Brain Drain In pakistan Essay

1.Brain drain is basically understood as the country’s loss of highly-skilled human capital together with a simultaneous lack of â€Å"brain circulation†, that is, the flow of talent from one country to another country. Pakistan is facing a twofold challenge, on the one hand an alarming increase in the skill level of human capital exiting the country’s economic system, particularly the scientifically- and technologically-skilled personnel, resulting in the erosion of national competitiveness. On the other hand, there is the system’s poor ability to attract skilled human capital from the rest of the world. A loss of our talent, combined with an inability to attract foreign â€Å"brains†, heavily penalizes the country in the context of a globalized world that increasingly competes on the basis of knowledge and innovation. The policies instituted to date by the our govtt, as well as by the private sector, aimed at reversing outward flows or attracting highly-skilled individuals to Pakistan have been inadequate. The main shortcoming of these policies has been that they have taken the form of low-key and often uncoordinated initiatives Aim 2. To find out the causes of Brain drain in pakistan and suggest measures to dec it. Seq 3.This paper will be unfold in fol seq:- a.Definition and types incl cat of skilled pers of brain drain b.Factor Causing brain drain. c.Remedies for brain drain. d.Analysis e.Recommendations f.Concl Definition and types of brain drain 4.What is Brain Drain.It the phenomenon of abandonment of a country in favor of another by professionals or people with a high level of education, generally following an offer of better pay or living conditions as well as improved conditions for conducting one’s professional activities. 5.Types.Fol are the types of brain drain :- a.Eco Brain Drain b.Religious brain drain c.Educational Brain drain d.Intellectuals Brain drain 6.Fol are the cat of skilled pers who form part of brain drain:- a.Corporate transferees. These persons operate at an international level through internal labor markets. Their transfers are prompted by various reasons and may last for periods of time of varying length. Frequently, such transfers are motivated by career advancement and training needs. This category also includes specialists in production systems, marketing and research; their transfers meet the organizational needs of the firms for whom they work .b.Technicians and visiting firemen. These are individuals whose movements reflect the specific occupational skills they possess. Their movements can take place within international labor markets or within the ambit of the operations of multinationals. Transfers may be related to specific development projects, or they may come about unforeseeably or in response to management needs in crisis situations. c.Professionals.Who often work in the healthcare or education sector, and are frequently engaged by non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Selection takes place on an individual basis and is for specific periods of time abroad. In some NGOs, deployment abroad may become permanent. d.Project specialists. Their migration is related to specific projects being carried out abroad. Transfers technically speaking go through internal labor systems, although sometimes these persons are recruited on the external labor market for limited contract periods. e.Consultant specialists. An increasing number of white-collar organizations are resorting to engaging specialists for a wide range of activities. The destinations are global, according to the organizational structure of the client. The consultancy firms themselves are becoming transnational in nature. f. Private career development and training. Many people are seeking opportunities through external labor markets for career advancement and further training, which necessitate stays of varying lengths abroad. This group includes different professions, but also young people in their early career years seeking experiences in foreign settings. This category also includes those who are in later stages of their career and whose transfers may be read in terms of â€Å"chasing the dollar†. g.  Priests and missionaries.   Religious and â€Å"semi-religious† orders who traditionally send their members abroad for periods of varying durations. The groups involved overlap with other types of emigrants, especially in the healthcare and education sectors. h. Entertainers, sportspersons and artists. This is a diverse internationally mobile group of persons whose stays abroad are often for brief periods. Some of them can, however, settle overseas permanently. i. Academics, researchers and other academic staff. There is a substantial exchange of academics and researchers between universities and similar institutions for periods of variable length. Many transfers are for relatively short periods, such as an academic term, whilst others are for longer durations (the archetypal brain drain situation). j. Students in higher education institutions. A growing number of young people are undertaking studies abroad, at all levels and for periods of varying duration, ranging from several months to a number of years. k. Spouses and children of the abovementioned categories can be reasonably included in all evaluations of the migration processes of highly-skilled individuals, though in strict labor-market terms, their inclusion would be questionable. Brain circulation This concept describes training and career paths in which students or workers go abroad to specialize and then return to their country of origin, drawing on the experience they have amassed to secure more advantageous employment conditions. Factor causing brain drain in Pakistan 6.Some of the major causes of brain drain are as fol ;- a.Un-employment b.Social Injustice c.Lack of institutional Facilities. d.Poverty e.Lack of Nationalism f.illiteracy g.Lack of Counseling Institutions h.Provisional Discremation. PROPOSALS FOR ACTION: GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES In terms of government authorities, five main areas of action are proposed: investment in research on par with that of other major economies; clear-cut policy choices that promote brain circulation; the adoption of models apt to encourage study and specialization abroad, and a subsequent return to Italy; the establishment of public-private partnerships; and the facilitation of entry visa procedures for foreign researchers and talent. In terms of universities and other public and private research centers, the work to be done is extensive and should form part of an earnest reform of the university system. There are at least nine main areas of action proposed: an overhaul of competitive exams for academic posts; the establishment of PhD courses in line with modern and competitive criteria; the delocalization abroad of periods of university and postgraduate study; the creation of academic centers of excellence; a shake-up of research funding; the conduct of university courses in English and the internationalization of curricula; the optimization of remuneration packages; mandatory retirement at age 65 in respect of all managerial roles performed by university academics, with a view to facilitating renewal; and the establishment of exchange programs. A boost in research investment First and foremost, we note that research cannot be undertaken without investment. Paksitan spends 0.8% of GDP on research and development (2008 figures). This percentage is surprisingly low compared to that for countries such as the United States (2.8%) or the Swiss Confederation (2.9%), but also relative to the European average (1.8%). The adoption of policy choices aimed at promoting brain circulation Policy choices apt to facilitate the departure and arrival of skilled human capital from around the world are a necessary precondition for Italy to be geared towards social and economic development that is competitive with that of other countries. Such policies should also tackle the social immobility, patronage, parochialism and vested interests that have historically contributed to the brain drain from Italy and, at the same time, hinder the influx of skilled human capital to our country. The creation of public-private partnerships Government institutions should encourage partnerships with the private sector and with universities, and strengthen their links with the local labor market. Such collaborative relationships would also instill a more international and global culture in a society that would become more competitive and transparent. Proposals for action: universities and other research bodies It is essential that our universities and other research centers be made attractive, international and accessible to foreign students and researchers, in order to help even out the balance between incoming and outgoing talent. This obviously entails making the university system more open and meritocratic, giving rise to a need for serious and farsighted reforms. The creation of centers of excellence In order to ensure the workability of two-way exchange programs, it is necessary to create centers of excellence capable of attracting and hosting the best international students and researchers, providing them with a standard of quality similar to that in their sending country or which they would be able to find elsewhere in the world. A shake-up of research funding We propose that an end be put to indiscriminate funding, which should instead be allocated according to peer-reviewed proposals with calls issued on a regular basis. Adjudication panels should draw on international experts with no ties to the research institutes associated with the proposals. Medium-term and final reports should be required and be a key condition for obtaining further funding. Remedies For Brain Drain in Pakistan 6.Some of the major remedies of brain drain are as fol ;- a.Aval of jobs. b.Provn of Social Justice c.Improvement in institutional Facilities. d.Eco Reforms e.Uplifting Nationalism f.Security Sit g.Making of Counseling Institutions h.Role of Media. i.Revision of Immigration Policies

Billy Budd by Herman Melville

The story, Billy Budd, by Herman Melville embodies many themes. The same story has also been the subject of many different interpretations because of these themes. One of the more popular interpretations has to do with the many different allusions to the holy Christian bible. Billy has often been interpreted as Adam from the book of Genesis, while his counterpart, Claggart, has often been compared to the serpent in the Garden of Eden or as Satan. The reason for this comparison has to do with the sacrifice that Billy makes at the end of the story.Good natured and kind hearted, Billy becomes the innocent victim of a harsh society. In order to make this portrayal, however, it is necessary to briefly discuss the trials and tribulations that Billy endured. The goodness of Billy is highlighted more during the times when Claggart tries to tempt Billy in committing dastardly acts and deeds of evil; the temptations that Claggart dangles in Billy’s way show Claggart’s different a ttempts to destroy the character of Billy. This is analogous to the situation in the Garden of Eden where the Serpent tries to deceive Adam into taking the fruit of the forbidden tree.The description of Claggart’s dead body as it lies lifeless in the form of a snake reinforces this point. This is an important characterization that is used well in the story as it makes it easier for the readers to identify one of the many themes that are embedded in Billy Budd. Without these comparisons to Adam, the innocence and the tragedy of the downfall of Billy would not be as highlighted as they are in the story. The sacrifice that Billy makes in the end becomes the haunting image of how a hostile society can corrupt the lives and minds of the innocent ones.

Is there a danger of inflation in Greece Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Is there a danger of inflation in Greece - Essay Example Greece ultimately joined the Euro monetary area as its 12th member from January 1, 2001 after the European finance ministers' council decided on June 19, 2000 that the country had fulfilled all the convergence criteria and approved its accession (Micco et al, 61). Greece had a troublesome inflation history. In 1990, the performance of the Greek economy was very poor with the inflation reaching higher than 20% and the budget deficit exceeding 16% of the GDP. During that particular year, the growth rate was literally zero and the current account deficit was 4.3% of the GDP. The EMU project came as a blessing in disguise for Greece and throughout the 1990s, Greece implemented economic and political policies that were in tune with those of EMU (Greece in the European Union, 93). This paper discusses the inflation trends and theories in general, and explores the Greek economic scenario briefly in particular with a view to finding out whether there is a danger of high level of inflation in the coming days in the country. A deep analysis of the economic factors guiding the inflation trends in Greece suggests that the Government economic measures will certainly help reduce the inflation threat considerably. Body Part A (Inflation theories) Before we proceed to assess whether or not an impending threat of high level of inflation is emerging in Greece, there is need to study the essentials of inflation on how it is caused. In any country, inflation is basically caused through the emergence of two powerful but common scenarios. Factors of inflation The two factors from which inflation stems are an increase in demand for products, known as the demand pull inflation and an increase in the cost of factors of production, known as the cost push inflation. Monetarists, also known as the neo-classical theorists, point out that when there is a surge of money supply in a nation's economy, it leads to excess money on an aggregate level and creates more demand by increasing the spending capacity of the population. To put it simply, inflation is created when the spending power of the population exceeds the capacity of a country 3 to produce goods and services in enough quantities. This is a situation where prices of commodities go on increasing with the supply levels of goods and services lying below the supply levels of money in the country. As the inflation is caused through an increase in demand, it is called the 'demand pull inflation'. Higher volumes of money supply are generally pumped into the economy of a country when its Government prints more currency or indulges in heavy borrowings to meet budget deficits (Theories, Demand pull inflation). On the other hand, the non-monetarists, also known as the Keynesians, argue that when the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of a country increases it does so with higher prices sending a message that the economy has passed the stages of full employment levels of output. This type of situation naturally raises the prices of various commodities. In the phenomenon of a cost push inflation, the cost of factors of production increases paving the way for higher prices of commodities. That leads to wage increase and in turn enhances the

