A Sense of Belonging Essay Example for Free

A Sense of Belonging Essay The novel Simple Gift is written in a verse form and presented by three different perspectives of the main characters- Billy, a 16 year old runaway, Caitlin, a girl from a wealthy family and Old Bill, a homeless alcoholic. This mix of gender, social status and age forms a sense of belonging which each character gains. The first person narrator allows the reader to directly engage with each of its characters. Billy Luckett does not have any connection with his dad because he is subjected to abuse both physically and verbally. He gives a negative description of his dad saying â€Å"the old bastard†. He uses colloquial language and sarcasm â€Å"see ya dad. I’ve taken the alcohol. Drink this instead to celebrate your son leaving home.† This sense of disconnection is illustrated in the poem ‘sport’ where his father â€Å"gives him a backhander across his face, so hard he fell down† and he â€Å"slams the door on his sporting childhood†. Herrick uses this metaphor to create a sense of isolation and alienation caused by an alcoholic father. Billy has no connection to his school either. He is shown to be a rebel by saying â€Å"Billy Luckett rhymes with†¦Ã¢â‚¬  the use of ellipse highlights the feeling of disconnection. He disrespects his teachers as well which is evident when he says â€Å"Let Cheetum chew on that†. All these instances show that he does not belong and has no connection with his family or community leading him to run away. He compares his dad to Ernie, the train driver in the poem â€Å"Men†. He says that they are both opposite. â€Å"There are men like Ernie and there are men like my dad†. He refers to his dad as someone who does not perform his fatherly role emphasising on the fact that he is completely disconnected from his father. Certain people can make a person belong and Billy’s case is no different. Billy and Caitlin have nothing in common but their relationship relay’s on internal love and bonds. They both feel disconnected from the world and their families. They catch each other â€Å"doing someth ing they didn’t want to do but had to† both Billy and Caitlin are attracted to each other physically too. Billy notices she has â€Å"bouncing, shiny, clean hair and her eyes were pale green†. Caitlin notices his attitude of self-admiration and the fact that he is â€Å"homeless and proud of it.† They develop a strong sense of connection both physically and emotionally. Making to love to Caitlin was the ultimate sense of belonging. It also contrasts Kate’s description of having sex. Billy describes it as â€Å"falling headlong into the clear water of the Benderat River and opening my eyes to the beautiful phosphorescent bubbles of light.† He uses this simile to convey a feeling of a magical world. This description also shows the beauty of the emotional bond making the experience special. Billy and Caitlin, create their own â€Å"special world† which is very important to them as it enhances their belonging and connections. In the end billy gives Caitlin a â€Å"beautiful green emerald ring† he had brought thinking about her eyes which indicates the value he places on their relationship which in turn enhances the sense of maturity they both attain. After the death of his wife and daughter Jessie, Old Bill disconnects himself entirely from the world. Old Bill relays on alcohol to forget about the world and his past. However, the gifts of cigarettes trigger his memory of his daughter. Old Bill is changed by Billy’s kindness of Billy bringing him wheatbix and tea every day. This symbolises that Billy helps Old Bill to belong again after many years of remoteness from the society. Old Bill starts to treat Billy differently which shows that he has changed his attitude towards Billy and they have developed a relationship. Old Bill ultimately becomes Billy’s father figure. Towards the end he provides Billy a place to live-his house. This shows that he is letting go of the past. He finally accepts the death of his family and starts a new life. In the end he decides to travel north as it is his daughter’s dream. Old Bill also needs a change from his old life and memories. Right from the beginning, Billy has a strong connection with nature and the land. This is evident in the poem ‘Westfield Creek’. Billy uses diction and positive adjectives to show a sense of belonging to â€Å"a place he loves†. This positive description contrasts with his house and school. Billy’s view on land is positive and liberating as it a place â€Å"where he can come to read and learn.† It is his â€Å"favourite classroom.† Billy also has a strong sense of connection with the train carriage his â€Å"Motel Benderat†. He â€Å"closes the door and make a home† showing that he has shut the world out.

