Movie Summary Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Summary - Movie Review Example However, their pursuit was short-lived as the civil war breaks out in the country. As a result, there is a declaration of martial law and immense presence of troops in the streets. One unfortunate day, the soldier comes and takes the young man off. After this action, the journalist wife and father in law (Jack Lemmon) engages in unraveling what happened to the missing man (Costa-Gavras). However, their attempt is frustrated by lack of support from the government agencies both in the country and abroad. The failure leads to rise of theories on disappearance. Some believe the man was killed as a target of left-wing foreign journalist and hence he might have been killed. Other argued that American embassy officials knew of his whereabouts or were part of authorizing the journalist execution (Costa-Gavras). The movie has been significant in various ways. First, the move shows a strong attack of policies adopted by United States at the time. It is a clear criticism of unwarranted policies directed towards Chilean people (Costa-Gavras). The movie also evokes anger as one wonders why lack of support to the family looking for one of their own. The anger is aggravated once one realizes it is based on a true story. Moreover, I have come to understand through the movie that families are united by a problem despite underlying differences. This is because prior, there was a difference between the journalist wife and father- in -law (Costa-Gavras). Moreover, the plot of the movie is well organized as the events are tied together in a forward moving narrative as the search for the journalist is intensified (Costa-Gavras). In the speech, Mandela answers several question raised by the audience in the town hall meeting. Mandela begins by acknowledging the welcome he received. In the first question, he acknowledges ANC condemns racism in various parts of the world (BDS South Africa). He expects peoples that are the victim of racism to come together in fighting the

Preschool Literacy Essay Example for Free

Preschool Literacy Essay This paper is going to outline the myriad of benefits that high-quality preschool literacy programs will afford families, communities, school districts and the world. Today, numerous researchers are delving into HOW to establish an effective and successful pre-school program. In this paper, I hope to answer several questions: ? What is pre-school literacy? ? What benefits do participants in a preschool program receive? ? HOW do we go about establishing a high-quality pre-school literacy program? I am rather passionate about this area. Being a speech pathologist, literacy skills and communication skills are so interwoven it is difficult to separate them. I have to say that while going to school many years ago, we didn’t learn that much about literacy as it related to speech and language development. It is only recently that researchers and educators have identified the importance of how both developmental areas are linked. I feel that establishing successful and highly effective programs that incorporate family and child directed activities are crucial to the success of our young students. That being said, let’s explore pre-school literacy. What is preschool literacy? Most people hear the word ‘literacy’ and equate that with ‘reading’. This would be an adult analogy. For very young children, we don’t, nor should we, expect them to read! Early literacy skills refer to many different things, none of which is sitting down with Mom at the age of two and reading aloud for her. At the youngest ages, early literacy skills refer to children’s exposure and experience with books. The following list is derived from Schickendanz (1999) and Early Literacy (www. zerotothree. com) . It states that early literacy behaviors include: ? Book handling behaviors – handling and manipulating the book ? Looking and Recognizing- how are they paying attention to the book, pictures, words; demonstrating recognition of pictures, etc. ? Picture and Story Comprehension – Imitation of actions noted in a story, talking about a story ? Story-Reading Behaviors – verbal interactions with the books, imitating a pointing a finger at words and/or pictures. ‘Establishing strong early literacy behaviors is essential to literacy development and should be the focus of early language and literacy programs’ (Early Literacy, 2003) It is suggested that these skills develop naturally and unfold as a result of social interactions with parents and caregivers, rather than direct instruction. I agree with this statement wholeheartedly. Ideally, it is everyday interactions with infants and toddlers that include talking and book reading that help establish the crucial beginning stages of literacy development. I recently heard on a radio program (can’t cite it) that children between the ages of 0-3 years should hear approximately 30,000 words a day to build an effective vocabulary! Amazing. Todd Risley, co-author of Meaningful differences in the 3 everyday Experiences of young American children (Mangione, 2005), states that isn’t an intentional teaching of these behaviors but rather embedded in the social interactions. He believes, as do I, that oral language skills appear to be the basis of phonological processing skills, which is a strong indicator for reading readiness in kindergarten. As children move into the preschool realm, (typically described as ages 3 through 5), prereading skills are developing along a continuum, rather than as a set of discrete and separate skills. In the article Critical Issue: Addressing the literacy Needs of Emergent and Early Readers (www. ncrel. org), the authors made a very interesting point I’d like to share with you. They discussed the various stages of literacy development that are not relevant to this article, however, an important transition occurs when a child’s â€Å"‘reading’ of a story changes from sounding like oral language to sounding like written language. This demonstrates a change in ideas from thinking of reading as spoken words to understanding that reading is recreated from written text that has special wordings† (McGee Richgels, 1996;Sulzby, 1991). It is the beginning of the child’s print recognition. With respect to specific pre-school literacy behaviors that we should see addressed in a high-quality preschool program, the most important would be: ? Oral Language- engaging in rich conversational exchange with students, developing oral vocabulary, reading aloud daily, having children