Monday, September 30, 2019

Romeo and Juliet Persuasive

Who Truly is to Blame? Choosing between telling the truth and keeping a secret are both hard decisions to make. In the play, Romeo and Juliet, these decisions can make or break a situation. The play is all about secrets kept and truths to be told, which end up causing the death of the star-crossed lovers. The story between the two lovers is that their affection for one another is a secret to each opposing houses. Was the secret worth keeping? As some characters helped disguise the love, others couldn’t keep it a secret.Romeo and Juliet were betrayed by a close friend who made plans that ended up fraudulent to both Romeo & Juliet, when the real job was to keep the love alive. Friar Lawrence is the definite reason for the deaths of the ill-fated lovers. Friar Lawrence was a helpful attribute to the secreted love affair. As he married Romeo & Juliet, he passionately supported their decision. â€Å"You shall not stay alone, till holy church incorporate two in one†(8 41). Friar gave true evidence to him supporting the marriage. If Friar had not thought he could keep the marriage a secret, why would he have performed the ceremony?If Friar had not supported the secret and prevented the love from occurring, the deaths of the paramours could have been prohibited. Friar Lawrence performing the ceremony just goes to show he did not put in mind what could happen to the safety of Romeo & Juliet. Friar Lawrence seemed to have a plan for Romeo to return back to his love. â€Å"Ascend to her chamber, hence and comfort her. But look thou shalt live till we can find a time to blaze you marriage, reconcile your friends, beg pardon of the prince, and call thee back with twenty hundred thousand times more joy than thou went’st forth in lamination†(863).Briefly, Friar showed his full plan for presenting Romeo & Juliet’s marriage to both the Capulet and Montague houses. In general, Friar should have either never agreed to the marriage or should have kept it a secret from everyone to prevent Romeo’s sudden banishment and Juliet’s heartbreak. Friar’s plan did not help as went planned, it damaged the situation. Therefore, Friar Lawrence contributed another reason why he is responsible for the death of Romeo & Juliet. Numerous people believe that Friar Lawrence was at the helm for the quietus of Romeo & Juliet, while others have a difference of opinion.People have confidence that Lord Capulet is to charge for the deaths. Capulet allegedly forced marriage upon Juliet causing her dejection. Also, Lord Capulet did not support Juliet’s decision to not marry Paris, being that he would disown his own pride and joy if she had chosen not to wed. Capulet’s dynamic ways made abounding people believe that he was the clue behind the deaths. However, Juliet’s father did attempt to postpone the exchange of vows to County Paris until he assumed Juliet was matured and prepared for t he burden of marriage.As stated, â€Å"My child is yet a stranger in the world, she hath not seen change for fourteen years; Let two more summers wither in their pride, ere we may think her ripe to be a bride†(769). For that matter, Capulet only tried to be a virtuous father and do what was best for his daughter, but easily letting pressure and royalty run his decisions. On the other hand, Friar Lawrence was secretive and unfaithful as a priest and close friend. Friar tried to repair every problem which in the end made nobody happy. Both the Montagues and Capulets have lost their beloveds from a far past feud.Was it all worth losing? Friar was censurable for the loss of Romeo & Juliet. To summarize, Friar Lawrence was 100% at fault for the deaths of Romeo & Juliet. Between his poorly thought out plans, the pain he caused Verona, and how untruthful he was as a priest, he, in fact, let down Romeo & Juliet. He may have wanted the best for everyone and to make all hap py, but he caused more problems than solutions. Consequently, all of the facts I have stated are tantamount to why Friar Lawrence is to blame for the unfortunate events.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Dead White Males Essay Essay

The two opposing ideologies in this play are liberal humanism and post-structuralism. How are they represented? How does the play operate to position the audience to finally prefer one above the other? Dead White Males is a play about a sexually deprived lecturer, Dr Grant Swain, who attempts and almost succeeds in bedding one of his students, Angela Judd, by utilising his position in the university, and by imbuing his views upon his students. Alongside this plot is the conflict between two ideologies, liberal humanism and post-structuralism. Angela, the main character of the play is compelled to make a choice between post-structuralism represented by Dr Swain, and liberal humanism, (Shakespeare), who is constantly opposed and criticised by Swain. By the end of act one it is quite obvious who the villain of this play is. In the opening scene the villain first shows his destructive nature through his unnecessary violence. â€Å"ANGELA How is it that you know so much about us? [SHAKES PEARE is just about to answer when a MAN in his thirties, dressed in fashionable casual clothes appears behind him.] MAN He doesn’t you know. [The MAN pulls out a pistol and shoots SHAKESPEARE dead. ANGELA looks at the MAN, horrified]† (Pp 1) The man in this scene is of course Dr Grant Swain, and his dramatic entrance encourages us to dislike him, because we feel it is wrong to shoot people for no apparent reason. Swain appears to us the villain, due to his unmistakable character, for, aside from his violent episodes, we find that he is interested in only one thing. Sex. He tries to hit on Angela, but she declines his offer. After Melissa accepts his offer of dinner later on, he quickly and conveniently loses interest in Angela making it obvious that he was concerned with only one thing. Another quality we disfavour him for is his over-confidence. From the beginning of the play, when introducing himself and his course, he is â€Å"animated by the intense certainty that he has a supremely important message to communicate and is enormously well equipped to deliver it.† Swain endeavours to shoot Shakespeare several times, and although this is only in Angela’s imagination, we are positioned to agree with Angelaà ¢â‚¬â„¢s attitude towards Swain because she is one of the sympathetic characters. The audience sees Angela as one of the â€Å"good guys†. She is a sympathetic character, and her circumstances as well as her attributes position us to see her as such. Sympathy is evoked for her: 1. Because she seems naive, and readily falls prey to Swain’s way of thinking 2. Because she is a victim of the villain 3. She has been deprived of the nurturing her mother should have provided 4. Because she has suffered through her childhood as a result of her parents’ â€Å"happy marriage† 5. When she is embarrassed in front of Steve Also she defends Col, and takes on the rest of the family. In doing so she becomes a sort of heroine, defending the helpless and upholding the truth, and this positions us to like her character even more. The warring ideologies in this play are represented not only as favourable and unfavourable in this play, but also by certain characters. By establishing who are the â€Å"good guys† and who are the â€Å"bad guys†, the representation of the characters’ respective ideologies are also determined. Post-structuralism is without doubt the unfavourable ideology in this play. This is sim ply because it is expended through the villain of the play. Even though Angela admits that she ‘think(s) there is some truth in what he (Swain) says’ (Pp 80) the fact that Swain subscribes to post-structuralism still conquers, causing post-structuralism to seem as flimsy as its subscriber does. Even when Angela reprimands Shakespeare for his disgraceful casting of women, liberal humanism still holds its approval above post-structuralism, as Shakespeare asks to be wished back to an era of sanity, implying that Angela’s views are insane. Because post-structuralism is the unfavoured ideology, liberal humanism has no other option but to be seen as the favoured one. It’s values and attitudes are mouthed by unobjectionable characters and so are preferred over that of post-structuralism. The play operates by using conventions such as characterisation/casting, tone, dialogue, and conflicts, as well as using our own ideologies to position us to view all the characters and ideologies as we do. When there are conflicts between the characters we instinctively choose sides, as we look for a character to feel for and a character to be disinclined to. This helps to support liberal humanism throughout the play, as in each individual conflict we find that the pitiable characte rs are those that speak the patriarchal type ideologies, whereas the aggressive characters mouth the more modern ideologies. This occurs between Swain and Shakespeare, Col and his daughters, Col and Sarah, and Sarah and Martin. The casting and characterisation of Dead White Males plays a major part in determining who and what are preferred above the others. By having certain  characters approve certain ideologies, it encourages the audience to also approve or disapprove of those ideologies. Swain an objectionable character is so very offensive because of his character. He is power hungry, as well as sex orientated as we see in his reaction to Melissa’s let down. ‘SWAIN You’ve really made and idiot of me, haven’t you? MELISSA Are you saying the marks you gave me weren’t genuine, because if you are – SWAIN Of course there were genuine, but – MELISSA Good marks equals sex. Is that what was going on in your mind? SWAIN No! For God’s sake this was not a case of exploitation. I have grown extremely fond of you! [ANGELA enters. SWAIN makes a great effort to control his anger.’ (Pp 91) By using him to mouth the more passive ideology, the audience becomes less receptive to it. However it is not enough to just have the good guys endorsing the dominant ideology, and the more offensive guys endorsing the bad one, for the audience to accept the prominent ideology. So the good guy (Angela) becomes a victim of the evil post structuralism, and then is shown the light. In the end she succumbs to liberal humanism causing the audience to look upon it favourably. Ironically, the majority of the males in this play are far from the liberal humanist version of the typical dominant male. They are all somewhat spineless to s certain extent and are all victims of their dominant ideology. Swain, being ridiculed for his view, Col being abused by his family for being loyal to a mate, Steve and Martin, both being not very assertive and so are run down by their lack of confidence. The females too are far from their docile liberal humanist stereotype. Sarah is a headstrong feminist, Melissa is ready to give Swain exactly what he deserves and Angela is almost bullies her father a s much as the rest of the females do. In fact the characters although mouthing liberal humanist beliefs (well, some of them) actually conform to post-structuralist stereotyping. However, this juxtaposition of the cast with the plot only reinforces liberal humanist attitudes, suggesting that if the males and females had been playing their respective roles then perhaps the story would not have been so miserable. The play uses our own ideology as well to make us choose one of the plays ideologies above the other. Note that it is very difficult to gain the support for an alternative ideology from an audience when dominant ideology of our society is liberal humanism. The two opposing ideologies in this play are liberal humanism and post-structuralism. Dead White Males operates by  using techniques such as characterisation to position us to prefer one ideology above the other. The main way the play does this is by having an objectionable character, mouth the values and attitudes of post-structuralism, causing us to prefer liberal humanism. In the end I feel there is only a slight preference of one over the other because although Swain is the villain who shoots himself in the foot, much of what he says is historical fact. Bibliography : Dead White Males by David Williamson

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Inflation Control by Government of UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Inflation Control by Government of UK - Essay Example This heaving inflation delayed diverted central banks plus stalled them from lessening interest rates to assist in relieving the credit crunch. In spite of all of the above during January, the depression was expected. The predictions for 2009 are bleak: Alistair Darling declared of late that the government had misjudged the severity of it. On the other hand, a more positive school of reflection says that the nastiest of the depression perhaps might be over. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my professor for all the support, assistance and advice all along. I would also like to thank my family and friends, who also encouraged me and motivated me at every step. This report helped get into the crux of the issue, i was also able to analyze the situation from the government and the Publics perspective. The world economy has been considerably exaggerated by the monetary crisis plus analysis are the nastiest given that the Great Depression. Already, the largest developed countries, notably those where the crisis originated, have entered into recession. Drop over to the supplementary countries was primarily minute; however a lot of bussing economies are currently facing it tough. The suppositions regarding a decoupling of these economies have without a doubt demonstrated off beam. 1.1 The emergent countries: These emerging countries too are facing the influences of the calamity, which will interrupt moreover in a lot cases overturn the accomplishment of the Millennium Development purposes, together with the civilized work for all. This is of fastidious concern provided that, even during the pre calamity phase, the development outlines within specific areas, particularly within the United Kingdom, making way towards the insignificant decline within poverty. The civilized living also working state of affairs still remain out of acess for a lot of individuals .Most significantly, the crisis has made it right through the valid economy by resources of three equally strengthening diffusion channels, explicitly: the restricted accessibility of credit for the working capital, trade funding and feasible investments within the real economy , implying the credit crunch ; vigilant cost decisions, leaning towards the minor side of the yield, service and costs, in turn distressing assurance amongst th e customers and

Friday, September 27, 2019

Contemporary hospitality industry Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Contemporary hospitality industry - Assignment Example ng to the British Hospitality Association, (BHA) the hotel and tourism sector comprises of an approximate of 127,000 businesses and employment for about 1.6 million people. This is anticipated to rise in the future as more investors come into the industry. Approximately, the industry contributes about 19% of the total national income. This kind of labour is either directly or indirectly related to hospitality and tourism (Reid et al, 2010). There are distinguishing differences between a 4* hotel and a Bed and Breakfast. Different travellers settle on where to stay based on specific needs. Bed and Breakfasts are usually run by a family providing a friendly and caring environment. It is appropriate for people who want to have the home away from home experience. A 4* hotel is mostly a member of a conglomerate which is larger and consists of other hotels. The inns are privately owned mostly private homes that have been renovated for commercial use. The Bed and Breakfast food is provided by the owners and usually gourmet which is informal and quality food. The food could be eggs, meat or what is available in the house. A four star hotel offers a continental breakfast which is a variety of fruits, cereal, yogurt, and batter for those who wish to make waffles. The food is prepared by professional chefs. A four star hotel is offers a more complex style of living with uniform rooms and decor whereas Bed and Breakfasts are more like homes rented out to guests with an open kitchen and variations in rooms. A four star hotel has a large staff employed to perform several duties such as cleaning, checking in guests and other services while a Bed and Breakfast is equipped with lesser staff who treat guests as members of the house. The main distinguishing factor between a tall and flat organisational structure is the levels of management. In a flat organisational structure, there is usually just one level of authority. This could be the CEO whom everybody reports to. In a

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Case Vignettes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Case Vignettes - Essay Example He refers to these states as sort of frenzied; when he finally gets out of the rut he’s been in and gets back on track. He says that they will occur for days at a time and are always followed by a crash, in which he becomes suicidal and bed-ridden. Jessica is 28 and she is a new mother. While her pregnancy was a life-altering experience and challenge, the steadfast support of her husband and family made sure she was able to handle the experience without losing her sanity. Jessica reports welcoming the responsibility of mother-hood, but since giving birth 3 months earlier has started to feel increasingly hopeless and guilty about her situation. When asked to describe the guilt she was experiencing she was not able to identify a specific example of something she was guilty, instead indicating that it was more of an abstract pervading sensation. While her husband attributes her feelings to the stress of adapting to motherhood, she has begun to fear that the depression will last forever and it’s actually a change in perspective. Ashley has is 6 years old. She began the first grade a number of months back and from the beginning has had difficulty relating to other students. At times she will remove herself from the other students in the class and refuse to interact. Other times she will lash out physically and verbally at the other students. Her progress throughout the year has shown a steady decrease. The teacher, Mr. Wilson, sent a letter home with Ashley asking to speak with her parents in a conference. After receiving no response, he phoned Ashley’s parents and relayed to them Ashley behavior. Ashley’s mother informed Mr. Wilson that their family is going to have to move into a homeless shelter soon. He also discovered that Ashley’s mother is not able to read. Paul is a 9 year old third grade student. He has shown a talent for sports, and last semester won the school’s track meet for his age bracket. He is very popular at recess, but has

