Learners' perceptions about listening comprehension problems, Dissertation

Learners' perceptions about listening comprehension problems, strategies and teachers' solutions to improve students' list - Dissertation Example Additionally, the study establishes that learners encounter a range of listening problems, which can be overcome through various techniques that help learners to utilize effective strategies in confronting them; nevertheless, this literature observes that learners’ perceptions of their listening problems may or may not be valid because several factors may interact to influence their perceptions. This literature makes a clear distinction between listening and comprehension processes with the former requiring no interpretation or reaction to the text while the latter requires the meaningful interactive activity to facilitate understanding of the text. In the context of this research, listening comprehension refers to the manner in which listeners discriminate and construe meaning from information that they receive through their auditory and visual clues to make sense of the communication process. This perspective of listening comprehension is in line with the Second language app roach, according to which listening to verbal language is both a vigorous and intricate process, requiring learners to pay particular attention to selected areas of audio, to make meaning, as well as relate what they hear to their mind frames. Hamouda (2012) argues that, despite its profound significance in foreign language learning, listening has long been ignored in foreign language acquisition, research, teaching, and assessment especially given the little focus on listening problems encountered by L2/F1 learners in listening to spoken English. This literature reports findings from a study that investigates the listening problems experienced by a group of first year English Major Students of Qassim University, which include accent, pronunciation, speed of speech, insufficient vocabulary, different accents of the speakers, poor concentration, anxiety, and bad quality of recording. Knowing the various difficulties learners encounter in listening comprehension is paramount in EFL te aching because it enables EFL teachers to guide learners in developing effective learning strategies that will eventually enhance their English listening competence. Listening plays a very significant role in communication because it enables listeners to take in new ideas and information from discourses; listening takes a lion’s share of the total time spent on communication and it is central to students’ educational development because it is the most frequently used language skill in the classroom. EFL learners have major problems in English listening comprehension because educators overemphasize English grammar, reading, and vocabulary competence areas at the expense of listening skills in EFL teaching courses. This literature suggests that adapting and improving listening materials, and improving teachers' classroom techniques on the part of the teachers, in addition to, improving English proficiency, and improving listening strategies on the side of the students ca n help alleviate the various listening comprehension problems. Graham (2006) explores the perceptions of English students between the age of 16 to18 concerning listening comprehension in French; in addition to that, this literature also examines the students’ viewpoints on the influences that result to either success or failure in listening comprehension assignments. According to this study, a substantial proportion of students in the higher levels of education rate their competence in

The spanish conquerors Essay Example for Free

The spanish conquerors Essay By the 16th century the Spanish empire was sending expeditions to expand their colonies. With the blessing of the Pope the Spaniards sent expeditions mainly to expand their economy in the guise of spreading the Catholic Faith. Countries like Cuba, Philippines, Mexico and etc. were colonized. The Spanish fleet landed at the Yucatan and Mexican Coasts and started conquering the land in the name of the King of Spain who they say was put in power by God himself. Mexico was named New Spain and was under their rule for three hundred years. There were revolutions by the indigenous groups but none was successful due to advance artilleries of the Spanish Conquerors. Any uprising was immediately crushed by the government. They were subjected to Catholicism, slavery, tributes and other Spanish customs. Churches, Schools and other institutions where built to further pacify the natives. Friars and Dominican priests were sent to educate them and to localize the Catholic Faith so that it would be easier for the natives to make the transition. The Spanish Regime introduced the â€Å"Suffering Christ† which taught the people to be patient and endure sufferings for those who do so will be rewarded in the end. Religion was used by the Spaniards as a tool for oppression and as a way of collecting taxes. In the structure of the Spanish government, religion is regarded as more powerful than the social justice therefore everyone is subjected to the Church making it the most power institution in society. The priest on the other hand was the most powerful individual in society. Tributes were collected from the natives. All its natural resources, mainly silver, wheat, sugar cane, and etc was exploited for the purpose of export to other countries. This caused unrest since there is a flow of wealth out of the country leaving Mexico impoverished. Land was confiscated from the natives and was transformed into Haciendas wherein they planted money crops having the natives as farmers. Only a portion of the land was rented to the natives and some are even held as slaves. The crops were exported through the Galleon Trade which supported the economy of Spain. Social class was also changed in favor of the conquerors. The highest among the class were the Peninsulares which are composed of pure blooded Spaniards who where born in Spain. Next to them are the Creoles which are pure blooded Spaniards born in the colonies of Spain. Then the Mestizo which is half Spanish individuals and then the natives which are regarded as higher than the blacks. The irony of it is that the natives are the ones who rightfully own the land but they are the lowest in the social strata. They were the ones subjected to taxes, land acquisitions of friars, polo y servicio which is a required service for the government for a span of six months in a year without pay, curfews and other laws that directly undermine their rights as citizens of their country. The natives were also forced to strictly follow the religious customs and totally abandon their pagan religion and demigods. They were baptized and those who refuse to do so are called as an outcast in society which they call as â€Å"excomunicado†. The excomunicados are stripped of what little right a citizen has and at time hunted by the church and imprisoned or exiled. There was also little social mobility since the social strata was based on race. If one is born a native, there is no hope from him to alleviate his strata and will therefore suffer the same faith that his ancestors did. It was impossible to move from one class to another unless you marry those of the upper class. However this case is only applicable to native women since the Peninsulares are very protective of their women. This posted a problem for the Native men since all mothers wanted their daughters to marry a Peninsular creating a shortage in wives for the native men. High positions in the government were also limited to the upper classes which are the Peninsulares. This led to social unrest since the Creoles wanted to hold office. This created resentment and dissatisfaction among the classes. Many factors affected the declaration of freedom from Spain and some of these are the problems mentioned above. First is the inequality brought about by the case system, the flow of wealth which directly benefits Spain, the inability of Spain to support the needs of its colonies since at that time there was also crisis in their own nation, and the influx of new ideas from Europe and America with regards to Liberalism and democracy. After three hundred years of being under the Spanish Rule freedom was given to the native.

