The Adoption Of Integrated Marketing Communications Essay

The Adoption Of Integrated Marketing Communications - Essay Example Integrated marketing communications is a marketing strategy that is extremely common-sense. IMC is an emerging concept. Therefore, it does not as yet have theoretical framework that is mutually accepted by all academicians or scholars. A number of scholars, however, are contributing to the building of a theory base. That is, in the rapidly changing advertising environment now found in many countries, there has been an inevitable calling for a more coordinated and systematized marketing communication concept and approach, which have often taken the form of Integrated Marketing Communications. Integrated marketing communications has been defined as a management philosophy (Stewart, 1996), an educational movement (Hutton, 1996), and a unifying business practice (Burnett and Moriarty, 1998), among others (cf. Stewart, 1996). These inconsistencies in defining and measuring IMC have prevented the development of a cohesive research stream in this area. In order to build on and extend previous research, we chose to adopt the original definition of Duncan and Everett (1993), who define IMC as "the strategic coordination of all messages and media used by an organization to influence its perceived brand value." The companies, who have adopted integrated marketing communications, use one strategy for everything instead of dividing communications into several departments. It is a re-invented marketing strategy and it must espouse two fundamental principles: 1. The first principle stipulates that marketers should view all forms of media, print, electronic equally. No precedence should be given to one form of media over the other, for example, to newspapers over television etc. Marketers should possess a totally unbiased and prejudice-free approach towards all form of marketing media. 2. The second principle that is a very important part of the marketing strategy is that the people responsible for marketing in every organization must approach all kinds of marketing media with a strategic approach and do proper planning in this regard. The background behind the emergence of IMC comes from three major areas. First, from the corporate or client side, an increasing competitiveness and higher risk in the marketplace brought about by aggressive activities by management's merger and acquisition group have been required simply to meet the consumer's increasingly diverse needs more successfully through a variety of new marketing strategies. Second, from the media and market side, weakening power of traditional marketing and advertising due to the rapid development of information technology has increased the search for more effective and cost-efficient methods in marketing communications. Third, from the consumer side, on-going changes and increasingly diversified consumer lifestyles have encouraged advertisers to develop more elaborate and quicker response communication disciplines. The traditional advertising media base has now been replaced with new forms of media. Thus, the companies now have to adopt new and emerging forms of

Truth Is Absolute Not Relative Essay Example for Free

Truth Is Absolute Not Relative Essay Background of the Topic: Many people nowadays seek for â€Å"THE TRUTH†. I searched up the internet and Google gave me 611 million answers in just a quart of a second. As top answer Google gave me this definition from wisegeek.com, â€Å"An absolute truth, sometimes called a universal truth, is an unalterable and permanent fact. The concept of absolute truths what they are and whether they exist has been debated among many different groups of people. Philosophers have waded in the muck of defining absolute truth for millennia. For example, Plato believed that absolute truth existed, but that truth on earth was merely a shadow of great forms of absolute truth existing in the universe which is now commonly called â€Å"universals†. Alternatively, many believe in relative truths, where facts may vary depending on the circumstances.† Simply put, WHAT’S TRUE TO ME MAY NOT BE TRUE TO YOU. It is however difficult to disprove the concept of absolute truth, since saying that there are no absolute truths that it is absolutely true that no absolute truth exists is itself an absolute truth.† Relationship of the Topic- Main: It will help us to know and recognize the fundamental basis of truth. To me: I firmly believe on absolute truth unlike others. I believe in the absolute truth of the Bible and God as its ultimate source. To the society: Living in a society sharing the same ground that there is an existence of absolute truth would eradicate most of today’s debates on non-significant yet intriguing problems. Also, there is the need of a certain and mutual fundamental basis of the absoluteness of truth and from whence it come forth. Problem: Many of us were blinded about what is truth and a lot of us have different queries regarding what is the real meaning of truth whether it is absolute or relative. Definition of the topic: There are a few things that we all agree are absolutely true, but they depend upon an agreement in definition. ABSOULTE TRUTH: †¢ Truth is discovered not invented †¢ Truth is transcultural: it can be conveyed across different cultures. †¢ Truth is unchanging: it can be conveyed across time. †¢ Beliefs cannot change a truth statement no matter how sincere one may be †¢ Truth is unaffected by the attitude of the one professing it †¢ All Truths are absolute †¢ Truth is knowable In order for truth to be absolute and holding these qualities, it must be grounded in a source that is personal, unchanging, and sovereign over all creation. Relative Truth: Truth is created not discovered. Truth is a matter of perspective and each culture or individual defines for themselves what truth is. †¢ Since truth is invented, there is no universal transcultural truth. Each culture or individual will define truth differently according to their background and perspective. †¢ Truth changes since it is inseparably connected to individuals and cultures which continually change truth perpetually to changes. †¢ Since truth is a matter of a group or individual’s perspective, one’s beliefs can change a truth statement. †¢ Since an individual determines truth, truth is affected by the attitude of the one professing it. †¢ There can be no such thing as absolute truth. †¢ Absolute truth is not knowable. Absolute and objective truth cannot be known since it is built on the shifting foundation of man’s perceptions. As each individual’s perception is different, truth cannot be known. References: Bible and Blogs specifically the Truth Project

Effects Different Types Of Discrimination And Oppression Can Have Social Work Essay

