable standard and quality, which should be jealously guarded and should never be compromised, immersed in scandal, or be allowed to tread the paths of deficient and mediocre products and brands. 5. In many cases, brand managers make the tragic mistake of rating and quantifying their brands and the charge of sustaining it as cost, rather than assets, and the outcome is unpleasant and detrimental to the development and sustainability of the brand. A brand is among the most prized asset of any entity, product, or producer; whatever is thus spent in advertising and marketing a brand should be treated as an investment, rather than as cost. Trying to quantify the effects of investing (advertising and marketing) in a brand may not be visible in the balance sheet, but in the long run, evaluation of state of affairs in the market will reveal the enviable function that the investments in the brand is yielding. Thus, investments made in the development, advertising, and marketing of a brand is not wasted, and should not be treated as cost, but as a high-yielding investment by brand managers. 6. Treating customers and other stakeholders with esteem is one practice that should not be neglected by brand managers, if the desire to establish a viable brand is to be achieved. In a corporate environment, good corporate governance should be observed, if the yearnings and aspirations of customers, patrons, and shareholders are to be met. This cannot be achieved in the absence of a workforce that is not ade

ear Essay -- essays research papers

The ear is an organ of the body that is used for hearing and balance. It is connected to the brain by the auditory nerve and is composed of three divisions, the external ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear. The greater part of which is enclosed within the temporal bone. The ear is looked upon as a miniature receiver, amplifier and signal-processing system. The structure of the outer ear catching sound waves as they move into the external auditory canal. The sound waves then hit the eardrum and the pressure of the air causes the drum to vibrate back and forth. When the eardrum vibrates its neighbour the malleus then vibrates too. The vibrations are then transmitted from the malleus to the incus and then to the stapes. Together the three bones increase the pressure which in turn pushes the membrane of the oval window in and out. This movement sets up fluid pressure waves in the perilymph of the cochlea. The bulging of the oval window then pushes on the perilymph of the scala vestibuli. From here the pressure waves are transmitted from the scala vestibuli to the scala tympani and then eventually finds its way to the round window. This causes the round window to bulge outward into the middle ear. The scala vestibuli and scala tympani walls are now defor med with the pressure waves and the vestibular membrane is also pushed back and forth creating pressure waves in the endolymph inside the cochlear duct. These waves then causes the membrane to vibrate, which in turn cause the hairs cells of the spiral organ to move against the tectorial membrane. The bending of the stereo cilia produces receptor potentials that in the end lead to the generation of nerve impulses. The External or Outer Ear - comprises of the auricle or pinna which is the fleshy part of the outer ear. It is cup-shaped and collects and amplifies sound waves which then passes along the ear canal to the ear drum or tympanic membrane. The rim of the auricle is called the helix and the inferior portion is called the lobule. The external auditory canal is a carved tube and contains a few hair and ceruminous glands which are specialized sebaceous or oil glands. These secrete ear wax or cerumen. Both the hairs and the cerumen help prevent dust and foreign objects from entering the ear. A number of people produce large amounts of cerumen, and this sometimes cause the build up to be impacted and can bri... ...on on the position of the head in space for static equilibrium making it essential for maintaining appropriate posture and balance, where as dynamic they detect linear acceleration and deceleration. There are two kinds of cells in the two maculae, hair cells and supporting cells. The hair cells are the sensory receptors. Laying over the hair cells are columnar supporting cells that probably secrete the thick, gelatinous, glycoprotein layer called the otolithic membrane and over the membrane is a layer of dense calcium carbonate crystals called otoliths. When the head is tilted, the otoliths shift, and the hairs beneath respond to the change in pressure and bending the hair bundles. Dynamic equilibrium functions in the three semicircular ducts, the saccule and the utricle. The two ventical ducts are the anterior and posterior semicircular ducts. The lateral semicircular duct is horizontal. In the dilated portion of each duct, the ampulla, is a small elevation called the crista. This contains hair cells and supporting cells which are also covered by a mass of gelatinous material which is called cupula. When the head moves the attached semicircular ducts and hair cells move with it.

