The Mistake of Standardized Testing Essay Example For Students

The Mistake of Standardized Testing Essay High-stakes testing, also known as standardized testing, is quoted as the new American education reform. Throughout the last two decades, this issue has become more political than ever. It has become so politically heated, that students and their future are being played with in a way that parents, teachers and administrators cannot even fathom. Throughout the two articles, Holding Kids Responsible for Our Failures by Paul Wellstone and Missing the Mark for Low-SES Students by John Gustafson, the authors clearly explain the downward spiral that education faces today, especially in terms of creating an even wider gap between rich and poor schools in America. We will write a custom essay on The Mistake of Standardized Testing specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Within the article Holding Kids Responsible for Our Failures, Paul Wellstone discusses the heavy disadvantages of high-stakes testing. He believes that it is absurd for us to believe that students who attend the poorest of schools have anywhere close to the same preparation and readiness as students who attend the wealthiest of schools (Wellstone 89). This is absolutely true. Low SES (low socioeconomic status) students who live in the South Bronx are obviously not going to have the same opportunity to thrive in their environment compared to upper middle class students who attend school in suburban Westchester County. The sad notion is that those students have to take the exact same statewide NYS regents exam. Missing the Mark for Low-SES Students by John Gustafson also argues the current standardized testing movement fails to guarantee increased academic performance for students from low-income backgrounds, because they lack the life experiences that serve as a basis for learning. The current emphasis on standardized testing offers an environment that is far too rigid and fundamental to allow low-SES students to excel (Gustafson 2). Gustafson points out that there are three main influences that impact academic achievement in which policy makers tend to ignore. That is school, home and peers. He argues that without these three components, students will not succeed. One reason why I particularly enjoy this specific article is because the author offers different methods to make learning interesting and understandable for students in which they can thrive in a successful academic environment with the pressure of high-stakes testing. The methods include: (1) building a knowledge base (2) reading activities (3) performance (4) encouragement (5) field trips (6) integrated curriculum. Both Wellstone and Gustafson argue that standardized testing is an irresponsible way to determine graduation, promotion, and academic tracking. Of course, Wellstone seems to make the political argument while Gustafson focuses on methods in dealing with high-stakes testing. The authors similarly debate that the key investments in education should be quality teaching, early childhood education, parental involvement and increased funds to public schoolsnot standardized tests. The basis of the two articles gives me the evidence to believe that standardized and high-stakes testing is overtly irresponsible in the public education sector and should not be encouraged in the future of education. However, if America does continue to use the high-stakes testing as a way to measure students academic capability, then we must ensure a vigorous and dynamic way to fairly educate our poorest schools as much as the wealthiest schools. Bibliography Gustafson, John P. Missing the Mark for Low-SES Students, Yappa Delta Phi Record v. 38, no. 2. Winter 2002. p. 60-3 Wellstone, Paul. The Conscience of a Liberal: Reclaiming the Compassionate Agenda. New York: Random House, 2001. .

graduate essays

graduate essays In The Graduate, the director, Mike Nichols, emphasizes the mysterious tone of the film with his overuse of lighting, camera angles, and shadows. The uncertainty Benjamin Braddock feels can be seen right from the start as he stands on the moving sidewalk at the airport. He is positioned at the right hand side of the screen moving forward. You can see a large area to the left where the credits appear. I think the director chose this technique for the opening credits to symbolize how this graduate is arriving at a new destination Dark rooms with shadows are used heavily in this film. The director shows Benjamins room as dark and shadowy to parallel his personality. This is also seen in the Robinson house. Shadows everywhere with light on only part of the characters faces tells you that this is a house of mystery and uncertainty. The director places lights seemingly on the ground to cast huge shadows of the characters on the walls. This makes you feel that the directors idea is to have the characters deepest secrets and personalities overshadow the characters themselves. The pool scene where Benjamin Braddock is in the SCUBA suit demonstrates another film technique. The director uses a shot from inside the suit looking out towards the family. You cant hear anything. It lets you know how Benjamin feels about his current life. He is just going through the motions of life. Then, when Benjamin is under water sitting perfectly still, the director goes from a close-up and fades out until you cant see him anymore. This makes you think that the character is sick of it all and that he is about to change. Over-the-shoulder shots, odd angles, and shadows are all used in the hotel scenes. Benjamin doesnt want anyone to see him there. The director conveys this message with a shot that puts the large podium between th...