Service Quality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Service Quality - Essay Example Satisfaction, Loyalty and Retention†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..5 Staff Recruitment, Training and Service Strategy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦6 TQM (total quality management)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.6 Chapter 2†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.7 Methodology†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.7 Chapter 3†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.7 Primary findings†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦7 Chapter 4†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.13 Recommendations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.13 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.13 Appendix†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦14 References†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..17 Abstract: The hospitality industry is surviving on high quality of services on a reasonable price. The customers are the revenue generators for the business houses and that is the reason they must be provided with the great quality service so they become the loyal customers. For any business empire whether it is small or big, the primary focus is how to retain their existing customers and how to acquire new customers. To retain the existing customers the in-depth understanding of the customer needs is very important. The service quality has become the primary focus of most of the organizations. Mainly for the fast food centers the service qualities are the baseline for the improvement of their performances. The service oriented factors are deeply associated with the loyalty programs (Brooks, 2010). The Service quality gap model gives the perfect picture of the gaps between the service given and service expected. This paper will focus on all the aspects of having good quality services and it will take an attempt to find out the customers perception about the best quality service. Introduction: In the hospitality industry the quality speaks the ultimate word. The hospitality industry is based on the service qualities of the people in the shops or in the restaurants. For many times it has been seen that even after providing the best survives the customers are not satisfied. In these cases the reason behind the dissatisfaction is very important to understand for the fast food centers. The service gap models help the managers to understand the gaps between the service provided and the services wa nted by the customers. However, in the recent time it is better to know the reaction from the mouth of the real time customers. And that is the reason, the primary data collection is very important. in. The primary and secondary data are important to support the outcome of the services related to the customer satisfaction. In regards to this research, the secondary data are collected from many secondary resources like online websites, articles, books and journals related to the customer satisfaction and service quality. And the primary data are colle

How to use a Rubber in Mobile Phones Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

How to use a Rubber in Mobile Phones - Essay Example This paper focuses on mobile technology. Some of the factors to consider when choosing materials for developing a mobile device will include, weight, girth, flexibility of the material and its fitness for the intended purpose. The mobile device market has over the past years evolved to unimaginable extents. There has been the development of space age smartphones with unimaginable capabilities and processing speeds. There has also been vast improvement in the display of such devices in both clarity and size. Many mobile devices have been unveiled by different manufacturers such as Nokia, Samsung, HTC, Apple, Motorola and many more competing for the consumers available. One thing that has been an issue is the safety of such expensive devices when they get to fall or submerge in water. To solve this problem, we focus on Nokia’s N9 and the use of rubber by Nokia to act as a protector to this flagship device. Then Nokia n9 uses an 8 megapixel rear camera that is used for photography. The type of lenses used is Carl Zeiss by Nokia with autofocus and image stabilization property. This camera also comes with a dual led flash light to assist in photography in dark conditions. It is one of the most crucial parts of the phone. The battery in the Nokia n9 is what sustains the life in it. It a lithium ion battery that is internal to the mobile phone. It has a large capacity so that it can power up the large display and the processor together with other auxiliary components. This is the N9’s AMOLED gorilla glass curved screen that covers the whole of the N9 front face. This is a touch screen used for both input and output in this system. It not delicate as such since it is curved hence can resist a little bit of damage. The N9 case is made of polycarbonate that is well brushed. This is where all the components of the phone are housed and firmly head. It is the chassis of the whole device therefore providing the shape and character of this marvelous

Exploring Entrepreneurship in Dubai Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Exploring Entrepreneurship in Dubai - Coursework Example The secondary research tool used was the internet. The website of the MOBH group covers all essential aspects of the company background, mission and vision, and future projects. It focuses on all areas of the company and served as a helpful resource. Gulf News and other articles on the group's acquisitions and deals assisted in getting a background on the company. The most important source of primary research was Mr. Mohammed Omar bin Haider, who agreed to a discussion and is the major source of research. The detailed discussion dealt with all the topics that were to be covered in the report as well as most issues faced by him and the corporation. The limitations faced were that the discussion could have been more objective and straightforward and it was difficult to get real problems out on the table. Third party sources and information from and about major customers was difficult to find. Most statements from the entrepreneur were biased or ambiguous. Mohammed Omar Bin Haider Group (MOBH) is a Dubai based corporation run by Mohammed Omar bin Haider. His father Omar Ali bin Haider was the founder of the company in the early 1950s along with his son. He started with a factory for gas production from 1964 to 1971 was the exclusive provider in Dubai. Mohammed Omar bin Haider is the current chairman of the group and is actively involved in its operations, direction and overall strategy. The company’s vision is to be the best at everything. The mission is to be a high growth company and diversify into various sectors.

Does Receiving a College Education while Incarcerated Influence Research Paper

Does Receiving a College Education while Incarcerated Influence Convicted Felons Ability to Find a Job - Research Paper Example This project stresses that the overall education attainment of inmates and the formerly incarcerated is considerably below that of the general population in every world’s country-this is especially in regard to A and O-levels. In the United States, for example, about half of the nation’s adults had at least some level of college education. This was inconsequentially the opposite indication because less than 2o per cent of state and federal prisoners had some college education. College education for individual convicts while incarcerated ultimately affects their ability to find jobs. College going for the college students is therefore meant to aid the rehabilitation process and not utterly give the convicts employment. Education is one of the best rehabilitation weapons as some of the felons may have done offense due to the lack of appropriate hunger management skills. Through college education, this would be the beginning of learning basics of life for the felons. This paper makes a conclusion that college education plays a critical role for the felons that are incarcerated particularly with regard to their ability to find a job. The views of the researchers point towards using the educational platform as a tool for rehabilitating the inmates. The starting figures of the prison population foster the need of more effective solutions of making the lives of the prisoners better, for their sake and the sake of society in general. Through education, the lives of the offenders can be significantly improved.

High-Risk Nutritional Practices Paper First Draft Essay

High-Risk Nutritional Practices Paper First Draft - Essay Example de the lack of constant exercising, proper hydration, and continuous cleanliness, as well as participation in general medical checkups and examination. In this regard, there are a host of factors that inevitably result in the lack of or limitation of access to proper nutritional value and health. When delving into the aspect of culture and traditional affiliations, it is critical to note that a majority of cultural practices and/ traditions and essentially linked to the religious aspects of given social settings. Therefore, the need to be considerate of religious input with regard to cultural practices pertaining to nutritional intake and practice is vital (Grant, 1998). The paper will delve on the influences of cultural ideals and practices, on various populations’ dietary/ nutritional intake. Focus will be on the existing influential factors as well as co-relative factors founded on cultural perspectives and practices. This will encompass prevailing historical belief systems and inclusive practices portrayed, with each culture being explored further in terms of such high-risk behaviors. Within European contexts, the U.S. is often regarded as the ‘melting pot’ of all cultures, religions and ways of life. As Kittler and Sucher (1999) portray, this is best represented by the diversity portrayed and subsequently experienced in the daily life of American citizens, eventually affecting critical aspects such as socialization, nutritional value intake, political affiliations and ideological perspectives. Looking at high-risk nutritional behaviors, it is worthwhile to note that other aspects of socializations i.e. family/ gender roles, age-group category/ bracket, spiritual beliefs, education, health care practices, physical activities, drug and substance abuse, cultural practices and traditions amongst others, fundamentally influence the nutritional behaviors present within different social contexts. In terms of cultural diversity, the U.S. is uniquely

China as an attractive market for Foreign Direct Investment Essay

China as an attractive market for Foreign Direct Investment - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that China is the fastest growing economy in the world and since 1980s has been consistently experiencing high economic growth rates. With the sheer size of the economy and the expansion of manufacturing base of the country has made it one of the largest and most lucrative markets to enter by the international firms. Initially China offered great advantage in terms of access to low cost labor as well as raw materials and manufacturing facilities. However, due to its domestic economy size and the rising income levels, China also presents itself as one of the largest market for the international firms to enter into. All major international brands including McDonalds, Apple, Next and all other better consumer brands have made their entry into China to tap into the local market. Foreign direct investment in China and the impact it had on the Chinese economy is considered as one of the most important economic success stories of the recent times. By the end of 1999, China was having $300 billion of foreign direct investment in the country which was merely $19 billion a decade ago. This figure has now increased manifolds and China is one of the largest attractors of foreign direct investment in the world. What is also important to note that most of the FDI in China was through the Greenfield projects with the collaboration of the local players in the market?   Why this has happened and why China becomes an attractive target for FDI will be discussed in this question. Chinese Economy Chinese economy is the second largest economy in the world overcoming Japan as the second largest economy in the world after USA. It is also the fastest growing economy in the world with growth rates of approximately 10% for last three decades. Such consistent economic performance indicates that the Chinese economy has been able to project itself as one of the most important target for foreign direct investment.  During 1950s and 1960s the ov erall focus of the government was on controlling inflation through tighter budgetary and monetary policy controls. Though China is still a communist country with government controlling most of the resources of the country but it still managed to make a transition to market based economic practices. Though It has the history of nationalizing the banks and other institutions however, it has been continue to attract foreign direct investment in the country. There can be different reasons as to why China became the attractive economy for the foreign direct investment. More important reasons are discussed below: Quality of the Government Though China is the leading centrally controlled economy after USSR with government controlling most of the resources however, it is still considered as the mmarket-friendlygovernment. It has been argue that despite constraints, China has been able to put in place an effective FDI governance mechanism in the country. The quality of the government, overal l policies and the environment presented in China serves as one of the biggest motivating factors for international investors to invest in China. It is also important to understand that greater control of the Chinese government on the management of overall affairs of the economy may be supportive too. Since the government is politically strong therefore foreign direct investment may have become easier.

Final Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Final - Assignment Example tury liberal rights custom, in the feeling of being outlined fundamentally to ensure natives from state activity which encroaches upon singular freedom and self-governance. The assert that the right to " life, freedom and security of the individual" under area 7 assurances the right to deny unwanted health awareness medication is predictable with this origination of the Charter.2 Since its establishment, inquiries have likewise been raised regarding whether the Charter not just keeps the state from meddling with unique flexibilities, yet obliges governments to take positive measures to guarantee that Canadians can to be sure delight in the full profit of essential human rights. From this point of view, the issue whether the Charter assurances access to human services benefits as a component of the right to life, freedom and security of the individual under area 7, or of the right to equivalent insurance and equivalent profit of the law under segment 15(1) of the Charter, is a matter of much more amazing investment (Jacob, 2007). The medicinal calling has as far back as anyone can remember subscribed to a collection of moral explanations created principally for the profit of the patient. As a part of this calling, a doctor must distinguish obligation to patients as a matter of first importance, and to social order, to other wellbeing experts, and to self. The accompanying Principles embraced by the American Medical Association are not laws, however measures of behavior which characterize the essentials of fair conduct for the whole association and its administration. A regular skeleton utilized as a part of the examination of therapeutic morals is the "four standards" methodology hypothesized by Tom Beauchamp and James Childress in their reading material Principles of biomedical morals. It distinguishes four fundamental good standards, which are to be judged and weighed against one another, with consideration provided for the extent of their requisition. The four

