Research Designs and Methods Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Research Designs and Methods - Term Paper Example   If we were to not use scientific research, we would have to rely on intuition, guess and whims. All through history, one can see examples of how important decisions can go wrong because the decision maker relied on these. Intuition is often influenced by a few events that are not representative of the norm. The decision maker may not even realize how much weight a particular incident may be given simply because it has had an emotional impact on them; and not because it is really relevant. Statistical studies have shown that any one of a number of guesses has exactly the same chance of being right as any other in the set. Nevertheless, we often make the mistake of believing that a particular guess has a greater probability of being right. This is a fallacy that motivates every gambling situation. The whims and ideas of monarchs have often been their downfall. Major decisions of corporations, countries and even individuals, if taken without the backing of facts and research can oft en lead to costly mistakes – sometimes irreversible... (Baily, 1994; 76-83). A majority of the type of research mentioned is conducted by using mathematical and statistical functions. But when the object of study is a human being, quantitative measurement of phenomena is not always possible. Human experience is inherently qualitative, and often it is best reported thus. A number of researchers have understood this, and choose to study phenomena from a qualitative and descriptive point of view. While such research is often criticized for not being able to present hard data, the insight it provides into the human experience makes it well worth the effort. It is, of course, difficult to generalize from subjective data; a strength of objectively collected data. In some cases, there is no attempt at all to apply the findings in a larger context. Qualitative research is also more fallible in its interpretation. But in spite of all its flaws, qualitative data – especially in the Social Sciences – can provide an understanding and a perspective that empirical data cannot afford.     

Fonterra Cooporative Group Limited globalization and competitive

Fonterra Cooporative Group Limited globalization and competitive In this report is are discussing about the how the Fonterra Co-operative Group Limited (Fonterra) can gain the competitive advantage in the market and what strategies has been adopted by the Fonterra company through globalization, under the finding of this report it will evaluated the SWOT analysis of Fonterra company ,by using the SWOT analysis how Fonterra can clearly know the companys key business structure and operations, history and products, strength ,weakness ,Opportunity and weakness ,beside that it also discuss about the porter five forces about how Fonterra have adopted the strategies to gain the competitive advantages in global market and how Fonterra compete with the competitor . Beside that this report also discuss about how the Fonterra adopted the total quality management, brand strategies, product repositioning and supply chain in order to sustain it success in long term Some research has been done to write this report. All the research sources are based on book, website, journal articles, and media articles. The information from the sources helped to discover how Fonterra the increase the market share in some market such as using alliances strategies in some high competitive market ,how to repositioning to gain more market share and how their establish the brand into the consumer mindset 1.0 History of Fonterra Company Fonterra Co-operative Group Limited (Fonterra) owned by New Zealand dairy farmers and it representing 96 per cent of all dairy farmers in the country. As we know the Fonterra Co-operative Group Limited was established in year 2001 from the merger of the two largest cooperatives which is New Zealand Dairy Group and Kiwi Co-operative Dairies. (http://www.fonterra.com/wps/wcm/connect/fonterracom/fonterra.com/our+business/fonterra+at+a+glance/about+us/our+history) through the merging within 2 companies, Fonterra gaining the monopoly control of the New Zealand domestic and export dairy industry. The headquartered of Fonterra the office is in and employs 15,600 people. Beside that Fonterra supplies nearly 40percent of the global whole milk powder (WMP) market (http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/nzx-launches-milkpowder-futures-103322) and with revenue exceeding NZ$16 billion and they become one of the worlds largest dairy companies. The operating profit in year 2009 was was NZ$922 million as comp ares to the year 2008 the operating profit have been increased around NZ$ 324million .and the net income in year 2009 also increased around 73% compared to year 2008 which is NZ$244 million.( http://www.foodista.com/book/MB5XFZ2M/fonterra-co-operative-group-limited-swot-analysis) As we know Fonterra is a supplier of dairy products and dairy ingredients. It principally engages in collection, manufacture and sale of milk and milk derived products. The company supplies value added dairy products to the customers around the world. In addition it also provides dairy ingredients which include, ready-to-serve beverages, butter, ready-to-serve creams, yoghurt, cheese, milk, ice cream, desserts and.  