How can Malaysia get out of the middle income trap?

How can Malaysia get out of the middle income trap? Malaysia is caught in the middle trap right now and getting it out is going to be tough. With an income that is not too high and not low, Malaysian find it hard to reach a higher level of income. To really get out from the middle income trap, Malaysia needs to change what it has been doing economically for the past 40 years. Middle income trap concept refers to an easy transition of a low income to a middle income economy due to its competitive nature in terms of cheap wages and labour- intensive industries. It is easy to transit from low income to middle income but it will be hard to transit from middle income to high income due to several factors. Malaysia is getting into middle income trap and is likely to experience a small change in factor- price ratio. This means that wages received by both skilled and unskilled labour does not increase a lot and doesnt reach high income level. In our research paper, we will divide into the four main parts. First, we discuss the background of Malaysias economy and then the factors which lead Malaysia to fall into the middle income trap, in this part we find out that there are about six factors which lead Malaysia into the trap. After that, we discuss on people who are affected due to the middle income trap. Lastly, ways or method to escape from the middle income trap is also our main concern. We have some ways to implement to make developing nations can graduate into becoming fully advanced economies. When we look at our economic background, we can clearly see that from independence to the 1980s, Malaysia progressed rapidly. From an agricultural society in the 1950s, it evolved into an Asian Tiger Economy by the 1980s, mainly labour- intensive industrialisation. However, subsequent effort in deepen our industrialisation make our economic to remain stagnant while other countries continue to expand rapidly. Recently, countrys performance has been disappointing with GDP growth rate declining to 5.5 percent in 2002 to 2008 from 9.1 percent in 1990-1997. In the past 1970, about 50% of Malaysian live in absolute poverty but now decrease to less than 4%. However, Malaysian feels that they are stuck from increasing where GDP growth has slowed up. However, when we look at other countries for example Korea, they are at one time the poorest country in the world but they are growing both economic and politic. Reason that their economic can grow is because they have higher purchasing power compared to Malaysia. This is because they receive averagely higher income and with higher income they will have more spending power which will boost their economy. Countries such as Cambodia and Vietnam have very low wages while Malaysia traps in the middle ground. How to get into middle income trap One of the factors Malaysia trapped into the middle income is due to over dependence on FDI and lack of doing research and development (RD). Multinational companies will only provide instant of capital, expertise and technology into Malaysia but they will not develop or improving Malaysias product. Malaysias businessmen seem to be satisfied in making profit by serving the MNCs and maintaining their original, assembly- based business models. Besides, labour productivity is growing quite slow than in the 1990s. Manufacturing in Malaysia has a low value added and had spent a very low RD spending. For example, Malaysia had spent only 0.6% of GDP in RD compared to South Korea which is 3.5%. South Korea is probably the best example of a developing country which shifts to a advance country. Companies in Korea like Samsung and LG dominates in the market. Taiwan is also not far behind. Chinas policymakers are aware that they need to suit with the changes in market if the labor costs rise. With a low tech manufacturing industries and lack of skilled labour compared to country such as Singapore, the production in Malaysia is less competitive and thus less profit which means lower wages paid to the workers. Migrant workers which depress wages also one of the factors which cause Malaysia to fall into the middle income trap. It is a mistake in letting migrant workers to overflow in Malaysia and depresses wages. This will limit the improvements of the productivity. Malaysia has too huge amount of foreign workers which is reportedly has 1.9 million registered workers and another 600000 unregistered ones accounting for nearly one- fifth of the working population. These workers are not confined to the so- called 3D jobs where the jobs are difficult, dirty and dangerous that the locals are unwilling to do those kinds of jobs. Too many of unskilled labour will lead to low value added in the productivity. Malaysian worker are forced to receive low wages since competition with the migrant workers are keen because the migrant workers are willing to accept lower wages and longer hours of working. Besides, when we take account the negative externalities which associates with the excessive presence o f migrant workers, we found that migrant worker is a burden to Malaysias economy as the migrant workforce turns out to be a costly affair. There are cases where the migrant workers cause social problem in Malaysia and there were also cases where the migrant workers are abused by their employer. They are also forced to receive low wages since there is no law to protect their rights. It is not denied that Malaysia needs the services of foreign workers, both skilled and unskilled but government need to ensure that they are well treated and wages should be increased align to the local wages so that Malaysian wages can be raised higher. In the case of Malaysia, high wage need not mean high labour costs if an increase of wages are backed by an increase in productivity. In the other words, low wages does not mean lower labour costs if the productivity declines. Apart from that, over subsidies of the subsidised item leads to middle income trap. Subsidy was implemented in 1961 under the Control Act 1961 and subsidised items include petrol, sugar, gas, rice, salt and other basic items. Subsidy of these items has made the Government spending to increase and it is too heavy for government to continue to bear the cost. For example, the oil price in 1970s was under US$12 per barrel. However, it increases to almost US$75 per barrel which causes a cost that is unbearable to the government. Moreover, over subsidies in local industries for example proton is a burden to the government spending. If compared to South Korea, such industry had do the same thing in the beginning but they were weaned off from the government subsidy much earlier and where Proton is still now subsidised. The high cost of subsidies restrains the government ability to upgrade infrastructures and involve in more research and development which increase the productivity and competi tiveness in order to become a high income country. Price control has been one of the major causes of falling into middle income trap. The policy where government enforced price control in Malaya to avoid hardships after World war2 holds until today. Price control items include basic necessities such as rice, flour, sugar, milk and even taxi fares. Price of commodities in Malaysia is much cheaper because of the controls compared to other countries. The problem with the price control is that workers annual pay raises are linked to the nations CPI which is consumer price index. This mean that with a low CPI, the salary received by the worker remain low and a shift to a higher income will be very hard. Since 1980s, Malaysian wages have fallen behind wages of the rest of the world. For an example, a graduate policeman earn at RM 2300 per month compared to RM4400 in Singapore. Apart from restraining Malaysian wages, price controls also sternly distort domestic economic factor proportions which cause many factories ending up in inefficient economic production processes. When we compared through GDP, South Korea has a GDP per capita of US$16450, Singapore US$34,346, while Malaysia still remain at US$7469. The table below shows that the breakdown weightage allocated for the different categories of items consumed on a daily basis. For example, Food and non- alcoholic beverages and Housing, water, electricity, gas and fuels make up over 52.8% of the weightage. We can see that most of the items are heavily subsidised or price controlled. Apart from the raw materials, value added items such cooked food and beverages are always levied at the market price but not captured in the CPI. Besides, transport which contribute 15.9% of the weightage does not include hire purchase for cars and motorcycle or the cost of imported spare part for repairing. Some construction materials such cement and clinker maybe price controlled but for certain price of rental are determined at market rate. http://greglopez.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/n5-1.jpg?w=300 Low inflation rate causes wages to be artificially suppressed and it creates a wide gap between Malaysian working domestically and those workers who work abroad. With low wages, we will be unable to attract talent from other countries even though our product and services are relatively cheaper. Moreover, low or middle income creates a technology gap making Malaysia to be uncompetitive. Technology goods and services have become more expensive for Malaysian to purchase including items such as Iphone, laptop which it is common nowadays. With a cheap currency, we find it difficult to purchase the most advanced technology to improve productivity. Malaysia was emphasizing on agriculture sector in the early 1950s but when Malaysias economic had shift from agriculture sector to manufacturing sector, agriculture sector had became a drag to the economy. The dominance of oil palm and rubber in the agriculture sector is unfortunately a significant drag and had caused the nations to cease from shifting to a high income economy. Those plantation terrain, paddy harvesting and rubber tapping are not easily mechanised and remaining done by manual. Agriculture sector with high technology and mechanised makes more profit by having much efficient and more productivity. Until today, agriculture with manual worker still remain as low wage activities and most of the agriculture depend a lot on foreign labour. For example, textile industry hires most of the workers from Bangladesh since the local workers are not willing to work in