Journal of learning style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Journal of learning style - Essay Example I decided to begin with a short ‘Study Skills Assessment’ questionnaire provided on-line by Columbia Basin University (Appendix 1), containing fifty-six questions; received feedback indicates that I could improve strategies used for reading as well as for concentration and memory. Thinking about this I wrote up a personal SWOT analysis in an attempt to find further evidence of my strengths and weaknesses. I found a downloadable example from Bristol Business School, belonging to the University of Western England (Appendix 2), which helped me with the questions I should ask myself. This exercise proved quite time consuming and needed much effort on my part to really think about and answer each question as fully and as honestly as I could; nevertheless I did persevere and ascertained my strengths as an outgoing, imaginative and very personable at a social level. My weaknesses include writing, especially long assignments or reports – this Journal assignment is not too difficult because it is broken into manageable sections, oral presentations and making decisions. The most useful aspect of this task was that it induced me to really think about my strengths and weaknesses, as well as any considered threats and how I intended to deal with them. Next I completed a learning approaches questionnaire (based on Approaches to Study Inventory (Tait & Entwistle 1996) and provided on-line by Bournemouth University (Appendix 3). Results indicate that I have a surface/passive approach to learning and that I tend to reproduce information and try to memorize subject matter rather than delving further or seeking to extend that information, that I keep closely to the syllabus provided by the lecturers and do not follow up interest of my own. At this point I wanted to know more, so because a discussion on learning styles is a component of this Learning Journal, I decided to spend time researching learning styles and

European Tourism Essay Example for Free

European Tourism Essay The article in question paints a perfect picture of the little country of Andorra, one of the few places remaining on earth where culture and sanctity has have not been overrun by the trappings of modern life. After reading the article, one comes away with a warm and happy feeling about what is going on in Andorra. It is a place, to be frank, that any person would want to visit in order to feel the beauty of the Pyrenees Mountains and understand the history of Europe. The author is careful to point out the fact that Andorra is certainly not stuck in the 15th century, though. It has updated itself to modern culture and although you cannot catch a flight to the country, one could certainly drive there to take advantage of a few conveniences. Among those are the shopping, which the author spends a great deal of time talking about. It is interesting that a place with such a richness and wealth of history and culture would have to offer bargain basement tax breaks for people to come and visit. In a way, this speaks to today’s culture, where people are more concerned with commerce than they are with culture. Andorra is a perfect mix of that commerce and culture, though. It is a place that is naturally torn and conflicted between two of Europe’s most traditional powers, yet it somehow maintains a measure of neutrality and independence. It is similar to plenty of other countries in Europe in regards to size, but does not share many similarities beyond that. Andorra is a place that, according to the author, every person should get to see because of the beauty and history that will immediately engulf the senses.

Divorce by Ivan Klima :: Divorce Ivan Klima Short Stories Essays

Divorce by Ivan Klima In the short story entitled â€Å"Divorce† by Ivan Klima a judge makes an important decision that will affect him for the rest of his life. The decision maybe by this man, a Judge named Martin Vacek was for the better. Loyalty and dedication is more important than lust and romance. Judge Martin Vacek displayed true honorability when he decided to stay with his wife rather than go off with a younger, more attractive, recently divorced woman. His decision completely ignored his inner most feelings. Love didn’t overcome him. This was extremely unusual. Society has showed most of the time that love can prevail over anything. According to Martin that wasn’t the case. He proves that being loyal is number one to him. The Judge proves to be a noble man and I think the choice he made was the right one. A man who has been with married for 30 years show great loyalty. When the judge has a passionate and erotic night with a slim, finely built, smooth skinned, who has not one wrinkle one her skin, and who is twenty years old you would think that he found the perfect woman. In his eyes he has but chooses not to be with her. He finds her attractive and just feels an electric impulse when he is with her and when he speaks his soft words he actually makes this woman melt like butter. Martin hasn’t experienced this reaction towards him in a long time so this woman is main him feel outrageously special. So considering all the things he displayed what would Judge Martin Vacek do when she asks him â€Å"what’s the point of such a marriage Martin?† He answers with the absolute opposite of what she wanted to hear. She was waiting for Martin to say something to let her know that she is more special than his wife, but that wasn’t the case. Due to his decision Judge Vacek loses out on an amazingly gorgeous twenty year old girl but keeps his wife of thirty years who he has no feelings for. Martin had a chance to change his mind and make her still

