The Effects of Standardized Tests on Education

Standardized tests have been debated and argued for as many years as they have existed. It is worthwhile to look at some of the arguments for both sides and find out if there can be some middle ground. Two important factors of standardized tests are the way the tests are administered and how the results are handled. These two issues may be more important than the tests themselves. There must be ways to have accountability in most areas of society. In schools, we need to know if teachers are teaching and if students are learning. There has to be some way to judge whether the system is working. Standardized tests can show students’ strengths and weaknesses. Ideally, teachers then develop strategies to address the needs of the student that the test has outlined. These tests can help predict selection at college, justification for scholarships, and selection for employment. They can document achievement, both for the student and the teacher. â€Å"The fundamental ideas behind the construction and use of tests are not beyond our understanding†. Says Andrew J. Strenio Jr.  These tests â€Å"certify that the examinee does have the requisite skills and competencies needed to graduate from high school programs, practice in an occupation or profession, or receive elevated status within a profession†. (Defending Standardized Testing; Phelps, Richard. We could not function in society without some basic standards and these standards need to be uniform throughout our society. Chauncey and Dobbin write in their book Testing: It’s Place in Education Today:â€Å"Every school and almost every teacher uses a test at some point in the process of planning instruction that will fit the student and his capacities†. Standardized testing is just a larger scale for comparison. It offers feedback to the student and the school system about where achievement is in certain areas. But it should not be the only criteria for what we consider success. There is a great deal of criticism of standardized tests. Making test scores public is a way to see them as indicators of school quality. This has increased their value 100% but not in a particularly good way. Officials use an assortment of bribes and threats to coerce everyone into concentrating on test results. If the scores are high, the bribes may include bonuses for teachers and schools. Students may receive food, tickets to theme parks or sporting events, exemptions from in-class final exams, and even scholarships. The threats include loss of funding or accreditation for schools, while students may be held back a year or denied a high school diploma if they don’t test well, regardless of their over-all academic record. All together, these tactics are known as ‘high stakes’ testing. There may not be data on this, but Alfie Kohn states â€Å"the people who work most closely with kids are the most likely to understand the limits of standardized tests. † He says that â€Å"support for testing seems to grow as you move away from the students, going from teacher to principal to central office administrator to school board member to state board member, state legislator, and governor. † 3 Standardized Minds by Peter Sacks talks about the unquestioned position of standardized testing which he terms â€Å"an unhealthy and enduring obsession†. He also writes about the cost of all this testing. â€Å"The amount Americans spend taking tests, preparing for tests, scoring tests, and running magnificently elaborate testing programs in schools, colleges and the workplace is stunning, probably running in the billions of dollars each year. It is possible that Americans may be taking as many as 600 million standardized tests annually, or more than two tests per year for every man, woman, and child in the United States. Unreasonable demands of ‘higher scores’ from schools has many negative results. Alfie Kohn says â€Å"Teachers are beginning to tire of the pressure, the skewed priorities, and the disrespectful treatment as they are forced to implement a curriculum largely determined by test manufacturers or state legislators. † A hostile environment develops as teachers feel the need to prove that low scores were not their fault. An unhealthy competition is set up between teachers. High-stakes testing has led to widespread cheating. Recently, Atlanta schools cheating scandal has been front page news. An article in Substance News by George N. Schmidt on Dec. 26, 2010 details the depth and breadth of the CRCT scandal. The article is part of series that has examined the statistically improbable gains in test scores in Atlanta schools and how school district officials responded to them. The money spent on this investigation could probably build a new school. The expectation of higher scores means teachers are more likely to â€Å"teach to the test’ and become drill sergeants. Other things like fine arts fall to the wayside as math and science are emphasized. From the book Standardized Minds: â€Å"Researchers have found consistently that one of the most damaging effects of large-scale, big-stakes standardized testing in schools has been to: (1) oversimplify what’s taught in school; and (2) to severely constrict what is taught to only those items most likely to appear on an upcoming standardized test. There is blame and consequence to cheating, whether it is outright erasures on tests or days of teaching the test. But it should help us to rethink the pressures on ‘high-stakes’ testing. Maybe the Atlanta cheating scandal can show us that our response to the test score is way out of line. School districts, schools, teachers, and students should not have to be tested under such extreme pressure. This threatening atmosphere makes cheating a likelihood. Grades and test scores don’t tell us what we really want to know about somebody. The Case Against Standardized Testing includes a list offered by educator Bill Ayers: â€Å"Standardized tests can’t measure initiative, creativity, imagination, conceptual thinking, curiosity, effort, irony, judgment, commitment, nuance, good will, ethical reflection, or a host of other valuable dispositions and attributes. What they can measure and count are isolated skills, specific facts and functions, the least interesting and least significant aspects of learning†. Maybe it is not a ‘bad test’ but how the results are handled. Daniel Koretz in Measuring Up talks about the limits of test scores. He says â€Å"What education leaders want is a fair, straight-forward measure of school performance, to be able to monitor schools and hold them accountable. The problem is that we tend to overestimate what tests can do. Tests are not designed to summarize all that students and schools can do†. By the same token Andrew Strenio states that â€Å"Standardized tests convey an illusion of much greater precision than they are actually capable of achieving†. Learning is a process and process is defined as movement, a series of actions or changes. That is what makes it hard to precisely measure. So maybe we should not pin so much on standardized tests. Instead, make them a component of the over-all measurement of quality achievement. Valerie Janesick states in The Assessment Debate that â€Å"Learning does not take place by sheer dumb chance or luck . It takes place by design†. She makes reference to Grant Wiggins saying â€Å"the goal is not instant reform or instant knowing but rather a continuous process that results in understanding†. Priscilla Vail states â€Å"Above all, parents, students, and educators must remember that a test only shows what one person did on one exercise on one day. A standardized test score is not a license to live or a measure of deserving oxygen and space on our planet. † The opportunity to demonstrate what you know can also be done with portfolio assessment, group or individual projects, and take-home exams. We should strive to create schools that help students flourish. We should also strive to hire administrators who can develop and implement new criteria for measuring achievement that could go along with the standardized tests.

