Assessment of Students’ Satisfaction on the Restructured Essay Example for Free

Assessment of Students’ Satisfaction on the Restructured Essay 1.0 Introduction At the University of Ghana there are reports that rooms originally built to take two students, are now officially allocated to five students (after minor modifications), but unofficially occupied by as many as eight or nine – to the knowledge of the university authorities! Apart from the obvious hygiene and health hazards posed, what kind of ambience does this provide for study after classes? All of which have brought most African universities to a state of serious deterioration. This is evident not only to those who work or study in those universities but to even the most casual visitor. – (Association of African Universities, 2004) Housing is a basic human need in all societies and fundamental right of every individual. In advanced countries, housing is more accessible to all categories of people including the poor and the needy as a result of subsidies from the government. The situation is not the same in developing countries of the world. In Ghana, for example, accessibility to housing by the poor is quite a difficult situation which is worsened by the harsh economic conditions and poor enabling environment. Likewise, accessing housing facilities by Ghanaian students at the university is no exception, especially where such university happens to be the dream destination of most Ghanaians entering into tertiary institution. In tertiary institutions worldwide, the provision of accommodation to the students’ population takes different models. This includes; non-residential, where students source for their own accommodation. Residential, where the university houses all its students and dual-residential, where the university houses its student population for a period of time only, probably the first and final year, while the students during the remaining period source for their own accommodations. The experiences of students in tertiary institutions in sourcing and securing for their own accommodation around university communities are likely to be interesting and significant. However, it is worth noting that, University of Ghana, the nation’s premier university has gone through a series of development when it comes to how to accommodate its students, both undergraduates and postgraduates. 1.1 Research problem University of Ghana has undergone a series of reforms when it comes to the residential policy for its students. The ever increasing number of enrollees in the institution is what defines this restructuring of the policy governing students’ accommodation over time. In the past two years what the incumbent vice chancellor of the university term as â€Å"Decongestion† has taken place in anticipation to the fulfillment of the university achieving efficiency in its field of operation. The drive has also been fast tracked by his informal goal that the university should achieve a world-class status. Effective August, 2011, the university effectively implemented its decongestion policy allocating rooms to a maximum of three (3) students and four (4) students in the main halls and annexes respectively. This was done to address the problems of overcrowding that resulted in adverse effects of poor sanitation, pressure on residential utilities such as reading rooms and libraries, kitchen and washrooms, among other poor conditions for effective personal studies by students. Residential facilities have been increased to make the policy successful. Even though, the problem of inadequate accommodation for students is not entirely solved, the restructuring have been effective since its implementation, and it is worth investigating the effects of the new policy, whether it has achieved its goal or it is towards achieving its intended goal or otherwise. 1.2 Purpose of the study The main reason why this research is being conducted is to evaluate the satisfaction of students with the current students’ residential policy and its effects on their studies. 1.3 Objectives of the study Specific objectives of the study are as follows: 1. To assess students perception of sanitation in the halls/hostels now. 2. To assess students perception of security in the halls/hostels now. 3. To investigate students accessibility to some basic hall/hostel utilities. 1.4 Research Questions 1. What is students’ perception of sanitation in the halls/hostels now? 2. What is students’ perception of security and comfort in the halls/hostels now? 3. What is the accessibility status of students to basic halls/hostels utilities now? 1.5 Relevance of the study As a top university in Ghana and Africa and one which is striving to attain a world class status, adequate facilities should be provided and already existing ones improved, especially standards of services and facilities which include providing conducive on-campus student housing facility. The above research provides the grounding for this study and highlights the areas of new knowledge which are needed; to focus upon students’ satisfaction of residential facilities in University of Ghana. A key question is what is the level of students’ satisfaction with regards to the students housing facility (SHF) in the context of University of Ghana? The study contributes to a better understanding of SRS of UG. The results offer valuable feedback to the university authorities, facility managers and university hostel/hall administrators in terms of the present standards or the need for further improvement of the SHF through effective designs and management. The results will help to formulate guidelines in terms of allocation of rooms to students, maintenance and for future developments of student housing ensuring that the university is able to provide adequate and contemporary on-campus SHF. 2.0 Literature Review 2.1 Introduction This section reviews existing literature on the student residential facilities. It is mainly made up of previous studies, journals, articles, periodicals amongst other sources. They form the secondary source of data to the study. 2.2 The Concept of Student Residential Facility Student housing has long been regarded as an essential component of the facilities provided by the higher learning institutions in assisting students to expand their intellectual capabilities. According to Hassanain (2008), well planned student housing facilities (SHF) promote desirable educational outcomes and help to achieve the broader objectives such as social cohesion and responsible citizenship. An earlier study by Zahran (1972) reveals that a good student housing promotes interactions between roommates of different backgrounds and specializations; and thus broadens the students’ knowledge. Amole (2005) argues that facilities such as study areas or meeting places for academic discussions and social gatherings provided in the student housing will encourage informal intellectual activities outside the students’ own faculties. Price et al. (2003) related student interpersonal growth to adequate facilities and Fay (1981) highlighted the importance of students’ satisfaction in the SHF as a strategy to enhance student development. Despite the importance of SHF, little literature is available to evaluate student opinions of their housing facilities. Most studies on post-occupancy evaluation focus on family housing either public or private residences, investigating the interaction between owner-occupiers or tenants and their housing settings. Majority of these studies utilized the concept of housing satisfaction when evaluating the interactions between the residents and their physical environment (Amole, 2009b). Arguing that housing satisfaction can lead towards improving individual’s quality of life, Salleh (2008) investigates dwelling, housing services and neighbourhood factors that influence the residents of private low-cost housing in Malaysia. The study revealed that the residents are more satisfied with their dwelling units and housing services if compared to their neighbourhood facilities. Elsinga and Hoekstra (2005) study housing satisfaction among European communities and find out that except in Austria, homeowners are more satisfied than the tenants because homeownership provides security, freedom and financial benefits. In contrast, James (2008) analyses the influence of age and type of ownership on the level of satisfaction and establishes that tenant satisfaction increases with the age at a much faster rate than the type of homeownership. However, student housing and family housing are not the same. Student housing comprises of basic bedroom units with other shared facilities such as bathrooms, toilets, laundry, kitchens, common lounges and cafeterias located either per floor level, per block or for the whole student housing accommodation (Amole, 2009a). On the contrary, the basic unit for family housing is a house which includes bedrooms, bathrooms, toilets and a living area all as part of the unit with other housing facilities such as playground, shops and school at the neighbourhood (Parkes et al., 2002). In addition, student housing offers limited security of ownership and freedom if compared to family housing. Therefore, the above findings may not apply in the context of student housing. Studies on residential satisfaction (RS) from the student perspective are mostly focused on factors affecting RS; such as reasons for students to maintain their previous residence (Cleave, 1996) and predictors of student residential satisfaction (SRS) (Foubert et al., 1998; Khozaei et al., 2010b). There are also studies on student housing with narrower scopes such as the effects of floor height on over-crowding (Kaya and Erkip, 2001); students’ perceptions on indoor comfort (Dahlan et al., 2009); students’ sense of attachment with a particular student housing (Khozaei et al., 2010a); coping strategies for students staying in student housing (Amole, 2005) and the relationship between satisfaction and levels of environment (Amole, 2009b). These studies offer little guidance as to whether the students are satisfied with SHF provided. Among the limited studies on SRS are studies by Amole (2007, 2009a), Hassanain (2008) and Radder and Han (2009). Amole (2007, 2009a) investigates RS among students in Nigeria and the findings indicated a low satisfaction with the SHF provided. Radder and Han (2009) researched student satisfaction levels in South Africa and the findings indicated again a level of dissatisfaction with campus residences. Alternatively, Hassanain (2008) found that students in Saudi Arabia indicated a level of satisfaction with the SHF provided. However, the studies were conducted in countries where the culture and climate are different from that experienced in the Southeast Asia region, which is likely to affect the perceived environment of the built environment. Therefore, the results of the studies may not be applicable to the study context. 2.3 Evolution of the accommodation structure Originally, halls in the university were built to accommodate two students per room. This provision was adequate for students because not many people sought for higher education. However, as the population of Ghana increased and the need to seek higher education became prominent in the country, the number students enrolled each academic year increased rapidly as well. Residential facilities were increased and expanded to accommodate the ever increasing number of student intake which demanded restructuring of student residential policy given the limited resources the university had. In the midst of the reforms, beyond the expansion and modification of the original rooms to accommodate two persons at a time, the number increased to five (5) in a room officially, both in the main halls and the annexes. The continuous increase in the student intake amidst the unexpanded residential facilities meant that, not all students could be accommodated on campus, therefore, private hostels began to spring up to absorb the excess students who could not secure accommodation on campus. The private hostels motivation to make profit meant that they charge high prices which were unbearable by many students. This brought about one of the prominent terms that everyone who has passed through the four walls of the University of Ghana is popular with â€Å"Perching†. 