Its ingredients are used to manufacture a wide range of dairy products for markets around the world. We know that Fonterra is a dairy and dairy ingredients supplier. It is mainly engaged in the collection, manufacturing, and milk and dairy derivative product sales. The company offers value-added dairy products to customers worldwide. In addition, it provides dairy ingredients which include ready to drink beverages, butter, ready to serve cream, cheese, milk, yogurt, desserts, pre-proofed frozen pastry, and ice cream.a its ingredients are used in the manufacture of a wide range of milk Products in world markets. Some of the brand of Fonterra product we can easily found in market such as BROWNES, Anlene, FERNLEAF, ANCHOR, SOPROLE and TIP  TOP. (^ Leo Paul Dana, Jason Schoeman (2010). An Entrepreneurial Innovation: Mega Cooperatives. Asia Pacific Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship 4 (1): 67-88. http://jbia.jp/jpeg/APJIE4-1.pdf.) 2.0 SWOT Analysis SWOT analysis can essential the sources for top level company data and information .by using the SWOT analysis we can inspects the structure of business and the operation of the company .beside that it also will provides summary analysis of the main source of revenue lines and strategy and also the key competitors and major products and services. The figure 1.0 below is the analysis the SWOT of Fonterra company Strength Have the stable and secures supply of the milk resources in long term even the global demand is outstripping supply because of the uniqueness shareholder relationship within the farmer Due to the Fonterra is merging from 2 large of company of the large company in New Zealand so they pursue growth of the economic scale with the various resources. New Zealand is a higher productivity environmental for daily product. Large number expertise worker within the industry in the company. Weaknesses Due to the relationship of the supply is the vital of company to secure supply of the milk resources. The competitor could be pinch the supplier with the better price. Because of the merge the company the resources and infrastructure are overlapping and got resistance o restructure and relocation the infrastructure and resources Too reliable on climate and ecology .less efficiencies of the productivity compare to competitor. Opportunity They can reduce the barriers of entry in most market. WTO trade negotiations due to the lowest cost suppliers. The can increase the clean green image and value added of nutrition of it product. Threat Some of the country may increase the tariffs to protect the local suppliers. Some of supplying competitor may start to adopt more global Strategy. The legal and media crisis due to some issue. Too rely on exchange rates 2.1 Porters five forces analysis Porters five forces is a one of the strategies which can analysis the existing market and business strategy. By using these strategies Fonterra Company can develop effective strategies to raise your profitability, power, and competitive and understanding the competitive forces in your industry. 2.1.1 New Entrants Due to the de-regulated market structure of New Zealand and them also one of the member of the free trade country. In this way they might attract entrants competitor who are based for export oriented supply and processing .most of the Participants are mostly of the global entrants who preferring the low cost supplier nation with strategy of increasing export share. 2.1.2 Supplier Fonterra having the advantages in cost of items bought from suppliers because the have uniqueness shareholder relationship within the farmer. in the way the can get the lower cost supply and due to the relationship even the global demand outstrips supply of the milk resources they also will get the stable supply in long term. Beside that they also increase the efficiency of production in certain country such as India, china, Poland. For example they expending farm operation to increase production in china due to the current supply of high quality fresh milk cannot keep up with the demand of the current market for more information it can refer to http://www.sharechat.co.nz/article/9e40bb66/fonterra-milking-chinese-demand-expanding-farm-operations.html 2.1.3 Buyer Buyer is plays an important role in the market because they is the one who create the demand in an industry .as we know dairy product is a standardized product .Fonterra are facing the volatile price of the dairy product because of the changes in supply and demand of the product this is because most of the consumer are changing the eating habit beside that due to the floods in the dairy producing country it already affect the global stock. So they introduce a new online sales channel for its dairy commodities which can quickly notice to the price change of the dairy product. (http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/Product-Categories/Dairy-based-ingredients/Fonterra-develops-online-trading-for-dairy-commodities) 2.1.4 Substitutes Dairy milk is a natural product how ever it also got some substitutes for it product such as soya milk, goat milk and other it will affect the demanding of the milk product in this way it might affect the profit of the Fonterra Company 2.1.5 Internal rivalry As a global company, Fonterra have to compete with the competitor such as Nestle, Kraft and other which are the global operation industry and rapid growth in the share market. Even a Fonterra company is a merge from the 2 large in New Zealand but they also face the threat from the global competitor because they might using the free trade to increasingly global market strategies .Fonterra have been consolidate dairy resources in the industry by being merged into larger and more efficient competitor . 2.2 Total Quality Management (TQM) Because fonterra is daily industry, the hygiene and health of the product should be awareness so that quality of the product are important to them because it might affect the image of the company if some customer was food positioning after taking the companys product .so the internal quality control of the product are plays an important role to build the competitive advantages in the market and also meet the customer satisfaction .Total Quality Management (TQM )system have been introduce to their company. Through the TQM they can increase the ISO accreditation because this is one of the ways for them to control the quality of the product. By this way company will have high confident to their product and also can easily get the trust from the customer as well for example New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra said Wednesday it is 100 percent confident in its milk supplies to a Chinese company under investigation over claims of tainted milk powder. (WELLINGTON, 2010)appendix 1 because of the TQM system they will highly defined the procedure and standards of their product. Beside that they also provided the training to all the staff evens the truck driver they also ensure they are well train and professional driver and meet the industry standard. 