Should Children Be Educated at Home or School Essay Example for Free

Should Children Be Educated at Home or School Essay I strongly believe that children should be educated at school because socialising is a very important part of life as well as childhoods. In schools there are better facilities and professionally trained teachers for all different subjects for example a science lab and a drama studio. In the following paragraphs I’ll explain the advantages and disadvantages of both school-schooling and home schooling. Going to school is now already a general way of direction for the community but even though it is, some parents still wants their children to be home schooled because there are many advantages in it, such as they get more individual attention from the teacher, have more personal time for hobbies and much more. School is a better way of education for children because it lets you socialise with others and keeps you open minded with lots of friends. At school people are taught responsibility and discipline by professionally trained teachers who are specialised in a particular subject. On the other hand, some people may say that you don’t need friends to help you as you are growing and to achieve a high grade but friends are important and it will be one of the greatest memories from your childhood. There are also many advantages in homeschooling for example, the student will get more individual attention from the teacher, they can learn in their own pace, leave more time for personal things like hobbies and many more. Therefore they can learn in a quiet and peaceful environment with no distractions. According to the graph below, it shows that people who are homeschooled achieve higher grades then people who are public schooled, therefore this graph tells you that people who are home-schooled more often in getting higher grades and can achieve ,ore without the help of friends. Secondly, we can prove that school is better because it has better facilities such as science labs and drama studios. This is important because as you are learning you will be able to use realistic equipments to practise and learn. These are parts of the benefits of public schooling because at home you won’t be able to afford such expensive equipments like stage lights, science labs and much more as a result, school schooling is much better than homeschooling. However, at home you might not have such expensive and big equipments but since you are alone you will have no peer pressure. This is an advantage because if you don’t have peer pressure you will always have confidence in yourself and won’t have to worry about the grades and places that you got in your class or year group. But sometimes competing with others is good because you can see your grades and results compared to others. Overall competing with others isn’t always a bad thing.

Reflection on the History & Systems of Psychology Essay Example for Free

Reflection on the History Systems of Psychology Essay Pre-modern, modern and postmodern frames of reference have all helped shape important, contemporary psychological theories and issues. In this paper I will attempt, in a reflective manner, to walk through and revisit the areas we covered in course, the end aim being to gain a measure of insight into where the field of psychology stands today, particularly with regard to oppressive forms of ethnocentric monoculturalism. In terms of pre-modern perspectives, in the course we first discussed historical issues concerning the mind-body problem. I stated the nature of the relationship between body and mind and whether they are one and the same or two distinct substances, which is the center of the debate between monists and dualist. Descartes, the most well known dualist, argued for a separation of mind from soul and body. Also an interactionist, Descartes held the mind influenced the body as much as the body impacted the mind (Goodwin, 2009). Plato, his predecessor from antiquity, was also a dualist and an interactionist arguably, and believed the body and soul/mind were temporarily at one during life; each came from a completely different place, the body from the material world and the soul from the world of ideas. At the moment of death, the body withered away in time and space, the soul or mind returning to the world of forms and there realizing universal truths (Wozniak, 1992). Delving deeper into pre-modern views of the mind-body problem I touched upon Spinoza. Spinoza, a contemporary of Descartes, dismissed Descartes two-substance view in favor of what is called double-aspect theory (Wozniak, 1992). Double-aspect theories hold the view that the mental and the physical realms are varying aspects of the same substance. For Spinoza, that single substance is God, perceived as the universal essence or nature of everything in existence. In Spinoza’s view, there is no partition of mind and body, therefore. Instead they are of a single substance, in a pre-established coordination, reflecting the divine essence. In reflection, I continue to side with Spinoza and double-aspect theory in terms of pre-modern perspectives. I do believe that there is a pre-established coordination between mind and body that is reflective of the divine creation. I am therefore I think is my continued response to Descartes. In terms of modern perspectives in the course we examined the origins of psychology as a subject discipline. During the course I stated that psychology first appeared as a subject discipline in 1879 when Wilhelm Wundt started a psychology lab in Germany at the University of Leipzig. The laboratory devoted itself to the analysis of conscious thought in its basic elements and structures, which was uncovered through a process of introspection (Gross, 1996). What differentiated this ‘new psychology’ at the time from philosophy was its use of measurement and control as well as its emphasis on the scientific method to study mental processes relevant to human consciousness. Due to his influence on Edward B. Titchener, Wundt’s frame of reference arguably helped give birth to structuralism. Indeed Wundt’s disciple, Titchener, is credited with developing and labeling structuralism in an 1898 paper called â€Å"The Postulates of a Structural Psychology (Goodwin, 2009). In the paper he compared and contrasted structuralism with functionalism, which he claimed infested most US universities, save Cornell where he was cultivating what would come to be  called the â€Å"the Cornell school of psychology.