2.4 The issue of â€Å"Perching† The word connotes students who illegally share residential facilities with official occupants of a room. This resulted in overcrowding in the halls, putting extreme pressure on washrooms, reading rooms, hall libraries, dry lines, among other facilities that were originally constructed for two people. This was happening who many reforms were going on. The two most popular reforms were the â€Å"in-out-out-in† and the â€Å"in-out-out-out† policies. The former meant that, all first year students were qualified for accommodation on campus, this qualification did not mean automatic allocation of rooms to freshmen but allocation was subject balloting for a â€Å"YES† or â€Å"NO† and second and third year students were to look for their own accommodation. Under this policy, final year students like first year students also qualified to be accommodated on campus; it is however, worth noting that, even for the final year students, because of the limited number of rooms available, allocation of rooms was also done via balloting a yes or no by students. The latter policy, in-out-out-out raised a lot of eyebrows as it meant that only first year students were offered accommodation on campus. And for this policy allocation to level 100 students was automatic and assured. With this policy in place the problem of â€Å"perching† worsened. The official number of occupants in a room almost doubled for almost all the halls of residence. The adverse effects of poor situation created a lot of problems; poor sanitation, insecurity, discomfort, which had direct impact on students’ health, hygiene, and efficiency. 2.5 The current residential policy â€Å"The University of Ghana Hostels with a capacity of 26000 beds, which was to be built at the University of Ghana, Legon, with partnership between the university and six banks was a dream come alive as long as finding a solution to the perennial problem of accommodation in our public universities is concerned† this was an assertion made by Professor C. N. B. Tagoe, Vice Chancellor of the university of Ghana (GhanaWeb, 2008). From the above statement I would to acknowledge the â€Å"Contingency theory† one of the prominent schools under the Open Systems perspective of Organizations. This theory as a branch of systems design emphasizes that design decisions are dependent on environmental conditions. Contingency theory is guided by the general orienting hypothesis that organizations whose internal features match the demands of their environments will achieve the best adaptation. Lawrence and Lorsch (1967), who coined the label â€Å"contingency theory†, argue that different environments place differing requirements on organizations. In a recent review article, Lawrence (1993) provides a partial list of factors that one or another theorist has considered important. They include size or scale, technology, geography, uncertainty, individual predispositions of participants, resource dependency, national or cultural differences, scope and organizational life cycle. With concentration on the resource dependency factor, it is indicative that, the adaptation and realization of the said solution was heavily contingent on the provision of financial resources by the six banks which are external to the organization. As the resources from the external environment was provided by the six banks, the expansion of the residential facilities have been a reality indeed, making it possible to establish four different hostels which accommodates about 7, 120 students. It is a combination of these factors that made it possible for the decongestion exercise in the five traditional halls feasible. Currently, some of the hostels have been restructured into halls and run as the traditional halls. The standard rooms accommodate four (4) persons as the annexes do. With other stringent measures put in place to control â€Å"perching† it is believed that, the purpose for which this restructuring was done is being worked towards. It must be stated categorically that, the main reason for this exercise is to improve students’ efficiency in the university. 2.6 Halls of Residence/Hostels The University believes in community living as an essential part of student life. It is therefore primarily residential, providing accommodation in Halls of Residence for both undergraduate and post-graduate students as well as flats and guest rooms for senior members and guests. There are five halls of residence (available to all students) and several Hostels. The present Halls and Hostels are as follows: Each Hall consists of junior members (students) and senior members (academic and senior administrative and professional staff), and is managed by a Council comprising members elected by persons belonging to the Hall. The Master (or Warden in the case of Volta Hall) is the Head of the Hall. Each Hall has Junior and Senior Common Rooms for students and Faculty, respectively. A tutorial system offers an opportunity for counseling students and ensuring their welfare at both academic and social levels. Students maintain interaction with each other and the wider community through recogni zed clubs and societies. Each Hall has a kitchen and a dining hall to cater for students feeding. Chapels and a mosque are also available for use by various religious denominations. A Chaplaincy Board co-ordinate the activities of religious groups. Social life on the campus is organised mainly by the Students Representative Council and the Junior Common Room Committees which provide various kinds of social programmes. LEGON HALL: Legon Hall was the first to be built on the permanent site of the University of Ghana at Legon and is, therefore, the Premier Hall of the University. Its foundation tablet was laid during the Michaelmas Term of 1951 and, in September 1952, the first undergraduates were accepted into residence. On Trinity Sunday, 31st May 1953, the first service was held in the Chapel and the first meal served in the Dining Hall. From these events, the Hall took Trinity Sunday every year as its birthday, celebrated by a common Feast for both its Junior and Senior Members. The Halls motto, Cui Datum (To whom much is given†¦), was selected from St. Lukes Gospel, in recognition of the special responsibility attached to the Halls seniority. Senior Members of the University may be assigned as Fellows of the Hall by the Vice Chancellor and they usually keep their Fellowship for as long as they remain with the University. Persons of academic distinction outside the University may be elected as Honorary Fellows at a General Meeting of Fellows. The rest of the membership of the Hall is made up of persons in statu pupillari. The governing body of the Hall is the Hall Council, members of which are Fellows of the Hall. The principal Hall Officers are: The Master, the Vice-Master, the President of the Senior Common Room, the Senior Tutor, and the Hall Bursar. AKUAFO HALL: Akuafo Hall was established with the appointment of Professor D.A. Taylor, a Master-designate and a Hall Council in 1953. The Hall Council in 1954 decided to name the Hall Akuafo to commemorate the generous gesture of the farmers of Ghana in giving money for the foundation of the University College. A crest which depicts a cocoa tree, an open book and a drum, designed by Professor W.J. McCallien, and a motto, laboremus et sapiamus, suggested by Professor L.H. Ofosu-Appiah, were adopted by the Council. A commemorative plaque with a Latin inscription composed by Professor L.H. Ofosu-Appiah was set up to show the gratitude of the Hall to the farmers of the country and to the British Government who gave the University College funds for the building of the Hall. The Hall was officially opened on 17 February, 1956, but the first students, numbering 131, came into residence on the 5th October, 1955. The Hall has its own statutes governing the election of officers and the administration of its affairs. Once a year, the Master has to convene a meeting of the Fellows, who form the governing body, to receive his annual report. The Senior Common Room is open to all Fellows and their guests, and the Senior Combination Room to all senior members of the University. Senior Members may also invite students to the Combination Room. COMMONWEALTH HALL: The first batch of students was admitted into residence in Commonwealth Hall at the beginning of the 1956-1957 academic year. In the Lent Term of that academic year, Ghana attained its independence from Great Britain, and the Hall, hitherto known as the Third Hall, was officially christened Commonwealth Hall to commemorate Ghanas admission into the Commonwealth of Nations. The official opening of the Hall was performed in March, 1957. It is, so far, the only all-male Hall of Residence in the University. The motto of the Hall, Truth Stands, was taken from a quotation from Satyre by John Donne (1572-1631): On a huge hill, cragged, and steep, Truth stands and hee that will Reach her, about must, and about must goe This motto combines both the physical situation of the Hall (on a hillside overlooking most of the University and beyond) and the proper pursuit of a University education, the search for truth. It is the only Hall of Residence in the University which has a theatre and Amphitheatre for lectures and plays. The Coat of Arms of the Hall depicts the strength and unity of purpose of members of the Hall deriving from the bonds of association enjoyed by the individual members of the Hall. High Commissioners of the Commonwealth countries in Ghana are accorded Honorary Membership of the Hall. There is a Hall Council which administers the affairs of the Hall, assisted by the Tutorial Board and the Senior Common Room Committee. VOLTA HALL: Volta Hall started as the Fourth Hall in the 1959-60 academic year, on 16th November, 1960. The University College Council, on the recommendation of the Hall Council, named it Volta Hall. The Hall consists of the main hall originally designed to accommodate 82 students, and an annex with an original capacity for accommodating 198 students, the occupation of which began in January 1966. The motto of the Hall, chosen during the Halls tenth anniversary celebrations, is in the Akan language and it is: Akokobere Nso Nyim Adekyee. This means that the secret or knowledge of life and nature is a gift to women as it is to men. The Hall has a governing Body which comprises all the Fellows assigned to it and those elected by the assigned Fellows. The government of the Hall rests with this body which delegates some of its powers to a Hall Council. The Hall Council consists of ten members, including the Warden, the Deputy Warden, the Senior Tutor and the Bursar who are ex-officio members. The day-to-day administration of the Hall is carried out by the Warden with the help of the Senior Tutor, who deals with all students affairs, and the Bursar. MENSAH SARBAH HALL: Mensah Sarbah Hall, the fifth Hall of the University, stands in the southern part of the campus. The Hall consists of a main Hall built around a quadrangle and a number of Annexes standing to the north and east. The last two south annexes are attached to the Hall. Until October 1991, Mensah Sarbah was the only co-ed Hall of Residence in the University, which made it quite unique among the Halls. The governing body of the Hall is the Council, which is responsible to the full body of Fellows who form the Senate. Students affairs are handled by students own elected government headed by a President, while the general administration of the Hall is under the Master who is assisted by the Senior Tutor and Tutors on the one hand and the Bursar on the other. Other Hall Officers are the Chaplain, who is responsible fo r the Roman Catholic Chapel, the Prayer Room Warden, who is responsible for the Protestant Chapel, and the Librarian. Senior Common Room affairs are managed by an elected committee under the President of the Senior Common Room. The Hall is named after the famous Ghanaian jurist, writer and statesman, John Mensah Sarbah of Cape Coast. It has been customary for the Hall to celebrate the birthday anniversary of this great man every year. This anniversary is known as Sarbah Day and is highlighted by a dinner and a get-together. The Hall has a crest designed to bring out the principal features of Mensah Sarbahs life. It consists of three elements: a pair of scales, a stool with a book resting upon it, and a hill surmounted by a castle. The scale signifies the legal profession, the stool and the book symbolise culture while the hill and the castle are intended to depict the familiar landscape of Cape Coast with its many hills and forts. At the same time, the castle is intended to symbolise strength and honour. The Halls motto is: Knowledge, Honour, Service three words which aptly summarise the guiding principles of Mensah Sarbahs life. VALCO TRUST HOSTELS: The idea to build a graduate hostel was first nurtured w hen Legon Hall Annex C was prepared exclusively for graduate students of the Hall. The quest for a suitable accommodation for graduate students gained attention when Valco Trust Fund offered to finance the construction of a graduate hostel. As a further boost to this course, Legon Hall Annex C was converted into an Annex of the Hostel. The Valco Trust Hostel, donated to the University by the Valco Trust Fund to ease pressure on student accommodation, is a block of purpose-built, self-contained flats for 190 students. The Hostel, which was completed in June 1997, is the University’s first hostel for graduate students. A second block with similar facilities was opened in January 2006. Located behind Mensah Sarbah Hall on the southern part of the campus, the flats are arranged in single and double study bedrooms with en suite shower and toilet. There is a shared kitchen for every twelve rooms. Facilities in the hostels include common