Assessment test Essay Example for Free

Assessment test Essay Assessment is a vast topic that is a continuing process that educators use to observe, gather, and evaluate evidence to determine what students have learned, as well as, making informed, and dependable decisions to enhance student learning. It encompasses a broad range of testing from nationwide accountability tests to everyday classroom observation and quizzes. In order to take control of what appears to be an excess use of testing, assessment should be looked upon as a tool for information. The more information we have about students, the more closely we can look at  instructional strategies that are effective and which ones need to be modified. There are two main types of assessments that I will be discussing, formal and informal. Informal assessments or in other words â€Å"assessment of learning†, are used to evaluate students during the learning process. Formal assessments are conducted as a tool to evaluate student’s completion of work or the final product. There are many advantages and disadvantages to these types of assessments techniques that I will be discussing for measuring student progress. I will begin by discussing two formal assessment types along with its  advantages and disadvantages. The first type of assessment that I would like to address would be the statewide-standardized test under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The statewide standardized test is considered a high-stakes test because of the important consequences it has on passing or failing the test. It mandates yearly testing for grades 3 through 8 and once in high school for reading and math. Science was recently added in the mix to test students at least once in elementary, middle and high school. The underlying principle for this type of testing was intended to reach great  academic achievement for all students, especially those from lower socioeconomic classes. Advantage #1 It ensures that no child—regardless of race, ethnicity, gender or status is trapped in a consistently low-performing school. If a school does not make adequate progress towards set standards, parents have the option of sending their children to a better performing school or are provided free tutoring. This assessment helps determine if the student is receiving high-quality education at different grade levels. Advantage #2 Teachers are held accountable. If a student is not advancing with one  method of teaching, the teacher must use a different technique for a more favorable outcome. They must use research-based methods of teaching. This high-stakes test determines how to use assessment results to plan effective instruction. Disadvantage #1 This statewide-standardized test does not recognize student growth. It does not offer a realistic picture of how a student or school is performing as a whole. The extent of what a student actually learned is not known. Students that start out at a disadvantage are not given recognition for progress in achievement. Disadvantage #2 Teaching to the test. The growing concern with this high-stakes test is that it has become the curriculum and instruction has been narrowed to focus on results. Disadvantage #3 States set their own standards and can make tests unusually easy to compensate for inadequate student performance. The second type of formal assessment I would like to discuss is the aptitude test. It is a norm-reference test and is administered under timed testing conditions. It measures a student’s overall performance across a wide range of intellectual capabilities. These test are useful to determine the current level students are at and to adjust classroom curriculum  accordingly. Advantage #1 Aptitude tests are excellent predictors of future learning or performance. Advantage #2 Aptitude tests help students understand their own strengths and weaknesses. Advantage #3 Aptitude tests are useful tools for working with students with special needs because it can help teachers form realistic expectations of the student. Disadvantage #1 Since this is a multiple-choice type test, it does not allow for creativity or an alternative way of thinking. Disadvantage #2 Since this is a norm-reference test, students do not know how well they individually mastered the material. They only know how well they did compared to other students. Informal assessments is an important tool for teachers to use to monitor students’ progress throughout the learning process. The first type of informal assessment I feel is crucial in monitoring student performance is observation. I feel this method would be valuable to use in my classroom because I can observe students immediate reaction to my instruction especially during a pair-share or group setting. As I walk around the classroom, I would document my assessment of students’ performance and then provide feedback. Advantage #1 As I observe and listen, it will allow me to know how many students remembered and processed the information given, as well as using it to solve problems. Advantage #2 As I observe and listen, it can help me to immediately clarify any confusion and address the problem. Disadvantage #1 Not all students may be verbally participating at the time of observation. Disadvantage #2 Some students become nervous when being observed, and their performance may suffer. A second type of informal assessment that I would use in the classroom would be student portfolios. Through the portfolio process,  students develop goal-setting and self-directed learning techniques. It helps students value themselves as learners. It also allows students to compete with themselves rather than with other students. Advantage #1 Students can plan and manage their own time to complete their work. This can benefit the students by teaching them responsibility for their own learning goals. Advantage #2 Students know their own strengths and weaknesses as they assess and analyze their progress. Disadvantage #1 Portfolios take a lot of planning and organization. Gathering all the information can make it difficult to manage. Disadvantage #2 Evaluating and scoring a student’s portfolio evolves a wide range of subjective evaluation procedures, which can limit reliability. A third method of informal assessment is through student oral presentation. This technique provides the student an opportunity to present information through verbal means in lieu of a written form. It allows the student to show their knowledge on a particular subject. To assess this type of method I would use a rating scale to grade student performance. It is very important to use a detailed rating scale for students to know the  aspects of the presentation that are to be considered in the assessment. Advantage #1 This method of assessment is instant and immediate in the transmission of information. Feedback can be given instantly. Advantage #2 Oral presentations provide maximum preparation. This can allow the students to practice to achieve perfection. Disadvantage #1 Some students are timid and more introverted than others. Oral presentations can be very intimidating and nerve-racking. Disadvantage #2 English language learners or those students who have a disability might affect their ability to speak fluently. Disadvantage #3  Students might find it easier to organize information through written communication. The final informal assessment method I would use would be pop quizzes. This type of assessment is usually quick, given without prior warning and can be completed in 15 minutes or less. Teachers can use this method to determine if students have grasped recent information. Advantage #1 Allow students to build on previous information and strengthens concepts which may have been unclear to them. Advantage #2 It is a great way to reinforce material that may be covered on a standardized type assessment test. Disadvantage #1 It does not allow for accommodation for those students who need extended time on examinations, tests and quizzes. It can cause undo stress for those students. Disadvantage #2 It doesn’t really tell the true picture of a student’s level of knowledge. Some students may be lucky enough to guess the majority of the questions correctly. Having a mixture of written and oral types of informal assessments services a wide range of students. It allows the teacher to evaluate and recognize student’s learning needs and determine the appropriate level and pace of workflow. It offers the students the best chance to excel in one or more formats.

