Monday, August 19, 2019

Antigone, Empress of Byzantium, and My Aunt :: Antigone Essays

Antigone, Empress of Byzantium, and My Aunt I have very few heroes, but if I could pick three people who are heroic to me, I would have to choose Antigone from the tragic play Antigone by Sophocles, Theodora, Empress of Byzantium, and my own personal hero, my great aunt Alice. All of these women have had a profound effect on the world around them, and worked hard to shape the world as they saw fit, to protect their loved ones and those to whom they were and are loyal. My personal hero especially has had a profound effect on my upbringing and me. While I have few heroes, I will pick some people from the past, present, and literature to represent what I believe a hero should be. The first hero is Antigone from the well-known Greek tragedy Antigone, written by Sophocles of an older Greek myth. Antigone was not only a hero, but also a martyr. She died for her cause; she died to save the honor and soul of her brother Polynices, even though he was a traitor. She defied the order of the main antagonist Creon, or Kreon, whose edict was that no one should bury Polynices body, or even mourn his passing. (Antigone) On the other hand, her other brother who had seized the thrown after Oedipus's passing, was buried with honor and as a hero. Antigone would not stand for this, as both her mother and father were dead, and thusly she would never have any other brothers ever again. She did not want either of her brothers bodies to be, "left as a corpse eaten by birds and dogs and torn to pieces, shameful for everyone to see," because this would bring more shame to her family then had already been brought by her father, who had killed his own father unknowingly and married hi s own mother. This is one reason that Antigone is dangerous and heroic, she remembers the past, unlike Creon, who unwittingly begins to repeat the mistakes of Oedipus in his reign, and Antigone uses this information as well as any sword master as a weapon against Creon. She knows that she will be put to death, however she faces up to that and defends her brother anyway, and is unafraid of the consequences. She even makes Creons orders seem shameful, putting them up in a classic rivalry between divine and human law, making it clear that the will of her gods is more important then life or death.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Wuthering Heights :: Essays Papers

Wuthering Heights Wuthering Heights is the only book Emily Bronte ever wrote. It is a very powerful story about love and hate and sorrow and death. It spans thirty years and is all narrated by, first Mr. Lockwood, and more importantly, Ellen Dean, the faithful housekeeper. At the beginning of the book, Mr. Lockwood had just arrived at Thrushcross Grange as a tenant. He went to see Mr. Heathcliff, the man he was renting the house from. When he arrives at Wuthering Heights, he meets a young lady the he assumes to be Heathcliff’s wife. However, Heathcliff tells him that she is not his wife, but his daughter-in-law. When he then meets a young man, he naturally assumes it to be Heathcliff’s son, but again Heathcliff tells him that he is wrong. Heathcliff makes it very clear that Mr. Lockwood is not welcome. However, Mr. Lockwood vows to visit Wuthering Heights a second time. The next day he does visit Wuthering Heights again and is snowed in over there. He spent the night in a room with three diaries in it - one labeled Catherine Earnshaw, one, Catherine Heathcliff and the last, Catherine Linton. That night he dreams he hears Catherine’s spirit at the window, and after hearing that, Heathcliff throws open the window and implores her to come in. Mr. Lockwood leaves early the next morning and catches cold. He is bedridden for the next few weeks and asks Ellen Dean to tell him what she knows about the people residing at Wuthering Heights. She agrees. The story really began with Mr. Earnshaw and his son, Hindley and daughter, Catherine. Mr. Earnshaw left town on business and brought back with him an orphan they named Heathcliff. Heathcliff soon turned out to be Mr. Earnshaw’s favorite and he and Catherine became great friends. Hindley despised him for that. When Mr. Earnshaw died, Hindley returned from school married and took over as the master and treated Heathcliff awfully. His quick mind was dulled and he and Catherine became very rebellious. One day, they were over at Thrushcross Grange and saw Edgar and Isabella Linton. They saw Heathcliff and Catherine and thought they are burglars. Edgar sicced his dog on them and Catherine was injured. She stayed at the Grange for a few weeks and returned to Wuthering Heights a sophisticated lady with a furious temper and attitude. Hindley’s wife, Frances gave birth to a child named Hareton and then died shortly after.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Open University

Democratising higher education: the ignou initiatives Dr. Nayantara Padhi Assistant Professor, Centre for Corporate Education, Training & Consultancy, IGNOU, New Delhi Email:[email  protected] acin Starting with two courses and 4,000 students in 1985, IGNOU has reached the ladder of success being the world’s largest mega university, most diverse and inclusive institution offering over 3500 courses and catering to over 2. 5 million students.IGNOU is committed to be accessible to all by ensuring learner convenience through its unique ‘age no bar, place no bar and pace no bar’ approach. This approach of IGNOU falls in line with the objectives of democratizing higher education as the current initiatives of IGNOU indicate. During last few years IGNOU has been experimenting various innovative ideas and methods for meeting the above mentioned objectives and ultimately to cater to the diverse needs of people. This has resulted into successful launching of number of prog rammes, courses, medium and modules.To name a few, Community College establishment, programmes for physically challenged, providing second career opportunity to Indian Army: Gyan Deep, Convergence of distance education and higher education, starting of face to face programmes, use of 3G technology for imparting education , Flexilearning mode, satellite based communication etc. In this paper an attempt has been made to present an overview of the above mentioned innovations that has been carried out by IGNOU in order to align with the mission of democratising higher education. Also the current status of these innovations and the related issues are highlighted.DEMOCRATISING HIGHER EDUCATION: THE IGNOU INITIATIVES Vision Statement of IGNOU â€Å"Indira Gandhi National Open University, the National Resource Centre for Open and Distance Learning with international recognition and presence, shall provide seamless access to sustainable and learner-centric quality education, skill upgradati on and training to all by using innovative technologies and methodologies and ensuring convergence of existing systems for massive human resource required for promoting integrated national development and global understanding†. IntroductionThe Indira Gandhi National Open University was established by an Act of Parliament in 1985. Today the University is making all efforts to take higher education to the doorsteps of the hitherto unreached. The University imparts education and knowledge through various flexible means suited to the open and distance education mode, including Information and Communication Technologies, in order to fulfill the vision of democratizing higher education, it provides higher education and training to large sections of population, particularly the disadvantaged segments of the society.It promotes national integration and the integrated development of human personality; encourages, co-ordinates and assists open universities and distance learning systems across the country to improve standards in such systems. Learners from varied groups including rural and tribal areas, physically-challenged, jail inmates and rehabilitation houses, government and non-government sectors, parents and home-makers, the employers and the employed have been beneficiaries of the IGNOU programme.The University has put special focus on women, socially and economically disadvantaged groups, the north-east region, and other tribal and low literacy areas of the country. The University provides a multi-mode learning system comprising print, audio, video, radio, television, teleconferencing, interactive radio counseling, Internet-based learning and face-to-face counseling. IGNOU recently has also been involved in the National Skills Mission particularly in generating employment in line with the various schemes of the Central Government and State Government.The aim is to provide flexible knowledge and skill opportunities for the unemployed youth of India so as to meaningfully equip them with skills and opportunities. This approach of IGNOU falls in line with the objectives of democratizing higher education as the current initiatives of IGNOU indicate. During last few years IGNOU has been experimenting various innovative ideas and methods for meeting the above mentioned objectives and ultimately to cater to the diverse needs of people.This has resulted into successful launching of number of programmes, courses, medium and modules. To name a few, Community College establishment, growth, programmes for physically challenged, providing second career opportunity to Indian Army: Gyan Deep, Convergence of distance education and higher education, starting of face to face programmes, use of 3G technology for imparting education , Flexilearning mode, satellite based communication etc. All these noble initiatives of IGNOU are presented in the following paragraphs. A. Empowerment of Indian Soldiers- Gyan DeepGyan Deep is a bold initiative of Indira Gan dhi National Open University (IGNOU) to educationally empower the soldiers of the Indian army by granting of degree- a step aimed at providing the jawans with a second career option. Gyan Deep aims to equip the soldiers who join the force just after school. Nearly 50,000 Indian soldiers retire from the army every year after completion of 15 years in service. They constitute a young workforce but they lack any kind of professional skill to enter the job market after retiring from army.The soldiers would be receiving certification in knowledge and skills within the educational framework stipulated by IGNOU. With the imparting of formal degrees, the soldiers would be in a position to obtain a second career option and earn for themselves and their families reasonably well even after retirement. The certification and enhancement of educational qualifications would be within the broad framework of Community colleges, as set by IGNOU. Community colleges recognised by IGNOU will empower the already excellent training ystem within the Indian army and provide an opportunity for in service trainings to be benchmarked and credits issued for the Indian-Army soldiers to obtain a formal degree. In due course of time this innovative process will allow for lateral entry into the regular university system by allowing the candidates enrolled in Certificate, Diploma or Associate Degree courses to accumulate credits. Associate Degree of Community Colleges includes: †¢ Minimum two years/4 semesters of study †¢ Total of 64 credits 1st Semester: Basic Foundation Course (16credits) – compulsory subject – Basic Military Training – Certificate course. nd Semester: Applied Course in the chosen Programme Sector (16 credits)- compulsory subject –Advanced Military Training – Diploma (minimum one year). 