Heart of Darkness and Coppola’s Essay

   Kurtz was the best agent the Company had – and yet his journey has resulted in his oppressive and tyrannical demeanour; and he unleashed his maddened soul unto his surroundings. Kurtz obviously spent much time dwelling on thoughts and attempts to journey into his soul. The fact that he once travelled down the river with his ivory, and yet turned back after miles of travelling depicts his indecisive nature. Marlow realises this, and sees how torn apart the man really is. He realises that Kurtz’s solitude in the wilderness had allowed him to segregate and isolate everything he had known. With nothing to control him and no voices of reason, his journey into his soul in the end, distorted it into a malicious, gluttonous thing, whereby its greed and passions were to become insatiable, â€Å"But his soul was mad. Being alone in the wilderness, it had looked within itself†¦ it had gone mad. † (pg66) As we approach the end of their journeys, we see that Marlow has salvaged himself from insanity and darkness. Kurtz however, cannot retrieve himself, â€Å"The brown current ran swiftly out of the heart of darkness†¦ as Kurtz’s life was running swiftly too, ebbing, ebbing out of his heart into the sea of inexorable time. † (pg68) The use of metaphors and analogous language explicates that the further Marlow and the others depart in the physical journey, the less the likelihood of Marlow obtaining a deleterious soul. However, inversely, the further Kurtz proceeds away from his physical journey, the ‘heart of darkness’ he entitled to himself – the sooner he faces his cessation. He had desecrated his soul, gratified his monstrous passions to the extent where he would now allow his journey to have a path back. This concept is elucidated in the analogy that he had â€Å"kicked himself from the earth†¦ he had kicked the very earth to pieces.. † (pg66). And so the end of Kurtz’s journey occurs, his final words being â€Å"The horror! The horror! † (pg69). He seemingly passed judgement on his actions and life, his ‘journey’ and he deemed it to be horrid. By the end of his journey, Marlow has an altered perception of life. We see that through this spiritual journey he has gained the ability to understand reasons for barbarous actions; a suggestion that it is only through experience and such a journey, that one could ever understand how and why the mind can turn into such a truculent, repugnant thing. Coppola’s Apocalypse Now presents a mission through the Nung River to reach deeper into a jungle. Captain Willard accepts a mission to exterminate Kurtz, a man who implements unsound methods and is accountable for murder. Here Coppola employs a sound technique, the use of music in a minor key to pose an apprehensive sentiment to the mission. Willard formulates an analogy â€Å"never get out of the boat†¦ unless you were going all the way. Kurtz got off the boat†¦ † Willard interpolates to Kurtz’s mental journey, and how Kurtz ‘got off the boat’, and theoretically straight into the arms of the jungle. Kurtz was a man who had extreme potential and ability to reach high ranks within the army. However, he abandoned this and adventured into the unknown and attained new beliefs and ethics, â€Å"the more I read and began to understand, the more I admired him†¦ he could’ve gone for general†¦ but he went for himself instead. † Willard’s understanding of this is one of the primary indications of his commencement towards his own spiritual journey. Kurtz opens opportunities to Willard – by venturing into Kurtz’s foundations he ventures into his own. During this dialogue we see close up camera angles of Willard, sweaty with a torch and black background, giving him a strong look of obsessiveness. Willard then reads a letter from Kurtz, within the letter is a significant passage, â€Å"there are many moments for compassion†¦ there are many moments for ruthless action. What is called ruthless†¦ may be†¦ seeing clearly what there is to be done and doing it†¦ directly. † Kurtz is attempting to postulate reason and justify his ruthless conduct. Following this the boat halts to inspect a native’s boat. During the examination, the soldiers open fire despite the native’s innocence. They discover a girl is still living, and resolve to accompany her to a hospital. Willard however, determines he must continue on his expedition. He deliberately shoots the girl and thus adopts an aspect of Kurtz, â€Å"seeing clearly what there is to be done and doing it. † A median camera shot encompasses the face, neck and torso of the girl, lifeless and inert, revealing and provoking an increased sense of callousness upon Willard’s part. Eventually Willard encounters Kurtz, and he imparts a recount explicating the barbarity of the Vietcong guerrilla forces, â€Å"And then I realized they were stronger than me because they could stand it†¦ men who are†¦ able to†¦ kill – without feeling, without passion, without judgement†¦ † Upon saying this, his face is shadowed; there is no sound but his echoing words reinforcing the dialogue’s intensity. Although Kurtz may have desired strength and mercilessness, the irony and sarcasm of his stories pose another reason as to why he divaricated from the army. The American army has the ability to kill and wage war, and yet American soldiers still hold to moral values that completely contradict their actions, â€Å"we train young men to drop fire on people. But their commanders won’t allow them to write fuck on their airplanes because it’s obscene†¦ † As Kurtz despises such â€Å"lies†, he comes to believe the ability to endure abominable vulgarity shows true genuine strength, and lacks contradictory behaviour. We thus receive reasoning for Kurtz’s journey. Willard then concludes to slay Kurtz, however it is not for the benefit of the army, â€Å"I wasn’t even in their army anymore†¦ I felt like he was up there waiting for me to take his pain away†¦ † As he sees Kurtz, the music begins to play rapidly to produce anticipation. It is a ritualistic slaughter, with constant cuts to a scene of vicious sacrificial killing of a water buffalo by the natives, insinuating Kurtz as a false deity, having an erroneous journey. He is deservingly being slaughtered like an animal, sacrificed back to his jungle. Kurtz’s last words are â€Å"The Horror, The horror. † Here we perceive an acceptance of iniquity in a human’s soul, the ‘horror’ that can arise when a man delves into his soul, and depraves it through attempts to monopolise it. As Willard exits from slaughtering Kurtz, he has been established as the native’s ‘new deity’. Undershot camera angles endorse Willard’s superior status, his face is smeared in mud and his body is profaned with blood. The music is disturbing (producing an anticipative mood) as he progressively walks through the sea of people. There is the prospect of Willard continuing in Kurtz’s footsteps. However, he advances to his boat. It was through this journey that he was able to comprehend Kurtz’s actions. But Willard himself did not falter over the edge into insanity. The journeys in this case show us that placed into the right scenarios, there does sleep a suppressed greed and insanity in every soul that has the chance to escape if delved into. However, as we can see from Marlow and Willard’s examples, this can be understood and the unleashing of such evil can be avoided. Coppola and Conrad both used their techniques to show this concept and those concepts relating to it. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Joseph Conrad section.

Anatomy Unit 6 Study Guide

Unit 6 Study Guide 1. The types of muscles are smooth, cardiac, and skeletal. 2. The muscle is made up of myofibrils that allow for muscle contraction. 3. The parts of the myofibrils that allow for it to extend out are called the sacomere. 4. The nerve cell that connects to several muscle fibers called a motor neuron. 5. The thick ones are protein myosin. The thin ones are protein actin. 6. The chemicals that stimulate the muscle to contract are called neurotransmitters 7. Acetylcholine contracts the muscles. 8. Acetylcholines are stored at the end of each motor neuron. . The combination of the motor neuron and the muscles it controls are called a motor unit. 10. The energy storing molecule found in the mitochondrion is ATP (adenosine triphoshate). 11. If there is a lack of ATP then there will be muscle cramps. 12. The chemical that builds in the muscle caused by strenuous exercise is lactic acid. 13. The pigment that causes blood to be red is hemoglobin. 14. The pigment that causes the muscles to be brown is myoglobin. 15. The discoloration and swelling in a muscle strain is caused by ruptured blood vessels. 16.After death where ATP decreased and muscles cannot relax the body then rigor mortis will take place. 17. A contraction then sudden relaxation of a muscle caused by a single stimulus is called a twitch. 18. The delay between the time the stimulus is applied and the time the muscle responds is called latent period. 19. Partially inflamed and swollen tendons are called tendonitis. 20. The immovable end of the joint is called the origin. 21. The movable end of the joint is called the insertion. 22. Muscular dystrophies is inherited disorder which causes the collapse of muscles. Anatomy Unit 6 Study Guide Unit 6 Study Guide 1. The types of muscles are smooth, cardiac, and skeletal. 2. The muscle is made up of myofibrils that allow for muscle contraction. 3. The parts of the myofibrils that allow for it to extend out are called the sacomere. 4. The nerve cell that connects to several muscle fibers called a motor neuron. 5. The thick ones are protein myosin. The thin ones are protein actin. 6. The chemicals that stimulate the muscle to contract are called neurotransmitters 7. Acetylcholine contracts the muscles. 8. Acetylcholines are stored at the end of each motor neuron. . The combination of the motor neuron and the muscles it controls are called a motor unit. 10. The energy storing molecule found in the mitochondrion is ATP (adenosine triphoshate). 11. If there is a lack of ATP then there will be muscle cramps. 12. The chemical that builds in the muscle caused by strenuous exercise is lactic acid. 13. The pigment that causes blood to be red is hemoglobin. 14. The pigment that causes the muscles to be brown is myoglobin. 15. The discoloration and swelling in a muscle strain is caused by ruptured blood vessels. 16.After death where ATP decreased and muscles cannot relax the body then rigor mortis will take place. 17. A contraction then sudden relaxation of a muscle caused by a single stimulus is called a twitch. 18. The delay between the time the stimulus is applied and the time the muscle responds is called latent period. 19. Partially inflamed and swollen tendons are called tendonitis. 20. The immovable end of the joint is called the origin. 21. The movable end of the joint is called the insertion. 22. Muscular dystrophies is inherited disorder which causes the collapse of muscles.