2.3 Strategies Repositioning Business repositioning is a critical marketing concept that is often only poorly understood. Most businesses will benefit greatly from some careful thought about strategic repositioning and product repositioning (http://www.m-insights.co.uk/business-repositioning.html) for the Fonterra they are keep on investing in the consumer product division ,new Zealand milk well this is an option or decision from Fonterra .but in this way the core supply competencies of Fonterra will be overlook . We know that Fonterra is a unique export-oriented global cooperation. They have won because of its experience in and knowledge of organizational respect for the dairy industry. In Asian countries, Fonterra has been re-positioning their Anlene product with the new clinically test which is protect bone strength within 4 week if women are drank 2 glass of Anlene hi calcium milk a days which able to reduces the amount of bone loss in post-menopausal after 4 week .thought the research Fonterra company has spent more than us$50 million on bone health research and it has conducted 18 clinical trials relating to bone health. In Indonesia Fonterra have gained the market share risk from 43% to 72% of the high calcium milk adult dairy product category and it become the market leader of the high calcium milk adult dairy product category across Asia and has experienced a 15% increase in growth this financial year 2009 due to the repositioning of the product Fonterras Anlene gets boost in Asia. (http://milk-brand.chikaworldfood.com/T_13248_____fonterra%E2%80%99s-anlene-gets-boost-in-asia.htm) 2.4 Supply Chain The supply chain can be define as the a collection of activities and organizations involved in moving products for example, raw materials from one point such as a manufacturers facility to another such as a customers distribution center. It includes the exchange of both material and associated information flows for example, shipment notices. (http://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/publications/ftat_user_guide/sec5.htm) From the supply chain analysis, Fonterra can how and where the product resources from and how and where their selling end product. We know that Fonterra dairy is owned by the dairy farmers in New Zealand .they got approximately 13,000 milk suppliers and they also one of the shareholder of the company .beside the shareholders milk supply .Fonterra also got other addition milk supplier where from the other country such as dairy America and DFA from the united state, Nestle from the America,Bonlac from Austria and other because Fonterra is a international dairy companies. Fonterra have 80 plants around the world which for processing and manufacturing the resources. Beside that they also got 3 main research and development plants which at Massey (New Zealand), Mexico and Germany. Fonterra is a worlds largest multinational food companies and they have a good global distribution network for distribute the end product to whole world because they have been exported milk out of New Zealand around 20 year ago. They are exported the end product to Asia Middle East, Africa due to the high demand of the dairy product. Due to the production of dairy product is much more then the demand on it country. Fonterra are more widespread to use of rail to shipping their products throughout the country. This will enable us to get more frequent, flexible and reliable shipping options by this way it can give their customers greater confidence that our products can be delivered on time. In order to gain the market share and competitive advantages in the high competitive market .Fonterra are alliances with existing national dairy company in country to expanding dairy market. By using the alliance strategies they can expend dairy market in the country with the minimum cost. For example they have announce that a new joint venture in the United Kingdoms highly-competitive yellow fats market thought the alliances they establishment a new company that to be responsible for distributing and market of the product of ANCHOR brand in the UK country domestic market and developing the new product for the yellow fats market in British Isles and EU respectively. Fonterra mainly have divided the market place into 4 channels due to wide product range the four channels which is foodservice channels which is restaurants, hotels, bakeries. Retail channels such as supermarket, wholesalers, by product channels such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and consumer channel which is milk powder, cheese, yogurts and other. Each channel has different demand on the dairy product. (http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-79373875.html) (Chen, I. J., Paulraj, A. (2004): Towards a theory of supply chain management: the constructs and measurements. In: Journal of Operations Management, 22/2: 119-150) 2.5 Branding Strategies By using the branding strategies Fonterra can understand the customer preferences and expectations from the brand beside that it also can make you product different from other product .thought the branding it can build a strong position on the product and make it become more unique ,sustainable and valued place in customer mind . A good brand strategy builds the customer loyalty which customer will continue purchase your product without reflect on the price. Fonterra are dividend their consumer business into three major regions which is Australia and New Zealand, Africa, Asia , Middle East and Latin America and it bring compound annual growth rate around 20% for the last four year By using the branding strategies it bring the growth at 4-5 % per annum in the Asia Middle East and the market price is worth NZD$12.5 billion .by the estimate the consumption of the Fonterra product will continuing raise