3rd Semester: Army Class 2 Standards (16 credits) –Application oriented courses (8 credits) and elective courses (8 credits). 4th Semester: Army Class I standards (16 credits) – Elective courses, compulsory internship and Project work (16 credits). Degrees offered by IGNOU †¢ 64 credits obtained on successful completion of Associate Degree will become transferable towards the completion of 96 credits in total in order to obtain a degree. The 3rd year of 32 credits will be earned with IGNOU. †¢ Subsequent accumulation of credits and a third year of graduation with IGNOU can be taken within five years of completion of the Associate Degree. †¢ Degrees awarded may be BA, BCom, BSc. , BBA etc. , with varying specilisations. Towards achieving these goals, IGNOU will facilitate the registration of various Regimental Training Centers and Army Schools of Instruction/HRDCs of Indian Army as Community Colleges. If need be, IGNOU would also introduce new subjects in the curriculum.Upon completion of 96 credits, the degree awarded would be similar to the ones awarded to other students. B. Education for All: Co mmunity Colleges Community Colleges are an innovative but alternative system of education aiming to empower the individuals through appropriate skill development leading to gainful employment in collaboration with the local industry. Community Colleges aim at developing skills for self-employability of the marginalized and under-privileged sections of the society including urban-poor, rural poor and women.The methodology employed under the scheme of community colleges is the imparting of skill based training to the uneducated youth. Community Colleges generally have a two year curriculum leading to an Associate Degree by transferring to an undergraduate college or direct entry into an occupation or trade. Starting in July 2009, IGNOU commenced the scheme of Associate Degree Programmes through community colleges in various parts of India. The theme of community college embodies in itself the democratic goal of imparting livelihood based education to the disadvantaged section of the p opulation.Another major contribution of community colleges has been to expand access to post secondary studies for millions of students who would otherwise not have an opportunity to participate. Establishing one community college in each of the 600 districts in the country in the next five years as IGNOU Community College is one of the approaches of IGNOU in this direction. These colleges in different regions will be under the administration and academic control of the regional centres of IGNOU.Community Colleges will ensure vertical mobility for those who opt at a later stage for further education in the respective areas through credit transfer in the open university and distance education system in the country. Through IGNOU Community Colleges, the effort is to institutionalize the mechanism of providing skill based programmes in India till now undertaken by non-governmental organizations and training centres. The training in skills provided in these colleges will be recognized a nd formalized through various certifications. Functioning of Community Colleges . Eligibility for becoming community college An institution applying to IGNOU for registration as a Community College should be run by an educational agency/registered society/trust or corporate body rooted in community-based activites. Theymust be credible institutions with a minimum period of five years of proven service and be located in the community it seeks to serve. On receiving the application, IGNOU will scrutinize its feasibility based on the recommendations of an expert committee and the applicant will be informed of its eligibility.Prior to launching programmes, the agency should have done a need analysis of the local job requirements and opportunities and incorporate these findings into the curriculum. It should have active linkages with rural, agricultural,industrial and commercial organizations of the locality for empanelling part-time instructors, providing on job training to students and provide job placement to successful students. ii. Organisational Structure of Community CollegeThe college will constitute the following bodies to facilitate smooth functioning of its academic and administrative activities: Community College Board will be the Executive body of the college. The Board will manage the academic matters of the college relating to appointment of faculty, approval of programmes leading to award of Certificate/Diploma/Associate Degree, and regulate the finances of the college. Academic Committee will be the principal Academic body of the college responsible for the maintenance of standards of instruction, examination and linkages with the industry/community.The academic committee will: Make regulations regarding admission of students;Recommend to the Community College Board proposals for institution of new programmes of study;Advise the Community College Board on suggestions pertaining to academic affairs made by it;Prepare syllabi for various programmes; and Coordinate the industry/community linkages. Examination Committee will be responsible for the smooth conduct of internal assessments, mid-term examination and term-end examinations.It will be the custodian of processes related to evaluation such as question paper setting, answer script evaluation, moderation, timely announcement of results and handling of examination related grievances. Programme Structure †¢ Associate Degree Programmes are offered both full-time or part-time. †¢ Mode of delivery : face-to-face and Blended †¢ Mandatory apprenticeship. †¢ First year Foundation courses 16 credits per semester. Application oriented courses 16 credits per semester. †¢ Second year-Electives of 8 credits; Application oriented-8 credits, Internship and Project work-16 credits.Programmes under Community Collges: The following academic programmes leading to an Associate Degree may be considered: †¢ AA (Associate Arts) †¢ AS(Associate Science) †¢ AC S (Associate of Computer Science) †¢ AC(Associate of Commerce) †¢ ABA (Associate of Business Administration) †¢ AAT (Associate of Arts in Teaching) Academic Framework of Community Colleges Since Associate Degree is a new academic qualification in India, it is essential to have a common set of descriptors for the programme which articulate entry requirements, curriculum content, teacher qualifications and training and exit avenues. Entry Requirements Students who have completed School final are eligible for direct entry into the Associate Degree Programme. †¢ Alternatively students who have completed 10th standard may enroll in the Bachelor’s Preparatory Progrmmes and on completion of first year may transfer into the Associate Degree Programme. †¢ Non 10+2 (Eighteen years age) will have to complete BPP and Associate Degree Programme from Community college for lateral entry to third year of the Degree Programmme. Curriculum Design †¢ The curriculum of the Associate Degree Programme should include a substantial amount of generic skills with a major portion to be completed in the first year. First Year Courses (all foundation courses, 16 credits), Second Year (application oriented courses, 16 credits) and some of the basic electives in the respective subject of study worth of 32 credits to be completed in the first two years of Associate Degree Programme of the community college. The equivalence of the courses will be recommended by the Committee appointed. †¢ A number of existing courses of IGNOU may be appropriately combined for an Associate Degree. Challenges of Community Colleges †¢ Academic pathways- transfer of students to third year in IGNOU and other universities. Quality assurance – recruitment of faculty, standards in industry – based curriculum development. †¢ Avenues for technical and vocational teacher and trainer-training. †¢ Business/industry linkages including training contracts . †¢ Programmes to be rooted in communities – regional and local needs. C. Flexi Learn: Access to Quality Higher Education e-GyanKosh (www. egyankosh. ac. in), a repository of learning resources, is an initiative that was taken up by IGNOU in October, 2005 to store, index, preserve, distribute and share the digital learning resources developed by the IGNOU.Emerging as one of the world’s largest educational resource repositories, it includes digitized and uploaded storage of over 95% of the IGNOU’s self-instructional print material. With help of special channels like YouTube, IGNOU is providing with video programmes, through the metadata link in the repository. At present about 40,000 self-instructional print materials and over a 1,600 videos are available in the repository. After its public launch in June 9, 2008, the site already had received around 700,000 hits with an average of 1,000 visits per day from all over the world.At present, there are more than 60,000 active registered users of the repository. The facilities of e-GyanKosh are now being extended with a Flexi Learn platform to offer ‘open courses’ free of cost with course wise registration and assessment. IGNOU’s Flexi Learn platform will facilitate informed learning wherein anyone can register and explore courses free of cost to gain knowledge and skill in a particular area of interest. Certification for courses will be based on payment of the requisite fees. The Flexi Learn platform will provide an alternative way of awarding degrees and diplomas.The Flexi Learn platform offers courses in a complete open and flexible environment with following features. – Any visitor to the Flexi Learn site has the option to register for any particular course or a full length academic programme. A modular approach is followed wherein a registered learner can combine course credits to obtain a diploma or degree of their own choice. – The platform provides self learning environment with a list of Academic Advisors/Course Guides to act as mentors. The Personal Learning Environment (PLE) will have interactive tools like Discussion Board , Blogs, Wikis, Podcasting,RSS feeds, etc. Each course has option for both online assessment as well as an offline one as per the choice of the learner wherein a learner can take their exams ‘on demand’. The final exam will be in a proctored environment. The evaluation will be at three levels – diagnostic (where prior knowledge testing is required), formative and summative and will be designed by the faculty based courses requirements. Various of evaluation may be adopted viz. objective, short essay type, term paper, course projects, practical activities etc. A complete tracking mechanism is integrated in the platform through the e-portfolios of individual learners. The e-portfolio will keep a formal record of all formal and informal studies carried out by the registered learner. Cert ification of the course will be based on stipulated time spent on a course (for a 4 credit a minimum at 45 days) and completion of all learning activities identified by the faculty. The Flexi Learn platform provides an opportunity for prospective learners to sample a course before enrolling and also help them in choosing courses and programmes of study.Course wise registration facilitates offering topic specific continuing education progammes especially in skill based and professional areas. A flexible framework is provided through this model for Schools of Studies to identify and combine different courses already