Structure and development of Australian Curriculum

Introduction Due to the dynamic changes that characterise the 21st century, Australia has done some progressive changes to its curriculum, all of which aim at making the skills acquired because of deploying the curriculum in teaching more market-demand oriented. The declarations of the goals of education that are vital for Australian young generation, as voiced by Melbourne, have greatly inspired the Australian curriculum.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Structure and development of Australian Curriculum specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The ministry of states and territory education adopted the declarations in 2008. According to ACARA (2010), â€Å"The Melbourne Declaration emphasizes the importance of knowledge, understanding and skills of learning areas, general capabilities and cross-curriculum priorities as the basis for a curriculum designed to support 21st century learning† (Para.1). Australia has es tablished a criterion for signifying the changes by using a coding system. An example of the code system is v1.1. â€Å"A change to the number after the point marks any updates to the curriculum such as additional information or editorial changes† (ACARA, 2010, Para. 1). The curriculum in one way or another deploys the process-product model but puts incredible emphasis on the varying students’ needs. By noting that education needs of students and labor markets are diverse, this paper examines the various features of the updated Australian curriculum, as accomplished by The Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) in quest to cater for the needs of the 21st century learners. The Structure of the Australian curriculum Education and skills, which are the base level requirements of job markets, keep on changing: something that necessitates the need for alteration of curriculum to suit such demands. Consequently, the Australian curriculum has to face progressive modifications to make sure it takes into consideration the requirements of all the learners, as time changes. The need for validation of the curriculum increases based on the onset of sophistication of technologies and dynamics of the skills base of the Australian labor markets. As a result, Australia cannot avoid a corresponding validation and modification of the curriculum. In this regard, According to ACARA (2010), â€Å"The foundation to year 10 Australian curriculums for English, mathematics, science and history is now available including curriculum content supported with elaborations and achievements standards supported with work samples† (Para.1). It therefore means that the Australian curriculum is keeping abreast with dynamics of education to meet changing needs of students as well as labor market.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More ACARA has the chief respon sibility of developing the curriculum in Australia. â€Å"The scope and sequence summarises the curriculum documents of all states and territories and the Statements of Learning for Science† (MCEETYA, 2006, p.4). The scope of the curriculum work encompasses development of â€Å"curriculum from kindergarten to year 12, beginning with learning areas of English, mathematics, science and history† (2010, Para. 2) followed by curriculum development in arts, languages and geography subjects. Every subject must have the aims or rationale behind it described well, must have brief description of year levels and organization of the learning areas, have provisions for explanation of what people anticipate of the teachers to deliver as well as the descriptions of the expected quality standards that the teachers must meet. According to ACARA, the curriculum also provides â€Å"†¦student work samples that illustrate the achievement standard at each year level† (2010, Para .5). Thus, the work samples guide teachers in assessing performance of students from kindergarten to the others grade years. In addition, the curriculum must also have a glossary written consistently in accordance with the various terms that any curriculum must employ. Relationship of Australian curriculum with other models Australian curriculum is well compliant with various curriculum models, which borrow widely from process-product models and procedural models. Such models include Tyler and Skilbeck’s situational analysis models. Tyler’s model borrows it basis from sequences that are logically developed. â€Å"The models begins with the objectives through to content to method and then to evaluation/assessment† (Brady Kennedy, 2010, p.41). On the other hand, Skilbeck’s situational analysis model seeks to provide a process for examination of contexts that people deem appropriate for operation of the curriculum. Such theoretical basis is crucial for cons truction of any curriculum model: something that ACARA appears to appreciate. Although, Tyler may have not intended to deploy his procedural model to prescribe specific steps in the curriculum making process, the Australian curriculum rather follows specific planning steps tantamount to those theorized by Tyler. To ensure that the Australian curriculum measures up to the international curriculum, the requisite body: ACARA, charged with responsibility of curriculum modification benchmarks the newly to be incorporated changes with curriculum from other nations.