The changes and continuities in political Essay Example for Free

The changes and continuities in political Essay The Roman Empires imperial bureaucracy, economy, and governing instructions were left to Byzantium at the end of its reign. Although Europe didnt have very extensive unity or political order, the Byzantine policies brought Europe to a state of economical and political order, with a big area for trade and interaction, and cultural unity. Only Byzantium survived the declining population, outside military threats, economic contradiction, epidemic disease, and political trouble after the fall of Rome. The rulers of the Byzantine empires were sporadically increasing their borders, and The Constantine came to be ruler, he had a big part in supporting Christianity and ecclesiastical affairs. And once rule switched over to Justinian, he influenced the codification or Roman Law, and because of his code, most of Europes laws were influenced by Roman law. The Slavic peoples also benefited from being able to shift over into the Byzantine Empire when the Byzantine military resources were sent over to the Western Mediterranean by Justinian. Before the 8th century Bulgaria and Byzantine had taken part in cultural, political, and commercial affairs. Starting around the 5th century and leading up to the 12th, economical prosperity and political stability was brought to Eastern Europe by the Byzantine empire. Cultural and commercial exchanges were also supported in the post-classical world, which would help shape the development of the commonwealth in Eastern Europe. The political leaders also set up a sequence of independent states while enduring economical and political reform in western Europe, and supported their society. So, generally speaking, all of the different societies that were established under Byzantiums economic, political, and cultural influences from 476 to 1450 still changes some of the countries from today.

Pakistan Elections Essay Example for Free

Pakistan Elections Essay Whilst the tenure of a democratically elected government comes to an end, political parties in Pakistan are gearing up for elections. Almost all significant parties have ruled the country one way or the other during the past five years. Perhaps, Elections 2013 are going to take place at the most critical time in the history of country. On the verge of selling their story to the public, the anti-status quo parties will have to produce a revolutionary and out of the box solutions to people’s problems, or to befool the masses yet once more. The energetic and aggressive media in its present capacity remains a major factor to influence minds. Still there is a big question mark on whether media can play their role positively and constructively. At the moment, media is the only institution which has the power to make or break the future of the country. Now when elections are just around the corner, any possible equation hinting at the postponement of elections is out of questions. Several attempts have been made and number of rumors has been floating but recent developments suggest that any such effort to derail the electoral system will not be supported by establishment. It is believed that three major factors will decide the outcome of the upcoming elections. First and foremost is an international issue, i.e. withdrawal of US and ISAF troops from Afghanistan. Three major parties (PPP, PML (N) and PTI) are on a serious quest of convincing US officials that their leadership will be the right choice to handle Afghan borders when US withdraws their troops. Two other factors will be internal but international community is keeping a close eye on it, namely economy and energy crisis. These elections will be dominated by these issues and any party who can provide solution for these problems can ultimately dominate the election results. This is slightly an idealistic statement; given the electoral process in Pakistan has its own dynamics. Yet these issues will affect the outcome of these elections a great deal. Country’s economy is severely jolted by poor economic decisions and terrorism. IMF has already declined any further assistance on economic revival. Terrorism and mismanagement of resources have coupled to shatter the economy of the country. More alarmingly, next budget is to be prepared by care taker government which is not likely present a popular budget. They will also be hesitant of making any tough decisions with little mandate. Looking for a next installment in terrorism support fund or Kerry-Lugar package will be the ultimate desire as the care taker government will not be in a position to bargain for a bail-out package from the international community. No political party has been able to assure USA that they have the most viable strategy to facilitate US exit from Afghanistan, establish peace in the region, resolution to the border issues with Afghanistan India and controlling the growing militancy in the country. Other issues that will be of immense importance for next government include controlling the law and order situation in Karachi, de-weaponizat ion in the country, establishing the writ of state in Balochistan and FATA, a cohesive national agenda, new provinces, minimizing corruption, land reforms, farmer-friendly agricultural policy and importantly for a common man; the inflation. It will be little unfair not to discuss Tahir-ul-Qadri factor for electoral reform in these elections. Regardless of what TUQ achieved with this entire exercise, it is imperative that he certainly had an impact on pushing election commission for strict electoral reforms. All of a sudden, election commission approved rules of qualification for contesting elections and party elections etc. This is more for self-survival than for any sincere efforts for transparent elections. Elections in Pakistan have their own dynamics. This is why parties enchanting slogans of change have to get the ‘electable’ candidates in each constituency. Not only PML(N) has to embrace the once Musharraf’s supporters and PPP has to break into PML(N) and PML(Q) but a party like PTI also had to get the feudal lords, Musharraf’s supporters and infamous politicians. Fortunately for the people and unfortunately for the political parties, there has been significant awareness about electing the right candidate regardless of any party, race, prejudice, cast or other factors. In this tricky scenario, parties are trying to portray themselves as righteous and honorable entities; at the same time, they are playing their cards on the other front very effectively, i.e. dirty politics! Thanks largely to vibrant electronic and print media in Pakistan. Next few weeks will give a clearer picture of which political party is going to utilize this opportunity. But one thing can be stated with conviction that these elections will be unlike all previous elections in Pakistan. As mentioned earlier, media have the most crucial role to play. These are no doubt the most crucial elections in Pakistan after 1970. These elections will decide Pakistan’s destiny in next few decades.