this sector because of the low wages. The mobility of the foreign workers in plantation is also easy and they move from estates to factories which mean it is hard for government to disallow the foreign workers to work in the non- plantation sector. The cumulative effect is that there are now about 2.3 million low- skill foreign workers in Malaysia, making up about 20% of the workforce. They are in the manufacturing, petroleum, construction and domestic- help sectors. Lately, they are also involving in retailing, food and beverage, tourism and hotel industries. Such a massive inflow of foreign workers into those industries will therefore suppress wages in Malaysia and causes middle income trap. Effects of the Middle Income Trap Malaysias caught in the middle-income trap right now give awareness to our policymakers that the export-led growth strategy, according to some, is no longer an optimal development strategy for developing countries especially Malaysia. Continued emphasis on export-led growth will, among other things, increase the reliance of developing countries on the developed world and dampen domestic market growth. Many export-dependent developing countries started tweaking their growth strategies especially after external demand for their exports dried up on account of the current global financial and economic crisis. Though Malaysias growth strategy had started emphasizing domestic demand since about a decade back, it still remains largely dependent on external demand for its economic growth (Quah, 2009). Ex-World Bank chief economist and Brookings Institutions Wolfensohn Centre for Development, Global Economy and Developments senior fellow, Homi J. Kharas, said there was an impetus for change a nd rethinking on policies and strategies in Malaysia every 10 years based on economic developments. Malaysia has been very successful as an exporting nation but has also been very export dependent. About 90% (of products) are being exported to the United States, Europe and Japan, he said, adding that Malaysia needed to diversify its exports (Malaysia needs to be high-income economy, 2009). However, the main challenge is domestic market of Malaysia is too limited due to only 28 million of populations. Thats why we are facing the dilemma of the exploration of external and domestic market. However, 2010 GDP performance sets strong momentum for a robust 2011. Given the marked improvement in economic growth in the first half of the year, domestic demand was clearly the chief momentum driver for the recovery. Moving forward, the country is anticipated to register a robust GDP growth of 5.6% in 2011, with domestic demand once again acting as the back-bone for momentum (RAM Rating Services, 2011). Besides, middle-income trap also lead to declining private investments. The old growth model provided three decades of outstanding performance, permitting Malaysia to provide for the health and education of its people, largely eradicate poverty, build a world-class infrastructure and become a major exporter globally. But the progress we have made over the past half-century has slowed and economic growth prospects have weakened considerably. We are caught in a middle income trap. Malaysia has been susceptible to external shocks, as seen during the past crises. Increases in international commodity prices, like fuel or food, have direct impact on domestic prices. Similarly, unless production costs and productivity in Malaysia can keep pace with those abroad, exports are likely to lose ground with negative effects on national employment and income. Malaysias economic engine is slowing. Since the Asian financial crisis of 1997-1998, Malaysias position as an economic leader in the region has steadily eroded. Growth has been lower than other crisis affected countries, while investment has not recovered. Private investors have taken a back seat. Since the Asian crisis, aggregate investment as a share of GDP in Malaysia has continued to decline, with private investment remaining stagnant due to several factors. In some industries, heavy government and government linked company (GLC) presence has discouraged private investment. Cumbersome and lengthy bureaucratic procedures have affected both the cost of investing, and the potential returns on investment. Malaysias place within the Global Competitiveness Index dropped to 24th in the 2010 report from 21st previously, indicating that the country is losing its attractiveness as an investment destination (New Economic Model For Malaysia, 2010) A plunge in exports wounded this trade-sensitive economy in 2009. The impact of weak exports spread to private investment, which fell sharply, and to private consumption, which was nearly flat. Fiscal stimulation packages provided some buffer for aggregate demand. Economic growth will rebound during the forecast period, underpinned by a recovery in exports and rising incomes. Annual inflation is set to pick up from low levels. The government plans renewed efforts to encourage private investment. Fixed investment fell sharply by 5.5%, with many firms cancel ling or deferring investment decisions. Investment acted as the major drag on GDP in 2009. The ringgit, having depreciated by 5.0% against the dollar during the first 3 months of 2009, when increased risk aversion and deleveraging activities by international investors increased the demand for dollars has since appreciated. Economic growth, while impressive, has slowed and private investment, averaging about 30% of GDP just before t he Asian financial crisis, has fallen to around 9.5% of GDP. These indicators point to the need to address deficiencies in the investment climate and to reappraise the role of public sector companies that compete with the private sector. (Rajapakse, 2010) Other than that, the effect of middle-income trap include lack of appropriately skilled human capital caused by brain drainA graduate teacher starts at RM2,500 per month in Malaysia, compared to RM6,196 in Singapore and RM15,661 in Hong Kong. Malaysian wages have fallen behind partly due to the gross divergence between the suppressed Malaysian CPI and that of the world (FONG, 2010). Globalization, outsourcing, offshoring and business process outsourcing gave rise to mobility of resources, investment, companies and skilled workers. Skilled workers flow to locations where they are paid higher and companies move to locations that are more competitive. Many skilled Malaysian workers have been leaving the country, lured by higher pay (Altfa, 2011). Many Malaysians could be found working overseas as they were often adaptable, multi-lingual and inexpensive. In terms of composition of the economy for most developed countries, more than 60% of annual gross domestic product (GDP) came from the services sector, with Malaysia somewhere just over 50%. Deputy director in the Public Private Partnership Centre and Secretariat to the Economic Council of the Economic Planning Unit Dr Soh Chee Seng said: Our productivity levels are not really low, it is just that they are falling behind other rapidly developing countries like China, India, Indonesia and Thailand: According to HSBC Bank Bhd executive director Jon Addis the countrys infrastructure was still patchy such as in terms of public transit, which had some idiosyncrasies. (Min) Malaysia stuck in middle income trap will lead to bring to affect of low value added industries. According to Wikepedia, value added  can be refers to extra features of an item of interest for example product, service, person and etc that go beyond the standard expectations and provide something more while adding little or nothing to its cost. Value-added features give competitive edges to companies with otherwise more expensive products. (Wikipedia) In Malaysia, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have evolved to become a key suppliers and service providers to large corporations, inclusive of Multinational Corporation and Transnational Corporation (MNCs TNCs). SMEs contributed to expanding output, providing the value added activities in the manufacturing sector, creating employment opportunities, contributing to broadening Malaysia export based. Our Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has urged SMEs to adopt technology as a core part of their business strategy to gain a sus tainable competitive edge. He said that the SME community in Malaysia was not adopting technology as rapidly as it should. (Adopt new technology, Najib urges SMEs, 2011) For this point, SMI Association of Malaysia president Chua Tiam Wee urged the government should concern about the problem faced by SMEs, such as securing adequate financing at competitive rates for new start-ups, the issue of frequent policy changes in employing foreign workers to overcome shortage, and also the problems in dealing with government agencies to acquire halal certification and other licences. (Mustaza, 2011) Besides that, there are many factors have contributed to the countrys slower growth over the past year among them to caused less invest from FDIs to Malaysia, we are loss of comparative advantage with other emerging economics such as India, Vietnam and China which being supplanted as a low-cost export and services based. (The Middle Income Trap, 2010) Another effect of the middle income trap is that Malaysia providing a low skilled jobs and low wages to attract foreign worker migrant into our countries. To become one of the high income countries, mean that the income of an individual is high. The main goals of the New Economics Model(NEM) are that Malaysia will toward become a high income country with target of US$15,000 until 20,000 per capital by 2020. But now Malaysia stuck in the middle income trap because there are not enough high wages job created in Malaysia. Normally, high wages are often related to the high skilled worker. In fact the share of skilled labour has declined across industries. The figure as shown as below shown that the use of high skilled labour for differences industries for 2002 and 2007. The EE as one of the largest industries contribute in GDP of Malaysia. From the diagram, the use of high skilled labour in EE was declined from 54% to 46%. The regional competition did lead to some minor transformation over the years. Although the manufacturing sector in Malaysia was grew rapidly, but that is resulting shortage of Malaysian workers with higher wages. Therefore, the foreign labours are welcome to Malaysia to fill the gap. So the companies could enjoy