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Structure and development of Australian Curriculum specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The Australian curriculum depicts a significant relationship with other curriculum models, as it takes into consideration the importance of hitting an optimal capability to interrelate the skills, the experiences acquired and the capacity of t he learners to deploy such skills in their lifelong endeavors. Virtually all people endow different students with differing capacity to build on abstract ideas, reason critically, and make impeccable application of the meta-cognitive skills in the due learning process. Such concerns in the Australian curriculum are somewhat compliant with the Stibecks model, put forward in 1976, in which he highlights the importance of school cultures and proclaims that in understanding of these culture contributions to the effectiveness of learning results, the first step would entangle conducting situational analysis. Directly congruent with the Australian curriculum model, Stilbeck model emphasizes on the â€Å"goal formulations, program building implementation and monitoring† (p.26). Consequently, in an endeavor to guarantee the safeguarding of underachievement, â€Å"curriculum needs to be developed that will both challenge and stimulate students appropriately† (Brady Kennedy, 20 10, p.32). This constitutes a major aim of all described curriculum models and something inherent in the Australian curriculum model. Choice and Flexibility are essential components of any curriculum. Differentiation, followed by fine-tuning of the curriculum models has the capacity to aid in a creative way in producing a curriculum that is accommodative of all individual student differences. Similar to other curriculum models, Australian curriculum model aims at ensuring that the curriculum is adaptive to accommodate every student. It accomplishes this through substantive revisions, as prompted by the need to meet the dynamic market labor demands. Definition of the Australian curriculum The idea of curriculum has been in use over a long term to describe the schooling organizations. In his book, The Curriculum, Kelly defines curriculum as â€Å"all the learning, planned and guided by school, whether done in groups or individually inside or outside the school† (1999, p.12).Adv ertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In this context, one can view curriculum cuts as a product, which entangles a transmittable sphere of knowledge. He/ she can as well view it as a praxis and or process, which are congruent with Aristotle’s classification of knowledge into four categories: â€Å"the theoretical, the productive, and the practical† (Kelly, 1999, p.5). The syllabus itself is more of theoretical and must undergo a process to make it more practical. The outputs of the process: products and praxis render the curriculum productive. In the context of the Australian definition of curriculum, according to the Royal Australian college of general practitioner curriculum â€Å"details the knowledge, skills and attitudes, necessary competency, unsupervised general practice and emphasizes self directed learning objectives, the development of critical self reflection and lifelong learning skills, and maintenance of professional practice standards† (2010, Para. 6). This definition, substantially addresses the key concerns of any curriculum in a broad sense in schooling. However, according to Marsh (2004), the much scholarly contested need for the inclusion of the curriculum applications outside school is still left out to confine the definition of the curriculum (p.199). Thus, teachers need to entangle strategies, which make sure that the key skills and competencies get across to students effectively. Goals and purposes of education The purposes of education entail making every student, irrespective of race or disability to grow into full potential and capacity since education encompasses creation of means of opening barriers, minds and making it possible to convert impossibilities into possibilities (Marsh 2004, p.210). The curriculum in Australia seeks to instill strong foundation on key areas of learning including numeracy, teamwork, creativity, social competence, literacy, self-management among other areas. The main object aims at enabling all the Australian students to stand a chance of learning through multi interdisciplinary environment with the intention of developing new and efficient expertise that meets the hefty demands of the 21st century job market. The Australian curriculum supports and promotes the view that curriculum constitutes a major tool for predicting and ensuring that young people in Australia become competitive in cultural life, economic and political both locally and in the international floors. According to (ACARA), such a curriculum deserve to be a reflection of the Australian â€Å" visions for future and best attempts for predicting and planning what young people will need to be active and successful† (2010, Para.8). In the development process of the curriculum, involvement of all stakeholders and professional associations have