rooms, washrooms and a restaurant. INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS’ HOSTELS: The International Student’s Hostels are located on the southern part of the campus off the road to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research. For a long time, it had been the dream of the University of Ghana to create and strengthen links with other universities in order to enhance the international student presence on campus. The first phase was commissioned in June 1999 and the second in January 2006. The Hostels are co-educational and each has 43 single rooms and 85 double rooms. In addition, there are facilities such as a well-fortified security system, kitchenettes and restaurants. REFERENCES Amole, D. (2005),â€Å"Coping strategies for living in student residential facilities in Nigeria†, Environment and Behaviour, Vol. 37, pp. 201-19. Amole, D. (2009b),â€Å"Residential satisfaction in students’ housing†, Journal of Environment Psychology, Vol. 29, pp. 76-85. Association of African Universities (2004), â€Å"Challenges Facing African Universities: Selected Issues†, African Studies Review (2004) Vol. 47, No. 1, 1-59 Dahlan, N., Jones, P., Alexander, D., Salleh, E. and Alias, J. (2009),â€Å"Evidence base prioritization of indoor comfort perceptions in Malaysian typical multi-storey hostels†, Building and Environment, pp. 2158-65. Elsinga, M. and Hoekstra, J. (2005),â€Å"Homeownership and housing satisfaction†, Journal of Housing and the Built Environment, Vol. 20, pp. 401-24. Fay, G. (1981),â€Å"A model for reviewing growth environments†, Journal of College and University Student Housing, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 46-7. Foubert, J.D., Tepper, R. and Morrison, D.R. (1998),â€Å"Predictors of student satisfaction in university residence halls†, Journal of College and University Student Housing, Vol. 21No. 1, pp. 41-6. Hassanain, M.A. (2008),â€Å"On the performance evaluation of sustainable student housing facilities†, Journal of Facilities Management, Vol. 6 No. 3, pp. 212-25. James, R.N. (2008), â€Å"Residential satisfaction of elderly tenants in apartment housing†, Social Indicators Research, Vol. 89, pp. 421-37. James, R.N. (2008), â€Å"Residential satisfaction of elderly tenants in apartment housing†, Social Indicators Research, Vol. 89, pp. 421-37. Kaya, N. and Erkip, F. (2001), â€Å"Satisfaction in a dormitory building: the effects of floor height on the perception of room size and crowding†, Environment Behavior, Vol. 33 No. 1, pp. 35-53. Khozaei, F., Hassan, A.S. and Khozaei, Z. (2010a), â€Å"Undergraduate students’ satisfaction with hostel and sense of attachment to place: case study of â€Å"universiti sains Malaysia†, American Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Vol. 3 No. 3, pp. 516-20. Lawrence, Paul R. and Jay W. Lorsch. (1967)â€Å"Organization and environment† Boston; Harvard University, Division of Research, Graduate School of Business Administration. Parkes, A., Kearns, A. and Atkinson, R. (2002), â€Å"What makes people dissatisfied with their neighbourhoods?†, Urban Studies, Vol. 39 No. 13, pp. 2413-38. Price, I., Matzdorf, F., Smith, L. and Agahi, H. (2003),â€Å"The impact of facilities on student choice of university†, Facilities, Vol. 21 No. 10, pp. 212-22. Radder, L. and Han, X. (2009), â€Å"Service quality of on-campus student housing: a South African experience†, The International Business Economics Research Journal, Vol. 8 No. 11, pp. 107-19. Salleh, A.G. (2008),â€Å"Neighbourhood factors in private low-cost housing in Malaysia†, Habitat International, Vol. 32, pp. 485-93. www.ghanaweb.com, (Tuesday, 8th January, 2008) retrieved on 4th October, 2012. www.ug.edu.gh (2012) retrieved on 10th October, 2012 www.ug.edu.gh (2012) retrieved on 2nd November, 2012 www.ug.edu.gh (2012) retrieved on 5th November, 2012

Stakeholder Project Organization

Stakeholder Project Organization The Stakeholder would be someone who is concerned, an engaged or interested in a project. Stakeholder is individuals or organizations that have a straight concentration in a service being provided. There are three categories of user primary, secondary and tertiary. Example: Employees, customers, suppliers, Local community. 1.1 .1 PRIMARY STAKEHOLDERS: Primary stakeholders are those people and groups ultimately who are affected by the project. That will be differ depends on the types of project concerned and should be analyzed according to criteria such as gender, income levels, dependence on resources, etc. The primary stakeholders are the most important of the organization. People or group who are ultimately impacted either positively (beneficiaries) or negatively (for example, competitors). The users are those likely to be frequent hands on user of the organization. Example Regional Nature Conservation Authority Ministry of Environment, Forestry, Regional Planning, etc Activity:- Landowner and or residents in the forest Forestry companies Tourism operator Recreational and other user 1.1.2 SECONDARY STAKEHOLDER: Secondary stakeholders are the intermediaries in the aid delivery process. The secondary users are occasional user or those who use the system through an intermediary. People or groups who have a role in the decision making process without being directly affected by the outcome. Example Local business Landowner and residents not inside the protected area but near Environment NGOs 1.1.3 TERTIARY STAKEHOLDER: Tertiary users are those affected by the introduction of the system, or who will influence its purchase. Tertiary stake holder can still have an influence, but are not directly involved. Example Local opinion leader Local media Ecological department of universities, research institutes Environmental inserts or special programs of national media 1.2. Scope Document: The scope document is a general term for any document that refines and defined the requirements aspect of the triple constraint of time, cost, and requirements. 1.2.1 Purpose of a scope document: The purpose of this document is to collect, analyze, and define high-level needs and features of that system. It focuses on the capabilities needed by the projects. The scope statement is generally confined to a few paragraphs or pages, the scope document may be a far more substantial document. It captures information from a variety of sources and places it in a single repository. As an alternative, it may largely be a document that provides reference to other documentation in other locations. Specifically identifying those locations and the information embedded in that documentation. 1.2.2 Contents of a scope document: Executive Summary: It contains the overall information about the project in a short summary documentation. Description of the Proposed Action The various types of action and processes will be taken to accomplish the project. The description of all those action and processes is documented here. Project Purpose, Need and Benefits Background and History of project Cornell and Public Need for the Proposed Action Objectives of the project Benefits that will be gain to meet the objective. Neighborhoods Consideration about the business competitors, about their activity. Project Deliverables Description of all deliverables that will establish the successful completion of the project Project Boundaries The project development area is defined here with specifications. Resource needs The resource that will be needed to complete the project successfully, all are documented here. Cost Contain specific plan about the cost estimates to prevent misunderstanding later. Payment plan Define when and how project development team should be paid for the project Task-2 Introduction: There are some visual forms to help us our project. There are different stages in the development of the project and that stage can focused to use some visual form. While planning to develop a project many factors and issues should be considered before getting into the project and what are more stages in the total life cycle is vital for the successful implementation of the project and that stages are focused by the visual form. You can focus of all your project stage by using visual form. 2.1 Life Cycle Model:- The term project lifecycle models how a project is planned controlled and monitored from its inception to its completion. Project life cycle model are not similar. To deliver a quality system, its critical to know the risk facing your project and to use models that reduce those risks. Life cycle models describe the phase of the projects and the order in which those phase are executed. Each phase produce deliverables required by the next stage in the life cycle. There are some life cycle models is Waterfall Model, V-shape model, Spiral model and etc. 2.1.1 Waterfall Life Cycle Model: The waterfall life cycle was the first attempt at the definition of software development life cycle. The concept of a waterfall in this model suggests that one stage is completed before the next one starts and the diagram exactly show that concept. Stage completion is judged by the outcome of the stage matching the requirements defined by the previous stage. Requirements Analysis Diagram: Waterfall Model Requirements Specification System Design Code Test Implement Maintenance The water model is very simple diagram. The model is showing some lifecycle activities. The waterfall model is very simple to use and easy to manage due to the inflexibility of the model because each stage has specified deliverables and a review processes. Those stages are completed one at a time. That is best for small project where requirement are much understood. 2.1.2 V Model: The life cycle models heart of the v-Model. It describes the activity and products in the V-Model. Just like the waterfall model, the v-shaped life cycle is a sequential path execution of processor. Each stage must be completed before the next stage begins. Testing is emphasized in this model more so than the waterfall model though. The testing procedures are developed early in the life cycle before any coding is done, during each of the phase preceding implementation. Maintenance Initial Concept Requirements definition Software Design Detailed Design Code Unit Test Acceptance Test Integration and Test Tested Software Tested System Test Modules Diagram: The V Model The sequential lifecycle diagram is easy to understand, it easy to focus what the plan a project according to a sequential approach. The V-Model maintains the change control board and they meets once a year and processes all received change request on the V-Model. That supports tailoring, at each project starts, the V-Model is tailoring into a specific project. The tailoring makes it possible because the V-Model is organization and project independent. The V-Model produces actual support on how to implement an activity. In each activity scheme there are instructions, recommendation and detailed explanation of the activ 2.2. The Activity Networks: The activity network is a technique for pictorial representing a project plan. It shows dependencies between all the activities that have to be created. The most important part of activity diagram is the Critical path. Activity networks find out the all activity and find out who activity dependence to others. And the process of creating network begins with the drawings up of dependency list. The processes assign independence to each product or activity and specifies it backwards dependency. EST Duration EFT Activity Description LST Float LFT 8 5 13 E 19 11 24 22 2 24 I 22 0 24 24 4 28 J 24 0 28 28 28 3 5 8 C 14 11 19 3 6 9 G 18 15 24 9 13 22 H 9 0 22 13 7 20 F 15 2 22 9 4 13 D 11 2 13 0 3 3 A 0 0 3 3 6 9 B 3 0 9 0 0 Diagram: Activity Networks The activity networks show the activity by a box with sections used to hold key pieces of information. The show the activity starts time, finished time and there duration. They show last start time, finished time and there float. For example the boxes (nodes) A, B, C, D, E, etc represent the activities and the arrows, or connectors, represent the dependencies between the activities. And provide the information of which are activities are much more critical. The diagram contains the some visual information are: Earliest Start and Finished Time Latest Start and Finished Time The Critical Path Dependency Type 2.2.1 Earliest Start and Finished Time:- Earliest Start Time (EST): The earliest points are shown when the activities are started. The next activities (box) earliest start time (EST) dependence on previous finished time (EFT). Earliest Finished Time (EFT): the earliest point are illustrate the activities finished time. The EFT depends on what the activities duration. The activities duration calculate (EFT = EST + Duration) the EST and produce the Earliest Finished Time (EFT). 