Thursday, October 31, 2019
A project study for new entrant restaurant in West London, Northolt Essay
A project study for new entrant restaurant in West London, Northolt - Essay Example In case the findings will be encouraging, a thorough feasibility study should establish further details like the allowable amount of capitalization needed in order to be competitive, why such an amount will be right, how to raise the funds, and who will be the owners by the time the actual business becomes a reality. Thus, the initial scope of this project study will be a top view of the Restaurant Industry in London and West London, Horholt as well as an inside view of the factors affecting the industry as well as other factors that can positively or negatively affect a new entrant in the restaurant business Among others, the location itself ought to be described. And the restaurant which is in between an industrial estate, plans to penetrate the competitive market shortly after it was opened. How to gain a good share of the potential business for restaurants within Northolt will be the other major problem that this research should be able to resolve. In other words, the aim of this project is first of all to clarify whatever opportunities, limitations, and requirements have to be considered by a new industry player in the restaurant industry. Secondly, it aims to find out whether the present restaurant can have the capability to rise up to the minimum requirements in order to compete in promoting the business. II. Structure and Elaboration of the Process In order to determine the potential of a restaurant business in the area and later on recommend a market strategy for the purpose of gaining a good market share, a more vivid description of the critical parts of a restaurant industry would have to be presented. These would include the following: (a) Location - descriptions of the place where the restaurant is people; (2) People ââ¬â or who should be served by any promotion and set of services plus other benefits; (3) Products ââ¬â or what will have to be offered to the potential customers; (4) Pricing ââ¬â comparison of the cost of products and se rvices offered in the restaurant; and (5) Current Promotions ââ¬â how restaurants in Northolt promote their business in order to build a market share for themselves. It will be assumed that the new restaurant does not yet have such a strategic promotion to likewise reap a good market share. Potential of the Place The location of Northolt is considered ââ¬Å"a pleasant suburb to the West of Greater London, in Middlesexâ⬠according to Squidoo (2012). It has parks, transportation facilities linked to the rest of London, Golf and Country Clubs, and a Royal Air Force airport. A traveller will take only 20-30 minutes coming from Central London to reach Northolt. One of the transport facilities is an underground Railway Station that is connected to the underground London Railway Station. The cost of rent or purchase price of a house was recently reported to be very reasonable. There are car repair shops, football fields, playgrounds for children, a park for skating, and a boat la ke. Squidoo calls the place ââ¬Å"cosmopolitan and multiculturalâ⬠. But it still has woodlands, lakes in parks, wildlife where a moorhen, geese, swans, and ducks. A Coffee Shop beside the lake has become popular. Near the Northolt Railway Station, there are more than 20 hotels. See the complete list in Figure 1 under the Appendix Section. This gives an idea of how many people visit, rent, and live in Northolt. The Ealing
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
MacDonaldisaation Thesis (Education paper) analysis of journal article Essay
MacDonaldisaation Thesis (Education paper) analysis of journal article by Dale (1994) UK EDUCATION SYSTEM KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED - Essay Example The 'Mac' chain of restaurants is famous for standardising everything related to the production or selling of their goods. Dale (1994) also argues how Ritzer has started a crusade against the 'fast-food' giant 'Mac' and how they have ensured the disintegration of the family. He quotes Ritzer in saying that the habitual use of 'McDonaldized' systems is destructive to our physical and physiological well-being as well as to the society as a whole. We have to agree to the fact that we are in a world where brand names become common names. If we were to ask what is common between 'Zipper', 'Xerox', 'Kerosene', then the answer is they are all 'Trade names' that has become common names. In the same vein, the processes adopted by 'McDonaldization' have come to stay with us as 'McDonaldization'. In fact, 'McDonaldization' is much older than we thought (see McDonaldization 2008). In fact it is much older than the principles adopted by Ray Croc, founder of McDonalds (for more information see McDonaldization 2008). If that was the case, then why talk of only 'McDonaldization' It is possible that everybody could afford a 'Big Mac', but not a Ford automobile! The logic of operating 'Mac' although looks very simple and organised and certain things have to be borne in mind. First, 'Mac' makes a limited set of dishes that are similar in taste, packaging and quality; secondly people like it and hence its popularity and finally the volume of 'Mac' food eaten by people is a very small compared to their normal food. In this age of globalisation and free trade it is inevitable that