Globalization Impact on Modern World

Gradually, the world’s population is becoming integrated in to one community. Interaction between people from various continents and countries is bringing people together such that the national boundaries and racial differences are becoming of little significance. This process has been facilitated by the growing entertainment industry.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Globalization Impact on Modern World specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Prior to the modern communication and the internet, the major mode of interaction between people of different races from different geographical locations was through trade. Missionary work was also a significant contributor to this phenomenon. However, the recent developments in communication have elicited interest in different races in terms of cultural and social interaction. The major factors in this interaction are the internet and mobile telephony (Crothers, 2007). One unique development that is a result of globalization is the popularity of the pop culture. Beginning with pop music, which has been in the market for a significant period, the pop lifestyle has become embedded into the lives of the majority of young Americans. This culture has been promoted primarily by globalization of economy. Global entertainment industry is doing remarkably well due to the adoption of the culture in other countries (Bertho, 2008). The growing importance of the industry through globalization has a serious effect on the American youth. Most of the prominent figures in the entertainment industry have grown immensely rich due to their worldwide sales. Consequently, the perception of the American people towards entertainment industry is overwhelmingly positive. While the American customs are becoming more popular around the world, pop culture emerges as the most popular aspect of the said social customs. In turn, the American youth is becoming more inclined to emulat ing the leading proponents of the culture (Bertho, 2008). The popular trend is enhanced by the concept of free trade that is being increasingly adopted by the world economies, with the United States being the chief campaigner for the liberalization of trade. American entertainment services dominate the European entertainment markets, and are also dominant in the developing nations.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Since the entertainment industry is an important sector of the economy, the United States government does not regulate its trend even with the increasing social concerns. Canadian media is also dominated by United States’ entertainment and information services such that the Canadian media is indistinguishable from United States’ broadcasts (Dunn, 1995). The picture painted by the entertainment industry is not accurate. Entertainment art relies on exagg erated drama and fiction, which is primarily an imaginative field. However, the American youth seems to be indifferent to the fictitious natures of this illusion. Although this industry has a positive effect on the economy, there is a growing concern that it is overwhelming other important areas of knowledge. Most children and young adults have been absorbed by the popularity of the American culture so that they have abandoned most of the important realms of knowledge that are crucial to the stability and wellbeing of future generations. For example, rock music, which has preoccupied most young Americans due to its popularity around the world, advocates for abandoning of the concept of tradition, and adopting a more liberal approach to life (Crothers, 2007). This perception is more pervasive than helpful to the American people. There is also fear that homogenization of the economy and the entertainment industry will eventually erode the American culture and identity. Furthermore, th e cultures of the world society are speculated to merge into one homogenous culture in the future. This way, the distinct identities of different cultures will be dissolved. Moreover, this has started manifesting in the adoption of a single pop culture in the entertainment industry. References Bertho, M. (2008). The impact of globalization on the United States. Westport, Conn.: Praeger.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Globalization Impact on Modern World specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Crothers, L. (2007). Globalization and American popular culture. Lanham, Md.: Rowman Littlefield Publishers. Dunn, H. S. (1995). Globalization, communications, and Caribbean identity. New York: St. Martin’s Press. This essay on Globalization Impact on Modern World was written and submitted by user Ember Q. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

7 Interview Questions Youre Not Expecting

7 Interview Questions Youre Not Expecting These days it’s not all about how good we look on paper. Skills and experience and results are very important, but workplace culture within companies is becoming an ever more important factor in the hiring process. And one of the ways interviewers can screen for this is by determining the emotional intelligence of their potential employees. Emotional intelligence. You know, empathy, social skills, self-awareness. How you might comport yourself under pressure. How you might handle difficult situations. What kind of coworker you’d be. Etc.Here are 7 questions that are probably trying to assess just that:â€Å"What bothers you most about other people?†This will give the interviewer valuable insight into how you perceive other people, and how you handle interpersonal conflict. You’ll want to be generous here, and not succumb to pettiness or venom. Take the higher road.â€Å"Tell me about a day when everything went wrong.†Everybody has bad days. What the interviewer wants to know most is whether you took it out on your coworkers, or crumbled under pressure- whether you were able to have a sense of humor about it. They’re hoping to find someone who can handle uncertainty and difficult situations without losing their cool.â€Å"Tell me about a colleague whom you really got along with.†What do you see in others? What traits do you value in friends and coworkers? If it seems like you have only forced, professional dealings at the office, they might think you’re on the stiffer side.â€Å"What’s something you could teach me?†Do you have any particular knowledge or skills that might be unique and useful in that workplace? If so, are you able to humbly and clearly pass that on to someone else? Can you communicate effectively? How’s your ego?â€Å"Tell me about someone you admire.†What you value most in others is very enlightening about who you really are. If you value the cutthroat backstabb ing success-at-all-costs type, red flags might be going off. And if you value the plodding career desk-slumper, your interviewer might think you have no drive to push yourself to greater heights. There’s no real fudging this question, so be honest, but try and pick someone truly admirable.â€Å"What are you most proud of?†Can you highlight a particular achievement without being a total egotist? Can you speak of something good you did without humblebragging? Are you able to be gracious about the help you may have received along the way? Did you rest on your laurels, or use one success to nudge you gently toward other?â€Å"If you were the boss, what kind of person would you hire?†Not just for this job, but for any job. Telling an interviewer what you might value in an employee reveals to them a bit about who you might be as their employee. At very least, they’ll get a sense of what matters most to you in the workplace setting, and what sort of team youâ₠¬â„¢d most like to be a part of.

Theatre Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Theatre - Essay Example Her dialogues were very spot on, and if there is any blame to be made on her part, it should be directed towards the original play instead of her performance. Others were not so great. Kate Herrell in her role as Virginia had trouble delivering the frustrated sarcasm of an actress whose career seemed to be fading away. The reaction to her first criticism regarding her performance in The Golden Egg was not as violent as that of someone who dopes and pops pills should have been. She had all the dialogues and swear words a funny crude character requires, but somehow, she returned not as many laughs as she could have. Other characters generally fulfilled their roles well, from Ira (played by Craig Ewing) the theatre-critic, to Emma (Fina Romero) the witty know-it-all oldie. Most of the one-liners presented by Ira were especially funny, as he explains why he ridicules the play when he does: Hey, I didn’t write this shit. 3. Where the play was particularly lacking was with the perfo rmance of J. Nick Dickert, who played James. He was in the lead role, but displayed little characteristics of a leading actor. James’ nature was displayed too humbly in my opinion. ... ike â€Å"He has all of my mannerisms and none of my walk†, in reference to the actor who played the role James turned down, should have been wonderfully sarcastic, but they were not. The supporting roles of Gus, the coat boy and Peter came in handy in those times, played by Noah Mittman and Christopher Lynch respectively. Mittman did a great Southern accent as Gus. 5. Directing The cast helped each other in terms of acting because of the great direction. Eileen Kearney did a wonderful job portraying the inner workings of a theatre production which the regular audience is very quick to judge. Her choice of comic cast shed some light on Mcnally’s mind-frame as it must have been when coming up with this play, which had more to show than simply portraying the backstage workings of a recently held play. The director brought to light the lack of loyalty that actors often share. They pretend to like each other only up until the point when the play is cast in a bad light, such as when a bad review comes in, which quickly turns everything into a blame game. I especially liked the way Eileen brought in the bad news, whether it would be via Emma reading the Times newspaper or through the television, and all the focus of the audience would turn towards the controversial characters of Virginia, James (who pretended to like the play) and the kleptomaniac director who hates praise Frank. This was supported by the beautiful set design which put Julia’s, the producer’s wealth on display seems as everyone was confined to her room as the reviews piled in. The lighting focused on the actors and never on objects of concern, so that the focus was always on their expressions as opposed to the television or the newspaper. The ambient light was kept to a minimum for this reason. The