available, for offering new tailor-made and need based programmes. In the long run this will help in achieving IGNOU’s objective of democratizing higher education by taking it to the doorsteps of the learners and providing access to high quality education to all those who seek it.D. Convergence Scheme: Merger of ODL and Conventional Higher Education System The objec tive of the Scheme is to achieve the targets setout in the Eleventh Plan Document for Higher Education, and focusing on access and equity issues. Inclusion as a concept goes beyond just providing distance learning access. It takes into account the need to interface with the conventional system, use innovative technologies and to optimize the access to physical facilities, intellectual and knowledge resources in institutions to achieve its goals.The Scheme, jointly conceived by University Grants Commission (UGC) and Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Distance Education Council and AICTE under the guidance of the Ministry of Human Resources Development, aims to focus on enhancing the quality and quantity of education delivery in the context of social dimensions of the country, with a thrust on capacity building and strengthening of the conventional university and collegiate education system. The success of the Scheme, announced in 2007, is not surprising. Many of the exis ting IGNOU courses have also found new takers with the announcement of the Scheme.Given a target of achieving 15% gross enrollment in higher education by 2015, the scheme aims to move it from the current enrollment ratio of 11% in the 16-23 age group. Under this Scheme, a student can be enrolled for obtaining a regular degree while pursuing another complementary course. Thus, a student can aim to get two degrees at the same time. Another programme, called Bachelor’s Preparatory Programme (BPP) enables the students who have not been able to get Pre-University/Senior Secondary education to become eligible for applying for bachelor’s degree courses.This is a boon to those who were not able to complete their schooling or pre-university courses. This is a six-month intensive training programme. While IGNOU has over 2500 Learner Support Centres by different names depending on the specific role they play such as Regular Study Centres, Programme Study Centres, Special Study Ce ntres, Recognised Study Centres etc. , the Scheme on Convergence has helped in developing synergies with well endowed colleges. This has resulted in qualified faculty and state of art infrastructure being made available to students, in addition to providing additional mentoring on a flexi time basis.In short, technology in Education, when applied creatively enhances the potential to address both access and inclusion issues, especially in India. E. 3G and Mobile Technology usage for Reaching the Unreached The significance of mobile technology is evident from the fact that increasing number of people have started using mobile devices, carrying mobiles with them all the time. Hence, any service provided to the students through mobile devices enables quick connectivity as compared to any other technology such as PC based internet technologies.IGNOU launched the SMS Alerts service on November 18th 2008. Since then, SMS Alerts Service is being used by various constituents of IGNOU includi ng its Regional Centres to communicate information to its students. Following are some of the applications of 3G technology to ODL system: †¢ ODL institutions can develop high bandwidth applications that can be used by prospective students to apply for admission using their 3G enabled mobile devices. †¢ ODL institutions can develop 3G enabled student response systems.These response systems can respond in real time with information such as Study Centre allocation etc. †¢ Such 3G enabled student response systems can aid in providing responses to queries of students in real time. †¢ Most of ODL institutions send course material to their students by post as well as host material on the web for students to download. It is difficult for students to download course material which occupies large memory due to poor Internet connections. 3G technology enables faster downloads of course material to the student’s mobile devices.They can download course material wherev er they are, anytime. This ensures that the course material is available to every learner who is having a 3G enabled mobile device. F. Education through Digitally Enabled learning The National Mission of Education through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) was launched recently with the broad objective of ensuring connectivity of the learners to the ‘World of Knowledge’ in cyberspace and to make them ‘Netizens’ in order to enhance their self-learning skills and develop their capabilities for on-line problems solving†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.The efforts of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) would be geared towards creating an open house for knowledge. The attempt is to harness a large number of knowledge resources in the manner that adds value to them by making them more personalized and useful to the lifelong learner/student. The effort would also involve content packaging and integration to suit specific needs of the students at various levels or with different kinds of talent/mental prowess. A budget allocation of Rs. 02 crores has been made in 2008-09 for the National Mission on Education through ICT. For bridging the digital divide and empowering teachers/learners to harness information and communication technologies for their empowerment through knowledge, the need of the hour is to provide digital literacy to teaching learning community in Higher Education. The aim has to be to ensure that this community should be able to operate the computer or other devices and connect to the knowledge network.It should be for the teacher/learner to identify the content from its suitable pictorial representation and to play the audio-visual content to derive knowledge from the relevant module of knowledge. Obviously, this digital literacy cannot be spread through the computer networks since it aims to empower the teacher/learner to use the network. Hence, digital literacy for teacher empowerment will have to be imparted through oth er means relying heavily on audio-visual material, non-governmental organizations, change agents and institutions established for them, and mass contact programmes.Provision of e-Books and e-Journals Free to the Learners Overall education has two parts, formal and informal. Both forms of education require text books, reading material, journals and magazines and access to them can be provided through digital libraries which would substitute comprehensive brick-and-mortar libraries. Since everything in the library would be available on line with concurrent access to multiple sites for a large number of students, good bandwidth around the year would be the key.Support for Generation of e-Content and Digitization and Indexing of Existing e-Content It shall be the endeavour of the Mission to continuously work for enriching the repository of e-contents of the nation. For the purpose it shall encourage the academicians, scholars and institutions to contribute to the world of knowledge in c yber space by creating e-knowledge content. The Mission shall also evolve a mechanism to rate the quality of the e-content generated before admitting it to the national repository. Evaluation of e-ContentBenchmarking learning content would ensure quality which is central to the philosophy of the Mission. As content generation shall take place at various places, by different sets of experts, the development of quality assurance procedures and testing mechanisms is essential. These tools shall be deployed on the Mission website so that anybody developing content can routinely use these to get proper feedback. The Mission shall also attempt to provide guidance to them in order to facilitate their search for quality material.Finance Assistance to Institutions of Higher Learning for Procurement of Hardware/Replacement of Obsolete Hardware In order to accomplish its major objective of utilizing latest technologies to make higher education easily accessible, the Mission shall provide finan cial assistance to all the institutions of higher learning for the procurement of hardware or replacement of the obsolete hardware essential for accessing to the world of knowledge in cyber space. National Testing ServiceThe Mission shall provide financial and technical support to a designated Government agency for establishment of a National Testing Service (NTS). The Mission shall be free to move for the establishment of a separate body to act as a National Testing Service in order to fulfill its objective of certifying the competence and skills acquired by the individual through formal or non-formal means of education and / or training in different disciplines/professions.This shall help them in gaining employment as also to continue their higher studies/training. Content Generation The National Programme of Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) was started by the Indian Institutes of Technology and the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. A good number of quality material on v arious courses has been created by these premier institutions of the country. E-Contents are being continuously generated by the reputed faculty members of the premier institutions under NPTEL programmes.This programmes has been subsumed with the Mission to give it a new dimension. The Mission hopes that the e-contents generated under this programme shall be of great use for the engineering students enrolled in engineering colleges across the country. Standardisation and Quality Assurance of Contents & Certification /Automation of Certification The main objective here would be to evolve Quality Assurance (QA) Process for E-learning Content and to create an environment for Quality Audit of Content.The mission seeks to promote R&D in specific important areas of content creation and management for enriching the QA process and also promote multi-institutional involvement for definition of quality and dissemination of Quality awareness. Developing Suitable Pedagogical Methods for Various Classes and Intellectual Calibers and Research in e-learning Web enabled learning modules suffer from the absence of teacher and peer interaction/pressure. Many a times, the content developers develop the modules keeping in mind their own clientele of students or their own impressions of the student’s caliber, receptivity, etc.This may result in a â€Å"one shoe fit all† syndrome. It is well known that any given class would have very bright students, mediocre students and weak students. Even among them, the grasping power of concepts would vary based on their surroundings and the perceptions that the students have derived over a period of time. The most efficient pedagogical method would also depend on the extent of knowledge that the students has in that area. Development of Language Converter Tool KitThe focus of the National Mission on Education through ICT would be on content for all classes starting from nursery level to research level. Presently, the content bei ng developed for Sakshat under this Mission is in English. English content also makes it possible to tap into the convenient, open access educational resources available on the Internet, be they in text, audio, visual, simulation, animation, question