2.2.2 Duration: The diagram is show the activities duration. That is easy to find out which activities times are defined. The important point about this is that it is not until the activity network has been completed, and the dependencies combined with the estimated elapsed durations, that the project manager can be confident about the predicted elapsed duration and whether a specific end date is achievable or not. 2.2.3 Latest Start Time and Finished:- Latest Start Time (LST): They LST provide the information of the latest time that the activity in question can begin, without causing subsequent jobs to overrun. Latest Finished Time (LFT): The latest time that the activity in question can finish, without causing subsequent jobs to overrun. Float: The earliest points are show the time of who much needs to time the activity are finished. They use to some mechanism to provide the information. Working backward through the network, the mechanism is: LFT of an activity = LST of succeeding activity. LST of an activity = LFT Duration. 2.2.4 Critical Path:- The diagram (visual form) is very attractive you can easily find out which activities are critical. If any activity has no Float, as in the case you can understand that the activities are more critical and this called the Critical Path. That helps to the project. These activities are high risk, so The superlative people can put on them They can easily monitored frequently of the activity The estimating can be re-examined for their liability to any risk of overrunning. 2.2.5 Dependency Type: The visual form can easily help us to find out the dependency of our project activities. That can show to which activities are depending to other. â€Å"We have assumed that an activity cannot start until the previous one has finished. This is not always the case. Sometimes activities can overlap, for example, where one activity is design programs and the successor is code programs these can go almost on parallel but there must be delay before the start of the letter activity.† 2.3. Mind Maps:- â€Å"Mind Map is diagram used to represent an expression of radiant thinking and is therefore a natural function of human mind†. This visual form is very interesting that can generate an imaging idea of any projects. Mind Mapping is useful technique that improves the way you take notes, and support and enhances your creative problem solving. By using Mind Maps, you can quickly identify and structure of a subjects and the way that pieces of information fit together, as well as recording the row facts contained in normal notes. Mind maps are tools which help you think and learn. FIG: Mind Map 2.3.1 Key Ideas in a project: That is applied to every aspect of life where improved learning and clearer thinking will enhance human performance. The mind map has some essential characteristic: The subject of attention is crystallized in a central image The man themes of the subject radiate from the central image of branches Branches hold a key image/word printed on the associated line details radiate out The branches from a connected model structure Mind Maps are more compact than conventional note, often taking up one side of paper. This helps you to make associations easily. And if you find out more information after you have drawn the main Mind Map. Then you can easily add it in. Mind Map is also easily useful for: Can summarized information That can easily Consolidating information from different research sources Its help to thinking through complex problems and Presenting your information in a design that shows the overall structure of your subject Task-3 3.1. TUCKMAN Theory: Bruce tuckman has provided the theory to develop a successful project team. There have five stage of group development. His research led him to determine four phase of group development those are- Forming Storming Norming Performing And the last stage is Adjourning. Forming: personal relations are characterized by dependence in this stage. Storming: in this stage, the characterized by achievement and argument in the personal relations dimensions an organization in the task-functions dimension. Norming: in the stage, the interpersonal relations are characterized by cohesion. Performing: This stage are not reached by all groups, if group members are grow to stage four, their ability, variety, and depth of personal relation are expand to true interdependence. Adjourning: That stage involves the execution of task behaviors and disengagement from relationship. 3.2. BELBIN Theory: Dr Meredith Belbin defined a team role as: â€Å"A tendency to behave, contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way†. Belbin identified nine cluster of behaviors team, terms team role. Those are- Co-ordinator: the co-ordinator may not stand out in a team and usually does not have a sharp intellect. Shaper: He or She will challenge, argue or disagree and will display aggression in the pursuit of goal achievement. Two or three shaper in a group, according to Belbin, can lead to conflict, aggravation and in-fighting. Plant: Weaknesses are a tendency to disregard practical details and argumentativeness. Resources Investigator: Weakness are a tendency to lose interest after initial fascination with an idea, and they are not usually the source of original ideas. Company worker/implementation: Implementers are conservative, inflexible and slow to respond to new possibilities. Monitor evaluator: Weakness are that they appear dry and boring or even over-critical. They are not good at inspiring others. Those in high level appointments are often monitor evaluators. Team worker: They tend to be indecisive in moments of crisis reluctant to do things that might hurt others. Completer finishers: Weaknesses according to Belbin, are that they tend to be over anxious and have difficulty letting go and delegating work. Specialist: their weaknesses are single-mindedness and a lack of interest in other peoples. 3.3. MYERS_BRIGGS theory: The Myers-Briggs personality typology, unlike some other typing theories such as the Enneagram or Four Temperaments, uses a combination of several aspects to arrive at a â€Å"composite† type, based on the interaction and relative weight of different behavioural and attitudinal factors. The types are expressed as combinations of four letters, as follows: E or I (Extravert or Introvert) S or N (Sensing or iNtuitive) T or F (Thinking or Filling) J or P (Judging or Perceiving) E/I preference: interest the world around you. S/N preference: how you gather the information about the world. T/F preference: how you evaluate that information. J/P preference: your attitude to the world. These four pairs give 16 possible combinations, some of which are more common I the population than others. I will use myself as the worked example in what follows as I am the nearest subject to hand. 3.4. Knowledge from Tuckman, Belbin, and Myers-Briggs theory to develop a project team 3.4.1 Tuckman theory: Tuckman theories originally give me the knowledge of groups. How the way to observed group evolve, whether they were conscious of it or not. And I understand how to move the performed in the stage. The forming stage is describing the characters of each group members. And next stage they are comments to each other. Group might be happily Norming and performing stage because they are understood to each other. 3.4.2 Belbin theory: I collect the some information of Belbin theories. That is each team role has its particular strength and allow able weaknesses, and each has an essential contribute to make to a team. Every member needs different time to her/his roles. 3.4.3 Myers-Briggs: That theory simple to helps an aide-memoire for people who have done the profile, and give a flavor of how it works if its new to you. The theory helps to how we deal with the world around us. How you gather the information about the world and how you evaluate that information and your attitude. Generally if Im a project manager then I select and develop of an effective project team to follow some idea. First fall check every team members are polite behaviors and the members have more confident. And identifies the members are communicate more openly with each other and then I will make a project team. The members are keen to be accepted into team and look the team leader for guidance and direction. The members are eager to be accepted. 3.5. Risk of Team Failure: There are common problems:- 3.5.1 No Trust between the Team Members: That is most and effective problem to a group. When team members do not trust to each other or are suspicious of each others motives, the end result is a team that is not interrelated in its approach. So we are assessment the team members are related to each other. 3.5.2 Ineffective Interaction and Unproductive Team Meeting: Some of important time all team members comes to attend the meeting. The meeting is one of the most critical aspects of the team process with strategies and innovative to problems emerging during this time. 3.5.3 Poor Role Clarity: When roles are not clearly defined, this can lead to conflict and confusion on tasks. So team member can not understand what exactly is expected of each of them. So identify who is responsible to each tasks and identify they are confidently done this tasks. 3.5.4 Poor Time Management: A team should plan its goal and activities whilst keeping time constraints and deadlines in mind, otherwise their efficiency level in managing and implementing a task can suffer. While a team analysis any task they should define who many times are needed to each task. They are trying to finish that task proper time. 3.5.5 Losing Focus of Business Objective: If every member can unclear the goals of team so they lose of directions and lose of focus efficiency products. And turn lead to wrongly prioritized activities. While a team can identify their goals they can lead better direction and focus the efficient products. 3.5.6 Faulty Analysis of Market Conditions and Flawed Company Policies: If a team can fail to reservations in market condition 3.6. Risk Matrix: This is the simple method to raise visibility of risk and assist the management to make decision against all the risk that arise. It is a graphical representation of information normally found in existing risk logs. Risk matrix is easy to use, unless they are designed properly High Medium Low High Medium Low Consequence Likelihood A A A B B B C C C FIG: Risk Estimation Matrix (From MBP book of NCC Education) 3.6.1 Notes: How to assess the Risk of team failure. A risk assessment is simply a careful checking of what, and identify of any event that if occurred. It may be negatives or positives in our team. There are many reasons for a team can breakdown. So we are researched before making a team. That helps get greater strategic thinking and enhances creativity the proper solution when a team failure. 3.7. Contingency Plan: The contingency plan helps to identify what I will do if the risk occurs. The points are discussed here encapsulate the key issues that can lead to team failure. Team managers and team leaders have to take measures to protect the team from these chains that can wrap themselves around the team and collapse its performance. Diagnosing is the first step to solving the problem. Some of the issues such as role clarity or losing focus of business objectives can be solved by a discussion with the team members. Some of the other problems like poor trust, poor time management, and poor team interaction can be better tackled through team building exercises. Lets now look at the other side of the points, success. If success is what the team is after, then what is it that is expected of teams? What should they do to be successful? Understand their goals Interact, communicate effectively, explore ideas and innovative approaches Be loyal, co-operative, willing to share information and lend a helping hand Understand market realities and develop a sound strategy Keep time frames in mind Know their responsibility within the team and focus on results All this may seem like a tall order but is actually achievable. Everybody on a team is naturally equipped to deal with these factors, the only exception being ‘flawed company policies, which is up to corporate management to resolve. When teams in an organization show problems, then the solution may lie in a deeper analysis of the problem and exploring the areas mentioned above to find a solution. Task 4 Validation and Verification is the process of checking that the product. 4.1. Verification: 4.1.1 Definition: â€Å"Am I building the product right?† The process of determining whether or not the products of given phase of the software development cycle fulfill the requirement established during the previous phase 4.1.2 Purpose The purpose of Verification is to ensure that selected products meet specified requirements. The interpretation of this process area for business development is to ensure business development work products meet specified objectives and criteria. A key work product is the customer proposal. It should be verified that it meets customer-specified needs by conducting a readiness. 