Effectiveness of Student Internship

Effectiveness of Student Internship Introduction. The purpose of this study is to describe an internship program targeted at adolescents and aimed at addressing the competences needed. This study involved three main stakeholders: scholars, educators and employers engaged in the internship program. The intent is to gain a better understanding of how each group works together to equip scholars with the relevant college and career readiness competences and meet employer competences needs. Examining the experiences of scholars, employers and educators engaged in internships will reveal how such programs can enhance college and career readiness among scholars and address employer competences needs. Developing a rich descriptions of the structure and organization of the program establish the context for the internship and provided insights into the challenges and opportunities of those engaged in the program. This proposal will use a qualitative case study method (Creswell, 2013, Yin, 2009, Merriam, 1998) to explore internships and to guide the data collection, analysis and the reporting of the study. Components addressed in this section will be: (a) research design; (b) data collection and analysis; (c) ethical considerations to ensure validity and trustworthiness of the study. Qualitative studies provide richness and holism to the analysis of the phenomenon under study (Miles Huberman, 1994) and since such studies occur in  natural settings, researchers can examine a phenomenon within its context. A qualitative method enables the researcher to understand the meaning and purpose that individuals ascribe to their activities, (Guba Lincoln, 1994) by finding out intangible factors and contextualizing the participants experiences. Also, qualitative research affords the researcher an opportunity to understand an issue or phenomenon that cannot be easily quantified (Creswell, 2013). A qualitative method is suited for exploring the phenomenon of internships within the context of the program which is geared towards equipping adolescents with industry-relevant competences and addressing employer competences needs. Conducting a case study on internships within the context of a local organization and examining this intersection of employers, scholars, and educator s will enabled the researcher gain a holistic understanding of their experiences. It will also allowed the researcher to delve into the complexities and subtleties of the phenomenon and provide an opportunity to explore policy, knowledge and practice as they relate to internship programs. Creswell (2009) defines qualitative research as, a means for exploring and understanding the meaning individuals or groups ascribe to a social or human problem. Qualitative research is further discussed by Merriam (2009), researchers are fascinated in understanding how people interpret their experiences, how they construct their worlds, meaning they attribute to their experiences. A qualitative case study method is determined to be the best method to get the information needed to answer the research question and sub-questions. Qualitative research allows the researcher to study participants in their natural setting in order to make sense of or to interpret a phenomena in terms of the meanings the p eople bring to them, (Denzin Lincoln, 2000). Audience Purposeful sampling will be to select the participants for this study. In purposeful sampling, the researcher selects individuals and a site to study because they can purposefully inform the understanding of the research problem and central phenomenon (Creswell, 2013). This study will be conducted as a single instrumental and embedded case study and focused on a high school internship programs in a local school district in a western part of North Carolina in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the United States during the 2016-2017 scholastic year. Several participants will be included in this study. The participants in the study will agree to take part on the condition that their identities would be protected. Thus, pseudonyms will be assigned to each of them to help maintain confidentiality. The following paragraphs will include the three units of analysis (the employer, the scholars and the educators) and provide a summarized biography of each participant. Three units of analysis will be examinded. Unit of Analysis 1: The scholars (teens) internship program within the organization. Unit of Analysis 2: Educators high school setting. Unit Analysis 3: Employers involved in the internship program. Examination of Philosophical Assumptions and Interpretive Frameworks. It is beneficial for consumers of research to understand the philosophical assumptions of the researcher in relation to reality (ontology) and the nature of knowledge (epistemology) and the values that underpin the research process (Merriam, 2009; Creswell, 2013; Glesne, 2010). Beliefs about the world and what reality is (ontology) are influenced by factors such as worldview which determine the kinds of questions why answers are sought. These factors determine what is being reality (Creswell, 2013; Glesne, 2011). My ontological belief is that reality is known through my participation with the  different participants in the internship program as each participant would present  multiple realities based on their views, experiences, worldviews, and contexts. Thus,  when studying individuals, it is considerable to understand that reality is subjective as seen through many views, and my intent as the researcher should be to report the multiple  views of participants as presented. Creswell (2013) explained that epistemological  beliefs help the researcher determine what counts as knowledge. This knowledge is  gained by getting close to the participants to understand their views and experiences. My epistemological stance required that I conduct my research in the participants  environments to gain a holistic understanding of internship and how the  participants contexts and experiences bore upon the phenomenon. By getting close to the participants and listening to them with an open mi nd, I understood their knowledge claims. My choice of research method enabled me to study an internship within the context of an organization to understand the experiences and  perceptions of the participants.   From an axiological standpoint, qualitative research is value laden as researchers bring their values and biases to bear on a study and how findings are interpreted (Creswell 2013; Glesne, 2011). Dahlberg, Drew and Nystrom (2001) thus encouraged researchers to adopt an open stance and be receptive to information about the phenomenon under study as it is presented as this allows researchers to see things in a new way. In view of that, my duty as a researcher required that I maintain an open stance and make myself available to what I was studying and be willing to listen and understand what I was being told with no judgment on my part. It is considerable that I suspended my assumptions and be open to learning from participants and not make any assumptions about what my participants knew or did. Through my extensive review and my experiences with the concept of internships, I will monitor my assumptions and biases and separate them from the data being presented by my participants. I had to be cognizant of how my previous knowledge about internships could influence my interpretation of the data. To prevent this from happening, I endeavored to jot down my feelings and perceptions about the information I received. Besides, gaining more insights into the phenomenon, adopting an open stance enabled me to identify dissenting views and report such evidence in this study, enriching the study with information that could be beneficial to the different