Independent learning Essay

STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 115 The Foundation Programme, I think, taught me how to work and be a person who is more reliant on myself. So if I don’t do the work and I don’t get the grades, I know it is on me. Varsity is where you have to be more responsible for all your actions. You have to be aware of whatever you are doing. You just can’t be negli- gent. (Chipo ? MSAFP) At university, you are just given assignments at the beginning of [the] semester and then you have to make sure that you do them well in time. There is no one to manage you and push you to do those assignments. In high school the teachers al-ways ask you about the assignments: â€Å"Did you do it? Why didn’t you do the as- signment well, and on time? † But here if you don’t do the assignment on time, they subtract marks and then you fail. (Lebogang ? MSAFP) Like them, Tony and Jaco also emphasised that a student must take responsibil- ity for their studies. For Tony, rather than parents, â€Å"you decide† and for Jaco, â€Å"everything is just up to you†. I think it is all about you taking responsibility for your own work. You ? nd in high school, if you’re with your parents, your parents are there to put pressure on you. You ? nd your parents saying, â€Å"No more TV. Go and study now. † But now, it’s you yourself. You decide your study times. You decide whether you’re going to do an assignment or not. You balance your social life and your school life. You balance it yourself. It’s not your parents who do that for you now. (Tony ? MSAFP) Basically time management is left to you for everything. You don’t have people telling you that this has to be done. Everything is just up to you. For me, it wasn’t a challenge because I had come from a working background. (Jaco ? MSAFP) Similarly, former DoTS students highlighted that taking responsibility to learn is essential for persisting with university study. Pip and Copernicus also empha- sised the importance of keeping up to date without the guidance of teachers and parents. For Pip, taking responsibility was â€Å"quite hard†, while for Copernicus, taking responsibility was â€Å"one of the biggest things†. I suppose just learning for ourselves and taking that much responsibility for our own learning, that was quite hard. (Pip ? DoTS) Compared to high school, everything’s your responsibility now. You have to make sure you do it. I think that was de? nitely one of the biggest things for me. If I was going to struggle with anything, it was being responsible. (Copernicus ?DoTS) Alicia, Kirsty, Tara and Max considered taking responsibility for their studies to be part of becoming independent. For Alicia, â€Å"you’ve got to keep on top of it† and for Kirsty â€Å"it’s all independent† and â€Å"there’s no one chasing you†. It’s very independent here. You’ve got to keep on top of it. There’s no one to tell you, â€Å"This is where you’ve got to be at. † (Alicia ? DoTS) It’s all up to you I suppose. It’s all independent. If you don’t do the readings, there’s no one chasing you to say you’ve got to do them. If you don’t have an as- signment in, there are not many excuses you can use to get an extension. (Kirsty ? DoTS) CH A P TE R 6 INDEPENDENT LEARNING 116 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 116 Like them, Tara and Max emphasised the importance of taking responsibility for their studies. For Tara, â€Å"it’s up to you†. For Max, university study involves â€Å"less guidance basically† and you â€Å"do it on your own†. Obviously it’s up to you to get the assignment in on time. To write it, you’re not really going to have a lot of help from other people like teachers. It was hard to be responsible for yourself, not having the teachers constantly having tabs on you and things like that, and not guiding you through. That took me a little while but I got used to it eventually. (Tara ? DoTS) First year wasn’t dissimilar to high school. It was with less guidance basically. So there was just the requirement for you to be more independent, to go out and do it on your own. (Max ? DoTS) For school leavers who were used to being reminded by teachers to complete their work, an adjustment to independent learning at university was a stark con- trast, but they emphasised the centrality of independent learning in university study. Rachel, Meg and Caitlyn each re? ected on the dif? culty of working inde- pendently. For Rachel, studying without a teacher supervising her was the hard- est. While for Meg, adjusting to not having anyone to remind her was the most dif? cult thing, Caitlyn observed â€Å"nobody is going to chase you†. Having to work by myself at home I’d say was the hardest, because the teachers weren’t sitting there saying, â€Å"Right, you’ve got 45 minutes to get this piece of work done. Go and do it. † (Rachel ? DoTS) The most dif? cult thing was probably not so much the fact that you are on your own, but the fact that people won’t remind you. You’ve got to make sure that you’ve got that assignment done. That’s all on you. I think the responsibility was pretty heavy because you’re so used to everybody else taking care of you. Now you’re a grown-up, you’re here and you’ve got to do it yourself. (Meg ? DoTS) Here you have to be independent. Nobody is going to chase you if you don’t hand in the assignment. Not that lecturers don’t care, but you’re just another name on the list. Their job is to teach and your job is to learn and if you’re not keeping up your end, I guess it’s just too bad. (Caitlyn ? DoTS) Besides taking responsibility for their own learning, former pathways students also struggled with self-motivation, self-discipline, and self-direction. Sammy, Marie and Tony all learned to direct themselves to study. For Sammy, â€Å"you have to learn to do things†. For Marie, â€Å"you don’t have anyone on your back telling you†. For Tony, not completing work is the student’s â€Å"loss†. Independence matters most. I would also say self-motivation. It taught me to study for myself because of the deadlines and the lecturers were pushing. You have to learn to do things for yourself because no one is going to do them for you. (Sammy ? MSAFP) I think a lot of people struggle with self-discipline, especially if you don’t have anyone on your back telling you, â€Å"Look, it’s 8 o’clock. You have to go to class. † (Marie ? MSAFP) If you don’t do it, it is your loss. (Tony ? MSAFP) INDEPENDENT LEARNING 117 6 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 117 In contrast, Jaco arrived as a very self-directed student who had no trouble keep- ing up to date. For Jaco, â€Å"if you start something, you ? nish it†. I’m one person to really work to my timetable. I don’t like to be late for anything. If anything needs to be done, it needs to be done the proper way. That’s some- thing I’ve grown up with from my parents. If you start something, you ? nish it, period, within the time frame. (Jaco ? MSAFP). Choosing to be a university student and making a conscious decision to learn are important for becoming a self-directed learner. Caitlyn, Denise and Sorcha pointed out that each student must make the choice to study for themselves. For Caitlyn, a student ? not the person’s mother ? must â€Å"make the decision to do it†. For Denise, a student must â€Å"want to do it†. For Sorcha, a student must become self-regulated and must â€Å"be interested in studying†. Being independent, having to do things for yourself, is hard. The work is chal- lenging, but I expected that. It’s not like when you’re in Year 12 and your mum wants you to ? nish and your school wants you to ? nish. My mum probably could- n’t have told you what I was doing at uni. There is no one to sort of push you along. You have to make the decision to do it yourself. (Caitlyn ? DoTS) Studying at school you’ve got no choice. You’ve got people on your back remind- ing you of what you have to do, when it has to be done, and how to do it, whereas at university you have to be motivated and want to do it. You have to be self-directed. (Denise ? DoTS) You have to be interested in studying, otherwise no amount of motivation or teacher-input can help. You’ve got to be a self-regulated learner. You can’t lean on your friends to take you through an exam. (Sorcha ? DoTS) Deciding to learn is not always an easy process for new students. Having com- menced the DoTS pathway three years after ? nishing high school, Nursing stu- dent Vaughan struggled to become a self-directed learner. A dif? cult thing was probably the self-directedness of uni. I’ve never been self-di- rected. I still struggle with it a little bit [in my third year]. (Vaughan ? DoTS) While Vaughan struggled with self-directedness throughout his degree, during the DoTS pathway, he sought professional advice to ? nd that he had to â€Å"get on with it† himself. I’d gone and seen the counsellors and they alerted me to the reality that no one is going to do it except me, so there are no quick ? xes there. We had a bit of a chat about things and you realise you have to get on with it. (Vaughan ? DoTS) Becoming a self-regulating learner involves taking individual responsibility for learning, for keeping up to date, and for becoming independent. These require- ments for university study appear to be well recognised by former pathways stu- dents even though many struggled, as do most new university students, with the initial transition. CH A P TE R 6 INDEPENDENT LEARNING 118. STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 118 PUTTING IN EFFORT Putting in effort to learn, to understand the materials and to complete the re- quired work are among the most demanding aspects of university study. In South Africa, Accounting lecturers at Stellenbosch University assumed high stu- dent failure rates were due to poor preparation on the part of the students. Their Accounting students agreed, with one third suggesting that their classmates did not put in suf? cient effort and half believing they themselves did not study hard enough. These students also suggested that attending class and putting in effort  were among the most important factors for persisting with university study (Steenkamp, Baard & Frick, 2009: 151? 152). Former MSAFP and DoTS pathways students attested to the importance of putting in effort. Pip, Lisa, Vaughan, Sorcha and Reap explained putting in effort in terms of understanding course materials. For Pip, it was important to â€Å"make an effort to understand†. For Lisa, it was important to â€Å"get the answers† and â€Å"know your stuff†. For Vaughan, it was important for a student to learn the course materials and â€Å"know† they â€Å"did it† by themselves. I always make an effort to understand. I de? nitely don’t do the amount of work outside my contact hours that I should, but I make an effort to understand it. When I do have contact hours, I’ll make an effort to understand it and, if I don’t, then I go out and read up on it. I think it makes a difference if you want to be here and you actually want to understand the work. I think that’s what makes a good uni student. (Pip ? DoTS) I know that I’ve got to get things done. If I don’t get them done, then I’m not going to get the answers. We have quizzes each week and you can’t answer the quizzes if you haven’t studied and you don’t know your stuff. (Lisa ?DoTS) I read my chapter and I don’t collaborate with other people. I just tend to do it by myself because I want to know that I did it by myself, not because someone else has written down all the answers for me. (Vaughan ? DoTS) Like them, Sorcha and Reap emphasised the importance of making an effort to learn. For Sorcha, â€Å"you can become smart† with hard work and effort. For Reap, â€Å"you can’t fake it†. You can be smart and not do the work and not be successful and not achieve your goals, whereas if you have the time, the passion and all that, you can become smart. (Sorcha ? DoTS) You can’t breeze through uni. You’ve got to be able to do the work. You can’t fake it. (Reap ? DoTS) A willingness to put in effort to learn involves having the right attitude toward study which includes commitment and dedication. Barbara and Kendall believed that without the right attitude it is dif? cult for new students to adapt to univer- sity and experience academic success. For Barbara, university â€Å"has to be your number-one priority† and for Kendall, a student should â€Å"work so hard for it†. I think you have to be committed. You have to be committed to go to uni. Just be- cause you’ve got the brain, you got the marks, you got accepted, you might as  INDEPENDENT LEARNING 119 6 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 119 well go and do it ? it’s not really the right attitude, because you’re a nuisance, mostly to the tutors and lecturers. You have to be committed. You have to be there because you want to be there. I think it has to be your number-one priority to a certain extent. Get your assignments done. Get your uni work done. Then play. (Barbara ? DoTS) I just think you have to be dedicated. You have to know what you want. You have to work for it. It’s not just going to fall in your lap. Once you get it, it’s the best. Like I’m not even ?nished my course yet, but I’ve just got a job as a Division Two nurse and I’m wrapped. You work so hard for it and when you get there, it’s the best. (Kendall ? DoTS) A willingness to put in effort coupled with an attitude of dedication and com- mitment are attributes of an independent learner. Becoming an independent learner involves a new approach to study. Former pathways students contrasted their expectations of university learning with their experiences of becoming independent learners. Anna and Simon re? ected on different ideas about students and study. For Anna, a student should be â€Å"smart†,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"independent† and have a â€Å"love of learning†. For Simon, study at university in- volves thinking, discussing, â€Å"collaborating your thoughts and learning new things† as well as reading, reasoning and writing. [st3:When I was in Year 12 I would say that you have to be smart to come here. But doing DoTS teaches you what you need to be. You have to have a love of learning. You have to be an independent learner. (Anna ? DoTS) I remember in high school that I didn’t know what studying was. Now, for me, studying means doing what I need to do. I think of doing the work that re- quires me to think and learn something outside a lecture. Thinking is part of studying and so is discussing. It’s a process. You’re collaborating your thoughts and learning new things. An assignment is a good example. Because you have to read extra material, you have to have an understanding, you have to do your rea- soning and you have to put your ideas down. (Simon ? DoTS) Like Simon, Tony recognised the differences of degree study. For Tony, study at university involves â€Å"work on your own† and â€Å"research on your own†. In MSAFP I was used to having, let’s say, three tutorials in a week and in those tu- torials I could work through that assignment with my lecturers and ?nd out what I have to do. But you ? nd in undergrad you only have one tutorial in a week and you have to do your work on your own, research on your own and everything. (Tony ? MSAFP) Becoming an independent learner involves students also recognising when they need help. Asking for help is an issue that new university students, and particu- larly pathways students, ? nd challenging. For example, in the UK, low SES stu- dents studying at Shef? eld Hallam University tended not to ask for help but rather accepted their dif? culties with university study as though they were a nor- mal part of life. In in-depth interviews, both mature-aged students and school leavers reported they rarely approached tutors and instead preferred to draw on informal supports and peer networks. One student reported being afraid the CH A P TE R 6 INDEPENDENT LEARNING 120 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 120 tutor would think she was a â€Å"slacker†, while others drew on a â€Å"strong sense of self-reliance† coupled with an â€Å"immense determination to succeed† (Clegg, Bradley & Smith, 2006: 107? 