Health Module 1st Quarter Essay

Gender and Human Sexuality At the end of the quarter, you should be able to 1. discuss sexuality as an important component of one’s personality. 2. explain the importance and dimensions of human sexuality. 3. analyze the factors that affect one’s attitudes and practices related to sexuality. 4. assess personal health attitudes that may influence sexual behaviour. 5. relates the importance of sexuality to family health. 6. discuss the signs, symptoms, and effects of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Infection and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). 7. enumerate steps in the prevention and control of STIs. 8. analyze why abstinence is the most effective method for the prevention of HIV and AIDS and other STIs. 9. follow government policies in the prevention and control of HIV and AIDS (RA 8504 or Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act). 10. explain other government efforts in ensuring a clean blood supply to prevent issues and problems related to sexuality (RA 7719 or Blood Services Act of 1994). 11. apply decision-making skills in managing sexually-related issues. Are you ready? You may first consider doing some activities that will brighten you up while expressing your knowledge about sexuality as an important component of one’s personality. A. DIRECTIONS: How much do you know about gender and human sexuality? Find out by answering the following questions. Write your answers in your activity notebook. 1. What term defines a man or a woman based on biological characteristics? a. sex b. gender c. sexuality d. androgyny 2. Which of the following illustrates gender? a. Miguel loves to cook. b. Marco does not cry in public. c. Hazel has a positive body image. d. Ahmed is attracted to Felicity. 3. What do you call the sets of activities that society considers as appropriate for men and women? a. gender role b. gender identity c. gender equality d. gender sensitivity 4. Why is it important to understand human sexuality? a. We will all be mature adults. b. We have similar sexuality issues. c. There is a specific age for developing one’s sexuality. d. It will help us build a better relationship with ourselves and others. 5. Which characterizes a good decision? a. Easy to make b. Makes your friends happy c. One that your teacher told you to make d. Arrived at after a thoughtful consideration of consequence/s B. DIRECTIONS: Read the following statements. Analyze your personal stand on each item. Write a short explanation why you agree or disagree with it. 1. Teaching is a job for women. 2. Men have no right to cry in public. 3. Both men and women can be police officers. 4. It is the responsibility of both parents to take care of their children. 5. Both the father and the mother should share in meeting the financial needs of the family. C. DIRECTION: Before you start studying the next lesson on human sexuality, you are going to answer the self-inventory test about STI and HIV/AIDS. How familiar are you with STIs HIV AIDS? 1. I have never heard of them or I have heard of them but don’t know what they are. 2. I have some idea what they are, but don’t know why or how they happen. 3. I have a clear idea what they are, but haven’t discussed them. 4. I can explain what they are and how do they occur what they do that may affect family life. Have you made a personal health plan on how to protect yourself from risky sexual behaviour? 1. I have neither planned nor thought about it. 2. I have planned but not thought about it. 3. I have planned but not practiced it. 4. I have both planned and practiced it. D. DIRECTIONS: For each of the following topic, place a check mark in the cell if it describes your experience. Topic/Concept Have read it Have heard it Have seen a TV or movie production Have written a report paper on it STIs HIV/AIDS Abstinence Refusal Skill Blood donation/transfusion E. DIRECTIONS: Fact or Fiction: Are the following statements true or false? Write true or false on the space before the number in order to find out your knowledge in sexually transmitted infections particularly HIV/AIDS. When you finish this module, you will have the opportunity to plan for yourself on how to avoid being infected with HIV/AIDS and live a healthy lifestyle in order to have a healthy relationship with your family. 1. A person can acquire HIV/AIDS from using intravenous syringe used by the infected person 2. Most sexually transmitted infections can be treated and cured without medical attention. 3. If an HIV/AIDS woman gives a normal birth to a child, her child may have a greater chance of being infected too. 4. A person always knows when he or she has a sexually transmitted infection. 5. People who get sexually transmitted infections have a lot of sex partners. 6. All types of sexually transmitted disease can be cured. 7. Parental consent is needed before you are treated for a sexually transmitted disease if you are under 18 years of age 8. You can have no symptoms, yet be infected with a sexually transmitted disease and be able to pass it on to someone else. You can get several sexually transmitted diseases at one time. Lesson 1 – Gender and Human Sexuality At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following: 1. discuss sexuality as an important component of one’s personality. 2. explain the importance and dimensions of human sexuality. 3. analyze the factors that affect one’s attitudes and practices related to sexuality. 4. assess personal health attitudes that may influence sexual behaviour. 5. relates the importance of sexuality to family health. LEARNING GOALS AND TARGETS Write your targets on what you expect to learn after reading and accomplishing this learning material. Lesson 1 Gender and Human Sexuality Part I. WHAT TO KNOW Sexuality involves the physical, mental, social, emotional, and ethical dimensions of one’s personality. ACTIVITY # 1 Here is someone who wrote about herself in a poem. Read and analyze how the author wanted to express herself. Sexuality means you have to be aware of yourself better. As you grow older, you will experience a range of social, emotional, and physical changes. As these occur, you need an intensive knowledge on how to deal with your attitudes and behaviour. ACTIVITY # 2 Graffiti You! On a half-size cartolina, write quotations, sayings, slogans, and so on that will describe and reveal your likes, passions, and aspects of your personality. After sharing this in class, you can post it on your bedroom walls and be inspired! A sample has been done below. Sexuality can be best understood through the help of the people around you. ACTIVITY # 3 How I See Myself – How Others See Me Listed below are characteristics which may or may not represent you. Using the icon at the left side, see if you can rate yourself. After you are done, fold the paper in half and ask a classmate to rate you. Extrovert _____ Selfish ____ Confident _____ Aggressive ____ Shy _____ Attractive _____ Good listener ____ Approachable ____ Liked _____ Fun ____ Sincere ____ Irresponsible ____ Kind _____ Dependable ____ Other/s: ______________________ ________________________ Extrovert _____ Selfish ____ Confident _____ Aggressive ____ Shy _____ Attractive _____ Good listener ____ Approachable ____ Liked _____ Fun ____ Sincere ____ Irresponsible ____ Kind _____ Dependable ____ Other/s: ______________________ ________________________ Extrovert ______ Selfish ______ Confident ______ Aggressive ______ Shy ______ Attractive ______ Good listener ______ Approachable ______ Liked ______ Fun ______ Sincere ______ Irresponsible ______ Kind ______ Dependable ______ Other/s: ________________________ ________________________ After accomplishing this task, compare your response with the answers of your classmates regarding your characteristics. Are they the same? Do your classmates see you as you see yourself? Reflect on this matter. Healthy sexuality encompasses the following characteristics: ACTIVITY # 4 Puzzle-Puzzle Fill up the pieces with the words/phrases hat describe your personality. Afterwards, fix the puzzle. What figure have you formed? What picture do you see that comprise the individual’s personality? What do you think will happen if you lack any of these pieces? Below is a diagram showing health attitudes that can influence sexual behaviour. Which of these do you possess? Levelling Off Please read and analyze the following key terms. ACTIVITY # 5 Gender Assumptions 1. giving birth 2. making a living 3. fixing the broken faucet 4. doing household chores 5. helping the children with their homework ACTIVITY # 6 Write the changes that you expect as you mature from a boy/girl to a man/woman. Copy the example figure below and write your own figure in your activity notebook. ACTIVITY # 7 Society Says In your activity notebook, copy the table as shown below and write words or phrases that you associate with the words masculine and feminine. GENDER ROLES MASCULINE Example: breadwinner FEMININE Example: babysitter The aim of education for human sexuality is to develop in a boy the characteristics of the personality belonging to his sex, and in a girl the characteristic of her own sex, thus turning a boy into a mature man and a girl into a mature woman, Using Life Skills to Improve Sexual Health The life skills that are mentioned below will give you the tools to deal with problems both big and small. Assessing your Health means evaluating your well-being periodically. This includes your sexuality. Figure out what you can do to improve your health if it is not as good as it can be. Making Good Decisions means making choices that are healthy and responsible. You must have the courage to make difficult decisions and stick to them. Communicating Effectively. Communication skills help you avoid misunderstanding by expressing your feelings in a healthy way. This means if you listen to what people say, they will want to listen to you as well. Practicing Wellness can be accomplished through information about good sexuality. Setting Goals or aiming for something that will give you a sense of accomplishment. Just be sure to be realistic with your target goal. Refusal Skill is a way to say no to something that you don’t want to do. This skill requires practice. But first, you must feel strongly about what things you want to avoid. Evaluating Media Messages is being able to judge the worth of media messages. It is a big challenge knowing that most media messages are very  convincing ACTIVITY # 8 Give an example of a situation for each of the life skills learned. Explain how you will use each skill in these situations? Write you answer in your activity notebook. Which of the life skills do you feel will be the easiest one for you to use? Which is the most difficult to use? Explain your answer. ACTIVITY # 9 Making Good Decisions In your activity notebook, label the page with the letters D E C I D E vertically. Use the six steps in decision making in going through this activity. 1. Your classmates are going to a party this weekend, this is the first time that you are asked to attend by a friend but then you discern that your parents will not approve it. You don’t want to make your friends angry by not going, but you also don’t want to get in trouble with your parents. Determine what decision you should make. 2. One of your closest friends tells his/her problem and asks for your support. He got his girlfriend pregnant / she got pregnant. How can you show your support and stand firm with the morals that having children should be the choice of matured individuals under the blessing of marriage? The following guide questions may help you decide. Is it safe? Is it legal? Is it healthful? Does it show respect for me and others? Does it follow norms and standards of society? Part II. WHAT TO PROCESS ACTIVITY # 10 Follow the instructions below to help you complete the poem â€Å"I Am† and make it a poem about you. Write this in a whole sheet of paper. Post it in the display area of the classroom. I Am Line 1:I am (write your name). Line 2:I am the child of (write the full names of your parents). Line 3:I am the grandchild of (write the full names of your four grandparents). Line 4:I am the sibling of (write the first names of your brothers and sisters, if any). Line 5:I am the friend of (write the names of a few friends). Line 6:I am (write three descriptive words that describe you). Line 7:I am a (write something that you do well – for example, I am a volleyball player). Line 8:I am a resident of (write the name of the barangay and the city in which you live). Line 9:I am (write your citizenship). ACTIVITY # 11 Dealing with People We all encounter people in our lives. Here are some descriptions of people. In your activity notebook, jot down some positive ways of dealing with each type of personality. 1. Show off (people who would like to be the center of attraction whenever possible). 2. Worriers (people who worry about everything). 3. Gossips (people who spread rumors and often exaggerate information). 4. Bullies (people who use threats, fear, and cruelty to control others). 5. Whiners (people who grumble and complain about everything). ACTIVITY # 12 How Well Do I Know Myself On your activity sheet, trace your left and right hand on each side of the paper. Each finger represents a characteristic of a healthy sexuality. ACTIVITY # 13 Male versus Female In your activity notebook, copy the Venn diagram as shown below. Write the roles played by male and female in the space provided. In the space where the two circles meet, write the common roles played by both. Where they don’t join, write their specific roles. Choose the specific roles from the box below. MALE FEMALE Part III. WHAT TO REFLECT AND UNDERSTAND You can reflect and understand better your personality by accomplishing the activity below. ACTIVITY # 14 Read and reflect on the article below. ACTIVITY # 15 Role Play To better analyze the factors that affect the attitudes and practices related to human sexuality, you are going to internalize a given character. Gather your classmates, group yourselves into five (5). Each member of the group will assume the role of any of the following: 1. one who grew up in a very religious family 2. one who was raised by authoritative parents 3. one who has been strongly influenced by media 4. one who has good friends from the opposite sex 5. One who has been educated in an exclusive school You are given ten (10) minutes to prepare a short skit. Each group shall present the skit in two (2) minutes. After the presentation, analyze the factors that shape the sexual attitudes of the various characters. Answer the following questions. Use them as your guides. What are the factors that shape our sexual attitudes? How do these factors positively or negatively affect our sexual attitudes? What can we do to maximize the negative effect of these factors on our sexual attitudes? Rate yourselves accordingly using the rubrics below. CRITERIA ADVANCE (20) PROFICIENT (15) APPROACHING PROFICIENT (10) DEVELOPING (5) Work Attitude (cooperative with the group) Always cooperative and focused on task during group work and presentation. Usually cooperative and focused on task during group work and presentation. Sometimes cooperative and focused on task during group work and presentation. Rarely cooperative and focused on task during group work and presentation. Presentation of Character Convincing in communicating character’s feelings, situation and motives. Competent in communicating character’s feelings, situations and motives. Adequate in communicating character’s feelings, situation and motives. Limited in communicating character’s feelings, situation and motives. Relevance of the actions Actions are clearly established and effectively sustained. Actions are clearly established and generally sustained. Actions are established but may not be sustained. Actions are vaguely established and may not be sustained. Use of Non-Verbal Cues (voice, gestures, eye contact ) Impressive variety of non-verbal cues is used in an exemplary way. Good variety of non-verbal cues is used in a competent way. Satisfactory variety of non-verbal cues is used in an acceptable way. Limited variety of non-verbal cues is used in a developing way. Imagination, Creativity, and Choices Demonstrate insight that powerfully enhance role play Choices Demonstrate thoughtfulness that completely enhances role play. Choices Demonstrate awareness that acceptably enhance role play. Choices demonstrate little awareness and do little to enhance role play. Congratulations! You did a great job! Please refer to the boxed entries for you to assess how you fare in Activity # 15. Education for human sexuality deals with the formation of virtuous habits right attitudes integration of positive values ACTIVITY # 16 For each factor listed below, provide examples of how this factor affects your sexual attitudes and behaviors. Write your answer in your activity notebook. A.1. Family. Family values oftentimes determine your own values. Describe how your family affects your values regarding human sexuality. A.2. Culture. Filipinos living in different regions have diverse cultures and beliefs. Your cultural background can affect your values regarding sexuality, along with the norms and standards set by society. Describe how your culture affects your human sexuality. 3. Peers. Like your family, your friends can also have a significant impact on your views on human sexuality. Describe how your friends affect your human sexuality. 