low wages and production costs to comfortable profit. The skilled labour force is also linked to education. The labour force with tertiary education for advanced countries is usually high, so many skilled Malaysian worker will leaving the country to pursue a higher pay. The central themes of the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP) is encapsulated in 10 Big Ideas, says the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) of the Prime Ministers Department. These 10 Big Ideas, if vigorously and consistently implemented would see Malaysia through the challenging times and enable the nation to be a high-income and developed nation by 2020, said the Unit under the Prime Ministers Department. (10MP Encapsulates In 10 Big Ideas, Says EPU, 2010) One of the ideas of the Tenth Big Ideas is to unleashing productivity-led growth and innovation. Malaysia stuck in the middle income trap will cause lacking in talent and innovation to do so. Malaysian graduates tend to more interested to work in abroad because they offered a high income from the other countries. As they leaving from Malaysia, it will lose the skilled talent needed to make innovation to develop the country. Therefore, Malaysia lack of holistic approach and systematic assessment of innovation. Besides that, the growth model eventu ally runs out of steam. As the incomes increase, so the costs also have to be concern. The low-tech manufacturing industry was undermining the competitiveness. Therefore, Malaysia tend to move up the value chain, into exports of more technologically advanced products, like electronics. The economy has to innovate and use labor and capital more productively. To get to become a high income country, the economy needs to do more than just make stuff by throwing people and money into factories. That requires an entirely different way of doing business. Companies must invest more heavily in RD on their own and employ highly educated and skilled workers to turn those investments into new products and profits. (DAN, 2010) Based on the effects of middle-income trap stated above, we strongly suggest that government has to consider thoroughly before Goods and Services Tax (GST) is imposed. . Such a plan has pros and cons and serious implications and has to be thoroughly studied and extensive consultation made before a final decision is made. Public consultation on this policy that would have great impact on the Malaysian economy and investment is seen as vigorous enough that would have an impact on poorer Malaysians and the government coffers (Altfa, Minimum wage policy can hurt manufacturers competitiveness, 2011). GST wills worsening the poverty condition in Malaysia as well as deteriorates the private consumption in economy. The ripple impacts of GST will deepen the situation of middle-income trap in our country. WAYS TO GET OUT OF MIDDLE INCOME TRAP Brain drain refers to significant emigration of educated and talent individuals to another country. Malaysia being criticised for mismanaging its talent human resources as skilled and talent Malaysian moved to countries whom provide better earnings [1]. The problem grew serious as the statistics of brain drain increasing dramatically. Federal Government stated that between the beginning of 2008 and August 2009, slightly more than 300,000 Malaysians migrated to overseas. It is estimated that in 2009 there were over 700,000 Malaysians living abroad, with up to two-thirds of them are professionals workers. Therefore it effects the economic transformation of our country from a low to a high value-added economy. Therefore to curb brain drain problem, a new Talent Corporation will be formed to find out and deliver top talent from overseas and locally that are beneficial to stimulate economic sectors. The Government will attract Malaysians currently living and working in other countries to return Malaysia in order to build their careers in Malaysia. According to the Minister in the Prime Ministers Department, Tan Sri Nor Mohd Yaacob, this corporation hopes to draw back at least 70,000 Malaysians from overseas over the next 10 years by offering a package of very attractive incentives [2]. Strategies were taken to succeed the talent corporation plan. Three areas have been identified in 10th Malaysian Plan including soft infrastructure investment such as skills development, providing enablers to support concentrated industrial clusters and specialisation and increasing Research Development and venture capital funding [1]. Government scholarships especially Public Service Department scholarship will be given to top students from around the world to further their studies in Malaysia whom later will be encouraged to contribute to the Malaysian talent pool [1]. The civil service will increase its focus on hiring high-caliber young talent and will offer 60,000 scholarships to students in local and foreign universities [1]. Moreover, under the 10MP open visas will be offered to highly-skilled foreign professionals and there will be no time limit on visas for skilled foreign workers whom earns more than RM8, 000 per month [1]. Despite that, living conditions will also be improved in order to attract more world-class talent to make their homes in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur will be set as a city for people seeking quality and diverse lifestyles, in close proximity to nature, cultural richness and excellent infrastructure [1]. Therefore Talent Corporation able to draw back Malaysian talented workforce to stimulate economy of Malaysia and indirectly could help Malaysia get out of middle income trap. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) plays a significant role in Malaysias economic development. In the 14th century, Malacca had attracted FDIs in services because of its strategic location in the Straits of Malacca [3]. First, FDI has provided an additional source of capital which directly helps host country to expand their production activities and thereby generate more profit.   The profits can be used for the purpose of making contributions to the revenues of corporate taxes of the  recipient  country [4].  FDI assists in increasing the income that is generated through  revenues  realized through taxation [4]. [1] Lee Wee Lian (2010) The Malaysian Insider: Najib bets on move from hardware to software. [2] Malaysian Today online news (2010): Attracting talents back through the Talent Corporation [3] 2010 Foreign Direct Investment vs Domestic Investment. New Straits Times. FDI allows the transfer of technologies. In general, FDI provides the fastest and most effective way to deploy new technologies in developing host countries (UNCTAD 2000). Innovative technologies can help not only increase returns to investment but also improve productivity [4]. FDI also promoted exports and trade. Without foreign capital, Malaysia might not have experienced rapid increase in their exports. Exports have been the main engine of economic growth, especially for Malaysia, where it moved from mainly primary goods exporters to major exporters of manufactured goods. The shift in exports reflects the structural transformation of Malaysia from being agriculture-based to industry-based. Meanwhile, the countries that get FDI from another country can also develop the human capital resources by getting their employees to receive training and learn extra skills on the operations of a particular business. FDI can significantly relevant to boost economy. Therefore, we have to create more opportunities for major investors to invest in the domestic economy as FDI able to help Malaysia get out from the middle income trap. Malaysia will focus and worked out more to strengthen its investment attraction activities to attract both the domestic and foreign investment required. As a beginning, corporatization and empowerment of MIDA announced in the Tenth Malaysia Plan and the expansion of its scope to cover domestic investment [5]. There are two categories of investor attraction. First, targeted outreach to potential investors and secondly, partners as well as broader-marketing campaigns [5]. A Roadmap for Malaysia Targeted outreach activities include identifying and negotiating with specific investors to participate in identified projects will be conducted [5]. [4] Economy Watch: Benefits of Foreign Direct Investment [5] Chapter 1: New Economy Model of Malaysia: Economic Transformation Programmed Fiscal stimulus packages helped increased the spending on green technologies in many countries. Several countries have focused to technologies that help improve energy efficiency. Recently, statistics shows that only 13 percent of Chinas domestic electricity consumption is provided through cogeneration facilities. Meanwhile, when cogeneration facilities are combined with district heating and cooling (DHc) systems, further synergies can be created. Through implementation of a DHc facility and as well as the size and number of buildings the cost of total capital and investment can be lower than the cost of traditional methods for heating and cooling individual buildings. This energy efficiency significantly reduces carbon emissions. (Article: Escaping the Middle Income Trap) Moreover, some green technologies have ability to reduce poverty or inequality gap. For example, renewable energies such as solar power can facilitate rural electrification, which can help to reduce poverty [6]. Investment to keep green technology efficient could help a country to escape from middle income by reducing poverty and inequality. However, public funds get misallocated or finance white elephant projects, with less contribution to the economy. For example, plenty of Chinas green investments are in wind technology. However, some analysts report shows that a high proportion of Chinas current wind assets might be either not in use or not connected to the national power grid. In other cases, promoted new technologies can be far from the economys comparative advantage or their subsidization can harm competitiveness. In this case, measures that allow the market provide guide when subsidizing or investing in green economy are required. (Article: Escaping Middle Income Trap) [6] World Bank. 2000. Energy Services for the Worlds Poor. Energy And Development Report 2000. ESMAP, World Bank, Washington, Dc. There are many ways to Malaysia be escape from the Middle trap income. One of it is by New Economic Model (NEM). NEM is an economic plan in Malaysia discovered on 30th March, 2010 