108, 111). Similarly, in a survey of 101 direct entry Business students in Scotland, the majority did not disclose personal issues that  might affect their study (Barron & D’Annunzio-Green, 2009: 20). Although students may be reluctant to consult tutors in person, they are also reluctant to seek help online. In Australia, at a new suburban campus of the Uni- versity of Queensland, students knuckled down to study independently and without assistance. More than 80% of the students rarely, if ever, asked for help, support, or assistance online (Ballantyne, Madden, & Todd, 2009: 306). New stu- dents may not feel comfortable to ask for help when they deal with new lectur- ers and tutors each semester. Both mature-aged students and school leavers at  the University of Wollongong felt that interaction with their lecturers, whether online or face to face, was important in feeling comfortable enough to ask for help (Lefoe, Gunn & Hedberg, 2002: 44). Other students, studying Psychology at Macquarie University, found they only received help from a tutor when they asked directly for assistance (Plum, 1999: 244? 245). While former DoTS students described independence at university as being â€Å"up to you†, they also pointed out that assistance is available when requested. Paige, Therese and Helen each stressed the importance of seeking assistance and asking for help. For Paige, it is important not to be scared to seek advice. For Therese, it is important to â€Å"ask them†. For Helen, it is important to â€Å"take the initiative† and â€Å"go and ask for help†. I think you have to make sure that you’re not scared about going to ask for help, because people are there to help you. (Paige ? DoTS) My brother did say to me once that the lecturers are there to help you. If you have a question, you must ask them. (Therese ? DoTS) I think you have to be more independent. You have to be willing to put in the work and you have to be willing to ask for help. Those who aren’t willing to ask  for help, they fall by the wayside. When you know you might be drowning, you’ve just got to get up and take the initiative. Like in a workplace, no one will come and ask you. You’ve got to go and ask for help yourself. (Helen ? DoTS) Furthermore, Helen outlined the strategies she used in asking for help when, as a pathway student, she was â€Å"afraid† or just â€Å"con? dent enough† to seek advice. I would just go and ask whoever I needed to ask. I’d knock on people’s door ? lecturers, tutors, anyone. If I was a bit afraid of asking, I’d actually ring and ask at the front of? ce, â€Å"Who do I speak to? † and they’d put you through. I was con? dent enough to do that, I think, from working in my gap year. If I hadn’t worked that year, I think I probably wouldn’t have been. (Helen ? DoTS) Putting in effort helps a student adjust to the new style of independent learning at university. Independent learning requires a student to become metacognitive about their learning and study habits, so they are aware of when to seek advice. Taking the initiative to ask for help is an attribute of a student who is taking con- trol of their learning and becoming independent. INDEPENDENT LEARNING 121 6 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 121 THE RIGHT ATTITUDE. Students cannot become independent learners unless they have the right attitude to study and a willingness to learn. Melinda, Lisa and Vaughan recognised the importance of a willingness to learn in university study and each drew on their vocational motivation to persist with university study. For Melinda, wanting to learn is â€Å"probably number one†. For Lisa, it is important to â€Å"want to learn†. For Vaughan, it is important to have a â€Å"desire to learn† to absorb information. Wanting to be a student and wanting to learn are probably number one. Wanting to actually do it, because you’ll never do it if you don’t want to. You have to want to learn. If you just want to be a nurse, you can be a nurse with just a pass. But to be a good nurse, you have to want to be a student. You have the chance to learn, so you can get High Distinctions, so that you can be a great nurse, not just a nurse. (Melinda ? DoTS) I want to learn. I never used to want to learn, but I do now. I actually want to learn about all the different things and how everything works in Nursing. (Lisa ? DoTS) I think it’s about willingness to learn too. There’s a mountain of information out there. If you’ve got no desire to learn, you’re not going to take any of it in, so  you’ve got to want to be there. (Vaughan ? DoTS) The right attitude helps a student actually complete the work. A student’s atti- tude to learning is important in accepting the responsibility of a university work- load. Whether a student’s most recent learning experiences were at a secondary school, a vocational college, or in the workplace, becoming an independent learner in a university environment necessitates a different attitude (Booth, 1997). Age may also in? uence a student’s attitude. In Australia, mature-aged students have been found to be more committed to study than school leavers. Compared  to school leavers in outer western Brisbane, twice as many studying parents (over the age of 25) never skipped classes and regularly used support services. Moreover, students more than one year out of school were more con? dent and decisive than school leavers and were seven times more likely to complete the weekly readings (22% versus 3%) (Ballantyne, Madden & Todd, 2009: 307? 308). While it may be the case that mature-age students have the right attitude to study, many school leavers in the MSAFP and DoTS pathway also demonstrate the right attitude. Having a willingness to change may best indicate a student’s capacity to ad-just to independent learning as well as to enable academic engagement and epis- temological access. In the UK, a University of Nottingham survey of History stu- dents found two-thirds of students expected to change over the period of their degree, suggesting that adjustment to university is an ongoing process and not just a dif? cult phase at the beginning of the ? rst year. These History students, who preferred discussion and debate over any other method of learning, ex- pected to develop open-mindedness, interpersonal communication skills, and in- dependence (Booth, 1997: 209, 214; see also Brownlee, Walker, Lennox, Exley &  CH A P TE R 6 INDEPENDENT LEARNING 122 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 122 Pearce, 2009). Their positive attitudes to learning enabled them to persist with study. Similarly, former MSAFP and DoTS pathway students highlighted the in? u- ence of a student’s attitude in persisting with university study. Persistence de- pends on motivation and engagement as well as commitment and a sense of re- sponsibility to learn. Sammy, Elaine and Lindy af? rmed a willingness to learn underpins success in university study. You have to want to do something to achieve success in it. (Sammy ?MSAFP) If you put your mind to it and tell yourself you can do it, you can be successful. That’s what I think. (Elaine ? MSAFP) I tell myself, â€Å"This is your future. The future is in your hands. † Nobody can write my exam for me. Nobody can study for me. It’s my future. It’s my life and the way I live it is my choice. I make myself study by looking at everyone else studying. When they’re all studying, I get motivated to study. (Lindy ? MSAFP) Like them, Meg, Paige and Therese each clearly articulated a willingness to learn and recognised that university study is serious business. Meg and Paige high-lighted that the right attitude helps a student achieve success, while Therese stressed that skills development is made possible when a student has the right attitude. When I came here, I was 19 and I was ready to start being a grown-up. What I do now is going to play out my future. Every step I take is towards where I want to be. (Meg ? DoTS) I think I’m a lot more focused now. I know what I have to do and what needs to be done, that I can’t slack off and that I have to meet deadlines. I know that be- cause I’ve chosen to do this, I have to put in the effort. (Paige ? DoTS) You should actually want to be here and to take it seriously. You’re not here just to have fun. With skills, you can develop them over time. You can teach yourself how to study and what’s the best way to study, how to ? nd information that you need and that is relevant, then to be able to differentiate between what’s relevant and what’s not relevant. But that comes with time I think. (Therese ? DoTS) Other former pathways students expressed an awareness of their changing atti- tudes to study. Caitlyn recalled, with some humour, the dependent attitude she overcame during the ? rst semester of the DoTS pathway. I remember actually asking the lecturer if I could have my birthday off, and he said no! (Caitlyn ? DoTS) Chloe and Lisa re? ected on their changing attitudes toward their social lives as they became more serious about study. Chloe gave up excessive partying on weekends, while Lisa changed her â€Å"party life into uni life† I went out every weekend and got drunk. I’ve given that up now, because a hang- over lasts quite a few days with me. It really knocks me down. (Chloe ? DoTS) I just needed to change my party life into uni life. I liked to hang out with my friends more and go out on the weekends. But that’s changed now. (Lisa ? DoTS) INDEPENDENT LEARNING 123 6 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 123. Vicky, Lisa and Melinda reiterated that a student’s attitude is re? ected in their be- haviour and highlighted that choosing to attend classes re? ected a commitment to study and a sense of responsibility to learn. Turn up to- class. Don’t just say, â€Å"If I miss this lecture, it won’t matter,† because it will. The blackboard site doesn’t give you everything. (Vicky ? DoTS) I know there are compulsory classes, but you have a choice of what you want to learn and what you want to do. (Lisa ? DoTS) If you don’t want to go to lectures, don’t. If you don’t want to go to tutes, don’t. If you don’t want to do the readings, don’t. It’s your education that suffers from it and it’s your grades. I don’t want to say there are not people there to help you, but they’re only there if you ask for help. (Melinda ? DoTS) Former students of both the MSAFP and DoTS pathways point out that success- ful students are self-disciplined. Sammy, Chitalu and Chloe re? ected on how self- discipline helped them not only to keep up to date, but also to enjoy studying. I have a personal laptop and when I ? nd myself playing [games], then I think that tomorrow I have a tutorial and if I have studied enough for that. If I haven’t, I im-mediately switch off, so I start reading my lecture slides and trying to understand the questions that might be discussed in the tutorial. (Sammy ? MSAFP) It’s not really hard work when you are disciplined and you do what you’re sup- posed to do. But when you take it lightly and you just have fun, it really becomes hard work. (Chitalu ? MSAFP) I don’t really need to make myself do it because most essays I enjoy writing and enjoy learning. I guess I’m pretty disciplined. (Chloe ? DoTS) Yet, other former pathways students also pointed out the risks of procrastination and avoidance. Chipo, Tara and Lisa re?ected on wasting time and delaying, or avoiding, study commitments. For Chipo, postponing study is â€Å"time wasted†, while for Tara and for Lisa, it was easy to â€Å"put things off† or put â€Å"everything aside†. If you waste your time, time wasted is time that you can never get back. I had to learn these things as I went along because, you know, you postpone things. You say, â€Å"Oh no, I’ll do it later† and then next thing you discover you’ve got an assign- ment due tomorrow. (Chipo ? MSAFP) I tend to procrastinate a little bit and to put things off. (Tara ? DoTS) At the start, I was too busy stressing out and putting everything aside and not  even thinking about it. In the second half of my ? rst year, I got the hang of what uni is all about and what you’ve got to do to get by. (Lisa ? DoTS) Like them, Daniel, who returned to study from the workforce, tended to pro- crastinate. The solution was to have his life â€Å"timetabled†. I’m a terminal procrastinator. I always have been and stupidly enough I’ve been conditioned to actually continue to do so because I keep getting reasonable results in spite of procrastinating. I timetable a lot. I have my life timetabled so I start the semester saying, â€Å"Alright, I have this on this day and this on that day† and then. CH A P TE R 6 INDEPENDENT LEARNING 124 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 124 around work I schedule one day where I focus on each subject. On that day, whether it is travelling on the train or at home in the afternoon, I do all of the reading and work on assignments and stuff like that. I allocate the time to do the work. (Daniel ? DoTS) One aspect of independent learning that former pathways students found easy was being â€Å"in control† of their own study. In contrast to high school where stu- dents felt pushed, particularly by teachers and through competition with their  peers, at university students directed their own learning. Lindy found being in control â€Å"the easiest thing† about becoming an independent learner. The easiest thing was being in control. I didn’t have a very hard time getting used to being in control. (Lindy ? MSAFP) Like Lindy, Grace, Andrew, Julia and Max appreciated the autonomy of univer- sity study. Arts students Grace and Andrew both preferred studying at university over studying at high school. Grace felt she was â€Å"making up for† bad habits at high school, while Andrew felt as if he were ? nally â€Å"doing something†. In high school I hated studying, so I ? nd it really strange. I ? gure I’m making up for what I didn’t do in high school. (Grace ? DoTS) I did uni pretty well actually. I kind of preferred it to high school. Because, for one, I felt like I was doing something. With high school, it’s kind of like what you have to do. We were there because we had to be. At uni, it was where I wanted to be. (Andrew ? DoTS) Similarly, Julia and Max had no trouble taking control of their learning. Educa- tion student Julia viewed her learning as an opportunity, while Arts student Max found his own progress â€Å"inspiring†. I can’t believe people don’t hand work in because that’s just beyond me. I just  think why would you not even give yourself a chance? When I saw the mark for attendance, I thought I’m going to make sure I attend every class because that’s marks I can count on and I would never not hand anything in because every mark is another step closer. (Julia ? DoTS) It’s all on yourself. You’re responsible for failing. You’re responsible for doing your assignments. You’re responsible for passing. You’re responsible for your grades. There’s no one pushing you along. It’s inspiring to think that you’re con- trolling your own learning. (Max ? DoTS) Having the right attitude to study is important for success. Regarding themselves as serious, responsible and goal-oriented students, some former pathways stu- dents were openly critical of their peers who did not share the same â€Å"right atti- tude† to study. Andrew and Rachel were both critical of students who aim for a minimum pass, regarding them to be â€Å"unmotivated†. I come across a lot of unmotivated students who are like, â€Å"I’m just here to get a pass and get my degree and get out. † (Andrew ? DoTS) I actually ? nd a lot of people are only motivated to get that pass score. They are not that motivated to go the extra mile. (Rachel ? DoTS) INDEPENDENT LEARNING. 125 6 STUDENT VOICES BOOK_Layout 1 2011/10/07 11:57 AM Page 125 Like them, Jenna regarded some of the other students as having the wrong atti- tude for studying. Describing their attitudes as â€Å"very lazy† and â€Å"very blas †, Jenna contrasted her own willingness to learn and to put in effort with their lack of motivation and poor attitudes. There are de? nitely some students who are very lazy in their attitude. They don’t go to classes. They don’t do the reading. They have a very blase attitude and I ? nd that very frustrating because I’m here to learn and I put in the time and effort. (Jenna ? DoTS).

