Issues and controversies in management project Case Study

Issues and controversies in management project - Case Study Example McDonald's evidences the validity of the stated. Renown for its corporate social responsibility record in its home country, and owing a sizeable percentage of its market share to this, upon expansion into foreign markets, McDonald's exported its CSR principles along (Bronn, 2006). Hence, in the 32 of the countries in which it operates, it has over 200 Ronald McDonald Houses, charity organisation which support underprivileged children (Bronn, 2006). It has also embraced environmentalism and committed itself to green practices, publicly acknowledging its responsibility towards the preservation and conservation of an increasingly fragile environment and ecosystem (Paton, 2007). Operating on the basis of these and other practices designed to underscore its commitment to CSR, McDonald's has successfully entrenched itself in the communities within which it operates. Indeed, a significant part of its market success and ability to penetrate the barriers to foreign market entry are a direct o utcome of the fact that it projects an image of a company which wants to give, not just take, from its community (Paton, 2007). Corporate ethics, albeit strongly related t... rnationalisation, it is imperative that multinationals acquire an understanding of the ethical systems particular to the foreign markets in question and adhere to them. For instance, in some cultures, gender segregation is an inviolable ethical principle, with the implication being that foreign entrants should adhere to this practice. In others, child labour is not viewed as unethical and the employment of children may be interpreted as the extension of assistance to an impoverished family. However, since this last is not viewed as an ethical practice and its implementation as universally unethical, not to mention a violation of international law, multinationals who engage in this practice may irreparably damage their market standing. This means that in designing their ethics guidelines, companies must create a fine balance between international and national ethical systems. McDonald's has managed to achieve this balance. On the one hand, it adheres to universal ethics guidelines whi ch dictate the imperatives of fair wages, non-discriminatory labour practices Royle, 2005) and quality goods from suppliers (Verschoor, 2001). On the other, it respects the cultural ethics of its host environments whereby, for example, it does not employ women in its restaurants, in concession to the segregation precept, although it does in its offices (Heck, 2003). The point here is that upon entry into foreign markets, the company does try to embrace and adhere to local ethical precepts, even as it abides by international ones, so as to facilitate entry and acceptance. Branding Competitive advantage is a critical determinant of successful entry into foreign markets and of surviving the challenges of globalisation and realising its promises. Branding is a managed process to

Florida Shrimp Industry Analysis Essay Example for Free

Florida Shrimp Industry Analysis Essay What if it were logical and profitable to merge two of the fastest growing shrimp industries in the United States today? That is exactly the idea behind â€Å"bait shrimp production†, the latest development in the combined evolution of the valuable live bait shrimp industry and the continual growth arena of aquaculture. Farm-raised bait shrimp is a very appropriate combination of the two businesses; both have a historical development in Florida for over forty years. Florida has been proclaimed the â€Å"Fishing Capital of the World† with its 1,197 statute miles of coastline hosting 3. 4 million anglers annually. The statistics regarding the recreational fishing industry in Florida are astounding. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) reports: †¢The economic value of recreational fishing to Florida is $7.0 billion and supports 75,000 jobs. †¢Recreational fishing is the second largest sports industry in Florida with over 700 world-record fish caught. Live bait shrimp is the nucleus around which evolves Florida’s saltwater sport and recreational fishing. It is the preferred bait for fishing near shore species such as snook, sea trout, redfish, snapper, cobia and mackerel. The business of catching and supplying live bait shrimp began with a few individuals supplying themselves, and a few bait shops in the 1950’s to becoming a multi-million dollar industry with exports throughout the Southeast United States. This growth is a testimony to the pre-eminence of shrimp as the most popular live bait among saltwater anglers in Southeast United States. The message is clear the recreational/sport fishing industry and live bait shrimp are well established in Florida. And their popularity is growing amongst the14 million people (75% living within 10 miles of the coast) and the 40 million tourists who visit each year. Commercial fishermen currently supplying 100% of the bait shrimp market experiences regulatory restrictions, seasonal declines in wild stocks, and unreliable labor causing unpredictable shortages and as such are unable to meet the increase in the market demands. The FWC and Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer service reports: †¢As the tourist and recreational fishing industry continues to increase in Florida so will the bait shrimp business. †¢Fishermen love to use live bait shrimp and retailers are always running out of bait before they run out of customers. †¢The retailer wants consistent deliveries of bait shrimp in numbers that will keep the customers walking through the door of their