4.1.3 Importance: It is important to verify that the business development products meet the external customers needs. Verification increases the likelihood that offered products and services will be accepted by the customer, but it does not guarantee success. Verification is necessary but not sufficient. The business development campaign should include verification milestones throughout the process. Does the proposal meet the buyers specification? What are the risks in the proposal? Do marketing collateral and advertising meet the defined goals and objectives of the campaign? These types of question arise in a project for verification. 4.1.4 Features: verification addresses whether the work product properly reflects the specified requirements Verification includes verification of the product and intermediate work products against all selected requirements, including customer, product and product component requirements. Verification is inherently an incremental process because it occurs throughout the development of the product and work products, Verification of work products substantially increases the likelihood that the product will meet the customer, product, and product component requirements. 4.2. Validation: 4.2.1 Definition: Am I building the right product? Validation is the process that checks the product design satisfies and fits. That provides a high degree of assurance that a product, services, and system accomplished its intended usage â€Å"you built the right product†. There are few terms uses in validation process: Code validation/Testing Function validation/Testing User acceptance Testing or system validation 4.2.2 Purpose: The purpose of Validation is to demonstrate that a product fulfills its intended use when placed in its intended environment. The interpretation of this process area for business development is to validate and to demonstrate that a campaign product or service fulfills its intended use in support of the business development campaign objectives. 4.2.3 Importance: The proposal is a key product of the marketing effort. Prospective customers base their decisions largely on the organizations proposal. Because knowing how to develop a good proposal is critical core competency for business development, it is important to evaluate the readiness of the offer before it is submitted to the customer. The following types of question may in project for validation. What is the size of the market? Is the market growing or contracting? What influences this movement 4.2.4 Features: validation can be applied to work products as well as to the product and product components Validation is to demonstrate that a product or product component fulfills its intended use when placed in its intended environment. Validation demonstrates that the product, as provided, will fulfill its intended use 4.3. Verification and Validation in a Project Lifecycle The need and importance of verification and validation in a project are stated below with a life cycle model. The V-model Operation Test Stress Test Business Analysis Requirements Definition Functional Design Technical Design Programming Source Code Technical Design Functional Design System Requirements Business Requirements Live Simulation Acceptance Test System Test Link Test Unit Test Environment Test SPECIRYING TEST INTERMEDIATE PRODUCT VERIFYING SRAGE 4.3.1 Verification and validation in V model Here validation is taken in the primary stage which named requirements specification to check all the information in accurate and exact for build the project. With the information of previous stage the design stage is developed. Verification is done after the design process to develop evidence of design solution requirements compliance. A shorthand statement of the meaning of verification is commonly voiced as, â€Å"Am I building the product right?† Verification technique aims to detect and aid the designer to correct mistake during the product developments.. After the design is verified, the conceptual model and its associated design are converted into code or hardware by the developer. Code verification and hardware checkout ensure that the detailed design is being implemented correctly in the code or hardware respectively. Code verification normally entails detailed desk checking and software testing of the code, comparing it to the detailed design, documenting any discrep ancies and fixing any problems discovered. Other important activities include participating in code testing, audits, walkthroughs, and inspections; validating input data; preparing complexity report; conducting code analysis; and verifying code structure. Integration checking also sorted out by verification testing to address that is all component of the product or part is integrated properly and accurately. Validation and verification are present throughout all the phase of product life cycle and are composed of a wide variety of activities. The validation and verification activities are detection and correction of errors. In incremental assessment, which verification and validation activities provide at each phase of the process model. The information gives the progressive view of the productivity of the development process and quality of the product. 4.3.2 In a project life cycle verification and validation can arise in different stages. Those are mentioned below Requirements Interface requirements Developmental plans Configuration Management Plan Quality Assurance Plans Studies and Analyses 4.3.3 Checking Procedure of verification and validation Checked all the item that may need for the project development Requirement are checked through validation Test all the module for integrating correctly Design of the development mu

Free Essays - All Quiet on the Western Front :: All Quiet on the Western Front Essays

All Quiet on the Western Front Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front is one of the greatest war novels of all time. It is a story, not of Germans, but of men, who even though they may have escaped shells, were destroyed by the war. The entire purpose of this novel is to illustrate the vivid horror and raw nature of war and to change the popular belief that war is an idealistic and romantic character. The story centers on Paul Baümer, who enlists in the German army with glowing enthusiasm. But in the course of war, he is consumed by it and in the end is "weary, broken, burnt out, rootless, and without hope." Through Baümer, Remarque examines how war makes man inhuman. He uses excellent words and phrases to describe crucial details to this theme. "The first bomb, the first explosion, burst in our hearts." Baümer and his classmates who enlisted into the army see the true reality of the war. They enter the war fresh from school, knowing nothing except the environment of hopeful youth and they come to a premature maturity with the war, their only home. "We were eighteen and had begun to love life and the world; and we had to shoot it to pieces. We are not youth any longer." They have lost their innocents. Everything they are taught, "the world of work, duty, culture, and progress" are not the slightest use to them because the only thing they need to know is how to survive. They need to know how to escape the shells as well as the emotional and psychological torment of the war. The war takes an heavy toll on the soldiers who fight in it. The terror of death will infest the minds of soldiers and bring about horrible images of death and destruction until they break down and go to pieces. "Every hour and everyday, every shell and every death cuts this thin [line of sanity], and the years waste it rapidly." In these dangerous moments, anybody would have gone mad, have deserted their post, or have fallen. It takes a special kind of soldier to deal with this emotional abuse; a soldier who will not go to pieces at the sight of a mutilated body; it takes a soldier like Baümer. Baümer has "grown accustomed to it; war is the cause of death like influenza and dysentery.

Theme of Suffering in Musee des Beaux Arts by W.H. Auden Essay examples

A poem is a great way to express your feelings as well as get your point across. Each poet tells their story but sometimes it isn't so easy to figure out what it is trying to say. There are occasions where you have to break that poem into pieces and figure the story behind that selection. These individual pieces come together like a puzzle to teach you the lesson it intended to teach. The different pieces in the poem we read can give you a general idea of suffering, the idea that people undergo pain and distress. In the poem 'Musee des Beaux Arts' by W.H. Auden it is under that suffering occurs everywhere while not always seen, however, when seen everyone is apathetic. Within the poem, Auden makes a reference to the Greek myth of Icarus. Icarus falls to his watery grave after flying to close to the sun. ?First the fisherman, shepard and the farmer are on the scene at the time of Icarus? fall, not as he and Daedalus simply soar overhead like gods?. (Ruby Mary K & Marie Rose Napierkowski: 154-155). This line tells us how three men saw them flying as if they were gods. is that the ?failure? of Icarus is of little importance to these living and laboring, that, as a German proverb states, ?No plough is stopped for the sake of a dying man? (Ruby Mary K & Marie Rose Napierkowski: 154-155). As this quote describes the three men did not stop what they were doing to help Icarus who was dying. Two of the men did not see Icarus suffering so they went along with their lives, but the fisherman saw Icarus struggling as the water entered his lungs. The fisherman went along with his life and just let Icarus die. Later on in Auden?s poem he states that . The expens ive delicate ship that must have seen something amazing, a boy falling out of t... ...f the canvas? (Ruby Mary K & Marie Rose Napierkowski: 154-155). In this painting Jesus suffers as he drags the large cross to his execution. Besides for their own comfort there was a reason to kill Jesus. He endured pain and suffering throughout his whole journey. From all of the people in the painting you can see that there were people who witnessed his suffering, but they were withheld from helping by the torturer and ?the torturers horse?. Breughel painted ?human position? and ?how it takes place?. Each of his three paintings depicts W.H Auden?s idea of people and their relationship with suffering. W.H Auden?s ?Musee des Beaux Arts? there are many allusions to others suffering. These examples all help to support the moral of his poem. Suffering is all around us, yet we still do nothing to stop it. This illustrates his point by showing ignorance in all people.

Psychotherapy Versus Pharmacotherapy :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Psychotherapy Versus Pharmacotherapy: Is One Better than the other? One of the most startling things to me at the beginning of the Neurobiology and behavior course was learning about the existence of "reductionism." That is, those who do not believe there is a human soul or necessarily even a mind. Instead, as I understood it, reductionism says we are all a product of our neurons and the firings that take place in the brain and nervous system. Those scientists, from what we discussed, might claim that disorders that take place in human behavior (such as schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or even depression) are all functions of neurotransmitters and the firings of neurons in the brain. In order to cure ailments such as these, certain psychiatrists or doctors might rely heavily and solely on medication. This type of treatment is known as the pharmacotherapy approach, in which medication is the primary tool used for curing patients. However, this idea did not ring true as necessarily the best or only approach to human disorders, especially t o a psyche major such as myself. I decided to then delve into the Internet to see people's views as well as actual statistics on which treatment, psychotherapy or pharmacotherapy, was indeed better. What I found was that a combination of the two seems to be the best bet in treating patients, and I will show evidence to support this as I talk about each topic individually, and then discuss their merits when used together. Also, in the scope of a paper such as this, I will look at both sides of the two treatments specifically for depression, since that is the best way to discuss specific statistics and for recovery. (3) WHAT IS PSYCHOTHERAPY? Just for a brief overview, psychotherapy is seen as a method of treating symptoms of distress in patients to help them return to a normal level of functioning. It is used as a medical tool to help a person overcome difficulties. Typical therapy is the kind most of us are familiar with, 50 minute sessions that are once a week with a therapist. The main focuses is for a patient to better understand their circumstances, the best ways to deal with them, and who they are as a person. Usually, if patients have a behavior specific problem, the APA homepage says sessions last an average of 16 visits. (APA homepage reference). Technically, the therapist has an interview with an individual to find out who they are as a person, their background, and then works from there to help heal and discuss the problems that have been affecting their daily functioning.