Comparing Common Characteristics of The Trial and Nausea :: comparison compare contrast essays

Common Characteristics of The Trial and Nausea I am happy I took the opportunity to explore Jean-Paul Sartre's Nausea and Franz Kafka's The Trial. These novels are considered by many to be two of the definitive works representing Existentialist philosophy. Many other authors have dealt with the subject of existence in the form of a novel, most notably Samuel Beckett (Molloy) and Albert Camus (A Happy Death). Existentialist ideas have even slipped into the works of authors such as Ernest Hemingway and Joseph Heller. The Trial and Nausea have a great number of common characteristics. Obviously, Existentialism is an important theme in both The Trial and Nausea. The background of this philosophy creates a solid foundation on which the novels develop. Both novels contain a high level of absurdity, which is used as a device to clarify common life experiences that are often overlooked. The protagonist in each novel is presented in an isolated environment. Each character deals with enormous inner turmoil while trying to find meaning in his life. Both novels were written in Europe in the late 1930's, at a time when World War II was beginning to invade the lives of Europeans. Hitler's dominance of human minds was most likely a strong influence on the thought processes displayed by the Existentialists. This mode of thought seems a reasonable reaction to the massive destruction of individual worth and freedom that takes place at times of war. The conceptions of existence have influenced many writers. A specific school of writers, the Existentialists, chose to focus solely on unraveling the mysteries of existence. Sartre and Kafka were two of the most influential and famous writers of the Existentialist school. Sartre, in addition to his acclaim as a novelist, received considerable acclaim as a philosopher. Some critics, on the other hand, were strongly opposed to any notion of the Existentialist mode of thinking.

