Internet Essay Example for Free

Internet Essay Internet has become one of the basic needs for mostly peoples; we can’t expect our daily life without internet. If we observe, we can easily check out the fact that how internet has dominated in our lives and we are very much dependent on internet. Earlier internet wan the source to collect information only but as time and technology changing day by day, lots of new trends is coming and our daily life has shifted on Internet. If we want to explore any new palace, we use internet, if we want to go for shopping, we use internet and this is not the end point of our list. We use internet to solve our mostly daily uses queries. Internet has become very useful in the field of education. As internet contributing great help in education, here we are discussing how internet contributing for education. With the help of internet, we can easily contact with any one. Internet has diminished the differences and every resource is very near and close to the needy one. Earlier School and College projects were too tough to complete but with the help of internet, information and data is available 24? and every needy student can complete their projects with the help of a small research. In other words, now needy one can achieve the goal, excuses don’t exist now. The biggest source for information that is encyclopedia is available online and any one can use it to get desired information. Now there is no chance to get the incomplete information, Encyclopedia contains the most effective information’s and it is available online. Every news in online available, whatever happens is available suddenly sp there is no scope to look back or wait for some thing. You have internet and you can update yourself any time according to your own needs and time table. What ever is happening is visible. There are lots of Online Learning Programs are available for those who are unable to attend the classes or have any other problems. Even online collages and institute are also available to serve online education.

The Benefits Of Strategic Planning Business Essay

The Benefits Of Strategic Planning Business Essay Formal strategic planning is affected by the macro-environment and this is the highest level layer in the framework, this consists of a wide range of environmental factors that impact to some extent on almost all organisations. The PESTEL framework can be used to identify how future trends in the Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environment and Legal environments might affect an organisation. Pestel analysis provides the broad date from which key drivers to change can be identified. By using these key drivers organisations can envision scenarios for the future. Scenarios can be used to help organisations decide if change needs to happen depending on the different ways in which the business environment may change. It is important for managers to analyse these factors in the present and how they are likely to change in the future. By analysing these, managers will be able to draw out implications for the organisation. Pestel factors are sometimes linked together i.e. technological factors can impact on economic factors. It is necessary to identify the key drivers of change these are environmental factors that are likely to have a high impact on the success or failure of the strategy. Key drivers vary by industry i.e. Primark may be concerned by social changes that can change customer tastes and behaviours. The critical issues are the implications that are drawn from the understanding in guiding strategic decisions and choices. The next stage is drawn from the environmental analysis specifically strategic opportunities and threats for the organisation. Having the ability to identify these opportunities and threats is extremely valuable when thinking about strategic choices for the future. Opportunities and threats form one half of the SWOT analysis that shapes a companys formulation. The use of SWOT analysis can help summarise the key issues from the business environment and the strategic capability of an organisation that are most likely to impact on strategy development. Once the key issues have been identified an organisation can then assess if it is capable to deal with the changes taking place within the business environment. If the strategic capability is to be understood the business must remember that it is not absolute but relative to its competitors. SWOT analysis is only useful if it is comparative, that is it examines strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. SWOT analysis should help focus discussion on the future choices and to what extent an organisation is capable of supporting these strategies. SWOT analysis should not be used a substitute for more in-depth analysis. In responding strategically to the environment the goal is to reduce identified threats and take advantages of the best opportunities. Peter Drucker (1954), discussing the importance of business policy and strategic planning in his book The Practice of Management says we cannot be content with plans for a future that we can foresee. We must prepare for all possible and a good many impossible contingencies. We must have a workable solution for anything that may come up. By taking advantage of the strategic gap (which is an opportunity in the competitive environment that has not been fully exploited by competitors) organisations can manage threats and opportunities. Core competencies are a set of linked business processes that deliver superior value to the customer, when these are combined they create strategic