Education Vision Essay Example for Free

Education Vision Essay I believe that all students should be held to the same standards of education. While there should always be accommodations for an individual students strengths, weaknesses and learning style, there should also be a universal set of criteria by which a students progress is measured. While those standards may sometimes seem exacting to the students expected to meet them, they are far less demanding than what is required of todays workers in an economy where competition has become global. An innovative and creative spirit has become in the last twenty years something that is generally expected of everyone rather than something only expected of the exceptional, a solid foundation in the basic elements of education, math and reading have become ever-more vital to succeeding in the modern world. Where education is concerned, I have found that creativity and innovation can oftentimes be fostered by the experience of overcoming challenges and, thereby, attaining a justified belief in ones own abilities. A student who is taught to take pride in their work and, especially, to take pride is turning a failure into a success is someone likely to succeed in a world where competition is fierce and belief in ones self is the most advantageous thing. Where the application of standards are concerned, I believe that any leader in an educational setting must be held to high standards just as are the students. By holding myself accountable to the highest standards, I gain the legitimacy to expect the same of my students and the ability to inspire them to do more than they may have thought possible. The position of a leader is one that is at least partially earned by gaining credibility in the eyes of those whom I am charged to lead. This can best be accomplished by setting an example; by continually challenging myself with new ideas and new situations while at the same time having the conviction to stand by those practices that have proven effective over time. Having worked as a teacher and a teachers assistant in various settings for the past five years, I have learned that both students and educators must never loose touch with their essential humanity and that empathy must always accompany high expectations. When a student knows that their teachers understand the hardships they face but still expect them to perform at a level of excellence, the student can be assured that they are not being driven unreasonably but are only expected to perform at the level their teachers know that student can achieve. Where sympathy and lowered expectations are really forms of condescension, empathy and high expectations communicate to a student that their instructor has not only high hopes for their student, but also a sincere and justified respect for their students potential. I have always felt a visceral connection and genuine responsibility for the successes and failures of my students. I hope to always be there to help my students experience the satisfaction of success and of overcoming failure.

Marketing And Branding For Online T Shirt Companies

Marketing And Branding For Online T Shirt Companies The current study is aimed to predict the Marketing plan and the Branding through a mix of marketing products for my Online T- shirt Company based in India for the next 2 years. Therefore the current study has been focused to deliver the appropriate marketing plan supported by effective brand positioning related to market the T- Shirts via internet and how will the techniques attract the customers. Thus the T- shirts of the Online selling firm are being separated from the various other marketing policies and brands through this approach. The appropriate recommendations for effective branding which in turn carry out marketing for my company is as below: Analyzing the product and assessing the positive aspects of the product. Preparing the appropriate marketing plan suitable for my firm Branding the product on the basis of the unique quality through repositioning. Regain the edge and strengthening the brand values through marketing plans. Suggesting the future marketing capacity and the opportunity for the firm Adoption of suitable branding strategies such as branding by planning, branding imageries, branding experience and the branding by self expression. SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS: The situation analysis of my firm Online T shirt company has been commenced to study the needs and requirements of the target consumers for better satisfaction and thus for improving the business it is necessary for my business to concentrate more on the clients and an effective study about the internal circumstances as well as the external opportunities, current trends of the market place, and the assessment of the capability of my firm Online T shirt company. Hence for this, I decided to carry out the situational analysis as the main aim through which the 5 Cs of my firm can be evaluated. The 5 C s is the major aspects that are related with the firm that will help me to take better marketing verdicts and strategies. The basic ideology in carrying out the situational analysis is to study the macro economical, micro economical and the internal aspects of my firm. The basic 5 Cs are the common factors related with the firms such as company, consumers, challengers, and collaborators and finally the climate. The following are the major aspects of the situational analysis I want to relate with my firm Online T Shirt Company. Company: For my Company, Online T Shirt firm will include the following aspects under this category: The manufactured goods such as T Shirts. Reflection in the market place The expertise and familiarity Ethnicity and backgrounds of firm Ambitions and future targets Collaborators: These aspects are the major functional players of my firm such as: Dealers Affiliates Distributors Customers: The main aspects of my business are the target consumers and for the analyzing the situation, the following aspect have been selected: Size of the Market and its expansion Major segments