The Shadow – Creative Writing

The sun rose from behind the hill, at tower hill, as it climbed higher in the sky, its rays beamed through the window pains of the roof of the train station. Mr Hitchin's stood staring at the train schedule; he didn't know where to go, London, or Leeds? Mr Hitchin's was looking for work, tower hill just wasn't good enough, he had bigger and better things in mind, he wanted to make the money and give the orders, but this time he wasn't going to let happen what happened last time. He had decided, he was going to Leeds. He was wearing a black trilby hat, and a black pin striped suite, he was also wearing a long brown trench coat, that traipsed along the floor as he made his way to the ticket office. â€Å"One way to Leeds† he said to the ticket officer. â€Å"What time?† said the ticket officer? â€Å"12:35, please if that's the one that goes the earliest† questioned Mr Hitchin's â€Å"Yes sir, that is the earliest train to Leeds today sir, that's à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½12.50 please† Mr Hitchin's handed the officer the money â€Å"Thank you sir, you look familiar have we meet before? you remind me of somebody that I saw in the paper, but I can't remember what for, ow well was probably somebody else, have a pleasant journey sir† â€Å"Thank you† Mr Hitchin's replied. He made his was to the platform ready to catch the train, the time was now 12:39, 4 minutes late, two police officers walked through the entrance of the train station, Mr Hitchin's stood with his back to the wall, around the corner from the platform, wedged between the wall and a vending machine. The police officers were getting closer to him, as they walked down the platform asking people questions and showing them a piece of paper. â€Å"Excuse me sir, have you seen this man?† Mr Hitchin's looked at the sheet of paper there was a picture of him and the words ‘wanted, for attempted murder' on it! He quickly jerked his head down and slightly pushed the brim of his hat over the edge of his face. â€Å"No, sorry† he quickly replied. The train was now at the platform, and people were boarding it, one of the officers' looked him up and down. â€Å"Excuse me sir, do you mind if you come with us, so we can ask you some questions?† â€Å"Of course† Mr Hitchin's replied, as they made there way to the exit of the train station, Mr Hitchin's turned and ran to the doors of the train, the police officers stumbled behind him trying to catch him. As Mr Hitchin's jumped onto the train the doors firmly closed behind him. The train set off, as the police officers ran at the side of it trying to catch it, but the train carried on going, all the way to Leeds. Mr Hitchin's was scared; the police were onto him again†¦ Mr Hitchin's was awoken as the train jerked to a halt; people clambered over each other as they exited the train. He rose from his seat, collected his belongings, and left the train as well. Here he was Leed's city station, he looked around there was police at the entrance and still the wanted posters were around on the walls as well. He made his way over to a news paper stand, were he brought a copy of the Yorkshire post, were he had happened to make the front page, again, the headline read â€Å"convict on run for attempted murder†. He jerked quickly hading over the cash and makes a swift exit of the station, he turned out of the station, and made his way to the Queens hotel. He exited the hustle and bustle on the streets, and made his way into the reception of the queen's hotel. The warm air welcomed him with the smell of peaches, he swiftly made his way to the front desk, were he rang for some service. â€Å"Hello sir, and welcome to the queens hotel† said a man, who emerged from behind the counter, he was quite short and had jet-black hair. â€Å"Hi, I'd like a room for one, for 4 week's,† said Mr Hitchin's â€Å"Yes sir, the total will be a total of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½2,100, when would you like to pay?† â€Å"On my departure† replied Mr Hitchin's â€Å"Very well sir, we do insist of a deposit of 10% sir† Mr Hitchin's handed the receptionist the money â€Å"Thank you sir, her is your room key, it is room number 24 it is up the stairs and is the first room on your right†. Mr Hitchin's made his way to his room, he opened the door and walked in, he paced over to the window and peered out, the streets were full of people making there way to work, what was he going to do? He needed a job, so he grabbed the Yorkshire post he bought earlier and started to look for a decent job. Half an hour had past, he still hadn't found anything. He needed a new identity, a now look, so he grabbed his phone and called Steve, â€Å"hi Steve, it's Greg, well I'm in Leeds and as you know in a spot of trouble and I need a cover, can you help?† â€Å"Meet me outside the royal armoires in 2 hours† replied Steve. Mr Hitchin's set off to meet Steve, he walked down bridge gate end, over the river Aire, and onto dock street, soon he reached armouries way and waited for Steve to arrive. He saw Steve inside, and sharply made his way inside, making sure his identity wasn't recognisable. He sat in an arm chair by the side of the door, Steve walked over and sat down next to him, he placed an envelope that he had in his hand on the arm of the chair, Steve then got up, leaving the envelope on the chair arm and walked away, Mr Hitchin's took the envelope and placed it in his inside pocket, and made his way back to the hotel. On his way back, Mr Hitchin's noticed that there was a black ford escort following him, with two men on foot, who also seemed to be following him, Mr Hitchin's quickened up his pace, he was just about to turn into the street were the hotel was, when a police officer stepped in front of him and said â€Å"Greg Hitchin's, I think we need to talk†