by Najib Tun Razak, Malaysian Prime Minister. It is intended to more than double the per capita income in Malaysia by 2020. According to Najib, the goal of NEM is to transform the Malaysian economy to become one with high incomes and quality growth. The keys to the plas as described by Najib are high income, sustainability and inclusiveness. For the high income key, there are lifting the real growth rate to an average of 6.5% per annum over the 2011-2020 period. Per capita GDP will rise to about USD 17,700 by 2020 and aggregate demand will have to grow at a robust pace as well. [7] Moreover, the high income key in NEM will unlock the value of in Principles of Learning: Overview of Theories Principles of Learning: Overview of Theories Yesenia Zuniga Learning Principles Telling a child to do something is never an easy thing to do because most of the time they won’t listen to their parents. During the age of four to eight years old the only thing a child wants to do is play and bond with other kids. Parents are affecting a child’s academic performances if the only thing a parent is doing is letting their child play and not having any reading time before they start elementary school. There are three learning principles a parent should use to help their child enjoy to read and enhance their academic performances while in school; classical conditioning, operant conditioning and observational learning is what parents can use to motivate their child to read. Although a child might find reading boring if a parent uses the three learning principles a child can adapt to reading and find their child to have cognitive development. The first learning principle is classical conditioning. Classical conditioning is learning to link two stimuli in a way that helps us anticipate an event to which we have a reaction (Psychology book). Parents are going to learn the best method to link two stimuli and help their child learn that reading is a wonderful pastime. During classical conditioning parents are going to have to learn also how to identify the following; neutral stimuli (NS), unconditioned response (UR), unconditional stimuli (US), conditioned response (CR), and conditioned stimulus (CS). Many parents may think how do I know that classical conditioning works? An example of classical conditioning is the experiment of â€Å"Little Albert† led by John B. Watson, during this experiment little Albert had no fear of anything. When he was presented a rat he had no fear, when little Albert heard the noise of the steel bar hit with a hammer he would start crying, after when they combined the rat and the hammer hit the steel bar little Albert became afraid of the rat. The US, was the loud noise, the UR, was the fear response, the NS was the rat before it was paired with the noise, the CS was the rat after pairing; the CR was fear (psychology book pg.247). A classical conditioning strategy a parent could use for their child is for the parent to create a child’s library room in their home, in the wall they could have a painting of their child’s favorite cartoons character reading, have classical music while the child is reading, and also have a comfortable sofa. A child will see that when he or she starts reading is a place they could escape to, is somewhere they could be comfortable and relax and through time the child would think of reading is something peaceful, delighted, and a de-stress zone. In this case the US will be the painting of the cartoon, the UR is listening to the music while the child is reading, the NS is the book, after condition the CS would be the book the child is reading and the CR is the child actually enjoying reading a book. There are many strategies one can use but this would be the best, for a child to want to hear and learn how to read but a parent has to make it fun for them. Making it fun for the child to read is important because if it is fun then the child will find it amusing. The second learning principle is operant conditioning. Operant conditioning is changing behavior choices in response to consequences (Psychology book). During operant conditioning a parent can use a positive or a negative reinforcement. A parent should use both reinforcement and the parent is going to use fixed-interval schedule which is in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed (psychology book pg.279). A strategy a parent could use is read a book to their child, sit them down and make them listen without having any disturbances but the child should understand that it could be rewarding or there could be consequences if they do not listen. When the parent finishes reading the book to their child, the child must explain what the parent has read to them. When the child is not able to explain what they were just read to the parent should take away an hour of playtime and make them read a book on their own. In th is case this would be a negative reinforcement but through time the child would understand that when they are read to they should listen so they could understand and be able to explain what other people are reading to them which would help them when the child is in school because it would also teach them to listen to their teachers. A positive reinforcement could be, if the child is able to explain what the parent just read to them the parent should reward the child with a small dessert. The child will see that paying attention while someone is reading to them it can be rewarding and they will also see that through time reading can be rewarding. The third learning principle is observational learning. Observational learning is acquiring new behaviors and information through observation and information, rather than by direct experience (Psychology Book). This learning principle has a modeling and a vicarious learning; a modeling is the process of observing and imitating a specific behavior (psychology book 290) and a vicarious learning our choices are affected as we see others get consequences for their behaviors. The best decision a parent should use while trying to teach their children that reading is fun would be modeling. Kids tend to copy one another and if a parents teaches their children to sit down for an hour and read to him or her they could be an influence to other children. Not only will this strategy be helping their academic performance it will help other kids with their performances as well. Kids tend to learn so much by observing other people and kids, parents could use that advantage to help their child be an influence to other kids and tell them that reading is something enjoyable. Parents need to teach their children that reading is fun that is something enjoyable so their child could be an influence to other kids and his or her friends. Parents could have difficulties with their children to get them to read but with classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and with observational learning it is possible. The parents have to start taking action because they are the ones that can help improve their child’s academic performance. Instead of letting their children play and waiting for them to start school so they could start learning how to read parents should be reading to them when they are three to four year old so they are used to it. Parents need to expose their children to books at a young age because at a young age a child may listen and through time they get used to reading but if they want to get their child to get used to reading in their teenage years is more difficult. Academic performances are very important in a child’s life because it determines their capability in school and in the world, and if by teaching a child to read at a young age helps them improve then that is what a parent shou ld be doing. Reference Page David G. Myers, D,B. (2013). Psychology 10th Edition, New York: Worth Publishers

The Creation of Disneyland Essay -- Walt Disney 1950s

The Creation of Disneyland Walt Disney: The Early Years Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5, 1901. He was the fourth of five children born to Elias and Flora Disney. Elias was a fairly unsuccessful businessman, who moved the family from city to city in search of financial success. When Walt was four, they moved from their home in Chicago to a farm in Marceline, Missouri. Walt's time in Marceline provided him with the vision for Main Street USA (Francavigilia, 1981). His frequent associations with animals would also become evident in his later cartoons (Bryman, 4). In 1910, the family left Marceline and moved to Kansas City. Elias was a strict taskmaster who often beat his children. This led to Walt's two oldest brothers deserting the family. Another brother, Roy, left to go help an uncle on a farm. Although they were no longer living together, Roy and Walt remained close. In 1919, Walt got a job as a cartoonist at a commercial art studio in Kansas City. That job did not last long, and following a failed attempt at starting his own business, Walt began to work for the Kansas City Film Ad Company. During this time, he seriously explored the world of animation. Success, however, did not come easily to Walt, and he soon decided that he had to leave Kansas City. In 1923, he carried just $40 in his pocket and left for Hollywood. Walt's brother Roy, who was already living in Los Angeles, provided Walt with some financial backing and contacted a distributor about Walt's first animation Alice's Wonderland. Working together with Roy, the brothers opened "Disney Bros. Studio" (It would later be known as Walt Disney Studio). Roy handled the business operations and Walt specialized in the animated productions. Although produ... ...jects. James Rouse, an accomplished architect has credited Walt Disney for providing much of his inspiration. In addition to suburban malls, Rouse has created Baltimore's Harborplace and Boston's Faneuil Hall Marketplace (Hine, 152). Although Walt Disney died in 1966, his ideas can still be found across the globe. Works Cited Adams, Judith A. The American Amusement Park Industry. Boston: Twayne, 1991. Bryman, Alan. Disney and his Worlds. New York: Routledge, 1995 Francavigilia, R.V. (1981) "Main Street USA: a comparison / contrast of streetscapes in Disneyland and Walt Disney World", Journal of Popular Culture, 15: 141-156 Justdisney.com. 18 Apr. 2004 http://www.justdisney.com/disneyland/history.html Thomas Hine, Populuxe (New York: Knopf, 1986), 152. Works Consulted Marling, Karal Ann. Designing Disney's Theme Parks. New York: Flammario, 1997.