the capacity to supply the ardently required expertise deemed necessary for merging the views of the curriculum and actual practice on the ground. The views of Australian curriculum on the l earner The learners are diverse and have varying capabilities. The founders of the Australian curriculum framed it in a way that â€Å"ensures that curriculum content and achievements standards establish high expectations for all students† (Killen, 2003, p.23). The curriculum is flexible and tailor made in such a way that it turns rigorous with provisions for availing engagement opportunities during the learning process to all students who are viewed as possessing multiple need which evidently spontaneously change largely due to factors attributable to diversity in historical backgrounds and social economics. Worth noting is that many diverse factors inform the curriculum thereby influencing the curriculum view of learners. The first factor is philosophy, which helps in understanding the behaviors of students and how to cope with these behaviors in order to ensure proper learning. The curriculum also caters for the needs of students who need special treatment. Human developme nt has also influenced Australian curriculum view of learners. Due to the rapid change happening in the current world, which involves a lot of human development, the Australian curriculum is undergoing many changes to produce students who can cope with the changes experienced in 21st century. This curriculum caters for all kind of learners. Learning theories, evident in the curriculum, aid in understanding the complex process of learning. The valued processes of teaching, assessment and learning Australian curriculum ensures effective processes of learning, teaching, and assessment of all students. These processes are paramount in ensuring that student getting out of Australian schools are well informed and are ready to tackle diverse challenges. The learning process is of great essence in this curriculum, as it serves to equip students with the necessary skills as stipulated in the curriculum. This incorporates student-centered and teacher –directed learning together with en abling all students to relax and instigate different questions with lot of increasing initiative, expertise, and self-direction (Rudd Smith, 2007, p. 17). Learning process involves theoretical learning in books, education visits, and practical lessons. This makes learning more enjoyable and meaningful for all students and to aid students in making sense of key concepts or ideas. Accessing whether the student has achieved at, below, or above the set standards is paramount because it forms a strong feedback on how to improve the teaching process for better results. In addition, it aids in discovering students requiring targeted teaching and additional support to ensure that they do not fall behind other students. Assessment process of this curriculum occurs for different purposes and at different levels. This include, ongoing formative assessments within Australian classrooms with aim of monitoring learning processes and providing feedback to Australian teachers to inform their own t eaching and improve way of learning among students (Pinar, 2003, p.23). Monitoring learning process and continuous assessment of students is essential in determining of appropriate curriculum. Furthermore, there is a summative assessment done for diverse purposes of twice-yearly assessment and reporting to guardians and parents on achievements and progress of their students. In addition, there is an annual â€Å"†¦testing of different levels of students’ achievements in distinct aspects of numeracy and literacy† (Pinar, 2003, p.23). This is, â€Å"conducted as a part of Australian National Assessment Program-Literacy and Numeracy’ (NAPLAN)† (Holt, 1996, p.249). Lastly, there is periodic sample evaluation and testing of learning areas, which fall within this curriculum in order to ensure high quality standards are maintained. All these process have produced remarkable results by producing well-informed students with diverse knowledge. Extent to which Australian Curriculum cater for the 21st century needs Over the years, Australian curriculum has undergone tremendous changes all aimed at re-defining the goals of education, re-conceptualizing of skills, attributes, and depositions that young Australians should gain from their education. This re-conceptualization is set to cater for unprecedented global changes, driven by technological and economic forces as well as environmental challenges. This curriculum is, â€Å"focused on equipping students with adequate skills so as to take advantage of diverse opportunities offered by the rapid changing world and contribute to tacking its many challenges† (Schwartz, 2006, p.449). It achieves this through quality teaching, innovations, good leadership in schools, and employment of highly qualified professionals in the learning institutions. In addition, Australian Government has endorsed different researches, which provide means of catering for the diverse needs experienced in 21st ce ntury. Conclusion ACARA plays a significant role in ensuring that Australian curriculum is flexible to keep breast with changing dynamics in education and labor markets. In the