The Children Act 2004 | Analysis

The Children Act 2004 | Analysis The Children Act was first introduced in 1989 and was amended in 2004 after an inquiry into the death of Victoria Climbie. After the death of eight-year old Victoria Climbie in 2000, Lord Laming was asked by the Government to carry out an investigation to know if new regulation and guidance were needed to develop the safeguard of child system in England. The Governments answer to the Victoria Climbie Inquiry report (Laming, 2003) was the Keeping children safe report (DfES, 2003) and the Every child matters green paper (DfES, 2003), which in turn led to the Children Act 2004. This Acts ultimate purpose is to make the UK better and safer for children of all ages. The Act also created a Childrens Commissioner; putting in place services provided to and for children and young people by local authorities and other persons; dealing with Wales about advisory and support services in regards to family proceedings; dealing with private fostering, child minding and day care, adoption assessment panels, the explanation of reasonable penalty, the making of allowances as respects children and families, child safety orders, the Childrens Commissioner for Wales, The publication of material in connection to children dealing in legal cases and the release by the Inland Revenue of data relating to children. The government aims is for every child whatever their background or their conditions, to have the backing they need to: be healthy i.e. enjoying good physical and mental health and living a healthy lifestyle; to stay safe i.e. to be free from harm and negligence; to enjoy and achieve i.e. to make the most out of life and to develop the skills to become an adult; to make a positive contribution i.e. to be in touch with the community and society and not taking part in anti-social or criminal conduct; To achieve economic well-being i.e. not being prohibited by financial difficulty from reaching their full ability in life. The green paper suggested improvements was into four main areas which are assisting parents and carers, early involvement and effective security, responsibility and combination locally, regionally and nationally and staff improvement. Being healthy It is shown by a study that those smoking regularly aged 11-15 in England has gone down since 1996 from 13 to 10 percent. But obesity level is rising. Between 1996 and 2001 the number of children who were obese having between 6-15 years old in England increase by 4 percent. Young rates of pregnancy were lower by 10 percent in 2001 than in 1998. But UK still has the most teenage pregnancies in Europe. The World Health Organisation published a report in 2002 that UK had the least suicide rate amongst 26 countries, but suicide is still responsible for 20 per cent of young deaths. Staying safe In March 2002, 59,700 children were in care in England, which is an increase of 22 percent since March 1994. But, the number on child protection registers in England have been decreasing as there were only 25,700 in March 2002 compared to 38,600 ten years earlier. Between 1981 and 2001 the percentage of young boys in England and Wales reprimanded or sentenced of a crime decreased from 7 per cent of young boys to 5 per cent, but the same rate for girls increased from 1.3 to 1.4 per cent. A research of criminal and harassment found that 46 percent being the target of some kind of crime in the last 12 months among those aged 11 to 16 in ordinary schools. In most cases of domestic violence where around one in ten women involved yearly, their children were present in the same or next room, and one in three child safeguard circumstances points to a past of domestic violence against the mother. Enjoying and achieving The number of those aged 11 reaching the normal level in English and maths went up by 12 percent, from 63 percent to 75 percent and from 61 percent to 73 percent in English and maths respectively since 1997. In 2002 more than half of 15 year olds got a minimum of five GCSEs at grades A*-C, a rise of more than 6 percent since 1997. However success is not steady through diverse ethnic groups like for example pupils from Chinese and Indian backgrounds succeed considerably over regular GCSE results; black pupils and those from Pakistani and Bangladeshi backgrounds do inferior in their GCSE results. Non-attendance has stayed the same from 1995/96 at 0.7 percent of half days absent. At the end of 2001, in every eleven youngsters having 16-18 years old, one was not in education, work or training and in every four youngsters between 16 and 18, one spend time out of education, training and employment. Making a positive contribution A new research of secondary students who are 11 to 18 years old showed that 86 percent had taken part in certain sort of community activity in the previous year and half participated in raising fund or gathering cash for charity. From the 2001 General Election, assessments found that attendance was lowest between those aged 18-24, as only two in five casted their vote. Economic well-being Between 1992 and 1995, 19 percent of children stayed in working age jobless homes, but in 2003, the percentage had fallen to 15.2. The percentage of children staying in homes with comparatively low earnings decreased between 1996-97 and 2001-02 from 34 to 30 after housing expenses. The percentage of children staying in homes with virtually low earnings fell largely from 34 percent to 20 percent after housing deductions. The Childrens Act 2004 established a Childrens Fund which is aimed to support in the abolition of poverty and economic difficulties felt by disadvantaged children or those whose familys monetary conditions leave them deprived by making sure that children aged between five and thirteen attend school regularly and also decreasing the risk of crime being carried out by these children, so that they can get the best promising start of their life. The Childrens Act 2004 specially caters for disabled children. Local authorities have a responsibility under the Act to arrange for  facilities to children in need if these amenities will aid keeping a child safe and healthy. After the death of baby P, there was a review conducted by Lord Laming which suggested that those dealing with children need to be properly trained to detect any problem so that social workers or other practitioners can better safeguard children under their responsibility. The Children Act 2004 provides a strong emphasis and a new approach to childrens services but is not sufficient in itself. Its application must be part of an extensive progression of transformation, concentrating on results and brought onward by local transformation packages in 150 Local Authority regions set within a national structure. The National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services (NSF) is fundamental to this. It put forward a ten-year plan to encourage durable and continual progress in childrens health and well-being. As it is applied by Primary Care Trusts (PCTs), Local Authorities and other groups including other health bodies, it will add to the realisation of the five outcomes.