value and can lead to competitive advantage. By using Porters five forces analysis which is a framework for organisations to analyse industry and business strategy, they can draw upon the five forces that determine the competitive intensity and therefore attractiveness of a market. Three of Porters five forces refer to competition from external sources and the other two are internal threats. This analysis is just one part of the complete Porter strategic model the others include the value chain (VC) and the generic strategies. According to Porter (2008) the job of a strategist is too understand and cope with competition; however managers define competition too narrowly as if it has occurred only among today direct competitors. Competition goes beyond profits to include competitive forces such as customers, suppliers, potential entrants and substitute products; the extended rivalry that results from all five forces defines an industrys structure and shapes the nature of competition within an industry. For example Apple are good at technology and innovation therefore they can take the opportunities that give them competitive advantage and makes them leaders compared to Samsung or Nokia. Porters says there are 5 forces that shape the competition: Threat of new entrants Bargaining power of customers powerful customers usually bargain for better services which involve cost and investment Bargaining power of suppliers may determine the cost of raw materials and other inputs effecting profitability Rivalry among competitors competition influences the pricing and other costs like advertising etc. Threats from substitutes where-ever substantial investments in RD is taking place, the threat of substitutes is large. It also affects profitability. Competitive advantage is the heart of strategy and for the strategy to succeed the organisation should have relevant competitive advantage. We can see an example of this with Toshiba who operate in electrical goods, through a flexible manufacturing system it manufactures different products / varieties of some products on the same assembly lines. At Ohme it assembles nine varieties of computers on the same line and on the adjacent line it assembles 20 varieties of lap top computers. It is able to switch from one product / variety to another instantly at low cost and makes profits on low volume runs too. This flexibility of Toshiba to respond quickly and easily to the fast changing market demand is definitely one of its competitive advantages. Whereas its competitors make profits only through long volume runs of a particular model. However, there are a lot of companies who are choosing not to invest due to the recession; however Lidl and Aldi are taking advantage of supplying cheaper products giving them competitive advantage over say Waitrose. Benefits of Strategic Planning Effective strategic planning can positively improve the performance of an organisation and give them the ability to serve more clients, access additional resources or enhance the quality of service/product. It can also offer solutions to major organisational issues or challenges and gives stakeholders of the organisation an opportunity to develop harmonic solutions to long-term issues/challenges that have been affecting the organisation. Furthermore it allows for forward thinking, allowing an organisation the opportunity to pause and revisit the mission and create long-term vision. It allows clear future direction allowing stakeholders to look to the future, plan and respond to changes. Evaluation One of the major drawbacks of formal strategic planning is the uncertain dynamic environment, things change constantly and everything becomes shorter. The recession at the present time is making everything unpredictable and this is not good for strategic planning. According to Mintzberg (1994) strategic planning should be used to devise and implement the competitiveness of each business unit. Scientific management was pioneered by Fredrick Taylor (1856-1915) and involved separating thinking from doing and thus creating a new function staffed by specialists. Planning systems were expected to produce the best strategies as well as step by step instructions on how to achieve this, but this never worked well. According to Mintzberg strategic planning is not strategic thinking, the most successful strategies are visions, not plans. When an organisation can differentiate between planning and strategic thinking they can then get back to what the strategy making process should be. Once a manger has the ability to learn from all sources around him, including personal experiences and market research and can integrate this into a vision of the direction that the business can then pursue. Mintzberg suggests that strategic planning is a misconception and rests upon three unsound arguments: that prediction is possible, thats strategists can be detached from the subjects of their strategies, and that the strategy-making process can be formalised. Strategic thinkers can apply lessons learned from Mintzberg (1994) three inherent fallacies of traditional planning: The Fallacy of Prediction is the assumption that we can actually control events through a formalised process that involves people engaged in creative or even routine work and can manage to stay on the predicted course. You need more than hard facts you need the personal touch. People are not objective, they are complex. The Fallacy of Detachment is the assumption we can separate the planning from the doing, if the system does the thinking, then strategies must be detached from the tactics. Formulation