Environmental and Ecological Issues in Robyn Eckersley’s Perspective Essay

Robyn Eckersley, a renowned environmentalist believes that ecocentric theorists do not claim that anthropocentrism is the sole or original cause of the ecological crisis. She also reflects that environmental crisis is the outcome of humanity’s joyful and spontaneous instincts due to repressive social and psychic division of labor. As a matter of fact, she contends to the idea that it is the rise of material paradigms that people are in need of reconciliation with nature. She notes that utilitarianism in its very state undermined the essence of the environment which is why the veil of knowledge worn by the society is covering them thus colonizing the life-world. Eckersley examined the deontology of ethics inclined with the aim of making the recent topographical shifts within the field that are less â€Å"unknown to us (Eckersley). † To note, she states â€Å"utilitarian and eudaimonistic or therefore theological moral philosophy derives difference between good and evil from the effects which actions and attributes by nature have for the form of life of the actor and his environment (Louden). † In further illustration, she meant that the good deeds can conveyed as those that are considerably favorable effects for human welfare, while those that bring about the opposite are otherwise. Hence, this connotation also falls on the deliberative state of intuitive and formalistic ethics. Although Eckersley favors a rights discourse as a way to include the natural world in a liberal system, she admits that, â€Å"†¦the rights discourse becomes considerably strained (in all its dimensions) when we come to consider ecological entities (Eckersley). † She defines multiple human activities to be the cumulative result of the ecosystem’s components and that today’s approach towards this epidemic will not ensure sustainability. In essence, she is not against any form human-driven doings; however, she is not favor of the manner that it handles the resources that in the light provides for the very existence of human beings. The harvesting of the planet’s resources is seen to be detrimental to the future of the ecosystem and if such is prolonged, survival will be provided only for the few. Socialist critique of liberalism in comparison with the ecological state will differ in terms of morality and the deontology of ethics. It is apparent that not all deeds are the same when it comes to utilitarianism, sometimes, the ecosystem, being unable to air its share of sentiments, id reprimanded and oftentimes taken for granted (Rice). Humans are subject to care for those of its kind and the environment is not considered to be a part of it. In consequence, such is an irony, given that the human beings live and survive with the help of a healthy ecosystem—without the ecosystem, the members of the society will not be able to live. Policies, regulations and management may have changed over time. If compared to the previous century where not all are aware of the threat and the challenge of sustainability, the contemporary era now gives regard to narrowing the problems and eradicate or at least moderate in the utilization of resources provided that there is a massive chance that it may no longer be available in the next 100 years. The signs of climate change is a proof that laws would need to focus on combining good deeds not only for the people that it serves but also to detain the precautionary measures that may possibly harm the humanity.Accordingly guidance is considered necessary on the position of ecosystem mechanism that may be at risk (Rice). Works Cited Eckersley, Robyn. â€Å"Liberal Democracy and the Rights of Nature: The Struggle for Inclusion. † Environmental Politics 4. 4 (1995). Louden, Robert B. â€Å"Toward a Genealogy of Deontology. † Journal of the History of Philosophy 34. 4 (1996). Rice, Jake. â€Å"Can We Manage Ecosystems in a Sustainable Way? † A symposium on Sustainable Management of Marine Living Resources 60. 1-2 (2008). .

