Beginner Acting Exercises †Stage Acting Essay

Beginner Acting Exercises – Stage Acting Essay Free Online Research Papers Beginner Acting Exercises Stage Acting Essay Stage 1 Eyes Closed Leader Exercise Half the class stands on one side of room with pointy finger outward and eyes closed. The rest of the class comes across room and touches tip of finger and leads eyes closed person around the room. If leader moves too fast the tips are separated. It is the leaders job to keep finger tips together. This exercise can be thought of as truck driving with a trailer behind it. The Triangle Game Group Movement Improvizational Activity (Professor calls out numbers) #0 walk around the space without looking at anyone. #1 walk around space while keeping one person in your line of sight. #2 Walk around space with two people in your line of sight, or walk between the two people. #3 try to stay an equidistant from your two people that are in your line of sight. (This goes on until stasis occurs) Stage 2 Tell your students: â€Å"Today we are going to play the casting procedure† Split the class into even number of groups of about 4. One group is to be a casting crew, (casting directors) and the other is to be candidates for leading roles in the film. After first casting they change roles. Show the casting group their objectives: 1. â€Å"You are a casting crew for a new horror film, you have to find a person to play role of innocent victim of a monster. Think of tasks you are going to give your candidates to perform to check their acting abilities.† 2. â€Å"You are a casting crew for a new gangster film, you have to find a person to play role of a ruthless gangster. Think of tasks you are going to give your candidates to perform to check their acting abilities.† The group of applicants receive one of the following information: 1. â€Å"You are a candidate for a leading role in a new horror film. It might be the turning point of your life. You really want to get that role.† 2. â€Å"You are a candidate for a leading role in a new gangster film. It might be the turning point of your life. You really want to get that role.† Stage 3 The emotions game – Give your students handouts with emotions (see bottom of this page) and make sure they understand all terms. Then one student has to pick one emotion and mime it. Others try to guess the emotion. This activity goes until all students tried it. Stage 4 Show students a short extract from a professional film. Tell them to pay attention to acting. Then give them a scripted fragment and ask to play the same roles (You have to take part in distributing roles if necessary). One person shoots everything (possibly in the similar fashion as in the original film) so that everyone can watch it later and analyse. (Just use linear in-camera editing) Students analyse their acting. Stage 5 Similar to the previous one. Show students fragment of a professional script and tell them to enact it. Again someone (not the same person) shoots the action. Students watch the effect Show them the original performance in the professional film to compare. Stage 6 Groundwork for students’ film Finding locations: Tel your students to read through the script and suggest locations for scenes. Once the locations are established on paper it is good to visit them if possible and check their applicability. Research Papers on Beginner Acting Exercises - Stage Acting EssayWhere Wild and West MeetThe Hockey GameStandardized TestingThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductPersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyCapital PunishmentThree Concepts of Psychodynamic19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided Era

Learn how to get only As for your paper!

Learn how to get only As for your paper! How to End Failing Grades in Paper Writing Failing grades on papers in college is a GPA â€Å"killer.† When a major research paper can be fully one-third of a course grade, it is easy to understand that no one ever wants a â€Å"D† or â€Å"F† on one of them. And yet those grades are quite common, when students submit writing paper assignments that are just not up to the standards that college-level work demands. If you are the recipient of some of these kinds of grades, you know you have to something to fix the issues you have. But you can’t fix those issues unless you first identify them. So, here are common causes of poor writing grades, and if you can identify yours, you’ve made the first step toward grade recovery. Course overload: Some students are just too ambitious and enroll in either too many courses or in too many really challenging courses. And many students have part-time jobs that they must keep due to their financial situations. Take a long hard look at the courses you are currently in. If it is early in the semester, you might want to consider dropping ones in which you are struggling and picking up a â€Å"fluff† course to keep your credit load the same. This will naturally give you more time to spend on the essay and paper writing for the remaining courses. Time Management/Procrastination: If you are not organizing your time efficiently, you will always end up trying to get those essays and papers completed at the last minute. This is a â€Å"death knell,† because you will never do a good job when rushed. And if you are the type of person who is continually putting things off and choosing social time instead, you will always have your â€Å"back up against the wall† when you finally do have to get a paper in. Students who get consistently good grades on writing assignments schedule time for them in advance and stick to a schedule of daily assignments, time for work on longer-term essays and papers, down-time to just chill, job, and other co-curricular and social activities. If you manage yourself well, you will have time for all of these things. Lack of Motivation: If you are forced to take a course in which you have no interest, do not feel alone. Every college student faces this issue, and it is really hard to get motivated to write an essay or a paper on a topic you really dis-like. There is no cure for this, but you will have to force yourself to put together a credible piece of writing anyway. One thing you can do is get online and read sample essays and/or papers on the topic, and these will give you some good ideas for development and perhaps some current resource materials that you can use. A word of caution: all of your professors have plagairism-detection software at their disposal, and, in fact, a number of colleges now require that a student submit a TurnItIn report with their essays and papers. Don’t try to â€Å"game the system!† Organizing Information/Data from Several Sources: Writing a paper that will earn a good grade means that information and data is presented in an organized fashion. When several sources are used, synthesizing that content can be a challenge, especially when you have to be very careful about the specific source of each piece. If you struggle with combining the results of research into logical sub-topics, you need an organizing system. In high school, you probably used note cards, and that works for many students. If it doesn’t work for you, try listing each sub-topic at the top of a page and then enter information that pertains to that sub-topic (with the source and page number of course) all on two or three pages. You can then print those page out, lay them before you, and have a complete picture of the information you have on a sub-topic. Combining similar pieces of data from different sources is then an easy task. English writing skills: If you do not have proficient composition skills, you probably already know it. Even though a paper may be for a history class, lack of good writing automatically lowers a grade. Professors are, after all, human, and they get frustrated when they have to read anything that is poorly written – they cannot focus on your content, no matter how good it is. You must get help if this is your issue, and here are your options: First, commit to remediating your skills through an online course or a tutor. This will take time but eventually pays off. Make use of the writing lab on your campus – it’s free, and there are good writers there to help you. Write your rough draft and have a friend who is a good writer review and edit it for you. Get a writing style app that will find your major errors and give you solution suggestions. Contact a custom paper writing company and get original custom writing of your essays and papers. The additional â€Å"plus† of this option is that you can study the pieces as you work to improve your own skills.