develop their own stories by looking at pictures (Tomie DiPola books are excellent for this) ? General Knowledge – what prior knowledge are the student’s coming into school with that they share, encouraging questions and new experiences with in the classroom, ? Print Awareness- being exposed to various written materials, some repetition of early literacy behaviors, point/drag techniques while reading ? Alphabet knowledge – the ABC song, recognizing sounds that letters make, letter recognition. ? Phonological awareness- Increased awareness of the sounds of the letters and how to play with them through rhyme, segmenting, blending, ? Pre-writing skills – later stages of development and exposure to writing mediums (pen, pencil, crayon, markers, paint), using journals with self-made pictures, word walls. (Roskos, K; Christie, J, Richgels, D, www. naeyc. org) How do participants in high-quality preschool programs benefit? I think I could go on for days about the benefits of an excellent preschool experience. For the sake of brevity, I won’t! Numerous studies have been conducted to determine whether preschool programs are beneficial and cost effective. The majority of studies suggest the answer to that is an overwhelming YES. 4 The Chicago Child Parent Center (CPC), the High/Scope Perry Preschool Program and the Abecedarian Project are all examples of highly qualified preschool programs. The CPC is recognized by the US Department of Education as an exemplary early childhood program. A comparison of the benefits of these programs was conducted, yielding what I thought were incredible results. These programs have been in effect since the 1960’s, servicing low-income areas in Chicago and Michigan (Lee, J, www.ccsso. org). In a speech given by Dr. W. Steven Barnett of the National Institute for Early Intervention Research in 2006, three separate studies compared the results of participants enrolled in the above-mentioned preschool programs against a control group that wasn’t enrolled in any preschool program. Their longitudinal studies revealed amazing results, which are credited to the attending of the preschool programs. According to them, participants in the program (as compared with non-participants): ? Were less likely to be enrolled in special education ? Had a higher rate of high school completion ? Demonstrated higher test scores ? Were less likely to repeat a grade ? Had increased earning after completing high school ? Engaged in less criminal activities ? Had a lower incidence of smoking, pregnancy and abortion. These benefits did not stop at the poverty line. They also demonstrated that middle class children benefited from the experience as well. He discussed the well-known fact that disadvantaged children benefit more when they are in class with children from different socio-economic backgrounds. An analysis I found very interesting was that ‘For every dollar invested into the preschool programs described in this paper $7 is saved in public expenditures’ (Lee. www. ccsso. org). WOW, think what that could mean to a superintendent’s budget! When trying to determine whether a preschool program could benefit those in the middle class, the US Dept. of Education, NCES, (1997) article entitled Dropout rates in the United States:1995 determined that middle class children have fairly high rates of the problems that preschool reduces for low-income children. While benefits decrease gradually with an income increase, the overall benefits are greater when ALL children are exposed to PreK. In an evaluation of 5 state prek programs conducted by Barnett,W. S, Lamy, C. and Jung, K. (2005), results revealed that in all programs, whether universal or targeted, students demonstrated gains in language, literacy and math. While all students (various SES backgrounds) gained, the low-income students gained more. Soooooo†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 5 How do we go about establishing high-quality preschool literacy programs? In an ideal world with unlimited funding, it wouldn’t be too difficult. However, we don’t live in an ideal world and much needed financing is often diverted to other important (or not so important! ) causes. Really, what is more important than education? One resolution could be to emulate the success demonstrated by the Chicago and Michigan programs spoken about earlier in this paper. In Rockland County, some school disctricts already offer a district-based preschool program. This year, all districts were alloted slots to participate in a Universal PreK initiative. However, while that is an excellent start to establishing a much needed entity, a lot of work still exists. During my research gathering I read many, many articles that discussed the family-centered literacy approach. Such as at the CPC, involving the parents and providing them with strategies and useful techniques to help their children empowers them and makes them feel useful and successful. Without parental involvement at the preschool level, literacy development suffers. Since the institution of NCLB, many school disstricts are seeking wasys to provide needed support to their students without it becoming a ‘special ed’ component or target program. Instituting a universal prek program benefits all. Looking at the various achievement gaps that Dr. Barnett identified in his paper, while there is significantly more of an achievement gap at the lower SES levels, there are still marked gaps in the middle class level, thus further justifying why ALL students would benefit from the experience. In an effort to establish successful high-quality preschool programs in Texas, the retired CEO of Texas Instruments was aware of the huge impact the Perry Preschool Program had on its communities and he was eager to replicate that success in Texas. Therefore, after establishing a successful pilot program, the participants wanted to be able to spread the success throughout the state and a handbook â€Å"Improving Early Literacy of Preschool Children’ was developed for prekindergarten educators. The authors and editors really were able to target what a high-quality program looks like with suggestions on how to implement them into your existing programs. The following steps are indicated to improve a preschool program: ? Set goals ? Create an improvement plan ? Build a classroom library ? Train the teachers and encourage collaboration. ? Keep rack of student’s progress ? Inform and involve parents 6 ? Communicate with elementary schools the children will attend ? Measure and document results (Dougherty, 1999) All of these steps