Does Ethnicity and Language to the Degree of Parent Involvement in Schools Essay

Many recent studies have indicated that parent involvement can make significant differences to outcomes at schools. Why some parents become involved more than others in their children’s education has been the subject of past studies, and ethnic minority status (especially Black and Hispanic) have been associated in the past with poor involvement compared to whites. But other studies have shown completely opposite conclusions i. e. parental involvement is higher in ethnic groups than whites. The critique: This questionnaire study of teachers and parents was a multi-dimensional investigation into the role of ethnicity in parental involvement in schooling found that Black parents perceive that they take a more active role in their children’s schooling than any other ethnic group. By contrast the teachers’ perceptions on the issue were drastically opposite – teachers reported much lower levels of alliance with Black parents than White or Hispanic parents. The fact that fewer than 4% of teachers in this study were blacks probably has been a significant factor in this regard. One of the main weaknesses of this study is a lack of verifiability – it was entirely based on questionnaires, without any involvement of students themselves. Secondly the fact that the population consisted entirely of low-performers may have introduced a source of bias in the study. There were also inadequate measures of ruling out the effect of other confounding factors e. g. education level, incomes of households which made it difficult to compare ethnicity properly. Finally, some ethnic groups returned more questionnaire than others, making it difficult to conduct a like for like study. Conclusion : More studies are needed, carried out in a more rigorous method, before the true effect of ethnicity on parental involvement with schools can be established.

Lawrence’s Presentation of Elizabeth Bates in Odour of Chrysanthemums Essay

Odour of Chrysanthemums is a short story by D. H. Lawrence, written in the autumn of 1909. It is set in Nottinghamshire and tells the tale of a coal miner’s wife, a young mother, waiting for her abusive husband Walter to come home. She blames his drinking for his absence. It turns out he has been killed in a pit accident. The story describes the setting before the discovery of his death and the aftermath. The main character in the story is Elizabeth Bates, mother of two and wife to Walter, the coal miner. Elizabeth, the protagonist of the story, is first introduced by Lawrence in a descriptive tone. He describes her as being a tall woman of imperious mien, handsome, with definite black eyebrows. The fact he calls her handsome, a word usually used for describing men, shows that she may carry some male qualities, such as strength. Also, Elizabeth has smooth, black hair parted exactly. Along with her dark eyebrows, this darkness could show a stern side and her hair being parted exactly shows precision and order of which she may have in her life; a routine, a daily schedule. She closed and padlocked the door also, which shows her need for security. Lawrence writes about Elizabeth standing steadily for a few moments watching the miners as they passed along the railway shows that she is curious to know where her husband is. She calls her son, John, and when he replies and she cannot see him she looks piercingly through the dust. She is afraid that he is at the brook, which she had previously told him to avoid. When she sees him hiding before the raspberry canes, she was pleased and gently asked him to come inside. This shows that she is a responsible mother who looks out for her children’s safety and security. This is a major theme given off in Elizabeth’s character. On his way into the house, John tears the wisps of chrysanthemums and drops the petals in handfuls along the path. Elizabeth says ‘Don’t do that- it does look nasty’. Chrysanthemums are a symbol in the book and her saying this indicates that she does not like the flowers. However, she picks one herself and when they get home, instead of disposing of it; she tucks the little flower into her apron. Keeping the chrysanthemum shows that the flowers have meaning to Elizabeth; this also reflects the reason as to why she finds them â€Å"nasty†, indicating to the reader that they do not hold the most pleasant memories for her. After this first appearance of chrysanthemums, Elizabeth and her father begin suspecting her husband has gone drinking yet again. The reader also finds out the fate of Elizabeth’s husband, though it is through mere foreshadowing. â€Å"Her husband did not come home.† Elizabeth channels her husband through her son when she sees him struggling with a knife and a piece of wood. She saw herself in his silence and pertinacity and the father in her son’s indifference to all but himself. She then pieces together what Walter was doing and glances at the clock, which shows impatience and, again, curiosity. When she ventures out to strain the potatoes in the yard she again watches the men trooping home, fewer and fewer. You can tell she is getting more anxious on why her husband has not returned. We see Elizabeth’s temper when she finished her barely eaten meal rose up from the table with evident anger and exclaimed how scandalous it is for a man to not come home to his dinner and hints that he has gone to the pub while she waits. Walter seems to be a recognizable brand of â€Å"bad husband,† and Elizabeth, the put-upon wife and mother, seems to be a clear victim. Her frustration and harsh words about Walter seem fully justifiable. Elizabeth clearly sees herself as having wasted her life with Walter, missing out on a better life she could have had with someone else. However when she comes down from putting the children to bed Lawrence describes the room as empty, which could show that her life is in fact empty without her husband. Elizabeth is certain of disaster as the story leads on, which we see from the very start. The story reaches its climax when Walter’s mother turns up at Elizabeth’s house. We see juxtaposition between Elizabeth and the grandmother. The elder woman is described to be very troubled, weeping without wiping her eyes, the tears running however stopped by Elizabeth’s directness when she said ‘Is he dead?’ We also see the difference of the two when Lawrence describes Elizabeth as having her thoughts elsewhere. She thought about the economic difficulties his death could bring upon her, and if he was hurt she was thinking of how tiresome he would be to nurse. Lastly she considers the children. The fact she shows little emotion towards the fact that her husband may well be dead agrees with the ea rlier point of Elizabeth being a long-suffering wife who deserves sympathy. Her response to Walter’s death reveals that she is not as blameless for her unhappiness as she first appears. At first, Walter seems to be the clear cause of Elizabeth’s difficult life. When his death is finally reviled the old woman drops into a chair and starts to wail and weep (a typical response to such news) but Elizabeth tells her to hush and not to wake the children, appearing to not be affected. When they both heard the details of his horrific death the grandmother continues to wail and cry, and Elizabeth again tells her to be quiet and not to wake the children. This shows her maternal side, and is showing the grandmother that she is a good mother like she herself boasts about. Elizabeth’s dismal view of her fate changes once Walter’s corpse is brought home. As Elizabeth and her mother-in-law undress and wash Walter’s body, much like a parody of the two women attending to the body of Christ, Elizabeth confronts her role in the marriageâ€⠄¢s failure. When she looks at the corpse, she realizes that for years, she has not really seen Walter. He was her husband but distant from her, and she feels â€Å"ashamed† because she had not allowed him to be himself. Instead of feeling anger and resentment, she recognizes that her own expectations and refusals helped tear them apart. She describes her unborn child as ice in her womb, ice of fear. She has no-one to support her anymore. This may be the reason why she ‘winced with fear and shame’ from the death. The pity she feels for Walter sharply contrasts with her earlier harsh view of him, serving as an epiphany—she suddenly recognizes Walter as a human being, rather than simply a difficult burden. Elizabeth realizes she has been culpable in her own unhappiness. At the end of the story, she submits to both life and death as her â€Å"masters,† humbled by her own mistakes and about to carry on with a new perspective.