Is there an appropriate balance between the right to protect your Essay

Is there an appropriate balance between the right to protect your reputation with the law of defamation and the right to free speech - Essay Example Obviously democratic societies benefit from free and open speech as well as providing compensation for those who are injured by false damaging statements. However, the law of defamation allows for â€Å"remarkable restriction of the freedom to speak and write.†1 This point is amply substantiated by the evaluating the law of defamation and the right to free speech with particular emphasis on how the courts have protected the reputation of the individual The English law of defamation is decidedly complicated.2 The complexities stem from a variety of technical and detailed rules contained in both common law principles and legislative provisions.3 Moreover, the common law has been modified by the Defamation Act 1952 and the Defamation Act 1996 and by the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms which have been indorsed by the Human Rights Act 1998.4 Under English law defamation can be founded by virtue of either libel or slander.5 Libel typically refers to the print form although libel does not necessarily require that it was committed by word.6 For instance in Monson v Tussauds Ltd a wax effigy was held to be sufficient to substantiate a libel.7 Ultimately, the libel is required to be such that it makes permanent imputations against the character of another8. Common forms of libel are usuall published by television broadcasts, newspapers, video and audio recordings.9 Slander, however can be made by virtue of non-permanent forms and is typically committed by word of mouth. A claim in slander requires that the plaintiff prove special damages unless the alleged slander is founded on one of the following grounds: Be that as it may, the plaintiff is at liberty to lodge a complaint with the court and the defendant is required to prove that the statement is true.12 The fact that the plaintiff is at liberty to lodge a complaint so easily, speaks to the strict protection of individual reputations under

Prerogative Powers in The Context of The UK Constitution Essay

Prerogative Powers in The Context of The UK Constitution - Essay Example The British constitution (comprising of a set of guiding principles and laws) is derived from a large number of sources that include: Royal prerogative powers Conventions Statute EU Treaties Common law Authoritative statements made in print, as in law books. Royal prerogative laws existed prior to the current form of the UK parliament. Officially, the right to exercise prerogative laws are retained by the Queen. However, in actual practice Ministers of the Crown, which comprise of the British Cabinet, exercise majority of these laws. The powers, as vested by the royal prerogative laws, are termed as Royal prerogative powers. On the other hand, statutes are laws that are passed by the UK Parliament; hence, they refer to laws  that are considered as the highest form of law for all governmental activities. This essay briefly examines differences that exist between Royal prerogative powers and statutory powers, while analysing and deriving that prerogative powers in their current form are not compatible as regards executive accountability, and needs modification to ensure better governance. Discussion Prerogative powers and statutory powers: The  royal prerogative  is a set of established privileges, immunities and authority, acknowledged in the  UK  as the sole right of the Sovereign. A majority of the  executive  powers, vested in the queen and exercised by the UK cabinet, have been accorded under the royal prerogative laws. Historically during middle ages in the UK, the king used royal prerogative powers to enforce his will during the process of decision-making, which purportedly aimed at public good. However, from 19th century, various reforms took place and by convention, it became compulsory to take into account the  advice given by Ministers of the Crown or the Prime Minister, who in turn are accountable to the UK Parliament for their decision while exercising prerogative powers.2 Under the constitution, the queen retains his or her powers to exercise Royal Prerogative laws against the advice of the UK Cabinet or the Prime Minister, however in actual practice the queen can only act as such during emergencies or where there are no precedent cases that can be applied suitably to that specific situation. Currently, the royal prerogative laws encompass various areas that are significant and critical to the United Kingdom, including country’s security, defence, and foreign affairs. While the queen’s name is officially present in all the aforementioned areas, in reality she exercises very little power, because currently royal prerogative power is vested mainly in the hands of the Cabinet ministers and the prime minister. While delineating prerogative powers, there have been difficulties in giving it a clear definition. As the Select Committee on Public Administration  Fourth Report  framed it in their review, â€Å"The royal prerogative itself is a notoriously difficult concept to define adequately.