shop †¢Although the fishing effort has increased 50% over the past ten years, the live bait harvesters cannot meet the market demands. This increase in demand without an increase in supplies has resulted in an extremely high dollar value of live bait. This increase in demand, low supply and high dollar value has attracted the attention of shrimp producers. Now for the other half of the combination shrimp aquaculture. As the demand for live bait shrimp has expanded without an increase in supplies, the inevitable has begun to take place culturing Florida’s endemic penaeids for bait size shrimp using hatchery and production technologies developed for other economically important penaeids. Wholesale distributors cannot get adequate supply of bait shrimp certain times; retailers are forced to accept inaccurate counts and variable sizes of wild bait, which they will loose almost 30% in mortalities during the course of the day. Retailers cannot consistently provide the customer with the desired size and often sell â€Å"mixes†. Fishermen are reliant on the seasonal migration, molting periods and life cycles of the natural population; as such they cannot guarantee quality or volume. Shrimp spawn in April/May releasing eggs that move with the tides and currents into estuaries, where they spend their postlarval and juvenile stages before migrating back to deeper waters. Bait size shrimp are virtually impossible to harvest in June, July, and August due to this natural life cycle; and are in short supply September through December. It is the winter months January through April that suppliers, wholesalers and retailers can experience marketable size bait shrimp. However, even during this time period, harvesting of small animals causes immediate stress and holding them in â€Å"live† haul tanks for long distance deliveries results in high mortalities. Enter the growth industry, Aquaculture, dedicated to providing consumers what they need – healthy, quality seafood and aquatic products at market prices. The inability of the fishermen to provide year round live bait shrimp, there is a significant gap supplies. From this lack of product will grow the combination of live bait shrimp and aquaculture— Live Bait, Inc. Live Bait, Inc. will produce bait shrimp is at high densities in enclosed facilities equipped with multi-phase, recirculating systems. Bait size shrimp will be cultured to three variable sizes, (8,10, and 12 grams) to provide the retailer with desired â€Å"mixes†. Bait shrimp production facilities, unlike shrimp boats, can be located through out Florida in high value areas that support a large volume of recreational fishing and tourism. Live Bait, Inc. will focus on providing existing market channels with high quality bait at market prices, in a consistent and reliable manner through out the year. The first bait shrimp production facility is said to have been an offshoot of a Texas AM project developing production systems for Gulf of Mexico endemic shrimp. The species of choice for this area are brown shrimp (F. aztecus) and it is believed that the company, although small scale, Lone Star Fishery, is experiencing continued success. There is a tremendous interest amongst fishermen and wholesale dealers in developing culture systems for bait shrimp. However, once they realize the capital investment and risk involved, they become interested in buying from Live Bait, Inc. The market for live bait shrimp is continuing to grow, especially during the summer when local residents and tourists target inshore species. This year-round demand, unreliable supplies and high dollar value ensures a continued market for this commodity. Industry Participants There are several groups of industry participants, which must come together in order for Live Bait, Inc. to function well. 1.Wholesale Dealers. Everything begins and ends with this customer. Wholesale distributors have established marketing channels and will be buying directly from the production centers. Each production center must first identify the base of the wholesaler from which the high volume, high value business will be drawn. Their attitudes, needs and abilities must be the genesis of each decision in designing the size and location of production facilities. 2.The Nuclear Breeding Center. For long-term sustainable production and the Florida Department of Aquaculture’s support and sanctions; it is imperative that a breeding program for F. duorarum be established from the beginning. Experience has proven the necessity of SPF stocks in minimizing the incidents of diseases and animal stress from high density, mass production. 3.. For Live Bait, Inc to produce, cost-effective, quality bait shrimp it needs outstanding seedstock. Large numbers of seedstock at affordable prices will needed, on a weekly basis in order to maintain the sequential stocking required by multi-phase systems. 