Extreme Depictions of Feminism Essay example -- John Irving World Acco

Extreme Depictions of Feminism in John Irving's The World According to Garp and Catherine MacKinnon's Sexuality In the classroom, in popular culture and in suburbia, to call someone or something 'extreme' is enough to completely eliminate his, her or its credibility. 'Extreme' has become a derogatory comment. In this paper, I will be dealing with two extreme depictions of feminism; one from John Irving's novel The World According to Garp and the other Catherine MacKinnon's essay "Sexuality." It is important to keep in mind that some have argued that the extreme views of any movement for social change are important because they push boundaries and make other voices of the movement sound more reasonable (thus gaining more support). In my dealings both these works, I want to avoid falling into the defensive trap. While feminists are negatively portrayed in the Irving's novel as extreme, anti-male, and apocalyptic, I want to get past a knee-jerk dismissal of the novel and get at Irving's commentary on the feminist movement because I believe that it can provide valuable insights into feminism. Similarly, I will not automatically run away from MacKinnon's essay because her feminism is so radical. The rhetoric in which MacKinnon phrases her arguments is apocalyptic, and she serves here as my "real" example. What I find most important is that 'extreme' is not automatically a dismissal. I do not want to lose track of this position because it can work as a counter-text to some of my arguments within this paper. Both of these depictions are compelling, they seduce their reader, if only momentarily, into believing their portrait of feminism. I can only speak for myself in reporting reactions to these texts. I found "Sexuality" per... ...Womanhood," in Free Spirits, ed. Kate Mehuron, Gary Percesepe, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall) 1995, 339-351. . 53, Death and Desire. .493, Feminisms. . Norman Cohn, "Cosmos, Chaos and the World to Come: The Ancient Roots of Apocalyptic Faith" (New Haven: Yale University Press) 1993, 227. . Quinby, Lee. "Genealogical Feminism" in Anti-Apocalypse (London: University of Minneapolis Press) 1994, 33. .Gregory M. Herek. APsychological Heterosexism and Anti-Gay Violence: The Social Psychology of Bigotry and Bashing@ in the Men=s Lives anthology (Third Edition). Ed. Michael S, Kimmel and Michael A. Messner. (Boston: Allyn and Bacon) 1995, 341-353. .Frances Bartkowski.@Epistemic Drift in Foucault@ in the anthology Feminism & Foucault:Reflections on Resistance. Ed. Irene Diamond and Lee Quinby.(Boston: Northeastern University Press) 1988, 43-58