4. Media. The media plays a significant role in our lives as we regularly watch televisions, listen to radio, search the internet, read newspapers, etc. Describe how media affects your human sexuality. ACTIVITY # 17 Analyze Media Message Think of a commercial and write how men and women are being portrayed. Then, respond to the following: What is the commercial all about? What messages were presented about being a man or a woman? Is the information real and accurate? Why or why not? boys and girls are given the impression of men being superior to women. In as much as we would like to practice gender equality, the rules for human conduct and human appropriateness are not alike for both sexes as practiced in most areas in the Philippines. This is likely shown in the examples below: A. Boys and men are permitted to stay out more and up to a later time than the girls and women. B. A philandering or immoral man is considered as demonstrating his manliness or â€Å"pagkalalaki†. A philandering or immoral woman is considered as cheap, bad, or â€Å"masamang babae†. C. Women are expected to remain virginal until they marry, while it is generally acceptable for men to have sexual experience before marriage. D. Women are socially judged and legally penalized for adultery and for having children out of wedlock. E. Men who stay at home to do household chores instead of having jobs to earn money for the family are considered by some as â€Å"under ‘d saya.† ACTIVITY # 18 In your activity notebook, answer the following questions: 1. What is your stand on double standard of morality? 2. How can we possibly eliminate the double standard of morality? VIRGINITY a virgin is a person who has not had sexual interaction. ACTIVITY # 19 My Abstinence Bag Abstinence is the best decision one can make in safeguarding sexual health. In this activity, list five items that you value most in life and will help you say no to unhealthful practices. Explain how this item can encourage you to make right decisions. For example, putting a family picture in my abstinence bag can remind me of how I value my loved ones and how I would like to make them proud of my achievements. ACTIVITY # 20 In your activity notebook, answer the following questions: a.i.1. Do you believe that virginity is important for both boys and girls? Why? a.i.2. What are your attitudes and standards towards virginity? Compare it with the norms and standards set by society. Does it confirm? a.i.3. How do you value virginity? Part IV. WHAT TO TRANSFER ACTIVITY # 21 What Do You Value? Values are qualities or conditions that are important to a person. Complete this survey by determining what you value in yourself. In your activity notebook, tick on the appropriate box based on the importance you assign to each attribute. Not Important Important Very Important 1. To be respected by my parents. 2. To be respected by my friends. 3. To have a positive image of myself. 4. To have lots of friends. 5. To do well in school. 6. To give and receive love. 7. To stay virgin until marriage. 8. To build healthy relationships with members of both sexes. 9. To appreciate sexuality as factor of personality. 10. To make intelligent decisions concerning sexual behaviour. After completing this survey, what observations can you make about your values? ACTIVITY # 16 ACTIVITY# 22 Visualize & Learn! a. You will be given five minutes to close your eyes and imagine a scenario in the past where kings and queens once lived. Imagine you are the king (if male) or queen (if female). The queen is captured and needs recuing from her captors. The king assumes the conventional role of a brave king who rescues his queen, while the queen takes on the role of a meek and mild queen who needs looking after. b. Visualize a scenario of a typical Filipino family. Analyze and enumerate the roles being played by the male members of the family (grandfather, father, male siblings) and the female members of the family (grandmother,  mother, female siblings). Does it conform to the norms set by the society? ACTIVITY # 22 Critical Thinking Let us try to connect our lesson to current issues in our country. ACTIVITY # 23 Watch and Relax! This is your opportunity to show your understanding of gender role in the media. Choose a movie or a television show which you believe has gender role labels in it and you must deconstruct and analyze. Extract any gender-biased content. Recreate one of the scenes of the film by submitting a script of your own for this scene. Write a reflection on why you think the gender role depiction in media must be addressed. ACTIVITY # 24 K W A Chart In your activity notebook, copy the table as shown. List your top five (5) issues concerning sexuality regarding what you know, what you want to learn, and what you have learned. Give a brief explanation of your answer. Sexuality Issue What I Know What I Learned How I Will Apply (the concept/skill learned) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Human sexuality is the totality of being a man or being a woman. It includes everything that makes you a male or a female – your ideas, behavior, feelings and judgements. ACTIVITY #25 As you analyze the significance of sexuality to family health, ask yourself the following questions: Do I periodically evaluate my sexual health? Am I making good decisions? Am I setting and meeting my goals? Do I use refusal skills when I need to? Am I communicating my feelings and expectations? Do I compare and evaluate media messages as to the norms and standards of society SUMMARY Think back on something that you have learned from this Learning Materials. Reflect on the following questions and then write your answers on the box. 1) What did you learn? 2) How did you go about learning the lesson? 3) Why did you choose to learn it? 4) What/Who helped you learn it? 5) What hindered your learning? 6) How did you know that you had learned it? LEARNING MODULE FOR HEALTH – GRADE 8 QUARTER 1 Family Health Module 1 Issues and Problems Related to Human Sexuality Sexually Transmitted Infections (with emphasis on HIV/AIDS ) Government Policies and Republic Act No. 8504 and 7719 Introduction: After learning about human sexuality and gender, you will now be introduced to the nature and prevention of sexually-transmitted infections (STIs) like Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Sexually-transmitted Infection (STI) is a communicable disease that is spread from person to person through sexual contact. Despite the efforts of government and civil society, the incidence of STIs particularly HIV/AIDS continues to increase. Thus, it poses a serious threat to Filipinos especially to young people like you. According to the Department of Health’s Philippine HIV and AIDS Registry, we had already exceeded the 10 thousand mark in HIV infections since 1984 when the disease was first documented in the country. More than a thousand of these already developed into full-blown AIDS. Sexually-transmitted infection is preventable. The first step is to remain sexually abstinent until marriage. Next is to obtain accurate information about these diseases and recognize inaccurate information. Third is to enhance life skills. By knowing how to make decisions and practice refusal skills you can never go wrong in safeguarding your health. OBJECTIVES: At the end of this module you will learn to 1. Discuss the signs, symptoms and effects of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome ( AIDS) 2. Identify and analyze steps in the prevention and control of STIs 3. Realize why abstinence is the only sure way to avoid sexually transmitted infections particularly HIV/AIDS 4. Follow government policies in the prevention and control of HIV and AIDS (RA 8504 or Philippine AIDS prevention and control Act) 5. Explain other government efforts in ensuring a clean blood supply to prevent issues and problems related to sexuality. 6. Applies decision-making skills in managing sexuality related issues. This time you will answer the following pre assessment activity. This is non-graded test. The purpose is to identify your learning needs. It is important that you answer the items to help you find out what you need to know. PRE-ASSESSMENT A. DIRECTIONS: Before you start studying the next lesson on human sexuality, you are going to answer the self-inventory test about STI and HIV/AIDS. How familiar are you with STIs HIV/AIDS? 1. I have never heard of them or I have heard of them but don’t know what they are. 2. I have some idea what they are, but don’t know why or how they happen. 3. I have a clear idea what they are, but haven’t discussed them. 4. I can explain what they are and how they occur, what they do that may affect family life. Have you made a personal health plan on how to protect yourself from risky sexual behaviour? 1. I have neither planned nor thought about it. 2. I have planned but not thought about it. 3. I have planned but not practiced it. 4. I have both planned and practiced it. B. DIRECTIONS: For each of the following topic, place a check mark in the cell if it describes your experience. Topic/Concept Have read it Have heard it Have seen a TV or movie production Have written a report paper on it STIs HIV/AIDS Abstinence Refusal Skill Blood donation/transfusion C. DIRECTIONS: Fact or Fiction: Are the following statements true or false? Write true or false on the space before the number in order to find out your knowledge in sexually transmitted infections particularly HIV/ AIDS. When you finish this module, you have to plan on how you can avoid being infected with HIV/AIDS and live a healthy lifestyle in order to have a healthy relationship with your family. 1. A person can acquire HIV/ AIDS from using intravenous syringe used by the infected person 2. Most sexually transmitted infections can be treated and cured without medical attention. 3. If an HIV/AIDS woman gives a normal birth to a child, her child may have a greater chance of being infected too. 4. A person always knows when he or she has a sexually transmitted infection. 5. People who get sexually transmitted infections have a lot of sex partners. 6. All types of sexually transmitted disease can be cured. 7. Parental consent is needed before you are treated for a sexually  transmitted disease if you are under 18 years of age 8. You can have no symptoms, yet be infected with a sexually transmitted disease and be able to pass it on to someone else. You can get several sexually transmitted diseases at one time. Check if your answers are correct. What you will do! Learning Goals and target Read the questions below and fill out the column in my response column Write your answer in your activity notebook. What? / So What?/ Now What? Strategy: My response What: What I want to know about the topic? What behavior I would like to change or improve to have a healthy sexual behaviour? What steps are involved to accomplish this healthy sexual behavior? So what: Why is this important? What does it mean to me? How does knowing about this information change my thinking? What other ideas in human sexuality do I have or connections can I make to STIs and HIV/AIDS? Now what: What are the implications human sexuality to a healthy family life? What am I going to do or apply to protect and promote healthy sexuality? What measures will I do to prevent HIV/AIDS? Just enjoy and have fun in learning! Your teacher will help and guide you as you walk through your learning journey. Part I. WHAT TO KNOW Are you ready? What is STIs? Sexually-transmitted infection or STI, also known as sexually-transmitted disease (STD) is a communicable disease that is spread by a pathogen (disease-causing organism) from one person to another person through sexual contact. A person who has a sexual relationship with someone who is infected can get one or more of these diseases. STIs are transmitted through an exchange of bodily fluids during sexual intercourse. These infections are commonly caused by bacteria and viruses. Some STIs can be treated successfully but many STIs such as HIV/AIDS still have no cure. The good news is, all STIs can be prevented. Symptoms of STIs depend on the type of infections. Common symptoms include discharge from the genitals, warts, blisters or sores in the genital area, a rash, painful urination, or flu- like symptoms. Some STIs don’t have any signs or symptoms. In fact one of every 10 people can have STIs but be asymptomatic. These people are carriers and are very dangerous because they can transmit an infection without even knowing it. . The only certain way to prevent/to keep from catching these diseases is by abstinence. Sexual abstinence is the deliberate choice to refrain from all sexual activity Let’s Review 1. What is a sexually transmitted infection? 2. What is abstinence, and why is abstinence the only certain way to prevent STIs? Knowing About STIs Teens are the age group most likely to get STIs that is why it is important for teens to learn about STIs Study the table below and identify sexually transmitted infections. Make a summary and identify the major ways on how to prevent sexually transmitted infections. COMMON SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTIONS AIDS Chlamydia Genital herpes Gonorrhea Syphilis Pathogen (causative agent) Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Chlamydia Trachomatis bacterium Herpes Simplex-2 Virus Neisseria gonorrhoea bacterium Treponema Pallidum bacterium Long term effects Immune systems failure, severe illness leading to death,8-10 years to see signs of infection, infection of infants leading to death In women, pelvic inflammation with abdominal pain, fever, menstrual bleeding, ectopic pregnancy In men, enlarged lymph glands of the groin, infection of the  testicles. Infection during birth can cause blindness or illness in newborn If left untreated, it may cause cervical cancer in women and cause deformities in unborn babies Sterility, liver disease, testicular disease, infection of heart lining, eye infections for newborn leading to blindness If left untreated, mental illness, heart and kidney damage, and death may result Prevention measures Abstinence from sexual intercourse and from use of intravenous drugs Abstinence from sexual intercourse Abstinence from sexual intercourse and from use of intravenous drugs Abstinence from sexual intercourse and from use of intravenous drugs Abstinence from sexual intercourse and from se of intravenous drugs What are HIV and AIDS? Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is a fatal communicable disease with no effective treatment or known cure. It is the final stage of infection caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). When HIV enters the body it attacks the body’s immune system. Thus, the body becomes vulnerable to opportunistic infections or diseases that develop when the body’s defense system becomes weak. Among these infections are Kaposi’s sarcoma, a rare but deadly type of skin cancer, recurrent pneumonia, and toxoplasmosis within the brain. Early symptoms of infection with HIV may include a rash, sore throat, fever, and tiredness. Nearly everyone with HIV develops AIDS. People with AIDS cannot fight off diseases that healthy people could easily resist. Because AIDS has no cure, people with AIDS eventually die from one of these diseases. Ways of Acquiring HIV Activity 1. Deal or no deal Let us deal with how HIV AIDS can be transmitted from one person to another. The following chart lists ways of acquiring HIV. If the manner is false, put an X on the No Column meaning no deal, but if the manner is an actual way of acquiring HIV put an X in the Yes Column meaning we need to deal it. Ways of Acquiring HIV Yes No 1. Breastfeeding . 2. Handshaking 3. Sharing the eating utensils with someone infected with HIV. 4 . Donating blood with Red Cross 5.Selling blood in blood banks 6. Someone who has HIV who cough and sneeze near you. 7.Hugging someone with HIV 8. Having unprotected intercourse with someone with HIV 9. Sharing contaminated syringes, needles or other sharp instruments with someone infected by HIV 10.Receiving transfusion of blood infected with HIV 11.Sitting in the toilet seat used by the HIV patient 12. Mosquito bites 13. Tattooing using an infected needle 14.Swimming with an HIV infected person 15. Wearing clothes of an infected person 16. Ear and Body piercing with an infected needle HIV must enter into the person’s bloodstream to infect the person. HIV has been found in many body fluids including blood, semen, vaginal fluids, and breast milk of infected person. Which items have you already known and been informed about how HIV/AIDS can be acquired? Have you heard of other ways AIDs can /can’t be transmitted or not transmitted? How can you correct misconceptions? Check your answer. Your teacher will help you analyze the responses . Make a generalization on how a person can acquire HIV AIDS. I learned that HIV can be transmitted by ___________ I learned that HIV cannot be transmitted by_________________ 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 Activity 2 REDUCING THE RISK OF HIV In small groups, brainstorm on how HIV can be transmitted and then create a chart or web to illustrate it. For each method of transmission, you and your partners will list at least three ways to reduce one’s risk of exposure to HIV. A sample chart appears below. Groups share their charts/webs and discuss. Mode of Transmission Ways to prevent and control Sexual Contact (Infected Body Fluids, Blood . Semen). ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ Injecting drug and sharing infected needles ______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ ________________________________________________ Maternal transference (Mother to baby during pregnancy) ________________________________________ ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ Activity 3 Good Reasons for Abstinence A. DEFINING ABSTINENCE How will you define abstinence? Have you experience giving up one thing in your life in one-week period? Try this with a partner or classmate. Choose one or two from the activityies. 1. You will refrain from any of the following activity- watching television, not eating a particular food, or not playing a particular game or sport for the entire one-week period. 2. During that time, you will keep a diary of your feelings and attitudes about being â€Å"abstinent.† 3. After a week is up, you and some of your classmates will meet in small groups and share your feelings and discoveries. Answer the following questions in your small group.: a. How hard was it to abstain for the entire week? b. Did it get more or less difficult as the week went by? Explain. c. Did friends or family members try to tempt you during the time period? d. How did you handle the pressure? Abstinence is _____________________________________________. Now what is sexual abstinence? How can sexual abstinence keep a person from getting pregnant and protect them from STIs HIV AIDS? Some people choose abstinence for other reasons as well. Read the article and use the information in the article to complete the chart that follows. Remember to copy the chart in your activity notebook and fill it with required entries. There is an increasing number of young people being infected with Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) or for every 10 cases 1 is a child. The most serious of these diseases is AIDS Activity 4 Name Reason for choosing abstinence Your name______ (Your thoughts concerning this reason) Marta Jonathan Peter and Joanna Racquel Noemi Reducing the Risks of Sexually Transmitted Infections Rubric for your Activity 2 and 4 4 3 2 1 Points Explanation Complete response with detailed explanation Good Response With clear explanation Explanation is not clear Misses key points Demonstrated Knowledge Shows complete understanding of the question Shows substantial understanding Response shows some understanding Response shoes lack of understanding Sensible opinions Complete response with bright opinion Meets the sensible opinion Hardly makes sensible opinion Does not meet sensible opinions Total points YOU ARE PROTECTED!!! Government Policies in the Prevention and Control of HIV/AIDS and other STIs Republic Act No. 8504 also known as Philippine AIDS Law Government efforts in ensuring a clean blood supply to prevent issues and Problems related to sexuality (RA 7719) or the Blood Services Act of 1994) Let’s Appreciate What is the government doing to protect the health of the Family in terms of STIs HIV AIDS? How are you protected in case of blood donation and blood transfusion? Here’s more†¦. Have you donated blood? Or received blood transfusion? How does it feel? There is a law that covers the proper ways to give and receive blood services. PART II. WHAT TO PROCESS Activity 1 Let’s Think Critically Reflect on the following focused points and write your ideas in your activity notebook 1. Analysis: How can good general health practices be healthful in preventing STIs. 2. Only two strategies if practiced consistently reduced the risk of STIs to zero. Name the steps in the prevention and control of STIs particularly HIV/AIDs 3. Analyze why sexual abstinence is the most effective method for the prevention of HIV/ AIDS and other STIs. Activity 2. Life Skills in Action Common Sense and Good judgment are powerful strategies to prevent and control STI HIV AIDs. Think about this 1. How does alcohol affect the persons judgment in making responsible sexual behavior? 2. Why do we need to practice saying NO to behaviors that are risky to your sexuality? 3. Explain how you can practice refusal skills to prevent and control STI HIV/AIDS. Activity 3 Tracing the Link The drug, the blood, the alcohol connections to STI HIV AIDS How does it contribute to the transmission of STI HIV AIDS? Read the article below Dr. Jane Perez is a school physician lecturing about STI HIV AIDS in Bangkalan National High School asks the students the following questions: â€Å"How many of you have seen the effects of drinking alcoholic beverages or have read the effects of taking dangerous l drugs? â€Å"What is the danger of using shared syringe in cases of blood transfusion? â€Å" â€Å"What are the possible harmful effects to people being tattooed using needles? â€Å" Have you donated blood? Or received blood transfusion? She received varied responses, and she continued asking them to see a strong links or connection in the prevalence of STI HIV/AIDS. What are the connections of alcohol, drug abuse, blood donation and transfusion to STI and HIV/AIDS? Can you give your response? Write your answer on the space provided and discuss your answer with your classmates. 1. How can drinking alcohol leads to STI HIV ? _____________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ 2. What are the dangers of using shared needles in tattooing, or shared syringe in injecting drugs? ______________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ 3. Have you donated blood? Or received blood transfusion? How does it feel? There is a law that covers the proper ways to give and receive blood services. It is RA 7719 or the Blood Services act of 1994. What is Blood Services Act of 1994 (RA 7719 )? ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ Why is it important that blood donors be qualified to donate blood? Can you relate this law to STI and HIV/AIDS protection and prevention? ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ Day Eight PART III. WHAT TO REFLECT AND UNDERSTAND These are activities you will do to help you acquire adequate and significant information about this topic. It is important that you clarify ideas about the lesson. You are going to watch an interactive video and video news episode about HIV AIDS incidence in the Philippines this will help you and be aware of the Activity 1 Interactive Video a. Visit the web sites and collect materials and Fact sheets about STI HIV / AIDS. b. View some video clips on HIV updates in the Philippines like Kapuso mo Jessica Sojo www.you tube.com c. The â€Å"Power of You† by the DEP ED -UNICEF Activity 2: Investigative Reporting HIV/AIDS Visit your school clinic or barangay health center. Interview a health personnel about HIV/AIDS using the following guide questions: What is HIV? What is AIDS? What are the signs and symptoms of Human Immunodeficiency Virus ( HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) How can HIV/AIDS be spread from one person to another person? What are the effects of HIV/AIDS to our body? How can HIV and AIDS be prevented? Report the information that you have gathered in class. Compare this with what you already learned in class. Activity 3 I Believe After the activity you can make a compilation of facts and information about HIV / AIDS. Be ready to make an advocacy campaign about preventing HIV /AIDS. You need to be heard and speak out on the topic† HOW can I be safe from HIV / AIDS.† Tell the class what you believe Activity 4 Just Say NO! How to say no and remain friendly to someone you like? Is it difficult for you to refuse? If somebody ask you to do risky behavior like drinking and smoking or even doing pre-marital sex , how will you refuse? Throughout life you are likely to meet people who will persuade you to do things you do not want to do. How do you say no and still remain friendly with someone you like? Is it difficult for you to refuse? If somebody asks you to do risky behavior like drinking and smoking or even do pre-marital sex, how will you refuse? The ability to say NO to unhealthful practices is called Refusal Skills. The following are the different ways of saying NO to things that you don’t want to do. Technique of saying NO The Response Whats Your Response? Maintain eye contact and say NO firmly Person A: Do you want to smoke cigarette Person B: NO,( firmly) ____________________________________ ____________________________________ Be true to yourself and to your belief. Give reasons for saying NO Person A: Do you want to be my drinking buddy? Person B: NO ! I love my body. I don’t want to die young. ___________________________________ ____________________________________ Walk away or avoid the situation If you know that the group are doing risky sexual behavior that you don’t want to do or join, then JUST don’t GO ____________________________________ Change the subject Try suggesting something better to do with your time, Person B: Let’s smoke. Person A: I think it would be better if we eat instead. ________________________________________________________________-______ Match verbal with non-verbal communication Shake your head and say NO ! _________________________________________________________________ Give your personal Conclusion: Internalize how you will firmly refuse an offer to engage in risky behavior For more skills on Refusal Skills Visit http://www.thecoolspot.gov/index.asp Activity 5 Role-play the following situation showing how you can express feeling or thought on resisting pressures using refusal skills. Practice with your friend. 1. A friend inviting you to drink alcohol after school 2. Ramon told you to cut classes so you can attend a birthday party. 3. Carmen invited you to try smoking. Activity 6. Check it out: 1. Find out what government agencies are responsible for educating the public about HIV/ AIDS in our country. List them in your notebook and write their specific task/s. 2. How does the government protect the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS? 3. What services are available for people living with HIV/AIDS? How can they avail of these services? 4. What will be your behavior toward a person with HIV/AIDS? What will you tell her/him? SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT Answer the summative test before you proceed . PART IV. WHAT TO TRANSFER Activity 1 Let us apply what have you learn. Design a poster that tells teenager on how to avoid STIs and HIV/AIDs using Abstinence and Refusal Skill. Activity 2 Applying Health Knowledge 1. Design a booklet or a health journal entitled â€Å"STI and HIV/ AIDS ALERT† that summarizes the major points presented in the lesson. 2. What steps should public health agencies take to further control the spread of STI and HIV/AIDS? 3. As a teenager, how will you avoid being infected by this disease? 4. You will need parental involvement. Ask your parent or another adult at home how they learned about blood donation, STIs and AIDS/HIV. Ask them about the accuracy of the information. Seek advice from your parents on how you can prevent being infected by HIV/ AIDS 5. Community Involvement. Find out what kind of services are available to help people who have HIV/AIDs in your community. Look also in your community measures they are doing in relation to Blood donations. Prepare a report to share your findings with your classmates Activity 3 Thinking Critically 1. Application. Develop a law of your own that you think would be effective in the prevention and control of STIs HIV/AIDS. Explain your thinking. 2. Application. The only known way to prevent a kind of STI is to abstain from sexual contact. What strategies can you suggest that would be effective in telling this concept to teens who are already sexually active? Are you ready to answer the following questions? Activity 4 Critical thinking Imagine that you have a chance making solutions on how to decrease the number of HIV/ AIDS in our country, what are the three things that you will do? 1. Write all your answers in your health journal. 2. Post your decisions in the form of sticker messages on the bulletin board or in any display board 3. Suggest activities for you and your class to decide. a. You may want to present a theater presentation on how you will prevent and Protect yourself from contacting STIs and HIV/AIDS b. Organize a Parent’s forum on STI and HIV/AIDS. Invite your teachers, and parents to this information campaign. c. Start a students’ advocacy campaign on how teenagers can be protected from HIV AIDS Independent Study Activity 5 Check yourself. Reflect and Understand After you complete the guided practice review and answer the questions below to review what you have learned 1. In your own words, can you give the difference between HIV and AIDS. 2. What are the four ways that HIV can be passed from one person to another person? 3. If you become HIV positive, what will you do to prevent AIDS? And what will you do to live longer? 4. AIDS is not curable but it is preventable. What are the best methods of prevention? 5. Name two ways teenagers can do to reduce the risk of HIV infection. 6. How can using alcohol and illegal drugs increase a person’s risk of having HIV infection? Use the chart below in answering the items SUMMARY Think back on something that you learned on this Learning Materials. Reflect on the following questions and then write your answers on the box. 1) What did you learn? 2) How did you go about learning the lesson? 3) Why did you choose to learn it? 4) What/Who helped you learn it? 5) What hindered your learning? 6) How did you know that you had learned it? Supplemental Readings RA 8504 OR THE PHILIPPINE AIDS LAW OR THE PHILIPPINE AIDS PREVENTION AND CONTROL ACT. Article1 The Government must promote education and information campaigns. Schools and non-formal education programs must include HIV/ AIDS education. The DOH must conduct public health education campaigns. The government must provide education for Filipinos going abroad. Employers, working with DOLE must develop workplace education and safety. The Department of Tourism must provide education for tourists and transients. LGUs must develop local HIV prevention and education efforts. Accurate information about prophylactics will be provided. It is against the law to give false or intentionally misleading information on HIV/AIDS. Article 2 The Government will develop and promote safe medical practices All blood, organs, and tissue for donation will be tested. If it tests positive, it will be disposed of safely, and not used. The DOH will provide guidelines on safe surgery and medical procedures. Article 3 The Government will provide appropriate confidential HIV testing. HIV testing can only be done with the consent of the person tested. The DOH will provide anonymous HIV testing Counselling will be conducted before and after testing The DOH will make adequate and affordable HIV testing available in all of the barangays in the Philippines. Article 4 The Government will ensure adequate health and support services for people with HIV. Hospitals will provide adequate care for persons with HIV. LGUs must provide community-based prevention and care efforts. Livelihood efforts will be made available for people with HIV. The DOH is to do STD prevention and control efforts. The DOH is to make sure that health insurance is available to people with HIV. Article 5 The Government will monitor HIV/AIDS The Government will establish an AIDSWATCH council. Reporting procedures will be developed to track HIV rates, while respecting client confidentiality. Contract tracing is permitted provided confidentiality is not breached. Article 6 Confidentiality will be protected on HIV status. All healthcare workers and anyone handling health records will strictly preserve patient confidentiality on HIV status, and the identity of people with HIV. HIV status can be shared by health officials in three circumstances; officials of the AIDSWATCH council, health workers who are involved in treatment and need to know for their own safety, and a judge if under subpoena for an official court case. HIV results may be given to the person tested, an official of the AIDSWATCH council, and a parent or guardian. It cannot be given to anyone else. Legal penalties can be provided for breaching confidentiality. People with HIV must inform spouses and sex partners as soon as reasonably possible. Article 7 Discrimination against people with HIV is illegal. Employers cannot discriminate in hiring, firing, promoting, or assigning based on actual or suspected HIV status. Schools are not allowed to refuse admission, punish students, or deny participation in activities based on real or perceived HIV status. A person with HIV has the legal right to travel, live, and lodge with the same freedom as any other citizen. Quarantines and other restrictions are illegal. A person with HIV has every legal right to seek public office. Credit services cannot be denied based on HIV status. Insurance cannot be refused based on HIV status, provided the person does not lie about their HIV status. Hospitals can health services cannot refuse treatment or discriminate based on HIV status. Decent burials cannot be denied based on HIV status. Legal penalties for discrimination will be enforced. Article 8 The government will establish a Philippine National AIDS Council This council will be responsible for implementing the act and conducting all national AIDS performances.

