Developmental Milestones: Birth to Age Three Essay

After birth, babies will start to grow at an incredibly fast rate during their first year of life. As they grow, babies will experience developmental milestones. Developmental milestones are skills that babies will acquire such as recognizing the voices of their parents, smiling, making sounds, rolling over, sitting up. Throughout the rest of their young lives, children will experience developmental milestones. Milestones are categorized into three areas of development: motor development, language development, and social/emotional development. Some children will develop and achieve certain milestones in accordance with a milestone chart, or by the prediction of a physician. While each child will experience developmental milestones, they will do so at varying rates. Every child will develop at their own rate, and within their own time. Although, there are special instances where development has been arrested due to an illness or premature birth. In instances such as these, it is necessary for the parents to consult their physician to determine a developmental time line for their child’s particular need. In general, it should be understood that babies will crawl, and take that first step, when the time is right for them.

ESL learners feel anxious when doing reading comprehension tests Essay

This paper will explore in depth all the implications of the claim that ESL learners feel anxious when doing reading comprehension tests. First of all, the psychological and social causes of anxiety in ESL speakers during reading comprehension assignments will be explored and analyzed. Secondly, the level of anxiety will be assessed. Finally, the paper will suggest several ways to reduce negative feeling associated with performing reading comprehension tests by ESL speakers. Psychological causes of anxiety in ESL students partially mirror the experience of any other school related anxiety. Students are unsure of their abilities under the conditions of internal (i. e. a desire for self-affirmation) and external (i. e. a desire to please parents) pressure. Presently, students feel an incredible pressure to achieve and be at the top of their class, since the realization that school grades determine their future comes very early. Therefore, the joy of learning is often transformed into a struggle to excel (DeNoon, 2007). High expectations and competitive environment contribute greatly to the experience of anxiety and even panic. As concerns the severity of anxiety experienced by ESL speakers, it might range from slight psychological discomfort to serious physical symptoms. For example, short-term memory loss might be the result of extreme anxiety (the feeling of suddenly ‘remembering’ the correct answer immediately after turning in the test). Physical expressions of anxiety may include rapid pulse, a feeling of breathlessness, trembling, sweaty palms, dry mouth, chest pains, digestive problems such as nausea or diarrhea, loss of appetite, headache, sleeplessness, and stomach ache (BUPA’s Health Information Team, 2004). Anxiety may also result in undesirable social consequences, such as loss of trust between parents and students, since the latter sometimes tend to conceal the difficulties they encounter, as well as test results. Such behavior eventually results in unfavorable family atmosphere. The practical values of this research lies in the field of practices and methods aimed at eliminating the causes of anxiety and helping students benefit fully from the learning process. Negative thoughts about possible failure discourage active learning and, taken to extreme, can produce a generally devastating effect on personality development. Furthermore, anxiety during the testing process can distort result, since students who are able to control their emotions better will tend to get higher score, despite the fact that their knowledge might be less complete as compared to students who suffer from extreme anxiety. Together with exercises aimed at increasing students’ self-confidence, relaxation exercises might be very helpful for those who suffer from anxiety. It is also of paramount importance to teach students to plan their time for taking the test so that they would not feel lost and experience a state of panic. The methods of research will be qualitative and will include questionnaires and interviews. At one hand, questionnaires will help to gather statistically significant data and understand the pervasiveness of the problem. From another perspective, interviews will help to research the problem in depth by analyzing students’ perceptions, emotions, and experiences. Therefore, the combination of these research methods will provide the most accurate picture of anxiety in ESL speakers during reading comprehension tests.

Compare and contrast managing employment relations with and without Essay

Compare and contrast managing employment relations with and without trade unions - Essay Example Several employee employer surveys over the years have allowed for this nation to be put to test in real life workplace situation (Blanpain & Dimitrova, 2010). It is a fact that workers will perceive the management-employee relations based on practices and even structures that that underpin the relations between the management plus the workers on the individual bases and at large. Not to be forgotten also is the employee’s individual experiences at work as well as their reference frames. It is an obvious thing the opinions of the management-employee relations will vary across the hierarchy at the work place (Bendix, 2001). Managers and especially HR mangers will be less likely to be in criticism of the system as opposed to other employees. This varying opinion may also be caused by the fact that employee needs may differ from those of the managers. A differing opinion may also be as a result of the fact that the management operates on different reference frames, hence working on different information than the employees. As case in point, it is not unusual for a manager to interpret grumbling employees as a form of blowing off steam. While it may be in some cases true that they are letting off steam it is not always the case so there is a need for a mediator to unite the two (Fleming, 2004). It may be hypothesized that unions a perpetually in a bid to obtain higher wages for their members than they would ordinarily be offered were they absent. Some may also argue that trade unions result in the employers losing out to the employees when it comes to share of profits to the disadvantage of the firms. If this line of thought is followed then there is high chances for conflict to araise between the firms and the trade unions. Should the firms resist the trade unions, then the unions would be forced to mobilize workers leading to strong

