Annotated Bibliography on Virtual Classroom for Middle School Research Paper

Annotated Bibliography on Virtual Classroom for Middle School - Research Paper Example Generally, the findings of the study showed online learning are user-friendly and cost-effective. This study would be useful in this study, as it would supply resourceful insights to expand the critical dimensions of the study. Peterson, P., E. (2010). Saving Schools: From Horace Mann to Virtual Learning. New York: Harvard University Press. This book explored the subject of virtual learning within the overall perspective of the historical development of the American education system. The book analyzed the efforts of change advocated by prominent reformers from the eighteenth century to the current period. One general observation that the study makes is that the reform efforts did not yield the desired results as originally intended by the reformers. For instance the book argues that the falling standards of America’s education system is a result of the cumulative effects of past reform efforts. However, the study concludes that virtual learning has the potential of reversing t he damage done on the American education system. This source would be resourceful in analyzing the possible opportunities and pitfalls of virtual learning. Kupczynski, L., Mundy, M., A., Goswami, J., Meling, V. (2012). Cooperative Learning in Distance Learning: A Mixed Methods Study. International Journal of Instruction, 5, (2), 81-90. This study sought to determine the efficacy of cooperative learning within virtual settings. The study was conducted at a Hispanic Serving Institute. The study compared between the traditional forms of online learning and online cooperative learning on the score of effectiveness. The study consisted of 56 participants. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used in the study. Regarding the quantitative results, the study established that there was no significant difference in performance between students from the traditional online approaches and those in the online cooperative learning category. However, qualitative results of this study show ed that a significant percentage of the respondents in the cooperative learning category were more satisfied than those in the traditional forms of online learning. The relevance of this source to the study is to be determined from the score of comparisons between the different forms of virtual learning in relation to its relevance in grade school. Sun, K. (2005). A study on learning effect among different learning styles in a Web-based lab of science at elementary schools. Advanced Learning Technologies. 80-82 This study sought to investigate the value of virtual learning within the field of science at the elementary level. The study involved a comparison of between two groups in a laboratory learning session. The intervention group was subjected to a web-based program of learning while the control group was limited to conventional forms of laboratory learning. The results showed that students from the web-based learning program showed better results than those in the conventional methods. The results also showed that the virtual learning model was suitable for different forms of learning. Further, the results of the study indicated that a majority of the students preferred to be subjected to the web-based models of learning than the other forms of learning. A significant majority expressed their displeasure in the exclusive use of the textbook model of teaching and argued in favor of

The Workplace Diversity of MNCs Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Workplace Diversity of MNCs - Research Paper Example As from Catherwood Library (2010) â€Å"Workplace diversity is a people issue, focused on the differences and similarities that people bring to an organization. It is usually defined broadly to include dimensions beyond those specified legally in equal opportunity and affirmative action non-discrimination statutes. Diversity is often interpreted to include dimensions which influence the identities and perspectives that people bring, such as profession, education, parental status and geographic location†. Problem: Expatriate Recently most of the organizations who are working in different countries want to keep a good amount of diversity in the organization. That is the reason they employ people from different countries with different cultural background, language, religion etc. The organization has to deal with people and it’s very common that where there are individuals coming from diverse backgrounds, there are high chances that conflicts can arise at any time. The iss ue that women employees are lesser in number at the organization is also a diversity problem faces by many organizations. Because if there is no equal number of gender then business towards the better number of gender is going to happen and small least number of gender will be suppressed by the greater number and they will not feel comfortable working there. That is also in general not good for the organization. (Mor Barak, 2010, p.4) Diversity in the workplace mainly encircles people from diverse cultural backgrounds, language, gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religious belief and other values. Diversity is also reflected when people belong to variety of educational fields, work experiences, personality, socio-economic context, marital status etc. (Vissa, 2013) For instance, often in the European work culture, people address their seniors by their names without adding any â€Å"Sir† at the end of the name and this practice is regarded as friendly and warm by the p eople of Europe however the person belonging to Asian culture would find it insulting if his junior addresses him by name. Language also creates a major diversity factor, as it is considered to be the primary tool for communication. Most of the organization lack of proper number of and quality human resource staff to handle these issues. These are the problems regarding expatriate currently facing by most of the MNCs (Multi-National Companies). Solution: Using diversity in positive manner As we can see that the organization has introduced several policies supporting the diversity within the workplace therefore it is must for them to maintain a conflict resolution system. The organization should create an environment of tolerance and understanding in the team. They should also encourage the employees to adopt this mindset, to challenge their belief system and to be open-minded enough to hear each of the members’ view. It will help members realize that there isn’t only o ne way of thinking. The managers need to accept that they can’t make everyone think and act like they do (Esty, 1995, pp 12-14). They need to be attentive to verbal and nonverbal cues that might course tension.  Ã‚  