due to Asia and Middle East are starting focus on their health and wellness. The most successful product brand strategy in the Asia and Middle East is Anlene. As we know the Anlene was create in year 1991 in Asia which are the high calcium milk to maintain the strength of the bone and prevent the osteoporosis, by the successful brand strategies today Anlene has bringing in over $320 million per year which represent almost one-fifth of the total sales revenue in the Asia country .Fonterra have invest around $2-3 million annually on bone health research and looking how to develop new format and formulation of the Anlene product. A research report from the International Osteoporosis Foundation showed that 286 million people in China will suffer from osteoporosis or low bone mass by 2020, and this figure may rise to 533 million by 2050.in this way they have launched the Anlene in china market. Instead of earning money they also conducted over 3 million bone scans in Asia country since 2006 beside that the also educated the consumer the risk of the osteoporosis and how to prevent it. For example they provided a free service to Malaysian consumer about the bone health check and beside that some of the consultant will give the advice on the consumer about what is going on and how to overcome the situation .for more information it can refer to appendix 1 Beside the milk powder of Anlene product, the Anlene Concentrate also have launched in the Asia country to target on different segmentation consumer .to build a good reputation of the Anlene product beside education some knowledge consumer and the boned check service they also hired Michelle Yeoh which is the action movie star in Asia and become spoke person of its product .it this way they manage to sell Anlene with the premium brand with is 30-50% expensive compare to the normal milk. (http://www.fonterra.com/wps/wcm/connect/418dd400440c080d84b29e9906727cef/240610%2B-%2BCEO%2BAndrew%2BFerrier%27s%2Baddress%2Bto%2BSIDE.pdf?MOD=AJPERES) (http://www.agro.uba.ar/agro/agroneg/pdf/strat_manag.pdf) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Ireland, R D, Hoskission, R E Hitt, MA 2009, The management of strategy concepts, 8th edn, South-Western Cengage Learning, USA à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Singh, K, Pangarkar, N Heracleous, L 2010, Business strategy in Asia a case book, 3rd edn, Cengage Learning Asia, Singapor 3.0 Recommendation

Barbie: Independent Woman or Damaging American Icon? Essays -- Argumen

Barbie: Independent Woman or Damaging American Icon? She's the classic American beauty, the woman we all dreamed of being at one point in our lives. She has long, tanned legs, cascades of blonde curls and has such perky breasts that she doesn't even need a bra. Although this character does not need air to breathe and is made of plastic, she has been one of America's most potent icons for more than 40 years and has affected girls in ways even human models aren't capable of. With 250 million Barbies in existence in the United States alone, there are more Barbies than there are people in the United States (Green 339). Barbie is adored by 8-year-old girls, collected by baby-boomer moms, and despised by feminists. No one can deny Barbie's unmistakable popularity. I myself am still the owner of 10-12 well-worn Barbie dolls. They are the outcome of much begging and pleading with my parents and their many unsuccessful attempts at getting me to stop sucking my thumb. Barbie was fascinating to me because she was a woman, not a baby like my other dolls. My sister and I spent hours creating complex "grown-up" scenarios with Barbie and her counterparts. Although I have fond memories of those afternoons of make-believe, I am now a more consciences adult aware of Barbie's shortcomings as such a powerful cultural icon. Although some people would call Barbie a feminist due to her multiple careers and her independent, fun-loving personality, I now see that Barbie’s unrealistic body size, her association with consumerism, and her potent sexuality make her a negative and harmful American icon. Barbie was conceived in 1959 by Ruth Handler (Green, A. 1/2). While on vacation in Germany, Ruth found a novelty d... ...rth Island Journal 11:4 (1996). Academic Search Elite. Palni SiteSearch. Goshen College Good Library. 3 Mar. 2001. Matheny, Krista. "Many Women Believe Barbie Damages Society." Murray State News U-Wire 18 Feb. 2000. <www.sam.com/article> McConnell, Tandy, ed. American Decades: 1990-1999. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2001. Prager, Emily. "Our Barbies, Ourselves." Signs of Life in the U.S.A.: Readings on Popular Culture For Writers. 3rd Ed. Maasik, Sonia and Jack Solomon. Boston: Bedford, 2000. 706-709. Robertson, Virginia. "Special Report on Reaching Girls: What Barbie Says About Girls." Aug. 1997. Kidscreen: About Reaching Children Through Entertainment <www.kidscreen.com/articles/ks15997.asp> "The Culture of Beauty." Diabetes Forcast Jul 1995. Academic Search Elite. Palni SiteSearch. Goshen College Good Library. 3 Mar. 2001. Barbie: Independent Woman or Damaging American Icon? Essays -- Argumen Barbie: Independent Woman or Damaging American Icon? She's the classic American beauty, the woman we all dreamed of being at one point in our lives. She has long, tanned legs, cascades of blonde curls and has such perky breasts that she doesn't even need a bra. Although this character does not need air to breathe and is made of plastic, she has been one of America's most potent icons for more than 40 years and has affected girls in ways even human models aren't capable of. With 250 million Barbies in existence in the United States alone, there are more Barbies than there are people in the United States (Green 339). Barbie is adored by 8-year-old girls, collected by baby-boomer moms, and despised by feminists. No one can deny Barbie's unmistakable popularity. I myself am still the owner of 10-12 well-worn Barbie dolls. They are the outcome of much begging and pleading with my parents and their many unsuccessful attempts at getting me to stop sucking my thumb. Barbie was fascinating to me because she was a woman, not a baby like my other dolls. My sister and I spent hours creating complex "grown-up" scenarios with Barbie and her counterparts. Although I have fond memories of those afternoons of make-believe, I am now a more consciences adult aware of Barbie's shortcomings as such a powerful cultural icon. Although some people would call Barbie a feminist due to her multiple careers and her independent, fun-loving personality, I now see that Barbie’s unrealistic body size, her association with consumerism, and her potent sexuality make her a negative and harmful American icon. Barbie was conceived in 1959 by Ruth Handler (Green, A. 1/2). While on vacation in Germany, Ruth found a novelty d... ...rth Island Journal 11:4 (1996). Academic Search Elite. Palni SiteSearch. Goshen College Good Library. 