all products cannot be handmade and delivered specially. Mass production is inevitable; also because the consumption, sometimes, far exceeds the production. The only way to ensure that any product lives up to the manufactures reputation is that they are trouble free. To make it trouble free, certain manufacturing norms have to be introduced that are uniform and streamlined. The flipside to this argument is that 'Mac' generates trash because of 'McDonaldization' procuring food that has ethical issues. So it is under these 'parameters' we are forced to live and act, whe ther we like it or not. Ritzer opines that there are four reasons behind 'McDonaldization' namely efficiency, calculability, predictability and control. For details on this please refer to 'McDonaldization, (2008). Here again the flipside of the argument is that we have to take into consideration the following: 1) irrationality; 2) deskilling and 3) consumer workers (for more information see McDonaldization 2008) Dale, 'McDonaldization' and education 'Commoditization' of education is the byword in today's academic circles (Dale 1998; Daniel 2002). Dale (1998) argues about 'McDonaldization' of higher education in today's scenario. In today's education system, other than the traditional way of teaching, a lot of institutions are offering franchising options. This is akin to 'McDonaldization', but in the educational system. Daniel (2002) calls it the 'commoditization' of education. The advantages in this method are large. It brings education to all by implementing a uniform curriculum for everybody and it is gaining popularity in most of the Open Universities of the world and is also gaining acceptance in most of the developing countries. In this
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Supreme court of the uk
Supreme court of the uk Introduction UK has created a new Supreme Court and had transformed the judiciary authority from the House of Lords by creating a new Supreme Court in the UK; it happened first time in the history of UK this procedure was distinctive and democratic in the society. ââ¬Ëââ¬ËThe focal area of creating new court was that they wants the judiciary to act as independent body because before that the judges of the higher court worked both as a legislature as well as judges in the house of lords, the main reason for creating a new court was that how fair it is for the judges to work as a judges in house of lords and as a officials in the parliament because the ââ¬Å"state invest the judiciary in both parliament and in the house of lords and it put the independency and impartially of the court at higher risk. The other prospect at that period was invented that the decision made by the law lords judges might be challenged by the court of human rights on the basis of ââ¬Ëfairness that they might be not be fair enough. In June 2003 the press conference was called and the Labour party announced the plan to generate a new Final Court in the United Kingdom. The debate was quite contentious, it was shocking news mainly for the parliament and for the public because it was new judiciary establishment for everyone and the issue arose that the House of Lords existed for the last hundreds of decays and for them creating a new supreme court was dishonouring and demolishing the history. ââ¬Ëââ¬ËThe debate of having a new Supreme Court whose members would not be a part of house of lord considered the issue of unjust between three national legal systems. The judges in the UK has not got that strong power like the judges in the United States they got strong supremacy to refuse or declare or say no to the ââ¬Ëstatute if its making trouble or inconveniences in their work but in the United kingdom they havent got this power i.e. if the parliament is passing the statute and if the judge say I dont think this statute should pass because it will create a problem or may be inconvenient for us in the future. The parliament will ignore the judiciary view and will do whatever they think is better because Parliament got the highest power. Judge has a very small room to fit in they will still apply the legislation if they think its not fair So, in simple words the law lords of the highest courts has no right and power to act in accordance to their convenience. Here the subject is what made Mr Blair to separate the judiciary from the parliament. The reason Mr Blair come to this unexpected constitutional reform is the conflict of Article 6 of Human Rights Act 1998 (ââ¬ËThe national court cannot ignore the 1998 Act if theres a conflict between) in Article6 its stated that Every one has a ââ¬Ëââ¬ËRight to a Fair Trial everyone is entitled to an independency and impartiality. So the question is how fair it is for the judiciary to work as a legislative in the parliament and as well as to perform their duty in the House of Lords as a law lords. ââ¬Å"In 2003 the council of Europe has questioned from the British government it was a real shameful for the British government they have questioned about the position of the Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg, he was the senior judge and was also a cabinet minister and a speaker of upper house of legislative. Its the point of the justice and fairness its unfair for one person holds many pow ers together. We had Lord Chancellors from the 20 centuries, sudden change was quite scandalous. Now the Lord Chief Justice is replaced by the Lord Chancellor, he will be