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Art Gallery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Art Gallery - Essay Example I was particularly impressed by his sculptures His sculptures are fascinating as they are made either from exotic wood or an assortment or stone pieces. The use of oxidized paint gives it a metallic copper finish as though the sculpture was done by an tribe in Africa or it came from an ancient people from an Aztec pyramid. The carving is done in such a way that the viewer sees what he want. There is a combination of modern with ancient. The chosen piece "Shrine" was displayed as a major piece in a the corner of one of the rooms. The lighting was excellent so as to show the effect of the oxidized finish. combines modern with ancient. I have to note that I did not mark the year it was done and I could not find it on internet. The cross on the top of the piece show his technique as a modern graphic designer. It is pretty and really gives no other indication until you start to think of the symbolism of the piece. As you take your eyes and start looking down you see the cross as a means of joining two pieces of wood or two people. It is quite common in both African and local culture in Latin American culture to have two people joined together in wood in the form of a statue. His technique is modern as the viewer needs to look awhile as to see the purpose of the Shrine. It is a shrine to the couple. It is a shrine to man and woman. There is no differentiation to the man and the woman. This is also another modern technique. Is the cross a protection of God? This is just an idea. The use of oxidization shows that the unification of man and wife is an ancient custom and will continue to last. This piece can be interpreted as just a piece of wood with a pretty form. In any other context it would have been interesting to take different statutes from different cultures to compare the same subject, then the viewer would have seen the meaning given to the Shrine. I chose this piece because it took work to figure out

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Summary of Aristotle's ethical system Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Summary of Aristotle's ethical system - Essay Example Another motivating factor is an honor, but again this emphasizes more on praising others. For this reason, Aristotle concludes that the means of attaining happiness, which is also the main purpose of human existence, is the virtue. In particular, happiness is said to be complete without qualification because it is chosen for itself, and people never choose it for anything else. Virtues, however, are chosen for the sake of happiness. These virtues can be intellectual such as judgment, wisdom and practical wisdom, while others maybe character such as temperance and generosity Virtue involves an individual’s habit and choices. When a person makes the right decisions, they eventually develop a virtuous disposition of habit which allows them to make decisions a lot easier when they encounter the same type of problems. In essence, an individual will no longer have to run through a list of options each and every time they encounter an ethical problem, but will instead apply what they used previously. Another question that arises is how to make the right decisions. According to Aristotle, making the right choices involves the people following virtue: which is a mean between two extremes of excess and defect. This means that when an individual is faced is in a certain situation; they will tend to make a choice that is equidistant from two possible extremes. For instance, when a person is faced with a defect of cowardliness and an excess of rashness, an individual would settle for an average of courage.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Organisational Strategy Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Organisational Strategy - Case Study Example Porter (1980) explained the importance of focusing on cost leadership and product differentiation to gain competitive advantage - producing an excellent product which is a complete solution to a perceived need. It will then use system lock-in to sustain its competitive edge - locking in complementary products, maintaining a proprietary standard whilst locking out potential competitors. Between 1996 and 2006 the PC industry underwent two major revolutions. Firstly the way in which PCs were ordered changed with the commencement of e-commerce and secondly the methodology for manufacturing PCs altered radically with the introduction of lean manufacturing and supply chain management. 1996 Dell began selling on-line in 1996 recognizing the importance of having an encompassing e-commerce strategy. By 2000 its on-line sales were $50m/day. Dell became the largest manufacturer of personal computers in the world in 2001. Many have argued that the Internet renders strategy obsolete. In reality the opposite is trueit is more important than ever for companies to distinguish themselves through strategy. The winners will be those that view the internet as a complement to, not a cannibal of, traditional ways of competing. The great paradox of the Internet is that its very benefits - making information widely available; reducing the difficulty of purchasing, marketing, and distribution; allowing buyers and sellers to find and transact business with one another more easily - also make it more difficult for companies to capture those benefits as profits. (Porter, 2001) Figure 3 The Five Forces Source: Porter(2001) Being online increases competition. However there are opportunities there - particularly the removal or reduction of barriers to entry, and potentially equal access to consumers. Dell has no research and design costs thus increasing its advantage. IBM had already shown that marketing and distribution skills were more important than the latest technological innovation as the market for low cost PCs matured faster than anticipated. Dell simply adopted IBM's strategy: Advanced design Open source software Multi-channel distribution Low-cost manufacturing Aggressive pricing Supply Chain Management Strategy Taylor

Sunday, September 22, 2019

How coherent a work is Herodotus' Histories Essay

How coherent a work is Herodotus' Histories - Essay Example s fragmented and digressing into fable and even those who were prepared to step outside the confines of the thinking of their own era, were often not prepared to make more than small concessions about the possible motives, expertise and literary devices found in The Histories. More recent research , however, suggests that, if understood within the intellectual climate of their time, The Histories reveal themselves as the multi-faceted work of a highly intuitive and progressive thinker, who used the past and the present, to record and draw parallels with the complexity of his own time, and who used a plethora of tools at his disposal to inform of the consequences of reliving the past - these were definitely not the rather clumsy, ‘anachrostic’ efforts of an ancient teller of tall stories (De Jong, I. J. F., 2003). Viewed with an appreciation of 5th century philosophy, science, epic heritage, political currents and literary know-how, The Histories is a historical record of high intellectual quality and significance, largely coherent in its aims and with considerable unity, once literary structures and devices have been understood in their ancient context. Although there is perhaps still much to be discovered, evidenced by the considerable amount of research that is continuing to offer new possibilities of understanding this important text. This on-going curiosity is now extending into a much broader field of inquiry and includes research into the uses of language, narration, moral, ethical and judicial concepts, as well as general themes, although the focus of the research has shifted and is no longer done to establish coherence, but aims instead to demonstrate the multiplicity of creative devices that Herodotus had at his disposal. Interest in The Histories has continued throughout the ages and the critiques of Thucydides and Aristotle were followed by others, classical scholars of the first few centuries CE and again, after the so-called dark ages. Given the

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Philosophy - Free

Philosophy Free Will vs Determinism Essay The dialogue between philosophers over the existence of free will versus the inevitability of determinism is a debate that will always exist. The discussion centers around the true freedom of humans to think and act according to their own judgment versus the concept that humans are intrinsically bound by the physical laws of the universe. Before I enter this chicken and the egg debate I need to quantify my terms: Free will is defined by the great philosopher, St. Thomas Aquinas as â€Å"vis electiva† or free choice. It is the ability of man to contemplate and judge the effects of the actions he is about to take. †¦But man acts from judgment, because by his apprehensive power he judges that something should be avoided or sought. But because this judgment, in the case of some particular act, is not from a natural instinct but from some act of comparison in the reason, therefore he acts from free judgment and retains the power of being inclined to various things. † (Aquinas. Suma Theologica) Determinism is a complex notion but is best described by David Hume as the notion that something cannot come from nothing and that all actions have causes preceding them. I conceive that nothing taketh beginning from itself, but from the action of some other immediate agent without itself. And that therefore, when first a man hath an appetite or will to something, to which immediately before he had no appetite nor will, the cause of his will, is not the will itself, but something else not in his own disposing. So that whereas it is out of controversy, that of voluntary actions the will is the necessary cause, and by this which is said, the will is also caused by other things whereof it disposeth not, it followeth, that voluntary actions have all of them necessary causes, and therefore are necessitated. (Hume. Liberty and Nessessity. ) Philosophy and world religion alike were born of the same origins. Each of the two ancient disciplines arose from the quest for the answers to life’s ominous questions. These human questions, archetypical to people of all geographic locations; where did we come from; why are we here; where do we go when we die; unite us as a race. It is no coincidence that each religion and theology from all four corners of the earth tackles these black holes of human logic. Each religion carves their own individual explanations of these unanswerable questions into their core belief systems, each one centrally different than others. However, they all share one common thought; each shares a belief in an afterlife determined by the choices made in life. Free will is the common denominator in all world religions, because all share the essential concept of morality. The widespread acceptance of the concept of morality implies that there is a choice to be had at each and every juncture or life. The choice comes from recognition of good and evil. For good and evil to exist, then there has to be the ability to decipher between the two and also decide to accept one over the other. The existence of morality alone proves that free will exists, because without the freedom to choose right or wrong in any given situation there would be no qualitative measure of the â€Å"rightness† or â€Å"wrongness† of ones actions. David Hume comments on the origin of morality and its place in our everyday decision making processes, â€Å"Only when you turn your reflexion into your own breast, and find a sentiment of disapprobation† (Hume.  Treatise of Human Nature). In other words, there are no outside stimuli that can decipher good from evil; the line can only be drawn by internal thought. Hume was a naturalist in that his vision of the world and therefore stance of philosophy was based directly through the experiences of the senses. His stance on many issues directly originated from his ability to experience it with the five senses, and on the subject of morality he takes exception. Even he recognizes the existence of morality in everyday life, even though it cannot be explained through the lens of the senses. It would seem that morality’s acceptance must therefore prove that free will exists, but there is one essential school of thought yet to weigh on this topic; science. Science was the latest bloomer of the three major disciplines of existential explanation and in the post modern era is becoming more and more popular. As the world becomes further secularized and the reaches of scientific logic continue to exceed their grasp, many of the world’s intellectuals identify â€Å"truth† on a scientific scale. Science does not support the theory of morality, because it can’t be proven to exist. The notion of â€Å"free-will†, something which world religion and philosophies alike recognize as a fundamental part of our human anatomy, is called into question in a few simple and logical ways. Science supports the theory of determinism as the only logical explanation of the unfolding of the actions of our lives. First off, science has recently developed the discipline known to us as physics, in which the laws of the universe have been defined. In the short time in which humans have been graced by the scientific understanding of the laws of the universe, human kind has yet to fully step back and contemplate the magnitude of this discovery. In generations past, humans believed that we were made special with â€Å"free will†, but now we know that like all things in the universe we are subject to the physical laws. This is a huge step forward in rational thinking because it allows us to understand that our previously God given concept of â€Å"free will† was really a result of a lack of understanding of the deterministic laws of the universe. For instance a law as simple and commonly accepted as â€Å"gravity† challenges the idea of free will. Gravitational pull determines that no matter the size of an object, once separate from the surface of the earth will be dragged back down at the same force every time. This is a simple concept that we take for granted, but it works in the free will v. determinism argument. We are ruled by gravity, and therefore all of our lives activities answer to it. We can’t choose to jump off a building and float in the air because we’ll be pulled back to the ground to our imminent deaths. We can’t choose to stay younger and keep our skin tight to our faces because gravity’s long-term effect causes our skin to droop down towards the ground. The choices I just listed may seem farfetched to some, however, if we examine the notion that we have â€Å"free will† in the empirical sense of the word we see that not all of our decisions are controlled by us, and that we fall victim to the tyrannical rule of the physical laws of the universe. We aren’t truly â€Å"free† to create our own actions in life. Albert Einstein offers a particularly apt synopsis, â€Å"Everything is determined, the beginning as well as the end, by forces over which we have no control. It is determined for the insect as well as the star. Human beings, vegetables, or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious tune, intoned in the distance by an invisible piper. (Albert Einstein) The rule of physical law aside, which hinders us from truly being â€Å"free† to choose our own actions in life, is a much more simple scientific argument that dispels the notion of free will. For example: Say a 20 year old man murders another man in cold blood. They have no affiliation, no prior knowledge of who each other is, or reason to dislike each other. Man A walks up to random Man B and shoots and kills him. Was this action of Man A a result of â€Å"free will†? To examine the notion fully you need to look at his action coming from two sources. Either Man A was born with the moral flaw to allow himself to find killing another human acceptable, or that Man A was influenced during the course of his life by interactions and actions of others and came to that conclusion based on his own experience. There is no other explanation for Man A to willingly choose to open fire on Man B and kill him. If we look at the first option, Man A’s natural moral compass was skewed, allowing for him to conceive the notion that killing another is okay. This speaks to the determinant nature of our chemical makeup. Its possible his DNA made a mistake coding somewhere and he developed overtime and understood that killing another is â€Å"wrong† or maybe that his entire sense of â€Å"right from wrong† was skewed inside his mind. This would lead Man A to lead a life normally on the outside, and yet without regard for consequence, open fire on another man and kill him as easily as he could have held a door for him. This is the idea that he naturally had the capacity to kill, and that he could not control it. Eventually one of his animalistic impulses would finally stick and he’d be in the right place at the right time, and that it was only a matter of time until he killed someone. If you don’t subscribe to that theory and believe that he chose to kill Man B that day, try and consider that the results will still be pre-determined. If Man A killed Man B due to his choice, then his own â€Å"free will† and judgment that he finds reprehensible to kill another man can’t be attributed to truly â€Å"free† will of choice. Not every human kills others as part of their natural lifestyle, as they might kiss or mate with another. In fact a very small percentage of people in the world murder other humans, and this begs the question of why? What makes this small percentage of people â€Å"choose† to kill another person? The answer is that if they choose to do it, and they weren’t previously miswired so as said in the prior paragraph, then they must have been influenced by their surroundings. When Man A was six years old he didn’t choose to murder Man B, the events of his life led him to make this decision about whether or not murder was okay. This is yet another reason that he wasn’t truly free to choose; outside influence hinders the ability to choose freely. Whether he was abused, molested, lost a loved one, or just plain fed up with the monotony of everyday life in society, something pushed him over the edge. Something allowed for him to justify his actions; that something is outside influence. This deterministic train of thought explains why people do what they do, but not when. What makes us actually hit the point of no return, or when will the right opportunity hit the right mood leading the right action? (In our example the murder of Man B) The paradox between â€Å"free will† and â€Å"determinism† exists because of the influence of the different schools of thought. If one aligns his personal truth based on religious fervor, then an understanding of â€Å"free will† can exist logically and on the other hand if one bases his logic around science then â€Å"determinism† seems to be the only answer. So where does that leave philosophy, the great bridge between the two polarized schools of thought? It leaves philosophy somewhere in the middle, examining the validity of both sides of the argument, and helping to shed light on the debate over whether or not we truly are free to make a choice or if we are merely floating along the currents of the universe. Personally, I’m lost somewhere in the middle, hoping that the answer to this time-old question will be revealed.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Effectiveness of Active Learning Over Passive Learning