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer

Geoffrey Chaucer's â€Å"The Canterbury Tales† is more than just an entertaining collection of stories and characters; it is a representation of the society Chaucer lived in. In the late 14th century England the traditional feudal system was changing as the church was losing its importance and more people were becoming part of the emerging middle class. Chaucer's â€Å"Canterbury Tales† is a microcosm of this society because it demonstrates the social divisions known as the Estates, it illustrates the growth of the middle class and the decline of the feudal system, and it shows the corruption and power of the Church, and it embodies most aspects of the Middle Age.Feudal society was traditionally divided into three â€Å"estates†, which were roughly equivalent to social classes. The â€Å"First Estate† was the Church, the â€Å"Second Estate† was the Nobility, and the â€Å"Third Estate† was the Peasantry. The rigid division of society into th e three traditional â€Å"estates† was beginning to break down in the late 14th century England, and by the time of Chaucer, there was a rise of the middle class. In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer is highly conscious of the social divisions known as the â€Å"Estates.† While the genre of The Canterbury Tales as a whole is a frame narrative, the General Prologue to The Canterbury Tales is an example of â€Å"Estates Satire,† a genre which criticizes the abuses that occur within the three traditional Estates.Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales embodies most aspects of the Middle Ages, whether it is in the form of immoral religious clergyman, poor, virtuous farmers, or the honorable knight. All these characters provide excellent examples of the many omnipresent themes of the Middle Ages. The prevailing values and themes of the Middle Ages included violence and revenge, religion and corruption, and social status and hierarchy.The times in which Chaucer's The Cant erbury Tales is set are tumultuous and are filled with suffering, conflict, and general animosity; as such, the ideas of revenge and thus violence are fairly prevalent. In a great many of Chaucer's tales, this theme is framed perfectly. An example near the end of  the Reeve's tale after the miller discovers the scholars' treachery. â€Å"He [the miller] grabbed Allan by the Adam's apple, and he, in return, roughly grabbed the miller and hit him on the nose with his fist† (Chaucer 83). In this instance, not only a quick resort to violence is exhibited, but violence is used as revenge as the miller attacks Allan after realizing that he has slept with his wife. Evidenced by this, violent tendencies were often the most common, and the most appropriate response.In all of England, violence was seen as something of a way of life Curtis Gruenler, in a literary analysis, states, â€Å"[V]iolence on a large scale held English attention as spectacular victories against the French ear ly in the Hundred Years War were followed by a series of costly, disastrous campaigns† (Gruenler). War was a profession of many people in England including a character of Chaucer's, the Knight had fought in at least 15 battles and had essentially built out his entire livelihood based upon the battles he was called upon by his lord to take part in. In essence, violence was a universally recognized form of justice and retribution something that was explicitly pointed out in Chaucer's stories.Yet another theme is the presence of religion, or more specifically, the presence of corruption within religion. Many members of the pilgrimage have ties to religious office, and all but the Parson have in some way violated their vows or otherwise acted somewhat out of their bounds as a high ranking member of the Church. Chaucer illustrates this elegantly in the form of the Pardoner's prologue where he states â€Å"make an offering to my relics in this church [. . .] make an offering in the name of God, I shall absolve them by the authority of which was granted to me by papal bull† (Chaucer 288).After telling the pilgrims of this trick, clearly aimed at pocketing a good deal of money, he explains, â€Å"By this trick I have gained a hundred marks year after year since I became a pardoner† (Chaucer 288). The Pardoner is not, however, the only immoral religious character involved in the pilgrimage. The Friar, for example, has broken his vows as a clerical member of the Church, most prominently his vow of chastity.The Friar has engaged in relationships that have violated this vow, and when a child comes as a result of this interaction, he has gone so far as to marry the woman to her  lover so as to cover his own tracks. All of these aspects of church corruption in The Canterbury Tales eventually come down to a desire for pleasure and money, something that plagued the legitimacy of the Catholic Church and eventually led to the religious reformation.Among th e characters a sort of social hierarchy became quickly apparent in the midst of these many travelers. A general character emerged that separated the pilgrims based upon their economic and social standings. There was a rather large contrast between the richest of the travelers and the poorest. For example, the Franklin was an owner of a large estate and lavish personal goods. Although he is deeply in debt, his social status is still far higher than that of say, the Plowman. The Plowman is one of the poorer members of the pilgrimage, but despite this he is one of the more cheerful and charitable members of the pilgrimage. This can be seen as Chaucer's means of expressing his feelings toward the social hierarchy of the times.Chaucer also weighs in on feudalism, the socioeconomic system of the time. â€Å"[Chaucer represents the] feudal arrangement of society [. . .] around the figure of the knight as a conception of nobility, and around the labourer a conception of commonality† (Morgan 8). Chaucer seems to see feudalism as a system that divides people into the wealthy nobles and the poor laborers. Chaucer also seems to recognize the presence of a middle class that seems to rise out of feudalism. For example, the figure of a merchant who gains his wealth by his own accord, specifically money trading, and is almost entirely independent of the feudal system.The Merchant is described in the general prologue as â€Å"[a] responsible man [who] kept his wits about him [. . .] Nevertheless he was really a worthy man† (Chaucer 6). In short, Chaucer saw the social structure of his time and saw certain things he had disapproval of, but indeed, he saw some other parts of it as beneficial to the betterment of society.To close, Chaucer's masterpiece The Canterbury Tales exhibits many prevalent themes and in such a way paints a picture of the times. He does this by talk of violence, religious corruption, and social structuring, all of which were very pertinent bit s of society in the time as they all formed a system that  is looked back on and interpreted through works of fact and fiction such as The Canterbury Tales.