are so important to developing a program that is successful. It is hard to determine whether one step is more important than another. Personally, I really feel that if the teachers and the teaching assistants and/or aides are given the proper training, every interaction with a child will take on new meaning. The Margaret Cone Head Start Center in Southeast Dallas has serviced predominantly low-income populations. As part of their language enrichment program (LEAP), each teacher attends six weeks of instruction at the nearby university as well as several workshops a year. Because of these teacher trainings, Cone Center children have produced improved scores on a variety of tests targeting vocabulary, language skills and social skills. I believe that involving the parents as much as possible and having them in the classroom for a half-day a week or twice a month lets them see what is happening and provides modeling they can use at home. Obstacles that I can identify at this point to establishing high-quality preschool programs that ALL children can attend include: ? FUNDING ? Private preschool programs vs. school district based programs ? Consistent participation on the part of the parents ? Difficulty providing quality training programs for the teachers and teaching assistants/aides due to lack of funding, time, resources While I feel there are many excellent examples of qualified and successful preschool programs in Rockland County, we do not meet the needs of all the children of the preschool age. As CPSE chair, I am able to provide special education needs to many children that require it. However, there is great variability between the programs that we recommend students attend. Consistent high-quality preschool programs would be beneficial to ALL students involved, not just the special needs children. In conclusion, it is a well-documented fact that preschool literacy education benefits all children involved. The need lies in our ability to establish high-caliber programs that are consistent, with staff that is well trained and caring. I think if we can distribute the information about the long-term effects researched and prove to the masses (school boards! ) that the bottom line would be cost savings to the community, we might see some change. I look forward to that day! References 1. Schweinhart, L. J. Lasting Benefits of Preschool Programs ERIC Digest. ericdigests. org. Retrieved February 25, 2008, from http://www. ericdigests. org/1994/lasting. htm 2. Dougherty, C. , et al. Improving Early Literacy of Preschool Children a Handbook for Prekindergarten Educators. Texas Instruments, 1999. 3. Lee, J. The Benefits of Preschool for High School and Beyond. Council of Chief State School Officers. Retrieved February 25, 2008, from http://www. ccsso. org 4. Roskos, K. A. , Christie, J. F. Richgels, D. J. The Essentials of Early Literacy Instruction. National Association for the Education of Young Children. Retrieved February 23, 2008, from www. naeyc. org/resources/journal 5. Mangione, P. L. (2005). Creating Language and Literacy Experiences for Infants and Toddlers. PITC Graduate Conference. Berkeley, CA. 6. Johnson, D. Sulzby, E. Critical Issue: Addressing the Literacy Needs of Emergent and Early Readers. North Central Regional Educational Library. Retrieved January 21, 2008, from http://www. ncrel. org/sdrs/areas/issues/content/cntareas/reading/li100. htm 7. Barnett, W. (2006, Jan. 10). Research on the Benefits of Preschool Education: Securing High Returns from Preschool for All Children. New York, NY. 8. Brain Wonders. Early Literacy (2003). Zero To Three. Retrieved January 24, 2008, from www. zerotothree. org/BrainWonders.

Terri Schiavo A Case Study Of Euthanasia Philosophy Essay

Terri Schiavo A Case Study Of Euthanasia Philosophy Essay Euthanasia is a life-terminating process with means to end pain and suffering. However, sometimes the way euthanasia is performed can be painful in itself. Terri Schiavos case was a very high-profile one for many reasons, one of them being because of this particular issue. She was 26 years old when she collapsed in her home in Florida in 1990 from what seemed to be lack of oxygen. She was in a coma for two and half months before entering a vegetative state. What came after would prolong into a 15-year dispute between Schiavos husband and her family in trying to figure out what would be the most ethical thing to do. After Terri Schiavo entered the vegetative state, there were two different paths she could have continued onto. The first being death through euthanasia, while the second being living life and surviving with constant assistance and through artificial means. According to Diana Lynne in her article at http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=29516, however, the path to euthanasia was absolutely unnecessary. Schiavo was not drooling, which meant she was able to control her saliva and therefore would not need feeding tubes. She was not in a PVS, or a persistent vegetative state, because she very well recognized her environment and was able to interact with it. Nurses reportedly could distinguish her words through her difficulty to speak as she would say help me and Mommy. Herein laid the biggest argument- would Terri want to live a life like this? Her husband, Michael Schiavo, reported that Terri had stated herself that she would never want to live her life as a vegetable and would rather have someone put a stop to her suffering. There was, however, no written proof, or any at all for that matter, of this claim. Terris parents insisted that she would not want to be euthanized due to her religion-they said she was a devout Roman Catholic and was very religious. There was no evidence to support this claim either. Michael Schiavos intentions for Terri had been questioned since he lost all hope in her survival in 1992. His intentions were also suspicious because he had claimed that her reason for collapsing that night was due to her bulimic eating disorder-an issue that no one as aware she was dealing with. Another suspicious piece of evidence from the case was the fact that Terri had neck injuries when she was brought to the hospital that night she collapsed; her parents, the Schindlers, believe that Michael tried to strangle her that night. The first time he petitioned for Terris food tube to be removed in 1998, Michael Schiavo was already engaged to another woman whom he had had two children with. He was still married to Terri and was legally her guardian. The court ruled in favor of Michael Schiavo and decided to remove Terris