America in 1920s Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

America in 1920s - Essay Example In the track of World War One, American men tussled to hoard their realm and woman wrestled to triumph the spot on to take part in an election. Near the conclusion of the First World War America was viewed as the mainly influential and affluent state in the world. During the 1920s the United States' cutback was roaring with hit and rising wealth, in which a huge pact of Americans, although surely not everyone, collectively. This epoch was too identified as the 'roaring twenties. By a copious contribute of raw resources (e.g. oil and coal) and the strategy of separation and repression in place; America rapidly becomes yet extra dominant and richer. America had large area variety, with every district contributing a bit diverse to the financial system. Into Metropolis at hand were fine waged career so folks who existed in city profited since the improved salaried work. Beside amid the goal of a state in the 1920's, at hand was as well frustration. America experienced the immense stash market collides that left a lot of Americans impoverished. This dissatisfaction in America was too what directed to the country's misery (Kallen (2002), p. 28). The melancholy instigates in 1929 and final for almost a decade. Millions of individuals lost their occupations beside with lots of industry going broke. The inequity of funds is what shaped such a wobbly economy. The stock market's undertaking a lot poorer than populace attention in this age. This condition leads to the largest stock market hurtle in our account. Cost attained a point that citizens by no means imagined. At one face whilst the market was deafening in September 1929 forty percent of stock market values were clean air. This supposed that financiers thinking that the stock market would set off up since it have been going up. Ku Klux Klan's existence paved the way for extensive fame during the 1920's. The KKK pleased the mainstream of white conventional America of any accountability for the inadequacy of the social order. It as well presented them a sagacity of refuge by shaping a hefty treaty in opposition to minorities (Smith (2002), p. 106). The 1920's where a point in time of conservatism, it was a period of immense communal modification. As of the world of fashion to the world to politics, forces collide to manufacture the mainly volatile decade of the century. The eighteenth Amendment was approved in 1920, which finished alcohol unlawful. It was named the Prohibition Amendment. This was recognized as the "Noble Experiment". All in history contributes to what a country is today and that is what we call contribution to culture, a way of life. The way we are today can be explained of what we experienced from the past. As a consequence, a lot of non-traditional tendency embark on to emerge in the lives of the youthful liberals in the 1920's. Women set in train to sense extra sexually unconventional and comprehend that they also had desires apart from only breathing to house their male equivalent. Many women also obtain up smoking, a commotion beforehand hand over wholly to men. In addition, progressively, women chase careers outside of their homes. The tempo of separation mounted. The young age band had closed living their lives according to customary culture, principles and had slot in their individual sets of needs, ambitions, and principles by which to exist as an alternative. The 1920's has really contributed greatly in the present