Job Involvement On Employee Satisfaction Health And Social Care Essay

This instance survey examines the relationship between occupation engagement and employee satisfaction with specific mention to medical physicians working at learning infirmaries of Riphah International University. Data was collected from 127 medical physicians. The consequences indicate that occupation engagement has a important impact of medical physicians working at learning infirmaries of Riphah International University. Schemes and recommendations are besides discussed. Field of Research: Human Resource ManagementIntroductionThe Hippocratic Oath requires that â€Å" physician shall continue the criterions of professionalism, be honest in all professional interaction and strive to describe doctors lacking in character or competency or prosecuting in fraud or misrepresentation, to allow entities † . Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh ( 2005 ) , states that professional work comprises of exercising of cognition, accomplishments and discretional judgements. These properties are developed through committedness of professionals to their professions, to their peculiar domain of work and the promotion of organic structure of cognition. Medical profession is regarded as one of the noblest professions in the universe. It is merely natural that professional organic structures every bit good as the general public expect the medical practicians to show the highest criterions of professionalism. They are besides expected to adhere to these high criterions even in the face of such hardship as unfavourable occupation environment, hapless conditions and low earning degrees. In order to prolong the trust of the people, the medical professionals must turn out their committedness to competency, unity, morality and selflessness. The best manner to beef up their professionalism is to use these properties in their day-to-day patterns ( O ‘ Neil, 2002 ) . However, the major alterations in demographic forms, composing of the employment sector, increasing consumerism coupled with worsening moral criterions are progressively exerting force per unit area on professionalism. The medical profession is no exclusion. In the current epoch of information exposure and rapid globalisation, no state can put its professionals, be they of any subject, in quarantine. The medical profession in Pakistan is besides being affected by the international tendencies, both positively and negatively. The degree of occupation satisfaction among physicians, particularly immature physicians, appears to be worsening, as they are frequently found kicking about their inappropriate on the job conditions, deficiency of calling development chances, unequal compensation and thorough working hours etc. The people, nevertheless, by and large remain apathetic to these factors and go on to believe that the physicians must demo and follow with model criterions of professionalism, simply on the footing of their occupation engagement and committedness. The profession is perceived to be a service to the ailing humanity and its members are required to lift above personal involvements while executing their responsibilities. Though a figure of surveies have been done to mensurate the extent of and the subscribers to occupation satisfaction among medical practicians, this survey intends to look into and mensurate the impact of occupation engagement on the degree of occupation satisfaction. In order to happen the direct impact of occupation engagement, no other subscribers to occupation satisfaction have been included in the survey. The survey is based on the informations collected from the medical physicians functioning at the learning infirmaries of Riphah International University ( RIU ) , Islamabad viz. Pakistan Railway Hospital ( PRH ) , Rawalpindi, Islamic International Medical Complex ( IIMC ) , Islamabad and Islamic International Dental Complex ( IIDC ) Islamabad. The sample is a blend of physicians of assorted subjects like medical specialty, surgery and dental medicine.Problem StatementRIU is actively prosecuting the policy of bettering the health care substructure and criterions of patient attention services at its instruction infirmaries. The quality of the physicians and their professionalism at the occupation, is one of the major contributory factor for accomplishing the targeted high criterions. The professionalism of physicians mostly stems from the overall occupation environment in general and their degree of occupation satisfaction in peculiar. It is by and large believed that occupation engage ment has a positive correlativity with occupation satisfaction. In position of the RIU ‘s mission, to advance and pattern Islamic moralss and values in all domains of its activities, the physicians functioning at its instruction infirmaries are expected to demo greater committedness to the profession and derive satisfaction from dedication to and engagement with their occupation. However, no scientific survey has been done to mensurate this peculiar facet at any of the RIU ‘s instruction infirmaries to day of the month.Research QuestionDoes occupation engagement impact the degree of occupation satisfaction of the medical physicians functioning at the learning infirmaries of RIU? If so, what extent of this impact and what is the nature of this impact, positive or negative?Scope of the survey:The survey would be transverse sectional, primary informations based. All the physicians, from House Officers to Consultants/ Professors of all the three instruction infirmaries will be included in the survey.Survey Variables:The job statement intends to prove the impact of occupation engagement ( independent variable ) on occupation satisfaction ( dependent variable ) . Therefore, the survey would be directed towards mensurating the causal result between these two variables. Job engagement is defined as â€Å" the grade of psychological designation an employee has with his/her function in the workplace † ( Kannungo, 1982 ; Robinowitz and Hall, 1977 ) . Job satisfaction is defined as â€Å" an employee ‘s satisfaction with the feelings of success achieved from the occupation, the enjoyment of executing the responsibilities of the occupation and the degree of liberty associated with the occupation. ( Yilmaz, 2002 )Literature reappraisalThe construct of occupation engagement was foremost introduced by Lodahl and Kejiner ( 1965 ) . They related the occupation engagement to the psychological designation of an person with the work or importance of work in the person ‘s self image. It has a direct correlativity with occupation satisfaction and besides influences the work public presentation, sense of accomplishment and unexplained absenteeism. ( Robinowittz and Hall, 1977 ) . However, there is a important difference in the degree and extent of occupation engagement in different types of work ( Tang, 2000 ) Job satisfaction is one of the most researched constructs. It is regarded as cardinal to work and organisational psychological science. It serves as a go-between for making relationship between working conditions, on the one manus, and individual/organizational result on the other. ( Dormann and Zapf, 2001 ) It is by and large believed that physicians are progressively demoing dissatisfaction with their occupations. A cross sectional survey carried out in the USA, in 1986 and 1997, found a worsening tendency in the satisfaction degree among general internists and household practicians of Massachusetts ( Murray. et Al. 2001 ) . Other surveies besides indicate that a stress degree of physicians has dramatically increased during the last twosome of decennaries. Though the physicians have achieved noticeable success in footings of calling and fundss, they frequently remain over worked and stressed. Consequently, the defeat, choler and restlessness are taking many of them to lose sight of their calling ends and personal aspirations. Another survey concludes that the work load, unsuitable working hours and deficiency of inducements are the major subscribers to the dissatisfaction of public wellness attention doctors in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia ( Kalantan, et.al. 1999 ) . A survey, based on the informations acquired at the learning infirmary of Bahawalpur, concluded that â€Å" Most of the physicians in all ranks and with different makings were found non satisfied with their occupations due to miss of proper service construction and low wages † ( Ghazali et al, 2000 ) . There are besides other studies of worsening calling satisfaction due to worsening professional liberty ( Toedtm, 2001 ) .A survey conducted among Korean doctors besides concluded that overall occupation satisfaction of doctors was highly low ( Lee et al, 2008 ) . In order to understand the kineticss of occupation engagement and occupation satisfaction, the underlying contributing factors need to be looked at before determining the impact of one on the other. Previous surveies have found that factors like income, relationships, liberty, pattern environment and the market environment are of import spheres that influence physician satisfaction ( Mello et al, 2004 ) . Job engagement is the manner a individual looks at his occupation as a relationship with the working environment and the occupation itself. How occupation involvement generates feelings of disaffection of intent, disaffection in the organisation or feeling of separation between life and occupation as perceived by an employee. This creates co-relation between occupation engagement and work disaffection ( Rabinowitz and Hall, 1981 ) . Hellriegel and Slocum ( 2004 ) have argued that since satisfaction is a determiner of the work experience, it follows that high degrees of occupation dissatisfaction are indexs of deeper organisational jobs. Job dissatisfaction is strongly linked to absenteeism, turnover, and physical and mental wellness jobs. It can be safely concluded that occupation satisfaction has a strong relationship with organisational committedness. The workers who are attracted by the occupation and organisation turn out to be most motivated. This is because their organisational committedness and occupation engagement is of a really high degree. They identify with and care about their occupations. Dissatisfaction among the medical professional is non a recent phenomenon. Excessive work burden, demand on clip and bureaucratic working environment had been the traditional thorns taking to low degree of occupation satisfaction among the physicians ( Lee et al.,2008 ) . More countries of dissatisfaction have been identified by the recent surveies which relate to decreased professional liberty over clinical determinations and decreased clip per patient. ( Murray et al. , 2001 ) . Measuring the degree of occupation satisfaction among the medical professional strictly on the footing of occupation engagement may supply a new dimension to the findings of the old surveies. The occupation engagement of the medical practicians, in this survey, is being looked at from the point of position of committedness to the profession due to its aristocracy and service to the humanity instead than due to the factors traditionally identified with this construct. MethodSampleThe survey covered all the physicians from House Officers to Consultants/Professors functioning in the three instruction infirmaries ( PRH, IIMC, IIDC ) of RIU ( module members non involved in clinical pattern are excluded ) .MeasureThe instrument, in the signifier of a questionnaire, used for probe has been adopted as follows Job engagement was measured by 9 points taken from occupation involvement graduated table of J.K.White and R.A.Ruh ( 1973 ) . Each point was measured on a five point Linkert graduated table where value of 1 corresponded to â€Å" Strongly Disagree † and value of 5 corresponded to â€Å" Strongly Agree † . Mean of the tonss obtained on each of the 9 points was calculated to bring forth a individual mark for occupation engagement. Job satisfaction was measured by 19 points taken from Cammann, Fichman and Klesh ( 1979 ) . Each point was measured on five point Linkert graduated table where value of 1 corresponded to â€Å" Strongly Disagree † and value of 5 corresponded to â€Å" Strongly Agree † . The tonss obtained on each of the 19 points were converted into mean to bring forth individual mark for occupation satisfaction. The concluding version of this questionnaire consisted of 28 inquiries utilizing five point Linkert Scale and six demographic facets.ProcedureDatas were collected, on site, over a period of 10 yearss from the pre determined sample. Purpose of the survey and the questionnaires were discussed with the decision makers of the infirmaries. One officer at every infirmary, punctually briefed about the assorted facets of the questionnaire, was nominated to personally administer and subsequently roll up the questionnaires from the respondent. A sum of 140 questionnaires were distributed among the physicians at three infirmaries of which 127 completed questionnaires were received back. Therefore, the respondents represent 90.71 % of the selected population which is a reasonably high degree of response. ( Note: Non response from a few is chiefly attributed to the physicians being on leave during the period of probe )ConsequencesTable 01: Correlation MatrixAJob SatisfactionEmployee Involvement0.43** **p a†°Ã‚ ¤ 0.01, n =127Table 02: Arrested developments AnalysisIndependent VariableBetat-valueP-valueJob Involvement 0.43 5.43 0.000 Ns =127 R Square = 0.19 ; Adjusted R Square = 0.18 ; F =29.48 ; Significance F = .000 ; Dependent Variable = Job SatisfactionFINDINGS & A ; DISCUSSIONThe correlativity analysis indicate a important relationship of 0.43** ( **p & lt ; 0.01 ) . Thus it supports hypothesis of survey that the physicians ‘ occupation satisfaction at learning infirmaries of RIU depends to good extent upon their occupation engagement. The arrested development analysis indicate that merely 19 % discrepancy in the dependant variable is explained by the independent variable. This low value indicates that there are other variables which contribute towards occupation satisfaction of physicians working at learning infirmaries of RIU. The value and T values besides show a important value which proves the hypothesis of current survey. The consequences of this survey are consistent with consequences obtained in survey conducted by Huselid & A ; Becker ( 1998 ) The concerned directors and physicians at these infirmaries were asked to show their sentiment about importance of occupation engagement at their work topographic point. After elaborate treatment the ground for this important relationship is due to the fact that these infirmaries are established with a mission to pattern ethical values, focused more on a service for community instead than fiscal additions. The physicians who join these infirmaries largely come with a mission aligned with organisational aims. Hence, apart from other factors, occupation engagement is one of the key factors which make them satisfied with their occupation. The survey contributes towards explicating importance of employee engagement in occupation satisfaction. The findings besides suggested that direction might be able to increase the degree of satisfaction with increasing the interactions with physicians in staff meetings. Doctors could be interviewed to find their perceptual experiences of direction ‘s ability to turn to these issues. Most of the Pakistani organisations do non recognize the importance of occupation engagement which as per the present survey is one of the cardinal contributing factors towards occupation satisfaction.DecisionThe primary aim of this research was to analyze the impact of occupation engagement on the degree of occupation satisfaction of physicians functioning at the learning infirmaries of RIU. This survey has through empirical observation demonstrated that occupation engagement has a positive relationship with the degree of occupation satisfaction among the selected sample of physicians. Therefore, RIU may see following the policies which may further higher degrees of occupation engagement. This may besides be an effectual scheme to increase the degree of occupation engagement among the physicians and, in return, harvest the benefits of the higher efficiency and greater patient satisfaction. More investing in conditions that are contributing to increasing the occupation engagement would accomplish higher degree of occupation satisfaction, finally taking to increased patient satisfaction and organisational growing.Restrictions of the StudyIt is of import to observe that this survey is based on preset population comprising of the physicians functioning at the three learning infirmaries of RIU. As these infirmaries are being managed by the same authorization i.e. RIU, the physicians are working under the same policies and, more or less, in the similar working environment. This may restrict the generalizability of the findings to other scenes and population. Thus, farther research should try to retroflex and widen these findings to different samples in different organisational scene.