Martin Luther and His Impact on the Modern Church Essay

Western Europe was in desperate need of change during the sixteenth century. The popular cry among the Europeans was a call for â€Å"reform†. The political atmosphere was unstable as a result of violent leadership changes during the dismantling of the feudal system. This disunity of the people created a general atmosphere among the Europeans of discontent, unrest, and frustration. Economically, the inhabitants experienced increased poverty and financial troubles. The church was severely plagued by greed and corruption among the clergy, even in the upper echelons. The spiritual quality of the clergy was being degraded through the appointment of familial or political candidates. The theological minds, like Martin Luther’s, sought a reformation of church doctrine and a return to the basics of Christianity. The emphasis placed on Luther’s doctrine of justification and scriptural authority helped to reform church traditions and break the binding hold of corrupt leade rs over the church. The sixteenth century was a tumultuous time for Western Europe and the Church. Many Europeans were fraught with worry concerning the economical, religious, and social disorder. As the printing press became popular, the middle and lower classes were being flooded with information that had previously been unavailable; several competing doctrines were being given a voice through printed media. Previously, people would turn to religious institutions for hope and guidance amidst this type of chaos. However, the state of the church in the sixteenth century was fragile. This is due in part to the effects of the Great Schism in the fourteenth century. â€Å"[The Great Schism] divided the political, as well as the ecclesiastical world, and breaks up the Christian Europe into several hostile camps†. The Great Schism was a result of a gradual decline along political and theological lines. Prior to the Great Schism, the Papacy had risen to a level of prominence in the hearts and minds of Western European Christians. The Church controlled virtually every aspect of human life within Western Europe and the Pope was looked to as the authority on all matters; spiritual and secular. The Church possessed a large percentage of the region and had established one of the most efficient systems of government in history. At this time, theological justification for the supremacy of the papacy had been established under the principle of â€Å"the subordination of the state to the church† by Pope Innocent III. However, in Eastern Europe, the Pope was more of a foreign authority; available only when their own political leadership could not settle matters. The empire was recognized as the supreme power. They argued that unity for the citizens could only be realized through obedience to one authority; the empire. Since Christ had not given the authority of the state to the church, the church had no right to claim supremacy over the empire. Several religious leaders in the East sought to inhibit the power and authority of the Papacy. The climate of Europe was poised for division. The beginning of the division came in the form of the â€Å"Babylonian Captivity of the Church† that lasted from 1309 to 1377. During this period, the French King Phillip IV held Pope Boniface VIII captive, and sequestered the College Cardinals to Avignon. This would introduce a reign of corruption among the French papacy and introduce a dividing line between European Christians; one side supporting the French papacy and another side that opposed it. These factors led to a final cataclysmic event that earned the title â€Å"The Great Schism†. When Gregory IX, the final Avigonese pope, returned to Rome, the Church attempted to re-establish the papacy in its historic setting. Upon his death, the papacy faced a great challenge. Urban IV, an Italian pope, was elected at the urging of the local mob, while Clement VII, a Frenchman, claimed rights to the seat as well. This caused confusion over the authority of the church and division among political lines; England, Germany, I taly, and their allies support Urban IV, while France, Scotland, Spain, and their allies supported the â€Å"anti-pope† Clement VII. The Great Schism had a great effect on the faith and spirituality of the masses. There was a general feeling of distrust toward the Church and leadership. Even after the Great Schism had ended, â€Å"many found it difficult to reconcile their faith in the papacy with their distrust for its actual occupants†.Corruption and bribery were now commonplace among the upper level clergy; the practice of â€Å"the sale of indulgences† would even substitute for the process of salvation. Morally, the church was failing the believers. However, there were other flaws within the church during the sixteenth century. At the end of the fifteenth century, Western Europe had been flooded with literature from divergent theological schools of thought. â€Å"New philosophical outlooks were introduced†. Mysticism and humanism were now beginning to replace the previously solid scholastic theology of the church. Supporters of Reform were calling for a change of the traditional practices. It is in this context with which Martin Luther was influenced during the fifteenth and sixteenth century. Martin Luther grew up in an austere environment in Germany in the 1500’s. As a young adult, Luther entered the monastery out of concern for his own salvation. He thought, â€Å"’Oh, if I go into a monastery, and serve God in shaven crown and cowl, he will reward and welcome’†. Luther began a diligent study of theology during his time at the Augustinian Priory in Erfurt. He excelled intellectually and spiritually, though he experienced severe personal struggles. â€Å"He sought to work out his own salvation by careful observance of the monastic rule, constant confession, and self mortification†. This careful obedience to the monastic life was to no avail; Luther was plagued with despair at the thought of his sinfulness. Added to his frustrations, Luther had experienced disillusionment during his tenure at the monastery. The carnally minded clergy of Rome shocked him. â€Å"In Rome, the first sparks of doubt flew into his soul, which, perhaps, while he was unconscious of it, faintly glimmered, but which, with the first opportunity that might present itself, were destined to rise up into a flaming fire†. It is through these experiences that Luther would come to significant theological conclusions concerning the doctrine of justification by faith. These conclusions helped to spark a movement that would forever change the mindset of the Christian community. As Martin Luther continued his studies of scripture, he was tortured by the guilt of sin. â€Å"He was struck by the prayer of Psalm 31:1, ‘in thy righteousness deliver me’. But how could God’s righteousness deliver him? The righteousness of God was surely calculated rather to condemn the sinner than to save him†. His questions required him to review Paul’s’ doctrine of justification detailed in Romans. The doctrine of justification by faith is the basic message of God’s forgiveness towards the sin of man. Job pondered this question in the Old Testament; â€Å"How can a person be justified before God?† (Job 9:2, HCSB). Justification, then, is an act of grace by God, where he accepts the righteousness of Christ as our own by our faith in Christ. Paul comments that â€Å"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. For in it God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.† (Romans 1:16-16, HCSB) The righteousness of God now holds new meaning for Luther; the message of the gospel, or good news in Christ. The justice or righteousness of God does not mean punishment as Luther originally thought, but rather the imputation of God’s righteousness to the believer. The righteousness of God is imputed to the believer, even as the believer is a sinner, because of God’s grace and mercy. Essentially, as Christians we are both sinful and justified. God does not excuse or ignore the sin of man. However, God declares us as justified because of the sacrifice of Christ once we believe and trust in Him. Our faith is not the cause of justification, as if we are rewarded for faith. But rather, faith and justification are free gifts to sinners who accept them. Luther’s new revelation led him to a new way of thinking and preaching. His thoughts concluded that â€Å"I soon felt as if born again; as if I had found the gates of Paradise thrown wide open to me. Now I also looked upon the blessed Scriptures more reverently than in former times, and read them through rapidly† . This message of justification was received warmly by the masses. The western Europeans felt that Luther spoke to their condition, and increased their desire for reform. For Luther, the Word of God was of utmost importance and it helped him find the answers to the issues of salvation that overwhelmed him. In the mind of Martin Luther, the Word of God was more than the text of the Bible. â€Å"For the laws of the Bible become sweet unto us when we read and understand them, not only in books, but in the wounds of our precious Savior†. The word of God is essentially more than scriptural text; it is the revelation of God and the Word of God working together. In the primary sense we are told in John 1:1 that the Word of God is actually God himself. â€Å"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.