Deng Xiaoping's foreign policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Deng Xiaoping's foreign policy - Essay Example Though Korea and Japan are trade partners for US in Asia, the policies of US regarding China even dominated election manifesto of that Country. When discussing about the foreign policy of Deng Xiao Ping, it is reasonable to mention about US. The underlying reason is that in post cold war period, US emerged as a single super power and any country's foreign policy was compelled to keep US in consideration if it wants to be a major partner in world trade. Deng's policy was matter of discussion because China developed links with US despite confrontation in past and present (Taiwan). The significant feature in the Deng's foreign policy is recognising the US as a sole super power in post cold war period. The growth of China compelled US to treat human rights and economic benefits separately. Development of Sino US relations: From the date of sworn in of George Bush in 1989 till the end of two term presidency of Bill Clinton Sino American relations took a dramatic changes. Bush even visited China before visiting Europe to state the new priorities and China reciprocated in the same way US responses.1 The communication gap between China and Soviet Union, the down ward trend of Soviet Union's economy, George Bush's diplomacy in meeting China's leadership before Gorbachev met them made this foreign policy a successful thing for PRC (people's Republic of China). In the aftermath of Tiananmen Square incident China's top leadership recognised that US have its own compulsions regarding the moral and human values. From that point of time both the countries started responding cautiously to each other's acts and deeds. The opening of China's market and the opportunities to establish industries there by US companies made Bill Clinton to treat human rights and economic issues separat ely to avoid sanctions on China. After 1994 gesture of Clinton there was even military confrontation between US and China regarding Taiwan Strait. But within one year China recognised the compulsions of US regarding Taiwan and summits were held between the two countries in 1997 and 1998, which resulted a strategic partnership between the two countries. After that though a failure, US supported to include China in WTO. A saying was developed in diplomatic circles in between 1989-2000. It was "the American elections start with criticising China and the elected president term ends with developing relations with China". This gives the intentions of the leaders of both the countries to develop relations in spite of opposition in the home country. The reason is that the populations of the two countries interacted very less till then. The interaction is possible when the relations develop. So instead of stepping into precipice, the leaders of both the countries tried to refrain themselves from criticising each other in the case of domestic and international developments. Though the per capita income of China is less than number of western countries, the vastness of its economy and number of customers in its 1.2 billion population made West and US to develop strategic relations with China. So if Deng's foreign policy was termed as a success, the credit goes to the economic development of China. Though there are disparities in distribution of wealth in China, the size of the economy compels any

Essay Interview Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Interview - Essay Example Although my country also provides good educational opportunities, yet they cannot be compared to Canadian standard of education. I believe in high-end quality in education. I believe in seeking that kind of education and degree that is recognized worldwide. My own homeland also has many reputable universities that are recognized around the globe, but my dream was to seek education in Canada since I was a little child. I can find highly flexible learning opportunities in Canada. There is a wide variety of courses available there. Although I may sound like demeaning the education of my own homeland, but the truth is that I am a very patriotic person; yet, I cannot compromise on sensitive issues like education. I had to choose what was best for me, and therefore, I chose Canada. Among many other choices which I was considering about immigration for the purpose of education, I found Canada to be a country which provides protection to its citizens much more than any other country. We can call it a safe country. I feel comfortable in any part of the country without the threat of terrorism or violence. People are guaranteed protection even in bigger cities like Ottawa and Toronto. I do not feel as if I am being neglected because I am not in my own homeland. There is Canadian social help system which does not make me feel unaccompanied when I am facing difficulties settling down. There are a lot of government sponsored programs and courses that I can seek help from in my hard times. For example, if I lose my job, I shall be supported through a government funded program to back up my finances until I find a new job. Another important point that I considered was that Canada is one of the developed countries whose economical infrastructure is very strong. I can be sure to find a suitable paying job in this country. Most of the jobs are well