4.Management/Production Team. This is the triangulation point where it all comes together. The team must identify the best locations; design the most cost effective facilities and production systems, produce shrimp using state-of-the-science technologies to provide high quality bait shrimp available for daily pickup. Who are the individuals or groups that are likely customers of farm raised live bait shrimp? Fortunately, there are some marketing surveys that have been conducted Florida state agencies, the US Department of Commerce and Mariculture, Inc. that can provide some answers even in this new concept. The target market for Live Bait, Inc. is the wholesale dealer/distributor, who currently is supplied 100% by the bait shrimp fishery. Currently, wholesale dealers either buy dockside from shrimpers and/or they use their own boats. As such they are located within close proximities of bait shrimping boats and not necessarily in the high value tourist areas. Each GLB’s locations will develop its facility, production numbers, sizes and services around the target audience –wholesalers. GLB will target several distinct groups: 1.Wholesalers, which fit the basic demographic characteristics of supplying retailers from great distances. These will be wholesalers who either buy dockside from shrimpers and/or they use their own boats. As such they are located within close proximities of bait shrimping boats, which are in five major regions: Hernando (Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas and Manatee) with 47% of total bait shrimp landings; Pine Island (Lee County) with 33% of total bait shrimp landings, Biscayne Bay (Dade and Monroe Counties) with 18% of total bait shrimp landings and Jacksonville (Fernandina Beach) with 2% total bait shrimp landings. Wholesalers will truck live bait shrimp 220 miles from Homosassa to Naples or from Miami, which is 107 miles. Wholesalers from these regions supplying the North-Central East Coast, the Keys and Panhandle will be targeted. 2.Wholesalers who supply retailers dealing in large volumes. For example marinas that sell 275,000 – 300,000 or more bait per day during the winter months and 65,000 – 80,000 per day during the summer months. Volume in these areas severely restricted due short supplies and distance from suppliers. Retailers claim they could sell up to 300% more, if the supply were available. Wholesalers supplying large marinas, high-end fishing piers located in metropolitan areas, and retail bait/tackle stores that promote popular sport fishing tournaments will be targeted. 3.Wholesalers who supply high dollar bait to retailers located in areas support high value recreational/sport fishing and tourism. Wholesale prices for live bait vary considerably with location. For example prices in Pine Island will run $30/1,000 shrimp while in Marco Island and Naples, which is just south of Pine Island, will have prices up to $70/1,000. Wholesalers who supply retailers who are willing to pay the higher market price will be targeted. 4. Wholesalers who are receptive of farm-raised bait and will promote the product among retailers. Currently, an overwhelming majority of retailers accept the idea of farm-raised bait. Most are willing to pay between 50-100% above current prices for farm raised bait as long as the supply is consistent and reliable. Wholesalers who are willing to promote our product, pay premium prices for premium farm raised bait shrimp will be targeted. 5.Wholesalers who are either currently exporting to neighboring states, or who would like to export to other states. Florida Bait shrimp wholesalers export live bait nine months out of the year to different neighboring states. Currently they supply 60% of the Alabama Market, 20% of the South Carolina and 50% of the Georgia market. Wholesalers exporting to other states will be targeted. 6.Bait Brokers dealing in frozen bait are currently importing small frozen shrimp that are severely damaged from outside the United States. The shrimp exotic species, which may or may not be infected with viral diseases. These brokers currently cannot meet the needs of their large contracts such as those with Wal-Mart and Publix. Process them, as most of the brokers also have processing plants. 7.Wholesalers who are supplying retailers whose customers would prefer farm raised bait over wild bait for ecological and environmental reasons. These six primary target groups provide fertile ground for GLB to become a profitable operation within the first year of production. In fact, GLB will become the top producer of farm-raised bait for Florida and the entire southeast coastal corridors. Live Bait, Inc. production centers will be established in key locations through out Florida. The marinas, retail bait shops, bait and tackle shops within a thirty-mile radius will match the demographic target profile – high volume, high market price, pro-farm raised bait, easy assess to interstate highways and are being supplied by wholesalers from great distances. A marketing survey conducted by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Service’s, Bureau of Seafood and Aquaculture Marketing has documented annual landings (harvests), volumes of bait sold by retailers, wholesale/retail prices, peak seasonal demands and months of supply shortages. Major harvesting areas are divided Hernando Regions (Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas and Manatee) with 47% of total bait shrimp landings; Pine Island (Lee County) with 33% of total bait shrimp landings, Biscayne Bay (Dade and Monroe Counties) with 18% of total bait shrimp landings and Jacksonville (Fernandina Beach) with 2% total bait shrimp landings. Annual Landings report to Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission by licensed bait shrimpers in 2000 was 2.46 million pounds (246 million bait size shrimp using a 100/1b count). This is 50% above the reported landings for 1991 of 1.23 million pounds 123 million bait size shrimp using a 100/lb count). Fishery managers feel the harvest numbers are under-reported on trip tickets. And since live bait shrimp is a cash industry sales are not accurately reported. Also not all shrimp caught as live bait is sold as live bait, there are high mortality rates associated with harvesting, holding and transporting. Larger shrimp will often be culled and sold as food. It is likely that the farm production needed to supply current markets will have to be 50% above reported landings to approximately 3.69 million pounds (369 million bait size shrimp using a 100/lb count).