3 Mar. 2001. Matheny, Krista. "Many Women Believe Barbie Damages Society." Murray State News U-Wire 18 Feb. 2000. <www.sam.com/article> McConnell, Tandy, ed. American Decades: 1990-1999. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2001. Prager, Emily. "Our Barbies, Ourselves." Signs of Life in the U.S.A.: Readings on Popular Culture For Writers. 3rd Ed. Maasik, Sonia and Jack Solomon. Boston: Bedford, 2000. 706-709. Robertson, Virginia. "Special Report on Reaching Girls: What Barbie Says About Girls." Aug. 1997. Kidscreen: About Reaching Children Through Entertainment <www.kidscreen.com/articles/ks15997.asp> "The Culture of Beauty." Diabetes Forcast Jul 1995. Academic Search Elite. Palni SiteSearch. Goshen College Good Library. 3 Mar. 2001.

Langston Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance

Longboats Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance Harlem Renaissance was undoubtedly a cultural and social-political movement for the African American race. The Renaissance was many things to people, but it is best described as a cultural movement in which the high level of black artistic cultural production, demanded and received recognition. Many African American writers, musicians, poets, and leaders were able to express their creativity in many ways in response to their social condition. Until the Harlem Renaissance, poetry and literature were dominated by the white people and were all about the white culture.One writer in particular, Longboats Hughes, broke through those barriers that very few African-American artists had done before this period. Longboats Hughes played a major role and was a tremendous influence on African-American culture throughout the United States during the era of the Harlem Renaissance. He has written many poems that were influenced during the Harlem Renaissanc e, Trumpet Player and Harlem. From my perspective these poems expressed his rhythmic style and his connection to the Harlem Renaissance.In the sass's and early sass's, there was an African American cultural movement hat took place in the neighborhood of Harlem, New York. It is variously known as the Harlem Renaissance, the Black Literary Renaissance, or the New Negro Movement. This movement developed at the end of World War I in 1918, blossomed in the mid to late sass's, and faded in the mid sass's. There were several things that contributed to the rise of this time period, after segregation was made legal in the South, it made living conditions intolerable for African-Americans. They were powerless before the law and less than human in the eyes of many whites† (Harlem Renaissance 954). This caused a great migration to the North which seemed absolutely necessary for African-Americans. There was an industrial explosion occurring in the North and it was creating a demand for lab or. Many settled in northern cities such as Chicago, Philadelphia, and Cleveland, but New York was the destination for most. This migration to the North was a huge breakthrough for African-Americans and was the beginning of the cultural movement, the Harlem Renaissance.The Harlem Renaissance was also considered as a literary movement led by the African-Americans. It was a time of African-American creativity in literature, music, dance, and art. This movement created amazing opportunities for African-Americans, they were able to pursue their hopes and dreams without being discriminated against. They persevered and finally received what they hoped and dreamed of from white society. African-Americans received better education, more employment opportunities, and were more acknowledged in the performing arts. African Americans worked not only with a new sense of confidence and purpose but also with a sense of achievement never before experienced by so many black artists in the Eng, troub led history of the peoples of African descent in North America† (Harlem Renaissance 953). During this time the black culture was becoming more popular and accepted by non-blacks. The Harlem Renaissance was important to African- Americans because it was the first major step towards equality. Many African-Americans began to write during this time and began getting noticed for their writings. Some common themes represented during the Harlem Renaissance were the influence of the experience of slavery and emerging African- American folk traditions on black identity, the effects of institutional racism, the lemmas inherent in performing and writing for elite white audiences, and the question of how to convey the experience of modern black life in the urban North† (Wisped, Harlem Renaissance). In many of the writings that I have read from the Harlem Renaissance era, they truly depicted their struggles and experiences through their writings.There were numerous famous poets that emerged from this era, Longboats Hughes was one of the most famous poets and writers of this time. His poems were mainly about his heritage and also the experiences of Africans. Hughes was a great writer with much diversity in his types of writings. His poetry was a way for us to see a picture of urban life during the Harlem Renaissance, the habits, attitudes, and feelings of his oppressed people. These poems did more than reveal the