Dystopian Society Present in 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 Essay

The idea of a dystopian society is that of complete control, either through the use of a police state that has ultimate control over humanity and or the idea of man abusing technology to further gain control of its subjects. These ideas are very present in both novels. In 1984, the totalitarian state is technically and urbanely engineered to spy on and see people’s very thoughts. In Fahrenheit 451 a similar idea is used in the outlawing of literature and the use of denunciations to capture and punish those deemed to have broken the law. This essay is going to explore the idea of Man’s struggle against the society which seeks to break him, erasing the individual, resulting in the mindless slaves to society, the very idea that the authors warn against. In 1984, the constant barrage of information regarding the greatness of the state and Big Brother’s supremacy over the common man forces everyone to consent and believe in the totalitarian state. The party justifies itself by eliminating the individual, giving power to everyone as being part of the collective power of the party as O’Brien mentions  «if he can escape from his identity, if he can merge himself in the party so that he is the party, then he is all-powerful and immortal  » the party’s belief that they control everything even human reality portrays how far a totalitarian government can go in achieving complete control of humanity. This can be clearly seen in 1984, where O’Brien tortures Winston to the point where he is capable of relinquishing all humanity, all common sense until the point where O’Brien tells Winston that two and two make five. Winston loses all sense of individuality to the point where conforms to the party and denounces his true love Julia. Through the use of fear and crushing oppression, the idea of love apart from love for big brother and the party is all that remains. Therefore the Party succeed in their aims, obedience through the use of force and fear. The central conflict of the novel is Man-vs. Society, as with Fahrenheit 451. Winston constantly struggled for individuality in a society were there is no â€Å"I† there is only ‘we†, individuality and freedom of expression is forbidden, punishable by death. The party wishes to control all of humanity, eradicating the â€Å"sex instinct†, O’Brien says  « we will abolish the orgasm  »  « there will be no loyalty, except loyalty towards the party. There will be no love, except the love of big brother†¦ there will be no art, no literature, no science  », in this, the party’s aims are clear. They seek to destroy what it is to be human, to create a population of hollow men, loyal to none but the party, un-thinking, un-loving slaves of the party, tools. As in 1984, the state in Fahrenheit wish to crush creative thinking, eradicating humanity in the process. The burning of books, similar to the book burnings of Nazi Germany show the totalitarian, dystopian need to control the thoughts of the masses. By doing this, they control the past, and therefore the future. They are able to rewrite history to justify their acts, indoctrinating the youth to believe in their cause, just as the Nazis did. In Fahrenheit 451, as in 1984, symbolism and reversible meanings are present which can also be seen as conflicting emotions in the protagonist and the struggle to find a place in society. In 451, the contrasting ideas of fire and water are very interesting. The firemen are not as tradition tells, protectors of the people, putting out fires and saving lives, but using fire to burn and destroy literature. Their role is to destroy, to burn human creativeness. Captain Beatty, chief of the fire department, believes that â€Å"fire is bright and fire is clean. † This idea contradicts the norm of fire is destructive and evil. This represents the twisted ideas of authority, reversing the meaning of words, rewriting them to justify their aims of total control over humanity. The masses fail to see the true meaning of these words, or perhaps they have forgotten. This shows how far the totalitarian government has succeeded in indoctrinating people into believing what ever they wish them to. However, the protagonists in both novels are depicted as being marginalised because they do not share the same ideas, due to morals and ideals that they can only express in their minds, far from the reach of the state, a lonely free island in a sea of relentless waves. The idea of water by Bradbury is used to cleanse montag’s soul. The water saves Montag, cleansing him of the scent of society, he is thus reborn. In addition, when Montag is trying to escape the helicopters and the mechanical hound, the tools of the totalitarian government, the stream hides and saves him until it is safe to return to land. Montag indulges himself in the water and â€Å"there was only the cold river and Montag floating in a sudden peacefulness, away from the city and the lights and the chase, away from everything† in this the water saves him, purifies him, the opposite of the dystopian symbol, fire. Water is portrayed as the flow of humanity. In 1984, the party uses contrasting ideas in their party slogans such as  « War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength  » these contrasting ideas represent perfectly the party’s ideals. The individual and the freedom that comes with it actually results in slavery in the dystopian society, ignorance of the truth of what the party is really about protects you from persecution of the thought police. The use of these contradicting words and the lack of opposition, mean that the party have succeeded in their indoctrination of the masses as no one has the ability to see past the words to see their true sense, even Winston and Julia remain troubled by it. In a dystopian society, the state exerts complete control over its population through oppression, terror and the constant use of propaganda. This is apparent in both novels. Both novels are predictions of a future controlled by totalitarian states. The thoughtpolice in 1984 use brainwashing, spies and denunciations to control the party however the proles are generally untouched. This is similar to Nazi Germany in that only those who rebelled or were undesirables in society were quashed, the general population remained untouched. By comparing Nazi Germany and the era in which this novel was written, we can see the blatant warning against future governments similar to the National Socialists led by Hitler and the state of terror and oppression and ethic cleansing which was deemed for the greater good. O’Brien says to Winston â€Å"perhaps you have returned to your old idea that the proletarians or the slaves will arise and overthrow us. Put it out of your mind. They are helpless, like the animals. Humanity is the party. † This shows the view that the totalitarian government controls all that is humanity and the lower classes remain irrelevant because they have neither the knowledge nor the power to overthrow those who control reality. They control the laws of nature, the past, the present and the future. However, Fahrenheit 451 does not elaborate on the political aims of the ruling party apart from their desire to quash human creativity and the ideas of individuality. Yet it remains a typical part of dystopian ideology to desire to control every aspect of the masses and even humanity itself. The use of the  « telescreen  » is an interesting concept that is abundant in both texts. The use of the telescreen in Fahrenheit 451 is that this became the populace’s way of interacting with others without physically interacting with them, as people became detached from literature, from freedom. The people on these televisions were your â€Å"family†, who would keep you company and be your â€Å"friend†, spurting propaganda and essentially keeping people in check. The telescreen in 1984, shared the same idea but consisted of other more sinister uses such as spying on those suspected of thoughtcrime, revolutionary thoughts against the party, overhearing conversations and playing militaristic key speeches and propaganda techniques seen in Nazi Germany with the peoples radio. However this form of propaganda could never be switched off. This shows the ingsoc party’s ability to penetrate every single aspect of humanity and society, the idea that  « big brother is watching you  « is very well demonstrated. This of course being the reason why Winston and Julia were captured and tortured by the state. The use of the Telescreen can be noted in Winston and Julia’s struggle in that they are constantly bombarded by party propaganda, possibly overheard by the party through speakers hidden in the screen. This creates pressure to conform for fear of being found out and sent to the ministry of love for reconditioning. The underlying fear of the unknown bound them to neither conform nor rebel. They are lost in a society which they cannot escape and do not wish to be a part of, yet they have no choice. I believe that under this amount of pressure, anyone would fall and conform to whatever the Party demands, as the individual is no match for the collective power of the Party. Winston is not just a character in the story, but an idea. Winston is an anachronism. His mind and personality are not defined by the Party slogans, by the Party’s ideas of what he should be. From his own point of view he is an individual; from the Party’s point of view he is a flaw in the reality it is creating. The story follows Winston and his struggle for individualism and his overpowering feelings of humanity, the very feelings that the party try to destroy, which they eventually do through horrific torture spread over months. O’Brien says to him whilst trying to brainwash him  « you are the last man†¦you are the guardian of the human spirit.  » Winston then looks into the mirror and sees the frail creature that he had become. O’Brien does this to show the extent to which his party can destroy humanity and rebuild it to their designs. He then goes on to say  « Do you see that thing facing you? That is the last man. If you are human, that is humanity.  » Convincing Winston that his struggle in futile, the control of the party is infinite, they create the law around them to meet their ends of controlling everything, and everyone. Winston is eventually brainwashed and ends up loving bigbrother, thus the aims of the party complete. In conclusion, the extent to which 1984 refers to a dystopian society compared to Fahrenheit 451 is at once different yet similar. The ideas of the party relate to those of the Nazis and soviet Russia; the lies, the oppression, the propaganda, the removal of civil liberties and the crushing of humanity. However 1984 is an extreme version of this prediction of the future. Fahrenheit explores more the emotional changes in Montag that convinces him to relinquish his part in destroying freedom of expression enforced by the fireman and the state and to embrace his curiosity and his humanity. 984 ends with the destruction of Winston, finally loving bigbrother, his love for Julia destroyed, his individuality crushed they had both failed themselves and each other and lost to power of â€Å"Big Brother. † Orwell was a firm believer in Marxism and the need for the proletarian to rise up and equalise society. These two tales are a warning of the dangers of dystopian societies, the need f or humanity to shed this society that has become so desensitised and to be aware of the reliance on technology, before it is too late.