Examining The Philosophers Mahatma Gandhi And Socrates Religion Essay

Examining The Philosophers Mahatma Gandhi And Socrates Religion Essay As philosophers Mahatma Gandhi and Socrates have approached a moral life differently because of different perceptions held by each. Socrates was one of the great Athenian philosophers. In childhood he worked as a sculptor because he did not belong to a rich family. He is described as an ugly, poor, and unwashed man who was more concerned with moral purity than external appearance. Some of the characteristics of Socrates include ignorance, and thoughtful. Socrates was one of the influential thinkers in the fifth century whose enthusiasm to careful reasoning changed the entire enterprise. Socrates in his forties, tried to answer some of the difficult questions about the world around him. Some of the questions he asked such as what is virtue? What is justice? and what is truth? Socrates looked at these questions with a different perspective compared to other people. Socrates believed in civil obedience. On the other hand, Mahatma Gandhi believed in civil disobedience. Mahatma Karamchand Gandhi was from a small state in western India Porbandar, also known as Sudamapuri. Due to the sacrifices Gandhi made for Indians the people in India called him Mahatma Gandhi. Mahatma means great soul and Gandhi means grocer. Grocer was Gandhis family occupation in the early days. Gandhi belonged to the religion Hinduism. Some of the characteristics of Mahatma Gandhi include patience, tolerance, and honesty. He was a shy person and never talked to anybody in his school. He was an honest person, as exemplified by a school incident. One day, the educator inspector came to his school to inspect the students education. He gave some spelling words to write down on paper. Since Gandhi misspelled the word the instructor asked him to copy the right answer from someone else. However, Gandhi did not like to copy. He never did copying in his life; these incidents represented his honest and truthful nature. Socrates and Mahatma Gandhi not only differed in personal characteristics but they als o have a different perspective in trying to answer difficult question about the world around them. For instance, in order to gain rights Socrates follows civil obedience and in contrast Mahatma Gandhi follows Civil disobedience. In comparison to Mahatma Gandhi Socrates tried to answer the difficult questions about the world in different ways. Socrates questioned people about the world around them and on the other hand Gandhi made some philosophical quotes in order to help Indian people gain their rights in India. For instance, Socrates has a foundational place in the history of ideas in spite of not having written anything. He is considered one of the philosophers who have altered how the philosophy itself is envisaged. Socrates did not write anything because he believed that knowledge is something which is living and a thing that can be shared by interacting with people. The method of Socratic philosophical inquiry consisted in questioning people and proving to them that their original assertion is wrong and making them work through questions into a contradiction on the positions they have asserted. Plato was the student of Socrates who has written the book The Apology of Socrates. In Greek the title is cal led Apologia Socratous. It is the oldest existent document of Greek Philosophy. With the title, many readers refer to it as an apology however the title is ambiguous because in Greek apologia means defense. Socrates simply defends the way he lived his life but does not apologize for anything he has done during his lifetime. In the text The Apology of Socrates the Socrates says First, then, its right for me to make my defense, Athenians, against the first of the false accusations made against me and against my first accusers, and then against the later ones and the later accusers. Many have accused me before you, and have done so for a long time now, though they didnt say anything thats true (43b). In 399 BC Socrates was charged of refusing to recognize the gods which was recognized by the state and for corrupting the young Athenians. In other words, people believed that Socrates was trying to corrupt young Athenians about god. He was stood before a jury which consisted of five hundred people of his fellow Athenians. In the text, he is defending himself in front of 500 Athenians saying that many people have accused me, but no one said anything which was true. With the Socratic Method he offended many great powerful Athenians. Since he created a lot of powerful enemies they brought him to trial thinking that they could make him beg for mercy. It did not work out but instead Socrates ended up insulting the jury by elucidating how ignorant they are, Socrates was mean, ugly, and outspoken but like Mahatma Gandhi he always wanted to be truthful. Socrates looked at the things in the world differently compared to other people. In the trial for the life of Socrates he astounded the listeners by being found guilty and destined to death in spite of his energetic defense. In the text The Apology of Socrates the Socrates says And so, members of the jury, you should be optimistic about death and think about this one truth, that no harm comes to a good man in life or in death, and his problems are not neglected by the gods (65d). Since Socrates held different perceptions about the world. He says that nothing can harm a good man neither in life and death. After hearing both sides the jury asked the members to vote on the guilt of Socrates. Since a lot of people voted for him that he was guilty he was sentenced to death. Socrates was given a chance to determine his penalty but Socrates wanted to be punished for his actions. Therefore, the jury sentenced him to death. According to Athenian law, they prescribed him to drink a cup of hemlock. Hemlock is like poison. While dying he believed that dying now and escaping from the problems was good for him. On the other hand, Gandhi was not like Socrates. He was calm, thoughtful, and observant. After finishing his studies, he returned to India for a short period of time. Again he went to South Africa because he was unable to obtain a job in India. At first, he traveled in the train, because he was not prepared for the racial intolerance. Since his color was black he was thrown out of the train. An incident in the train shaped his actions for years. During that period of time British controlled South Africa. He was abused, and all Indians suffered similar treatment. Gandhi stayed in South Africa for twenty one years to fight for his civil rights and won many concessions for his fellow Indians. He believed that if they can gain rights with nonviolence then why be violent and harm others and ourselves. In order to fight for truth and gain rights he gave rise to Satyagraha. Satyagraha is divided into two words which Satya and agraha. Satya means truth and agraha means to follow the principl es of truth. Satyagraha was a tool used for nonviolence and civil rebelliousness which is the appropriate methods for obtaining political and social goals. In the text Mahatma Gandhi- Selected Political Writings the Gandhi says Satyagrahi does not inflict pain on the adversary; he does not seek his destruction. A Satyagrahi never resorts to firearms. In the use of Satyagraha, there is no ill-will whatever. Satyagraha is pure soul-force. Truth is the very substance of the soul. That is why this force is called Satyagraha (52). According to Mahatma Gandhi a person who is Satyagrahi does not harm the opponent with violence. Since Mahatma Gandhi believed in non-violence he gave rise to satyagraha and ahimsa. In the book Mahatma Gandhi-Selected Political Writings Mahatma Gandhi also says Our shastras seems to teach that a man who really practices ahimsa in its fullness has the world at his feet, he so affects his surroundings that even the snakes and other venomous reptiles do him no harm (40). The word Ahimsa symbolizes non-violence. In the soul of every human being there are many things that we have to fight against such as fear, ignorance, anxieties, and stress. But according to Gandhi the outer fight should be avoided. In the Bhagavad-Gita the holy book which belong to the religion of Hinduism. Lord Krishna asked Arjuna to fight in order to deracinate ignorance. However, fighting is necessary only on some occasions when it is the explicit will of god. According to the text any person who practices ahimsa w ith truthfulness nothing can harm them not even harmful creatures such as snakes and reptiles. If a person is a follower of ahimsa then the person should love their enemy. Ahimsa is non-violence but also includes truth and courage. During the lifetime of Socrates he questioned people about the world around them and died because of his ignorant behavior. Socrates chose death because he did not wanted to break the law of the city and also held a belief that since he was a good man nothing can harm him. On the other hand, Mahatma Gandhi fought for the rights of Indian people without spreading violence and practicing Satyagraha and Ahimsa. He did not die of ignorance instead he was assassinated by Nathuram Godse. He killed Gandhi because according to him Gandhi was betraying India by negotiations with Pakistan to stop the war which was going on. He was the great soul that will live among Indians. Both Socrates and Mahatma Gandhi not only differed in personal characteristics but also they have a different perspective in trying to answer difficult question about the world around them. Socrates was ignorant but he always believed in truthfulness as Mahatma Gandhi. Both philosophers approached a different moral life. Gandhi died for the people and Socrates died because he wanted to without breaking the law of the city.