Effectiveness of Active Learning Over Passive Learning In this study, there has been a thorough examination and careful observations which show, that within passive learning although a primitive form of learning there is also some kind of active learning taking place. There is no clear difference between the active and passive learning and there is some kind of active learning taking place within the passive learning which is unconsciously being ignored. In reality, active learning is the measurement of the extent to which the learner is challenged to use his or her mental abilities while learning. The effect of various teaching and learning strategies show the clear impact of active forms of teaching and learning techniques on higher level students but there are still some factors that are posing a great barrier to active learning at secondary levels. These barriers involve curriculum, content, teaching pedagogy, school and classroom environment, behaviour, social factors and new electronic media (mobiles and social networking sites) be ing the worst. In order to create a better active learning environment within secondary schools, there is strong need for giving more autonomy to teachers within the classes. There are also some factors which have been discussed that could influence the students involvement within the classes which also hinders the active form of teaching and learning. There is also a need to realise that there are several teaching and learning styles that one could use to gain same learning skills that are again ignored unconsciously. Each and every learning activity has a different processes that could initiate the active form of learning within the brain even though they are regarded as active or passive learning in the real world. Teachers also have to realise that there are some students who prefer to learn through a passive style of learning as opposed to an active style of learning which may hinder them in a number of ways. Context: I have been teaching in a comprehensive girls school where 70% of the students are from an Minority Ethnic Background. The school accommodates over 1000 students with over 100 teachers from diverse back grounds. I was initially covering for a member of staff, when the position became vacant and I applied and was appointed to the post. The problem arose when I began teaching MFL as there had been a tendency of learning through passive teaching over a number of years. The behaviour in general of the pupils was good with some odd occasions of bad behaviour. There was a mix tenedency and attitude towards innovation and active learning by the students and the language faculty. The majority of my students were from an ethnic background, learning to improve their Urdu language. The major problem students faced was in relation to reading and writing skills because of the alien nature of the writing style of Urdu language. The students speaking and listening skills were very good due to their social environment and the electronic media around them. There is a huge difference between two sets of skills and it is very hard to correlate most of the time. There were students who were forced to learn Urdu by either parents or their peers and were there without any love or passion for the subject. Also the students were not willing to accept the new changes such as the new teacher, teaching style and the presence of opposite gender within their classes. There was a change within the school at management level and was a move towards a change in teaching methodology and assessment. The higher management was trying to implement the OFSTED lesson observation criteria throughout the school. The behaviour management system also went under changes and some staff members had problems in understanding and implementing them within the classes. Alongside these factors there was a huge task of assessing the pupils within all the four essential skills within MFL (Listening, speaking, reading and writing). I had few lesson observations that did not go well because of the behaviour problem and by being defensive as I was teaching more passively than active. I had implemented various strategies within the class of which some worked very well and some of them were disaster. One of them was the introduction of the active form of learning and teaching upon which some classes appreciated the new strategies and techniques where as some gave an insight of the problem that could arise when introducing the active form of learning and teaching within the classes. Analysis of Problem: Active learning is probably more striking for learners than passive forms of leaning. Learners are supposed to be more motivated and interested when their mental activity is challenged and when they can make decisions about their own learning. The retention capabilities are also greater in case of active learning as compared to passive learning as per figure 1.By being involved in some of the decisions related to their own learning the learners can connect to their prior knowledge and their needs more optimally. As a consequence, they will learn all the kinds of valuable skills, such as social skills, decision making skills and taking responsibility. In addition, by finding out things independently, they can follow their own interests and motivation. In reality, active learning is the measurement of the extent to which the learner is challenged to use his or her mental abilities while learning. The passive learner does the same in less content as passive learning is mainly involved in the initial phases where as active learning enhances the passive learning. There are various types of learning skills that could structure the focus of process-oriented instruction such as cognitive skills, meta-cognitive skills and affective-motivational skills. (Simon et al, 2000). The cognitive skills involve deep learning strategies like comparing, overview skills like summarising, criticising and structuring, reviewing and generalising, schematising, and transfer skills like considering potential and essential conditions of use. Meta-cognitive skills involve planning of times and planning for leaning, realistic goal setting, orientation on goals and outcomes, regular inspection and testing and finally restarting and reflection on process and outcome. There are two main types of communication which occurs within the class named one way and two way communications. Within One-way communication, Listener has little or no opportunity to respond straight away and directly. A teacher must make assumptions about the listeners skill level, prior training, and understanding of the material being communicated. Therefore, errors like the following could be made by the teacher: making the material too difficult, making the material too simple, making assumptions which are not fully shared by the audience, thus making it impossible for them to understand what is being said. Other characteristics: faster transmission less accuracy, potential lack of common vocabulary. Within Two-way communication, there is a flow of information among and between individuals. Because of the opportunity for immediate feedback, many of the assumptions that one makes under one-way communication about skill level, prior training, and understanding of the material being communicated get tested immediately. Other characteristics: slower transmission, greater accuracy, time to develop a common vocabulary. According to Bergquist et al (1975), Psychological effects of one-way communication on students. Frustration the student cannot easily communicate or ask for clarification of teacher information. Apathy a lack of involvement and interest in what is going on. Fear students dont want to talk in front of the group for fear of being put down or for fear of making the teacher angry. Dependence students expect the teacher to give all the necessary information. Most become unable to judge the value of the information. Hostility and/or aggression-they may cheat or quit coming to class Three other learning styles are more likely to result in classroom participation; they are: Collaborative: This style is typical of the student who feels he can learn the most by sharing his ideas and talents. He cooperates with teachers and peers and likes to work with others. He sees the classroom as a place for social interaction as well as content learning. Participant: This style is characteristic of the student who wants to learn subject content and likes to go to class. He takes responsibility for getting the most out of class and participates with others when told to do so. He feels that he should take part in as much of the class related activity as possible, but he does little that is not part of the subject outline. Independent: This response style is characteristic of the student who likes to think for himself. He prefers to work on his own, but he will listen to the ideas of others in the classroom. He learns the content he feels is important and is confident in his learning abilities Research shows that students do not have just one style but that instead they have several in varying degrees and in various situations. It is not necessary to have a battery of psychological instruments to assess these styles, since an awareness of your students behaviours will give you clues as to which ones are operating. A more formal way of obtaining this information is to give each student the description of the various learning styles (without the descriptive word) and ask them to rank the styles on a scale of most and least like them. A tabulation of that information may give you useful information about the predominate learning styles in your classroom. (Bergquist et al, 1975) Students exhibit a number of learning styles in their approach to the classroom. Three that are related to a lack of involvement are: Avoidant: This response style is typical of a student who is not interested in learning subject content in the traditional classroom. He does not participate with students and teachers in the classroom. He is uninterested or overwhelmed by what goes on in the classes. Competitive: This response style is exhibited by the student who learns material in order to perform better than others in the class. He feels he must compete with other students in the class for the rewards of the classroom, such as grades or teachers attention. He views the classroom as a win-lose situation where he must always win. Other students are unlikely to join this student in participation because of the win- lose nature of the interaction. Dependent: This style is characteristic of the student who shows little intellectual curiosity and who learns only what is required. He sees teachers and peers as sources of structure and support. He looks to authority figures for guidelines and wants to be told what to do. Consequently, this student is unlikely to initiate or have much that is original to say in class discussions Analysis of Intervention (Solution): Learning to collaborate and learning from collaboration means acquiring skills like dividing tasks between group members, leading a group, learning together, monitoring group progress, defining group goals and group learning goals, negotiating and co-structuring knowledge, coordinating cognitive and social communicative actions and creating a supportive collaborative climate (Simon et al, 2000). Another important factor is the ability to regulate own learning which is the regular increase of independence in thinking and learning through systematic scaffolding. Simons and Zuijlen (1995) have suggested the following sequence: working independently, Learning strategically and self directed learning. When working independently the learning goals, the learning strategies, the time and place of leaning, the way of testing and feedback is determined by the teacher or learning environment. Students just have to fulfil assignments and learning will occur if and when they obey. (Simon et al, 2000) When learning strategically, students should have freedom of choice related to the learning strategy such as what kinds of learning approach to take, when and where learning will take place. In self-directed learning students have more freedom even though the learning goals remain under teacher control and for example with respect to choice goals, self testing and or feedback/judgement procedures. As described by the Simon et al (1995), In the beginning stages of any learning the simpler forms of independence should occupy more time than the more complex ones with a gradual increase of time for more complex forms. Whereas more complex forms of independence can regulate and only be practiced with respect to themes where one has relative high level of expertise. Simply there should be more independent work with some strategic learning relating to topics at beginning stages which will provide more room for strategic learning, also in relation to less familiar topics and some room for self directed learning about familiar topics. More importantly, by demonstrating and discussing them with each other on a regular basis, the important thinking, learning and regulation skills are made public. One of the main obstacles to learning and think is that these processes are hidden and remain invisible (new learning ref), the students dont realise that all human beings have many different ways to approach tasks instead of believing their way is the only possible way for learning new things. Interventions aimed at fostering students development of active general self regulated learning and conditional or metacognitive knowledge about learning have involved specifically designed learning how to learn programs as well as integrated programs where learning how to learn is embedded within regular discipline instruction. Simpson et al, (1997) especially mention the problems of limited transfer of the learned strategies to new situations and the lack of long term evaluation data. One well know successful program of that kind emphasise integrated learning to think, integrated learning to learn and integrated learning to regulate learning and thinking (Simons et al, 1997). In integrated programme, students are induced to activate their existing knowledge and strategies about learning, to reflect on their own and alternative approaches to learning, and on the impact of different learning styles on the quality of learning outcomes in their particular discipline area as well as in general. A major advantage of integrated programme is that they can be implemented with, and benefit learners of all ages, all levels of development and across all fields of study. Cognitive interventions during regular instructions rely on reflection, persuasion, awareness raising as well as constructive frictions (Vermunt Verloop, 1999) in order to raise challenge students possible misconception about learning. Carrying out such interventions during the actual process of learning is particularly well suited to raise students awareness of the relationships between learning strategies and learning outcomes. Evaluation (analysis of findings/evaluation of impact): Active learning is defined as a form of learning in which the learner uses opportunities to decide about aspects of learning process or the extent to which the learner is challenged to use his or her mental abilities while learning. In reality, there is no clear difference between active and passive learning. It is more a dimension a matter of less and more than dichotomy. In other words in active learning the learners make their own time planning, they choose learning goals and activities they like, they test their progress, they take care of their learning and understanding on their own, and they reflect on errors and successes. Thus active learning also involves preparation, execution, regulation, control, feedback and maintenance of learning activities by learners. (Simon et al, 2000) In independent active learning, it is not so much the number and quality of decisions about learning that count but how much activity is asked from the learner. Are the students figuring out things on their own? Are they working without teacher supervision? Are they working together as a group? Are they thinking while learning? The goals and kinds of activities, the control and regulations as well as the feedback and maintenance of the learning are under teacher control. The major findings after the research show the same findings as Riemersma Veugelers, 1997; Van Hout-Wolters, 1994; Veugelers, 1999 (cited in Simons et al, 2000) have identified a number of factors contributing to the difficulties in the implementation of active forms of learning. School Management and organisation: Some schools provide very few opportunities for active learning to students because of too many traditional teacher directed classes and insufficient self study hours in their time table. School experience problems with changing the curriculum to fit in with the learning-to-learn lessons or with integrating learning to learn instructions in the content lessons. Teachers: Many teachers are not highly motivated to give attention to active learning as they do not see the benefits of it within the subject matter and argue that these activities take up too much valuable time. Other teachers want to concentrate all their attention on the instruction of content knowledge as otherwise it will affect their results or grades. This results in creating chaos amongst the students relating various new forms of teaching and learning. The use of active learning within the class makes teaching more intensive and time consuming, while teacher salaries remain the same. Also not all the teachers possess sufficient knowledge and skills to foster active learning and to supervise their students in active self directed learning. Most teachers would need to develop forms of instruction which are fundamentally different from those they are currently using and familiar with. Particularly the greatest barrier of all is the fact that faculty members efforts to employ active learning involve risk that students will not participate, learn sufficient content or use higher-order thinking. There is also a misconception or fears that faculty members will feel a loss of control, lack necessary skills, or be criticised for teaching in unconventional ways. However, each barrier or obstacle and type of risk can be successfully overcome through thoughtful and careful planning. Learners are not always motivated to invest much time and energy in gaining the new skills either. They do not always recognise the usefulness of these skills, or they dread the needed effort to learn them (Rabinowits , Freeman, Cohen, 1992, (cited in Simons et al, 2000)). Students often hold strong beliefs and persistent approaches to learning especially failure fearing students prefer to learn a whole paragraph by heart than to understand and remember the main issues. Students in especially secondary schools are not very interested in the subject matter instead they go to school to meet their friends; learning seems to be more or less a side issue. Such students prefer to follow teacher directed lessons, than to engage in self directed activities. Individual differences between students create problems such as attention seeking students who attract more attention as well as causing disruption. Some students get little teacher attention during individual study hours as they ask ver y few questions and thus are offered little supervision. A failure to periodically solicit student feedback in a subject about how it is progressing. Are students getting out of the subject what they want? Are the classroom procedures and methods used well? Are there some things that you are doing which students dont like (for example, lecture, clarity of presentations, unfriendly manner)? Information on these factors not only helps make the classroom atmosphere better but it also creates an atmosphere where students feel the teacher is interested in what they have to say. This has a tendency to transfer into content areas as well. Contents: There are specific learning skills which are considered most important by a school or teacher. There still appears to be a lack of good learning-material within the subject areas in which active learning is incorporated. Snow and Lohmans (1984) argument that direct training of content related cognitive strategies may be counterproductive for more able students because they have already developed effective models of learning. Therefore students were provided with opportunities to witness the mental activity of more able individuals, and then encouraged to practice the strategies with guidance in a socially supportive environment. While some students learn to self regulate their learning without much tuition or prompts, others need guidance, not only to acquire the strategies but also to develop the conditional knowledge necessary to know how, when and where to these strategies can be applied appropriately (Hattie, Biggs, Purdie, 1996; Winograd Hare, 1988, (cited in Simons et al, 2000)). There are several techniques or strategies that are regarded as Passive learning strategies used for the externalisation of mental activity such as think aloud and expert modelling that provide a learner unique insight into the thinking processes of an expert. While scaffolding, cognitive coaching, reciprocal teaching and other forms of guided learning are expected to provide the support necessary to develop the skills and confidence for independent use of techniques. Two popular strategies based on problem-solving model take account of the case study methods of instruction and guided design. Whereas other active learning pedagogies worthy of teachers use include debates, cooperative learning, role playing, drama,simmulation, and peer teaching. College teachers are commonly facing problems and complaining that the secondary school teachers are not playing their roles properly as they are wasting their time in games or activities rather than giving attention to reading or improving cognitive skills. Where schools and parents fail students at school, when they get to college they lack the capacity to concentrate on anything for longer than about 10 minutes at a time. Such students have been failed by their schools and teachers, its too late, as in many cases, for them to change and their chances of a decent education/job are already finished. Conclusions and Recommendations: Active learning is also important for teachers. Motivational and burnout problems of teachers are likely to decrease if students are more motivated and more actively engaged in their own learning. Besides, teaching becomes more intellectually challenging when students are learning actively and independently. An excellent first step in promoting active teaching and learning is to select strategies with that one can feel comfortable. Low-risk strategies, on the other hand, are structured and planned, naturally of short duration, focused on subject matter that is neither too abstract nor too controversial, and well-known to both the students and the faculty members. The modification of traditional lectures (Penner 1984) is one way to incorporate active learning in the classroom. Discussion in class is regarded as one of the most widespread strategies promoting active learning with good reason. If the objectives of a subject are to encourage long-term retention of information, to inspire students toward further learning, to allow students to apply information in new settings, or to develop students thinking skills, then discussion is preferable to lecture (McKeachie et al. 1986). Bergquist et al (1975) have described the following factors within Getting Students Involved in the Classroom. Encourage exclusive dialogue with the teacher and not between students. This fosters a lack of involvement since students must compete with each other for the kings ear. Front to back seating arrangements encourage one-way communication. It is hard to talk to the back of someone elses head. Front to back seating arrangements discourage students from talking among themselves but they do focus attention on the teacher . Students who feel pressurised into attending every session are less likely to want to participate. An overemphasis on grades and grading, constantly stressing the importance of material for the midterm or final, how important a good grade in your subject is, and how much you appreciate good students will lead to a lack of involvement. Students are less likely to be involved when the name of the game is to get a grade and not learning something that might be of value to them. If active self regulated learning is to increase in school, at university and in the workplace, there is a need for learners to be equipped with the skills, confidence and commitment for active learning across tasks and situations. It also requires the educational context to provide the opportunities and affordance for active and independent self regulated learning to take place and be valued. All of the above help create an atmosphere where students do not want to get involved (The non-involvement cycle). Consequently, they begin to behave that way, which leads the teacher to assume they are apathetic and uninterested, thus the teacher continues to treat them in ways that lead to more apathy and uninvolvement. Thus a self-fulfilling prophecy begins to emerge. Even though active learning provides a great benefit within the teaching and learning arena the question still remains whether the students at secondary school are ready for this change. Research completed with higher level students indicated that when the learning skills and behaviour reached a mature state the majority of the students were there to learn. Whereas at secondary schools, there are several issues that require attention at a higher level such as behaviour issues within schools and classes, teachers training, teachers right with in the classes, more freedom with the curriculum, specially designed curriculum to promote active teaching and learning including others. In a recent article in the Guardian news paper, Mortimore, P (2010) reiterates that teachers are the solution not the problem. This means the profession attracting, and keeping, the most talented and the best-motivated people. It also means the government allowing teachers reasonable autonomy in how they teach. If the officials address the following issues, there will possibility of promoting active learning at the secondary level.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Racial Profiling is Necessary Essay -- Race Racism Prejudice Essays