Schema Theory: Usefulness For Language Teaching

Schema Theory: Usefulness For Language Teaching There can be no doubt that all our knowledge begins with experience, Immanuel Kant (1781: 41). What is schema and schema theory? A schema (plural schemata) is termed as a mental structure (which) derives from all the particular experiences we have had (Nuttall 1982:7). Schema theory was first proposed by the gestalt psychologist Bartlett (1932), who observed that when people were asked to repeat a story from memory, they often filled in details which were not included in the original but related to what they already knew based on their cultural background. Schema then is culturally bound, as shall be shown in this essay. The concept of schema can be found from anthropology to philosophy and has been considered for both instruction and assessment in language learning, examples of which will be referred to and considered later. Kant (1781) claimed that new information, concepts and ideas can only have meaning when they can be related to something already known by the individual. This exemplifies how the idea of background knowledge in language-related performance has been around for centuries, if not actually co ined as a term at the time. McNamara, Miller and Bransford (1991) in Clapham (1996), who referred to the theory as mental models which consist of mental tokens, agree that schemata are used in comprehension but that it is not clear what we do with them. There are two main types of schema that have since been termed by theorists (Cook 1997). The first is formal schema and is based on the background knowledge of the structure of any given text. The second is content schema and relates to the background knowledge of the content area. We can see then that all schemata relates to background knowledge of some kind. A similar distinction can be made with processing skills used for reading, which is discussed later. Carrell (1998) states that these processes are not understood well. In this essay I will, however, attempt to address the issue of schema theory along with its practical application in relation to studies that have been carried out in the area. In doing so, I will also attempt t o focus on the main skills involved and the factors that affect its usefulness from the perspective of a language teacher. As teachers of English, we are constantly attempting to activate schematic knowledge for all skills work, and indeed, any work at all done in class. Within the context of a multi-skills approach, it more often than not leads to processing via receptive skills (reading and listening) and then progresses to productive skills work (speaking and writing). Research on schema theory has had a great impact on understanding both reading and listening skills, with the amount of research done seemingly focussing on the former. Thus, for the purposes of this essay I shall refer mainly to the evidence as it is applied to reading skills. Most methodologies investigating the role of schemata or background/prior knowledge are variations on Carrell’s (1987) paradigm. Traditionally in the study of second language comprehension, the emphasis has been focussed almost exclusively on the language itself rather than the individual attempting to interpret it (Cook 1997). It seems that more recently the language learner themselves, with the knowledge and ideas that they bring from the outside world, is perhaps as important a factor as the language itself. Carrell and Eisterhold (1983:80) point out that one of the most obvious reasons why a specific content schema may fail to exist for a reader is that the schema is culturally specific and is not part of a reader’s cultural background. Aebersold and Field rather philosophically describe it when they say, if the topic†¦is outside of their experience or base of knowledge, they are adrift on an unknown sea (1997:41). It is then surely the teachers responsibility to help learners and make sure that they are guided in the right direction by providing that which may be missing, or at the very least, helping to stimulate what is already there. In an ideal scenario, it would include a combination of both factors. Application to skills processing Processing a text can be seen as a two-way process between the text and the background knowledge or memory schemata of the listener or reader (Carrell 1982). This again stresses the need to take the learner into account and suggests a more holistic approach to skills work. Cook (1989) states that the mind, when stimulated by key words or phrases in the text or by the context, activates a knowledge schema. The emphasis here is on the cognitive characteristics of schema which allow us to relate incoming information to existing information. The reading process, therefore, involves such things as identification of genre, formal structure and topic; all of which activate schemata and allow readers to comprehend a text (Swales 1990:89). In turn, as well as allowing for the organisation of information and knowledge, schemas also allow us to make predictions on the continuation of discourse and check whether our fit matches (Carrell 1998). If it does not, then it would be common sense that w e are able to add to our already existing schema. It also makes sense that the more experience (both life and classroom) a learner has, the more available schemata they will have at their disposal and thus the better equipped they will be. Focussing as we are mainly on reading skills, a useful distinction can be made here between top-down and bottom-up processing. The former relates to making predictions based on background knowledge (knowledge-based) and the latter to building textual meaning from the individual linguistic units (text-based) (Carrell 1982:101). This has also been referred to by Anderson Lynch (1988) as schematic knowledge, which is background knowledge that includes factual/sociological factors and procedural knowledge or how the language is used in discourse; versus systemic knowledge, which is the knowledge of the language system and includes semantic, syntactic and phonological features. All of which, when related by context, combine to provide comprehension. So then, in relation to schema theory, it is with the former of both the above that we are most concerned. At times it can seem that theorists are overly concerned with this being some kind of battle and hence, the use of the word versus abov e, with one aspect winning over the other. However, evidence points to reading skills involving both equally, working hand-in-hand in order to achieve the best results possible. This view is supported by Spiro (in Carrell 1998), who believes that skilled readers constantly adapt their mode of processing, changing to meet the demands of a particular text/reading situation; less skilled readers tending to rely overly on processes in one direction and thus experiencing negative effects on overall comprehension. Overreliance on top-down processing has been referred to as schema interference, or a lack of understanding (Carrell 1998). When faced with unfamiliar topics, some students may overcompensate for absent schemata by reading in a slow, text-bound manner; other students may overcompensate by wild guessing (Carrell 1988:101). Swaffar, Arens and Byrnes (1991) in Clapham (1996) argue that most reading comprehension items only test bottom-up skills and fail to actually measure the way a reader understands, advertising the use of recall protocols in tests of reading comprehension. This view is supported by Carrell (1998) and has certainly been my experience as a teacher of English. We can surmise then that it is our responsibility as teachers to help make learners aware of the importance of both types in relation to one another and attempt to provide the right balance in order to achieve the greatest degree of comprehension possible. The form of detrimental processing mentioned here is supported by a good deal of related studies, some of the most