† Here detailed, the Word of God is actually the personage of Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity. This means that when God speaks, He also acts. This is depicted in Genesis as the Word of God is involved in creation; God said, let there be†¦and there was. Christ, now God’s greatest action is also His greatest revelation; the victory of God through Christ. The Bible is the Word of God, not because it is infallible, but because in it we find Christ. The final authority of the Word of God is now realized in Christ. â€Å"Luther responded that it was neither the Church that had made the Bible, nor the Bible that had made the Church, but the gospel, Jesus Christ, that had made both the Bible and the Church. Final authority rest neither in the church nor in the Bible, but in the gospel, in the message of Jesus Christ, who is the Word of God incarnate†. Luther came to a transformative knowledge through his theological doctrines of justification by faith and the scriptural authority of the Word of God. His new emphasis greatly challenged the traditional views of the church. In sharing his knowledge, he penned ninety seven theses to stimulate debate about the theological traditions of the church. He expected to cause a stir, but the theses never received a wide circulation outside of the university. Luther pens another theses in response to the misrepresentation of doctrine by John Teztel, a German Dominican preacher. Tetzel, authorized by Pope Leo X, was responsible for the sale of indulgences in Germany. The sale of indulgences was the practice of granting absolution to a sinner through a monetary remuneration. Family members were also able to purchase an indulgence for the deceased. Pope Leo granted the authorization of the sale of indulgences with the conditions that half of the proceeds would be used by the papal coffers. The monies would then be used for the refurbishing of Rome; more specifically â€Å"the refurbishment of the great basilica that is now the pride of Roman Catholicism†. With righteous indignation, Luther refutes the practice of the sale of indulgences in his Ninety Five Theses. The sale of indulgences was popular at the time, though a theologically gray area. Luther believed that this practice was indicative of the loss of the foundational truths present in the gospel. Luther wrote the theses through his new mindset in the doctrine of justification by faith. Luther established that the sale of indulgences financially exploited the believer whereas salvation was intended to be a free gift from God. He also inadvertently challenged the authority of the Pope: â€Å"if it is true that the Pope is able to free souls from purgatory, he ought to use that power, not for trivial reasons such as the building of a church, but simply out of love, and freely†. With his nailing of the Ninety Five Theses on the door of the church in Wittenburg, on the Eve of All Saints, Luther is said to have sparked the Protestant Reformation Though the religious nature of the Reformation reverberated throughout Western Europe, there was a significant political aspect as well. Though Luther was nothing more than a friar, however, his text was an endangerment to the profits of the empire. The Emperor Maximillian wanted to silence the indignation of Luther. To the emperor’s chagrin, this could not be accomplished through Luther’s Augustinian Order; many of his fellow friars favored his teachings. The pope was forced to use an alternate method in commissioning Cardinal Cajetan to arrest Luther; an unfruitful undertaking. When Luther learned of Cajetan’s plans, he escaped back to Wittenburg to file an appeal with the general council. During this time he remained under the protection of Frederick the Wise, and attempted to gain support for his cause. Shortly following this, the Emperor Maximillian died. The Imperial Throne was vacant, and Pope Leo was searching for a candidate that he could control. Out of the three possibilities, he believed Frederick the Wise would help to balance the power in the region and allow Leo greater influence. Leo allowed the condemnation of Luther to be postponed. During this time, Luther gained the support of a colleague, Andrea von Karlstadt, at the University of Wittenburg who helped him to reform the schools theological curriculum. Karlstadt and Luther would enter into the academic debate with a shrewd theologian, John Eckk at the University of Leipzig in Ingerstoldt. It proved disastrous for Luther. His theological doctrine concerning the authority of scripture agreed with the findings an early theologian, John Huss, who had been declared a heretic. By agreeing with Huss, Luther, was therefore declared a heretic. This catalytic event began a series of struggles and triumphs for the Reformers. To his success, the debate with Eckk gained him support among humanists and the German nationals. Throughout Germany, and beyond, Luther’s protest began a movement in those who desired reform. Luther also ignited the ire of Charles V, the new emperor, with his seemingly heretical stance. Through a series of events, Luther was issued a papal bull that required the burning of his books and his excommunication. He burned this order in public, which prompted him to be brought before the Imperial Diet at Worms. It is here that Luther refuses the opportunity to recant and makes his boldest affirmation â€Å"My conscience is a prisoner of God’s Word. I cannot and will not recant, for to disobey one’s conscience is neither just nor safe. God help me. Amen†. The Reformation that Luther desired was a positive renewal of the church internally. However, Luther was unable to carry out the necessary steps to cement the reform movement. After the Diet of Worms, Luther retreated and Karlstadt was left to further the Reformation. Initially Luther was advocated the changes taking place, including the marriage of monks, the simplification of worship, and the abolition of mass for the dead. However, things soon began to spiral when rebellion broke out among the peasants. Luther never supported rebellious undertakings and urged a more peaceful solution, but to no avail. â€Å"Protestantism† would be blamed and it would create a division in the religious community; Protestants on one side, and Catholics on the other. The Protestant Reformation did not cause other reform movements, but would parallel them. Reform movements would spring up in various European states. In Switzerland, Ulrich Zwingli would be credited with the beginning of the reform movement. Zwingli was a pastor who would draw national attention by declaring many of the same theological doctrines as Martin Luther. He spoke out against the requirement of pilgrimages for salvation, and denounced the exploitation of the Swiss people at the hands of church leadership. Similar to Luther, Zwingli even spoke out against a seller of indulgences that had come to Zurich. The Swiss Reformation saw the New Testament as central to its program of renewal. Their main goal was the â€Å"restoration of biblical faith and practice†. This is where Zwingli held differing opinions than Luther and his followers. Zwingli believed that they should return to the ways of the New Testament and Christ. Zwingli agreed with Luther on several points, but they could not agree on predestination or the understanding of the sacrament. Concerning predestination, Zwingli saw it as a natural consequence of the all knowing nature of God. Luther though content to determine that salvation was the work of God, could not completely agree with Zwingli. This affected their understandings of the sacrament. â€Å"Zwingli dreaded a physical interpretation; Luther, on the contrary, dreaded the evaporation of the of the spiritual element of the sacrament of communion†. The religious community and the citizens of Western Europe were in a state of chaos during the sixteenth century. In desperate need of change, the Europeans called for reform against the traditions passed down from the medieval era. Through the revelations of Martin Luther concerning his doctrines of justification by faith and scriptural authority, the popular sentiment was organized into a movement that would of forever change the religious landscape of the West. Ultimately, a reformed Europe would be divided between the Catholic states of the south and the Protestant states of the north. From these efforts, several differing denominations would result that would inspire religious diversity and other reforms within the church. No longer would the believer be held to the sacrilegious traditions that had pervaded the papacy for over two centuries. Luther’s reformation was more than a â€Å"protest against the pope†; it [was] a positive and constructive renewal of the chu rch†.

White Privilege Essays

White Privilege Essays White Privilege Essay White Privilege Essay Data Analysis Investigation Introduction Research Question: Do individuals in the Midwest experience the affects of white privilege? During this investigation I seek to explore the differences in privilege that males and females, of different race and ethnic backgrounds, experiences in their daily lives. My fellow Sociology of Race and Ethics classmates and I will conduct Peggy McIntosh’s White Privilege survey, in hopes to find any differences in privilege felt by individuals of varying age, gender, race or class membership. My hypothesis is: According to Peggy McIntosh’s White Privilege survey, she suggests that white people are privileged with what she describes as â€Å"an invisible package of unearned assets, which I (Peggy McIntosh) can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was ‘meant’ to remain oblivious. White privilege is like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions maps, passports, code books, visas, clothes, tools, and blank checks† (McIntosh, 1988). I suggest that with the changing of times, and ever growing equality that this distinct idea of white privilege is no longer prevalent. I believe that, McIntosh’s view of white privilege is no longer applicable in today’s Midwestern society and culture. I hypothesize that age will have more of an effect on responses to the survey than that of gender or race. I predict that younger people (below 20) are at a greater risk of feeling â€Å"underprivileged†. For my second hypothesis, I suggest that overall people in the Midwest feel privileged versus not. I believe this because I feel that the social stratification in the US, especially in the Midwest, has declined creating a more equal environment for all. Data Collection I will receive my data though the use of Peggy McIntosh’s White Privilege survey. First I will take the survey, while recording my answers, and then give the survey to ten other individuals, recording their answers in the same format. My fellow classmates will do the same, then all of the information will be then collected and charted accordingly into cross-tabulation tables. Each survey participant will be asked to rate their responses on a 1-4 scale: 1 = Strongly Agree, 2 = Agree, 3 = Disagree and 4= Strongly Disagree. The date responses can than be interpreted as answers of Strongly Agree, and Agree indicating a greater response of â€Å"privilege† – which McIntosh believes suggests members in a majority group. The data will then be organized into cross-tabulation tables. Each table will contain only two variables – one independent variable (gender, age, race, member of the class or not) and one dependent variable (each statement from the survey). After collecting the data a few changes were made: age was recoded into groups of ages, while also recoding all responses of ‘Disagree’ and ‘Strongly Disagree’ into one value for each variable, both to make analysis easier. Race was also recoded into ‘White’ and ‘All Other Races’ to expedite analysis. Also the ethnicity variable responses were found to be unreliable, so that variable was removed before running the data. When reading a cross-tabulation table it is important to remember that in order to interpret the data response, you must look for the differences in the percentages of responses not in the difference in the number of responses. Also, the needed information is, if the independent variable (gender, age, race or class membership) seems to make a difference in how a person responds to the dependent variable (the questions). After all the data has been gathered and charted, I will then compare the findings to my hypothesis. In order to discover whether my hypothesis is true or false I will evaluate the cross tables of age, gender, race and class completed from the collected data. Exploring the Data Younger ages (less than 20) have a larger affect than old age in feeling â€Å"underprivileged†. After