In order to understand racial profiling, it must first be correctly defined. Although different authors use different criteria for the term racial profiling, Merriam-Webster’s definition for the word racial is â€Å"of, relating to, or based on a race (Merriam-Webster, 2006; p.855).† The definition the dictionary puts forth for profiling is â€Å"the act of suspecting or targeting a person solely on the basis of observed characteristics or behavior (Merriam-Webster, 2006; p.830).† Based on these definitions, racial profiling could be defined for criminal justice purposes as targeting a person based solely on the characteristic of race. Most people, law enforcement officers included, would consider racial profiling based on this definition as ethically wrong. However, a case must be made for the use of profiling based on race in some circumstances. Critics claim that racial profiling has no place within the justice system because it targets minorities who are not necessarily doing anything illegal. They argue that the evidence that shows that racial profiling as a successful tool in the law enforcement arsenal is skewed, and that those targeted are actually less likely to perform illegal acts than others who are not targeted, because those who are not are less likely to get caught, while those who are targeted are much more likely to be caught in an illegal act, so they will perform less illegal activity. The evidence supporting racial profiling states that this argument is invalid because many illegal acts are cited as being done by minorities, specifically in terms of gang activity. Many people feel that racial profiling is ethically sound because in order to obtain a suspect, an officer must be looking for a person with certain chara... ...rian’s perspective and he believed that any profiling based on race is wrong (Fredrickson, 2002; p.166). Conclusion Based on these authors, as well as others, it can be effectively argued that racial profiling is not, in and of itself, an unethical practice. However, it must be used in a precise manner in order to be morally sound. This method includes using it as a tool in the investigative process and not before it has been determined that a crime has been committed. It must also be used in a specific way: to describe an individual suspect and not a group of people who are suspected of possibly committing one crime or another. The witness’s background and bias must be taken into account, and racial profiling must be done equally and without favor to one racial group. After these steps are taken into account, racial profiling cannot be considered unethical.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Essay --

Teenage pregnancy is defined as a teenage girl, usually within the ages of 13-19, becoming pregnant. The term in everyday speech usually refers to girls who have not reached legal adulthood, which varies across the world, who become pregnant. (UNICEF July 2008). â€Å"We all know that teenage pregnancy is a blur on the vision of Antigua & Barbuda because it impedes the progression and the development of our people.† (Athill youth Director).When a young girl becomes pregnant it mars her chances of success. It is a multifaceted problem and there is no one reason why a teen may become pregnant, we know that there are cultural influences and home support for inappropriate behaviour,† the youth director added. The non-completion of school by many young people is a serious concern for our educational and economic system. By leaving school before graduation, many dropouts have considerable educational deficiencies that limit their financial and social well-being throughout their adult lives. In more than two decades ago, there has been an increasing number of teenage pregnancies globally, refle...

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Mla Exercise

Exercises Using MLA Works Cited Source: Arkin, Marian, and Cecillia Macheski. Research papers: A Practical Guide. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin Company. 2001. Directions: Using the following information, create a Works Cited entry for these sources. Important words have been capitalized. Remove or change the capitals and use MLA style of capitalization and punctuation. After you have the entry for each source, arrange them in alphabetical order as they would appear at the end of a research paper on the Works Cited page. 1. The title of the book is W. E. B. DUBOIS. The book was published in BOSTON in 1986 by TWAYNE Publishers.The author’s name is MARABLE MANNING. Manning, Marable. W. E. B. Dubois. Boston: Twayne, 1986. Print. 2. An article entitled SIX CENTS AN HOUR was written by SYDNEY H. SCHANBERG. This article was published in LIFE magazine. It appeared in the JUNE 1996 issue on pages 38-46. Schanberg, Sydney H. â€Å"Six Cents an Hour. †Ã‚  Life  June 1996: 38-46. Prin t. 3. MARY LAWLER’S book called MARCUS GARVEY was published in NEW YORK by CHELSEA HOUSE publishers in the year 1988. Lawler, Mary. Marcus Garvey. New York: Chelsea House, 1988. Print. 4. This book was published by PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS, which is located in PRINCETON, New Jersey.It was written my Myron Weiner. Wiener’s book was called THE CHILD AND THE STATE IN INDIA: CHILD LABOR AND EDUCATION POLICY IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE. It appeared in 1991. Weiner, Myron. The Child and the State in India: Child Labor and Education Policy in Comparative Perspective. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1991. Print. 5. An article entitled INDIA BATTLES ILLEGAL CHILD LABOR appeared in the newspaper the CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR. It was published on November 8, 1995 and the article begins on page 9. â€Å"India Battles Illegal Child Labor. †Ã‚  Christian Science Monitor  8 Nov. 1995: 9. Print. 6.This article came from Ebscohost from NCLive. The author’s name is SALLY RICHF IELD. The article name is HOW HIGH THE DOVE FLIES. The article’s volume and issue number are 1. 5. The date of online publication is August 10, 2000. The name of the online journal is BIRDS ARE US. The sponsor of the site from which you got this information is Stanly Community College in Albemarle, NC. The date of access is November 2, 2001 Richfield, Sally. â€Å"How High the Dove Flies. †Ã‚  Birds Are Us  1. 5 (2000): n. pag. NC Live. Web. 2 Nov. 2001. 7. This article came from a scholarly journal the pages issues separately.The author’s names are RODNEY MONTGOMERY and MAUREEN FOSTER. The article’s name is DYSFUNCTION IN UNIVERSITY MANAGEMENT IN NEW SOUTH WALES IN 1947 AND 1983. The name of the journal was THE JOURNAL OF HIGHER EDUCATION MANAGEMENT. The issue number is 43. 2. The year of publication is 1989 and the pages run from page 6-17. Montgomery, Rodney, and Maureen Foster. â€Å"Dysfunction in University Management in New South Wales in 1947 a nd 1983. †Ã‚  Journal of Higher EducationManagement  43. 2 (1989): 6-17. Print. 8. This source comes from a CD-ROM. Its editor is SONALD SHEEHY. The name of the CD-ROM is ROBERT FROST: POEMS, LIFE AND LEGACY.This CD-ROM was published in NEW YORK by HOLT in 1997. Sheehy, Sonald. ed. Robert Frost: Poems, Life, and Legacy. New York: Holt, 1997. CD-ROM 9. This source is a personal or professional web site. The authors are STEVE SPANOUDIS, BOB BLAI, and NELSON MILLER. The site’s name is POET’S CORNER. The publication date is February 2, 1998. The user’s date of access is February 4, 2000. The URL is http://www. geocities. com/. apanoudi/poems. Spanoudis, Steve, Bob Blai, and Nelson Miller. Poet's Corner, 2 Feb. 1998. Web. 4 Feb. 2000. 10. This source is an online book. The original date of publication of the book is 1846.The author’s name is CHARLOTTE BRONTE. The name of the book is JANE EYRE. The user access date is March 16, 1999. The site is gopher. vt. edu:10010/02/50/1. Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. 1846. Web. 16 Mar. 1999. Works Cited Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. 1846. Web. 16 Mar. 1999. â€Å"India Battles Illegal Child Labor. †Ã‚  Christian Science Monitor  8 Nov. 1995: 9. Print. Lawler, Mary. Marcus Garvey. New York: Chelsea House, 1988. Print. Manning, Marable. W. E. B. Dubois. Boston: Twayne, 1986. Print. Montgomery, Rodney, and Maureen Foster. â€Å"Dysfunction in University Management in New South Wales in 1947 and 1983.   Journal of Higher EducationManagement  43. 2 (1989): 6-17. Print. Richfield, Sally. â€Å"How High the Dove Flies. †Ã‚  Birds Are Us  1. 5 (2000): n. pag. NC Live. Web. 2 Nov. 2001. Schanberg, Sydney H. â€Å"Six Cents an Hour. †Ã‚  Life  June 1996: 38-46. Print. Sheehy, Sonald. ed. Robert Frost: Poems, Life, and Legacy. New York: Holt, 1997. CD-ROM Spanoudis, Steve, Bob Blai, and Nelson Miller. Poet's Corner, 2 Feb. 1998. Web. 4 Feb. 2000. Weiner, Myron. The Child and the State in India: Child Labor and Education Policy in Comparative Perspective. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1991. Print.