Case Study 6 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

6 - Case Study Example First, the major attracting aspect in the television industry is content, contrary to common knowledge to many that a majority are attracted by money. It would therefore, most appropriate that the content aired is made that which attracts to both the new potential employees and the clients. This would ideally attract a substantive number of highly qualified individuals into the industry. Second ideal and very important idea on how to become more attractive to highly qualified personnel for a television industry in the current global market is to establish a media school in television broadcasting. Such a school would enhance the interest among individuals who complete their studies in the school to get attracted into the industry. The third idea on how to enhance attractiveness of the television industry for qualified personnel is through increased advertising. Advertising enables the outside world to know more about an industry and an organization, thereby becoming more attractive to the potential and highly qualified personnel. Indeed advertising is considered one of the most effective ways to enhance

Opportunity assessment for 'YPlan' Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Opportunity assessment for 'YPlan' - Essay Example There is a business opportunity in the last minute seat business as the theatre industry has an annual balance of 30% unsold seats, the cinema industry has 80% unsold seats while the live music industry has a balance of 40% unsold seats. The company YPlan is a young app company founded in 2012 by Rytis Vitkauskas and Viktoras Jucikas. YPlan specializes in last minute event discovery which involves alerting users of available tickets for live events happening within the next 24 hours. The events it sells include wine tasting sessions, music gigs, theatre or silent discos with all featured events handpicked by the company’s editors. The YPlan is based in London, UK, and serves the iPhone market in the city. The company was initially based in East London’s TechHub starting with two employees but grew quickly recruiting 17 employees in the process and shifted its base to King’s Cross. The company plans to expand internationally to other markets where the iPhone penet ration is huge like the US and Japan. YPlan seeks to exploit a gap in the entertainment market by being the first app company to provide an efficient means of purchasing last minute nights out tickets. The founders have experience in the software industry and have a long history of entrepreneurship. Rytis, for example, has previously worked at Summit Partners where he was responsible for software and technology investments. He contributed to the sourcing, execution and management of summit investments in Acturis and Avast software (Baron 2012). Challenges in the app business The company’s services were only available in London as of Jan 2013, but it looks to expand its business to American cities. The app market is crowded and competitive; it is hard for most entrepreneurs to break through. The popularity of apps changes quite often; therefore, entrepreneurs have to be conversant with the latest trends in the industry (Chell 2004). To launch a successful app entrepreneurs hav e to acquire the relevant technology appropriate to a particular platform. If the entrepreneur intends to launch the app on different platforms, then he/she needs to purchase a platform specific developer license for each platform. Platforms are in general mutually incompatible, with each having unique technical detailing and coding. The coding and testing stage requires the services of experienced app developers and software engineers. The app developer also needs sound designers, graphic designers and content developers, in addition to, an effective marketing and PR team. The company does not offer a filtering system to sort between different types of events like music gigs and theatre.   Some competitors like Hotel tonight appeal to customers with discounted rates for their services while Yplan offers discounts for only some of the events (Chell 2004). Other competitors like Groupon use coupons to advertise various products including sales of tickets to a wide range of events a t highly discounted rates. This could impact on Yplan’s bottom-line as its services are restricted to subscriber-only app based marketing. Groupon’s customers need not own a smart phone in order to buy its products. Groupon has also negotiated lucrative deals with various American companies and this could be a hurdle to Yplan’s strategy of entering the American market. For instance, Groupon have partnered with the MLB to sell tickets to its games. Opportunities and product differentiation