development of the curriculum, ACARA has realized the need for collective purpose in education. Consequently, Australian curriculum has undergone several changes into its updated stated discussed in the paper. Since the curriculum views the needs of students as diverse, it must satisfy their myriads anticipations. Substantive revisions are inevitable, if at all, one has to meet the demands precisely. Thus, the essay claims that the characteristic changes in the labor market demand have the capacity to warrant for the need to revise the curriculum perhaps annually. References Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2010). Australian curriculum. Web. Brady, L., Kennedy, K. (2010). Curriculum Construction, (4th Ed.). French’s Forest: Pearson. Holt, M. (1996). The making of Casablanca a nd the making of curriculum. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 28(3), 241-251. Kelly, A. (1999). The Curriculum. Theory and Practice. London: Paul Chapman. Killen, R. (2003). Effective teaching strategies: Lessons from research and practice, (3rd Ed.).Tuggerah, NSW: Social Science Press. Marsh, C. J. (2004). Key Concepts for Understanding Curriculum, (3rd Ed.). London; New York: Routledge Falmer. MCEETYA. (2006). Statements of Learning for Science. Melbourne: Curriculum Corporation. Pinar, W. (2003). International Handbook of Curriculum Research. London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Royal Australian College of General Practitioner. (2010). Frameworks for A New Curriculum. Retrieved from https://www.racgp.org.au/education/education-providers/curriculum. Rudd, K., Smith, S. (2007). Establishing a National Curriculum to improve our Children’s Educational Outcomes. New Directions for our Schools. Oxford: Oxford UP. Schwartz, M. (2006). For who do we Write Curriculum? Journal of Cur riculum Studies, 38(4), 449-457. This essay on Structure and development of Australian Curriculum was written and submitted by user Rylan Beck to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Legal Action Essay

Legal Action Essay Legal Action Essay Full Question: After importing some USB devices from China for a client I found the items were not working and not the memory capacity they claimed they were. In other words, my client is upset and wants their money back and I would like to know if there is some organization or establishment in Canada or China that can assist me in retrieving my money? Answer: Your problem rests in the cost of taking this matter to a local jurisdictional court and then collecting on any judgment you could earn and it would cost an arm and a leg to enforce this. I will not provide any legal advice but will try and give you some insight – Say so long to your money – which you should simply assume. You should Immediately contact the commercial section at the Chinese consulate located nearest you and bombard them endlessly with letters and emails every couple of weeks. Stay on top of them and make sure they realize you have lost profit, your costs and integrity. Now come up with an amount. [you are permitted to file a claim for profit loss and as well as potential profits]. You should ask for this number. State in no uncertain terms that you are going to be black listing this exporter globally inside of twenty one days. [black listed by FTN exporting and bigger corporations functioning internationally – we are quite visible in China also] Your assistance can be found though the consulate and the consumer affairs office in the nation where it originated that should take charge of

Pakistan Early Civilizations History

Pakistan Early Civilizations History From: Library of Congress Country Studies From the earliest times, the Indus River valley region has been both a transmitter of cultures and a receptacle of different ethnic, linguistic, and religious groups. Indus Valley civilization (known also as Harappan culture) appeared around 2500 B.C. along the Indus River valley in Punjab and Sindh. This civilization, which had a writing system, urban centers, and a diversified social and economic system, was discovered in the 1920s at its two most important sites: Mohenjo-Daro, in Sindh near Sukkur, and Harappa, in Punjab south of Lahore. A number of other lesser sites stretching from the Himalayan foothills in Indian Punjab to Gujarat east of the Indus River and to Balochistan to the west have also been discovered and studied. How closely these places were connected to Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa is not clearly known, but evidence indicates that there was some link and that the people inhabiting these places were probably related.An abundance of artifacts have been found at Harappa so much so, that the name of that city has been equated with the Indus Valley civilization (Harappan culture) it represents. Yet the site was damaged in the latter part of the nineteenth century when engineers constructing the Lahore-Multan railroad used brick from the ancient city for ballast. Fortunately, the site at Mohenjo-daro has been less disturbed in modern times and shows a well-planned and well-constructed city of brick.Indus Valley civilization was essentially a city culture sustained by surplus agricultural produce and extensive commerce, which included trade with Sumer in southern Mesopotamia in what is today modern Iraq. Copper and bronze were in use, but not iron. Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa were cities built on similar plans of well-laid-out streets, elaborate drainage systems, public baths, differentiated residential areas, flat-roofed brick houses and fortified administrative and religious centers enclosing meeting halls and granaries. Weights and measures were standardized. Distinctive engraved stamp seals were used, perhaps to identify property. Cotton was spun, woven, and dyed for clothi ng. Wheat, rice, and other food crops were cultivated, and a variety of animals were domesticated. Wheel-made pottery some of it adorned with animal and geometric motifs has been found in profusion at all the major Indus sites. A centralized administration has been inferred from the cultural uniformity revealed, but it remains uncertain whether authority lay with a priestly or a commercial oligarchy.By far the most exquisite but most obscure artifacts unearthed to date are the small, square steatite seals engraved with human or animal motifs. Large numbers of the seals have been found at Mohenjo-Daro, many bearing pictographic inscriptions generally thought to be a kind of script. Despite the efforts of philologists from all parts of the world, however, and despite the use of computers, the script remains undeciphered, and it is unknown if it is proto-Dravidian or proto-Sanskrit. Nevertheless, extensive research on the Indus Valley sites, which has led to speculations on both the arch aeological and the linguistic contributions of the pre-Aryan population to Hinduisms subsequent development, has offered new insights into the cultural heritage of the Dravidian population still dominant in southern India. Artifacts with motifs relating to asceticism and fertility rites suggest that these concepts entered Hinduism from the earlier civilization. Although historians agree that the civilization ceased abruptly, at least in Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa there is disagreement on the possible causes for its end. Invaders from central and western Asia are considered by some historians to have been destroyers of Indus Valley civilization, but this view is open to reinterpretation. More plausible explanations are recurrent floods caused by tectonic earth movement, soil salinity, and desertification. By the sixth century B.C., knowledge of Indian history becomes more focused because of the available Buddhist and Jain sources of a later period. Northern India was populated by a number of small princely states that rose and fell in the sixth century B.C. In this milieu, a phenomenon arose that affected the history of the region for several centuriesBuddhism. Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, the Enlightened One (ca. 563-483 B.C.), was born in the Ganges Valley. His teachings were spread in all directions by monks, missionaries, and merchants. The Buddhas teachings proved enormously popular when considered against the more obscure and highly complicated rituals and philosophy of Vedic Hinduism. The original doctrines of the Buddha also constituted a protest against the inequities of the caste system, attracting large numbers of followers. Until the entry of the Europeans by sea in the late fifteenth century, and with the exception of the Arab conquests of Muhammad bin Qasim in the early eighth century, the route taken by peoples who migrated to India has been through the mountain passes, most notably the Khyber Pass, in northwestern Pakistan. Although unrecorded migrations may have taken place earlier, it is certain that migrations increased in the second millennium B.C. The records of these people who spoke an Indo-European language are literary, not archaeological, and were preserved in the Vedas, collections of orally transmitted hymns. In the greatest of these, the Rig Veda, the Aryan speakers appear as a tribally organized, pastoral, and pantheistic people. The later Vedas and other Sanskritic sources, such as the Puranas (literally, old writings an encyclopedic collection of Hindu legends, myths, and genealogy), indicate an eastward movement from the Indus Valley into the Ganges Valley (called Ganga in Asia) and southward at least as far as the Vindhya Range, in central India. A social and political system evolved in which the Aryans dominated, but various indigenous peoples and ideas were accommodated and absorbed. The caste system that remained characteristic of Hinduism also evolved. One theory is that the three highest castes Brahmins, Kshatriyas, and Vaishyas were composed of Aryans, while a lower caste the Sudras came from the indigenous peoples.At about the same time, the semi-independent kingdom of Gandhara, roughly located in northern Pakistan and centered in the region of Peshawar, stood between the expanding kingdoms of the Ganges Valley to the east and the Achaemenid Empire of Persia to the west. Gandhara probably came under the influence of Persia during the reign of Cyrus the Great (559-530 B.C.). The Persian Empire fell to Alexander the Great in 330 B.C., and he continued his march eastward through Afghanistan and into India. Alexander defeated Porus, the Gandharan ruler of Taxila, in 