Impact of multimedia in learning English as a second language Literature review

Impact of multimedia in learning English as a second language - Literature review Example Meanwhile, learning happens as a process rather than an event. This means that for the acquisition of second language to take place, there are series of things that a person should do, as learning a second language will not happen overnight. Mayer (2003) used the cognitive theory to explain the processes that take place in the course of second language acquisition. It was noted that the more interaction a person has with the language being learnt, the better the chances of acquiring it more easily and quickly. Meanwhile, the interactions that a person has with language often differ in potency and impact. For example using the multimedia principle, Mayer (2003, p. 33) explained that ‘the human information processing system contains an auditory/verbal channel and a visual/pictorial channel’. By implication, a person gets an easier grip of a particular language being learnt if provisions are made for all of auditory, verbal, visual and pictorial channels. However, using multimedia such as audio and video easily provides all these channels at a go (Neal, 2006). Based on this, when designing a website for acquisition of English as a second language, it will be beneficial to include audio and video files that wil l provide multimedia learning platforms, rather than use only written and verbal means of acquisition. Neal, L. (2006). Predictions for 2006 — E-learning experts map the road ahead. Elearn Magazine [online]. Available at http://www.elearnmag.org/subpage.cfm?section=articles&article=31-1 [accessed 13 February

Profit Pathology and Disposable Planet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Profit Pathology and Disposable Planet - Essay Example Both â€Å"Flow† and â€Å"Pathology† address crucial problems that endanger people’s lives. â€Å"Flow† is a documentary directed by Irene Salina in 2008 and introduces the difficulty many people around the world have in finding clean water and how chemicals have contaminated drinkable water around the world. It is common knowledge that water is indispensable for survival; however, the reality is that water is becoming scare throughout the world. As stated in â€Å"Flow†: â€Å"The world is running out of fresh water.† This dramatic observation represents a real threat to millions of people around the world compelled to drink dirty water. This scarcity of fresh water is related to the pollution caused by companies whose chemical products contaminate the water. â€Å"Flow† presents examples from Mexico, Bolivia, India and South Africa where people die after drinking contaminated water. This pollution is a point Michael Parenti denounce s in his article. He indeed presents pollution as s threat to people’s health and survival. Indicating the companies’ involvement in the pollution, he states: â€Å"This corporate system of capital accumulation treats the Earth's life-sustaining resources (arable land, groundwater, wetlands, foliage, forests, fisheries, ocean beds, bays, rivers, air quality) as disposable ingredients presumed to be of limitless supply, to be consumed or toxified at will†. ... He indeed presents pollution as s threat to people’s health and survival. Indicating the companies’ involvement in the pollution, he states: â€Å"This corporate system of capital accumulation treats the Earth's life-sustaining resources (arable land, groundwater, wetlands, foliage, forests, fisheries, ocean beds, bays, rivers, air quality) as disposable ingredients presumed to be of limitless supply, to be consumed or toxified at will† (Parenti). He clearly denounces the destruction of the world’s resources and the toxic chemicals companies discharge in them therefore threatening people’s health and lives. Similarly â€Å"Monsanto† and Parenti’s article also share the same concern about the deadly effects of chemicals and the invincibility of the multinationals that have total control over the organizations supposed to regulate the fields. This documentary directed by Marie-Monique Robin in 2008 presents Monsanto, a multinational agri cultural biotechnology corporation, involved in the production of herbicide and genetically engineered seeds. Even though Monsanto claims â€Å"to help farmers produce better crops† (Monsanto) there is a growing controversy concerning the health risks that the products constitute. In fact, some studies find that the herbicide, Round up, and other chemicals â€Å"Provoke the first stages that lead to cancer† (Monsanto). Because of these health risks, workers and researchers raise the question of safety; however, their concerns did not find easy answers since they soon found out that the company was very powerful and well-grounded. Their priority was not the safety of their workers or the environment but to make profit. One of the company’s reports indicates: â€Å"We cannot afford to lose