Academic Achievement Essay

Academic Achievement This unit will help you: use your prior knowledge to help you understand what you are reading; practice reading for a specific purpose; make decisions about the relevance of a text in terms of reading purpose; read selectively in order to use appropriate information from the text. †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ The topic of this unit concerns factors that may lead to improvement in academic performance among students. It is based on three major research projects carried out in the United States. The influence of class size on academic achievement (157–159). Task 1: Predicting text content Think about what factors can have an influence on the academic achievement of the students in a school, college, or university. Look at the following list of possible influences and rate the ideas on a scale of 1–5 (1 = very little influence, 5 = very strong influence). Influence on academic performance Resources available (e. g. , computers, laboratories, textbooks) Teacher level (qualifications, experience, etc. ) Student motivation Rating 1. 3 Add and rate some of your own ideas. Then compare your list and ratings with a partner. Focus task. Your reason for reading Text 1-1 is to get some background information to help you write the following essay. English for academic study 18 Academic Achievement 1 Task 2: Reading for a purpose 2. 1 Look carefully at the title of Text 1-1. Do you think that the text will be useful for writing an assignment about academic achievement? Share your conclusions with another student. Read the introduction to Text 1-1 (lines 1–66). As you read, try to make up your mind about how useful this text might be for your purpose. When you have finished reading, circle and complete the following sentence. 2. 2 Task 3: Reading selectively 3. 1 Read the subheading (lines 67–68) and think about your own opinion on the issue. Do you think that smaller class sizes help to improve academic performance? Circle your answer then write one reason for your choice below. 3. 2 Below are some notes that have been made by another student on Text 1-1. Read lines 67–117 and check the points mentioned in the text. a) b) c) d) e) f) g) Reading & Writing 3. 3 Read lines 69–72. What does anecdotal mean? Try to guess the meaning of this word by looking carefully at the whole sentence. If the ideas in this paragraph are anecdotal, think about how seriously you should take them into account when writing your assignment. 19 3. 4 Read lines 97–117 and underline specific information from this paragraph that you might use to help in the completion of the Focus task. Think about: †¢ †¢ 3. 5 how useful you think this paragraph might be in relation to the Focus task; whether you think the sources are reliable. With a partner, compare and justify your choice of information for all four questions. Task 4: Identifying the writer’s purpose 4. 1 Read lines 118–192 and decide on the main functions of this section of text from the choices given below. For each choice, rate the function from 0–5 depending on how sure you are (5 = very sure). Study tip It can be very helpful to recognize why the writer has written a text, or a section of a text, i. e. , what the function of the text is. Function a) To persuade the readers to accept a certain point of view. b) To explain the importance of using research data instead of anecdotal explanations. c) To evaluate the importance of the research carried out into the effect of classroom size on academic achievement. d) To describe the research method used in various parts of the US into the effect of classroom size on academic achievement. 4. 2 What is the function (or functions) of Figure 1: Milestone studies in class size (page 159)? a) to summarize the content of the text b) to outline the content of certain relevant research c) to explain the importance of the STAR project d) to compare the data from research about class size Rating Task 5: Understanding referencing in texts Referencing in a text is a way of linking words and ideas together, thus  making the text more cohesive and easier to understand. The following activity will provide practice in this important skill. 5. 1 Look at line 119 of Text 1-1. What information or idea in the text do the words these findings refer to? a) The US Department of Education b) The National Assessment of Educational Progress c) Project STAR Study tip An effective reader makes use of referencing in a text to gain a clear understanding of what the author wishes to convey. 20 English for academic study Academic Achievement 5. 2 What other words or phrases (lines 119–148) refer to the same data? a) b) 5. 3 (line number (line number ) ) 1 What reasons do the writers give for ignoring the data? Complete the list below, using a similar note form. a) b) c) d) e) 5. 4 What factors, according to the writers, made Project STAR better than other poorly designed studies? Complete the list below, using a similar note form. a) b) c) d) e) Text 1-2 A case study: Shining star (p. 160) Task 6: Reading a text for closer understanding (1) 6. 1 What general point is made in the first paragraph of Text 1-2 (lines 1–11)? Find a short phrase that best summarizes this conclusion. Reading & Writing 21 21 6. 2 In the second paragraph, which of the following benefits of smaller classes do Finn and Achilles (1990) identify in their review of the project? Answer true or false and add the line number from where you found the answer. a) Better academic performance in small-sized classes. b) Students benefit at an early stage in small classes. (line number (line number ) (line number ) ) ) c) Students later continue to perform well in normal-sized classes. ) d) Average students make the most progress. e) Minority groups gained the most significant benefits. (line number (line number f) On average, ethnic minority students improved by one-fifth of standard deviation. (line number ) 6. 3 In the final paragraph, which of the findings of Finn and Achilles (ibid. ) in Ex 6. 2 does Hanushek comment on? Put a check ( ) when Hanushek agrees and a cross ( ) when he disagrees. Write N/A if Hanushek does not mention these findings. a) b) c) d) e) f) 6. 4 To what extent do you feel that the analyses of Project STAR will help you with the Focus task? Rate your opinion 0–5 (0 = not at all). Discuss your answer with a partner. Text 1-3 The Asian paradox: Huge classes, high scores (p. 161) Task 7: Reading a text for closer understanding (2) 7. 1 Discuss with a partner or in groups what you know about academic performance in developed Asian countries, and how academic success is achieved. Read lines 1–65 of Text 1-3. As you read, remember to highlight ideas that might be useful for the Focus task. What is your understanding of the â€Å"Asian paradox†? What one word in the text (lines 17–35) gives a reason for this Asian paradox? 7. 2 English for academic study 7. 3 22 Academic Achievement 7. 4 Find other short phrases in the rest of the paragraph (lines 35–48) that might provide further reasons for the apparent academic success of Japanese students. 1 7. 5 Having read the text, have you found any information that might be useful for the Focus task? Task 8: Thinking critically about the text 8. 1 Look at the list of possible influences on academic performance in Task 1 (page 18). Are there any new influences you want to add to the table, and any you want to delete? Influence on academic performance Rating 8. 2 If you added any influences to your table, what rating would you give them, on a scale of 1–5? Task 9: Making use of the text You now have some information that may help with the Focus task that you will be given in order to complete Unit 1 of English for academic study: Writing, if you are studying that course. Reading & Writing Decide now if, and how, you can use the information in Texts 1-1, 1-2 and 1-3. 23 Unit summary In this unit you have thought about using your prior knowledge to help you understand what you are reading and made decisions about the relevance of a text in terms of reading purpose. You have learned to identify the writer’s purpose and to read selectively in order to use appropriate information from the text. 1 Complete this summary about the reading skills you practiced in the first unit with some of the words from the box. understanding meaning expertly prior title critically predictions subheadings selectively purpose It is easier to read a text if you have some knowledge of the topic that the text is about. This will help you to make and will give you a , which you always need when you read. Knowing why you are reading and what you are looking for will help you to both enjoy a text and focus on it better. Reading the and any there might be will help you to quickly know if you want to read a text and how useful it will be to you. It is important to read , especially if you are short of time. Some parts of a text will provide the information you need while other parts will be less important. You will usually read a text quickly first to get a general idea of what it is about and then read more carefully for closer and to be able to think about the content. 2 Look at these possible topics of a reading passage. How much prior knowledge do you have of each topic? Mark each topic as follows: L – I know a lot about this topic, so I could make plenty of predictions. S – I know something about this topic, and so I could make a few predictions. N – I know very little or nothing about this topic, so I wouldn’t be able to make any predictions. a) increasing traffic congestion in major cities b) special education for children with learning difficulties c) the growth in the popularity of baseball in Asian countries d) the intelligence of dolphins e) the origins of development of paper making English for academic study For web resources relevant to this unit, see: www. englishforacademicstudy. com/us/student/reading/links 24 1 1. 1 Academic Achievement. This unit will help you: think about the aims of academic study, and how to achieve them; learn about the different stages of the writing process; identify and learn how to cope with difficulties in academic writing; learn how to consider the knowledge and expectations of your reader; think about different approaches to the organization of your ideas. †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Task 1: Thinking about academic success The following questionnaire, Ex 1. 1–1. 14, will help you think about your views on the meaning of academic success and aspects of academic writing. You will then be able to discuss your views with the rest of the class. What is the aim of academic study? (Please check ( ) one or more. ) to meet intelligent people to ensure having a career or future job to discover more about theories and certain known facts to discuss philosophy to enjoy learning to enable members of society to exchange ideas that are intellectually stimulating* to develop personal growth to contribute to the social and economic development of society to pass examinations to gain a higher-level degree to improve cooperation between different members of world society * intellectually stimulating: encouraging the mind to develop further 1. 