from implementation, thinkers from doers. One objective is to make sure senior managers receive relevant information without having to immense themselves in the details. One fact is innovation has never been institutionalised and systems have never been able to reproduce the synthesis created by the entrepreneur or the ordinary strategist and probably never will. The Fallacy of Formulisation suggests that systems could certainly process more information, at least hard information. However they could never internalise it, comprehend it, and put it all together. Such control is more a dream that a reality. Reality tells us that anomalies, the fickle behaviour of humans and the limitations of analysis play a huge factor in the organisational outcomes and to disregard them is risky and could lead to incomplete planning. What are the limitations of strategic planning when things are changing rapidly? The limitations of formal strategic planning can be seen if the future is uncertain and the expectations divert from the plan. There could also be internal resistance to formal strategic planning due to factors including: Information flows, decision making and power relationships could be unsettled Current operating problems may drive out long-term planning efforts There are risks and fears of failure New demands will be placed on managers and staff Conflicts with the organisation are exposed Planning is expensive in time and money Planning is difficult and hard work The completed plan limits choices and activities for the organisation in the future CONCLUSIONS The question posed seems to be is strategic planning worthwhile. The answer to this lies within the organisation and is dependent upon size. It seems that the ability to learn and implement strategies contributes to the business performance of small or medium sized companies in a dynamic industry. Leadership is important and organisations today have to deal with dynamic and uncertain environments. To ensure success organisations must be strategically aware. They must understand how changes in their competitive environment are unfolding. They should constantly be on the lookout for new opportunities to exploit their strategic abilities, build on awareness and understanding of current strategies and successes. Organisations must be able to respond quickly in response to opportunities and threats. Organisations must compete effectively and out-perform their rivals in a dynamic environment; they must find suitable ways for creating and adding value for their customers. Overall they must be flexible. Organisations could think about changing their strategy to an emergent strategy which would allow them to adapt to new ideas and according to change. Emergent strategy implies that an organisation is learning what works in practice. An example of this is Groupon who provide daily deals in large cities and in return Groupon get a percentage of the deal usually 50% from the company providing the deal. The company is on track to make $500M in revenue this year and has raised its last round at a $1.35B valuation. Groupon is an example of an emergent strategy which has transformed several times. Organisations could think about downsizing production before closure as companies are killed due to an uncertain dynamic environment. In an article labelled The Real Value of Strategic Planning one manager said our planning process is like a primitive tribal ritual there is a lot of dancing, waving of feathers and beating of drums. No one is exactly sure why we do it, but there is an almost mystical hope that something good will come out of it. Another said, Its like the old Communist system: We pretend to make strategy and they pretend to follow it. Henry Mintzberg has gone so far as to label the phrase strategic planning an oxymoron. He notes that real strategy is made informally in hallway conversations, in working groups, and in quiet moments of reflection on long plane flights and rarely in the panelled conference rooms where formal planning meetings are held.

Creation Stories of Babylon, Egypt, and Genesis Essay -- Creationism C

Creation myths of Babylon, Egypt, and Genesis There are many similarities in the Babylonian, Egyptian, and Genesis stories. In all the stories one god creates man and explains how all things on earth come to being. They also set up their calendars and show examples of evil within each story to set up moral rules for man to live by. How do these elements compare between each of these stories? In the Babylonian myth the God Marduk creates man from the blood of another god Kingu. â€Å"Blood will I compose, bring a skeleton into being, Produce a lowly, primitive creature, ‘Man’ shall be his name.† In Egyptian myth the God Rae creates man and takes this form. In the Genesis story there is only one God, he creates man in the image of himself. In the Babylonian and Egyptian stories, the major difference is they have many Gods. Also, in the Genesis story God creates man in his likeness, this might be the case with the Babylonian story, but that is not clear. The major similarity is that all three of the stories only have one God that creates mankind. All the stories show how things came onto the Earth and how it was made; they also set up their calendars at the same time. In the Babylonian story, Marduk is granted the power of speaking something and it will come to being and if he spoke it again it would come out of being. Marduk becomes king, greater than all the Gods, after slaying the God Tiamat. Then later the defeat and capture of Tiamat’s army and commander Kingu. â€Å"He ma...

