Software to support assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Software to support assessment - Essay Example I would also have the ability to look at the students’ quiz and test scores, as well as time spent in answering individual questions and how much time was spent in finishing the test. Results from the assessment would aid me in the identification of the areas that students did not comprehend satisfactorily. Following the analysis of the results, it is easy to reconstruct the methods of teaching that would allow me, as an educator, to teach lessons in a way that the students can comprehend (Russell 1). Formative assessment is embedded, typically, within the process of instruction. A simple way of defining formative assessment is that it is used during instructions. It can be utilized to determine the topics or needs that require addressing with a student. It can be used to identify gaps in what has been learnt and the reason they are struggling (Hickey 1). It includes homework, tests, and interaction with the students. For instance, discussions can include allowing children to put down questions and answers before learning topics. One very valuable component of this assessment process is descriptive feedback where, using technology, the teacher can point out the areas the student did well in, as well as offering suggestions for specific improvement. Summative assessment, on the other hand, is given to students following specific instruction points to measure how they understand a subject. Various examples include final and midterm exams, interim or districts tests, standardized state exams, and high stakes exams (Hickey 1). They can be utilized for checking subject mastery after a few months or weeks. Technology can be used send questions to parents to conduct summative assessment using provided questions. Use of technology to assess student learning has various advantages. First, it can improve authenticity, as well as alignment with outcomes of learning. TEA can take many forms and the flexibility of design allows for the assessment of a wide array of c ompetencies and skills. It also provides the educator with opportunities to replicate tasks expected of students in a workplace in an environment that is risk free (Penuel & Yarnall 1). Secondly, it also helps in the clarification of marking criteria. Virtual learning environments allow the educator to present criteria for assessment in the module, which ensures the criteria, is accessible and transparent. Thirdly, it spreads, for students and staff, the assessment load. TEA eases resource re-use and repurposing while enabling automatic marking that reduces the workload. Finally, it improves engagement with students, as well as the promotion of deeper learning. Technology used in assessment-enhancement enables diverse methods to be used in improving grades, allow frequent formative assessment, and support active learning (Penuel & Yarnall 1). However, TEA use has a number of disadvantages. One major issue in the implementation has to do with cost in terms of effort, time, and money that should be weighed against pedagogic benefits (Penuel & Yarnall 1). There are also issues with accessibility as most staff and students’ digital literacy is not on a level playing field, making some uncomfortable in using TEA. Special students’

Food and Money Essay Example for Free

Food and Money Essay Why did Huang Tsung-hsi see the well-field system as a foundation of a renewed Chinese culture and a stable political state? The well field was the center of a plot of land divided into 9 sections. Eight families farmed the plot; each held one of the sections and the central one belonged to lord of the whole plot. Why? The well-field system is believed to be the most ideal arrangement between landowners and tenants. Under this system, the families occupying each of the eight fields will befriend each other, cooperate in guarding the crops, watch each others back in case of danger, and rescue one another in times of trouble and illness. This system promotes harmony and equal treatment by the landlord. The burden of taxation is also distributed evenly among the families. Huang Tsung-hsi saw this system as the foundation of a renewed Chinese culture and stable political state because, as a follower of Mencius, he advocated that rulers must rule their subjects justly and well. Huang Tsung-hsi abhorred selfish autocratic rule. If a ruler promotes equal distribution, people will not be afraid of getting poor. If the people are assured of their just treatment, there will be peace in a society. Once people are content, government will not fail. In Ibn Khaldun’s analysis of Islamic society, did â€Å"group feeling† function in the same way as the well-field system did for Huang? In Ibn Khalduns analysis of Islamic society, he defined group feeling as subordinating of an individuals personal needs to that of the interest of the group. He argued that if an individual wont prioritize the group, there would be no peace and social development. Comparing this with the well-field system, I should say that in a way they are the same. The same because both systems promote solidarity and cooperation to achieve a purpose. In the well-field system, it can be assumed that individual needs are secondary in relation to what is best for the group. Works Cited Swann, Nancy. Food and Money in Ancient China. Princeton, 1950.