Mumbai-Pune Expressway

Mumbai-Pune Expressway The Mumbai-Pune Expressway has always been a project of high priority for the Maharashtra State Government. The traffic on the Mumbai-Pune section of National Highway 4 is expected to increase drastically. The distance between the two cities is some 180 km and it takes about five hours to cover it under good traffic conditions. However increasingly, and during the monsoon, traffic on the Mumbai-Pune road is very high and frequent accidents block the narrow and winding curves of the two lane highway. Landslides in the region are very frequent due to the monsoon rains. The resulting delays and traffic blockages turn a 5-hour journey to one that would involve anywhere between 10 to 15 hours. (Sulakshana Mahajan, 2002) The Government of Maharashtra had been newly elected in 1995 and they were very keen on the early completion of the Mumbai Pune Expressway, as there was prestige value attached to it. It was decided in July 1996 to implement the project as a BOT(Build-Operate-Transfer) project and tenders were prepared appropriately, for which only one bid was received from Reliance India Limited which was rejected as it was double the government budget. In turn the project was awarded to MSRDC. (IITK Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, 2007) Feasibility Study: In 1990, the Government of Maharashtra appointed RITES and Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick of United Kingdom to carry out the feasibility study and they submitted the report with the estimated cost of 240 million USD. The Government then handed over the project to MSRDC in March 1997 on a Build Operate and Transfer basis (BOT) with permission to collect tolls for a period of 30 years. The Government of India received the clearance from the Ministry of Forests and Environment in November 1997. In order to prepare detailed estimates, designs and bid documents the work was divided into eight phases and each phase was under the supervision of renowned international consultants. (IITK Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, 2007) Features: Â · The Mumbai Pune Expressway also known as the Yashwantrao Chavan Expressway is Indias first six lane high speed access controlled tolled expressway. Â · Spanning a distance of 93kms it connects Mumbai, the financial capital of India and Pune, the neighboring industrial hub city. Â · The project cost 350 million USD to construct and was completed under the guidance of MSRDC in a time period of 24 months. * The expressway has four lane wide tunnels at five locations with a total length of 5724m. * There are separate tunnels for traffic in each direction and these tunnels are provided with modern facilities for ventilation, lighting and fire fighting vehicles. * This work was entrusted to the Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd on 8 December 1997. Benefits of the Expressway: Many aspects of the Expressway make it an engineering marvel. * No signals along the 93km route and no blind curves. * Reduction in accidents. * Reduction in travel time. * Saving of fuel consumption. * Faster crossing of the Khandala Ghat. * Reduction in pollution. Issues faced in building the Highway: Â · The mountainous terrain around the area, posed a huge threat in building the Expressway. Â · As five tunnels had to be constructed, there was a lot of difficulty in drilling through the mountains as the rock was extremely hard. Â · Around 500 trees which got in the way of the construction had to be uprooted and transplanted into pits dug at other locations. Â · Vast areas of rich, fertile land had to be cleared into farmlands in interior areas. Â · Difficulty in accessing the work areas to supply raw materials. Â · Nature of soil in the area caused problems in building roads, due to which concrete roads had to be built. * Environmental Concerns: An Environment Impact Assessment was conducted by RITES and they identified the following concerns: The construction of the Expressway would impact on the quality of water in the rivers flowing in nearby areas, which were being used for drinking and industrial Purposes. It would also result in loss of forests and rare flora, effect on wild life in the Ghats and lead to landslides in the future. Â · The difficulties faced due to rehabilitation of the human settlements. Reasons for the successful implementation by MSRDC: Workforce: MSRDC hired their workforce from Public Works Department and CIDCO (City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra), most of whom had extensive experience in the development of large-scale projects. They also took employees from the revenue department on deputation to help with the land acquisition process. (IITK Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, 2007) Appointment of Project Management Consultants: A Steering Committee was set up in order to recommend different technical standards to be adopted, to prepare geometric standards, and to help MSRDC in deciding upon various provisions of tender documents and related matters. The Steering Committee proposed that Project Management Consultants (PMC) be appointed for preparing and ensuring consistency in design standards, cost estimates and tender documents, and to supervise the construction work as and when it began. In addition it was also though that if the technical aspects of the projects were taken care of by PMCs, then MSRDC could concentrate on the task of coordinating the various administrative requirements such as getting clearances, raising finances etc. Committees were to be formed to perform each of the tasks by drawing personnel from each of the PMCs to ensure consistency. Since the most important skill for a PMC was considered to be Technical Skill, the selection criteria were such that 75% importance was assigned to the technical bid and 25% to the financial bid. Another condition was imposed that 1 PMC will work on only 1 section of the Expressway to avoid excess load on a PMC. (IITK Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, 2007) Facilities given by MSRDC to Consultants and Contractors: MSRDC and the Government of Maharashtra provided several facilities to contractors and consultants in order to ensure quick and efficient working. The expenditure on these services helped reduce production costs by 8-10% as a result of speedy completion of work. Some of the facilities given were like: * Project Management Consultants had their own site offices set up with standard equipment like Xerox, telephone, printer provided at MSRDCs expense. * Increase in the price of steel, bitumen and cement will be absorbed by MSRDC. * Custom duty is to be reimbursed for import of new machinery. * Land provided for site facilities was given to the contractor free of cost. * As the stretch of construction was 93 kms, MSRDC prompted oil companies to set up petrol pumps. * MSRDC took the responsibility to divert all utility services like telephone cables, water pipelines and electrical lines coming in the construction stretch. Litigation: MSRDC adopted a very proactive stand towards litigation right from the start and they appointed a panel of experts for handling cases. They also made sure they responded to court orders in very less time which helped reduce the delays in re-seeking appropriate dates. (IITK Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, 2007) References: Roadtraffic-technology.com. (2009) Mumbai-Pune Expressway, India. Available from: http://www.roadtraffic-technology.com/projects/mumbai/ [Accessed: 11/12/2009] Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation Ltd. (2007) MSRDC Project Mumbai Pune Expressway. Available from: http://www.msrdc.org/Projects/Mumbai_Pune_Expr.aspx [Accessed: 11/12/2009] Wikipedia (2009) Mumbai Pune Expressway. Available from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mumbai-Pune_Expressway [Accessed: 11/12/2009] ExpressIndia (2000) The Mumbai-Pune expressway. Available from: http://www.expressindia.com/news/fe/daily/20000730/fec30031.html [Accessed: 11/12/2009] Dandekar/Mahajan EPW Paper (2001) MSRDC and The Mumbai-Pune Expressway: A Sustainable Model for Privatizing Construction of Physical Infrastructure? Available from: http://sdmahajan.tripod.com/epw_paper.pdf [Accessed: 11/12/2009]