Motivating Students in Writing Curriculum Essay -- English Writing Tea

Being an effective Instructor of Composition at the community college level requires a variety of skills and talents, many of which simply can’t be taught in formal classroom settings. Facing constant pressure to make judgments that have weighty consequences is just one of the challenges of teaching writing. A writing teacher who is too strict or inflexible can give students the excuse they may be seeking to withdraw or not perform in class. Some students are only too eager to proclaim that they can’t possibly meet high standards in writing, so there is â€Å"no use in even trying.† Putting stringent rules in place for a writing class does not necessarily provide an atmosphere that will foster successful student writing. But being lenient and making exceptions to policies can give a teacher the reputation of being one who can be manipulated or worse yet, â€Å"easy.† How do teachers of writing negotiate these obstacles and still manage to convince students to produce quality writing not only in their classes but across the curriculum as well? How do teachers of writing fulfill an obligation to students, and provide them with a basis of knowledge and the writing experience to prepare them for the next semester of writing instruction while still being understanding and compassionate? There is a fine line between expecting students to do their best work and knowing when to allow them some room for the extraordinarily difficult situations in which many of them find themselves. This is one aspect of the job that very few veteran teachers speak of to laypersons. And yet this is a very real problem teachers of writing face every day. How do we find a way to be compassionate and fair without compromising the morals and character of the teache... ...nd working in a broken society---to the complicated and thoroughly nontraditional lives being led by most of our students, regardless of age or background, to the unavoidably and increasingly personal interaction that takes place with our students, to issues of trust and ethical responsibilities. (325) It is as if Dan Morgan has been observing my classroom and reading my mind. Students are depending on writing teachers to be fair and ethical no matter how much the students attempt to bulge or dilate the traditional boundaries of a student/teacher dichotomy. The ability of our students to develop as writers could very well depend on our willingness to rise to the challenge of meeting the complex demands that are being made on teachers of writing. Works Cited Morgan, Dan. â€Å"Ethical Issues Raised By Students’ Personal Writing.† College English 60 (1998): 318-325. Motivating Students in Writing Curriculum Essay -- English Writing Tea Being an effective Instructor of Composition at the community college level requires a variety of skills and talents, many of which simply can’t be taught in formal classroom settings. Facing constant pressure to make judgments that have weighty consequences is just one of the challenges of teaching writing. A writing teacher who is too strict or inflexible can give students the excuse they may be seeking to withdraw or not perform in class. Some students are only too eager to proclaim that they can’t possibly meet high standards in writing, so there is â€Å"no use in even trying.† Putting stringent rules in place for a writing class does not necessarily provide an atmosphere that will foster successful student writing. But being lenient and making exceptions to policies can give a teacher the reputation of being one who can be manipulated or worse yet, â€Å"easy.† How do teachers of writing negotiate these obstacles and still manage to convince students to produce quality writing not only in their classes but across the curriculum as well? How do teachers of writing fulfill an obligation to students, and provide them with a basis of knowledge and the writing experience to prepare them for the next semester of writing instruction while still being understanding and compassionate? There is a fine line between expecting students to do their best work and knowing when to allow them some room for the extraordinarily difficult situations in which many of them find themselves. This is one aspect of the job that very few veteran teachers speak of to laypersons. And yet this is a very real problem teachers of writing face every day. How do we find a way to be compassionate and fair without compromising the morals and character of the teache... ...nd working in a broken society---to the complicated and thoroughly nontraditional lives being led by most of our students, regardless of age or background, to the unavoidably and increasingly personal interaction that takes place with our students, to issues of trust and ethical responsibilities. (325) It is as if Dan Morgan has been observing my classroom and reading my mind. Students are depending on writing teachers to be fair and ethical no matter how much the students attempt to bulge or dilate the traditional boundaries of a student/teacher dichotomy. The ability of our students to develop as writers could very well depend on our willingness to rise to the challenge of meeting the complex demands that are being made on teachers of writing. Works Cited Morgan, Dan. â€Å"Ethical Issues Raised By Students’ Personal Writing.† College English 60 (1998): 318-325.