Different Aspects Of Journeys Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Different Aspects Of Journeys - Research Paper Example Furthermore, Frost’s poem mainly describes the options of the speaker in taking one road over the other, thus, the focus is more on the roads themselves or the journey itself. On the other hand, Welty’s short story is more focused on the character of Phoenix, and how the journey she is taking is simply a means to show her qualities, convictions, and characteristics as a person. This paper will explore the different ways by which these two pieces tackled the topic of taking a journey. The poem â€Å"The Road Not Taken, by Robert Frost, tells of the speaker who happens to chance upon a fork in the road in the woods. The two roads that lay before him are both littered with untrodden leaves until finally, the speaker chooses one of the roads telling himself that someday he will take the other, though of this, he is also doubtful. The speaker further goes on to say that someday, he will be reporting about how his journey turned out to be. On the other hand, the short story â€Å"A Worn Path† by Eudora Welty talks about the journey of the main character, Phoenix, a very old woman who went on a trek to get medicines for her sick grandson. In this journey, she encounters and overcomes many challenges and trials that are representative of the challenges that she faces in society as a â€Å"colored† woman. Frost’s poem takes the form of rhyming quintains of iambic tetrameter. That is, it contains stanzas, four to be exact, of five lines each, consisting of four metrical feet (Hengreaves), with the ABAAB rhyming scheme. The metrical length of the poem is relatively shorter than most poems while the number of lines per stanza is longer. Thus, even this form of Frost’s poem is already an indication of what the poem wants to convey, which is nonconformity.

Behavior Management in Classroom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Behavior Management in Classroom - Essay Example Thus, new and customized model of teaching models work as a source of intellectual combination of prior theorists and current trends in human learning. Question 3 Excluding external contributing factors to misbehavior in the classroom (e.g. home environment, lack of parental support for the school, peer influence etc.) what other classroom related factors might be influencing students to misbehave in the classroom. Identify and briefly explain three major factors. Answer There are some of the classroom related factors that can provoke a student to misbehave in the classroom. These can be damaging to the learning process and affecting other subjects in the learning process. It should be noted that the teacher’s tone, voice and language can play a very major role in the behavior management of a student. For instance, if a child is not able to understand the instruction of the teacher then he is more likely to loose his concentration on the subject of matter. This will result in distraction of other’s attention from the lecture. Another factor which is likely to persuade the student to misbehave in the class would be lack of attention by the teacher. It should be noted that not all children are same. Thus, teachers need to give proper attention to all students otherwise it will result in misbehave in the class. Also, a teacher needs to be consistent with the instructions that are being given to the student. If increasing instructions on one day and lesser on the other day is noted then it will make children become agitated. These three factors can lead a child to misbehave in the class regardless of the family settings they belong. Question 4 How can teachers maintain positive relations with students whose behavior is challenging and difficult to manage? Identify... There are some of the classroom related factors that can provoke a student to misbehave in the classroom. These can be damaging to the learning process and affecting other subjects in the learning process. It should be noted that the teacher’s tone, voice and language can play a very major role in the behavior management of a student. For instance, if a child is not able to understand the instruction of the teacher then he is more likely to loose his concentration on the subject of matter. This will result in distraction of other’s attention from the lecture. Another factor which is likely to persuade the student to misbehave in the class would be lack of attention by the teacher. It should be noted that not all children are same. Thus, teachers need to give proper attention to all students otherwise it will result in misbehave in the class. Also, a teacher needs to be consistent with the instructions that are being given to the student. If increasing instructions on on e day and lesser on the other day is noted then it will make children become agitated. These three factors can lead a child to misbehave in the class regardless of the family settings they belong. Question 4-Â  How can teachers maintain positive relations with students whose behavior is challenging and difficult to manage? Identify and explain three ways. Make sure you choose significant (not trivial or highly unique and specific) strategies. Identify strategies that would apply across a wide variety of classroom events and behaviors.

William Kentridge Artist From South Africa Film Studies Essay

William Kentridge Artist From South Africa Film Studies Essay The sixth film in serious Drawings foe Projections was the History of the Main Complaint which was made in 1996. This film was made before the True and Reconciliation Commission hearing began. The plot of History of the Main Complaint was about a businessman named Soho Eckstein who was a wealthy white man living in South Africa. He was lying on the bed surrounding with doctors to discuss with his injures at hospital because he had a car accident. He was just an empty shell without his identity. William Kentridge was sending the conflicting message of the struggles that people were facing with in South Africa in that period. It was manifest that all of the conflicts made people sufferings were taking away of their true identities. In this History of the Main Complaint film, William Kentridge drew some x-rays pictures with objects to illustrate Sohos physical injuries and emotion. The main point of these x-rays explained explicitly that Sohos body and mind are occupying with these materials. These objects include manual typewriter, adding machine, telephone, ticker- tape machine for stock market information, seal press embossing, and a cup of coffee. The x-rays are showing purposefully every object in the central of picture and it represents respectively his whole career milestone in business to be a metaphorical key history event at his country. For example, there is an old- fashion electronic volt generator which symbolizes his struggles with other politicians during apartheid- era in South Africa and a bottle of shaky ink is representing how people view governments unstable system of policies in South Africa. Both of them are in control of the apartheid regime for around forty years. The film of Felix in Exile, which was the fifth film in the serious Drawings for Projection made in 1994, was focusing on the history of South Africa. The plot of the film was about an African American woman, Nandi, who was a land surveyor. She was a representation of the homeland. A man called Felix who was living in Paris in exile. The drawings in his room were being covered by the floods which were indirectly as memories. In this movie these two characters were interacting with each other about changing the situation of South Africas society in long distance. Nandi changed Felix about the sense of self identies and through Nandis eyes show Felix was looking forward to his country and seeing a new, democratic revolution about South Africa. The film of Felix in Exile used the technique of photographing each drawing. This was a long process of re- draw the same drawing over and over again to draw, erase, smudge and redraw. The reason why he used this kind of technique was because it created sense of movements in the film just like telling a story through stop motions. It showed impressively the audience of time and change, especially about history and fading memories. History of the Main Complaint and Felix in Exile were both animated films. Animated films were made by stop motions. William Kentridge used the technique of drawing a lot of prints and made them into a film in order to tell stories without any narration or oral communication; however there were sounds and music to help the audience feel the emotion that William Kentridge was trying to express through his animated films. These two films were basically black and white stop motion drawings with some pop colors, such as red and blue. The stop motion was a very unique way to tell stories by using effectiveness of moving images. The red and blue colors used in the film had symbolic meanings, too. Blue was associated with peace, waiting, hope, and sorrowfulness. In History of the Main Complaint, a pail with blue water was placed in a corner close to Sohos bed in the hospital. Here, blue water symbolized redemption and hope. It had never been touched or removed from the room, and had waited quietly for the awakening of Soho. In Felix in Exile, red color was used extensively in Nandis depictions of landscape. The places where the corpses lay, as well as their wounds, were marked clearly in red. Red symbolizes blood, wounds, and death. For example, when Nandi was shot down on the ground, the blue water flowing down from the faucet turned red. It was a declaration of Nandis death. The dark red blood flowing out from the old wounds of the unknown corpse was a silent narrative of South Africas violent history. Analyze the ways in which Kentridges use of themes and formal techniques complement and or conflict with each other. Kentridge examines the people who live, records evidences that happened, and his personal life in Johannesburg-the city where he was born, lives and works. The animated films of Felix in Exile and History of the Main Complaint are two films about the darkness of South Africa. Through the use of visual symbols and metaphors, he intends to present complicated human situations. On the one hand, he purposely leads the viewer to analyze symbols and metaphors in his films to provoke their emotions. He used the technique of photographs taken after each erasure and redrawing process to impress viewers and truly expressed his feeling towards the country history at that time. These films are not only pieces of artwork, but also are addressing the struggles that people have experiences in South Africa.Ultimately, the reviewers have found the objective position that the Kentridge has taken and the hidden meaning in his works. His animated films are now some significant artworks that highly influ ence the modern art industry.