Effects Different Types Of Discrimination And Oppression Can Have Social Work Essay With particular emphasis on education this work will examine the effects different types of discrimination and oppression can have on minority groups in general, before progressing to address the effects on specific minorities. This will include considering the effects, personal, cultural and structural levels of discrimination have on groups such as: ethnic minorities, non-English speaking and disabled and low socio-economic status children. Focus will then shift to evaluate the success some informal measures have had in combating such effects and if they have redressed the balance for societies minority groups. In this respect, the impact of equal opportunities, anti-discriminatory practice, social inclusion, participation and empowerment and advocacy will be analysed through experiences of non-English speaking families, children of different sexual orientations, disabled and traveller children. The inter-relationship of these informal measures will be noted as will the multiplicity and increased magnitude the effects of discrimination will have on children belonging to more than one minority group. Social stratification refers to the way societies rank people into hierarchical categories, this is a means by which one group exerts power over another and can result in minority groups being discriminated against and oppressed when this power is unjust or cruel (Macionis and Plummer 2008). Discrimination can therefore be described as behaviour that has the effect of disadvantaging a particular group of people, and within multi-faceted societies a tendency exists to discriminate against groups based on factors such as gender, disability, religion, race and class (Malik 2009). Thompson (2003) argues, the major outcome of discrimination is oppression and the insidious relationship between the two, is that the former causes the later. Thompson (2006) also refers to his PCS analysis as a framework in recognising discrimination takes place via interlinked and constantly interacting relationships between ones personal feelings, cultural beliefs and messages received from a powerful structural level. This re-enforces the complex nature of the roots and explanations of discriminating behaviour. Adding to the complexities of discrimination are the types and various vehicles used to perpetuate it, one of which is stereotyping which can be both an unconscious and conscious processes (Malik 2009). Through stereotyping, some minority groups are labelled and negative images or expectations are attached to these groups (ibid). The effect of this, for young people from any of the previously mentioned minorities, can result in them engaging in a self-fulfilling prophecy loop, whereby one is conditioned to conform to other peoples expectations of them. Through this process the child will not fulfil their potential in life and their self-perception will be seriously affected resulting in low self-esteem (Malik 2009). Allowing some children to claim social superiority over another group based on race, gender, class and other social groupings, will result in false perceptions about society and an opposite self-fulfilling prophecy (Lindon 2004). The notion of racial discrimination resulting in low self-esteem was examined by Clark and Clark in a study into the effects of discrimination on self-perception of black children. They concluded, racial discrimination resulted in black children entering a cycle of self-hatred based on skin colour and consequently positive peer group identification suffered (Sturt 2000). In addition, children from ethnic minorities are at greater risk, than their non-ethnic minority peers, of experiencing direct discrimination in an educational setting through name calling or physical abuse from other children. This may result in negative feelings including isolation/exclusion from mainstream society, low self-worth, culminating in low educational attainment thus constructing barriers to future employment, health and life chances (United Nations 2000). This may be further compounded if these children do not have English as their first language, with non-English speaking parents and without adequate language support within the structure of the school setting. Discrimination such as this may be described as unconscious or institutionalised, or both, affecting a childs emotional, social and cognitive development whilst giving rise to feelings of; lack of cultural dignity, being ignored and avoided with a general lack of independence or empowerment leading to depression (Moonie et al 2000). This example provides a working illustration of interactions and relationships between Thompsons personal, cultural and structural levels of discrimination (Thompson 2006). Concerns over institutionalised and unconscious discrimination towards disabled children within school playgrounds were highlighted, in recent research by Wooley et al (2006). The effects of organisational, social, physical and attitudinal barriers on disabled children ranged from; shortened or no break-times, grouping all disabled children together during breaks, heightened concerns over risk taking resulting in limited play opportunities thus exclusion from peers, a disproportionate length of playtime spent in exclusively adult company to the playground environment not being adapted to suit the needs of disabled children (ibid). This gives rise to concerns including; isolation and exclusion of disabled children, educational institutions fostering a learned helplessness self-concept, and the increased probability of re-enforcing negative stereotypes of disabled children (Wooley et al 2006). The impact of discrimination for disabled children is heightened within education for those with dual memberships to minority groups, such as belonging to a low socio-economic group and being disabled (Oliver 2009). Effects of discrimination on disabled children outlined above, coupled with evidence that poorer children do not attain the level of qualifications their better off peers aspire to, are significant (Gentleman 2009). This is linked to a lack of equivalent advice, mentoring and support available to middle class children, as well a lack of finances playing a role in lower leaving age and non-take up of further/ higher education (ibid). The implications of belonging to poorer families has a bearing on childrens health, diet and impinges on all areas of development which then discriminates against high educational achievement, and low expectations of such children is reflected in results throughout the education system (Harman 2010). Bernstein (2003) further argues, through his elaborated and restricted code theory, lower class children are discriminated from any learning environment, as they are more comfortable using a restricted language code which assigns significantly different meanings to spoken language than their middle class peers who use an elaborated language code. He explains educators use this elaborated code, thereby discriminating against working classes, resulting in these children turning away from education due to feelings of; inferiority, boredom and not being represented in educational role models, resulting in low grades hence a repetitive cycle of generational poverty (ibid). Effects including those outlined above are a growing concern for society and have highlighted the increasing need to tackle discrimination with a positive attitude to change. Thus resulting in a two-pronged approach, using best practice/informal measures underpinned by formal legislation/policies (Millam 2002). Informal measures are not mutually exclusive in tackling discrimination. This is illustrated by elements of anti-discriminatory practice overlapping, supplementing and feeding into equal opportunities and social inclusion, thus promoting participation, hence enabling empowerment and advocacy (Malik 2009). Promoting equal opportunities within education is crucial if unfair inequalities between groups are to be successfully addressed (UN 2000). Therefore in schools which have children from ethnic minorities whose first language is not English, all barriers should be eliminated to ensure full participation from the child and their family (Moonie et al 2000). This might include ensuring newsletters and welcome signs within school can be understood by all families, arranging interpreters during parent/school consultations and providing children with individual support within the classroom (ibid). It is also important associated negative stereotypical images are eradicated from books within the classroom, and might also involve cultural and religious differences being celebrated by encouraging appropriate culture tables to be displayed and discussed (MIllam 2002). Whilst this informal measure might redress some imbalances and promote equal opportunities for non-English speaking children, teachers unions are concerned about the added burdens this incurs. Their worries relate to increased financial and resource pressures on individual schools and local educational authorities arguing promoting equal opportunities to this minority group seriously undermines the quality of education given to pupils as a whole (Kirkup 2007). Applying equal opportunities through anti-discriminatory-practice to eradicate discrimination and oppression can be aided by using Thomsons PCS analysis to understand and challenge such behaviour (Thompson 2006). Applying this theory to explain why children and teachers might practice hetrosexualism reveals that personal, direct prejudice against gays, lesbians or bisexuals is commonplace and rarely challenged, this is re-enforced culturally by negative stereotypical images and jokes aimed at this minority group and is backed up structurally by being seen as threatening to religious beliefs and family values (ibid). Understanding this relationship allows anti-discriminatory practice to be actioned on all three levels by; challenging discriminatory language, whether delivered through jokes or otherwise (Teacher Net 2007). Ensuring discussions are raised within school settings in order to eliminate negative stereotypes associated with persons of ] different sexual orientations, warrant ing all books do not depict only typical nuclear families and promoting sexual diversity in society in a non-threatening but serious manner (ibid). Some of the afore-mentioned anti-discriminatory practices may be relatively easily implemented in primary school settings, however, secondary schools prove more challenging environments to confront such discrimination and deep rooted prejudices (Curtis 2008). In some secondary schools staff report being afraid to challenge homophobia for fear of making themselves targets of abuse, or being seen to promote homosexuality. Teachers also feel they will not be supported by parents if they tackle homophobic behavior (ibid). This again highlights the interplay between Thompsons PCS levels and the direct, indirect and institutionalized nature, within education, of discrimination against this minority group (Thompson 2006). Social inclusion of disabled and special educational needs (SEN) children into mainstream education has been embraced by the Scottish Government (2007) whose main aim was, the achievement of equal access to, and participation in skills and learning for everyone, including those trapped by persistent disadvantage. CSIE (2008) believes inequalities and discrimination will reduce as a result of integration. Through valuing diversities between students and embracing all types of learners within the school community they see developmental benefits to all children. Integration is viewed as integral to the de-structuring of physical, societal, attitudinal and legal barriers confronted by disabled learners (ibid). There is however growing concern appropriate staff training and increased numbers of specialist staff are not in place within Scottish Education to make social inclusion of disabled children work (Montgomery 2004). These concerns are added to when statistics of exclusions from Scot tish Schools show that children with SENs in mainstream education are three times more likely to be excluded than non SEN children and thirteen times more likely if the child is also in receipt of free school meals and looked after by a local authority (Scottish Government 2008). Many minority groups feel their voices are not heard and their level of participation in decision making is compromised, this can be a particular concern for children as this ageism can lead to discrimination (ATL 2010). Schools can address this by practicing simple measures ensuring participation such as: children deciding on story endings, meaningful decision making through representative pupil councils and involvement in writing positive behaviour policies (ibid). Engaging children in participation and by listening to their views raises self-esteem and equips children with valuable decision making skills (Clark n.d.). The quality and degree of participation can be assessed using Harts Ladder of Participation; which shows the higher the level of participation the more autonomous the child feels. It also outlines the dangers in appearing to allow children to participate which may be simply tokenistic or manipulative on the part of the adult (Fletcher 2008). Levels of participation links to increased empowerment and the minority group of traveller/gypsy children has consistently been identified as segregated from society and requiring advocacy in order to have equal opportunities (STEP 2009). Due to racial discrimination, cultural mistrust of educational establishments, and the nomadic nature of their lives, the uptake of education has been low and has been influential in rendering empowerment out of reach to the majority of travelling children. In efforts to combat this inequality and provide much needed advocacy, outreach teachers educate the children in their communities whilst trying to encourage mainstream take-up (OHanlon and Holmes 2004). This approach has had limited success in bridging the equality gap and eliminating discrimination and oppression, but has had some success at promoting more positive images of travellers and providing/maintaining vital links with other services (Myers and Bhopal 2009). It is hoped this analysis has been successful in highlighting devastating life-long impacts discrimination and oppression can have on the lives of minority groups in society. These effects span all developmental areas and can result in compromised health, education, life chances thus impinging access to societal services. Complexities surrounding why people discriminate against minority groups can be better understood and more effectively challenged using Thompsons PCS theory. Whilst informal measures are important factors in combating discrimination and oppression their success concerning some minority groups is measured, illustrated in problems encountered by education services integrating disabled children within mainstream education. General consensus appears to be; more funding and training is required rendering this workable. Similarly promoting equal opportunities to non-English speaking children is important, making significant differences to cultural identity and inclusion within the wider community but financial concerns arise. Informal measures have had little impact on travelling communities as they are still generally socially-excluded. Negating effects of discrimination is a complex balancing act with no easy solution.

Themes used in the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet Essays -- Literary Anal

The theme of the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is entertainment. This is proven thought the play through use of comedy, drama, romance, and conflict. This style brought people of all ages, mindsets, and social classes to see the play since it used the mixture instead of just a single genre of entertainment. The result was Romeo and Juliet being very entertaining, profitable, and generally succeeding in its purpose. The use of comedy was usually through sexual puns and double entendre like â€Å" ’Tis true, and therefore women, being the weaker vessels, are ever thrust to the wall. Therefore I will push Montague’s men from the wall and thrust his maids to the wall† (1.1.15-18) and â€Å"My naked weapon is out. Quarrel, I will back thee.†(1.1.33-34).These sexual puns almost always solved the problems with traditional comedy not being funny to all social classes nor mindsets. The other type of comedy in the play was more traditional like the panicked start of the fight at the beginning â€Å"Do you bite your thumb at us, sir? I do bite my thumb sir. Do you bite your thumb at us, sir? [Aside to Gregory] Is the law of our side if I say â€Å"Ay†? [Aside to Sampson] no. No, sir, I do not bite my thumb at you, sir, but I bite my thumb sir.†(1.1.44-52). This comedy also broke the wall between the social classes and mindsets since scenes like this were funny to almost everyone. Both types of comedy usually were funny to almost everyone since they did not depend on certain situations which only a select few would usually experience. Thus this made the play even better at its purpose of entertainment. The use of drama throughout the play is most prevalent in the last few acts but is also shown thought the rest of the play. When Romeo is... ... Montagues and Capulets. For example the first combat is caused by that hatred alone "My naked weapon is out. Quarrel, I will back thee. How? Turn thy back and run? Fear me not. No, marry. I fear thee! Let us take the law of our sides; let them begin. I will frown as I pass by, and let them take it as they list. Nay, as they dare. I will bite my thumb at them, which is disgrace to them if they bear it." (1.1.33-43). The actual combat was presented quickly after this in this fashion "Draw if you be men. - Gregory, remember thy washing blow. They fight. Part fools! [Drawing his sword.] Put up your swords. You know not what you do."(1.1.63-65). These elements were all combined in Romeo and Juliet and put to use to make an interesting plot for the purpose of entertainment.This was a sucess as shown by how long this has been an interesting play to watch and listen to.