The South African Forced Removals History Essay

The South African Forced Removals History Essay In South Africa, apartheid was an important factor in the forced removal of many innocent South Africans, due to the color of their skin. Throughout the 1900s the struggle between segregation and equality was brought to attention, affecting almost every aspect of a black South Africans life. From the causes, to the effects upon the civilians, the forced removals majorly affected the present day South Africa. From 1960 to 1983 the Bantustan Policy was enforced to forcibly move South African blacks out of the area designated for whites. There are many causes as to why the forced resettlement of blacks was conveyed byt the government. The apartheid more or less originated back in 1652 when white settlers first arrived in South Africa. This history did impact the way the laws and policies were enforced later on 1948 on by the nationalist party. In 1910, the Union was formed. After this, the territorial segregation the white settlers had impressed was put in law with the 1913 Black Land Act. The Black Land Act limited the areas black Africans could occupy through ownership or rent. This act would become the basic land policy of South Africa up until the end of the resettlement. The Act also made the number of migrant laborers increase, since most of the industries and mines, which was and still is the main source of income for Africans, were occupied by black workers, but were located on white land. During the 1930s and 40s, the amount of money blacks were paid in urban areas was considerably better than that of rural, and this began a migration of black Africans into urban areas. This countered the wishes of the dominant agricultural capitalists, who needed a good work force during the agricultural boom of the 1950s. Thus begun the move towards forced removals, to keep blacks out of white urban areas. This need for the removal was the implementation of the Bantustan Policy. The Bantustan Policy was directed towards rural resettlement, urban resettlement, and resettlement within the Bantustans. These resettlements were to direct blacks from designated white urban land and areas, which led to a superfluous amount of farm laborers. By the beginning of the 1980s, almost 60% of the African population was based in the Bantustans (Kristen Henard). The black spots or communities the blacks were forced into were overcrowded and unsanitary. These communities more or less became the dumping grounds for unwanted blacks, namely the elderly, women and children. The Black (Urban Areas) Consolidation Act amended in 1952, those Africans with the section 10 right had the right to remain there only if they were born in the area, and had lived there continuously, worked for one employer for more than ten years, or lived lawfully and continuously there for 15 years. For others, there was a 72 hour limit for visitation in the white areas. The influx control regulations of the Consolidation Act were furthered in the 60s when the labor was needed in agricultural areas, rather than industries. These regulations went along with the Bantustan dumping grounds, and the unproductive and redundant workers. In 1986, the Abolition of Influx Control Act was created to replace the Consolidation Act of 1952. The system of influx control regulating and controlling the movement and residential rights of Africans and the subsequent further restrictions or relaxations must be tied to the political environment and the economic needs of the white capitalists. As the towns are centers of wealth and power and the majority rule movement was strongest in the towns, a permanent African population in the towns was perceived as rising political and security problems. In general the influx control regulation. aimed at reducing the number of Africans living permanently in the towns as much as possible so as to reduce the concomitant political threat they pose This amended both the 1951 Prevention of Illegal Squatting Act and the 1979 Slums Act, providing the essential administrative controls that could be used for population and African urbanization control. The 