The Native Perspective of Urban Education Essay -- Education

I. Introduction: This essay reports the state of urban and rural educational development in public schools, while also focusing on New Orleans public education system. In the literature, we explore factors both internal and exclusive as well as factors external and inclusive that contribute to the quandaries of K-12 education in America. To be clear public education as a whole is not in crisis. Children in more affluent school districts gain a comparative advantage over their impoverished peers because they have strong investments tied to the communities overall success. In turn, these children are able to go further with more resources readily available to them. However, children in less affluent school districts face serious educational shortcomings due to little investment in the beggared communities surrounding the school. It is more accurate to say that America has two systems of public education. The first system, based principally, but not entirely in the suburbs of America and in wealthier urban districts, is in many respects mediocre, specifically in comparison to international peers in advanced industrial nations. However, the second system, based principally in poorer urban and rural areas, is an absolute failure; in which an exceeding number of students dropout well before high school graduation. An astounding number of students receive high school diplomas that do not certify academic confidence in basic subjects. An outstanding number of students are unprepared for the world of employment. An incredible number of students are unprepared to matriculate to institutions of higher education or advanced training. In this essay, I shall focus on the small yet significant aspect of this educational crisis bey... ...rs—not eliminated in all cases, but closed substantially in many cases. This is in part because a higher percentage of the expenditures in the poorer districts are now being picked up by the states. Likewise, the federal government also picks up expenditures through compensatory education programs. So while money matters, it is not the only thing that matters. School safety and discipline matter significantly. The quality of teachers matters considerably. Support from parents and the surrounding community matters radically. And a culture of learning matters drastically. Hence, all of those things must be attended to; at the same time, we must concentrate on the preexisting and remaining gaps in resources. This study points to the disparities of public education in historically poor minority communities and the steps necessary to address the issues. (Developing)