Factors Affecting Quality Of Higher Education Education Essay

Factors Affecting Quality Of Higher Education Education Essay The higher education sector is very crucial in education and has a leading role in all walks of life. When providing for quality education quality products can be produced. Higher education provided by the public sector in Mauritius is unable to meet the demands for a seat at the university. Private sector institutions are competing with the public sector institutions in education. The number of higher education institutions in both sectors in Mauritius is increasing. Thus, the study is aimed at analysing the quality of education offered at the University of Mauritius. The purposes of the study were; (a) To analyze the quality of services offered by the University of Mauritius. (b) To investigate the quality of students of the University of Mauritius. (c) To understand the level of increasing demands for courses at the University of Mauritius. The population of study was students from the different faculties of the University of Mauritius. The sample was two hundred full-time students; all attending a degree programme from the five faculties of the university. Data were tabulated, the amount of variables was reduced using the principal component analysis (factor analysis) and then analyzed using a logistic regression. Chapter 1: Introduction Higher education usually includes advanced education consisting of three to seven years after graduation leading to some specialisation to qualify for a professional activity or for employment in executive positions in business, industry, or government service. In Mauritius, higher education is the top most level of three sector education system. Higher education is the most important level of education because it develops the manpower for the country that leads the nation in giving insight into its future ideals, resources, problems and its solutions. The future of a nation depends largely on the quality of people groomed in the institution of higher education. Higher education in Mauritius can be traced back to the establishment of the School of Agriculture within the Department of Agriculture in 1914, which became integrated into the UoM when it was established in 1965.After that, many institutions have been established in the private and public sector that are providing higher education in the fields of medical, engineering, information technology, computer sciences, business studies and commerce. With the growing role of private institutions in catering higher education, the need was felt to evaluate the quality of education and services offered at the University of Mauritius which is a public sector institution. All over the world the universities are recognised as centres of higher learning, which are considered as expedients agents of development in the nation building. Universities generate, disseminate and utilise knowledge. As primary contributors to economic growth, they produce scientists, engineers, professionals, technicians, scholars, managers and men of exquisite capabilities. The capacity of a nation to develop economically, socially, politically and culturally derives largely from the power to develop and utilize the capabilities of its people. Chapter 2: Literature Review Higher Education The term higher education is usually used to distinguish courses of study, which result in the award of a degree, Diploma or similar advanced qualification, for various kinds of further education (Lawton and Gordon. 1993). Higher education constitutes the stage of education which starts after 15 years of schooling for the intellectual work and advanced training of students for their effective leadership role in all walks of national life. Tertiary education level is higher than that attainable on completion of a full secondary education. An accepted definition of higher education is that higher education requi res as minimum requirements for admission, the successful completion of secondary education or evidence of the acquisition of an equivalent level of knowledge (Terry and Thomas, 1979). Higher education includes all education above level of the secondary school given in Colleges, Universities Graduate Schools, Professional Schools, Technical Colleges and Normal Schools (Good, 1973). Higher education is simply the highest part of the education system, in terms of students progression, the acquisition of education qualifications, its status and its influence over the rest of the educational system. Higher education is said to impart the deepest understanding in the minds of students, rather than the relatively superficial grasp that might be acceptable elsewhere in the system. In higher education, nothing can be taken on trust and the students have to think for themselves so as to be able to stand on their own feet, intellectually speaking (Barnett, 1997). Higher education is thought to advance students to the frontiers of knowledge through their being taught by those who are working in that difficult territory. Sanyal (1982) says that in order to achieve the new international order, there is the need for integrating socio-economic policies with educational policies in each country, as stronger co-operation amongst the third world countries in field of higher education. Development of higher education should not only be contingent upon economic development to achieve the new international order but should promote the development of culture in view often fact that role of science and technology, the life-style and the very sense and value of life under-go changes in the future. Objectives of higher education All over the world the universities are recognised as centres of higher learning, which are considered as expedient agents of development in the nation building. Universities generate, disseminate and utilise knowledge. As primary contributors to economic growth, they produce scientists, engineers, professionals, technicians, scholars, managers and men of exquisite capabilities. The goal of higher education is to meet two principal needs: socio-cultural and developmental of a country. Higher education is an opportunity for individuals to develop their potential. It fulfils the needs for high-level manpower in a society. Its objectives include cultural and material development. It produces individuals who are morally sound and capable of multifarious roles in the society. It is a medium and vehicle for achieving an objective of higher vision, should endeavours, with commitment and larger spending, in higher education (Govt. Of Pakistan, 1999). A countrys social and economic development depends on the nature and level of higher education. This fact is revealed by the statements and findings concluded by the prominent educationists and decision-makers. In the developed countries, the role of higher education in production of high quality human capital is quite evident. The Governor of the State of Kentucky, Paul Patten, once said, I have staked my success as governor on changing the way we deliver higher education to our people. Education and economic development are the twin rails that will lead us to a higher plateau and help us achieve our goal of raising the standard of living in our state. My experience in creating jobs, as the secretary of the economic development, during my term as lieutenant governor, has helped me focus on the needs of our businesses. Those businesses are the customers of our product: the graduates in higher education. Increased technology and global competition demand that we develop our students s kills and mental capacity so they can share in the tremendous prosperity of our nation. He further emphasized on the quality of higher education and the need for its improvement. He commented, higher education is in trouble. The warning signs could not be clear. Its users (students and families) think