† Notwithstanding, Goodwin (2009) has stated that Titchener and the Cornell view of psychology was extremely narrow largely because of its insistence on introspection and due to Titchener’s attitude that his way was the only way, a position that often does not bode well in academia. In this vein and perhaps arrogantly so, Titchener, likened structuralism to anatomy, its purpose being analysis he surmised whereas functionalism he likened to physiology, stating that functionalists examine how the mind is able to adapt one to his or her said environment, wh ich to Titchener was a waste of time without a deep understanding of structure. As one needs to know the ins and outs of human anatomy before being able to fully delve into physiology, so thus was the  functionalist at a loss, in his view, without the ability to outline the structures of human consciousness via a highly difficult process of systematic, experimental introspection as stipulated by him in almost cult like exclusivity, which spawned criticism. Accordingly, his movement never gained the momentum it needed to win American hearts and minds, falling into the dustbin of history in favor of functionalism. Nevertheless, in spite of Titchener’s unpopularity in the US, his enduring contribution is that he helped create a place for the lab and experimental psychology in all colleges and universities with programs in psychology. While functionalists were also interested in looking at mental processes such as consciousness in so far as assessing human behavior in terms of how it aided people in adapting to ever-changing environments, they did not, unlike followers of Titchener, emphasize introspection (Goodwin, 2009). Psychologist James R. Angell, a follower of John Dewey, the founder of functionalism in America, became its most outspoken spokesperson, criticizing Titchener and drawing a sharp contrast to him in a 1907 popular paper called â€Å"The Province of Functional Psychology.† It was a damning response to Titchener’s 1898 paper. For Angell, the structuralist was  interested in the â€Å"what?† of conscious thought, whereas the functionalist psychologist wished to know the â€Å"how?† and â€Å"why?† of it, asking what is consciousness for? (Goodwin, 2009). This way of viewing psychology in terms of its practical applications, became an important influence in modern times, because it led to the study of topics such as developmental and abnormal psychology, in addition to examining the individual differences of mind, (which Titchener and the Cornell school remarkably had no interest in). When asking how psychology can be used to solve everyday problems in a practical way, we are taking from the functionalists and their movement. Perhaps the most prominent movement in the field of modern 20th century psychology was behaviorism. Behaviorism began essentially due to the work of Ivan Pavlov. Pavlov who did not consider himself a psychologist, but, rather a physiologist interested in the process of digestion in dogs, was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1904 (the year B. F. Skinner was born) in Physiology and Medicine. In the course of his research, Pavlov observed that the dogs would often start salivating before any food being given to them, when they would see the food or the food’s container, or when they heard the footsteps of the lab assistant who was on his way to feed them. His observations led to the study to what we now call classical conditioning (Gross, 1996). The first attempt to apply Pavlov’s findings on conditioning to humans was made by John B. Watson in a dubious and arguably unethical experiment on a small boy named Albert, showing that the fear of rats can be deliberately induced (Watson and Rayer, 1920). The experiment served to popularize a new behavioral approach to psychology that would within a decade become the dominant force in America, Watson its founder, propagator and publicist (Goodwin, 2008). To the modernist Watson (1913), psychology is an objective natural science,  its theoretical goal the prediction and control of behavior. Wundt and Titchener’s view on introspection has no place in its methods, nor is consciousness addressed or studied. There is no marked borderline between people and animals. Due to Watson’s input and influence cats, dogs, rats, and pigeons became the major source of psychological data. As ‘psychological’ now meant ‘behavior’ rather than ‘consciousness,’ animals that were easier to study and whose environments could be more readily controlled could replace people as experimental subjects (Gross, 1966). B. F. Skinner, also a behaviorist and modernist, went steps further than Pavlov and Watson, casting behavior in a more interactive light. He made a distinction between respondent and operant behavior and argued that most animal and human behavior is not brought about in the way Pavlov and Watson indicated and surmised. Skinner, like Edward Thorndike before him, was interested in how animals operate on their environment and how this operant behavior brings about particular consequences that can determine the likelihood of that behavior being repeated. In experiments he used a variation of Thordike’s puzzle-box, a Skinner box, which was made for a rat or a pigeon to do things in, rather than escape from. Fundamentally, Skinner saw the learner as much more actively involved than did Pavlov or Watson, for whom behavior was due to stimuli, unconditioned stimuli before learning and conditioned stimuli after learning. In addition to behaviorism, modern views of psychology took twists and turns. As a reaction to both Titchener’s structuralism and Watson’s behaviorism, the Gestalt psychologists of the 1920s and 1930s in Germany and Austria were primarily concerned with perception and held that perceptions could not be deconstructed in the way that Wundt and Titchener wanted to do with thought, and that behaviorists had sought for with behavior. Their belief could be  succinctly stated as follows: ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts’ (Gross, 1996, p.3). The whole is essentially destroyed when you break down perception and behavior into parts, the Gestalt psychologists held. There are organizing principles of perceptual organization which were voiced by Gestalt’s founder Max Wertheimer. These principles are frequently highlighted in units on perception in general psychology textbooks and are as follows: the principle of proximity, the principle of similarity, the principle of continuation. All of the organizing principles have in common what is called the law of simplicity or what Gestaltists term Prà ¤gnanz. This refers to the tendency for perceptions to mirror reality as closely as possible (Goodwin, 2009). In the course I gave an example of gestalt thinking, which in reflection I would like to return to as it clearly remains in mind. I used the example of a bus stopping at a bus stop in one’s neighborhood. On a given day the bus stops at the