How The Eustace Diamonds Changes Representations of Femininity Essay

How The Eustace Diamonds Changes Representations of Femininity in Vanity Fair Since Anthony Trollope published The Eustace Diamonds (1872), readers have associated Lizzie Eustace with Becky Sharp of William Makepeace Thackeray’s Vanity Fair (1848) (John Hall 378). Both Becky and Lizzie perform a femininity made all the more dangerous by contrast to the femininity of their idealized counterparts, Amelia and Lucy. Both novels involve a man’s choice between satisfying his sexual desire for the dangerous girl and fulfilling his promise to the ideal girl. As is typical in Victorian novels, the narrators spend more time exploring the bad girl option than the less-exciting alternative. In the context of denying the novel’s focus on Lizzie, Trollope’s narrator furthers the connection between the two bad girls by recalling Becky: Although the first two chapters of this new history have been devoted to the fortunes and personal attributes of Lady Eustace, the historian begs his readers not to believe that opulent and aristocratic Becky Sharp is to assume the dignity of heroine in the forthcoming pages (57). Given the difficulty of imagining how Trollope could have spent more time telling Lizzie’s story, the novel itself belies this statement; readers know that the bad girls are the heroines of both novels. Critics have noted the similarity between the two novels, but they have not really explored it. I want to argue that to understand the relationship between the good girl and bad girl in each novel, we have to move out from the dichotomy itself to the third term that determines the meaning of the other two: the woman who comes from abroad. I will argue that it is the shift that occurs in t... ... McLennan, John. Studies in Ancient History: Comprising a Reprint of Primitive Marriage. London: Macmillan, 1886. Miller, Andrew. Novels Behind Glass: Commodity, Culture, and Victorian Narrative. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1995. Nunokawa, Jeff. The Afterlife of Property: Domestic Security and the Victorian Novel. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1994. Psomiades, Kathy. â€Å"Heterosexual Exchange and Other Victorian Fictions: The Eustace Diamonds and Victorian Anthropology.† Novel: A Forum on Fiction 33.1 (1999): 93-118. Thackeray, William Makepeace. Vanity Fair. John Carey, ed. London: Penguin Books, 2001. Thackeray, W.M. Vanity Fair. John Sutherland, ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1983. Trollope, Anthony. The Eustace Diamonds. Stephen Gill and John Sutherland, eds. London: Penguin Books, 1969.