Dyslexic Students Success Factors for Support in a Learning Environment

Dyslexic Students Success Factors for Support in a Learning Environment Introduction Dyslexic people have been misunderstood in the past by the people who are involved in their training and correction. Some of them have been labelled as thick or even people who cannot spell. However, research has proved that dyslexia is not a representation of one’s intelligence.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Dyslexic Students: Success Factors for Support in a Learning Environment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The condition has a number of causes though the presentation is different in individuals with varying levels of inability to read. This essay reviews the literature on dyslexic students, the available methods for their support in learning, and the factors determining the success of these methods in the learning environment. Literature search and review Brief topic outline The subject of information studies is broad. There are a number of possible studies in each of the fields. The topic for this study is ‘Dyslexic Students: Success Factors for Support in a Learning Environment.’ The paper presents a search of literature with information on the same. During the search, some of the related findings on the topic are the diagnosis of the condition, the causes, and the prognosis of this condition. However, the interest of the search is on the success factors in the learning environment when correcting the condition. Some of the topics that still need review in this area include the pathological signs in the brains of dyslexic students and the effects of social factors on the condition. Therefore, the research questions include: What are the types of learning environments for dyslexic students? What factors support learning in this environment? Literature search strategy The search strategy used a combination of methods. Electronic databases were preferred for the search. The key words were dyslexia, dyslexic students, learning support, and learn ing environments. The search was conducted in more than one database followed by analysis of the results.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The references of the results were then searched with the relevant ones being analysed for the study. The search for relevant books was through the COPAC library catalogue, which yielded useful publications for the study. A systematic approach was used in the search. A targeted approach was later adopted for use to eliminate the less useful publications. The bibliographic tools used to carry out the search included the library catalogues and the databases. Since knowledge is constantly accumulating on the subject under study with research findings being published regularly, a limitation in the search was made. The search, therefore, was limited to the research publications made since the year 2000. They were deemed to be current a nd useful to the study. For the purpose of ease in the compilation of the search results and a detailed analysis of the literature, only literature published in the English language was considered for review. Search results From the original search, a number of results were obtained. These were then scrutinised followed by a final list of 20 references, which were then used for the study. The results include Bell, J 2010, Doing your research project : a guide for first-time researchers in education, health and social science, Blaxter, L, Hughes, C Tight, M 2010a, How to research, Burden, R, Burdett, J 2005, Factors associated with successful learning in pupils with dyslexia: a motivational analysis, Carroll Iles, An assessment of anxiety levels in dyslexic students in higher education, Clough Nutbrown, A students guide to methodology : justifying enquiry. Others are Davis, R 1997, The Gift of dyslexia: why some of the brightest people cant read and how they can learn, Doering, A n unusual balance of skills: dyslexia in higher education, Fred Murphy On being dyslexic: Student radiographers’ perspectives Radiography, Gold, Rotella, Chenoweth, and Zaleski, Overcoming dyslexia (Book), Hatcher, Snowling, and Griffiths, Cognitive assessment of dyslexic students in higher education, Kirby, Sugden, Beveridge, Edwards, and Edwards, Dyslexia and developmental co-ordination disorder in further and higher education- similarities and differences. Does the ‘Label’ influence the support given?, Ling and van Schaik’s, The influence of font type and line length on visual search and information retrieval in web pages. However, these are some of the results from the search with the rest being included in the reference list.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Dyslexic Students: Success Factors for Support in a Learning Environment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Selected sourc es The first of the works that was of relevance to the study was Fred Murphy’s work published in the radiography journal in the 2011 issue (Murphy 2011, p. 134). The purpose of Murphy’s study was â€Å"to provide an insight into life as a dyslexic student radiographer, identify barriers and risks in clinical training, and develop recommendations for the support of students with dyslexia† (Murphy 2011, p. 134). The justification of his study was the inadequacy of research into the experiences of student radiographers whose support was given only from the experience from other professions. He reported the absence of any study on the experiences of dyslexic radiography students (Murphy 2011, p. 135). The study involved comparing the abilities of dyslexic students in performing given tasks. This result was compared with the abilities of non-dyslexic radiography students. The results of the study revealed that there are few significant differences in the performance of clinical tasks by both sets of students (Murphy 2011, p. 136: Carroll Iles 2006, p.12: Perry 2003, p. 23). The ten dyslexic radiography students in the study reported difficulties and prejudices in their areas of practice. The clinical environment was also reported not to have a detailed support structure for their condition (Murphy 2011, p. 136). The study also revealed that the students had to take responsibility for most of their learning, which resulted in the development of complex strategies to cope with the condition. The study made a number of recommendations on the improvement of support structures for dyslexic students mainly for support of dyslexic students on clinical practice. This study is relevant to the current study, as it features some of the problems experienced by dyslexic students. The recommendations are also important as they apply to the dyslexic students in most of the areas of study because they face similar problems.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The research methodology is adequate for the study though the sample size used was not large enough to yield very significant results. The results are however presented in a clear manner thus making interpretation easy. The second study that was relevant to the current study was that by Robert Burden and Julia Burdett, whose work was â€Å"Factors Associated with Successful Learning in Pupils with Dyslexia: A Motivational Analysis† (Burden Burdett 2005, p.100). The study resulted from previous studies on the subject, which had established existing challenges for dyslexic students in their self-esteem (Burden Burdett 2005, p.100). The challenge in self-esteem is said to impart negative consequences on self-development of dyslexic students. Burden and Burdett set to challenge these findings (Burden Burdett 2005, p.102). The study was based on interviews conducted by the researchers on 50 boys between the ages of 11 and 16 who were dyslexic and attending a special school (Bur den Burdett 2005, p.102). The two issues they explored were the pupils’ â€Å"attitudes to learning and their sense of personal identity† (Burden Burdett 2005, p.102). They found a positive appraisal in most of the pupils they interviewed. They related this result to successful learning outcomes for the dyslexic pupils (Burden Burdett 2005, p.103). Their findings also included low levels of depression among the students with low levels of what they referred to as learned helplessness (Burden Burdett 2005, p.104). They singled this quality of the learning process in these children as an important one in their learning process. In the methodology, the number of students used indicates a significant sample for conclusion making, which again makes generalisation of the results easy. The study was also conducted in a systematic manner with the findings reported in an easy way. The use of statistical inference is also evident in the study thus making the findings of the study valid. The findings of this study are important to the current study, as they form a relationship between attitude and learning in the dyslexic students. Since the current study investigates success factors in the learning of dyslexic students, the factors discussed in the study by Burden and Burdett are important in conclusion making and inferences. The third study of significance is a pilot study by MacFarlane et al. The study is on â€Å"The effect of dyslexia on information retrieval† (MacFarlane et al. 2010, p.307). This study is the first of its kind. The results are therefore significant to the current study. The aim of the research was to fill the knowledge gap on the interaction of dyslexic people with information retrieval systems. A specific focus was made on their information seeking behaviour (MacFarlane et al 2010, p.307). The study utilised non-dyslexic people who were used as control for those under investigation. The methodology included the use of a st andard Okapi interface and two standard TREC topics, which were used to assess the information searching behaviour of the participants (MacFarlane et al 2010, p.312). The study demonstrated the differences between information seeking behaviours of dyslexic people with those of the controls using log data being recorded (MacFarlane et al 2010, p.323). From the study, â€Å"Session data indicated that there may be an important difference between the number of iterations used in a search between the user groups, as there may be little effect from the topic on this variable† (MacFarlane et al 2010, p.324). This inference is a relevant finding in the study of the problems encountered by dyslexic students. It is applicable in making conclusions in the study currently being undertaken. The authors found a knowledge gap in knowledge seeking behaviours of the dyslexics. They had no template on which to compare and use to critique their findings. There is therefore a need to conduct mo re research in this field. However, the layout and presentation of the results are systematic. The conclusion made tallies with the results they found. As for the methodology, the sample size was adequate enough. The methods used in data collection were relatively accurate. The use of statistical inference in the research is plausible, as it makes it an important study for the topic being discussed. The last of the important studies gotten from the literature review is the work of Taylor, Duffy, and Hughes (2007, p. 26), which investigated â€Å"The Use of Animation in Higher Education Teaching to Support Students with Dyslexia.