feeding tube in April of 2001. Three days later the feeding tube was put back in due to appeals made by the Schindlers which led to a hold in his case. There was videotaped evidence that Terri Schiavo was indeed responding to her familys interactions and was not brain-dead or vegetative. Unfortunately, Michael Schiavos consistent efforts finally came through. On March 13th of 2005, the feeding tube was removed from Terri Schiavo. This would lead to her death on March 31st, 2005 from dehydration and starvation. For 18 days Terri was parched and starving, and this is how she was killed. I believe that Terri Schiavo was killed in a harmful, thoughtless act and there a quite a few moral theories present in ethics that can support this. In Immanuel Kants ethical theory, the categorical imperative states that we should not use people as a means to an end. Killing a person to put a stop to their suffering through euthanasia would be using them to another end. Also, Kant believed that what seems to be an act out of kindness could lead to a bad thing; Kant was not interested in acting through compassion but rather what were the right thing and the best thing to do for the best possible outcome. Kant also believed that the value of a human being was above all price. He was extremely against suicide because of this belief of the human life and its worth. Especially in this case, in which Terri Schiavo was not brain-dead and could rationalize and think, I believe Kant would agree with allowing her to continue her live and not euthanize her. John Stuart Mill would state that euthanasia was just because he believed that as long as no other being is hurt, a person can do anything he or she pleases. However, I would interpret this utilitarianistic view as one that could go against euthanasia. I believe that the death of any being can and will hurt another. The death of Terri Schiavo devastated her family and friends. Through her starvation and dehydration, her closest loved ones were also in pain because of what she had to go through. Another moral theory that would go against euthanasia is the natural law. This ethical theory states that the end never justifies the means. This theory is evidently against euthanasia because it clearly insinuates that doing evil is not justified simply because the outcome will be good, even if the intentions mean well. This theory would suggest that killing an innocent person is never morally right to do because the main intention of this natural law is to protect and preserve the innocent. Natural law also insists that God gave life and it is up to him whether or not it is a persons time for that life to end or not and he will take that life away when he pleases; natural law very much believes in the sanctity of life. The natural law theory is very much closely related to Christian ethics which would also be against euthanasia for many of the same reasons. This portion of ethics believes that humans do not have any right to take away life because it is up to God because he gave us life. It believes that euthanasia is murder and we are not to kill. Life is sacred and is meant to be lived until the persons natural death and is therefore taken away naturally by God. In terms of what is just, I do not believe Polemarchus would agree with the removal of Terri Schiavos feeding tube or any other incident involving euthanasia for that matter because of his belief of tit for tat. This belief of justice will overlook an act of evil if this kind of act was already done to that person committing it. This belief is also known as an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. People in vegetative states in situations where they may be euthanized should not be if they are innocent people. Terri Schiavos case involved an involuntary euthanasia which means the person is not in a position to ask whether or not they want to die; the method of euthanasia in her case was passive, although the clear intention was for Terri to die. There are two other types of euthanasia: voluntary and nonvoluntary. In a voluntary case, the person asks to die and in a nonvoluntary case, the person does not want to die. The two types of methods in which euthanasia is performed are either passive or active. A passive method of euthanasia involves the cutting off of a treatment that the patient is on for a natural type of death while an active method of euthanasia is the opposite in which something is added in order to specifically end the patients life. This was the wrong thing to do especially because it was involuntary and it was therefore not certain that Terri Schiavo wished to die. It is reported that Terri Schiavo did not feel any pain during her 18 years in the hospital and because of th is, any argument supporting euthanasia using Terri Schiavo as an example is not reasonable. In any case, however, I believe that there is no such thing as a life not worth living. Its evident that every person would like to die with dignity and likely does not want to spend the last years of their life in a hospital but even though it is rare, it is possible to come out of a vegetative state. Also, according to all the philosophers and moral theories mentioned above, life is too sacred to not live, no matter what the circumstances

Deforestation Essay -- essays research papers fc

Deforestation Table of Contents Introduction 1 Important Facts 1 Historical Background 1-2 Background Law 2 Causes of Deforestation 2 The Green House Effect 2-3 Reducing Deforestation 3 Case Studies 3-4 Pros and Cons 4-5 Conclusion 5 Bibliography 6 Ninety percent of our trees, 300 - 900 years old, have been cut down. The remaining 10% is all we will ever have. Deforestation is a significant issue of our time and must be taken seriously if we want to protect our remaining forests. The definition of deforestation by the Random House Dictionary of the English Language is "to divest or clear of forests or trees" and we must stop deforestation to save our planet. My intent on writing this essay is to enlighten the reader about the facts on deforestation and to express my opinions about deforestation. There are approximately 3 400 million hectares of forests in the world, nearly 25% of the world's land area. Close to 58% of the forests are found in the temperate/boreal regions and 42% in the tropics. For about a millennium, people have benefited from the forests. Forest products range from simple fuelwood and building poles to sophisticated natural medicines, and from high- tech wood based manufactures to paper products. Environmental