stakeholders fascinated in internships. The social constructivist or interpretivist framework (Creswell 2013) guided the interpretation of the study. Through this viewpoint, I strove to co-construct the meaning of the world where the participants lived and worked. Given the varied factors that influence the success of internships, it is considerable to uncover the complexity of views that each of the participants held as their views would be informed by the context in which they worked, the resources available to them, and the cultural, economic and political environments in which participants found themselves. It is through my interaction with the participants I could explore and describe the role of internships in enhancing college and career readiness competences and to address employer competences needs. As a result, the knowledge I gained and my findings were co-created with my participants. Due to the value-laden nature of research, my  background and values could influence the interpretations I make throughout the   study. Thus, to ensure credibility and trustworthiness in my research, my values  and role as a researcher and what influenced my interest to this topic and research is  discussed in the next subsection. My Role as a Researcher My interest in internship programs for high school scholars stems from my readings and scholarly work as a graduate student that focused on workforce development and the need to address the competences gaps in the labor market. My interest is initially stimulated during my new position as a career development coordinator with Career and Technical Education. The notion of internship is personal as I raised in Parkton, North Carolina. In the educational system, attainment of a college degree is seen as the only path to success. However, the educational system and available resources privilege only a few scholars who are able to achieve a college degree. A large population of the scholars neither has a college degree nor gains any employable competences after high school. Although introducing technical vocational education and training systems allows for internship training in the secondary school system, there are minimal partnerships with core industries that can help scholars and drive the economy. Therefore, there is little realization of the economic that enjoys these programs since most of the training is for low impact industries resulting in low wages and with little interest to scholars. As compared to countries with well-established internship systems where public policy, education, industry and scholar interest are aligned to be nefit all stakeholders, these elements do not integrate well in a place like Parkton, NC. I hope that this research will shed better understanding of how such elements integrate and can be refined and adapted to meet different contexts. Most of the literature I reviewed showed a need to focus on high schools to attract scholars into internships. I realized through scholarly readings and experiences that the concept of internship had been an ongoing initiative in the United States for many years. However, with the push for college and higher education, the focus of training individuals to enter the labor market had shifted to formal schooling over the years. Despite the rise in formal schooling, changes in educational policies aimed towards a better educated workforce to meet the needs of the 21st century labor market do not show how the perpetual competences gap among labor market candidates can be fully addressed. This is evident from the concerns expressed by employers that a large proportion of American scholars graduating from high school enter the labor market with n o knowledge of relevant competences-scholastic, technical or career-related-to succeed (Stone Lewis, 2012). As stakeholders seek to address the problem of competences gaps, internship programs have re-emerged as a possible career pathway, despite their controversial implementations in the past which had resulted in varying degrees of success or failure. The problem with the internship system in the United States is that programs are arbitrary and discrete, with the averaging internship participant age about 27 years when they enter the programs. Also, many young adults stumble into internships to last resort, only to find out that those internships offered a stable and consistent career through the acquisition of industry-relevant competences. This topic is considerable because in the communities where I have lived, many kids were left behind when they failed to pursue the traditional scholastic route. I also believe such programs, when well thought out and coordinated, may offer a possible way out and a means to advancement in peoples lives. On a personal level, I enjoy the scholastic stimulation of engaging and sharing my ideas and research which can impact society. It is my belief that when supported with the right resources and vested stakeholders, internships can offer our young people a sense of purpose and meaning. They also provide several professional and personal benefits to those stakeholders who pursue them such as the organizations that sponsor and hire these Internships. Instruments Data Collection Procedures. In this study, the data will be collected primarily through interviews with participants and supplemented with observations and document review. Interviewing participants is an ideal and considerable tool since it allows the researcher to gain insights into the feelings and thoughts that are not readily observed and are usually the most considerable tool in qualitative research (Merriam, 2009; Patton, 2002). An interview protocol will be developed using semi-structured interviews to aid in organizing ideas and ensuring that vital questions were not missed. Individual, face- to- face interviews will be attempted and additional information will be gathered through emails and phone conversations. The participants will be interviewed at different times and in different locations. Data collection will involve a series of interrelated activities that adds depth and breadth to a study by producing the best answers needed to answer a research question (Creswell, 2013; Yin, 2009). In this study, the data will be collected primarily through interviews with participants and supplemented with observations and documents review. The interviews with the scholars will occur in their school instead of the worksite. With the consent of the principal and the scholars, the interviews with the interns will be scheduled during school period when they had elective classes such as aiding or study competences to not interfere with their core courses. The interview questions to the scholars will focus on their experiences as interns, lessons learned and their plans in relation to the program. The internships will provide insight into their perceptions of the program and the benefits and challenges involved. Interviews with the educators will be conduct at their respective schools and in the district coordinators office. The interview questions that will be posed to the educators will provide insights into the challenges and opportunities of the partnership program with the employer organization. Interviews with participants from the employer group will be conducted within the organization. Interview questions will focus on the reasons for starting the program, their experiences, challenges and opportunities in developing and implementing the program and overall goals of the program. At the beginning of each interview, I will explain the purpose of the study and the interview, reiterated how long the interviews will take and explained to participants their rights. The interviews will be structured to last only one hour. Creswell, 2013 suggested that a researcher use open ended, general