Reaction Paper: Prenatal, Infancy, Middle Childhood, Adolescence, Adulthood Prenatal Development

Development is a lifelong and dynamic process that follows highly definitive processes from conception to old age. Basic themes developed in childhood are transferred or modified through the development stages unto adulthood. The prenatal development as covered by Gregoire & Jungers is extremely crucial for child development specialists or counselors.The developments that occur even before the birth of a child have profound influences on the health and well being of the individual as the process of growth and development continues. In the chapter, â€Å"Prenatal Development† the authors highlight physical, cognitive, emotional and social gains that is made.According to the authors, physical and behavioral characteristics are influenced by genetics and the environment. Prenatal development is further subdivided into three distinct categories based on the duration and the associated developments in pregnancy.For instance, between week one and week three marks ovum period, week f our to eight marks the embryo period and week eight onwards marks the fetal period(Gregoire & Jungers 115).During the ovum period, implantation of the fertilized egg occurs followed by the formation of the neural tube. Most organ systems begin forming in the embryonic period. Development of organ systems precedes both in a cephalocaudal and proximodistal direction.During this period of development, the only risks to normal development are the teratogens. The understanding of the risks to prenatal development is useful because it aids the mother in making decisions aimed at avoiding events, activities or nutrition that may negatively impact on the health and development of the fetus.Some of the teratogens as listed by the author include any substance that may cause structural damage to the unborn such as drugs, environmental pollutants, alcohol, infectious diseases, diet and other factors related to psychological health like stress and anxiety. However, there are other factors that m ay also directly affect the physical development at the prenatal phase.The prenatal phase of development is defined by some authors as the period between conception time and birth. In normal circumstances, this duration typically lasts 38 to 42 weeks. During this entire period rapid changes accompany the transformation of fertilized egg, to zygote and eventually to a baby.It is only during this phase of development that systemic growth occurs so rapidly in the absence of any form of direct external influences. Any influence to the unborn is transmitted via the mother. Due to the rapidity of growth and development coupled to the vulnerability of the unborn to deleterious external influence, the prenatal phase demands strict medical management (Curtis & Newman 58).The authors succeed in presenting a critical analysis of the prenatal stage of development; however the presentation is highly complex and extremely modeled for the sole benefit of counselors. The text may not be appropriate from child development specialists without an advanced level of professional or academic achievement.During the prenatal stage of development, all activity takes place in the uterus. The behavior of the unborn can only is described through the experiences of the mother. Mothers possess an extraordinary sensitivity to the movement of the fetus.Based on the descriptions of these movements, the behavior of babies is described as being active or passive. They are active when they are kicking or rolling while when they are quiet their behavior is described as being passive.Fetal movements are more noticeable from the sixteenth week towards the twentieth week. By the seventh month of pregnancy, eyelids open. Taste and smell also develop. Studies have also established that grasp reflex also exists in utero.InfancyAfter the birth of an infant, the development domains necessarily expand from the biological aspects to other domains that had earlier on been less important. Thus, Gregoire & Ju ngers begins the analysis of the stage of infancy by looking into the physical, cognitive as well as the socioemotional domains that categorically characterize the changes and transitions that will occur during the entire lifespan of an individual.The first noticeable changes at infancy are the reflexes fundamental for survival and adaptation to the new environment. As development progresses, other some reflexes are maintained while a select number are discarded due to their non-importance in survival and adaptation.Some of the survival reflexes that the author notes include; rooting, breathing, papillary, eye blink and sucking while the primitive reflexes may be observed as swimming, stepping, plantar, babinski, startling and palmar(p. 114).Just like in prenatal development, motor and physical development proceed via the cephalocaudal and proximodistal patterns. Motor developments allow the infant to accomplish the raising of heads and chest followed by sitting, crawling, standing and eventually walking. Between eleven to fifteen months, many infants begin to walk unaided.Fine tuning of motor skills allows them to perform tasks such as uncoordinated reaching and grasping using their palms. Later on coordinated reaching and grasping is observed as the infant learns to use thumb and the forefinger.As these motor developments become more and more apparent other physical developments in seeing and hearing also becomes noticeable. It is at this time that sensitivity to sounds becomes evident. As such they can be soothed, distressed, or even alerted via the influence of varying frequency or rhythms of tones.Through auditory developments, infants