Determining Best Practices of Effective School Communication Dissertation

Determining Best Practices of Effective School Communication - Dissertation Example As the purpose of the study is to research highly dependable communicative means to be used by schools, it is also the aim of this study to validate that motivation of the parents help school-going students to perform better. The introduction to the topic includes a background to the research topic of determining best practices of effective school communication, the problem statement, the purpose statement, research questions, theoretical framework, nature of the research, scope of the research, its assumptions, limitations and delimitations, besides the importance of the research work in the context of its implications for social change, ending in the summary of the introduction. Research Theory and Research Strategy Methodology for the research is theory based, totally depending on qualitative research method for the analysis of the conducted research. A qualitative research needs to comprehend processes, happenings, and connections between them from social and cultural perspective s. Qualitative research demands no numerical calculations to prove the facts, as it is based on direct information availing from people and social communities in favorable surroundings (Sociology, 2003). As my research is based on similar tenets of interviewing parents on how communication level with school teachers can be enhanced and find out the causes of their inactivity in participation, the qualitative research method is the right choice. My research strategy will be segregated into three phases, first is the introductory phase, which will be followed by the second phase, the main event, after which validation, the third phase will take off. In the first phase the concept of effective school communication with given objectives of the research will be marked for piloting. The distinct aspect of qualitative research is that it helps in explaining the topic and understanding the issues in natural settings on the basis of the experiences, beliefs, and thinking of all participants (Sociology, 2003). The interview of participating parents in the first stage will help in briefing the parents the purpose of the interview in the informal way. The second phase will touch all the research questions deeply, to elicit participants’ opinions on each one of all the five research questions. As the research design of my methodology is observer-participant, the data description will state the behavior, reaction, and practices of the parents. Parents’ answers will be analyzed to get relevant inputs (Sociology, 2003). My role of observing the parents will be very significant here, to correctly state their views and experiences. I need to be friendly enough with the participating parents to create the perfect setting where they express their anguish or appreciation of the school administration without any inhibitions. Further, my qualitative phenomenological research will help in discussing the singular critical question, as experienced by various participants. The phenomenological methodology research strategy will assist me in understanding the parents’ perspectives, as observed from their angle. There are other methodological roots, as symbolic inter-action and ethnography, employed in qualitative field research but phenomenological

The New York Public schools and New York Charter Schools Dissertation

The New York Public schools and New York Charter Schools - Dissertation Example Although there is a perception (generally) that the education in charter schools are vastly different than those in public schools, this research seeks to understand whether there is a difference in New York schools. The research will also review the beginning aspects of charter schools and draw a comparison of the positives and negatives of both charter and public schools.... As an example, California initiated a law to in 1992, showed how their charter schools would stay accountable. The Charter School Act for New York State passed in December 1998, allowed for the production of independent self–governing public schools. The law essentially stated that New York charter schools would meet state standards, regent’s requirements, state, health, safety, civil rights, and student assessments just like all public schools (About Charter Schools, 2010). Positive and Negative Aspects of Charter Schools vs. Public Schools One of the largest differences between public and charte r schools is that children are allowed to go to charter schools regardless of where they live. This gives parents and students a choice of schools and they are able to choose a school that they feel is the best choice for their children. In some ways, this action creates a need for public schools to develop more challenging The public schools limit their students to those who live within their specific districts. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) (2011) many charter schools will help to reform public schools but they are limited in scope so they will not be able to foster and entire public school system (NCSL, 2011). When looking at the positive and negative aspects of public schools, it is important to point out that public schools are free and the provide transportation to and from school for the children. Because the school is in the neighborhood, children will attend with their friends. This can also be a negative attribute for public schools if t heir friends include gang members or people who would get them into trouble in some way.