Extensive Reading With Young Learners English Language Essay

Extensive Reading With Young Learners English Language Essay In this essay, I will discuss extensive reading with Young Learners, and how extensive reading can be promoted, with reference to young learners in Hong Kong. Children learn to read in English in schools in Hong Kong at an early age, but there is little encouragement for them to read for purposes other than to learn the language. I will examine the benefits of extensive reading, in particular childrens stories, and how these can be used to promote extensive reading with primary learners in my teaching context at the British Council Hong Kong. Why extensive reading? Day and Bamford (1998, 4) contend that the type of reading done in ESL classes bears little resemblance to reading done in the real world, and that in fact students learning to read a second language do not read and they do not like reading. Reading in the classroom tends to be done purely in order to teach or review a language point, or to train students for an exam. However, It is simplistic but true that the more students read, the better they become at it (Day and Bamford 1998, 4). Teachers therefore need to find ways of encouraging students to read that are enjoyable and motivating for them, and more closely resemble the kind of reading that is done outside the classroom. Extensive reading, is any reading that is done either for pleasure or not explicitly for the purposes of teaching reading. (Emery 2009, 38). This can be any type of text, whether fiction or factual. With this type of reading, the readers attention should be on the meaning, not the language, of the text (Day and Bamford 1998, 5). As children focus on meaning when learning a language, extensive reading should then particularly appeal to them as a way of learning English, especially if the texts are of types that they would normally read in their first language. Language learning from reading comes from exposure to the language, but is not the primary aim of extensive reading. Clark and Rumbold (2006, 9) list the following benefits of reading for pleasure; reading attainment and writing ability text comprehension and grammar breadth of vocabulary positive reading attitudes, which are linked to achievement in reading greater self-confidence as a reader pleasure in reading later in life Although their report was regarding native speaker children in the UK, they note that these benefits are equally true for second language acquisition. It appears, then, that extensive reading is crucial for literacy development. In Hong Kong, there is little interest in reading for pleasure, particularly in English (Ho 2008, Leung 2005). Taking into account the above benefits of reading for pleasure, it seems crucial to encourage a love of reading extensively in our students in Hong Kong, both inside and outside the classroom. Why stories? First and foremost, children enjoy stories. Stories are particularly important in the lives of our children à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Childrens hunger for stories is constant (Wright 1995, 3). If we provide children with stories, they will be motivated to read and listen to them. Reading stories in the classroom is a shared event, which encourages social skills, such as cooperation, collaboration, listening and turn taking and helps to create appropriate affective conditions for learning to take place (Read 2008, 7). We can also provide them with the means to read stories for themselves outside the classroom, increasing their exposure to language further. Children are also aware of and enjoy stories in their first language; From their early experience, children are likely to be familiar with story or narrative structure (Cameron 2001, 129). This means that, unlike many classroom activities, the telling or reading of a story will be a familiar activity. Even if reading books and stories are not commonplace in the home, children will have had exposure to stories through a variety of other media, e.g. films and cartoons. Children are therefore more likely to be receptive to a story than an activity which is not so familiar and therefore potentially confusing. Stories fulfill childrens need for security and novelty (Cameron 2001), as there is the security of the familiar structure of the story, with a beginning, introduction to characters, a problem which is resolved, and an ending, and also the novelty of new stories, characters and plot surprises. Stories provide a clear context from which children can find meaning. The meaning and enjoyment of the story are the most important for children, and the meaning of the language is supported by the context. They work out the meaning first and tend not to pay attention to the words that are used to express the meaning (Moon 2000, 5). Stories are a rich source of language. Because stories are designed to entertain, writers and tellers choose and use words with particular care to keep the audience interested (Cameron 2001, 163). Many words and phrases are often repeated throughout a story, increasing students exposure to them, and also helping to create the sense of security and familiarity. Through such exposure to language children are learning new vocabulary, often without realising it (Cameron 2001, 164), and the teacher can also exploit this vocabulary in classroom activities. Moreover, this vocabulary is used within a clear context, so Children have the ability to grasp meaning even if they dont understand all the words (Ellis and Brewster 2002, 8). Heathfield (2009, 17) refers to his own experience of storytelling with elementary Italian learners, who were able to follow and understand the general meaning of stories told in English. Attention can be paid to vocabulary and students accuracy once the context and meaning have been established. Stories provide children with exposure to not only vocabulary, but also to the structure of sentences and the general feel and sound of the foreign language (Wright 1995, 5). If stories are read aloud, children have exposure to the pronunciation of the language, its rhythm and intonation. This exposure helps them with their fluency, both written and spoken, when they are later ready to move to more productive use of the language. Stories also contain a variety of themes and topics which can be interesting and relevant to the students themselves, or can be exploited in the class. These themes can be linked to other subjects across the curriculum. They can also help develop childrens awareness of the world around them, or of different cultures. Stories can also be used as a stimulus for speaking and writing, and exercise the imagination (Ellis and Brewster 2002, 1). Cameron (2001, 160), warns, however, that we should not allow our feelings of nostalgia and fond memories of childhood