Definition of Mobility Essay

1.1 – Give a Definition of Mobility The definition of mobility is the ability to move body parts, and the ability to move from place to place as well as sitting down and getting up. 1.2 – Identify and Explain Health Conditions That Can Affect Mobility Some health conditions that can affect mobility are age, arthritis, strokes, heart attacks, infections, fracture of bones and possibly mental issues. Arthritis can affect mobility due to the joints hurting or going stiff making mobility harder for the individual. Heart attacks and strokes can affect mobility due to an individual’s balance possibly being impaired but also due to possible paralysis of one side of the body. Mental issues could affect mobility due to someone’s confidence possibly going due to a fall etc. 1.3 – Outline the Effects That Reduced Mobility May Have on Individual Well – being. Reduced mobility and movement may have different impacts on different people; some people may be able to cope better with it than others. Some people may lose their confidence and sense of self, some people may develop depression due not being able to do as much as they used to. Reduced mobility and movement may affect people’s personal relationships, moods. It can also affect a person’s social life due to possibly not being able to leave the house etc. It can also affect a person’s day to day life for example personal care, food preparation to being able to make meals and cups of tea. 1.4 – Describe the Benefits of Maintaining and Improving Mobility for the Individual The benefits of maintaining and improving mobility for individuals are great; it can help with the physical and emotional well – being of the individual. The physical benefits include keeping good circulation and muscle strength; it can help to maintain a steady weight of the individual. Simply put if you don’t encourage an individual to keep their mobility and movement then the muscles waste away, for example if you were to keep a mobile individual bed ridden their muscles in turn will waste away impairing their movement and mobility. Also in some cases physiotherapy can also help to build up the muscle strength etc. enabling reduced movement to possibly increase. The emotional well – being of maintaining and improving mobility for an individual is very important as when someone has reduced movement and ability it can affect their social life, social skills, self-esteem a nd confidence and can also lead to depression, which in a nutshell if you can  improve the mobility and movement of an individual can reduce the risk of depression, can enhance self-esteem and confidence and also can enable them to have a social life. Who Would You Report Progress and / or Problems to? If I noticed progress or problems relating to an individual’s mobility and movement I would always note this down in the Care Log and I would also inform my co-ordinator of any issues, my co-ordinator would then report it to possibly doctors, nurses and also to the occupational health team which could either sort out the use of equipment or could implement anything that could help the individual for example extra care or even reduced care and reduced equipment. How Would You Report the Following Problems and / or Progress Relating to Mobility? – Choice of Activities, equipment, appliances and support provided. I would always be vigilant in my work and the care I provide to see if I could notice any changes to an individual in regards to all aspects of their care including mobility. I would also read care notes that have been written by other carers involved in their care and also possibly family members and healthcare professionals etc. If I noticed any changes at all in regards to what activities they chose for example if they stopped wanting to go out etc. I would always ask them the reasons for this and listen to the reasons (these reasons could be something along the lines of don’t feel confident enough and feel off balance) I would write these concerns down in the Care Log and also report to my co-ordinator, senior carer or manager to possibly look at implementing additional support for their choice of activities. If there was an issue with the equipment for example needed different equipment as it wasn’t suitable or even that they didn’t need the equipment again I would write it down and log it in the Care Log as well as reporting to co-ordinator, senior carer or manager, they would then report this to the occupational health team who would then organise for an assessment of the equipment in place and if necessary change or alter the equipment to suit the individual’s needs at that time. If there was an issue with appliances for example couldn’t work the cooker anymore etc. again I would record my findings in the Care Log along with to my co-ordinator,  senior carer and manager, I would also see if I could speak to the family to see what they suggested and also to see if I could suggest anything for example a microwave instead of a cooker and maybe bigger handled cutlery instead or normal cutlery etc. If I had a problem with the support provided I would again rec ord in the Care Log along with my co-ordinator, senior carer and manager. These concerns would possibly be told to the family and also could be reported to healthcare professionals along with the individuals social worker.

Free Essays on Compare Contrast

]... Free Essays on Compare Contrast Free Essays on Compare Contrast The death penalty capital punishment vs. life in prison is the legal infliction of the persons convicted of a severe crime. Today, in modern law, the death penalty is corporal punishment in its most severe form along with life in prison. Death penalty is irreversible: it ends the existence of those punished, instead of temporarily imprisoning them. The differences between the death penalty and life in prison are distinct but have different consequences. The first type of penalty is the death penalty. It’s classified to be the most severe punishment for criminals that have committed the most severe crimes such as murder or rape. Statistics like these show that some criminals are not effected by the penalties we give them. In 1993, criminals on parole committed 84,800 crimes, this included 13,200 murders, 12,900 rapes and 49,500 robberies.(www.prodeathpenalty.com) The death penalty has the potential to be a very effective deterrent. The average inmate spends 9 years on death row costing the state substantial amounts of money. Life in prison is a second type of severe punishment; for criminals that commit severe crimes but maybe not as serious as murder. Life in prison is imprisonment without parole, the convicted is never released even with good behavior. Criminals are sent to a state or federal prison where they stay locked up but can work in the prison for money and get an education. On average it costs three million dollars for a life without parole inmate. This cost is from the $60,000 a year for the cell for 6 years and 1.5 million dollars for the trial.(www.prodeathpenalty.com) I think from the statistics shown, the death penalty might be a more effective deterrent. [337 words]...

Content Marketing Tips Should Never Be Trusted

Content Marketing Tips Should Never Be Trusted You shouldnt trust everything that you read on this blog. In fact, you probably shouldnt trust anything you read on any blog.  Doing so may actually be bad for your marketing. Why? Most Content Marketing Tips Are 100% Totally Made Up Content marketing tips are usually made up, and why wouldnt they be? Everything is made up these days – even scientific research. In a recent study, economists found that nearly all studies published in economics journals are likely to be wrong. After studying  49 papers in leading journals that had been cited by more than 1,000 other scientists, researcher  John Ioannidis found that  within only a few years, almost a third of the papers had been refuted by other studies. Yikes! Things arent much better in the medical field. Author  David Freedman published in his book Wrong  that about two-thirds of the findings published in the top medical journals are refuted within a few years. Even worse, as much as 90% of physicians medical knowledge has been found to be substantially or completely wrong according to  Time Magazines  article on the books findings. As much as 90% of physicians medical knowledge has been found to be substantially or completelyAre you finding this a bit creepy? You should be, and it should give you all the less reason to trust your friendly neighborhood content marketing professional  carte blanche. Most of what they say is full of crap someone has to say it. All Content Marketers Are Liars Heres the thing – too much marketing these days is based on what some other guy told me to do, and not enough on what our data told us to do, and thats a real problem. This post is about putting the other guys ideas on trial, and making sure that their tips actually work – for you. It may sound obvious, but it begs a reminder – never trust marketing advice that you havent tested.

Free Essays on Pygmalion Effect

Most people have heard about the Pygmalion effect, or the possibilities of effecting ones behavior by your belief in their ability. This is also known as the self fulfilling prophecy (Digest, 2003) the effect was highlighted in the play â€Å"My Fair Lady,† this was where Eliza Doolittle’s success was enhanced by Professor Higgins belief in her ability. Is it possible to affect one’s behavior by your belief in their ability, or is this just fallacy? During everyday life this theory might not be recognizable; to the average person it might not even be important. But what happens when the person effecting behavior is in the position of authority? What say a teacher, how would their opinion affect the performance of a student. Just for a moment think about the first day of a new semester, a group of students enter the room. The group consists of black, fat, skinny and white students; some are what you might call beautiful, some ugly with acne. Also mixed in with the group are the usual jocks (sport motivated) and the young teenage girls that spend their free time with daddies BMW whopping it up at the mall. At the end of the line arrive the poor, lower class students whose parents are unemployed, dad just lost his job at the mill type. You stand at the front of the classroom surveying the new recruits. Would you categorize these students, judge them in anyway? Or would you look freely across the room without any pre-judgment? Teachers all over the world encounter this problem everyday. Take the fat black student, he sits in class everyday, never takes a note and scores a 100% on the first test. What is your first reaction? Do you congratulate him, or do you try and remember who he was sitting next to? Conversely when the handsome upper class student scores 100%, is your reaction the same or different? We categorize people everyday. America is one of many countries where success is directly related to the amount of worldly poss... Free Essays on Pygmalion Effect Free Essays on Pygmalion Effect Most people have heard about the Pygmalion effect, or the possibilities of effecting ones behavior by your belief in their ability. This is also known as the self fulfilling prophecy (Digest, 2003) the effect was highlighted in the play â€Å"My Fair Lady,† this was where Eliza Doolittle’s success was enhanced by Professor Higgins belief in her ability. Is it possible to affect one’s behavior by your belief in their ability, or is this just fallacy? During everyday life this theory might not be recognizable; to the average person it might not even be important. But what happens when the person effecting behavior is in the position of authority? What say a teacher, how would their opinion affect the performance of a student. Just for a moment think about the first day of a new semester, a group of students enter the room. The group consists of black, fat, skinny and white students; some are what you might call beautiful, some ugly with acne. Also mixed in with the group are the usual jocks (sport motivated) and the young teenage girls that spend their free time with daddies BMW whopping it up at the mall. At the end of the line arrive the poor, lower class students whose parents are unemployed, dad just lost his job at the mill type. You stand at the front of the classroom surveying the new recruits. Would you categorize these students, judge them in anyway? Or would you look freely across the room without any pre-judgment? Teachers all over the world encounter this problem everyday. Take the fat black student, he sits in class everyday, never takes a note and scores a 100% on the first test. What is your first reaction? Do you congratulate him, or do you try and remember who he was sitting next to? Conversely when the handsome upper class student scores 100%, is your reaction the same or different? We categorize people everyday. America is one of many countries where success is directly related to the amount of worldly poss...