it charges a premium price for an increasingly mediocre service. Its primary suppliers (secondary schools) often fail to deliver material that meets minimum standards, and its beneficiaries (employers) often are frustrated by the quality of the finished product (McGill,1992). Factors affecting Quality of Higher Education The quality of higher education may be enhanced through providing proper professional training to the teachers by revising the existing curricula. Higher education is the most important level of education because it develops the manpower for the country that leads the nation in giving insight into its future ideals, resources, problems, and its solutions. The future of a nation depends largely on the quality of people groomed in the institution of higher education. Factors that contribute the most are the level of competency of teachers, curricula and the standards of students intake, in the deteriorating quality of higher education. Nevertheless inappropriate funding for student support services, libraries, journals, books, ill equipped laboratories and lack of repair facilities for equipment and non qualified staff are crucial factors in education. Salaries and other allowances consume the university budget, thus, little is left for the items so essential for raising the quality of education. Budgetary constraints, particularly for operation, adversely affect the quality of teaching, especially practical training. 2.3.1 Students Experiences Students experiences of their learning and the teaching in the subjects they are studying are one of the more ubiquitous sources of information about the quality of teaching for institutions and individual academics. 2.3.2 Student to Staff Ratios While at the level of the institution student: staff ratios (SSRs) may seem to be a direct consequence of funding levels, institutions in practice spend funds on buildings, on administration, on central services, on marketing, on teachers undertaking research, and so on, to very varying extents, rather than spending it all on teaching time. Low SSRs offer the potential to arrange educational practices that are known to improve educational outcomes. First, close contact with teachers is a good predictor of educational outcomes (Pascarella and Terenzini, 2005) and close contact is more easily possible when there are not too many students for each teacher to make close contact with. Second, the volume, quality and timeliness of teachers feedback on students assignments are also good predictors of educational outcomes and again this requires that teachers do not have so many assignments to mark that they cannot provide enough, high-quality feedback, promptly. A gain, low SSRs do not guar antee good feedback or feedback from experienced teachers. 2.3.3 Classroom-Size Meta-analysis of large numbers of studies of class-size effects has shown that the more students there are in a class, the lower the level of student achievement (Glass and Smith, 1978, 1979). Other important variables are also negatively affected by class size, such as the quality of the educational process in class (what teachers do), the quality of the physical learning environment, the extent to which student attitudes are positive and the extent of them exhibiting behaviour conducive to learning (Smith and Glass, 1979). These negative class-size effects are greatest for younger students and smallest for students 18 or over (ibid.), but the effects are still quite substantial in higher education. Lindsay and Paton-Saltzberg (1987) found in an English polytechnic that the probability of gaining an A grade is less than half in a module enrolling 50-60 than it is in a module enrolling less than 20. Large classes have negative effects not only on performance but also on the quality o f student engagement: students are more likely to adopt a surface approach in a large class (Lucas et al., 1996) and so to only try to memorise rather than attempt to understand. 2.3.4 Class Contact Hours The number of class contact hours has very little to do with educational quality, independently of what happens in those hours, what the pedagogical model is, and what the consequences are for the quantity and quality of independent study hours. Independent study hours, to a large extent, reflect class contact hours: if there is less teaching then students study more and if there is more teaching students study less, making up total hours to similar totals regardless of the ratio of teaching to study hours (Vos, 1991). However, some pedagogic systems use class contact in ways that are very much more effective than others at generating effective independent study hours. A review of data from a number of studies by Gardiner (1997) found an average of only 0.7 hours of out-of-class studying for each hour in class, in US colleges. I n contrast each hour of the University of Oxfords tutorials generate on average 11 hours of independent study (Trigwell and Ashwin, 2004). 2.3.5 Teaching Qualifications Teachers who have teaching qualifications (normally a Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education, or something similar) have been found to be rated more highly by their students than teachers who have no such qualification (Nasr et al., 1996). This finding was in a context where obtaining such a qualification was largely voluntary, and those who have the qualification might be considered to be different in some way from those who have not, and this could be argued to invalidate the comparison. The difference might concern the extent of professionalism or commitment to teaching, but nevertheless there was no control group in the study. A longitudinal study that overcomes this objection has examined the impact over time on students ratings of their teachers, and on teachers thinking about teaching, of (mainly) compulsory initial training during their first year of university teaching, in eight countries. It found improvements on every scale of the Student E valuation of Educational Q uality, a questionnaire developed in the US (Marsh, 1982) and tested for use in the U K (Coffey and Gibbs, 2000), and improvements in the sophistication of teachers thinking (as measured by the Approaches to Teaching Inventory, a measure of teaching that predicts the quality of student learning, Trigwell et al., 2004). This improvement in measures of teaching quality could not be attributed to mere maturation or experience as teachers in a control group in institutions without any initial training were found to get worse over their first year, on the same measures (Gibbs and Coffey, 2004). Functions of higher education The capacity of a nation to develop economically, socially, politically and culturally derives largely from the power to develop and utilise the capabilities of its people. Higher education thus is considered sine qua non of national development, for it produces the highest level of manpower. In all advanced countries, the universities constitute the main spring of human capital. The most successful discharge of the universities role as a change agent is in the area of science and technology. The training of high-level scientific manpower is a matter of vital national concern. Higher education is today recognised as a capital investment in education. It is considered investment of human capital which increases labour productivity furthers technological innovation and produces a rate of return markedly higher than that of physical capital. Today we find the world divided into developed and developing countries. The dividing line between them is the capacity of educational and scientific attainments and its application for economic progress and prosperity (The World Bank, 1990). In modern times, higher education is considered as a means of human resource development in a society. In advanced countries, universities constitute the main spring of