same corner the person is accustomed to, and is recognized to be that bus. The person gets on, but has made a mistake. She did not realize that there was a route change that morning and the bus she took was numbered differently. What gives? Is it only a matter of not paying attention? In Gestalt inspired, top-down conceptually driven processing, we begin with one’s prior knowledge, motivations, expectations and beliefs. In the bus example, the inability to see and decipher or register a different number on the bus and get on it, means it was recognized it to be the customary bus due to top-down processing (Danner, 2009). If one were to notice the different bus number, however, that would entail bottom-up processing, because such processing is data driven. The different number is perceived in terms of information in the sensory input, in conjunction with top-down processing, revealing to the person that it is not the customary bus. Perhaps after realizing her mistake, the person in  the example will be more careful next time, thereby exercising more bottom-up processing. If Austria was home to some of Gestalt’s most prominent members and adherents, it was also home to Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis. Freudian psychoanalytic theory was the first to state the significance of innate drives and define abnormal and normal behavior in relationship to the role of the unconscious mind. Its importance is that the theory of personality popularized contextualizing human behavior in terms of the id, ego, and superego, notating development in five psychosexual stages. Each stage was marked by shifts in what Freud believed were the underlying modes of gratification: oral, anal, phallic, latency and genital (Glassman, 2000). In reflection, I continue to find merit in Freuds concept of stages for sure. I would still prefer to call them development stages, however, and not necessarily put a sexual meaning on them, as Freud and his supporters have done and continue to do. There is no need to detail the well-known limitations and criticisms of Freudian theory, which according to Glassman (2000) are its falsifiability, the great deal of emphasis put on case studies, and its cultural bias towards women. Regardless of such naysaying, his supporters would passionately argue for and be adamant about such a sexual narrative of the human person, which if not fodder, certainly has entertainment value. In fact, Freudian theory is fascinating to me largely due to the dramatic (almost cinematic) conflicts and challenges that mark each psychosexual stage. Perhaps the most well-known of these is the Oedipal conflict (which occurs in the so-called phallic stage). It was interesting to read that some analysts called the fe male variant, the Electra conflict, but Freud himself did not use the term (see Freud 1924). Perhaps the most attractive modern theory of personality, in my view, would belong to Carl Rogers. In Carl Roger’s theory, a person is the source of his  or her basic needs such as food and water. He or she is also the source of a growth motive which he called an actualizing tendency, which is an innate drive that is reflective of the desire to grow, to develop and to develop one’s capabilities (Glassman, 2000). It is the actualizing tendency that stimulates creativity, causing a person to seek out new challenges and skills that motivate healthy growth in one’s lifetime (Gross, 1996). According to Rogers (1961, but originally proposed in 1947): Whether one calls it a growth tendency, a drive towards self-actualization, or a forward moving direction tendency, it is the mainspring in life†¦ It is the urge which is evident in all organic and human life – to expand, extend, become autonomous, mature and develop. In reflection, I continue to feel that Roger’s influence and continuing popularity in the psychotherapeutic community give his theories merit. APA members have been asked which psychotherapist they believe to me the most influential figure in the field (Smith, 1982). In 2006, this survey repeated in the Psychotherapy Networker. In both surveys, Carl Rogers was the â€Å"landslide† choice. While this does not prove Rogers to be correct, certainly it gives his theory of motivation more credence than not, increasing its believability. Certainly, I feel influenced by Rogers as I move forward in my career. While Rogers theory of an actualizing tendency and the overall nature of the client-centered approach may be controversial due to its allowance to let the client call the shots and as stated by Goodwin (2009) for its overemphasis on the the self at the expense of the importance of the community, in addition to being clearer what it was against than what it was for, it is nevertheless, a credible postulation in terms of its application in therapy and remains my preference over Freud. Accordingly, I continue to feel that all clients  innately wish to be successful in life and to be praised as contributors to their own selfactualization. They wish to expand their knowledge and achieve  higher levels of success beneath all the guises that seem otherwise. When clients are not performing to their fullest potential, praise and support can help ignite the actualizing tendency in a manner that would otherwise have remained dormant. When exploring postmodern views of psychology we have to inherently speak about cultural narratives and meta-narratives. What is psychology today and who defines it? What is psychology’s story, who told that story historically, and who gets to tell it today? When we look at psychology as a practice, historically and today, is important to bring to the fore the ethnocentric monocultural aspects that were oppressive to women and continue to be to minority groups in reinforcing white male Euro-American culture as the normative and desirable culture. Indeed, therapists and helping professionals should try to help deconstruct and unveil monoculturalism whenever it rears its despicable head. When oppressive forms such as heterosexism, ageism, gender and sexism come to the fore in therapy, for example, therapists should not reinforce them but try to encourage reflection on such prejudices with the aim being for the client to indentify for what it is – and to grow accordingly. The field of psychology itself is not immune but remains at risk to the debacle of monoculturalism. According to Yutrzenka, Todd-Bazemore and Caraway (1999) even though the data forecast that by 2050, ethnic minorities will make up over 50% of the US population, this quickly changing demographic has minimal effect on the number of ethnic minority psychologists. This is particularly true for Native Americans, who are far more underrepresented than any other ethnic