Economic Inequality in Toni Cade Bambaras The Lesson Essay examples --

Sylvia and The Struggle Against Class Consciousness in Toni Cade Bambara's "The Lesson" "The Lesson" by Toni Cade Bambara is not just a spirited story about a poor girl out of place in an expensive toy store, it is a social commentary. "The Lesson" is a story about one African-American girl's struggle with her growing awareness of class inequality. The character Miss Moore introduces the facts of social inequality to a distracted group of city kids, of whom Sylvia, the main character, is the most cynical. Flyboy, Fat Butt, Junebug, Sugar, Rosie, Sylvia and the rest think of Miss Moore as an unsolicited educator, and Sylvia would rather be doing anything else than listening to her. The conflict between Sylvia and Miss Moore, "This nappy-head bitch and her goddamn college degree" (307), represents more than the everyday dislike of authority by a young adolescent. Sylvia has her own perception of the way things work, her own "world" that she does not like to have invaded by the prying questions of Miss Moore. Sylvia knows in the back of her mind that she is poor, but it ne ver bothers her until she sees her disadvantages in blinding contrast with the luxuries of the wealthy. As Miss Moore introduces her to the world of the rich, Sylvia begins to attribute shame to poverty, and this sparks her to question the "lesson" of the story, how "money ain't divided up right in this country" (308). Sylvia uses her daydreams as an alternative to situations she doesn't want to deal with, making a sharp distinction between reality as it is and reality as she wants to perceive it. For instance, as they ride in a cab to the toy store, Miss Moore puts Sylvia in charge of the fare and tells her to give the driver ten percent. Instead of figurin... ...siting F.A.O. Schwarz awakens in Sylvia an internal struggle she has never felt, and through criticizing Miss Moore, Sylvia distances herself from realizing her poverty. In her responses to the toys, their prices, and the unseen people who buy them, it is evident that Sylvia is confronting the truth of Miss Moore's lesson. As Sylvia begins to understand social inequality, the realization of her own disadvantage makes her angry. For Sylvia, achieving class consciousness is a painful enlightenment. For her to accept that she is underprivileged is shameful for her, and Sylvia would rather deny it than admit a wound to her pride: "ain't nobody gonna beat me at nuthin" (312). Works Cited Bambara, Toni Cade. "The Lesson." Eds. Hans P. Guth and Gabriele L. Rico. Discovering Literature: Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1997. 307-12.