of the Market place Outstanding profits that customer is aiming to search for both physical and indefinable profits Impulse behind procurement; significant drivers, profits vs. expenses Resolution maker or the administrative component of the firm Study about the current retail trend that includes the current trend followed by the consumer for real acquirement the merchandise. The sources of customer data resources about the SEO where the shoppers obtain information about the merchandise. Process of buying that is by desire or vigilant judgment Incidence of acquisition, seasonal features of the goods. Capability of purchase with certain quantity at a time Recognition of consumer needs, new trends and inclinations and expected change of trend over time Competitors: the next set of considerations for the analyzing the situations are the factors about the competitors of my company: Authentic or probable rivals Straight and indirect rivals Goods of rivals Place of positioning of goods Market shares Strong points and limitations of competitors Climate: The climate is the fifth C in analysis or macro-environmental factors related with my Online T Shirt Company are: The financial atmosphere such as business cycle, rate of inflation, rate of interests, and other macroeconomic concerns Authoritarian and the political background like policies provided by the government and policies that influence the souk Social and the cultural aspects such as fashion and trends of the society Technical backgrounds such as latest acquaintance that will allow probable innovative traditions of fulfilling the needs of the clients and the blow of expertise on the demand for accessible goods. SWOT Analysis: Thus for analyzing the about facts of my company Online T- shirt firm special strategic tool will be applicable. This tool availing the analysis of situation is termed as SWOT analysis. The following is the SWOT analysis of my Online T Shirt Company. (Kotler et al., 2006. Pp. 63) Strengths for my Online T Shirt Company: The products are of good quality and available in various shades The company has extended line of distribution and global commerce availability The delivery will be done appropriately and on timely basis Carry out the process with lower prices Lesser costs of other expenses and staff costs Weaknesses: As the online business is growing in extent and is available globally several weaknesses may arise and sometimes these are more compared to conventional commerce threats. The following are some of the anticipated weaknesses for my Online T -Shirt Company for next 2 years: Chance for no proper retention due to the availability of identical products No personal feel and checking of products may not be preferred The expenses of transport and manufacturing may rise from what has been quoted All the visitors may not make proper sales order Opportunities: The following are some of the anticipated opportunities for my Online T -Shirt Company for next 2 years: The rapid growth of online users due to appropriate web hosting processes. More availability of traffic and more effective sales of the company The online shopping is very opportunistic and most comfortable The improved security in transactions have increased the scope for online T Shirt commerce as well The company can still be able to provide the service in wide fledge and also in other accessories also that is extension is main opportunity Threats: For my Online T Shirt Company many ascertain various threats due to the high internet usage and some of these might be severe as well. The following are some of the threats to the company: Due to easy entry of various businesses may cause lot of competition and rivalry Lack of customer relationship management will further cause losses Duplication of the products and network security attacks MARKETING AND BRAND OBJECTIVES: Sales and Price Targets The sales and price targets is very important for my company as depending on this the future plan can be made. The target price will decide the sales target of the company. In general the EPS forecasts will be made to suggest the sales target and target prices. In my Company, the proposed sales target can be predicted as Rs. 35, 00, 000 per annum whose price target will fall around Rs. 30, 00, 000. Satisfaction levels and change in awareness The level of satisfaction is very important for any company. My Online T Shirt Company shall deliver the objectives such that the satisfaction is enhanced in consumers by providing the services through active comparison from other services both in prices, quality and efficiency, quality, flexibility, lesser operational prices, swift delivery, more revenue of sales, etc. And in turn the loyalty is built. Thus the awareness will be built in consumers regarding the process and product of online T Shirt Company. The process of uniqueness will develop positive attitude and behavior ultimately providing better opportunity for business. The branding and the sales objectives for the company are thus framed in order to improve the commerce of the company by keeping various aspects in notion such as Sales Price targets, satisfaction level of consumers, changes in customer awareness, attitude, behavior etc. all these will enumerate the effectiveness of branding and marketing in return the major objectives are: To develop viable branding process for my Online T Shirt company To assess the benefits, opportunities of company by delivering threats. To deliver appropriate banding strategies To predict the target price and sales target for next 2 years. To assess the marketing delivered through effective branding strategy MARKETING AND BRAND STRATEGY: For my Online T Shirt Company, the following are the appropriate marketing and branding strategies: Marketing Plan: For my online T Shirt Company the development of the appropriate marketing plan approach will be applicable as it mainly concentrates on the core objective of the business, includes various strategies, budget plan, target consumers, E commerce, pricing process, various risks involved and finally the marketing plan