Van Helsing and the Unorthodox Monster Narrative

Rebecca Scheinert Monsters and Myths September 16th 2012 Van Helsing and Unorthodox Monster Narrative Monsters have become a regular fixture in the contemporary movie industry but it is important to remember these supernatural creatures were born from ancestors in nineteenth century gothic literature. These creatures were a cultural product of the social, scientific, and psychological concerns of a society that had lost its faith in religion. Each monster was a manifestation of a ubiquitous fear that remains relevant today.In the 2004 film rendition of Van Helsing, the director Stephen Sommers calls upon the famed vampire hunter from Bram Stoker’s Dracula to restore order to a world interweaving the plots of Frankenstein, and The Wolfman. The hero of Van Helsing has been stripped of any memory of his character’s history and triumphs but must seek to vanquish his enemy aided only my the folklore of 19th century Eastern Europe. Without a sense of identity, Van Helsing acc epts this task joined by the beautiful Anna Valerious who is cursed by her ancestors’ promise to destroy Dracula.The duo must face endless threats, apply knowledge of the occult, and confront their inner demons to reach the climatic final battle with Dracula where they must cling to their disappearing humanity in a world of monsters. Although Van Helsing and Dracula are dramatic foils for one another, their similarities become as apparent as their differences as the storyline develops. In this final scene from Van Hesling, Stephen Sommers employs and distorts traditional monster mythology to prove to its viewers that the dichotomy between hero and monster is not mutually exclusive.Initially, the physical character of the scene is the vehicle that transports its viewers from the couch in 2012 to the recognized world of monster myths. The viewers’ acceptance of the setting is imperative because it invokes a â€Å"willing suspension of disbelief† from the audience in which the time-honored mythology of the classic monsters’ stories is embraced as historical fact (Tudor 121). The horror film genre employs setting conventionally â€Å"to facilitate our entry into the fiction† where the unbelievable characters and events are embraced (Tudor 122).For this particular scene, the audience finds the characters in an archetypical gothic setting, the laboratory where Frankenstein was created (Van Helsing). In the Gothic tradition, writers â€Å"built plots around restless spirits, ageless monsters, and unresolved sins of the past that reappear to bedevil modern characters† (Worland 12). Stephen Sommers places the characters in their imagined place and time by interweaving â€Å"Frankenstein’s middle-European village, Dracula’s Transylvanian mountains, and The Werewolf of London’s fog-shrouded setting† into a location familiar to the genre audience.In this scene, the nineteenth century stylized lab is tal l and imposing with rich architectural detail. In the darkness of night, moments before midnight as indicated by the baroque clock, clusters of fire and blue electrical charges are the only source light. The midnight hour is universal symbol for the time when monsters roam the earth while the men sleep (Philips 515). The evident destruction in the laboratory conveys that it has already failed terrifically. The setting is a reminder that in gothic horror the â€Å"stakes are high because the struggle is mortal and metaphysical† (Worland 17).This elaborate laboratory is paradoxical setting because the events are occurring in a time with scientific knowledge but in a part of the world that remains unchanged by industrialization. Furthermore, by combining Frankenstein and Dracula, the powers of science are directly conflicting with the religious themes of the legend of Dracula (Tudor 87). While inside the burning laboratory it is evident that both science and religion have failed the characters. The integration of the monster’s settings is only the first device Sommers plays with.Horror operates through the tried strategy of â€Å"placing stereotypical characters in cumulatively eventful situations† which is a structure the audience expects through out the movie (Tudor 112). The genre hero is titled by Andrew Tudor as the â€Å"expert† and given the responsibility of bringing the world or disorder back to order. When we enter this scene in the shambled laboratory, it is undeniably recognized as disorder. Tudor goes onto say that â€Å"Dracula’s traditional opponent, Van Helsing† is the common ancestor of all of the genre’s experts (114). The original bestows VanHelsing with the capability and knowledge to vanquish Dracula but was written as â€Å"scholastic and eccentric† as a fold to a vampires ruthless charm (114). Sommers introduces Van Helsing in this scene defeated by battle, fragile, limping, and gaspin g for breathe. Although he is introduced as man, the identifiable wolf scratches across his chest and the striking of the clock foreshadow his transformation into a werewolf monster. Sommers reminds the audience of the human expert and monster foil when Dracula enters as a flying monster and Van Helsing enters as a wounded human.The audience is aware they are rooting for Van Helsing and weary of Dracula. Furthermore, Van Helsing’s monster is a werewolf, who are seen as â€Å"demonic innocents† entangled in a â€Å"complex web of ritualistic expectations† (117). A werewolf is a sympathetic monster because the audience can compartmentalize the humanity from the lupine cruelty by his separate physical forms. Van Helsing reluctantly assumes his monster form writhing during his transformation. However, he embraces his fate by tearing off his jacket and engaging in battle.Van Helsing’s internal conflict between embracing his monster form to complete his task to vanquish Dracula and fearing the loss of his human control is illustrated when he frightens himself from his lupine form into his human form while choking Dracula. This narrative trick confounds an active audience who is inclined to remain loyal to the expert protagonist who has become what he is destined to destroy. In addition, the characterization of Dracula in the scene manipulates religious iconography to further the juxtaposition between religion and science that was introduced in the setting.In this scene Dracula exhibits the expected traits of a vampire when speaking in his human form. He is â€Å"elegant† â€Å"clean† â€Å"attractive† but â€Å"evil† and manipulative (116). Upon discovering Van Helsing is now a monster as well he tries to coerce him into joining his fight. Dracula sees all monsters as equals on the side of evil united against humanity and the greater good, as â€Å"a part of the same great game† (Van Helsing). Dracula is a satanic character, the of the evil side in the eternal battle between good and evil.This character parallel is supplemented by the physical characterization of Dracula in his monster form. Sommers employs the standard devil veneer with horns, wings, and red coloring as a universal symbol for evil. Dracula is charming and sophisticated in his human form but as a monster he is the hideous disconfigured archetype for evil. This proves to the viewer the humans can be monsters and the monsters can appear as humans. The naked eye cannot discern between what is evil and what is good, even when the monster is as obvious and Judeo-Christian devil.In these cases, Sommer’s is manipulating with the monster iconography by transforming orthodox characters. Monster iconography has â€Å"developed through statements, repetition, and variations that the audience has come to understand† (Worland 18). There is an expected viewer response of hatred for monsters and empathy for humans, which the director is playing upon. Through this device, he makes the social commentary that any man has the ability to become a monster and there is a monster in all of us.At the same time, he is loyal to the narrative by making the expert an empathetic monster and Dracula a deceiving monster. Ultimately, the audience’s psychological response to the scene is necessary for Sommers to manipulate the genre’s traditions and mythology effectively. Through out the scene there is a shock cycle of tension construction and release. Within the smaller context of a singular scene, the microscopic shock cycle will build and release pressure, keeping viewers engaged until end (Tudor 109).There is relief with the â€Å"grotesque and painful end† of Dracula. Rick Worland titles this event a â€Å"bad death† that challenges the traditional conceptions of mortality and the social good (8). The audience does not feel sadness for the revolting murder of Dracula but they ex perience devastation at the loss of Anna. Although Anna’s death is more troubling to the audience, the producers do not let us see her â€Å"bad death†. Anna is mauled by Van Helsing as a werewolf as well but in a moment of suspense and ambiguity we can only see the back of the werewolf’s body.While the audience watches this genre for the suspense and gore, it is still troublesome to see the end of the heroine. The audience can digest her death as a necessary sacrifice and the final shock rather than cruel an unusual when they are spared the visual impact of her death. This can also be looked at through a Freudian perspective. Freud advocated a â€Å"resonation of the return of any actions or desires repressed by the dominant social order† through experiences such as watching horror movies or nightmares (Worland 15).All of the audience members have felt repression, whether it is from an external societal source or an internal repression of feelings or mem ories. The monster is a manifestation of this repression. All varieties of repression can be overcome by vicariously living through this scene because the monster is both a triumphant hero and a defeated antagonist. In the end there is silence and the tension is released because both monster threats has been nullified. Antithetically, because of the dual bad deaths, the audience is left to contemplate if the ends justified the means.The audience has released their feelings of repression through the shock cycle but is left to contemplate the questionable victory and the tragic death long after the scene is complete. At the heart of this scene, Sommers challenges viewers to question the traditional protagonist and antagonist relationship in the movie and with the audience. He does this by presenting characters and settings that elicit expectations for the course of the scene’s plotline. Then, by choosing a different path, there is a psychological response from the engaged viewe r.Over the course of the brief scene, there are series of surprises that are not from the blood and gore but from the distortion of century old stories. At the conclusion of the scene, the audience has worked through feelings of repression by witnessing the destruction of two monsters and the death of two characters but are more importantly inspired to question what the true manifestation of good and evil are. Works Cited Phillips, William H. Film: An Introduction. Boston: Bedford/St.Martin's, 1999. Print. Tudor, Andrew. Monsters and Mad Scientists: A Cultural History of the Horror Movie. Oxford [England: B. Blackwell, 1989. Print. Van Helsing . Dir. Stephen Sommers. Perf. Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale. Universal, 2004. DVD. Van Helsing . YouTube. YouTube, 16 June 2011. Web. 16 Sept. 2012. ;http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=jr60kvuKw3w;. Worland, Rick. The Horror Film: An Introduction. Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub. , 2007. Print.