knowledge, ideas and innovations. Today, the most successful discharge of a university as an agent of change is in the area of science and technology. The priming and grooming of high-level professional manpower is a matter of vital concern. As a pathway to socio-economic development in a country, higher education cannot be ignored or given low priority. Higher education in a state of rapid development everywhere in the world as its benefits to the social, economic and cultural life of different communities is realisable. This has led to worldwide exponential expansion of universities and colleges; as many more people are encouraged remaining in education. However there are problems. First, higher education is expensive, and its expansion requires ample resources. Second, rapid expansion raises problems of quality ass urance and control, as increased numbers could so easily lead to a decline in standards. Third, expansion in the developing world often draws upon the resources, ideas and expertise of the developed world, even though these may not always be appropriate for every different economic and social system (North, 1997). Higher education plays a vital role in the development of a society. For centuries, tertiary institutions had the important role of educating our future political leaders, professionals of tomorrow, businessmen, religious and social philosophers, who serve the community, enrich its values and develop its resources. Universities are complex organisations with multiple missions and a myriad of roles. A university has the roles of providing of theoretical education and professional training, a developer and a disseminator of new knowledge, a catalyst to shape the practice of management and business and a contributor to the community and the national economy (Khurshid, 1998). 2.5 The Education system in Mauritius Mauritius educational system has for root the British one, as the island was a British colony long ago. After independence in 1968, the new government invested considerably in human and material resources for the education sector and progress has been noticed and reached in terms of a per capita grant to children of 3+ and 4+, primary education was free, as well as textbooks, compulsory secondary education up to 16. Higher education courses were offered at University of Mauritius and the University of Technology for affordable fees. Since 1977, secondary education has been free. As for full time undergraduate level at the University of Mauritius, it was free since 1988. Free education is funded by the State which strain huge budgets and subsidize a big part of the grant aided secondary schools expenses. With universal primary education being achieved in the 1970s, free education in 1977, and legislation making education up to 16 years of age compulsory, the challenges policyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ makers have had to face have related to broadening access at the higher education level, improving quality, and strengthening the management of the sector (while ensuring equity). The financing of higher education is basically via the government and students/parents. Students enrolled in public higher educational institutions are funded to a very large extent by the government. Students enrolled in local private higher education institutions and those in overseas institutions pay the full cost of their education. The key factors influencing the quality of higher education are the quality of faculty, curriculum standards, technological infrastructure available, research environment, accreditation regime and the administrative policies and procedures implemented in institutions of higher learning. The overall vision of government was spelt out in the New Economic Agenda formulated in 2000. The main challenge was to move gradually away from traditional sectors to the services sector. The objective was to diversify manufacturing into higher valueà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ added markets and to consolidate services (financial, ICT, etc.) as a fourth pillar of economic development. To attract new investment and to maintain the countrys competitiveness, a highly productive skilled workforce was seen as imperative. With a view to setting Mauritius on a higher growth path, the country has recognised the importance of developing higher education as a regional hub for high quality education and training, to ensure that the knowledge industry acts as a catalyst in broadening the Mauritian economy, and in providing the necessary support to the existing and upcoming sectors. There has been a dramatic paradigm shift in the development strategy mooted by the government. In summary, it has been accepted by government that the education system, especially higher education, needs to be reà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ orientated to respond more effectively. Higher education in Mauritius can be traced back to the establishment of the School of Agriculture within the Department of Agriculture in 1914, which became integrated into the UoM when it was established in 1965. However, it was only in postà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ independent Mauritius that several public higher education institutions were created, which were complementary to UoM. Over the years the higher education sector has become increasingly diversified. 2.5.1 Pre-Primary Sector This sector caters for children 4+ and since a few years for 3+. The State provides a grant of R 200 per child. The private institutions occupy 80% of the educational provision in the sector. The following measures are part of policy developments to consolidate the sector: Strengthening the institutional and regulatory framework for the provision of Early Childhood Care and Education. Reduction of disparity among pre-schools. Addressing the problem of out-of-schools pre-primary children due to absolute poverty. Developing a National Curriculum Framework for the pre-primary subsector. Ensuring readiness of all pre-primary school children for primary school. Construction of pre-primary units in disadvantaged areas Strengthening partnerships with parents through a Parent Empowerment Program. 2.5.2 Primary sector The enrolment in primary school takes effect at the age of five and enters the Standard I and moves gradually up to Standard VI. The CPE is an examination carried out at national level in all schools and follows a grading system. There are five compulsory subjects: English, French, Mathematics, Science and History and Geography. The grading process works on the five best grades along with Asian/Arabic languages. Several initiatives have been implemented in primary institutions to improve the CPE results. This gave rise to the Zones d Education Prioritaires (Z.E.P.). This targets those schools with low performance over 5 consecutive years. Later on in 2011, Enhancement Programme was introduced for STD III and IV. Moreover, the Sankorà © project was one where STD IV classes were equipped with interactive wall fixed projectors. 2.5.3 Secondary sector For a child to be admitted to a secondary college, it all depends on the CPE results. There are three categories of secondary schools: State owned grant-aided private schools, and fully private fee-paying schools. The secondary school experience begins with Form 1 up to Form VI, an achievement of seven years. Since 2010, a national curriculum has been set up for Forms I-III. The curriculum encloses all subjects up to Form III including English, French, Mathematics and the Social and Hard Sciences. When reaching Form IV, students are offered option form where they have to choose at least six major subjects for O-level exams in Form V. Later, for A Level examination, students will have to specialize in 3 main subjects and 2 subsidiary subjects. These two important examinations are undertaken by the University of Cambridge through the University of Cambridge International Examinations which sets up the syllabus, prepares the examination papers and undertakes correction for most subjects. 