Stone Cold Definitions: What is a Family?

American society is an interesting place: we value individualism and celebrate freedom, and strive for being the best in all that we do.   The road to achieving this is not an easy one, but as a nation, we understand this.   We train our children gradually by setting small tasks for them.   These tasks are designed to help our children â€Å"practice† for their imminent involvement in the â€Å"real† world, and it is the hope of those who create these â€Å"practice† sessions that children will grow into adults who are well-adjusted, productive Americans. This training includes learning to do a variety of things—from the mundane to the complex—primarily by trial and error.   We put training wheels on bicycles; we spread education out over a period of twenty-plus years; we encourage part-time jobs before careers and raising a pet to learn the value of life and the seriousness of responsibility; however, when it comes to creating a family, we act like it is an all-or-nothing affair.   We define it in a single way, and access it as â€Å"successful† only in the extremist of circumstances.   American society may value individualism, celebrate freedom, and strive for perfection, but it can be an extraordinarily judgmental place for those who fall outside the parameters of the traditional definition of â€Å"family.† Barbara Kingsolver examines the definition of â€Å"family† in her piece, â€Å"Stone Soup: What Does It Mean To Be a Family, Anyway?†Ã‚   Her conclusion: that the defined parameters are simply too narrow and that America’s continuing to use this false standard is detrimental to all people. There can be little doubt that the United States values individualism; however, it seems as though individualism is only acceptable if the involved party conforms to preconceived norms and moral standards set by the majority when exercising this right to be â€Å"individual.†Ã‚   Barbara Kingsolver asks readers â€Å"in the catalog of family values, where do we rank an occasion such as this?† (305). She is referring to a child’s soccer game and the fact that the child in question is surrounded by primary and extended family members—an entire cheering section of his own, but that social construct calls his family â€Å"broken† (305).   Obviously, â€Å"Andy† is not suffering for lack of anything while playing soccer—there is nothing at all â€Å"broken† about him or the people who make up his family.   Kingsolver’s point is powerful, and she demands each of us step back and consider the reason for family and the parameters by which the success of this configuration of people is judged. The point of people joining together to create a unified structure (i.e. a â€Å"family†) is to strengthen the one by adding others.   The make-up of the family structure is rather arbitrary, and as Kingsolver points out, in other countries as well as in America’s past, the presence of several generations under one roof was commonplace (308).   Modern society has changed the basic dynamic of â€Å"family,† expecting the branching out of children as they reach adulthood, and the defining of parenting â€Å"success† by an offspring’s financial and familial productivity out in the world. This does not sound at all like the makings of a strong â€Å"individual†; it sounds very much like a cookie-cutter environment churning out cookie-cutter people.   Kingsolver points out that â€Å"there's a current in the air with ferocious moral force [. . .] claiming there is only one right way to do it, the Way It Has Always Been† and expresses how nonsensical this attitude is (305). If we operated under the guise of â€Å"the Way It Has Always Been,† we’d still have slavery, children working in sweat shops, women who had no control over their own money, legalized domestic violence, etc.   Part of this nation’s strength comes from its ability to recognize flaws in its operations, make the necessary changes, and move on.   Why are we so slow to apply this to family?   As Kingsolver puts it, â€Å"this narrow view [of family] is so pickled and absurd I'm astonished that it gets airplay† (305).   Simply put, a group of people who join together to perform everyday tasks, including caring for a child/children, paying bills, maintaining a home, and caring for one another is a family. People who were born before the internet, cellular phones, and the microwave oven survived, and many of them continue to do so without having adapted or integrated any of those items into their daily lives.   