† The study was carried out in the higher education setting of the United Kingdom. The use of animated materials to support the learning of students with dyslexia was studied. The study design involved the use of thirteen dyslexic undergraduate computing students. The use of animation in their learning was investigated and compared with ordinary teachi ng methods (Taylor, Duffy Hughes 2007, p. 27). The results of the learning were then evaluated and inferences made accordingly (Taylor, Duffy Hughes 2007, p. 29). A control group of non-dyslexic students was utilised for the study. From the findings, â€Å"it appeared that appropriate animated learning materials were perceived as being more useful than equivalent static learning materials by both the students with dyslexia and the control group of non-dyslexic students† (Taylor, Duffy Hughes 2007, p. 27). The non-dyslexic students preferred the animated methods of learning as compared to the dyslexic students under study. The conclusion from the study was therefore that animated learning was of less significance in the learning of the dyslexic and the non-dyslexic students(Taylor, Duffy Hughes 2007, p. 29). The sample size used to make the conclusion was small. This drawback would reduce the accuracy of the findings and the reported conclusions. The use of statistical ana lysis is also not apparent in the study. The methodology appears to be limited in the ability to draw important conclusions. On the other hand, the reporting and use of statistical representation in the work is appropriate, and so is the analysis of the results. The work is important to the study being investigated, as it focuses on the dyslexic learning behaviours and one of the methods that may be used to aid learning for these students. Research proposal Topic description As indicated above, the topic for the study is, ‘Dyslexic Students: Success Factors for Support in a Learning Environment.’ Dyslexia has been described as a medical mystery with a number of researches done on the causes and possible solutions (Kirby, Sugden, Beveridge, Edwards Edwards 2008, p. 19). The modern education system has many dyslexic students. Teachers and instructors in institutions of higher learning are faced with the difficulty of effectively imparting knowledge to these students (Hat cher, Snowling Griffiths 2002, p. 76). A number of methods have also been suggested on how to support the train of the dyslexics. The methods have also been applied with varying results. Dyslexia has been classified and defined as a language learning disorder characterised by spelling, reading, and writing deficits (Gold, Rotella, Chenoweth Zaleski, 2003, p.63). A number of causes for the conditions have been suggested with some suggesting that dyslexics see words backward. However, some scientific evidence shows that the students have a problem in the sight for words and producing the sounds made by these words (Doering 2003, p. 16). The conventional methods of learning are not appropriate for the dyslexics. Most of the instructors find it hard when using them to teach the dyslexics. With the available methods of teaching dyslexics available, this research focuses on the success factors in the learning environment of dyslexics. The students have to memorise each new word they com e across. They hope to remember them in the next session (Ling van Schaik 2006, P. 39: Neurodiversity 2010, p.98). The learning environment for dyslexic students is different from that of conventional students. Several factors determine the success of teaching them in this environment (Madriaga 2007, p. 28). These factors form the basis of the study. Aims and objectives The main aim of the study is to investigate the success factors for support in a learning environment for dyslexic students. The study will therefore target to determine the factors affecting the success of learning for dyslexic students. Over the past, studies have been done on the best methods to teach dyslexic students with suggestions being made on the appropriate changes to be made (Davis 1997, p. 16). Follow-up studies have however shown mixed results while using the study methods proposed. This study therefore establishes the success of the methods in place to augment teaching for dyslexic students. Another a im of the study is to investigate the relationship between the learning environment and the learning outcomes for dyslexic students. As indicated above, various studies have found differing results on the effects of learning environments for dyslexic students (Reid Kirk 2001, p.29). The study will therefore utilise the results from some of the studies in a bid to compare them with those from the data collected on learning environments and learning outcomes for dyslexic students. Another aim of the study is to investigate the number of students benefiting from special methods for teaching dyslexics. In the past, the number of institutions offering special methods to teach dyslexics has been declining with few of the dyslexics being discovered (Reid Kirk 2001, p.29). The study therefore investigates the institutions and methods in place to train dyslexics showing how effectively they are doing this. The other objective of the study will be to find out the methods of diagnosing dysle xics in the institutions where the study will be conducted. Depending on the institutions, the methods used to diagnose special students vary, as it is also the case for dyslexic students. The study will therefore aim to find out the measures in place to diagnose these students in the institutions. The other aim of the study will be to determine whether dyslexic students are provided with extra tutorials in these institutions. Method of choice and pilot study In conducting a research or a study on the topic, the method to be used is significant as it determines the accuracy of the results that will be used to make conclusions (Bell 2010, p.23). The strength of the conclusions will therefore depend on the type of methods used for the research (Bell 2010, p. 23). A combination of methods has been found to be appropriate for making solid conclusions (Bell 2010, p. 23). The method of choice for the study will be the use of questionnaires for the department heads for the various institut ions with dyslexic students. The contents of the questionnaire include the details of the institutions to be sampled and the respondents. Some of the questions to be addressed include whether the institution has any dyslexic students. The questionnaire will also elicit for the opinions of the respondents of the on how to improve the measures in place for the improvement of learning resources for dyslexics in the library in their institutions. The second method to be used for data collection will be the use of interviews. The use of interviews in research enables the researcher to get the opinions of the interviewees thus allowing more of the objectives of the study to be covered (Clough Nutbrown 2007, p. 27). The interview will cover the questions not addressed in the questionnaire to provide for the addition of more information that may be necessary for the study. The conducting of the pilot study will be done in one of the selected institutions, which will involve a relatively fe wer number of respondents (Clough Nutbrown 2007, p. 27). The pilot study will be used to test the methods used in the actual study in a bid to establish the likely problems in carrying out the study. Sources of data The sources of data for this study are mainly derived from previous studies. They will be used to compare the results from the study. The use of peer reviewed journals and other professional works around the topic and objectives of the study will be made. The sources will be analysed for any relevance to the study before inclusion. The main sources of data for the research will be the performance registers for the students under the study. In the institutions where the study will be conducted, the results of the examinations sat by the dyslexic students will be utilised as the sources of data. The other sources of data for the research will be the records of the institutions with dyslexic students. These sources will be used to evaluate the number of students in the ins titutions with the condition. As indicated above, the data will be used to make conclusions on the achievement of factors for success in the learning environment for dyslexics. As a requirement, the strength of conclusions made by the research will be based on the statistical strength of the work, which will therefore be important to maintain (Clough Nutbrown 2007, p. 27). For the results of any research to be credible and generalisable to the wider public, the sample to be used must be representative of the population under study (Wolcott 2001, p.34). To achieve this goal, the sample size has to be large with a large number of participants to achieve the normal distribution of results (Wolcott 2001, p.34). The sample size will therefore have to be larger than fifty to make the results of the study as accurate as possible. The sample to be used will also be obtained by the use of an appropriate inclusion and exclusion criteria. The use of the criteria also improves the quality of t he findings for the research. Data analysis The methods used for analysis of data results for research purposes are equally as important as the methods used to achieve them (Wolcott 2001, p.34). The various methods of data