benefits include water flow control, soil conservation, and atmospheric influences. Brazil's Amozonia contains half of the world's tropical rain forests. The forests cover a region 10 times the size of Texas. Only about 10% of Brazil's rain forests have been cut to date, but cutting goes on at an uncontrollable rate. Since pre-agricultural times the world's forests have declined one fifth from 4 to 3 billion hectares. Temperate forests have lost 35% of their area, subtropic... ... I believe that if deforestation is not reduced soon, our ecosystem will be permanently damaged and we will have lost many our resources. Until then you might want to contact these organizations to find out more about our forests and become involved: â‚ ¬ Association of Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics P.O. box 11615 Eugene, OR 97440 (503) 484-2692 â‚ ¬ Global Relief P.O. box 2000 Washington, DC 20013 â‚ ¬ National Wildlife Federation 1400 Sixteenth St. N.W. Washington, DC 20036 (202) 797-6800 Bibliography Zuckerman, Seth. Saving our Ancient Forests. Los Angeles: Living Planet Press, 1991. Westoby, Jack. Introduction to World Forestry. New York: Basil Blackwell Ltd., 1989. Gallant, Roy. Earth's Vanishing Forests. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1991. Kerasote, Ted. Canada: The Brazil of the North? Toronto: Sports Afield, 1994. Deforestation Essay -- essays research papers fc Deforestation Table of Contents Introduction 1 Important Facts 1 Historical Background 1-2 Background Law 2 Causes of Deforestation 2 The Green House Effect 2-3 Reducing Deforestation 3 Case Studies 3-4 Pros and Cons 4-5 Conclusion 5 Bibliography 6 Ninety percent of our trees, 300 - 900 years old, have been cut down. The remaining 10% is all we will ever have. Deforestation is a significant issue of our time and must be taken seriously if we want to protect our remaining forests. The definition of deforestation by the Random House Dictionary of the English Language is "to divest or clear of forests or trees" and we must stop deforestation to save our planet. My intent on writing this essay is to enlighten the reader about the facts on deforestation and to express my opinions about deforestation. There are approximately 3 400 million hectares of forests in the world, nearly 25% of the world's land area. Close to 58% of the forests are found in the temperate/boreal regions and 42% in the tropics. For about a millennium, people have benefited from the forests. Forest products range from simple fuelwood and building poles to sophisticated natural medicines, and from high- tech wood based manufactures to paper products. Environmental benefits include water flow control, soil conservation, and atmospheric influences. Brazil's Amozonia contains half of the world's tropical rain forests. The forests cover a region 10 times the size of Texas. Only about 10% of Brazil's rain forests have been cut to date, but cutting goes on at an uncontrollable rate. Since pre-agricultural times the world's forests have declined one fifth from 4 to 3 billion hectares. Temperate forests have lost 35% of their area, subtropic... ... I believe that if deforestation is not reduced soon, our ecosystem will be permanently damaged and we will have lost many our resources. Until then you might want to contact these organizations to find out more about our forests and become involved: â‚ ¬ Association of Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics P.O. box 11615 Eugene, OR 97440 (503) 484-2692 â‚ ¬ Global Relief P.O. box 2000 Washington, DC 20013 â‚ ¬ National Wildlife Federation 1400 Sixteenth St. N.W. Washington, DC 20036 (202) 797-6800 Bibliography Zuckerman, Seth. Saving our Ancient Forests. Los Angeles: Living Planet Press, 1991. Westoby, Jack. Introduction to World Forestry. New York: Basil Blackwell Ltd., 1989. Gallant, Roy. Earth's Vanishing Forests. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1991. Kerasote, Ted. Canada: The Brazil of the North? Toronto: Sports Afield, 1994.

New businesses Essay

Consistent findings have imperatively indicated that the correlation between firm entry and survival is negative. Out of every one hundred new businesses introduced in the UK, 50 percent of them become obsolete before their third anniversary. Such high attrition levels are not only evident UK in alone but also in most modern economies and can be said to be a generic ‘rule of thumb’. Just why is it that so many nascent firms end up accomplishing little or nothing before they finally become extinct? Is it that their owners do not put enough efforts into the business development or are there other internal and external causes of this prevalent occurrence of business failure? Many theories have been put forth to explain the possible causes of the high rates of new business failure. It is not surprising that major diagnoses of the root causes of low survival rate in new businesses identify management inefficiency as one of the causes of the high attrition levels. Policy makers have also been blamed for recommending entrepreneurship as the solution to rejuvenating the economy yet little is done to educate people on what to expect amid globalization pressures, competition and technological changes that are likely to impact on the business survival. Other theories put forward include the supportive environment thesis, nature of activity and industry theory. Firm survival can however be properly classified in three explanatory dimensions: The firm’s specific characteristics; Operational factors and the business cycle. This paper explores the characteristics of business failure under these three dimensions and at the same time introduces a discussion on how entrepreneurs can enhance their business’s chances of survival by providing possible solutions to the low levels of survival witnessed in infant businesses. II. Analysis a) Definitions Birth of the firm: The introduction of a business marks the birth of a firm. This may actually start when the idea of the business is borne. Consequent activities such as registering the company, acquiring premises and capital are secondary elements in the birth of a business. Survival of the firm: Survival of the firm refers to its ability to withstand internal and external pressures to meet the objectives for which it was established. Survival determines whether a firm makes it through its lifetime or whether it fails and consequently exits the market. Death of the firm: This denotes the final stage in a business at a point where nothing can be done to revive the business and the only