Jack Kerouac’s On The Road

The ideas presented in the novel about life, beliefs, different feelings, and the kind of harassers depicted shaped America's youth culture for decades and the book became a sort of icon for this generation. On the Road provoked a change in the consciousness of the country. As Kerouac friend, William Burroughs, wrote, â€Å"It sold a trillion Levies, a million espresso coffee machines, and also sent countless kids on the road† (Change, 2007). Moreover, Kerouac book was also used as a gulled for several people In their road trips.In this essay, I will try to examine the way in which On the Road gives voice to the new social attitude which emerged after the publication of the book and it is known as the ‘beat' generation. The novel seems to promote a series of revolutionary values against the official conventions of America. In this way, traditional family values of responsibility, morality, religious ideas and working hard -as the family portrayed in Capote's In Cold Bloo d- are oppositely represented in the novel. Dean Mortality refuses to assume the social responsibilities that society imposes upon him.He Is with two women at the same time, so he Is not faithful to his wife. Moreover, he leaves his wife and children and goes on the road without worrying about their welfare. He Is very Irresponsible and because of him many people suffer. An example to Illustrate this would be noon have absolutely no regard for anybody but yourself and you damned kicks†¦ † (Kerouac, 1972: 182). Besides, both Dean and Sal are always short of money but they do not care about it and go on the road anyway. They do not have a permanent Job or work hard to keep the Jobs they get in some cities they arrive.Although, Sal writes book and tries to sell them, he is always has to ask her generous aunt to send him money. Then, both Dean and Sal have another philosophy of live, they want to have fun without responsibility and they do not care about American rotational v alues. Therefore, the novel presents a detachment from the American conventional society. This detachment from American traditional values created a new social attitude, depicted in Kerouac novel, which showed restlessness and dissatisfaction.The These people were idealistic and yearn for something more than the conformity of a prosperous society, which had became flourishing after the World War II to turn into one of the most powerful countries in the world. In the novel we can see how the characters go on the road because they are not satisfied with their lives and desire to get freedom. In that way, we can see the road as an open path which gives freedom as well as thrill of movement. With these Journeys, the characters also reflect the Joy of being young and alive, with no money in their pockets but no obligation either.A part from traveling, characters seem to vindicate the use of drugs, drink, sex, and music since these are the most characteristic things of their trips. These also help them in the search of the release they are looking for. Moreover, crossing the country in that way was only possible because at that time there were many motorways due to the prosperity of the country and cars began to e accessible for more people. In the novel, we can see how the car represents the consumer society of the time and how the characters do not fit into it.For instance, Sal made his first travel to the West by hitchhiking because he does not have money. Later, in another travel, Dean bought a new car -although he does it with all the money he had saved, leaving his wife without anything. This is something very important because for them the car is their dream of freedom. They can go wherever they want without depending on anybody, that is, without hitchhiking. However, when Dean picks up Sal for the first time with his new car, Sal realizes that it was already broken: â€Å"The radio was not working.It was a brand-new car bought five days ago, and already it was broken† (Kerouac, 1972: 111). In addition, we can also see this consumption in other aspects such as when Sal goes to the opera and wears a friend's suit. He feels on the top of the world (Kerouac, 1972: 51). Another aspect that we can see in the novel is that Dean and Sal go on the road since they yearn for new experiences which can contribute to their personal development as individuals. For them, life is a process and they want to find its meaning.They do not stop moving because they feel the necessity to do so. Several examples to illustrate this can be â€Å"we were performing our one and noble function of the time, move† (Kerouac, 1972: 127); â€Å"the road must eventually lead to the whole world† (Kerouac, 1972: 216). Traveling on the road also gives the characters self- knowledge and even maturity. Then, moving seems to be a necessary tactic for survival. This is connected with the fact that the real Journeys turn to be inward journeys for each charac ter. This is better seen in Sal Paradise.He seems to be searching for something since his Journeys are like quest for values or beliefs. He mess to get it while he is on the move, but the moment he stops, he wants to come back. He does not find what he is looking for. For instance, the first time he arrives San Francisco, after having wished going to the west a lot, he feels lonely and he wants to come back. He does not find the ‘paradise' he was looking for and so he has to keep moving. Society. He feels lonely, restless and depressed. He is also afraid of falling in love: â€Å"a girl like that scares me† (Kerouac, 1972: 214).He described himself as â€Å"l like too many things and get all confused and hung-up running from one falling star to another till I drop† (Kerouac, 1972: 120). It seems that Sal is disappointed about America. When he arrives at San Francisco he realizes that the continent is not big any more, there is a limit: â€Å"we can't go any fart her 'cause there anti no more land† (Kerouac, 1972: 161). Or when he tries to sit on the banks of the Mississippi River he cannot because the access is blocked with a fence (Kerouac, 1972: 141).The freedom and well-being he is looking for at first is represented by the West, which is also a symbol for future, prosperity and renovation. It is also associated with the traditional idea of the American Dream. On the other hand, the East is considered old, stagnant, intellectual, and he does not want to belong to that. The more Sal is reaching west, the best he feels: † it was getting better as I got deeper into Iowa† (Kerouac, 1972: 20). Therefore, there are two sides of everything: American West which can either fill the spirit and be the epitome of loneliness.It all depends on his emotional state. This view changed as long as Sal has grown as a character. He learns that East is also sweet (Kerouac, 1972: 222) and that there is wilderness in the East too. He becomes s trong, confident and in love. On the contrary, we cannot see this self-development in Dean and maybe that is the season why towards the end of the novel there is a detachment between both characters. Their positions have changed. Dean is incoherent and lost. However, the character of Dean Mortality became a sort of hero for this generation.Dean's arrival put everything into motion. He is full of energy, very masculine; he has impulsive passion; he represents what Sal is not. He symbolizes the pioneering instinct, the spirit of the west, idea of moving west to get freedom. So he is the personification of Gal's dream of the west. At the beginning he is seen as a sort of prophet (Kerouac, 1972: 38) but this is broken towards the end. As I said before, he is very irresponsible, even a con-man and almost a delinquent as he stole cars Just for fan.Victor, the Mexican man, is the first man to refuse Dean's attempt to follow him onto the road. His moral obligations to his wife and child are clear to him. He represents the morality Sal is in search of. Therefore, although the novel seems to celebrate the character of Dean Mortality, he is a questioned hero. To conclude, I have been talking about how Jack Kerouac On the Road inspired a new cultural phenomenon, which was known as the ‘beat' generation. I have pointed UT what I think the most relevant evidences are to show the way the book presents this new social attitude.