2 How important is it for you as a student to develop the following characteristics while studying at university? (Check ( ) H for High importance, M for Medium importance, L for Low importance. ) H M L knowing your strengths and weaknesses thinking about how to further develop your abilities thinking about how to approach a particular task using a logical, reasoned approach to study approaching your subject in depth being interested in finding things out learning how to study communicating results successfully Study tip Working with information is a good way of helping you develop ideas. Doing a questionnaire is one example of this, but you can do this yourself by setting clear goals for reading text, e. g. , having several clear questions you would like to answer. Reading & Writing 83 1. 3 What is academic writing? (Please check ( ) one or more. ) a mechanical exercise groups of grammatically correct sentences the clear expression of ideas, knowledge and information a form of self-expression a way of exploring, addressing and expressing academic issues a way of communicating results or information. 1. 4 To write well academically, how important are the following? (Check ( ) H for High importance, M for Medium importance, L for Low importance. ) H M L reading a lot studying grammar studying vocabulary imitating other writers writing a lot inviting others to comment on your writing going back and thinking again about what you have written rewriting repeatedly until you are satisfied understanding the process of writing meeting the needs of your reader 1. 5. How important do you think the following are when writing academic texts? (Check ( ) H for High importance, M for Medium importance, L for Low importance. ) H M L grammatical correctness spelling and punctuation (using periods, commas, etc. ) an appropriate style overall organization vocabulary good ideas good use of sources (appropriate citation, bibliography) relevance of subject content English for academic study response to the task 1. 6 In which of the following ways can you support your ideas when writing academic texts?  using personal anecdotes* using facts using statistics 84. Academic Achievement using examples using the news using information from books, articles, reports, the Internet using analogies** using the views and attitudes of others using research data * anecdote: a short, often amusing account of something that has happened ** analogy: to make or draw an analogy between two things is to show they are alike in some way 1. 7 Which of the following contribute to successful academic writing? Presenting information clearly and precisely analyzing questions and issues clearly and precisely distinguishing between relevant and irrelevant material recognizing key assumptions* identifying competing points of view demonstrating excellent reasoning and problem-solving abilities adopting a critical stance** understanding the context for which you are writing * assumption: if you make an assumption that something is true, you accept it is true without any real proof or evidence ** critical stance: to take a critical stance is to have a strong viewpoint on something after examining and judging it carefully 1. 8 When persuading your professor or other members of your academic community that your argument is valid, how important are the following? (Check ( ) H for High importance, M for Medium importance, L for Low importance. ) H M L analyzing questions stating facts reasoning your argument logically from facts explaining key terms using language appropriate to a particular subject area using other points of view to  strengthen your argument or research demonstrating the weaknesses of other people’s arguments acknowledging the limitations of your own argument or research supporting your argument with examples frequently summarizing your argument referring to well-argued conclusions 1. Reading & Writing 85 1. 9 Should you always think of academic writing as communicating with another person? Why/Why not? 1. 10 What do you do, or what do you concentrate on, when you are given a writing task: a) while you are still writing your first draft? b) when you have finished your first draft? c) before you hand in your final draft? 1. 11. What type of academic writing have you done in the past? 1. 12 What difficulties do you have with writing in English or in your own language? 86 English for academic study Academic Achievement 1. 13 What do you do when you have difficulties? 1 1. 14 Do you enjoy academic writing? Why/Why not? When you have finished the questionnaire, compare your answers with those of other people in your group. Discuss your answers, and keep notes of the discussion. Do you find that you all have very similar views and experiences? Or are your views and experiences very different? Are there any general trends among students in the group? Material adapted from White, R. V. (1994). Writing English for academic study series and Richards, R. (2001). Presenting critical thinking as a study strategy for UK higher education. Text 1 Academic achievement (pp. 157–161) You will have an opportunity to read these extracts from articles in the Scientific American during this stage. This will help you identify information that is relevant to the title of your essay. Task 2: Microskills: Planning The essay that you will prepare in this unit is on the following topic: Before you begin writing, you should spend some time: †¢ †¢ †¢thinking about exactly what the question is asking you to write about; generating ideas about the topic; this is called brainstorming; organizing your ideas into a plan. Reading & Writing As part of this preparation, you should read Texts 1-1, 1-2, and 1-3 to identify relevant information. You might also find that some of the ideas generated by the questionnaire and discussion in Task 1 will help you. 87 2. 1 Discuss what you think the key words are in the essay question: a) with a partner; b) with the whole group and your instructor. 2. 2 Spend five minutes writing down all the ideas you can think of that are relevant to the essay topic. Write notes, not complete sentences, so that your ideas flow. The order of your ideas is not important at this stage. Study tip Discuss the ideas you have written in Ex 2. 2: a) with a partner; b) with the whole group and your instructor. 2. 3 2. 4 Decide which of your ideas you are going to use in your essay. Writing down ideas quickly in note form is a very good way of unlocking your understanding. As long as you let your ideas flow and don’t try too hard, you will be surprised by what you already know. a) To help you, ask yourself these questions about your readers: †¢ What knowledge about academic study do they already have? †¢ What do you think they are interested in reading about in your essay? b) When you have decided which ideas you are going to include, organize them into a logical order in a plan. You may want to develop some of the ideas further and you may want to add a new idea. †¢ Group together ideas that seem to belong to the same paragraph. †¢ Think carefully about the order in which you will arrange the paragraphs. 2. 5 Discuss your plan with your partner. When you look at your partner’s plan, ask yourself: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ What is the overall idea in the essay? Does the plan follow a logical sequence of ideas? Are the ideas grouped effectively into paragraphs? Is the main idea clear in each paragraph? How many paragraphs will the essay contain? If the answers to these questions are not clear from looking at your partner’s plan, ask her/him to explain. Perhaps the plan needs to be changed or developed more. Note: Remember your plan is your guide; when you think more and start writing, you may need to change it, so keep evaluating it. 2. 6 Think about your partner’s comments on your plan and try to improve it. Write the first draft of your essay. At this stage, you should try to write between 400 and 600 words. Study tip  It is always helpful to get another opinion. This will not only help you improve your essay writing, but also get you used to the idea of modifying and redrafting that is so important in university study. 2. 7 English for academic study 88 Academic Achievement 2. 8 When you have finished your first draft, find another student who has also finished and exchange drafts. a) Read your partner’s draft carefully. Respond to the questions on the Peer Evaluation Sheet for Unit 1 on page 141 of this book. b) When commenting on your partner’s draft, remember that constructive criticism is more helpful when giving advice. The phrases below for making polite suggestions should help you to express your comments in a constructive manner. 1 Giving Peer Feedback PHRASES FOR MAKING POLITE SUGGESTIONS †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ It might be a good idea if you †¦ It might be a good idea to †¦ I agree with you, but you could †¦ Right, but you could †¦ This is/That’s good, but you could †¦ My advice would be to †¦ Do you think a better approach might be to †¦? Why don’t you †¦? How about this? Perhaps you could †¦ Maybe it would be better to †¦ I think it would be better if you †¦ Can I/May I make another suggestion? I would recommend that you †¦ Have you thought about (verb + ing) †¦? What about †¦? Remember: Peer feedback should be supportive and helpful—provide constructive criticism. Task 3: Microskills: Introductions 3. 1 Quickly write down what you think are the important points to include in an introduction to an academic essay. Reading & Writing 89 3. 2 Discuss your ideas and explain why you have chosen these points: a) with a partner; b) with the rest of the class. Study tip EAS Writing contains suggestions for individual work as well as pair, group, and class discussion. Make full use of this varied interaction to develop your ideas. 3. 3 Answer the following questions: a) What function or purpose does the introduction of an essay have? b) What should an introduction contain? 90 English for academic study Academic Achievement 3. 4 Look at the following sentences from an introduction to an essay on The problems of population growth. a) Decide which would be the most logical order of these sentences: 1 This growth has created many problems, especially in the capital cities. This essay will discuss the situation that has led to the development of these problems and describe some of them. The population of the world has been growing rapidly over the last thirty years. It will then suggest some possible solutions to the problems and evaluate their viability. The problems include housing, pollution, unemployment, and food and water shortages. b) Compare what you think with another student and also say why you decided on the order you chose. c) Together with your partner, try to identify an obvious pattern to the introduction and decide what the function of each sentence is. 3. 