Monday, September 16, 2019

English Essay

Culture polity, traditions, language, food, costume, belief system, architecture, arts, craft, music, dance, and sports which will be discussed in this article to give you an indication of Fiji’s indigenous community but also the various communities which make up Fiji as a modern culture and living. The indigenous culture is an active and living part of everyday life for the majority of the population. However, it has evolved with the introduction of vibrant and old cultures including Indian, Chinese and European culture, and various cultures from the Pacific neighbors of Fiji; in particular the Tongan and Rotuman cultures. The culture of Fiji, including language, has created a unique communal and national identity. Tradition and hierarchy Fijian indigenous society is very communal, with great importance attached to the family unit, the village, and the vanua (land). [1] A hierarchy of chiefs presides over villages, clans, and tribes. Chiefly positions are hereditary; a deceased chief is invariably followed by a kinsman or kinswoman, though not necessarily his own son or daughter. This reflects Polynesian influence: in most other Melanesian societies, chiefs are appointed on merit. The largest social unit for Fijians is the Yavusa, defined by R. A. Derrick as the â€Å"direct agnate descendants of a single kalou-vu† (deified ancestor). Chiefly succession was from older brother/sister to younger brother/sister, after the death of their father/mother. When the youngest brother/sister died, the eldest son/daughter of the eldest brother/sister became chief. This tradition still influences Fijian society today, though less rigidly: there is more of a tendency nowadays towards primogeniture. [2][3] Each brother/sister in the family then formed his own branch of the yavusa, called the Mataqali. Each mataqali became the custodian of a specific task. A fully developed Yavusa has several mataqali: * Turaga: This mataqali descends from the original ancestor through primogeniture – inheritance of the eldest son in each succeeding generation. The chief of a village is always chosen from the Turaga mataqali. [1][4] * Sauturaga: These are next in rank to the chiefs, support him, and enforce his commands and also have final say in the installation of a Chief[1] * Mata ni vanua: These form the official heralds of the village. They are also in charge of ceremonial functions. [5] * Bete: This was the traditional priestly class. The kalou-vu was believed to speak through the Bete. [1][6] * Bati: This mataqali forms the traditional warrior class. [6] * Dau (skill) and Matai: these are the crafts people and specialized skilled people of the tribe e. g. Dau ni vucu (Poet/choreographer/composer), Dau ni yau (treasurer), Mataisau (carpenter/or Canoe builder)[1] The mataqali are subdivided into Tokatoka, each comprising closely related families. Several mataqali comprise a village, several of which form a yavusa or district. The British colonial rulers amalgamated the districts into Yasana, or Provinces. The districts also form three Matanitu, or Confederacies. These are often said to be agglomerations of provinces, but as the latter were a colonial imposition, the boundaries do not coincide exactly, and the Provinces of Tailevu, Ra, Naitasiri, Lomaiviti and parts of Yasawa and Ba makes the Kubuna Confederacy. This Confederacy in modern Fiji is considered to be the most senior. The other two are Burebasaga (covering the rest of Viti Levu), and Tovata, covering Vanua Levu, Lau archipelago and Rotuma. Despite its isolation and relatively small size, Tovata has been politically dominant since Fiji gained its independence in 1970. Language The official language is English while the national indigenous language is Bauan which is only one of the many dialects that exist in the Fiji Group, each of the fourteen provinces more or less have their own dialect though there is a clear distinction between the dialects of the West, Central and Eastern parts of the country. Other languages spoken in the country are Fiji Hindi, Cantonese, Rotuman, Gilbertese (Rabi Island), and Tuvaluan (Kioa Island). The Fiji Islands are traditionally linked to their island neighbours Rotuma, Tonga and Samoa, and this is evident in the culture and dialects of the Northern and Eastern provinces being Cakaudrove, Bua, Macuata, and Lau. The many dialects spoken in these four provinces consistently use sounds that are heard in Tongan and Samoan, but not so with dialects from the Western and South Western parts of Fiji. The Fijian language uses a Latin alphabet. However, the Fijian alphabet is dissimilar from the English alphabet. Fiji English The existence of many dialects within the Fijian language as well as exposure to the other languages spoken have contributed to many Fiji Islanders being bilingual. For general communication in an informal environment, a very interesting cross use of the languages has developed, resulting in slang now commonly referred to as Fiji English. In formal settings, of course, correct usage is adhered to. Fiji English comprises aspects of Fijian, English and Hindi, which reflects the history and identity of the people of Fiji. Fiji English is non-rhotic. . Cultural arts and social polity In culture, its various crafts and music give it an identity along with it traditional etiquette and varying forms of clothing attire, its unique architecture also tells a story of a culture and its evolution, the following will discuss these aspects of culture in Fiji. Arts and crafts Fiji’s arts and crafts reflect local adaptations of their Polynesian and Melanesian heritage. By tradition, the men’s and women’s crafts are separate. Women’s crafts The village of Na lotu on Kadavu Island is famous for its pottery, the making of which is still governed by strict rituals. Nadroga and Rewa also produce fine pottery. Each region has its own unique style in the making of pottery. Tapa from the Lau Islands in Fiji. The making of Tapa cloth, or (masi), is another craft associated with women. Tapa is made from the bark of the paper mulberry tree and decorated in charcoal with symbolic motifs and various patterns. In modern times, it has become fashionable for a masi to bear the name of the person who made it. Masi are often exchanged as gifts on formal occasions. The island of Vatuelele of the southern coast of Viti Levu is famous for its masi products. Most Fijian mats are made from the leaves of the pandanus tree. The long process of preparation includes scraping and boiling the leaves, and drying them in the sun. There are different mats used for different occasions, and some are made as gifts for formal occasions such as weddings. Most mats are bordered with highly decorative and brightly coloured wool. One well-known Fijian mat is the kuta, made by women in Vanua Levu, particularly Bua. Weaving using various materials was another craft generally mastered by the women but also aspects of weaving were mastered only by the men, various types of weaving practiced were and still are; basket weaving, coconut rope weaving, and coconut leaves weaving. Men’s crafts Carving was practiced by the men; carving would be used for items of practical use and simple shapes and design were used. A lot of effort was put into well adorned weapons and items for the home and ceremony, today carving is practiced for its use in tourism and no longer plays a major role in Fijian society and life except in the case of the Tanoa used from drinking Kava. Drua, the most impressive Fijian canoe. Canoe Building was another art practiced only by the men, canoes were not only the major form of communication, but were important in all aspects of Fijian society, from the gathering of food and transporting of crops to use in presentation ceremonies and they were instrumental in wars and politics which were rife in Fiji. 9] The art of Canoe building was varied across the group and had several different types but of a similar design, the Camakau was a small twin hulled canoe for fishing or small transportation purposes, the most impressive of Canoes in Fiji were that of the Drua. In Fiji’s early history before European involvement, Control of the seaway was a major and decisive objective ; disrupting or cutting off the enemies supply and reinforcements gave great advantage in battle and would ensure victory. Sea battles involving hundreds of canoes were frequent. The canoe, which inspired fear and awe and so often held the balance was the mighty Drua. One of the most elaborate and beautiful artifacts of Oceania, the Drua was a product of considerable group efforts and human sacrifice. Double hulled and of gigantic proportions, the Drua was a masterpiece of design and craftsmanship, requiring total community involvement in its construction and human sacrifice in its launching. 10] Its speed out at sea would be in excess of twenty knots and still remained highly manoeuvrable, it was capable of carrying upward of 150 warriors and took some 6 to 7 years to build and would vary in length from 100 feet to 118 feet and have a mast height of 60 to 70 feet, in the mid-19th century the following accounts were recorded: â€Å"Up went the huge sail, down went the great steering oars, splashing into the sea, and away we shot like a racehorse. Owing to the great rate at which we were going, the sea was like a hissing cauldron on either side of our course, and the vessel, instead of having time to mount over the smaller waves, cut its way through them. † (West, 1869). â€Å"It had a magnificent appearance with its immense sail of white mats; its velocity was almost inconceivable. † (Wilkes, 1840). Ratu Seru Cakobau commanded an impressive fleet which had Several Drua with armed warriors ready for battle the led Canoe was named ‘Rusi I Vanua’ or ‘Cursed is the land’. 11] Much of the art of Canoe building has been lost and only a small few still practice the art on a very small scale as its use in this modern era seems to have lost its place. The craft of Canoe building was traditionally reserved for the male. Performing arts Fijian Rugby Team Performing a Traditional War Dance before their Rugby encounter against Canada. The Meke An indigenous art form is the Meke, which may incorporate the seasea (women’s fan dance) or a meke wesi (men’s spear dance). It is usually a narrative of an important event such as a war, a chiefly installation, or even a scandal. Some mekes are generations old, and form an important part of Fiji’s oral history. In olden times, the meke was considered to be an oracle from the gods, and the Dau ni vucu, or composer, would often go into a trance before a performance. Others are modern, composed for a particular event, much as a poet laureate might write a poem to celebrate an event in a Western country. Each district of Fiji has its own form of meke, performed in the local dialect. Other forms of Polynesian and Melanesian dance art forms exist with most widely known being dances of Rotuma and Tonga. There are also various Indian dances and Chinese dances which are performed at relevant festivals marking important times for these communities which are now a part of Culture in Fiji. Music Music of Old Fiji consisted of various chants which often told a story or preserved information to be passed on from generation to generation, these songs used various traditional instruments. With the introduction of European and Asian cultures music in Fiji has evolved and songs sung in the Fijian vernacular are popular but so also are songs in Indian and English, some local artists mix all three languages and traditional instruments from each culture making for a very interesting musical experience. A distinct Indian sound has evolved in Fiji that some see as influencing modern Indian music and even jazz. Clothing and costume The traditional attire was loin cloths for men and grass skirts for women. Skirts were short for single women, and long for married women, with girls wearing virgin locks before marriage. Most ladies of rank had the lower parts of their bodies decorated with tattoos. Chiefs dressed more elaborately. Modern Fiji’s national dress is the sulu, which resembles a skirt. It is commonly worn by both men and women. One type worn by both men and women is the ‘Sulu va Taga’ pronounced Sulu vah Tanga which is a wrap around piece of rectangular material which is elaborately decorated with patterns and designs of varying styles this is for more casual and informal occasions. Many men, especially in urban areas, also have Sulu va taga which is a tailored sulu and can be tailored as part of their suit. Many will wear a shirt with a western-style collar, tie, and jacket, with a matching Sulu va taga and sandals, this type of sulu can be worn to a semi formal or formal occasion. Even the military uniforms have incorporated the Sulu va taga as part of their ceremonial dress. Women usually wear a multi-layered Tapa cloth on formal occasions. A blouse made of cotton, silk, or satin, of often worn on top. On special occasions, women often wear a tapa sheath across the chest, rather than a blouse. On other occasions, women may be dressed in a chamba, also known as a sulu I ra, a sulu with a specially crafted top. There are many regional variations throughout Fiji. Residents of the village of Dama, in Bua Province and Cakaudrove i Vanua (Province), Fiji wear finely woven mats called kuta, made from a reed. While traditional and semi-traditional forms of dress are still very much in use amongst indigenous Fijian culture, there is a greater influence for Western and Indian Fashion in urban areas as in neighboring developed nations. Traditions and ceremonies Etiquette in indigenous Fijian ceremony is rather intricate depending on the function as various formalities and presentations which do several things; firstly it shows respect between two communal groups, strengthen tribal and family ties and reinforce social, tribal and family ties. Various items are used in ceremony and surrounded by ceremony, Kava, known in Fiji as yaqona, is Fiji’s national drink. Traditionally, it was used only in important ceremonies. Nowadays, it is a social beverage. There is a strict protocol associated with yaqona drinking. One should clap once, clasping the hands, take the cup, and drink the yaqona in a single draft before returning the cup to the bearer. Another highly prized item in ceremony is the tabua or Whale’s tooth, other items also the use of mats (masi) are also used traditionally in ceremony also various regions have tradition that has been passed down generation to generation for centuries one example are the firewalkers of beqa. The Sawau tribe of Beqa are noted for their ability to walk on white hot stones without being burned. 12] Strict rituals have to be observed before the firewalking ceremony. There is an ancient myth about how an ancestor of the Sawau tribe was given this power by a spirit god in exchange for his life, after the god was captured by the man who was fishing for eels. Cuisine The cuisine of Fiji in pre-colonial times consisted of root crops, vegetables, and fruits, as well as various land animals such as wild pig, human, and various birds. The coastal tribes wou ld have had the same, but also had a large amount of local seafood. These would have been prepared with local herbs and spices on wood fire rock ovens. Most cooking areas were located in the center of house so the smoke would repel insects and strengthen the roof thatching. Another popular method of cooking, which is still used today, is the lovo which is an earth oven[13] — a fire made on in a pit in the ground lined with heat-resistant stones. It closely resembles the hangi of the New Zealand Maori. When the stones are hot, food wrapped in (banana) leaves, is placed in the pit, covered with soil and left to cook before being exhumed and eaten. Dishes cooked this way include palusami, parcels of taro leaves saturated with coconut milk, onions, and sometimes tinned meat. Modern Fijian Cuisine is rather diverse with great influence from Indian cuisine and spices. When these are applied to local traditional dishes, it makes for interesting eating. European, Indian, and Chinese variants of cuisine, along with traditional foods, are common place in most, if not all households in Fiji. Architecture A bure kalou, a sketch done in the early 1800s. In Old Fiji, the architecture of villages was simple and practical to meet the physical and social need and to provide communal safety the houses were square in shape and with pyramid like shaped roofs,[14] and the walls and roof were thatched and various plants of practical use were planted nearby, each village having a meeting house and a Spirit house. The spirit house was elevated on a pyramid like base built with large stones and earth, again a square building with an elongated pyramid like [14] roof with various scented flora planted nearby. The houses of Chiefs were of similar design and would be set higher than his subjects houses but instead of an elongated roof would have similar roof to those of his subjects homes but of course on a larger scale. With the introduction of communities from Asia aspects of their cultural architecture are now evident in urban and rural areas of Fiji’s two main Islands Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. A village structure shares similarities today but built with modern materials and spirit houses (Bure Kalou) have been replaced by churches of varying design. The urban landscape of early Colonial Fiji was reminiscent of most British colonies of the 19th and 20th century in tropical regions of the world, while some of this architecture remains, the urban landscape is evolving in leaps and bounds with various modern aspects of architecture and design becoming more and more evident in the business, industrial and domestic sector, the rural areas are evolving at a much slower rate. Literature The emergence of Fiji’s literature (as distinct from oral literature) coincides with the country’s transition to independence in 1970. Among the first published works of Fijian literature, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, were Raymond Pillai’s short stories (in English) and Pio Manoa’s poetry (in English and in Fijian). More recent notable Fiji writers include Satendra Nandan (poet and novelist), Sudesh Mishra (poet), Larry Thomas (playwright), and Joseph Veramo (novelist). Religion Religion is quite diverse with Christianity being the dominant faith in Fiji. Many Christian denominations are present in Fiji, the most prevalent of which is Methodist. Of the other Asian religions the Hindu faith is dominant, followed by Islam. There are other belief systems observed by Fijians as well. The impact of Christianity The impact of Christianity in the 19th century resulted in certain traditions being proscribed. In the pre-Christian era, human sacrifice was practiced. Men were buried alive to hold the pillars to the house of a chief. Cannibalism was practiced, too:[16] the bodies of enemies slain in battle, or in sacrifice, were piled up and cooked for festivals, such as the installation of chiefs or the launching of a great canoe. 16] Seru Epenisa Cakobau. The Bauan warlord who united the disparate tribes of Fiji and proclaimed himself King in 1871, renounced cannibalism on his conversion to Christianity in 1854. A bure kalou, a pre-Christian Fijian religious Building. Old religion Fiji’s old religion is no longer practiced by the majority in the indigenous community who have adopted Christianity. Old deities are still acknowled ged and respected, but not worshipped. Fijian rituals still exists in private. Demographics Of the various faiths, Christianity is the dominant belief system and ncluding all the various denominations of the Christian faith they number in total 449,482. Hindus, with their various denominations, number in total 261,097. Muslims make up 54,324 of Fiji’s population. Followers of other belief systems make up 10,166 of Fiji’s population. Sports Sports culture is unique as different racial mixes and cultures come together in a common interest. Fiji is fanatical about sports and the two most dominant being rugby and soccer. Traditional sports Sports in older times had a practical place, apart from recreation, helping to train young warriors. One such practice would have the older men bring the male children a severely injured captive of war, allowing the boys to practice their archery skills against this living target. There were other sports that were practiced in older times which are not practiced now. Notable traditional sports used to be played were tiqa, ulutoa, veisaga, and veisolo. Modern sports The Fiji sevens team at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. Sports have developed greatly over the past two decades in Fiji with a wide variety of sports undertaken. Fiji is most well known for its prowess in the game of rugby union and in particular rugby sevens. Rugby union Rugby union is the most popular sport in Fiji. The highest level of competition is the Colonial Cup. The Fiji national rugby union team has competed in five Rugby World Cup competitions. The Fijian Rugby Sevens team is constantly one of the top two or three teams in the world, often the premier team. Rugby league Rugby league is a popular team sport played in Fiji. The Fiji national rugby league team is known as Fiji Bati, with the team competing in three Rugby League World Cup competitions. They made it to the semi-finals of the 2008 Rugby League World Cup. Football Football was a minor sport, but over the last decade with further international funding from FIFA and sound local management of the sport has grown in popularity amongst the Indian community initially but now also the Fijian community. Other sports Many sports exist in Fiji and in many ways has its own cultural following, sports such as golf which has been made famous by Fiji athlete Vijay Singh. Sports such as cricket and surfing which was brought to prominence by former world champion and Fiji athlete Tony Philips. Sailing in varying forms, various adventure sports, athletics, various Asian martial arts, boxing, and the list goes on.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Quality of Education