326 B.C. and marched on to the Ravi River before tur ning back. The return march through Sindh and Balochistan ended with Alexanders death at Babylon in 323 B.C. Greek rule did not survive in northwestern India, although a school of art known as Indo-Greek developed and influenced art as far as Central Asia. The region of Gandhara was conquered by Chandragupta (r. ca. 321-ca. 297 B.C.), the founder of the Mauryan Empire, the first universal state of northern India, with its capital at present-day Patna in Bihar. His grandson, Ashoka (r. ca. 274-ca. 236 B.C.), became a Buddhist. Taxila became a leading center of Buddhist learning. Successors to Alexander at times controlled the northwestern of region present-day Pakistan and even Punjab after Maurya power waned in the region.The northern regions of Pakistan came under the rule of the Sakas, who originated in Central Asia in the second century B.C. They were soon driven eastward by Pahlavas (Parthians related to the Scythians), who in turn were displaced by the Kushans (also known as the Yueh-Chih in Chinese chronicles).The Kushans had earlier moved into territory in the northern part of presen t-day Afghanistan and had taken control of Bactria. Kanishka, the greatest of the Kushan rulers (r. ca. A.D. 120-60), extended his empire from Patna in the east to Bukhara in the west and from the Pamirs in the north to central India, with the capital at Peshawar (then Purushapura) (see fig. 3). Kushan territories were eventually overrun by the Huns in the north and taken over by the Guptas in the east and the Sassanians of Persia in the west.The age of the imperial Guptas in northern India (fourth to seventh centuries A.D.) is regarded as the classical age of Hindu civilization. Sanskrit literature was of a high standard; extensive knowledge in astronomy, mathematics, and medicine was gained; and artistic expression flowered. Society became more settled and more hierarchical, and rigid social codes emerged that separated castes and occupations. The Guptas maintained loose control over the upper Indus Valley.Northern India suffered a sharp decline after the seventh century. As a result, Islam came to a disunited India through the sam e passes that Indo-Aryans, Alexander, Kushans, and others had entered. Data as of 1994. Historical Setting of IndiaHarappan CultureKingdoms and Empires of Ancient IndiaThe Deccan and the SouthGupta and Harsha

Retaliatory tariffs Mexico placed under NAFTA Research Paper - 1

Retaliatory tariffs Mexico placed under NAFTA - Research Paper Example Major impact has been on agricultural trading relation between USA and Mexico. According to trade statistics Mexico exports 80% of its agricultural exports to USA, and since the implementation of NAFTA, agricultural exports between USA and Mexico have increased by 9% every year, thus asserting that NAFTA has benefited both the nations (Agricultural trade, n.d.). The retaliatory tariffs that Mexico implemented on various imported goods from USA continued from March 2009 to October 2011. These tariffs were imposed when USA failed to meet the trucking provisions of NAFTA. Mexico initiated these tariffs keeping within the structure of dispute resolution process of NAFTA. In July 2011, a formal agreement was signed that made decisions regarding implementation of trucking provisions of NAFTA (Zahniser, et al, 2011, p.2). NAFTA came into force on January 1, 1994. It created a trilateral trading relation between USA, Canada and Mexico creating the largest single market of goods and services with these neighbouring nations as the members. The customer base of this treaty was nearly 440 million. The objective was to remove all tariffs on goods that are traded between the three nations thus creating a free trade area by the year 2009. The estimated annual valuation of traded goods between these nations was $ 14 trillion. (Ferrell, et al, 2011, p.98) NAFTA implementation has brought immense changes in the economic and trading relations between USA and Mexico and all these have had great trade impacts in USA. When NAFTA was signed by the three nations, the USA-Canada free trade agreement was already in practice for five years. There were amalgamations of many industries in USA and Canada. Mexico in the pre-NAFTA era was following a policy to produce goods that would substitute imported goods from the USA. One such example was Mexican automotive industry which was ruled by many decrees pronounced

Mythology essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Mythology - Essay Example The two ancient Greek legends together give an exciting recount of incidences that give a clear picture of the philosophical and religious views of the ancient Greeks regarding death and the afterlife. Generally from the two stories, it is evident that the ancient Greeks feared afterlife and regarded death as a not so glorious and undesirable natural event. For example, during his visit to the Hades, Odysseus saw the dead who were pathetic, deprived of their wits. On the other hand, The Myth of Er by Plato suggests the ancient Greek belief that moral people are rewarded after death while immoral people face punishment upon heir death. This is particularly illustrated by the description of how Er saw the sinners being punished while people who were Virtuous group were rewarded with happiness. Lastly, the ancient Greeks believed that the deceased should be buried with dignity with proper customary burial rites to allow them get to afterlife after their