Sovereign Hill in Ballarat is a classic example of 'staged Essay

Sovereign Hill in Ballarat is a classic example of 'staged authenticity, outline some of the challenges that the tourism operator faces in trying to commercial - Essay Example Sovereign Hill is a multidimensional attraction that depicts the Australian town of Ballarat, around the mid-nineteenth century, about ten years after the discovery of gold in 1851. The attraction offers an excellent example of a â€Å"living† museum, â€Å"presenting the mining and social history of Australia’s gold rush era† (Buhalis & Costa, 2005: 209). The township is spread over sixty acres of land, has around sixty buildings, 300 costumed staff, 200 costumed volunteers and around 40 horses. The gold rush museum promotes visitor participation and authentic experience through role playing, interactions with characters, and the buildings and artefacts. This is supported by a modern orientation centre which familiarizes visitors with the background of the gold rushes in the 1850s, with the help of audio and video. The tourist destination offers several interesting experiences including activities, events, festivals and a sound and light show â€Å"Blood on the Southern Cross† with spectacular lighting and special effects (Buhalis & Costa: 209). Sovereign Hill in Ballarat is a classic example of â€Å"staged authenticity†. This paper proposes to outline some of the challenges faced by the tourism operator in trying to commercialize the tourist destination, while at the same time attempting to maintain an authentic experience for the visitors. A tourist destination is not only a geographical place, it is an integration of products, services, natural resources, built environment, artificial elements and information that attracts a number of visitors to a place (Bieger: 8). The stakeholders are: actual and potential tourists, public administration, tourism operators, conductors of local private tourism activities, operators of non-local tourism activities and the host community. The main objective of tourism operators is the integration of different resources to provide facilities and activities based on policy. Tourism should â€Å"meet the needs of different

Operational Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Operational Plan - Essay Example Smart Pay acts as the intermediary between these business associations, because it holds money for the buyers and seller alike. Smart Ville is a very large company, and it has employed over 5000 direct employees in the countries in which it operates. The company also has agencies, and through its agencies, the company has employed over 7000 people. On this basis, the total number of people employed by Smart Ville is 12,000 people. The headquarters of Smart Ville is found in California, and it is at this place that all the senior management of the company is found. The mission of Smart Ville is to make it possible for people to communicate across the world in a fast, efficient, and affordable manner. The vision of the company is to be a leading company in providing services in telecommunication. The company aims to control 6o% of the telecommunications market in the world. The company values honesty, integrity and kindness amongst its employees, and any person that is dealing with the company. The head of this company is the president. The president of the company is elected by the organizations share holders, and he normally serves a period of three year, before he or she is then elected. The president has the duty of directing all the employees of an organization into implementing and undertaking the various policies of the organization (Strydom, 69). Furthermore, the president oversees other heads of department in the creation of the long term strategies of the company. This includes in production, as well as marketing strategies. Furthermore, the president of this company is responsible for reviewing the financial statements of each and every department of the organization, for purposes of ensuring that these departments work within their established budgets. It is also the responsibility of the president of the company to communicate new policies, or a shift in the managerial style of the company.

Term paper english Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

English - Term Paper Example Characters allow us to transport ourselves into the life of another person, if only for a time, to experience things we never before felt possible. Two examples of this truth are William Faulkner’s ‘A Rose for Emily’ and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s ‘Young Goodman Brown’. Characters are critical to the effectiveness of these stories because they work to develop the plot, provide conflict, and create a protagonist or antagonist that the reader can empathize with. The Plot Faulkner revolutionized story telling with his unique way of organizing a book. ‘A Rose for Emily’ certainly demonstrates this by the way Faulkner divides the book into five distinct sections. In so doing, he is able to develop the main character (Emily) in a systematic manner. We begin by seeing Emily in the twilight of her life, after she died, and how nearly the entire town came to her funeral. By beginning at the ending point of the main character’s life, Faulk ner builds his plot around the entire life of the character. He continues this strategy by moving a second section of the story. Here, the author describes events in Emily’s life from 30 years previous to her death. We gain perspective into the tenacity of the character and her willingness to fight any inquiries into her life made by the townspeople. Faulkner is further developing the plot by enabling us to the private side of Emily and how this contributes to her overall persona. The plot thickens in sections 3 and 4 as Faulkner describes various events in his characters life. The picture is of a town that is deeply concerned about Emily and foreshadows her eventual death. The plot climaxes in the final section of story by continuing where the first section left off. Had Faulkner not included the middle three sections of the story, the reader would be left at a loss as to why Emily would have such a lasting legacy on the town. The final section describes the events after Emi ly’s death and builds on the plot until the end. This type of storytelling is ingenious because the plot is truly built around the main character. The reader can follow along as various events are told and events foreshadowed. Nathaniel Hawthorne developed his stories much differently than Faulkner, yet the characters in his stories remain central to the development of the plot as well. As Leibowtiz noted in one of his essays on Hawthorne, â€Å"Hawthorne utilized characters and ideas for his own artistic purposes† (120). One such example of this is the story ‘Young Goodman Brown’. As in most of Hawthorne’s books, this story has a religious underpinning to it. To get to the message, however, the reader is taken on a journey with Goodman Brown. Once again, Hawthorne is like Faulkner in that the story is developed around one main character. This gives Hawthorne a unique ability to really develop everything about a character. Here, the entire story rev olves around Goodman Brown. From the very beginning of the story, when Goodman Brown says goodbye to his wife and that he’ll be back in a day, the plot develops quickly as the main character sets off on a series of unexpected adventures. Through various meetings and recollections from Goodman Brown himself, the reader begins to understand the shame and heartache he feels towards many of his relationships and acquaintances in life. It is through these musings that the entire plot is based. The story is quite simple really: Is Goodman Brown going to return home to Faith or not?

Wine marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Wine marketing - Essay Example This report mainly focuses on the online trend of wine retail marketing which are growing with the emergent of new technologies and sophisticated techniques over the internet network. With more technological development day by day online e-commerce system can generate a great prospect for online wine retail business ventures. Online Wine Retail Business Online wine retail business is growing fast with technological inventions. There are various advantages for starting a retail business online. Due to the cost cut as there is no physical space for the shop or floor staffs or other rents in the business process the online retailer will be able to offer products at a very low cost than the competitors who are retailing from shops physically in different shops and supermarkets. In online retailing the customer have the choice sit back comfortably at home and place their order for wines without any hassle of travelling. With this growing demand from the customers the online wine retailing business venture can be very effective way for any company to grab the market share. Through online retailing the company can have a wider reach to the customers worldwide and can increase their sale but on the other hand there are certain drawbacks also for online wine retailing like customers are not able to get a tangible product in their hand which is not preferred by many customers and since there are no direct contact with the customer face to face it’s not possible for the company to convince them to generate the lead (Aerator for Wine, 2011). Products and Services Offered Online wine store can quickly transform the visitors of the website into customers if they find the products and services interesting enough and relevant to their needs. Online wine retailer will have to offer wines of different brands for every need of the customers. Different wines ranging from red wines, sparkling, valentine, white wine, champagne and various others should be available online wit h their detailed information. The company should update information of the website regularly so as to understand the stock available for the products and will also give the customer an image about the popularity of the website. The company can offer discount count coupons on different occasions for their loyal customers and can also start the service of membership card to avail various benefits from the company. The company should also send e-mail notification to the customers to make them aware about their offers and products. Market Analysis Market Segmentation Market segmentation is the strategy by which the company divides the market and target a specific group of customers for a particular product. Porter’s Generic model is a very useful tool for analyzing the market and selects the possible route for entering into the market. Figure 1: Porter's Generic Model (Source: Kreitner, 2008, p. 184) Cost Leadership Cost leadership strategy is used to penetrate the market in a co mpetitive environment by keeping the price low from others. Price sensitive customers are often attracted by this type of strategy. Differentiation Strategy Differentiating the product from the competitors’ product is another strategy used by companies. Distinctive features of the specific product are highlighted to the customers. Focus Strategy This is the niche marketing technique

Contemporary Issues In Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Contemporary Issues In Marketing - Essay Example Industrial marketing is another contemporary marketing aspect. It entails changing the focus from the end products to capital goods. Industrial marketing utilizes advertising, promotion and communication to consumers in order to increase the sales. In the same way, companies are currently using social marketing as an avenue of generating benefits for members of the society. In order to reach customers regardless of their location, organizations adopt e-marketing that involve use of internet to market their products. This has been achieved through the advancement of technology in the contemporary world. Ethics in Coca-Cola Company Coca-Cola Company maintains corporate governance guidelines that depict the approaches adopted by the company in order to enhance corporate governance that is vital in meeting the needs of its consumers and employees. In order to ensure accountability and transparency in the company, Coca-Cola management team undertakes regular reviews of its system. The rev iew is also undertaken to achieve international ethical practises thus ensuring the company retains its leadership in the soft drink industry. Code of business conduct is one of the major aspects that are adopted by directors, employees and other associates in order to enhance integrity and honesty during the performance of their duties. Any time new directors or employees are hired by the company, they should study and understand the ethics concepts that are covered by the code. In this way, they effectively emulate the required ethical procedures during their duties. The company also has put in place Ethics & Compliance Committee whose responsibilities include administering the Code. Other duties of the... The paper work studies the aspects of social marketing as an avenue of generating benefits for members of the society. In the contemporary world, marketing has been influenced by various aspects that include technology development, customer relationship management, globalization and stiff competition. To ensure that companies remain competitive and the sales volume are increased, it is imperative to ensure that ethical issues are appropriately addressed during the operations of any company. Coca-Cola Company, the world market leader in the soft drink industry has portrayed effective ways of dealing with ethical issues. Despite the criticism that faced the company mostly from India, Coca-Cola has not been left behind as far as undertaking social responsibilities is concerned. This has resulted to creation of strong customer-company relationship which has seen the company sales increase over the years. Another essential marketing aspect that Coca-Cola has adopted is effective segmentat ion of its market. Meeting of its customer needs is an important aspect that Coca-Cola has initiated in its effort to win customer’s loyalty and trust. This has been achieved through segmentation of its market based on the location and behaviours of its customers among other aspects as depicted in the discussion above. Additionally, Coca-Cola has embarked on various strategies in order to improve its brand awareness. These include extensive advertisement of its brands especially via its website and other avenues.

