Planning for Research Essay Example for Free

Planning for Research Essay Define action research. Action research in education, is a firing-line or on job type of problem-solving or research used by teachers, supervisors, and administrators to improve the quality of their decisions and actions.   It seeks more dependable and appropriate means of promoting and evaluating student growth in line with specific and general objectives and attempts to improve educational practices without reference to whether findings would be applicable beyond the group studied (Good, 1993). Explain its intended outcomes The intended outcome of action research is to improve the lives of children through education and for teacher researcher to learn more about the craft of teaching. All action researchers are committed to looking critically at what we do in our classrooms and the effects our actions have on the children in our care. Hence, the main intended outcome of action research is for educational change that enhances the lives of children. Another intended outcome is to enhance the lives of professionals.   It is largely about developing the â€Å"professional disposition† of teachers, that is, encouraging teachers to be continuous learners—in their classrooms and in their practice. This intended outcome of action research for teachers to be professional problem solvers who are committed to improving both their own practice and student outcomes provides a powerful reason to practice action research (Osterman and Kottkamp, 1993). Give examples of action research projects that researchers in your organization or field of study might engage in. Investigate the effectiveness of current math curriculum on students’ process skills and attitudes. Investigate the impact of an intervention and to monitor if it makes a difference and learn more about how best to teach math to children and to implement some of cooperative learning strategies. Monitor the impact of a new mathematics problem-solving curriculum on student performance on open-ended problem-solving questions and students’ attitudes toward mathematics in general. Investigate the perceptions of colleagues, children, and parents toward absenteeism to more fully understand why the existing policy is not having the desired outcome. References Hammersley, M. (1993). On the teacher as researcher.   Educational Action Research,    1(3), 425–441. Kottkamp, C. (1993).   The effects of action research on a teacher education community. Paper presented at the American Educational Research Association Conference, New York, NY.

