Critically analyse how the Global Energy Assessment pathways represent future socio-technological change in the energy system, focussing on the building sector. The WritePass Journal

Critically analyse how the Global Energy Assessment pathways represent future socio-technological change in the energy system, focussing on the building sector. Abstract Critically analyse how the Global Energy Assessment pathways represent future socio-technological change in the energy system, focussing on the building sector. the Global Energy Assessment (GEA) was therefore launched and a new global energy policy agenda was established (GEA Writing Team, 2012: 4). The GEA intended to change the way society uses and delivers energy in order to mitigate climate change. In doing so, it brings together hundreds of international researchers to provide an analysis of the current issues that exist and to identify the possible options that can be taken in tackling climate change. Technology options and policies are also included in the GEA and are considered vital in protecting the environment and maintaining sustainable development (GEA, 2014: 1). As noted by Greening, the Secretary of State for International Development: â€Å"The long-term effects of climate change threaten to undermine progress in reducing global poverty† (Department for International Development, 2011: 3). This is the main reason why the UK is committed to helping developing countries adapt to climate change in a positive way by ensu ring that they take up low carbon growth and effectively tackle deforestation. This study will therefore examine some of the Global Energy Assessment pathways, by focusing on the building sector, in order to consider the effects these will have upon the energy system in the future. Socio-Technological Change in the Energy System In order for climate change to be tackled effectively, socio-technological changes are needed within the energy system. This can be ascertained by reviewing the different sectors which impact the environment and then considering what socio-technological changes are required. The building sector has a significant impact upon the environment because of the fact that it accounts for one-third of the planets total energy use (Global Alliance, 2012: 1). Technological improvements to buildings are therefore a cost-effective way of mitigating climate change. By using existing proven technologies we have the ability right to â€Å"reduce energy consumption in new and existing buildings by 30-50 percent at extremely low or no cost, and usually at negative cost (Global Alliance, 2012: 1). Increased building efficiency is therefore the future for the building sector because not only do greener buildings help to promote sustainability but they are also better for the consumer in that they are m ore comfortable and cheaper to maintain (NAR, 2014: 1). The pathways for transition that have been explored in the GEA therefore need to be followed if the building sector is to become more energy efficient. This is important given that GHG emissions are expected to nearly double by the year 2030 under a high-growth development scenario (Metz et al; 2007: 6). The GEA supports sustainability in the building sector by helping decisions makers address the challenges associated with building development (CCCSEP, 2012: 1). Energy Efficiency Barriers in the Building Sector   The building sector can contribute to tackling climate change through socio-technological change in the energy system, yet there are many barriers towards improved efficiency in this sector. One of the main barriers that exists is a lack of technical, economic and general knowledge about the energy sector. Not only does this knowledge gap apply to consumers but it also applies to building designers, architects and politicians (Urge-Vorsatz, 2012: 702). Because of this lack of knowledge, it is very difficult for many of the technologies and practices that exist in this area to be implemented. Furthermore, although energy efficient practices are considered cost effective, they are not being widely adopted due to the high initial start-up costs. The high upfront costs are thus discouraging, especially when there is a lack of knowledge that exists in this area and unless greater awareness is provided, it is unlikely that the GEA pathways will have much of an influence in the future. Mark et failures also provide barriers to energy efficiency because of the failures in the way the market operates (Urge-Vorsatz, 2012: 702). Such flaws prevent the trade-off between energy efficiency investments and energy saving benefits. Behavioural barriers are also a problem for energy efficiency in the building sector as the behaviours of individuals and companies may be difficult to change. For example, individuals may fail to turn the lights off in their homes, whilst organisations may fail to identify energy saving opportunities, especially if they do   not benefit directly from them. An example of this can be seen in relation to green leases since these are one of the main pathways to energy efficiency. Green leases thus impose obligations on landlords and tenants to achieve targets for energy consumption. This ensures that the energy use of commercial buildings is minimised through â€Å"better measurement, greater awareness and systematic management† (All Party Urban Development Group, 2008: 2). There are a number of different green lease shades which represent different commitments to the green agenda: light green leases represent a modest commitment to the agenda, whilst dark green leases reflect a much more serious commitment (Bright, 2008: 158). Regardless of the benefits green leases have on the environment, however, they are not being used as much as they should. This is largely the result of the â€Å"conventional relationship between the landlord (as building owner) and tenant (as occupier)† which generally neglects â€Å"environmental co nsiderations† (Hinnells et al; 2008, 1). The extent to which green leases represent future socio-technological change in the energy system is therefore unclear and it seems that further changes are required if a more robust system is to be implemented. Green leases should