The Comparison of Montessori Education and a Regular Mathematics Program in Kindergarten Classroom

The Comparison of Montessori Education and a Regular Mathematics Program in Kindergarten Classroom Background According to Gardener’s theory of multiple intelligences, children can acquire knowledge through different ways because they have different capabilities and competences. It is apparent that every student has special skills and learning needs.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Comparison of Montessori Education and a Regular Mathematics Program in Kindergarten Classroom specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, teachers often fail to identify the capabilities of their students in part because of the conventional teaching methods that they use in kindergarten classrooms. The success of most education programs is attributed to the application of modern teaching methods. The teaching methods commonly used in well-organized education programs include project work, self-directed learning, literature-based reading, and problem-based curriculum. Montessori education system emphasizes the importan ce of a well-prepared learning environment since it enhances high performance among students.  Piaget (1970, p. 30) asserts that the development of intelligence and acquisition of knowledge is a continuous process. The facets of intelligence include analytical, creativity, and practical skills. The primary role of intelligence is to facilitate understanding and invention. Successful learning is correlated with the incessant development of primary sensory motor actions among children. Thus, the more â€Å"practice a child gets with sensorial activities the higher a child will perform abstract mental operations†. Young learners should be guided to generate ideas and to discover mathematical relations on their own rather than forcing them to accept other’s thoughts. Children should gain experience in using mathematical skills through regular practice. This helps them to develop deductive reasoning and neurological thinking, which is essential for their academic progress . According to Nicholl (1998, p. 37), teaching efforts should focus on knowledge acquisition. An effective teaching strategy should facilitate the development of the learner’s character, emotional maturity, and wisdom. Nonetheless, the teaching methodologies used in most schools are ineffective because majority of students lack essential skills such as analytical ability and creativity, as well as, flexibility in thought. In this regard, teachers should help their students to develop interpersonal intelligence. This will enable students to assess their weaknesses and strengths.  Montessori (1995, pp. 5-12) asserts that infancy is the most important stage in a child’s development and learning because their interest to learn is at its peak. Consequently, educators must utilize the appropriate methodologies to maximize learning at the infancy stage.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OF F Learn More It is against this backdrop that the Montessori teaching methodology focuses on developing young learner’s sensorial and motor skills during their early years. A Montessori teacher must focus on continuous improvement of their professional skills in order to facilitate better learning. Teachers who are responsible for teaching above average students are aware of the fact that different strategies help them to meet the diverse needs of their students. Nonetheless, the statistics on students’ performance in mathematics indicate that a lot of improvement is still needed in teaching the subject. The schools in the United States have been unable to improve the math skills of their students. Research indicates that the performance in math in K-12 classes in the US is lower than in other developed countries. Hence, there is a need to improve performance through improved teaching methods. The foregoing paragraphs highlight the weaknesses of the con ventional teaching methods that are used in most schools. Additionally, they highlight the importance of using the most appropriate teaching methodology in order to enhance learning, especially, in math classes. Most educators believe that the Montessori education system can help students to acquire advanced mathematical skills at the kindergarten level. Consequently, the goal of this study is to gather evidence concerning the positive and negative aspects of using the Montessori system to teach mathematics in kindergarten. Concisely, the study will compare the Montessori system with the conventional education system in order to identify the model that best suits learner’s needs. Research Question The main question in this study is: what are the advantages and disadvantages of adopting Montessori education as a method of teaching mathematics in a kindergarten? In answering this question, the study will attempt to explain how the Montessori system facilitates learning among ch ildren. Furthermore, it will compare the strengths and the weaknesses of the Montessori system with a regular mathematics program in order to determine the extent to which it benefits students. The Essence of this Action Research It is a well-known fact that students have varying learning needs, as well as, ability to learn. Students can differ significantly in terms of their approach to learning. The conventional teaching methods that are commonly used in kindergartens often mask teachers’ ability to identify their students’ unique learning needs and abilities.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Comparison of Montessori Education and a Regular Mathematics Program in Kindergarten Classroom specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Consequently, the needs of some students are hardly met in regular mathematics programs. In this regard, it is necessary to identify an improved teaching method that will en able teachers to meet the learning needs of all students in their classrooms. This can be achieved through action research that evaluates the merits and the demerits of existing teaching methodologies in order to identify the best. Thus, this study seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of the Montessori education system as an alternative method of teaching mathematics in kindergarten. This will involve comparing the strengths and the weaknesses of the Montessori system with those of regular mathematics programs. The Setting and the Participants The selected location for the study is a privately owned Catholic school in Campbell, California. The objective of the school is to model future leaders of the world. The school provides complete education that not only develops the mind of the learners, but also their character. It offers a comprehensive content of art-based curriculum that enables students to engage in critical thinking, discovery of their world, and to overcome the challenge s they face in life. The school’s teaching program develops the students’ character alongside their academic development. The objective of this strategy is to produce complete scholars who are able to seek the truth and to utilize it in their everyday lives. The learning program used in the school promotes intellectual, emotional, and physical development of students in all grades. In this regard, the program provides the best setting for implementing the Montessori education system, which is the focus of this study. The participants were drawn from a class that consists of 12-year-old students. The students are mainly from middle and upper-middle class families. Hence, most of them are from families with relatively stable financial backgrounds. However, nearly 5% of the families depend on financial aid. Procedure for Data Collection and Analysis Data will be collected from the following sources in order to answer the research question. First, I will analyze the result s of formative assessments and evaluations such as students’ homework. This is an important source of data because it can shed light on the performance of students. Second, I will use observations in order to monitor students’ progress with learning in class.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Observation is an important data collection method since Montessori education requires little interference with students’ learning activities. The data collected through observation will be used to compare the effectiveness of Montessori education with traditional mathematics programs. Third, I will implement scoring rubrics in order to measure students’ performance. Concisely, it will be used to evaluate students’ ability to acquire mathematical skills, and the effectiveness of the Montessori methodology.  Fourth, student focus group discussions will be used to collect data. These discussions will enable me to collect data concerning the students’ knowledge, opinions and learning experiences. Additionally, I will be able to identify the teaching methods that children are familiar with and the challenges that they face. This will help me to evaluate the effectiveness of my teaching interventions. I will also be able to get new teaching ideas from the te achers who will participate in the discussions. Finally, teaching journals will be used to collect data concerning my experiences in class in order to improve my instruction methods and strategies. I will be evaluating the strengths and weakness that will be identified in lessons and teaching techniques on a weekly basis. I will use videotaping to identify my weaknesses and strengths during lessons. Moreover, my notes will be peer-reviewed by other teachers in order to identify mistakes. References Gubbins, J., Emerick, L., Delcourt, M., Newman, J., Imbeau, M. (1995). Research Related to the Enrichment Triad Model. Storrs: University of Connecticut. Montessori, M. (1995). Absorbent Mind. New York: Henry Holt and Company. Nicholl, M. (1998). Accelerated Learning for the 21st Century. New York: Dell Publishing. Piaget, J. (1970). Science of Education and the Psychology of teh Child. New York: Orion Press. Sternberg, R., Grigorenko, E., Ferrari, M. (2004). Giftedness and Expertise. S torrs: University of Connecticut. Watters, J. (2010). Career Decision Making among Gifted Students: the Mediation of Teachers. Gifted Child Quarterly, 53(3), 222-238.