5 Read carefully the following five introductions for an essay entitled Academic success in one’s own culture and try to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. % % â€Å"(! ‘%, & ! % ! ‘ (! ) %& ‘, &( % ! ‘ #%† % & â€Å"% ( ‘ â€Å"! ! % ! ‘ â€Å"(!’% & ) %, &# ( ‘ â€Å"! &,&’ ‘ ‘ & #’ ‘† â€Å"(! ‘%, ( ‘ â€Å"! &,&’ & â€Å"% ! %† #% %, & â€Å"† ‘† & && , & â€Å"(‘ ‘ &( && ! % ! && & â€Å"! † ‘ â€Å"&’ #†%’ ! ‘ † & † ! , &'( ! ‘& ! % % &† % ) ! ‘ ‘†%& ‘† † ‘ ! ‘ & † ! ! ,†( ! !’ % † ‘ ! & ‘ ‘ ,†( &( ! ,†(% ) %, , % â€Å"&’ ! , % &'( ! ‘& ‘%, ‘† ! ‘ % † â€Å"* ) % &† &'( ! ‘& #% % ‘† &'( , ! & † & & && , * & % &† ‘†%& ‘ ‘ % â€Å"& , % ‘ ‘† &( && ! ! ! ) %, † , * & & ‘† ) &( && ! &† ‘, / ( &&0 ! ! & &† ‘, & ! â€Å"‘ â€Å"! , â€Å"% â€Å"! 1& â€Å"*! â€Å"! â€Å"% (‘ &† ‘ * † ,1& (%’ % â€Å"% â€Å"% â€Å"&’ ! & &'( ! ‘& ! ‘ %&’ &’ â€Å"(% &( && ‘ ‘ ‘ % $( % ‘† ! â€Å"† & â€Å"% ! !’ % % & â€Å"† ‘† &'( , ! ‘ & â€Å"! &’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘! â€Å"% &'( ! ‘ ‘† ! â€Å"† † â€Å"% â€Å"! ‘% (‘ ‘† &# & ‘ â€Å"( / &( && 0 !’ â€Å"! â€Å"(% ( ‘ â€Å"! &,&’ ! â€Å"! #’ † ‘% ‘ â€Å"! ( ‘(% * ,& ‘& â€Å"(% &'( ! ‘&1 &( && % â€Å"% ‘ & && , * & % &( && ! * ! ! ! ‘ ‘ % ‘ ‘†%& Reading & Writing 91 ( ‘ â€Å"! & â€Å"! † ‘ & ‘†%& â€Å"! ‘% (‘ ! ‘† ‘ ) â€Å"# ! ‘ † &† ‘, ( ‘ â€Å"% ‘ % ‘ # â€Å"# â€Å"( % – ‘ % #†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ ! ‘ ) â€Å"† , +’ ! ! ( ‘ â€Å"! ! % ‘ # â€Å"# , #%†) ‘ % ( ‘(% † ‘( & & && , * & % ‘ ( ‘ â€Å"! &,&’ ! % ‘ & &( && ! â€Å"(% â€Å"(! ‘%, ! , ‘†%& ‘† & % ‘ ! â€Å"(! & ‘ & ‘†# ! ‘ â€Å"! ‘& #†%’ ! # ! & â€Å"! ‘ † â€Å"* ! !’ ! ‘ ! ‘ † & ‘ #† , † ‘ â€Å") %! !’ ‘ &,&’ † ( ‘ â€Å"! &(##à ¢â‚¬ %’ &,&’ ! ‘ & ‘ %&’ *†( ‘† ! ‘ !! â€Å"% ! &* % ! ‘ & $( &’ â€Å"! !’ & $( &’ â€Å"!. * ‘ ! † ‘ &% % & &( && ! # !. & & â€Å"&’ # ! & * ! &* % ‘ ‘ ‘ & ‘† % ( ‘ %† % (! ) %& ‘, % & â€Å"† % &†! ‘† & , &† ! # ! & &† ‘, ‘ % &’ † ‘ ! % % & &'( ! ‘&1 (‘(% ‘ ,† ‘ ! % ! ‘ % & â€Å"† % % #%† , ‘* ! &( && ! ‘ % (‘(% ‘ % % ( ‘! â€Å"&’ † ‘ * ‘† ! ‘ % #% &’ â€Å"(& † # ! , ! % , ‘ & & (& ( † (# ‘ â€Å"! ! ‘& â€Å"! ‘ â€Å"! & % â€Å"† % â€Å"% ! , # â€Å"# ‘ ( ‘ ‘† #% # % â€Å"% # && ! & â€Å"† + & † % ! ) ‘† &'( , % â€Å"% ‘ , † ! ‘ & â€Å"† ! %’ & % ( &’ ! & ‘ & & ‘ ‘ ‘ , â€Å"% ‘ ‘ ! ! † &'( , ! &( ‘& & && , ! ‘ â€Å"! & â€Å"‘ ) ‘ â€Å"! ‘† &'( , ! ‘% & ‘† % (# ‘ !! † &( && ! â€Å"(% ( ‘(% Edited extracts from authentic student mater ial 3. 6 Imagine you are writing an essay on the following three topics. Write a suitable introduction for each one of them. (Note that you are not going to  write the whole essay. ) a) The education system in one’s own country. b) Traveling broadens the mind. Discuss. c) The rapid development of electronic communications may mean that people will have fewer social skills. Discuss. 3. 7 When you write the second draft of your essay What are the aims of academic study and how can they be achieved? make appropriate changes to the introduction, and other parts, according to your peer feedback session. Study tip Spend time on your introduction as it plays a crucial role in the essay. It should provide the reader with a clear indication of the main areas you are going to discuss. 92 English for academic study Academic Achievement 1 Unit summary In this unit you have reflected on your attitudes and approach to academic writing skills. You have thought about the different stages of the writing process and practiced planning, writing a first draft, and giving peer feedback. You have also looked at how to write effective introductions to your essays. 1 Match the words and phrases in the box to their definitions below. They are all procedures and techniques that form part of the writing process. drafting brainstorming peer feedback organizing ideas adopting a critical stance a) Generating and noting down initial ideas about a topic without ordering them b) Putting ideas together in a logical sequence c) Deciding on and expressing your viewpoint after examining and judging possible opinions d) The process of writing and putting your essay together. Most essays will have two or more drafts and will be revised and edited after each draft. e) Comments on your essay from other students 2 Complete the sentences below on writing an academic text using some of the words from Ex 1. a) When you are given a writing task, it is important to start by b) When you write the first draft you should. c) Before you hand in your final draft 3 After working on this unit, write down ways in your notebook of how you improved your knowledge of academic writing. Reading & Writing For web resources relevant to this unit, see: www. englishforacademicstudy. com/us/student/writing/links 93 Academic Achievement Text 1-1: The influence of class size on academic achievement 1 THE INFLUENCE OF CLASS SIZE ON ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT Education is a pillar of modern society and the subject of endless, often passionate arguments about how it can best be improved. In the U. S. , there is heated 5 debate following revelations that the country’s secondary school  students perform poorly relative to many Asian and European students. The news coincided with increasing concern over the nation’s urban and 10 lower-income suburban schools, too many of which are languishing at achievement levels far below those of middle-class and upper middle-class suburban schools. Of all the ideas for improving education, 15 few are as simple or attractive as reducing the number of pupils per teacher. With its uncomplicated appeal and lack of a big, powerful group of opponents, class-size reduction has lately developed from a sub20 ject of primarily academic interest to a key political issue. In the United States, more than 20 states and the federal government have adopted policies aimed at decreasing class sizes, and billions of dollars have been 25 spent or committed in the past few years. The demand for smaller classes is also growing in Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and even Japan, whose record of secondary school performance is the envy of 30 most other developed countries. The most obvious drawback to class-size reduction is the huge cost. It requires more teachers, more classrooms, and more classroom equipment and resources. These 35 expenses can dwarf the price of alternative schemes, such as testing teachers or increasing their pay as a means of attracting better candidates. The state of California, for example, has been spending more than 40 $1. 5 billion annually over the past several years to reduce class size to 20 or fewer for children in the four- to seven-year-old bracket. On the other hand, if smaller classes really do work, the economic benefits could be huge. 157 Reading & Writing Text 1-1: The influence of class size on academic achievement cont. 158 English for academic study smaller classes. Finally, some analysts believe that the very youngest age group in smaller classes are more likely to develop good study habits, higher self-esteem and possibly other beneficial cognitive traits— which may very well persist for years, even 95 after the students have gone back to more normal-sized classes. One way investigators have attempted to analyze the effects of class size is by reviewing existing data, such as records kept by the 100 U. S. Department of Education. These show that between 1969 and 1997, the average number of pupils per teacher in American public and private elementary schools fell from 25. 1 to 18. 3, a decline of greater than 105 27%. In secondary schools, the number also fell, from 19. 7 to 14. 0. Of concern, however, is the fact that despite these steep drops in pupil-teacher ratios, the improvement in academic performance was negligible. Data 110 from the National Assessment of Educational Progress—a series of tests that is the only United States-wide indicator of student knowledge in reading, mathematics, science WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS and other subjects—show no significant OF SMALLER CLASS SIZES? 115 gains. In some specific age and subject categories, such as 17-year-olds and science, Educators have a multitude of explanations performance actually decreased slightly. for why smaller class sizes might be expect70 ed to improve academic performance, although frequently the ideas are anecdotal. WHAT THE RECORD SHOWS Fewer students in the classroom seem to translate into less noise and disruptive However, these findings do not necessarily 75 behavior from students, which not only gives the teacher more time for class work but 120 mean that class size makes no difference. For a variety of reasons, most researchers, also more freedom to engage students creincluding the writers, pay little attention to atively—by, for example, dividing them into these figures (Figure 1). For instance, groups for specific projects. In addition, schools strive for more than just high test 80 smaller classes make it more likely that the teacher can give greater individual attention 125 scores; they also usually try to keep their dropout rate low. In fact, the dropout rate to struggling students. Smaller classes also for students aged 16–24 fell from 15 to 11 allow teachers to encourage more discuspercent over the period. Because dropouts sion, assign more writing, and closely examgenerally come from the low end of the 85 ine their students’ written work. In other words, much of the benefit of reduced class 130 achievement distribution, a reduction in dropout rate could be expected to pull down size may depend on whether the teachers average test scores in the upper grades. adapt their methods to take advantage of They would accrue not just from the benefits of a better-educated workforce but also from other sources, such as the avoided medical costs and sick days of a healthier, more informed populace. The surge of interest in smaller classes 50 has spurred fresh analyzes of the largest, most conclusive study to date, which took place in Tennessee in the late 1980s. At the same time, new data are flowing from 55 various initiatives, including the California program and a smaller one in Wisconsin. These results and analyzes are finally offering some tentative responses to the questions that researchers must answer before 60 legislators can come up with policies that make educational and economic sense: Do small classes in fact improve school achievement? If they do, at what age level do they accomplish the greatest good? What kind of 65 students gain the greatest benefit, and most importantly, how great is the benefit? 45 90 Academic Achievement Text 1-1: The influence of class size on academic achievement cont. 1 FIGURE 1: MILESTONE STUDIES IN CLASS SIZE PROJECT STATE STUDENTS PARTICIPATING APPROX. COST SMALL CLASS SIZE KEY FINDINGS STAR 1985–89 Tennessee 10,000 $12m 13–17 Significant performance benefit of 0. 2 standard deviation; larger gains for minority pupils Small performance gain of about 0. 05 to 0. 1 standard deviation; no greater gains for minorities Significant performance advantage of 0. 2 standard deviation; larger gain.