The Literature of Realism Essay Example for Free

The Literature of Realism Essay I. Background †¢ 1. three fundamental issues: 1) conflict between the agrarianism and the industrialism 2) the conflict between the South and the North 3) the conflict between the East and the West †¢ 2. reaction against â€Å"the lie† of romanticism and sentimentalism †¢ 3. battle between â€Å"idealists† and â€Å"realists† †¢ 4. more attention to the immediate facts of life 5. the year 1865 an important shift from Romanticism to Realism a most significant event the holocaust or destruction of the Civil War ? a notable impact on American literature and art ? a profound emotional and philosophical impact on thinkers and writers ? some changes 1) putting to rest the romantic concept of war Romantics: a glorious, grand and noble encounter, something heroic Realists: a way of destroying romantic outlook on life a negative review of war — its destruction 2) changing the romantic concept of man Romantics: man as â€Å"the noblest work of God† Realists: man as a product of the environment, of his heredity, of fate or chance. 3) stimulating industrialization A. an explosive growth of business and industry a period of amazing engineering achievements, a period of frantic building and expansion B.  the emergence of an urban civilization a period of great plunder and exploitation, of greedy materialism and political corruption C. the miserable social ills the voices of criticism and voices of anger. 4) becoming the â€Å"melting-pot† society the influx of millions of immigrants — more freedom or a better living, or both — a land of opportunity 5) changing the concept of reality Romantics: the romantic concept of reality, the spiritual reality Realists: the visibly concrete world, the physical reality II. Major Features of American Realism †¢ 1. truthful treatment of material 1) examining characters in depth A. the individual — highly B. the function of environment — shaping character C. characterization — the center of the story D. the effect of action on characters E. the psychology of the people in the story 2) open ending †¢ 2. commonness of the lives of the common people 3. objectivity; an objective view of human nature and human experience †¢ 4. moral visions 1) the problems of the individual conscience in conflict with social institutions †¢ 2) focusing on the dilemma III. Local Color Fiction 1. Background 1) the shift of the publishing center: A. a new freedom B. a greater openness. 2) the growth of communication and transportation 3) the rapid growth of local magazines †¢ 2. Local-color Realism or Regionalism 1) a quality in literature fidelity to a particular geographical section and a faithful representation of its habits, speech, manners, history, folklore, or beliefs 2) a subordinate order of realism unique in his or her living section 3) more popular after the Civil War 4) a new freedom 5) much more interested in learning about life in other parts of the country 6) the desire to preserve distinctive ways of life and to come to terms with the harsh realities †¢ 3. Representatives women: Mary E. Wilking Freeman, Sarah Orne Jewett and Harriet Beecher Stowe: New England Kate Chopin: Louisiana men: Bret Harte: the Far West O. Henry: New York City Mark Twain: the Mississippi River †¢ 4. Local Color Fiction 1) a form of regionalism: local colorism A. people’s realization B. asserting their unique identity and seeking understanding and recognition C. the frontier humorists’ preparation D. the appearance of a lot of magazines 2) a quality of circumstantial authenticity A. not only an authentic surface but also the depths B. strong sketches of an environment C.simplicity: characteristic of vernacular language and satirical humor †¢ 5. Basic Features 1) a locale distinguished from the outside world the local character of their particular region 2) the exotic and the picturesque A. not common in other regions B. an attempt at accurate dialect reporting C. a tendency toward the use of eccentrics as characters D. the use of sentimentalized pathos or whimsical humor in plotting 3) the past A. not merely as nostalgia but also as realism in the social criticism B. the world of agrarian life a. the farms b. the people who were soon going to leave the farms c. the small towns d. a life that was vanishing 4) a great contradiction A. how things are right now B. how great the past had been 5) the influence of setting on character the diversity of America IV. Naturalism †¢ 1. Background 1) Charles Darwin’s ideas A. the struggle for existence B. survival of the fittest C. natural selection 2) Herbert Spencer’s theory of social Darwinism the weak and stupid would fall victim in the natural course of events to economic forces 3) the way of the development of the society 4) Darwin’s natural selection: a way to explain human behavior †¢ 2. Emergence 1) Emile Zola: the purpose of a novelist A. to be a scientist B. to place his characters in a situation C. to watch the influences of heredity and environment destroy them, or, to watch them overcome the inimical force of heredity and environment 2) some American writers A. human beings: no longer free and strong B. human life: governed by the two crushing forces of heredity and environment C. Howellsian realism: too restrained and genteel in tone †¢ 3. Major Features 1) the application of the principles of scientific determinism 2) three major concepts of literary naturalism A. humans: controlled by laws of heredity and environment naturalist fiction: no evidence of effective choice, or free will, or autonomous action B. life: a struggle for survival the naturalist’s concerns: a. social systems that destroy and dehumanize b. individual experience of loss and failure C. a major difference between the literary naturalists and the realists a. the violent, sensational, sordid, unpleasant, and ugly aspects of life b. all the aspects of life that are not too pleasant to consider 3) naturalist characters: A. being unable to resist the conditions that press upon them B. more or less combinations of innate traits and socialized habits †¢ 4. American Naturalistic Writers 1) not as pessimistic about life as the French 2) an optimistic feeling 3) a great regard for rugged individualism 4) similarities in theme and technique A. the forbidden subjects B. in a daring, open, and direct manner C. original and experimental in their respective styles 5) two examples of American literary naturalism: Stephen Crane and Theodore Dreiser A. an optimistic strain B. the influence of pessimistic determinism †¢ 5. Comparison With Realists and Romantics. 1) naturalists: reduce to nil the human chances of winning on their own terms realists: stress freedom of choice with large provisos concerning the power of outside forces romantics: stress the possible triumph of the human will 2) naturalists: see human beings no more than a physical object under the control of biological and environmental forces realists: see human beings just human beings romantics: see human beings almost as a god †¢ 6. Decline of Naturalism 1) the growth of psychological science and of psychoanalysis 2) the tendency to turn into the mythic through sheer immersion in the typical 3) disappearing with World War I 4) reviving during the period of the Great Depression in the 1930s The Literature of Realism (2) Some Leading Writers †¢ 1. Mark Twain (1835-1910) 1) Life A. born in Florida, Missouri B. a journey man printer at the age of 18 C. a pilot on the Mississippi River â€Å"Mark Twain†: â€Å"safe water† or â€Å"two fathoms deep† D. in 1865, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County 2) Literary Achievements A. The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County (1867) a collection of short stories B. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876)  · C. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884)  · 3) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1) the idea of lost boyhood (2) the first person narration (3) Mark Twain’s greatest achievement A. the world’s view of America; a profound impact onthe development of American writing B. his influences on American writers of the 20th century a. his presentation of native American material b. his art of the vernacular idiom c. his departure from the tradition of the 19th century gentility d. his sense of alienation (4) Satire A. Twain’s satire on southern culture before the Civil War a. two different subjects: ? the experience of westward expansion ? the experience of southern slavery b. attitudes toward the South and the West ? much less pleasant ? the problem of slavery the problem of mistreatment of humans by humans c. condemning racial discrimination d. making fun of typical American values e. a brooding pessimism about American values and life itself B. Twain’s satire on the poor whites their ludicrous idea: they were white and they were better than black slaves C. Twain’s satire on the genteel upper-class southerners a. a very aristocratic life b. being violent accepting their violence as right (5) Style A. vernacular language: unpretentious, colloquial, and poetic style; the directness of the language B. local color: descriptions of local places and people; playing tricks on the reader; C. cracker-barrel philosopher: the moral stance of a cracker-barrel philosopher (someone who understand folk wisdom, has a pretty good common sense of view of life, and is pretty realistic about social problems) (6) Significance A. the major achievements of his art: a. the carefully controlled point of view, with its implicit ironies expressed through the voice of a semiliterate boy b. the masterful use of dialects c. the felicitous balancing of nostalgic romanticism and realism, humor and pathos, innocence and evil B. his ability a. to capture the enduring, archetypal, mythic images of America b. to create the most memorable characters in all of American fiction 2. O. Henry (1862-1910): one of the most prolific modern American short story writers 1) LifeA. born at Greensboro, North Carolina B. named William Sidney Porter C. using the penname â€Å"O. Henry† in his creative writing D. died at 48 2) Literary Achievements A. a great master of the art of fiction B. popular mainly for his short stories a. typically American b. self-sacrificing member of a family c. the surprise ending C. illustration of his styleoriginal conception, exaggeration, simile and metaphor, humor, and surprise ending D. the list of his short stories: about 300 titles Cabbages and Kings The Gift of the Magi The Cop and the Anthem A Municipal Report †¢ 3. Theodore Dreiser (1871-1945) 1) Life A. born from a large, poor, religious, immigrant family at Terre Haute, Indiana B. bitter poverty, lacking education, skill and status C. against the poverty and narrowness of life D. direct personal experience and independent reading and thinking E. Spencer’s social Darwinism F. various jobs G. writing short stories. H. one of the first American writers to come from the lower level of society 2) Literary Career A. in September of 1899, Sister Carrie a. a landmark novel b. virtually ignored for more than a decade: the heroine transgresses the sexual code — a breach of proper moral conduct c. republliation in 1907: very popular, one of the key works in the Dreiser canon d. a female character, the new woman — more freedom in society, more independence, more ability to run her own life without being tied to a family, or without being tied to a husband — the beginning of women’s liberation movement e. Carrie: no control, no freedom of will, a slave to her heredity and to her environment B. Dreiser’s second novel Jennie Gerhardt (1911) C. â€Å"The Trilogy of Desire†: The Financier (1912) The Titan (1914) / The Stoic (1947) and an aptly autobiographical novel: The Genius (1915) a. financially successful people are of high sexual energy b. the chaotic nature of life prevents spiritual satisfaction c. normal and right for one to get the most from a society’s economic system D. Plays of the Natural and Supernatural (1916) The Hand of the Potter (1918) : a tragedy E.  An American Tragedy (1925): his masterpiece F. political activism and polemical writing a. Dreiser Looks at Russia (1928) b. â€Å"Tragic America† (1931) â€Å" † America Is Worth Saving (1941) G. attending International Peace Conference H. awarded the Merit Medal for Fiction I. joining the American Communist Part J. The Bulwark (1946) 3) Major Features A. stressing determinism: a. unable to assert their will against natural and economic forces b. pathetic in their inability to escape their fates c. subject to the control of the natural forces of heredity and environment B. society’s effect on a person  a. truthfully reflecting the society and people of his time b. treating human beings scientifically c. finding the explanation that man is the product of social evolution. C. narrative method: natural and free from artifice a. his tone: serious, never satirical or comic b. powerful narrative based on large quantities of material and detailed descriptions c. his powerful frankness widens the social and sexual range possible for literature in America d. striking at the American myth that success and famewere to be achieved by work and virtue e. dramatizing chance as a means of compelling characters to pay or gain for actions f.  characteristic of journalistic method of reiteration, word-pictures, sharp contrast, truth in color, and movement in outline g. its stubborn honesty and realism D. â€Å"the wheelhouse of American naturalism†, â€Å"chief spokesman for the realistic novel† and â€Å"a profound and prescient critic of debased American values†. a. American naturalism came of age b. recording the course and the vulgar and the cruel and the terrible William Dean Howells founder of American Realism; the most prominent critic of the entire realistic period Henry James a most prominent critic; an early psychological novelist one of the fathers of the psychological novel.