and focused questions that are aimed at understanding the central phenomenon of a study. Most of the interview questions will be open-ended to generate rich information from participants. Probing statements and questions such as Tell me more, Can you explain further? or You had mentioned that and Can you elaborate on that? will be used elicit further information or clarify points made by participants. Each of the interviews will be recorded, transcribed and stored on a password-protected computer and an external hard drive. Creswell (2013) noted that the use of multiple sources of data is helpful in providing corroborative evidence for validating the accuracy of a study. Additional data will be collected through observations that I will conduct at the organization while the interns are at work. Data from observations typically include activities, actions and behaviors, while data from documents can include records, correspondence and official publications, photographs and other physical artifacts (Patton, 2002). During this time, I will observe activities, behavior and other observable experiences among the participants as they performed their daily routines. In addition, documents such as training manuals, internships handbooks and other materials will be analyzed to uncover more insights that would supplement interview data. I will also use field notes and journals to record insights and feelings useful in helping me understand and interpret my findings. An considerable part of the data collection process will involve developing a timeline so that the process would run smoothly. Due to the participants schedules, data will be collected over a three-month period. After identifying gatekeepers at the research site, I will meet with each of them to explain the purpose of the study and sought their approval to use their organizations as study sites. Once approval from the local school district has been received, letters of consent will be sent to each of the participants. Parental consent will be sought from parents of the scholars who are under 18 years of age. The signed letters of consent will be collected prior to the interviews. Due to the emergent design of a qualitative study, I will to remain flexible and adaptable to changing the method. Sales and Folkman (2000) explained that flexibility and tolerance are considerable attributes at the planning stage; therefore, when researchers are inflexibly wedded to a particular design that can hinder them from designing a plan that is scientifically and ethically sound, it can cause major ethical violations as researchers. This principle of flexibility was applied when adjustments were needed to accommodate the schedules of participants and when the inclusion of other participants was suggested. Once the interviews are completed, the data will be transcribed and folders will be created for each of the participants and labelled. A contact summary form will reflect on each interview and summarize the key points and trends identified in a particular interview. The next step in the analysis process will involve a review of the data to get a sense of it. This will enable the researcher to review pertinent information and to understand how each participants answers provided information to the research question. The data will then describe and be interpreted by forming categories that best represented the data. Creswell (2013) noted that this critical phase involves building detailed descriptions by describing what is seen and interpreting the data in light of the views or the perspectives in the literature. The next step involved coding the data by condensing the text and providing codes based on evidence from the database, a process that required appropriately describing the information collected. After identifying the themes in the data, the next step involved interpreting the data by abstracting the codes and themes to the larger meaning of the data (Creswell, 2013). Throughout the interpretation process, meanings will be attributed to the themes by grouping the information and relating those groups to the study questions and linking them to literature. Research Design. Case studies are appropriate when one is studying a contemporary, real life situation bounded in time and location (Creswell, 2013; Yin 2009). Yin (2009) noted that a case study design permits the researcher to interview the participants of the phenomenon under study (in this case, the internship programs) and observe first-hand the participants as involved in the study. Case studies involve rich, contextual descriptions that allow the researchers to study internal and external factors that influence a phenomenon. Although case studies are typically not generalizable, the value of case studies is that they provide a deeper and richer understanding of a phenomenon, suggest complexities for further investigations or refine theory, and help to establish the limits of generalizability (Yin, 2009). When done well, the case study can provide a vicarious experience that can support and action for a phenomenon (Creswell, 2013; Yin, 2009). By using a case study method, the ho pe is that this study will provide detailed information on how internships can be developed and advanced as a pedagogical method that enhance the competences needed by adolescents as they transition into adulthood and meet employer competences needs. Single Case Study. Multiple case studies are deemed preferable to single case studies because comparison from other examples provides valuable knowledge to the audience and are perceived to be more rigorous. However, Yin (2009) affirmed that a single case study is an appropriate design when the aim of the researcher is to describe an unusual case that deviates from everyday occurrences as the findings may reveal insights about a process or a program and provide value for large number of people beyond those impacted by the particular case. Yin (2009) explained that focusing on a single case offers readers and the researcher the opportunity to draw out the uniqueness of the case by providing a comprehensive understanding of all stakeholders impacted by the phenomenon. Regarding the current study, the study of a single internship program enabled the researcher to uncover the complexities of the program and understand how each of the stakeholders contributed to the goals of the study. In a similar vein, Stake (2000) alleged that when researchers focus on comparisons of multiple cases, uniqueness and complexities can be glossed over, because when readers are presented with other cases to compare with, they often focus on one case as readers and rarely learn much from other compared cases Yin (2009) suggested that subunits can be incorporated into the unit of analysis to create an embedded single case study design or to enhance the rigor of a single case study design. Thus, in the current study, the internship program within the using organization was identified as the unit of analysis. Embedded within the case was the taking part high school scholars and the district educational personnel. Although an embedded design adds richness and rigor, it is no t without pitfalls. Yin (2009) noted that to ensure an embedded designs trustworthiness, the researcher will need to tie the results of each of the subunits to the larger unit of analysis so the original phenomenon of interest (in this case, the internship program) remains the target of the study. Data Analysis. Qualitative studies produce volumes of data and to avoid getting lost in a sea of data, the data collection and data analysis process should be interwoven. This helps the researchers in managing the data and provides opportunities to identify gaps in their data collection (Creswell, 2012; Merriam, 2009). Once the interviews are completed, the