10 A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY Alan Januszewski h e State University of New York at Potsdam Kay A. Persichitte University of Wyoming Introduction The purpose of this chapter is to provide a historical context for the current dei nition of educational technology. We will do this in several stages. First, we will review the primary purposes and considerations for dei ning educational technology. h en, we will review each of the four previous dei nitions, paying particular attention to the primary concepts included in each dei nition.We will examine the context and rationales for decisions made regarding each of these primary concepts. We will also present some of the historical criticisms of the dei nitions which provided the impetus for changing the dei nitions. h e criteria and purposes for producing a dei nition were discussed at the time of the writing of the i rst dei nition in 1963. A satisfactory dei nition of instructional technology wil l let us i nd common ground, will propose tomorrow’s horizons, and will allow for a variety of patterns that specii c individuals may follow in specii c institutions . . Research must be designed in terms of clear understanding of instructional technology. Superintendents of schools are requesting criteria for new personnel ER5861X_C010. indd 259 ER5861X_C010. indd 259 8/16/07 6:24:22 PM 8/16/07 6:24:22 PM260 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE needed in various phases of instructional improvement. Teacher-education institutions need assistance in planning courses for pre-service and in-service instruction that will provide the skills and understanding which will be required in tomorrow’s classrooms . . Let us consider the criteria for useful dei nitions. h ey should (a) clarify the description of the i eld in ordinary language; (b) summarize existing knowledge; (c) mediate applications of knowledge to new situations; and (d) lead to fruitful lines of experimental inquiry. . . . h is report aims to provide a working dei nition for the i eld of instructional technology which will serve as a framework for future developments and lead to an improvement in instruction. (Ely, 1963, pp. –8) h ose involved in the writing of the 1963 dei nition obviously believed that there were a lot of things to consider when dei ning educational technology. Or put dif erently, the existence of such a dei nition would have far reaching consequences, sometimes with implications that the authors might not intend. Acknowledging this opened the door to criticisms of the dei – nitions and the purposes cited for redei ning educational technology. h e authors of subsequent dei nitions all seemed to adhere, at least in part, to the purposes and criteria identii ed in the 1963 dei nition.The 1963 Definition h e leadership of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) recognized the 1963 dei nition of audiovisual communications as the i rst formal dei nition of educational technology (AECT, 1977). h is dei nition, the i rst in a series of four oi cially sanctioned dei nitions, was developed by the Commission on Dei nition and Terminology of the Department of Audiovisual Instruction (DAVI) of the National Education Association (NEA) and supported by the Technological Development Project (TDP).In 1963 audiovisual communications was the label that was used to describe the i eld as it was evolving from the audiovisual education movement to educational technology: Audiovisual communications is that branch of educational theory and practice primarily concerned with the design and use of messages which control the learning process. It undertakes: (a) the study of the unique and relative strengths and weaknesses of both pictorial and nonrepresentational messages which may be employed in the learning process for any purpose; and (b) the structuring and systematizing of messages by men and instruments in an educational environment. es e undertakings ER5861X_C010. indd 260 ER5861X_C010. indd 260 8/16/07 6:24:23 PM 8/16/07 6:24:23 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 261 include the planning, production, selection, management, and utilization of both components and entire instructional systems. Its practical goal is the ei cient utilization of every method and medium of communication which can contribute to the development of the learner’s full potential. (Ely, 1963, pp. 18–19) A footnote that was included as part of this dei nition read â€Å"the audiovisual communications label is used at this time as an expedient.Another designation may evolve, and if it does, it should then be substituted† (p. 18). Conceptual Shit s Signaled in Dei nitions h ere are three major conceptual shit s that contributed to the formulation of the dei nitions of educational technology as a theory: (1) the use of a â€Å"process† concept rather than a â€Å"product† concept; (2) the use of the terms messages and media instrumentation rather than materials and machines; and (3) the introduction of certain elements of learning theory and communication theory (Ely, 1963, p. 19).Understanding these three ideas and their impact on each other is essential to understanding the idea of educational technology in 1963. A technological conception of the audiovisual i eld called for an emphasis on process, making the traditional product concept of the i eld of educational technology untenable. h e Commission believed, â€Å"h e traditional product concept in the audiovisual i eld views the ‘things’ of the i eld by identifying machines, use of particular senses, and characteristics of materials by degrees of abstractness and/or concreteness† (Ely, 1963, p. 19).Members of the Commission preferred a process concept of the i eld which included â€Å"the planning, production, selection, management, and utilization of both components and ent ire instructional systems† (p. 19). h is process conception also emphasized â€Å"the relationship between events as dynamic and continuous† (p. 19). h e Commission argued that â€Å"materials† and â€Å"machines† were â€Å"things† or products and opted not to use those terms in the dei nition. Instead, the Commission used the terms messages and instruments. h e Commission further argued that materials and machines were interdependent elements. A motion picture and projector are inseparable as are all other materials requiring machines for their use† (Ely, 1963, p. 19). One was of little practical use without the other. h e Commission used the concept of media instrumentation to explain instruments. h e Commission said, â€Å"Media-instrumentation indicates the ER5861X_C010. indd 261 ER5861X_C010. indd 261 8/16/07 6:24:23 PM 8/16/07 6:24:23 PM262 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE transmission systems, the materials and devices available to carry s elected messages† (Ely, 1963, p. 20). e concept of media instrumentation also included the people who utilized the instruments in the educational environment as well as the transmission systems. h e idea that both people and instruments comprised media instrumentation was based in the broader concept of the man-machine system (Finn, 1957). In discussions of the relationship and integration of learning theory and communications theory to instructional technology, the Commission stated, â€Å"Certain elements of learning theory and communications theory of er potential contributions [to the i eld of educational technology]; e. . , source, message, channel, receiver, ef ects, stimulus, organism, response† (Ely, 1963, p. 20). h e Commission integrated learning theory and communications theory by identifying and combining the two systems basic to the process view of the i eld: the learning-communicant system and the educational-communicant system. h ese two systems use conce pts from both learning and communications theories that delineated and specii ed the roles of the individuals involved in the use of these systems. e learnercommunicant system â€Å"refers to the student population† and the educationalcommunicant system â€Å"refers to the professional persons in the school† (p. 23). h ese two systems could be of any size, ranging from a single classroom to large school systems (Ely, 1963). Merging the two communicant systems into a single model of the educational process provided the i eld of audiovisual communications with a theoretical framework (Ely, 1963) and a model that allowed educational technology to be viewed as a theoretical construct (AECT, 1977). e fundamental doctrine advanced by the writers of the i rst dei nition was that it was a â€Å"branch of educational theory and practice. † h e word theory was particularly important in this dei nition because it had a special place in the history of the audiovisual i eld, because of the status that it conferred on the i eld, and because of the expectation for further research to inl uence the evolution of that theory. Finn’s Characteristics of a Profession e 1963 dei nition was heavily inl uenced by James Finn’s (1953) six characteristics of a profession: (a) An intellectual technique, (b) an application of that technique to the practical af airs of man, (c) a period of long training necessary before entering into the profession, (d) an association of the members of the profession into a closely knit group with a high quality of communication ER5861X_C010. indd 262 ER5861X_C010. indd 262 8/16/07 6:24:24 PM 8/16/07 6:24:24 PM10.A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 263 between members, (e) a series of standards and a statement of ethics which is enforced, and (f) an organized body of intellectual theory constantly expanded by research. (p. 7) Of these six characteristics of a profession, Finn (1953) argued that â€Å"the most fundamental and most important characteristic of a profession is that the skills involved are founded upon a body of intellectual theory and research† (p. 8). Having established the importance of theory and research for a profession, Finn further explained his position by saying that â€Å". . this systematic theory is constantly being expanded by research and thinking within the profession† (p. 8). Finn was arguing that a profession conducts its own research and theory development to complement the research and theory development that it adapts/adopts from other academic areas. If educational technology was to be a true profession, it would have to conduct its own research and develop and its own theory rather than borrowing from more established disciplines like psychology.Finn (1953) evaluated the audiovisual i eld against each of the six characteristics and determined that the audiovisual i eld did not meet the most fundamental characteristic: an organized body of intellectual theory and research. â€Å"When the audiovisual i eld is measured against this characteristic . . . the conclusion must be reached that professional status has not been attained† (Finn, 1953, p. 13). h is argument was largely accepted by, and had a profound ef ect on, the leadership of the audiovisual i eld in the late 1950s and early 1960s.Finn (1953) laid a foundation that the audiovisual i eld was troubled by a â€Å"lack of theoretical direction† (p. 14). He attributed this to a â€Å"lack of content† and the absence of â€Å"intellectual meat† (p. 14) in the contemporary meetings and professional journals of the i eld. In his argument promoting the development of a theoretical base for the audiovisual i eld, Finn warned, Without a theory which produces hypotheses for research, there can be no expanding knowledge and technique.And without a constant attempt to assess practice so that the theoretical implications may b e teased out, there can be no assurance that we will ever have a theory or that our practice will make sense. (p. 14) Finn dedicated his career to rectifying this dei ciency in the i eld, and the resulting impact of his work on the 1963 dei nition is evident. Advancing an argument that audiovisual communications was a theory was an attempt to address the â€Å"lack of content† cited by Finn (1953). e Commission identii ed â€Å"the planning, production, selection, management, and utilization of both components and entire instructional systems† (Ely, ER5861X_C010. indd 263 ER5861X_C010. indd 263 8/16/07 6:24:24 PM 8/16/07 6:24:24 PM264 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE 1963, p. 19) as tasks performed by practitioners in the i eld directly related to Finn’s (1953) discussion of the â€Å"intellectual technique† of the audiovisual i eld—Finn’s i rst criterion for a profession. e i rst oi cial dei nition of educational technology can be viewed as an a ttempt to bring together remnants of theory, technique, other academic research bases, and history contained in the audiovisual literature, into a logical statement closing the gap on the â€Å"poverty of thought† (Finn, 1953, p. 13) that characterized the audiovisual education movement. h e evolution of audiovisual communications (and later, educational technology) as a theory began to add â€Å"intellectual meat† to audiovisual practice.By merging the audiovisual communications concept with the process orientation of the i eld into a new intellectual technique grounded in theory, the Commission strengthened the professional practice and of ered a direction for further growth as a profession. Emergence of a Process View Included among the many factors contributing to the development of the process view of educational technology were the two beliefs held by the most inl uential and prominent individuals involved with the audiovisual i eld: (1) that technology was prima rily a process (Finn, 1960b) and (2) that communication was a process (Berlo, 1960; Gerbner, 1956). e conceptual view of educational technology as a way of thinking and a process was established by the 1963 dei nition. h e intention of the Commission that produced the i rst oi cial dei nition of the i eld was â€Å"to dei ne the broader i eld of instructional technology which incorporates certain aspects of the established audiovisual i eld† (Ely, 1963, p. 3). Not unexpectedly, the 1963 dei nition drew some critique as it was applied to the emerging i eld of the 1960s and 1970s.Prominent individuals involved with audiovisual education, such as James Finn (1957; 1960a) and Charles Hoban (1962), had previously used the term technology when referring to the activities of the audiovisual i eld. Donald Ely (1973; 1982) observed that the use of the word control in the 1963 dei nition was problematic for many individuals involved with educational technology. Ely (1982) explained, â €Å"h e strong behavioral emphasis at the time seemed to call for the word ‘control’† (p. 3).He noted that the word facilitate was substituted by many professionals â€Å"to make the dei nition more palatable† (Ely, 1973, p. 52). Perhaps equally important was the desire by members of the i eld to move away from a behaviorally based psychology to a more humanistic psychology (Finn, 1967). ER5861X_C010. indd 264 ER5861X_C010. indd 264 8/16/07 6:24:24 PM 8/16/07 6:24:24 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 265 Criticisms of the 1963 Dei nition As noted in the introduction, no one dei nition can be the dei nition, and there were criticisms of the 1963 dei nition.James Knowlton (1964), a faculty member at Indiana University, was a consultant for the 1963 Commission on Dei nition and Terminology. In an essay that reviewed the 1963 dei nition, Knowlton stated that the dei nition itself was â€Å"couched in semiotical termsâ €  (p. 4) but that the conceptual structure used in the rationale for the 1963 dei nition â€Å"was couched in learning theory terms [and] this disjunction produced some surprising anomalies† (p. 4). Knowlton’s argument was based on a need for conceptual and semantic consistency in the dei nition.Knowlton argued that failing to pair the language of the dei nition with the language of the conceptual structure in the rationale resulted in a general lack of clarity about this new concept. h is lack of clarity in turn caused confusion in the direction of research and practice in the i eld. Less than a decade later, Robert Heinich (1970) saw a need to redei ne the i eld of educational technology for two reasons. First, he was critical of the â€Å"communications† based language used in the 1963 dei nition. Heinich argued that this language was too complicated for school personnel to interpret and apply.Second, Heinich argued that the power to make many of the deci sions regarding the use of technology in schools should be transferred from the teacher to the curriculum planners. Heinich’s argument for changing the dei nition was based on both linguistic concerns and evolutionary changes in the functions of practitioners in the i eld. Heinich promoted an approach to schooling where specialists would decide when and where schools would use technology. h is position was dif erent from that which was discussed in the rationale for the 1963 dei – nition.In the rationale for the 1963 dei nition, teachers were viewed as partners of educational technologists rather than as their subordinates (Januszewski, 2001). Forces Impelling a New Dei nition Other contemporary issues emerged which began to inl uence the i eld. h e report of the Presidential Commission on Instructional Technology (1970) stated that instructional technology could be dei ned in two ways: In its more familiar sense it means the media born of the communications revolution which can be used for instructional purposes alongside the teacher, textbook and blackboard.In general, the Commission’s report follows this usage . . . the commission has had to look at the pieces that ER5861X_C010. indd 265 ER5861X_C010. indd 265 8/16/07 6:24:25 PM 8/16/07 6:24:25 PM266 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE make up instructional technology: television, i lms, overhead projectors, computers and the other items of â€Å"hardware and sot ware. † (p. 19) h e second and less familiar dei nition . . . (Instructional technology) . . . s a systematic way of designing, carrying out, and evaluating the total process of learning and teaching in terms of specii c objectives, based on research in human learning and communication and employing a combination of human and nonhuman resources to bring about more ef ective instruction. (Commission on Instructional Technology, 1970, p. 19) Educational technology professionals responded to this report in a special section of Audi ovisual Communications Review (1970). h e professional reviews of the government report were mixed at best. Ely (Ely et al. 1970) of Syracuse University thought that the Commission’s overall ef ort was commendable given its lot y charge. Earl Funderburk (Ely et al. , 1970) of the NEA called the recommendations a balanced program. But David Engler (Ely et al. , 1970) of the McGraw-Hill Book Company disapproved of the Commission’s ef ort to relegate the process-based dei nition of instructional technology to some â€Å"future† role. Leslie Briggs (Ely et al. , 1970) of Florida State University accused the Presidential Commission of providing a â€Å"two-headed image† of instructional technology by stressing both a hardware and a process orientation of the concept. e contributors to this special section of Audiovisual Communications Review (1970) were generally dissatisi ed with the â€Å"two-headed† orientation primarily because of the confusion it m ight cause among the potential client groups of educational technology. h ey viewed the hardware orientation favored by the Presidential Commission as a setback for the profession. It meant the unacceptable return to the â€Å"audiovisual aids† and â€Å"technology as machine† conceptions of educational technology. h is orientation also implied the de-emphasizing of research and theory.Given these professional discussions and developments, professionals in the i eld believed that a new dei nition of educational technology was necessary. The 1972 Definition By 1972, through evolution and mutual agreement, the DAVI had become the AECT. Along with the organizational change came a change to the dei nition. ER5861X_C010. indd 266 ER5861X_C010. indd 266 8/16/07 6:24:25 PM 8/16/07 6:24:25 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 267 h e newly formed AECT dei ned the term educational technology rather than the term audiovisual communications a sEducational technology is a i eld involved in the facilitation of human learning through the systematic identii cation, development, organization and utilization of a full range of learning resources and through the management of these processes. (Ely, 1972, p. 36) As a member of the group that wrote several of the early drat s of the 1972 dei nition, Kenneth Silber (1972) was successful