be used more frequently than they are at present, yet it is questionable whether this is likely to happen given that â€Å"change may be rapid, disruptive and challenging (Hinnells et al; 2008: 1). Bright believes that capital investment will allow for more efficient equipment to be introduced that will allow for better energy savings to be made (Bright, 2008: 158). This will encourage landlords and tenants to enter into a green lease if they can identify the real benefits that are associated with them. Consequently, it is evident when looking at green leases that one of the main barriers towards improved energy efficiency is the lack of awareness that exists. In order to remove this barrier to energy efficiency, campaigns and sector learning networks could be introduced in order to increase the current awareness of GEA’s (Carbon Trust, 2005: 16). Furthermore, actions could also be taken that raise the attention of building owners such as; tax incentives and low interest loans (Rezendes, 1994: 41). This will allow greater access to energy efficient equipment and will encourage individuals to take advantage of the opportunities that are available. Another barrier towards energy efficiency in the building sector is transaction costs and the limited availability of capital. Because building owners do not generally have spare capital available to make their buildings more energy efficient, they are less likely to take the GEA pathways into consideration (Ecofys, 2012: 3). Furthermore, as has been pointed out; â€Å"financial barriers to the penetration of energy efficiency and building integrated distributed generated technologies include factors that increase the investments costs and/or decrease savings resulting from the improvement† (Urge-Vorsatz, 2012: 698). Arguably, building owners are unlikely to make energy efficient changes if they are not also cost-effective despite the fact that the equipment is more efficient. This could also be rectified through tax incentives and low interest loans, yet economic instruments could also be introduced that reduce the overall costs of the equipment. Energy prices could also be increased so that going green would be more of an incentive than it is at present. This is because, unless there are significant cost benefits of becoming more energy efficient, it is unlikely that individuals will be actively encouraged to do so. Market misalignment is another barrier that prevents â€Å"the consistent trade-off between specific energy-efficient investment and the societal energy-saving benefits† (The Carbon Trust, 2005: 16). An example of this can be seen in relation to tenant-landlord relationships where companies have no direct control over the premises and so are reluctant to invest in energy effi ciency. This barrier could be overcome through the provision of split-incentives. This would encourage landlords to become more energy efficient if they were being incentivised to do so. If the GEA pathways are implemented, the environment will benefit significantly from this and the passivhaus standard will be applied in the building sector. This standard is the robust approach to building design which seeks to minimise the heating demand of buildings by building houses that have exceptional thermal performance (Passivhaus, 2011: 1). Unless it is less costly for builders to employ the passivhaus standard, there will be no incentive for them to do so as they will not benefit from the reduced energy savings. GEA Pathways for the Energy Efficiency Transition Because of how important it is to protect the environment, it is necessary that the multiple objectives outlined in the GEA are being met through environmental control. The main objective of the GEA pathways is to understand the combination of measures, time scales and costs that are needed to transform the energy system. In understanding this, however, it is necessary to first identify the energy efficiency barriers that exist so that appropriate measures can be implemented to alleviate them. Reducing thermal energy use is achievable through a number of different pathways such as; best practice in building design, construction and operation; the elimination of energy poverty; the increase of living space and economic development ((Urge-Vorsatz, 2012: 703). Before these pathways can be incorporated, it will be necessary to for significant investments to be made as well as the introduction of new appliances and technology and discounted energy saving costs. Because this will require h igh start-up costs, increased knowledge of the GEA pathway benefits will be needed so that individuals and organisations will be incentivised to adopt such pathways. Hence, many approaches have already been implemented to manage pollution-generating processes (Stuart, 2006: 1), yet it cannot be said that the obligations placed upon individuals under the   Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the EU’s Council Directive 96/61/EC to control the environment are being realised (McEldowney and McEldowney, 2010: 48). This is likely to be the result of market failures and behavioural barriers since individuals and organisations may not be able to identify when an energy saving opportunity arises.   Nevertheless, since the Climate Change Act 2008 was first enacted various mitigation and adaption strategies have been introduced, such as the Government’s ‘Green Deal’. The objective of this deal was to limit greenhouse gas emissions so that the increase of global temperature could be decreased. The Green Deal has been considered a welcoming development because of the fact that it has enabled the energy efficiency of many households and businesses to be improve â€Å"without consuming so much energy and wasting so much money† (DEEC, 2010: 1). This is beneficial for consumers and is likely to reduce the initial startup costs. The Green Deal is also effective in increasing the awareness of energy saving benefits, which is likely to remove any subsisting behavioral barriers. Conversely, it has been argued that the implementation of the GEA pathways may actually lead to further energy use, through the so-called rebound effect (Gillingham et al, 2013: 474). Although the GEA have identified the possible re-bound effect the implementation of their pathways may have, it seems as though little consideration has been given to this (GEA, 2012: 1573). Accordingly, it cannot be said that the barriers to energy efficiency have been given much thought and unless the behaviour of individuals and organisations change, it is unlikely that the GEA pathways will have much of an impact in the future.   