buy custom Challenges Facing America in the 19th Century essay

buy custom Challenges Facing America in the 19th Century essay The 19th century (1801-1900) was an era in history that showed the collapse of many empires like Portuguese, Spanish, Chinese and Holy Roman. This opportunity gave chance to the United States, British Empire, to impel military conflicts and major advances in science and exploration. It is important to note that after the fall of the French Empire and its followers during the Napoleonic Wars, the British Empire was the worlds leading power, it controlled almost one quarter of worlds people and over one fifth of the land area. This promoted trade and fight against uncontrolled piracy. 19th century is period that led to invention and discoveries, with major expansion in the fields of electricity, mathematics, chemistry, biology and other metallurgy that later became the foundation of technological advances in the following centuries. Industrial revolution began in this era where even young children were employed in factories and mines (David Heidler, 19). There were major development in medicine and the general understanding of human being anatomy and major developments on disease prevention. It led to worlds rapid growth in population especially in the western world. It is believed that in the United States the population doubled. During this period there was introduction of railroads that gave major developmentin land transportation, it changed peoples lives. This period led to liberalization (Eric, 30). Many theorists suggest that slavery reduced, Britain was forced to make Barbary pirates to stop their practice of kidnapping and enslaving Europeans. In 13th Amendment that followed after United States civil war led to abolishing of slavery in 1865. Brazil abolished slavery in 1888 and Britain abolished in 1834 (Allen, 8). In North America there was a remarkable extensive formation of new establishment, where largest cities were founded at some point in the century. In 19th century it is believed that nearly 70 million people left Europe. The century also experienced quick formation, development and codification of various sport activities especially in United States. Various sports associations were formed; football association, rugby union, and baseball. Britain led to spread of cricket around the world (Mark, 25). In 19th century there was a Christian religious revival movement called Second Great Awakening in the United States that articulated Arminian theology that expected each and every person to be saved through revivals. This led to formation of many new denominations. Many people who were converted believed that the Awakening was supposed to create new millennial age (David Heidler, 4). It is also important to state that in 1839 to 1860 there was the trail of tears that led to removal and movement of Native American nations from southeastern region that forms the current United States. This process was described as genocide, because many Native Americans suffered due to great exposure, disease and starvation while they were travelling (Allan, 24). In 1846 to 1848 there was a war between United States and Mexico (Mexican War), American forces invaded and captured New Mexico, California, and other parts that are considered northern Mexico. In 1858 Mathew Calbraith who was the commodore of the U.S. Navy forced the opening of Japan to the West. He also had several victorious engagements with the British vessels (Eric, 11). John Quincy Adams proposed use of modern technology and development of education but he received a lot of friction from his enemies from Congress, he lost his second term, becoming the first president to lose only a single term since the period of his father. Theorists suggest that he lacked political ability, popularity and he met politicians who undercut him. In 1868 U.S congress gave assurance to its Citizens the right to expatriate. This allows the United States citizens to relinquish federal nationality in order to be allowed to reclaim Constitutional rights as defined by the 14th Amendment ((David Heidler, 9). Buy custom Challenges Facing America in the 19th Century essay