pain of poverty, it also illustrated racial pride and dignity. His main concern was the uplift of his people, whose strengths, resiliency, courage, and humor he wanted to record as part of the general American experience† (Wisped, Longboats Hughes). Hughes was not ashamed of his heritage and his main theme, â€Å"black is beautiful,† was expressed and shared to the world through his poetry. During the literary movement, music was central to the cultural movement of the Harlem Renaissance, which was a main feature of Hughes poetry.He had an important technical influence by his emphasis on folk, Jazz, and blues rhythms as the basis of his poetry of racial pride. Hughes used this unique style of writing because it was important to him to have the readers feel and experience what they were reading, â€Å"to recognize the covert rhetoric in lyric meaner to appreciate the overlap between emotive and discursive poetry. Rooted in song, the lyric reestablishes the ritual of human communion† (Miller 52). The poem that I felt reflected Languor's lyrical style and expressed the struggles of his people was, â€Å"Trumpet Player†.After reading it many times quietly, aloud, and with music I was able to truly understand the meaning that was portrayed through this poem. The trumpet player in this poem was â€Å"The Negro' who sat on the stage, playing his trumpet, and telling us his story about the past and present struggles of his life. In the first stanza where Longboats mentions â€Å"Has dark moons of weariness Ben eath his eyes†, tells me that he has been through many things throughout his life ND by looking at him you can see the struggles he has faced.The line that follows gives you an insight to what he remembers and his violent past, â€Å"Where the smoldering memory of slave ships blazed to the crack of the whips about his thighs†. After reading the first stanza you've learned about the trumpet player and the life that he has lived. â€Å"The Negro' continues to play â€Å"with the trumpet at his lips, has a head of vibrant hair tamed down, Patent-leathered now, Until it gleams like Jet- Were jet a crown†. In this stanza I felt that Longboats showed the beauty of the trumpet player despite the struggles he has faced.With music playing an important role in Languor's style of writing and in the trumpet player's life, he expresses this in the third stanza: â€Å"The music, From the trumpet at his lips, Is honey, Mixed with liquid fire†. The music that the trumpet player plays is like â€Å"honey' to him, it is easy and feels good, â€Å"mixed with liquid fire† meaning it is strong and powerful at the same time. Longboats goes on to explain how important the trumpet is for the trumpet player. He describes the rhythm as â€Å"ecstasy, distilled from old desire†, by using the word â€Å"ecstasy' Longboats expresses how moving and pleasurable the music is to the rumple player. Distilled from old desire† reflects that the trumpet player has always had the desire to play, and even though his desire has aged he still has it within his soul to play. Within the fourth stanza Longboats goes deeper into detail about how deep the desire within the trumpet player really is. â€Å"Desire, That is longing for the moon, Where the moonlight's but a spotlight In his eyes†, I felt that in this line Longboats is telling us that the trumpet player longs for great things as high as the moon, but for him it is unreachable and will onl y be a spotlight in his eye.He also amperes his desire, â€Å"longing for the sea, where the sea's a bar-glass, sucker size†; it is another way of telling us that his desires, hopes, and dreams are as big as the sea, but living the life of oppression it will only be the size of a small glass. The fifth stanza allows us to create an image in our mind what the trumpet player looks and feels as he is playing the trumpet. He is standing there with his Jacket that has a â€Å"fine one-button roll†, playing his trumpet without reading music from a page. Does not know Upon what riff the music slips†, I saw this line to be powerful, the trumpet layer plays and creates music from within his mind and soul, his gift of music is so profound it emanates right out of him without reading a single note. â€Å"Its hypodermic needle to his soul†, Longboats also describes the intense feeling he gets as he plays, almost like a drug, maybe even painful to his soul. â€Å"But softly, as the tune comes from his throat, Trouble Mellows to a golden note†, this last stanza defines for us why the trumpet player plays.Even though he has faced oppression, a violent past, desperation, and struggle the trumpet player uses the music to mellow his soul and invert his pain to â€Å"a golden note†. Throughout this poem Longboats Hughes was able to express using his Jazz-like structure and musical flow, the struggles, past and present, that his people have faced throughout their life. Another poem that I felt truly depicted the feelings of African-Americans during the Harlem Renaissance era is, â€Å"Harlem (Dream Deferred)†. It is a poem about the dreams slaves had while being on the plantations as well as in the streets of Harlem.Throughout the poem, we are not quite sure what the dream is but we are aware of the negative effects dreams can have when they are deferred. Longboats captured me with his first line â€Å"What happens to a dream defer red? † He speaks of the African- Americans from the plantations, who have dreams but are being suppressed by oppressing forces. Racism dividing whites and blacks from any type of equality in America allowing them to have dreams but holding them back to enough to never fulfill those dreams.He continues to ask what will happen to this dream â€Å"does it dry up like a raisin in the sun†, he uses the example off raisin because they start out as a plump Juicy grape, but transform into something different once they are left out to ray. I felt that Longboats wanted us to know that his people had dreams, but the mistreatment and belief of black inferiority from the white slave masters eventually caused those dreams to shrivel up like a raisin and lose their