The Playboy of the Western World Analysis

The Playboy of the Western World Analysis J.M. Synges highly controversial play The Playboy of the Western World exposed the middle-class Dublin audience to a different portrayal of Irish countryside life as opposed to the traditional idyllic image they were accustomed to. Synge strongly employs the element of satire in his play, implemented as a device to shock his conventional audience; the plays lack of morals would have offended the audience, so satire is also used to inject humour, creating a light-hearted tragicomedy. In pages 59 62 the presence of satire can be analysed in terms of satirising gender, religion and the presentation of rural Ireland, in addition to how satire is present throughout the entire play. Synge depicts Christy Mahon as a weak, frightened, young man at the beginning of the excerpt, whereas Pegeen is given a strong, almost masculine persona, protecting him from the Widows advances. When the Widow is introduced, the audience sees Christy clinging to Pegeen exclaiming Oh Glory! with Pegeen having to hurriedly give Christy his supper and usher him off to bed like a child. In this extract, the audience sees how Pegeen is given the protector role, exhibiting maternal instincts. In 1907, the satirising of gender roles shown with Synge giving more status to women than men would amuse the audience, as it conflicts with the traditional Irish patriarchal society. Christy is painted as the classic damsel-in-distress, with Pegeen having to fight the Widow, angrily telling her that she will not have him tormented, and he destroyed travelling since Tuesday was a week. Again it is evident that Christy is shying away from his expected male role, leaving Pegeen to defend him, amusing th e audience. When the Widow pulls Christy up, as theyd best be going, young fellow; so rise up and come with me, Pegeen retaliates by seizing his arm, insisting hell not stir. Christy has been compromised in terms of his masculinity; two women have physically placed their control over him, and Christy lacks the strength to disprove their control. This scene would have been very comedic, as not only are Pegeen and the Widow effectively having a brawl, a male associated activity, but Christy is helpless in the middle, like a female. Traditionally, it would have been the men who wooed the women, but Synge has ignored this, with Christy being rather violently wooed by Pegeen and the Widow, eliciting laughter from the audience, who would find the explicit use of satire highly amusing. Synge is presenting Christys essential emasculation, shown by reversing traditional gender roles. Later on in the play a mule race takes place; as D. P. Moran observes, the pursuit of physical-contact Gaelic games [was used as] an antidote to such emasculation. Christys partaking in the race shows how he used this opportunity to reassert his gender after feeling emasculated by Pegeen and the Widow. Throughout the excerpt from p.59-62, repeated references are made to religion, many in the form of Father Reilly, the local priest. Though he is not seen in the excerpt, his presence is acknowledged as he is partially why the Widow went to find Christy Mahon; when Pegeen asks her What ails you, or what is it youre wanting at this hour of the night? the Widow replies that she was after meeting Shawn Keogh and Father Reilly below, who told me of your curiosity man, and they fearing by this time he was roaring, romping on your hands with drink. The audience would not be surprised by Father Reillys attitudes, as in the 1900s Ireland was a devoutly Catholic nation, as Jane Abbottsmith explains The term Irish Irelander originated to characterize the true Irishman: Catholic and with Irish ancestry, learned in Irish folklore and competent in the speaking and reading of the Gaelic language. Abbottsmith continues to remark that it was the Irish peasants, who were the traditionally pious, Catho lic population that was well versed in Irish folklore. Though the 1900s audience would have expected the priests intervention, a modern audience would find it comedic how Pegeen being alone with Christy has prompted such a flustered reaction, suggesting Synges attitudes were ahead of his time. Irish society was devoutly religious, so the audience would have been surprised at how Father Reilly is the only religious character. The other characters do not seem to incorporate religion in their personas, shocking the audience. However, the only other character to be religious would cause offence: the Widow Quin remarks to Christ God save you mister! which is highly ironic as her intentions for him are far from holy. Seeing such a scandalized, predatory character using the Lords name would have undoubtedly offended the audience. The power of the Catholic Church is a running theme throughout the play, as Synge would be aware that his audience would compare what they see onstage to the Chur chs teachings. Therefore Synge has satirised religion to expose the absurdity of the extreme religious views in Ireland; a lack of religion in the other characters further show the audience how independent rural Ireland is from middle-class conventions. The portrayal of life in the Irish countryside was undoubtedly one of the main sources of controversy in the play. The middle class audience would have had the conception of rural Ireland employing a quiet, idyllic life however Synges play disproves this, county Mayo being the antithesis to their expectations. Christy is welcomed with open arms, despite the town knowing he murdered his father. As Adrian Fraser notes, The Playboy could be read as exploring a converse proposition: a communal willingness to absorb (even glorify) those who break the ultimate taboo against patricide. Christys glorification would greatly concern the audience, inducing outrage. By satirising countryside life, Synge was providing a social commentary on life in the isolated rural coast. However, Christy is later disgraced in the play, when the characters realise they have been deceived. When Pegeen tells of how the Widow supposedly murdered her husband, where she hit himself with a worn pick, and the rusted poison did corrode his blood the way he never overed it, and died after. That was a sneaky kind of murder did win small glory with the boys itself the audience would be shocked that such sin runs free in the countryside. As Fraser again writes, The Playboy of the Western World is a social satire of rural life that is fantastic, grotesque, and profound. At the plays conclusion, when Christy leaves Pegeen for his adventures, the audience would find humour at the contrast between their futures: Christy is off to live a life of excitement, whilst Pegeen is doomed to a fate of marrying Shawn and a dull life in County Mayo. The difference in their fates reinforces the plays status as a tragicomedy. Synge uses the element of satire in his play to expose to the middle class Dublin audience what life was like for the people of the countryside; the plays controversy stemmed from people disliking what they saw. By satirising gender roles, religion and the idyllic conception of Irish countryside life, Synge was effectively able to annul the pastoral sentiments felt towards them, illustrating to the middle class how independent rural Ireland was to the pretentious Dubliners. As Heidi Holder says Synge makes it quite clear to his audiences that their beloved image of the Irish country folk was a mere construction a construction eminently open to challenge, and it was precisely this dismantling of the distinctions between fiction and reality that was the source of Synges conflict with his audience.