FSHD Essay's Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

FSHD Essay's - Assignment Example Like on most IQ tests, the question of â€Å"If some x’s are y’s and some y’s are z’s, then some x’s must be z’s. The first test was multiple choice questions, while the second was true/false questions. Both tests seemed to be focused on the logic process. Whether or not you recognize it, your vocabulary is your strongest suit—use it whenever you can. Since your command of words is so great, you are also a terrific communicator — able to articulate big ideas to just about anyone. Your wordsmithing prowess will also help in artistic and creative pursuits. The power of words translates to fresh ideas off paper too. Since you have so many words at your disposal, you are in a unique position to describe things in an original way, as well as see the future in your minds eye. In short, your strengths allow you to be a visionary — able to extrapolate and come up with a multitude of fresh ideas. And you are in good company — bask in the brilliance of Word Warriors who have walked before you. William Shakespeare let loose the power of his pen. His ability to articulate the most subtle nuances of human nature and to create colorful characters are why his stories still have a major impact — even 400 years after he first wrote them. Whether you put pen to paper or use your understanding of the words around you to come up with creative approaches to problems, your potential as a Word Warrior is terrific. (Career Quizzes) The second test reported, â€Å"A person whose IQ score falls in the range of 111-128 is considered to be ‘above average intelligence’†. If I bought the whole report, then they would breakdown my evaluation further. The score that I think is the most accurate would be the first test. I do better with words than mathematics. I do not think these tests are accurate in assessing how intelligent people are. This is due to the overdone math process in all IQ tests. Intelligence is more than math. Memory recall also matters

Coninental Airlines Case Study Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Coninental Airlines Case Study - Research Paper Example n the last decade of the 20th Century, where Continental got out of the bankruptcy channel and started its way out to growth, the company as comparatively to EDS was just one of the company seeking solutions. As certain programming and IT management is not the core part of an Airline company, these operations were inevitably going to be outsourced to professional skills providing consultants and implementers. Now laying within the company, Continental after being stable towards its economic inflow through the Go Forward Plan was looking towards innovation. This also caused for major managerial change with much more skilled and innovative people. The difference is then directly seen when the core group of Continental was downsized and better people were hired who required newer, better and quicker solutions to the problems. When compared to EDS, at the end of first five years, Continental started to grow somewhat of a critical thinking system through the leadership of Bethune and Bren neman. That happened as they returned the company to profitability. Wejman being in charge and comparing the history through the scope of Continental in the relationship to EDS is of much regard towards the future five years. The most important of that being is stability towards Continentals constant change of managerial staff, executive office staff and creating constant long run solutions with systematic modifications throughout the year(s). Continental being a growing company, now was looking forward for IT solutions in all aspect to provide maximum concentration towards customer relations. Clearing making the prime priority to gain trust of the customers to have them fly often with Continental ensuring quality and time-saving incentives. Having made a World Wide Web domain, the IT outsourcing then was necessary to have a smoother in house work load. (Consulting, 2009) This major change was not necessary a easy solution to play with on EDS part and required sudden changes from the

Compare 2 Films Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Compare 2 Films - Term Paper Example Perhaps most notable among the two films is that they embody the underlining touches of the auteur. Auteur theory was perhaps most seminally articulated by Andrew Sarris in his Notes on Auteur Theory. In this essay he considers earlier formulations of the auteur theory, dating back to its consideration by Andre Bazin in Cahiers du Cinema who indicated that while cinema, as compared to painting or the novel form, is more a collaborative element, there is nonetheless a distinct feature of artistry that can be tied to the individual director. In comparing him to director George Cukor, Sarris even speaks of the auteur tendencies of Ingmar Bergman. Sarris extends this articulation, adding his own theoretical elements. He states, â€Å"Over a group of films a director of films, a director must exhibit certain recurring characteristics of style, which serve as his signature. The way a film looks and moves should have some relationship to the way a director thinks and feels† (Sarris, pg. 662). Sarris goes on to further elaborate on this theoretical formulation by indicating that the films of an auteur explore a certain personal concern that he equates to some degree with the singular aspect of the soul. It follows that auteur theory consists of both the external elements of technique, and the internal elements of personal vision. One of the primary elements of the auteur is that their personal style and vision is not expressed simply through one film, but comes to be a characteristic element throughout their work. Ingmar Bergmans work clearly meets this criteria. As one examines another of Bergmans seminal films – the Seventh Seal – in regards to Bressons work in the Trial of Joan of Arc its clear that there are both stylistic and thematic tendencies that demonstrate the films as elements of an auteur in the classic sense. In considering the Seventh Seal

Flayton Electronics Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Flayton Electronics - Case Study Example While some hackers will do it for fun and for exploration, others are malicious people who will defraud companies of substantial amounts of money. This paper examines crucial steps that a Flatyton Electronics Company can take after their data is stolen, how it can communicate with its customers, and ways to curb this in future. Flayton has an obligation to protect its customer’s private data. For the last 25 years, Flayton has build a big business from trust customers has on the company. Regular customers pay their bills using credit cards, master cards and other bankcards. According to federal trade commission website (FTC) it is impossible to be in business and not hold personal identifying information. Such information includes credit card numbers, names and addresses, business partners, and other account numbers (â€Å"FTC,† N.d). There is an implied obligation of confidentiality to the stores and their staff. It is the duty of the management of a store to make sure that customer’s information does not leak to fraudulent third parties. Therefore, Flayton Electronics’ management had an obligation to make sure that it employs credible employees who will keep customers information confidential. Additionally, it is an obligation of Flayton to make sure that its firewall remains working throughout to avoid hacking incidences. For this particular incidence, Flayton firewall remained down for sometime, which may have contributed to illegal access of customers personal data. All companies dealing with telephone card payments need to comply with all Payment card Industry (PCI) standards. PCI Security Council is not responsible for enforcing compliance but it is upon the company to comply (â€Å"PCI Security Standards† 2011). Customers dealing with Flayton Electronics assume that this company is compliant with PCI standards and thus their personal data is secure. Unfortunately, Flayton Company was only 75% PCI compliant. The communication strategy adopted by the CEO of Flatyton Electronics to inform their customers of the potential security breach will determine its business in the next few years. Brett Flayton needs to be timely in informing the public. Although the compan y has little knowledge of what transpired with the customers credit cards, it is wise to be the first to inform the public. Timely communication will make the company win the public’s trust. The longer Brett stays without informing the customers, the higher the risks of disclosure from another party where he will need to explain reasons for breaching its customers trust. Brett needs to explain to the security agents the reason for going public. He has the right to refuse to remain silent to enhance chances of catching the thieves as the law enforcing officers’ advice. However, the mode of communication adopted should be confidential to give a chance to the authorities to enforce laws on the victims. Brett can hold a meeting with the major customers, explain the latest discovery it has made on the security of cards, and detail any information in their hands now. Any defrauded customers will protect themselves from further frauds as a result. Consequently, it will have t o keep the customers informed on its latest discoveries. Additionally, Brett will have to convince the customers that the current measures the company has adopted will see to it that such an occurrence will not recur in future. Information on when it is safe to start using the cards again will be necessary. Flayton Electronics’ brand was damaged by the security breach. The major core value of this company is to win the trust of customers through effective products and efficient services. Brett, the CEO

Assignment 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Assignment 3 - Essay Example Their initial dabble at organizing their favorite websites into categories had transformed into a million-hits-directory website which offered a search feature to visitors, allowing them to search for web content by browsing categories. Considering that there had been no search engine before Yahoo!, it is safe to say that before the entry of the first mover, the industry had no other player in the category. The industry of the internet was a slow cycle industry since the product still exists in today’s world. However, the technology running and defining this network had a very fast cycle. Technology became obsolete very soon and firms were forced to keep innovating and improving their product offering in order to stay afloat. Many of the innovations brought about in this relatively new field were from garages and university dorms as was in the case of Yahoo!. When Yahoo! was initially launched, it was a little more than an organized directory of a handful of websites which the friends, families and peers of the two PHD students at Stanford University used to navigate the web. However, only a year later in 1995, the immense growing popularity of the website prompted the founders to actively pursue the concept as a business and set up their own company with the help of start up funds from venture capitalists.

Ways in Which the UK Government Policies Impact Upon the Social Essay

Ways in Which the UK Government Policies Impact Upon the Social Benefit System - Essay Example This essay stresses that varied researchers have attempted to offer an analytical framework, which is designed with an aim of improving understanding of the relationships between varied measures of government policy impacts upon social benefits system. This is vital because this will help the government to embed social impacts into government decision making process and also construe the policy implications on the comprehensive measures of wellbeing. There are numerous ways of valuing varied social benefits but understanding the role of different governmental polices in an economy is vital. The UK government intervenes in the labor market for varied reasons such as correcting market failure, achieving equitable income and wealth distribution, as well as, improving the performance of the economy. There are varied ways through which the government can intervene in the market and this is through fiscal or monetary policy intervention, labor market policy intervention, competition policy intervention and employing varied regulation or policies. As the paper the government policies have also affected the supply side especially the changes in the political context, economic restructuring, national and international economic conditions and changes in job skill requirement. The changes in skill requirements result due to development and diffusion of new technology; thus impacting the supply for labor. The labor market policies are often perceived not only as a demanding phenomenon but also as an exclusively supply side phenomenon. However, the orthodox macroeconomic policy as practiced by the central banks in the European markets and IMF requires the monetary policies, which is setting of interest rates to run in accordance with an inflation target in the labor market. The current global economic crisis has significantly challenged this view because when interest rates hits the zero lower bound, monetary policy becomes ineffective; hence impacting social benefits in the labor market. Some progressive commentators now argue that the monetary or fiscal policies are partially to blame for average unemployment level in many countries. This is because some policies set by central banks do not take employment levels into account when setting interest rates because they only target inflation; thus impacting social benefit system. In addition, the orthodox macroeconomic theories presume that in case unemployment exists in the market equilibrium; this must be due to the increased or too high real wages (Gillespie, 2013, p. 73). However, from the Keynesian theory, sometimes it may be possible for unemployment to exist in case wages are too low. This is because of insufficient aggregate demand in an economy of which wages are the