stories to colour our perceptions of the magic of stories. She notes that the classroom is not the same as the family home, and the teacher is not a parent, so we should adopt a more critical stance to using stories in class, both in our choices of stories and the way that we use them, and to be open to using other text types which may be equally appealing to children. We should also be aware that stories are also available through other media than books, e.g. animated cartoons or TV programmes, and it is very likely that children may be even more receptive to these forms of media than traditional books. Choosing stories The stories used with children should first of all appeal to them (Phillips, 1993, 46), whether it is the theme, the illustrations, or the fact that it is a story which is familiar to them and they know they will enjoy it. A good story à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ is simply one that listeners or readers enjoy (Cameron 2001, 166). The story should have interesting characters that the children can relate to and a clear plot, with possibly a surprise at the end. The length of the text should be appropriate, i.e. for beginning readers using books with shorter texts will promote success and motivation. The language used in the book should also be simple enough for them to understand, but also contain some language which is beyond their current level in order to develop learning and language development. The child should be able to build on familiar language with new language, but not be demotivated by reading something beyond their level. A story which uses a lot of repeated structures and vocabulary will help reinforce meaning, and children also enjoy the repetition. The illustrations used in a book are also important, as they not only make the book more appealing to a child, but can also support the meaning of the text and new vocabulary and stimulate their imagination (Hsiu-Chih 2008). The themes of the story can also help children to understand more about the world, but should have appropriate values and portrayals of characters. If a story is being used in class, one could be used which fits the topic of the lesson. There are many graded readers available for young learners, in which language is carefully selected to match the childs level of English. However, the language is often simplified in these readers to such an extent that the language becomes unnatural, for example present tenses are used throughout, whereas in authentic literature a story is nearly always told using past tenses. As Cameron (2001, 166) comments, It seems a pity to deprive learners of opportunities to hear authentic uses of past tense forms à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ I can see no intrinsic reason for supposing that use of the past tense would prevent children understanding a story. Cameron also points out that although many text books for young EFL learners contain stories, they often lack the prototypical features of a story, such as a plot with a a problem to be resolved, and a satisfactory ending. These stories are unlikely to capture childrens imaginations in the same way that stories can do (Cameron 2001, 162). Quality storie s have characters and a plot that engage children, often the art work is as important as the text in telling the story, and they create a strong feeling of satisfaction when the end is reached (Cameron 2001, 166). There are many arguments for providing children learning English as a second language with real books offering a rich source of authentic input and challenge (Ellis and Brewster 2002, 8). These stories are more likely to contain the elements necessary in a quality story as described by Cameron, and children can feel highly motivated by being able to understand a story which has not been simplified. There is also such a wide variety of authentic story books which makes it easier to choose something which will appeal to many different children. Ellis and Brewster (2002, 8) note that it can be argued that the language in authentic story books can be too complex for children learning English, while the content may be too simplistic for their age if a book is chosen which has been written for a younger target age. They argue that In a foreign language, however, children are often very happy to accept stories which they may reject in their mother tongue. Although care needs to be taken to select books which will appeal to the child, what is important is the way that the story is exploited and the language learning supported for the childrens particular level. It is what we expect the children to do which determines the proficiency level required, not the story itself (Wright 1995, 3). It is also important that the child, not just the teacher or parent, chooses the books that they would like to read. Clark and Rumbold (2006, 22) stress the importance of children choosing their own reading material on motivation and acheivement. They refer to Krashen, saying that students who choose what they read à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ tend to be more motivated, read more and show greater language and literacy development. Cameron (2001, 164) believes that children may learn vocabulary while listening to stories without realising it, and learner involvement with a story may be what makes a difference à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ letting children choose the stories they want to hear may help maximise the learning that takes place. They will be more likely to choose books that interest them, and therefore be more motivated to understand and engage with the text. It is difficult to place too much emphasis on the role interesting material plays in the desire to read (Day and Bamford 1998, 29). Using stories and promoting extensive reading There are many ways in which extensive reading and reading stories can be promoted both inside and outside of the classroom, which I will discuss in relation to my current teaching context. In the classroom, the teacher can use stories in a variety of ways, both to promote reading and to exploit stories for further language work. Reading stories aloud to the class is an effective way of exposing children to story books and their narrative structure. From listening and watching an adult read aloud, children can see how texts are handled, how texts encode words and ideas, how words and sentences are set out on a page à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Affectively, reading aloud can motivate children to want to read themselves (Cameron 2001, 141). The telling of the story should be an enjoyable experience, and, if possible, the classroom arranged so that all children are sitting around the teacher, maybe on the floor, so that everyone can see the book (Wright 1995). The teacher should take care to hold