There are both direct and indirect rebound effects that are likely to occur. The direct rebound effect happens when people consume more energy as a result of the low costs, and the indirect rebound effect happens when people use savings from lower energy costs to spend on other energy intensive activities (Sorrell, 2010: 636). In view of this, is thereby essential that re bound effects are taken into consideration when evaluating how beneficial energy efficiency really is. As noted by Giillingham et al; however: Empirical evidence indicates that the direct rebound effect will dominate in the near term at around 10-30 per cent (2013: 476). Regardless of this, it was also pointed out that rebound effects are not necessarily bad since the overall well-being of society will be improved as a result. Therefore, even if the re-bound effect does not lead to a significant reduction in energy use, societal well-being will be improved. It is unclear whether the target of 80 per cent emission reductions by 2050 will be achieved since there are a number of different changes that need to be implemented in order for the barriers to energy efficiency to be overcome (Bell and McGillivray, 2008: 531). In effect, whilst many implementations have been made towards establishing a sustainable future in the energy sector, the extent to which these have proven successful re mains largely unclear. If the barriers to energy efficiency are removed and the GEA pathways are followed, there is a possibility that the emission reductions will be reduced by 2050, yet it remains to be seen whether this will be by 80 per cent. This is because as put by Riahi et al; although the GEA pathways have shown that such a transformation is possible, the task remains and ambitious and will require rapid introduction of policies and fundamental policy changes that lead to coordinated efforts to integrate global concerns (2012: 1300). Consequently, the barriers to energy efficiency will need to be overcome before the GEA pathways can be implemented, yet this is likely to prove extremely complex. Increased awareness would be the first step as this will lead to behavioural changes that will ensure the GEA pathways are being adopted. Conclusion Overall, whilst there are a number of different GEA pathways that are intended to make effective socio-technological changes in the energy system, the extent to which these will prove successful remains unclear. This is because, whilst many of the pathways are considered effective ways of creating an environmentally friendly energy system, it cannot be said that the current mechanisms are being employed by all. This is evidenced by the introduction of green leases, which are aimed at establishing energy efficient ways of occupying commercial property. Whilst these leases do seem rather beneficial to both landlords and tenants, their place in the market has not yet been established. The lack of incentives may be one reason for this, which signifies how further benefits ought to be made available. In addition, the future of the mitigation and adaption strategies that have been implemented into the building sector is also unclear because of the fact organisations do not always co-operat e in the implementation of such strategies. The re-bound effect is also not being given enough consideration and thus needs to be taken into account when analysing the GEA pathways. Consequently, in order to maintain sustainable development and minimise climate change, it is vital that the GEA pathways are being promoted a lot more so that the impact the building sector has on the environment can be minimised, yet in doing so the re-bound effect should be taken into account in order to ensure that a more realistic approach is undertaken References All Party Urban Development Group., (2008). Greening UK Cities Buildings; Improving the Energy Efficiency of Our Offices, Shops and Factories. A Report Delivered by the Officers, (2008), centreforcities.org/assets/files/APUDG4.pdf 20 March 2014. Bell, S. and McGillivray, D. (2008). Environmental Law, 7th edn Oxford University Press. Bright, S., (2008). Going Green. 158 New Law Journal 1135, Issue 7333. CCCSEP. (2012) ‘Global Energy Assessment: Energy-Efficient Building Modelling Scenarios’ Centre for Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Policy, Centre European University, https://3csep.ceu.hu/projects/global-energy-assessment-energy-efficient-building-modelling-scenarios 29 March 2014. DEEC. (2010). ‘What is the Green Deal?’ (2010) The Department for Energy Climate Energy, decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/what_we_do/consumers/green_deal/green_deal.aspx Accessed 20 March 2014. Department for International Development. (2011) Tackling Climate Change, Reducing Poverty, UK International Climate Fund, https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/48217/3389-uk-international-climate-fund-brochure.pdf Accessed 19 March, 2014. Dowden, M., (2008). Property/Landlord Tenant: Contentious Carbon? 158 New Law Journal 1707, Issue 7348. Ecofys. (2012) ‘The Benefits of Energy Efficiency – Why Wait?’ Sustainable Energy for Everyone, ecofys.com/files/files/ecofys_2012_the-benefits-of-energy-efficiency-why-wait.pdf Accessed 30 March 2014. Gillingham, K. Kotchen, M. J. Rapson, D. S. and Wagner, G. (2013) The Rebound Effect and Energy Efficiency Policy Yale University School of Forestry Environmental Studies, [Online] Available: yale.edu/gillingham/ReboundEffectLongForm.pdf [03 April, 2014]. Global Alliance. (2012) Why Buildings, Global L-eadership in our Built Environment, globealliance.org/Libraries/Resources/Climate_Change_and_Buildings_Overview.sflb.ashx Accessed 20 March 2014. Global Energy Assessment (GEA) Writing Team. (2012) Global Energy Assessment, Towards a Sustainable Future, New York: Cambridge University press. Global Energy Assessment (GEA). (2014) Global Energy Assessment International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, globalenergyassessment.org/ Accessed 19 March 2014. Hinnells, M., Bright, S., Langley, A., Woodford, L., Schiellerup, P., and Bosteels, T., (2008). McEldowney, J. and McEldowney, S. (2010) Environmental Law, 1st edition Longman. NAR. (2014) What is Green Building National Association of Realtors, greenresourcecouncil.org/green-resources/what-green-building Accessed 14 March 2014. Passivhaus. (2011) The Passivhaus Standard [Online] Available: passivhaus.org.uk/standard.jsp?id=122 [03 April 2014]. Rezendes, V, S. (1994) Geothermal Energy, DIANE Publishing. Riahi, K., et al; (2012) Global Energy Assessment, Chapter 17, [Online] Available: iiasa.ac.at/web/home/research/Flagship-Projects/Global-Energy-Assessment/GEA_Chapter17_pathways_lowres.pdf [03 April 2014]. Sorrell, S. J. (2010) Dimitropoulus, The Rebound Effect: Microeconomic Definitions, Limitations and Extensions Ecological Economics, 65(3): 636-649. Stuart, R. (2006) ‘Command and Control Regulation’, The Encyclopaedia of Earth, eoearth.org/article/Command_and_control_regulation Accessed 20 March 2014. The Carbon Trust. (2005) ‘The UK Climate Change Programme: Potential Evolution for Business and the Public Sector’ Making Business Sense of Climate Change, carbontrust.com/media/84912/ctc518-uk-climate-change-programme-potential-evolution.pdf Accessed 29 March 2014. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DEEC). (2014) What we do, Gov.uk, https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-energy-climate-change Accessed 20 March 2014. The Greening of Commercial Leases. Emerald Group Publishing Ltd, emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1747108 20 March 2014. James, R., (2010). Not Easy Being Green. Property Law Journal 22, hilldickinson.com/pdf/Property%20Law%20Journal%20-%20green%20leases%20-%20Richard%20James%20Hill%20Dickinson%20LLP%20.pdf 20 March 2014. King, V., (2009). Is My Lease Green? 32 Company’s Secretary Review 24, Issue 24. LRCI., (2009). Guidance: Green Commercial Leases. Low Carbon Research Institute Convergence Programme, lcri.org.uk/images/pdfs/green%20leases%20guidance.pdf 20 March 2014. Urge-Vorsatz, D. (2012) ‘Energy End Use: Buildings’ iiasa.ac.at/web/home/research/Flagship-Projects/Global-Energy-Assessment/GEA_CHapter10_buildings_lowres.pdf Accessed 29 March 2014.

Fahrenheit 451 Study Guide

Fahrenheit 451 Study Guide Fahrenheit 451 is a novel by Ray Bradbury. Published in 1953, the book takes place in a dystopian future world where the job of a firefighter is to burn books, rather than put out fires. The main character, Guy Montag, is one such fireman, who slowly begins to perceive the world around him as perverse and superficial even as it slides inexorably towards a nuclear war. A commentary on the power of literacy and critical thought, Fahrenheit 451 remains a potent reminder of how quickly a society can fall apart. Fast Facts: Fahrenheit 451 Author: Ray BradburyPublisher: Ballantine BooksYear Published: 1953Genre: Science FictionType of Work: NovelOriginal Language: EnglishThemes: Censorship, technology, conformityCharacters: Guy Montag, Mildred Montag, Clarisse McClellan, Captain Beatty, Professor Faber, GrangerNotable Adaptations: 1966 film by Franà §ois Truffaut; 2018 HBO adaptation by Ramin BahraniFun Fact: Bradbury wrote Fahrenheit 451 on rented typewriters at his local library, spending $9.80 to write the book. Plot Summary The protagonist, Guy Montag, is a fireman whose job is to burn hidden caches of books, which are forbidden in this unspecified future society. At first, he goes about his job fairly mindlessly, but a conversation with a non-conforming teenager spurs him to question society. He develops a restless dissatisfaction that cannot be quashed. Montag steals a Bible and smuggles it into his home. When he reveals the book (and the others hes stolen) to his wife Mildred, she panics at the thought of losing their income and thus the huge wall-sized televisions she watches constantly. Montag’s boss, Captain Beatty, gives him 24 hours to burn the book or face the consequences. Montag eventually buries his book collection with help from Faber, a former professor. Soon, however, a call comes in for the Firemen to burn a new book cache- and the address is Montag’s house. Beatty insists that Montag do the burning; in response, Montag kills him and flees into the countryside. There, he meets a group of drifters who tell him of their mission to memorize books in order to eventually rebuild society. At the end of the book, there is a nuclear attack on the city, and Montag and the drifters head out to begin rebuilding. Major Characters Guy Montag. The protagonist of the story, Guy is a fireman who has been illegally hoarding and reading books. His blind faith in society erodes and opens his eyes to the decline of civilization. His efforts to resist conformity make him a criminal. Mildred Montag. Guy’s wife. Mildred has retreated entirely into a fantasy world stoked television. Mildred is unable to comprehend Guy’s dissatisfaction and behaves in a childish, superficial manner throughout the story. Her behavior represents society at large. Clarisse McClellan. A teenage girl who lives in Guy Montag’s neighborhood. She is curious and non-comformist, representing the nature of youth before the corrupting effects of society and materialism. She is the catalyst for Montag’s mental awakening. Captain Beatty. Montag’s boss. Beatty is a former intellectual whose disappointment in books’ inability to truly solve problems has turned him into an anti-intellectual. Beatty tells Montag that books must be burned because they make people unhappy without offering real solutions. Professor Faber. Once a professor of English, Faber is a meek, timid man who deplores what society has become but lacks the bravery to do anything about it. Faber embodies Bradbury’s belief that knowledge without the willingness to use it is useless. Granger. The leader of a group of drifters who have escaped society. Granger and the drifters preserve knowledge and wisdom by memorizing books. He