body. Though the APA as stated by Goodwin (2009), is vigorously addressing this entire issue at present, with such efforts to be praised, still the legacy of ethnocentric monoculturalism is a stain on the profession, and will remain so until  significant numbers of minority psychologists abound. In spite of the barriers confronting them, women and minorities have made many notable, valuable and vital contributions to the field of psychology. During the course I discussed Eleanor Gibson who received the National Medal of Science in 1992 for a lifetime of research on topics dealing with the development of depth perception to the fundamentals involved in reading, faced discrimination while at Yale from psychologist Robert Yerkes who wanted no females in his lab (Goodwin, 2009). While she was able to get her PhD there under the guidance of the neobehaviorist Clark Hull, she unfortunately went on to experience difficulties at Cornell (where her husband had gained a position) forced into an unpaid research associate position in spite of winning competitive and prestigious research grants. As a result of these grants, however, she was able to carry out pioneering studies on depth perception with Richard Walk. When Cornell, home to Titchener’s legacy, removed its nepotism rules in 1966, only then did she become a full professor. Furthermore, as discussed in the course, African-Americans have also made outstanding contributions to psychology. Kenneth and Mamie Phipps Clark again come to mind in terms of their best known research titled Racial identification and preference in Negro children (Goodwin, 2009). In this research it was shown that black children showed a preference for white dolls over black ones when asked which they would like to play with and looked more like. The Clarks concluded, according to Goodwin (2009) that one insidious effect of racial segregation was its negative influence on African-American self-esteem. As a result of this research, in part, the Supreme Court was compelled to do the right thing and reverse the racist separate but equal doctrine in Brown v. Board of Education. The Clarks’ contribution to psychology and the contributions of other AfricanAmericans preceding them were not without struggle. Their mentor at Howard University, Francis Sumner faced huge obstacles when attempting to get a graduate degree and gain employment in academia. African-Americans have often had their basic intellectual abilities questioned (Goodwin, 2009). The legacy of white racism and of the field of psychology’s complicity by not taking a firmer stand until only recently is without question a significant reason why African-Americans remain heavily underrepresented in the profession, in spite of the gains made for women. 60 percent of doctorates in psychology are awarded to women today, while Native Americans as we discussed and African-Americans continue to be awarded a paltry percentage in turn. Such dismal figures have nothing to do with intelligence. We know that early intelligence tests were normed on just Caucasian, middle-class populations and only recently has such bias been addressed and perhaps abated. This also was the case for the MMPI personality tests as well. In the case of the MMPI, many of the original items became dated and according to Kassin (2008), to bring the test up to the 21st century and more postmodern views, new items were written in, and a more diverse cross-section of the US was sampled. The result of that updating is the newer 567-item version called the MMPI-2. In reflection, my guess is that similar advances have been made or are being considered in IQ testing as well; otherwise we would have to call into question whether biased IQ tests are valid for minority groups. Accordingly, great care should be taken when formulating test questions as well as interpreting the results of test-takers from different cultural groups and urban tribes. Fundamentally, it is crucial that test makers be made aware of cultural differences when putting together IQ test questions, as recommended for the MMPI (Church 2001). Exercising caution does not mean  minority groups are treated with kid gloves, but rather that a lens of understanding is in place and that can come about as a result of the test makers and assessors informing themselves. Otherwise an IQ tests validity for minority groups is at issue. Pre-modern, modern and postmodern frames of reference have all helped shape important, contemporary psychological theories and issues. Accordingly, I have attempted in a reflective manner to revisit the areas of psychology’s history we covered in course. If psychology as a profession is to continue to grow and develop, it will occur through a similar process of reflection, followed by action. It is important for psychology to know its origins, its history and respective story. However, in realization of the depth of ethnocentric monoculturalism, its leadership, particularly in the APA, must act on the call to bring about the inclusion of more minorities. Otherwise, the oppressive stain of monoculturalism shall abound and continue to blemish the profession we hold dear. References Angell, J.R. (1904). Psychology. New York: Holt. Church, A.T. (2001). Personality measurement in cross-cultural perspective. Journal of Personality, 69, 979-1006. Danner, N. (2011). Psychology: ORG5001 survey of psychology I. Boston: Pearson Learning Solutions. Freud, S. (1924) A General Introduction to Psychoanalysis. New York: Washington Square Press (reprinted 1952). Glassman, W (Ed.). (2000) Approaches to psychology. Philadelphia: Open University Press. Goodwin, C.J. (2009) A history of modern psychology (3rd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Gross, R. (Ed.). (1996) Psychology, the study of mind and behavior. London: Hodder Stoughton. Kassin, S., (2008). Psychology in Modules: ORG 5002 Survey of psychology II. New York: Pearson Custom Publishing. Rogers, C.R. (1961) On becoming a person. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Smith, D. (1982) Trends in counseling and psychology. American Psychologist, 37, 802–809. Watson, J.B. (1913) Psychology as the behaviorist views it. Psychological Review, 20, 15877. Watson, J.B. Rayneer, R. (1920) Conditioned emotional reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 3, 1-14. Wozniak,R. (1992) Mind and body: Renà © Descartes to William James. Retrieved from http://www.qcc.cuny.edu/socialsciences/ppecorino/INTRO_TEXT/Chapter%206%20MindBody/DUALISM.htm. Yutrzenka, B.A., Todd-Bazemore, E., Caraway, S.J. (1999). Four winds: The evolution of culturally inclusive clinical psychology training for Native Americans. International Review of Psychiatry, 11, 129- 135. ProQuest: 43479524.