charant Characterization in Sophocles Antigone Essays -- Antigone es

This essay will illustrate the types of characters depicted in Sophocles’ tragic drama, Antigone, whether static or dynamic, flat or round, and whether portrayed through the showing or telling technique.    Martin Heidegger in â€Å"The Ode on Man in Sophocles’ Antigone† explains, in a rather involved theory,   the destruction of Creon’s character:    The conflict between the overwhelming presence of the essent as a whole and man’s violent being-there creates the possibility of downfall into the issueless and placeless: disaster. But disaster and the possibility of disaster do not occur only at the end, when a single act of power fails, when the violent one makes a false move; no, this disaster is fundamental, it governs and waits in the conflict between violence and the overpowering. Violence against the preponderant power of being must shatter against being, if being rules in its essence, as physics, as emerging power(98).    The dialogue, action and motivation revolve about the characters in the story (Abrams 32-33). Werner Jaeger in â€Å"Sophocles’ Mastery of Character Development† pays the dramatist the very highest compliment with regard to character development:    The ineffaceable impression which Sophocles makes on us today and his imperishable position in the literature of the world are both due to his character-drawing. If we ask which of the men and women of Greek tragedy have an independent life in the imagination apart from the stage and from the actual plot in which they appear, we must answer, ‘those created by Sophocles, above all others’ (36).    Surely   it can be said of Sophocles’ main characters that they grow beyond the two dimension ment of his edict; he changes after Teiresias’ visit and warning. Ismene and Haemon become dynamic later in the tragedy. Rarely does the dramatist use the chorus to convey information; most of this comes from exchanges of dialogue, which would be the showing technique.    WORKS CITED    Abrams, M. H. A Glossary of Literary Terms, 7th ed. New York: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1999.    Antigone by Sophocles. Translated by R. C. Jebb. no pag. http://classics.mit.edu/Sophocles/antigone.html    Heidegger, Martin. â€Å"The Ode on Man in Sophocles’ Antigone.† In Sophocles: A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by Thomas Woodard. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966.    Jaeger, Werner. â€Å"Sophocles’ Mastery of Character Development.† In Readings on Sophocles, edited by Don Nardo. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 1997.

Business law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 27

Business law - Essay Example The faculty chair of the department of economics at the University of Iceland, Gylfi Zoega, justifies the practice by recapping that it was a universal problem. â€Å"In New York, you have the same problem, right?† The actors use the utilitarian philosophy to vindicate their actions. The utilitarian philosophy holds that actions are rational if they result to a ‘summum bonum’, the greatest good and a happy end to a greater number. It contravenes the hedonistic approach where an individual acts for their own good and happiness. The revolving door, from a utilitarian perspective could be beneficial to both the private and government sector. For instance, former industry executives bring their rich knowledge and vast proficiency to the private segment and secure the private segment support needed in formulation and implementation of government policies. The former executives further would have sufficient influence over important individuals in government positions thus making it easy for firms to lobby for auspicious state policies and protocols. Moreover, former executives acquired jobs, power and influence and Charles Ferguson presents this as a beneficial approach to the financial crisis that was threatening to engulf America. The predominant notion is that allowing executives to switch positions was at the best interest the public; in reality, this was far from the veracity. However, the utilitarian approach to the revolving door issue was quite imprudent since utilitarianism justifies overlooking or minimization of widely embraced principles and justice in the formulation of ethical decisions. Instead, the actors should have framed their actions to be in line with the deontological philosophy and rights-based philosophy which could have led to the production of a fairly acceptable and justified movie. The deontological philosophy

China economic model Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

China economic model - Assignment Example The short supply of skilled laborers in China is part of the problem. The Chinese culture has never respected the value of intellectual properly probably because they are the merchants of pirated merchandise in the world. Due to this business culture the local inventors know that if they file for a patent, nobody will respect it and the product will get imitated. The government does not prosecute violators of intellectual property crimes even though there are some laws that are suppose to protect inventors and innovation in the business industry. China has forgotten than in the long term patents are what enable firms to gain incredible amounts of wealth. The American pharmaceutical industry in the great example of the value intellectual property can bring to firm. Raising money for smaller firms is difficult anywhere in the world. In China the task become much greater. The underlying behind this is the fact that the state is owner of the banks due to the communist Chinese regime. Since the state owns the banks the state tend to lend money only to state-owned companies that are large and can create a greater amount of jobs opportunities for the people. Small companies have to resort to the underground economy to receive financing. The three primary sources that lend money to these firms are: pawn shops, â€Å"credit guarantee firms†, and small industrial companies (Doungguan, 2009). These are informal creditors which operate under different type rules than the normal banking industry. They charge high interest and expect their money back in the short to medium term. The small business must produce fast, otherwise bankruptcy is inevitable because they face high short term liabilities. China has been hit harder than other civilized western countries by the global financial crisis. Some cities have lost between 33% to 50% of their overall employment because due to

Reflection Paper 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reflection Paper 4 - Essay Example In other words a face that looks open, alive with a wide smile that says â€Å"you’re welcome† (Marshall &  Jackson &  Sue 2004). Smarter look can be achieved with a pair of glasses and concentrated, meditated look with focusing on some exact object. You could also read a book or newspaper (Sherrow 2001). To look liberal it is best to know how to listen to others and give them time to freely express their thoughts and from my side it would be fair to honor other’s point of view. That is liberal. Wealth can be achieved with accessories like watch, cigarette case, shiny lighter, cool look and busy face like you’re waiting for some important meeting on the matter of serious business. All this details can be achiieved with such aspects of personal appearance as expression of the face, manner of talking, sitting, standing, walking etc. In other words anything serves the purpose and everything is important. It’s all necessary to become a more competen t communicator because people like and feel more open to talk to the successful, happy looking, spectacular or in general cool people (Rumsey & Harcourt 2005). But what is most important and it’s a simple truth is inner good because while all the outer things can be managed with right skills, inner respectful condition can only be achieved with real values because after first appearance they will continue the work which was started by the simple good