2.5.4 TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) The Mauritius Institute of Training and Development (MITD) is the main provider of the TVET program. Its purpose is to offer a variety of technical programs to students willing to meet the needs of the world of work at a middle professional level. Courses at the National Diploma are also provided at the MITD. The TVET sector is monitored and regulated by the Mauritius Qualifications Authority. 2.5.5 Tertiary sector It was in 1924 that tertiary education started with the College of Agriculture. It has developed and diversified; it now composes of public, private, regional and overseas institutions offering for a wide choice of courses and programmes. Through years, this education sector has given rise to other institutions with different characteristics and disciplines. Distance education has also been part of the sector. Some important institutions of the public sector are the University of Mauritius (UoM), the University of Technology (UTM), the Mauritius Institute of Education (MIE), the Mahatma Gandhi Institute (MGI), the Mauritius Institute of Training and Development (MITD) and the Open University of Mauritius (OUM). Besides all these, the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) is responsible for the allocation of public funds, planning, and coordination of post-secondary education and training as well. In addition, private institutions are more and more present in the tertiary education sector where they are proposing courses in areas like Information Technology, Law, Accountancy and Finance, and Management. 2.6 The University of Mauritius The University of Mauritius (UOM) is a national University of Mauritius. It is the oldest and largest Mauritian university in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered. It is situated at Rà ©duit, Moka. The University was inaugurated on 24th March 1972 by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II accompanied by His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh. Over the past decades, in response to the contemporaneous and emergent needs of the various sectors of the Mauritian economy, the university now has progressed from being a mostly in-service training institution to a fully-fledged university, concentrating increasingly on bachelors degrees, postgraduate programmes, research and consultancy. The universitys current strategic plan, Strategic Directions 2006-2015, has the following six strategic directions: Knowledge creation Knowledge diffusion Investing in resources Quality culture and good governance National, regional and international collaborations Community outreach The University of Mauritius has committed itself to continuous improvement and quality management. These are the actions that the university is trying to cater for: Ensuring relevance interact proactively with the world of work and the community to cater for emergent requirements while inculcating a wider sense of belonging to the university. Ensuring quality of teaching and learning enhance existing provisions for continuous improvement in the quality of teaching and learning, and work progressively towards the implementation of best practice. Strengthen research develop further the universitys research capacity and research management plan. Internationalize the university improve the international standing of the university and expand its role and programme of activities. Amongst Mauritian universities the UoM stands out both in terms of its dominance with regard to enrolment and it numerous pockets of excellence with regard to research. The UoM is the largest supplier of tertiary education locally, accounting for 22.2% of total higher education enrolment. Faculties Originally, the university had three schools, namely Agriculture, Administration and Industrial Technology. It has since expanded to comprise five faculties, namely Faculty Of Agriculture, Faculty Of Engineering, Faculty Of Law and Management, Faculty Of Science, and Faculty Of Social Studies Humanities. The faculties are involved in teaching, research and consultancy. It has also a Centre for Medical Research and Studies, a Centre for Distance Education, a Centre for Information Technology and Systems, and a Consultancy Centre. Following these on-campus developments and expansions, it resulted in a simultaneous increase in the number and in the diversity of programmes being offered, and the number of students enrolled. The programmes of the University are internationally recognized and include quality assurance mechanisms such as the external examiner system and affiliated with renowned Universities worldwide. There is a Quality Assurance Office which helps the University in maintaining and improving the quality of all its activities. There are various exchange agreements that have been established between the UOM and overseas universities. Students Union The Students Union, established in 1971, is run by and for the students. It work in the interest of students and regularly organize various activities. All students are members, the membership fee being included in the registration. Students are very dynamic in organizing extracurricular activities supported by the Public Relations Office. Chapter 3: Research Methodology 3.1 Problem Statement and Research Objectives When the problem has been clearly defined and the objectives of the research precisely stated the research can be designed properly. As it is often said, a problem well defined is a solved one. The problem statement for this study is that there is each year a high level of demand for a seat at University of Mauritius though there are other tertiary institutions in Mauritius. This study tries to find out the reasons behind this high demand. For this dissertation the research objectives are: To analyze the quality of services offered by the University of Mauritius. To investigate the quality of students of the University of Mauritius. To understand the level of increasing demands for courses at the University of Mauritius. To achieve the objectives mentioned above, a questionnaire has been administered to the different students in the form of face to face interview to collect information about the different factors affecting their learning experience at the University of Mauritius and hence facilitating the analysis of the information gathered. 3.2 Determine Research Design Research design can be considered as the basic plan which guides the data collection and analysis phases of the research project. There are three main types of research used in projects: Descriptive research Causal research Exploratory research Exploratory research is unstructured, informal research undertaken to have background information when the researcher does not know much about the problem. On the other hand in the descriptive method, research problem is well defined and structured and can be used to answer questions such as who, why, where, what and how (Burns and Bush, 2003), whereas causal research examines the effect of one variable on another one. The research undertaken in this study is descriptive in nature. The purpose of the research is to investigate, analyse and evaluate the student learning experience at the University of Mauritius. Data sources and Data Collection Primary data The only steps involved in collecting data is to look for primary data which consists of information collected for the first time to meet the specific needs of the investigation of the researcher. These can be in the form of letters, e-mails and interviews. Primary sources are more supportive, they address directly the requirements of the researcher though it might be costly.