Beowulf and Modern United States Essay -- Culture Compare Contrast Ess

Beowulf and Modern United States Many people who read the poem Beowulf would probably find it hard to find similarities between the poem and life in modern America. How could one compare an ancient Anglo-Saxon culture with the sophisticated world that we are living in today? But, if we look closely, we may be able to pinpoint some parallel between the two societies. This essay will discuss the topics of warrior life, the â€Å"bad guy,† and social similarities. One might wonder how a warrior culture might be similar to our own? But if we consider American culture, we are actually still very war-like. We have a strong military system built to protect our country and the people that make it up. We are also known for going to the aid of other countries that aren’t able to defend themselves. This is very similar to the mentality of the warriors in Beowulf. Beowulf comes to the aid of Hrothgar’s falling kingdom. Another similarity between the two cultures that some people may see in the most recent times is the idea of the bad guy or â€Å"monster.† Today Americans are trying to deal with ...

A Closer Look at Lucy: Sexual Dimorphism and Speciation in Australopit

A Closer Look at Lucy: Sexual Dimorphism and Speciation in Australopithecus In his peer-reviewed article, â€Å"Sexing fossils: a boy named Lucy?,† James Shreeve discusses, in detail, a study on sexual dimorphism and possible speciation in Australopithecines in Hadar, Ethiopia, based on the famous A. afarensis specimen, â€Å"Lucy.† In the article, â€Å"Lucy’s kind takes humanlike turn,† the author addresses sexual dimorphism and speculates on sex-based differences in behaviors in A. afarensis. The two articles have differences and commonalities with each other in content and both present research methods and conclusions on topics including sexual dimorphism, sex-based behaviors, and speciation in Australopithecines, which receive critical analysis. A study performed by Martin Hausler and Peter Schmid of the University of Zurich, Switzerland, appeared in the October 1995 issue of Journal of Human Evolution, igniting controversy over the 1974 Australopithecus discoveries in Hadar, Ethiopia. The most famous of the Hadar specimens is the 3-million-year-old skeleton, â€Å"Lucy,† who was recovered by paleoanthropologist, Donald Johanson. In his article, Shreeve presents the methods and findings of Hausler and Schmid’s study as well as some counter arguments from other scientists in the field. Hausler and Schmid suggest that speciation exists within the Hadar Australopithecines – that the specimens represent not just one species (afarensis), but two. To support their view, the scientists use calculations showing the sexual dimorphism (the presence of characteristics that differ between male and female members) among Australopithecines. Again, by studying sexual dimorphic traits, the scientists claim that â€Å"Lucy† is possibly male, not fema... ...â€Å"Sexing fossils: a boy named Lucy?,† a peer-reviewed article by James Shreeve, and the article â€Å"Lucy’s kind takes humanlike turn† address subjects including sexual dimorphism, sex-based behaviors, and speciation of Australopithecines. While the two articles differ in the research and findings presented, they share a main, significant conclusion about Australopithecines, which is the sexual dimorphism in body size. Male A. afarensis are evidently larger than females, although there is some disagreement as to how much larger (the degree of sexual dimorphism). Works Cited B.B. (2003). Lucy’s kind takes humanlike turn. Science News, 164, 3, p45(1). Retrieved April 5, 2004 from Infotrac Onefile database. Shreeve, James. (1995). Sexing fossils: a boy named Lucy? Science, 270, 5240, p1297(2). Retrieved April 5, 2004 from Infotrac Onefile database.