Reaction to Nonfiction Essay Example for Free

Reaction to Nonfiction Essay Salvation by Langston Hughes and Who Will Light Incense When Mothers Gone? Are two stories from the text that capture the attention and imagination of the reader. These two are nonfiction short stories that easily relate to the reader as well. Both stories caused a personal reaction as the writer used certain strategies to detail the idea, theme, and purpose behind each of the writings. It is also important to know the difference between a fiction and nonfiction story. The author has to intrigue the reader’s imagination to make the story interesting. Reactions and Strategies Salvation Salvation was written by Langston Hughes in 1940. This is a nonfictional story based on a childhood experience of the authors. Religion was apparently prominent in Hughes childhood and his family seemed to live by God’s word. Religion was so important to his family that he had to make a hard decision on either lying to his family or letting down his Lord. The writer described the day he was to find Jesus as a time to â€Å"bring the young lambs to the fold† (Hughes, 1940. P. 351). The story was moving, intriguing, and heartfelt. The writer made the story believable by giving a detailed setting and theme. The writer also used personal feelings and emotions of others to make this story believable. Who Will Light Incense When Mothers Gone? This short story was written by Andrew Lam in 2003. I was also a nonfictional story based on an experience in Lam’s adult years. Lam’s family were immigrates from Vietnam and the setting is at his mother’s 70th birthday. Lam overheard his mother asking her sister who would continue the tradition of lighting the incense and praying to the ancestors for protection. She seemed to be very concerned as was her sister that this tradition would cease when they passed away. This story was an eye-opener to what one may feel when tradition has been left to the elders and now needs to be passed down to the younger generations. It shows that when one is moved out of their culture they may try to hold on and teach their young, but there is no guarantee that the young will appreciate the values. One line expressed how the writer new his mothers pain, â€Å"mortality never less weighs heavy on her soul† (Lam, 20003. P. 1077). The writer used personal feelings and an insi ght into past and future to guide the reader into a better understanding of the situation. Personal Relation and Intended Purposes Salvation brings back childhood memories of personal experiences with church and family. Memories of summer at vocation bible school camp with friends and the lessons taught by the pastors. Also, movies about African Americans and church in the early and mid 1900’s were thought of during this reading. The purpose of this short story was geared toward understanding the importance of God in the writer’s life and family. The writer also displays the emotional reaction to his decision to lie about finding Jesus. Who Will Light Incense When Mothers Gone?, was a reminder of a military background involved with exposure to many cultures and religious diversities. Every cultures has it’s values and norms. When several generations of a particular culture migrate to America, some of those values will be lost. Individual ambitions will take place of the family traditions and values (Lam, 2003). The mother was upset with the son many times as he grew into an American cowboy, which the Vietnamese identified as being selfish and a rebel (Lam, 2003). The writer’s intent was to inform the reader of a lost tradition with in his family’s culture. Also, to make aware the struggle within to please his mother while upholding his personal ambitions. Nonfiction and Imagination It was apparent that these two stories were nonfiction because both were based on a personal experience that had and emotional impact on their life. The stories related to struggles and decisions that weighed on the consensus. It can be assumed that writing about these events may have taken pressure off the writer. Even with nonfiction the imagination needs to be provoked. The writer must set the theme and give a detailed setting so that the reader can place themselves in the situation. Including emotions of other characters also impact the imagination. If the author is trying to get a certain point across to his readers then they must bring the reader into the scene. Conclusion Both stories were easy to identify with because they were detailed with personal emotions and experiences. The author was aiming for a reaction from the reader that was personal and that was reached. The writer’s intention was clear and understood in both stories and was easy to connect personal experiences with. The two stories were nonfiction and dealt with personal struggles. Being that the two stories were personal it was intriguing to the imagination and simple to relate to. References Barnet, S., Burto, W., Cain, W. (2011). Literature for Composition (9th ed.). : Pearson.