analysis should be accurate enough to provide results that can be generalised for the population under study (Wolcott 2001, p.38). These methods are however dependent on the type of data that is gotten from the study. Some of the most utilised methods of data analysis are the gated counts that are manually done on paper and the use of statistical packages (Wolcott 2001, p.36). The gated method is tedious to use in analysis of multiple sets of data as it involves a number of processes (Wolcott 2001, p.37). It is however accurate to use especially for smaller sets of data. In terms of the speed used to analyse this method of data analysis, the time taken is relatively longer compared to the use of statistical packages (Wolcott 2001, p.34). On the other hand, the use of statistical packages in the analysis of statistical data is gaining popularity due to the established efficiency (Wolcott 2001, p.34). It takes a shorter time in analysing data. They are therefore important where there are a large number of sets of data involved (Wolcott 2001, p.34). For both of these methods, some errors may occur. The methods may therefore be combined for accuracy (Blaxter, Hughes Tight 2010, p. 12: Nielsen 2001, p. 34). For research on the success of factors for support in the learning environment for dyslexic students, a combination of data analysis methods will be used to ensure accuracy in the final results. The sample results will be analysed using the gated method, which will then be followed by analysis using an appropriate statistical package. Synthesis pattern The synthesis of results is important in any research as it determines the quality of the research. For this particular research, the synthesis will mostly be in the terms of the groups used. A fter analysis of the results, they will then be synthesised according to the related findings. Similar characteristics in the learning environments of dyslexics will be synthesised together to make a logical outcome. In the previous studies on dyslexics, the synthesis methods used were mainly applied to the results of the test performance (Reid Kirk 2001, p.29). The same methods will be used in this proposal. Project management The project will need significant funding, which will be used to offset the charges in the project, as well as the costs of the various tools and staff utilised in the study. The first cost that will be incurred is in the materials used to develop the project. They include stationery and printing charges. In producing the final draft of the proposal, a number of papers will need to be printed for review by the authorities responsible. They will significantly contribute to the cost incurred. When the draft is complete, the instruments for the pilot study and the actual study will then be prepared. They will also need significant funding (Wolcott 2001, p.34). The study will be carried out by a number of people over a number of days. Analysis will also involve a number of people based on the size of the sample (Bell 2010, p. 21). The staff therefore required in the carrying out of the study will be a significant source of cost for the project and the research. In getting to the field where the data will be collected, the staff and the people responsible for the study will need to travel. This travelling will take place throughout the period of the study. The use of both private and public means of transport to these areas will therefore need a significant amount of money. This need will contribute to the increase in the budget for the research. Other costs to be incurred in the research include the publishing of the results, the organisation of meetings to discuss the study, and the overhead costs. As an estimate, the research will likely utilise a thousand dollars, which is an estimate that could increase or reduce based on the size of the research. Disseminating findings The findings of any study are only important if they are provided to the relevant authorities for action. They should also be made public to ensure change is effected based on the findings and the results from the research. For the research proposed above, the results are significant to the learning institutions, which have dyslexic students in their classes. For them to fully utilise the results, a feedback will need to be planned. A report should be handed to the institutions where the study was conducted. The report should contain the methodology of the study, the results obtained from it, the recommendations, and other information from the study that may be relevant to the institutions. When the report is provided to the institutions, a session could also be provided to the people concerned. This session should be in a PowerPoint presentation. It should be in simple language for them to understand. It should also be informative. Another way of disseminating the results would be the use of professional and peer reviewed journals (Bell 2010, p. 23). These would then publish the results to be available for the scholars and general public. The relevant authorities could also be provided with a copy of the final report to make any changes and or gauge their performance based on the findings (Bell 2010, p. 23). The results could also be published in newspapers and magazines offering relevant information to the population concerned. Other methods of dissemination of the results include public lectures and tutorials. For the method chosen to disseminate the results, the target should be to reach the people that will have the most use of them. Conclusion In conclusion, the research involves finding out the factors of success in the learning environments of dyslexics. The topic was chosen due to the established problem in the lear ning of dyslexics especially when conventional methods of teaching are employed. The number of dyslexics in the institutions of higher learning is also reported to be increasing. This revelation justifies the need for the research. The study aims to achieve the mentioned objectives with the most important being to determine the success factors in the learning environment for dyslexics. A combination of methods has been suggested for the study with the use of questionnaires and interviews being considered. The questions will be addressed to the teaching authorities in the institutions established. The results will then be compiled. A pilot study will also be conducted to establish the problems likely to arise in a bid to plan for the research. The sources of data will be the records from the institutions especially the tests given to these students. The analysis of the data will be done by the use of a combination of methods, which will be simple gated counts and the use of statistic al packages. In the project management, the main cause of concern is the cost of carrying it out. Some of the costs that will be incurred include the staffing, travelling to the institutions, and making of the test instruments. An estimate of this cost has been given. The findings will then be disseminated in a number of ways with the feedback being made to the authorities responsible. A presentation will be made followed by a copy of the report that will be handed to the institutions. References Bell, J 2010, Doing your research project : a guide for first-time researchers in education, health and social science, Open UP study skills, McGraw-Hill Open University Press, Maidenhead. Blaxter, L, Hughes, C, Tight, M 2010, How to research, McGraw-Hill/Open University. Burden, R, Burdett, J 2005, Factors associated with successful learning in pupils with dyslexia: a motivational analysis, British Journal Of Special Education, vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 100-104. Carroll, J Iles, J 2006, An as sessment of anxiety levels in dyslexic students in higher education, British Journal of Educational Psychology, vol. 76, no. 3, pp. 651-62. Clough, P Nutbrown, C 2007, A students guide to methodology: justifying enquiry, Sage Publications, Los Angeles, London. Davis, R 1997, The Gife of Syslexia: why some of the brightest people cant read and how they can learn, Souvenir Press Ltd., Great Britain. Doering, JW 2003, An Unusual Balance of Skills: Dyslexia in Higher Education, Contemporary Review Company, Harvard. Gold, F, Rotella, M, Chenoweth, E, Zaleski, J 2003, Overcoming Dyslexia (Book), Publishers Weekly, vol. 250, no. 14, p. 63. Hatcher, J, Snowling, J, Griffiths, M 2002, Cognitive assessment of dyslexic students in higher education, British Journal of Educational Psychology, vol. 72, no. 1, p. 119. Kirby, A, Sugden, D, Beveridge, S, Edwards, L Edwards, R 2008, Dyslexia and developmental co-ordination disorder in further and higher education- similarities and differences. Do es the ‘Label’ influence the support given?, Dyslexia (10769242), vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 197-213. Ling, J van Schaik, P 2006, The influence of font type and line length on visual search and information retrieval in web pages. Web. MacFarlane, A, Al-Wabil, A, Marshall, R, Albrair, A, Jones, A Zaphiris, P 2010, The effect of dyslexia on information retrieval, Journal of Documentation, vol. 66, no. 3, pp. 307-26. Madriaga, M 2007, Enduring disablism: students with dyslexia and their pathways into UK higher education and beyond’, Disability Society, vol. 22, no. 4, pp. 399-412. Murphy, F 2011, ‘Being dyslexic: Student radiographers,’ Perspectives Radiography, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 132–138. Neurodiversity 2010, ‘Discovering the Extraordinary Gifts of Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Brain Differences, Publishers Weekly, vol. 257, no. 17, pp. 97-8. Nielsen, S 2001, Guidelines for Library Services to Persons with Dyslexia, IFLA Conference Procee dings, vol. 1 no. 1, pp. 1-4. Perry, A 2003a, Network Influences on Scholarly Communication in Developmental Dyslexia: A Longitudinal Follow-up, Journal of the American Society for Information Science Technology, vol. 54, no. 14, pp. 1278-95. Reid, G Kirk, J 2001, Dyslexia in adults : education and employment, John Wiley, Chichester, New York. Taylor, M, Duffy, S Hughes, G 2007, The use of animation in higher education teaching to support students with dyslexia, Education + Training, vol. 49, no. 1, pp. 25-35. Wolcott, F 2001, Writing up qualitative research, Sage Publications, London, Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Free Essays on Death Of Artemio Cruz