explains to Montag that history is cyclical, and that a new age of wisdom will follow the current age of ignorance. Major Themes Freedom of Thought vs. Censorship. The novel is set in a society where the state forbids certain kinds of thought. Books contain the collected wisdom of humanity; denied access to them, people lack the mental skills to resist their government. The Dark Side of Technology. Passive pastimes like watching TV are portrayed as harmful purveyors of passive consumption. Technology in the book is consistently used to punish, oppress, and otherwise harm the characters. Obedience vs. Rebellion. Humanity assists in its own oppression. As Captain Beatty explains, banning books didn’t require effort- people chose to ban books, because the knowledge in them made them think, which made them unhappy. Literary Style Bradbury uses rich language filled with metaphors, similes, and figurative speech throughout the book. Even Montag, who has no formal education, thinks in terms of animal images and poetic, deeply beautiful symbols. Captain Beatty and Professor Faber frequently quote poets and great writers. Bradbury also uses animal imagery throughout to associate technology with dangerous predators. About the Author Born in 1920, Ray Bradbury was one of the most important writers of the 20th century, particularly in the science fiction genre. Bradbury framed technology and supernatural forces as dangerous and foreboding, which reflected the anxious, uneasy atmosphere of the newly atomic post-World War II world.

Why I want to be a Medical Assistant Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Why I want to be a Medical Assistant - Essay Example One of the major problems in the healthcare industry is the shortage of manpower. At the same time, the number of patients who take shelter in hospitals because of chronic diseases is growing day by day. There are three major reasons which motivated me to select the career in the field of medical assistants: American patients are facing difficulties in communicating properly with foreign hospital staffs, America is losing huge amounts because of outsourcing of clerical and administrative hospital jobs to foreign countries and Medical assistant profession is highly secure and decently paid profession. Most of the people working in American health sector are foreigners. Because of the shortage of Americans in the healthcare industry, patients are facing problems in communicating effectively with the foreigners. It is difficult for an American to communicate effectively with a foreigner, even if the foreigner has some knowledge in English.

Ethics Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Ethics Assignment - Essay Example Most assuredly is the fact that making a personal choice to ethics requires much thought, information, and the free will to make such a choice while knowing of the resultant consequences. Indeed, personal ethics affects individuals and their society. Ethics should therefore promote our prioritization and achievement of our core values. Ideally, personal ethics may relate to our religion, virtues, morals, and the community we live in. Personal ethics reflect in ones standards of honesty, courtesy, respect, integrity, trust, harmony, truth, justice, and loyalty (Shay Web). More so, personal ethics vary from one person to another and their effects equally vary. Personally, I believe that my ethics are developing as I grow up. I am an honest, responsible, and respectable person. More so, these are my personal choices that define my personality and my morality. Nevertheless, these attributes have grown with time and various factors propagate the development of these ethics. I think that the development of such ethics comes with time and relate to the environment. For example, I can easily remember that initially I was not an honest person until my teacher and parents sought to intervene in my way of life. My teacher taught me on how to remain honest despite the many possibilities that might force me to compromise. At the same time, my parents ensured that I stick to what is ethical as I grew to an adolescent. Hence, the value of honesty developed in me from my teachers and parents with time. In addition, I relate the development of my personal ethics to the environment where I live. I grew in an environment where the society advocated for the respect of the elderly, law, and leaders. As such, with time I d eveloped this virtue and have since adopted it. Therefore, by interacting with peers and environment that promotes these virtues, it was easier for me to choose them as my environment promoted

Action Research Essay Example for Free

Action Research Essay Abstract This paper reports the results of an action research (RA) on the effectiveness of teaching stories in a new way â€Å"Teaching Stories without Telling Them†. The purpose of this research was to justify that how interactive ways of teaching stories enables students to perform better in the classroom, how the interactive teaching expands the knowledge of both teachers and learners, and how the teacher, at the same time, is teaching and drawing on and learning from the knowledge and experience of the students. That creates an ideal teaching cycle, a self-reinforcing teaching and never ending learning process. Introduction The teacher can choose particular designs and techniques for teaching a foreign language in a particular context. No quick fix is guaranteed to provide success for all classroom situations. Every learner is unique; every teacher is unique; so is every learner-teacher relationship. The teacher’s key task is, therefore, to understand the properties of these relationships and set the classroom environment accordingly. In other countries such as Nepal, students are taught to view their teachers  as an authority and a knows-everything person in the classroom, and this value-based relationship hinders the learners from freely expressing themselves in the classroom. In this firmly established teacher-centered system, it is often offensive for the students to contradict the teacher’s point of view. This unequal classroom relationship is often seen as a cultural disposition. I believe that this