Communication Skill Essay

International Conference Conferences, Symposia and Campus Events 2006 The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education Dorthy Missingham University of Adelaide Originally published in the Proceedings of the EDU-COM 2006 International Conference. Engagement and Empowerment: New Opportunities for Growth in Higher Education, Edith Cowan University, Perth Western Australia, 22-24 November 2006. This Conference Proceeding is posted at Research Online. http://ro. ecu. edu. au/ceducom/91 Missingham, D. The Universtiy of Adelaide, Australia. The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education Dr Dorthy Missingham School of Mechanical Engineering The University of Adelaide. Australia dorothy. missingham@adelaide. edu. au ABSTRACT Conventional Engineering curriculum is strongly focused on the development in students of technical knowledge and skills. However, in recent years, employers have increasingly acknowledged that this traditional preparation of Engineering students‘ is inadequate, as graduates lack the wide range of written and spoken communication skills required to engage with members of other professional groups and with the broader community. Recognition of the important role that communicative competence plays in professional success within the engineering industry has, as a result, led to a number of tertiary institutions developing curricula to address these needs. This paper presents a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in an Australian university, which aims to develop both communicative ability and community engagement. The courses that form the Engineering Communication Program provide for critical awareness-raising of community issues such as ethics, sustainability and gender, English for academic and professional Engineering purposes for both English as an Additional Language (EAL) and English background students and advanced research communication for postgraduate students. All courses are strongly informed by scaffolded learning techniques, systemic functional linguistics and genre theory, and most are run collaboratively by Engineering, Education and Applied Linguistics lecturers. The aims of the Program are to raise awareness in Engineering students about, and to equip them with skills for, their future roles and responsibilities, and to provide the community with engineers whose strong technical knowledge is balanced by an appreciation of the broader social contexts with which they will engage in their professional lives. INTRODUCTION The need for engineering students to acquire professional skills, in addition to technical skills, in order to enhance both community engagement and career success has been increasingly articulated by educators and industry professionals alike. Professional skills mentioned variously include teamwork, conflict resolution, and an awareness of social justice, sustainability and ethics. However, as highlighted by Adams and Missingham (2006) the need for improved communicative competence in engineering graduates has been the professional skills area most widely discussed in research and the engineering profession. Increasingly, engineers work in knowledge-intensive fields that require both high level communication and problem-solving skills (Alvesson 2004). In the Australian setting this need is recognised in the National Generic Competence Standards formulated by Engineers Australia, which extensively refers to communicative abilities throughout its descriptors of competencies required by engineers (IE Aust 1999). However, research on employer satisfaction with engineering graduates‘ communication skills indicates they are below desired requirements, both in Australia (DEETYA 2000) and abroad (Lee 2003). This paper discusses a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in The University of Adelaide, which aims to develop both communicative ability, and an understanding of the need and ability for community engagement. The paper begins with a brief comparative examination of engineering communication education in other universities, both in Australia and overseas. 346 COMPARATIVE APPROACHES The critical role that communicative competence plays in both academic and professional success has, over the past decade, been recognised nationally and internationally in a number of tertiary institutions involved in engineering education (Najar 2001, Riemer 2002, Einstein 2002). A review of literature, relating to engineering communication education, reveals several significant trends common both within Australia and overseas. These trends identify three major areas of academic and professional engineering communication recognised by educators as important skills needed by graduating engineers. The teaching of oral communication, written communication and teamwork skills have been introduced as part of the undergraduate engineering curricula in various Universities world wide (Einstein 2002, Schowm & Hirsch 1999). Whilst the combination of communication skills taught and the methodologies used may vary between institutions one particular theme or approach frequently emerges. An interdisciplinary approach to the teaching and learning of engineering communication (Artemeva, Logie &St-Martin 1999, Jennings & Ferguson 1995) is being practiced by a small but increasing number of engineering faculties and colleges. Examination of interdisciplinary approaches is important in relation to the integrative approach used by engineering and communication educators within the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Adelaide. In this respect, learning and teaching of oral and written communication skills in engineering communication curricula have been examined whereas team work skills have not been specifically examined for this particular discussion, as it is considered as worthy of separate dedicated research . Studies undertaken within Australian universities attest the need for high level communication skills. According to Najar (2001) communicative competence, including teamwork and professional writing skills for example, the ability to ? research, write and format basic research reports‘ as well as developing formal oral presentation skills is important to prepare students for both ?academic success and the workplace‘. Similarly Riemer (2002) claims that whilst engineering knowledge and technical expertise are important attributes the graduate engineer must be able to present this knowledge ? ith an excellent standard of communication skills‘. However, where Najar emphasises written and teamwork communication skills, Riemer (2002) claims that emphasis on oral communication skills is highly valued by employers. Riemer further elabourates that oral communication and presentation skills are ? career enhancers‘ which may be considered as ? the biggest single factor in determining a student‘s career success or failure‘ (Beder 2000 cited in Riemer 2002). Despite the apparent emphasis that Riemer places on oral communication skills he also acknowledges that there are a number of areas of communication skills which are necessary for engineers, including written communication skills, technical terminology and professional jargon. The later two areas are probably best described in linguistic terms such as genre and discourse, which are indicative that for each specific discipline there is an accompanying language culture. Internationally, universities are also engaged in the teaching and learning of engineering communication skills. Einstein in his 2002 overview of changes in engineering education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) describes a new approach implemented in the School of Civil Engineering which was developed in response to the view that what was being taught in universities was increasingly divorced from practice. As a result twelve courses were either created or developed in most of which ? regular oral, written and illustrated presentations‘ were required. Similarly Carlton University in Canada also recognised that the engineering discipline had specific needs in the teaching and learning of communication skills (Artemeva et al 1999). These needs related directly to the transition of engineering students from an ? academic to a workplace environment‘. In the case of Carlton University engineering communication studies emphasise written communication skills. The Carlton University approach described by Artemeva et al (1999) is in contrast to Riemers (2002) theoretical proposition on the prominence required in developing oral communication skills for the workplace. One other key difference in Riemers (2002) paper to the approaches suggested by Artemeva et al (1999) as well as Najar (2001) and Einstein (2002), is that Artemeva et al, Najar and Einstein are all overviewing programs of engineering communication already in existence. A common theme emergent in the literature is that many institutions recommend an interdisciplinary approach to the teaching and learning of engineering communication. Various researchers and educators claim that linking acquisition of academic communication skills to authentic engineering tasks 347 both challenges students negative attitudes, towards what they term ? earning English‘, as well as promotes student motivation. Shwom and Hirsch (1999) claim that shared agenda between disciplines recognises the equal status of engineering and communication, or the ? equal place at centre stage of the course‘. This view is also reinforced by Jennnings and Ferguson in their 2002 study, of communication engineering skills in Queen‘s University, Belfast, which states that through linking the study of communication skills to the exploration of engineering issues that communication skills become a key element in the educational process. Furthermore, ? here is a greater likelihood that students will develop a better overall perspective on their (engineering) subject‘. Significantly, many courses which have implemented an interdisciplinary approach have combined the teaching of communication skills with engineering design subjects. In an approach similar to that of the School of Mechanical Engineering, at The University of Adelaide, engineering schools at Northwestern University, USA, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard and Flinders University, South Australia advocate an interdisciplinary approach that combines engineering communication with engineering design. In reference to the program at Northwestern University, Shwom & Hirsch (1999), claim that design and communication are ? ideal partners‘ and that students ? combined knowledge of both fields will make them both better designers and better communicators‘. Additionally students are convinced of the importance of communication in engineering. Of the interdisciplinary approach taken at MIT, Einstein (2002) describes design as a synthesising process which requires various visual, written and problem solving skills inferring therefore that it is the natural setting for teaching and learning communication skills. He goes on to state that ? design (synthesis), coordination and communication‘ are regarded as the major features of the MIT , Civil and Environmental approach to engineering education. Najar (2001) discusses the Language in Use (LIU) modules linked directly to engineering design project work at Flinders University. A notable similarity with the approach of Adelaide University‘s School of Mechanical Engineering approach is that the development of students engineering knowledge is supported in an integrated way by the acquisition of professional and academic communication skills. Skills common to both universities include; how to communicate orally, how to research, and how to write and format research reports. Similarly the interdisciplinary approach employed in the Civil Engineering Department at Queens University, Belfast covers related communication issues in use of the library (how to research), English composition and technical report writing (written communication) and Public speaking (oral communication). Additionally Queens University covers poster presentation (visual communication) an area that the Adelaide University program covers in fourth year but which is not mentioned in the Flinders University program. It is apparent from the literature therefore, that the need for communicative competence in engineering education has been recognised in a number of places worldwide. In particular, an interdisciplinary education approach in engineering communication has been introduced in a range of Universities which offer engineering studies. Despite some differences in the methodologies, curricula and elements of communication addressed by different universities, including the University of Adelaide, these studies indicate that the synthesis of engineering design, which is inherently practical in nature, with the need to communicate the design process and outcomes is both an ideal setting and an important factor for positively influencing student motivation and skills in the study of professional communication. By promoting a shared agenda between disciplines the literature also suggests that this may also promote student recognition of the importance of communication in engineering. Regardless of the similarities and differences of engineering communication education taken by the programs discussed here the literature agrees that increased levels of communicative competence relate directly to employability and success in the engineering industry. THE ADELAIDE APPROACH Background The teaching of professional communication skills within the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Adelaide has evolved over a number of years since the mid 1990s. This evolution has experienced different iterations with the current approach developing more directly from a combination of initiatives taken both within the Faculty of Engineering and the School of Mechanical Engineering, and by the then Advisory Centre for University Education (ACUE), now the Centre for Learning and 348 Professional Development (CLPD). These initiatives led to the creation of various courses in Engineering Communication including courses for International Students. The Faculty wide Engineering Communication (EAL) course was traditionally managed by the School of Mechanical Engineering. In Semester 2, 2006 this course was transferred to management by the Faculty Academic Registrar in order to reflect the Faculty wide nature of the need for dedicated engineering communication course for international undergraduates. Within the School other initiatives led to the teaching of Engineering Communication to 3rd year students. Initially taught as a separate subject this course was combined with the Level III Design in 2004. In the same year the School of Mechanical Engineering also created a new course, Engineering Planning Design and Communication (EPD&C), for entry level students. The Mechanical Engineering Communication approach consists of a fully integrated, nested curriculum of courses, designed to; explicitly link communication learning to learning in engineering at all year levels, ? develop students‘ ability to construct and present logical argument discursively, ? oster language development from sentence level skills to large document written and oral communication, ? encourage active participation through class discussion and response to formative feedback, ? foster the ability to communicate problem identification, formulation and solution to diverse audiences and ? use development in communicative ability as a vehicle for fostering students‘ insight into and perspective on engineer ing practice in the community, including the social, cultural, political, international and environmental context of professional engineering practice. Each course in the program, illustrated below in Figure 1, addresses these aims while embedded within either broader Engineering course curricula or, in the case of Engineering Communication EAL, within a curriculum that employs specific strategies that address the needs of EAL Engineering students (Adams & Missingham 2006). 