significant of which I will now present in order to provide further validity to the concept of schema and schema theory. Studies Research carried out by Johnson in Carrell and Eisterhold (1983) suggests that a text on a familiar topic is better recalled than a similar text on an unfamiliar topic. Swales (1990), believes that this and other research supports the expectation that when both content and form are familiar the texts will be relatively accessible. It seems evident then that the greater the difference between the L1 and L2, the greater the difficulty in interpretation. Carrell and Eisterhold state that some key concepts may be absent in the schemata of some non-native readers or they may have alternate interpretations (1983:87). An obvious example we can choose to better exemplify this idea, are life rituals, such as celebrations that include weddings and festivals. One cultures concept of Christmas, for example, may contrast completely with anothers or may not, in fact, exist at all. These gaps or differences in cultural knowledge then need to be bridged in order to comprehend relevant information t o be considered and worked on. In Carrell’s (1987) study mentioned previously, subjects remembered the most when both the content and rhetorical form was familiar to them. However, when only content or only form was unfamiliar, unfamiliar content caused more difficulty for the readers than did unfamiliar form. This has obvious implications for the classroom and language learning, and suggests the common sense idea that teachers should attempt to choose topics and texts which learners have some concrete understanding of, especially when it comes to actual content involved. The form of a text then is something that learners are perhaps better able to deal with and which can be analysed, in the form a model for example, and then compared with the concept of form in relation to what they already know or are aware of or vice-versa. A conclusive study was conducted by Steffensen and Joag-Dev (1984) using two descriptions of weddings, which found that readers comprehended texts abo ut their own cultures more accurately than the other, which is no real surprise. Similarly, studies by Johnson (1981) and Kang (1992) have revealed that cultural origin of a text/story has a greater effect on comprehension than syntactic or semantic complexity. Also, results suggested that prior cultural experience prepared readers for comprehension of familiar information in a text. This again puts the emphasis on the importance of cultural background and how necessary it is for teachers to spend a good amount of time making sure that cultural concepts are considered and understood, whatever the form may be. However, the previous study showed that exposure to any unfamiliar words does not seem to have a significant effect on reading comprehension. This would then perhaps suggest that we do not need to give similar weight to the consideration of vocabulary, though we should, of course, bear this in mind when approaching texts. Carrell (1998:245) asks the relevant pedagogical question: Can we improve students reading by helping them build background knowledge on the topic prior to reading, through appropriate pre-reading activities? This then, for whichever theme and skill we are about to introduce and practise, is the key question. Were it not true, the implications for current methodology, and indeed ELT materials would be vast. Fortunately for all involved, this does not seem to be the case. The available research shown above, along with the likes of Stevens (1982) and Hayes and Tierney (1982) in Carrell (1998), suggest that all the effort of activating schema or schemata, is actually worthwhile. The latter study found that presenting background information related to the topic to be learned helped readers learn from the text regardless of how that background information was presented or how specific or general it was. As Stevens says: A teacher of reading might thus be viewed as a teacher of relevant in formation as well as a teacher of reading skills (1982:328). Levels Different pre-reading activities may be more or less effective with different proficiency levels. Hudson (1982) in Carrell (1998) found that a more explicit pre-reading activity, such as discussing pictures and making predictions, had a significantly greater facilitating effect on reading comprehension when compared to another less specific type; for example, vocabulary related. However, close analysis of the data showed that the effect was only significant for beginner and intermediate level ESL readers, with no real difference for advanced levels. This might then suggest that higher level learners are better able to deal with a lack of schema activation. Another significant issue is that, as lower level students may have the background knowledge but not the language skills to discuss them in English, their L1 might be used to access schemata but teachers should present the related vocabulary or otherwise a schema has been activated but learning the L2 has not been facilitated (Aebe rsold and Field 1997:77). ELT materials design When I first considered exactly what schema theory was, while admittedly not being fully sure, I was aware that it must have something to do with how, as language teachers, we are encouraged to warm up learners with an introduction that they can relate to and to ascertain exactly what it is that they know in relation to the subject matter and the coverage of a lesson and then to provide that which may be missing. So let us first begin by considering the actual activities that are used to introduce a topic. Carrell (1998) offers a variety of means in which relevant schemata may be constructed, including: discussion, real-life experiences, visual aids, text previewing, introduction and discussion of key vocabulary, and key-word/concept association activities. I would add brainstorming and use of quotations to this list. Although helpful, Carrell (1998) is of the opinion that these pre-reading activities are probably insufficient to be used only by themselves and teachers will almost c ertainly need to supply additional information; going on to suggest that it is probably wise to assume that pre-reading activities work best when used in a variety of combinations, believing that such activities must both build both new background knowledge, as well as activating existing background knowledge. So then, they are to be considered as a starting point and a springboard or foundation for teachers to utilise and learners to work from. The utilisation of schema theory in materials design is, in my opinion, completely evident and there for all to see. I do not feel it is necessary to include an extensive list of ELT materials in order to provide such examples, as there is such a great amount available. I think it can safely be stated that the introductory activity types do not vary too greatly and can be found in most good ELT textbooks; examples of which are Cutting Edge and (New) Headway, which are now considered classic ELT coursebooks and are widely used in the field along with many others that I have used myself in the past. Thus, I will instead focus on an example that I am currently using in my own teaching. As a teacher of English for Academic Purposes, I tend to use the Language Leader series of coursebooks along with other related materials, such as teachers books and so on, which I find both effective and user-friendly. I currently teach mid to high level learners who have an arts background and are worki ng towards arts related courses in higher education such as degree courses, and so it is appropriate that I choose material that focuses specifically on this area. The beginning of Unit 9 in Language Leader Upper-Intermediate (see appendix 1) provides examples of the activities mentioned above and include, for example, a picture of a Dali painting along with a quote to consider with some related questions for discussion, before moving