answer or in any other form. This abundant resource, however, cannot be tapped in regional languages because of IPR restrictions.Hence, efforts will be made to convert knowledge modules into various regional languages and also to subsequently launch a movement for creating the above types of content in the regional languages. Development and Realization of Virtual Reality Laboratories and Supporting Facilities for e-learning The Mission shall work for providing all the institutions of higher learning, in the country, with access devices and connectivity through high speed broadband and VPN etc. It is estimated that approximately 20,000 institutions of higher learning shall reap this benefit.It shall be the endeavour of the Mission to en sure that the access devices are available with maximum number of learners in the country to enable them to become ‘Netizens’. To achieve this objective it shall support development of low cost and low power consuming devices through their field trials. The Central Government would also bear 75% of the cost of the connectivity having bandwidth up to 10-25 Mbps per college or per department of a University if remaining cost is borne by State Government or college/institution concerned.Development of Certification & Testing Modules for Virtual Technological Universities & Creation of VTU, Multi Media Research and International Programmes The proposed Virtual Technical University (VTU) shall serve as a nodal agency for imparting training to undergraduate and postgraduate students as well as to the newly recruited teachers in the fields of Science, Technology, Management, Architecture, Pharmacy and other applied areas. The University will provide flexible, credit based cour ses to all registered participants using modern technology. VTU will help them in updating their knowledge and advancing their career objectives.G. Inclusive Growth for the Disadvantaged Group IGNOU with its diverse, low-cost programmes and a wide network has succeeded in attracting a significant group of learners from amongst the disadvantaged. However, a considerable cross-section of people still remains outside its reach. The University is mandated to reach them. The University has taken up a number of new initiatives mainly focused on empowering women, persons of the SC/ST category and the differently abled population of the country. Women’s Empowerment The University has been making conscious efforts to reach out to women, especially those from the remote and rural areas.Some of the initiatives in this direction are: a) Setting up the School of Gender and Development Studies in 2007: One focus are of study of this School is â€Å"Women‘s Studies†, which anal yses the status of women in society with the objective of strengthening individual and institutional efforts that enable women’s empowerment. The School is offering the following pertinent programmers: – Certificate in Empowering Women Through Self-Help Groups (under Women’s Empowerment Project sponsored by Department of Women and Child Development, MHRD, GOI). Certificate in Women’s Empowerment and Development (CWED). – Diploma in Women’s Empowerment and Development (DWED) – Ph. D in Women’s Studies. b) Establishing 26 women-specific study centres across the country. c) Setting up a Committee for Prevention of Sexual Harassment against Women (CPSHW). This committee oversees all work related to complaints of sexual harassment at IGNOU, besides carrying out awareness-raising workshops, seminars and other related activities.During the year 2008-09, the CPSHW prepared a document on the Policy & Procedures for the Prevention, Prohi bition, and Punishment of Sexual Harassment of Women at the Workplace, as per the Supreme Court guidelines. The document has been submitted to the University authorities for adoption in the form of an ordinance. SC/ST Empowerment The University has made extensive efforts regarding the empowerment of persons in the SC and ST categories. Some of the measures taken in this direction are: – SC/ST Cell: this cell looks after all issues pertaining to the grievances of SC/ST employees. Increased Access to ST Population: IGNOU has tried to increase its reach to the tribal population of Madhya Pradesh through a new scheme of mobile study centres, which has been found to be successful. – EEBB Centres: To provide access to people in the Economically and Educationally Backward Blocks (EEBB), identified by the Sachar Committee, efforts have been initiated to establish Special Centres in these blocks, irrespective of whether such centres fulfill the conditions normally expected of I GNOU study centres.Through these centres, aspiring learners of these blocks are given opportunities to pursue a variety of vocational programmes, besides BPP and bachelor degree programmes. – EDNERU: Initiative for North East Trbal population education and research. Empowerment of the Differently Abled A national Task Force has been constituted to make the IGNOU premises and its programes completely accessible to people with disabilities across the country. The access audit of the IGNOU campus at the headquarters was conducted on 22-23 October, 2008.In order to develop human resources in various areas related to disability for creating a disabled-friendly society as also promoting interdisciplinary study of disability with the purpose of removing barriers to empowerment of the persons with disabilities, the National Centre for Disability Studies (NCDS) was established in 2006. NCDS has launched a Post-graduate Diploma in Disability Management for Medical Practitioners, in col laboration with the Rehabilitation Council of India. The Pprogramme equips the medical practitioners with the skills and knowledge to effectively deal with persons with disabilities.H. Usage of Satellite The University endeavors constantly to make appropriate use of new technological solutions to achieve its mission of seamless education, cost-efficiency and borderless access to quality education. The University has enhance, in the recent past, its technological capabilities in the production and transmission of audio and video programmes through radio and television as well as the latest Web-enabled online services offered through the internet to learners spread across the globe.Gyan Darshan Gyan Darshan (GD) is a digital bouquet of four channels – GD-1, GD-2, GD-3, and GD-4. These channels beam programmes produced by IGNOU, UGC, NCERT, CIET, NITTTRs, IITs, DST and different ministries of the government of India. The transmission of GD channels is almost completely automated through the installation of the video server, GD-1 is a 24-hour channel which airs enrichment programmes produced by various government and educational organizations, and IGNOU curriculum-based programmes.GD-2 is the Interactive Distance Education Channel, dedicated entirely to distance education. Regular teleconference sessions and induction meetings are held through this channel for learners and trainees of the open university system and other apex bodies. During the year 2008-09,Gyan Darsha-1 and 2 have witnessed a tremendous growth in reach, since both channels were placed on the following DTH platforms – DD Direct Plus, Dish TV, TataSky, Sun TV, Big TV and AirTel. It was also available in the IPTV network for which an MOU with M/s Goldstone was signed.Further, GD-1has been declared a ‘must carry’ channel for all IPTV service providers and has been made available in many cities through the BSNL network. GD-1 and GD-2 are also being webcast through IGNOU†™s website . Test transmission of the Science Channel on GD-2 started, with effect from 23rd December, 2008 to broadcast programmes made by IGNOU,CEC, Vigyan Parsar, etc. Gd-3, â€Å"Eklavya†, was inaugurated on 26th Jan. 2003. It is a 24-hour channel dedicated to technical education and runs programmes generated at variousIITs, for students pursuing degrees n different disciplines in the area of engineering and technology. The signals are sent through microwave links, from where they are uplinked to the satellite. The nodal offer for this is at IIT, Delhi. GD-4, â€Å"Vyas Channel†, launched in Jan. 2004, is a 24-hour channel catering to the needs of students pursuing higher education under the university and college system in the country. The programmes are coordinated by the Consortium of Education Communication (CEC).The Vyas Channel has now become available on the DTH platform as well. Gyan Vani Gyan Vani, a ‘radio cooperative’ funded by the MHRD, i s the only FM Radio channel in the country devoted exclusively to education. Gyan Vani programmes include information relevant to students of pre-primary to post-graduate classes, it also carriers enrichment programmes for generating environmental awareness, awareness on female empowerment, legal literacy, capabilities in professional and science education. Each Gyan Vani has a range of about 60 kms.At present there are 26 GyanVani FM Stations functioning across the country at Allahabad, Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Chennai, Coimbatore, New Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jabalpur, Jaipur, Kolkatta, Kanpur, Lucknow, Mumbai, Mysore, Nagpur, Patna, Panaji, Raipur, Rajkot, Shillong, Varanasi and Viskhapatnam. Eleven new stations are on the anvil. Gyan Vani has made significant strides in recent years with all the 26 stations producing programmes. The radio programmes are contributed by NCERT, NIOS, IGNOU, NGOs and various State Government Departments.Gyan Vani has crea ted a Programme Exchange Unit and all the radio stations have access to the best productions of each station. Developmental and educational programmes from broadcasting organizations of countries such as Australia, Canada and Germany are also being aired on Gyan Vani stations. Gyan Vani, Delhi, is also webcast using IGNOU’s in-house facility. Interactive Radio Counseling (IRC) IGNOU runs at least one hour of live phone-in counseling programmes every week in the regional languages through the various Gyan Vani stations.The studio invites experts to clarify learners queries put across to them for their homes via the telephone. Both broadcast and non-broadcast modes of delivery were adopted by the University and the audio/video programmes produced at the University’s Electronic Media PrdocutionCentre (EMPC) were broadcast/telecast over Gyan Darshan, Gyan Vani, EduSat, AIR/Doordarshan Channels. In order to infuse interactivity in open and distance learning, one-way video a nd two way audio teleconferencing facilities are offered through GD-2.Important nation-wide programmes for IGNOU learners, lectures by eminent experts/dignitaries, discussions with RC staff, induction for new learners and convocation for graduating learners were conducted live through teleconferencing mode. Besides this, telecounselling and communication sessions were conducted for select application- oriented programmes such as nursing, information technology, MBA etc, in which the students got ample opportunities to interact with the faculty.The teleconferencing facility was also used by other institutions, such as the DAV College Management Committee (DAVCMC), National Board of Examination (NBE), Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), and the Department of Power, amongst others. EDUSAT is the first Indian satellite designed and developed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) exclusively for serving the educational sector. It is mainly intended to meet the dema nd for an interactive satellite-based