responsible to look after the work and the performances of the courts. Although the issue is not about the judges undermining expertise, performances of the work they do but its about the righteousness. ââ¬Ëââ¬ËImpartiality and independency must be measured against both subjectively and objectively standards. As it is been observed in ââ¬Ëââ¬ËFindlay V United Kingdom [1997]24 EHHR 221 , Where a solider has challenged the court martial procedure on the basis that the senior officer arranged a meeting, he appointed his members and the junior officer who was under his order. Had power to break up an official agreement regarding the court martial. Hereafter, again in the case of ââ¬Ëââ¬ËMorris V United Kingdom (application on 38784/97) [2002] ECHR 38784/97. In this case the applicant complained to the European court of human rights on the basis that in the court martial in his case, it was a violation of his right to a fair trial in Article 6 of European Convention of Human Rights. In simple words there was no independency in the court martial, the two officers for specific purpose chosen were also in compatible with the court martial independency. The decision of the reviewing authority to change the decision of the court martial was also in compatible with independence. The third intention is the new role of the Privy Council and transferring to the Supreme Court. ââ¬Ëââ¬ËMoreover they will take all the devolution cases from the Scotland, N. Ireland and Wales. Finally the New Supreme Court is officially opened on the 9th October 2009 and there will be 11 permanent law lords and the cost of the building was aprox57 million. Conclusion: âËâ Its only a debating question, its also difficult for Great Britain to abolish its conventions. This proposed Supreme Court may disturb the whole convention and political history but on the other hand the separation of the House of Lords will give the judiciary full independency to take the decision without any outside pressure but practically it wont happened. The new Supreme Court is not as powerful as the U.S is, because British is a unitary form of Govt. It will be so difficult for Supreme Court to get high degree of place in the society. BIBLOGRAPHY http://www.justice.org.uk/images/pdfs/supreme.pdf (i) See http://medlibrary.org/medwiki/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_Kingdom (9/12/09) V.Bodganor, Building the New Supreme court: National and Comparative Perspectives,[2005]Law Quarterly Review, p1,Westlaw. Robert.W, Robert, W. ââ¬ËThe New Supreme Court and the changes on the justice system, 2006, LIMUK 292 http://www.opsi.gov.uk/ACTS/acts1998/ukpga_19980042_en_3 (4/12/09) See The new Supreme Court and the changes in the justice system, 2006 by Robert Walker S.Roger;B Ruth, A Supreme Court for the United Kingdom Policy Paper Justice Nov 2002(The separation of powers)p.3 See Findlay v United Kingdom[1997] 24 EHRR 221 , Westlaw See Morris v United Kingdom (App no 38784/97)[2002]ECHR 38784/97, Westlaw. ee by Lord Bingham of Cornhill ; The Constitution Unit Spring Lecture 2002
Friday, October 25, 2019
Revolutionary War: The Battles of Lexington and Concord :: American America History
Revolutionary War: The Battles of Lexington and Concord The battles of Lexington and Concord were neccessary battles to the American Revolutionary War because they started the very thing that made our country free. Many people have always wondered how the historic American Revolutionary War got started. Sure, they have heard the stories of Paul Revere and the Midnight Ride: There was even a poem written about his ride, but Paul Revere didnââ¬â¢t start the war. It was a much bigger deal than just that. The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the very first battles of the Revolutionary War. The battle of Lexington was a brief fight that marked the first war-like conflict. It took place on the morning of April 19, 1775, when about 70 colonial minutemen, commanded by Captain John Parker, collided with about 800 British soldiers marching their way to Concord, Massachusetts, to steal some equipment from the colonial militia. The British soldiers were under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith (Lexington, Battle of). The first shot fired at this battle was the famous "Shot heard around the world." It was called that because it affected the history of the world greatly. Although when this battle happened, it wasnââ¬â¢t an official battle. It was mainly just like David and Goliath. It wasnââ¬â¢t fair: 800 seasoned soldiers against 70 colonial men. The men who were involved were called "embattled farmers" by the well-known New England poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson. These "embattled farmers" faced many long years of war. When the war ended, however, the 13 colonies would stand as a free country (Davidson). The Battle of Concord was the first serious conflict of the Revolutionary War. It again was fought on the same day as the battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775. The colonists had failed to stop the British, but they got reinforcements. when the British got to Concord, there was no equipment to be taken. It was a decoy and the British had been tricked. When they turned around to head back, they were faced with the Colonial army to fight. The colonial army won and the American Revolutionary War had begun. At the battle of Concord, Captain John Parker said, "Stand your ground; donââ¬â¢t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here." Many famous people were involved in these battles. Paul Revere was a patriot who is well-known for his famous midnight ride.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Islamization Under Zia Ul Haq Essay