Peace in Islam :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Frederick Denny, the keynote speaker of the night spoke on Islam and its moral responsibility and how Muslims need to educate. He was a very intelligent man and great speaker, but he was too philosophical for the students in the audience. I was one of those misfortunate souls who could not understand where he was going. He hit on many key points that connected the current problems of Islam and ideas of liberation theology.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  He stressed that Islam is and always will be a monotheistic, ethical religion. I agree with this statement and with the education of the youth and the world, others will see that Islam is not evil or that much different from Christianity in faith. In his randomness he also hit on the ideas of sin. In Islam Ma’arvt and Mounkar are the Islamic terms for what Christians call sinless and sinful acts or the expectable and not expectable behaviors. From these aspects of faith one can seek justice and morality through God, the one who wills and acts justly.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Spiritual morality and justice are filtered from God and should not be questioned. We should take what he gives us and use it responsibly. Doing what is right and just in the eyes of the lord will draw one closer to the almighty. Closeness to the Creator is the ultimate of all Muslims and with understanding and education all will see that this is the goal of all the Abraham faiths. All 3 believe that happiness comes from love for him. He asks only that we should â€Å"spend of our substances out of love for him alone.† Meaning moral duty enacted out of duty for him, â€Å"for god’s sake first.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Doing all things through the lord first and then showing and educating the people, the world and Muslims alike in the ways of the lord can reach peace in Denny’s opinion. There are struggles with-in Islam itself with the more radical liberation theology. They take their faith to the extreme and segregate their own. Find peace from with-in, find peace amongst your brothers, and then find peace amongst your neighbors in order to accomplish Takwa (avoidance of unethical). There will be a great deal of suffering. Denny does not Denny does not deny that. He says along with many Muslims that suffering with the principle of faith. Arming oneself with the glory of God will maintain your spirits and ultimately lead you to peace.