data will be transcribed and folders for each of the participants created and labeled. A contact summary form will be used to reflect and summarize the key points and trends identified in a particular interview. The next step in the analysis process will involve a review of the data to get a sense of them. Yin (2009) referred to this process as playing with your data. The goal here is to immerse myself in the data to understand what was going on before proceeding to the next steps. This will enabled me to review pertinent information and to understand how each participants answers provided information to the research question. Aft er exploring the database to get a grasp on the data, I will inscribe and interprete the data by forming categories that best represented the data. Creswell (2013) noted that this critical phase involves building detailed descriptions by describing what is seen and interpreting the data in light of the views or the perspectives in the literature. The next step will involve coding the data by condensing the text and providing codes based on evidence from the data. Coding is an essential step in the analysis as it helps the researcher identify the major themes in the data and allows the emergent nature of qualitative research to evolve (Creswell, 2013; Yin, 2009). During this process, I will choose codes that appropriately described the information gleaned. After identifying the themes in the data, the next step involved interpreting the data by abstracting the codes and themes to the larger meaning of the data (Creswell, 2013). Throughout the interpretation process, I will attribute meanings to the themes by grouping the information and relating those groups to the study questions and linking them to literature. The tentative findings will be discussed with chair. The findings will then be further refined, and a draft report will be sent to the chair for their review and feedback. The data will then be presented in a table format to illustrate the different levels of abstraction (Creswell, 2013) and to outline how I arrived at the conclusion and results of the interpretation. The final report of the case study will then be included in a detailed description of the internship program and its context. Providing a history of the program will help to organize the data and provide the reader with a context within which the research study was conducted. It concluded with a description of the experiences of the stakeholders (employer, scholars and educators) and how those experiences influenced the implementation and operation of the program. Miles and Huberman (1994) noted that using interpretive and material sources in qualitative research makes the world visible to readers by turning the world i nto a series of representations including field notes, interviews and memorandums to self. Interviewed participants will tell their personal stories and will be encouraged to explain the actions and activities that occurred as the program evolved. Many of the findings will be told through the voices of the participants. Thus, direct quotes from the participants will be incorporated into the final report to reflect their voices. Methods for Verifications (Ethical Considerations). This section outlines steps that will be taken to ensure the trustworthiness and credibility of the study. Once the case was identified, I will connect with gatekeepers of the organizations involved to explain the purpose of the study and to gain access to the participants for the study. Prior to collecting data, approval was sought from Gardner Webb University. Approval will also be sought from the educational district office since the study included scholars from the district who are considered a protected group. To gain approval to begin the study, I will develope a consent form for participants and an assent form for the parents of internships under the age of 18. The form will describe the purpose of the study, its benefits to the participants, how much time would be spent collecting data and how the findings would be used. Participants will be notified of their rights to end their involvement in the study and measures that wou ld be taken to ensure confidentiality and anonymity. Due to my obligation as a researcher to protect the anonymity of participants, pseudonyms will be used. To gain an in-depth understanding of internships, their structure and organizations and the experiences of those living the phenomenon, it is considerable to spend a substantial amount of time in the field interviewing and observing the participants. While this is a necessary step, I have to be respectful of the participants time and make sure our meetings or interactions are completed at their convenience so as not to disrupt their lives. The prolonged engagement in the field was necessary to build trust with the study participants and to understand the nuances of the phenomenon. It helped me to identify issues salient to the study. To corroborate the findings and to ensure that researchers gains comprehensive  information, Yin (2009) advised that researchers use diverse data gathering tools such as interview, observations, archival records and physical evidence where available. The process of triangulation is an ethical expectation that enables the researcher to illuminate a theme or perspective while ensuring the rigor and validity of the study (Creswell, 2013). Since the dissertation process is a solo process, it is considerable that I have debriefings and review sessions with my dissertation chair and peers who  could provide an aim perspective and reveal any blind spots by asking me questions  about my conclusions and assumptions. I will schedule meetings with my chair to provide him progress updates and to seek feedback from him.   Data collected will be stored on a password-protected computer and on an external hard drive. To maintain confidentiality, I will ensured that the information received from interviews is not shared with others without the consent of the participants. Although this kind of research posed no considerable risk to participants due to my questions and the characteristics of participants, I realized that no research study is void of risks, and thus, it is considerable to respect the research sites. Also, the participants time is respected to not inconvenience stakeholders. Once the major themes were developed in the analysis phase, the information is shared with participants to judge if I had ascribed the correct meanings to the data and if there are any discrepancies in interpreting the data. This member checking process was vital in determining the credibility of the research study (Creswell, 2013). To impact the targeted audience and to allow them to draw conclusions from the study, the final report includes rich descriptions of the participants and the contexts of the study (Stake, 2000) and direct quotes from the participants which provided a rich, vicarious experience to the target audience. Limitations This case study provids an in-depth description of one internship program. The study focused on one program could be perceived as a limitation. Although the findings may apply to other organizations, generalizations of the findings to other contexts such as an established program or another industry may have severe limitations. A comparative case would provide additional insights and boost the findings of the study. Summary The researcher of this study adopted a qualitative method to describe a school-industry partnership that offered internship training to scholars. In the following chapter, the results will be presented using thick, rich descriptions. The findings illuminate practices that enhance internship programs and provide an understanding of the opportunities and challenges faced by stakeholders.

Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction Essay -- Aesthetic Attitude

Visit any major museum of art, at any given time, and one could find an abundance of monumental names listed on tiny plaques hanging next to even more recognizable works of art. The excitement felt by any art enthusiast when walking into these buildings of time and creation, is undeniable and especially unique. Could it be the atmosphere of the building, the presence of artwork, the people, possibly the grandeur of the space, or perhaps, could it be the spirit of the artists themselves, peering through the work they created? As onlookers peer into the artworks in front of them, there is no question as to whether or not they considered what the artwork means, where it came from and what the artist was interested in who created it. The intrigued viewer quite possibly could also want to have a conversation with that artist and ask them questions about the artwork and what it was that they were thinking about when producing it, with a goal of better understanding what they were looking at. As the viewer and after serious contemplation, would you believe you understood the artwork as the artist or artist’s society believed the work? Could you appreciate the work the same? Walter Benjamin, a well known German-Jewish Marxist literary and cultural critic, philosopher, translator and essayist introduced ideas and questions similar to these in his epic essay, â€Å"The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.† He wrote about many different ideas concerning the concept of art, writing, po litics and society. Benjamin was born in Berlin on July 15, 1892. He worked and lived in Germany for the majority of his life. He earned a Ph. D in 1919, but never held an academic career (egs.edu, 2009). â€Å"He dedicated his life’s work to writ... ... 41-46. Ebscohost. Web. 12 Nov. 2009 Luehrman M., Unrath K. â€Å"Bringing Children to Art- Bringing Art to Children.† Art Education. Jan. 2009: 41-47. Print. Peim, Nick. â€Å"Walter Benjamin in the Age of Digital Reproduction: Aura in Education: A Rereading of ‘The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.’† Journal of Philosophy of Education 41.3 (2007): 363-380. Wilson Web. Web. 2 Nov. 2009. Stolnitz, Jerome. â€Å"One The Apparent Demise of Really High Art.† The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 43.4 (1985): 345-358. Wilson Web. Web. 15 Oct. 2009. Stolnitz, Jerome. â€Å"The Aesthetic Attitude’ in the Rise of Modern Aesthetics.†Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 36.4 (1978): 409-422. Wilson Web. Web. 15 Oct. 2009. Townsend, Chris. â€Å"Knowledge as Spectacle.† Art Monthly 322 (Dec.2008/Jan.2009): 11- 14. Wilson Web. Web. 15 Oct. 2009.

Childhood Perspectives in Jane Eyre and Hideous Kinky Essay -- Jane Ey

Childhood Perspectives in Jane Eyre and Hideous Kinky Charlotte Bronte was born in 1816 in Hamworth in Yorkshire. Her father was the vicar of the village she lived in. Her mother died when she was very young. With her two sisters, Maria and Elizabeth she was sent to a very strict boarding school where she was very unhappy. Both her sisters died of tuberculosis, which made her very upset. Jane Eyre was based on Charlotte Bronte's own experience and is a fictional autobiography. Esther Freud was born in London in 1963 almost 150 years after Charlotte Bronte. She spent most of her childhood in Sussex, she was taken to Morocco when she was very young but says she can't remember. Hideous Kinky was published in 1992, although it's not an autobiography its base on her childhood experiences in Morocco. Jane Eyre is set in the middle of the Victorian period where children had no rights and social class was everything. As the book goes on we see Jane grow from a rebellious and boisterous young girl to a sensible and determined woman. We see Jane move from place to place meeting and losing people. Although we do see Jane growing into a young woman we are only concentrating on the first 10 chapters in which we follow her childhood. Hideous Kinky is set in the 1960's, in Morocco .The book gives a view of life on the road to Morocco is put across through the eyes of a sincere but often distracted hippie's five year-old daughter. As the small family seeks food, shelter and friendship wherever they can and their adventures unfurl, there grows between them a strange yet unshakeable bond. The contrast between the historical and social period in which the two books are set is stark, particularly with regard to th... ...y. In the evening, Jane speaks to Helen, she asks her why she puts up with Miss Scatchared's bullying and she explains the principles of endurance, duty and self-sacrifice to Jane, as based on the New Testament Gospels. A lot of the first few chapters when Jane starts Lowood consist of the converse between Helen and Jane. Though this dialogue covers some complex theological ground, it is nonetheless quite naturalistic and provides us with a deep insight into Helen's character. Helen offers one solution to Jane's problem - the need to quell her passionate nature and Jane does learn from her, as we begin to see in the following chapters. But Helen's faith is also essentially inward - looking, as indicated by her tendency to slip into reverie, and potentially death - willing; she looks forward to death as an elevation, 'I live in calm, looking to the end'.