The Biology Of A Cell Mass - 1676 Words

Abstract Genetic instability and the accumulation of several molecular alterations are the cause of cancers through the development of a proliferative cell mass. However, it is restricted to the current prognostic and diagnostic classifications since there is no reflection of the entire tumor clinical heterogeneity. Therefore, they are not sufficient in making predictions for the adequate treatment of patients. The chances of survival for the patients suffering from cancer normally depends on the timely detection of the disease and in this perspective, the highly specific and sensitive methods of curing the disease take play. Notably, oncology can be revolutionaliuze3d through the development of the bio affinity particle and in the†¦show more content†¦Also, mutations in apoptosis complex or suicide that is activated by p53, a tumor suppressing protein, and this results in the complete disabling of replication and, thus, there is prevention of cell destruction when the alarms respons ible for self-destruction are set off. The above factors, when combined, lead to the unlimited cell proliferation and this unchecked cell division and malignant tumors release chemicals that promote the growth of abnormal capillaries leading to the feeding of these capillaries with the critical nutrients and this leads to the destruction of the surrounding cells. Some cells even detach themselves from the cell mass and then travel through to the bloodstream and then form tumors in some other body parts through metastasis. It is unfortunate that cancer, a very complex disease characterized by the combination of accumulation of several molecular alterations and genetic instability has become more fatal than heart diseases. As stated earlier, the chances for the cancer patients to survive solely depend on timely detection of the disease and then the application of certain techniques for its treatment. There are traditional methods that are employed such as the papanicolau test and mammography for women in the detection of