When General Zia-ul-Haq took over as the Chief Martial Law Administrator on July 5, 1997, Islamization was given a new boost. General Zia-ul-Haq was a practicing Muslim who raised the slogan of Islam. The Islamic sentiment has always been fully alive in Pakistan. Various governments have used this to their benefit. There are people who doubt Ziaââ¬â¢s reasons for raising the Islamic Slogan; whether it was for political purposes to counter balance Bhuttoââ¬â¢s appeal or was it to enforce Islam in its true sense. In his first address to the nation, he declared that Islamic laws would be enforced and that earnest attention would be devoted towards establishing the Islamic society for which Pakistan has been created. General Zia wanted to bring the legal, social, economic and political institutions of the country in conformity with the Islamic principles, values and traditions in the light of Quran and Sunnah, to enable the people of Pakistan to lead their lives in accordance to Is lam. On December 2, 1978, General Zia-ul-Haq delivered a nationwide address on the occasion of the first day of theHijra calendar. He did this in order to usher in an Islamic system to Pakistan. In the speech, he accused politicians of exploiting the name of Islam, saying that ââ¬Å"many a ruler did what they pleased in the name of Islam.â⬠After assuming power and arresting former leader Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto on charges of murder, the task that the government was facing was how to gain legitimacy. Since the Islamist parties were already against Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, they had the most influence on Zia-ul-Haqââ¬â¢s government. It was announced the government would enforce Nizam-e-Mustafa (Islamic System), a 180 degree turn from Pakistanââ¬â¢s predominantly parliamentary law, as a preliminary measure to counter what he saw as a lack of true Islam in Pakistan. Sharing the ideology of the Wahabi sect, Zia advocated purging Islam of what he considered to be impurities and innovations. He wanted to create a hard line Sunni Islamist state. His reforms were popular with Hanafi and Shia sects who faced widespread discrimination and human rights abuses during his rule. Significant and systematic changes aimed at Islamizing the legal system were initiated in 1979 and carried out under General Zia-ul-Haq. This process not only introduced religious and gender biases in Pakistanââ¬â¢s laws but also brought about far-reaching institutional changes in the countryââ¬â¢s judicial system. Ziaââ¬â¢s Islamization drive was ardently supported by religious parties,à particularly the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI), which emerged as one of his regimes key coalition partners. JIââ¬â¢s founder, Maulana Abul Ala Maududi, endorsed Ziaââ¬â¢s Islamization efforts and described them ââ¬Å"as the renewal of the covenant between the government of Pakistan and Islamâ⬠(Haqqani, 2005, p.139). In turn, Ziaââ¬â¢s support and patronage of the JI allowed the party to gain a foothold in the government so much so that crucial ministries, such as the Ministry of Information, were allocated to JI nominees. However, state sponsored Islamization intensified sectarian divisions between the Sunnis and the Shias 1 who opposed the application of the Hanafi fiqh in areas such as Zakat (Islamic tax) rather than Jaââ¬â¢fari fiqh, which they follow. The Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Fiqh-e- Jafari (INJF-Movement for the Establishment of the Shia Fiqh) was formed in 1979 and led Shia opposition to some of the measures instituted by Zia (Talbot, 2005). The Islamic conservatism and the Islamic state became Ziaââ¬â¢s primary policy of his military government. Intensified Islamic Policies to radicalize the country had the West worried. The secular socialist orientation and socialist economics process was an attempt to upset to Pakistanââ¬â¢s order of operation on a routine life, as Zia maintained. General Zia rejected Bhuttoââ¬â¢s philosophy and was reported to highly hostile of Bhuttoââ¬â¢s philosophical rationale, ââ¬Å"Food, Clothing, and Shelter.â⬠General Zia defended his policies in an interview in 1979 given to British journalist Ian Stephens, as he puts it. ââ¬Å"The basis of Pakistan was Islam. The basis of Pakistan was Muslims in the subcontinent are a separate culture. It was the Two-Nation Theory that carved out of the subcontinent as Pakistan. Mr. Bhuttoââ¬â¢s way of flourishing way of this Society was by eroding its moral fiber. Mr. Bhutto eroded the moral fiber of the society by pitching students against teachers, children against their parents, landlord against tenants, workers against mill owners. Pakistanis not incapable of economic productions. It is because Pakistanis have been made to believe that one can earn without working. We are going back to Islam not by choice but by the force of circumstances. It is not I or my government that is imposing Islam. It was the 99 percent of people wanted; the street violence against Bhutto reflected the peopleââ¬â¢s desire of wanting just as the campaign for Pakistan Movement. I am just giving the people what they want.