is not a new issue. Many published writings have critically looked at it. However, a teacher can always adopt various strategies to increase students’ participation in the classroom activities. In order to justify this possibility, I used a technique that I have termed as â€Å"teaching stories without telling them†. If the stories are carefully chosen, students feel what they do in the classroom is relevant and meaningful to their lives. Moreover, when asked to respond personally to the texts, students become increasingly confident about expressing their own ideas and emotions. The stories involve emotions as well as intellect, which adds to motivation and contribute to personal development. This is in particular very useful where the classroom is often only source of English. Background I’m a new English Teacher at Kaunlaran High School but I have been teaching English for the last four year. The pre-requisite to join this programme is School Leaving Certificate (SLC). Practically, the students who join this course range from SLC graduates to University graduates. I also work at â€Å"English Speaking and Research Club† that runs classes for those who want to improve their speaking skills. Interestingly, the members coming to this Club include school students to professionals and businesspersons. Certainly, the classes in both settings are multilevel in nature. I would like to refer to Hess’s (2002) definition multilevel class is the class in which students vary considerably in their language and literary skills. In my case, students not only differed in language level, but also in age, motivation, expectations, attitude and interest. The Procedure In both places, I began with a pre-test in order to diagnose the learners  level of English. The candidates were tested all their skills – first day reading and writing and the second day speaking and listening. Later they were divided into three groups named as triple five (those scoring less than 50%), triple seven (those scoring between 50-60 %) and triple six (those scoring 60% above) according to their test results; but they were not informed about it. Action plan teaching process Selecting a story: (I selected stories from books available in the market. I purposely chose books that had an appropriate level of difficulty and length.) Briefing the students about the different nature of class: (I told my students that they would have to read the text and be able to answer the questions I would ask them in the class. I did not read the story. My role as a teacher and facilitator was to ask questions very carefully so that I would be able understand the story and students’ role was to make me understand the story.) Giving students the story to read at home as reading assignment: (I gave each student a copy of the same story to read at home.) Grouping the students according to their language proficiency level and carrying out the class: (I asked simple factual questions to below average group i.e. 555; reflective questions to average group i.e. 777; and interpretive and judgmental questions to above average group i.e. 666. This actually engaged every student in the classroom activity. Moreover, they were very attentive when someone was speaking. This various types of questions actually motivated all level students to participate in the classroom activity.) Carry out discussion: (I was very careful while carrying out the discussion. Sometimes the students gave contradictory answers to the same question I asked. In such situation I played a very careful role – I gave the students equal opportunity to justify their answers. My job was to facilitate them to come to an agreeing point.) Giving home assignment: (I gave different tasks to different group – I asked the below average group to write a summary of the story, I asked the average group to imagine one of the characters in the story and write the story from their own perspective. For example, imagine that you are the Brahmin in the story, write a paragraph how these three thieves cheated you. I asked the above average group to interpret t he story using their own feelings and emotions. For example, do you think you would punish these thieves if you  were a judge? Write a very logical paragraph of your argumentations. The students at the beginning were little puzzled but did not express openly. However, they participated very actively in the classroom activities. My primary aim was to promote learner autonomy, by encouraging them to take charge of their own learning (Nguyen, 2005). This became even more interesting as I purposely did not read the story to create a real information gap. If I had read the story, I would already have known everything and then the questions I asked in the classroom would have been merely mechanical ones. For this reason, I claim that the classroom language was authentic. Classroom activity In the classroom, I asked four different types of questions: factual, reflective, interpretive, and judgmental. It is vital that we understand the nature of the different types of question. I have briefly described what they mean and quoted some sample questions I used in my classroom and their respective answers that students gave. They are as follows. a) Factual questions: the questions are very simple and they can pick up the answer from the text very easily such as: T: what is the title of the story? 555: Brahmin and thieves (they can pick from the text) T: How many characters are there? 555: There are four; one Brahmin and three thieves. b) Reflective questions: the types of questions are related with peoples’ emotions, feelings and associations for which the students have to use their won feelings to characters, event and plot of the story such as: T: What could be another suitable title? 777: Brahmin and the goat (they have to associate with the text.) T: why did they try to fool the Brahmin? 