Should Athletes Be Suspended Because Of Illegal Acts

Should athletes be suspended because of illegal acts? Suspension’s in sports are very controversial in the sports and news world. It’s almost like there is a athlete each month who was convicted for homicide, taking performance enhancing drugs, or DUI and DWI. And this continues to happen in the sports community. Leagues such as the NBA, NFL, MLB take this into vigorous consideration. But that doesn’t stop an athlete from injuring others and themselves. This is why suspensions need to occur more often in sports that lead to more serious consequences. There are many ways you could get suspended from the sports you play. Most athletes crave to get better by taking drugs. These drugs help the athletes overall performance ability or just†¦show more content†¦He was originally playing for the Denver Nuggets but got a suspension. He was later in free agency and was picked up from the Houston Rockets. He then had another DUI charge and was placed in Indiana where he is today. Because of his DUI charges the NBA suspended him three times and he was removed from a team’s roster two times in the past 6 months. Many people ask how are they charged. In the NBA you have the â€Å"three strikes you re out rule.† Each time you get a â€Å"strike† you will be put into suspension from the league. After you have committed an illegal act you are withdrawn from your team and league. This happens when you fail a drug test three times. Homicides are the most extreme law you can commit while playing a sport. Homicides are found commonly in the NFL. After thorough examination, if you were the one who committed the homicide you will get banned from the league in which you play in and will end up in confinement. DUI’s are easier to handle. In the MLB 433 players were convicted of DUI through the 147 years in existence. You will get suspended if you commit a DUI. The person who decides if a player is banned is the league s commissioner. For the NBA that would be Adam Silver and for the NFL is Rooger Goodell. The will face a jury and discuss the illegal act the the player has put on for themselves and the league in which they play in. The most common illegal act that athletes are convicted

Lesson of the Moth Poetry Analysis - 860 Words

Amber Brewer Dr. Fussell ENGL 1302 April 8, 2011 â€Å"The lesson of the moth† Analysis by Don Marquis The title of this poem by Don Marquis is The Lesson of the Moth because it is a poem about the thoughts of a moth and his outlook on life. The overall poem would be considered argumentative being the moth is trying to inform the man that he should live his life and let his hair down a little more instead of relishing the everyday routines of life. This is shown in paragraph 3 when the moth says â€Å"But we get bored with the routine/and crave beauty/and excitement.†(18-20)Another example of the passage being argumentative is when the man says â€Å"and before I could argue him/out of his philosophy.†(43-44) Don Marquis expressed several tones†¦show more content†¦The speakers use of words symbolized things as well which reflected on the tone of the poems. The speaker expresses how the moth relates â€Å"excitement† with beauty and also by saying fire is beauty too. The word excitement could mean to the moth having fun and living life. However, compared to the man, the word excitement could mean trouble or risky being that the moth is trying to fry himself on the electric bulb. In conclusion, Don Marquis message that he was attempting to display can be true however it can incur some serious consequences at times. Works Cited Marquis, Don. The Lesson of the Moth. Reading Literature and Writing Argument. Ed. Missy James and Alan P. Merickel. New Jersey: Pearson, 2008. 184-185.Show MoreRelatedThomas Hardy Poems16083 Words   |  65 Pagesit joy lies slain, And why unblooms the best hope ever sown? --Crass Casualty obstructs the sun and rain, And dicing Time for gladness casts a moan.... These purblind Doomsters had as readily strown Blisses about my pilgrimage as pain. HAP ANALYSIS Firstly the word hap means that which happens by chance. The poem is a sonnet, although it is presented as three stanzas in that the traditional octave is split into two stanzas each of four lines and the sestet is a stanza on its own. The

Environment Threat and Opportunity Profile Free Essays

ENVIRONMENT THREAT AND OPPORTUNITY PROFILE (ETOP) : ENVIRONMENT THREAT AND OPPORTUNITY PROFILE (ETOP) A VIEW FROM:-Anish CONTENT : CONTENT Definition of environment Overview of environment scanning Techniques of environment scanning DEFINITION : DEFINITION Environment means the surroundings, external objects, influences or circumstances under which someone or some thing exits. ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING : ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING Environmental scanning is a process of gathering, analyzing, and dispensing information for tactical or strategic purposes. TECHNIQUES OF ENVIRONMENT SCANNING : TECHNIQUES OF ENVIRONMENT SCANNING SWOT ETOP ETOP : ETOP It is a process of dividing the environment into different sectors and then analyzing the impact of each sector on the organization. We will write a custom essay sample on Environment Threat and Opportunity Profile or any similar topic only for you Order Now ETOP FOR BICYCLE COMPANY : ETOP FOR BICYCLE COMPANY CONCLUSION : CONCLUSION ETOP provides a clear picture to the strategists about which sectors amp; different factors in each sector, have a favorable impact on the organization. Organisational Capability Analysis †¢Internal Environment -strength amp; weakness in different functional areas Organization capability -Capacity amp; ability to use distinctive competencies to excel in a particular field -Abilty to use its ‘S’amp; ‘W’to exploit ‘O’amp; face ‘T’in its external environment Organization resources – Physical amp; Human cost, availability -strength / weakness Organization behaviour Identity amp; character of an organizationleadership, Mgt. Philosophy, values, culture, Qly of work environment, Organization climate, organization politics etc. ResourceBehaviour Distinctive competence -Any advantage a company has over its competitor -it can do something which they cannot or can do better -opportunity for an organization to capitalize -low cost, Superior Quality, Ramp;D skills METHODS amp; TECHNIQUES USED FOR ORGANIZATIONAL APPRAISAL Comprehensive, long term Financial Analysis -Ratio Analysis, EVA, ABC Key factor rating -Rating of different factors through different questions Value chain analysis VRIO framework BCG, GE Matrix , PIMS, McKinsey 7S Balanced Scorecard Competitive Advantage Profile Strategic Advantage profile Internal Factor Analysis Summary Organizational Capability Profile (OCP) -Weakness(-5), Normal(0), Strength(5) Financial Capability Profile Sources of funds (b) Usage of funds (c) Management of funds Marketing Capability Profile (a) Product related (b) Price related (c) Promotion related (d) Integrative amp; Systematic How to cite Environment Threat and Opportunity Profile, Papers