The relationship between executive remuneration and corporate Literature review

The relationship between executive remuneration and corporate performance - Literature review Example At a normative level, the managers are expected to align their personal goals with that of the shareholders and aim toward maximising their values (Chaubey and Kulkarni, 1988). Many of the studies have identified that managerial compensation is linked with the firm’s performance, which is a critical factor in the maximization of shareholders value. The managerial compensation includes base salary, deferred compensation, perquisites and cash bonus. This paper deals with the literature review related to the relationship between compensation of the executives and the performance of the firm. Executive Compensation and Firm performance The advent of the â€Å"new economy† industries is a recent phenomenon and not much literature is available which concerns the relationship between performance and pay. Anderson, Banker and Ravindran (2000) have used simultaneous equation model for estimating the performance of the firm and compensation of the executives in the information te chnology industry and has found evidences that suggest that the share of both pay and bonus increases with the performance. Along with this, the study also suggested that the extent of incentive pay and the level of pay are responsible for positively affecting the performance of the firm. ... The performance of the firm and its size serves as determinants of the pay, which has been suggested by a standard empirical model based on CEO compensation. The firm size is the component that measures the managerial discretion. The compatibility of managerial incentive is indicated by the performance of the firm. The literature related to the compensation of the CEO lacks consensus with respect to the appropriate functional specification. The research scholars like, Coughlan and Schmidt (1985), Hall and Liebman (1998), and Gibbons and Murphy (1992), prefer elasticity specification where the change in or level of the log of executive compensation is linked to the change in or level of log of the firm performance. A different approach has been taken by Jensen and Murphy (1990). They had used sensitivity approach that had linked the change in the compensation level with the change in the performance of the firm. These specifications imply that the relationship between the firm’ s performance and the compensation of the employees is contemporaneous only. This signifies that one-time increase in the performance leads to an increase in the compensation of the executives within that period of time. These specifications help to remove the fixed effects related to the firm. In other words, it omits the consistent effect of the time invariant factors such as, the diverse personal characteristics of the CEO, which otherwise might have diverted the estimation of the pay related to performance relationship. A wide spread interest and media attention had thrown light on the pay packages of CEOs in United Kingdom (UK). Eruption of public indignation was seen for the first time in 1995