What is Epistemology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

What is Epistemology - Essay Example The link of epistemology into ontology and the way epistemology shape social research in general. According to scientists, there is a significant difference between too expressions: â€Å"I know that† and â€Å"I know how†. For instance, it is well-known that 1+1=2, however, here we could think not only about the result, but about the process itself: how there two numbers should be summed up. When we state that we â€Å"know† something, the question arises why we â€Å"believe† that. When we â€Å"believe’ in something we usually think that this â€Å"something† will not make us disappointed, for example we may believe in our national basketball team and its victory. However, epistemology considers â€Å"belief† from another point of view. For example, when we believe that the grass is green that means that we consider the statement that the grass is green to be correct. Every statement is simply a preposition of someone else and it does not mean that everybody must believe it .At the same time, if something represents a real fac t, it is true. The main controversy in this area is concentrated on study of the nature of knowledge and its connection to related concepts: information, conviction, and rationalization. It is connected with the method of knowledge acquisition and uncertainty about various statements. The different arguments of rationalism and empiricism and the controversy that occurs on the base on this difference is connected to different experience of the people in their attempts to obtain knowledge. According to rationalists, there are significant methods to obtain information autonomously of experience at the same time as empiricists consider experience to be very essential in knowledge acquisition (Fodor 1975). The vision of rationalists is usually built in the following way: they state that sometimes our knowledge obtained through intuition is more reliable, than that obtained from experience. Then,

Project management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Project management - Essay Example That is the task of advertising. In order to expand sales and gain profit companies have use advertisement through various means of communication. This economic activity helps to spread the message across the target market for goods or services of the business. At the same time, though advertising can be said to be an element of public relations activities, advertising itself does not always mean public relations. The two concepts, though have much in common, contain many differences as well. Public Relations work for the improvement of company’s image, building public awareness about the company and its activities, as well as effective promotion of certain offers of the company or outstanding features of a product or service. So, public relations refers to â€Å"strategic communication that different types of organizations use for establishing and maintaining symbiotic relationships with relevant publics† (Sriramesh, 2009, p. xxxi). As for advertising, it is currently defined as a communication tool â€Å"directed towards specific target customers in order to carry the message regarding a particular product, service or ideas, meaningfully and persuasively with a view to achieve certain specific objectives such as, to establish brand loyalty, expansion of the existing markets, increased sales volume, etc.† (Kumar & Mittal, 2002, p. 2). ... The country has been admitted to the World Trade Organization (Walters & Samiee, 2003) and, therefore, became an attractive market for many multinational corporations. While the effect of media is suspect of influencing the relationships of different individuals, the targeting of commercial advertising and PR activities toward consumers and strategies employed in order to reach Chinese audience is the primary focus in this study. The fact that media outlets became so widespread in Chinese society serves as the impetus for studying in a more narrow scope the relationship between commercial advertising and PR, and the viewer/consumer in media commercial programming. In addition, the given work aims at analyzing techniques and strategies of advertising agencies used to influence Chinese consumers. Research questions Though Chinese market can be considered relatively new for western companies, it does not experience any lack of attention and is already flooded with foreign companies and, as a result, advertising and PR. However, thought the market is attractive, it has certain peculiarities and unique characteristics that should be considered by entering businesses when trying to become popular in China. Therefore, the given research is trying to clarify the following aspects of public relations and advertising in China: How in particular and to what extent public relations in China differs from advertising and what particular signs make a difference between the two communication activities in the Chinese market. What major communication means, tools and techniques Chinese and multinational companies use in China to effectively deliver the message to the target audience and how effective particular strategies and techniques are.

Crisis Communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Crisis Communication - Essay Example There were clearly ethical issues involved in the SARS crisis. This had to do with the handling of information, where it was necessary that accurate statistics on the crisis will be made known to the public for further action to be taken. However, this was concealed from the public in most parts of China. In the case of SARS, there could hardly be any form of pre-crisis contingency planning. This is because the cause of the disease was virtually not known and so it was going to be difficult to control its emergence. However, for most other parts of the world, there could be pre-crisis contingency plans to ensure that the disease did not spread to those areas. Examples of these could have been the screening of all people undertaking cross-border journeys. In cases where diseases were detected in people also, using a coherent quarantine system that ensured that there was no mingling of affected people with unaffected people. What is more, at the crisis event level, a rapid response con tingency plan was going to be necessary. This rapid response was supposed to ensure that as many cases of SARS were identified and rapidly responded to. Noting the high level of mortality associated with the disease, this rapid response contingency plan was going to be a way of ensuring that people who contracted the disease were not made to live with the disease for a very long time. Finally, an evaluation contingency plan was necessary at the post-crisis recovery phase to find ways of avoiding future occurrences. Media communication in times such as the SARS crisis is so important in ensuring that the right information was sent to the public. Such information was also necessary for educating the populace so that they would not over worry with events that were taking place. To this end, as a communication expert, one of the best ways to deal with the media is to ensure that there were specialized media reporters to give information to the public on the disease. This would have been done by sampling a section of the media who had some background in medicine or health and giving them professional and specialized information on the disease. Consequently, the public will be made aware that for any official and professional reportage on the disease, they had to look up to these media persons. These specialized media persons would be made to work with all media outlets as resource persons and spokespersons on the disease. They would have also used avenues of the new media such as social networks to give out information on the disease. Case # 3– 1997 Red River Valley Floods The 1997 Red River Valley Flood is a typical case of public environmental crisis that affected a group of people within an identified locality. The 1997 Red River Valley Flood is also a typical natural disaster that hit its victims in a spontaneous manner. Like with all natural disasters, the Red River Valley Flood was one that needed an integrated management strategy to address it at all levels of it including the pre-crisis and crisis phases. With an integrated management strategy, it was going to be possible to bring on board as many experts and professional in the field of flood disaster as control as possible to handle the flood. Most

Internet Business and E-Commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Internet Business and E-Commerce - Essay Example E-commerce can be between business to business (B2B) or even business to consumers (B2C). Therefore, e-commerce is actually conducting the whole of business online or if there still exists an operational offline real world shop of the business, then e-commerce can be used just for expansion purposes. 1 In this text, it is being assumed that a seller of leather goods is planning to go online through e-commerce. This seller has a very good repute in the market for selling the most premium leather goods. The company, Exquisite Leathers, has 5 branches all over the city and caters to the elite class. For now, it plans to open an online section so that it can expand its business even better. There can be a number of reasons for which a company can go online. The first and foremost reason, which has been mentioned earlier as well, is that the company might want to expand. Expansion can be in terms of serving new customers. When a company goes online, they are now virtually accessible to anyone all over the world. Therefore, if Exquisite Leathers plans to make international customers, this is the best way to do it. When the company will be placed online, it will be accessible to leather good buyers globally. The company will definitely have to use various strategies to make sure that they come to be noticed by all the customers. But e-commerce is the best starting point for expanding any given company's customer base. For that the company will first have to do the demand analysis of leather goods all over the world. This will tell them of their potential market. After this, the company will have to analyse that whether it can even cater to the whole target market that the demand analysis is giving. Therefore, the company will now have to decide on a target market, the market that the company wishes to serve. The target market will depend on the resources of the company to fulfill the needs of a given market. 2 The second reason for going online would be to increase sales. This is a requisite of increasing the customer base, but if we keep the customer base variable constant and just serve the same city that the company already has branches in, and then this reason will be even more valid. For example, if the company does not want to cater to international customers and just wants to make sure that it is fully available to all the customers within the same city, then e-commerce would be a great idea too. This is because there are many customers who are very busy and they do not get the time to go to physical shops and buy leather goods. Providing them with an online store of the shop will make the store easily accessible and available only on a click. This will ensure that the target market that the company wished to serve in the city, that is the elite market, is fully reaching them. Methods Adopted to go Online: A company can use two methods to go online. The first one is that of designing and launching the website themselves. As far as the second method is concerned, it is to go online by outsource the making of the website. The first method includes designing and launching the website themselves. This can be done by assigning the Information Technology department of the company to take care of all the details related to the website. But this does not mean that the Information T

William Shakespeare’s Othello Essay Example for Free

William Shakespeare’s Othello Essay William Shakespeare is a talented dramatist, actor and poet whose popularity remains unsurpassed until today.   Until now his plays are still being performed not only in Western countries but also in Asia and in other non-English speaking countries as well.   (â€Å"William Shakespeare 14)   Indeed he is recognized as one of the greatest dramatist of all time. William Shakespeare’s birth place is the town of Stratford-upon-Avon.   His exact date of birth is not accurately known since there are no existing records.   However, based on his baptismal record which is on April 26, 1564 appearing in the parish register of Holy Trinity Church, his birth date could probably be April 23, 1564.    This is because the baptism of children during William Shakespeare’s time happens just two or three days after birth. (Amanda Mabillard 4) The names of his parents are John Shakespeare, a prominent glove maker, and Mary Arden, the daughter of a wealthy landowner.   He is the third among the children of eight.   He started his education at the age of six (6) at the Stratford grammar school.   Latin is the primary language that school uses which is why he learned a great deal about Latin and the works of Latin authors.   (David Ross 2) His wife’s name is Anne Hathaway whom he married at the age of 18.   She is 26 years of age at the time and pregnant fueling speculation that the marriage may have been forced. Nevertheless, William Shakespeare had three children with her whose names are Susanna, Hamnet and Judith who are twins. (Folger Shakespeare Library 1) He eventually decides to leave Stratford and his family to pursue his dreams of becoming an actor.   Not much is known from him for several years until in 1592 where he attains sufficient success as an actor.   However, his rise to fame started because of his poems such as Venus and Adonius (1593), and Rape of Lucrece (1594).   Two years after, he gains recognition for his plays. It must however be stressed that Shakespeare’s fortune came not from acting or from writing poetry or plays.   Shakespeare’s fortune came from his investment in a theatrical company.   After he earns enough money, Shakespeare uses his earnings to invest in a theatrical company known as Lord Chamberlain’s men where he not only acts but also writes plays for the company. Shakespeare dies of a fever on April 23, 1616, the same month and day he is believed to have been born.   (Encarta MSN 1) He leaves to his two daughters Susana and Judith, the bulk of his estate and 300 pounds, respectively.   He gives his wife their â€Å"second-best bed with the furniture.† (Encarta MSN 1)