will help evaluate the effectiveness of the process. Hence these factors can be appraised as follows: Present Position Online T Shirt Company is a starting firm that will mainly deal the business through internet starting from selection of T shirts to put a deal and from tracking the consignment to delivering it. Hence my company also wants to improve the off line marketing policy to improve the significance of the company in the Indian market which improves the awareness of clients. Budget Plan As my company is dealt through online, the Budget plan include about 20% of total budget towards internet operation and about 10% to the telephone processing etc. the budget plan is perfect to implement and no necessary changes in the plan anticipated. Customers The target customers for my Online T Shirt Company are from genders male and female, all ages, and target client income shall be from high to middle class. As many of these client bases use the internet more traffic can be maintained. Pricing For my Online T Shirt Company, the pricing will be maintained very nominal so that the costs will be enormously low with eminent quality and lower time delivery from other competitors to draw clients from their base. Marketing Strategies The major strategy applicable for my Online T Shirt Company will be through online marketing and offline marketing that will improve the reputation of business and draw consumers. With the advent of the technology and change in the current trends various forms of marketing concepts can be employed in the marketing of the goods and services delivered by the organization in the unique way of approach. All the marketing techniques will however ultimately have the identical goals such as to acquire the large amount of clients and to withhold the clients and this is very important for my company in order to achieve the objective. The company may go for social networking as marketing base where the customers can explain the simplicity of process, product quality, lower costs and other benefits, mouth marketing, by providing special discounts, complimentary gifts, exclusion some type of taxes etc. Brand Plan The term branding for my Online T Shirt Company will be effectively deliver the motivation to the consumer and help retain through proper satisfaction. Thus the loyalty can be increased by highlighting the service opportunity, effective quality, emotional branding and unique t shirt designs, lower costs, identity as global presence etc. Branding strategy The brand strategy will be of various types such as brand planning, branding by imageries, branding by experience and the branding by self expression. In the case of my Online T -Shirt Company, the first and the last approach will be very advantageous though remaining strategies can also be applied. The first method is planning for branding where by proper research of market and demand for good and competence, the brand can be positioned. The self expression of branding will be built through satisfaction of consumers. ACTION PROGRAMME: The action plan of the company will be carried out by focusing on the 7 Ps of marketing mix in my company. The following are the main factors considered in the company in planning the strategy. 7 Ps: Pricing This type of marketing strategy is implemented to attract the consumers with minimum mark- up which may be lower from other outlets. My Online T Shirt Company may mark the goods with nominal prices with better discounts. Product The product strategy involves developing of novel products which may change according to the consumer current requirements. My online T Shirt Company shall be able to develop the products by keeping specific target clients in view with eminent colors and design aspects with current trends. Distribution My Online T Shirt companies have its own distribution channels and means which can be further improved with the growing expansion of the organization. The company will agree the process of delivery of the goods in harmony with local bodies for a timely liberation of the goods. Promotional My Online T Shirt Company generally follows the drastic promotional program with discounts and offers on various product range. A Google AdWords is the main source of promotions even for small and less branded firms to exercise the commerce equally with effective value. This mode of process will charge less money for advertising. Most of the people make use of Google for their main search option. Place The concept of the place strategy is very difficult to select in the conventional business compared to that of online business. For my Online T Shirt Company, the place of business is internet, where it can be operated from any place. But the main concern will depend to select the delivery place. Participants The participants are the people who are partaking in the business. The major participants of the commerce will vary based on various aspects such as gender, sizes, age, cultures, life styles, incomes etc. the major participants for the case of my Online T shirt company will be people both young and grown-ups and from kids to adults. The people also range with various sizes and genders etc. Process In my Online T Shirt Company, the process of service is to deliver the goods of sales through online interaction and online payment process. Physical evidence The physical evidence is essentially a form of guide and manual, leaflets that will guide the client to make the necessary operations such as keeping an order in the case of my Online T shirt company. PROJECTED PROFIT AND LOSS STATEMENTS: For the Online T Shirt Company to deliver the profit and loss statements it requires various aspects such as resolution of income, recognition of gains and revenues, recognition of loss and profits Revenues: Year 1 Year 2 Net Sales Rs. 30, 00, 000 Rs. 35, 00, 000 Interest Income Rs. 75, 000 Rs. 1, 00, 000 Gain on Sales of T Shirts Rs. 25, 00, 000 Rs. 30, 00, 000 Total Revenue Rs. 55, 75, 000 Rs. 66, 00, 000 Costs and Expenses: Costs of T shirts sold Rs. 30, 00, 000 Rs. 35, 00, 000 Selling expenses Rs. 7750 Rs 9000 General and