A Taste of American Pie :: Ethnicity Mexican American Essays

A Taste of American Pie Sunday morning. The smell of flour tortillas warming on the kitchen stove would waft all the way to my room. I could hear the radio play scratchy ranchera tunes to which my mother always seemed to know the words. If I lay long enough in bed, my mother would walk in the room and try to wake me up, resorting to singing my name or an old Spanish nursery rhyme if all else failed. Ask me where home is, and I'll tell you just this. This is home. This is me. All I've ever known is Mexican culture. Both of my parents were born in Mexico, and I myself have never lived more than a few hours from the border. I've never known a Christmas without tamales or a September 16 th without celebration. But I am not just Mexican. I am Mexican-American. MÃ ©xico may be home, but America is where I live. I find here in college that I am just beginning to learn what it means to be American. I used to think that I would find that meaning through a sort of duality; anything that was n't Mexican or part of the minority would have to be American. Ironically, the idea of "Americanness" was closer to home. I've come to realize that to be American is to know and share myself. America is a conglomerate of many cultures. As such, it possesses no single, distinct culture. There is no one overarching "American" culture that is independent of all those that make it up. The supposed "melting pot" of peoples is not exactly an accurate portrayal of America. This nation is dotted with cultural enclaves that nurture their own customs and traditions rather than fuse them with others. I, for one, would not give up my Mexican identity to become simply American. I am sure that many would agree that we are all more than American. Each culture, therefore, remains fundamentally unique, never really "melting" into another. To call yourself "American" is to recognize that you are a small, albeit integral, part of a greater phenomenon.

Symbolism in Flannery O’Connor’s “Revelation”

Flannery O’Connor belongs to the school of writing called American Southern Gothic. Her fiction revolves around people from the South and the volatile relationships fermenting in their society. The significance of being a writer from the American South has something to do with the immediate context from which the stories are written. The extent of slavery and racial prejudice in the South presents Southern writers with subject matter ranging from racism to moral decay (Wood 1) Apart from being rooted in what is considered a backwater, Bible-fundamentalist society, O’Connor’s staunch faith in Roman Catholicism also plays a part in her fiction. Many of her works have been read with symbolism of spiritual realities. Martin asserts that the symbolic nature of her work comes from the plausibility of her characters’ action or the circumstances in which they find themselves, and the metaphysical meaning these actions or circumstances take (137). To O’Connor, however, her fiction is not symbolic but sacramental in that the actions, which are often violent, are seen to be intrusions of God’s grace into the physical world (Revel). The ability of O’Connor to translate abstract matters such as good, evil, grace, and redemption into a concrete, mundane, and very real scenario infuses her fiction with rich symbolism. The effective use of symbol is demonstrated in the short story Revelation. Like most of her stories, Revelation is set in the South, in a little town where ordinary folks live. It is a world familiar to O’Connor, having been brought up in Georgia. The protagonist in the story is Ruby Turpin, a stocky woman who has a penchant for thinking about people in relation to her own sense of righteousness. Along with her husband, Mrs.Turpin is found at the beginning of the story in a clinic waiting room in which she joined several people. Immediately, she surveyed the room and sized them up according to her own sets of labels: a white trash woman, a fat, ugly teenager, a pleasant woman, and ordinary-looking folks. Not long after, she strikes a conversation with the pleasant woman who turns out to be the mother of the ugly girl. They talk about how important it is to observe propriety and maintain a positive outlook even when they have to deal with â€Å"niggers. † They then share sentiment about being thankful for whatever God has given them. All this time, the ugly girl named Mary Grace is smirking, obviously irritated and furious at the conversation of the two women. The white trash woman, on the other hand, tries to join the conversation by sharing comments which only showed her ignorance. At that point, Mrs. Turpin exclaims, out of a sudden burst of joy, how thankful she is to Jesus that He made things just the way they are, and that she was not somebody else. Then, without warning, Mary Grace throws a book to Mrs. Turpin’s face and lunges at her with her hands strangling the stout woman’s neck. Appalled by the violent act, Mrs. Turpin demands the ugly girl to explain herself, and with contempt, Mary Grace commands her to return to hell. Mrs. Turpin takes the incident to be a revelation from God. In her exasperation for not understanding why God would condemn a virtuous woman like her, she demands God for an explanation. All at once, a strange light reveals to her a vision in which all sorts of abominable people are leading a march to heaven with people like her trailing behind. One of the recurring references in the story is the eye. The title itself, Revelation, gives clue as to how eyesight will play out in the entire story. Revelation involves exposing something into view, and in the story, Mrs. Turpin realized the prejudice she hides beneath the courteous demeanor. Through O’Connor’s sleight of hand, Mrs. Turpin’s epiphany gains resonance throughout the story precisely because of the symbols which O’Connor employed. In Writing Short Stories, O’Connor says that a particular object or action becomes symbolic when it accumulates meaning from the beginning of the story until it reaches the denouement (O’Connor 1546). At