the book so everyone in the class can see it, and use mime, gestures, facial expressions, the stress and intonation of their voice, and the pictures in the book, to help students understanding (Ellis and Brewster 2002, Read 2008). Students should be encouraged to participate in the story reading through questions which reinforce understanding, e.g. describing the pictures, or making predictions about what happens next. The teacher can help students with new and difficult vocabulary by providing tasks to pre-teach vocabulary, and follow up with activities which consolidate the language and help students to recall the story. Above all, the story and related activities should be enjoyable for the students. Favorable feelings for and experiences with the teacher, classmates, materials, tasks, procedures, and so on, can forge positive attitudes toward reading in the second language (Day and Bamford 1998, 25). At the British Council Hong Kong literacy texts have been incorporated into the syllabuses for the higher level primary classes for students aged 8 and above. These are generally texts which are used in schools in the UK to teach literacy in the British National Curriculum, with accompanying teachers notes and materials these are usually adapted to suit the EFL and local contexts. The texts chosen are for a younger age group than they would be in the UK, i.e. materials for British children aged 8 to 9 are used in classes for Hong Kong learners aged 10 to 11. These have proved to be overwhelmingly popular with teachers, who report that they enjoy using them and find that students also enjoy the stories whilst being stretched, because they can see that the materials are authentic and feel a sense of achievement. Many teachers also use storytelling in class, as story books are readily available in Hong Kong. These teachers appreciate the value of using story books in class, and find storytelling an enjoyable activity in class themselves. Some teachers use story books not just for teaching purposes, e.g. the introduction/consolidation of language or to complement the course book materials, but also for a story time slot. Often at the end of the lesson, the story time slot is used as part of the classroom routine and settles children. The stories are read purely for enjoyment, and if enough books are available (some teachers have their own story book collection) students are able to choose which stories they would like to hear. For younger primary students book boxes are provided with a selection of suitable books, which teachers are encouraged to use with their classes. One advantage of the book boxes is that with a selection of books children are able to choose for themselves what the would like to read, or what they would like the teacher to read. Other ways of encouraging children to choose and read books would be to have a book corner in the classroom or a lending library for children, so that children could enjoy reading by themselves either in class or at home. Unfortunately, neither of these are currently feasible at British Council Hong Kong. The classrooms are used by many different classes, including adults, so it would not be practical to set up a corner of the classroom with books. There is also the issue of funding book corners or a library; with approximately 3,500 primary students currently taking courses at the British Council, the cost of buying sufficient books for either scheme is prohib itive. One scheme which has been successfully introduced for primary classes is a Reading Challenge. Students are encouraged to read books in English and write brief reviews of them. After they have read six they receive a prize of a certificate and a book. The success of the scheme seems to depend largely on how much the individual teacher promotes it, but prizes have been earned by students across a range of classes, not only in the highest levels or older age groups. Clark and Rumbold (2006, 20), in a review of studies examining the effect of reward on motivation, conclude that we cannot be certain that rewarding children for reading actually motivates them to read more, or if they do so, that they are reading purely to get a prize and will not continue to read widely in the future. However, if a reward is given for reading, it appears that literacy-targeted rewards, such as books or book vouchers, are more effective in developing reading motivation than rewards that are unrelated to the activity. The most important factor, however, in developing childrens literacy and enjoyment of reading is the involvement of their parents (Clark 2007, Clark and Rumbold 2006, 24, Wood 1998, 220). The British Council Hong Kong has recently introduced parent workshops to encourage parents to read with their children, emphasising the importance of reading not only for literacy and educational attainment but also social and emotional development. Parents are also shown how to choose appropriate books and how to read them with their children, exploiting the stories and the pictures. These workshops are proving to be very popular with parents, who, while keen to encourage their children academically, had previously not realised the benefits of reading for pleasure. Conclusion There is not on the whole a culture of reading in Hong Kong, but, given the advantages outlined of extensive reading, it is particularly important to encourage our students to read for pleasure, and using story books can be particularly effective. This requires not only access to suitable texts, but also training for teachers and parents on how to read books with children and develop further language use. 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Impact of Pulp Magazines on American Culture Essay -- Expository Essay

Impact of Pulp Magazines on American Culture â€Å"The story is worth more than the paper it is printed on.† Frank Munsey’s words symbolized the history of the pulp magazine. Frank Munsey started the pulp magazine craze with his first magazine, the Argosy, in 1896. The Argosy was a revamping of his children’s magazine, the Golden Argosy, shifting its focus from children to adults. The Argosy offered large amounts of fiction for a low price, because these stories would be printed on cheap pulpwood scraps, thus gaining the name ‘pulp magazine’. The pulp magazine has been a part of American history for well over a hundred years. During the late 1890’s, there was a period of high immigration. These immigrants and other working poor had no source of inexpensive literature, and this led to the development of the pulp magazine. Pulp magazines held a collection of stories in every issue, serialized so that in the following issue the next chapter of the story would appear. Since the first pulp ma gazine’s success, the Argosy, other magazines spawned, such as All-Story and Weird Story, and sinc...