349 EPD&C Level I 2 Engineer Communication EAL 1 Design Practice Level I I 2 Engineering and the Environment Level III 2 Design & Commun. Level III 2 Research Communication Program 1 Design Project Level IV 2 (Postgraduate) Figure 1: Mechanical Engineering Communication courses showing their relationships to each other and the broader Engineering curriculum. 1 for students enrolled in all Engineering disciplines 2 for students enrolled in Mechanical Engineering Theory The theoretical underpinning of the first year Engineering Planning Design and Communication course and the third year Design and Communication course is based on the notion of ? ocial constuctivism‘ as advanced by Vygotsky. In particular, Bruners‘ concept of ? scaffolded‘ learning (Wood, Bruner & Rose 1975) informs the student based approach that is centred on active participatory curricula which aims at assisting students to develop increasingly skilled levels of academic and professional communication. Social constructivism grew from a view that educational methods needed to be base concepts of learning beyond rote memorisation, ? egurgitationâ⠂¬Ëœ of facts and the division of knowledge into different subjects. Early approaches sought to provide appropriate learning situations where teachers allowed students to develop their own knowledge, meaning and truth in a context which would enable them to use the learning throughout their life. Vygotsky developed this philosophy, noting that ? the central fact about our psychology is the fact of mediation‘ (Vygotsky 1978 p. 166). Social constructivists consider that the dynamic interaction between instructors, learners and tasks provides the opportunity for learners to create their own understanding through the interaction with others and is the most optimal learning environment. The constructivist approach, guiding the Mechanical Engineering communication courses is further reinforced in the application of Brunerian notions of the ? spiral curriculum‘. Bruner postulated that ? A curriculum as it develops should revisit the basic ideas repeatedly, building on them until the student has grasped the full formal apparatus that goes with them‘ (Bruner 1960) p. 3). 350 In the School of Mechanical Engineering these theories guide the designing of courses which are aimed at developing generic language skills which can be used as the basis for current and future application within the engineering industry, rather than a language course focussed solely on communicating engineering terms. The learning and t eaching of communication skills across all levels of the undergraduate program enables scaffolding of knowledge to be integrated rather than focussing on a short d of student teacher interaction. Through this approach skills acquired in first year communication are reinforced in second year Design Practice, extended and elaborated on in the level III course and then reinforced again through workshops and practice in the fourth year Design Project. Borrowing from neuroscience research into learning. the 2006 Level III and semester 2 EAL students have informed the idea of a concept of developing an habitual intellectual framework. Whilst relying on heavily on scaffolded learning, this concept also aims to redress some of the negative perceptions that engineering student have about ? earning English‘ by encouraging students to acquire higher cognition learning in communication skills which they can then apply as habit. PRACTICE AND PERCEPTION Three dedicated communication courses are provided at undergraduate level, Engineering Communication EAL (English as an Additional Language), Engineering Design Planning and Communication (Level I) and Design and Communication (Level III). The overall aim of the three courses is to provide students with an nderstanding of the importance of communication to the professional engineer and to equip them with the necessary knowledge, skills, flexibility and confidence to be good engineering communicators. Through the application of Student Experience of Teaching and Learning (SELT) surveys students are able to comment on and assess the effectiveness of the courses to their needs. At the same time instructors are able to monitor student needs and make appropriate changes to the curriculum and methodology if required. Engineering Communication EAL Engineering Communication EAL was designed specifically to meet the particular needs of international students and to be complementary to the technical engineering courses students undertake to complete their degrees. Through a variety of formal and informal learning strategies students are introduced to and practice basic research techniques. These techniques include ? locating, critically reading and interpreting academically acceptable sources ? presenting their analysis in the form of evidenced based propositions with sources integrated appropriately ? resenting the argument in both a written and an oral form suitable for an academic audience. The strategies used emphasise participation and practice as key elements to becoming effective communicators. Therefore, classes are very active, sometimes rowdy and frequently fun with group discussions and impromptu presentations of issues, group and individual exercises integrated with peer teaching/learning through guided presentation of answers to the class, and open class discussion inviting students to academically critique their own and others responses. Student Experience of Teaching and Learning (SELT) surveys consistently indicate that learning outcomes for students are enhanced by ? full participation on (sic) the aims of the course‘, ? giving feedback to students about their participation‘, adjusting the teaching ? of various topics accordingly (sic) to the class – enabling faster, more effective learning‘, ? very dynamic lessons‘ and being ? able to stimulate my learning‘. Formal assessment strategies involve a series of formative assessments which involve students applying feedback provided to a subsequent assignment. Student comments indicate that this approach is highly effective. Design and Communication courses The Engineering Design Planning and Communication (Level I) and Design and Communication (Level III) courses are provided for all students undertaking degree programs in the School of Mechanical Engineering. The integration of communication and engineering design was devised specifically to emphasise the importance of professional engineering communication and to ensure that communication is not seen by students as a stand alone subject that can be completed and then forgotten about. The effectiveness of this approach in highlighting the importance of communication has been recognised by students who report that the course(s) ? improves your speaking and writing skills‘, 351 ?helps with the written work in other subjects‘, they have ? learnt how to write for university assignments‘, and ? learning academic writing (is) useful to further years of study‘. A number of students have explicitly stated that the course taught them ? to communicate effectively and should be compulsory for all engineer‘?. These comments are also consistent with graduate attributes specified as important not only by the Faculty but also by the engineering industry, including ? the ? ability to communicate effectively‘, ? the ? ability to undertake problem identification, formulation and solution‘ ? the acquisition of skills to enable the ? pursuit of life long learning‘. Course material is also designed to be complementary to the Engineering Communication EAL course by providing reinforcement of and extension to the skills learnt. For example, the Level I course provides students with the additional educational framework and the opportunity to apply skills learnt in ESL to the needs of report writing and the oral presentation of progress reports on a Planning and Design project. Student feedback through SELT surveys consistently evidence the importance of these skills, for example, ? It was great knowing how to structure a report properly‘ and the ? introduction to engineering report writing is very comprehensive‘. A further integrative approach that has been taken in the Level I and Level III courses is reflected in the establishment of the relationships with prior learning and future learning. For example, Level III examines structure, cohesion, critical thinking and analysis, the use of evidence, presenting arguments both in written and oral form and report writing at a more advanced level than the Level I course. The Level III communication course is also an important prerequisite to level the IV Design Project, where all students must write an extensive design report and present a professional seminar on their project. Challenges and Outcomes Empirical and anecdotal evidence indicates that engineers are poor communicators and that one of the factors which influences student choice in undertaking engineering studies is the belief they will not need ? English?. Therefore, discussions and exercises are designed to encourage students to participate and practice skills, to be flexible in their approach to language and its uses, to contribute their ideas, to build on their strengths and to develop confidence. The value placed on practical evidencing of communication is reflected in a participation mark, worth 20% of the total assessment. As a result classes are noisy and dynamic. Students also find that effective communication can be both useful and enjoyable. For example, SELT comments show ? I like the idea of students presenting ideas on overheads (transparencies) in class activities‘, the course ? keeps people interested in tasks that could be very boring‘, ? A good environment for learning is provided‘ and ? interactivity of the class in tasks helps us to gain a better understanding of the subject‘. Similar strategies of regular class and group discussions as well as workshop exercises are used throughout the courses to ensure students regularly practice the skills of communication. Student response indicates that group learning and discussion ? stimulates learning without placing student under pressure‘ and that all students‘are able to learn something regardless of language ability‘. Individual students and groups are invited to present analyses and answers to the whole class and then to call for comments from their peers. The importance to student learning of this approach is exemplified in the following SELT comment ? Doing exercises and presentations in class forced me to do the work which I otherwise would not have touched if it had been set as homework. I appreciate that. Students are encouraged to form cross cultural groups during classes, so that a greater understanding of diversity and its value in engineering is promoted. At the same time students must undertake practical work in developing effective team work skills in order to be able to complete tasks and class based exercises. Students frequently comment that the group work is th e best aspect of the course as it provides opportunity to improve interpersonal communication skills and to gain a real sense of diversity through their interaction with students of different socio-cultural, and ethnic backgrounds. Student comments indicate that working in cross cultural groups encourages ? acceptance of all ideas‘. Students discuss and at times challenge the characteristics of English for academic and professional purposes as presented in these courses. In doing so, students become increasingly aware of how purpose and socio-cultural factors shape the kind of language used in different contexts rather than 352 viewing language as simply correct or incorrect, or based predominantly on the rules of grammar. Issues of ethics and social responsibility arise naturally in relation to topics and lecturers encourage students to discuss these in class. Similarly communication and management themes highlight the nontechnical role aspects of engineering. Students have reflected that ? This (allows you to) practice skills you actually need‘ and there is a ? good balance for a broad variety of skills‘ development. Links to industry expectations are also reinforced through guest presentations from graduate engineers, Engineers Australia and industry leaders. In these way students are encouraged to broaden their perception of the engineering industry as a technical culture to include the understanding that engineering is also a communicative culture. Formal Assessment of Student Work A series of formal assessments, both oral and written are also undertaken to ensure that students can also apply research and analytical skills in a ? planned and timely manner‘ as highlighted by engineering graduate attributes. Formative feedback is given on all assignments in order that students may take full advantage of self directed learning. Students who apply the feedback to subsequent assignments are rewarded for both the attempt and the quality of the improvements made. Students report that this approach provides ? constructive criticism‘ which ? helps each student‘ to ? check their drafts carefully‘. Assessment criteria and their relationship to graduate attributes are fully discussed in both the course notes and in conjunction with exercises, and students have expressed this helps them to place learning in the context of professional and industry expectations, ? hen it‘s explained, it makes sense that engineers spend so much time writing reports, talking to clients and presenting project ideas to meetings‘. RESEARCH TOPICS AND TOPICAL RESEARCH To broaden student awareness of their professional responsibilities as engineers within society, in addition to operating within a company framework, research topics are carefully chosen to reflect community and industry concerns. In particular th e topics chosen provide for critical awareness-raising of community issues such as ethics, sustainability and social justice. For example, the research topic for the current semesters Engineering Communication EAL course is the Role of Engineers, through which students are exploring issues such as personal and interpersonal skills, engineering education and life long learning, ethical responsibilities, social and environmental factors, holistic thinking, entrepreneurship as well as technical skills. Previous topics have included an examination of gender issues in engineering education and the profession, forensic engineering, and the effects of teamwork on the outcomes of engineering projects. The imbedded nature of the Engineering Communications courses within the engineering curriculum ensures that the research topics are relevant to engineering practice, topical and frequently devised in collaboration with engineering lecturers. Level III Design and Communication research topics, for example, are devised together with the design lecturer and sometimes also with reference to other departmental members. The current semesters‘ research topic was directly linked to the Design Project topics. These topics and the communication research topic specifically designed to be co-related. Through this collaborative approach aspect of sustainability in engineering practice are reinforced and student skills in critical thinking, analysis and evaluation of research information are further developed. In Design the projects are to design a Formula SAE Car, Bio-Oil Trike, Biodiesel Bike, 1. 