Capitalism, Modernism and Postmodernism

Capitalism, Modernism and Postmodernism Eagelton’s essay, Capitalism, Modernism and Postmodernism, was first published in the New Left Review in 1983 in which his post Marxist analysis of literature is exposed. He accounts for capitalism influence on art and its role. The capitalist and late capitalist areas have seen two new forms of literature appear: modern and postmodern. The modern, Eagleton explains, â€Å"In bracketing off the real social world, establish[es] a critical, negating distance between itself and the ruling social order†[1], while postmodern works accepts the fact that it is a commodity and thus conflicts between its material reality and its aesthetic structure. Capitalism has turned art into a commodity, and after analysing this claim, the characteristics of modern and postmodern genres will be analysed, so as to understand literature’s role. Eagleton explains how â€Å"High modernity [†¦] was born at a stroke with mass commodity culture.†[2] Capitalism, as defined by Marx is the bourgeois doctrine by which they are in possession of the modes of production and manufacture goods, sold for a profit. According to most Marxist thinkers, including Eagleton, art became one of the goods that the bourgeoisie wants to monopolise, produce and sell. Art has become a commodity, dissolved into social life. Eagleton denounces the effects of late capitalism on art: â€Å"if the artefact is a commodity, the commodity can always be an artefact. Art and life indeed interbreed†[3]. Eagleton points out that that the â€Å"performative principle†, which he redefines as the deliverance of goods, also applies to the capitalist conception of art. The use of â€Å"best seller† as criteria of advertisement for literature proves that literature has become a mass commodity good. Art and literature have been influenced by some characteristics of late capitalism, such as virtual reality based on mass consumerism. Our society focuses on commodities sold to and ideologically integrated by the consumer: â€Å"The commodity is less an image in the sense of a â€Å"reflection† than an image of itself, its entire material being devoted to its own self-presentation†[4]. Art has become centred on its own image, role and place within society, because it has somehow lost its utopian role of mirroring the world, as if capitalism has perverted its function: â€Å"If the unreality of the artistic image mirrors the unreality of its society as a whole, then it is to say that it mirrors nothing real and so does not really mirror at all.†[5] Modernism and postmodernism are genres that emerged in the capitalist and late capitalist stages. They seem to have a common point: to focus on their role and concentrate on self identity. Eagleton uses de Man’s deconstructivist theory to define modernism: â€Å"Literature defines and pre-empts its own cultural institutionalisation by textually introjecting it, hugging the very chains which bind it, discovering its own negative form of transcendence in its power of literally naming, and thus partially distancing, its own failure to engage in the real.†[6] Modernism attempts at representing the real, but cannot do so and raises a paradox: it â€Å"resists commodification†[7] but is nonetheless part of it, thus part of the social and cultural superstructure of society, which it denies. Denying being part of the capitalist mass commodity is the very core of modern failure to represent the real. Postmodernism appears as a more cynical genre. Some of its features are the blurring of boundaries, pastiche and grotesque. It does not attempt to represent the world, since it is virtual, and would thus fail to describe it. Postmodernism seems to be very different from modernism on the ground that: â€Å"If the work of art really is a commodity, it might as well admit it†[8] and â€Å"become aesthetically what it is economically†[9]. Eagleton also suggests that postmodersism aims at parodying the commodity production, without adding any meaning in it; if meaning was added in the pastiche, making it parody, it would serve to alienate the self from reality, and according to postmodern thought, there is no reality it can be alienated from. All these features aim at empting the social content of art. Eagleton assessed the features of literature genres characteristic of capitalist stages, in order to draw a critical and theoretical approach of literature. He seems to focus on its ideological role, which is, more than its representational value, its only role left. Modernism deconstructs the â€Å"unified subject of bourgeois humanism, draws upon key negative aspects of the actual experience of such subject in late bourgeois society, which often enough does not at all correspond to the official ideological version.†[10] Indeed, literature acts as an ideology denouncing ideology. Capitalist ideology professes that mass consumption finally fulfils libidinal desires, when in fact, as modernism exposes, takes us away from our self and reality, from the â€Å"unified subject†Ã¢â‚¬â€a harmonious society—that late bourgeoisie claims to have reached. Postmodernism, despite not embracing the reality of society, draws upon ideological inconsistencies of the bourgeois di scourse, thus rendering itself ideological. It shows the incapacity of complying with the capitalist ideology: â€Å"the subject of late capitalism is neither simply the self-regulating synthetic agent posited by classical humanist ideology, nor merely a decentred network of desire, but a contrary amalgam of the two.†[11] The impossibility for the self to comply with all its obligations—familial, consumering, working—in the late capitalist society is denounced by postmodernism. It seems that Eagleton places literature at the centre of ideology, as a resistance to bourgeois ideology. De man explains that â€Å"the bases for historical knowledge are not empirical facts but written texts, even if these texts masquerade in the guise of wars and revolution†[12]; literature is at the heart of our knowledge, ideologically built, and seems to remain so, decades after the end of ideology was proclaimed. BIBLIOGRAPHY Modern Criticism and Theory, a Reader. Ed. D. Lodge. Eagleton, â€Å"Capitalism, Modernism and Postmodernism†. Longman: London and New York, 1988. 1 Footnotes [1]Modern Criticism and Theory, a Reader. Ed. D. Lodge. Eagleton, â€Å"Capitalsim, Modernism and Postmodernism†. Longman: London and New York, 1988. p 392. [2] Ibid. [3] Ibid. p386-387. [4] Ibid. p.387. [5] Ibid. [6] Ibid. p.391. [7] Ibid. p.392. [8] Ibid. [9] Ibid. p.393. [10] Ibid. p.395. [11] Ibid. p.396. [12] Ibid. p.390.

Iron Deficiency Anemia And Treatment Health Essay

Iron Deficiency Anemia And Treatment Health Essay This paper explores five sources that report what iron-deficiency anemia is along with how to treat the ailment. More specifically this paper looks at what role vegetables play in treatment of iron-deficiency anemia. All sources remain consistent in the role and how helpful vegetables are in fighting iron-deficiency anemia. Iron-deficiency anemia treatment from Heart, Lung, and Blood institute will provide that background of what iron-deficiency anemia is and how to treat it. Ross (2002), Johnson and Shinde (2010) all cover the role of food and more specifically the role of vegetables in treatment of iron-deficiency anemia. What is iron- deficiency anemia? According to Iron-deficiency anemia treatment from Heart, Lung, and Blood institute (2010); iron-deficiency anemia is the most prevalent type of anemia on earth. This type makes red blood cells (RBCs) that are below average size, thus the term microcytic is used when referring to them. RBCs are not only smaller in size and amount, but contain a below average amount of hemoglobin, which makes cells pale. Because RBCs are needed to transport oxygen throughout the body, anemia results in lower amounts of oxygen reaching the cells and tissues, disturbing their function. The distinction between iron-deficiency and anemia is important. They often go hand in hand, but people can be iron deficient without being anemic. Iron-deficiency is a reduction of iron storage while anemia refers to the reduction of iron in the RBCs. These reduced RBCs are not able to transport enough oxygen from the lungs to the tissues, causing a shortage in energy being released from the cells and every cell in the body will feel the effect. What causes iron-deficiency anemia? According to Iron-deficiency anemia treatment from Heart, Lung, and Blood institute (2010); iron-deficiency anemia may be caused by the following: diets low in iron due to iron being obtained from foods in our diet. A person unable to have a balanced high iron diet may suffer from some extent of iron-deficiency anemia. An increased iron requirement as well as an increased red blood cell production is required when the body is going through changes such as growth spurts in children and adolescents. Gastrointestinal tract abnormalities, malabsorption of iron is common after some forms of gastrointestinal surgeries. Most of the iron taken in by foods is absorbed in the upper small intestine. Any abnormalities in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract could affect iron intake and result in iron-deficiency anemia. Loss of blood can cause a decrease of iron and result in iron-deficiency anemia. Sources of blood loss may include GI bleeding, menstrual bleeding, or injury. What are the symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia? According to Iron-deficiency anemia treatment from Heart, Lung, and Blood institute (2010), the following are the most common symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia: abnormal paleness or lack of color of the skin, irritability, lack of energy, increased heart rate (tachycardia), sore or swollen tongue, enlarged spleen. The symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia may resemble other blood conditions or medical problems. How is iron-deficiency anemia diagnosed? According to Iron-deficiency anemia treatment from Heart, Lung, and Blood institute(2010), iron-deficiency anemia can be found from general findings on a complete medical history and a physical, like complaints of tiring easily, abnormal paleness or lack of color of the skin, or a fast heartbeat (tachycardia). Iron-deficiency anemia is typically found during a medical examination via a blood test that measures the how much hemoglobin (amount of RBCs) present, as well as the amount of iron in the blood. According to Iron-deficiency anemia treatment from Heart, Lung, and Blood institute (2010), treatment for iron-deficiency anemia: certain treatment for iron-deficiency anemia will be determined by your doctor based on: age, overall health, family and personal medical history, severity of the anemia, cause of the anemia, your opinion or preference. Iron supplements are just one of the many ways to treat iron-deficiency anemia. Supplements can be taken during the duration of several months to raise iron levels in the blood. Supplements may cause agitation of the stomach along with discoloration of bowel movements. Supplements should be consumed on an empty stomach, or with orange juice, to raise absorption levels. According to Ross (2002), other treatments include an iron-rich diet. Eating a diet with iron-rich foods can help treat iron-deficiency anemia. Good sources of iron include the following: meats beef, pork, lamb, liver, and other organ meats also, poultry chicken, duck, turkey, liver especially dark meat. Fish shellfish, including clams, mussels, and oysters, sardines, anchovies. Now letà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s look at what vegetables are good sources of iron. For example, leafy greens of the cabbage family like broccoli, kale, turnip greens, and collards. Also legumes, such as lima beans and green peas; dry beans and peas, such as pinto beans, black-eyed peas, and canned baked beans are good way to get some iron in your diet. And then there are the grains that are high in iron content such as yeast-leavened whole-wheat bread and rolls, iron-enriched white bread, pasta, rice, and cereals. With a vast amount of veggies and fruits around, high iron foods for vegans is abundant. According to Shinde(2010), one should eat the following high iron foods to maintain a healthy life. Food as follows : Freshly baked potato, Cooked Spinach, Green leafy vegetables, Beets, Lima beans, Peas, Broccoli, Turnip greens, Asparagus, Green beans, cooked, Tomato juice, Pumpkin, cooked, Swiss Chard, Canned sweet potatoes, Cooked Bok Choy. Those are mainly just the beans and vegetables that have high iron content to aid in ones high iron diet. Here is a list of high iron fruit: dates, gooseberries, mangoes, apples, papaya, banana, grapes, jack fruit and muskmelon. Since iron from vegetables sources are poorly absorbed by the body, it is important for vegans to take in more amounts of high iron foods and high iron vegetables. According to Johnson (2010), one can increase how fast the iron is absorbed by eating foods high in vitamin C. For optimal iron absorption in these sources in the body, one should ingest a good amount of vitamin C in the eating plan. Vitamin C increases the rate of absorption of iron in the body, so that its potential in the body is reached. Discussion Instead of taking iron supplements, one can get iron through foods high in iron. High iron vegetables and fruits remain the healthiest way to take in iron. All vegetables are packed full of some nutrients, but certain vegetables are specially known to be high in iron. There are plenty of high iron foods for vegans since there are lot vegetables high in iron. Certain vegetables have iron that is easily absorbed. These types of vegetables are very helpful people with iron-deficiency anemia. Knowing which foods are high in iron is half the battle.

Brief History of Buddhism :: Religion Theology Essays

Brief History of Buddhism Buddhism is one of the major religions of the world. It was founded by Siddhartha Guatama (Buddha) in Northeastern India. It arose as a monastic movement during a time of Brahman tradition. Buddhism rejected important views of Hinduism. It did not recognize the validity of the Vedic Scriptures, nor the sacrificial cult which arose from it. It also questioned the authority of the priesthood. Also, the Buddhist movement was open to people of all castes, denying that a person's worth could be judged by their blood. The religion of Buddhism has 150 to 350 million followers around the world. The wide range is due to two reasons. The tendency for religious affiliation to be nonexclusive is one. The other is the difficulty in getting information from Communist countries such as China. It's followers have divided into two main branches: Theravada and Mahayana. Theravada, the way of the elders, is dominant in India, Sri Lanka, Burma, Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia. Mahayana, the greater vehicle, refers to the Theravada as Hinayana, the lesser vehicle. It is dominant in India, Tibet, Japan, Nepal, Taiwan, China, Korea, Vietnam, and Mongolia. Siddhartha Guatama was born in Kapilivastu. His father was the ruler of the small kingdom near the Indian/Nepal border. As a child, his future was foretold by sages. They believed that he would someday be a fellow sage or leader of a great empire. He led a very pampered and sheltered life until the age of twenty-nine. It was at that time that he realized that he had led an empty life. He renounced his wealth and embarked on a journey to seek truth, enlightenment, and the cycle of rebirths. In the first years of his journey, Siddhartha Guatama practiced yoga and became involved in radical asceticism. After a short time, he gave up that life for one of a middle path between indulgence and self- denial. He meditated under a bo tree until he reached true enlightenment by rising through a series of higher states of consciousness. After realizing this religious inner truth, he went through a time of inner struggle. Renaming himself Buddha (meaning enlightened one), he wandered from place to place, preaching, spreading his teachings by word of mouth. He also gained disciples, who were grouped into a monastic community known as a sangha. As he neared his death, Buddha refused a successor. He told his followers to work hard to find their salvation. After his death, it was decided that a new way to keep the community's unity and purity was needed, since the teachings of Buddha were spoken only.