solution is complete closure. Termination of the firm as a legal entity: This means that the business is no longer recognized by the law. It means that a business in the context of the law is no longer operational and it is therefore not liable to debts, taxes among other liabilities to stakeholders. b) New Firms Survival Literature New businesses in the UK have in the past shown high levels of business failures witnessed within the first three years of inception. According to Caliendo and Fossen (2009: 154) at least fifty out of every one hundred new businesses introduced did not make it to their third birthday. A study by the DTI Small Business Service from 1995 to 2004 reveals that these failures are actually vary with industries which could be attributed to the various conditions that exist in these sectors (DTI, 2007: 13). On average, 82% of new businesses established survived the first year in business. Improvement has been recorded and by 2004, an average of 58% of new businesses survived the first three years over all the sectors. Detailed survey results are shown in table 1 and 2. c) Why Half of Nascent Firms Fail: The Survival Explanatory Dimensions 1) Firm Specific Characteristics i)Managerial Organization Discernible management errors and high incidents of poor management highly contribute to the low survival rates of newly established firms. The death of many firms is mostly characterized by management which has turned out to be reactionary. Inefficient decision making and inadequate or non-existent planning will have contributed to the failure of the business in at least 30 percent of nascent firms (Phillips, 2004: 68-70). Veronique and Wever (2000: 138) note that manager’s inability to react to various forces affecting the business operations such as competition, technological advancements, economic trends and money issues could lead to the ultimate downfall of a business. Inadequacy in management expertise is essentially attributable for the business’ failure to explore alternative financing options leading to bankruptcy. ii)Inadequacy of Cash Reserves Inadequate financing comes in as a close second after poor management. New owners with little or no prior experience in business may fail to effectively predict cash flow. Miscalculation of amounts required to sustain the business before it picks up and underestimation of the costs associated with borrowing money are the major causes of financial strain (Lane and Schary, 1991: 101-103). Exhaustion of cash reserves is also likely to be influenced by poor pricing, over-investment in fixed assets and uncontrolled growth. Uncontrolled growth occurs when the owners want to take up every opportunity that comes so that at the end of it all they cannot satisfy all their customers. In this case, firms end up borrowing large amounts to meet the high demand and when the loans cannot be paid effectively, what results is collapse of the firm (Audretsch and Keilbach, 2004: 423). Other causes include over dependence on a few customers, fraud and uncontrolled drawings by the owner. iii)Poor debt management and Over-borrowing This is closely associated with cash inadequacy and it results where managers are ill-equipped in financial management. Small business owners are likely to obtain the wrong type of financing and worse still take more than the business can afford to pay (Jostarndt, 2007: 139). This may lead to borrowing loans to clear existing ones which is not a good debt management strategy. Inability to pay debts on time and lack of coordination between incoming cash and outgoing cash may lead to the business finally going bankrupt and consequently causing its death. iv)Ownership Status There are two ways of looking at this perspective: the legal ownership and the reasons for starting the business. A sole proprietorship business is more likely to fail due to financial and management problems than a partnership or a limited company. The reasons for starting the business can highly influence a firm’s survival. Moore and Gooderl (2008: 8-10) name two types of entrepreneurs: the opportunity entrepreneur and the necessity entrepreneur. The former establishes a business to exploit available business opportunity while the latter may start up a business for the purpose of sustaining himself probably if he cannot find a job. According to Moore and Gooderl (2008: 16-17) the opportunity entrepreneur is likely to succeed while the necessity entrepreneur may not exert enough efforts towards the business. The increased number of necessity entrepreneurs in the UK has highly increased the failure levels in new businesses. v)Personal Characteristics of the owner This mostly has to do with the attitude of the owner and the manner in which he or she applies these in the business context. Owners make a mistake of taking up all responsibilities without making use of delegation to junior employees as a result of fearing that they may not do it perfectly. Jensen (1976: 335) describes this as the ‘challenge of letting go’. Owners normally find themselves exhausted from overwork and yet do not find time to address important issues facing the business. Use of business funds by the owner can also cause detrimental effects on the business. Personal attitudes such as aggressiveness and lack of concern for the employees may cause high rate of employee turnover as well as keep away customers (Daily et al, 2002: 398-343). vi)Innovation and reaction to technological changes The world is advancing at a high rate and technology is one of the areas that a business needs to keep up with. Many new businesses fail due to being left behind in technological advancements such that they are overtaken by their competitors who take with them all the customers (Agarwal, 1996: 103-106). Innovation is one of the major tools for a successful business and this is one area that new businesses have not been able to address mainly due to lack of enough capital to come up with new products and services. viii)Poor knowledge of the market Most business owners enter the market with little knowledge about what to expect. Failing to conduct market feasibility studies limit the owner’s knowledge on the competitors in the market and their influence; the customers’ characteristics and behaviour and various market fluctuations they are likely to encounter (Covin et al, 2000: 199-206). 