Dear Doug Essay

I am happy to hear you are adjusting to college life. I’m sure it’s a big change, but at least you have found friends to help you with the transition. It is also good to hear that you have a diverse group of friends, even though you do not all agree on the same thing. It will be a really good opportunity for you to show them the Christian view and maybe question their own beliefs. So I saw your question from Nathan about if God created all of nature, everything would be divine. No, not everything is divine, but God did create everything. Divinity has characteristics specific to itself that are lacking in finite (human) beings, animals, and material things. For instance, none of these are omniscient (all-knowing), omnipotence (all-powerful), omnipresent (always everywhere), or immutable (non-changing). Therefore, nature is created by the divine (God), and is a work of His creative nature, but nature is not divine in itself. Human beings were created â€Å"in the image of God†, meaning that He provided us with the knowledge and gifted us the Holy Spirit, which gives us a â€Å"connection†, a relationship with Him. Now the question about the trinity is hard for everyone to understand. Since we as human are very visual and physical we try to understand that trinity in our own terms, but since it is something out of our nature we have a hard time grasping the concept that God is three in one. In the essay â€Å"Are all Religions One† by Douglas Groothuis he explains that there is one God (Deuteronomy 6:4), who eternally exists in three equal persons: The Father (Ephesians 1:3), the Son (John 1:1), and the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:1-5). The trinity teaches that there is one divine essence that exists in three persons, not that one person equals three. Also I do not think God is a human invention. If we believe that we exist because of matter and chance then how could we trust our own minds? There would be no reason to trust our own mind since there is no absolute truth. Also everyone has a sense of right and wrong, well again evil could not exist if there was no truth, and God is our truth. I think it is pretty hard to make say God is a human invention and then have no explanation for the creation around us. Last but not least you asked about what is the Christian view of God. The Christian view would be that Physical and non-physical things both exist, such as morality, minds, souls, and numbers. Also while physical things change, non-physical things do not. Therefore, Christians believe that God (non-physical) exist and is unchangeable. Along with that he is all knowing and all-powerful, creating the universe in which we live. God is not dependable on us, but we sure are dependable on him. I hope this helps answers some of your questions, have fun on your date night! Cannot wait to hear all about it. Sincerely,