leadership and management :: essays research papers

The Functions of management Henri Fayol – first person to come up with a list of functions or elements of management †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Planning – setting objectives and also strategies, policies, programmes and procedures for achieving them. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Organising – managers set tasks which need to be preformed if the business wants to achieve its objectives. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Commanding – this involves giving instructions to subordinates to carry out tasks. The manager has the authority to make decisions. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Co-ordinating – this is the bringing together of the activities of people within the business. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Controlling – managers measure and correct the activities of individuals and groups, to make sure that their performance fits in with plans. The management process Peter Drucker – grouped the operations of management into five categories †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Setting objectives for the organisation †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Job measurement – assessing whether the business has met its objectives †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Organising the work †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Motivating employees †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Developing people – the management should bring out the best in people Four styles of management Autocratic – orders come form the top, and no leeway is allowed Democratic – less centralised, give space for initiative Laissez faire – arises from over worked or lazy management, staff is left to their own devices Paternalistic – decision making is still centralised but a noticeable attention and care for staff McGregor’s Theory X & Y Douglas McGregor undertook a survey of managers in the USA and identified two styles of management, which he called Theory X and Theory Y. Theory X managers tend to distrust their subordinates; they believe employees do not enjoy their work and that need to be controlled. Theory X is about the views managers have on their workforce. Theory Y managers believe that employees do enjoy their work and they want to contribute ideas and effort. Theory Y manager is more likely to involve employees in decisions Why do leader adopt different styles? Fiedler – argued that ‘it is easier to change someone’s role or power, or to modify the job he has to do, than to change his leadership style’. He found that it is difficult for people to change their leadership styles – an autocrat will always lead in n autocratic style. Fiedler suggested that a business should attempt what he called leadership match – to find a leader to fit the situation. Leader can either be task orientated or relationship orientated Hersey and Blanchard – argued that a leader’s strategy should not only take account of the situation, but also the maturity of those who are led. A leader will have task behaviour or relationship behaviour.

Sharing Leadership :: essays research papers

Sharing Leadership Song: She'll Be Coming ‘Round the Mountain She'll be coming ‘round the mountain when she comes, "Whoo, Hoo" Driving six white horses ... "Whoa Back" We'll all go out to meet her... "Hi Babe" We'll kill the old red rooster... "Hack, Hack" We'll all have chicken ‘n dumplings... "Yum, Yum" We'll wear our bright red woolies... "Scratch, Scratch" -The subject of this presentation is Sharing Leadership. -I need 4 (four) volunteers. Each get a Name-tag and corresponding style card. -Now we are going to have a role-playing activity with four patrol leaders... Introduce each. -The situation which each patrol leader will lead us in is: The Scoutmaster would like your patrol to build a campfire for all of the parents who are visiting tonight. The Wolf Patrol has also challenged your patrol to a game of ultimate. What will your patrol do? -Which leader handled the situation the best? -If the Patrol Leaders' Council decided that it would be better if the troop went to a different summer camp this summer, which leader would be best to lead the group? -If young Johnny Scout needs help in setting up his tent, but the patrol leader has to go to a Patrol Leaders' Council, which leader would be best to lead the group? -If the patrol is going rock climbing and the Patrol leader is an expert, which leader would be best to lead the group? -If the patrol must decide on a design for a new patrol flag, which leader would be best to lead the group? -If the Patrol leader needs to decide on a campsite for his patrol at summer camp and he gets knows that he may not get his first choice, which leader would be best to lead the group? -Is there one leader that is best for all situations? -Does a good leader have a combination of all of these styles? -Now that we have a general idea of leadership styles, we can examine each more closely. Remember that different situations often need different types of leadership. -The Four Style of Leadership are Telling, Persuading, Consulting, and Delegating. -The First one, Telling, is sometimes called Ordering. -In this case, who identifies the problem, makes the decision, and directs the activity? (The leader) -Are the group members considered? (Sometimes yes and sometimes no) -When is telling or ordering the right leadership style?