distance education system for the country.It is a collaborative project of the MHRD, ISRO, Department of Space and IGNOU. The satellite has six Ku-Band transponders and six Ext. C-Band transponders. One beam or Ext. C-Band covers the entire country, including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It reflects India’s commitment to use space technology for national development, especially for development of human resources in remote and rural locations. The University has established 134 interactive terminals across the country with a two-way interactive facility. An EduSat Mini Hub has been shifted from ISRO, Ahmedabad, to EMPC.ISRO has also provided a new Learning Management System (LMS) for the network. A recent study was conducted by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, New Delhi, aimed at assessing the impact, effectiveness and sustainability of interactive media technologies being utilized in the delivery system of IGNOU. The study included Gyan Vani, Edust-based teleconferencing, the IGNOU slot on the national channel, Doordarshan, the web platform and internet facilities. The broad findings of the study as stated in the final report submitted, are as under:IGNOU Hour on Gyan Vani Forty percent of students listen to the IGNOU Hour programmes broadcast on Gyan Vani. Fourteen percent students listen to the IGNOU Hour programmes on a regular basis. Forty one percent students tune in sometimes and the rest do not listen to programmes broadcast on Gyan Vani . IGNOU Programmes on Doordarshan Forty seven percent of students watch IGNOU Programmes telecast on Doordarshan channel 1. Ninety three percent students who watch IGNOU programmes on Doordarshan’s main channel are comfortable with the language of telecast.Sixty percent students who watch the IGNOU slot on Doordarshan rated the content quality of programmes telecast as good. More than seven out of ten students said the programmes telecast on the IG NOU slot on Doordarshan are useful in the learning process. Sixty percent students who watch programmes telecast on Doordarshan felt it helped them in understanding their progrmme topics better. The awareness of students about IGNOU programmes on Doordarshan DTH is quite high as more than seven out of ten students were aware about it. Fourteen percent students of IGNOU were found to have Doordarshan DTH in their homes.Conclusion As India strives to become a knowledge society, IGNOU ensures that no section gets left behind, that’s where attaining the objective of democratizing higher education. From the above discussion, it is worth mentioning that IGNOU’s contribution in democratising higher education is commendable. The innovations of IGNOU to impart education anybody, anywhere anytime using all channels is visible from the initiatives and the current status. With the growing demand of skilled workforce across the globe, IGNOU is taking all steps towards this.Right to Education is very much evident from the above mentioned initiatives. To conclude IGNOU’ s initiatives in democratising higher education ,a dynamic and innovative university with a passion to educate all and reaching the unreached, IGNOU has become the People’s University†¦the university of a billion plus. References Annual Report 2008-2009, IGNOU. IGNOU, Celebrating 25th Year of Success in Open & Distance Learning 2009-2010, Vol. 1, Issue1. IGNOU, Education Without Barriers. IGNOU, Profile 2010. IGNOU, IGNOU Community Colleges. IGNOU, Flexi Learn. IGNOU, Gyan Deep. IGNOU, Open Letter. www. ignou. ac. in

Friday, August 16, 2019

Benefits of LED Lights Vs CFL Essay

While the most walking spaces discourse regarding energy efficiency revolves around highly visible feature like solar panel, other efficiency technologies have the potential to reduce the amount of energy consumption significantly in walking space. With organizations such as Saudi Aramco where employees walk, jog, the ride bike and other different activities, the use of energy conservation can have meaningful environmental and monetary impacts. This report aims to provide Saudi Aramco’s board useful information about new technologies for energy and cost saving by making improvements to their Golf course. This report offers a starting point for considering energy efficiency improvements in the organization’s environment. It has been projected that electricity for lighting consumes around 20% of the world’s power station’s production. Introducing energy efficient lighting to all our lighting needs will dramatically reduce the overall consumption of worldwide energy. Any small changes in our lighting use will produce substantial energy savings in the end. The high-energy use can be addressed by using cleaner energy sources, such as solar panels, and by using light sources that require less energy and produce the same levels of lighting. This report will propose an efficient lighting project to reduce the energy consumption of the lights used to illuminate the walkway around the Dhahran Golf Course. Background The Walkway around the Dhahran Golf course is approximately 5.6 kilometers long. The walkway is used daily by Saudi Aramco employees to walk, jog, bike and other different activities. Most of this walkway’s use happens at night, after working hours, meaning that it needs to be well lit for the employees use. Currently, Compact Fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs that are fixed to poles all around the walkway illuminate the sidewalk. CFL light bulbs are considered to be more efficient than traditional Incandescent Light bulbs, having a service life of approximately 8000 hours compared to a maximum 1,000 hours  for Incandescent light bulbs. This longer service life results in fewer light bulb replacements, but more efficient technologies exist. For the Dhahran Golf Course walkway efficient lighting project, the team proposed the use of three innovative energy reducing technologies. The three techniques are, Light Emitting Diodes (LED), solar panels to power the LED’s, and a special material that uses energy gathered during the day to glow in dark. A brief summary of each technology will be given to better understand its use can contribute to providing more efficient lighting for the walkway. Light Emitting Diodes (LED) LED light bulbs emit light through the use of a semiconductor that releases light energy when an electrical current is passed through it.  This way of producing light differs from CFL light bulbs, which pass energy through mercury vapor to generate UV light, which is then enthralled by a  phosphor covering inside the lamp, causing it to glow. LED light bulbs have been in existence for some time now but were very expensive compared to Incandescent and CFL light bulbs. Over the last couple of years LED light bulb prices have dropped significantly, making them a more economically viable solution, especially when considering their very long service times. The table below details the differences between CFL and LED light bulbs. Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) Compact Fluorescents (CFLs) Life Span (average)   50,000 hours 8,000 hours Watts of electricity used   6 – 8 watts 13-15 watts (Equivalent to 60 watt bulb).   Annual Operating Cost  Ã‚  Ã‚   $32.85/year $76.65/year Contains the TOXIC Mercury   NO. Yes-Mercury is highly toxic to your health and environment Carbon Dioxide Emissions 451 pounds/year 1051 pounds/year Sensitivity to low temperatures None Yes  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ may not work under-23  ºC or over 49  ºC Sensitive to humidity No Yes On/off Cycling  (Switching on/off quickly) No Effect Yes  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ can reduce the lifespan drastically Turns on instantly Sure No  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ takes time to warm up Stability Highly Stable  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ LEDs can handle jarring and bumping Not highly stable  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ glass can break easily Heath Emitted 3.4 btu’s/hour 30 btu’s/hour Failure Modes   Not typical Yes. May catch fire As depicted from the above table using LEDs for lighting make both economic and environmental sense. Solar panels Solar panels are used to produce energy by converting sunlight directly into electricity. The electricity generated by solar panels is stored in batteries for later use. Just like LEDs, the costs of solar panels the past several years have been dropping, making them more economical. They have also become more efficient in converting a higher percentage of the light captured into electricity. Glow in the Dark Paint/Stones Consists of a luminescent material and synthetic resins that get excited by being exposed to daylight or a light source giving it an afterglow that initially is very radiant, then slowly dissipates as time passes by. This material provides a soft glowing light that only needs the sunlight during the day for it to produce light at night. This material can provide 10 hours of burning when exposed to only 2 hours of daily sunshine with a Luminescence Life of up to 20 years. Methodology First the team obtained data set from the Saudi Aramco accounting department which contained a listing of cost energy spent. The data set also provided estimated energy use in lighting in Saudi Aramco. From here, the team was able to filter the data only for lighting around the Dhahran Golf course. With this data set, the group generated summary statistic to find distribution for energy consumption (mmBTUs). The purpose of defining statistical use was to estimate energy consumption for the Golf course as well as understanding the range of the golf course. Next, the team then evaluated different technologies to gain energy saving potential. An early obstacle the team faced was how to estimate the impact of each technology on various places in the Golf course. To find a solution for this issue, the team conducted case studies and independent research to evaluate the other technologies. The team performed a systematic analysis of each of the techniques named above. Each technology was eluted based on: cost estimate for the project, difficulty of installation, a percentage expected efficiency gains, estimated payback periods and consistency of paybacks. Results The figure that follows represents the consumption of energy (from 2013). Discussion A case study analysis of the literatures suggested that the combination of all the technologies had a greater benefit-cost ratio than one and net present values hence indicating the benefits of energy saving brought by the technique. To prevent the high rise of energy consumption as suggested by the figure above, ultrasonic and infrared technology would be of greater benefit. These methods detect sound, heat, and motion, hence more efficient in spaces where people move more efficient. A more inventive technology such as this would increase the energy saving potential, but also may be unattractive to administration who have less control as to when the lights turn off in particular spaces. Despite their advantages, they remain much more costly to purchase than alternative lighting types. Inspiration This proposed design was first constructed by Daan Roosegaarde, a scene night painter, who developed a bycle path in Nueener, East of Eindhoven forming a part of the Van gogh cycle through Noord-Brabant in Netherlands. According to Roosegaarde, this proposed technology is â€Å"more gentle to the eye and surrounding