Sociology of Family essayEssay Writing Service

Sociology of Family essayEssay Writing Service Sociology of Family essay Sociology of Family essay1)   The movie characterizes the structure and functions of African-American families through the trials of a large African-American family, which is focused on maintaining the established longstanding family traditions.   However, these family traditions are fading away when some serious problems appear in the family, e.g. Mother Joe’s debilitating stroke, Lem’s failure to find a job, tensions in relationship between the family members and other problems.2)   The movie characterizes gender (manhood, womanhood, relationships between the two) and intergenerational (relations between different generations) relations in African-American families through interpersonal communication, which reflects human lie and injustice. Teri, Lem, Bird, Kenny, Maxine and Ahmad demonstrate their negative character traits.3) The movie depicts the links between African-American families and institutions of the wider society such as the world of work, the white world, and law enforcement, etc. through certain challenges faced by family members. For example, Lem fails to find a job because of his criminal history. Teri wants her cousin Blimp to give Lem a lesson.   There are many other examples.4) The movie suggests that the history of African-Americans in the U.S has had powerful impacts on African-American families. Traditional African American food is part of the history of African Americans in the U.S., e.g. the so-called soul food. The cultural traditions are reflected in soul food tradition. The film describes the particular food that is associated with the lives of modern day Chicago families.5) The movie shows the tensions in relationships between young people that might be helpful in explaining the statistical data on the relatively low percent of families with married couples found among African Americans.6) I find the characterization of African-American families to be consistent with my understanding of the course readings on African-American families. Food has been shown as an integral part of African American culture. The characterization of the sense of identity of African Americans and the role of African American community play an important role in the life of each family.7) I have one question about the movie that you would like to discuss. This question is â€Å"How does the film â€Å"Soul Food† (1997) reflect race, class and legacy of slavery?†1) Prof. Banks is focused specifically on marriage patterns within the black â€Å"middle class† of educated professionals because the decline in marriage involved not only the poor, but also doctors, lawyers and other categories of educated people. According to the author, â€Å"black women of all socioeconomic classes remained single in part because the ranks of black men have been decimated by incarceration, educational failure and economic disadvantage† (Bank, 2011, p.1853).2) Prof. Banks conducts his research based on the i nterviews.   He collects various types of data regarding black marriage decline, including judicial decision, governmental policies, economic data, etc. He collects data from various sources, including documentation, books, newspaper articles, journal articles, legal cases, films, etc. There are certain problems with the data because the content of sources differs, providing different information on the required issues.3) Prof. Banks think marriage is faring among the black middle class because of certain social, historical and economic challenges. Some of the statistics offered by Prof. Banks to document his claims about the status of marriage in the black middle class include various facts, such as in 1970s, â€Å"25 % of black children in the U.S. were born to unmarried parents† (Banks, 2011, p. 1856). Besides, the 2010 Survey shows that â€Å"half of black couples divorce within the first ten years of marriage; two out of every three black marriages are dissolved† (Banks, 2011, p. 1856).4) Prof. Banks diagnosis of roots of the marriage problems in the Black Community is focused on the effects of slavery because slavery had negative impact on gender relations of African Americans. Prof. Bank’s ideas about the impact of economic struggles of working class black men are clear as these struggles lowered the marriage rate of affluent black men. Black women’s responses make the problem worse because of reduction of benefits on marriage.5) Prof. Bank’s proposal that black women marry outside the race is comprehensive and appealing. This proposal is supposed to solve the marriage problem, producing new opportunities for the growth of marriage rate.6) Low marriage rates in the black community are an issue. Black people have other problems, but the problem of marriage decline affects all areas of activity. It is not a distraction factor. Black people and their communities are missing out on the growth of African American populati on, if they don’t marry.1)   The film suggests that the Sanchezs see family as an important part of their Hispanic identity. There are some scenes from the movie that illustrate what family means to the Sanchezs, e.g. Isabel’s pregnancy and her death, Jimmy’s failure to assist his son in getting rid of behavioral problems, Jimmy’s son hatred toward his father, etc. I do not think these are accurate descriptions of Hispanic families.2) Gender and intergenerational relations are important parts of any family. The film says much about those aspects of the Sanchez family because the viewer has an opportunity to observe the role of parental love and childish love. These are accurate depictions of Hispanic Families.3) Immigration shown in the film has impacted Sanchez family life because Maria was pregnant when the immigration agents deported her illegally. These are accurate depictions of Hispanic families.4) There are some other social forces or historical experiences, beside immigrant history, that seem have been important in constituting the Sanchez family. Maria wanted to return to her family. Jimmy and Chucho had close relationships. The film shows the involvement of Hispanic youth in gang violence and criminal activity. These scenes are accurate of the Hispanic experience.5) Maxine Baca Zinn suggests that Hispanic and African-American Families share many similarities. But she says little about differences. Comparing the depiction of the Hispanic family in the movie along with your knowledge of African-American families, it is necessary to define the following differences:   certain differences in family support, the differences in relationships among generations, and some differences in the following of traditional values.