Online Games Is Formative Way of Learning

Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment A research paper Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment A research paper Elizabeth Dunphy, EdD Commissioned by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, NCCA  © NCCA 2008 24 Merrion Square, Dublin 2 www. ncca. ie Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Contents Glossary 5 Introduction 6 Section 1: General background Purpose of the paper Assessment and curriculum The Irish context The practice context The legislative context Ethical IssuesTowards a definition of formative assessment Supporting learning and development 8 8 8 9 9 10 11 12 12 Section 2: The nature of early learning Characteristics of early learning The complexity of early learning Key theoretical constructs for assessment Ecological perspectives Socio-cultural perspectives Activity theory Children’s agency Children’s collaboration in learning Intersubjectivity and collaboration Childr en as co-constructors of knowledge Play as a context for formative assessment Emerging approaches to assessment Performance assessment and authentic assessment Summary 13 13 13 3 14 14 14 15 15 17 17 18 18 19 21 Section 3: What to assess in early learning The essentials of learning Dispositions A range of cognitive abilities Emotional well-being Self-concept and sociability Summary 22 22 22 23 23 24 24 Section 4: How to assess early learning A narrative approach to assessment of learning in early childhood Learning stories: A credit-focused approach A fully-contextualised account of learning Methods for collecting information on children’s learning Observing and empathising Conversations with children Clinical interviews Making sense of children’s learningSustaining learning and development through documentation Portfolios Summary 25 25 25 26 27 28 29 29 30 30 31 33 3 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Section 5: Assessment and the practitioner Professio nal knowledge Skills base Ethical considerations Manageability of assessment Tensions 34 34 34 35 35 36 Concluding comments 37 References 38 Table 1: Gardner’s understanding of human development and assessment and Shepard’s guiding principles of assessment 19 4 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Glossary Glossary Agency: Children are active in their own learning.Some ways in which they display their agency is by taking the initiative in learning situations, by observing and becoming involved in ongoing events, or by initiating conversations with others. Authentic assessment: Assessing children on tasks that are part of their ordinary everyday experiences in their early education and care settings. Co-construction: This occurs when children and/or practitioners construct meaning and knowledge about the world together in interaction. Collaborative learning: This is learning that takes place in social contexts and using the resources of the environment.Form ative assessment: This is assessment that informs teaching and learning. It is concerned with the shortterm collection and use of evidence for the guidance of learning. Intersubjectivity: This is the mutual understanding achieved by people in communication. Meta-cognition: This refers to what children think about their own learning, thinking and remembering and how the act of thinking about these processes affect the ways in which children then go about intentionally learning, thinking and remembering. It is a process whereby children become aware of their own thought processes.Pedagogy of mutuality: This perspective recognises that both child and adult bring beliefs and ideas to the learning situation and that discussion and interaction are the means by which a shared frame of reference is established. This results in an exchange of understandings between the child and the practitioner. Pedagogical content knowledge: This is a form of professional understanding which brings togethe r content knowledge and knowledge about pedagogy. It is based on an understanding of how best to organise and present ideas and adapt them in response to the diverse interests and abilities of children.Performance assessment: Assessing children’s early learning and development through observing, recording, and evaluating children’s performance or work. Scaffolding: This refers to the practice of providing guidance and support to children as they move from one level of competence to another. It is a metaphor that is used to describe interactional support for children’s efforts. The assistance offered to the child is sensitive to and contingent on the amount of support needed. Schema: These are patterns of early repeatable behaviours which children engage in and which lead them through a process of co-ordination, to make generalisations.Socio-cultural theories: These are a family of theories that have arisen from the work of Vygotsky and which have in common their emphasis on the role that social and cultural factors play in children’s development and learning. Theory of mind: Children gradually acquire the understanding that other people can hold beliefs about the world that differ from what the child him/herself believes or appears to be true. Transformation of participation: From a socio-cultural perspective, children are seen as developing through a process of participating in activities of their communities, and in doing so their participation changes.They become progressively more expert through engagement in cultural practice and through social interactions that guide them in taking on new roles and responsibilities. 5 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Introduction This research paper, Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment responds to the questions – What’s the purpose of formative assessment in early childhood? What should we assess? How should we assess?The paper is one of four research papers commissioned by the NCCA to set out the theory trail behind the Framework for Early Learning1. This paper is being used to develop guidelines on assessment for inclusion in the Framework. While there are a number of different types and functions of assessment this paper focuses on formative assessment as this offers most potential in terms of assessing to support learning in the day-to-day interactions between adults and children in early childhood. Section 1 of the paper, General background explores the meaning of assessment and its relationship with teaching and learning.Though still very much an emerging area, what we know about how to support early learning and development through the formative assessment process has advanced somewhat in recent years. In many ways the advances in assessment practices in early childhood education and care mirror those in the field of assessment g enerally. In particular, the articulation of the interrelatedness between teaching, learning and assessment and the complexity of the relationships between these processes and curriculum is of as much importance to those concerned with early learning and development, as it is to those concerned with later stages of development.The term assessment, as applied in early childhood education and care, generally implies the intention to provide a rich picture of the ways in which children act, think and learn. In order to orient the discussion about assessment in early childhood education and care, the initial section of the paper outlines the general context in relation to the assessment of early learning and development. While a number of different reasons for assessing early learning and development can be identified, this paper focuses on using formative assessment to support teaching and learning.Section 2, The nature of early learning begins from the premise that in assessing early learning and development it is critical to acknowledge and take account of the nature of early learning and development. We know that in early childhood learning and development is rapid, episodic and holistic. It is also highly influenced by the extent of support that is available for that learning. The adults around the child, and the extent to which they can and do support early learning and development, are crucial elements in determining the extent of learning.Because of their stage of development, children’s abilities in some areas are not yet mature. Their verbal abilities are still emerging, and so assessment of learning and development is often through observation of, and inference from, the children’s actions and reactions in particular situations. It is also essential to acknowledge and take account of the fact that there are considerable cultural variations in children’s experiences. These will result in differences in the course and content of early learning and development. They may also result in considerable differences in how children learn and in how they display their learning.It is important to focus on the breadth of children’s early learning and development. Section 3, What to assess in early learning focuses on assessing children’s dispositions, well-being, cognitive abilities and self-concept and sociability. Assessment in early childhood is shaped by how children from birth to six years learn and develop. A narrative approach offers great potential for making assessment of early learning visible. Documentation of evidence of early learning and development in various ways, using a variety of media and tools, is important for both reflecting on and communicating about children’s achievements.There appears to be general agreement that assessment of early learning and development should be informal, carried out over time, and in the context of the child’s interactions with materials, objects and other people. It should also be authentic in the sense that it should take place in real-life contexts where it is embedded in tasks that children see as significant, meaningful and worthwhile. Informal assessments, carried out as children engage in experiences they see as relevant and meaningful, are likely to produce the best assessments of early learning and development.These issues are considered in Section 4, How to assess early learning. 1 The Framework for Early Learning was renamed Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework in 2009. 6 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Section 5, Assessment and the practitioner discusses the need for professional development for early childhood practitioners. Good assessment practice requires understanding about how children learn and develop, the process of assessment, and skills to manageably assess in ways that respect children and that are e thically sound.The concluding comments clarify and summarise the key messages across the paper. Key points arising from the discussion are presented in shaded boxes throughout the paper. Some of these points relate to key messages arising from theory and research while others are aspirational. 7 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Section 1: General background This section of the paper explores what is meant by assessment in early childhood and discusses its relationship with teaching and learning.Informed by this, a definition of formative assessment is presented. The section concludes by describing the current practice and legislative context in which assessment takes place in Ireland. Purpose of the paper The purpose of this paper is to review issues related to formative assessment of early learning. The findings of the paper will be used to support the development of the assessment guidelines in the Framework for Early Learning2. The paper responds to questions related to the what, why and how of formative assessment in early childhood. Assessment and curriculumWays of assessing children’s learning and development cannot be separated from features of the curriculum (for example, the degree of formality or informality that characterises it), and from views of learners and learning which are embodied in that curriculum. Kelly (1992) identifies the interrelating of curriculum and assessment as †¦ a highly complex and sophisticated matter (p. 16). He argues that the interplay of one with the other is crucial in determining the effectiveness of either. The NCCA is developing a curriculum framework for children between the ages of birth and six years.The Framework embraces a particular view of the child, of learning and of how that learning may be celebrated and extended. In the Framework for Early Learning, learning is presented in four broad and complementary theme s:  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Well-being  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Identity and Belonging  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Communicating  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Exploring and Thinking. Some of the principles related to how children develop and learn which underpin the Framework include the following:  ¦Ã‚ ¦ holistic learning and development  ¦Ã‚ ¦ active learning  ¦Ã‚ ¦ play and first-hand experiences  ¦Ã‚ ¦ relevant and meaningful experiences  ¦Ã‚ ¦ communication and language  ¦ a well-planned and well-resourced outdoor and indoor learning environment. It will be important to identify an approach to assessment that will help practitioners identify and support children’s learning as it relates to the Framework’s principles and themes. Assessment and teaching are now generally considered to be as much inseparable processes in early childhood as they are in any other period of life (Shepard, Kagan and Wurtz, 1998; Bowman et al. , 2001). We now know that children learn by building new understandings on those that they already have ( Wood, 1998).In order to support children’s learning then, practitioners first collect information about children’s well-being, identity and belonging, communication, and exploration and thinking. What children engage with, think, know, feel or can do are all of importance in the assessment process. Reflection on this information helps the practitioner to establish 2 As noted earlier, the Framework for Early Learning was renamed Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework in 2009. 8 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment ow best to advance children’s learning and development. Once this is established the practitioner is then in a position to plan worthwhile, interesting and challenging learning experiences to further progress learning. Clearly then, assessment in early childhood is not something that can be considered independent of either curriculum or learning. It is critica l that the assessment of early learning recognises the unique nature of development in early childhood. It is also critical that we learn from the experiences of countries with a longer history of appraising assessment practices and processes than we have here in Ireland.Working in the context of the United States, where there has been considerable interest in finding appropriate assessment formats for use by early childhood practitioners, Shepard et al. (1998, pp. 8-9) devised a set of principles to guide practice and policy for the assessment of children’s learning. These represented a synthesis of understandings in respect of the most appropriate approaches to assessment in early childhood and the authors advised that they should apply to any situation in which assessments are used to make decisions about children’s learning:  ¦Ã‚ ¦Assessments should bring about benefits for children.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Assessments should be tailored to a specific purpose and should be reli able, valid and fair for that purpose.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Assessment policies should be designed recognising that reliability and validity of assessments increases with children’s age.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Assessments should be age-appropriate in both content and the method of data collection.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Assessments should be linguistically appropriate, recognising that to some extent all assessments are measures of language.  ¦Ã‚ ¦Parents should be a valued source of assessment information, as well as an audience for assessment results. The Irish context The practice context Assessment in the early years of a child’s life can be viewed from a number of perspectives. David (2003) identifies three perspectives  ¦Ã‚ ¦ the day-to-day informal assessments made by the adults with whom the child comes in contact. In most cases these are early years practitioners who may or may not document such assessments.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ the physical assessments by paediatricians, public health nurses and family doc tors.These aim to identify any physical problems that may impede children’s progression and seek to alleviate them as much as possible.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ diagnostic assessments that can have a range of functions, including identifying children with special educational needs, and helping practitioners to support their learning more effectively. No single type of assessment can serve all of the purposes identified in the perspectives outlined above. Each perspective has a role to play, especially in the case of children with special needs where diagnostic assessments are of paramount importance.Babies, toddlers and young children may experience various types of assessments in early childhood. Some may occur frequently, others occasionally. Multi-agency and multi-disciplinary communication is a critical means by which information related to the child’s development and learning can be shared for the benefit of the child. It is imperative that practitioners in early childhood settin gs have access to any information that is of use in making sure learning opportunities in the setting are appropriate for each individual child.The practice of practitioners building on assessments carried out by other professionals such as therapists can be facilitated by significant levels of inter- and/or multidisciplinary teamwork. 9 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Where children spend some or all of their day in out-of-home settings the practitioners with whom they are in contact engage in ongoing assessment for supporting learning and development.Traditionally, observation is the primary method used in assessing children’s learning and development in the range of early education settings in Ireland. For instance, close observations of children’s play in a range of childcare services in Ireland provide the basis for learning and teaching stories (Brennan, 2004). Many practitio ners use checklists to record aspects of their observations. These are often used to record observations in relation to the assessment of children’s skills and understandings, particularly in the area of identifying children with special educational needs and in supporting their learning and development.In relation to their use of assessment practices to support children’s learning in curriculum areas, only about half of infant teachers who participated in Phase 1 of the Primary Curriculum Review (NCCA, 2005) reported that they used observation and about three-quarters reported using documentation. Infant teachers in primary schools also use a range of developmental and diagnostic assessments, for example, in the area of early literacy, to assess specific aspects of children’s development and learning. (See Section 4 for a more extensive discussion on observation as an assessment method. )Increasingly there is an awareness that children live different childhoods : their social, cultural, linguistic and ecological experiences and opportunities differ and all of this influences assessment. Practitioners who are in daily contact with children are in a good position to familiarise themselves with these diverse aspects of children’s lives and of their possibilities for early learning and development. Consequently, on a day-to-day basis, the practitioner’s own assessments are the ones that have the most potential in terms of planning for children’s learning and of making judgements regarding children’s progress.Using assessment for this purpose is the central focus of this paper. Key point A range of assessments are appropriate in assessing children’s learning. The focus of the assessment depends on its purpose. The central focus of this paper is on formative assessment where practitioners’ own assessments are used to support and plan for children’s learning. The legislative context There is a long history of informal assessment of children’s learning in Ireland. However, for various reasons early childhood practitioners now find it necessary to document learning in ways that were not general practice previously.Both legislative requirements and practitioners’ own desires to better understand early learning and how best to extend it, are to the fore in encouraging the documentation of information related to children’s early learning and development. In relation to young children attending primary schools, The Education Act (Department of Education and Science, 1998) requires principals and teachers to regularly evaluate students and periodically report the results of the evaluation to the students and their parents. The implications of this requirement for teachers and schools include  ¦ developing assessment procedures which provide an accurate account of children’s progress and achievement  ¦Ã‚ ¦ creating and maintaining records of childrenâ €™s progress and achievement while they are attending the school  ¦Ã‚ ¦ providing parents with assessment reports which contain accurate and clearly accessible information about their children’s progress and achievement (NCCA, 2007a, p. 95). The Equal Status Act (The Equality Authority, 2000) has implications for the assessment policy in early education settings.In particular, it requires settings to be aware of the effects of context, culture and language in assessing children’s learning and development. 