â⬠In 1983, Nusrat Bhutto reasoned General Ziaââ¬â¢s policies as she puts it: ââ¬Å"The (scream) and the horrors of 1971 warâ⬠¦.à are (still) alive and vivid in the hearts and the minds of people of [Pakistan]â⬠¦. Therefore, General Zia insanelyâ⬠¦. used the ââ¬Å"Islam [card]â⬠â⬠¦.. to ensure the survival of his own regimeâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ The Government of Zia-ul-Haq took a number of steps to eradicate non-Islamic practices from the country. He introduced the Zakat, Usher, Islamic Hadood and Penal code in the country. Prohibition Order Drinking of wine (i.e. all alcoholic drinks) was not a crime at all under the Pakistan Penal Code. In 1977, however, the drinking and selling of wine by Muslims was banned in Pakistan and a sentence of imprisonment of six months or a fine of Rs. 5000/-, or both, was provided in that law. Under the Prohibition Order, these provisions of law were replaced by the punishment of eighty stripes, for which an ijma of the companions of Muhammad ever since the period of the Second Caliph Omar was cited. However, the law does not apply to non-Muslims, who can possess a license to drink and/or manufacture alcoholic beverages from the government. Prayer timings Instructions were issued for regular observance of prayers and arrangements were made for performing noon prayer (Salat Al Zuhur) in government and quasi-government offices and educational institutions, during office hours, and official functions, and at airports, railway stations and bus stops Reverence for fasting Ordinance An ââ¬Å"Ehtram-e-Ramazanâ⬠(reverence for fasting) Ordinance was issued providing that complete sanctity be observed during the Islamic month of Ramazan, including the closure of cinema houses three hours after the Maghreb (post-sunset) prayers. Definition of Muslim By amending the constitution, General Zia also provided the following definition of a Muslim and a non-Muslim * (a) ââ¬Å"Muslimâ⬠means a person who believes in the unity and oneness of Almighty Allah, in the absolute and unqualified finality of the Prophet hood of Muhammad, the last of the prophets, and does not believe in, or recognize as a prophet or religious reformer, any person who claimed to be a prophet in any sense of the word or of any description, whatsoever, after Muhammad. * (b) ââ¬Å"Non-Muslimâ⬠meansà a person who is not a Muslim and includes a person belonging to the Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, or Parsi community, a person of the Qadiani Group or the Lahori Group [i.e. Ahmadis] or a person belonging to any of the scheduled castes. A Federal Shariah Court was established to decide cases according to the teachings of the Holy Quran and Sunnah. Appeals against the Lower and High Courts were to be presented before the Shariah Court for hearing. Blasp hemy of the Holy Prophet (S. A. W.) would now be punishable by death instead of life imprisonment. Zia-ul-Haq selected his Majlis-i-Shoora in 1980. It was to be the Islamic Parliament and act as the Parliament of Pakistan in place of the National Assembly. Most of the members of the Shoora were intellectuals, scholars, ulema, journalists, economists and professionals belonging to different fields of life. The Shoora was to act as a board of advisors for the President. A number of other Islamization programs were carried out including the teaching of Islamic Studies and Arabic, which were made compulsory. Pakistan Studies and Islamic Studies were made compulsorily for B. A., B. Sc., Engineering, M. B. B. S., Commerce, Law and Nursing students. For professional studies, extra marks were given to people who were Hafiz-e-Quran. General Zia-ul-Haq wanted to make Pakistan the citadel of Islam so that it could play an honorable and prominent role for the Islamic world. The steps taken by General Zia were in this direction and had a long-term impact; the Zakat tax introduced by General Zia still holds and so does many of his the other laws. On the other hand Islamization was sometimes used as a political process. Ziaââ¬â¢s interpretation of Islam may have contributed to the rise of fundamentalism, obscurantism and retrogression. Since the death of General Zia in 1988, inconsistency and instability has prevailed in Pakistani laws. Instability means that the law is frequently changing or is under threat of change because of differences of opinion among the ruling factions. Three of the most obvious inconsistencies in Ziaââ¬â¢s Islamic law are: * Those between legal norms and socially observed norms; * Those between statutory legal norms and the norms applied in practice in the courts (e.g. Hadd is difficult to implement as confession, retraction of confession and strict standards of proof make it difficult to execute); *à Those between different formal legal norms (e.g. non-compliance with the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance is compromised by the courts but is strictly punished under the Zina Ordinance). Another example of this contradiction is that the constitution assures women equal status on the one hand but, on the other hand, they are greatly discriminated in criminal law. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008316story_16-3-2008_pg3_3 http://ijazulhaq.com/zia/biogrophy1.html http://www.rationalistinternational.net/Shaikh/blasphemy_laws_in_pakistan.htm
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Internet and Education: Positive or Negative Aspect?