Written Task Dolls House

Outline Prescribed question: Power and privilege: â€Å"How and why is a social group represented in a particular way? Title of text for analysis: A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, Norway 1879. Task is related to course section: Part 3: Literature texts and context Task focus: This essay focuses on Ibsen’s way of representing women, it explains why does he represent them in that specific particular way and how the time, era and context he lived in affected this aim. It states that women are represented as capable and independent individuals because of Ibsen’s concern of society’s acceptance of this new role of women.It compares women showed in â€Å"A Doll’s House† with the actual women of that time. It uses examples and quotation from the text in order to prove Ibsen’s posture towards the topic, and to answer the question of how and why women are represented in that particular way. Written Task: Henrik IIbsen was a Norwegian playwright , very concerned of women and human rights in general. Because of his thoughts and worries he wrote a play, â€Å"A Doll’s House† in 1879, which took him to being one of the most important Norwegian drama playwright. In this play he expresses his thoughts of how unfair women were treated in those days.The typical female stereotype was the mother and wife that usually stayed at home and took care of the children and house cleaning, the ones that sacrificed their lives and their personal goals for what society expected women to be. Ibsen’s idea for the play was to show how this stereotype had to change by accepting women as equal individuals as men. For this he created different women characters that expressed how wrong it was to follow this stereotype because of society. Throughout the play we will see women breaking this ideal stereotype, proving men and society wrong.In this essay we will reveal the how and why were women represented in this particular way. We already know that Ibsen had concerns of how women were treated, this was because of the context and time he lived in. Through all his life he lived in a society that showed women as unequal individuals. For some reason this did not make sense to him. He did not understand why women had to be treated differently. This was one of the main reasons of why he wrote â€Å"A Doll’s House† referring to society as an actual Doll’s House, were women were manipulated and to make people reconsider women’s role in society.The characters he created all alluded to how women were treated in those days. For example, Nora, the principal character, at the beginning of the play, was shown as a submissive wife: the typical woman stereotype. As the story continues she starts showing a new hidden side of her, that showed she was not going to follow societies expectations any more. Ibsen creates a situation in which Nora has to sacrifice for her family, because of Torvaldâ€℠¢s (her husband) sickness, by breaking the stereotype she should follow. She asks for a loan and lies to Torvald; she tells him that her father gave her the money.In order to pay for the loan she had to secretly work. When Torvald finds out that she lied, he judges her and tells her that it’s unbearably wrong. Nora realizes that Torvald does not really love her but he always loved the fact that she was dependent of him, the moment she stopped being dependent because of trying to save his life, he couldn’t take it. This led Nora to leave him; she was tired of being treated like this, she knew she was capable of much more. â€Å"I have been performing tricks for you, Torvald†¦ It’s because of you I’ve made nothing of my life. Here we can see how determined Nora is of her capacities, she blames Torvald because of her failure in life. She also points out that she’s been â€Å"playing tricks† all her life, for Torvald and society, acting as expected. Ibsen also reveals how a woman at that time, was impaired to find out who she is, in this case, Nora, really was and all she was capable of doing, not only for herself but in benefit of her family. Through having to tell lies, to her husband about how she obtained the money when he was ill, and to Krogstad, about her father? signature, she comes to realize that she is a valuable and more than capable person, although her ways of doing things was not correct. Her final goal was so important to her, protecting her family, she knew she had to do whatever was necessary, even if that meant not being true to her husband or society. In the end, she realizes that it was more important to her husband his reputation, than what it had meant to Nora, all she had done for the love of her family, concluding to the raw truth that her husband didn? really love her: he loved what she represented before society, a loving, faithful wife that compelled to all his expectations. She knew that to love her children, she needed first to understand and love herself, a thought way beyond and ahead of time, for a woman in the late 1800? s. Another woman, having a different role in society, such as Nora? s friend, Christine Linde, a childless widow, that proves to be an individual capable of surviving on her own, in a society who thought that a respectable women should be married and dependent of her husband. She once had been a â€Å"doll† like Nora.She also shows that she is a resourceful woman. When Nora tells Christine what is happening with Krogstad, Christine tells Nora not to worry that she will help her dissuade Krogstad (and she does), because she was once in love with him, but didn’t marry him since she needed money to help her sick mother and family. She proves here that a woman can act on her own, not being manipulated by men as it usually occurred, but being able to influence a man for her own purposes or even to help a friend. Nora, like a lot other women definitely felt like a â€Å"doll† being â€Å"played† by men and society.We can conclude that in the play women are represented in a particular way, women that could be independent and totally capable individuals with the intention to prove men and society of those times wrong. Ibsen’s posture towards this subject is so definite in that women should be treated as equal, that we can understand why he represented women like this; it was just the way he wanted society to accept them. Maybe one of the few ways of expressing this kind of thoughts was by creating a fictional drama play that showed women, as he wanted them to be accepted by an equal society. Word Count: Outline 151 Written task 1000

Colonial America essays

Colonial America essays Colonial America was a successful establishment in less than a hundred years. The first official census of the United States was 3,900,000 in 1790. Most of the population came from a high birthrate from the settlers; while the other half of the population came from the intense immigration of slaves. While the settlers came in hope of a better life, their goals could not be reached without hard work, work that they were not accustomed to. This called for the need of slavery. Captured Native Americans were also used as slaves, but that eventually did not work anymore. With no one else working on the land, the colonists needed major help. Slavery was one of the most important reasons people moved to colonial America. Slaves were imported mostly from West Africa, and they had no choice but to do what they were told. But the slaves obviously did not work for themselves. They worked for colonists from Europe, mostly England. Colonists started to move to America in hope of living a better life. If your status was not that great in England, coming to America was a chance to improve your status. Colonists were offered land to live and work on, and there was lots of land to be distributed so living expenses would also be a lot cheaper. This gave the lower-class better opportunities for a better life. Also, if you were an indentured servant, after you serve your time, you were given land of your own and no longer worked for anyone but yourself. Another reason why so many people to moved to America was because England was overpopulated. They forced Englishmen off the land and exported them to America. But England did not export their good men; they exported poor people, and prisoners (mostly all lower classes). England felt that they needed to get people off their land because if the population continued to grow, it could lead to disasters for the country. So people came to Colonial America for various reasons, whether it be f...