in including changes in many of the roles and functions of the practitioners of the i eld as part of that dei nition.Silber introduced the term learning system which combined ideas of the open classroom movement with some of the concepts of educational technology. Like Heinich’s (1970) perspective, Silber’s (1972) â€Å"learning system† (p. 19) suggested changes in the roles of the teacher and the educational technologist. Unlike Heinich, Silber supported the idea that learners should make many decisions regarding the use of educational technology themselves. Educational techno logists would produce a variety of programs and designs that learners would use or adapt to meet their own â€Å"long-range learning destination† (p. 1). Silber’s position was that the teacher should be more a â€Å"facilitator of learning† and less a â€Å"teller of information. † A Dei nition Based on h ree Concepts h ere are three concepts central to the 1972 dei nition characterizing educational technology as a i eld: a broad range of learning resources, individualized and personalized learning, and the use of the systems approach. â€Å"It is these three concepts, when synthesized into a total approach to facilitate learning, that create the uniqueness of, and thus the rationale for, the i eld† (Ely, 1972, p. 7). Examining these three concepts along with the idea of educational technology as a â€Å"i eld† is crucial to understanding the AECT’s (1972) dei nition of educational technology. It is particularly important to recognize that dif erent interpretations of these three concepts would result in dif ering conceptions of the i eld through the next three decades. h e dif erent interpretations and relative emphases of these concepts were due in large part to dif erences in educational philosophy and educational goals.Dif ering interpretations of these concepts would also have the more visible ef ect of substantially dif erent products and processes developed in the i eld. h e writers of the 1972 dei nition seemed to be aware that the major concepts could be interpreted dif erently, and they seemed to be interested ER5861X_C010. indd 267 ER5861X_C010. indd 267 8/16/07 6:24:26 PM 8/16/07 6:24:26 PM268 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE in including individuals with dif erent philosophical and academic backgrounds in the i eld. e writers of the 1963 dei nition and its supporting rationale seemed less concerned with accommodating divergent educational philosophies. Perhaps this was due to the fact that the 1963 dei n ition was the i rst formal attempt to dei ne educational technology. Such an under taking was formidable enough. Perhaps it was because the writers of the 1972 dei – nition paid more attention to the discussions of educational philosophy in the literature from the rest of the i eld of education.Perhaps it was because the 1963 dei nition viewed educational technology as an educational theory and, potentially, as an educational philosophy itself. Regardless, there is no doubt that by 1972, the authors of the dei nition of educational technology chose to consider educational technology a i eld of study and not as a specii c theory (Januszewski, 1995, 2001). Educational Technology as a Field h e decision to refer to educational technology as a i eld of study rather than a theory or a branch of theory had at least four results: (1) we acknowledged that there was more than one theory of educational technology, ore than one way to think about the role(s) of educational technology; ( 2) the dei nition prompted signii cant philosophical discussions by members of the profession; (3) the use of the word i eld encompassed both the â€Å"hardware† and â€Å"process† orientations of instructional technology described by the Presidential Commission (1970); and (4) this dei nition was based on the â€Å"tangible elements† (Ely, 1972) that people could observe. e 1972 dei nition essentially dei ned educational technology by role and function rather than as an abstract concept, as was the case for the 1963 dei nition, where educational technology was viewed as a theory. h e concept of â€Å"i eld† has been a thorny one for educational technologists. Like many areas of study within education, it is very dii cult to discuss educational technology without using the word i eld as a descriptor. Certainly audiovisual professionals used the term to describe the â€Å"audiovisual i eld† before the terms instructional technology or educational te chnology were ever used. e 1963 dei nition statement frequently used i eld (Ely, 1963) to move the discussion along, even though it was argued that educational technology was a theory or branch of theory. On the surface, the use of i eld seems a rather inescapable semantic problem when speaking of educational technology. But it is signii cant that the writers of the 1972 dei nition chose to use i eld rather than theory in the dei nition because the use of the word i eld established a territory. It also provided certain legitimacy to ef orts to advance ER5861X_C010. ndd 268 ER5861X_C010. indd 268 8/16/07 6:24:26 PM 8/16/07 6:24:26 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 269 both products and processes. h e consequences of this decision were anticipated by Finn (1965), who proclaimed Properly constructed, the concept of instructional or educational technology is totally integrative. It provides a common ground for all professionals, no matter in what aspect of the i eld they are working: it permits the rational development and integration of new devices, materials, and methods as they come along. e concept is so completely viable that it will not only provide new status for our group, but will, for the i rst time, threaten the status of others [italics added]. (p. 193) Criticism of the 1972 Dei nition h e 1972 dei nition was not the object of numerous criticisms as was the 1963 dei nition, probably because it was considered only an interim dei nition (Ely, 1994). Only one such article appeared in the literature of the i eld of educational technology—a critique was written by Dennis Myers, then a graduate student at Syracuse University, and Lida Cochran, a faculty member at the University of Iowa (Myers & Cochran, 1973). e brief analysis by Myers and Cochran (1973) articulated at least i ve dif erent criticisms. First, they proposed including a statement in the rationale for the dei nition stating that students have a rig ht of access to technological delivery systems as part of their regular instruction. Including such a statement follows from Hoban’s (1968) discussion on the appropriateness of technology for instruction in a technological society. Second, Myers and Cochran argued that the 1972 dei nition statement was weakened by neglecting to include a theoretical rationale for the dei nition. is criticism, which correctly pointed out that the dei nition is lacking a unii ed theoretical direction, supported Heinich’s (1970) assertions in his philosophical view of the i eld. In a third point, Myers and Cochran (1973) criticized the limited role that the educational technologist was provided in the description of the systems approach provided in the dei nition. In a fourth point, they discussed the shortcomings of the terminology used to discuss the domains and roles in educational technology.Perhaps the most interesting point made in this analysis concerned the relationship of educati onal technology to the rest of the i eld of education. In noting the problem of dei ning the i eld by the functions performed, Myers and Cochran (1973) pointed to the importance of considering the purpose of education. ER5861X_C010. indd 269 ER5861X_C010. indd 269 8/16/07 6:24:26 PM 8/16/07 6:24:26 PM270 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE What is important is that certain functions get done in education. h at generalization is important because it conveys an attitude that transcends narrow professional nterests and strikes a note of community and cooperativeness, qualities which are essential to the solution of problems facing education and society. (p. 13) Here, Myers and Cochran (1973) seemed to be chastising the writers of the 1972 dei nition for being overly concerned with intellectual territory and the roles performed in the i eld of educational technology. h is particular criticism lost only a little of its sharpness when it was viewed in light of earlier comments made about the inap propriateness of the limited role assigned to educational technologists in the dei nition (Januszewski, 2001).In summary, by 1972, the name of the concept had changed from audiovisual communications to educational technology. h e organizational home for professionals in the i eld had changed name: from DAVI to AECT. h ere had been substantial changes in our schools, hardware, and other technological innovations during the nine years since the writing of the i rst dei nition. Educational technology was now identii ed as a i eld of study, open to interpretation by those who practiced within it. e 1972 dei nition rel ected these interpretations but was intended to be only a temporary measure. Almost as soon as it was published, work began on the next dei nition. The 1977 Definition In 1977, the AECT revised its dei nition of educational technology with its third version: Educational technology is a complex, integrated process, involving people, procedures, ideas, devices and organizati on, for analyzing problems and devising, implementing, evaluating and managing solutions to those problems, involved in all aspects of human learning.In educational technology, the solution to problems takes the form of all the Learning Resources that are designed and/or selected and/or utilized to bring about learning; these resources are identii ed as Messages, People, Materials, Devices, Techniques, and Settings. h e processes for analyzing problems, and devising, implementing and evaluating solutions are identii ed by the Educational Development Functions of Research h eory, Design, Production, Evaluation Selection, Logistics, Utilization, and Utilization Dissemination. h e processes of directing or coordinating one or more of hese functions are identii ed by the Educational Management Functions of Organizational Management and Personnel Management. (AECT, 1977, p. 1) ER5861X_C010. indd 270 ER5861X_C010. indd 270 8/16/07 6:24:27 PM 8/16/07 6:24:27 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECTâ₠¬â„¢S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 271 h e Dei nition of Educational Technology (AECT, 1977) was a 169-page book intended to accomplish two things: (a) systematically analyze the complex ideas and concepts that were used in the i eld of educational technology, and (b) show how these concepts and ideas related to one another (Wallington, 1977). is publication included the dei nition of educational technology (which comprises 16 pages of the text), a history of the i eld, a rationale for the dei nition, a theoretical framework for the dei nition, a discussion of the practical application of the intellectual technique of the i eld, the code of ethics of the professional organization, and a glossary of terms related to the dei nition. Educational Versus Instructional Technology h e conceptual dif erence between the terms educational technology and instructional technology constituted a large portion of the analysis of this book.Understanding how the authors of the 1977 dei niti on viewed the relationship of instructional technology to educational technology is essential to understanding the 1977 dei nition and its theoretical framework. h e basic premise of this distinction was that instructional technology was to educational technology as instruction was to education. h e reasoning was that since instruction was considered a subset of education then instructional technology was a subset of educational technology (AECT, 1977). For example, the concept of educational technology was involved in the solution of problems in â€Å"all aspects of human learning† (p. ). h e concept of instructional technology was involved in the solution of problems where â€Å"learning is purposive and controlled† (p. 3). Educational Technology as a Process Two other complex conceptual developments were also undertaken by the authors of the 1977 dei nition, which were interrelated. First, the 1977 dei – nition of educational technology was called a â€Å"pr ocess† (AECT, 1977, p. 1). h e authors intended the term process to connote the idea that educational technology could be viewed as a theory, a i eld, or a profession.Second, the systems concept was infused throughout the entire dei nition statement and in all the major supporting concepts for the dei nition in both its descriptive and prescriptive senses. h e authors of the 1977 dei nition connected these two conceptual developments by saying that the use of the systems concept was a process (AECT, 1977). As one of the three major supporting concepts for the 1972 dei nition of educational technology, the systems approach had become the basis for the ER5861X_C010. ndd 271 ER5861X_C010. indd 271 8/16/07 6:24:27 PM 8/16/07 6:24:27 PM272 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE dei nition itself by 1977. h rough their ef orts to reinforce the process conception of educational technology, the leadership of the i eld now assumed that all of the major supporting concepts of the dei nition were t ied to, or should be viewed in light of, the systems approach. h e three major supporting concepts of the 1977 dei nition were learning resources, management, and development.Learning resources were any resources utilized in educational systems; a descriptive use of the systems concept the writers of the 1977 dei nition called â€Å"resources by utilization. † Authors called the resources specii cally designed for instructional purposes, a prescriptive use of the systems approach, â€Å"resources by design† or â€Å"instructional system components† (AECT, 1977). Like the concept of learning resources, management could be used in a descriptive fashion to describe administrative systems or in a prescriptive way to prescribe action. e concept of management was ot en used as a metaphor for the systems approach in education (Heinich, 1970). h e term instructional development was frequently used to mean the â€Å"systems approach to instructional development† o r â€Å"instructional systems development† (Twelker et al. , 1972). h e fact that the management view of the systems approach to instruction ot en included an instructional development process and the fact that instructional development models frequently included management as a task to be completed in the systems pproach to instructional development further intertwined the systems concept with the process view of educational technology. h ese descriptive and prescriptive interpretations of the 1977 dei nition would inl uence future dei nitions. As previously noted, the predilection that educational technology was a process was not new when the 1977 dei nition was written. Process was one of the three major supporting concepts incorporated into the rationale of the 1963 dei nition (Ely, 1963).Believing that educational technology was a process provided one of the major reasons that the leadership of the profession tended to reject the report of the Presidential Commission on Instructional Technology (1970), which focused heavily on the hardware of the i eld in its i rst dei nition of instructional technology. h e authors of the 1977 dei nition, who purposefully used the term process to develop a systematic and congruent scheme for the concept of educational technology, said, h e dei nition presented here dei nes the theory, the i eld, and profession as congruent. is occurs because the dei nition of the i eld of educational technology is directly derived from, and includes, the theory of educational technology, and the profession of educational technology is directly ER5861X_C010. indd 272 ER5861X_C010. indd 272 8/16/07 6:24:28 PM 8/16/07 6:24:28 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 273 derived from, and includes, the i eld of educational technology. (AECT, 1977, p. 135) In the end, the ef ort to demonstrate the congruence of the major concepts involved with educational technology created as many issues for the i eld as it resolved.Five immediate advantages for describing educational technology as a process were (1) the use of the term process reinforced the primacy of the process view of educational technology over the product view of educational technology. h e process view had been outlined in the 1963 dei nition statement, but the report of the Presidential Commission on Instructional Technology (1970) appeared to reverse this emphasis. (2) h e term process would ground the dei nition of educational technology in the activities of its practitioners, activities that could be directly observed and verii ed. 3) h e term process could be used to describe educational technology as a theory, a i eld, or a profession. (4) h e term process allowed the further evolution of thought and research around the concept of systems. Finally, (5) an organized process implies the use of research and theory, which would reinforce the idea that educational technology was a profession. Educational Technology as F ield, h eory, or Profession h e authors of the 1977 dei nition argued that educational technology could be thought of â€Å"in three dif erent ways—as a theoretical construct, as a i eld, and as a profession† (AECT, 1977, p. 7). h ey continued, â€Å"None of the foregoing perspectives is more correct or better than the others. Each is a different way of thinking about the same thing† (p. 18). h e writers of the 1977 dei nition argued that the theoretical construct, the i eld, and the profession were all process based. h e term process described and connected all three of these perspectives of educational technology with a single word. Educational technology had been called a theory in the 1963 dei nition (Ely, 1963), and it had been called a i eld in the 1972 dei nition (Ely, 1972).New to the 1977 dei nition was the argument that educational technology was also a profession. Prior to the publication of the 1977 dei nition, the term profession was used in passing as it related to educational technology. Since Finn (1953) had argued that the i eld had not yet reached professional status, members of the i eld (e. g. , Silber, 1970) had made few attempts to analyze educational technology systematically as a profession. Using Finn’s criteria, the writers of the 1977 dei nition argued that educational technology was now a profession.Depending upon the interpretation and application of the systems concept, educational technology could be explained as a theory, a i eld, or a profession ER5861X_C010. indd 273 ER5861X_C010. indd 273 8/16/07 6:24:28 PM 8/16/07 6:24:28 PM274 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE in the 1977 dei nition. h e impact of using the term process to describe educational technology as a theory, a i eld, or a profession hinged on these dif ering interpretations of the systems approach, once again prompting discussions and philosophical debates among prominent educational technologists. e period of the 1980s was not so focused on c riticism of the 1977 dei nition as much as characterized by broad academic wrangling over the interpretation and application of the dei nition (Januszewski, 1995, 2001). h e three major supporting concepts of the 1977 dei nition—learning resources, management, and development—could also be interpreted dif erently based on divergent conceptions of the systems approach. h e dif erent interpretations of learning resources, management, and development also provided the writers of the 1977 dei nition with a rationale to distinguish between educational technology and instructional technology.The 1994 Definition By 1994, the dei nition of educational technology had nearly come full circle. h e dei nition that was produced in 1994 read, â€Å"Instructional technology is the theory and practice of design, development, utilization, management, and evaluation of processes and resources for learning† (Seels & Richey, 1994, p. 1). h ere are no new concepts included in the 19 94 dei nition. What was new was the identii cation of multiple theoretical and conceptual issues in the explanation of the dei nition. e 1994 dei nition was intended to be much less complex than the 1977 dei nition. h e extent to which the writers were successful can be judged in part by reviewing the criticisms of the 1977 dei nition. h e attempt by the writers of the 1977 dei nition to show the congruence of educational technology and instructional technology revealed a