the onset of the story, O’Connor directs the reader’s attention to the physical appearance of Mrs. Turpin, most significantly to her eye. Her little bright black eyes took in all the patients as she sized up the seating situation† (O’Connor 818). It was through the appearances of people she sees in the waiting room that Mrs. Turpin judges whether they are agreeable or not. It was also through her eyes that she communicates. Upon meeting the eye of the pleasant woman, she seems to have an understanding with her regarding the sorry state of other people inside the waiting room: â€Å"The look that Mrs. Turpin and the pleasant lady exchanged indicated they both understood that you had to have certain things before you could know certain things† (O’Connor 822). O’Connor uses eyesight as a symbol of the inner being of Mrs. Turpin and the rest of the characters in the story—true to the aphorism that the eye is the window to the soul. This is further demonstrated in O’Connor’s description of the white-trash woman’s eye as having a â€Å"cast,† which could literally be a physical eye ailment but could also mean a failure to see things as they rightly are. As a contrast to Mrs. Turpin, the ugly girl who is significantly named Mary Grace responds to the pathetic conversation with a scowl. Mary Grace was the kind of person that Mrs. Turpin could not make sense of or judge as easily as she could others. This suggests that Mary Grace and Turpin do not share the same sentiments regarding other people. Mary Grace, described to have a â€Å"peculiar eye,† sees through Mrs. Turpin’s hypocrisy and uses her eye to condemn it. As Mrs. Turpin’s prejudice gets more blaring, Mary Grace fixes her piercing look at Mrs. Turpin who was starting to get confused at Mary Grace’s hateful look. Mrs. Turpin ignores the ugly girl and blurts out a prayer not unlike that performed by a Pharisee in the Bible. Upon hearing this, the ugly girl throws a book and hits Mrs. Turpin’s left eye. In Oedipus Rex, eyesight and the lack thereof is used ironically to demonstrate how the king’s blindness turned to sight (Bush). Similarly, Mrs. Turpin saw her prejudice through an impaired eye. She sees a vision, while in her backyard, revealing how her prejudice would get her behind the ranks of people marching to heaven. Eyesight, throughout the rest of the story, is used as a symbol of Mrs. Turpin’s prejudice as well as her redemption. Another recurring object in the story which accretes symbolic meaning is the pig. Commonly associated with uncleanness, the pig symbolizes the moral state of Mrs. Turpin. It is no coincidence that she and her husband Claud raise pigs in their backyard. O’Connor reinforces this symbol when Mary Grace calls Mrs. Turpin a warthog. Sparrow sees another meaning to the use of pigs in Revelation. According to him, the act of cleaning the pigs before they are sent to the slaughterhouse symbolizes the act of purging in Purgatory. In the story, Mrs. Turpin violently hoses her pigs as she asks God with insolence why she experienced the humiliating incident in the waiting room. This is a parallel to the act of cleansing that humans must undergo before they can reach heaven. Symbolizing Purgatory is evident in the final revelation Mrs. Turpin receives at the end of the story. The bridge connecting earth to heaven is a place where â€Å"virtues and vices will be equally purged. Shame and pride will be no more. Clean and unclean, sane and lunatic, white and black, gentile and Jew, slave and free, woman and man will enter in a single throng, the last being first, the first being the last. † (The Black Cordelias). The waiting room where Mrs. Turpin experiences her first revelation is another symbol in the story. Filled with people that come from different walks of life, the waiting room is used as a microcosm of the society wherein â€Å"niggers† and â€Å"whites,† rich and poor brush shoulders with each other. O’Connor employs a similar technique in Everything that Rises Must Converge where she set the story in a bus, a scaled-down image of the world. In Revelation, people inside the waiting room inevitably take symbolic meaning. Five types of people can be seen inside the waiting room, relating to different kinds of people in society. The white trash woman, with her ignorant comments and hasty judgment, symbolizes people who are uninformed and uneducated. They view the world with a sharp dichotomy: white and black. This is especially true in the South which was steeped with racism. The Negro represents those who are oppressed and marginalized in society. In most of O’Connor’s story, black people prove to be nobler than whites who think they are superior. Consistent with her strong Catholic beliefs, O’Connor puts preference to the oppressed. Mrs. Turpin of course represents the prejudiced and hypocritical. She is typical of some Christians who wear a mask of righteousness to hide their real feelings towards people they do not agree with. In Revelation, O’Connor puts hope in God’s sovereignty to transform people like Mrs. Turpin, and for O’Connor, God’s intervention in the physical world is possible because of the sacraments, the visible signs of God’s intangible grace. Finally, the presence of Mary Grace symbolizes people who fix the unbalance in the world brought about by prejudice and cruelty. Her name alludes to two Catholic beliefs: Mary, the intermediary between man and Jesus, and Grace, the unmerited favor which God bestows man. O’Connor uses Mary Grace to redeem Mrs. Turbin from her blindness and restore the balance in her life. The use of symbols in Flannery O’Connor serves her purpose of translating into everyday circumstances the abstract truths and teachings of her faith. Her Christian worldview is reflected in her characters and the transformation they experience. Despite being a staunch believer and defender of her faith, her fiction, as demonstrated in Revelation, does not come as a didactic propaganda. Her deft writing and understanding of fiction enables her to create realistic and believable characters which, in turn, enable readers to see the world as it is.