Ecofeminism In Environmental Ethics

Ecofeminism In Environmental Ethics Ecofeminism is a term that covers a variety of response to environmental problems and theorizing about them. This paper will look briefly on how the Ecofeminism has to do with Environmental Ethics. In the first section, will look briefly concept on Ecofeminism and environmental ethics and how do they apply. Next this paper will appear on the nature of Ecofeminist, critique of Ecofeminism and the implication of Ecofeminism to women. An attempt has been made in this paper to initiate a discussion about how the issue of how environmental degradation and exploitation of nature became a feminist issue also been discussed. Introduction The word or term of Ecofeminism was introduced by Francoise dEaubonne which is member group of feminists in France. This woman actually tries to pull out and bring out the idea and the attention to womens potential upon the crisis of ecological revolution during that time (dEaubonne 1994). Ecofeminism basely come out from idea on which the women or also known as Eve are closely with the nature compared to the men or Adam. This statement are said so because the behavior of women are feminine and fragile so do nature which are can depleted and destroy if there is no care about it. In last two decades, there are many topics and discussion especially on these Ecofeminism which are relates closely to the environmental ethics in order to prevent nature being degraded by human itself. In 1974, when the Ecofeminism come out with the issue of women and nature, the number of feminist and environmentalist on that time is increasing because of the attraction issue in Western country. The increas ing of number of both parties actually is due to the concern of the link between the domination of women and the domination of nature in Western culture especially in United Kingdom. Although the concept of Ecofeminism has come out to different meaning far from those day during Ecofeminism area in 1974 but at least it still follow the criteria and following claim (Karen 1990): (i) There are important connection between the oppression of women and the oppression of nature. (ii) Understanding the nature of these connections is necessary to any adequate understanding of the oppression of women and the oppression of nature. (iii) Feminist theory and practice must include an ecological perspective. (iv)Solution to ecological problems must include a feminism perspective. Nature of Ecofeminism There are many Feminist that are supportive on Ecofeminist and highlighted on the fact that ecology is a feminist issue. The feminist that highlighted on this issues is Susan Griffin (1998) and Mary Daly (1978), Carolyn Merchant (1980), Ynestra King (1981), Ariel Kay Salleh (1984), Karn Warren (1987,1990), Val Plumwood (1993) also discuss about the link between the oppression of women and nature in order to understand the connection why the environment is a feminist issue and why feminist issues can be addressed in terms of environmental concern(Gaard 1993). There are many feminist agree that ecology is a part of the feminist issue, which only they differ in term of nature and desirability. Ecofeminist can be based on variety of and certain of fundamental claims that point of view which link between oppression women and nature. Supposedly to understand and have wide of view in this discussion, one have to deep understand on nature of these link in order to understand more on oppressi on women and nature (Warren 1987). For ecofeminist, the idea of domination between women and nature is basic of in ideology (Warren 1990). In order to overcome, once has to reconstruct and re-concept of the underlying patriarchal value and structural relation of culture and promote equality, non-violence, non-hierarchical forms of organization to bring out new social forms (Warren 1987). Based on the feminist point of view, they said that one should inter-connect of all life process and revere nature and all life form. They also said that human should not control the nature but co-operate with it (Warren 1990). A characterization of Ecofeminism Ecological feminism is name given based on the characterization or position in different aspects of philosophies. Ecofeminism actually can interpret in much perspective of environmental ethics in the way of ecological such as understanding of the nature concept and how to mitigate or solve of environmental problems (Waren 1987). The understanding of ethics not only refers to one aspect only such as liberal, radical and socialist but it is wide world and it including of nature (Merchant 1992). So to be genuine Ecofeminist, it actually depends on how once describes it or conceptualizes of the Ecofeminist position. This is because to be the genuine Ecofeminist, it depends on how much, which or what level of the position in environmental philosophy to claim it as Ecofeminist. The different configuration of Ecofeminism is react in different way and it depends on how the linked connect between these two topic that discuss which is women and nature. It also depends on how people define it. Different people have their different understanding and view. In addition, it also differ the nature of womens oppression and how the solution been taken, the philosophy of human nature, equality and the how people response on freedom. All these aspect is depends on how each of the feminist theories to describe it (Merchant 1992). During 1960s, the issue on women in the workplace and education has become demanding for the feminist to bring out the topic in order to achieve a fulfilling life. Around the same year, the book Silent Spring written by Rachel Carslon which is feminist in 1962 that focus more on effect of pollution on the human and non-human world which give thousand question of life on earth and it become as a public issue. For an example of liberal in Ecofeminism, this perspectives actually are already been applied in Western country that are focus on political and philosophical framework that build in society to provide freedom in order to pursue their own interest. The liberal perspectives in Ecofeminism to be acceptable is actually depends on how people define it. Many Ecofeminism actually so far has do the concept of liberal feminist work such as keep intact oppressive and patriarchal ways of conceptualizing nature (Roach 1991). For an example, they actually focus work on problematic human- nature that global facing now. For liberal mode, environmental problem is one of the aspects of the degradation of natural resources which the issue are should blame on the lack of regulation of pesticides and other environmental problem. This issue can be mitigating with social production that is environmentally voice. To overcome this issue, combination of