An Overview of Indonesias Soil Sickness Essays -- Agriculture Agricul

An Overview of Indonesia's Soil Sickness The proper utilization of the world's soil to provide food for the world's increasing population is becoming an increasingly more important issue. In the tropical rain-forests, especially, the depletion of the natural ecological system has caused massive destruction to the rain-forests' soil, thereby impeding agricultural development. One of the stereotypes which is fostered by a concern for the proper use of the rain-forest habitat is that all slash and burn agriculture -- or swidden agriculture -- is detrimental to the rain-forest habitat, and should be halted completely. While swidden agriculture has caused large amounts of damage to the rain-forest as a whole, the problem lies not with swidden agriculture itself, but rather with the circumstances under which it is carried out. Tropical soils are able to survive, and indeed thrive, when swidden agriculture is executed properly. In Indonesia, examples of both correct and incorrect swidden agriculture methods can be found. The Indigenous peoples, who have been utilizing slash and burn methods of agriculture for centuries, properly burn and farm small plots of land, while letting soils regenerate plots which have recently been farmed. The peasant population of Indonesia, on the other hand, has turned to swidden agriculture by default, and utilizes the land only for short-term gain. The result is the depletion of the soil to an extent where it may never be utilized again. Two different methodologies of the same agriculture can have drastically different effects on the soil; why this is, and the specific processes involved in the soil which either deplete or enhance its quality will be examined in the following pages. In conclusion, ... ...k to colonize new, agriculturally marginal lands. Severe environmental disruption results..." (Goodland, 1984; 183). In order to save its soils, Indonesia needs major land reform policies, or social contracts which will give peasants an alternative to swidden agriculture. Until then, no amount of terracing, placing fertilizers in the soil, reducing slope, or irrigation can undo the damage to tropical soils. Unless something is done quickly, tree cover in the rain-forests may be replaced altogether by imperata savannah grass which threatens to turn Indonesia into a "green desert" (Geertz, 1964; 24). On a larger scale, failure to address the issue of soil depletion in Indonesia may result in the insufficiency of foodstuffs for the Indonesian people. As Edmund G. Brown, Jr. said, "Many past civilizations have fallen with their forests and eroded with their soils."

Establish Clear Expectations and Consequences :: essays papers

Establish Clear Expectations and Consequences In order to ensure that classroom learning is conducive to both the physical and emotional growth of the student, rules that explain what behavior is expected need to be reviewed. Chen, Horsche, and Nelson (1999) believe that giving children choices will help them develop a sense of ownership in regard to the learning process. Let the students decide how they will follow the rules. By working together, everyone has an opportunity to contribute to the overall environment of their classroom. After rules and procedures are established, it is important that the teacher admires good performance and provides negative consequences for unacceptable behavior. According to Marzano and Marzano (2003), the use of both verbal and physical reactions will help teachers reinforce classroom procedures (p.8). Simple physical signs like a â€Å"thumbs up† or a verbal â€Å"good job† will show the students that good behavior is recognized. Also, a teacher must be consistent with punishments for those who disregard the rules. â€Å"How you handle a situation with any student will teach that student something – as well as everyone else in the room† (Solan, 2002). It is essential that the teacher communicates immediately with a misbehaving student. Using different methods, like simply moving closer to the one who is disruptive, could be a cue which may reduce the chance of interrupting the whole class (Petch-Hogan & Murdick, 1996). A warning can often be eno ugh to correct improper behavior, thereby avoiding the need to assert full punishment. Communication Must Remain Open The best way to ensure a good classroom environment is to make sure that communications remain open between school officials, teacher, and parents (Brophy, 1982). This creates a feeling of trust within the classroom. Without being able to communicate properly, learning can not take place. Students with dialects, different languages, and backgrounds will make up many classrooms. Woolfolk (2004) feels that â€Å"communication is at the heart of teaching and culture affects communication† (p.174). Adjusting to different languages and cultures is a difficult task. Therefore, it will take everyone’s help to create a safe environment in the classroom. Know and Respect Your Students The headlines in Educational Psychology sum up that a good teacher will know, respect, and teach her students (Woolfolk, 2004). Teachers should never discriminate and always respect each child as an individual (Eggen, Jacobsen, & Kauchak, 1993).