Community Development And Health Inequalities Health And Social Care Essay

Community Development And Health Inequalities Health And Social Care Essay To understand the role of community development as a potential strategy for addressing health inequalities, this essay aims to provide a discussion of the extent of health inequalities in the population in the UK. The nature and scale of these issues, the different causes of the indifferences, it will also look at how community development will work and how it could help contribute to the policy goal to reduce the health divide. It will look at the different issues concerning such a project and whether it will prove successful. Building on from the idea of health inequalities being linked to social class, this section illustrates other rationalisations as to this difference and some clarification as to why this might be. Health inequalities by and large are calculated by socio-economic groups however there maybe other explanations for these differences. There are reasons to believe ethnicity make a differences to health inequalities, it is stated in the Health Inequalities report 2008-9 that in April 2001 Pakistani and Bangladeshi men and women reported the highest rates of both poor health and limiting long term illnesses whereas the Chinese reported the lowest. This is an alternative to the explanation of the socio-economic difference; nevertheless there are also other justifications. There are also claims that there are gender inequalities which exist The Mens Health Forum argue that mens life expectancy is more severely affected by deprivation than that of women (House of Common 2009), men are more like ly to commit suicide, suffer from obesity and twice as likely to be diagnosed with and die of cancer. There is also speculation that there is health inequalities between the young and old as the old receive poorer treatment and have less access to certain procedures found in the 2008-9 Health Inequalities report. There are also those who are suffering from physical and mental impairments with poorer health outcomes than other parts of society therefore they are more likely to suffer from terminal illnesses and coronary heart disease (House of Common 2009). The report has also found that health outcomes also vary according to geographical area thus those living in a deprived area are more likely to suffer from worse health problems than those in a more affluent area. To further understand health inequalities this section explores the causes of these, such as access to healthcare (House of Commons 2009). There are a plethora of causes why individuals can not get access to the necessary health care and treatment. The most compelling concern is about access related to age-related inequalities (House of Commons 2009). There are however arguments refuting this, there are other mitigating factors. There are a wide spectrum of lifestyle choices which further contribute to the inequalities in the populace, included amongst these are; smoking, nutrition, exercise and weight (House of Commons 2009). Individuals who are over-weight or given to unhealthy habits such as excessive drinking and smoking may display an increased reluctance to access medical treatment, resulting in a deterioration of health and a widening chasm of health inequalities. It is argued that the lifestyle factors which lead to health inequalities have an underlying socio-economic origin. It is purported that; causes of health inequalities reflect what are frequently referred to as the underlying causes-income, socio-economic group, employment status and educational attainment (House of Commons 2009). There is a correlation between education and income in relation to the health inequalities. The lower down in the socio-economic hierarchy you are, the higher the probability of health inequalities. There is also a widening gap between poverty and housing according to the Heath Inequalities report (2009), those of the low socio-economic group are more likely to have a substantial income therefore they are more likely to live in poor housing which in effect leaves them vulnerable to illnesses such as asthma due to dampness. There are many different aspects which maybe the cause of health inequalities in the population however there are disagreements with som e of these findings such as the link between socio-economic inequalities and health inequalities (House of Commons 2009). According to a recent publication in Health Economics there is not substantial evidence to say there is an association between socio-economic inequalities and health inequalities. There are no direct links but it is assumed that this is a factor in health inequalities and there is not much that can be done about this, however lifestyle factors play a big role in health inequalities in the population which can be helped to improve these inequalities. Community development is a way forward, this is one way in which health inequalities can be reduced in the population in the UK. Community development is a set up where communities can amplify their power and efficiency to improve community life, by getting people to recognise and develop their ability and potential and organise themselves to respond to problems and needs which they share (Scottish Community development Centre 2010). This would mean the community is in control they are able to participate in public decision making and governances (Community development Foundation 2009) as a result they are able to improve their environment for the better which gives them better control in the long run. By using the bottom-up meets top-down approach through capacity building the community members are being used to improve the health inequalities of the surrounding areas. In doing so the communities are being empowered as well as individuals being self empowered consequently the commun ity are more likely to respond than they are if a stranger such as a health professional came in and told the community what they are doing wrong and what needs to be done they have shared values and norms, mutual although not necessarily equal influence, common interests, and commitment to meeting shared needs (1998). Through this approach communities identify and build on strengths, resources, and relationships that exist within communities of identity to address their communal health concerns (1998), and do not feel threatened or belittled by health professionals and they are taking the initiative to recognise what they themselves are doing wrong or lacking and how this can be made better. Community development means there is not a victim blame approach so no one is saying a person is obese due to their eating habits and lack of exercise; it is giving the communities the opportunity to voice their opinions as well as giving health professionals the chance to build rapport with the community. Building on from that, the Scottish Community development Centre (2010) have found that Community development allows communities to plan and have positive prospects for the future as well as creating wealth and giving every member of the community access to its benefits. This would help reduce health inequalities significantly, the community can come together and feel as one and take care of one another which facilitates a safe environment. Through this people are able to