2) Operational factors i) Competition New businesses are often overwhelmed by the efforts required to counter competition from already existing firms. This is considering that these firms have already established their customer base and winning loyal customers could prove quite a challenging task for new businesses. Usually, dominant competitors may even device ways of putting new entrants out of business such as lowering prices and offering discounts (Covin et al, 2000: 200). Their aim is to push the new competitors until they cannot keep up with the situation such that they eventually quit. ii) Location The location of a business is a major determinant for its survival. New businesses in rural areas are likely to fail due to limited local markets and isolation. On the other hand high costs, presence of large firms and regulatory barriers pose challenges to businesses located in the urban areas (Sutaria and Donald, 2004: 250-253). 3)Changes in Business Cycle i)Macroeconomic growth and economic pressures New businesses are usually unable to handle economic shocks that may result from high interest rates, fluctuations in exchange rates and general inflation. According to David and Mahmood (1995: 89-93) not many businesses survive an economic surge or a recessionary period which may lead to skyrocketing of supply prices and high costs of borrowing. ii)Entering Cohorts’ exit rate Cohorts refer to groups with similar characteristics. The result of exit of similar businesses can either have a positive or negative effect on a new business. Exit may mean less competition which is an advantage. New firms however rely on one another for inspiration. A person operating a business where everyone is quitting due to one reason or another is bound to get disillusioned and have the attitude that his business may fail too (Phillips, 2004: 69-71). iii)Changes in legal environment When the laws of a country change, new businesses are likely to suffer since they are not yet stable enough to cushion themselves from such changes. Amendment of tax laws and business requirements may cause a new business to go bankrupt. d) Increasing Survival Chances Strategies to increase the chances of survival for a business entail addressing the leading causes of failure. The most fundamental requirement is the improvement of the management capabilities. When there is good management in a firm, other factors will follow suit because every operation of the business is determined by the management (Sutaria and Donald, 2004: 253-255). Improvement of communication within the business and proper sharing of duties are skills that the owners of the business need to acquire. This can be done through attending management and entrepreneurial seminars and conferences so as to learn secrets of firm survival from professionals. Proper planning is the ideal solution to financial problems. Veronique and Wever, 2000: 139-141) refers adequate anticipation of cash flow as the secret to overcoming financial problems for starters. This could be done through the help of an expert if the owner is not in a position to do so. Finding alternative sources of finance apart from the usual ones is key in preventing the collapse of a business due to lack of funds. There are many available sources of finance including bank loans, credit card advances, sale of assets among others (Moore and Gooderl, 2008: 298-299). Care should then be taken to make sure the finances are properly utilized. The firm should avoid relying on a few customers because huge losses can be felt if the customers suddenly withdraw. Instead, they should aim at a large customer base. Over-borrowing can be reduced through making proper cash forecasts and using the limited resources that the business has. In essence, the firm can adopt a steady growth over time instead of rushing to expand at once (Daily et al, 2002: 399-401). Finally, the management should be keen in managing the debts of the business keenly balancing the income and expenditure so as to cover all liabilities and debts in time. A business must clearly identify its customers and establish whether they can sustain the business effectively considering the level of competition. This can be done prior to the business establishment through a market feasibility studies while answering the following questions: How many competitors are in the area you plan to establish your business? Who will be the business’s customers and what are their buying habits? What is the level of loyalty of these potential customers to the current suppliers? Are they likely to buy your product? Is the product seasonal? Is it possible to make profit out of the business? Once these questions are answered, the likelihood of failure can be minimized as specific strategies to address the issues can be formulated (Audretsch and Thurik, 2007: 113-141). Business owners must realize that they cannot do everything by themselves. Employers can delegate and allow employees to make certain decisions. Consequently, owners will have ample time to concentrate on more important business issues such as finding new customers, getting more funds for the business as well as solving the current issues facing the business (Daily et al, 2002: 403-405). The need for long-term planning is inevitable. This involves planning for growth and transition in the future. It also involves planning for uncertainties such as loss of employees, customers and suppliers. In the wake of the high global trade advancement and changes in the market, businesses should always be alert to avoid being taken unaware by advancements in technology, innovation and changes in customer preferences and culture (Zoltan, 1988: 321). Legal changes and changes in tax systems should be catered for in the long-term business plan. The state of the economy is bound to change from time to time which is why firms must anticipate for any future economic shocks through investing in stocks, futures, options among others. Insurance is also an option for more larger firms. III. Conclusion No environment can be said to specifically favour new firms in all angles hence the need for those starting new firms to be overly cautious. Firms are most definitely exposed to numerous risks that may lead to their extinction as indicated in this discussion. Management is identified as the root cause of low survival rates among nascent firms and its improvement could work to solve the predicament presently being witnessed in new firm survival. Proper balancing of the firm’s cash reserves; being generally alert to any changes in the business environment; making informed decisions to deal with these changes coupled with excellent management practices is exactly what is needed to save young firms from their predicament and promote their longevity.