10 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act (EPSEN) (Department of Health and Children, 2004) requires that where a child has or may have special educational needs an assessment of those needs should be carried out. With children not attending formal schooling this is the responsibility of the relevant health board.Where th e child is a student then the Act requires schools to identify when a child is not benefiting from the education programme on offer and to investigate the reasons behind this. The school, or in the case of a child not at school the relevant health board, is mandated to ensure that an individual education plan (IEP) for an appropriate education for the child is drawn up in consultation with the child’s parents. The Act outlines the statutory requirements for educational planning for children with special educational needs (SEN).It requires that a multi-disciplinary assessment be carried out in situations where it is considered that the child may have special educational needs. An IEP must then be prepared for each child identified as having such needs. Discussion and agreement regarding the abilities, skills and talents as well as the nature and degree of the child’s special educational needs, together with an analysis of how these needs affect the child’s learni ng and development is required. The plan must include these and must also specify goals for learning and development for the child over a period not exceeding ne year. It must also specify the supports that need to be put in place to enable the child to participate in and benefit from education. The Disability Act (Department of Health and Children, 2005) enables provision for the assessment of health and education needs for persons with disabilities, arising from their situation. The Act provides for access for people with disabilities to health and education services. In relation to educational needs, Part 2 Section 8 (9) states that where an assessment is applied for it must be carried out by or at the request of an assessment officer who then identifies the need for the provision of an educational service to the child, he or she shall, in case the child is enrolled in a school, refer the matter to the principal of that school†¦in any other case, refer the matter to the coun cil for the purposes of an assessment. The Child Care (Pre-School Services) (No 2) Regulations (Department of Health and Children, 2006) set out the regulations and requirements pertaining to all aspects of the operation of pre-school settings. Regulation 5 explicitly requires that:A person carrying on a pre-school service shall ensure that each child’s learning, development and well-being is facilitated within the daily life of the service through the provision of the appropriate opportunities, experiences, activities, interaction, materials and equipment, having regard to the age and state of development of the child and the child’s cultural context. To fulfil this requirement it is necessary for practitioners to engage in making important judgements about children’s learning and development and how best to extend and enrich it. By implication this involves the practitioner in assessing learning and development.Indeed, the explanatory guide directs practitione rs to be pro-active in ensuring that appropriate action is taken to address each child’s individual needs with his/her parents and following consultation, where appropriate, with other relevant services (p. 39). While there are other pieces of legislation which impact on aspects of assessment such as the transfer of assessment information between settings, the focus of this paper is on the actual process of using assessment to support early learning and development. How best to comply with the above demands in ways that are respectful to hildren; capture the complexity of early learning; and are helpful in planning future learning experiences has now become a key issue for consideration for early childhood practitioners. Key point Assessment takes place within a particular legislative framework in Ireland. Ethical Issues The nature of the power relations between babies, toddlers and young children and the practitioners with whom they come into contact needs to be acknowledged in the assessment situation. The power of the adult and the relative dependency of children make it imperative that ethical issues are given serious consideration by practitioners.Some of these issues are discussed later in Section 5. 11 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Towards a definition of formative assessment Bowman, Donovan and Burns (2001) suggest that the term assessment, as applied in early childhood education and care, generally implies the intention to provide a rich picture of the ways in which children act, think and learn. Such a picture focuses on the individual’s learning, is built up over time and provides evidence of learning in a number of different contexts.In relation to its importance, they argue that: Assessment has an important role to play in revealing a child’s prior knowledge, development of concepts and ways of interacting with and understanding the worl d so that teachers can choose a pedagogical approach and curricular materials that will support the child’s further learning and development. (p. 259) Pelligrini (1998) describes assessment in early childhood as being about the collection of information about children. This is generally understood to encompass a number of other processes besides collecting. For example, Lally nd Hurst (1992) describe how assessment also involves practitioners in documenting, analysing and reflecting on the information collected, and using this to plan and support further learning. This definition is very similar to that used in Assessment in the Primary School Curriculum: Guidelines for Schools (NCCA, 2007a). While similar methods may be useful in both early childhood settings and in primary school settings, in early childhood assessment particular account needs to be taken of the characteristics of babies, toddlers and young children and to the unique ways in which these children learn.Early childhood assessment focuses specifically on finding out what children are interested in, understand, think, feel, and are able to do. It seeks to document this information in order to understand children’s thinking and learning styles, to chart children’s progress and to support further learning. It is developmental in that it focuses on processes rather than on content or product. Key point Assessment of early learning provides a rich picture of children’s learning by collecting and documenting information. Through reflecting on and using this information, children’s future learning is supported and enhanced.Supporting learning and development Assessment in early childhood has been identified as having a number of functions – ipsative, diagnostic, summative, evaluative and informative (Wood and Attfield, 2005). Assessment in early childhood has enormous potential to support learning and development. A recent large-scale longitudinal study of ear ly learning settings in England confirmed the importance of assessment in meeting children’s needs and in supporting their cognitive progress (Siraj-Blatchford, Sylva, Muttock, Gilden and Bell, 2002).The ultimate purpose of assessment in early childhood is to make learning more interesting, enjoyable and successful for children. Drummond (1993) suggests that assessment must work for children: We can use our assessments to shape and enrich our curriculum, our interactions, our provision as a whole: we can use our assessments as a way of identifying what children will be able to learn next, so that we can support and extend that learning. Assessment is part of our daily practice in striving for quality. (p. 13) Key pointAssessment in early childhood promotes the extension and enrichment of children’s early learning and development. The following section looks at the nature of early learning and the implications for assessing early learning. 12 Aistear: the Early Childhoo d Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Section 2: The nature of early learning This section of the paper discusses the characteristics of early learning and identifies some key theoretical constructs that guide the teaching, learning and assessment processes during early childhood.Theoretical considerations have been influential in shaping new and emerging approaches to assessment and the most salient of these are discussed in relation to their implications for the assessment of early learning and development. Characteristics of early learning During the early childhood period children’s learning across the various dimensions of development (for example, physical, motor, linguistic, emotional) is greater than at any other period, but is also highly variable across the dimensions.It also occurs very rapidly, is episodic in nature and is very susceptible to environmental conditions (Shepard et al. , 1998). These factors con tribute to making the assessment of early learning and development very challenging. The complexity of early learning We have a great deal of evidence that early learning and development is both extensive and complex (e. g. Drummond, 1993; Bowman et al. , 2001; Carr, 2002). The research paper, Children’s early learning and development (French, 2007) provides information on many facets of early learning and development.Early childhood educators have consistently sought to convey the extent of this complexity and over the years they have provided evidence of exactly how much learning children can demonstrate, provided that it is approached in appropriate ways. For instance, Donaldson (1983) clearly demonstrates how children display different levels of proficiency/learning in different contexts. In her seminal work, Children’s Minds, she reviewed research that illustrated the dramatic effect of the inclusion or omission of a single adjective in questioning children on so- called ‘logical’ tasks.She argues (p. 59) that the young child †¦ first makes sense of situations (and perhaps especially those involving human intentions) and then uses this kind of understanding to help him make sense of what is said to him. Looking not at what children say but at what they do, the work of Athey (1990) and that of Nutbrown (1999) clearly demonstrates how, as children pursue certain schema for considerable periods of time, these can be identified and supported by practitioners. Early learning is seen, for instance in Athey’s work, to have its own recognisable and valid characteristics.Nutbrown (1999) draws out the implication of that work for the assessment of children’s pathways and patterns of development and interest. This work along with that of Drummond (1993) exemplifies vividly how much of children’s learning there is to see if practitioners are open to seeing it by looking beyond what children can tell us and instead o bserving what they actually can do. Play provides an important vehicle and context for this work. Key point During the early childhood period, children’s learning is highly complex and is made visible through assessing carefully and thoughtfully.Key theoretical constructs for assessment Dahlberg, Moss and Pence (1999) observe that in recent years, especially in Western Europe, there has been a process of rethinking childhood that has led to new constructions of the child. They locate this process in a number of interrelated developments with respect to learning theories; philosophy; psychology; sociology; and a concurrent questioning of previous understandings in these fields. From this post-modern perspective, the young child is seen, from the start of life, as a construction of his or her own world.This is very similar to the perspective adopted by Malaguzzi (1993), the founder of the world-renowned Reggio Emilia pre-schools in Italy. Dahlberg et al. (1999) describe how in Reggio Emilia pre-schools, the young child is understood as a unique, complex individual who is rich in the sense that he or she is equipped from the start to engage fully and actively in their world. A wider discussion of these perspectives follows. 13 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessmentEcological perspectives Ecological and socio-cultural theories of learning have largely dominated explanations of development and learning in early childhood in recent years. For instance, ecological (Bronfenbrenner 1979) and bioecological (Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 1998) models of human development have been influential in efforts to understand learning and development and associated processes such as assessment. These models emphasise the role in human development of both the environment and of processes.The research paper, Perspectives on the relationship between education and care (Hayes, 2007) in turn highligh ts both the importance of care and education in facilitating children’s overall development. From this perspective, human development is seen as taking place as a result of progressively more complex reciprocal interactions (p. 996) between the young child and the people, objects and symbols in the environment. To be effective the interactions must occur on a fairly regular basis over extended periods of time (p. 996).These enduring forms of interaction (proximal processes) are seen as key to learning and development and we must study these interactions over time and alongside the observation of behaviour in natural settings. From an ecologicaltheory perspective, Bronfenbrenner (1979) describes how the learner can participate in increasingly more complex learning situations and in doing so take increasingly greater responsibility in the learning situation. The perspective also emphasises the agency or active nature of children in their interactions with adults, objects and sy mbols.The model can be used to draw attention to the interpersonal and situational aspects of assessment, for example: the importance of the personal characteristics of the child and the adult in the assessment context, the importance of reciprocal interactions between child and adult and the importance of assessing children’s level of engagement with the objects and symbols provided in the immediate environment. Thus the ecological approach emphasises assessment of children engaged in real tasks in natural settings.This perspective sits very well with the socio-cultural perspective that we look at next. Socio-cultural perspectives In the past two decades socio-cultural perspectives, that is perspectives that highlight the social and cultural nature of learning, are increasingly used to explain the ways that learning and development occur in early childhood (Anning, Cullen and Fleer, 2004). Socio-cultural theories of learning suggest that the process of learning is as much a social construction as it is an individual one. Rogoff (1998, p. 91) describes development as transformation of participation. Transformation occurs at a number of levels: for instance, the learner changes at the level of their involvement, in the role they play in the learning situation, in the ability they demonstrate in moving flexibly from one learning context to another, and in the amount of responsibility taken in the situation. Activity theory also concentrates on the social aspects of learning. Activity theory Activity theory, which is a development of aspects of Vygotsky’s work (See for example, Engerstrom et al. 1999), is also being highlighted as a theoretical framework that may be useful in explaining the complexity of learning–related issues in early childhood. Fleer, Anning and Cullen (2004) explain how activity theory, in common with Rogoff’s discussion of socio-cultural theory, focuses on the study of the complexity of human behaviour in social g roups and in specific contexts. The theory is premised on the notion that the contextual features of a task contribute to †¦ performance on that task (p. 178).Furthermore, children use tools such as language, a particular action or resource to mediate knowledge in interactions with others. But the cultural features of the context in which they use these tools influences the way activities are performed and understood. Key point If socio-cultural theory informs our understanding of how children learn, it also by implication informs our understanding of assessment. 