science, conservation and law is the best. Opportunity to women should open widely so that this gender can be conservator, lawyer and so on, like men. To change women profession in more professional work as discuss above, it is not the way that can decrease the environmental problem that the world facing right now. As the answer to the view that associated women and nature, these actually were devalued in Western country especially in United Kingdom which the Ecofeminist group with a radical are being analyzed the environmental problem with their critique and idea of patriarchy which could liberate both women and nature (Merchant 1990). So, the argument that always been said is that women are restricted by being closer of nature because their ability to bear children. In fact for the reality, women are actually are already gifted for feminine traits to become close to nature and earth. Critiques of Ecofeminism There are few feminist scholars such as Cecile Jackson (1993), Janet Biehl (1991), Meera Nanda (1991) and Bina Agarwal (1992) have voice out that Ecofeminist perspective which is ethnocentric, essentialist, blind to class, ethnicity and other differentiating cleavages, a historical and neglects the material sphere (Jackson 1993). The existing of Ecofeminist are results as historical exploitation and domination of women and nature as goes by which are seen as victims of development. If any harm to nature, it actually harm to women equally which is act as self-evident to certain Ecofeminist, since the women are close to nature compared to men. None of the claim or argument is link to both of those statements (women and nature). This claim is looking so personal observation and takes its position as self-evident. It actually looks as the maximization to the women and nature in ideology which neglecting the others such as the economic advantage and political power as well as the gender of labor and opportunity (Agarwal 1992). The view of women are become stereotype which men are expect women to become such as caring and nurturing without thought as a full range of women abilities to do other thing (Biehl 1992). Ecofeminist such as Susan Prentice (1998) argue about the combination of women with nature and politics imply that what men are do to earth is destroying or bad compare to women which nurturing to earth. This statement was argued which ignoring that men can also develop to care of nature. This argument actually is going beyond the radical which put Ecofemenism forward a critique that focusing on the relationship between production and reproduction and between ecology (Merchant 1992). Basically, women also provide knowledge of nature which helps in sustain life. The development of Ecofeminism was disrupted because of intervention and capitalist development in society. This which results men are concurred in production of exchange commodities in capitalist system economy while women are more in domestic sphere which specific work-force and social relations. In capitalist system, it actually focuses more on production which sustainability are being neglect. For socialism it focus more on production which to satisfy people need not greed. Based on Ecofeminism view, the socialist ecology should focus more on reproduction and nature rather that focus on production. But it does not happen because they homogenize the category of women. This is because they hardly to see women in other view basics in-term as caste, class, race and ethnicity. Because of this limitation Ecofeminists make effort to join and work together with the socialist framework Implication of Ecofeminist ethics for women. It is fact that females actually give socialized in certain way to achieve and maintain the appropriate system, that it also have been true that socialization aspects which must examined before they can be reclaimed and consider useful (Cuomo 1992).It actually not surprisingly by which the famous claim and argument that mentioned women are Ecofeminism compared to men throughout their behavior are much more closely to nature. The argument of this claim actually can tell that it reinforces the patriarchal ideology of the domination and limit Ecofeminisms own effectiveness which the results noted as the biology actually determine the social inequalities between men and women (Cuomo 1992). Based on the implication that has been studied, it belief that, women are actually very connected to nature with their feminine trait to preserving the environment in order to save the earth from being degraded. Men are actually cannot as feminine as women because the trait are reserve for them which w hy men cannot be expected to participate in the restoration of any environmental projects. This is because; men actually are lack of sensitivity sense to nature that women have it. Therefore, women actually are respectfully to in charge of cleaning up the global problem especially in environment sense as to full fill that they already been done such as nurturing mother. In the nutshell, the implications of Ecofeminst ethics are should appear to women not for men. If one believe that women have all the traits to preserving nature, so it qualifies to save the earth compared to men in a way to doing restoration projects since men gender are less sensitivity to nature. In the nutshell, women therefore can be leader in preserving earth as to full their biological traits which is nurturing mothers. For the conclusion, it actually difficult appears to be emancipator for women. Conclusion Understanding about humanity concept in this world and reality life actually can be build up based on the effort to comprehend those men-women into humanity-nature concept. The account of Ecofeminist that are actually separate both men-women are lead to the exploitation of women which this gender are more likely to viewed as closer to nature compared to men. The perspective of the Ecofeminist and Environmental ethics actually lead to the sense of interdependence of all individual and also human-nature. Interconnection between women and nature of dominant traits actually lead to show the Ecofeminism are mutually supporting each other, the conceptually are linked and the explicit of the acknowledgement of both is vital to any responsible to environmental ethics. The Ecofeminist philosophy actually not mainly focuses on one section that is understand of women characterization but also understanding of liberate women with nature in order to prevent it from the structure of oppression. It has been prove that women actually are very feminine with the nature through their biological behavior. Although it has historical oppression about woman, the Ecofeminism seem agree that trait in women genetic such as caring and nurturing their kid or baby should be include in environmental ethics.