Critical Review Accountability and Data Collection, including Reward Article

Critical Review Accountability and Data Collection, including Reward and Challenge Schools - Article Example The reform rightly undertakes the method of identifying the schools and districts with the maximum progress and recognizing them as Reward schools; this would encourage the functioning of the schools and thereby enhance their performance. Though I agree that the identification of the Challenge School and then helping them in specific ways is an innovative way to solve the problem, as all the schools may not lack in the same sphere, yet I also think that a problem might arise here with respect to correct identification of the challenged schools and the reward schools as no school will have everything bad or good in it, hence the process involved in the collection of data for recognizing and categorizing the schools needs to be clearly mentioned. According to me the reform should specify what benchmarks and parameters would be used for the identification of the categories. School Turn Around Models In my opinion, the method proposed for school remodeling might be criticized on the foll owing grounds. The idea of Challenge schools undergoing a turnaround and transformation model where the governing body of the school gets replaced and strengthened might not ensure better performance always according to me. This is because replacing an experienced authority with a new one might pose new problems as the newcomer might take time to adjust to the ambience before bringing on changes. Rehiring of the 50 percent of the old staff and filling up the rest with new staffs may initiate non-cooperation among the staffs and hence their productivity can go down and this is therefore not a very sound idea. I also think that closing the school and transferring the students into higher performing school may end up being a problem as the students would suddenly find themselves under greater pressure than what they have been exposed to (12). Effective Teachers and Leaders - state and district level data systems and evaluations With respect to the area of ‘Effective Teachers and Leaders-state and district level data systems and evaluations’ I observe that the development and implementation of meaningful educators and principal evaluation system by the State and the District is a positive step in providing quality education (15-16). I agree that the published data at the state and the district level about the performance of the principals and the teachers will put them under a constant pressure of doing well. The grants for the school on their better performance in building up better and effective teachers are also a good idea to work towards encouragement. Yet I find one negative aspect with respect to the transfer of the effective teachers to the high needs schools. Thought this is likely to act as a blessing for the schools in need, yet at the same time it can act adversely against the interest of the students who sometimes become accustomed to a specific way of teaching and might find it a problem to adapt to the change. I would recommend here the inclusion of how these changes would be implemented and what psychological changes the students would need to undergo. English Language Learners The provision of significant formula grants to aid the schools at the district and the state level for implementing elevated quality language instructions in educational programs is definitely a constructive move undertaken by the reforms (20). I also find he language proficiency assessment to determine the eligibility of the learner quite recommendable because it is likely to enhance the quality of the education. However, in that way many learners who wish to study the language will be exempted from doing so. Hence I suggest that by initiating innovative programs in the schools to impart language education the State itself can take a step in coming up with

Bridge design Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Bridge design - Coursework Example This old bridge carries gas pipelines along with phone cables which are needed to be accommodated in new design as well. Also this bridge provides a secondary path over the railway lines, thus providing an easy and safe transportation of pedestrians across the railway lines. Idea of stayed bridge was first introduced in 16th century which was then furnished to produce an engineered cable stayed bridge after Second World War. This engineered bridge was constructed in Europe to provide pedestrians with the shortest path to their destination. Cable stayed bridges are considered to be like ordinary suspension bridge as their physical appearance resemble a lot. These bridges differ from suspension bridges in a way that the suspension bridges are having two towers but cable stayed bridges make use of only a single tower to hold all the load of deck and traffic moving on the deck. In cable stayed bridges, the single tower is responsible of holding all the compressional forces acting on the bridge and tension is distributed by making use of stays. Such bridges are having specialized orthotropic decks which are furnished with continuous girders and stays for support. The analysis of such bridges is carried out by making use of linear elastic analysis. This technique is used because of the triangulated force approach used in the construction of stayed bridge. In real time applications, bridge is subjected to a number of torsional and shear forces that are being applied through the environment like, air currents, deformation of structure, load distributions etc. but currently we are not concerned with these parameters and considering only the live and dead loads. A typical suspension bridge force vector is shown below: The purpose of conducting this research is to come up with the best bridge design which is economically as well as socially feasible. Major concern is to construct a project which can be conveniently handled by the crew of county works while erecting