meaning.He then asks could it â€Å"fester like a sore and then run†, meaning does the dream pick at you like a wound or sore, but if nothing is done to heal that sore, or to reach your dream, does it run away from y ou. Longboats gives a very descriptive image to the point you can almost feel and smell what would happen to your dream if it was deferred, â€Å"Does it tint like rotten meat†, the dream becomes so stagnate it begins to turn fowl. In the line could it â€Å"crust and sugar over like a syrupy sweet† felt that Longboats was saying that dreaming was sweet in the inside but crusted over and became harder to reach from the outside.When Longboats said â€Å"maybe it Just sags like a heavy load†, he meant these dreams started to weigh on his people's hearts, it became a burden to have any dreams. The last question of the poem â€Å"Or does it explode? † stands out the most to me, you have a dream that you dreamed of so much that it leaves you in espalier and escapes you. Longboats Hughes wrote this poem during a time when African-Americans were enduring injustice, and feeling there was no way to reach forward.I felt he truly captured what it was like for Africa n-Americans at that time and how they were treated. Harlem Renaissance was a time when many African-Americans depicted their struggles and experiences through writing. It was a time that brought out many great changes and it allowed African-Americans to express their culture without fear and shame. This movement changed the way African-Americans were seen by whites, and he black culture became more accepted. Many great writers came about during this time, one of which was Longboats Hughes.His poetry was a true reflection of the African-American culture and Harlem. He was influenced by the struggles presented in the Harlem Renaissance, which was expressed through his poem â€Å"Harlem (Dream Deferred). † He also emphasized how music replenished the soul through emotional connections by the use of form and language through his poem â€Å"Trumpet Player. † Longboats Hughes had a true connection to the Harlem Renaissance, he helped define he spirit of the age through his l yrical style and brilliant writings.

Language Essay

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Communicative Language Teaching The Advantages and Disadvantages of Communicative Language Teaching By HAH Introduction The focus of this essay is to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). In doing so, it is important to first clarify the meaning of CLT and it’s place in the ongoing history of language teaching methodology. CLT is generally accepted as the most recognized, contemporary approach to language teaching. CLT is considered an approach, rather than a teaching method, and can seem non-specific at times in terms of how to actually go about using practices in the classroom in any sort of systematic way. The real problem when attempting to define CLT is that there are many interpretations of what CLT actually means and involves. It means different things to different people. Or perhaps it is like an extended family of different approaches, and.. as in the case with most families, not all members live harmoniously together all of the time. There are squabbles and disagreements, if not outright wars, from time to time. However, no one is willing to assert that they do not belong to the family (Nunan 2004). One of the things that CLT embraces within its family is the concept of how language is used. Instead of concentrating solely on grammar, CLT focuses strongly on communicative competence. Learners are encouraged to apply various language forms in various contexts and situations such as making hotel reservation, purchasing airline tickets, ordering at a restaurant, booking tickets to a show, asking for directions etc. It is this constant exposure to language in realistic situations, which is thought to aid language acquisition. Learners are given a clear reason for communicating in the form of role-plays and simulations. Accuracy of the language is seen to be of less importance than fluency and communicating successfully. Brown (2007) offers the following seven interconnected characteristics as a description of†¦

Word Choice Than vs. Then - Proofeds Writing Tips

Word Choice Than vs. Then - Proofeds Writing Tips Word Choice: Then vs. Than The difference between than and then is so slight that its easy to mix them up by accident. However, with a clear understanding of what each term means, you should be able to avoid mistakes! Herein, we set out the difference. Then (Time and Consequences) The word then is used to refer to time, typically to indicate a particular point in time or within a sequence: First I went shopping, then I went to the cinema. It can also be used to show that something should follow on from something else: We must first deal with the budget deficit, then we can think about building infrastructure. In this case, as well as following on from something else in time (i.e., building infrastructure can only happen at a time after the budget is addressed), using then in the second part of the sentence also shows how an idea can follow another in terms of logical sequence. Other examples of then being used in this way include: If it rains, then the streets will be wet. If you eat too much cake, then you will get fat. Than (Comparisons) The word than is always used to make contrasts and comparisons. For instance, we might say: My father is tougher than yours. Or we could say: It is windier in Oklahoma than California. Another common use of this term is in the phrase rather than, which is most often used to express a preference between alternatives (e.g., Im going to walk rather than take the bus). Than or Then? As you can see, these words have very distinct meanings, despite their similarities. As such you should take special care not to confuse them in your work. Remember: Then = Indicating a point in time Than = Making a comparison However, since its often difficult to proofread your own work, for complete peace of mind you might want to try the professionals.