Cochlear Implants and the Culture of Deafness Essay

Cochlear Implants and the Culture of Deafness - Essay Example This paper will examine whether the introduction of the neonatal hearing screening program has changed how the deaf community thinks about cochlear implants and further highlights the role the deaf community and cochlear implants advocates. A social model of deafness is part of disability that is linked to arising from the disabled people themselves, friends, family members, associated political and social networks. One aspect that discourages the understanding of an impaired condition by the promoter of cochlear implants is lack of impression. The Deaf Community insists that arguments concerning the deaf be made from the perspective of the deaf party and not his parents or the society. There are individuals in the society who do not understand the use of cochlear implants on the hearing impaired. In this case, they tend to assume the use without exactly knowing what they are meant for. Such insinuations obvious in the society neglect the deaf person’s opinion. While the techn ology may be useful in trying to boost a person’s self-esteem it is only convenient as aiding device and not as a curative one. Children’s deafness persists on a bionic ear, while their hearing is still impaired. This defeats the relevance of the hearing aid. To assert further on needlessness of the bionic ear, cochlear implants cannot aid in improving a person’s cognitive or their language skills. Users of cochlear implants will, therefore, be still dependent on other persons who do not have hearing impairment issues in their day to day lives. The deaf persons will require translation and adaptive learning process in order to fit in the social structure of the hearing population. Deaf persons and other individuals with hearing ‘problems’ go-ahead to form their own structures of social interaction that enhances their own method of communication. Such groups may include those of persons with cochlear implants.

Wine marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Wine marketing - Essay Example This report mainly focuses on the online trend of wine retail marketing which are growing with the emergent of new technologies and sophisticated techniques over the internet network. With more technological development day by day online e-commerce system can generate a great prospect for online wine retail business ventures. Online Wine Retail Business Online wine retail business is growing fast with technological inventions. There are various advantages for starting a retail business online. Due to the cost cut as there is no physical space for the shop or floor staffs or other rents in the business process the online retailer will be able to offer products at a very low cost than the competitors who are retailing from shops physically in different shops and supermarkets. In online retailing the customer have the choice sit back comfortably at home and place their order for wines without any hassle of travelling. With this growing demand from the customers the online wine retailing business venture can be very effective way for any company to grab the market share. Through online retailing the company can have a wider reach to the customers worldwide and can increase their sale but on the other hand there are certain drawbacks also for online wine retailing like customers are not able to get a tangible product in their hand which is not preferred by many customers and since there are no direct contact with the customer face to face it’s not possible for the company to convince them to generate the lead (Aerator for Wine, 2011). Products and Services Offered Online wine store can quickly transform the visitors of the website into customers if they find the products and services interesting enough and relevant to their needs. Online wine retailer will have to offer wines of different brands for every need of the customers. Different wines ranging from red wines, sparkling, valentine, white wine, champagne and various others should be available online wit h their detailed information. The company should update information of the website regularly so as to understand the stock available for the products and will also give the customer an image about the popularity of the website. The company can offer discount count coupons on different occasions for their loyal customers and can also start the service of membership card to avail various benefits from the company. The company should also send e-mail notification to the customers to make them aware about their offers and products. Market Analysis Market Segmentation Market segmentation is the strategy by which the company divides the market and target a specific group of customers for a particular product. Porter’s Generic model is a very useful tool for analyzing the market and selects the possible route for entering into the market. Figure 1: Porter's Generic Model (Source: Kreitner, 2008, p. 184) Cost Leadership Cost leadership strategy is used to penetrate the market in a co mpetitive environment by keeping the price low from others. Price sensitive customers are often attracted by this type of strategy. Differentiation Strategy Differentiating the product from the competitors’ product is another strategy used by companies. Distinctive features of the specific product are highlighted to the customers. Focus Strategy This is the niche marketing technique

Cochlear Implants and the Culture of Deafness Essay

Cochlear Implants and the Culture of Deafness - Essay Example This paper will examine whether the introduction of the neonatal hearing screening program has changed how the deaf community thinks about cochlear implants and further highlights the role the deaf community and cochlear implants advocates. A social model of deafness is part of disability that is linked to arising from the disabled people themselves, friends, family members, associated political and social networks. One aspect that discourages the understanding of an impaired condition by the promoter of cochlear implants is lack of impression. The Deaf Community insists that arguments concerning the deaf be made from the perspective of the deaf party and not his parents or the society. There are individuals in the society who do not understand the use of cochlear implants on the hearing impaired. In this case, they tend to assume the use without exactly knowing what they are meant for. Such insinuations obvious in the society neglect the deaf person’s opinion. While the techn ology may be useful in trying to boost a person’s self-esteem it is only convenient as aiding device and not as a curative one. Children’s deafness persists on a bionic ear, while their hearing is still impaired. This defeats the relevance of the hearing aid. To assert further on needlessness of the bionic ear, cochlear implants cannot aid in improving a person’s cognitive or their language skills. Users of cochlear implants will, therefore, be still dependent on other persons who do not have hearing impairment issues in their day to day lives. The deaf persons will require translation and adaptive learning process in order to fit in the social structure of the hearing population. Deaf persons and other individuals with hearing ‘problems’ go-ahead to form their own structures of social interaction that enhances their own method of communication. Such groups may include those of persons with cochlear implants.

World History Essay Example for Free

World History Essay Buddhism was founded in India during the 6th century and brought to China by the first century. Buddhism spread widely and cause china to have a period of political instability and disunity, but then later restored the imperial structure. By going from India to China, it had mixed results. Many Chinese accepted Buddhism and defended it while other observed Buddhism’s absence from past texts and used it as an excuse for political and social problems. Still others remained indifferent hoping that it would all work itself out and develop into a unified Chinese culture. Documents 2 and 3 defend and encourage Buddhism while 4 and 6 scrutinize and discourage its spread. Documents 1 and 5 neither encourage or discourage the religions spread, they simply state how it should be dealt with. An additional document that would be helpful would be a chart or graph that showed the number of people who converted to Buddhism. It would be helpful to see which group of documents was correct or who was just over-reacting. Documents 2 and 3 defend and support the spread of Buddhism. Document 2 speaks of the many joys, including Nirvana, of joining Buddhism. However, the author, Zhi Dun is part of the upper class and does not have a point of view from the lower class, which made up most of the population. Document 3 counters the scrutiny of anti-Buddhists with logic. However, since the author is anonymous, his influence in the document is difficult to pinpoint, yet his role as a scholar certainly dictates a slight upper class position, just like document 2. Documents 4 and 6 both discourage the spread and use of Buddhism. Document 4 ridicules Buddhism as â€Å"a cult of barbarian peoples,† saying how Confucianism is all truth and Buddhism is all lies. Of course Han Yu’s position in the imperial court makes his opinions 20 times more powerful than any peasants. Document 6 blames Buddhism for all of the problems in Chinese society. Since the author is Emperor Wu himself, it is very likely that his opinions carried a lot of importance in his nation, even though people sometimes adopt prohibited acts merely in attempt to rebel against the law. Documents 1 and 5 neither encourage or discourage Buddhism’s spread in China, but attempt to negotiate. Document 1 is directly from the Buddhist tradition, laying down the basic laws and guides to a happy and enlightened life. Since the document is taken straight from sacred texts, it was most likely the beliefs of all Buddhists. Document 5 attempts to make a compromise among the conflicts of belief systems in China. Although Zong Mi’s intentions may seem fair, he himself is a Buddhist scholar, so his ideas might just be an effort to defend Buddhism. The spread of Buddhism in China during the first century was met with different aspects and ideas. Many Chinese accepted Buddhism and defended it, as in documents 2 and 3, while other observed Buddhism’s absence from past texts and used it as an excuse for political and social problems, like documents 4 and 6. Still others remained indifferent hoping that it would all work itself out and develop into a unified Chinese culture, such as documents 1 and 5. Also, another additional document that could be helpful would be a text from peasants or the lower class, saying how they feel about Buddhism.