Composed upon Westminster Bridge and The World is too much with us

William Wordsworth, poet and writer, born on April 7th, 1770 in a small Cumberland village named Cochermouth, located on the northern edge of the Lake District. He attended infant school in the small town of Hawkshead, located in one of the most beautiful regions of the Lake District. Wordsworth remained at Hawkshead until the age of 16. There were some long and deeply impressive rumples through the country, which affected his poetry greatly. You will realize that he loves nature and had a deep loyalty to Britain, even though he lived in France and was married to a French woman. The two poems I will be discussing are; â€Å"The World is too much with us† and â€Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridge†. It is interesting to notice that both of these poems take on a Petrarchan sonnet form. The form of a sonnet consists of an octave (first 8 lines) and a sestate (last 6 lines). This gives us a total of 14 lines. However in â€Å"The World is too much with us† a unique and significant form is taken on; Wordsworth gives the octave 8 and a half lines while the sestate has only 5 and a half. Wordsworth uses the octave for the exposition or the theme and the sestate for the conclusion. â€Å"The World is too much with us† embodies one of the central ideas of the Romantic Movement in poetry, of which Wordsworth was a founder – that in our daily life, especially living in towns, we have lost touch with the renewing powers of nature. â€Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridge† is a magnificent sonnet, which shows Wordsworth appreciating and indeed demonstrating the beauty of a great city – though perhaps it is characteristic of his love for solitude, and is set in the early morning, when there is no bustle and noise. Throughout both sonnets Wordsworth cleverly employs the use of semicolons, colons, comma or just a full stop. His reasons for this is to make us pause, reflect and get the true meaning of the line we have just read. In the first two lines of â€Å"The World is too much with us† – The World is too much with us; late and soon Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Wordsworth uses both the semicolon and the colon and intends us to think â€Å"what world?† â€Å"which power?† he gets across that we are being engulfed in the materialistic world and have a lack of concern for nature, thus we take nature for granted and we waste our natural powers. In the corresponding lines of â€Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridge† – Earth has not anything to show more fair: Dull would he be of soal who could pass by A sight so touching in its majesty: Wordsworth utilizes a number of ploys to grab our attention. The opening line is a bold statement meaning he has not ever seen a better sight. The use of the word â€Å"earth† suggests the supreme quality of such beauty. He uses the words â€Å"earth†, â€Å"anything† and â€Å"fair† to indicate the entire world. In the second line syntax is put to use; â€Å"dull would he be of soul† as opposed to â€Å"he would be dull of soul†. This is for extra emphasis on the word â€Å"dull†. He also uses enjambment by allowing lines 2 and 3 to flow together as 1; this helps to stress ‘a sight so touching'. The repetition of the letter s sound helps to convey the ‘breathless' sense of admiration. Touching is a word that we can all relate to whereas majesty shows the importance of nature and how much he was startled by this view. In the next two lines of â€Å"The World is too much with us† – â€Å"Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!† Here Wordsworth gives nature a capital letter. This is the first indication in the poem of what it is about. Syntax again is used where he could have simply written â€Å"we see little in nature that is ours†, which means we don't recognise nature as being part of ours. In line two, the poet says â€Å"we have given our hearts away†, our heart is associated with love and without it he is implying we do not appreciate nature in the manner we should. A sordid boon is a phrase used to convey the meaning of a gift of no value. This hints that we no longer value our love by living in the materialistic world. Wordsworth uses personification in line four of â€Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridge†. A simile is also implied for further understanding. â€Å"This City now doth, like a garment, wear The beauty of the morning; silent, bare† Garment suggests a comfortable easy fit yet the world is more grand than say, clothing, and the beauty of the scene is enhanced by implications of resplendent finery. Another capital letter is used in the middle of the sentence on the word city. This shows the importance and beauty of the city. The two lines mean that the city now wears the beauty of the morning; again Wordsworth shows us his love and passion for nature. In the corresponding lines of â€Å"The World is too much with us† there is the same punctuation and language affects – â€Å"This Sea that bears her bosom to the moon; The winds that will be howling at all hours, And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers; Again to show the importance of nature Wordsworth uses a capital letter on sea, which is most of our natural world today. Personification is used on these same lines – â€Å"the sea that bears ‘HER' bosom to the moon† and â€Å"the winds that will be ‘HOWLING' at all hours†. â€Å"Like sleeping flowers† is the simile implied to show the calming after the storm. The octave in â€Å"Composed upon Westminster Bridge† ends with: – â€Å"Open unto the fields, and to the sky; All bright and all glittering in the smokeless air.† You could almost say these statements are incorrect, but remember it was the 1800's when this sonnet was composed. When Wordsworth stood upon this bridge he could see everlasting green fields, surrounding London, that lead right to the horizon. Open is a word that could mean anything but in this poem it means that there is a light open feeling to the atmosphere. â€Å"Smokeless† – still, pure, unpolluted. Perhaps this reminds us of how the scene will change once days of smoky industry begin. â€Å"For this, for everything, we are out of tune; It moves us not.† These are the last one and a half lines of the octave in â€Å"The World is too much with us†. Wordsworth suggests here that we are out of tune. Thus hinting we are not in harmony with nature. This again shows the difference of tone. In â€Å"composed upon Westminster Bridge† the tone is a hushed, almost breathless admiration. He was surprised by sudden vision of splendor and became more emotional whereas he recognizes the materialistic living in â€Å"The World is too much with us†. The sestet of â€Å"The World is too much with us† opens with â€Å"Great God†. Wordsworth recognises God's great power of nature but he would also rather be a Pagan because Pagan's appreciated nature. He wants to see glimpses to make him less sad and a glimpse would keep the suspense and make him more aloof. Proteus and Triton are Greek Gods. Proteus: Greek sea God and Triton: one of a race of minor sea – Gods in Greek mythology, with a mans form but the tail of a fish, often depicted as carrying a shell – trumpet. In the sestet of â€Å"composed upon Westminster Bridge† Wordsworth seems very happy with the view of London city with the sun rising. He says such things as: â€Å"Never did the sun more beautifully steep†, and â€Å"Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!† which is another cleaver use of syntax. This is a change from â€Å"The World is too much with us† as in that sonnet the wonderful natural scenery in which he was writing made him sad to think about how people don't appreciate it anymore. â€Å"Dear God† is also used in â€Å"composed upon Westminster Bridge†. This is maybe his prayer to God to keep nature so beautiful whereas in â€Å"The World is too much with us†, he used â€Å"Great God† as to say WAKE UP! We (the readers) can visualize and relate to the wonderful scenery Wordsworth describes effectively, with language and punctuation to convey his meaning.