777: because they want the goat. c) Interpretive questions: the types of questions are related with meaning,  purpose and values such as: T: Why do you think the title should be Brahmin and goat? 666: Because the goat also has main role in the story. d) Judgmental question: these sorts of questions allow the students to decide their feelings, emotions and response to the topic and discussion they have had together such as: T: Write a very logical description, why do you want to punish one? 666: I should judge very carefully. We all know that if we miss judge then there is no one to help poor people. In this case, any way the Brahmin is (sis) victim †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. In this way, every learner participated in the class. Though the class was multilevel, the task designed for different levels was really challenging. The classroom rule was that only the group was supposed to answer the question, in case they did not answer then other group would answer. As far as the error correction concerned, I did not correct all the errors they made in the discussion. It does not mean that I ignored all the errors. I corrected only global error not the local error. I agree with Brown’s (2000) definition that the local error is clearly and humorously recognized and recommended that they may not be corrected as long as the message is understood and correction may interrupt a learner in the flow of communication. The global error needs to be corrected in some way since the message may otherwise remain unclear and rather ambiguous. I have corrected the errors watching the situation without disturbing in their attempt to produce the language. The result I found a dramatic change in the classroom atmosphere: all trying to say something, listening to others what they say. In fact, I had never had such satisfaction in my class before even though I used pair work, group work and role-play. In this sense, I agree with Nunan’s (as cited in Hiep 2005) suggestion that the teacher should use such activities that involve oral communication, carrying out meaningful tasks and using language which is meaningful to the learners and as well as the use of materials that promote  communicative language use. Such activities helped the learners to find the ways of helping them to connect what is in the text to what is in their minds. One of the major advantages of this approach is that texts can be selected based on the richness and diversity of the language and on the relevance to the English learners who should find them both meaningful and motivating. I refer Nguyen (2005:5) â€Å"Exposing students to varieties of stories let them experie nce not only the beautiful language but also something beyond, such as sympathy with characters and engagement with emotional situations that relate to their actual lives. As a result, I found the activities vital for progress in language learning process. Such discussion certainly enhances students’ ability to pay attention, remember new grammar and vocabulary, process ideas and response appropriately. Moreover, students get enough chances to express their own ideas and opinions and discuss the opinions and ideas of other students. I agree with Byrd and Cabetas (1991:9) ‘by discussing these differences students learn to use English more clearly and to understand it better.† Moreover, they learn to clarify their own ideas, values, perspectives, and learn from others. A major innovation that I have noticed about this technique is to systematically build students’ ability to present their own ideas, opinions and feelings both accurately and confidently. I have particularly focused on maximizing student-talking time and minimizing teacher-talking time in the classroom setting. This action research proved the idea of Breen and Candlin (as cited in Byrd and Cabetas 1991) that the teacher has two roles: the first role is to facilitate the communicative process and to act as an independent participant within the teaching-learning process; second role is that of researcher and learner.

John Maynard Keynes and His Contribution to Economics and America Essay

Introduction With the recent recession John Maynard Keynes and his theories are being debated by millions of Americans, though likely without their knowledge, as his theories have become integral to America’s economic policy. A search of â€Å"John Maynard Keynes† on Google news, limited to just the past week, yields more than 200 results, illustrating the scope of Keynes’ continued influence. Fueled by concerns over unemployment and inflation the debate rages over government’s role in the economy, including regulation of industry, tax rates, and government spending to stimulate the economy. What people are really arguing over are the merits of supply-side economic versus demand-side. Keynes or â€Å"Keynesian economics is based on the notion that government can boost employment or cut inflation by manipulating the demand side of the economy—increasing government spending and expanding the money supply to boost employment and doing just the opposite to hold d own inflation.† â€Å"The two decades between 1919 and 1939 had seen great economic instability.† The economic troubles were being experienced both at home and abroad. In addition to the unemployment plaguing America and other â€Å"major capitalist industrial nations--†¦Britain, France, [and] Germany† —there was also â€Å"nightmare inflation, collapsing banks, [and] agrarian and industrial devastation.† The start of this economic collapse coincided with the end of World War I and the accompanying peace treaty. Keynes, a British economist had been advising his government throughout World War I, including The Paris Peace Conference. He entered the international scene of economics with his 1919 book titled, The Economic Consequences of the Peace. The book captured his views following the Treaty... ...s, 1989. Print. (432) Ibid, 432 "What Was the New Deal?" Franklin D. Roosevelt - American Heritage Center, Inc. 2006. Web. 21 May 2011. . Hofstadter, The America Political Tradition, 442 Subtopics as suggested by Donald Morgan. Qtd In Reich, Economist Keynes, 3 Qtd In "John Maynard Keynes." The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. 2008. Library of Economics and Liberty. 5 June 2011. . Ibid Hicks, J. R. Mr. Keynes and the "Classics"; A Suggested Interpretation. Econometrica. Vol. 5, No. 2 (Apr., 1937), pp. 147-159 P. 147 "Economics A-Z | Economist.com." The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. Web. 22 May 2011. .