A writer can usually connect characters in his novel through parallels, foils, and other literary devices. In The Death of Artemio Cruz, by Carlos Fuentes, Fuentes links the main character and the father, Artemio, to his son, Lorenzo with parallels and foils put there in order to help his reader better understand the depth of Artemio Cruz. In the section titled, â€Å"1939: February 3,† Fuentes describes Lorenzo’s and Dolores’ love for each other. This description helps the reader fully understand Artemio Cruz, his love for Regina, and his life as a whole. Artemio and his son are different types of lovers, but lovers nonetheless. Lorenzo is romantic while Artemio is rough. This can be seen in the love scenes Fuentes describes. Lorenzo’s first act of love with Dolores is explained with beauty, desire, and sensitivity. â€Å"They touched hands, embracing it, and they wrenched themselves from their tree to embrace each other, Dolores and he, so he could caress her brow and she his neck. She stepped back, so he could see her moist green eyes better, her half-open mouth, before she buried her head in the boy’s chest, raised her face to give him her lips...† (Cruz 227). Fuentes describes this encounter in a passionate way. He explains that Dolores stepped back so that her beautiful green eyes could be seen better. Eyes are important in relationships as they hold the key to love. One looks into the others’ eyes in order to see love as an image rather than just a feeling. Fuentes recognizes this as he makes Dolores move merely for the sake of allowing Lorenzo to gaze into her eyes and see her emotion. This is an effective gesture in showing the romanticism of the two lovers. Fuentes us es great diction to show their desire for one another. They both â€Å"wrench† themselves off the tree so that they both can arouse the other. It involves the workings of the two figures. Neither sex is dominating over the other. Lorenzo does not need t... Free Essays on Death Of Artemio Cruz Free Essays on Death Of Artemio Cruz A writer can usually connect characters in his novel through parallels, foils, and other literary devices. In The Death of Artemio Cruz, by Carlos Fuentes, Fuentes links the main character and the father, Artemio, to his son, Lorenzo with parallels and foils put there in order to help his reader better understand the depth of Artemio Cruz. In the section titled, â€Å"1939: February 3,† Fuentes describes Lorenzo’s and Dolores’ love for each other. This description helps the reader fully understand Artemio Cruz, his love for Regina, and his life as a whole. Artemio and his son are different types of lovers, but lovers nonetheless. Lorenzo is romantic while Artemio is rough. This can be seen in the love scenes Fuentes describes. Lorenzo’s first act of love with Dolores is explained with beauty, desire, and sensitivity. â€Å"They touched hands, embracing it, and they wrenched themselves from their tree to embrace each other, Dolores and he, so he could caress her brow and she his neck. She stepped back, so he could see her moist green eyes better, her half-open mouth, before she buried her head in the boy’s chest, raised her face to give him her lips...† (Cruz 227). Fuentes describes this encounter in a passionate way. He explains that Dolores stepped back so that her beautiful green eyes could be seen better. Eyes are important in relationships as they hold the key to love. One looks into the others’ eyes in order to see love as an image rather than just a feeling. Fuentes recognizes this as he makes Dolores move merely for the sake of allowing Lorenzo to gaze into her eyes and see her emotion. This is an effective gesture in showing the romanticism of the two lovers. Fuentes us es great diction to show their desire for one another. They both â€Å"wrench† themselves off the tree so that they both can arouse the other. It involves the workings of the two figures. Neither sex is dominating over the other. Lorenzo does not need t...