environment† compared to other existing technologies (De zeen magazine, 2014, par 4). Recommendation and plan of action The solution I am proposing is a combination of the three technologies explained, LED lighting, Solar panels, and glow in the dark materials. First all the CFL lighting should be removed. CFL bulbs have a much shorter service life and have higher energy requirements. Due to the long-life and very low energy use, LED lights will be used instead. The LED lights will be powered by the proposed solar panels, making the solution self-reliant with no need to connect to the electrical power grid. In addition to the LED lights, the glowing material/paint that is placed on the walkway itself, will utilize the sunlight during the day to provide a glowing light at nighttime. With this combined solution, we will realize the following benefits: Lower energy cost (no need to connect to the electrical grid) Environmentally friendly solution Self-reliant, all power is from the sunlight Eliminate the need for CFL that contain hazardous mercury Lower maintenance cost: Less frequent bulb replacement, due to LED long service life and durability. Energy efficiency avails an incredible opportunity for positive local, national and international impact. While organizations save money, the organization strain on the electrical system is relaxed, hence lowering of the global pollutant emission. Whatever the motivation, energy efficiency should be viewed as an opportunity to upgrade organizations. Saudi Aramco is encouraged to use this report as a supplemental resource in their decision process. After reading through the report, Saudi Aramco is heartening to learn further details about energy efficiency technologies of their interest. Reference Benefits of LED Lights Vs CFLs retrieved from: http://lifx.co/lighting101/advantages/led-vs-cfl/Comparison Chart: LED Lights vs. Incandescent Light Bulbs vs. CFLs. Retrieved from: http://www.designrecycleinc.com/led%20comp%20chart.htmlDe zeen magazine (2014). Daan Roosegaarde’s glowing Van gogh cycle path to open in the Netherlands. Retrieved from: http://www.dezeen.com/2014/11/12/daan-roosegaarde-van-gogh-bicycle-path-glowing-patterns-nuenen-netherlands/Pacific lamp Wholesale. Retrieved from: http://paclamp.com/news/light-bulb-moment-how-lighting-became-efficient-over-yearsPath V. G. Glowing lines Smart Highway. Retrieved from: https://www.studioroosegaarde.net/project/van-gogh-path/The History of the Light Bulb: http://energy.gov/articles/history-light-bulb Source document

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Briar Rose

Stories have an Intriguing effect on life. They can Inspire, teach and comfort. Gamma, Abaca and Josef from the novel Briar Rose have all been affected and shaped through stories. Today, Ill try to help you all get an idea of how these three characters have been affected by stories and the results that come from it. These ideas have been supported through many literary techniques including symbolism, imagery, irony and allegory, all of which help convey the importance of stories for not Just these harassers, but also for us.The story â€Å"Sleeping Beauty† represents Gamma and all the hardships she had faced in the past. She consistently repeats her story, despite Sylvia and Shania's protests in order to show how much it means to her, but at the same time, how she doesn't fully understand it herself; it's just like you repeating something until you understand it. The use of allegory and symbolism effectively links the story of â€Å"Sleeping Beauty' to Gamma's past and more I mportantly, the Holocaust.A clear example which shows his technique is when Gamma describes the bad fairy as â€Å"the one in big black boots and silver eagles in her hat. † The initial meaning to this is the description of the bad fairy, but as the story progresses, we find out that it was in fact a Nazi, given away by symbolism on the silver eagles. The use of allegory gives not Just a literal meaning to the antagonist depicted, but also a historical reference to the Nazi's during WWW.Therefore, the Importance of stories to Gamma was vital, because even though It was en as Just a fairy-tale, It represented who she was. The experiences she had and the challenges she faced. Furthermore, as we learn more about Gamma's story, we start to empathic with her experiences which contributes towards the development of our understanding Stories have played a large role In Beech's actions and emotions. The story â€Å"Sleeping Beauty' helps by serving as a catalyst and answer to the pr oblems she faces along the Journey.During Beech's meeting with Josef where they fill In each others stones, wrought the use of imagery, they explore the conditions that Gamma and Josef experienced during the Holocaust. An effective example is when Josef discovers the heap of bodies that were gassed and tossed away, and describes one of his findings as seeing â€Å"a child no more than 3 or 4†¦ On the very top of the heap(IPPP). † This example highlights the horrific experiences and conditions that were happening during the holocaust, as well as the Inhumane treatment of humans, regardless of age and gender.Hence, stories have played a vital role in Beech's life as it opened her mind to the realities of life; where there are traumatizing acts happening around the world that even her own grandma was a part of it. And as for the effect on readers, through imagery we are able to connect to the text at an emotional level to understand and sympathies with the feelings that Aba ca goes through. Closure of Gamma's past is found. As a character, Josef is depicted as the Prince due to the action of â€Å"kissing† Gamma to wake her up.This links back to the story of â€Å"Sleeping Beauty', through the princess waking up from a kiss. This is shown when Josef is performing â€Å"it was into Josef mouth that she, at last, sputtered and coughed. † In this case however, a sense of irony is present. Josef is a homosexual, which contradicts with the stereotype image of a prince, being a man that's attracted to women. The use of irony contests the standard image of a prince, questioning the sexuality while also giving off a bit of humor. But not only does Josef sexuality provoke irony, but also touches on the historical context of the Holocaust.It highlights he fact that Jews weren't the only ones that suffered during the way, different ethnic groups and homosexuals were also victims of the holocaust. Through the vital role of stories, Josef is able to reconnect with his past and be content knowing Gamma continued to live on in America. And as for the readers, we are once again further educated with the holocaust, specifically realizing that Jews weren't the only target. Through these three characters, with the aid of imagery, irony, allegory and symbolism, it is clearly shown their lives were shaped and influenced by stories.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Holiday Decision Making

Name: Luong Thanh Long Class: FB3A CONSUMER BEHAVIOR AND HOLIDAY I- Holiday decision-making is different from the traditional problem-solving model of consumer decision-making: 1) The traditional problem-solving model of consumer decision-making: * Behind the visible act of making a purchase lies a decision process that must be investigated. * The purchase decision process is the stages a buyer passes through in making choices about which products and services to buy. * Five Stages of Consumer Behavior: A. Problem Recognition: Perceiving a Need: Perceiving a difference between a person's ideal and actual situations big enough to trigger a decision. * Can be as simple as noticing an empty milk carton or it can be activated by marketing efforts. B. Information Search: Seeking Value Two steps of information search| Internal search| External search| * Scanning one’s memory to recall previous experiences with products or brands. * Often sufficient for frequently purchased products. * When past experience or knowledge is insufficient * The risk of making a wrong purchase decision is high * The cost of gathering information is low. * Personal sources, such as friends and family. * Public sources, including various product-rating organizations such as Consumer Reports. * Marketer-dominated sources, such as advertising, company websites, and salespeople| C. Alternative Evaluation: Assessing Value * The information search clarifies the problem for the consumer by: (1) Suggesting criteria to use for the purchase. (2) Yielding brand names that might meet the criteria. (3) Developing consumer value perception. * A consumer's evaluative criteria represent both The objective attributes of a brand (such as locate speed on a portable CD player) * The subjective factors (such as prestige). * These criteria establish a consumer's evoked set * The group of brands that a consumer would consider acceptable from among all the brands in the product class of which he or she is a ware. D. Purchase Decision: Buying Value Three possibilities| From whom to buy| When to buy| Do not buy| which depends on such considerations * Terms of sale * Past experience buying from the seller * Return policy. which can be influenced by * Store atmosphere * Time pressure * a sale * Pleasantness of the shopping experience. | | E. Postpurchase Behavior: Value in Consumption or Use * After buying a product, the consumer compares it with expectations and is either satisfied or dissatisfied. * Satisfaction or dissatisfaction affects * Consumer value perceptions * Consumer communications * Repeat-purchase behavior. * Many firms work to produce positive postpurchase communications among consumers and contribute to relationship building between sellers and buyers. Cognitive Dissonance: The feelings of postpurchase psychological tension or anxiety a consumer often experiences * Firms often use ads or follow-up calls from salespeople in this postpurchase stage to try to convince buyers that they made the right decision. In short, in the traditional problem-solving model of consumer decision-making, people tend to consider and investigate all the needs and desires of a product carefully through a range of steps. There are both internal and external factors affect on the decision-making of consumer. ) Holiday decision-making, as described in the case: * The genetic decision about whether or not to go on holiday was not always the starting point; and sometimes this genetic decision was irrelevant. * â€Å"People have a limited capacity for analysis, and this leads them to break down complex decisions into hierarchical processes and take into consideration a small number of critical variables at each level to make the decision-making process more manageable†. * â€Å"When confronted by a complex problem, the human brain ‘satisfies’ more than it ‘optimises’,† explains Nicolau. In this situation, â€Å"the individual will try to choose an option that is sufficiently satisfying, regardless of whether or not it is the best choice†. 