1923 Black Act was also influenced by apartheid, made to segregate the urb an African population. On the other hand, the 1986 amendment to the Prevention of Illegal Squatting Act provided for the possibility of controlled squatting because it allowed the minister of Constitutional development and planning to designate land for this purpose and make suitable regulations related to the provision of services and a form of local government. The government thus acknowledged the ultimate impossibility of eradicating all squatters and at the same time the positive effects of this type of low cost housing considering the extreme housing shortage in the urban areas. This provision can also be interpreted as another attempt to divide and disorganize the dominated and oppressed class by giving preferential treatment to a certain group of squatters so as to induce a positive attitude towards the apartheid regime whereas all the other squatters still lived under the threat of conviction and eviction. They then continued to control that population with the Group Area Ac t, facilitating control over the black urban population. This act attempted to hamper organization among the oppressed urban working class. Also, the segregated townships were placed on the outskirts of cities. This was facilitated so that the blacks were away from sensitive business centers, and to control political and economic faces of the towns. At one point in the forced removal era, the implantation of the many racially based laws resulted in 87% of the total land area of South Africa being owned by the white minority, whereas 13% was set aside for the 5 to 1 black majority. This made obvious the intentions of the government, to make sure the black majority was run and controlled by the white minority. Throughout the segregation, there was series of peaceful demonstrations, along with violent ones. In 1985, over a period of four days Africans resisted being moved from their home, Crossroads, South Africa, to the new government- run Khayelitsha Township. Eighteen people were killed during the movement, and 230 were injured. The apartheid system can be described as state action designed to secure and maintain white domination by furthering white political and economic interests through control over the black majority population. The mechanisms of population control used, include the panoply of forced removal intended to control, divide and segregate the people of South Africa. Forced removals have occurred in different historical times with different functions and guises. Ultimately the whole process can be traced back to the structures of black economic exploitation and white political domination inherent in the apartheid regime. The process of change began with the election of Willem de Klerk as leader of the National Party in February 2, 1989, his subsequent presidentship, and more specifically his speech on February 2, 1990 as he announced the repeal of apartheid legislation, the democratization of the state system, the normalization of the political process, and the multi-party negotiation process for a new Constitution. The latter was eventually set up in December 1991 under the name Congress for a Democratic South Africa. After a suspension in June 1992, the negotiations resumed in early 1993 and resulted in an agreement on the details of a transitional Constitution, including 34 Constitutional principles against which the final constitution will be tested, and the arrangements necessary to ensure free and fair elections set from April 26 to 28, 1994. The then elected transitional parliament, acting as a Constitutional assembly, would begin to draw up a final Constitution. The forced removals of South Africa were heavily influenced by apartheid, meaning the white minority controlling the black majority. The struggle between equality and segregation originated when the white settlers first arrived in Africa, but finally concluded in the 90s. There are many causes, from regulations and acts, to the white supremacy. Although it ended, the effects still remain. Many South Africans still live in insanitary slums, having been forced and never left.