5 top tracking apps for your 2018 goals

5 top tracking apps for your 2018 goals The end of 2017 is right around the corner, and if you’re like most people your brain is turning towards setting goals for yourself for 2018. Also, you may be realizing that you’re about to embark on a familiar cycle: setting a bunch of grand plans for yourself for the coming year that quickly fall apart, sometimes before you even get to shout â€Å"Happy New Year!† If this sounds like your typical end-of-year behavior, don’t feel too bad- you’re not alone! According to a recent Huffington Post article, â€Å"Only  8 percent of people  actually keep their New Year’s resolutions, according to one commonly cited statistic. There are many reasons  people can’t stick to their resolutions, from setting too many of them to getting derailed by small failures. Setting overly ambitious and restrictive goals―like quitting sugar when you haven’t already been making small changes to improve your diet―is one major cause of failure. While you might initially feel inspired and energized by setting blowout goals for 2017, the luster of these resolutions fades quickly when we realize how difficult they are to keep.†That said, setting goals for 2018 may seem daunting―but there is a path towards success and there are tools for helping you stay on track. These days, you don’t need anything more than your smartphone and a helpful tracking app to keep you focused and on target as you work towards your goals.There are a ton of goal-tracking apps available, and choosing the right one for you can become a big project in and of itself. Take a deep breath- we’ve gone ahead and selected five of the most helpful goal-tracking apps available to help you achieve your goals in the new year.1. GoalsOnTrackBilling itself as â€Å"goal software for high achievers,† GoalsOnTrack empowers users to create SMART-based goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely) and provi des lots of useful features to help users stay on track- like braking down large, long-term goals into easier-to-manage and organize milestones and subgoals. GoalsOnTrack also allows you to set focused action plans, recurring tasks (with helpful reminders!), and task schedules that are easy to update and adjust with you. It even has a journaling option and customizable music and photo features to help keep you motivated and visualize success.2. Coach.meThis handy habit-tracking app features a free mobile version as well as customizable fee-based options, which even includes a real coach to help keep your goals for 2018 within reach. Once you set a habit for yourself using the app, you can begin tracking your daily progress, set helpful targets and reminders, view weekly and monthly behavior trends, and even connect with a supportive community for encouragement and guidance- all designed to help you form new and positive habits in your life.3. StridesStrides is a free, an all-in-one goal and habit tracking app that features a variety of helpful tracking templates that you can use, or ones that you can customize. It has a host of helpful visuals that are accessible from a central dashboard, which makes it easy to see your progress (or lack thereof) and retool accordingly. Users of the free app version can track up to 10 goals at a time on any of their iOS-based devices; users who require greater flexibility and power can take advantage of the fee-based Strides Plus premium plan.4. Way of LifeWay of Life calls itself â€Å"The Ultimate Habit Builder and Breaker† and features a wide range of helpful visual tracking features, including pie charts, bar charts with easy-to-read trend lines, and a scoreboard that provides instant feedback. It also allows you to tag, skip, share, and archive goals, set multiple daily reminders, take notes, and export to email and other apps. The free version lets you track up to three goals, habits, or behaviors that you want to increase or decrease; fee-based options let you unlock additional features and resources.5. ATrackerIs your busy life a daily struggle to get everything done and keep track of it all? If so, then ATracker just might be the lifesaver you need. This time-tracking app is designed to make sure that you’re maximizing your time each day towards effectively pursuing your goals. The app lets you track the time you spend on a variety of chosen tasks and view daily breakdowns in pie charts or bar graphs- so you can quickly see how your waking hours are being spent and make adjustments accordingly. There are free and fee-based versions available, based on your individual needs and goals.There you have it- the top tracking apps to help you set your goals for 2018 and stay on track. All you need to do is select the one that seems best for you, and not let excuses get in the way of you achieving your goals.