Religion, Barnard College Women, War, and Evangelical Biblical Interpretation after 9.11 :: September 11 Terrorism Essays

Religion, Barnard College Women, War, and Evangelical Biblical Interpretation after 9.11 One of the most disturbing things about living in New York City since 9.11 has been the way in which the U.S. has been able to wage war on Afghanistan and now maybe Iraq, with very little public outcry. I’d like to suggest that behind the apathy, certain traditions of Christian biblical interpretation may be at work, traditions that feature feminine figures in very particular ways. These are interpretive traditions around salvation history, and apocalypse. Of course, one of the reasons that many people, particularly liberals, have not opposed the war is the discourse of saving Afghan women. There have been a number of insightful postcolonial critiques of this discourse and how it harms Afghan and Muslim women—for example, Lila Abu-Lughod’s talk given at Columbia University, â€Å"Responding to War,† which built on Gayatri Spivak’s critique that so often white men feel they have to save brown women from brown men. I would like to take these critiques as a premise, but move in a slightly different direction to consider where white men get their savior-complexes. I am interested in how interpretations of the bible shape political events and how the interpretive traditions of salvation history and apocalypse may be grounding this neo-colonial discourse of saving women. Here I’m not just talking about media rhetoric, but also about how people respond to that rhetoric and how certain ways of reading the bi ble position them to respond to that rhetoric. Given that evangelicalism and fundamentalism are alive and well in the U.S, I think its important to consider how common interpretations of the bible are part of the political calculus. This might be an obvious point, but I think that those of us on the left might bemoan the Christian Right without paying attention to precisely how biblical interpretations get incorporated mainstream discourse. However, my comments here are meant to be more suggestive than conclusive. The trope of Israel as a woman gets taken up in salvation history oriented interpretations of the Hebrew Bible in predictable ways. Israel is commonly read as woman who must alternately be punished and saved, and then ultimately led into dominion over other nations. For instance, I’ve documented some examples of these kinds of reading in my work on

Zen Buddhisim and Japan Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Zen Buddhism and Japan   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Japan and the development of Zen Buddhism went hand in hand towards the beginning of the sixth century. Buddhism was in full bloom in India and the Chinese were adapting it to there Lifestyle when several Japanese clans began picking it up. Zen Buddhism   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Zen Buddhism is a combination of Indian and Chinese thought process revolving around the world as it is and the discipline of finding enlightenment. The idea of enlightenment or Satori as the Japanese called it was the central point of Buddhism The Chinese had several ways of looking at the things that were contradicted by Indian lifestyles and thus you have the creation of Zen Buddhism. The Chinese weren’t as philosophically minded as their Indian counterparts, rather looking at things in a very practical way. The Chinese were always devoted to world affairs, but always kept touch of reality. The Chinese weren’t looking for God, or answers from a higher source, looking within for the answers. This is one way the Zen Buddhism was greatly different from most other religions was its emphasis on asking questions and seeking answers thought the use of meditation. The monks that followed Zen Buddhists weren’t asked to recite group prayer or any oth er deeds of piety, but rather just ask questions and seek answers. The basis of Zen Buddhism also puts an unprecedented emphasis on community. A monk of any level, or the master of of a Monastery all have the same role in community and work together on all levels. No matter how mundane the work might be, the group emphasis rules above all thus creating every man equal. Zen teachings believe in handling a thing rather than an abstraction and this is an example of this. Rather than asking a god figure, or waiting for god’s intervention, Buddhist monks believe in asking the question to themselves or to a higher monk where they can get a grounded answer, although it was usually cryptic.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  These cryptic answers however relate to one way one achieves enlightenment, through the use of Zen verbalism. This verbalism is very characteristic of the Chinese way, as the answer is always grounded in something very real. Most Zen teachings that are written down are reflective of thi... ...d that they will find enlightenment through their determination to die. If left alive these warriors will feel as though they have failed, and are cowardly, thus they fight with an urgency unlike most others. Their desire to obtain complete master of Bushido is unfortunately only obtainable by their demise. This method of training and preparing soldiers is unlike most other and is highly effective in creating the perfect soldier, one that fights with an awareness like none other, and another who trains with the sole purpose of ending up in a fatal situation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Zen Buddhism has had a tremendous impact on Japan and China, influencing the way everything is today. Today Zen is a commonly used term and is widespread about the world. Many Zen centers have been set up, and a greater focus on meditation is quite popular. The Zen boom is just that though, to many people cannot commit themselves to fully dedicating themselves to its teachings and apply it, but if Japan is any measure its success is very positive. Japan has firmly set itself up as a premier country, with a deep history and a very rich culture of which are developed with the help of Zen Buddhism.

Contemporary issues on mobility and work spaces

Oxford Encyclopedia of Economic History. Retrieved 24 February 2011 . – also Jump up A A Legal Bridge Spanning 100 Years: From the Gold Mines of El Dorado to the ‘Golden' Startups of Silicon Valley By Gregory Grooms, 2010. Assignment 1, mobility – Threaten Darkish First let me explain how this essays goes which I tough it would look and sound better if the definition and samples come first and then after that and also in between I refer them to interior design and our roles and use as one.I'll start with the definition of the word mobility to get to know this term and see it's difference from the other use of mobility as in the new technology and mobile APS for workplaces. Therefore â€Å"Mobility' indicates a worker's ability to physically move around freely in he workplace to accomplish work. Mobility for work can be assisted with items such as a wheel chair, crutches, canes, a desk near the door, a scooter to ride between distant buildings, and a shuttle bus.M obility also refers to a worker's ability to take advantage of various Job opportunities ( I will write more on this issue below), including the ability to relocate, move to a superior Job position, commute a particular distance to work daily, or change positions due to family and civic responsibilities. Some impediments to the mobility of labor include personal hindrances such as geographical location and ability to move, physical and mental ability, and prior Job experiences. Social/legal hindrances to mobility include a lack of educational opportunities, family responsibilities, and various laws.A frequent use of the word, mobility, occurs when organizations use the term to define the upward mobility of employees. An employee with upward mobility has the appropriate mix of needed qualities and characteristics including experience, knowledge, skills, education, cultural fit, and availability. An employee with upward mobility potential is ready for promotional opportunities*. Now a t this point I going to write further more about the mobility of employees and various Job opportunities to see what that points to exactly and how that is related to mobility.Employee mobility is an issue that has taken on a whole new meaning as more and more businesses have gone global. Employees today are commonly asked to take assignments in company locations outside their home country. These kinds of opportunities are seen as Contemporary Issues in Interior Architecture- Fall 2014 2 benefits by many employees who enjoy experiencing new cultures and the multi- cultural exposure. Managing employee mobility is important though, because without