Major Advances in Broadcasting Essay Example for Free

Major Advances in Broadcasting Essay Civil War (1861- 1865) Personal Journalism is born. This allowed people to publish their thoughts and feelings individually. Topics not limited to slavery and racism is written by various people but sometimes not published due to limited freedom in broadcasting. 1890- Yellow Journalism enters the broadcasting arena making it possible for politicians use the power of broadcasting to win elections and cover up bad news. 1918- Edwin Howard Armstrong was able to develop a method for â€Å"amplifying extremely weal, high- frequency signals or the superheterodyne circuit† (Radio and Television). 1930’s- a circuitry was developed to eliminate static that interferes with radio reception. A static free broadcasting was formulated by means of amplitude modulation (AM) and Frequency Modulation (FM). 1950’s- transistors were invented and made broadcasting more possible. 1956- Videocassette recorders were introduced so that people can view delayed television shows. 1949- The birth of Cable television which is known for its â€Å"good reception and additional programming† (Radio and Television). 1965- Commercial Communication Satellite was first used and it was followed by orbiting transmitters. 1967- A bill was passed in the United States which enables Public Broadcasting (Andersen Gray 400). 1968- 200 million TV sets were made available worldwide. 1972- â€Å"Richard Nixon vetoes funding for public broadcasting† (Andersen Gray 400). 1978- 78% of the households own colored television. 1988- Sony introduced handheld and battery operated televisions also known as the â€Å"watchman† it is a transistorized television. 1990’s- High Density television is made available which features system for satellite transmission. HDTV has better picture and sound compared to analog televisions. 1996- Television and internet begins its competition since more people are depending on the World Wide Web rather than watching television and listening to radio news. 2000-present- more dynamic way of transmitting signals in television, radio and cable are discovered which enables people to receive information faster and clearer than before. There are live streaming features of cables and internet TVs that allows people to see what is happening on the other part of the world it shares endless fascination of everyday living. Today is an important time for Journalism in our country’s history because broadcasting is more developed. Series of advancement were made in terms of information gathering and dissemination of news. It is easier for journalists nowadays to gather vital news and making people aware of the recent events. As technology changes, journalism’s future becomes clearer and more available for people. The history of out country is now easier to trace because freedom of speech is now allowed and the country is experiencing more democracy unlike before. Broadcasting today is more convincing since no one is manipulating the issue. Today’s mass media journalism is not limited to people who are living in this country. It can also be broadcasted on other parts of the world. Works Cited: Andersen, Robin Gray, Jonathan. Battleground: The Media. USA: Greenwood Publishing, 2007. Radio Television Timeline. Great Achievements Website. Retrieved 9 March 2009 from: http://www. greatachievements. org/? id=3659