The Harlem Renaissance

The Harlem Renaissance Free Online Research Papers The Harlem Renaissance remains one of the most momentous artistic engagements in the history of African-Americans. Harlem, a neighborhood in upper Manhattan, became the international capital of African American culture. African – American painters, sculptors, musicians, poets, and novelists joined in a remarkable artistic outpouring. Some critics at the time attacked this work as isolationist and conventional (Sporre 549). It served to create a realization of identity for African-Americans, while forcing white Americans to face up to the importance of an ethnic group too long measured substandard. The Harlem Renaissance saw an explosion of African-American literature, music dance, art and social commentary in the 1920’s. Although in reality it was a place for a deprived people to adopt a politically radical view and express it to an audience that hadn’t been available before the Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance used artistic expression to make a considerable impact on all aspects of society, while also providing African-Americans with desirable qualities, abilities, and characteristics that wasn’t synonymous with slavery. Two of the most important factors contributing to the creative phenomenon of the Harlem Renaissance era were World War I and the great migration of Blacks from the rural South to the industrial North during the war years and continuing throughout the 1920’s. Many African-Americans supported the war effort enthusiastically by serving in the armed forces or by filling vacant jobs vacated by white soldiers in cities like New York, Detroit, Chicago and Philadelphia. After the war they were hopeful that their patriotism would earn them a greater measure of equality, but their expectations were thwarted by the 1919 race riots in both the North and the South and by a record number of lynching’s that same year. A new racial pride and a sense of community among Blacks emerged during this period and its center was Harlem, the birthplace of the â€Å"New Negro†, who refused to accept either the plantation mentality of the South or the ghetto mentality of the North (Witalec Volume 1, 1). One of the most influential people of the Harlem Renaissance era was Charles Surgeon Johnson. As founder of the journal Opportunity, Johnson offered recognition and support to many African-American writers by giving them the chance to publish their works, by holding literary contests with prize money, and hosting honorary annual banquets. For this and other efforts, Langston Hughes, a renowned poet and novelists, credited Johnson with having â€Å"singled handedly propelled â€Å"the Harlem Renaissance into being (Witalec Volume 3, 1). The Harlem Renaissance movement wasn’t without conflict. One of America’s principal Black intellectuals, W.E.B. Du Bois emerged as the leading voice in the struggle for racial advancement during the first half of the 20th century. He firmly believed that educated blacks-the small percentage of black intellectuals should provide the strong leadership that nation’s Blacks so desperately needed. â€Å"The Negro race, like all races, is going to be saved by its exceptional men,† he wrote. Du Bois’s philosophy was in direct opposition to that of another Black leader, Booker T. Washington, a former slave and founder of the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute for Blacks. Washington held that the way to raise Blacks up was to supply job training for them. Washington exhorted Blacks to put aside their aspirations for political and social equality and strive instead to improve their industrial skills before demanding a higher place in American societ y (Chambers 40, 41). Critics question whether the Harlem Renaissance really achieved its aims of forging a new identity for Blacks separated from the history of slavery. One of the criticisms is that by trying to create distinct culture separated from the past abuses and even the contribution of Anglo-European traditions it succeeded only in alienation. Amore potent criticism is that the Harlem Renaissance reproduced only the specific identity of the middle class, intellectual elite of an ethnic group trying to impress it’s backgrounds and views on a population still dominated by lower-class and uneducated people. Still another criticism is that the very goal of forging an identity for an entire ethnic group and socially edifying them was grossly ill-conceived because overwhelming number of African-Americans are mostly unaware of it or know it only as history at best(Kramer and Russ 51). Visual artists of the Harlem Renaissance, like the dramatists, attempted to win control over representation of their people from white caricature and denigration while developing a new repertoire of images. Prior to World War I, Black painters and sculptors had rarely concerned themselves with African-American subject matter. By the end of the 1920’s, however, Black artists had begun developing styles related to black aesthetic traditions of Africa. The international appeal of jazz and its connection to common Black life, accompanied by sheer virtuosity of its musicians, encouraged Black intellectuals in other fields to turn increasingly to specifically â€Å"Negro† aesthetic forms as a basis for innovation and self-expression. The tendency appeared in concert music, choral programs and Broadway musicals as well as literature. Popular revues and vaudeville acts drew all-Black audiences throughout the United States in cities on the Theatre Owners Booking Association circuit. In the 1920’s Black-produced shows came to Broadway again and again, and many White-produced shows featured Black casts. The success of such shows helped fuel optimism of the Harlem Renaissance (Web). The crash of the New York Stock Exchange on October 29, 1929 ravaged the entire nation, marking the beginning of an economic depression that lasted well into World War II. Millions of unskilled laborers lost their jobs, and skilled laborers who managed to keep working suffered a drastic drop in income. African-Americans suffered even more severely during this period: Black unemployment soared to about 50percent nationwide, and in some large cities it reached even higher rates, 65 percent in Atlanta, and 80 percent in Norfolk, Virginia. African-American workers were usually the first to be let go; nearly half of those who lost their jobs had been domestic servants and were replaced by white workers, many of whom had previously considered such work too menial. Poverty not only struck the ordinary Harlemite but ended the careers of many of the period’s artists as well. Most Black artists had always felt uncomfortable with the necessity of enlisting or accepting financial support from White’s. When once wealthy patrons who saw their funds reduced, gave up their Black artist and poet protà ©gà ©s, it became painfully clear how important such funding had been to Black artist success (Chambers 109, 113). Although the Great Depression effectively ended the Harlem Renaissance, it could not destroy the era’s music, political, literary, and musical legacy. Not only are many of the renaissance works and artists still tremendously respected and influential today, but their example and their success opened doors for generations of future Black artists. In 1910, Black artists had little chance for recognition, but by 1930, publishing a novel by a talented Black writer or producing a record by a talented Black musician was simply seen as good business (Chambers 120). Chambers, Veronica. The Harlem Renaissance. Chelsea House Publishers, 1998. Kramer, Victor A., and Robert A. Russ, eds. Harlem Renaissance Re-examined. Whiston Publishing Co. 1997. Witalec, Janet. Harlem Renaissance, a Gale Critical Companion, Volume 1, 3. The Gale Group, 2003. Web. Galileo, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2002. Spore, Dennis J. The Creative Impulse-An Introduction To The Arts, Eight Edition. Pearson Education, Inc, 2009. 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