Karyotype Analysis to Detect Cancer

Karyotype Analysis to Detect Cancer Abstract A complete set of metaphase chromosomes is called a karyotype. It is widely used to detect the chromosomal abnormalities that are related to the genetic diseases and various type of cancer. As the biomedical science advances, various kinds of techniques are introduced to analyze the human karyotype. These karyotype analyse are widely used in genetic counselling to minimize the risk of having unfortunate abnormalities that can cause serious limitation on quality of life. So, nowadays individual and families are realized the necessity to implement the genetic testing. Introduction In genetic counselling, knowledge of karyotype analysis is greatly used to determine the heritable diseases including cancer. Moreover, pedigree construction based on Mendelian principles was used in days gone by the determinable pattern of inheritance. In recent years, FISH (fluorescence in situ hybridization), PCR (polymerase chain reaction), CGH (comparative genomic hybridization) and SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) arrays have been developed and hold a promising future for human genetics. Among them FISH is the most currently diagnostic tool for the various chromosomal aberrations that can be visible in karyotype analysis. The most tested chromosomes are 13, 18, 21, 22, X and Y that account for 85% of chromosomal abnormalities (Rodrigo et al., 2010). But now, genetic scientists have carried out all the approaches towards chromosome analysis. On the other hand, with the high risk society is greatly interested to do pre pregnancy counselling to reduce the heritable defective g enes for the next generation. Therefore, use of karyotype analysis has been more and more improved in genetic counselling for the screening and diagnosis as well as for treatment and prevention. Karyotyping Karyotype construction and analysis is the powerful diagnostic method to identify the chromosomal studies in human genetics. Karyotyping is usually done at the metaphase of cell cycle in which the chromosome structure is the most condensed. Therefore, it is easier to identify the complete set of metaphase chromosomes (Nie et al., 1998). There are 46 chromosomes in humans (22 autosome pairs and sex chromosomes). Karyotypes show the number of chromosomes, the sex chromosome content, the presence or absence of individual chromosomes and the nature and extent of any structural abnormalities. Karyotyping can be accessed under a microscope to examine the number and structural variants which must be size of 3 Mb or more. Only DNA sequencing can observe smaller alterations (Klein and Tibboel, 2010). Chromosomes in all human karyotype are divided into seven categories depending on their size and on their bands after staining procedure. Each group is arranged into A to G defined by size and centromere position. These banding patterns help to identify specific defect regions on the chromosome. Thus, any defect in chromosome region can be described as accurately. For example; 1q2.4 defines chromosome number 1, q arm, region 2 and the banding 4 (Trask, 2002). Method For karyotype construction, the specimen can be taken from the white blood cell, skin cells, amniotic fluid cells and chorionic villus cells. Then the cells are prepared to enter mitosis and arrested in the stage of metaphase. Moreover, these preparations are treated with trypsin and staining to obtain the banding pattern. After that, a video camera attached microscope directly sends the images to the computer to generate the karyotypes (Yang et al., 2000). Generally, the karyotype can be used to determine if chromosome of an adult has an abnormality or defect that can be passed on to a child. The origin of complex chromosomal defects is identified by using standard G-banding procedures, fluorescent staining, FISH and CGH. FISH is a recent technology to detect the specific chromosome structure by using particular DNA probes. This method is more accurate and enables the detection of micro-deletions and exact break points involved in each chromosome (Ligon et al., 2007). The karyotype analysis is of benefit to pregnant women at the age of 35 and having the history of a previous child with a defect. Because the risk of chromosome abnormalities is dramatically increased in advanced maternal age and if the mother is an X-linked carrier, the recurrent risk is 1 to 2%. Therefore, antenatal screening tests including karyotyping are carried out to pregnant women who are older than 35 years and those with family history of chromosomal abnormalities. Different tests are done in different stages of pregnancy. In first trimester, these high risk mothers are conducted by non-invasive procedures like high resolution ultrasound for nuchal translucency and PAPP-A (pregnancy associated plasma protein A) for trisomy 21 to exclude the major chromosomal abnormalities. Then triple test consisting of a serum ÃŽÂ ±-fetoprotein, unconjugated oestradiol and human chorionic gonadotrophin is usually carried out in second trimester. If the abnormalities are detected, it is necessary to continue some invasive procedures like chorionic villus sampling and amniocentesis for cytogenetic testing. Chorionic villus sampling is offered at 11-13 weeks of pregnancy, Amniocentesis is done at 15 weeks and fetal blood sampling is carried out at 18-22 weeks of pregnancy. Although all these procedures carry the risk of miscarriage, they are suitable for chromosomal and DNA analysis (Callen et al., 1988). Particularly for the detection of trisomies in chromosome 13, 18, 21, X and Y because which account for more than 85% of all fetal aneuploidies. As a benefit, if a couple has a known risk to offspring, they can choose options to avoid or plan further pregnancy. If the male partner is affected, the couple has the option for artificial insemination of sperm from a donor. If the female is affected with a dominant condition or is an X-linked carrier, the couple has the option for egg donation from another female. Moreover, a relatively new procedure is pre-implantation genetic diagnosis. Initially, this process requires in vitro fertilization. If fertilization occurred, one cell is removed from the stage of the blastocyst and then investigated for the chromosomal disorder. If there is no defect, it will be returned to the uterus (Fukuda et al., 2007). In the molecular genetics, DNA testing is divided into four main categories which are diagnostic testing, carrier detection, pre symptomatic testing for adult onset diseases and prenatal diagnosis. In genetic counselling, karyotype analysis is widely used in carrier detection incase of balanced translocation carrier, autosomal dominant recessive, X-linked female carrier disorder in order to evaluate the risk of having an affected child. Furthermore, karyotyping can be used as a pre symptomatic or predictive test in some individuals who are at risk of an adult onset disorder to determine whether or not they carry the mutated gene for these disorders. This test is of value for autosomal dominant condition because of having a chance is of 50% if one parent is affected. Familial adenomatous polyposis, colon cancer and Huntington disease are the examples of autosomal dominant (Bodmer et al., 1991). Chromosomal aberrations Abnormalities of the chromosomes which are large enough to be visible under the light microscope are termed chromosomal aberrations. They are usually classified into numerical and structural aberrations. A numerical aberration is the disordering of chromosomes due to error in separation of the chromosome in cell division. Aneuploidy represents gain or loss of a specific whole chromosome due to failure of a paired chromosome in meiosis. The one with an extra copy of a chromosome is called trisomy and the one with a missing copy of that chromosome is called monosomy. These can be seen in either autosomes or sex chromosomes. Autosomal trisomy will result in early miscarriage and monosomy of an autosomal chromosome is not compactable with life. Autosomal trisomy is associated with increased maternal age (Harper et al., 1995). Similarly, polyploidy represents a complete extra set of chromosomes due to fertilization by two sperms (dispermy) or failure in maturation divisions of either the eggs or the sperm. For examples, triploidy and tetraploidy depending on the number of extra sets of chromosomes. Triplody occurs in 2% of all conceptions but early spontaneous abortion is usual (Munne and Cohen, 1998). Aneuploidy of the autosome The most commonly seen autosomal aneuploidies are trisomy 21-Downs syndrome, trisomy 18-Edwards syndrome, trisomy 13-Pataus syndrome. Sex chromosomal aneuploidies are Klinefelter syndrome and XYY syndrome in male and Triple X syndrome and Turner syndrome in female. Autosomal monosomy is mostly lethal and autosomal trisomy is relatively common (Rodrigo et al., 2010). The kayotype of Downs syndrome is 47, XX/XY, +21 that is an extra copy of chromosome at chromosome number 21. The disease incidence is 1 in 900 live births if the mother age is at 30 and is strongly correlation with advancing maternal age. More than 90 percent of cases are maternal in origin and are caused by non-disjunction in maternal meiosis 1. The affected children are born with sever hypotonia (floppy) and also show characteristic facies of upward sloping of eyes, small ears and protruding tongue. 40-45% of the patients are presenting with congenital cardiac abnormalities and serious limitation of IQ scores ranging from 25-75. The average life span is 50-60 year if the affected one does not have severe cardiac problems. Most of the patients suffer from Alzheimer disease in later life because of a gene dosage effect of amyloid precursor protein on chromosome 21(Wald et al., 1997). The karyotype of Patau syndrome is 47, XX/XY, +13 and of Edward syndrome is 47, XX/XY, +18. Patau and Edward syndrome share many clinical features in common and are usually found at the time of doing cytogenetic analysis in malformed children. They both show the incidence of 1 in 50,000 and convey a very poor prognosis, with most affected infants dying during the early life. Approximately 60% of cases are caused by non-disjunction and 10% of cases are resulted from mosiacism or unbalanced rearrangement. The recurrence risk is less than 1% if the parent is not a carrier of a balanced translocation (Massiah et al., 2008, Rasmussen et al., 2003). Aneuploidy of the sex chromosome Aneuploidy of the sex chromosomes is more common than the autosomal aneuploidy but has less impact. Unlike the autosomes, monosomy for the Y chromosome is always lethal whereas monosomy for the X chromosome is a viable condition. The commonest syndromes that have ever been seen in the clinical setting are Turner syndrome, Klinefelter syndrome, Triple X syndrome and XYY syndrome (Smith et al., 1960). The karyotype of Klinefelter syndrome is 47, XXY. The additional X chromosome of maternal origin is 56% and paternal is 44%. It usually arises from non-disjunction at either the first or second meiotic division (Lamb et al., 1996). For example, if the father produces XY sperm it can cross over with the maternal X ovum to produce XXY. Overall the birth incidence of 47, XXY is 1 in 1000 male with an increased risk at maternal age and azoospermatic infertile males (Steinberger et al., 1965). This is the single commonest cause of hypogonadism and infertility in male. The other clinical findings include learning difficulties, gynecomastia and taller than average with long lower limbs. There is increased incidence of carcinoma breast and osteoporosis in adult life. But it can be treated with testosterone from puberty onwards and fertility has been achieved by using the techniques of testicular sperm aspiration and intracytoplasmic sperm injection in a small number of affected males. Monosomy of the X chromosome results in Turner syndrome, 45, XO karyotype due to non-disjunction in either parent. It is estimated that 1% of all conception from which 95 to 99% of all 45, XO embryos die before birth. Therefore, the incidence of live birth is very low ranging from 1 in 5000 to 1 in 10,000. It is being detected by routine ultrasound scan during second trimester showing the residue of intrauterine edema with neck webbing. They have significant defects in height, sexual development and fertility but there is no mental retardation (David et al., 1986). The short stature is apparent without growth hormone treatment and it is due to haploinsufficiency of the SHOX gene on the pseudoautosomal region. For the management of infertility, estrogen therapy should be started at adolescence for the development of secondary sexual characteristics and in-vitro fertilization using donor eggs offers the prospect of pregnancy. The karyotype of the super female syndrome is 47, XXX which is also known as triple X syndrome. It usually appears as physically normal but 15- 25% are mildly mentally handicapped and quite oppositional behavior. About three quarters of the affected females are fertile of which one- half of their offspring would expect to have this syndrome (Michalak et al., 1983). Many studies have shown that the additional X chromosome is of maternal in origin in 95% of the cases due to error in meiosis I. Furthermore, another karyotype defect associated with personality disorder is 47, XYY syndrome. It was firstly noted in 1965 in a cytogenetic survey in males for violent and dangerous antisocial behavior and about 4.5% of the males in this survey were shown as XYY karyotype. The frequency of having this characteristic karyotype in the general population is 1 in 1000 birth according to the sub-sequent studies. The recurrence risk for the offspring would be 2XXY : 2XY : 1XX : 1XYY due to production of YY sperm at the second meiotic division or post-fertilization non-disjunction of the Y (Staessen et al., 2003). Structural aberration is the disordering of the structure and shape of the chromosome resulting from chromosomal breakage and error in rejoining mechanisms. Translocation is the transfer of chromosomal material between non-homologous chromosomes but there is no DNA loss. Three recognizable translocations are reciprocal, centric fusion (Robertsonian) and insertion. The one important thing in translocation is the balanced reciprocal translocation which occurs in two non-homologus chromosomes (Michael and Malcolm, 1997). In a normal population, 1 in 500 is known balanced carriers and they are clinically healthy but they can give a problem when they reproduce. It is possible for the balanced translocation carrier to pass on the translocation in an unbalanced form that can lead to miscarriage and physical or developmental problems (Munne et al., 2000). Deletion is the loss of a part of a chromosome that can cause multiple dysmorphic features because of the loss of one or more gene. For a deletion to be seen in karyotype analysis, the amount of deletion must be large. It may also occur as a result of an unbalanced translocation (Barber, 2005). Although deletion of a small piece of chromosome is not a serious problem, deletion of entire chromosome is lethal. Therefore, only a few viable conditions are found with a large deletion. Angelman syndrome Deletion of the terminal portion of chromosome 4 causes the Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome. Cri du chat syndrome is caused by a deletion in the short arm of chromosome 5. Both conditions are very rare and the incidence is 1 in 100,000 live births (Cerruti, 2001). Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome usually presents with variable phenotypic features. A characteristic feature of the Cri-du-chat syndrome is having a sound of cat like cry (Niebuhr, 1978). The phenotype is slightly different depending on their chromosome break point. There are two regions of break point in the short arm of chromosome 5 that have been identified in this syndrome. Loss of chromosome segment in 5p15.3 results in abnormal larynx development and deletion in 5p15.2 is associated with mental retardation (Overhauser et al., 1994; Simmons et al., 1995). Prader-Willi syndrome and Angleman syndrome are caused by deletion in the region 15q11-13 or by uniparental disomy (Ledbetter, 1981). If both copies of the chromosome are inherited from the father, the child will have Angelman and from the mother, the child will have Prader-Willi syndrome (Horsthemke, 1996). The incidence of Prader-Willi is 1 in 10, 000 whereas Angelman is 1 in 20, 000 live birth (Clayton-Smith, 1993; Petersen et al., 1995). A characteristic feature of Prader-Willi syndrome is sleepiness and of Angelmans are bouts of laughter (Zori et al., 1992). The children with Prader-Willi syndrome develop marked obesity and learning difficulties in the later life. These cytogenetic microdeletions in the long arm of chromosome 15 can be visible by using either FISH (fluorescence in situ hybridization) or DNA analysis with probes from the deleted region (Nicholls, 1994). Wilms tumour is the one of the micro deletion syndromes and deletion occurs at chromosome 11p13. The affected child develops renal neoplasm (Wilms tumour) together with aniridia (absent iris), genitourinary malformations and growth retardation. This combination is also known as WAGR syndrome. It is due to loss of several genes within this deletion. For example, loss of PAX6 is responsible for aniridia and loss of WT1 causes Wilms tumour. DiGeorge syndrome is caused by a mocro deletion in the proximal long arm of chromosome 22. The incidence is 1 in 400 live births and is presenting with heart abnormalities, thymic and parathyroid hypoplasia. The half of the affected has short stature and partial growth hormone deficiency. In adult life, 25% of the cases suffer from schizophrenia. A micro deletion at the chromosome 7q11 causes Willams syndrome presenting with elf like face, hypercalcemia and supravalvular aortic stenosis. It is due to loss of one copy of the gene that encodes elastin. With the improvement in the cytogenetic techniques and the use of FISH, additional rare micro deletion syndromes are identified, for example; deletion 1p36 syndrome and Smith-Magenis syndrome. The other structural abnormalities include duplication, inversion and mosiacism and the rare structural variants are fragile site, heteromorphisims, isochromosome and ring chromosome. Cancer and chromosomal abnormalities Some of the cancers can be detected by karyotype analysis. The connection between chromosome rearrangement and cancer is evident in hematological malignancies. The several chromosomal translocations are found in various types of leukemia. The specific chromosomal translocation between chromosome 9 and 22 occurs in chronic myeloid leukemia is called the Philadelphia chromosome. In this case, a part of the proto-oncogene, c-ABL on the chromosome 9 moves to the BCR gene on the chromosome 22. The resulting BCR-ABL gene codes for fusion protein that has tyrosine kinase activity in excess. Therefore, Philadelphia chromosome positive cases are prolonged survival with the treatment of tyrosine kinase inhibitor. Moreover, detection of BCR-ABL transcripts in the bone marrow by PCR analysis is also necessity for the clinical follow-up. So, it can be used as a well defined diagnostic tool and prognostic factor. The most specific cytogenetic abnormality in childhood acute lymphoid leukemia is the translocation between chromosome 12 and 21 called TEL-AML1 translocation. Moreover, Philadelphia chromosome translocation also occurs in increasing age and carries a poor prognosis. Acute myeloid leukemia occurs in all age groups and is the common form of acute leukemia. The specific chromosomal abnormalities in acute myeloid leukemia are translocation between chromosome 15 and 17 and translocation between chromosome 8 and 21. In the chromosome 15 and 17 translocation, PML gene on the chromosome 15 is fused to the retinoic acid receptor ÃŽÂ ± gene (RARÃŽÂ ±). Therefore, acute myeloid leukemia associated with this type of translocation is well treated with all-trans retinoic acid and results in good prognosis. Furthermore, core binding transcription factor encoding genes CBFÃŽÂ ± and CBFÃŽÂ ² are involved in a translocation between chromosome 8 and 21. Another form of chromosome rearrangement in acute myeloid leukemia is inversion of the chromosome 16 in which CBFÃŽÂ ² gene is also involved. The four most common chromosome abnormalities in chronic lymphoid leukemia are trisomy 12, structural abnormalities of chromosome 17p, deletion at chromosome 13q14 and 11q23. These abnormalities carry the prognostic significance. Likewise in leukemia, chromosomal abnormalities are also seen in lymphoma. Lymphoma is a group of diseases caused by malignant lymphocytes that accumulate in the lymph nodes. Burkitts lymphoma is caused by viral infection that induces the transfer of C-MYC oncogene on the chromosome 8 to immunoglobulin gene on the chromosome 14. As a result, C-MYC gene is deregulated and the affected one clinically presents with massive lymhadenopathy of the jaw. Moreover, this specific translocation is associated with other forms of cancer including Burkitts lymphoma and multiple myeloma. Chromosome translocation associated with haematological cancers Translocation site Type of cancer t(9;22) Chronic myeloid leukemia (Rajasekariah et al., 1982) t(8;14), t(8;22), t(2;8) Burkitts lymphoma (Margrath, 1990) t(8;21) acute myeloblastic leukemia (Oshimura et al., 1976) t(4;18) follicular lymphoma (Fleischman and Prigogina, 1977) t(4;18) acute lymphocytic leukemia (Oshimura et al., 1977) The proportion of leukemia with a heritable component has been estimated as 25% in monozygotic twins. The risk to sibs in childhood leukemia is 2- 4 times higher than the population incidence. The risk of a relative developing Hodgkins disease is seven fold higher than others (Kelly, 1992). Retinoblastoma is the well known childhood cancer that involves in the developing retina cells of the eyes. The disease onset is usually in the first five years with a white cat eyes reflex or squint. Early diagnosis and treatment will have good long-term outcome. It can occur either hereditary or non-hereditary. In the heritable condition, the disease is an autosomal dominant in manner and is caused by the germline mutation that is the mutation in the RB1 gene. Approximately 5% of the cases reveal interstitial deletion involving the long arm of chromosome 13 in the cytogenetic analysis. In the non-heritable condition, the mutation in the RB1 gene arises as a post-zygotic event in early embryogenesis is also known as somatic mutation. Genetic counselling Genetic counselling is a communication process that deals with the problems associated with the occurrence of a genetic disorder in a family. Genetic disorder is a considerable health and economic problem because there is no effective therapy. So, high risk population group often seek advices as to why it happened and about the risk of having further abnormal offsprings. Therefore, the realization of the need of the individuals and couples together with the awareness of the importance of the accurate information, has led to the widespread introduction of genetic counselling clinics in parallel with clinical genetics. The introduction of genetic counselling services has been provided approximately 40 years ago. Thus, the genetic counselor provides the information related to the medical diagnosis, prognosis, complications and the possible treatment. Moreover, they have to explain the mode of inheritance of the disorder and also have to calculate the risk of the recurrence. Then, they h ave to bring out the options available for dealing with reducing the risks of having a disorder (Frets et al., 1991). . The options are no further pregnancy, adoption, in vitro fertilization with pre implantation diagnosis, artificial insemination-AID by donor (egg donation), termination of pregnancy, or ignore and accept the risk (Zare et al., 1973). AID is performed for husband with AD trait or both are carriers for a serious AR (Taranissi, 2005). In UK, due to the Congenital Disabilities act of 1976, legal action can be brought against a person whose breach of duty to the parents results in a child being born disabled, abnormal or unhealthy. Therefore, antenatal diagnosis with selective termination of pregnancy became a reality in UK with the abortion ACT OF 1967 (Macintyre, 1973). In the setting of genetic counselling, interviews must be conducted with great sensitivity and psychological insight as the parents may feel guilty for their abnormal babies. Therefore, genetic counselling should be offered to both parents and must give adequate time under an appropriate situation. The depth of explanation should be matched to education background of the couples, outlining of the genetic basic of the condition with the aid of diagrams and recurrent risk calculations (Sermon, 2002). The quality of the genetic counselling depends on the availability of facilities that ensure an accurate diagnosis can be made. If the diagnosis is incorrect, it will be totally misleading information. The important thing in genetic counselling must be non- judgemental and non-directive. The aim is to deliver a balanced version of the facts which will permit the parents to reach their own decision with regard to their reproductive future. Moreover, referral to an appropriate support group is also the essential integral component of the genetic counselling process. The recurrence risk is usually calculated by using Bayes theorem that express probability of disease occurrence mathematically. Bayes theorem is also known as Bayesian analysis or Bayesian inference. But some of the limiting factors are delayed age of onset, reduced penetrance and use of DNA marker. These are more complex in the risk calculation. Autosomal dominant trait is the risk to each child of an affected person at 1 in 2. However, the risk estimation in family counselling can be difficult because of the variable penetrance and expression. For example in case of incomplete penetrance, although the parents have a dominant disorder but the disease does not manifest itself clinically. This gives the appearance of the gene having a skipped generation. In Autosomal recessive trait, if one of the parents is carrier, the offspring have a 1 in 4 chance of being affected and a 2 in 3 chance of being carrier (Yoshikawa and Mukai, 1970). Recurrence risk of 1 in 4 chances does not mean that their next three children will be uneffected because of the tossed coin phenomenon and joint probability. Therefore, genetic counselor should be explained that there are 3 chances out of 4 that their next baby will be affected. Autosomal recessive disorders are more severe and higher motality than autosomal dominant. In this case, there is usually no family history although the defective gene is passed from generation to generation. Similarly the sex-linked disorder can be dominant or recessive as the autosomal genes. In an X-linked recessive trait, if females are obligate carriers, one half of her sons will be affected and one half of her daughter will be carriers. If an affected male reproduces, there will be normal sons and carrier daughters. An X-linked dominant condition is very rare and vitamin D-resistant rickets is the best known example. Consanguineous marriage and incestuous relationship in the parents provides further support increases for the risk of recessive inheritance. Risk for consanguinity is common in Arab population. As for the carrier detection, some of the inborn errors of metabolism are autosomal recessive disorder like Tay Sachs disease and haemoglobinopathies but these can be detected only by biochemical analysis. But because of X inactivation, few of these are absolute and this information needs to be combined with the pedigree risk using Bayes theorem (Markova et al., 1984). Fragile X syndrome is an X-inked dominant, single gene disorder rather than chromosome abnormalities. It is a common heritable cause of learning difficulties and affects 1 in 5000 males. The characteristic features are high forehead, large ears, long face, prominent jaw, large testes and repetitive speech. This is due to mutation of FMR1 gene encoding CGG repeats at the end of X chromosomes long arm. It appears as a constriction in the X chromosome in the chromosomal analysis called fragile site. The more repeats, the more severe the disease. If this reaches greater than 200 CGG triplets, it becomes a full mutation. Each son of the carrier woman with full mutation will have a 50% chance of getting this disease. Moreover, 50% of the female carriers with full mutation also have mild learning difficulties and there will have a 25% chance of getting a daughter with learning difficulties. Conditions needed for genetic counselling and investigation (Watson et al., 1992) Infertility one in ten of all couples are involuntarily infertile, such a couple needs chromosomal analysis to exclude a balanced structural rearrangement and Klinefelters syndrome. Recurrence miscarriage one of six pregnancies ends as a spontaneous miscarriage. 3-5% of cases have a balanced structural rearrangement Still birth Perinatal death with multiple malformations Gene therapy The recent progress in molecular genetics is the prospect of successful gene therapy. Gene therapy is the genetic alteration of the cells of the affected persons for curing the genetic diseases. Somatic cell gene therapy consists of the alteration of genes in human somatic cells to treat a specific disorder, for example, X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency disease. In this case bone marrow stem cell has been a prime candidate for somatic therapy because it is a proliferating cell and has a long life span in the body. Currently, the best source is believed to be embryonic stem cells and ethical consideration impinges on almost every aspect of clinical genetics. On the other hand, gene replacement therapy has been used for loss of function mutation. This involves replacing a missing gene product by inserting a normal gene into somatic cells. There are many techniques for introducing of gene into cells but retrovirus and adenovirus are the most commonly used as gene therapy vectors. Another method of gene therapy is the gene blocking therapy to encounter the effect of gain of function mutations. These include the use of antisense molecules and RNA cleaving riboenzymes. Conclusion The benefit of karyotype analysis in high risk populations provides the prevention and early management options to minimize the risk. As genetic science development, researchers and clinicians have more advanced diagnostic tool like multiplex PCR, SNP microarray, CGH (comparative genomic hybridization) to identify the far more complex chromosome abnormalities. Although karyotyping by FISH can detect both balanced and unbalanced translocations, uniparental disomy can only be detected by SNP arrays and high output sequencing. Despite the high cost, enormous benefit can be found for society to evaluate the superior treatment protocols and genomic technologies for the future.