Essay --

The number of children who enter foster care is rapidly growing; however, there are not enough foster parents for these children. Children are placed into foster care because of neglect, abuse and many other reasons. Foster parents are single individuals or married couples who become licensed to serve as caretakers for foster children. Foster parents are very important because they help the child grow and by providing love and affection, and even stability while they are away from birth parents. The purpose of this review is to increase the awareness about foster parenting and finding ways to recruit parents to create successful foster placements. A research study shows that twenty-two licensed foster parents at a parent training session with the Louisiana Department of Social Services was compare to the role perceptions of White and African American foster parents, (Nabusti, York, & Sandell, 2004). This study found that there are some differences and similarities in White and African American foster parents. They collected data from 128 African Americans and 65 White foster parents. This study proved that African American parents are likely to take care of children who are related to them; nonetheless, they isolate themselves from child welfare agencies, (Nabusti et al., 2004). In this study, foster parents revealed they were responsible for creating a relationship between the foster child and birth parents, assisting the child with social and emotional development, helping the foster agency operate easier, providing the child with traditional parental roles, and establishing spiritual relationships with the child (Nabus ti et al, 2004). This study proved that African American foster parent think it is extremely important t... ...t that we understand the foster care system and its process as well. Finding ways to recruit foster parents is very important. All of the studies discussed above have found ways to recruit foster parents, give advice to foster parents to make foster placement successful, and even compared the African American and White foster family perceptions on foster care. The foster care system is very serious and proper foster placements are very much needed. While researching recruiting foster parents, I noticed that church or organizations have not hosted a foster recruitment day to increase interested families awareness on how to become a foster parent. Hosting an educational seminar on the importance of foster families and explaining to the audience on how to become foster parents would be an effective way to increase the awareness of interested foster families.

Leadership styles case study

1. Northwest Center for Families (NCF) practices transactional leadership. This is because its director, after attending the conference on dual relationships in social work, has already created a clear structure on what she wants her subordinates to do and if they do not follow, necessary punishment has also been in-placed. She did this by sending out a memo prohibiting dual relationships in social workers’ relations with clients, which when disobeyed will result to their termination. Employees were even advised to report non-sanctioned interaction between them and their clients. The director’s directive also mentioned that employees should eat lunch only in the office when the construction of the new employee lounge is done. 2. Southeast Social Services (SSS), on the other hand, practices transformational leadership. This is because its director has primarily regarded and involved his subordinates in his plans regarding the problem of dual relationship in social work by calling a meeting. Here, he shares his experiences and thoughts about the conference and his personal mission to address the problem at hand. He motivates everyone and encourages the organization to be one in solving the problem, thus being more efficient in their profession and service. 3. I recommend that a health care or human service organization adopt or practice transformational leadership. This is because an organization involved in healthcare or human services needs a competent, professional, skillful, and personable leader. He or she must possess familiarity with the programs of the organization and the knowledge and skills to implement these. Furthermore, he or she must possess values and awareness on others’ welfare and situations (Rudnick, 2007). Since the healthcare and the human services fields require utmost and voluntary service, employees should be given proper, sensitive, and sensible motivation for them to function for the community and not be intimidated by rules of a tyrannical leader. In this sense, a transformational leader can ensure employees’ loyalty to the organization’s mission (Rudnick, 2007). Â   Â  