The Antacid Rocket Experiment

The Antacid Rocket Experiment If your child has tried the Naked Egg Experiment, he has seen how the chemical reaction between calcium carbonate and vinegar can remove an eggshell. If he’s tried The Exploding Sandwich Bag Experiment, then he knows a little bit about acid-base reactions. Now he can harness that reaction create a flying object in this Antacid Rocket Experiment. With some open space outdoors and a little caution your child can send a homemade rocket into the air by the power of a fizzy reaction. Note: The Antacid Rocket Experiment used to be called the Film Canister Rockets, but with digital cameras taking over the market, it’s become harder and harder to find empty film canisters. If you can film canisters, that’s great, but this experiment recommends you use mini MM tubular containers or clean, empty glue stick containers instead. What Your Child Will Learn (or Practice): Scientific inquiryObserving chemical reactionsThe Scientific Method Materials Needed: Mini MMs tube, a clean used-up glue stick container or a film canisterHeavy paper/card stockTapeMarkersScissorsBaking sodaVinegarTissuesAntacid tablets (Alka-Seltzer or a generic brand)Soda (optional) Tissues are not a necessity for this experiment, but using tissue can help to delay the chemical reaction long enough to give your child some time to get out of the way. Make Baking Soda and Vinegar Rockets Have your child sketch out and decorate a small rocket on a piece of heavy paper. Ask her to cut out the rocket and set it to the side.Help your child cut the â€Å"hinge† holding the cover to the MMs tube so it comes on and off. This will be the bottom of the rocket.Give her another piece of heavy paper and have her roll it around the tube, making sure the bottom of the rocket is easily accessible. Then, have her tape it tightly in place. (She may need to cut the paper to make it fit better).Glue the rocket she drew and cut out to the front of the tube to make the whole thing look more like a real rocket.Move outside to a clear, open area and open the containerFill it one-quarter full with vinegar.Wrap 1 teaspoon of baking soda in small piece of tissue.Warning: You must act quickly in this step! Stuff the folded tissue in the tube, snap it shut and stand it up (with the lid down) on the ground. Move away!Watch the rocket pop right up into the air after the tissue dissolves in the vinegar. Make an Antacid Rocket Use the same rocket from the baking soda and vinegar experiment, making sure to clean it thoroughly first.Take off the cover and put an antacid tablet into the tube. You may have to break it into pieces to get it all to fit. You can use generic antacid tablets but Alka-Seltzer works better than generic brands.Add a teaspoon of water to the tube, snap on the cover and put the rocket - lid down - on the ground.Watch what happens once the water dissolves the antacid tablet. What’s Going On Both rockets are working under the same principle. A baking soda and vinegar mixture and the water and antacid combination create an acid-base chemical reaction that releases carbon dioxide gas. The gas fills the tube and the the air pressure builds to a point where it is too great to be contained. That’s when the lid pops off and the rocket flies up into the air. Extend the Learning Experiment with different types of paper and how much baking soda and vinegar you use. It may help make the rocket fly higher, faster, or even be coordinated to a countdown.Ask your child compare how the different rockets worked. Which worked better?Substitute soda for water in the antacid rocket and see if it works differently.

Ethics Final Paper Term Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethics Final - Term Paper Example However, the challenge of the project lies with its side effects to the locals and to the environment. The keystone pipeline project entails transportation of oil from the extraction site to the storage facilities, hence passing through many regions before reaching final destination. Therefore, it has many disadvantages based on its environmental degradation in the areas. Similarly, the process of extracting oils is very difficult and risky to the locals in cases measures are not placed to curb any uncertainty that may arise (Figueiredo and Brent 8). Hence, many factors require consideration before embarking on the project. Accommodating different players involved will be crucial in the management of the project and reducing the negative impacts associated with it. One of the key people for the successful implementation of this project are engineers who have different function. One of the roles of engineers is to conduct an environmental assessment to evaluate all the claims that might hinder the implementation of the project (Figueiredo and Brent 8). It is true that oil pipelines are hazardous, especially when they break and leak into the environment. Their impacts are always immense and make people oppose them whenever they hear about their construction. Therefore, engineers must conduct an environmental assessment to determine risk and mitigation measures. Secondly, engineers have a role of informing the community where the pipeline is to be constructed on the benefits of the projects. They also need to know the risk involved and their duties for the success of the project (Figueiredo and Brent 8). This will be essential since it will give the locals an opportunity to contribute and participate in the construction of the projects. Creating awareness to the surrounding communities is critical to the implementation of any project since it becomes inclusive, and people have to give

Organizational Behavior Terminology and Concepts Paper Essay

Organizational Behavior Terminology and Concepts Paper - Essay Example Organizational behavior plays an important role in achieving the company’s goal. Therefore, positive attitude and behavior towards the company’s goal should be present throughout the organizational hierarchy; regardless of employees’ authoritative power within the company. According to Sweringa and Wierdsma (1992), â€Å"the more complex the rules and less transparent their formation, the harder they are to change.†1 This statement applies to organizational behavior. Meaning, the older the organization exists, the harder it is to change employees’ behavior and rules within the work place. Whenever the management is planning to change the company rules, it is more efficient to change the organizational behavior first. Organizational culture refers to a collective attitudes, experiences, beliefs and values shared by group of people within an organization. Organizational values could develop into an organizational norm, guidelines or expectations that are prescribe as an appropriate and accepted behavior of employees in a specific situation.2 Culture pertains to a pattern of beliefs and expectations shared by the members of an organization. Culture produces norms in shaping the behavior of both individuals and groups within an organization. It is usually long-term, strategic, and difficult to change because it is rooted in beliefs and values. Organizational culture represents a shared sense of the way employees in which organization do as a critical factor in guiding day-to-day behavior and shaping a future course of action. Organizational culture is classified as: strong culture or weak culture. Strong culture exists when employees would immediately do things because they believe that it is the right thing to do. Weak culture is present when there is a little misalignment in the organizational values that needs extra control by using an extensive procedures and bureaucracy. Diversity includes the differences in religion, age, sexual

Discussion Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 32

Discussion - Assignment Example In the event of establishing customer satisfaction, the employees seemed accurate in delivering their obligations towards the clientele groups (8-6). The mode of efficiency, cross-cultural teamwork, and value-added approaches inscribed through training was serviceable as their practices matched the strategies of the organization. The group seemed to have the ability to gain new orientations, which when applied led to value propositions and customer satisfaction (9-12). The evaluation process and the performance appraisal plans undertaken on a quarterly and annual basis deciphered knowledge that the group was devoted to deliver their tasks in exchange of the set goals and objectives. Eventually, the employees deserved the top five rankings due to their unified approaches in performances. They revealed a level of aggression towards the implementation of sound decisions. The group gained the ability to respond to customer needs through researches with an aim of acquiring innovative alternatives. Customers revealed their satisfaction in the acquired services through the collected reviews (10-13). Lastly, the appraisal revealed that the top five personnel bore the desired experience and knowledge in their specific careers thus; they had the ability to react towards any challenges, monitor the customer segments, and implement the acquired skill gained in the training for the organization’s