Security Analysis and Portfolio Management Assignment

Security Analysis and Portfolio Management - Assignment Example It was originated in USA and the first credit rating agency was set up in New York. Credit rating can be defined as the way of evaluating the credit worth of a debtor. According to Moody’s a rating is an opinion on the future ability and legal obligation of the issuer to make timely payments of principal and interest on a specific fixed income security (Gurusamy, 2009, p.88-89). In general, the evaluation of the various securities is done by the credit rating agencies regarding the ability of the debtor to pay back the financial obligations and the probability of becoming a defaulter. In addition, credit rating is also used by the individuals and business ventures that purchase bonds which are issued by the government and companies in order to determine the possibility that company or the government will fulfill its bond obligations. The credit rating is based on the records of earlier repayment and borrowing. Apart from that, the credit rating is also done on the basis of the company’s availability of assets and liabilities. ... Some of the factors are convenient and some are inconvenient. A poor credit rating of the companies or the government indicates that they have high chances of not fulfilling the obligations. A credit rating also highlights about the credit quality and credit risk. The desirable characteristics of a credit rating are as follows: - Specificity: - The rating is in accordance with or specific to the debt instrument. Relativity: - The rating is based on the willingness and the relative capability of the instrument issuer to service the obligations of the debt specific to the terms of the contract. Guidance: - The credit rating is aimed to provide guidance to the investors regarding the credit risk associated with an investment. Qualitative and Quantitative: - In order to determine the credit grade, both qualitative as well as quantitative factors are used. The judgment made is however qualitative in nature. Not a Recommendation: - The rating does not provide any kind of recommendations to hold, buy or sell the instruments. This is because of the fact that credit rating does not take into consideration factors such as personal risk preferences, market prices and other factors that may impact the investment decision. Broad Parameters: - The credit rating is based on some of the parameters of information provided by the issuer and information collected from other sources. No Guarantee: - The rating as provided by the agency does not provide any assurance for the accuracy and completeness of the information regarding the factors of rating. The increasing importance and stupendous growth of crediting rating system has been mainly due to the globalization of the credit market, moving trends towards the privatization, due to the withdrawal

The Skill of Writing Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

The Skill of Writing - Personal Statement Example The genre of academic writing requires extensive reading and research work. The research plays a pivotal role in providing write-up focus and substance. It makes the composition rich and informative. The writer must good research skill apart from being an active reader. But the highlight of academic writing is the writing style itself which is formal, grammatically correct and not unnecessarily accessorized with big words. Above all other aspects, it needs proper planning and organization to compose an academic paper. When writing an academic, essay there is a high possibility of getting lost in the overload of information supplied by the research materials. The first task is to zero down on the topic that the writer wants to work on and then sift relevant information to build up the argument of the essay. While deciding upon the argument of the essay the writer has to choose one or more perspectives of approaching the topic. In light of that perspective, the writer arranges the points in such a way that the argument looks strong and convincing. Academic  writing calls for a critical-analytical approach to the topic. The writer should attempt to develop an individual perspective in the essay yet incorporating appropriate elements from the resources as support of his argument. Quotes or paraphrasing from the references wherever necessary makes the essay resourceful and interesting. It also shows the writer’s ability to integrate and tune in information according to the need of the paper. When using references the writer must be aware of the different referencing styles like MLA, APA, Harvard, and Chicago and strictly adhere to one particular norm. The writing has to be grammatically correct, precise and to the point.

Lab#2 concrete mix design and compression tests Lab Report

#2 concrete mix design and compression tests - Lab Report Example Concrete quality control is an essential practice to ensure consistency in both the fresh and hardened concrete. Some of the laboratory methods used for concrete quality control include; slump test, compressive strength test and workability tests. The primary objective for this experimental study was to identify the characteristics exhibited by concrete materials and to familiarize with the commonly used laboratory specimen manufacturing and testing methods. In design and quality control of concrete, the most specified concrete property is strength. This can be attributed to the fact that testing methods available are relatively easy and furthermore; other concrete properties such as resistance to weathering and fire, elastic modulus, and impermeability are directly linked to strength. This means that having the strength data, then the other properties can be deduced. A good concrete mix should take into account the following key attributes: workability, consistency, strength, water cement ratio, durability, density, slump expected, and heat and chemical resistance. The relative proportions of concrete components, either by volume or weight, will closely influence its properties in both fresh and hardened state. The cement-water paste forms the active component in the concrete material, which is dependent on the characteristics of materials used and their relative proportions. The aggregates used must be well graded to minimize air voids in the concrete matrix. Generally, concrete mix designs are currently being over-designed for the fear of production of results that will not meet the minimum strength criteria specified by the engineer concerned. There is therefore need for analysis of concrete compressive strength variance and understanding of the criteria for proper concrete mix designs suitable for various applications. Concrete is a