develop their skills, reduce isolation by involving everyone as well as creating social networks and building relationships characterized by trust, cooperation and mutual commitment and mediating (1998) with other communities and agencies that affect their community. Community development can prove to be very successful, as an individual a person can be deprived, isolated, intimidated whereas part of a community a person can be rest assured there will always be others, they benefit from community health and feel par t of a community by a sense of identification and emotional connection to other members (1998), working together to reduce health inequalities and taking control to help maintain their achievements. It is hard to measure the success of community development as this would have to be looked at case by case however there are success stories such as the March 2010 Rural Community Programme in the Northwest (Northwest Regional Development Agency 2010). The Northwest have strengthened their rural communities and in 3 years have resulted in 57 social enterprises being supported across a range of services including health (Northwest Regional Development Agency 2010). By empowering the community they have made a huge accomplishment, together they have reduced health inequalities through providing services therefore there is ease of access. This is a huge success for community development; this evidence shows that community development strategies can be used to help reduce health inequalities. Community development can be triumphant; by setting up projects in different communities the government can reduce health inequalities in doing so they are reducing numbers of inequalities of health in the population. This can help the NHS; if there is less health problems there will be less expenditure in the NHS and the government save money which they invest in the NHS to help improve their services. Community development allows capacity building for those communities with lack of education and skills this could be life changing as it allows them to build on their own capacities and improve their lives. Communities come together and become a family. Communities are empowered and as a result voice their opinions and help to decide on policies that put in place, Councils provide local leadership. They know their patch, they bring local knowledge and can help bring people together to breakdown the silos that bedevil public bodies (Local Government 2010) this way theses policies are m ore likely to be successful as they are from the community therefore they are more relevant and money is not wasted in making policies and having to make changes so they meet the needs of communities. Communities learn how to work with others and build relationships and partnerships with other communities and institutions primary care trusts, voluntary sector bodies and local businesses are proving key partners for many of the projects (Local Government 2010). This helps with funding as there is sponsorship coming from different places rather than just from government making it easier on them. With funding from outside deprived communities could become wealthier and the widening gap between the socio-economic groups would decrease and there would be significant improvements in the health inequalities in communities. However there is a lack of evidence in some community development projects there is a well recognised gap between research findings and the implementation of evidence based prevention strategies in community settings (McGinnis and Foege, 2000). If there is no evidence of success within community development projects the government will be reluctant to invest money into the project which would discourage communities from taking part, which inevitably means the community development strategy will prove to be ineffective. If this were the case then health inequalities would not be resolved and communities will still be deprived. There is also the finance side of this strategy; a project like this can be expensive; if government feel its not cost effective there would be limited or no funding available. As this would be new the community and there is no guarantee it will be victorious the community will be disinclined to invest there time or money in the project. Even if there were fundi ng available there is always the chance that communities will chose not to take part, there will also be communities where only part of the community want to get involved therefore would not be as beneficial as possible. There is a chance these strategies may not meet community needs (Green and Mercer, 2001). If a community development strategy is set up in place but does not meet the communities need it would a waste of time and money. Community development needs to be developed around the members of the community, if the project is too multifaceted for the members of the community they will not want to part take or findings could be misleading therefore the project will fail the low level of individual participation rates in studies that recruited from a representative targeted population raises questions about generalisability (uel.co.uk, 2010). There would be insufficient research and findings can be misrepresented. The programme needs to be designed around the community and their capabilities. Another issue could be inadequate resources whether that is down to funding or geographical area and such, without resources the community development would be futile. To conclude, this essay has analysed four key ideas, Firstly it has discussed the extent of health inequalities in the population, the nature and scale of these inequalities. Secondly it has discussed some of the causes for these health inequalities. The third area was the community development and its potential as a strategy to reduce health inequalities. Finally this essay discussed the how community development would make a useful contribution to the policy goal to reduce the health divide. The idea of community development sounds good, many communities would benefit from such projects, this would help change many health inequalities and recent health issues wouldnt be such an issue. There would not so much pressure on the government to do put provisions in place to reduce health problems such as obesity. If there was a community development project based around obesity, people would learn about the benefits of eating healthy and exercising and how to prepare healthy nutritious food on a budget. This would save the NHS millions if the number of obesity related treatments were reduced significantly. Evidence illustrates community development would be a huge success in reducing health inequalities and improving communities. In relation to community development it can be seen that projects can be effective however based on the evidence this not necessarily cost effective, there are no guarantees and even if there is funding there is no assurance the community development will be maintained. There are too many risks involved the situation would have to be assessed very carefully and a lot of planning would have to go into the project. This is not ideal for all aspects of health inequalities; there is also the issue of insufficient findings or misleading results. Unless there is a big chance of success there is no use of wasting time and resources.