How does Emily Bronte succeed in making Heathcliff remain to the reader a “likeable” character in Wuthering Heights?

Wuthering Heights first appeared in May 1846, but it was not the great success it is today, as the book did not sell many copies, following this Emily Bronte along with her sisters sent their novels and poetry along to publishing houses where it was published properly. They deceived the public at first by using pen names, because at that time women were not seen as intelligent or capable enough to write such a novel. The audience of this book would have been upper class, as they would have been the only people who could afford books, and also be able to read them. The public reaction to Wuthiering Heights were fairly mixed for example, these are extracts from magazines or newspapers at the time of Wuthering Heights publishing: New Monthly Magazine from January 1848 â€Å"Wuthering Heights by Ellis Bell is a terrific story† on the other hand: The examiner, 8 January 1848 â€Å"it is wild, confused, disjointed and improbable; and the people who make up the drama†¦are savages.† The law has changed considiberally from the time set in the book, and this is important when reading the book as Heathcliff's revenge revolves around the laws at the time reflecting how wrong they were, which results in Heathcliff an uneducated cuckoo with no money and no family ends up quite legally stealing and cheating his way into wealth and property as part of his revenge caused by the pain he inflicts. He did this quite cleverly through marriage and death, yet his cruel actions don't make the reader hate this disturbed man however much they should, and throughout this essay I will consider all of the various reasons why the audience warm to Heathcliff. As the story of Heathcliffs life begins Nelly Dean, the nursemaid at Thrushcross Grange, is telling it to a tenant – Mr. Lockwood. As a child Nelly Dean, the daughter of the Earnshaw's maid used to spend all her time at Wuthering Heights playing with the children. Mr. Earnshaw went away for a trip to Liverpool where on the streets he found the starving, dark skinned, Heathcliff and brought him home to Wuthering Heights, immediately the rest of the family were alarmed and didn't welcome him and the children rejected him from being in their company. Cathy warmed to Heathcliff quickly as did Mr. earnshaw and he became his favorite child. However Hindley did not and hated him which made him cruel to heathcliff this is where the reader really feels for heathcliff; a poor fatherless child rejected and bullied by half of his new family and yet never complained; â€Å"he would stand Hindley's blows without winking or shedding a tear, and my pinches moved him only to draw a breath and open his eyes, as if he had hurt himself by accident and nobody was to blame.† All this plays a part in the view of Heathcliff later on in the book. Growing up Heathcliff and Cathy were best friends, too fond of each other in fact, and when punishment was endured onto either of them it was for them to be separated. But longing to be with one another, one incident which changed this is when they both snuck out and went to thrushcross grange where the lintons lived they wound them up