Regression Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Regression - Research Paper Example I retrieved my data from STATS Indiana. Three or four decades ago, cars in the United States were bought out of only necessity. People used to purchase cars not for laxity, but due to various factors such as for convenience purposes. In the last two decades, however, the world in general has moved on from this kind of situation. People no longer buy cars out of necessity, but rather, people buy cars for luxurious reasons. The United States, and Marion County in the state of Indiana to be specific, is no different. Motor vehicles of different models are purchased round the clock, for many reasons other than necessity (Riley 1). The automobile industry in Marion County is one of the most active among all industries within the county. In the recent years, the number of motor vehicles operating on the road has been going up steadily. There are various factors that contribute to this upward trend. The factors influencing the above trend may be well discussed if grouped into various categories. First and foremost, population is the most influencer of the rate at which cars are bought. In this paper, the population is considered both for the local and immigrants. The other factor is age. Age, in Marion County, is a major determinant of car ownership. Employment is another factor which highly determines the general purchasing power of the population. This paper, therefore, examines each and every of these contributing or influencing factors, determining how each one contributes, negatively or positively, to the selling and purchasing trends in the motor vehicle industry. In every business industry, there are market forces that determine the rate at which the goods and/or services in that particular industry are sold or purchased. These market forces are demand and supply. These are the only determinants of sales and purchases in any particular industry in any particular country. The market forces

A critical appraisal and evaluation of the constraints and legal Dissertation

A critical appraisal and evaluation of the constraints and legal protections for foreign investment - Dissertation Example It is for this reason that states and international communities strive towards organizing transactions with the objective of extracting the maximum from foreign investments. Moreover, states and businesses aim at protecting their investments because of the fact that foreign investment is characterized with the internal and external movement of capital turnover and exploitation. Many developing countries believe that foreign investment is an urgent need for achieving economic growth and adopting better technology in their production processes. Developed nations can exploit their technical expertise by investing their capital in developing countries and thus make optimum use of the resources available in these countries. But this need cannot be effectively achieved unless an appropriate environment is created for foreign investments. This implies that foreign investments cannot be made efficient unless a stable process is applied to carry out actions and transactions in a suitably crea ted environment that is free from fear and uncertainty. Additionally, such needs require the implementation of the initial provisions in terms of the existence of such circumstances in order to effectively deal with hurdles that could result in scaled investments and contractions. This is necessary in order to alleviate the intensity of such problems, which is possible only if a legal framework is determined in carrying out the required operations. This paper aims at achieving this goal by examining the varied constraints that obstruct or prevent the smooth flow of foreign capital. It is also important to examine and search for protective measures in terms of legal security for domestic investments. This is best done by balancing conflicting commercial interests independently and without bias and without violating the legitimate rights of the contracting parties. In considering the given perspectives, a critical appraisal and evaluation of the constraints and legal protections for f oreign investment will be made by making a descriptive and analytical appraisal of different issues. The paper will first analyze the phenomenon of foreign investment in terms of legal and economic concepts. Next, an investigation will be done of the emergence and the development of the phenomenon of foreign investment. Finally, the role of foreign investment in the development of trade and the economics in different countries will be discussed. An acknowledged belief in regard to foreign investments is that the advantages accruing from them depend on how they are dealt with by the host country. Researchers have made qualified propositions to the effect that properly regulated foreign investments have the potential to create economic growth, employment, technology advancements, skilled manpower, market accessibility and development of the economy. It is necessary to balance the negativities of foreign investments with their positive effects by adopting applicable systems of control and taxation. Thus, it can be said that foreign investments can be good or bad for any economy, depending on how they are dealt with. This viewpoint is being increasingly accepted in many countries. It is believed in this regard that foreign investments are indispensable for the development and growth of developing economies, no growth is possible without foreign inflow of capital, foreign investments bring efficient ways of managing resources, technologies, competition and accessibility to international markets. Developing countries are not being forced by any entities to seek foreign investments but their governments need them. The private sector is