Internet and Education: Positive or Negative Aspect? The Internet started to boom in the 1990ââ¬â¢s and has continued to evolve ever since. Today the concept of what was thought to be one of the greatest inventions has blown this old-time invention out of the water. In order for the Internet to be accessible a computer device is needed. Today on we can carry the Internet in our hands with wireless access; as before it was a fixed machine usually on a desk with multiple cords attached.Noting that the invention of the computer and Internet has only increased in value and quality the rate of use has also increased significantly. This increase use of the Internet has affected and impacted people around the world. People use it at home, work and school for different reasons such as to communicate, shop, and look up information. The question that withholds is whether or not Internet use is beneficial or problematic. A topic that relates to this ongoing question is the effects that Inter net use has on education and academic performance.The Internet is used through a wide variety of spectrums within education; teachers and students use the Internet on a daily basis. Studies have shown positive and negative factors of the Internet appearing in education from both student and instructor views. When looking at the Internet as a positive aspect there are many studies and factors that play a role in helping conclude this acquisition about Internet in an educational setting. The Internet can be very beneficial for students along with teachers and administrators.For example, the adult literacy and basic education (ALBE) classroom teachers have found the Internet to be beneficial for themselves as well their students (Berger, 2010). Jim I. Berger conducted a study using ALBE instructors to better understand their use of the Internet in the classrooms. These ALBE instructors explain they use the Internet to simply look up lesson plans and to communicate with the students on a daily basis (Berger, 2010). Berger (2010) sent a packet of 50 fifty-six-item surveys to every state director of ALBE services; in return he got 219 applications with an 18. % response rate (p. 155). When focusing more on the results and procedure Berger (2010) grouped the 56-item survey into 5 composite scales; (a) reasons for use (the Why scale), (b) ways the Internet was used (the Practice scale), (c) positive consequences (the PosCon scale), (d) negative consequences (the NegCon scale) and (e) reasons they would or could not use the Internet in their classroom (the Barrier Scale). Two specific parts of Bergerââ¬â¢s study that helps conclude Internet is a positive aspect in education is the Why scale and the PosCon scale.Berger (2010) asked the respondents to use the Likert-like scale with values not, some, or very to address his survey questions. When reporting the results for the Why scale Berger chose the teachers who answered with very. Majority of the teachers (71. 8%) s aid they felt it was very important to use the Internet in class because students would one day need it in their professional lives, around half (54. 1%) thought the Internet helped students learn basic skills, a little less than half (40. 9%) stated they used it because they enjoyed to, while (31. 3%) of teachers felt the Internet makes them better teachers (Berger, 2010, p. 56). For the PosCon scale Berger (2010) reported the results based on ALBE instructors who agree or strongly agree. His findings concluded that 83. 5% reported that students were more empowered, 82. 4% thought the material was more engaging for the students, 82. 2% felt that students improved their basic skills, and 76. 2% thought they could incorporate higher-level thinking skills in their lessons. Also, a great proportion (70. 2%) stated that classes became more student centered and half (50. 4%) thought the students worked together more often (Berger, 2010, p. 157).To conclude Bergerââ¬â¢s study it was fo und that the Internet was beneficial in education when looking at ALBE classrooms in more ways than one. However, a weakness of Bergerââ¬â¢s study is the response rate. This is only a small fraction of instructors and teachers around the world. Similar to Bergerââ¬â¢s positive findings is a study conducted by Gwo-Jen Hwang, Po-Han Wu and Chi-Chang Chen. Their study addresses the topic of web-based problem-solving activities. According to the Hwang et al. (2012) study online web-based problem-solving games are found to be beneficial in education.In their study an online game was developed for conducting web-based learning activates (Hwang et al. , 2012). Two classes of fifth and sixth graders participated in the study. One group was the experimental group while the other was the control group. The experimental group was guided by an educational computer game that used a Graphical Quiz approach to develop the game-board learning system, while the control group was guided by lear ning sheets and keyword search online (Hwang et al. 2012). Hwang et al. (2012) required both groups to take a pre-test and post-test regarding ââ¬Å"butterfly ecology. In result Hwang et al. (2012) reported the online-education game not only improved the studentsââ¬â¢ learning achievement and attitudes, but also situated the studentsââ¬â¢ in a learning state filled with involvement, concentration and enjoyment. The results also show how the approach was effective; the learning activity conducted in this study showed that students were highly motivated in their web-based problem-solving tasks (Hwang et al. , 2012). Hwang et al. (2012) thus concludes that the students were highly engaged in the task due to the intrinsic motivations promoted through the game.Between these two studies it seems safe to say that the Internet is used in multiple ways in education and in general has a positive outcome. While studies like these show positive factors of Internet use in education there are also findings that conclude negative effects of Internet usage. Along with the increased use of the Internet comes increased amount of distractions. Distractions such as social networks, shopping sites, sport networks and YouTube are constantly being streamed from networks around the world. Researchers Jomon Aliyas Paul, Hope M.Baker, Justin Daniel Cochran (2012) believe there is a negative correlation between grades and time spent on laptops, tablets and cell phones during class. They also say itââ¬â¢s very common to see students using their phones during class; this behavior is not only distracting to the one using the mobile device but for others around them as well (Baker et al. , 2012). Noting this is an example of how the Internet in education is misused and often abused in educational settings. Relating back to Bergerââ¬â¢s study, he concluded there are also some negative aspects of the Internet in education.Berger (2010), states 54. 4% of the instructors claim that students visited sites unrelated to assignments or class work, 36. 7% of instructors found that their classes split into those that did and those that did not know how to use the Internet, 23. 9% found that students visited inappropriate sites (porn, gambling), 22. 5% of instructors indicated that students copied material from the Internet and used it as their own, and 20. 9% felt that their students relied too heavily on the Internet for information (p. 157).His study shows that students are easily distracted by the endless uses of the Internet. As a college student I struggle with these distractions on a regular basis. Looking at a different spectrum of Internet and education researchers Nejla Canbulat, Sevil Inal, and Meral Kelleci conducted a study looking at the relationship between the Internet and academic performance for a small portion of high school students. To further explain the Canbulat et al. (2012) study, 804 high school students between the ages of 15 and 18 were c hosen randomly from four high schools in Istanbul city.One of the three questions their study asked was ââ¬Å"Do computer and Internet using periods of high school students adversely affect their success at school? â⬠They collected their data through a survey. They founded that the students average computer use periods were 2. 07à ±1. 5 hours daily and their average Internet access periods were 1. 8à ±1. 5 hours daily (Canbulat et al. , 2012, p. 1648). Depending on if the student had Internet access at home or had to access the Internet through a public place, such as a cafe, altered the results of time spent on the computer.In Nejla Canbulat, Sevil Inal, and Meral Kelleciââ¬â¢s (2012) study they restate Berson and Bersonââ¬â¢s findings of 92% of 10800 teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18 had access to the Internet and spent most of their time messaging with people, surfing across websites, playing games and only 1% of them use the Internet for making searches and studying (p. 1644). Canbulat et al. (2012) founded that compared to this statement their study proposed that half of the teenager (50. 5%) connected to Internet for searching purposes; however, other reasons were chatting (18. 1%), playing games (12. %), listening to music (9. 7%), sharing content in forum sites (6. 6%) and accessing websites with sexual content (2. 