History Of Swimming :: essays research papers

Swimming Swimming is the act of moving through the water by using the arms, legs, and body in motions called strokes. The most common strokes are the crawl, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and sidestroke. Some scientists believe that human beings are born with an instinctive ability to use their arms and legs to stay afloat. That instinct, however, disappears within a few months after birth. Later in life many children and adults learn to swim in order to be safe around the water, to have fun, and to participate in competition. Most people learn to swim by imitating others, most often their parents, brothers, sisters, and friends. Most youngsters in also take lessons at swim clubs, community centers, schools, and recreational facilities. In addition, the American Swim Coaches Association (ASCA) and the American Red Cross sponsor programs that teach children about water safety. Instructors teach students skills that will make them safe, efficient, and confident swimmers. Beginners first put their heads in the water and blow bubbles by exhaling. Gradually, students progress to floating, treading water, and ultimately, learning the techniques of the major strokes. Individuals should not swim in conditions that their ability and experience will not allow them to handle. For inexperienced recreational swimmers, many safety hazards exist, even in a pool. These hazards include misjudging a dive and hitting one's head on the bottom, holding one's breath too long, becoming exhausted, and experiencing sudden cramps while too far from shore or other swimmers. The history of swimming dates back thousands of years. One of the earliest representations of swimming is an ancient Egyptian wall relief that shows soldiers of Pharaoh Ramses II. Swimming was very important in ancient Greece and Rome, especially as a form of training for warriors. In Japan, competitions were held as early as the 1st century BC. In Europe, swimming was less popular during the Middle Ages, swimming didn’t pick up until the 19th century. In the late 19th century amateur swimming clubs began conducting competitions in the United States and Britain. In the United States, colleges and universities such as Yale University, Indiana University, and the University of Southern California played an important role in spreading interest in swimming as a competitive sport. In 1875 Matthew Webb of Great Britain became the first person to swim across the English Channel.

To Falsify or not to Falsify :: Science Scientific Essays

To Falsify or not to Falsify Consider for a moment the views of Hellenic and Hellenistic science. Hellenic science was a science of the big picture. Science which often overlooked small details. Hellenistic science, on the other hand, was much more mathematical and precise. The shift from Hellenic to Hellenistic science was nothing more than a change of perspective in science. Right or wrong aside, scientist's perspectives changed and along with it what was allowed to be scientific. To quote Khun, "What is it that transforms an apparently temporary discrepancy into an inescapable conflict. How can an conceptual scheme that one generation admiringly describes as subtle, flexible, and complex, become for a later generation merely obscure, ambiguous, and cumbersome?"(Khun 76) Whether we like it or not, science is subjective. There are certain universal standards of science that all fields must follow, such as the empirical method, but among the different scientific fields science changes. What works in one field may not work in another. Sir Karl Popper claims "The criterion of the scientific status of a theory is its falsifiability."(Popper23). He then states "Induction, i.e. inference based on many observations, is a myth" (Popper25). This produces problems for certain fields of science.. His theory accounts for the "hard sciences", chemistry, physics and astronomy, but not for the "soft sciences". These soft sciences deal with different set of limitations and problems. Many so called "pseudo-sciences" deal with people, not constant non-sentient bodies. In these sciences, the variables are limitless and the best predictions scientists can produce are probabilities. So what about other sciences such as psychology, sociology, meteorology, and medicine? There are numerous fields of science that deal with probability and correlation's, which are part of the inductive method of science. What's there to say to these fields? For these sciences induction must remain valid when deduction is not possible. In the "hard sciences", such as chemistry, physics, and astronomy, deduction is applicable to the validity of a theory, and therefore deduction can be used to accurately falsify a theory. The soft sciences require induction for theory verification as well as deduction. Since I am a psychology major, I will use psychology and sociology to refute Poppers claims of falsifiability. The examples that I give are done with the scientific method. When necessary, random samples are used and confounding variables are negated. These studies were done within scientific guidelines.