learn how to discriminate between non speech sounds and speech sounds and even begin to show preference for human voices and by extension, ton specific human voices. Moreover, attachment and temperament attributes begin to not only determine their bonding with closer carers but also how they behave and respond to the enviro nment.Gregoire & Jungers, posit that during infancy emotional development is externally affected by the nature of parent's responsiveness and that over a period of time self regulation among infants is internalized. It is also during the same time that gains in self awareness are achieved.In a nutshell, infants learn of their own existence as distinct beings and as they begin to discover how to interact with their environment they realize that their actions possess predictable results. At the later stages, they gain knowledge of their own physical composites (p. 119).According to Christiansen et al, infancy extends to toddler hood and is associated with cognitive, sensory and musculoskeletal development. Social and emotional gains are also made. By early infancy, differences in temperament and personality become manifest. These character attributes are modeled by genetic and environmental factors which directly influence early social development (Christiansen et al 49).These first e ighteen months after birth characterize the beginning of communication, the acquisition of walking skills and use of hands for grasping and reaching and the child's relationship with the social environment. With rapid physical growth, motor and sensory fine tuning, the impacts of cultural, social emotional and cognitive influences become integral in development.Middle ChildhoodBy middle childhood, sense of identity as reflected through play activities, gender roles, and family relationships can be observed. Even though physical growth can easily be measured, rapid development in social skills, linguistic skills and cognitive gains are even more compelling.It is at this period that imaginary and physical play, self care activities, school and family chores and responsibilities emerge to demand the child's concentration (Christiansen et al 48). According to Gregoire & Jungers, this period ranges from six years to eleven years and is marked by great strides in cognitive development. It is also at this period that children are exposed to peer and other social sphere influences (124).Children demonstrate an extensive knowledge of language. Gains and use of vocabulary, grammar as well as pragmatic skills are astounding. After mastering good grammar correcting of grammatical mistakes, these young learners then begin to communicate with regard to context. Code switching enables them to adapt their linguistic skills to the persons they are communicating with.Gains on self concept can be observed when children start to make social comparisons and interpret their behaviors and abilities in relation to their social environment. During middle childhood children demonstrate very high esteem which later drops off to realistic levels.This leveling off of self esteem is only possible after children succeed in incorporating feedback about their competency in relation to that of other peers or other individuals in the social environment.On the emotional scale, self conscious emo tions develop as children begin understanding the concept of personal responsibility. By learning to interpret how others are feeling or thinking, they understand other people's perspectives. These developments are further buttressed by emotional self regulation which is linked to a variety of social functioning aspects.Pre-schooling and schooling increases the importance of peer associations in middle childhood. Through peers they learn socially appropriate behaviors and emotions such as empathy, sympathy and shyness.Since children only make friends with other children identical to them in terms of gender, race, age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, achievement, popularity and social behavior, peer associations became incredibly important in modeling their behavior and cognitive gains.The importance of middle childhood developments cannot be underrated as some researchers point out. Middle childhood activities can be used to predict adult work competence. Peer relations in middle c hildhood may be used to predict early adulthood involvements in romantic relationships(Huston & Ripke 25).In a nutshell, middle childhood is characteristic of a stage where individuals continually refine motor skills, focus on academic and/or school related tasks while at the same time nurture peer relationships that would become very useful not only in adolescence but also in early adulthood.AdolescenceAccording to Copher & Mortimer, adolescence marks the development period when individuals establish identities. This stage of development is often associated with significant emotional strain as individuals are forced to model themselves into who they think they are and what they hope to become as they progress to adulthood.Identities are basically grounded on relationships, roles, status and character traits. Character trails can either be classified as behavioral or psychological attributes. In the western world, adolescence as a stage is conceptualized as experimental, carefree an d playful. As these adolescents mature into adulthood, the conceptualization changes to being independent, hardworking, responsible and productive.It is important to note that the author restricts this classification to Western conceptualization since these definitions vary the world over with regard to the cultural, social and even legal context. These asynchronies attribute to identity conflicts and status