Contributors to the Evolution of American Higher Education System

The evolution of Higher Educational System the United States can be attributed from several components. Among these attributes are the 1944 GI Bill of Rights and the appointment of the President's Commission on Higher Education by President Truman in 1946. Such significant contributions not only greatly affected the American Education System during those times but also served as catalysts that continue to benefit the modern society. These also paved the way improvement, acceleration and the widening the system of education as well as has opened opportunities for Americans of past, present and future generations.The significant development of the American higher education system can be traced from the enactment by President Franklin Roosevelt on June 22, 1944 of the â€Å"GI Bill of Rights† which was also called as the â€Å"Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944† (cited in Greenberg, 2007, p. 47). The law changed the American economic and social standpoints since among i ts provisions provided veterans of World War II an easy and immediate financial assistance by means of unemployment insurance.Most importantly, the law gave American veterans big opportunities such as vocational and practical activities relating to college learning as well as free access to housing and business loans (Greenberg, 2007). One of the permanent legacies of the GI Bill of Rights is now the ordinary impression that anyone can and should have education irrespective of â€Å"age, sex, race, religion, or family status† (Greenberg, 2007, p. 49). The law was also noted for bringing back the veterans' interest in education, majority of who have not achieved even secondary diplomas because of the World War II.With the provision of a better quality of higher education which the veterans have longed for, the law provided a broad and lasting acceptance of the notion that learning, particularly post-secondary or college education is the Americans' pathway to an improved employ ment and life (Greenberg, 2007). Aside from providing Americans from all walks of life a practical access to higher education, the GI Bill of Rights has also altered the definition of college learning in public awareness starting from 1950s until today.Before the war, the system was characterized mostly by â€Å"private, liberal arts, small-college, rural, residential, elitist, and often discriminatory from institution to institution with respect to race and religion† (Greenberg, 2007, p. 50). However, the current higher education system now is noticeably public that centers on â€Å"occupational, technical, and scientific education, huge, urban-oriented, suitable for commuter attendance, and highly democratic† (Greenberg, 2007, p. 50).At present, the system focuses and offers quality cultural, learning and financial aspects of higher education instead of just authorization of the upper members of the society. Lastly, the law is best noted as one factor that led to tre mendous social change. Since there was shake up of perspectives as regards â€Å"sex, religion, and race,† the law subjected even the ordinary Americans to liberated ideas of the society by means of higher education (Greeberg, 2007, p. 51). Meanwhile, a lot of veterans returned to college or post-secondary education in 1946.The heavy influx of students and industrialization of the economy, however, overstressed the system, curriculum and facilities. Additionally, the increasing number of war veterans studying again aggravated the existing educational problems being experienced by regular college students. This is because the group of veterans has to struggle it out with the American youth in their pursuit of a quality higher education. Hence, both the two groups increased the demands of college education.However, government assets and means of instrument are unable to adapt with the requirements such as an increased enrollees as well as variety of needs and involvements of bo th the veterans and youth as college students (Alexander, 1998). With the above situation in 1946, President Truman established a â€Å"President's Commission on Higher Education† and said that â€Å"we should now reexamine our system of higher education in terms of its objectives, methods, and facilities; and in the light of the social role it has to play† (President's Commission on Higher Education, 1947).The committee was composed of 28 prominent and outstanding Americans such as professionals and laymen like George F. Zook. The group immediately worked and in December of 1947, made a 377-page report titled â€Å"Higher Education for American Democracy† which was composed of six volumes under the following titles: â€Å"Establishing the Goals, Equalizing and Expanding Individual Opportunity, Organizing Higher Education, Staffing Higher Education, Financing Higher Education and Resource Data† (President's Commission on Higher Education, 1947, pp.1-3, 5- 8, 25-29, 32-39, 47-49). With a task to carry out what President Truman has said and define the obligations of colleges and universities, the commissions worked it out with the said educational facilities but were initially unsatisfied with the results. This is because education experts noted an apprehensive sense of failure or defect in the system. They also felt that the facilities are unable to keep up with the pace of the ever-changing state of the system as the society.Additionally, they see a need to re-pattern everything in order to meet the needs and address the concerns of the veterans and youth students which eventually will bring out the effectiveness of the modern education and system and society Moreover, the escalating desire of Americans to aspire for college education and critical necessity for such effective system became the determining factors for the need to improve the execution of the conventional tasks.This, in effect, eventually enabled the system, to assume the new challenge such the as re-entry in college of war veterans as the growing number of youth students, who are both motivated to improve their worth as a free and educated Americans (Alexander, 1998). The above-cited commission and measure are both significant as they greatly contributed on the evolution of the American Higher Education System. This is because the improved system of American higher education enabled the achievement of a more quality of living and democracy in the country for the reason that the benefits equally extended to all citizens.The GI Bill of Rights and 1947 President's Commission on Higher Education have proven their existence and worth because they paved the way for renouncing the unfair education practices of discrimination and separation. Moreover, the said two contributors have resulted in leaders' realization of the importance of quality and accessible college education system and equal opportunities in life. Ultimately, higher education system sho uld be targeted at weakening as well as getting rid of learning discrimination and eventually establishing attitude that will offer the system freely accessible to all Americans. ReferencesAlexander, F. K. (1998). The President's Commission Higher Education for Democracy, 1947. The American College and University EOL 474. Retrieved June 20, 2008 from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign database. Greenberg, M. (2007). The GI Bill of Rights. Historians on America: Decisions that Made America (pp. 46-54). Washington, DC: U. S. Department of State's Bureau of International Information Programs President's Commission on Higher Education. (1947). Higher Education for American Democracy: A Report of the President's Commission on Higher Education. Washington, D. C. : Government Printing Office.a