Emily Dickinson’s Success is Counted Sweetest Essay

Emily Dickinson’s â€Å"Success is Counted Sweetest† has been penned in iambic trimeter with the exception of the first two lines of the second stanza. The poem highlights aphoristic truths that are universal. In the first stanza, Emily Dickinson endeavors to define the true essence of success. The general impression is that success can be ‘counted’ by only those who have experienced it numerous times. Nevertheless, it is more precisely evaluated or counted by those who have never succeeded as they can apprehend its true value. In another poem, â€Å"I Had Been Hungry, All the Years†, Emily Dickinson writes that â€Å"Hunger-was a way / Of Persons outside Windows- / The Entering-takes away-â€Å". For the true experience of life, failures are inevitable. For, what we learn from our failures, success can never teach us. The alliteration with the repetition of the ‘s’ sound lays emphasis on ‘success’. Success also tastes sweeter to the person who has persevered very hard for it, than to a person who has found success effortlessly. The former is also more thankful to God, and cherishes his accomplishment. The word ‘nectar’ here implies water. However, it is perception that renders it ‘nectar’. To the thirsty ones with parched throats, a drop of water tastes as sweet as nectar. Here ‘sorest’ is utilized with reference to its old meaning ,that is ‘greatest’.Only the one in the direst need, can treasure any sort of sanction. Not one of all the purple host Who took the flag to-day Can tell the definition, So clear, of victory! Some people define success by virtue of positions that they acquire and assume in life. The poetess asserts how none of the purple leaders who took the flag to-day could describe what victory actually meant. The act of victory in such a stance of winning a battle is limited to the act of taking away a flag. It also points to the worldly act of hoisting a flag. Arundhati Roy in â€Å"The End of Imagination† toys with the word ‘successful’.She echoes how the meaning of the word ‘successful’ depends upon perception. For instance,a soldier who dies at war is deemed by others to be ‘unsuccessful’.Roy points out that it does not necassarily mean that the soldier is in any way ‘unfulfilled’. The poetess highlights the word ‘to-day’ to underline the presentness and transiency of the situation. ‘Purple’ is the colour of royalty because the fine clothes/robes of kings and emperors were dyed purple; and also connotes ‘blood’. It was the trend that dynasties ruled over some countries .Being born to a royal family, one could never realize how difficult it was to achieve that position as it naturally came to them as a heirloom .Shakespeare said: Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ’em. (Twelfth Night Quote Act ii. Scene 5.)Of these,only those who achieve it comprehend its worth according to Dickinson. As he, defeated, dying, On whose forbidden ear The distant strains of triumph Burst agonized and clear! In the above lines, the poetess exemplifies the frenzy of success, that one loses consciousness in. He loses the ability to evaluate himself objectively. In such a context, the person who loses the battle and is dying can perceive it better. The dying man’s ears are not ‘forbidden’. The figure of speech utilized here is a’ transferred epithet’ .Rather what is forbidden to his ears is the sound of success, as he belonged to the defeated side. He is successful in that he can realize the futility of war, and the meaningless of success as the speaker in Wilfred Owen’s â€Å"Strange Meeting’ does. The word ‘strain’ in â€Å"strains of triumphs’ may be used as a pun in the above phrase. Here,the victory may also be ‘strained’. The idea of distance and defeat is suggested by the alliteration of the ‘d’ sound. Moreover, the one who is caught in the noise and fury of success cannot ,in fact hear its sound. The one who serenely lies away can perceive it better. It does not manifest itself subtly, but does† Burst agonized and clear!† Rukhaya, M. (2012, October 07). Poetry analysis: Emily dickinson’s â€Å"success is counted sweetest†. Retrieved from http://voices.yahoo.com/poetry-analysis-emily-dickinsons-success-counted-

Critical Thinking Essay Sample

Critical Thinking Essay Sample Critical Thinking Essay Sample What it means to be human in ancient Israel: Israelites are a group of people in the Middle East who believe that they are all descendants of Jacob. The Israelites are perhaps the only people with a well recorded history dating back to 6000BC; their history is well written in religious books such as the Quran and the bible. In the olden days being an Israelite was a hard thing as you had to live according to the standards set by the leaders and the God that was never seen, most people suffered as there was no democracy. The Israelites were ruled by kings who had super special powers and no one was authorized to question their judgment. To them, the kings were a level lower than God and therefore deserved to be respected. The people of Israel were monotheists, meaning they worshiped only one God but sometimes they ended up worshiping the gods and goddesses of the surrounding