conceptual problem for the i eld. h e dei nition of educational technology, which was concerned with â€Å"all aspects of human learning† (AECT, 1977, p. ), had become so broad that some individuals in the i eld of education pointed out that there was no dif erence between educational technology and curriculum, school administration, or teaching methods (Ely, 1982). Saettler (1990) wryly pointed out that the dei nition had become everything to everybody, and he dubbed the 1977 dei nition the â€Å"omnibus d ei nition. † Logical Problems h ere were also serious l aws in the reasoning and the conceptual interpretations used in the theoretical framework and rationale for the 1977 dei nition of educational technology.Establishing the dif erence between ER5861X_C010. indd 274 ER5861X_C010. indd 274 8/16/07 6:24:28 PM 8/16/07 6:24:28 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 275 education and instruction, the authors argued, â€Å"Education, then, includes two classes of processes not included in instruction: those processes related to the administration of instruction . . . and those processes related to situations in which learning occurs when it is not deliberately managed† (AECT, 1977, p. 56).An example of learning not deliberately managed given in the discussion was â€Å"incidental learning† (p. 56). It was reasonable for the authors to argue that nondeliberately managed learning and/or incidental learning was part of the concept of education (Januszewski, 1997). However, the dei nitions of â€Å"technology† by Galbraith (1967), Hoban (1962), and Finn (1960a, 1965), which were used by the authors of the 1977 dei nition to discuss the term technology as it related to the concept of educational technology, all included the ideas of organization, management, and control (AECT, 1977). e writers of the 1977 dei nition considered organization, management, and control critical characteristics of technology; but these ideas were contrary to the idea of â€Å"incidental learning† and â€Å"learning that was not deliberately managed. † Education, at least as it was distinguished from instruction included in the rationale of the 1977 dei nition, did not seem compatible with technology. It is dii cult to conceive of a technology of the incidental, unmanaged, and unintended. e gains made in the organization of the framework of the concept of educational technology by distinguishing between education and instruction were lost when education was paired with technology (Januszewski, Butler, & Yeaman, 1996). h eory or theoretical construct. h e relationship of educational technology to â€Å"theory† presented another problem in the discussion of educational technology presented in the 1977 dei nition and rationale. ere are three ways in which the concept of theory is related to educational technology in the 1977 dei nition statement: (1) the thought that educational technology was a â€Å"theoretical construct† (AECT, 1977, pp. 18, 20, 24); (2) the notion that educational technology itself was â€Å"a theory† (AECT, 1977, pp. 2, 135, 138); and (3) that the â€Å"dei nition of educational technology was a theory† (AECT, 1977, pp. 4, 20, 134). To some degree, all three of these discussions of theory and educational technology are accurate, but they cannot be used interchangeably as they are in the 1977 dei nition.A theoretical construct is not the same as a t heory; nor is it the case, that because a dei nition of a concept is a theory, the concept itself a theory. h e word theory has been used in at least four ways in the literature of the i eld of education: (1) the â€Å"law like† theory of the hard sciences; (2) theories that are supported by statistical evidence; (3) theories that identify variables that inl uence the i eld of study; and (4) theory as a systematic analysis of a set of related concepts (Kliebard, 1977). ER5861X_C010. indd 275 ER5861X_C010. ndd 275 8/16/07 6:24:29 PM 8/16/07 6:24:29 PM276 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE h e fourth sense of theory is of interest to this analysis of the 1977 dei nition of educational technology. Systematic analyses of any abstract concept can be said to be theories of that concept. Referring to educational technology as a theoretical construct, or a theory, or calling the dei nition of educational technology a theory may be accurate if the construct or theory includes a systematic an alysis of the concept of educational technology. e writers of the 1977 dei nition provided criteria for â€Å"theory† that was not theory as a systematic analysis of related concepts. h e 1977 view of theory was an attempt to establish general principles and predict outcomes (AECT, 1977). h is approach was substantially dif erent from the usage of the word theory in the 1963 dei nition statement. Further confusion arises because of the writers’ claim that educational technology did indeed meet the criteria for being a predictive theory (Januszewski, 1995, 2001).Certainly â€Å"educational technology† is a theoretical construct. â€Å"Educational technology† may also be considered a theory depending on what exactly is intended by the word theory. The 1977 definition of educational technology is a theory about the abstract concept of â€Å"educational technology. † But because the definition of the concept of educational technology may be a theory of educational technology, it does not necessarily follow that the concept of educational technology is itself a theory.This is similar to saying that a definition of the concept of democracy may be a theory of democracy but that the concept of democracy itself is not a theory. Few involved in the field of educational technology adopted this systematic treatment of the concepts provided in the 1977 definition. Many in the field adopted only portions of the definition (e. g. , Gustafson, 1981). Certain parts of the definition and the supporting statements were cited by scholars in order to make erudite points about the field of educational technology (e. . , Romiszowski, 1981), but a reading of the literature of the field during this era reveals that the whole of the conceptual framework provided in the 1977 definition, specifically the part intended to distinguish educational technology from instructional technology, was not widely accepted by the professionals in the field of educati onal technology (Seels & Richey, 1994). This lack of acceptance led to the label changes in the 1994 definition. Distinguishing between educational and instructional. e ef ort to revise the 1977 dei nition addressed some of the conceptual incongruencies of previous dei nitions. h e i rst of these was the dif erence between educational and instructional technology. Unlike the writers of the 1977 dei nition, who sought to distinguish between educational technology and instructional technology, ER5861X_C010. indd 276 ER5861X_C010. indd 276 8/16/07 6:24:29 PM 8/16/07 6:24:29 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 277 the authors of the 1994 dei nition acknowledged that this problem had no easy answer. ey admitted, â€Å"At present the terms ‘Educational Technology’ and ‘Instructional Technology’ are used interchangeably by most professionals in the i eld† (p. 5). But they argued, Because the term ‘Instructional T echnology’ (a) is more commonly used today in the United States, (b) encompasses many practice settings, (c) describes more precisely the function of technology in education, and (d) allows for an emphasis on both instruction and learning in the same dei nitional sentence, the term ‘Instructional Technology’ is used in the 1994 dei nition, but the two terms are considered synonymous. Seels & Richey, 1994, p. 5) With that, the oi cial label of the i eld was changed from â€Å"educational technology† to â€Å"instructional technology,† although it was quite acceptable to continue to use the term educational technology. Underlying Assumptions Seels and Richey (1994) did dif erentiate the 1994 dei nition from previous dei nitions by identifying and analyzing some of the assumptions that underlie this dei nition. Identii ed assumptions included Instructional technology has evolved from a movement to a i eld and profession.Since a profession is concerned with a knowledge base, the 1994 dei nition must identify and emphasize instructional technology as a i eld of study as well as practice (p. 2). A revised dei nition of the i eld should encompass those areas of concern to practitioners and scholars. h ese areas are the domains of the i eld (p. 2). Both process and product are of vital importance to the i eld and need to be rel ected in the dei nition (p. 2). Subtleties not clearly understood or recognized by the typical Instructional Technology professional should be removed from the dei nition and its more extended explanation (p. ). It is assumed that both research and practice in the i eld are carried out in conformity with ethical norms of the profession (p. 3). Instructional technology is characterized by ef ectiveness and ei – ciency (p. 3). h e concept of systematic is implicit in the 1994 dei nition because the domains are equivalent to the systematic process for developing instruction (p. 8). †¢ †¢ †¢ à ¢â‚¬ ¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ ER5861X_C010. indd 277 ER5861X_C010. indd 277 8/16/07 6:24:29 PM 8/16/07 6:24:29 PM278 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE h e inclusion of these ssumptions in the analysis and explanation accompanying the 1994 dei nition allowed for the publication of a dei nition that was much more â€Å"economical† than were previous dei nition ef orts. h eory and Practice h e authors of the 1994 dei nition stated that the dei nition was composed of four components: (a) theory and practice; (b) design, development, utilization, management and evaluation; (c) processes and resources; and (d) learning. h ese components were not necessarily new; but in this dei nition, they were reorganized, simplii ed, and connected, in a way making the 1994 dei nition unique. e 1994 dei nition used the phrasing included in the 1963 dei nition when it called instructional technology â€Å"the theory and practice of. † And the authors argued, â€Å"A profession must have a knowl edge base that supports practice† (Seels & Richey, 1994, p. 9). h e authors used a simple but rather clear notion that â€Å"theory consists of the concepts, constructs, principles, and propositions that contribute to the body of knowledge† and that â€Å"practice is the application of the knowledge† (p. 11).In so doing, the authors cleared up the problem of the meaning of theory that they had inherited from the writers of the 1977 dei nition, a dei nition of theory that had been too precise. Domains h e concepts (or â€Å"domains† of the 1994 dei nition) of design, development, utilization, management, and evaluation comprise the accepted knowledge base of the i eld today as evidenced by the Standards for the Accreditation of School Media Specialist and Educational Technology Specialist Programs (AECT, 2000).When these concepts are taken together and conducted in sequential order, they are the same as the stages of â€Å"development† described in t he 1977 dei nition. h ese concepts are directly traceable to the idea of educational engineering developed by W. W. Charters (1945). It is important to realize that the authors of the 1994 dei nition did not intend that practitioners of educational technology perform all of these tasks in the sequential order. Specializing in or focusing on one of these tasks would include broad practitioners in the i eld (Seels & Richey, 1994).Seels and Richey (1994) provided dei nitions of processes and resources: â€Å"A process is a series of operations or activities directed towards a particular end† (p. 12). â€Å"Resources are sources of support for learning, including support systems and instructional materials and environments† (p. 12). h ese descriptions allowed the authors to (a) use process to reinforce notions of ER5861X_C010. indd 278 ER5861X_C010. indd 278 8/16/07 6:24:30 PM 8/16/07 6:24:30 PM10.A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 279 eng ineering and science in instruction; (b) maintain the distinction between resources as things and processes; and (c) be consistent with terminology used in all three previous dei nitions. h e concept of learning was not new to the 1994 dei nition; however, the dei nition of learning intended by the authors was new. In previous dei nitions, the term learning was intended to connote a change in behavior such as advocated by Tyler (1950). But the authors of the 1994 dei nition wanted to move away from a strong behaviorist orientation. ey argued, â€Å"In this dei nition learning refers to the ‘relatively permanent change in a person’s knowledge or behavior due to experience’† (Mayer, 1982, as cited in Seels & Richey, 1994, p. 12). Including the phrase â€Å"due to experience† also aided in moving away from causal connections and allowed for incidental learning. h is interpretation signaled the acceptance of a dif erent kind of science in education: one less grounded on prediction and control and more interested in applying other theoretical and research principles to the instructional process.Criticism of the 1994 Dei nition h e primary criticism of the 1994 dei nition is that instructional technology appeared to look too much like the systems approach to instructional development while changes in the practice of the i eld (e. g. , constructivistbased initiatives and the general acceptance of computer innovations in classroom methodologies) made the 1994 dei nition too restrictive for mainstream teachers and school administrators as well as researchers and scholars. h ese criticisms and further evolution of the research and practice in the i eld led to a need for reconsideration and evision of this dei nition at er more than a decade of use. The Current Definition h e task force empanelled by AECT to review the 1994 dei nition wrestled with the historical issues presented here and with other issues of perception, changing employm ent and training expectations, semantics, and a strong desire to develop a dei nition that both served to include the broad variety of practitioners in this i eld and one which would prompt renewed attention to the theory and research so critical to our continued contributions to learning.In a sense, we are not so far removed in this century from the professional goal stated in the 1963 dei nition: ER5861X_C010. indd 279 ER5861X_C010. indd 279 8/16/07 6:24:30 PM 8/16/07 6:24:30 PM280 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE It is the responsibility of educational leaders to respond intelligently to technological change . . . If the DAVI membership is to support the leadership in such bold steps, dei nition and terminology as a basis for direction of professional growth is a prime prerequisite . . Now that the i eld of audiovisual communications, the largest single segment of the growing technology of instruction, has reached the point of decision making, we i nd ourselves in the same quandary ot her i elds have discovered when they have attempted to dei ne their i elds: i. e. , dei nition exists at various levels of understanding but no one dei nition can be the dei nition. (Ely, 1963, pp. 16–18)And so, the latest in the line of dei nitions of educational technology: â€Å"Educational technology is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate technological processes and resources. † References Association for Educational Communications and Technology. (1972). h e i eld of educational technology: A statement of dei nition. Audiovisual Instruction, 17, 36–43. Association for Educational Communications and Technology. (1977). h e dei nition of educational technology. Washington, DC: Author.Association for Educational Communications and Technology. (2000). Standards for the accreditation of school media specialist and educational technology specialist programs. Bloomington, IN : Author. Berlo, D. (1960). h e process of communication. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Charters, W. W. (1945). Is there a i eld of educational engineering? Educational Research Bulletin, 24(2), 29–37, 53. Commission on Instructional Technology. (1970). To improve learning: A report to the President and the Congress of the United States. Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Oi ce. Ely, D. P. (1963). e changing role of the audiovisual process: A dei nition and glossary of related terms. Audiovisual Communication Review, 11(1), Supplement 6. Ely, D. P. (1972). h e i eld of educational technology: A statement of dei nition. Audiovisual Instruction, 17, 36–43. Ely, D. P. (1973). Dei ning the i eld of educational technology. Audiovisual Instruction, 18(3), 52–53. ER5861X_C010. indd 280 ER5861X_C010. indd 280 8/16/07 6:24:31 PM 8/16/07 6:24:31 PM10. A HISTORY OF THE AECT’S DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY 281 Ely, D. P. (1982). h e dei nition of educational technology: An emerging stability.Educational Considerations, 10(2), 24. Ely, D. P. (1994). Personal conversations. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University. Ely, D. P. , Funderburk, E. , Briggs, L. , Engler, D. , Dietrich, J. , Davis, R. , et al. (1970). Comments on the report of the Commission on Instructional Technology. Audiovisual Communications Review, 18(3), 306–326. Finn, J. D. (1953). Professionalizing the audiovisual i eld. Audiovisual Communications Review, 1(1), 617. Finn, J. D. (1957). Automation and education: General aspects. Audiovisual Communications Review, 5(1), 343–360. Finn, J. D. (1960a).Automation and education: A new theory for instructional technology. Audiovisual Communications Review, 8(1), 526. Finn, J. D. (1960b). Teaching machines: Auto instructional devices for the teacher. NEA Journal, 49(8), 41–44. Finn, J. D. (1965). Instructional technology. Audiovisual Instruction, 10(3), 192–194. Finn, J. D. (1967, August). Dia log in search of relevance. Paper presented at the Audiovisual Communication Leadership Conference, Lake Okoboji, Iowa. Galbraith, J. K. (1967). h e new industrial state. Boston: Houghton Mil in. Gerbner, G. (1956). Toward a general model of communication.Audiovisual Communications Review, 4, 171–199. Gustafson, K. (1981). Survey of instructional development models. Syracuse, NY: ERIC Clearinghouse on Information Resources. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 211 097) Heinich, R. (1970). Technology and the management of instruction. Washington, DC: Association for Educational Communications and Technology. Hoban, C. F. (1962, March). Implications of theory for research and implementation in the new media. Paper presented at the Conference on h eory for the New Media in Education, Michigan State University, Lansing, Michigan. Hoban, C. F. (1968).Man, ritual, the establishment and instructional technology. Educational Technology, 10(5), 11. Januszewski, A. (1995). h e de i nition of educational technology: An intellectual and historical account. Ann Arbor, MI: Microi lms International. Januszewski, A. (1997, February). Considerations for intellectual history in instructional design and technology. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology, Albuquerque, New Mexico. ER5861X_C010. indd 281 ER5861X_C010. indd 281 8/16/07 6:24:31 PM 8/16/07 6:24:31 PM282 JANUSZEWSKI AND PERSICHITTE Januszewski, A. 2001). Educational technology: h e development of a concept. Libraries Unlimited: Englewood, CO. Januszewski, A. , Butler, R. , & Yeaman, A. (1996, October). Writing histories of visual literacy and educational technology. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the International Visual Literacy Association, Cheyenne, Wyoming. Kliebard, H. M. (1977). Curriculum theory: Give me a â€Å"for instance. † Curriculum Inquiry, 6(4), 257–269. Knowlton, J. Q. (1964). A conceptual scheme for the audiovisual i eld. Bulletin of the School of Education, Indiana University, 40(3). Myers, D. C. & Cochran, L. M. (1973). Statement of dei nition: A response. Audiovisual Instruction, 18(5), 11–13. Romiszowski, A. J. (1981). Designing instructional systems. London: Kogan Page. Saettler, P. (1990). h e evolution of American educational technology. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, Inc. Seels, B. , & Richey, R. (1994). Instructional technology: h e dei nition and domains of the i eld. Washington, DC: AECT Press. Silber, K. (1970). What i eld are we in, anyhow? Audiovisual Instruction, 15(5), 21–24. Silber, K. (1972). h e learning system. Audiovisual Instruction, 17(7), 10–27.Twelker, P. A. , Urbach, F. D. , & Buck, J. E. (1972). h e systematic development of instruction: An overview and basic guide to t