Essay --

EFL students always have comprehension problems in listening for many complicated reasons. The listening materials are considered to be too fast and variable for EFL students, especially for the beginning language learners. Renandya and Farrell (2011) believed that â€Å"any increase in speech rate tends to result in a decrease in comprehension† (p. 53). What’s more, when the speaker modifies the sound or blend several words together when they are speaking, listeners will get confused. When we talk with others outside class, communication seems much easier compared with the in-class formal listening practice, and that is because face-to-face communication is a two-way listening. If we have any difficulty or miss any information, we can easily go back and ask the speaker to speak more slowly and clearly, or to repeat the information. In this case, listening is not that difficult. On the contrary, formal listening exercises are usually one-way tasks; listeners cannot get any extra clue except the listening material itself. This is even more difficult for beginning listeners, and they have nothing to do except following the so-called good listeners’ strategies, which are actually ineffective for them. According to traditional listening researches, the lower-level listener should be able to solve their comprehension problems by themselves with a lot of formal strategy training. However, the reality is a different situation. In this article, Renandya and Farrell (2011) stated that the traditional training of listening strategies is very popular, but many problems still exist. For example, it is a great burden for teachers to acquire many different strategies and theories in order to train their students; and the so-called effective listen... ...few projects; instead, students at different language proficiency levels should have their own listening plans and designs. For those beginning learners, easier and more interesting listening resources would be appropriate. They may listen to kids’ songs; watch cartoons and movies with simpler conversations; listen to podcast; or read latest news that they are interested in and communicate with their classmates and friends. Their focus should be on fluency and adequacy. For those at higher proficiency level, more complicated video and audio resources could be a good try, and they may also focus on complexity. Teachers should also notice that, extensive listening does not only refer to outside class and self-monitoring activities. Teachers must take charge of some tasks in order to better control the effect and guide students to practice toward the correct direction.

Artificial Intelligence and Investing Essay -- Technology, Stock Exch

Artificial Intelligence and Investing INTRODUCTION Artificial intelligence can be defined as the ability of a computer to perform activities normally considered to require human intelligence. The techniques of this intelligence include knowledge-based, machine learning, and natural language processing techniques. Investing can be defined as the act of committing money to an endeavour with the exception of obtaining profit. Investing activities require data identification, asset valuation (the process of determining the worth of something), and risk management (the process of managing the uncertainty in investment decision-making). Artificial intelligence techniques can be applied to financial investing, especially in the areas of credit risk assessment and stock valuation. In the future, we can expect that the techniques of artificial intelligence will be integrated into systems that simultaneously address investing activities. WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE? Technology is an important factor in investing activities. For example, stock trading is computer-based and can automatically execute the trading of large volumes of shares. This has become an extremely frequent activity on stock exchanges in our advanced world. Artificial intelligence is allowing humans to have a â€Å"cutting edge† by using computers when investing. Years ago, a usual activity for a computer program was a simple, or even a complex, numerical calculation. An example of this could be a forensic officer’s ability to compute the path and pattern of a bullet. Today, computers are more advanced. It is no problem for a computer program to assist humans in their decision making processes. Humans have access to huge databases across the world over the interne... ...ollection, asset valuation, and portfolio management). These systems will interact with humans and humans will be able to specify their preferences and make difficult decisions. SUMMARIZER’S CRITIQUE In general, the article â€Å"Artificial Intelligence and Investing† offered a lot of valuable information regarding the both the current, and future, paths of artificial intelligence systems. The article was broken down into simple sections that helped the article come together. The author’s intent of relating artificial intelligence to investing was successful in explaining that artificial intelligence is of great assistance to investors across the globe. On the other hand, I believe the article contained some examples and terms which were not really explained in enough detail to the average user. Basically, some terms were not presented at an average reader’s level.