Discuss Hamlets attitude to death and the afterlife Essay Example for Free

Discuss Hamlets attitude to death and the afterlife Essay Discuss Hamlets attitude to death and the afterlife, giving an indication as to how both contemporary audience and modern audiences might view it. Hamlet deals with situations, which require a single-minded response. However, by the end of the twentieth century a large percentage of people were unfamiliar with church worship and words of the bible, which makes modern interpretation of it much more difficult which Elizabethan and Jacobean audience of Shakespeares time on the other hand had strong beliefs in religion, includes specifically the afterlife. Hamlet shares the views of the contemporary audience and we must therefore try to understand his religious perspectives in the way that contemporary audiences would have done. To the modern audience the religious ideas and beliefs of Hamlet may seem strange 1 There is never an ideal production of Hamlet; any interpretation must limit. For our decade I think the play will be about the disillusionment which produces apathy of the will so deep that commitment to politics, to religion or to life is impossible Hamlet is always on the brink of action, but something inside him stops the final committed action. It is an emotion which can encounter in the youth today. I agree with this statement but I think that it is Hamlets conscience that holds him back from killing Claudius rather than mere disillusionment. For the Shakespearean audience, a religious theme would have been established at the very beginning of Hamlet when the ghost fades on the crowing of the clock and Marcellus says: Some say that ever gainst that season comes Wherin our Saviors birth is celebrated, This bird of dawning singeth all night long: And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad. The nights are wholesome, then no planets strike, No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm, So hallowd and so gracious is that time No spirits are allowed to walk the earth in the day. The Crowing of the cock could also be a religious reference to St Peters denial of Christ before the crucifixion, all of which would have been readily understood by a less secular audience than a modern one. When Laertes discovers that Hamlet killed his father, Polonius, his reaction is in complete contrast to Hamlets when he discovers what happened to his father. Laertes is prepared to go to Hell to avenge his fathers death and is more concerned about getting his revenge than what happens to him. The final result of Laertes decisiveness is the death of Hamlet. Laertes gets his revenge, but at great cost. In a traditional revenge tragedy the search for revenge would predominantly lie with the hero of the play. However, Shakespeare makes Hamlet very aware of the consequences of his actions, which is why this is not the typical revenge tragedy that Jacobean audiences were familiar with. This is because Shakespeare wanted to show that Hamlet has a morality that rises above vengeance. Laertes takes on the role of the character who demands vengeance regardless of the consequences. Hamlet, as I have already suggested, is very much a thinker and considers the consequences of his actions. He procrastinates about taking revenge throughout the play and ironically it is Claudius who suggests the fencing match and the poisoned wine, which ultimately allows Hamlet to honour the Ghosts wishes and kill Claudius. When Hamlets fathers ghost first appears to him, he wonders whether or not to accept it at face value. This is because Shakespeare has acknowledged the church belief that no soul could ever return from the grave so all in reality were evil spirits or devils who are attempting to entrap mortals into their power. On first seeing the ghost Hamlet says: Angels and ministers of grace defend us! Be thou a spirit of health or goblin damnd, Bring with thee airs from heaven or blasts from hell, Be thy intents wicked or charitable, Thou comst in such questionable shape That I will speak to thee. Ill call thee Hamlet