0 litre Biodiesel Taxi – Tuk-Tuk, Hybrid Solar Electric Vehicle, Biodiesel Boat, Formula SAE Aircraft, Alternative Energy 2-Seater Aircraft, Hybrid Solar/Biofuel Generator, Fossil-Fuel-Free irrigation system or a Nano-satellite. The topic for the Communication assignments is ? ustainability‘, applied to the chosen design project. , as outlined below. Topic The broad objective of sustainable development is ? to achieve social justice, sustainable economies, and environmental sustainability? ( European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns, 1994). Australia has a National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development which aims to ? meet the needs of Australians today, while conserving our ecosystems for the benefit of future generations? (Office of Sustainability, Department of Environment and Heritage, 2006). 53 Task Environmental sustainability is a fundamental aspect of sustainability. For your Communication assignments you should identify how environmentally sustainable features can be incorporated in the design of your project, for example a bio-diesel boat, or alternative energy 2-seater aircraft. In addition, you should compare the effects of these features to a traditionally designed version of your project. You are not expected to justify sustainability. Your research must focus on the specific features of sustainable transport. Yong & Missingham, 2006) Previous research topics have included the following: Investigate an ethical dilemma in an engineering project, and critically evaluate the response of the engineering company or companies involved, in terms of relevant tenets of the IEAust Code of Ethics. (Yong & Missingham, 2005) Select an example of technological development that is prominent in industrialised society and analyse the benefits as well as the adverse effects of this technology to individuals, society and the environment. Yong & Missingham, 2004) A high level of both professional communication skills and an appreciation of community concerns required to be developed by the Level III Mechanical Engineering students. The topic descriptions have also been carefully devised to illustrate to students the inter-relationship of effective communication and an understanding of the social, cultural, political, international and environmental impacts implicit in the professional practice of engineering. These expectations are detailed in the Research Topic paper given below. ?Your research is to be based on a topic which has social, cultural, economic, and/or political implications. Engineers work in every sphere of life. As a professional engineer you will be working in an array of industries, in various contexts, and making contact with many people about professional organisations, government departments and agencies, allied industries and organisations, academics, and others. As an effective communicator and decision maker, you will need to be able to present your interpretation and findings on a range of issues, as will occur in the negotiation and management of projects, the submission of tenders, and the advising of clients. The topic for your research in this subject aims to provide you will strategies to both write and talk about your interpretation and findings about diverse issues. Your writing and your presentations will be an attempt to convince a nonspecialist audience of your point of view. You may choose one of the following areas of research for your project. Topic A – the impact of engineering projects on local communities The projects you may work on as an engineer could have significant social, cultural, economic, and/or political implications for people and communities who are not directly involved in the implementation of the project. Your research task is to: Discuss an engineering project which has, or has had, a significant impact/s on local communities Your research is to examine the impacts and outcomes of a specific engineering project on a community or communities. Examples of engineering projects could be dams or hydro-electric projects, weapons testing, mining, the building and operation of chemical or other industrial plants, building roads and railways, and others. The size of the project is unimportant, rather it is its impact on the local community which will be the focus of your research. The impacts could be one of the following scenarios, or a combination of scenarios: ? Well recognised and integrated into the planning of the engineering project, yet have provided, or are providing, difficulties in the implementation and outcomes of the project ? Recognised by the local communities or interest groups, but rejected or ignored by project planners and workers ? Unrealised in past projects, with the long-term consequences now the subject of community and/or legal dispute. 354 Your discussion needs to be an examination, that is, an analysis of the impacts arising from the project. Avoid lengthy descriptions of the history of the project, the engineering technicalities, or merely describing the impacts. You need to read as widely as possible about the project you have chosen, and from your interpretation of the source information provide a discussion of the (perhaps disputed) impact/s of the project. Limit your scope so that you have a specialised focus, that is, analyse only two or three impacts of the project. The word limit set for your assignments means you will not be able to cover all aspects of the project. Your focus needs to be an in-depth examination rather than a broad sweep of issues. Topic B – the impact of seemingly simple technology on the existence of communities. This topic also aims to examine the impact of (seemingly simple) technology on the existence and quality of life for those who use or used the technology. Your task is to: Discuss the impact of a seemingly simple technology on the existence of a community This research topic involves examining the design logic underpinning the technology and importantly the effectiveness of its use. Examples of apparently simple technology could be the boomerang, other hunting implements, for example, harpoons and poison arrows, a specific type of irrigation system, terracing for the cultivation of crops, and others. Your research needs to take account of: ? The design logic underpinning the technology ? The quality of life and survival provided for those who used the technology ? Any evidence which debates the effectiveness of technology, particularly its long term use. The technology you are examining may have been beneficial for a community in the short term, but in the longer term, further developments, modifications, abandonment of the technology, may have ensured a better quality of life, even survival, of a community. Long term environmental impacts could be important in your study. Your discussion needs to be an analysis of the effectiveness, or otherwise, of the technology. Avoid lengthy descriptions of the history or the form of the technology. This information needs to be only brief background information. You need to read as widely as possible about the technology you have chosen, and from your interpretation of the source information provide a discussion of the (perhaps disputed) effects of its use. Limit your scope so that you have a specialised focus, that is, on the analysis of two or three aspects of effectiveness of the technology. The technology could be from any era, past or even present day. If you are examining past technology, your focus needs to be on the effectiveness, or otherwise, of the technology itself for its intended purpose regardless of other influencing factors such as the introduction of other technology as a result of invasion, colonisation, or economic factors. Alternatively, the technology could be in current use or development, such as reversions to more environmentally sustainable technologies, for example, wind power. (Wake, 2002) CONCLUSION By promoting a shared agenda between language and engineering disciplines it is suggested that this may also promote student recognition of the importance of communication in engineering. Regardless of the similarities and differences of engineering communication education taken by various programs discussed here, increased levels of communicative competence relate directly to employability and success in the engineering industry. The program developed by School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Adelaide represents a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in an Australian university, which aims to develop communicative ability, community engagement and an awareness of the social, cultural, political, international, environmental and ethical contexts in which professional engineers practice. 55 ACKNOWLEDEMENTS Thanks go to many colleagues and friends, and to staff and students of the School of Mechanical Engineering who provided input (often unwittingly) to this research proposal. Thank you to Karen Adams for the stimulating and frequent discussions on many things educational and philosophical and Colin Kestell engineering lecturer extraordinaire who can always be relied on to stimulate teaching enthusiasm and creativity. Many thanks go to wonderful colleagues Elizabeth Yong and Kristin Munday whose considerable work is also represented here, and to Catherine Irving and Patricia Zoltan whose support, intellectual contributions and hard work have also contributed to this program. Thank you also to Barbara Wake whose commitment to and knowledge of academic communication which, together with the vision of Colin Hansen, Head of the School of Mechanical Engineering have enabled the development of such a successful program of professional and academic engineering communication. Special thanks to Roxanne Missingham for the editing and encouragement. REFERENCE Adams, K & D Missingham (2006) Contributions to Student Learning: An overview of Engineering Communication courses in Mechanical Engineering education, School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Adelaide, unpublished (internal) report. Alvesson, M (2004) Knowledge Work and Knowledge-intensive Firms, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Artemeva, Natasha, Logie, Susan & St-Martin, Jennie (1999) ? From Page to Stage: How Theories of Genre and Situated Learning Help Introduce Engineering Students to Discipline-Specific Communication? Technical Communication Quarterly, Summer, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 301-316. Bruner, J (1960) The Process of Education, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. Department of Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs (2000) Employer satisfaction with graduate skills: research report, by AC Nielsen, DEETYA, Canberra. Einstein, H Herbert 2002, ? Engineering Change at MITâ⠂¬Ëœ, Civil Engineering, October, vol. 72, i. 10, pp. 62-69. European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns, Aalborg, Denmark, 1994, Charter of European Cities and Towns Towards Sustainability, p. http://ec. europa. eu/environment/urban/pdf/aalborg_charter. pdf> viewed 21 July, 2006 Institution of Engineers Australia (1999) National Generic Competence Standards, IEAust, Canberra. Jennings, Alan & Ferguson JD (1995) ? Focussing on Communication Skills in Engineering Education‘, Studies in Higher Education, vol. 20, no. 3, pp. 305-314. Lee, Tong Fui (2003) ? Identifying essential learning skills in students‘ Engineering education‘, paper presented at the Annual HERDSA Conference, 6-9 July, Christchurch, New Zealand. Najar, Robyn L (2001) ? Facilitating the development of disciplinary knowledge and communication skills: Integrating Curriculum‘, paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Australian Association for Research in Education, Freemantle, 2-6 December. Newell, James A, Marchese, Anthony J, Ramachandran, Ravi P, Sukumaran, Beena & Harvey, Roberta (1999) ? Multidisciplinary Design and Communication‘, International Journal of Engineering Education, vol. 15, no. 5, pp. 1-7. Office of Sustainability, Department of Environment and Heritage, Government of South Australia, (2006) What is sustainability? viewed 21 July, 2006 356 Riemer, Marc J (2002) ? English and Communication Skills for the Global Engineer‘, Global Journal of Engineering Education, vol. 6, no. 1. Shwom, Barbara & Hirsch, Penny (1999) ? Re-envisioning the writing requirement: an interdisciplinary approach‘, Business Communication Quarterly, March, vol. 62, i. 1, pp. 104-108. Vygotsky, L S (1978) Mind in Society, MIT Press, Cam bridge, Mass. Wake, B (2002) Engineering Communication Course Notes, School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide. Wood, D, Bruner, J, & Rose, S (1975) ? The Role of Tutoring in Problem Solving‘, Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, vol. 17, pp. 89-100. Yong, E & Missingham, (2006) Design & Communication Course Notes, School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide. Yong, E & Missingham, (2005) Design & Communication Course Notes, School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide. Yong, E & Missingham, (2004) Design & Communication Course Notes, School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide. 357