Drivers for adopting public-private construction partnerships in the Term Paper

Drivers for adopting public-private construction partnerships in the US, UK and Australia - Term Paper Example This study also narrows the gap in the literature by collecting primary empirical data from interviews with construction company managers and owners in the US with a view to understanding their perspectives on the drivers for adopting PPPs. The results of this study are discussed and implications for practice and areas for further research are identified. Table of Contents Abstract 2 Introduction 4 Study Scope and Objectives 5 Research Methodology 5 Organization of the Research Report 6 A Review of Literature 6 Conceptualization of Public-Private Construction Partnerships 6 Public-Private Construction Partnerships in the US, UK and Australia 9 Public-Private Construction Partnerships in the US 9 Public-Private Construction Partnerships in the UK 11 Public-Private Construction Partnerships in Australia 13 Summary of Findings in the Literature 14 Empirical Evidence 14 Secondary Data: Australia 14 Secondary Data: The UK 17 Primary Empirical Evidence 19 Analysis 22 Implications for Pract ice 23 Areas for Further Research 23 Bibliography 25 Introduction Public-private partnerships (PPP), also known as P3s are contractual arrangements between governments and private entities/concessionaires for the construction of facilities. Under the P3 contract, the private investor typically funds the construction phase of the facility and is usually entitled to share revenues associated with the facilities (Rowlson, 2012). In addition to sharing revenues, the private entity involved in a PPP also assumes some of the risks associated with the construction project (Hodge, 2004). As a part of a trend toward more privatization of public services, the UK has increasingly adopted PPPs for the construction of government infrastructure (Spackman, 2002). A similar trend can be observed in the US with 23 states legislating for PPPs (Rowlson, 2012). PPPs have also become a part of government public management systems in Australia (English, 2006). Ke, et al. (2009) conducted a review of lite rature on PPPs and examined peer-reviewed articles published between 1998 and 2008. Findings indicate that research into PPPs have steadily increased from 1998 to 2008 revealing an increasing importance to the construction industry. The most popularly researched areas was the â€Å"build-operate-transfer† form of the PPP with some interest in investment conditions, governance and other areas that tend to compliment PPPs (Ke, et al., 2009, p. 1076). It would therefore appear that the drivers of PPPs is under-researched. As, Hodge and Greve (2007) note, although there is intensive interest in the popularity of PPPs, little is understood about these new partnerships in the context of traditional partnerships. Bovaird (2004) argue that although PPPs have become increasingly popular globally over the last 25 years, the definition of PPPs is difficult to conceptualize as it means different things, depending on the country involved and the project to which it applies. Thus further r esearch is necessary for gaining a more profound understanding of PPPs, what the future of PPPs are and how best to model PPPs. This research will therefore add to current knowledge on PPPs by comparing the drivers of PPPs in the UK, the US and Australia. The UK, US and Australia are selected for this study because empirical and

Sexual diversity in schooling Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Sexual diversity in schooling - Essay Example schools in Australia through the education system about sexual diversity and inculcate in them values such as inclusion, respect for others, and fairness. The fact is, however, that sexual diversity remains a controversial topic and has largely been ignored in the education systems (Herron, & Javier, 2006). This essay will criticize the failure of the school education system to incorporate sexual diversity. The essay will also examine the consequences of failing to address these issues and helping to deal with homophobia among children and young people. According to the Australian Journal of Human Rights, sexual diversity refers to one’s experience of gender identity or transgender that goes beyond the binary or biological notions of being either male or female (Steinberg, 2009). Dr. Tracie O’Keefe originally coined the term in his paper about human rights submitted to Amnesty International in 2002. The term has gained wide usage in many circles within Australia. Sexual diversity mostly aims at celebrating diversity in gender identities as opposed to categorizing people in different sexes or genders. Sexual diversity is also a general term referring to individuals who do not identify with either masculinity or femininity with regard to their gender identity. The term includes different groups such as androgynous, transsexual, transexed, cross dressers or transgender. Other terms popular in various parts of Australia include pan-gendered, sistergirl or brotherboy, and intergender (Dijk, & Driel, 2007). Sexual diversity also includes other minority groups such as lesbians, gays, and bisexuals. These groups of individuals have received widespread discrimination and segregation in the community. Sexual diversity has been a major human rights issue in Australia in the past few years, with cases of homophobia, exclusion being on the rise. The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been at the forefront in fighting for inclusion of transgender individuals in

Death Penalty should be legalized Research Paper

Death Penalty should be legalized - Research Paper Example This was to be upheld by all the member states of the UN. From the very beginning, the death penalty had been embroiled in controversy. The aforementioned International Bill of Human Rights was proclaimed in the year 1948, by the UN. However, this did not include any reference to the death penalty. It took nine years of debate, for the UN General Assembly to include a statement regarding the death penalty. This transpired in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Evans). As such, death penalty issues have been accorded a place in human rights. In the societies of the world, the list of penalties tend to be execution, loss of liberty by means of imprisonment or other restrictions on movement, corporal punishment, loss of property, mutilation, such as the amputation of the limbs, and loss of opportunities, such as the revocation of a driver’s license. The list of penalties for crime could vary to some extent, on the basis of the society involved. Nevertheless, deterrence would be the perceived objective of any system of penalties. It is in this context that one has to view a system of criminal justice that does not have a deterrence effect (Davis 23). Such a system would be rejected as being of no worth whatsoever. In addition, several academic studies, conducted in the recent past, have clearly shown that the death penalty has a significant deterrent effect upon murder. The analysts of these studies have declared that between three to eighteen lives could be saved for every convicted murderer who is put to death. In this context, the study conducted by Naci Mocan assumes significance. This study, which was conducted in the year 2003, by Mocan and other researchers determined that every execution would reduce the number of homicides by five. On the other hand, commuting a death sentence would translate into an increase of five in the number of

Gloria Steinem Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Gloria Steinem - Term Paper Example Her grandmother Pauline Steinem was a revered suffragette in her day. But in the early years of Gloria’s life, there was little evidence to suggest that she would uphold her grandmother’s legacy. Since her father had to relocate to new cities very frequently, the young Gloria Steinem could not be enrolled in a regular school. All her early education was provided by her mom at home. This delicate family equilibrium came to an abrupt end, when Gloria was only 8 years old her parents broke off their marriage. Not only was young Gloria deprived of a father figure, she was also thrust into a life of grinding poverty in the next few years. Complicating an already dire situation was her mother’s propensity to suffer mental depression. In the years following the divorce, Steinem’s mother fell into such an abysmal depression that the mother-daughter roles reversed for once and Gloria was left to take care of her ailing mother. When in her late teens, she went to li ve with her elder sister in Washington, D.C., where she enrolled for Smith College. Just as she was about to complete her degree, she got a break which were to prove very significant. In 1956, in the year of her graduation, she got selected for a two year scholarship program in India ((Sondra, 1987). The two years Steinem spent in India during her formative years were to prove profound for her understanding of women’s issues. The experience broadened and deepened her grasp of the status of women in the Third World and how socio-political realities impose severe restrictions for freedom of women. She realized that â€Å"the high standard of living most Americans take for granted was not available to all. She commented at the time that ‘America is an enormous frosted cupcake in the middle of millions of starving people’. She returned strongly motivated to fight social injustice and embarked on her career as a journalist†. (www.gale.cengage.com) Emboldened by her