Legendary Lycurgus the Lawgiver of Sparta

Legendary Lycurgus the Lawgiver of Sparta Athens had its Solon, the law-giver, and Sparta, its Lycurgus- at least thats what we like to believe. Like the origins of the reforms of Lycurgus, the man himself is wrapped in legend. Plutarch on Lycurgus Rise to Power Plutarch tells the story of Lycurgus as if he had been a real person, albeit an eleventh-generation descendant of Hercules, since the Greeks generally ascribed genealogy that went back to the gods when writing about important figures. In Sparta there were two kings who jointly shared the power. Lycurgus, according to Plutarch, was the younger son of one of these two kings. His older brothers wife was pregnant when both Lycurgus brother and father died, and so, the unborn would have become king- assuming it was a boy- in time. Lycurgus sister-in-law proposed to Lycurgus, saying she would do away with the child if he would marry her. In that way both she and Lycurgus would maintain power in Sparta. Lycurgus pretended to agree with her, but instead of having the child killed after birth, as was a Greek custom, Lycurgus presented the child to the men of Sparta, naming the child and saying that he was their future king. Lycurgus himself was to act as guardian and advisor until the baby ca me of age. Lycurgus Travels to Learn About Law When slander about the motives of Lycurgus got out of hand, Lycurgus left Sparta and went to Crete where he became familiar with the Cretan law code. Plutarch says Lycurgus met Homer and Thales on his travels. Recalled to Sparta, Lycurgus Institutes His Laws (Rhetra) Eventually, the Spartans decided they needed Lycurgus back and persuaded him to return to Sparta. Lycurgus agreed to do so, but first he had to consult with the Delphic Oracle. The advice of the oracle was so well respected that it would add authority to whatever was done in its name. The oracle said that the laws (rhetra) of Lycurgus would become the most famous in the world. Lycurgus Changes Spartas Social Organization With the oracle on his side, Lycurgus instituted changes in the Spartan government and provided Sparta with a constitution. In addition to changes to the government, Lycurgus altered the economy of Sparta, banning ownership of gold or silver and useless occupations. All men were to eat together in common mess halls. Lycurgus reformed Sparta socially, too. Lycurgus started the state-run education system, including the training of women, the peculiar non-monogamous Spartan marriages, and the role of the state in deciding which newborn was fit to live. Lycurgus Tricks the Spartans Into Keeping His Laws When it appeared to Lycurgus that all was being done according to his suggestions and that Sparta was on the right track, he told the Spartans that he had one more important mission. Until he returned, they were under oath not to change the laws. Then Lycurgus left Sparta and disappeared forever. That is the (condensed) story of Lycurgus, according to Plutarch. Herodotus also says the Spartans thought the laws of Lycurgus came from Crete. Xenophon says Lycurgus made them up, while Plato says the Delphic Oracle provided them. Regardless of their origin, the Delphic Oracle played an important role in the acceptance of the laws of Lycurgus. The Great Rhetra Heres a passage from Plutarchs Life of Lycurgus on his obtaining an oracle from Delphi about the establishment of his form of government: When thou has built a temple to Zeus Syllanius and Athena Syllania, divided the people into phylai, and divided them into obai, and established a Gerousia of thirty including the Archagetai, then from time to time appellazein between Babyka and Knakion, and there introduce and repeal measures; but the Demos must have the decision and the power.