Those of us who make use of modern technology are not harmed by the lack of understanding or participation of those who choose to remain â€Å"behind† the times. However, those who insist on the â€Å"traditional† definition of â€Å"family† and persist in applying derogatory terms to the variety of familial make-ups that have become more prevalent are harming those who choose to acknowledge familial advances.   â€Å"Divorce, remarriage, single parenthood, gay parents, and blended families simply are. They're facts of our time† (307). It seems odd that in a nation that is so sold on individuality and freedom of choice that it has  begun to package cheese in balls, slabs, individually wrapped slices, and sticks that we shy away  from a multi-faceted definition of family.   Perhaps the problem is the way in which people look  at things.   Can it be that only a single parent struggling to get by understands that the slab is  cheapest, and that it has the added benefit of one’s being able to cut it and wrap it in a variety of  sizes and shapes that can be determined based on need?   Isn’t this a simple, physical example of  the old adage that anyway you slice a thing, it is still the thing?   Does it really matter what the  make-up of the family is as long as it fulfills it goals?   There are legitimate reasons for the  changes seen in the modern family. â€Å"Some of the reasons listed by sociologists for these family  reconstructions are: the idea of marriage as a romantic partnership rather than a pragmatic one; a  shift in women's expectations, from servility to self-respect and independence; and longevity† (Kingsolver 307). Prepare a list of the things a person might fight hardest for in terms of â€Å"freedom,† and the freedom to choose a life partner has got to be near the top, and this freedom is not about one’s orientation: it is about one’s freedom—period.   Whether straight or gay, single or married, the freedom to enter into or leave a relationship seems fundamental. Barbara Kingsolver discusses her preconceived notion of marriage and divorce: a notion that was constructed by the society in which she grew up—the society that continues to exist in America (306).   She admits to her naà ¯ve belief that in choosing a mate one could not err, and admitted that â€Å"once upon a time [she believed . . ] that everyone who [divorced] could have chosen not to do it.   That it's a lazy way out of marital problems.   That it selfishly puts personal happiness ahead of family integrity,† but having lived her life and gone through a divorce, she now sees that this is simply not true. This bursts not only the bubble of her expectations, it places the rest of her family, including her children, into a category that implies imperfection and an inability to perform up to expected standards.   Kingsolver equates the â€Å"judg[ing of] a family’s value by its tidy symmetry is to purchase a book for its cover† (308).   Oddly, the â€Å"children of divorce† are profoundly unaffected in many ways, and where adults see defeat, they see the opportunity to have two different homes and two sets of things as advantageous.   Certainly this isn’t always the case—as it is not always the case that a child raised in a â€Å"traditional family† goes unscathed.   Each situation and each experience is—dare I say—individual. The closing anecdote in Barbara Kingsolver’s piece places the term Stone Soup in to context, and it is in this recollection that real advice can be seen.   While the story hinges on the soldiers’ plan, what happens all around them is of equal importance.   The message in the story is that both sides must be ready and willing to accept their opposition: the hungry soldiers gave in to the townspeople who in turn gave in to the hungry soldiers, and in the end, everyone is better for having shared. The same is true of the modern family.   No one should be forced to give up the ideal of â€Å"family† anymore than anyone should give up the ideal of having a cupboard filled with food; however, everyone has got to be willing to acknowledge that their definition of â€Å"family† is relative—much like the â€Å"full† cupboard, and often simply adding to the pot what you can is sufficient. Work Cited Kingsolver, Barbara.   â€Å"Stone Soup: What Does It Mean To Be a Family, Anyway?†Ã‚   The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across Time.   8th ed.   Ed. Gilbert H. Muller.   LaGuardia: City U. of New York, 2003.   305-310.