onto what constitutes art and asking the students to read a text (leaflet: p.91) related to the theme of art This is a typical example of how schema theory is utilised in ELT materials and very similar activities can, in fact, be seen at the start of each unit. However, as Carrell (1998) suggests, this is not enough; and so, we as teachers are handed the responsibility of deciding exactly what to do with it. There are, of course, teachers books that help to provide ideas for usage which can be highly beneficial for inspiring ideas, especially for teach ers without the experience that helps to know how to approach such an activity. In using the material in the classroom myself, I have taken what is there and, as Carrell (1998) has suggested, added variety to it and attempted to bring it to life. For example, rather than just using one picture that is in the coursebook, show learners a range of examples that include a variety of genres and will then link into later activities that require learners to consider what constitutes art and include such examples (see activity 1b). Learners might also be encouraged prior to the lesson to bring in their own examples and thus start the activation and thinking process before the lesson has even begun. It could, and arguably should, link to work done in previous lessons that may include visits to art museums and galleries. This then is a kind of controllable variable in that we hopefully already have an idea of the background knowledge that learners will bring in from previous learning and the outside world. Thus, the more we know our students, the more it makes sense that we are in a position whereby we are better able to know what might work best. This is an area that I feel could be expanded upon and explored in greater detail by those who carry out studies pertaining to the area of schema and schema theory. While the learner is indeed now taken into account, the actual relationship and depth of shared and common knowledge between the teacher and their learners, plus amongst learners themselves, is something that rarely seems to be mentioned. Further application As well as in relation to teaching, schema theory can be applied to testing also; whether it be for diagnostic or assessment purposes. Of course, there are far too many examples of testing for us to consider here but it can be said that many of these forms of testing are very limited. As an IELTS examiner, it can sometimes seem as though one is preparing learners with strategies and techniques in order to pass a test, rather than to actually improve their English language skills. With all the skills being tested individually, we could apply schema theory across the board and suggest that the test-taker is not always prepared with necessary schematic knowledge before actually taking the exam. However, not all will be aware of the usefulness of this, and instead take the test(s) cold. They will then be expected to respond to and answer questions that they have a very limited knowledge of, which is a major criticism of the exam. For example, if they have not previously considered the ef fects of globalisation, they will not have the necessary schematic knowledge needed to answer the question. A better method, in my opinion, would be to make the exam more integrative and thus testing more than one skill at a time. For example, rather than testing receptive and productive skills separately, a combination could be used in which learners read a text or listen to an extract and then have to respond by writing or speaking about that which they have just been exposed to. That way we are then better able to actually provide the necessary information which might not be there in the first place. For example, learners might be asked to summarise a text or extract after reading or listening to it. It makes sense that test-takers will more likely come with the formal schema but not necessarily the content schema required. It will be interesting to see how the new Pearson Test deals with this aspect, especially being a computer based exam. Conclusion Despite the current popularity of pre-reading/listening activities, there might be restrictions to their use in ELT and they may not always work as intended. Cook (1994) stated that schemas can be restrictive even if they allow us to process communication. It has been proved that applications of schema theory do not always mean that comprehension has been improved, particularly where there is insufficient attention to the details of a given text, or where schema-interference increases due to the activation of dominant or negative schemata (Stott 2001). Also, there is evidence that the contextual and background information given may not always necessarily be adopted by the learners. However, there is little doubt that schema theory has positively influenced the teaching of reading and listening and that pre-activities can help to improve a learners comprehension in many situations. Therefore, it makes sense for teachers to use such activities but not be assumptive that what we expect is in fact reality. In other words, teachers should make sure that they check the usefulness of the activities used and pay close attention to possible schema-interference or non-activation. In essence, we must do the most possible in order to increase comprehension, and thus, maximise overall performance. Bibliography Aebersold, J. and Field, M. (1997) From Reader to Reading Teacher. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Anderson, A. and Lynch, T. (1998) Listening. Oxford: Oxford University Press Bartlett, F. (1932) Remembering. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Carrell, P. (1982) Cohesion is not coherence; TESOL Quarterly: Vol. 16, No. 4 Carrell, P. and Eisterhold, J. (1983) Schema Theory and ESL Reading Pedagogy, in Carrell, P., Devine, J. and Eskey, D. (eds) (1988) Interactive Approaches to Second Language Reading. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Carrell, P. (September, 1987) Content and Formal Schemata in ESL Reading; TESOL QUARTERLY. Vol. 21, No. 3: Southern Illinois University Carrell, P. (1988) Some Causes of Text-boundedness and Schema Interference in ESL Reading, in Carrell, P., Devine, J. and Eskey, D.E. (eds) (1988) Interactive Approaches to Second Language Reading. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Carrell, P. (1998) Interactive Approaches to Second Language Reading. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Clapham, C. (1996) Studies in Language Testing: The Development of IELTS 4. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Cook, G. (1994) Discourse and Literature. Oxford: Oxford University Press Cook, G. (January, 1997) Key concepts in ELT; ELT Journal. Volume 51/1: Oxford University Press Cook, G. (1989) Discourse in language teaching: A scheme for teacher education. Oxford: Oxford University Press Johnson, P. (1981) Effects on reading comprehension of language complexity and cultural background of a text; TESOL Quarterly: 15(2), 169-181. Kang, H. (1992) The effects of culture-specific knowledge upon ESL reading comprehension: School of Education Review, 4, 93-105. Kant, I. (1781) Critique of pure reason Maslow, A. (July, 1943) A theory of human motivation; Psychological Review: Vol. 50(4), 370-396. Nuttall, C. (1982) Teaching Reading Skills in a Foreign Language. Heinemann Singhal, M. (1998) A Comparison of L1 and L2 Reading: Cultural Differences and Schema, http://iteslj.org/Articles/Singhal-ReadingL1L2.html [last accessed on: 14.11.09] Swales, J. (1990) Genre Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Steffensen, M. and Joag-Dev, C. (1984) Cultural knowledge and reading, In J. Alderson A. Urquhart (Eds.), Reading in a Foreign Language (pp. 48-61). New York: Longman Stott, N. (November 2001) Helping ESL Students Become Better Readers: Schema Theory Applications and Limitations; The Internet TESL Journal: Vol. VII, No. 11 Tannen (1993) Framing in Discourse. Oxford University Press US