Theories of Government Control of the Internet

Theories of Government Control of the Internet Critically analyse Lawrence Lessigs argument that the ability of governments to control activities within cyberspace is determined by the codes of cyberspace. The Internet enables individuals to access a ‘new realm of human activity’[1] and has affected the lives of billions of people. Due to the effect that the Internet has on citizens of all states, many called for legal involvement. The increasing use of the Internet for commercial purposes sparked initiatives to attempt to legally regulate the system[2]. Internet traffic is carried over vast communications networks which are owned and controlled by public and private sector providers. The European Commission has had to step in on a number of occasions were a merger of providers would be a breach of competition laws, due to the stake of the market each provider has.[3] Ian Lloyd states that the internet is similar to other forms of communication as it is heavily regulated but it lacks specific legal provisions[4]. The Communications Act 2003 is said to have few provisions regarding internet regulation. At a national level, communication regulation has operated for years and international agencies like the International Telecommunications Union adopts a more functional role towards regulating. As the Internet is a global tool, policing and regulating it seems a considerable legal and political question. Some argue that the internet is governed by internet users as they reach a consensus. Regulatory structures are seen to evolve on their own rather than develop in an organised way. Lawrence Lessig believes that governments’ attempts to regulate the internet will fail. He concedes however, that governments may be able to regulate the architecture of the Internet and in turn it could develop into a form of regulation across all areas[5]. Lessig proposes that internet sites should have greater power to identify customers so as to recognise individuals’ credentials[6]. This form of indirect regulation would form a basis of self-regulation within cyberspace. He states that the state may affect Internet service providers (ISPs) from regulating an aspect which will make it more difficult for it to do business.[7] Further e-commerce will lead to greater involvement of the state due to the commercial nature of these transactions thus making identification of parties easy. Lessig continues by warning that if the Internet is regulated by a ‘closed code’ then the state’s effectiveness to regulate remains unchanged. If however, the Internet adopts an ‘open code’ then it will act as a check on the governments’ power.[8] The internet is defined by a set of protocols (TCP/IP) which are rules for how your computer will interact with a server and vice versa. These protocols make interaction possible as users agree on simple protocol of data exchange. A ‘closed code’ has bothered many which believe that an ‘open code’ fits in with the values of the internet of free and easy file sharing. This code is a public code, which people may view without gaining permission of others and so facilitates transparency. Alternative views state that the rise in e-commerce will result in greater input of the state, but there are problems connected to regulating e-commerce. Rowland Macdonald point out there are inherent difficulties when regulating e-commerce as it is not geographically or jurisdictionally restricted and there are also competing pressures whether to regulate or not to regulate as seen in Lessig’s argument [9]. Lars Davis states that two dangers must be avoided[10]. The first danger is under-regulation, as this would lead to the perception that e-commerce is an activity that contains an unacceptable high element of risk and so it will prevent parties from people participating in commercial activity on the Internet. This decrease in commercial activity will be regardless whether they are commercial entities or they are consumers. The second danger is over-regulation. The market would become rigid and inflexible which can be said to be the Internet’s most appealing feature. This in turn would lead to a stifling in development and perhaps in commercial entities setting up in jurisdictions which have less rigid regulations. Davis states that these ‘regulation havens’ which have a reduced or minimal control is a distinct possibility. The overly strong control could be detrimental to the attractiveness of parties conducting e-commerce. The benefits offered by e-commerce would be lost to markets with less rigid regulations and so economic development would suffer in those countries which have rigid regulations. Rowland Madonald note a further difficulty in deciding where the scope of a particular state’s regulation should extend[11]. They ask the question whether it should extend to ‘businesses that are based in another state but which conduct business with consumers or businesses in the particular state?’ The geographical factors which usually make the scope of a jurisdiction easy to see are blurred when relating to internet commerce. They use the example of the EC Directive on Certain Aspects of Electronic Commerce in the Internal Market[12] to show an attempt to create a ‘balance point’ between member states and regulating e-commerce. The Directive recognises the difficulties which commercial entities face when having to take into account different legal regimes. The ‘country of origin’ principle which EC member states adhere to, allow the regulations of one state the right not to be discriminated against the regulations of another. In other words, once marketed in the home state, it can be marketed in all member states. However, these regulations which provide a balance for e-commerce provide little help when dealing with commercial entities that are not based in the EU. By using the Directive as an example, we see that incompatibility with its clauses regarding e-commerce could result in an action being taken and a case being brought in the European Court of Justice (ECJ) and a judgment against a party. If the commercial entities are not EC member states then there is no authoritative organ which can force a party to comply with the regulations. Amit Sachdeva proposes that rules governing private international law are inadequate to deal with e-commerce[13]. Sachdeva states there are four solutions to the problem of regulating cyberspace and its jurisdiction. First, the laws could be expanded to include the Internet. This suggestion is taken by Davies but as noted, the problem of an over-regulated system would be detrimental to many economies. Secondly, the establishment of a new international organisation to propose a set of rules appropriate for cyberspace jurisdiction would be beneficial to governments when attempting to legislate. Thirdly, these decisions need to take into account commercial entities acting as a decentralised body of various actors and stakeholder. Lastly, he proposes a treaty based international harmonisation model where rules are certain and predictable and at the same time flexible in order to ensure that the potential benefits of this technology are meaningfully consumed by individuals[14]. However, S achdeva warns that a comprehensive treaty based solution on all possible issues is an unrealistic target as the apparent youth of the Internet suggests that a number of complex issues are yet to be seen[15]. Georgios Zekos believes that new terminology, which recognizes the complexity of the Internet relationship and state, is necessary[16]. He suggests that a cyberspace jurisdiction should be used for cyberspace actions as their actions are only felt in cyberspace. Zekos proposes that cyber courts and cyber arbitral tribunals could have jurisdiction to solve all actions taking place on the net and the enforcement of their awards and decisions will be made according to international conventions on internet enforcement and e-awards[17]. Therefore, cyberspace does not owe sovereignty to any state but only to cyberspace itself. Conclusion Before adopting any model or any combination of different models, it must be remembered that the internet is here to stay, and so is the potential to commit and facilitate unlawful acts, and the resultant litigation by commercial entities or individuals. We have heard of Lessig’s argument, but have also seen acts made by the EC in order to regulate internet use. Certainly, with growing numbers of Internet users and the growth of e-commerce, more breaches of law will arise and it is for the states to find an appropriate balance between over-regulating and under-regulating the Internet. Bibliography Johnson, D.R. and Post, D. ‘Law BordersThe Rise of Law in Cyberspace† (1996) 48 Stanford Law Review Lessig, L. The Code and other laws of cyberspace 1999. New York, Basic Books. Lloyd, Ian J. Information Technology Law 5th ed. 2008. New York, Oxford University Press Reed, C. Angel, J. Computer Law: The Law and Regulation of Information Technology 6th ed. 2008. New York, Oxford Universtiy Press. Rowland, D. Macdonald, E. Information Technology Law 2008. London, Cavendish. Sachdeva, A.M. ‘International jurisdiction in cyberspace: a comparative perspective’. Computer and Telecommunications Law Review 13(8), 2007; 245-258. Zekos,G.I. ‘State cyberspace jurisdiction and personal cyberspace jurisdiction’. International Journal of Law Information Technology 15 (1) 2007. pp 1-37. Footnotes [1] David R. Johnson and David G. Post, (1996)p.1367 [2] Liability for breach of the statutorily implied terms as to the quality of goods in s.14 of the Sales of Goods Act 1979. [3] Proposed merger of MCI/Sprint and Worldcom. Case No. COMP/M.1741-MCI. [4] Lloyd (2008) p.457 [5] Lessig (1999) p.49 [6] Lessig p.50. [7] P51. He uses an example of a mandatory ‘traceability regulation’ where software could trace the user when he provides minimal level of identification. The state could then legislate, making it mandatory for banks to do business with ISPs which have traceability software. [8] Lessig p 100 [9] Rowland Macdonald (2008) p.243. [10] Lars Davies- www.scl.org/content/ecommerce, s1.3.2. Report funded by the Society for Computer and Law. [11] Rowland Macdonald (2008) p.244. [12] 2000/31/EC [13] Sachdeva (2007) p.245. [14] Ibid p. 255. [15] Ibid p.256. [16] Georgios Zekos (2007) p.2 [17] Ibid p.36.