Cultural Influences On Emotional Expression and Perception Essay

Everyone is uniquely shaped, and should not be compared with others. Expressing ourselves can differentiate from other expressions since we are unique in each and every way. Some similarities may exist, but not necessarily every aspect of what we tend to express. As defined in the textbook, â€Å"emotional expression is the most important representation of our emotions, and may be similar to others† (Adler, Proctor, and Towne 137). Perception is part of the emotional expression because â€Å"it is the process of selecting, acquiring, interpreting, and organizing sensory information† (wikipedia.org). These two are important because we express what we express with the perception of our emotional expression. Different situations will result in different perception of emotional expression. For example, we may jump when we feel excitement or cry when we feel grief. Every expression we make is appropriate on what we feel in that particular event. We live in a country with a very diverse culture, and everyone is raise differently base on their culture. This paper will talk about the cultural influences on emotional expression and perception. Examples, description, and explanation will also be given to further explain the topic. Although many emotions and expressions of emotions are universal, some differences exist among many cultures. The comparison of both cultural similarity and difference has been very important in the area of emotional expression and perception (Matsumoto par. 2). It is very helpful to know the similarities and differences in emotion across cultures. It helps us understand the role of emotion in our lives and the importance of emotion to our thinking and behaving. People in different cultures categorize emotions differently. Some languages have classification for emotions that are not classified in other languages. It is a belief that nonverbal expressions of emotion differ across cultures, due to the fact that different cultures have different display rules. Display rules are norms that tell people whether, which, how, and when emotions should be displayed (wikipedia.org). The power of cultural norm determines how and when to show emotions that is not actually felt. The comparison of emotions helps us understand the role of emotional expression and nonverbal behaviors in social interactions to improve interaction among people from different cultural backgrounds. In addition, when comparing expressions, people of different cultures agree on which is more strongly expressed? Cross-cultural research indicates that the answer to this question is yes. Itziar and Fernandez compared these differences in paired expression of the same emotion (par. 5). According to the research, the result was that â€Å"ninety-two percent of the time, the ten cultures in their study agreed on which of two expressions was more intense† (Fernandez, Carrera, Sanchez, Paez, and Candia par. 5). For example, looking separately for each emotion, American and Japanese agreed on which photo were more intense in 24 out of 30 comparison. These findings are important because they suggest that people of different cultures use the same visual cues in judging others (Fernandez, Carrera, Sanchez, Paez, and Candia par. 8). The role of culture in emotional control is shown most explicitly through the use of display rules. Display rules are learned, culturally determined norms that govern people’s display of emotions in different social situations (Matsumoto, 1990). Matsumoto (1972) found cultural differences in display rules when a group of Japanese and American students were shown stressful film stimuli in two conditions. In the alone condition, both the Japanese and American students displayed the same negative facial expressions of fear, disgust, and distress. However, when the experimenter was present, the Japanese students smiled to mask their negative emotions while the Americans continued to exhibit their negative affects. Furthermore, a study by Matsumoto (1990) found that Americans rated disgust and sadness as more appropriate in in-groups than did the Japanese. In contrast, the Japanese rated anger as more appropriate in out-groups than did the Americans. The above findings suggest that the Japanese and American students utilized different sets of display rules which influenced either their expression or inhibition of their emotions (Matsumoto par. 2). The different sets of display rules can be understood in terms of the American and Japanese emphasis on individualism versus collectivism respectively. Individualism and collectivism are dimensions of cultural variability that refer to the degree to which a culture encourages individual needs, wishes, desires, and values over that of the group  (Matsumoto, 1990). For example, individualistic cultures emphasize individual goals and independence. Collectivist cultures, on the other hand, stress collective goals and dependence on the group (Matsumoto, 1989). It could be understood in this context that the expression of negative emotions in an in-group setting is regarded as extremely negative in collectivist countries, since the manifestations of such emotions threatens the interdependent relationship of the group. In an individualist country, however, the expression of both positive and negative emotions may feel right and good since such expressions highlight both the separation of self from others and the individual’s private, internal attributes (Forgas and Bond, 1994). What may feel good then, in this case the inhibition or expression of emotions, is largely dependent on one’s culture and socialization. To take this idea a step further, the correlation between emotional inhibition and well-being, either negative or positive, may be dependent on one’s respective culture. A past research on the relationship between emotional control and well-being has yielded conflicting findings. Where one line of research suggests that the active inhibition of emotions will lead to an increase in physiological arousal and a decrease in well-being, the other proposes that the inhibition of emotions will result in a higher level of well-being. The aim of the present study is to unravel parts of the conflict by examining the influence of gender and culture on the relationship between emotional control and well-being in two ethnic groups, Asians and Caucasians (Aeker and Williams par. 10). Furthermore, seventy-nine