2 * Final decision and bookings are often made very late. * Informants often expressed post-decision regret, which people strove to reduce. * Searching for holiday information tends to be affected by external factors. II- Compare the information search process, as it is described here, with the search process that consumers might follow for one other product category: Holiday information search process| Consumer search process for one product| * Information collection for a holiday tends to be stopped when the holiday has been booked * Real information are collected during the holiday * Consumer will get more conflicted conscious of information. * People do not prepare their trip in much detail. In contrast, they want to discover unexpected things. * Incidental learning seems to play a bigger role than internal learning. * For only one product, consumer will take more time to collect information of a product and analysis in more details and intensive from lots of sources. * Information collection lasts till they ensure that this information is correct and they can make a comparison with other products. * Consumer tries to avoid unexpected situation. * Information search information tends to be stimulus-based (external)| III- The implications of the findings for managers marketing and promoting holidays: 4P principle plays important role in the man agers marketing. Holidaymaker should make a holiday that meets the needs of customer. If we don't provide a holiday special or offer that helps them with those goals, we are doing them and your business a grave disservice. We also need to survey clients and customers from the current year to see how they can improve in the future. Think about how your channels work together and which channels reach your target customer. Offer a free gift or holiday discount to customers who take the time to complete your survey and do not forget to keep contact with your customer. Customer surplus is a very important area in Marketing mix. Only the marginal consumer is willing to pay just the market price in typical supply and demand equilibrium. The consumers would be willing to pay more than the market price is what makes the demand curve slope downward. The amount that these consumers would be willing to pay, but do not have to pay is known as the consumer surplus. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. 2 The magazine Tourism Management, Juan Luis Nicolau and Francisco Mas analysed data from 2,491 people gathered by the CIS http://www-rohan. sdsu. edu/~renglish/370/notes/chapt05/

A Study On Triumph Of Will Media Essay

A Study On Triumph Of Will Media Essay The best purpose of documentary would be to discover of addressing the actual is what Stella Bruzzi thinks may be the purpose of the documentary the ideal method. The ‘aim would be to ‘find an ideal method of ‘representing truth as she says it himself. The three underlined phrases are themselves theoretical conditions that are uncertain, thus this is actually the first indicator that documentary mightn't always accomplish its goal. Documentary-style of movies continue to be under discussion may they be regarding how ‘real, this Stella Bruzzi employs the word ‘find' in the place of a far more powerful and term that is particular. Consequently, what's a really documentary based on advocates that are various? The very first author to make use of documentary like a phrase in his overview of Robert Flahertyis Moana, John Grierson, created his dictum that documentary is meaning of fact'. Griersonis essayFirst Concepts of Documentary contended that documentary was theatreis possibility of watching existence might be used in a brand new talent; the "original" actor and "original" picture are greater instructions than their hype alternatives to interpreting today's modern world; which supplies "hence obtained from the natural" could be more actual compared to served post. Unlike Bruzzi's concept of ‘representing' truth, Grierson thinks in ‘interpreting' it. Meaning could be inform of re enactment. Therefore the issue that occurs is - how practical is just a documentary that's moments and stars â€Å"guiding† the film's circulation? Any re enactment or circumstances that were borrowed could be altered to replicate the concept, which leaves almost no room for truth of the repr esentative. The word ‘documentary' comes from the doc' - to share info on the foundation of proof and evidence to aid it, based on the Merriam Webster dictionary. Within the world of movies and theatre, a documentary is just a movie that's an effort, in another or one single style, toshowreality as itreallyis. Another method of determining documentary may be the requirement because it is to fully capture existence - because it normally seems. It requires to become shot surreptitiously, as the objective would be to seize the unawareness has extended to include several extra elements than its unique description of life. ‘Documentaries' was a phrase used to explain films shot on film-stock, which is really a phrase used to explain celluloid's breakthrough - an item much-less delicate compared to document movie used. It's today arrived at include electronic and movie shows, whether for private-use, created-for-Television or for the silver screen. Documentaries' ongoing objective would be to continuously function to recognize a film-making exercise that catches existence because it certainly is, produce a cinematic convention that stays vibrant and fascinating, and lastly, to achieve and continue maintaining an association using the market. There are many kinds of documentary, however for this composition, I'll pit two different ‘documentaries' and evaluation which of those two, allow it to be nearest towards the above meanings that are various. Success of the Will a propaganda movie produced by Leni Riefenstahl and Super-Size Me is just a documentary by Morgan Spurlock would be the two documentaries I'll consider since their styles are different from one another, which can lead to a fascinating evaluation of the documentaries' objective and the things they achieve ultimately. Success of the May/ Success des Willens In 1934 Hitler recommended that Leni Riefenstahl movie this year's celebration move. Hitler needed an initial-price filmmaker to direct the celebration rally's movie, having insisted earlier that he desired to "manipulate the movie in this method that the market is likely to be obviously conscious that being an instrument of propaganda... They're likely to visit a political movie. After I discover governmental propaganda underneath the cloak of artwork it nauseates me. Allow it to possibly be politics or artwork." Riefenstahl required that her very own organization in the place of from the Ministry For Individualsis Enlightenment makes the movie. Hitler guaranteed to not hinder the recording and decided to this need; he granted her total independence to help make the movie she preferred. Though basically her organization funded and dispersed Success of the Will, there's small question the party really supplied the environment in addition to the resources and every service feasible fo r unimpeded movie saving of the function. This displays significantly about the biasness that's contained in the movie. Hitler's SA were recognized for generating concern, as well as if guaranteed to possess disturbance in her documentary, if Riefenstahl did display anything damaging concerning the Party, it might just imply possibly concentration camp or her disappearance. Furthermore, the film's name was recommended by Hitler himself, meaning that in the end it had been dependent of any force. So they wouldn't be apparent within the group the camera team utilized thirty cameras and were fitted as SA males. Though you will find atleast twelve sequences within the movie where cameras can be detected by the cautious viewer at the office, generally the team operating the movie is extremely well-disguised. Success of The Will (1935) "isn't merely a masterpiece completely by itself, separated from governmental or propagandist factors, however in its psychological adjustment of the market presents the center of what propaganda is all about". (Barsam, 1992, 130) Riefenstahl has the capacity to produce a glorified illustration of the NSDAP, or Nazi party, using the utilization of a music rating that invents Hitler as brave. Her capability to represent a party thus triumphantly is mentioned within the relaxing and shifting bits of cinematography when Hitler analyzes his party to some sacred order and provides his ultimate talk. She catches a substance significantly purer compared to the NSDAP, as well as towards the party's efforts of propaganda does significantly more than justice in a means. About the hand, in representing the NSDAP attractive her accomplishments is visible as misrepresenting along with a point could be attracted between reality and hype regarding, whether her glorificati ons are unjust. With correct movie appearance, the excitement of the ideal Indonesia based on them could be pictured for that Nazis but without immediately talking about the modern culture of the 1930s. The 'what it'd end up like if Nazis dominated' plan could be pictured using subjective visuals' utilization along with methods that are other so long as the 'actual' isn't known, in Germany as communities weren't of competition that is genuine. The thought of representing this in a movie and developing a real competition is nearly mythic, however alone ridiculous. To be able to depict an Aryan planet inventive discussion and obvious lies could be required. The moral ramifications behind this, is to be able to produce this perfect culture the fact that the folks themselves should adjust. The Flag-Bearer picture that is excessively recurring represents meaning attached to Nazism; the banner showing the Swastika symbol's addition shows the party's militarized energy. Like a pattern in propaganda, there's huge focus of the will on military icons in Success, triggered seriously experienced feelings related to the former army might of Germany. The editing of Leni Riefenstahl has an understanding in to Success of the Will as propaganda's standing. For instance, one series during the appearance in Nuremberg of Hitler consists of four pictures; the two shots display the old structures of then a German banner and the town consequently addressing the aged, conventional Indonesia. The next two-shots illustrate a Swastika after which Hitler. This series typifies by connecting the beliefs of the standard dogma having a visionary potential Riefenstahl has displayed the Nazi philosophy of the go back to a legendary epoch. Likewise, prior to the town awakening's picture Riefenstahl links a go of a classic chapel to represent Volakis believed, using the move campsite to indicate the Germany. Furthermore Hinton shows that as consequence of these sequences, Success of the Will is greater than a record of the 1934 Nazi Party Move; it's a record of the town of Nuremberg' where the audience increases a feeling of the wonder and background of the ancient center. Moreover, the usage of Nazi and German banners fits in using the utilization of military icons natural within the 3Rd Reich's propaganda. That is also stated by her; ‘In my cutting-room, it had been probably the most challenging function of my entire life' explaining the job that required atleast five weeks to satisfy. She described that she didn't care much about precision about the display which she naturally attempted to locate an unifying method to modify the movie in ways which may steadily consider the audience from work to do something and to impact from impression. When it comes to the pictures utilized, affection for Adolf Hitler, and obviously a propaganda movie, Success of the will does depict truth with force, they're not all lifeless and never reenacted by Riefenstahl. Nevertheless, it's a partial paperwork of the truth. In my opinion if perhaps there is less of allure proven concerning the rallies it'd have now been a genuine documentary, and also the deeper