Boxer vs. American Staffordshire Terrier Essay -- Animal Research

What makes these two dogs so similar is that they are two of the top most popular breeds here in the United States. It has been said that dogs is man's best friend, and because of this, it makes them great companions. These two breeds, the Boxer and the American Staffordshire terrier fit very easily into family life. When an owner tells his dog that he is a good boy, the dog happily wags its tail. Then, there are those times when an owner has to discipline his dog, the dog, then creeps away with that sad puppy dog look on its face. According to Jill Viers, "a dog will love you unconditionally; it will be there until the end. Doesn't it deserve the same when it is truly man's best friend" (Viers) Both of these breeds the Boxer, and the American Staffordshire terrier; have similar, but different in their ancestry, appearance, grooming and maintained; it is what makes both of these two breeds so desirable. For starts, the Boxer and American Staffordshire terrier were both first used to dogfights and bull-baiting until it was banned in the early 1900s. The Boxer was first breed in the early 19th century, they used them for dog fighting, bull-baiting and to run down and hold large game for their master. They received their name because of their ability to stand on their hind legs and bat at its opponent, appearing to box with its front paws, hence the name Boxer. Then, later in Germany, the Boxer became the breed for their intellect and muscular strength. Boxer is from a Mastiff and a bulldog breed together. Later in Germany, they were used guard and police dogs as they were very alert. After World War 1, the Boxer came to America, where their popularity in the states. Whereas, American Staffordshire terrier has a backgro... ... well as a good family pet. The Boxer also has another advantage over the American Staffordshire, and that it is excellent with all children. Finally, the Boxer also does well with other pets in the household. Not like the American Staffordshire terrier, where it needs raised with the family from puppy hood. Works Cited American kennel club-american staffordshire terrier. www.akc.org, n.d. Web. 21 June 2011. . American kennel club-boxer.www.akc.org, 2005 March 30. Web.21 June 2011.. Bulldog-Boxer. In bulldog breeds.com, 29 June 2010. Web. 21 June 2011. . Dog breeds american staffordshire terriers. In five star dog.com, n.d. Web. 21 June 2011. .

Philosophy of Education Essay -- Philosophy of Teaching Teachers Essay

Philosophy of Education Everyone has their own personal views on philosophy and they also have their own educational goals, myself included. Over the course of this paper I will discuss my views on philosophy and my educational goals. Furthermore I will address the nature of students; the nature of knowledge; the purpose of public education; my methods of teaching; and finally the curricular areas that I feel are the most important. First I shall discuss the nature of students. Much like Rousseau, I believe humans are born naturally innocent and are largely shaped by the environment, they are also partially shaped by nature. Every single person has the ability to learn. Nature and nurture determine how much they can learn and how well they learn it. Some people are born or develop certain mental/physical handicaps that give them great difficulties in learning mental and physical skills. On the other hand some individuals sometimes referred to as child prodigies learn with great ease. Neither should be ignored, and both should be allowed to live to their fullest potential, while giving others the same equal opportunity. Not one individual should be treated less or better than another should. However if someone needs extra assistance in learning, they should receive it in full. Students are also greatly shaped by their environment. Their families teach them basic skills and moral lessons as soon or before they can comprehend them. During school age, different subjects can shape a student’s life. For example a child who finds math very easy compared to the rest of their subjects may find a job as a mathematician later on in their life. While a child who finds math extrem... ... important are every day skills such as typing, home economics, computer use, etc. Now that I have addressed my full educational philosophy statement, I will now canvass my professional development plans. First of all I hope that I have the money and grades to further my education in graduate school. Everybody tells me to get as much education as you possibly can. Anybody can agree with the fact that if you put seven years of college into your life, you will more than likely not work a dead end job. I can not say if I will join any professional groups right now, because I do not know anything about them. More than likely I will, but I need to know more about them first. In conclusion, I hope you find my views on philosophy acceptable, and if not, do not worry I still have plenty of time to find out the do’s and don’ts of education.