people. According to their religious beliefs, it was clearly stated that one should worship only God despite that some went against the rule. However, there were serious consequences attributed to that. For instance, anyone found worshiping another god was stoned to death outside the city and in the case where the whole group was found to worship other gods it resulted in mass punishments that would sometimes lead to death. The Israelite community constituted of twelve tribes. Among these tribes was the Leviticus where the entire priests were chosen from. The Levites only become priest and they were not required to do any duties other than their temple work. Furthermore, they had no land and therefore depended on the other tribes for food who had to give out one tenth of their produce to the Levites. This can be seen as some form of exploitation of the people of Israel as others had to work and use their hard work to feed the people who had been chosen by god. Despite this, they highly believed that it was the right thing to do before God. In Israel, most people were farmers and lived in small villages while a small number lived in towns. However, the towns were much smaller and underdeveloped than the modern day towns. Markets were always held in the gateways of the towns. The life of most Israelites however revolved around worshiping and most of the time they were either doing service to god or praying to god for forgiveness. The Israelites had rules that were supposed to guide them throughout their life; these rules were known as the commandments. These had to be followed strictly failure to which they would be punished severely. Moses one of the early Israelites, was given these rules by god while on top of Mount Sinai, alone meaning no one was there to witness him being given the rules. This means that the people had to live and abide by the rules that they did not have a chance to even vote for and make a decision yet no one was supposed to go against them failure to which lead to death. This can be seen as some form of dictatorship as only one person was to be heard and if anyone went against him it automatically led to death. Death penalties were common in Israel (the bible, exodus) and many crimes resulted in death, especially crimes that were related to religion. This is ironical as the same person (God) who created the people could be so mercy less and set rules that took away the life that he made. This can be seen as rules that were set by selfish leaders so as to make the people not to question their performances and believe that they had been chosen by god and so everything they did was right. Leadership was highly respected in ancient Israel and no one was supposed to go against the leaders and anyone found to go against the leaders was persecuted by stoning. Yet these leaders were not chosen or elected by the people the leaders were chosen by God and they had to be from some families. Sex before marriage was an abomination and any person found having sex without getting married would be killed. To some point this rule was good but the punishment was too harsh for the crime, homosexuality would also lead to a death penalty this was wrong because it led to death yet life was supposed to be respected. The common man had no excuse for sinning and if he was found to have sinned it would result in heavy punishment. On the other hand leaders could sin and get away with it take an example of David who killed a man for his wife but because he was loved by God he was forgiven, if he had been a common man then he would have been killed without questioning(Harmer 89). Gender inequality was common and women were looked down upon, they held no positions in the political posts and had to do whatever the men said the woman had to respect the man and had to get married and have children a woman who had no children was considered cursed even if the husband was the cause of the problem. Prostitution was not allowed and any woman found was killed yet the man was not killed. This is very unfair to women as all of them had sinned and not the woman alone so why kill the woman alone and not all of them. War was common in ancient Israel and the local people did not decide when to go to war. This was a decision that was made by the leaders as they were the once to decide when to go to war and when not to go to war. Soldier’s war picked from every family who had to give a son to defend the people, even though this is not wrong it is still wrong considering the fact that during war people would die. However the soldiers had to go to war and incase of death there was no compensations that was made to the family. In conclusion it is evident that the people of Israel suffered a lot and this was mainly because of their leaders who were believed to be God chosen yet they were just ordinary people. Life was unfair for the common man and they had to live in fear of death as most simple crimes would lead to death by stoning, and no one was allowed to question those in authority as they were believed to be chosen by God. If you are looking for professional essay writing services to get your critical thinking essay written by certified academic writers contact www.!