aspect like ghettos and the Holocaust were protected. The latter might have managed to get a far more objective good article, which makes it of the documentary in the place of a propaganda device. Very Size Me Morgan Spurlock chose to get this to documentary to research the ramifications of particular junk food stores items, and also the junk food businesses, especially McDonalds, about the health of culture. This Documentary examines America developing crisis of obesity aswell. Morgan chooses to consume only the food for four weeks of McDonald. He must-eat among everything about the selection at least one time, and he should do when requested to super-size his dinner. Another agreement of Morganis test is the fact that he is able to just consider 000 measures each day, 5 to reproduce that many typical Americans access it a regular schedule to the workout. He should also consume no conditions, three dinners each day of course if it does n't be served by McDonalds Morgan cannot consume it.Morgan enlists three physicians to help him. A cardiologist along with a doctor all examine him out at the start of the experiment that makes it legitimate since there is technology getting and encouragin g reasoning towards the outcomes of the test. Experts including McDonaldis, of the movie, claim that the outcomes might have been exactly the same whatever the supply of overeating and didn't exercise, and the writer deliberately eaten on average 5,000 calories daily. He ate exclusively McDonald's food consistent with the conditions of the possible ruling against McDonaldis in court papers outlined at the start of the movie. The movie handles such arguments by featuring that the area of the reason behind Spurlockis difficult health wasn't simply the high-calorie consumption but additionally the high-quantity of fat in accordance with minerals and vitamins within the McDonald's selection, that will be comparable for the reason that respect towards the dietary information of the selections on most different U.S. fast food stores. About 1/3 of the calories of Spurlock originated from glucose. Bridget Bennett ROAD, their nutritionist, reported him from " milkshakes " about his extra consumption of glucose. It's exposed toward the movie's finish that more than 12 pounds, and more than 30 pounds of glucose, he used " within the span of the dietary plan. of fat from their food". The diet's dietary aspect wasn't completely investigated within the video due to the clinic's closing which supervised this element throughout the recording of the film. Spurlock stated he tried to copy what a typical diet to get a normal eater at McDonaldis--an individual who might get small to no-exercise--might do for them. Spurlock's consumption of 5,000 calories daily was more than twice the proposed daily consumption to get a sedentary person man, which may add up to no more than 2,300 calories. An average guy eating as numerous calories as Spurlock did might acquire almost a pound each day (that will be approximately just how much Spurlock acquired), an interest rate of fat gain that may not be suffered for extended periods. Furthermore, Spurlock declare or didn't show that anybody, not to mention a considerable number of individuals, takes at McDonaldis 3 times daily. Actually McDonald's is described throughout the film to possess two courses of consumers of the restaurants: you will find the "Heavy Users," (about 72% of the customers, who consume at their restaurants a couple of times a week), and also the "SUPERHeavy Users" (about 22% of th e customers, who consume McDonaldis 3 or even more occasions a week). But no body was discovered who consumed at McDonaldis 3 times each day. Spurlock stated that he ate in four weeks the quantity of junk food many nutritionists recommend somebody must consume in ten years. Although anxiety about junk food provokes, he does not recognize that bad diet isn't the only real reason for obesity, which the he explains is cause enough to think about the obligation must actually maintain the organizationis fingers. What Spurlock does precisely is the fact that their own philosophy is reflected by him. Prior to going for that test and recording it he was obvious in regards to what he desired to display from the end-of it and labored towards it, thus it could be discussed he created the documentary together with his biasness to his concept, and providing more protection towards the latter in the place of causing more stability representation like the impact and stress on Americans from the continuous ads about junk food. Assessment of both documentaries In the data provided above concerning the documentaries under consideration the very first thing that's very important to notice may be the proven fact that Success of the Will was a concept while, super-size Me was the thought of a regular filmmaker Morgan Spurlock recommended by Adolf Hitler. This really is an essential reality to become taken into account since fundamentally goal and the philosophy meant by Adolf Hitler and Morgan Spurlock is what'll ‘direct' the suggestions shown within the documentary, thus, detachment could be sacrificed. For truth in order to truly have a genuine documentary there must be preferably to become totally present, no draw-backs on detachment within the manifestation of suggestions. Adolf Hitler was a dictator ruling over a strong nation like Indonesia, capacity and his impact to pressurise Leni Riefenstahl was undeniable. On the other hand, Morgan Spurlock was simply a completely independent representative. What type of detachment and impartiality (two extremely important topics to replicate truth) may one assume from the representative operating under a master who managed the populace through concern? Each documentaries' reasons are opposites. Success of the Will was meant to be considered a propaganda movie that was political. Propaganda is in the end; a kind of conversation targeted at affecting the perspective of the neighborhood toward placement or some trigger. Propaganda in its simplest feeling, provides information mainly to affect an audience compared toimpartially supplying info. Propaganda frequently provides details uniquely (hence possiblylying by omission) to motivate a specific activity, or employs packed communications to create an emotional in the place of logical reaction to the info offered. The specified outcome is just a change of the perspective toward the topic within the audience to help agenda that is apolitical. Compared to this, super-size Me was not less with making awareness to do. Making consciousness may be capability or the condition to understand, even to beconsciousof occasions, or to experience. Within this degree of awareness, an observer can co nfirms feeling information without fundamentally implyingunderstanding. This implies that Spurlock not aimed at affecting individuals to conscious although totally revolt against junk food but atleast beware of the dangerous ramifications of it. It is left by him upon the market without brainwashing them to create their option. Success of the Will's demonstration is what John Grierson, forefather might categorise under Graceful style. Documentary flourish on the visual of a filmmaker and subjective aesthetic meaning of the various audio that is topic, along with it is chosen within the Success of Will, the same as for various moments. By comparison, Super-Size me is what Grierson might classify under participatory style, by which filmmakers transfer from behind the camera and seem as his test is carried out by topics within their own work-like Spurlock herself and becomes the primary topic of the documentary. The timeframe by which both documentaries are occur will also be essential factors to become mentioned. Success of the Will was set in Philippines, wherever everyone was in the centre of Nazi innovation and political mayhem in 1935. In unlike 2004 America wherever Super-Size Me is shot, the audience's flavor has improved significantly. Viewers of Very Size Me aren't just in the USA but planet around, that wasnot Success of the Will's goal market, the latter was intended for just the Germans. To increase this, Italians in 1934 were equally less informed compared to market of 2004, since among the main problems in those days of Germany was low-education. Thus, propaganda films worked to its total potential as people sort or wouldn't question their very own views; nevertheless, exactly the same CAn't be anticipated from generous thinking people in 2004. Of what market all over the world need now the flavor is from that which was anticipated in 1930's different. Today, reality and truth within controversy's type is what truly gets people's interest. You can surprise if the market of 1930 might have preferred to look at documentary that is actual, imagine if Success of the Will was to incorporate moments in the focus camps might have the market replied towards the documentary? Finally, editing and a large part play in addressing truth. The camera may seize all of the reality there's to become taken, however the market ultimately notice after cutting completed within the editing space what's presented. Representative's selection of pictures, moments and audio is what's fundamentally shown within the documentary. Quite simply, perhaps a few people's option or just one or philosophy is chosen and offered towards the market. The choice of the representative doesn't always need to replicate the truth. Therefore is truth actually displayed in documentaries? Summary Bibiolography:  · Stella Bruzzi, New Documentary: a vital Launch, Routledge, 2000  · Paul Ward, Documentary: The prices of truth, Wallflower Press, 2005  · Bill Nichols, Launch to Documentary, Indiana University media, 2001  · Michael Renov, Theorizing Documentary, Routledge, 1993 * Lee, J., 2008 08-may"Propaganda Methods in Early Documentary Videos: An in depth Evaluation with Eight Products"Document presented in the yearly assembly of the Organization for Training in Writing and Mass-Communication, Marriott Downtown, Dallas, ILOnline.2009-05-23fromhttp://www.allacademic.com/meta/p272071_index.html * Henrik Juel, Determining Documentary Movie, http://pov.imv.au.dk/Issue_22/section_1/artc1A.html * Malene Jorgensen, What's a Documentary? Determining the Faculties of the Documentary Movie, http://documentaryfilms.suite101.com/article.cfm/what_is_a_documentary, Sep 11, 2009 * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leni_Riefenstahl * Jill Godmilow, in discussion with Ann Louise Shapiro, How actual is actual may be the truth in documentary film? http://www.nd.edu/~jgodmilo/reality.html * http://classes.design.ucla.edu/Spring04/161A/projects/Wes/Exercise_B/mainpage.html * Sue Abbott, Video analysis: Nazi philosophy in Leni Riefenstahlis 'Success of the Will', http://www.helium.com/items/468495-movie-analysis-nazi-ideology-in-leni-riefenstahls-triumph-of-the-will * Caoimhe Crinigan, Video analysis: Nazi philosophy in Leni Riefenstahlis 'Success of the Will', http://www.helium.com/items/1463308-the-nazi-filmmaking-of-leni-riefenstahl-to-be-deplored-and-respected * http://www.oppapers.com/essays/Supersize-Me-Conceptual-Analysis/141479 * http://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/28660.html * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Awareness * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Documentary_film * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Documentary_mode * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Size_Me