participants were asked to fill out questionnaires assessingtheir level of emotional inhibition, subjective well-being, and identification with anindividualistic versus collectivist culture. Results found that Caucasians and Asians differed onthe individualism-collectivism scale, with Caucasians being more individualistic and Asiansmore collectivists. The effect of culture was found with Caucasians having a negative correlationbetween emotional inhibition and well-being while Asians having an almost zero correlation. Influence of gender was also found in which increases in the level of emotional inhibition isnegatively correlated to well-being for the female sample, but for the male sample, there wasagain a zero correlation. An interactive effect of culture and gender was also found with Asianmales having the most positive correlation between emotional inhibition and well-being, andCaucasian females having the most negative correlation between emotional inhibition and well-being. Explanations of the findings in terms of gender and cultural norms are discussed(Matsumoto par. 5). The interacting effects of cultural and gender norms were also demonstrated. Asian maleswho were high on emotional inhibition were highest on well-being and Caucasian females whowere high on emotional inhibition were lowest on well-being. The results could be understood inthe context that Asian males are socialized by both their gender and cultural norms to inhibit their emotions. The act of inhibition is then consistent with what they believe they should do. Caucasian females, on the other hand, are told by both their gender and cultural norms to express their emotions. The act of inhibition is then contradictory to these expectations. It makes sense then that when one’s actions are consistent with one’s perceived cultural and gender expectations, the result would be a higher level of well-being than when the actions are contradictory to the expectations. Though the results demonstrate that both culture and gender influence the relationship between emotional control and well-being, the present study also has important limitations. First, the emotional inhibition scale measures the inhibition of both positive and negative emotions. It can be understood from a collectivist context why the inhibition of negative emotions is valued because the expression of such emotions is deemed threatening to the group. However, the expression of positive emotions is not only non-threatening but can actually facilitate group harmony. It can then be predicted that for negative emotions, inhibition will correlate positively with well-being. However, since the inhibition of positive emotions is contrary to the cultural norms, the inhibition of positive emotions will correlate negatively with well-being. Since the emotional  inhibition scale combined both types of emotions, we can speculate that there might be a canceling effect, resulting in the zero co rrelation found for the Asian sample. Furthermore, the Asian sample in the present study consists of students from U.C. Berkeley. It can be speculated that these students have to some extent acculturated into the American system and perhaps have embraced parts of the individualist culture, such as the value of expressiveness. Though the ICIAI depicts significant cultural difference between the Asians and Caucasian sample, the issue of acculturation can be reduced with cross-cultural research comparing the U.S. population with the Asian population. To investigate further the meaning of differences, Matsumoto (1993) showed ratings from Japanese and Americans on smiling versus non-smiling faces with regard to intelligence,attractiveness, and sociability. Americans rated smiling faces as more intelligent than neutral faces; the Japanese, however, did not. Americans and Japanese both found smiling faces more sociable than neutral faces, but for the Americans the difference was greater. These differences suggest that cultural display rules cause of Japanese and Americans to attribute different meanings to the smile, and serve as a good explanation for perceived major differences in communication styles across cultures. Evidently, the study has contributed to the understanding of the relationship between emotional expression and culture. Although results have shown that there are definitely effects of culture on emotional expression and perception, the future research is needed to extend the influence. For example, a study measuring the expression of positive and negative emotions separately will be easier to understand on how cultural norms affect the emotional expression and perception. The finding of cultural influence is a great step forward in understanding the role of emotional expression. However, it is just the beginning in investigating the complex between the control of emotions and our perception. Summing up, this paper talked about the different expressions the people in  different cultures gave. Everyone is brought up differently and taught differently. Therefore, we express our emotion differently because of the surroundings we grew up in, and the people that influenced us. Although people in certain parts of the world are different in terms of the background, tradition, and norm and so on, all of us are crossing that barrier on having friends by effective communication. We shouldn’t prejudice other persons before thoroughly knowing them because stereotyping is typically wrong. If people start to get to thoroughly understand differences of others, then this will become the beginning of making best friendships than ever. Bibliography Adler, Ronald B., Russell F. Proctor, and Neil Towne. Looking Out Looking In. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2005. Aeker, Jennifer L. and Patti Williams. â€Å"Empathy Versus Pride: The Influence of Emotional Appeals Across Cultures.† The Journal of Consumer Research 25.3 (1998): 241-61. Fernandez, Itziar, Pilar Carrerra, Flor Sanchez, Dario Paez, and Luis Candia. â€Å"Differences Between Cultures in Emotional Verbal and Non-Verbal Reactions.† Psicothema 12 (2000): 83-92. Forgas, Joseph P. and Michael H. Bond. â€Å"Cultural Influences on the Perception of InteractionEpisodes.† Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 11.1 (1985): 75-88. Matsumoto, David. â€Å"American-Japanese Cultural Differences in Judgments of Emotional Expressions of Different Intensities.† Cognition and Emotion 16.6 (2002): 721-47.