14 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessmentWhat all of these perspectives hold in common is their emphasis on the socially constructed nature of learning and of assessment. There are a number of other important constructs that also unite them to greater or lesser degrees. These include children’s agency, the importance of collaborati on, and the co-construction of meaning and knowledge. These constructs are particularly helpful when thinking about the quality of the interactions between practitioners and young learners. Quality interactions are increasingly recognised as central to pedagogy (Black and Wiliam 1998a; Siraj-Blatchford et al. , 2002).The next sub-section discusses these ideas in some detail, and in doing so, draws out the implications for assessment practices in early childhood. Children’s agency Bruner (1999a) argues that advances in the study of human development provide us with a profile of the child as an active, intentional being; with knowledge as ‘man-made’ rather than simply there; with ways to negotiate with others in the construction of knowledge. (See French (2007) for more detailed information. ) A crucial aspect of identity and self-esteem is that the child sees him/her self as an agent in control of his/her own actions.Some ways in which children display their agenc y is by taking the initiative in learning situations, by observing and becoming involved in ongoing events, or by initiating conversations with others. Agency is about taking more control of your own mental activity (Bruner, 1996, p. 87). Bruner argues that the agentive mind is not only active in nature but it seeks out dialogue and discourse with other active minds (p. 93). Bruner (1999a) identifies efforts to recognise children’s perspectives in the processes of learning as highly significant and he uses the term pedagogy of mutuality (p. 3) to describe the pedagogy that arises from such endeavours. It is premised on the belief that children are able to reason; to make sense (both alone and in discourse with others); to reflect and to hold theories about self and about the world. The practitioner, according to Bruner (p. 12) is concerned with understanding what the child thinks and how he/she arrives at what he/she believes. He identifies four key research constructs which have enriched this perspective on teaching and learning (and by implication assessment):  ¦Ã‚ ¦Intersubjectivity – how the child develops the ability to read other minds  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Theory of mind – the child’s grasp of another’s intentional state  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Meta-cognition – what the child thinks about learning, remembering thinking  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Collaborative learning – how children, through talk and discussion, explain and revise their thinking. These theoretical ideas are important also in the analysis of assessment as it relates to early learning and development. Children’s collaboration in learning is also important and this is considered below. Key pointThe active role which children themselves play in their interactions with others needs to be recognised and taken into account in any assessment of learning. Children’s collaboration in learning Zone of proximal development Vygotsky’s theory of learning (1978; 1986) has bee n highly influential in helping to explain the processes of learning in early childhood. In particular, his notion of the zone of proximal development has provided the foundation and potential for some of the most important recent initiatives in the assessment of individual children’s learning (Lunt, 2000).Berk and Winsler (1995) describe Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD) as a dynamic zone of sensitivity in which learning and cognitive development occur. Tasks that children cannot do individually but they can do with help from others invoke mental functioning that are currently in the process of developing, rather than those that have already matured (p. 26). It appears that Vygotsky originally introduced the ZPD in the context of arguing against intelligence testing which he felt was seeking to assess something static and did not reflect the dynamic and ever-changing 5 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and developm ent through formative assessment nature of human cognition. Adult-child collaboration within the ZPD is critical for effective teaching and learning interactions because it is within such interactions that the practitioner identifies how the child may be assisted in learning and what the child is capable of doing with appropriate support. The practitioner also has the opportunity to assess the impact of such support on the child’s progress.This approach to assessment effectively merges the teaching and assessment processes. It is commonly referred to as dynamic assessment. When Feuerstein (1979) first proposed this form of assessment he was envisioning, in essence, a joint problem-solving situation during which the practitioner gauges the nature and extent of assistance required by the child in order to solve the problem. Children’s responsiveness to appropriate instructional interactions is a key factor in dynamic assessment situations and it is now considered to be a n important predictor of learning potential (Berk and Winsler, 1995).Lidz (1991) emphasises that: The focus of dynamic assessment is on the assessor’s ability to discover the means of facilitating the learning of the child, not on the child’s demonstration of ability to the assessor (as cited in Berk and Winsler, 1995, p. 139). Dynamic assessment is considered by Berk and Winsler (ibid. ) as especially useful for making visible the learning potential of those children whose early experiences do not include experiences that prepare them for learning in group/institutional settings. (For a comprehensive discussion of dynamic assessment and emerging approaches to such assessment, see Lunt, 2000).The concept of scaffolding is often associated with ZPD and it is this which we turn our attention to next. Key point Practitioner’s interactions with children often incorporate both teaching and assessment. It is critical that the practitioner is capable of engaging certai n interactive skills in such situations since these will be necessary to ensure optimal learning and development. Scaffolding Effective scaffolding (Wood, Bruner and Ross, 1976), where the adult guides the child’s learning in the ZPD, is an important feature of the engagement of the child in joint problem solving.Here, the child interacts with the practitioner while the two are jointly trying to reach a goal and this results in the establishment of intersubjectivity (Newson and Newson, 1975). Intersubjectivity refers to the process whereby two participants achieve a shared understanding whilst undertaking a task that they approach from different perspectives. The parties co-construct meanings in activities that involve higher–order thinking (Vygotsky, 1978). Rogoff (1998) emphasises the ongoing mutual process of understanding, which is inherent in joint problemsolving interactions.She also draws attention to the institutional and cultural aspects of joint problemsolvin g activities. She distinguishes between her socio-cultural approach to studying experts’ support of novices’ learning and other approaches which focus on particular techniques such as scaffolding. Rogoff distinguishes between the concepts of ‘scaffolding’ and of working in the zone of proximal development. She describes scaffolding as a specific technique focusing on what experts provide for novices; it focuses on the tutor’s efforts as they relate contingently to the novice’s successes and failures (p. 699).However, working in the zone of proximal development is, in her view, wider than scaffolding. It focuses on the processes of communication that builds a continually evolving mutual perspective. It is a way of describing an activity in which someone with greater expertise assists someone else †¦ to participate in socio-cultural activities in a way that exceeds what they could do otherwise (p. 699). Mutual contribution is an essential consideration so interactions and communicative and collaborative processes all form part of the picture, rather than just the child’s successes or errors as in scaffolding.Rogoff argues that The concept of scaffolding does not refer to the institutional and cultural context in which it occurs, whereas the concept of zone of proximal development requires attention to processes of communication and the relation of the interaction at hand to institutional, cultural and historic processes. (p. 700) 16 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Key point Supporting children’s learning is an important part of assessment. For the practitioner this is often far more complex than simply applying a technique such as scaffolding.Learners make an equally important contribution. Intersubjectivity and collaboration are important in scaffolding children’s learning and we look at these two concepts b elow. Intersubjectivity and collaboration Rogoff (1990; 1998) has illustrated how children make an important contribution in collaborating in the process of establishing joint understanding. Children, including infants in the first year of life, can sometimes be observed to be deliberately taking the lead in collaborative activities by seeking information or by directing activities.Rogoff’s analysis, consistent with Vygotsky, suggests that the intersubjectivity as achieved by adults and babies is different from that achieved by adults and children who can use linguistic (verbal and gestural) communication to achieve mutual understandings. This then has implications for the assessment process across the age range birth to six years. Working in the zone of proximal development with a toddler will include the adult engaging in the demonstration of objects, collaborative activity with objects and the focusing of the child’s attention.Rogoff (1998) points out that the child , for example in seeking to help the adult in everyday chores, very often initiates such activity. Older toddlers and young children will often seek to assert their independence in doing a particular task themselves but Rogoff’s analysis of the research suggests that they also will actively seek assistance when they are stuck. Recently a question has arisen about the capacity of early years settings to support the kinds of relationships and shared experiences that enable children to engage in the types of social participation that promote optimum learning (Parker-Rees, 2007).The research indicates that the nature and scope of babies, toddlers and children’s interactions with parents, the playful quality of these interactions and the extent to which relationships can influence reciprocal imitative behaviour (an important process of learning especially in the first year) must all be fully appreciated by practitioners and be seen as desirable conditions for learning in th e setting. Key point The concept of collaboration is key when considering assessment from a socio-cultural perspective.In collaborating, the child and the practitioner are involved in each other’s thinking processes through shared efforts. In order to assess certain aspects of learning by babies, toddlers and young children, it is essential for adults to collaborate with the children in order to understand their learning. The co-construction of knowledge is supported by intersubjectivity and collaboration and it is to this that we next draw our attention. Children as co-constructors of knowledgeIn recent times the term ‘co-construction’ has featured prominently in influential early childhood publications, although it was implicit in the last century in the work of Dewey (1933) who emphasised the ways in which children construct their learning by actively engaging in, and shaping, their experiences and environments. For instance, Jordan (2004) discusses the term s caffolding and compares it with coconstruction. The specific pattern of interaction that characterised early accounts of scaffolding, according to Jordan (ibid. and Rogoff (1998), generally maintained the power and control with the adult. They argue that the term co-construction emphasises the child as a powerful player in his/her own learning. An example of how this process of co-construction works in practice is illustrated in the discussions of the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education (Edwards, Gandini and Forman, 1998). Co-construction refers to adults and children making meaning and knowledge together (MacNaughton and Williams, 2004).Co-construction recognises the child’s expertise and in order to understand this, the practitioner needs to interact with the child and become aware of the child’s thoughts and thereby to establish intersubjectivity. 17 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through f ormative assessment Recent research (Siraj-Blatchford et al. , 2002) also highlighted the process of co-construction and found it to be a key factor in terms of promoting children’s learning.Essentially a co-construction perspective emphasises understanding and meaning on the part of both child and adult, rather than the acquisition of facts by the child. Jordan (2004) concludes that the two concepts, scaffolding and co-construction have different applicability depending on whether the goal of the practitioner is the exploration of thinking or the achievement of pre-specified learning goals. Key point Co-construction of meaning and knowledge is central to teaching, learning and assessment and it occurs when both child and practitioner engage together in achieving mutual understanding.Play as a context for formative assessment As this paper demonstrates, children’s learning is complex and assessment approaches need to take cognisance of this. In early childhood, this co mplexity is abundantly evident as children engage in play. The importance of play to young children’s learning and development is a key principle for early childhood practitioners (Wood, 2004). Assessing children’s understandings and progress as they play, either alone or with others, is a crucial activity in early year’s settings. In assessing the child’s learning through play the adult can use a range of approaches and methods.Practitioners make assessments by focusing on children’s play interests, their levels of engagement and participation. They make assessments while skilfully engaging with children in play. Skilful engagement includes intervention in play as and when appropriate. Such interventions may serve to initiate or sustain interactions, thereby leading to shared talking and thinking. They may also involve scaffolding children in order to enable them to reach their potential at a particular time. (See the research paper, Play as a con text for early learning and development (Kernan, 2007) for detailed information on play. Children’s learning is a complex matter and assessment approaches need to take cognisance of this. The paper now looks at emerging approaches to assessment, all of which take account of play as a vehicle for learning and development. Key point Assessing children’s understandings and progress as they play, either alone or with others, is a crucial activity in early year’s settings. Emerging approaches to assessment The rationale for using assessment to enrich and extend children’s learning can be located in recent developments in society’s understandings of learning in the early years.For instance, in recent decades there have been very big changes in our understandings of human nature and of learning. Gardner (1999, p. 91) reviews what he describes as several lines of evidence from the cognitive, neural, and developmental sciences which point to a far more capa cious view of the human mind and of human learning than that which informed earlier conceptions. He presents a picture of assessment that builds on the newly emerging picture of human development (see Table 1). Gardner’s principles complement the earlier principles presented by Shepard et al. 1998). (See pages 16-17. ) 18 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Table 1: Gardner’s understanding of human development and assessment and Shepard’s guiding principles of assessment Features of human development Features of assessment In understanding human development, there is Assessment should  ¦Ã‚ ¦ be simple, natural and occurring on a reliable schedule evidence for the existence of multiple faculties or ‘intelligences’  ¦Ã‚ ¦ have ecological validity (be done in situations hat are real)  ¦Ã‚ ¦ recognition of vast individual differences;  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦ the desirab ility of assessing learning in context utilise instruments that are intelligence-fair and not dependent on language or logical faculties  ¦Ã‚ ¦ locating competence and skill ‘outside the head of the individual’.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ use multiple measures  ¦Ã‚ ¦ be sensitive to individual differences, developmental levels and forms of expertise  ¦Ã‚ ¦ use materials which are intrinsically interesting and motivating  ¦Ã‚ ¦ yield information to be used for the learner’s benefit.  ¦Ã‚ ¦ a necessity for a developmental perspective  ¦Ã‚ ¦ n emergence of a symbol-system perspective  ¦Ã‚ ¦ Performance and authentic assessment incorporate some of Gardner’s ideas and a discussion of these follows below. Performance assessment and authentic assessment Emerging approaches to assessment take account of developments in theories about learning and about human development. Performance assessment is currently seen as an approach that is particularly appropriate for asses sing many aspects of early learning and development (see Bowman et al. , 2001). Meisels (1999) describes performance assessment as assessments that are ounded on the notion that learning and development can only be assessed over time and in interactions with materials, objects and other people. In this approach to assessment, the expectation is that tasks must be practical, realistic and challenging for children (Torrance, 2001). Performance assessment implies observation of children as they undertake a number of routine tasks in early learning settings. According to Meisels (1999, p. 58) these should meet a number of criteria:  ¦Ã‚ ¦ tasks should bring together various skills that children display and demonstrate during the course of interactions  ¦ children should be assisted to perform to the very best of their ability  ¦Ã‚ ¦ tasks should be guided by developmental standards  ¦Ã‚ ¦ tasks should engage children in reflection about their work and in articulating their ideas about their learning. Authentic assessment is a type of performance assessment. It is described as compatible with the prevailing philosophy that emphasises whole child development (Puckett and Black 2000, p. 6). This philosophy explains development across a range of domains (for example social, moral, emotional, language and cognitive).It also recognises the diversity of early learning and the role of environmental factors in shaping that learning. From an authentic assessment perspective, curriculum and assessment are interwoven and emphasise relevant and meaningful experiences. Assessment focuses on what children do, and on how they do it in the context of meaningful tasks. Authentic assessment has a number of identifiable features (Puckett and Black, 2000, p. 7), including the following: 19 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment  ¦Ã‚ ¦ an emphasis on emerging development  ¦ a focus on the youn g child’s individual strengths and weaknesses  ¦Ã‚ ¦ is based on principles of child growth and development  ¦Ã‚ ¦ emanates from logical, meaningful, relevant and applicable curricula  ¦Ã‚ ¦ is performance based  ¦Ã‚ ¦ recognises different intelligence and learning styles  ¦Ã‚ ¦ is reflective and analytic  ¦Ã‚ ¦ is ongoing and occurs in many contexts  ¦Ã‚ ¦ is collaborative with learners, parents and others involved in children’s learning  ¦Ã‚ ¦ is interwoven with teaching. Key point Authentic assessment is compatible with a whole child perspective on learning and development. 20 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum FrameworkSupporting early learning and development through formative assessment Summary Where the purpose of assessment is to promote further learning, assessment becomes a particular type of teaching strategy. (See Marshall and Drummond, 2006). Assessment from a socio-cultural perspective takes account of the key learning processes as de termined by socio-cultural theory. In particular, collaboration and the importance in that process of the establishment of mutual understanding (intersubjectivity) need to be emphasised, as do ideas about children’s agency and those related to the co-construction of knowledge and understanding.An understanding of the different processes that contribute to children’s learning, and the types of interactions that promote it are key to understanding how such learning can best be assessed. The recognition of these processes at work is also central in conceptualising assessment approaches that take account of and display the key role of children themselves in the assessment process. Authentic assessment reflects new understandings about learning and about human development, and recognises the holistic, contextualised and dynamic nature of learning in early childhood.Having discussed the interconnection between how children learn and approaches to assessment, the next section looks at what to assess in children’s early learning and development. 21 Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Supporting early learning and development through formative assessment Section 3: What to assess in early learning This section of the paper identifies aspects of learning that are of concern in assessing children’s early learning and development. The challenges of assessing a wide range of learning and development in a balanced way are discussed.The essentials of learning Skills and knowledge are important in respect of early learning. However, increasingly there are calls for a wider view of what it is that children are learning in the years from birth to six, and for explicitness about other areas of children’s development that are now recognised as critical for long term success. For instance, Bertram and Pascal (2002) identify social competence, emotional well-being and dispositions to learn as core constituent elements of the effectiv e learner.In relation to each of these areas they identify elements that characterise the effective learner. Indicators related to disposition include independence, creativity, self-motivation and resilience. Those related to emotional literacy include empowerment, connectedness, and positive self-esteem. Those related to social competence inco