Effects on Light and Colour on Our Environment

Effects on Light and Colour on Our Environment Light and colour have the ability to have a profound effect on the we perceive and interactive with our environment, effecting us holistically, in mind, body, and spirit. Altering the way we experience space, changing our perception of spatial definition and proportion. Light and colour serve as mediums for communication and information. They aid orientation and influence movement; differentiate space, establish hierarchy and indicate function; conveys symbolic messages; they are an expression of the Zeitgeist and connect us to the world in which we live. Light and colour have major impacts on our psychologically influencing our emotion, feeling and creating associations, physiologically impacting on our well-being on both a visual and non visual basis. Piturity gland etc.? One would usually associate the above solely with the sense of sight but both light and colour induce synesthesia, evoking associations with senses such as taste, smell, kinesthesia, temperature and according to some even effect our perception of time. The way we comprehend and experience light and colour it more complex than a simple optical stimulation. Our perception is a result of interplay of both physiological and the psychological factors in the conscious and subconscious. We have many prepossessions and preconceptions and light and colour which can be formed through personal experience, be a result of cultural influences and/or eduction or be part of genetic make up, developed over millions of year of evolution. There are six basic interdependent factors which combine to give us are perception of light and colour, biological reactions; the collective unconscious; conscious symbolism and association; cultural and mannerisms; trends, fashions and styles; and personal relationships and factors Biological Reaction Our biological reactions occurs not just as a result of the visual pathway. Light and thus colour aslo effect us a through neural pathway or energitic pathway. Through the energietic pathway light and colour stiumli are carried directly to the brain and onto the pineal and putrity glands, which control the production of hormones. This in turn can effect the likes of, metabolism, blood pressure, stress and aggression. The Collective Unconscious the collective unconscious refers to perception which is not rationalised by our conscious thoughts or our own personal experiences. According to Jungian psycholgy the collective unconscious is the part of our psche that has nothing to do with conscious or unconscious reaction based on personal experience amessed during our life time The collective unconscious consists of architypes, primordial and latent images, impressions and associations, in our gentic make up. Predispositions devloped thorugh millions of years evolution and the development of our species and cause us to interpret the environment in same way our predecessor The authors Hall and Nordby describe it as: the collective unconscious is a reservoir of latent images, usually called primordial images by Jung. Primordial mean the first or the original therefore the primordial image refer to the earliest development of the psyche. Man inherits these images from his ancestral past, a past that includes all of human ancestors as well as his prehuman or animal ancestors. Conscious Symbolism Funadmental associations and impressions made in the conscious. There are many associations to certain colour with are universally, and are read the same no matter the culture or eduction, for example yellow with light, blue with the sun and green with nature. The symbolism of the light and colour can be particulary significant in the field of architecture due to there connects to evoking mood and feeling. Light and colour suggest warmth or coolness, alter one perception of whether a room is friendly, etc Cultural influences Although there are many colour associations which are universal, we must also consider how different culture have different associations for some colours. For example japanese culture tends to be more responsive to softer colours, prehaps this relates to a greater appreciation of materiality. Indian culture on the other hand has a greater affinity to loud, bright and vivid colouration. There are also certain colours which gain greater significance in a certain colour. An example of this is the religious importance of green in Islam. Trends Fashion and Style Our interpretation and perfernces of colour can affect by what is in vogue at a particular time. Trends in the built environment tend to change on a less regular basis than in other. Although responsing to trends in architect and interior design may not result in creating the most beneficial environmets as different enviroments have different requirements, trends can be important in producing a sense of zeigheist. Such as ? Personal Relationships and Factors Our relationship to space is highly influenced by personal and subjective factors such as personal dispostion and specific personal experience, for example one would usually associate blue with coolness but if burnt by a blue object may induce an connection to heat. Other personal factors can change perceptions of light colour include sensitivity, age, character and temperament and are physical and psychological make up. Colour psychology can be separated in to interlinked subdivisions, applied colour psychology and depth colour psychology applied colour psychology is the one that generally applies to architecture. It deals with the implementation of the predetermined psychological effects to create a spatial ambiance to produce psychical benefits thus physiological benefits, or to convey a specific imagery. More? Symbolism and imagery of light and colour. For it is through symbols that man finds his way out of his particular situation and opens himself to the general and the universal. Symbols awaken an individual experience and transmit into a spiritual act, into a metaphysical comprehension of the world- Mircea Eliade For thousands of years natural light has been used for its powerful associations, for early man light held more significance than perhaps any other time, it was the giver of life and revered to the extent of worshipping the sun. Its significance however has diminished especially since the intrusion of artificial light Light can be regarded as metaphorical in conjuring thoughts of another place or notion. It can be symbolic, representing something else often that which immaterial such as infinity, and often symbolic of that which we do not fully comprehend. Light has the quality to produce a power ephemeral state of being. For link to times season Zeitgeist? Darkness is also important in this experience not only as a contrast too dark but in its own symbolism and representations, and the states of mind it creates, the lack of light suppress the visual, heightening the other senses. Strong darkness presents the unknown leading to states of apprehension, unease and even to phobia. The interplay of light and dark can lead to the the creation of contemplative or theatrical light. Luis Barragan advocates the use of what he calls half-light architects are forgetting the human need for half-light the sort of light that imposes a tranquillity, in their living rooms as well as their bedrooms we should try to recover mental and spiritual ease and to alleviate anxiety, the salient characteristic of these agitated times, and the pleasures of thinking, working, conversing are heightened by the absence of glaring light One of the few cultures in which the design of such environments is prevalent is in Japanese traditions. Quote for in praise of shadows and example? Another way to create places of contemplation is to use diffuse or baffled light, producing a level of uniformity contemplation is nourished by the lack of distractions Metaphorical Light Metaphorical light extends the role of light beyond that of simply of revealing, it denotes light that is used to conjure a visions of a different locality, for example its can be used to as a representation of nature, blurring boundaries giving one the impression that they are not in a interior setting. The use of metaphorical lighting is vivid in the works of artist Edward Hopper. In his painting New York Movie, Hopper uses contrasts in light to differentiate between the fanstay world of the theatre and the reality in which the usher carries on with her everyday life. Symbolic light is used as a representation of the immaterial and the unembodied, beyond that which is portrayed by the metaphorical, complex notions such as life and death. An powerful example of this is the Vietnam War memorial in Washington D.C. The names of the dead are inscribed in the specular granite surface of the wall. The ever-changing reflections of light and the surrounding remind us of our place and temporal natural in this world and thus our mortality. For thousands of years light has been associated with the spiritual facets and seen as the manifestation of divinity and the ethereal. Since prehistoric man light, the sun have been connected to the scared, prehistoric worshipped the sun build monuments align to its summer solstice to honour it, as this was when its was its most powerful. Tombs were also built with reference to the sun, often align to face the sun rise on the summer solstice. The light of a new day and the rising sun gave hope of an after life the natural language of light and dark is a powerful one with which to express architectural meaning Specific colour also hold symbolic associations. Many of these are fairly obvious, however these initial associations over time have lead subsequent affiliations or can take on induce different connections. The collective findings from a number of experiments have shown that many are universal however there may be slight variations in different cultures and religions. Associations have from human experience, going all the way back to early man. As discussed above primordial images etc have been stored in the human genome past on from generation to generation and contribute to our colour perception. Eckart Heimendahl suggests that our colour perception develops from three types of symbolism: ritual symbolism, traditional symbolism and aesthetic-emotional(psychological) level symbolism, which fuse to give us our experience of colour one of the most striking features of the results concerning perference, connotation and colour-mood associatations is the consistancy from one individual to another, from group to group and cross-culturally. There has been a great number of cross-cultural studies comparing subjects in America, lebanon, Kenya, Botswana, greece to mention a few. Monkeys have been compared to Man, men to women, children to adults, layman to architects. As another author concludes, it would indicate either that our heritage is such that we learn correct responses, or that there is some innate mood reaction to different colors (Kuller 1981 p.164) The message a colour conveys and thus it psychological effect is dependent on colours hue and the environment in which it sits. Even the slightest change it a hue nuance can alter its meaning. The materiality of the colour also plays a significant role in this process, which will be discussed later. The following will give and over the imagery and messages that the prominent hues are affiliated to. Red is a warm, stimulating colour with both positive and negative associations. It positive connotations include the aforementioned warmth due to its connection to fire, as well as passion, strength, activity and love. Its more negative affiliations include rage and aggression, ferocity, although these have served a purpose throughout history. An example of this in military, where red was used to change mind sets and convey a aggression. Red also represent blood, which to some may portray an unfavourable message, can also represent life. This is perhaps linked to early man who may have concluded that blood gave life after seeing blood leave the body a slaughtered prey. Love? Red is the dominant and attention grabbing colour as its focus point is behind the retina which give the impression that it is protruding pink? orange is a largely positive colour and is generally considered to have very few negative connotations. Although less assertive than red its is still vibrant and energetic, with lighter tone being cheering. Orange also has connections to nature reminding us of autumn and sunsets. Brown is a darker tone of orange which again has strong connections to nature, prompting thoughts of the earth. As it is earthly is suggest security and stability. However certain shade of brown may be less pleasant and dreary and even dispiriting. Yellow is considered to be the happiest colour due to it luminous and radiant nature and thus it tends to raise ones spirits. Perhaps its is most powerful and spiritual affiliation with the sun, and therefore with light and life. Yellow was also the colour of mercury in, best known for being the messenger of the god, but was the god of commerce and profit, as well as the god of the traveller, thus yellow can represent spiritual enlightenment. Green focus precisely on the retina and therefore is the easiest colour on the eye. As a result green is relaxing and refreshing. One of green major associations is nature and vigorous growth. Early rituals were based around the lush green of vegetation and thus is a symbol of food and life, and as a subsequence in Christianity represents hope and immortality. Green also has significant religious value in Islam where it is regarded as a holy colour. In stark contrast certain variations of green can convey a message of mould and decay and as a result death. Depending on its position between yellow and blue green has different effect, a green closer to yellow will appear to be more stimulating where as bluish green appear cooler and more tranquil Blue like green is relaxing and retiring, but appear cooler than green although darker tones appear to feel warmer. Materialtiy also affects its relative warmth, a dark blue, thick carpet will not provoke a cold feeling. Blue induces feelings of calmness and as a result contemplation and due to its obvious connection to water blue gives expresses cleanliness. However if not used correctly blue can be cold and depressing as refered to in the phrase I have the blues. Blues symbolism has a number of cultural variations. In Rome blue was the colour of a philosopher robe and reflected wisdom. In China blue symbolises immortality and holiness to Hebrews. purple/violet white symbolises many positive things, architecture it prompts a sense of openness and freedom, a white space will always feel more expensive, however if the portion of white is to greater it gives a sense of emptiness. From a multi-discipline perspective, white conjures images of cleanliness, purity, innocence and peace. In Asia white is the colour of mourning but in a positive way, as the believe that death on this earth is the beginning of a better life. black grey Over and under stimulation In terms of of both physiological and psychological factors the balance of stimulation is important in providing the right environment. Both over-stimulation and under-stimulation can have adverse affects on our well-being and the overall impression of a space. For an environment to be most beneficial a balanced variety should be sort. Balance is the securing of unity midst variety. Both variety and unity are required to sustain interest, and these opposing forces must be balanced. Variety is necessary to attract and arouse interest; unity is essential to create a favourable impression and desires. Variety overdone is confusing and unpleasant. Unity overdone is monotonous. The mark of colour arrangement is knowing where to stop between these extremes Exposure to an overly complex visually chaotic environment or extremely monotony, whether it be through colour, pattern or contrast can effect us physiologically by triggering changes in rates of breathing, blood pressure and pulse, thus lead to increased stress levels Over stimulation can induce an increase in muscle tension and is believed to increase ones susceptibility to infection which can lead to ulcers and coronary disease. Surprisingly dull under-stimulating environments can cause increases in heart rate. With no external stimulation one becomes more aware of there inner self. Subject to individuals mentally and nature if their thought, this can lead to fear, anxiety and distress. On a psychological level an under stimulating and thus sensory deficiency setting is known to lead to a lack of concentration, restlessness and irritability. Under stimulation can also lead to perception disorders. It cannot be stressed enough that the balance between unity and complexity is the first and most important rule in the design in beneficial environments However in certain situation it can be the designer objective to create space which are under stimulating. It space may be design as a spiritual and contemplative space which encourages one to look inside themselves for enlightenment To understand the extent of light and colours effect, we must consider it on its own as well as the how it reacts and relates to its environment. Our cognition of light and colour can be largely influenced by how they contrast with there surroudings. There a number of different contrast relationships which alter the way perceive and distinguish: Light-Dark Contrast In its simplest terms this is the contrast between light and shadow. But can also refer the to difference between lightness of colours, but the contrast is most prominent in the achromatic i.e. when no hue is involved. Light dark contrast can be useful for differentiating space. However too great a contrast will cause visual fatigue and strain. Chromatic-Achromatic contrast. Combining the chromatic with the achromatic will alter the perceived intensity and luminosity of the chromatic colour. White and grey nuances weaken a colours luminosity and therefore can be used to neutralise. On the other hand black increase a colours luminosity. Complementary Contrast Complementary contrast occurs between two colour which are as different as possible, location directly opposite on a colour wheel. Each complementary contrast has its own unique feature. For example a contrast between orange and blue gives the greatest warm-cool definition and a yellow-violet contrast give the most intense light-dark contrast. Effect/importance Intensity contrast Describes the contrast between colours of the different saturation. Intensity contrast is best used when a when small amount of pure colour are used as an accent amongst muted colours, which give a particular feature emphases while maintaining the over ambiance of the space. Quantity Contrast Quantity contrast is the proportional relationship between the colours in a space. The proportion of a particular colour plays major role in establishing spatial definition and impression Flicker Contrast licker is a over stimulating contrast, occurring when intense colours with similar lightness or darkness are combined is a space. This type of contrast shows that the colouration has not been considered appropriately, flicker contrasts should be avoid. There are two other physiological contrast which also need to be taken into account when assessing the impact of colour, successive contrast and simultaneous contrast. Simultaneous contrast is the phenomenon where by a colour will be perceived differently with a different foreground, background or environment. For example if a neutral grey is place on a surrounding colour background the grey will appear to have a hint of the complementary colour of the background colour. The perceive change is not reality but is a result of ones colour sensation. Simultaneous contrast does not just affect hue and saturation but also brightness. For example grey will appear lighter against a darker background Successive contrast is a phenomenon where by if one is subjected to a colour stimulus for an excessive amount of time an after image of its complementary colour will occur. For example if one stares at a red surface for a prolonged period of time then look at a white surface, the white surface will appear to be blue green. This after-image is believed to be the result of fatigue. The affect is temporary but nevertheless can be disturbing. e.g.? The physiological reality is that the eye requires any given give colour to be balanced by its complementary, and will generate it if it is not present. Complementary colours also provide psychological balance to warmth and coolness of colour. The after image is a physiological effect which indicates than use us of complementary colours the the most effective way of creating a harmonious space Synesthesia Synesthesia (Greek, syn= together + aisthesis= perception) is a neurological condition in which the stimulation of one sensory modality evokes a experience in another modality, or the crossing of two or more sense. Light and colour not only stimulate the sense of sight but arouses sensations in many other of the other senses through visual and non visual means. Perception of weight as a general rule darker and more saturated colours will appear to be heavier and more dense than lighter and less saturated colours. Warmer colours will also seem heavier than the cooler coolers if the same hue Perception of volume and distance The lighter a space is the more open it will be perceived to be thus a space will appear to have a larger volume than a dark space. Within a space lighter colours, cooler colours and small patterns will appear to recede. With darker or more saturated seeming the protrude thus making distances seem shorter. Perception of temperature it is widely believed that visually, colour can alter our perception of whether a room is warm or cool. Since the formation of the hypothesis several experiments have been observed which seem to prove what was thought . One such example is described by Johannes Itten in his book The Elements of Colour, is experiment illustrates a significant difference in the temperature at an individual felt cold in different coloured room Occupants of the blue-green felt that 59 degrees Fahrenheit was cold, where as the temperature had to fall to 52 degrees Fahrenheit in the red-orange room before the subjects felt cold evidence from a corresponding Norwegian study drew a similar conclusion, in which subjects set a thermostat four degrees lower in a red room compared to a blue room. However test also showed that the effect where only temporary and after a period of time the effects begin to diminish. Perception of Taste and Odours Certain colours can evokes associations with tastes or smells. Colours such as lavender, pale yellow and pink have pleasant associations with smell and colours such as coral, soft yellow and light green are associated with pleasant tastes. These affiliations can be useful in industrial situation to help improve unpleasant environments Perception of Sound Gestalt psychologists such as Heinz Warner, Krakov, Allen and Schwartz have produced evidence that strong odour and taste can alter our perception of colour. It is suggested that strong taste and odours make us more less sensitive to red and more to green. On a similar note through colour association can be used to offset loud environments. For example one may mentally connect highly saturated warm colour with being loud, cool and low saturated colour having the opposite effect, thus cool or low saturated colour can be used to help offset noisy environments a noisy atmosphere will be experienced subjectively as nosier or more bothersome if paint with glaring yellows or reds. Shrill and high pitched sounds may be offset by olive green Perception of Time Some researchers believe that light, colour and pattern can alter our estimation of time. One theory is that subdued, monotonous spaces cause one to overestimated time. Perhaps this is related to boredom and under-stimulation. It is a common conception that time passes more quickly when one is enjoying themselves. Light, colour and our perception of space. Space remains in oblivion without light. Lights shadows and shades, its different sources, its opacity,transparency, translucency and conditions of reflection and refraction intertwine to define or redefine space. Light subjects space to uncertainty, forming a kind of tentative bridge through fields of experience Steven Holl The way we use and perceive a space is greatly influence by light and colour along with the factors described. Above the have the ability to define boundaries and differentiate spaces. They provide orientation and consciously and unconsciously affect how we move through a building. Furthermore due to the synesthetic sensations they induce as described above, light and colour alter the perceived dimensioning of a space. Space, as we experience it in architectural settings is a result of our entire perceptual system. One sees the environment not with the eyes but with eyes-in-the-head-on-the-body-resting-on-the-ground As we have found out light and shadow can be a powerful tool with which to reveal meaning. However they also play a major role in defining our sense of space, if we manipulate light we alter our perception of architectural space. Before structure, walls, ceiling and floor, it was light which estbalished boundaries. At night a room for early man was defined by light admitted by fire, the extremity of which came when light faded into darkness.