Essay --

Colour vision refers to the ability of an organism to distinguish between stimuli based on the wavelengths of light they emit, reflect or transmit. We live in a world filled with colours which we use as an advantage on a day-to-day basis; to signify danger, make things stand out and to help us categorise the world around us. However, 1 in 12 males and 1 in 200 females (approximately 4.5% of the population) suffer from some sort of colour vision deficiency or blindness (Colour Blind Awareness, 2014). It is therefore of interest to investigate what is different about the visual system in this minority and why the occurs. This essay will investigate this by considering what ‘colours’ actually are in terms of wavelengths of light, investigating the differences of what we perceive to be a ‘coloured’ world based on the different visual systems of non-human animals. Finally it will look at what makes the system of colour blind humans different, questioning whether we can really consider them colour blind at all. The basis of our vision is a direct cause of photons (light) entering our eyes from the environment around us. We examine these photons in one of two ways; either the intensity of the light (number of photons) or by examining the wave energy. This wave energy is what enables colour vision, and refers to our eyes ability to detect slight changes across the electromagnetic system of light. As a whole this consists of a variety of parts; cosmic rays, gamma rays, x-rays, ultra-violet light, visible/white light, infrared, microwaves and radio waves. Our human eyes are only sensitive to the visible white-light which ranges from approximately 400 to 700 nanometres (nm) across the electromagnetic system. Newton is heavily credited towa... ...t differences in colour therefore relies on the sensitivity of different types of cone cell within our retina. This is what enables us to see the full spectrum of visible light from blues into the deep reds. It is evident from studies with dogs, birds, snakes and other animals that having a different number of cones, or having these cones sensitive to different wavelengths causes a completely different perspective of our colour world. As a result Dichromatic or Monochromatic humans who are missing a certain type of cone(s), or even trichromatic humans with a cone sensitive to an anomalous wavelength can be labelled as colour blind. Whilst these ‘colour blind’ individuals are usually still able to detect differences in colour across the visible spectrum of light they ultimately see the colour world in an abnormal way to an individual with a normal visual system.

Life speech

Live life to its fullest l' m happy to Join with you today, base on something that all humans should do every day, every moment, every minute, every second and every breath. Life is a priceless object that god gave us. Life is a matter of choices. Life is a start and an end to our destiny. Throughout the years, from Stone Age and now, humans sometimes choose misery over enjoyment which is not wrong but also not right. It' s the decision of each of us, wherever we want to waste precious opportunities that Life give us. Humans, Like me and you, should enjoy life to the fullest.We should avoid the chains of misery and wretchedness. We should leave the nest that we once were afraid of leaving. We should release the cage that kept our happiness and Joy and break It until It s dust that we are standing on. We should pass on happily and satisfied, once we fulfill the life we want. Everything was meant to be there, meant to be done, meant to play a role In something. We are the mall characte r of our life. We are the stars that shine In the light of our brightness. We are the ones that play the most Important and significant role in our life.We are the center of attention of our life. We are meant to achieve the goals we set. It would be fatal if we din t enjoy life. But we want to avoid it. Problems and mistakes are not the things that go wrong but we are. We should overcome what we think, what we feel and what we did. We can t stay the rest of our life sitting in the bench of hell waiting until the day our soul float to the sky. We need to act now, it doses ‘t matter what you need to do to complete your destiny, it doses t matter what problems you need to solve on your way to your destiny.That is what life is, a maze where a challenge, a struggle, a journey, a mystery, an adventure was to start, overcome, solved and ended. It's a maze that you will meet beauty, love, promise, tragedy and sorrow. A maze that we receive spirits, promises, opportunities, songs and gifts. Live life to its fullest and wake up without regrets. Have a cheerful start in everyday and always remember that a new days starts from zero. Live life to its fullest and share it with others. Share it with others, inspire them, or learn from them. Live life to its fullest and complete the goals you set.Every step counts, it's like a stair, one step will not make you reach the top, but ten steps will. Live life to its fullest and sing it as long as you want to. Life is not only a story you're the main character but also the song that sings and shows your feeling throughout the years. Live life to its fullest and learn from the past. It doesn't matter If today was a bad day for you, think about your mistakes and learn from It, as a wise men say â€Å"People learn from their mistakes not from their remembrance. † Live life to Its fullest and take each opportunity.Not every day you will have the same opportunity as today; it might happen In another 5 years or maybe never. Take It and don t leave It, use It and don ‘t waste a great opportunity to show your talent and skills to others. Enjoy each opportunity that life takes you to. Live life to Its fullest and treasure every moment. You don ‘t want to forget excellent moments, or romantic moment or great moments with some people you really care. You need to treasure each of the moments you enjoy In life and keep It In