analyzing the data, I believe my hypothesis that the ages 18-19 feel underprivileged as compared to the older ages, was correct. This is represented in the findings, that of the en questions surveyed, exactly one half the questions (five of ten) the age group 18-19 had the highest disagreement percentage compared to the other age groups. No other age group had close to the equivalent outcomes, the closest age group being groups 24-34 and 45-50 both with two. The findings show that in one half of all situations this age group is presented with, they feel as though they are underprivileged as compared t o other age groups, but by examining just the 18-19 age group or age as a whole, the majority feel as though the ‘Agree’ they are privileged. This finding is universal through all independent variables. While comparing all independent variables, of the 10 survey scenarios no matter what the independent variable is 70% of the time the participants feel they ‘Agree’ to being privileged. Exploring Data – Midwesterners overall feel â€Å"privileged† versus â€Å"underprivileged† no matter the independent factor. After analyzing the cross-tabulations, I feel as though my hypothesis about the Midwestern society is spot on. The data show’s that across any independent factor (age, gender, race and lass membership) a large majority of the participants surveyed feel as though they ‘Agree’ to being privileged. This is an overwhelming statistic that is constant throughout all independent variables; of the ten surveyed scenarios people agree 70% of the time to feeling privileged. In only, one scenario do people as a whole feel as though they are underprivileged. Overall Analysis and Personal Findings I found the collective results very interesting, especially in the age category. I thought it was interesting that older adults feel less privileged more than or equal to that of middle aged adults. I had assumed, that in our society much like that of the Native American societies that respect and privilege comes with age. I found the data surprising that the age group that tended to feel most privileged was ages 20-21. In four of the ten scenarios, the 20-21 year olds surveyed felt the most privileged or ‘Strongly Agreed’ to the situation as compared to all other age groups. I did not expect this, as the previous age group had felt the most nderprivileged in half of the scenarios, and in only an addition 1-2 years, the surveyed participant went from feeling the most underprivileged to the most privileged. I had guessed that the feeling of privilege would gradually increase with age groups, leaving the oldest age group (50 and older) with the highest feeling of privilege. I thought this, not only because society often deems wisdom with age, but also because the older participants surveyed may have grown up in a more dominant white privilege society, and those same feelings and thought processes would still be relevant to the way they feel they fit in society. All in all, I found very interesting facts from the data collected in every category. Things that I had thought would hold true, often did not. Such as, when considering the independent variable of gender, I assumed that women would primarily feel as though they were underprivileged as compared to men, but the data shows other wise. From this survey, men felt more underprivileged as compared to their female counterparts 100% of the time. Another fact that I found shocking was that when considering race as the independent variable. My hypothesis that white privilege was no long prevalent in the Midwest was incorrect. Participants of the ‘Other’ race felt underprivileged in half of the scenarios, and the other half they only ‘Agreed’ to feeling privileged. As compared to their ‘White’ counterparts, feeling privileged 100% of the time. I do believe that in the Midwest, things are moving close to equality as this is seen in at least half or more of the situations both the ‘White’ and ‘Other’ race group feel as though they ‘Agree’ to being privileged. No one group stands out as ‘Strongly Agreeing’ to be privileged for the majority. This tells us, that although there are still instances of white privilege, the Midwestern society is moving away from that and more towards social equality. : McIntosh, Peggy. Daily effects of white privilege. White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. Wellesley College Center for Research on Women, 1988. Tues. 19 Feb 2013. .

Object and Opt-out on Moral or Religious Grounds

Object and Opt-out on Moral or Religious Grounds Hashtag: #HDPyasambildirgesi (HDP Declaration of Life) Object and Opt-out on Moral or Religious Grounds Non-recognition of the right to conscientious objection is an enduring and highly controversial issue in Turkey and recently, HDP (Haklarm Demokratik Partisi), the country’s leading opposition party promised to legalize it if their candidates win the June 2015 parliamentary election. Conscientious objection or CO according to UN Commission on Human Rights is the right of every individual to object on grounds of conscience but a number of states such as Turkey are unwilling to recognize it as an important human right. Conscience or our sense of right or wrong is in effect the core features of a person’s moral and spiritual identity. Normally, people refused participation or involvement in something because it is against their moral and religious principles.  For example, some people refused to participate in war because of their deeply embedded moral, ethical, or religious belief that killing another human being is wrong. Note that personal code, political, sociological, philosophical, psychological, and other pragmatic reasons are not accepted the basis for a conscientious objection. Students at public or government-subsidized private schools are free to attend religion classes but they can also choose not to and exercise their right to conscientious objection on moral or religious grounds. The right to object is also applicable to a vast range of issues such as oath taking, compulsory patriotic exercises, school curricula, and others that may be easily granted due schools’ obligation to satisfy its neutrality obligation. For instance, a student’s objecting on a culturally impartial and race discriminating curriculum may be allowed to opt-out or exempt him from course requirements. However, similar to conscientious objection to military service, ritual practice, living arrangement, and others, the objection made on moral or religious grounds should pass the test of sincerity. Want to know more? Go here: Womens Right to Education Relieving Students School-Related Stress   Developing Students Creativity and Self-Expression Smoking in Public Places Should Be Banned The Misdemeanors of Well-Educated People in Public Office Testing the Sincerity of the Conscience Most educational institutions have formal policies permitting students at all levels to exercise their right to conscientious objection. In medical schools, for instance, students are allowed to use alternatives if testing of certain laboratory animals such as mice, dog, cats, rabbits, and others violates their conscience. In the United States, the right to conscientious objection to dissection in educational projects is guaranteed by law and school policies authorizing teachers to cooperate and develop an acceptable alternative with their students. The right to conscientious objection is potentially vulnerable to abuse such as avoiding the arduous training and danger associated with military service. It is, therefore, necessary to ascertain whether the objection is actually based on conscience rather than personal code or philosophy in life. A student exercising the right to conscientious objection and opting-out of a religious education class must clearly demonstrate that attending such class violates his or her conscience. For instance, the right may be granted if the student is a member of another religious group or verifiable evidence of a religious conviction that receiving religious teaching other than their own preacher or priest is a sin. Similarly, a student’s conscientious objection on racially discriminating and culturally impartial curriculum must be accompanied by strong conviction or proof of sincere and meaningful and enduring belief that is contradictory to that of the curriculum.

A Note on Cheerleading Essay Example for Free

A Note on Cheerleading Essay ? Cheerleading. When you hear that word, what do you think about? Snobby, skinny blonde girls that have nothing else to do in life besides smile and wear short skirts? Well, when I hear that word, I think of confident, courageous and athletic young women who have a chance to be someone else on a gym floor. Cheerleading is full of so many opportunities! I’ve been a cheerleader for four years and it has done so many things. But before that all happened, my life was just simple. I was nervous to talk in crowds, my face turned red when people wanted to speak to me, and I acted shy in many other ways. I wouldn’t say I was a nobody. I mean, I was a somebody, but just not a positive, talkative student who enjoyed attention. In 7th grade, signing up for cheerleading was a hassle. I didn’t want to sign up all by myself. So I convinced some of my friends to sign up with me. Unfortunately, they quit right before try-outs because they weren’t that interested anymore. So basically, I felt all by myself. But I hung on. I cheered all the cheers, chanted all the chants, stretched all the stretches, and jumped all the jumps. Cheerleading was fun. It changed my life in just three months. I felt as if I was â€Å"coming out of my shell.† But more was to come freshman year. Signing up for cheerleading in freshmanwas easy. But it was the wait for the season to actually start that was aggravating! Eventually, time slowly came by and it was , 2009, the first day of practice, and that was a wake-up call. There was a new, more professional coach, and only one girl from last year was back to be on the squad. So it was time to meet other people for a change and make more friends. New cheers were being taught from the captains of the High School Cheerleaders. Who knew that I’d get the highest score in try-outs and become head captain? Well, I did, and a captain is supposed to lead everyone. That’s what let me be myself. I was able to help everyone understand what to do, when to do it, and stand in front of a crowd by having a different uniform than the other non-captains on the team. Games are my favorite. Just running onto the floor is a rush, and I plan to do that for at least four more years. Yes, I want to be on the High School Cheerleading squad! I’m confident I will make it, and I’m not scared to try. The high school coach has been to some of our practices and I could tell she was impressed. I guess I have to wait a year to see what she says. GO, BULLDOGS! As you can see, there’s been a drastic before and after. Before, I was a shy girl who was just average. Now, I’m a young woman who has a good sense of self-confidence! A Note on Cheerleading. (2017, Jan 21).