Effect of Pornography on Violence Against Women

Effect of Pornography on Violence Against Women Critically assess the case that the products of the contemporary pornography industry are both a cause of violence and discrimination directed against women and also ‘intrinsically harmful’. ‘Everyone says: ‘Oh, women want sex soft and pretty, like a Harlequin novel’. It’s as if women are being protected†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Candida Royalle (2000:545) It is not the purpose of this essay to defend the contemporary pornography industry which to this day remains a ‘dirty’ and -to a large extent- a male-dominated, exploitative business, but rather to understand the reasons behind this sad reality. Pornography made its first prominent appearance in feminist discourse in the late 70s, when feminist groups such as ‘Women Against Violence in Pornography and the Media’ (WAVPM) embarked upon their anti-pornography campaign in the San Francisco Bay area[1]. The so-called ‘sex wars’ of the 1980s brought about an unprecedented division within the feminist movement. Anti-pornography writers, such as Andrea Dworkin and Catharine MacKinnon -authors of the famous ‘Minneapolis and Indianapolis ordinances’[2] advocated the censorship of pornographic material, on account of its role as ‘a practice that is central to the subordination of women’[3]. Other feminists put forth a liberal leg al argument, invoking the First Amendment to the American Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech. Two decades later, the pornography debate has retained its relevance in feminist discourse. There is still heated disagreement over three interrelated issues: what is the definition of pornography? Does pornography cause violence and discrimination against women? What is the best way to deal with pornography in the policy and legislation arenas? While critically assessing the anti-pornography thesis, I will argue in turn that most sexually explicit graphic material is not the cause but can mirror the misogyny and exploitation that characterizes modern societies; and that far from being ‘intrinsically harmful’ pornography can in fact be employed in the service of feminist ideas. A necessary starting point if we are to understand pornography would be an analytically helpful definition. But this is itself one of the main points of disagreement between feminists. The pro-censorship side has emulated traditional definitions of pornography[4] and equated sexual explicitness with violence and female subordination[5]. Dworkin understands pornography as the platform where sexist ideology thrives by exhibiting male supremacy, discernible in seven interwoven strains: the power of the self, physical power, the power of terror, the power of naming, the power of owning, the power of money and the power of sex’[6]. Contemporary porn depicts women as the helpless victims of men: bound, tortured, humiliated, battered, urinated upon or ‘merely taken and used’. Evoking the Greek etymology of the word, Dworkin (1990:24) defines pornography as the ‘graphic depiction of whores’, (‘porne’ being the Greek for a cheap prostitute or sex slave). Thus pornography is conceived as something sexist, violent and exploitative by definition; in other words, as an intrinsically harmful phenomenon. Even at this early stage, pro-censorship analysis seems to rest on shaky methodological grounds. First it involves a clearly circular argument which condemns pornography without trying to understand it, almost like arguing that ‘pornography is bad, because it is bad’. Second, the cross-cultural analysis of Ancient Greece is dubious, if not completely a-historical, since ‘pornography’ is not an ancient but a Victorian neologism, invented in the 19th century, thus reflecting Victorian sensitivities rather than ancient realities. Third, the definition of porn as a field of violence and sexism logically entails a distinction from other, sexually explicit material that is not violent, demeaning and exploitative, but is based on sentiments of mutuality and reciprocity. Defining this emerging category, usually referred to as ‘Erotica’, is a highly subjective endeavor and obviously unhelpful for an academic or a judge. Equating sexual explicitness to vi olence, misogyny and other value-judgments is not only counter productive to the search for a descriptive definition of pornography; it is also untrue, since it is often the case that ‘soft porn’ or even altogether non-sexual material can contain much more disturbing scenes of violence and sexism than pornography itself [7]. Fourth, most of the anti-porn literature has applied its definitions of pornography in a vague and inconsistent manner, jumping from the ‘graphic depiction of whores’ to the more mainstream concept of porn as cheaply produced ‘smut’ for instant consumption[8]; and sometimes to a more inclusive definition containing phenomena as diverse as fashion, TV commercials, sex toys and sex education[9]. Methodological concerns aside, anti-porn definitions of pornography entail positions that appear to contradict the very essence of feminism. Anti-porn pronouncements on ‘good, sensitive Erotica’ vis-à  -vis ‘bad, abusive porn’ are essentially pronouncements about ‘good’ and ‘bad’ sexuality. At the risk of caricature, this entails restrictions on sexuality of Orwellian dimensions, and is contrary to the fights of the feminist, gay and lesbian movements for sexual liberation and diversity. One anti-porn author opines that ‘erotica is rooted in eros, or passionate love, and thus in the idea of positive choice, free will, the yearning for a particular person, whereas in pornography the subject is not love at all, but domination and violence against women’[10]. Statements like this one seem to imply an acceptance of old patriarchical stereotypes of the form ‘men are aggressive and polygamous by nature, while women are passive and monogamous’ and that women do not, cannot or should not enjoy sex in itself. Paradoxically, Dworkin’s (1990) synoptic treatment of the history of pornography exaggerates the passivity and helplessness of female victims and the violence of male domination to such an extent, that it unwittingly reinforces the very binary stereotypes that feminism has historically fought to uproot. Her presentation of women in pornography as ‘whores’, is at best patronizing, if not condescending and insulting towards female porn-workers, who often choose to follow that mode of subsistence. The choices of porn-workers deserve as much respect as those of women working in less stigmatized industries and, perhaps, even greater feminist solidarity[11]. Pro-censorship argumentation tends to revolve around two rhetorical devices. The first is the exaggeration of the amount and degree of violence contained in pornographic material, through the accumulation of undeniably disturbing images. The slide shows projected in WAVPM meetings and the material articulately described in Dworkin’s book have been handpicked for their shock-value and power to disturb. Drawn primarily from the underground cultures of Bizarre, Bestiality and SM, most of these images are largely unrepresentative of the mainstream market, which is both highly diversified and specialized. Specialization is a key-point because of the basic fact that different people have different ‘turn-ons’. Given that some people may find publicly disturbing, what others view as privately stimulating is no good reason to label porn in its entirety as intrinsically offensive. The second rhetorical device lies in the argument that pornography is not just a representatio n of imaginary violence but also a recorded reality or as put by MacKinnon, a ‘documentary of abuse’[12]. Again this argument misleadingly conflates reality with representational fantasy. To claim that every woman -or man- that appears to be abused in a porn-movie is actually abused, is almost as naà ¯ve as claiming that every man shot-dead in, say, ‘the Terminator’, is actually dead. The anti-porn argument fails to take into consideration factors such as artifice, acting and role-playing[13]. While genuine case of abuse are not absent from the porn industry, the vast majority of depictions of ‘violence’ occur in a role-playing context which carefully ensures the safety of the actors. My view is that understanding pornography requires a descriptive definition which, instead of passing judgments over the moral credentials and political consciousness of its participants, focuses on the realities of the porn industry. In this light, modern pornography, as we know it, is the graphic representation of sexually explicit material, mass-produced and mass-consumed with the purpose of sexual arousal. Although it is not ‘intrinsically evil’, this industry is morally no better than the society that produces it. The effect of sexually explicit material on its viewers and society at large is the second main component of the pornography debate. Anti-porn analysis has insisted on a theory of causality, whereby real rape, physical abuse and humiliation of women by men occur as a direct result of their exposure to the ‘hateful values’[14] of pornography. In Dworkin’s own words ‘at the heart of the female condition is pornography: it is the ideology that is the source of all the rest;’[15]. By equating the representation of violence with injurious action, Dworkin evokes what neo-Aristotelian theorists of representation have termed as the ‘Mimesis-model’. Derived from the Greek word ‘mimesis’, meaning ‘imitation’ or ‘reproduction’, the model positions the real both before and after its representation[16]. At a theoretical level the Mimesis-model can be sufficiently challenged by another Aristotelian concept, that of Catharsis. This would entail that far from reducing men to perpetrators of violence, exposure to the mock-violence of pornography -with all its artistic conventions and restrictions- would relieve them of the violent dispositions that lay ‘hidden’ in their psyche, in the same way that, say, a horror movie may give us pleasure without inciting violence and blood-thirst. The Catharsis-model fits particularly well to the very nature of pornography. Founded on a much-attested human desire for an occasional breach of taboo, porn tends to represent situations and feelings that may well be antisocial and very often remote from what the actual social practice is. Japan -a country with one of the lowest rape rates world-wide- sustains a huge pornographic industry that ‘specializes’ in violence and sexual domination[17]. The anti-pornography perceptive fail s to grasp this crucial distinction between social reality and harmless fantasy[18]. In terms of empirical evidence, psychological experiments on the alleged correlation between exposure to porn and violent activity are, at best, inconclusive[19]. Historical and cross-societal analysis is equally unpromising for the Mimesis-argument. Porn, in its modern sense, is a very recent creation[20]. And yet, the exploitation of women by men had predated it by thousands of years. At the same time, political systems that adhered to the systematic suppression of pornographic representations, such as the Soviet Union or modern Islamic states, had not been less exploitative or violent. And yet, many anti-porn thinkers have insisted on censorship, despite the fact that this insistence has produced an awkward alliance with moral traditionalists from the Right[21]. If passed, the 1984 Minneapolis ordinance would have reinvented ‘pornography’ as a criminal offence, distinct from ‘obscenity’. This would have allowed women to take civil action against anyone involved in the production, or distribution of pornography, on the grounds that they had been ‘harmed’ by its portrayal of women. In the passionate words of Andrea Dworkin (1990:224) ‘we will know that we are free when the pornography no longer exists. As long as it does exist, we must understand that we are the women in it: used by the same power, subject to the same valuation, as the vile whores who beg for more.’ If only, pornography was, indeed, the mother of all evil. Then sexism could be uprooted at one, simple, legislative stroke. But unfortunately, sexism, v iolence and exploitation are endemic to the economic structure of the modern society and pervasive of all our media. Pornography seems to have been singled out as a scapegoat for all forms of sexual prejudices in today’s world. The long-standing social stigma and visual honesty of the industry made it an easy target to right-wingers and left-wingers alike. Censorship has not worked in the past and there is no reason to believe that it will work in the future. I believe that the only viable solution to the pornography problem is the exact opposite of censorship, namely support for ‘the Politics of Representation[22]. Women should try to ‘capture’ pornography, as producers, script-writers and directors, in a manner consistent with earlier feminist ventures into other male-dominated fields, such as literature, politics, media, religion, education and science. ‘Going legit’, would not only mean that society as a whole will take a less hypocritical stance to the realities of pornography but also that regulation would guarantee better working conditions for female porn-workers (e.g. unionization, safe-sex, better security, health and cleanliness)[23]. Most importantly establishing a feminine perspective within the industry would counterbalance the male bias from which it now suffers. Following the example of v entures such as ‘Femme Productions’ -launched by former porn-worker Candida Royalle and targeting a couple market- sexually explicit material written and produced by women can celebrate women’s right to pleasure without complying to sexism and exploitation[24]. Pro-censorship feminists have been mistaken in defining pornography as problem. The explicit representation of sexual scenes is neither ‘intrinsically harmful’ nor a direct cause of violence. While men retain the reigns of an industry plagued with social stigma, porn will continue to be biased and exploitative. Yet, in the right hands, pornography can become an instrument for feminist action. BIBLIOGRAPHY Barker, I. V. (2000): ‘Editing Pornography’, in D. Cornell [ed], Feminism and Pornography, Oxford Readings in Feminism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 643- 652 Butler, J. (2000): ‘The Force of Fantasy: Feminism, Mapplethorpe, and Discursive Excess’, in D. Cornell [ed], Feminism and Pornography, Oxford Readings in Feminism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 487-508 Carter, A. (2000): ‘Polemical Preface: Pornography in the Service of Women’, in D. Cornell [ed], Feminism and Pornography, Oxford Readings in Feminism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 527-539 Cornell, D. (2000): ‘Pornography’s Temptation’, in D. Cornell [ed], Feminism and Pornography, Oxford Readings in Feminism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 551-68 Dworkin, A. (1990): ‘Pornography: Men Possessing Women’, London: The Women’s Press Ltd C. A. MacKinnon (1988): ‘Pornography and Civil Rights: A New Day’, Minneapolis: Organizing Against Pornography Kilmer, M.F. (1997): ‘Painters and Pederasts: Ancient Art, Sexuality, and Social History’,in M. Golden and P. Toohey [eds] Inventing Ancient Culture: Historicism, Periodization, and the Ancient World, London, pp 36-49. MacKinnon, C. A. (1993): ‘Only Words’, in D. Cornell [ed], Feminism and Pornography, Oxford Readings in Feminism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 94-120 Rodgerson, G. E. Wilson [ed] (1991): ‘Pornography and Feminism: the Case Against Censorship’, Feminists Against Censorship, London: Lawrence Wishart Royalle, C. (2000): ‘Porn in the USA’, in D. Cornell [ed], Feminism and Pornography, Oxford Readings in Feminism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 540-550 Rubin, G. (1992): ‘Misguided, Dangerous and Wrong: an Analysis of Anti-pornography Politics’, in A. Assiter and A. Carol [ed], Bad Girls and Dirty Pictures: the Challenge to Reclaim Feminism, London: Pluto Press, pp 18-40 Russell, D. E. H. (2000): ‘Pornography and Rape: A Causal Model’, in D. Cornell [ed], Feminism and Pornography, Oxford Readings in Feminism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp 48-93 Sutton, R.F., Jr. (1992): ‘Pornography and Persuasion on Attic Pottery’, in A. Richlin [ed], Pornography and Representation in Greece and Rome, New York, pp 3-35. Footnotes [1] Rubin (1992:18) [2] See Dworkin McKinnon (1988) [3] MacKinnon in the Minneapolis hearings, cited by Rodgerson Wilson (1991:11) [4] e.g. ‘the written, graphic or other forms of communication intended to excite lascivious feelings’, in the ‘American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language’, cited in Rubin (1992:25). [5] MacKinnon (1993:22) [6] Dworkin (1990:24) [7] Rubin (1992:24, 26) [8] e.g. compare pp 81 and 218 in Dworkin (1990) [9] Rubin (1992:28) [10] Gloria Steinem, cited in Rubin (1992:28) [11] Cornell (2000:551). For financial incentives for joining the porn industry see Royalle (2000:541-2) [12] cited in Rubin (1992:31) [13] For an excellent analysis of the difference between real violence and SM role-playing see Royalle (2000:545-6) [14] Dworkin (1990:24) [15] Dworkin, cited in Rubin (1992:34) [16] Butler (2000:448) [17] Sutton (1992:28) [18] Rubin (1992:19); Royalle (2000:546) [19] Rubin (1992:30) [20] Rodgerson Wilson (1991:67) [21] Barker (2000:643) [22] Cornell (2000:553) [23] Royalle (2000:548); Rubin (1992:33-4) Cornell(2000 :552-3) [24] Cornell (2000:564)