A Schools Website Makes an Important First Impression

A Schools Website Makes an Important First Impression Before a parent or student physically sets a foot into a school building,  there is an opportunity for  a virtual visit. That virtual visit takes place through a schools website, and the information that is available on this website makes an important first impression. That first impression is an opportunity to highlight the schools best qualities and to show how welcoming the school community is to all stakeholders-parents, students, educators, and community members. Once this positive impression is made, the website can  provide a wide variety of information, from posting an exam schedule to announcing an early dismissal because of inclement weather.  The website can also effectively communicate the schools vision and mission, the qualities, and the offerings to each of these stakeholders. In effect, the school website presents the personality of the school. What Goes on the Website Most school websites have the following basic information: Calendars for school activities, school schedules, and bus schedules;  Policy statements (ex: dress code, Internet use, attendance);School news on individual student achievements or group achievements;Information on the school learning activities including academic requirements, course descriptions, and prerequisite course work;Information on school extra-curricular activities (ex: clubs and athletic program);Links to teacher web pages and also staff and faculty contact information; Some websites may also provide additional information including: Links to organizations or websites outside the school that support the schools academic program (ex: College Board-Khan Academy)Links to software that  contain student data  (Naviance,  Powerschool, Google Classroom)Links to forms (ex: permission slips, course registration, attendance waivers, transcript requests, free and reduced lunch) that can reduce the  costly reproduction of paper copies;Board of Education resources such as contact information for board members, minutes of meetings, agendas, and meeting schedules;District policies, such as those policies on data privacy;Photos of students and faculty;A forum or discussion page for  teachers, administrators, students, and parents to exchange information such as news and calendars of events;Links to school social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, etc). Information placed on the school website will be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Therefore, all the information on the school website must be timely and accurate. Dated material should be removed or archived. In real time information will provide stakeholders confidence in the information posted.  Up to date information  is particularly important for teacher websites that list assignments or homework for students and parents to see. Who Has Responsibility for the School Website? Every school website must be a reliable source of information that is communicated clearly and accurately. That task is usually assigned to a schools Information Technology or IT Department. This department is often organized at the district level with each school having a  webmaster for the school website. There are a number of school website design businesses that can provide the basic platform and customize the site according to a schools need. Some of these include Finalsite, BlueFountainMedia,  BigDrop, and SchoolMessenger. Design companies generally provide the initial training and support on maintaining the school website. When an IT Department is not available, some schools ask a faculty or staff member who is particularly technologically savvy, or who works in their computer science department, to  update their websites for them.  Unfortunately, building and maintaining a website is a  large task that can take  several hours a week. In such cases, a more collaborative approach of assigning responsibility for sections of the website might be more manageable. Another approach is to use the website as a part of the school curriculum where students are given the task of developing and maintaining  portions of the website. This  innovative approach benefits both the students who learn to work collaboratively in an authentic and on-going project as well as educators who can become more familiar with the technologies involved. Whatever the process for maintaining the school website, the ultimate responsibility for all content must lie with one  district administrator.   Navigating the School Website Possibly the most important consideration in designing the school website is the navigation. The navigation design of a school website is particularly important because of the number and variety of pages that may be offered to users of all ages, including those who may be unfamiliar with websites entirely. Good navigation  on a school website should include a navigation bar, clearly defined tabs, or labels that clearly differentiate the pages of the website. Parents, educators, students, and community members should be able to travel throughout the entire website regardless of the level of  proficiency with websites.   Particular attention should be given to encouraging parents to use the school website. That encouragement might include training  or demonstrations for parents during school open houses or parent-teacher meeting. Schools could even offer technology training for parents  after school or on special evening activity nights. Whether it is someone 1500 miles away, or a parent living down the road, everyone is afforded the same opportunity to see the schools website online.  Administrators and faculty should see school website as the front door of the school, an opportunity to welcome all virtual visitors and make them feel comfortable in order to make that great first impression. Final Recommendations There are reasons to make the school website as attractive and professional as possible. While a private school may be looking to attract students through a website, both public and private school administrators may be seeking to attract high-quality staff who can drive achievement results. Businesses in the community may want to reference a schools website in order to attract or expand economic interests. Taxpayers in the community may see a well-designed website as a sign that the school system is also well-designed.