Cooling Drinks

1) What is the specific latent heat of fusion of water?Specific latent heat of fusion is the amount of heat absorbed or released by a substance when changing states. This could be boiling or melting. Latent heat of fusion is the amount of energy needed to melt a substance, while latent heat of vaporisation is the amount of energy needed to boil a substance. The specific latent heat of fusion of water is 334 j/g In the graph, you can see that as the temperature increases more energy is needed to heat the water. When the temperature hits the latent heat of fusion, the temperature stops rising as the energy is being used to change the state of water. This also happens when the latent heat of vaporisation2) What is the specific heat capacity of water?The specific heat capacity is the amount of heat that is needed to raise the temperature of a substance. The specific heat capacity water is 4181 j/kg. This is higher than most metals. Here are some other substances with their specific heat capacity; SubstanceC (J/g oC) Air 1.01 Aluminium 0.902 Copper 0.385 Gold 0.129 Iron 0.450 Mercury 0.140 Sodium Chloride 0.864 Ice 2.03 Water 4.183) Why energy is needed to melt ice and how this is explained by the structures of ice and water The molecules of H20 behave differently in water than in ice. In water they are floating around freely and in ice they are â€Å"stationary†, they only vibrate slowly. This is because they don’t have enough energy to break their intermolecular bonds. So in order to melt ice you need to add energy to give the molecules kinetic energy to move around, becoming less stationary. If enough energy is given to the molecules they break the intermolecular bonds and the ice melts to ice. 4) Why is ice more effective for cooling a drink than cold water The cooling of a drink with a cube of ice is more effective than using cold water because ice can absorbs a lot more heat. This is because it has a higher specific latent heat of fusion.Hypothes isThe greater the amount of ice that melts the bigger the temperature drop of the water This is because when more ice melts more energy is taken from the waterApparatus5 identical beakers which are made of the same materials Thermometers with a suitable range; -10oC to 100oC Measuring with volume above 200cm3 Top-pan balance reading with up to 35g Ice (crushed), not straight form the freezer Suitable insulating material Means of removing water e.g. paper towels Stopwatch to measure time in minutes and secondsMethod1) Pour 200cm3 of water into 4 same sized beakers of the same materials. This is so the materials does not affect the in temperature 2) I’m going to measure the temperature of the water. I’m going to make sure the temperature is the same to make it a fair test. I’m going to leave the water to become room temperature for about 5 minutes 3) I’m going to add 15g of ice to Beaker 1, 25g to Beaker 2, 25g to Beaker 3 and the fourth Beaker will have no ice.The fourth beaker will set the benchmarks. The amount of ice is the independent variable. I will measure the ices mass by using the top-pan balance. I used these certain amount of mass so I have a big range of data and will make a better comparison. 4) I will then measure the temperature of the beakers every minute for three minutes. 5) Then I will put all my results into a table and then into a line graph so I can make easy comparisons Hazards, the risks and how to reduce the risksResults Table1. Describe any patterns or trends in your results. Comment on any unexpected results. After analysing my result I have found some trends in the data. I also saw some anomalies that came up in the experiment. The most obvious trend is in the line graph and the temperature drop. The more mass of ice I put into the beaker to cool the drink, the faster the temperature dropped. For example, in beaker one 2. Compare results of your own investigation (Part 2) with the data from other groups wi thin your class and any data collected in Part 1. Comment on any similarities and differences.Suggest  and explain possible reasons for any differences. 3. Evaluate your results, the method you used and how well you managed the risks. 4. Do your results from Part 2 support the hypothesis suggested by Charlie’s friend? Explain your answer. 5. It is possible to use the equations below to predict the temperature drop of the water when a chosen amount of ice is added to it. Will the actual temperature drop, measured in your experiment, be equal to the predicted value? Use relevant scientific explanations in your answer. Use the results of your experiment, appropriate calculations and your research (Part 1) to provide evidence to support your answer. 1 cm3 of water has a mass of 1 gEnergy = mass Ãâ€" specific heat capacity Ãâ€" temperature change Energy = mass Ãâ€" specific latent heat