Gullivers Travels :: essays papers

Gullivers Travels Jonathan Swift wrote Gulliver^s Travels in 1762 with the intent of entertaining many people. Entertainment through satire is what Swift had in mind. This was accomplished when Bantam Books first published his tales in 1962. It was again published by Bantam Books in 1981, New York, New York being the place of publication. To fully understand Gulliver^s Travels, one must first reflect upon the following: the plot, character, setting, theme, point of view, conflict, climax, resolution, symbolism, and figurative language. These ideas will help the reader comprehend some of the ideas portrayed throughout the novel, as well as why Swift wrote them. The setting plays an important role in all novels, but in Gulliver^s Travels, one must take into consideration that the four different parts of the book have different settings. The first setting is more or less on an island called Lilliput, on November 5, 1699. Gulliver ended up on this island due to a ship wreck. The setting to the second part of the novel happens to be upon his arrival to another island that Gulliver wishes to inspect for water. This was on the 16th of June, 1703. The third part of the book has many different little scenes. The first of which takes place on Laputa an island of deformed creatures. The fourth and final part of the book takes place in the country of Houyhnhnms, in 1711. The main character, Gulliver, is a well educated sailor. He has been recommended to be a surgeon. Traveling around the world, exploring new places, Gulliver meets many new cultures and civilizations. Gulliver wears clothes not uncommon to the 1700^s. He has long hair, that sometimes restricts him from turning his head. Gulliver is a round character. This can be seen when he refers to past experiences during an adventure. This means that he can compare the two situations, thus learning from it. There are many minor characters. Easier referred to by the names of their people. Them being: the small Lilliputians, the giant Brobdingnags, the creatures at Lugnagg and Balnibarbi, with the islands of Laputa and Blubdrubdrib. And finally, the Yahoos and Houyhnhnms. Gulliver^s stories are told in the first person by himself. Some very important symbols are used throughout the novel to depict some very important ideas. One of these symbols would be when Gulliver relieves himself on the Lilliputians royal castle to put out a fire. It seems, as though how silly something may seem, it