the deepest of your soul. Every time you treasure a moment, you will realize that living life to its fullest is important you very much. Life speech Live life to its fullest l' m happy to Join with you today, base on something that all humans should do every day, every moment, every minute, every second and every breath. Life is a priceless object that god gave us. Life is a matter of choices. Life is a start and an end to our destiny. Throughout the years, from Stone Age and now, humans sometimes choose misery over enjoyment which is not wrong but also not right. It' s the decision of each of us, wherever we want to waste precious opportunities that Life give us. Humans, Like me and you, should enjoy life to the fullest.We should avoid the chains of misery and wretchedness. We should leave the nest that we once were afraid of leaving. We should release the cage that kept our happiness and Joy and break It until It s dust that we are standing on. We should pass on happily and satisfied, once we fulfill the life we want. Everything was meant to be there, meant to be done, meant to play a role In something. We are the mall characte r of our life. We are the stars that shine In the light of our brightness. We are the ones that play the most Important and significant role in our life.We are the center of attention of our life. We are meant to achieve the goals we set. It would be fatal if we din t enjoy life. But we want to avoid it. Problems and mistakes are not the things that go wrong but we are. We should overcome what we think, what we feel and what we did. We can t stay the rest of our life sitting in the bench of hell waiting until the day our soul float to the sky. We need to act now, it doses ‘t matter what you need to do to complete your destiny, it doses t matter what problems you need to solve on your way to your destiny.That is what life is, a maze where a challenge, a struggle, a journey, a mystery, an adventure was to start, overcome, solved and ended. It's a maze that you will meet beauty, love, promise, tragedy and sorrow. A maze that we receive spirits, promises, opportunities, songs and gifts. Live life to its fullest and wake up without regrets. Have a cheerful start in everyday and always remember that a new days starts from zero. Live life to its fullest and share it with others. Share it with others, inspire them, or learn from them. Live life to its fullest and complete the goals you set.Every step counts, it's like a stair, one step will not make you reach the top, but ten steps will. Live life to its fullest and sing it as long as you want to. Life is not only a story you're the main character but also the song that sings and shows your feeling throughout the years. Live life to its fullest and learn from the past. It doesn't matter If today was a bad day for you, think about your mistakes and learn from It, as a wise men say â€Å"People learn from their mistakes not from their remembrance. † Live life to Its fullest and take each opportunity.Not every day you will have the same opportunity as today; it might happen In another 5 years or maybe never. Take It and don t leave It, use It and don ‘t waste a great opportunity to show your talent and skills to others. Enjoy each opportunity that life takes you to. Live life to Its fullest and treasure every moment. You don ‘t want to forget excellent moments, or romantic moment or great moments with some people you really care. You need to treasure each of the moments you enjoy In life and keep It In the deepest of your soul. Every time you treasure a moment, you will realize that living life to its fullest is important you very much.

Inquiry learning Essay

Introduction Discovery learning or Inquiry Learning has a long history in education and has regained popularity over the last decade as a result of changes in the field of education that put more emphasis on the role of the learner in the learning process. Zachos, Hick, Doane, and Sargent define discovery learning as â€Å"the self-attained grasp of a phenomenon through building and testing concepts as a result of inquiry of the phenomenon. † The definition emphasizes that it is the learner who builds concepts, that the concepts need to be tested, and that building and testing of concepts are part of the inquiry of the phenomenon. Computer simulations have rich potential to provide learners with opportunities to build and test concepts, and learning with these computer simulations is also referred to as simulation-based discovery learning (Lester, Vicari, & Paraguacu, 2004). Students engaged in discussions – raising questions, resting ideas, challenging each other’s assertions – is at the heart of inquiry learning. Such discussions enable students to go beyond hands-on activities to interpret and reflect on their experiences and develop new ways of thinking. Reflecting their understanding of inquiry learning, the originators of network science aimed to have students in distant classrooms use the network to discuss science with one another like collaborating scientists (Feldman, 2000). Literature Review The main goal of discovery learning activity is to obtain and/or construct knowledge about a domain by performing experiments and inferring rules and properties of the domain from the results of those experiments. Research on discovery learning has shown that learners can experience a range of problems that can prevent successful learning. Discovery learning requires learners to act in the same manner as scientist when discovering the properties and relations of the domain that is simulated, using processes that are very similar to the processes of scientific discovery. Learners need to generate hypotheses, design experiments, predict their outcome, interpret data and reconsider hypotheses in order to construct knowledge about the domain. With each of these learning processes, problems can arise. Learners can fail to state testable hypotheses, design uninformative experiments or interpret experimental results badly (Gauthier, Frasson, & VanLehn, 2000). In order to make discovery learning successful, learners can be supported from within the learning environment. The learning environment can contain cognitive tools that can be directed at the support of one or more learning processes. Cognitive tools can offer support to the learner in several ways of support, creating a learning dialogue between the learning environment and the learner and at establishing the conditions under which profitable learning processes takes place. Cognitive tools play a role in supporting and provoking these learning processes (Gauthier et al. , 2000; McTighe & Wiggins, 2005). Like in discovery learning, the idea of simulation-based discovery learning is that the learner actively engages in a process. In an unguided simulation-based discovery environment learners have to set their own learning goals. At the same time they have to find and apply the methods that help to achieve these goals, which is not always easy. Two main goals can be associated with simulation-based discovery learning; development of knowledge about the domain of discovery, and development of skills that facilitate development of knowledge about the domain (Lester, Vicari, & Paraguacu, 2004). Those who read Guthrie, Cornford, Allen, and Bluck, among others, will find there what we might call the â€Å"traditional view. † According to this view, the paradox is a dilemma about one’s epistemic resources at the outset of inquiry and the role those resources play at the inquiry’s conclusion. The alternatives that the dilemma proposes are beginning with 1) total, explicit knowledge or 2) absolute ignorance. The doctrine of recollection provides the solution with its proposal that all inquiry begins with something intermediate between 1) and 2): latent, unconscious, or implicit knowledge. When these commentators speak of â€Å"total knowledge,† they seem to have in mind â€Å"self-consciously clear† or â€Å"conscious† knowledge (Anton & Preus, 1989). There are three points to be borne in mind in any discussion on learning by discovery. First, what is involved primarily is the learning of facts, concepts and principles rather than skills, techniques or sensitivities; and the subjects most relevant to discovery learning are mathematics, science and environmental studies. Second, it is usually associated with the traditional classroom, and third learning by discovery does not just happen; it comes about as a result of a particular teaching method or strategy. Numerous strategies can be distinguished in this connection; perhaps the most common one to be found is that of guided discovery (Manion, Morrison, & Cohen, 2004). Discovery or Inquiry must ultimately in the history of the race precede instruction; for if it’s this teacher who teaches from someone else who learned it from another teacher that cannot go back indefinitely. Somewhere in the knowledge that we pass on in the process of teaching, someone must have discovered it for himself. so we see, first of all, that learning by discovery is primary (Loucks-Horsley & Olson, 2000). Learning by instruction is secondary. And if this is so then we also see that teachers are, in an absolute sense, dispensable. For nothings which can be learned by instruction with teachers is impossible to learn without teachers. I don’t mean teachers aren’t useful; they are. For most of us would not be able to learn without the help of teachers or learn as rapidly or learn as easily the things we have to come to know in the course of our lifetime. But I do not mean that teachers are only helps. And this understanding of the teacher as an aid, as something which helps in the process of learning, is the deepest insight into the nature of teaching in relation to learning (Adler, 2000). Learning by instruction, learning with the help of teachers is no less active than learning by discovery or inquiry. Perhaps it would be better then, instead of saying learning by instruction and learning by discovery, to call them both learning by discovery; learning with a teacher as â€Å"aided discovery† and learning without a teacher, as â€Å"unaided discovery (Adler, 2000). Analysis Many network science projects have not lived up to their potential to involve students in productive inquiry. Firstly, the network science model of curriculum typically constraints classrooms by imposing rigid schedules for data submission and exchanges. The low level of completion for many network science projects – which, was less than 50% of classes in one project submitting data – may reflect teacher’s inability to fit the real lives of their classrooms, punctuated by school events and holidays and snowstorms, into the schedule demands of many network science projects (Feldman, 2000). Aiming to coordinate work among classes, many network science projects are constrained by centralized schedules. To refocus science learning on inquiry, teachers and students need flexible schedules to allow questions to be pursued in greater depth. Without such flexibility, the potential of the curriculum to support student inquiry is greatly diminished (Feldman, 2000). Secondly, network science encourages the use of scientific and social problems to spark learning, focusing on the importance of investigating questions for which the answer is not known. However, this emphasis on questions for which the answer is not known and the questions are of genuine interest to scientists excludes the possibility of students investigating concepts that may be well known to scientist but no longer of interest to them. Because such concepts are still unknown to students and potentially of great interest, they offer a scientific excursion through which students can reliably have successful and powerful learning experiences. For example, students might investigate phenomena as simple as why some objects float – a topic that is unlikely to be of any interest to scientists (Feldman, 2000). Inquiry learning, under appropriate conditions, is highly desirable; an