inconsistencies among different social institutions(http://family.jrank.org).Typically, adolescence occurs between the ages of 12 to 19 years. The period is characteristic of hormonal changes. The pituitary gland releases growth hormones which stimulate the release of a wide variety of other homes by different glands in the body.These hormones aid in body growth and sexual maturation. Key aspects of sexual maturation include the release of androgens and estrogens which trigger sexual maturation.Physical changes in the body as manifest in the growth and maturation of reproductive organs and other secondary sexual features also signify sexual maturation and finally, spermarche in boys and menarche in girls are directly related to pubertal changes.There are other physical developments that are not associated with sexual maturation   but which can also be observed during adolescence. For instance, as opposed to childhood, a reversal of cephalocaudal growth occurs. Release of thyroxine by thyroid glands results in height and weight gains.These developments can be measurably be seen as broadening of the boy's shoulders and girls hips, increase in the growth of legs, feet and hands. Boys increase muscles while girls accumulate more fat. Gins also occur with respect to the improvement in motor skills which vary between the sexes.On the cognitive development front, adolescents develop the capacity to engage in abstract scientific thinking but this does not necessarily imply that such individuals find it much easier to plan and make everyday decisions. Peer associ ations lead to the formation of cliques. Peer affiliation, conformity and peer pressure also increases during this development phase(Gregoire & Jungers 130).Adolescents are always in search of autonomy and their emotional development is characterized by the same. While early childhood is almost supremely influenced by the family, peer influences rival family influences in adolescence. Thus, even though parent-child relationships remain crucial, conflicts between adolescents are their parents are not unusual occurrences.Huge gains in cognitive development imply that many adolescents can engage in operational thought hence they may often recognize multiple choices that are available to them. Some choices may not be optimal. Problems in decision making are attributable to this multiplicity of choices.Since adolescents have to make decisions in a dynamic sociopolitical world with varying traditional expectations, economic upheavals and contemporary conditions, there are times when the d ecisions made may be grossly inappropriate. In fact, a majority of the changes related to sexual maturation and hormonal changes also reflect on physical and motional status of the adolescents.In preparation for adulthood, adolescence marks the period of educational attainment while at the same time working to attain considerable financial health. However, for a majority of youth, adolescence which comes with increased risk taking creates several youth problem behaviors like substance abuse and delinquency.Problems with the law may also arise due to engaging in legally prohibited activities like smoking and drinking. Play in adolescence assumes a structured and formalized nature hence music, competitive sports, dances and a host of other group experiences. Social relationships are nurtured because of their importance. Productive pursuits like volunteer activities and work are taken up by some individuals and such pursuits may last a lifetime.

Race or color Essay

â€Å"To live anywhere in the world today and be against equality because of race or color is like living in Alaska and being against snow†. This famous observation of William Faulkner sums up the present attitude of the people towards discrimination based on color. It is hard to believe that a few decades earlier, unimaginable atrocities have been meted out against a particular section of the society just because their skin color was considered inferior. The real life story, â€Å"Warriors don’t cry† written by Melba Patillo Beals highlights the invincible hurdles faced by a group of ten black students just to acquire a basic education on par with the other students. The events narrated in the book from chapter 12 to chapter 20 leaves one stoned about the heartless abuse that these children had to undergo. A separate army consisting of 1200 soldiers is employed to ensure the safety of these ten children on the first day of their school. Despite this arrangement, there is violence and a threat to the children’s lives, thanks to the fanatic hatred of the segregationists towards the black people. Braving all odds, Melba and her friends continue their education in the school, but every day they are tormented with abuses and unfair treatments even by the school authorities. These chapters give heart-wrenching details of the physical and mental violence against Melba and her friends. Even though a few white girls were sympathetic to Melba’s situation, they could not help her because of threats from the segregationists. It is difficult to believe that even the school authorities did not help their cause. They discriminated against her by excluding her from all festivities and events. Even on her birthday, when Melba defended herself from violence, she was suspended for attacking the whites. After reading the horrible and terrifying accounts of Melba, one cannot avoid admiring the grit and perseverance with which she and her friends pursued their education. After reading these chapters, I felt relieved and thankful for the fact that such discrimination is not existent today. The first African-American president of The United States, Mr. Obama is a proof of this advancement.