Emma :: essays research papers

Emma Austen, Jane. Emma. New York: Bantam Books, 1981. Emma takes place in Hartfield, which is a part of Highbury, England. Highbury was a large and populous village, but Hartfield was much quieter and secluded. The story is in a time where you only married people of your own social status. Therefore, the story probably takes place in the Eighteenth century but there is no direct reference to the time at which the story takes place. It was a romantic time where women were concerned with marrying their true loves, but only if they were of their same class. The importance of the village in which Emma lives is that to entertain herself she engages herself in matchmaking activities. The main character of the story is Emma Woodhouse. She is "handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and very little to distress her or vex her." (Austen, 3) Emma was the youngest of two daughters and she was spoiled by her old, affectionate father. Her mother had died when she was only a child and her sister, Isabelle, had married at an early age. This made her mistress of his house from a very early period. Emma’s self image is very strong and she is doubly pleased with her match-making skills, which turn out to be disastrous for her friend Harriet. Harriet Smith is a young girl of an unknown background, but she was a student at Mrs. Goddard’s School. Emma challenges herself to reform and refine Harriet. She becomes to aspire to see Harriet marry a person in a higher social station. Harriet is very pretty. She was "short, plump, and fair, with blue eyes and light ha ir, and a look of great sweetness." (Austen, 20) The other main character of the story is Mr. Knightley. He is a sensible man of about thirty-seven. He is the elder brother of Isabelle’s husband and a friend of the Woodhouse family. Mr. Knightley had a very cheerful manner which pleased Emma. He was also one of the few people that could see faults in Emma and he didn’t hesitate on telling her of them. In addition to Mr. Woodhouse, Emma’s father, the other character’s in the story are Isabelle, her husband, Miss Taylor (now Mrs. Weston) and her husband. From the start of the story, Emma’s willful and determined imagination give way to the plot of the story. Emma :: essays research papers Emma Austen, Jane. Emma. New York: Bantam Books, 1981. Emma takes place in Hartfield, which is a part of Highbury, England. Highbury was a large and populous village, but Hartfield was much quieter and secluded. The story is in a time where you only married people of your own social status. Therefore, the story probably takes place in the Eighteenth century but there is no direct reference to the time at which the story takes place. It was a romantic time where women were concerned with marrying their true loves, but only if they were of their same class. The importance of the village in which Emma lives is that to entertain herself she engages herself in matchmaking activities. The main character of the story is Emma Woodhouse. She is "handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and very little to distress her or vex her." (Austen, 3) Emma was the youngest of two daughters and she was spoiled by her old, affectionate father. Her mother had died when she was only a child and her sister, Isabelle, had married at an early age. This made her mistress of his house from a very early period. Emma’s self image is very strong and she is doubly pleased with her match-making skills, which turn out to be disastrous for her friend Harriet. Harriet Smith is a young girl of an unknown background, but she was a student at Mrs. Goddard’s School. Emma challenges herself to reform and refine Harriet. She becomes to aspire to see Harriet marry a person in a higher social station. Harriet is very pretty. She was "short, plump, and fair, with blue eyes and light ha ir, and a look of great sweetness." (Austen, 20) The other main character of the story is Mr. Knightley. He is a sensible man of about thirty-seven. He is the elder brother of Isabelle’s husband and a friend of the Woodhouse family. Mr. Knightley had a very cheerful manner which pleased Emma. He was also one of the few people that could see faults in Emma and he didn’t hesitate on telling her of them. In addition to Mr. Woodhouse, Emma’s father, the other character’s in the story are Isabelle, her husband, Miss Taylor (now Mrs. Weston) and her husband. From the start of the story, Emma’s willful and determined imagination give way to the plot of the story.