the right training and planning, employees moving to foreign countries will not be prepared to meet the challenges such moves present.Your company does not want to find itself faced with loss of productivity, or worse, loss of its best managers because of lack of planning. Being prepared to address the issues related to employee mobility sho uld be included in the company's strategic planning. Quality of living in this matter can be an issue if a company frequently transfer employees within the country or outside the country. Either way there are concerns which should be addressed in these compensation and benefits packages.For example, in the US, a manager transferred from a small town in Texas to a large northeastern city will be faced with many of the same issues as an employee transferred from the US to Canada and that is a very simple and the most easiest transfer in contrast with moving to India or china, a completely different culture. These concerns or issues include cultural and compensation differences. These differences become more pronounced when the company re-assigns employees from a developed country to a third world country.But it is really a matter of degree. Making sure that the staff are well prepared for these types of moves will insure the transition is smooth and they remain productive. After all t he reason managers are transferred is in order to better utilize their talents and skills within the company**. Here I can say our role as an interior designers may help with these issues but with prior researching, planning, somehow rearranging their working spaces even from their own country to their destinations.So that they can familiarize themselves and got to know those areas better prior going there to make them arm proof and repaper Just in case. Many transfers involve more than the staff also. The managers and workers in general have families who are as much a part of the move as the company employees. It's important for the company to recognize the needs of the employee's family also. Unless the staff feel as if their family will also benefit from the transfer without Jeopardizing their safety or welfare, company transfers will meet a lot of resistance.In these cases also our role as interior designers can come to great use by even designing and making their homes look lik e the one in future after move, better said aka and redesign them as person by hurt so they would not feel alienated. Now here are some instances of companies and how they help these employees related with this mobility matter. For instance the Whichever Workforce Mobility*** helps clients optimize their mobile workforce by delivering innovative solutions that make it faster, easier and more cost effective to deploy key talent and transfer critical skills anywhere in the world.Our expertise in Contemporary Issues in Interior Architecture- Fall 2014 3 relocation and assignment management ensures that our clients' mobility programs advance their business and workforce strategies. They deliver sustained customer value through unique service and engagement initiatives, including: – Trusted Partner – Next Practices – Fans – Balanced Scorecard Here again we as designers can be creative about those mentioned above. Even by being faster, easier and more cost effe ctive.By faster that can be as helping deploy critical talent at the speed of business by motivating them through Just by one look but by a great look. Because opportunity won't wait. By easier that can be as to Just open communication, transparency, mutual trust and boundless innovation. And by ore-cost effective that can be vast global resources and in-house expertise to control our clients' program costs which we can be ahead of it by being innovative or creative in these fields to somehow more economic but more fashionable.Also there is other term as labor mobility, which Labor mobility or worker mobility is the geographical and occupational movement of workers. Worker mobility is best gauged by the lack of impediments to such mobility. Impediments to mobility are easily divided into two distinct classes with one being personal and the other being systemic. Personal impediments include physical location, and physical and mental ability. The systemic impediments include education al opportunities as well as various laws and political contrivances and even barriers and hurdles arising from historical happenstance.Increasing and maintaining a high level of labor mobility allows a more efficient allocation of resources. Labor mobility has proven to be a forceful driver of innovations. There I also another International Labor Mobility. Which International labor mobility is the movement of workers between countries. It is an example of an international factor movement. The movement of laborers is based on a difference in resources between countries. According to economists, Over time the migration of labor should have an equalizing effect on wages, with workers in the same industries garnering the same wage.

Benefits of Exercise

We've all heard it before, â€Å"Exercise is good for you because†¦. † Nowadays you can't check out at the grocery store or do much of anything without being reminded that we mortal humans need to exercise. Still, we persist, procrastinate and eventually complain that we're overweight, sick, dying, etc. Listen. Some exercise is better than none, more exercise is generally better than less, and no exercise can be disastrous. No one is asking for you to start a rigorous daily regimen,  just do something.If you need motivation, here is a list of scientifically proven health benefits that regular exercise brings. Longevity. People who are physically active live longer. According to a 20 year follow-up  study,  regular exercise reduces the risk of dying prematurely. New brain cell development, improved cognition and memory. Exercise stimulates the formation of new brain cells. Researchers found  that the areas of the brain that are stimulated through exercise are respo nsible for memory and learning.For instance, older adults who engage in regular physical activity have better performances in tests implying decision-making process, memory and problem solving. Exercise is a powerful antidepressant. Study  after  study  has shown that exercise promotes mental health and reduces  symptoms of depression. The antidepressant effect of regular physical exercise is comparable to the potent antidepressants like Zoloft. It may take at least 30 minutes of exercise a day for at least three to five days a week to significantly improve  symptoms of depression.Cardiovascular health. Lack of physical activity is one of the major risk factors for  cardiovascular diseases. Regular exercising makes your heart, like any other muscle, stronger. A stronger heart can pump more blood with less effort. Cholesterol lowering effect. Exercise itself does not burn off cholesterol like it does with fat, however, exercise favorably  blood cholesterol levels by dec reasing LDL (bad) cholesterol, triglycerides and total cholesterol and increasing HDL (good) cholesterol. Prevention and control of diabetes.There is strong evidence from high quality studies (e. g. Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study) that moderate physical activity combined with weight loss and balanced diet can confer a 50-60% reduction in risk of developing diabetes. Blood pressure lowering. The way in which exercise can cause a reduction in blood pressure is unclear, but all forms of exercise seem to be effective in  reducing blood pressure. Aerobic exercise appears to have a slightly greater effect on blood pressure in hypertensive individuals than in individuals without hypertension.Reduced  risk of stroke. Research data  indicates that moderate and high levels of physical activity may reduce the risk of total, ischemic, and hemorrhagic strokes. Weight control. Regular exercise helps to reach and maintain a healthy weight. If you take in more calories than needed in a day , exercise offsets a caloric overload and controls body weight. It speeds the rate of energy use, resulting in increased metabolism. When metabolism increases through exercise, you will maintain the faster rate for longer periods of a day.Muscle strength. Health  studies  repeatedly show that strength training increases muscle strength and mass and decreases fat tissue. Bone strength. An active lifestyle benefits bone density. Regular weight-bearing exercise promotes bone formation, delays bone loss and may protect against  osteoporosis  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ form of bone loss associated with aging. Better night sleep. If you suffer from poor sleep, daily exercise can make the difference. The natural dip in body temperature five to six hours after exercise may help to fall asleep.