Administrative expenses Rs. 4000 Rs. 5000 Internet expenses Rs. 5000 Rs. 6, 000 Telephone expenses Rs. 5000 Rs. 5500 Shipping expenses Rs. 10, 000 Rs. 12, 000 Delivery expenses Rs. 40, 000 Rs. 42, 000 Office supplies Rs. 4000 Rs. 5000 Insurance expenses Rs. 50, 000 Rs. 60, 000 Interest expenses Rs. 10, 000 Rs. 12, 000 Income taxes Rs. 5000 Rs. 6000 Total Costs and Expenses Rs. 31, 40, 750 Rs. 36, 62, 500 Net Income: Rs. 24, 34, 250 Rs. 29, 37, 500 CONTROL METHODS: The control methods are the basic requirements of any form of business organization as it will directly effect on the success of the firm. Various plans or strategies are followed in the firm in order to control the process. Annual Plan The annual plans are to deliver the flow of process, goals and objectives which my company wants to achieve at the end of the year. The long range vision is observed to be the key function that will provide with the annual plan of the firm. My Online T-shit company goals are to achieve the target sales of Rs. 35, 00, 000 for next 2 years. Profitability The profitability will be determined as the capability of the firm to deliver the anticipated total income constantly in all the years. My online t-shirt company anticipates a net income of Rs. 30, 00, 000 for the next 2 years. This can be calculated in terms of return of Investments or ROI. Where ROI = (Net profit Amount Invested) / (Amount Invested) Efficiency The efficiency is the most significant term where the achievement of or ability to carry out a job with a least expenses of time and effort: The assembly line increased industrys efficiency Strategic controls and Marketing Audits The audits are carried out internally in the firm so as to appraise the system of accounting. Â  As a management tool, the audit measures and evaluates the effectiveness of management controls. The Naval Audit Service provides an independent audit of programs, activities, systems, and procedures. CONCLUSION: Hence it can be concluded by carrying out study on marketing plan and branding on my Online T-shirt Company is that the effective branding and marketing will in turn carry out the marketing that will help the organization to make strategic positioning. The process of branding will improve with the selection of benefits that may catch the pulse of target consumers and generally the emotional benefits whereas the marketing is the strategic process which will help the organization to sketch the plan of action so as to achieve the goals and objectives of the company. Any marketing technique will focus mainly over the 7 Ps of the product or the service delivered by the company and to study the benefits of rivals and prepare for the plan to defy the responses of the rivals. This concept will also assist the company to determine the level of performance of his company and the rival company. For achieving the goals to generate more sales and brand position as eminent firm will necessities to make a plan of action which is carried out by marketing and brand strategies and early estimation of profits and losses along with the better control factors.

Increasing Healthcare Costs Becoming A Concern Economics Essay

Increasing Healthcare Costs Becoming A Concern Economics Essay Rising health care costs has become a concern for many nations, societies and even individuals. The ability to cope with this issue and its implications will be greatly looked into in this report. In order to understand how to tackle this challenge, there is a need to first understand the root causes, in other words, what causes health care costs to rise. After having looked at some of the common beliefs of rising health care costs, the report will then look at the strategies implemented to tackle this challenge. To do so, the report will make use of a few journal articles to critically discuss on the effectiveness of Singapores healthcare financing system and recommend measures that will help solve the issue better. Literature Review A very common and simple reason that people give for the increase in healthcare costs often fall on the fact of aging population and the increased vulnerability of the population to health issues, leading to more medical consultations, both inpatient and outpatient. This in turn, causing healthcare costs to rise. Another common reason that many people give for the increase in healthcare costs is inflation. Inflation causes the prices of goods and services to rise. When such happens, the costs of health care will rise because the salary of the workforce employed in the healthcare industry increases, the costs of medication increases and the costs of health insurance increases, for example. (Cockerham, 2010) The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development noted a significant increase of average ratio of health spending to GDP in its 31 member countries. The report also suggested that while technological advancement brought about improvement in diagnosis and treatment, this also contributed to the increasing of health spending (OECD Health Data 2010, 2010). In another report, rising health care costs was attributed to greater use of innovative medical technologies. However, the report suggested that rising health care costs could also be due to the market power of health care providers. In the report, however, it seemed to suggest that the extent of the increase in rising health care costs in developed countries like the United States in terms of the market power of health care providers are more significant than that in developing countries. (Annals of Internal Medicine, 2005) It is undeniable that no country is able to guarantee accessible healthcare for all. However, the situation in low-income countries is far more critical as some are even unable to ensure access to basic healthcare for its citizens. A few options proposed to tackle this issue include governments increasing their budget allocations on health expenditure, raising additional domestic funds for health or diversifying their funding sources (World Health Organization, 2011). Another interesting cause highlighted for