elaborate pattern of ideas must be built up in a child’s head and only the child can built it; it is the teacher’s job to help the child to build up this elaborate structure of interrelated ideas, and to help the child correct the structure of interrelated ideas, and to help the child correct the structure whenever it is found to be in error (Solomon, 1988). By means of discovery learning we may reasonably expect children to learn something new; and to do so through some initiative of their own. Moreover, a teacher supports a child’s self-chosen activity with questions, commentary and suggestions (Manion et al. , 2004). Conclusion In this paper, we presented a view on combining collaborative learning and the discovery learning. The aim was to show how we can benefit from theoretical knowledge on discovery learning to enhance the added value that collaboration can have and, vice versa, how collaboration in itself can serve as support for the processes of discovery that learners can engage in. Mutual gain can be created from combining collaborative and discovery learning by increasing the mutual awareness in tools supporting either type of learning. Adding knowledge about discovery to collaborative tools can enhance collaborative tools to adapt themselves or give feedback on their contents. On the other hand, collaborative processes take the role of cognitive tools for discovery learning in making learning processes explicit. Of course the examples given in the paper are only a small part of what become possible combining two powerful paradigms of learning (Gauthier et al., 2000). In the latter part of the paper we show how a theory of discovery learning can help to design architecture for communicative support for discovery learning. A central place is taken by a common frame of reference that supports the communication between the different components in the architecture (Gauthier et al. , 2000). References: Adler, M. J. (2000). How to Think About the Great Ideas: From the Great Books of Western Civilization. Chicago and La Salle: Open Court Publishing. Anton, J. P. , & Preus, A. (1989). Essays in Ancient Greek Philosophy: Plato. New York: SUNY Press. Feldman, A. (2000). Network Science, a Decade Later: The Internet and Classroom Learning. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Gauthier, G. , Frasson, C. , & VanLehn, K. (2000). Intelligent Tutoring Systems. Germany: Springer. Lester, J. C. , Vicari, R. M. , & Paraguacu, F. (2004). Intelligent Tutoring Systems. Berlin Heidelberg, NY: Springer. Loucks-Horsley, S. , & Olson, S. (2000). Inquiry and the National Science Education Standards: A Guide for Teaching and Learning. Washington DC: National Academies Press. Manion, L. , Morrison, K. R. B. , & Cohen, L. (2004). A Guide to Teaching Practice. London and New York: RoutledgeFalmer. McTighe, J. , & Wiggins, G. P. (2005). Understanding by Design. Virginia USA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Solomon, C. (1988). Computer Environments for Children: A Reflection on Theories of Learning and Education. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London, England: MIT Press.

Market Imperfections With Internet Travel †Economics Essay

Market Imperfections With Internet Travel – Economics Essay Free Online Research Papers Market Imperfections With Internet Travel Economics Essay The Internet is clearly a marvelous technological advance. It helps millions of people from all over the globe to exchange information almost instantly which certainly has big effect on markets throughout the world. It makes the markets more competitive and more customers related. You might say that the internet is creating a â€Å"new† economy which is based on more information and communication. Many businesses know that in order to stay competitive they need to follow this new trend and many of them have. Today you can buy almost everything through the internet and it certainly is very convenient and easy. One of the markets that is particularly affected by the internet and the e-commerce is the travel industry. Before people, such as my parents, where more used to book a holiday through a travel magazine or a travel shop but that time has passed and nowadays most of my family holidays are booked through the internet. The reason to this is because it is easier and the amount of products and services is bigger. The e-commerce also makes the possibility of comparison between the different products much higher. All these factors have made the market better but the market is far from perfect and this i s due to market imperfections. In order for any market to be perfect the market should have a so-called â€Å"Perfect Competition†. If this would be the case there would be no market imperfections. But this is not the case and in the real world there are many market imperfections. In the real market there are market imperfections such as â€Å"Consumers Lack Perfect Knowledge†. This means that consumers are not completely aware of the products or services their buying. In most markets there exist entry barriers which make it hard for new companies to come in, due to such factors as high costs and brand loyalty to existing companies. While operating in the market the companies have the possibility to collude and keep up the prices. They may also differentiate their products and use advertising which makes it hard for the consumer to get a true picture of the products. But the market imperfections have certainly been reduced since the launch of the e-commerce. The travel industry has changed in dramatic ways since the advent of the internet. The e-commerce has added many new things to the knowledge of the consumers. Now days there is a greater price transparency, with the consumers able to compare different flight tickets and vacations on-line. There is greater information on the quality of the products since it is possible to read reviews of people already used the service. Travellers now use this medium of e-commerce to plan and