Brief a case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Brief a case - Essay Example At one point the cars pulled up alongside one another and the drivers spoke to each other. A traffic stop involving the Ford discovered cocaine and DeLatorre had been observed driving by the traffic stop twice and slowing down to observe the scene. A search warrant executed on the home uncovered more drug-related evidence. DeLatorre was subsequently arrested and charged with conspiracy to possess and distribute cocaine and aiding and abetting possession with intent to distribute. Legal Issues: Delatorre appealed his convictions on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence to substantiate the conviction on each of the counts. In particular, Delatorre argued that the probative value of the evidence against him was outweighed by its prejudicial effect. Delatorre also argued that the trial judge abused the discretion by allowing the prosecution’s expert witness to give evidence on issues that fell outside of the witness’s expertise. Legal Reasoning: Referring to the Federal Rules of Evidence, Rule 702, the appellate court ruled that experts may testify to any fact or opinion based on â€Å"specialized knowledge that will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue† provided the expert is â€Å"qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training or education† (Rule 702). Moreover, if the court errs in determining the expertise of a specific expert witness pursuant to the definition provided in Rule 702, the conviction will not be overturned if the error was harmless (United States v Carrazana, 921 F.2d 1557 (11th Cir. 1991). The expert witness testified to drug language and schemes characteristic of the illegal drug trade. The appellate court ruled that courts have allowed Drug Enforcement Officers to testify as experts relative to drug trades language and schemes. In this case the appellate court was satisfied that the expert witness, as a Drug Enforcement Officer had the necessary