the increase in rising health care costs could be due to our social behaviour in terms of financial prudence when a third party pays our medical bills. It is interesting to note that when our medical bills payment falls on the responsibilities of a third party (i.e. employer, insurance company or government) and we only pay a small and affordable percentage, we are more likely to seek medical consultation, diagnosis and treatment even for the slightest illness. A case study on Singapore health care financing system is done to discuss on how these considerations are managed and how it may be further improved. Case study: Singapore health care system financing According to one of the research studies, Singapores ageing population which is estimated to increase by 12% in 2030 to 19% of its population being made up of older Singaporeans aged 65 and above. This is of a concern in ensuring provision of affordable healthcare especially where responsibility of the healthcare bill often falls on the children of this segment of the society. Singapores health care system focuses on developing independence and interdependence of its people on the nation. In order not to create total reliance and dependence on the nation, Singapores health care system begins with building a healthy population through preventive healthcare programmes and promoting a healthy lifestyle (Ministry of Health, Singapore, 2007). Singapores health care system then ensures affordability of healthcare to its people through offering universal coverage and multiple layers of protection. In this strategy, this is done through (1) heavy government subsidies of up to 80% of the total bill in acute public hospital wards, which all Singaporeans can access, (2) , a compulsory individual medical savings account scheme which allows practically all Singaporeans to pay for their share of medical treatment without financial difficulty, (3) Medishield, a low cost catastrophic medical insurance scheme, which allows Singaporeans to effectively risk-pool the financial risks of major illnesses. Individual responsibility for ones healthcare needs is promoted through the features of deductibles and co-payment in Medishield. Eldershield, a severe disability insurance, is also available for subscription by Singaporeans to risk-pool against financial risks of suffering a severe disability. and (4) Medifund, which is a medical endowme nt fund set up by the Government to act as the ultimate safety net for needy Singaporeans who cannot afford to pay their medical bills despite heavy subsidies, Medisave and Medishield (Ministry of Health, Singapore, 2007). To promote competition and transparency so as to counter further unwarranted rise in healthcare costs, in 2004, the Ministry of Health began to publish hospital bill sizes  to show the variation in costs among our hospitals, with a view to push our hospitals on this effort to do more with less.   There have been some successes since then in spurring improvements, e.g. LASIK prices dropped by more than S$1,000 per eye and the competitive price wars continue to this day, at great benefit to consumers. The Ministry has also progressively published health outcomes on the website to encourage further improvements and help patients make more informed choices. Singapores success was further supported by its statistics on government spending in 2008, when Singapore spent about S$ 10.2 billion or 3.9% of GDP on healthcare. Out of this the Government expended S$2.7 billion or 1.0% of GDP on health services (Ministry of Health, Singapore, 2007). Discussion: Effectiveness of Singapores strategies in managing rising health care costs Singapores focus on the ideology that prevention is better than cure helps managing rising health care costs by encouraging its population to reduce the need of seeking medical attention and thus reducing substantially incurring of such expenditure. Its preventive healthcare programmes such as free or subsidized community health screening programmes and activities aimed at promoting active living and healthy lifestyle makes being healthy a simple way of life which is possible to achieve. Moreover, this ideology will continue to tackle the lasting problem of aging population and the increased vulnerability of the population to health issues, which is said to be a cause for rising health care costs. With stressors of a fast-paced meritocratic society such as stress at school at a very young age, stress of work upon working life and the stress of supporting and maintaining a family, this often causes one to become sick and have to turn to medical attention for relief. As such, Singapore would need to consider strategies on how to tackle such non-health issues that may lead to healthcare expenditure, in order to further assist its population to manage rising health care costs. Next, having discussed the preventive strategy taken by Singapore, the Medisave and Medifund benefits would be discussed. It is important to first understand that only Singapore Citizens and Singapore Permanent Residents contributing to the Central Provident Fund (CPF) as well as his dependents (i.e. spouse, children, parents and grandparents) would be able to benefit from the Medisave. In addition to subsidizing healthcare expenditure, the Medisave can also be used to pay the premiums of MediShield, which covers up to 80% of a large medical bill at the class B2/C level or any appropriate integrated shield plans from approved private insurers (Ministry of Health, Singapore, 2007). This allows the individual and his dependents who are subscribed to the MediShield or the integrated shield plans to have the most, if not all, of the inpatient and outpatient healthcare expenses, including co-insurance and deductible to be taken care and omits the individuals stress of having the need to seek sufficient cash funding for such a purpose. This in turn, helps to minimise the social stressor of healthcare need. While this may prove to be helpful to its population, it is important to note that as the benefits is still fairly limited. Compared to its entire population