prepare trips. The suppliers are trying to offer cheaper trips in order to stay competitive and the internet helps to avoid the service charges added by the companies. The e-commerce has helped new travel agencies enter the market and has diminished the control by large firms to overcharge prices. The technical components that make up the travel industry have changed as well since the Internet’s arrival. The emergence of travel web sites such as Planet Rider and online travel companies such as My Travel ha s taken the web by storm and forced travel agencies to rethink their approaches and adapt to the popularity of the Internet. The arrival of a homepage like My Travel has changed the travel market in many ways. The homepage offers everything to satisfy a customer needs. They offer a variety of products such as Ski Holidays, Sun Holidays, and Cruises. By using their homepage a customer can easily find out everything about the company from their history to their board of directors. The homepage enables the customer to ‘Shop around’ and compare prices with their competitors such as Expedia. The customer can easily compare the prices of the different trips and it makes the planning of the trip very easy. The customer saves time and nerves on waiting in telephone cues. The page is very easy to use and it should not be a problem for a person even with low knowledge of the internet. A homepage like this helps to lower entry barriers and increases competition which results in better quality and lower cost products. It also enhances the use of travel since the price are low and this attract new customer s. A homepage like EasyJet.com under eases the long process of ticket booking. Before the process of ticket booking was either done through telephone service or ticket shops. Now days a ticket can be booked through a simple click on the mouse button. The customer is provided with a long range of products and can easily compare prices between rivals. And you might even notice that even though Easy Jet is a low price carrier it might sometimes charge more than normal airline carriers (see appendices). The homepage constantly updates new special offers and has features that help the customer to create a trip just the way he wants it. The homepage is translated into 7 different languages and is therefore easy to use for a person with low language skills. The homepage provides services to customers to find out everything about the routes even such things as the weather. The online ticket booking does not online benefit the customers but also the companies. It helps the companies to reduce th eir overall costs allowing them to invest in ways to improve their market presence. Due to the low costs offered by the company the competition increases and other air carriers such as British Airways are forced to cut down their prices. This surely makes the market more competitive and benefits the customer. The Travelocity homepage is another example of a very simple and straight forward homepage. It offers a wide range of products such as flights, hotels, cars/rail, vacations, cruises and last minute deals. It is a very good homepage that is easy to use and offers and impressive variety of products. The homepage offers good information about the company as well as their products. The homepage even gives you ideas of what to do when you arrive to your destination. The consumer benefits from the homepage since it is open 24/7 and the prices are fairly low. The homepage in general helps the company to lower their distribution costs and gives them the potential to expand considerably and create a direct relationship with their customers. It helps the market to be more competitive and gives the customers a higher knowledge and possibility to compare products (see appendices). A homepage like this also helps lowering the entry barriers since the set up costs for such a homepage are very low . Obviously the internet has improved not only the travel market but the market in general. The booking of travel online is perhaps the most successful niche of all of the world’s e-commerce efforts. It has benefited the consumer in many ways. Now days the consumer has the possibility of buying a wide range of products to lower prices, easily compare the prices of suppliers, finding useful information about the products and easily buying the products by simple mouse clicks. The internet has helped to reduce the costs for both consumers and suppliers. It has helped to reduce the entry barriers and increase the competition. But the Internet is far from being perfect due to several factors such as technical problems and credit card scams. There has been the last few years, a growing problem with credit card scams using the internet. This is a world wide fraud and uses debit and credit cards. This is certainly a big problem for the e-commerce and costs several millions every year. B ut in general the advantages of the e-commerce overcome the disadvantages. In future I think that the companies within the travel industry which do not take the e-commerce into account will find it very hard to compete and will probably be left out of business. Bibliography: * My Travel Available at URL: uk.mytravel.com/ * Easy Jet Available at URL: easyjet.com/ * Travelocity Available at URL: travelocity.com/ * British Airways Available at URL: britishairways.com/travel/fx/public/en_gb?eId=111011timestamp=0602011151 * Easy Jet Available at URL: easyjet.com/en/book/step2.asp * Sloman J., (2003) Economics (fifth edition) UK: Pearson Education Limited Appendix Research Papers on Market Imperfections With Internet Travel - Economics EssayAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaDefinition of Export QuotasMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductOpen Architechture a white paperTwilight of the UAWBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfPETSTEL analysis of IndiaThe Project Managment Office SystemNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceHip-Hop is Art