Effect of Age Stereotypes on Balance Performance

Effect of Age Stereotypes on Balance Performance Question 1: An important aspect of physical functioning is the ability to stay balanced. How may expectations generated by age stereotypes influence older adults’ balance performance? Critically review psychological theory and research relevant to this issue, and discuss broader implications for interventions that may support healthy physical functioning of older persons. Loh Qiu Yan Melissa Abstract Older adults face wide range of age stereotypes as they age into their golden years. Such life cycles made people question their cognitive ability and physical functions. The effect of age stereotypes led to one facing both positive and negative aspect of life. These constant stereotyping had negative impacts on health and physical function. But with the help of social interactions, it helped older folks have a choice in leading a more balanced life. The use of social networks helped maintain their physical and cognitive functioning, giving them the room to have independence as well as learning more about their bodily functions. Importance and interventions in maintaining balance performance in physical functioning of older adults. Aging is an inevitable process in living beings where the condition of the body deteriorates resulting in decline of functioning. This challenges the physical abilities and cognitive functioning of older people (Wulf, Chiviacowsky Lewthwaite, 2012) in instances of performing daily activities such as being mobile enough to bath and dress on their own (Clark, Hayes, Jones, Lievesley, 2009). In order to maintain the ability to be mobile and independent in bodily functions at an older age, this is usually accompanied with the decline in physical, mental and sensory abilities. These declines in functions can affect performance in areas that require cognition involving fluid intelligence for example memory and abilities to reason and explain, along with task that require executive control involving vocabulary and word knowledge. Moreover, with the decline in physical functioning, particularly muscle strength and joint flexibility mostly involves motor tasks and balance; such as walking a nd running results in more dependence on cognitive resources at an older age due to the decline in eyesight and auditory range (Schaefer, Schumacher, 2010). These physical and cognitive challenges faced by older individuals can become issues; potentially leading to age stereotypes caused by expectations and assumptions in limited abilities of older adults (Wulf, Chiviacowsky Lewthwaite, 2012). By understanding how aging and age stereotypes take place plays an important role for individuals in realising the anxiety and uncertainty that can further affect cognitive capacity, assuming of own abilities for example intellectual and reasoning abilities (Schaefer, Schumacher, 2010), and regulation of positive and negative feedback given (Wulf, Chiviacowsky Lewthwaite, 2012). The cognitive aspect of a person can be affected positively and negatively in one’s mind set for example towards a challenging motor task which tests an older person’s ability (Wulf, Chiviacowsky Lewthwaite, 2012). This further challenges the balance performance of an older person who might require more cognitive resources later in life (Schaefer, Schumacher, 2010). Hence, the importance of understanding aging, age stereotypes, cognitive and physical functions in influencing balance performance can help develop a more positive aspect in maintaining healthy physical functioning. To better perform the interventions required for physical functioning of older folks, it is necessary to understand the reason behind age stereotypes which can have a negative impact on older folks. One probable reason that can lead to a rise in age stereotypes is by labelling and categorising people into old age groups. As a result, it usually occurs where less favourable attitudes are placed on older adults, viewing them as less productive members of society (Phillips, 2014). This in turn makes individuals come to a conclusion that these deep rooted thoughts and beliefs, mind-set and perceptual behaviour actually support age stereotyping (Blaine, 2013). Furthermore reinforcing and heightening their levels of fear and dependency on others throughout their aging process (Clark, Hayes, Jones, Lievesley, 2009). These thoughts and fears are further embedded in their mind, altering their mind set thus creates a self-conscious state (Wulf, Chiviacowsky Lewthwaite, 2012), which results i n self-stereotyping (Levy, 2003), and affecting balance performance which reduces the ability to perform (Wulf, Chiviacowsky Lewthwaite, 2012). An example of old age stereotype expressed with the use of cartoons characters in portraying older individuals such as Abe Simpson who is the father of Homer Simpson in â€Å"The Simpsons† cartoon. He was portrayed as a senile and dependent person who appears to be quite difficult to handle at times, also seen as being a burden to his son. This portrayed older adults in a negative stereotypical manner with limited abilities to be independent which is not the case for everyone (Blaine, 2013). However, switching to a different perspective of age stereotyping happening in a workplace environment in the context of Singapore, it proved that there were certain generational differences in the negative stereotypes towards older employees. For example, employees at a younger age felt they had more efficiency towards the aspect of multitasking and creativity compared to older employees whom felt that they have stronger work ethics but think that younger employees have stronger demand to wards recognition (Blauth, McDaniel, Perrin, Perrin, 2011). These generational differences were similar in the aspect of comparing the cognitive functioning which is related to balance performance of both groups of people. With better understanding of the cause and reasons for age stereotypes guides older individuals foster a better relationship with their cognitive and body functioning. As much as ageism being a concern, with the constant stereotypical opinions and perception on older people, emotional reactions of these elderly folks are affected in both positive and negative ways (Blaine, 2013). Positive influences and implications can be through social means by interacting with family members, friends and various people from all walks of life. Not only does social interaction help regulate the emotional reactions of older folks; it also encourages individuals in integrating with society through social means (Charles Carstensen, 2010). Social networks and interactions also have an effect on cognitive functioning where it is a motivational factor behind a better quality of life and the ability in maintaining independence despite increase in age; Furthermore, resulting one to developing more self- efficacy in leading a better functional health. This is due to the body reacting in a positive manner where social interaction has a direct relationship with neuroendocri ne and cardiovascular reactivity. Thus, with positive and supportive interactive reactions in the body help to reduce the physiological reactivity that has been linked to endocrine and cardiovascular activity resulting in cognitive decline (Seeman, Lusignolo, Albert Berkman, 2001). In the event of cognitive functioning of an older adult decreasing, there are higher chances of cognitive disorders or impairments such as signs of vascular dementia or Alzheimer to appear (Price, Corwin, Friedman, Laditka, Colabianchi Montgomery, 2011). Hence in order to maintain or increase cognitive functioning, having strong social networks and support in maintaining connectedness can improve one’s mental and physical health, resulting in prevention of cognitive decline. Voluntary activities are one of the social network and integrating activities that encourages bonding sessions with different individuals, demands social and mental skills (Charles Carstensen, 2010) provides a sense of purpose and prevents isolation for those who face difficulties at any point in their life (Grimm, Spring Dietz, 2007). The effect of social interaction has a potential and positive influence on cognitive functioning where both fluid intelligence and executive control involve extensive int rinsic cognitive components required during social interaction for example striking conversations with people during bonding sessions and activities. Social integrating activities such as volunteering can help one have a better sense of control over life and physical health by providing support to other older adults and gaining a sense of accomplishment. With the use of these cognitive components can further promote older individuals having better cognitive engagement and functioning (Seeman, Lusignolo, Albert Berkman, 2001) which are linked to balance performance. Maintaining of balance may seem as a simple and indispensable part in many people, however it is a task that is physical and demands independence in the aspect of an elderly person (Onambele, 2006). Through the study done by Wulf, Chiviacowsky, Lewthwaite (2012) showed that balance is influenced by social cognitive, affect and assuming of own abilities etc. Thus older adult’s balance performance can be further strengthened by increasing their perceived abilities in performing and completing tasks. In addition, based on a study done by Levy Leifheit-Limson (2009) similar to Wulf, Chiviacowsky, Lewthwaite (2012) where instilling of positive age stereotypes on physical or balance performance help mould a certain level of expectation towards the stereotype led to one conforming to it. As a result this causes one to self- stereotype (Levy, 2003), which affect the performance of the individuals in performing better due to the positive influence. Likewise if it was a negative ster eotype, the outcomes are negative. Further implications on how stereotypes can affect balance and physical functioning are neatness of handwriting and speed of walking. This was seen in a study done by Levy (2003) where older adults exposed to negative stereotypes are likely to appear older and frail. The body conditions as observed through handwritings produced seemed to have a little towards illegible due to shaking and unstable movements of the hands which explains that balance performance is affected. In another experiment of exposure to positive stereotyping, the speed of an older adult showed connection between the former and the latter. By exposing them to positive views, makes them self- stereotype themselves towards a more positive and satisfying aspect. The idea of measuring the speed of walking is by how much time is needed for foot to be lifted off the ground and this is measured as swing time which indicated balance. Therefore, results show that older individuals who we re exposed to positive stereotypes had greater swing time in particular to having better balance in their physical movements and their cognitive functioning. In conclusion, age stereotypes, cognitive abilities and physical functions share significantly close relationships in maintaining balance performance for older adults. Positive and negative age stereotypes can give significant effects to an older adult which can be misled and neglected at times. This can cause further effects in time and worst if the stereotypes are negative. The use and help of social interaction and network can boost a person’s physiological reactivity making one have a sense of accomplishment which promotes social integration. Most importantly it leads older individuals to keep their mind and body in working conditions which allow them practice and maintain independence. References Blaine, B. (2013). Understanding Age Stereotypes and Ageism. InUnderstanding the psychology of diversity(2nd ed., pp. 175-186). SAGE Publications. Blauth, C., McDaniel, J., Perrin, C., Perrin, P. (2011). Age-Based Stereotypes: Silent Killer of Collaboration and Productivity.  AchieveGlobal,1(2), 1-15. Charles, S., Carstensen, L., (2010). Social and emotional aging. Annual Reviews of Psychology, 61, 383-409. Clark, A., Hayes, R., Jones, K. Lievesley, N., (2009). Ageism and age discrimination in social care in the United Kingdom. Centre for Policy on Aging. Grimm, R., Spring, K., Dietz, N. (2007). Volunteering, Life Satisfaction, and Mental Health. In  The health benefits of volunteering: A review of recent research.Corporation for National Community Service, Office of Research and Policy Development. Levy, B. (2003). Mind Matters: Cognitive and Physical Effects of Aging Self-Stereotypes.  The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences,58(4), P203-P211. Levy, B., Leifheit-Limson, E. (2009). The stereotype-matching effect: Greater influence on functioning when age stereotypes correspond to outcomes.  Psychology and Aging,24(1), 230-233. Onambele, G. (2006). Calf muscle-tendon properties and postural balance in old age.  Journal of Applied Physiology,100(6), 2048-2056. Phillips, L. (2014). Efforts to Promote Physical Activity Must Battle Ageist Stereotypes. Research in Gerontological Nursing,7(1), 4-5. Price, A., Corwin, S., Friedman, D., Laditka, S., Colabianchi, N., Montgomery, K. (2011). Older Adults Perceptions of Physical Activity and Cognitive Health: Implications for Health Communication. Health Education Behavior, 38 (1), 15-24. Schaefer, S., Schumacher, V. (2010). The Interplay between Cognitive and Motor Functioning in Healthy Older Adults: Findings from Dual-Task Studies and Suggestions for Intervention.  Gerontology,57, 239-246. Seeman, T., Lusignolo, T., Albert, M., Berkman, L. (2001). Social relationships, social support, and patterns of cognitive aging in healthy, high-functioning older adults: MacArthur Studies of Successful Aging.  Health Psychology,20 (4), 243-255. Wulf, G., Chiviacowsky, S., Lewthwaite, R. (2012). Altering mindset can enhance motor learning in older adults. Psychology and Aging, 27, 14-21. DOI: 10.1037/a0025718