being able to benefit from such initiatives, there is a burden created on the CPF-contributing individual to look after both his personal and dependents healthcare needs and expenditure, using the Medisave. Should the CPF-contributing individual be the sole breadwinner of the household, this would inevitably create further psychosocial stressor on him which may pose potentially cause health deterioration and create unwarranted expenditure on healthcare needs. Therefore, Singapore would need to relook into providing healthcare financial subsidies to its population who are do not contribute to the CPF, in order for its approach to manage rising healthcare costs to be effective and complete. On top of the Medisave, the Medifund scheme exists to help ensure needy Singapore citizens who are unable to pay for their medical bills, are still provided with the necessary medical care. In order to benefit from the Medifund, a list of basic requirements needs to be met, such as the patient and his family having difficulty affording the medical bill despite heavy government subsidies, MediShield and Medisave (Ministry of Health, Singapore, 2007). While the Medifund scheme shows the government great concern and active efforts to ensuring medical care is catered to the needy of its population, the initiative is still not wholesome and thus need to be relooked into, such as in a situation where a patient meets most of the criteria stated but comes from a broken family and has a family member who is able but refuse to pay for the patients medical bill, he may then be unable to benefit from the Medifund. In such an instance, further implications and repercussions to the patients psycho logical and physical health may worsen his existing medical condition. Not only will his medical bill continue to snowball, his physical health problems may continue to deteriorate as well. Indeed, Singapores strategies in managing rising health care costs through its present healthcare system seem comprehensive and complete. However, there are still some areas that Singapore would need to relook and focus on in order that the strategies would be effective for its population. With the known fact that change is the only constant, a review system would thus need to be in place to improve strategies implemented to manage rising health care costs effectively. A recommended approach for Singapore to review and implement more wholesome, comprehensive and effective strategies to managing rising health care costs may be that of implementing differential healthcare financing schemes that would assist the various socio-economic segments of its population. Secondly, as rising health care costs due to inflation has yet to be tackled by its current strategies, Singapore may need to review its employment assistance and salary compensation strategies to better assist its population in managing rising health care costs, such as ensuring its population who are unemployed to be able to seek employment or reemployment within a short time frame as well as ensuring that the salary compensation for each occupation or profession would be appropriately accorded based on skills, abilities, experience, performance as well as inflation. Conclusion The Singapore government should not micromanage the issue of rising healthcare costs by superficially managing direct influence on rising healthcare costs. The need to prepare its population to accept the change to an ageing population society is crucial in ensuring that every individual is responsible for the

Ginsberg and Roth Choosing Their Own Judaism :: Allen Ginsberg

Ginsberg and Roth Choosing Their Own Judaism      Ã‚  Ã‚   I take these things for granted. Tradition and cultural awareness to me is another thing I can shrug off like too much homework. To my generation it's fashionable to embrace other traditions: mendhi tattoos for the Italians, matzo ball soup for the Pakistanis, McDonald's for the Nigerians. When did we learn to borrow from everyone else? When did I learn to come to terms with my own identity? The Civil Rights movement started it all. In quick succession, Asians demanded recognition, Native Americans wanted to carve a place back into their country, women wanted to burn their bras. Why not the Jews in America? Allen Ginsberg used his own tradition and his mother's death to establish that identity, while Philip Roth used a fictional narrative to tell the story of a Jewish family in America. Why compare these works at all? Both are creative accounts of Jewish American culture, one through poetry and one through a fictionalized self. Both use Judaism to express feeling to eith er tradition or memory. Both are literary works in the 1960s that deal with Jewish self-identity rather than black, white, or other identities. But I'm getting ahead of myself... Allen Ginsberg says his own work "Kaddish" is "finally, completely free composition, the long line breaking up within itself into short staccato breath units - notations of one spontaneous phrase after another..." (Allen 417). "Kaddish" is a prayer of atonement, making its point through rhythm, repetition and incantation. Ginsberg uses "Kaddish" to express his understanding of his own identity, and also to put that identity into the framework of Judaism. Ginsberg's mother Naomi went through a series of mental hospitals and psychological outbreaks from Ginsberg's childhood, eventually receiving a lobotomy and dying shortly thereafter. The Ginsberg family never held a traditional "Kaddish" because too few men were present to do so. Two years later, Ginsberg performed the ceremony with then friend Zev Putterman, and later wrote his own version of "Kaddish" (Asher). He starts his "Kaddish" incanting the spirit of Naomi by pulling up memories of her and her identity. "I walk toward the / Lower East Side - where you walked fifty years ago, little / girl - from Russia, eating the first poisonous tomatoes of / America - frightened on the dock" (Allen 195). In Part IV, Ginsberg then goes on to chant to his mother with the phrases "O mother," "with your," and "with your eyes.