4%) (p. 1649). Even though these percentages seem to correlate with a positive use of the Internet too much time spent searching and using the Internet causes problems in interpersonal relations (Canbulat et al. , 2012). To conclude their findings they state that the more time spent on the Internet adversely affected the studentââ¬â¢s success at school. The study also founded that the increased spent time on the Internet decreased the academic success of students.The students that accessed the Internet at home used it less often than the ones who accessed the Internet through a cafe, reckoning that the Internet at hom e is kept under parental control (Canbulat et al. , 2012). This however may not be the case for every student who has a computer at home; this is only a small study that was done with high school students. When comparing Canbulat et al. and Bergerââ¬â¢s studies itââ¬â¢s hard to differentiate whether the Internet is a positive or negative aspect within education due to the different views between teachers and tudents. Most teachers argue itââ¬â¢s a good thing for teaching and it also helps students interact with each other. However, some teachers believe that the increased use of Internet distracts students from their daily work by visiting non-related sites. These findings from Bergerââ¬â¢s study relate to the Canbulat et al. correlation found between the increased use of the Internet and decreasing academic performances. Students are spending more and more time on these non-related sites affecting their studying habits and overall grades.There have been many studies con ducted about the Internet and the psychological effects it has created; some good while some bad. Certain researchers claim that Internet chatting decreases loneliness and depression, increases the feelings of happiness, and greatly enhances perceptions of social support and self-esteem (PW Kang 2007; Shaw and Gant 2002; Chen 2012). While others believe the increasing use of Internet is effecting face-to-face interactions by reducing time spent with family members and friends, thus creating more and more feelings of loneliness and depression (Kraut et al. 1998; Chen 2012).If the Internet does create these feelings of hopelessness and depression this could affect students not only socially but academically too. In the classroom these feelings of depression can often lead to alienation and feel worthy only when using the Internet. This could reduce the social interaction a student may have in school thus creating low self-esteem. A student may then cover these feelings up by using the Internet, which in turn would reduce the motivation of a student to do homework or study for upcoming exams. Overall the Internet is a positive aspect in the world of education.On the contrary itââ¬â¢s known for itââ¬â¢s devious distractions. Studies and research prove both cases are true among students and teachers. People today rely solely on the Internet as before it was just something to have. Is the Internet and technology the destruction of social interaction and resulting in increased isolation? Some critics argue thus is true while others oppose this idea as a whole. This is yet another issue thatââ¬â¢s addressed with the concern of the Internet. Time can only tell. List of Reference Baker H. M. , Cochran, J. D. , & Paul, J. A. (2012).Effect of online social networking on student academic performance. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(6), 2117-2127. Berger, J. I. (2010). Profiles of Internet use among ALBE instructors. Adult Basic Education & Literacy Journal, 4(3) 1 51-160. Canbulat, N. , Inal, S. , & Kelleci, M. (2012). Internet use and its relation with the academic performance for a sample of high school students. HealthMed, 6(5), 1643-1650. Chen, C. , Hwang, G. , & Wu, P. (2012). An online game approach for improving studentsââ¬â¢ learning performance in web-based problem-solving activities.Computers & Education, 59(4), 1246-1256. Chen, S. (2012). Internet use and psychological well-being among college students: A latent profile approach. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(6), 2219-2226. Bibliography Baker H. M. , Cochran, J. D. , & Paul, J. A. (2012). Effect of online social networking on student academic performance. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(6), 2117-2127. Berger, J. I. (2010). Profiles of Internet use among ALBE instructors. Adult Basic Education & Literacy Journal, 4(3) 151-160. Canbulat, N. , Inal, S. & Kelleci, M. (2012). Internet use and its relation with the academic performance for a sample of high school students. HealthMed , 6(5), 1643-1650. Chen, S. (2012). Internet use and psychological well-being among college students: A latent profile approach. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(6), 2219-2226. Dodd, B. J. , & Antonenko, P. D. (2012). Use of signaling to integrate desktop virtual reality and online learning management systems. Computers & Education, 59(4), 1099-1108. Hwang, G. , Wu, P. , & Chen, C. (2012).An online game approach for improving studentsââ¬â¢ learning performance in web-based problem-solving activities. Computers & Education, 59(4), 1246-1256. Kiran-Esen, B. , & Korkmaz, M. (2012). The effects of peer-training about secure Internet use on adolescents. Turkish Psychological Counseling & Guidance Journal, 4(38), 180-187. Korkmaz, O. (2012). A validity and reliability study of the online cooperative learning attitude scale (OCLAS). Computers & Education, 59(4), 1162-1169. Otaibi, K. N. A. (2012). Attitudes towards the use of the Internet. Psychology Research, 2(3), 151-159.
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