The Will To Power Essay Example For Students

The Will To Power Essay In the Will to Power, Nietzsche claims:The will to power interprets (-it is a question of interpretation when an organ is constructed): it defines limits, determines degrees, variations of power. Mere variations of power could not feel themselves to be such: there must be present something that wants to grow and interprets the value of whatever else wants to grow. Equal in that- In fact, interpretation is itself a means of becoming master of something. (The organic process constantly presupposes interpretations.)Part I of this paper unpacks this passage concerning the nature of interpretation to reach the crux of Nietzsches argument. Part II then contextualizes this argument with respect to his claims regarding perspectivism and interpretation. Finally Part III raises the most plausible critique of Nietzsches claim of perspectivism as possible responses by Nietzsche in his defense. I. AnalysisIn the passage above, Nietzsche claims that it is not human beings which interpret, but rather, it is the will to power interprets.As discussed in lecture, the organic process which presupposes interpretation is essentially the very process of adaptation by which an organism tries to fit itself into its environment and to other species around it, such as its predators and its prey. This process is a way in which the organism physiologically interprets the world. So interaction is the fundamental phenomenon of the forces that make up the will to power and these interactions in so far as they are systematically centered around a particular center of power, can be called a perspective or interpretation which that center of force gives of its surrounding environment. And what we think of as this specifically human interpretation is only the conscious psychological realization of this much more fundamental law of nature. Thus it is the will to power that interpreter!s, and it does so by appropriating, that is, knowledge is a process of appropriation. To understand what Nietzsche means by appropriation here, we can look to section 515 where he states not to know but to schematize-to impose upon chaos as much regularity and for as our practical needs require.In this statement, Nietzsche claims that interpretation is to impose upon chaos as much regularity and form as our practical needs require. So for the plant, or some animal that preys on its environment, they will distinguish only between things that are useful and that which is not useful to the individual. The predator has no sense of distinction between this or that individual fly; one fly is all the same because it is simply food. However, in treating these different bits of prey as equal, it schematizes and organizes, and simplifies the world for itself. That is, once we start to recognize them as equal-this is the same as that-we begin to categorize them accordingly. !Sluga illustrates how as hum an beings we say: that this person which I just met a couple days ago is still the same person, although he has changed in slight ways, maybe he was wearing a cap back then. As human beings, we recognize there is a difference, but the difference is not important to us. In this process of equalization, man imposes schema and order on the world; and that is really the nature of interpretation and the will to power. II Contextualization of Nietzsches ArgumentHaving completed my analysis of Nietzsches discussion in section 643, I would now like to move on to contextualize the implications of this claim with respect to perspectivism. To begin, section 636 we see how Nietzsche connects the concepts of perspective and interpretation with the concept of the will to power. According to Nietzsche,Physicists believe in a true world in their own fashion: a firm systematization of atoms in necessary motion, the same for all beings-so for them the apparent world is reduced to the side of universal and universally necessary being which is accessible to every being in its own way (accessible and also already adapted- made subjective). Warning There is a Demand for Change Persuasive EssaySo one does not just make up something and claim that this is reality; but instead, one must recognize that these interpretations came from deep down from the reality that one is, namely, from ones drives and needs. Therefore, knowledge is a perspective and an interpretation, and when one understands that one can recognize and grasp the world, but we have to realize that each understanding is an understanding from a particular location, and that this particular interpretation is one of which there can be others. Recognizing that what we call knowledge is the imposition of schema on the chaos of the world, we then begin to realize that knowledge is a kind of artistic creation, thus taking us back to the Birth of Tragedy.