Diamonds Are My Best Friend Essay -- essays research papers

“It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in spring, when everything else begins again. And it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings. And then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone.'; A. Bartlett Giamatti, the former commissioner of Major League Baseball. From the lush, green grass to the smell of an old leather glove, baseball is truly an extraordinary game. Let us look beyond the enormous salaries and free agency and examine baseball for what it really is: an outstanding form of entertainment. Baseball is incredibly important to me, as not only have I learned an enormous amount from it, I have experienced a whole spectrum of emotions during my love affair with the game. I have been a baseball fan all my life. I remember watching my beloved St. Louis Cardinals play in their robin’s egg blue uniforms in the early 1980’s. We had a birdfeeder in our backyard, and every morning, the same cardinal would stop for his breakfast. I named him Tommy Herr, after the Cardinals second baseman at the time. Tommy has long since retired, but I will always remember the little bird flying in my backyard. It is difficult for one to approach this subject without a sense of heroism and romanticism of it’s rich history. One of my favorite parts of going to the ballpark is listening to the fascinating stories of old timers, the men who have loved the game since childhood. They remember Musial, Maris, and Mantle. They can tell you stories of hearing Hank Aaron hitting his record breaking home run on the radio, or watching Lou Gehrig as a young child. Many of the greatest baseball stories can be heard from these men, living encyclopedias if what the game once was, and it today. Someday I will be sitting in the box seats of a ballpark, and a young child will take the seat beside me. I can captive his imagination with anecdotes of Cal Ripken Jr.’s remarkable streak, Ozzie Smith’s amazing back flips, Pedro Martinez’s menacing fastball, and the magical summer of 1998 when Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire mystified the world with their long ball heroics. Only in recent years have I begun to truly appreciate the game for what it really is. While some go to the ballpark to see home runs, popular players, or fireworks, I find myself attracted to th... ... that next year, it will all begin again. A fresh new start. A brand new season. However, right now, it is fall. A pitcher grabs a coat to keep his throwing arm warm in this chilly rain, and soon the entire dugout is seen donning coats. The leaves start to change to brown. Kids go back to school. Football begins to creep onto the minds and lips of sports fans. The season comes to a close, and the spring looks terribly far away with an icy cold winter between now and the promises that lie ahead. Baseball has survived throughout the years. It has survived two World Wars. It has survived a depression. It will continue to survive throughout the next millennium. It has gone on strike and saw half it’s fans leave, then watched them come back to see truly great men exhibit even greater talent. Baseball is a sport for the ages. Eighty year old men who have watched this game for years come to the park and sit next to eight year old boys who have never seen a professional game in their lives. That’s what baseball is all about. It is extraordinary. Athletes rise above the compitition and achieve greatness while astonishing veteran fans and simultaneously earning new ones.

The Practical Ways of Spending Money

What is better? To spend money Saving and investing your money for the future is one of the most practical things you can do. This is solid advice, but when you do decide to spend your hard earned money it should be spent on something practical, useful, and meaningful to the wellbeing of your existence. So many people either save their money or blow it on worthless crap. Here are some practical ways to spend your money on something useful: 1.Travel to See the Significant People in Your Life – There may be no better way to spend your money than to use it to nurture and rekindle personal relationships with the most significant people in your life. As time quickly passes, we sometimes forget how essential strong personal relationships are to our mental wellbeing. The older we get the more we need true friends and family to be regular parts of our lives. 2. Hire a Personal Trainer – Your health is your life. Without it, all the success and affluence in the world is meaningl ess.Committing yourself to a regular exercise routine is one of the best ways to maintain the health of your body and mind. Sometimes it’s hard to tackle this endeavor on your own. Spending money on a knowledgeable personal trainer who can set you on the right course creates priceless results. Make sure you stick with the trainer until you are committed to exercising on your own. 3. Fix What Is Broken – Have you been ignoring your screeching brakes? What about the excessively loud hum from your AC compressor?Or the scratching noise coming from your computer system? Sooner or later these small annoyances will wear down the reliability of the product and you will be left with a completely broken product instead of just a halfway broken one. Use your money wisely to fix and maintain your belongings. 4. Educate Yourself – Use your money to purchase educational courses or books pertaining to your career, or to a miscellaneous topic that interests and intrigues you. R emember, knowledge is power and your brain is the container of that knowledge.There are few options for spending money on something more practical than the development and facility of your brain. 5. Add Value to Your Home – Your home should be your sanctuary, the place on this planet where you feel the most comfortable. Adding value to your home , be it personal value or increased monetary value, is always a practical choice for spending your money. If the additions you make increase your level of comfort for years to come, you win. If they increase the value of the home to a third party someday when you sell, you win. If both occur, you win big.