Effective Use of Irony and Satire in Unveiling :: Unveiling

Effective Use of Irony and Satire in Unveiling Unveiling, by Vclav Havel, is an almost satirical view of societal behavior in the modern day world. The unusual props located throughout the apartment as well as the characters involved in the play come together to form an ironic tale wrought with realistic themes and an extremist view of modern society. The main characters are Vera, Michael, and Ferdinand Vanek. The play begins with Ferdinand entering the party of Vera and Michael. As the story line progresses, Vera and Michael continue describing their many material possessions and showing off their supposed glamour. All throughout the commentary on their accolades, they also openly criticize Ferdinand in every aspect of his life. They claim to do so only because they like him and because he is their best friend. In the end, Ferdinand begins inching towards the door, and Vera and Michael start to go hysterical at the thought of Ferdinand leaving. Finally, when he sits back down, Vera and Michael resume their "normal" chatter. The characterization in Unveiling is consistent in that each character is generally stagnant. Vera is a flat character. She starts out as a needy woman who is almost grandiloquent when she speaks of her belongings. Her husband Michael is no different. His pretentious behavior is only heightened by the accessory of his wife. In the end, they are still the same albeit not as composed as in the beginning. Ferdinand is really just a minor, speaking character in the play. There is not much depth to his character. He is essentially flat because there is no change in his character or lack thereof. Though Unveiling does contain many themes, the principle one that is prevalent throughout is social pretensions. Vera and Michael pretend that everything is fine in their life though it clearly is not. They hold themselves to a materialistic standard that they feel they must uphold. The slick veneer that they like to hide behind is actually rather brittle and transparent. Their loneliness is apparent. For their "unveiling" party, there is only one guest, Ferdinand. That points to the fact that they do not have many friends, thus the reality which is that they are alone. Along these same lines, societal pressures and social conformity are also major themes. They feel they must uphold such pretenses because that is the social standard.

Political and Legal Forces Essay

Political and legal forces are two of the three most important aspects for a business, with social forces being the third. Politics is a changing scene, and the rules and laws will change not regularly but often enough. Different elected parties have different feelings about certain business practices and use or alter the laws to change these. The same comes into play with trading in other countries. Organizations, especially the European Union, have a lot of rules for their member states with regards to production, distribution, content, health benefits, and many more. What are political forces? Political forces are governments and unilateral bodies that decree certain rules, regulations, laws or restrictions with regards the way a country is run. This siphons down into everyday life, especially business. Businesses cannot avoid these unless they move countries, and then there’s the issue of the attention this draws. More often than not they simply have to adapt. An example i s taxation. If taxation rises for companies then so does the price of the goods. If taxation rises in general then wages have to be increased thus making production values higher and prices for goods increase further. †¢What are legal forces? Legal forces are the types of law and legislation that a political body introduces. A government or state-body like the E. U may decide, for example, that advertising chocolate around children’s television is inappropriate, and thus ban them from advertising on children’s channels and during set time periods. This is a legal constraint. †¢How do we adapt? You have to evaluate the situation. If you’re being taxed more then the simple solution is to raise prices. However, this may upset the consumer, so you need to weigh up whether it’s safer to take the decrease in profitability or whether you should only marginally increase the prices, thus reducing your loss and minimizing upset to the consumer. Other manners of political interference or legal restriction can occur. Realistically you just have to make them part of your business model. Defying the law can result in punishment, such as fines and even closure

Constitual convention of the 1787 essays

Constitual convention of the 1787 essays The constitual convention of the 1787 had to deal with hard desicons and choices between fedral and state sepration. they had to deal with the Kentucky resloution, Alexander Hamilton, and the Bill of Rights. The Constitual had to figure out the hard choices to see where the central goverment should and shouldnt deal with state affiars. With all those factors the consnstitual convention had many hard desicons to make trying not to upset or cause too much drama with either side. The constitual convention of the 1787 had to deal with hard desicons and choiices between fedral and state sepration. they had to deal with the Kentucky resloution, Alexander Hamilton, and the Bill of Rights. The Constitual had to figure out the hard choices to see where the central goverment should and shouldnt deal with state affiars. With all those factors the consnstitual convention had many hard desicons to make trying not to upset or cause too much drama with either side. >Alexander hamiltion was a strong supporter of a central goverment. Fedrealist strongly stood behinde him supporting him in his ideas of setting up the bank of america taking over states debts and ruling the newly founded united states.The founding fathers thought that there were still problems with the union under the Articles of Confederation and needed to be changed with power in defferent places. Commerce was a large issue because if the difficulties in going from state to state with your goods. Hamilton and Madison felt the states were holding too much power and a central government was needed to handle the affairs of the entire union.In document one alexander hamiltion stated the police and little issues like that would be dealt with inside of the state but forgien affiars, and banking would be a central goverent issue. It was qutoed " employ all the means which regulate to its regulation to the ...