Decision In Paradise Essay example -- decision paradise Business

Decisions in Paradise As stated in Decisions in Paradise I, Kava has struggled with many obstacles that have prevented this country from becoming a beautiful and a well- known paradise attraction. At this portion of the project, AJA Consulting Firm would like to continue our vision by establishing a greater presence in Kava. Critical thinking is an important part of the decision making process which is essential to ensure decisions are well thought out and possibly prevent individuals from making bad decisions or mistakes that could be costly and in some instances, deadly. No matter what kind of decision an individual makes critical thinking is a very useful tool. Our proposal will display critical thinking skills learned and present a portion of the nine step decision- making techniques to find possible solutions to those problems and how those solutions could affect the island of Kava. At this time, the stakeholders need information to make a sound judgment concerning the project. Several tools are available to gather statistics that will assist stakeholders in determining if the project risks are worth the investment. To start, an individual would need to know who the stakeholders are. A stakeholder may be defined as an individual who perceives themselves as someone having an interest in the actions of the organization such as customers, shareholders, employees, or members of a community. By identifying the stakeholders, the project planners can study the individual or group concerns through a stakeholder analysis. De Kluyver and Pearce state that a stakeholder analysis is "the process of identifying and prioritizing key stakeholders, assessing their needs and concerns, and incorporating their ide... ...king a problem through. The individual will have self gratification knowing that a decision was not made in haste and to know that all angles and possible avenues have been explored from understanding what point he is trying to convey. Learning to think critically can help an individual avoid buying into fallacies and limited thinking. When one applies critical thinking to the decision making process, one is less likely to end up making a poor decision. References De Kluyver, C., Pearce, J. (2006) What is strategy. Strategy: A View from the Top (An Executive Perspective) (pp. 1-14). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2006). Critical Thinking: Tools for Taking Charge of Your Learning and Your Life (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

René Descartes Essay

Philosophy begins as an art of wondering. This art of wondering, leads man into asking a number of questions about himself and the world around him. Variations in philosophical thoughts as result questions posed by man, help in modification of philosophy. The purpose of this essay therefore, is to do a comparative analysis of Sophie’s World by Josteen Gaarder with three philosophical texts: George Berkeley’s Treatise on Human Knowledge, John Locke’s Essay on Human Understanding and Rene Descartes’ Passions of the Soul. We shall also show the roles of authors and texts in Philosophy. TREATISE ON HUMAN KNOWLEDGE VERSUS SOPHIE’S WORLD One of the outstanding efforts of Berkeley in this work was to show that the world exists as it does because of the ideas perceived by the mind of God and as such, existence of things depends on their perception through the senses. Likewise in Sophie’s World, Aristotle through his belief showed a similarity with Berkeley’s stance in this text Treatise of Human Understanding. For Aristotle, highest degree of reality is what we perceive with our senses. Berkeley also said that existence is the state of being perceived by a perceiver, but on the contrary, Descartes in Sophie’s World believed that he exists because he thinks. It furthermore means that his existence depends on his ability to think. He used such words like cogito ergo sum (latin) and je pense, donc je suis (French) all meaning `I think therefore I am` to illuminate his thesis on this. Plato while stressing the sovereignty of reason in Sophie’s World said that the reason can only give us the true reality of things and as such contradicted the empiricist approach of Berkeley. ESSAY ON HUMAN UNDERSTANDING VERSUS SOPHIE’S WORLD John Locke illuminated in this work that idea is derived from experience of sensation or reflection, just like it reflected in Sophie’s World in which his fellow empiricists likewise stressed the inevitability of experience as the source of true knowledge. David Hume in particular established that man has two types of perceptions, namely: impressions and ideas. By `impressions` he means the external sensations of reality. By `ideas` he means the recollections of such impressions. Aristotle the trail blazer of empiricism, in alignment with the empiricists believed our reason to be completely empty until we have sensed something. John Locke in this book made an attempt to refute the notion of `innate ideas` by proving that it does not exist, whereas in Sophie’s World, philosopher like Plato believed in an innate idea, an external world of ideas outside of the natural world. Descartes even believed that the idea of God is innate. PASSIONS OF THE SOUL VERSUS SOPHIE’S WORLD Descartes defined passions of the soul as a mental state or thought that arises as a direct result of brain activity and such passions can move us to action. He also suggested that one needs to learn to control one’s passions, for they can move one to perform vicious acts. Benedict Spinosa in Sophie’s World, suggested that we must free ourselves from our feelings and passions only then shall we find happiness. Conversely, also in Sophie’s World, the Epicureans through the teachings of Aristippus believed that the aim of life is to attain the highest possible pleasure or passions and by so doing, they contradict Descartes belief. AN EYE ON THE ROLES OF AUTHORS AND TEXTS IN PHILOSOPHY Authors in philosophy play incredible roles in modification of philosophy through their texts. There various attempts to answer the underlying questions of nature and man have led to the developments of dialectical methods like thesis, antithesis and synthesis used in philosophy today. An eye on the three authors and philosophers: Descartes, Berkeley and Locke whose works where compared with Sophie’s World above showed the vital role they played in philosophy. While Descartes was a rationalist, Berkeley and Locke were empiricists, but through their texts, they contributed in `epistemology` or theory of knowledge. CONCLUSION Having done these comparisons, we can see the successful deduction of similarities and differences between the Sophie’s World and three aforementioned philosophical texts. I attest that Sophie’s World is necessary philosophical paraphernalia needed by a neophyte in Philosophy as seen from its versatility in the course of this comparison done, and also how it covered aspects of history of Philosophy in such a sublime manner. POPE JOHN PAUL II MAJOR SEMINARY OKPUNO, AWKA NAME: UMENABA BENJAMIN C COURSE: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY COURSE CODE: PHIL 101 REG NO: PJPS/NAU/013/O69 LECTURER: REV. FR DR. AUGUSTINE OBUROTA TOPIC: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF SOPHIE’S WORLD WITH THREE PHILOSOPHY TEXTS WITH AN EYE ON ROLES OF AUTHORS AND TEXTS IN PHILOSOPHY DATE: 28TH NOVEMBER, 2012 OUTLINES INTRODUCTION TREATISE ON HUMAN KNOWLEDGE VERSUS SOPHIE’S WORLD ESSAY ON HUMAN UNDERSTANDING VERSUS SOPHIE’S WORLD PASSIONS OF THE SOUL VERSUS SOPHIE’S WORLD AN EYE ON THE ROLES OF AUTHORS AND TEXTS IN PHILOSOPHY CONCLUSION.