Literacy narrative Essay

Audience: Professor and fellow students of the English 102 course Purpose: To explain how I became literate in my lifetime and what contributed to my literacy level today 1,357 Words Benefits of Being a Bookworm Have you ever been asked, â€Å"What is your first language? † Living in such a melting pot of a country, the United States, minorities often get asked this question. Usually when people ask others this question, it is not because they want to know which language you learned to speak first. People ask this question to see which language the one being questioned is more fluent in. Is it possible that your second language might be the one you are more fluent and literate in? The answer to this question is yes. I am a first-generation immigrant to the United States and proud. My first language (to be politically correct) would be Cape Verdean Portuguese Creole. What I want to ask is why is it important to know what my first-language is when I am more literate and fluent in English? If I can compare my languages to my siblings, I would, due to the fact that I was raised with both of them equally during the course of my life. I learned Creole at home with my parents ad family, but I owe my literacy I English to school, and the love I had for reading. Practice makes perfect. A person’s literacy level is completely based on practice. Schools aim to train students to be literate and educated, but those students who practice at home (outside of the regulations of school) are the true scholars. Let’s look at Malcolm X, for example; a man who had formal schooling up until the eighth grade and nothing after that. Yet, even though Malcolm X had less schooling than all of us college students here at UMASS Dartmouth, he is probably, in my opinion, more literate and more educated than most of us. Interesting isn’t it? The reason why Malcolm X was so educated is because he read every day, non-stop, in his jail cell, with no distractions. He kept a dictionary by his side to teach himself any new words he would come across that he was unfamiliar with. What better way is there to familiarize yourself with a language and expand your vocabulary other than reading written works by other people that most likely know things you don’t know and have a different vocabulary than you? By reading you learn new diction, new facts, and cause your brain to grow in knowledge. I can say that aside from school, reading, like Malcolm X, expanded my literacy skills. As I had said before, I am a first generation immigrant; my parents also are first generation immigrants. I never had the luxury of being taught English by my parents, being read to by my parents, or getting help with my homework or anything academic at all except for math, of course, which doesn’t vary between countries that speak different languages. But even with this being said, I had always been at the top of my class in elementary school, done very well in middle school, and done well enough in high school to have the pleasure of being offered the opportunity to be in an Advanced Placement English class. I was a nerd in my early years. I used to enjoy reading very much. I would always ask my father to take me to the library, where I would check out many books and go through them like a bullet. During class time, when the teacher would be finished or took a break and there was nothing else to be done, I loved reading; I looked forward to silent reading time in class. When I had a 100-page book, I would tend to finish it within a day. Longer books such as the Harry Potter series would be finished within a few days. I never had a problem with reading assignments because I would finish them so quickly and understand everything I read. I had an eighth-grade reading level in elementary school while I would watch other students struggle while reading aloud as they stumbled on their words and wouldn’t know how to properly pronounce them. I never understood why it was so easy for me while other students would find it difficult. As a child I read all the Harry Potter books; they were my favorite. I also enjoyed other series such as Curious George, The Babysitter’s Club, and Judy Blume. I also read plenty of other books that I cannot remember because the list was so long. I believe that there is a strong relationship between reading and writing. Someone who is an excellent reader and comprehends what he/she reads should have a big vocabulary and a sense of how real, professional writers perform. Every book, magazine, and newspaper we read or look at is composed of articles and passages written by professional writers. If you have a lot of experience with all this, then you should know what a professional piece of work looks like and sounds like. Therefore, I feel like someone who reads a lot will be a good writer as well. The two things are connected, and it helps to write when you are a skilled reader and vice versa. Books are the perfect model for those who want to become more skilled as writers. After all, that is exactly what Malcolm X did, and he became very skilled. It takes a very skilled writer to produce the best books out there. If one does not know how to read and cannot understand words on a page, then how is it that they can know how to write the words down on their own pages. Similarly, if you are deaf, how can you learn to speak properly? Hearing words and their pronunciation is the model for the deaf to learn how to speak; and if they are missing their model or example, it can be almost impossible to learn naturally, on their own. I feel that reading and writing are the most important elements of school and learning. Books, articles, research papers, whether they are non-fiction or fiction, all serve a very important purpose. Whether you are reading for pleasure to expand your imagination and reduce your stress, reading to attain information on a specific topic or just to expand your knowledge, or reading to practice and become more literate and a better writer, you are never at a loss. Therefore, writing becomes very important because, if it wasn’t for writing, there would be nothing out there for us to read in the first place. Reading is not for the lazy. I used to love reading as a kid and found it so interesting, but as I grew into my teenage years and became more interested in action, reality and drama, I distanced myself from all the reading and became more of an extrovert. The occasional newspaper article or magazine article is still entertaining to me though. Even now, as a college student, you will never find me reading anything unless it is required for me to achieve the grades I desire; never do I read for pleasure. I feel that I achieved a high reading level way back in my middle school days, and that has influenced me to think that the only thing now that can improve my writing is to keep writing. I feel that I have acquired a great deal of knowledge throughout my lifetime and I did a lot of this myself through all my readings. Nobody pushed me to read during my spare time. My parents weren’t very literate in the English language to be role models for me or to help me read or even read to me. All the instructions I have read, all the words I learned how to pronounce, I did it on my own through reading. As a matter of fact, I don’t even remember seeing my father ever read a book, and my mom didn’t start reading until after she went back to school to get her college degree. Literacy is all about exploring the world of words, and pages, reading, and writing. In order for one to achieve great literacy, one will need to push and challenge himself/herself to read more and understand the readings.