Free Essays on Cyberlaundering

Introduction This article will explore the latest technique in money laundering: Cyberlaundering by means of anonymous digital cash. Part I is a brief race through laundering history. Part II discusses how anonymous Ecash may facilitate money laundering on the Intenet. Part III examines the relationship between current money laundering law and cyberlaundering. Part IV addresses the underlying policy debate surrounding anonymous digital currency. Essentially, the balance between individual financial privacy rights and legitimate law enforcement interests. In conclusion, Part V raises a few unanswered societal questions and attempts to predict the future. Disclaimer: Although the author discusses this subject in a casual, rather than rigidly formal tone, money laundering is a serious issue which should not be taken lightly. As this article will show, fear of money laundering only serves to increase banking regulations which, in turn, affect everyone's ability to conduct convenient, efficient and relatively private financial transactions. Part I Humble Beginnings In the beginning, laundering money was a physical effort. The art of concealing the existence, the illegal source, or illegal application of income, and then disguising that income to make it appear legitimate 1 required that the launderer have the means to physically transport the hard cash.2 The trick was, and still is, to avoid attracting unwanted attention, thus alerting the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and other government agencies 3 involved in searching out ill-gotten gains.4 In what could be described as the "lo-tech" world of money laundering, the process of cleaning "dirty money" was limited by the creative ability to manipulate the physical world. Other than flying cash out of one country and depositing it in a foreign bank with less stringent banking laws,5 bribing a bank teller, or discretely purchasing real or personal property, the classic approach w... Free Essays on Cyberlaundering Free Essays on Cyberlaundering Introduction This article will explore the latest technique in money laundering: Cyberlaundering by means of anonymous digital cash. Part I is a brief race through laundering history. Part II discusses how anonymous Ecash may facilitate money laundering on the Intenet. Part III examines the relationship between current money laundering law and cyberlaundering. Part IV addresses the underlying policy debate surrounding anonymous digital currency. Essentially, the balance between individual financial privacy rights and legitimate law enforcement interests. In conclusion, Part V raises a few unanswered societal questions and attempts to predict the future. Disclaimer: Although the author discusses this subject in a casual, rather than rigidly formal tone, money laundering is a serious issue which should not be taken lightly. As this article will show, fear of money laundering only serves to increase banking regulations which, in turn, affect everyone's ability to conduct convenient, efficient and relatively private financial transactions. Part I Humble Beginnings In the beginning, laundering money was a physical effort. The art of concealing the existence, the illegal source, or illegal application of income, and then disguising that income to make it appear legitimate 1 required that the launderer have the means to physically transport the hard cash.2 The trick was, and still is, to avoid attracting unwanted attention, thus alerting the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and other government agencies 3 involved in searching out ill-gotten gains.4 In what could be described as the "lo-tech" world of money laundering, the process of cleaning "dirty money" was limited by the creative ability to manipulate the physical world. Other than flying cash out of one country and depositing it in a foreign bank with less stringent banking laws,5 bribing a bank teller, or discretely purchasing real or personal property, the classic approach w...

Why Germany moved it's capital from Bonn to Berlin Research Paper

Why Germany moved it's capital from Bonn to Berlin - Research Paper Example Bonn was seen as the city that epitomized West German economic success and political moderation but Bonn supporters defended it based on this success during the parliamentary debate separating it from Nazi which they believed haunted Berlin and they argued that Bonn was good for upholding the country’s democracy. Moreover, the debate cut across party lines, that is, some social democrats and Christian democrats supporting Berlin and others backing Bonn and this parliamentary division reflected people’s mixed feelings about where to locate their government and set on the newly united Germany. However, some leaders suggested that the debate was not a fight between two cities but a decision about the future of the society for everyone’s good. Most parliamentarians backed the move to Berlin since it symbolizes Germany’s unification. This essay explores what made Germany to move its capital from Bonn to Berlin. German lawmakers engaged in a very heated debate t o make a decision whether the capital of the newly reunified country to remain in Bonn or be relocated back to its historic eastern location in Berlin (Cowell). Bonn has served as the capital of West Germany until the reunification of Germany when Berlin was chosen to be the new capital and the move to Berlin has been lengthy and costly but this move had been delayed by construction problems, plan charges and bureaucratic immobilization. Even though the parliament voted to support the move from the West German capital of Bonn to the old German capital of Berlin, most politicians perceived this as a future happening. Bonn supporters argued that a move to Berlin which is under monarchy, chaotic Weimar Republic, and the Nazis would only ruin the country contrary to Berlin backers who claimed that Bonn represented a small town thus a small minded Germany but Berlin was actually the country’s spiritual and cultural heart. More so, this relocation was meant to enhance unity in the country, that is, the unity of people from Berlin and the rest of the east depended on this move. However, everyone was worried about the cost which was high and this was reflected in the parliament’s decision to make a move after a long time. Improving Berlin’s infrastructure required a lot of money. Accordingly, some have argued that the â€Å"enormous cost of moving all government ministries to Berlin would never assume Bonn’s role as the sole seat of government† (Quint 107). One major reason why German moved its capital from Bonn to Berlin was to ensure a change from a smaller to a larger city (Slack and Rupak 105). Unlike Bonn which was quiet and small in size, Berlin was â€Å"a brash and busy metropolis† and it ranks as a great city recognized worldwide (Holz). Bonn had no symbol of being a capital because being small in size, it cannot contain dominant section like other middle or large sized German cities do especially Berlin (Slack and Ru pak 105). This actually made Germany to move its capital to a larger city, Berlin. In addition, Berlin is situated at the heart of the east making it to the best choice as the country’s capital and seat of government. Furthermore, the unification treaty acknowledged Berlin as capital leaving the decision on the seat of government to the future German legislature (Quint 107). Berlin supporters argued that relocating to Berlin would be very important in providing both political and economic support but others opposed this claiming that moving all government offices to Berlin would only add more financial burden (Quint 107). Accordingly, eastern representatives argued that the shift to Berlin is crucial to enhance â€Å"economic recovery in the former GDR and bolstering a psychological sense of parity and equality for of

Answer exam questionA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

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