ideal families essays

ideal families essays Have you ever been walking down the street and seen the perfect family? Do you think that other people ever look at your family in this way? Ever since there have been families, there have been images of the perfect family and the Ideal American Family. This image is described as: a mom, a dad, two and a half kids, a white house, green grass, and a white picket fence. Everything is perfect about this family. They are always happy and never get into fights. Every member of the family has utmost respect and love towards the other members of the family. Do you think your family is perfect and fits into this category? I know that my family doesnt fits this description. It might seem like that from the outside, but being part of the family, I know this is not true. From my personal experience I feel that the image of the Ideal American Family is wrong for society to have because it questions the concept of family, causes a lack of closeness between family members, and allows peo ple to make assumptions about other people based on their family. What is family? Family can be considered blood-related kin. Some people might consider members of his or her family being: friends, co-workers, pets or relatives. Who a persons family is depends entirely on that person. The idea of the Ideal American Family includes blood-related people. What happens to those people who, for some reason or another, dont have the Ideal American Family? Possibly one of the members of their family has left for some reason. Maybe someone died. There might have been a divorce. All of these situations are very common in todays society. Many times it is not anyones fault for it is out of his or her control. There is nothing that could have been done to prevent such an occurrence. Now this family doesnt fit the whole image of Ideal American...