Edward O. Wilson’s “Is Humanity Suicidal?” Essay

In the 1990s article, â€Å"Is Humanity Suicidal?†, Edward O. Wilson is concerned about the extinction of the human species. He believes that humanity’s harsh treatment of Earth will soon have excruciating consequences. Wilson also states that the increasing industrial world is having a very consequential affect on the global environment and that it may be too much for it to handle. He insists that â€Å"the human species is an environmental abnormality,† because human’s negative impact on the earth is likely to threaten the survival of the human species. Wilson asks â€Å"Who can safely measure the human capacity to overcome the perceived limits of the Earth?† The limits of the Earth’s natural resources and the Earth’s ability to sustain itself from humanity’s rough treatment is unknown. Wilson believes that there are two different perspectives for the future of the human species, which are exemptionalism and environmentalism. There are people who fail to recognize environmental issues for what they really are. These are the exemptionalists. They see these problems as very minor. Wilson believes that these people think that environmental problems will soon disappear with the growth and advancement of technology. He believes that these people are too caught up with their own lives and the present that they fail to think about what could be waiting for their ancestors in years to come. Then there are the environmentalists, in which Wilson has a strong belief in. Wilson believes that humanity cannot remake in the Earth in its original form. The increasing human efforts to remake the earth and control the global environment for human use is causing too much change in the environment that Earth soon my not be able to support the survival of the human race, therefore humanity’s intelligence can be somewhat of a weapon to there own survival. Wilson asks if population growth and human control over the environment proves that â€Å"humanity is suicidal†. Wilson argues that we are not destined to destroy ourselves by trying to control the environment, so therefore we are not suicidal. He believes that humanity is â€Å"smart enough and have time  enough to avoid an environmental catastrophe of civilization-threatening dimensions.† Wilson also holds the belief that in order to preserve our environment that we must realize that humans are not the only organisms in the ecosystem that helps keep the environment livable; every organism plays their part. With the constant reporting of the extinction of species because of our harsh treatment, the jobs that the different organisms have to our environment are now lost. He argues that the Earth is too complicated in order for one species to be bale to control it. Wilson concludes that we have around 50 to 100 years to straighten out our environment and to develop different values and ways of thinking. If the human’s negative impact on the Earth increases it will result in the fall of our global, industrial civilization.

Motivational Theories and Factors Essay

Stress and conflict in the workplace can cause major emotional and physical damage to the facility and workers. In the past, there have been reports of tragedies caused by disgruntled workers who may have clocked in with a gun in hand. We are going to look into ‘three motivational theories including the relationship of stress and conflict in relation to individual motivations. ’ Many factors can motivate employees while at work. Some of the motivating factors could include the structure of the lives of the employees before they became employed. Personality is a big factor in employee performance and motivation. Someone that is an introvert may not have the same mind set as an extrovert. This will definitely dictate how that employee behaves and responds to directives at work. Turmoil has happened in recent years in workplace settings. Let us take a closer look at a tragic workplace incident. Omar Thornton was a thirty-four year old black delivery driver in Manchester Connecticut. On August 4, 2010, he signed his resignation papers in front of witnesses after he saw video footage of him stealing beer from his company. Before leaving the room he reportedly pulled a gun and started randomly shooting workers he came across. In the end, he killed eight, leaving two wounded before he killed himself. Thornton’s relatives and girlfriend said he had been harassed in a racial manner. This story is not the only one we have seen in the news. It proves that motivation can be a source of good behavior or negative. In Thornton’s case he was motivated by what he thought to be racially aimed mistreatment from his white co workers. This caused him to become stressed and it reached a deadly point of conflict, a him against them scenario. In the real world, no employee should allow their job stress to motivate them to take lives or destroy property. Stress can lead to serious consequences, whether it becomes a health issue or affects performance in a negative way. If employees are in constant conflict over management issues, pay working conditions or other concerns, this can lead to low moral among the employee congregation. It won’t matter if all employees are involved in the struggle, dissatisfaction can spread like sand into each individual’s boundaries. It will be the main topic around the water cooler each day. The job for management is to keep employees motivated in the right direction for the good of the company and its productivity. Management can help decrease the incidents of job dissatisfaction by following these steps. Positive reinforcement should always follow an employees job well done. When problems or disagreements arise the discipline should fit the crime. All persons who live up to their expected performance should be treated in a fair respectful manner. Goals should always be well pronounced so that no employee will say they didn’t know what was expected of them. Some jobs may need to be restructured to generate better productivity. All employees who perform in an acceptable capacity should be rewarded fro their compliance. Increased pay or a truck load of benefits may not always be at the top of the list when it comes to employee motivation. People want to feel needed and appreciated on the job. They want to know that their work is worth something. So, to decrease the incidents of stress, unfairness which can lead to conflict and disgruntled or dissatisfied employees, companies need to place value on employees who are doing what they are asked. When conflicts arise, there should be a procedure in place to allow every voice to be heard. When I am involved in stressful work situations, I bring it to the attention of my department manager. I do not attack an individual, I attack the cause of the problem. I follow the company’s guidelines for resolution, it has always worked for me. Since I started this class, I have learned that positive external motivation can also decrease or prevent stress in the workplace. So there should be a plan already in place to head off negative incidents.