Marks And Spencers Business Strategy Assignment

Marks And Spencers Business Strategy - Assignment Example The company has a very humble beginning but it has grown significantly over time to become a leader within the business industry of its operations. The company has dominated the British market for a long time. Its dominance is attributed to the value and quality of the clothing products that it offers its customers with a view of gaining their loyalty to its products. Marketing Week, (2005, p. 9) reveals that it is through the value that Marks and Spencer has for the needs of the customers that shoppers have been obliged to desire its products as opposed to those of the competitors. With time, the company has grown and diversified its products significantly and in addition to clothing, the company provides its customers with furniture, food and loan services. This paper gives a critical discussion and analysis of the business strategy of Marks and Spencer Plc with a view of analyzing and evaluating the company’s strategy using Porters Generic Strategy Framework. Moreover, the company is assessed in terms of acceptability, feasibility and suitability toward all of its stakeholders. Analyzing Marks and Spencer’s Strategy Business Strategy In 1999, the glory that Marks and Spencer had in the market started to crumble. This was illustrated by the fall in profits. As a result of the failure that the company experienced, it has endeavored to apply the most suitable business strategy so that it would remain competitive within the market and maintain its glory. Davies (1999, p. 60) points out that Marks and Spencer adopted a Competitive Strategy Model and Value Chain so that it would recover from the previous failures and challenges and thus maintain its competitive advantage while remaining as the market leader of the industry of its operation.... Davies (1999, p. 60) points out that Marks and Spencer adopted a Competitive Strategy Model and Value Chain so that it would recover from the previous failures and challenges and thus maintain its competitive advantage while remaining as the market leader of the industry of its operation. Kenny (2009) adds that it is through the Competitive Strategy Model and Value Chain that Marks and Spencer has regained its glory which is revealed by its current success and competitiveness in the market. The SWO analysis of the company which reflects its competitiveness is presented in Appendix 1. Business Environment and Strategy Datamonitor (2007, p. 1) demonstrates that the five forces of generic Strategies as postulated by Porter have been proved to be the most effective aids for businesses in the attainment of a competitive edge within the business environment. The key areas under which Porters Generic Strategy Framework analyzes businesses the power of suppliers, the power of buyers, the thr eat of substitutes, the threat of entry and the competitive rivalry. Grundy (2005, p. 195) explains that the business environment involves various forces which determine the success of a company and these include competition and economic, social, legal and cultural forces. The ability of a company to survive the challenges which the environment presents it with is determined by the implementation of a suitable business strategy which ensures that a competitive advantage is gained and attained. Beaver (1999, p. 325) recommends a Competitive Strategy Model as a way of allowing a company to overcome the environmental forces and thus become a market leader and the most competitive business in the market. Therefore the implementation of the Competitive Strategy Model by Marks and Spencer

Business Data Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Business Data Analysis - Essay Example The value of correlation coefficient is positive. Therefore it can be said that as age increases so does income. The level of dissatisfaction is significantly higher in women as compared to men. There were 14 ‘extremely dissatisfied’ responses from women as compared to only 6 from men. On the other hand the positive responses were 117 as compared to only 89 from women. However almost 21 males very a little dissatisfied as compared to only 8 from women. a. Predictors: (Constant), How many promotions, if any, have you received while working for your present employer?, How many traumatic events did you experience last year?, How many hours did you work last week, at all jobs?, How many years of school have you completed?, In your household, how many family members, including yourself, were employed last year?, Age, Your pre-tax income last year ($000), Total family pre-tax income last year ($000), Since you were 16 years old, about how many years have you worked for full-time pay? The age of employees at the company varies between 69 and 18. This is a very large level of diversity. This diversity can be help in creating creativity but also can be a tough task to manage such a diverse workforce. The major workforce has their age in the mid thirties. The age of employees can affect their output. Therefore it was important to analyze the affect of employee age on different variables. The analysis revealed that as the age of employees was increases their number of hours worked were becoming less. This means that older people were working less as compared to the younger workforce. This can be due to the higher posts of senior employees and managerial roles. The increase in pretax income with an increase in age also supports this theory. As the employees get older they become senior and therefore have a better pay scale and have to put in fewer hours. The age however was totally unrelated to union membership. Therefore we can that there was an

Marketing Plan for your new SERVICE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Marketing Plan for your new SERVICE - Essay Example tomers’ sophistication is surging upward, and the need for outsourced call care centers in Philippines and India is raising the necessity for development of language skills and computer training to satisfy the needs of the diverse and tremendously competitive American market. Due to this rapid growth, Americans are finding themselves sub par service due to the language barrier from country to country. It is our opportunity to educate the population of both countries in efforts to lower miscommunications. Our targets are individuals that are not functionally literate, and those that speak a language different than the export (Diola, 2014). We can hope our services are also able to slow the decline of call centers in India, while eager to see both countries grow. CompuLanguage is entering its first year of operation. Our services have been rendered; however marketing will be crucial in the development of our brand and services as well as to make our target market more aware of our brand and services for growth of our customer base. Tutors411 offers an array of services and subject lines to meet individual and organizational needs (Diola, 2014). The call center industry is a profitable business and the Philippines are taking advantage of it. According to Monticello (2012), there are over one hundred countries seeking current dominance in the industry (p.3). Malaysia, Singapore, and China are the Philippines’ primary competitors in the call center market. India has been struggling to keep business. It will lose seventy percent or thirty billion dollars’ worth of all Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) businesses; particularly call centers (Diola, 2014).   India has regained business due to sales and up-selling strategies. Also, Indian companies have moved to the Philippines. This is one of the key reasons for the steady growth of the call center industry in the Phillipines (Winn, 2014). There are a number of specific competitors that can be described as