A Very Scary Tooth Fairy Professor Ramos Blog

A Very Scary Tooth Fairy What is the golden rule? Why do people worry if they do bad things that bad things will happen to them? There is a saying what comes around goes around but what does that mean? The fear of karma is real and keeps some people walking on eggshells. There are many who do not believe in karma even though it can be traced back to the bible, in the book of Luke it says â€Å"do to other as you would have them do to you† (6:31). Karma can come in many forms but for this paper karma comes in the form of a hideous vengeful banshee known as the Tooth Fairy. This vengeful sprit wreaks havoc on the town who wronged her. The Tooth Fairy has always been an iconic symbol of childhood and represented as a good fairy like those seen in Walt Disney’s fairy characters, until the 2003 horror, mystery suspense movie Darkness Falls introduced a quite different type of Tooth Fairy that we had grown up to know. This evil specter has taken the very wanting tradition of exchange of teeth for money to a whole new level. When children of the town Darkness Falls lose their last baby tooth or milk tooth as referred to in some other cultures, this evil Tooth Fairy comes to collect their teeth and for those who so happen to awake and look upon her face will not only lose their tooth but their life. As stated in Cohens thesis VII â€Å"this thing of darkness I acknowledge mine†, society creates our monsters as this dark fairy is the product of a towns sinful act of murder of an innocent woman (Cohen 20). Fueled by revenge for her murder and an evil not known to us, this murderous Tooth Fairy takes her revenge out on the town’s children for generations to come. The monstrous tooth collector in my opinion makes an excellent monster that would frighten any child but since this evil specter only kills the children of Darkness Falls, I feel this tooth fairy has limited herself to the rest of the world making her less menacing. The Tooth Fairy in a black cloak and porcelain mask that covers her hideous burnt face is an image that would give any child nightmares, but what would be more frightening than the realization that this story of the Tooth Fairy is based on true events. What great monster doesn’t originate from legend? Darkness Falls evil Tooth Fairy originates from the legend of Matilda Dixon. The movie was inspired by events that occurred over the last 150 years in the small town of Port Fairy, Australia. The biography film of Matilda Dixon explains in short: her life in Port Fairy and events that lead to her death, also the cover up of her murder thereafter. Matilda was born December 24, 1803 and worked in a bakery. Matilda would bake a special cake for the children in exchange for their baby teeth earning her the name the Tooth Fairy, until one day in 1840 Matilda had an oven fire which burned most of her face and body. Matilda wore a porcelain mask on her face and refused to go out into the daylight because of the sensitivity to light. She did not let kids come over to her home and Matilda did not bake anymore but she still gave the children gifts for their baby teeth. Matilda would wait for the town to sleep before going out into the night with cloak and mask. The children left their teeth in handkerchiefs tacked to their doors and Matilda would leave small amounts of change in exchange for them. The towns people thought this behavior was weird but allowed it because of Matilda’s kind nature. Until September 23, 1841 two children went missing and Matilda was blamed and hung to death by a drunken mob only later to realize that the children were safe at home. Cohen specifies in monster thesis IV that â€Å" the monster is difference made flesh, come to dwell among us†, this helps us to understand that the people saw Matilda as being different therefore once the a child went missing she was easily made into an insidious child murder (Cohen 7). Matilda cursed the town with her dying breath saying, â€Å"what I took before in kindness I will take forever in revenge†. The towns people buried her along with their secret, but like all secretes they are revealed sooner or later. The Movie Darkness Falls is exactly what a horror movie should be; fun, scary, fast paced, with plenty of jump moments. The movie is enjoyable to watch with your children (PG-13 of course) and I would recommend it to those who enjoy the genre. The movie starts off with a back story of the legend of Matilda Dixon, then fast forwards to modern time were a boy named Kyle Walsh is in a restroom retrieving his last baby tooth from his bloody mouth. Later that night Kyle practices the tradition of leaving his tooth on his end table for the Tooth Fairy. Kyle is asleep when the Tooth Fairy enters the room. Kyle accidentally wakes up to see the Tooth Fairy floating above his bed wearing a black cloak and a porcelain mask. The Tooth Fairy lets out a shriek like a banshee from the old Irish mythologies and tries to kill Kyle from this time on. Kyle manages to escape but his mother sees the frightening facial image in the mirror while going to investigate his room and is killed instantly by the tooth procuring dark fairy. From that point on he is considered crazy by the towns people. Years later, Kyle must return home to confront his past, and save his childhood sweetheart’s son from an unrelenting evil that has plagued the town of Darkness Falls for over 150 years. Even if this wicked tooth fairies’ actions of revenge were justified her hideous appearance alone instantly categorizes her as a monster and her less than appealing looks leaves her burnt, decomposing body not to be desired. Cohens monster thesis I tells us that â€Å"the monster signifies something other than itself†, this allows me to believe that burnt body of Matilda Dixon is a representation of the Salem Witch Trials? In the late 1600’s 19 innocent women were found guilty of witchcraft and executed by hanging others were burned at the stake. Matilda was accused of wrongdoing and hung because the people saw her practices weird. Even though it is not stated in the movie it could be said that the town’s people saw the strange behavior of collecting baby teeth as a form of witchcraft. Different cultures have their beliefs in tooth disposal as stated in Donald Capps academic journal The Tooth Fairy â€Å"parents believed that it was very bad for them to let their child’s baby tooth fall into the hands of a witch or an evil spirit because, if this should happen, the witch or spirit could gain a magical power over the child†(Capps and Carlin 269). The Toothy Fairy has not been associated with one specific look but has appeared in countless shapes and sizes. According to Cohens thesis III â€Å"the refusal to participate in the classificatory orders of things is true of monsters,† therefore the tooth fairy is monstrous (6). In Joyce Graham’s book The Tooth Fairy she describes the Tooth Fairy â€Å"as a creature with two dark eyes, shiny like green-black carapace of a beetle, lurking under a matted shock of black hair and tangled elfin locks with a mouthful of blue light, teeth like sharpen daggers and standing about four feet†(Graham 17). In the short film Tooth Fairy by Joe Harris he tells of a Tooth Fairy that does far more wicked things than just take baby teeth left for her in the night. The Tooth Fairy in this film scratches out the boy’s eyes for peeking while in the middle of her toothy duties. However, the Tooth Fairy is represented I can agree that it shares the characteristic of a monster. Overall, the Tooth Fairy horror genre was entertaining and enjoyable to watch. The Darkness Falls take on the Tooth Fairy myth melded with other folklore created an image of true monstrosities. The towns people of Port Fairy insidious act of murder of an innocent woman and the karma that took form an evil tooth banshee bent on revenge. Researching the different cultures and traditions of tooth lore and applying Cohens Monster Culture (Seven Theses) to my research has open my eyes to a whole new world of understanding why these monsters exist and continue to regenerate through time, also what frightens us most is not what we see but the unknown of what lies in the darkness waiting. ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY Capps, Donald, and Nathan Carlin. â€Å"The Tooth Fairy: Psychological Issues Related to Baby Tooth Loss and Mythological Working Through.†Pastoral Psychology, vol. 63, no. 3, June 2014, pp. 265–280. This article focuses on the Tooth Fairy legend that emerged in the United States and Britain in the nineteenth century. Legends that are presented from around the world tell of rituals dealing with the loss of baby teeth. I will use information from this article to argue about the development of the Tooth Fairy in different cultures. Cohen, Jeffrey Jerome. â€Å"Monster Culture: Seven Theses.† From Monster Theory: Reading Culture. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1996. 3-25. The Monster Culture (Seven Theses) gives examples and explains how the world has created monsters throughout the centuries. The seven theses are break down characteristics, actions and images of the monsters of society and what propels them to live on in our culture. I will incorporate information from the thesis to evaluate the tooth fairy in my monster evaluation. â€Å"Darkness Falls (2003).† YouTube, uploaded by You Tube Movies, Provider Sony Movies Shows, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FhN30C8ZpLw. This movie is about Matilda Dixon (aka The Tooth Fairy) exacting her revenge on the town of Darkness Fall. Darkness Falls is based off the legend of Matilda Dixon, but instead of occurring in Australia where the legend originated the story takes place in the United States. Matilda comes for the last baby tooth of the children of Darkness Falls and if they look upon her face, she will take their life. I will evaluate this avenging tooth fairy that Matilda has become for my monster evaluation. Joyce, Graham. The Tooth Fairy. Great Britain, Signet Books, a division of the Penguin group, 1996. This is a short story about a young boy growing up in England in the 1960s. The boy is haunted by a demonic Tooth Fairy who gets him into all sorts of trouble. The description and my perception of Graham Joyce’s evil Toothy Fairy will be incorporated in my monster evaluation. â€Å"movieweb Darkness Fall The Legend of Matilda Dixon MovieWeb com.† YouTube, uploaded by Samuel Thompson, 8 April 2011, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GYSf32mJ_Yt=33s. Legend of Matilda Dixon gives a short biography of her life in the town of Port Fairy, Australia. Interviews with people that live in Port Fairy tell tales of how Matilda would give gifts to the children in exchange for their baby teeth, earning the name the Tooth Fairy. One day two children went missing and an angry drunken mob blamed Matilda. Matilda was hung by the neck by the mob only to find later that the children were fine at home in their bed. The legend of Matilda Dixon will be used in monster evaluation as an origin of the monstrous tooth fairy. â€Å"Tooth Fairy (2019) Trailer.† YouTube, uploaded by Wicked Thrilling Freaks, 29 November 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDbQCD_p7xo. The Tooth Fairy is a supernatural horror film released in Britain 2018. The Tooth fairy is a tale about an evil tooth fairy who rips out teeth. The images and actions of the evil tooth fairy will be used as a primary source of my monster evaluation.

Fitness program for Snooki from jersey shore Essay

Fitness program for Snooki from jersey shore - Essay Example cise, exercise gives individual the benefits that cannot be achieved from dieting as it allows the individual to boost their metabolism while making sure the body burns the fats that are not needed. Exercise can be used to build muscles, enhance the shape of the body and result in a firm and toned body while dieting alone cannot promise a body that is firm and toned. When combined with dieting, exercise increases the rate of losing weight (Caballero, Allen and Prentice, 411). Nicole â€Å"Snooki† Polizzi is a reality TV personality and dancer who is famous for being a member of the cast of the MTV reality show Jersey Shore among other shores including talk shows. She has struggled with anorexia while growing up as a consequence of cheerleading but her parents helped her deal with the disease. As an adult, she gained weight especially when she was starring in Jersey Shore. This fitness program is aimed at assisting her reduce her weight to healthy levels through working out and a healthy diet. This fitness program takes between four to twelve weeks depending on the weight that is to be lost. It should be followed together with healthy eating and a control of portions, which means eating the appropriate food in the required quantities at the correct times so that it can be easier to burn pounds of fat each week. The program will include a resistance program that will assist in gaining muscles meaning that progress will have to be monitored through body measurements as well as body fat percentages. In order to maximize the reduction of body fat, the type of food and its portions should be changed to fit the new way of life. Losing weight can be achieved with the kind of diet a person takes but in order to increase the muscle strength and cardiovascular fitness, gym workouts will be required. Therefore, a weight loss fitness program should stimulate as much fat as possible through three full body workouts every week with two day of cardiovascular exercises and two

Stems Cells Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Stems Cells - Research Paper Example Stem cells refer to undifferentiated cells that have the capacity to differentiate and form specialized types of cells; these cells also have the ability for self regeneration. The potential of stem cells to differentiate encompasses the ability to develop and form other cell types. For instance, a totipotent stem cell such as a fertilized egg can develop into cell types such as embryonic membranes. In addition, a pleuripotent stem cell can advance and develop into cell types, which may emanate from all three germinal layers. Self-regeneration entails how stem cells divide, leading to the production of other stem cells. The division takes place symmetrically during the early stages of development. This means that each cell undergoes division, resulting to daughter cells that have the same potential (Panno 1). Later on, asymmetrical division takes place with one of the daughter cells produced during symmetrical division, leading to the production of a stem cell and another cell that has more differentiation. Stem cells tend to occur in most multi-cellular organisms. They have the ability to undergo mitotic cell division and renew themselves. As a result, they may differentiate into numerous specialized cell types Panno 10). There are two main sources of stem cells; these include embryos that may be formed during embryological development (embryonic stem cells) and adult tissue, which can also be referred as adult stem cells. Adult stem cells can also be referred as somatic stem cells; after the development of the embryo, they can be found all over the body. Embryonic stem cells emanate from a human embryo, which can be four or five days in the development phase known as a blastocyst Panno 12). Cloning refers to the process whereby there is the production of multiple offspring that tend to be identical. It entails the asexual production of a copy that looks exactly like the original. For instance, cloning can be used in the production of