Operations & Service Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Operations & Service Management - Assignment Example Orientation, Legal Restriction, Layout and Design, Composition, Process Photography, Darkroom Procedures, Stripping, Plate making, Offset Ink and Paper, Bindery Operations, Offset Press Operation, Production Problems, and Occupations and Evaluation .Main is the usage of special paper for printing for M& S. Note: All corporate and promotional material (e.g. booklets, leaflets and posters) must be approved by the Publications Officer, before being passed to the Print Unit for reproduction. 3-5 working days should be allowed for this, depending on the complexity of the job. In order to obtain order from M&S,Wace Burgess need to focus and assess on the potential risks and reward for its sustenance and integrity .It is ideal to sign a printing services agreement including the expectations of the client stating all the possible format for orders, Costing ,Capacity planning,Utilisation,Turn around time ,Accuracy parameter, designing process and die cutting etc .There should also be stringent clause on payment terms and penalty or adjustments in terms of late completion of order based on impact of loss incurred by W&S. Wace Burgess should also the need to commercialize the new technology on a large scale and to make profits and prove its sustainability." It is important to note that the Wace Burgess is noticed by M&S because they have been successful in printing technology. Now they are faced with a new challenge of managing creativity while getting a big order from a profound organization like M&S: an identity-shift from a small organisation to larger organisation is a bit

Accounting Scandal Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Accounting Scandal - Research Paper Example Olympus took advantage of the absence of the accounting rules for marking to market. There were unrealized losses related to investment values. Olympus paid high amounts in the form of goodwill during the acquisition transaction. In actual, this goodwill was the loss on securities investments. Subsequently, the goodwill (losses) was amortized. This amortization allowed the company to spread its losses over several accounting periods (Olympus Corporation - The Third party Committee, 2011). The fraud could have been detected earlier if the auditors of Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG) and Ernst and Young (EY) had acted with due diligence and care. If they had exercised professional judgment, then the critical determination and assessment of investment transactions would have brought this fraud to light earlier than 2011. The newly appointed Chief Executive of Olympus was in a position to detect the severity of transactions at an early stage of his tenure then the question arises that why could not the auditors detect this fraudulent transaction? As a result of this fraud, three executive of the company were fined for 700 million Japanese Yen. Furthermore, six banks sued Olympus for about $273 million. These damages were filed for the losses that these banks incurred as a result of a drop in the company’s stock price after the 13-year old fraud was discovered (Bloomberg, 2014). This accounting scandal relates to the Futures Trading Company that perpetrated a fraud of $211 million. The fraud was committed by intercepting the bank confirmation process. The fraud continued for 20 years. Initially, when banks did not have the facility of any online confirmation, Russell Wasendorf Sr., who was the CEO of the company, changed the address of the bank’s branch. When the confirmation was received, he then forged the address the bank’s branch and replaced it with the

Operations & Service Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Operations & Service Management - Assignment Example Orientation, Legal Restriction, Layout and Design, Composition, Process Photography, Darkroom Procedures, Stripping, Plate making, Offset Ink and Paper, Bindery Operations, Offset Press Operation, Production Problems, and Occupations and Evaluation .Main is the usage of special paper for printing for M& S. Note: All corporate and promotional material (e.g. booklets, leaflets and posters) must be approved by the Publications Officer, before being passed to the Print Unit for reproduction. 3-5 working days should be allowed for this, depending on the complexity of the job. In order to obtain order from M&S,Wace Burgess need to focus and assess on the potential risks and reward for its sustenance and integrity .It is ideal to sign a printing services agreement including the expectations of the client stating all the possible format for orders, Costing ,Capacity planning,Utilisation,Turn around time ,Accuracy parameter, designing process and die cutting etc .There should also be stringent clause on payment terms and penalty or adjustments in terms of late completion of order based on impact of loss incurred by W&S. Wace Burgess should also the need to commercialize the new technology on a large scale and to make profits and prove its sustainability." It is important to note that the Wace Burgess is noticed by M&S because they have been successful in printing technology. Now they are faced with a new challenge of managing creativity while getting a big order from a profound organization like M&S: an identity-shift from a small organisation to larger organisation is a bit

Computer Programming Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Computer Programming - Coursework Example The â€Å"implements† keyword is used by a concrete class to indicate that it implements the interface and that each method in the interface is declared with the signature specified in the interface declaration. Note that we use an interface class instead of an abstract class since there is no default implementation to inherit as would be in abstract classes. It is also noteworthy that an interface class must be declared in a file with the same name and a .java file-name extension. Should the user fail to select anything in the special features panel that is reinforced or sealable top, the default is, it is assumed that the container is not reinforced or can’t have a sealable top as appropriate. The user will only enter the exact dimensions of the desired container and that these dimensions will be within the range that the company can make. That is there is no way of checking whether the ordered dimensions can actually be

Business Law Essay Example for Free

Business Law Essay What is Business Law? Businesses interact in many and varied ways. To name just a few types of business transactions, there are contracts, mergers and acquisitions, leasing, etc. How these transactions are carried out is overseen by Business Law. Additionally, how businesses are formed is a large part of Business law. This area of law is very wide-ranging, although it deals primarily with defining the rights and responsibilities of businesses, rather than enforcing these laws. Because of its extensive scope, Business law has spawned a large number of legal practice area subcategories, which include Sales and Secured Transactions, Banking, Landlord-Tenant, Mortgages, Real Estate Transactions, Debtor and Creditor, Bankruptcy, Consumer Credit, Negotiable Instruments, and Contracts. Business law and Commercial law are very closely related, so much so that the terms are often used interchangeably and the legal issues they address frequently overlap. The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) is the principal presiding authority over commercial transactions. * Business.gov Business.gov helps small businesses understand their legal requirements and locate government services from federal, state and local agencies. Business.gov is an official site of the U.S. Small Business Administration. * Commercial Law / Business Law Definition Commercial law (sometimes known as business law) is the body of law that governs business and commercial transactions. It is often considered to be a branch of civil law and deals with issues of both private law and public law. Commercial law includes within its compass such titles as principal and agent; carriage by land and sea; merchant shipping; guarantee; marine, fire, life, and accident insurance; bills of exchange and partnership. It can also be understood to regulate corporate contracts, hiring practices, and the manufacture and sales of consumer goods. * Compliance with Business Laws Most aspects of running a business have some legal consequences. Whether your business is just starting up, expanding, or winding down, you must comply with the federal, state, and local laws that govern your business activities. * Employment Law for Businesses A great many common law rulings, statutes, administrative rules and legislation make up the practice and interpretation of employment law. Its governance falls under the umbrella of both federal and state statutes, as well as administrative regulation and judicial precedent. When workers file claims for employment discrimination, unemployment compensation and workers’ compensation, these claims fall under employment law. Likewise, overseeing workplace safety and standards, fair wages, retirement and pensions, employee benefits, and much more, are part of this wide-ranging legal area. Employment law deals with both the employer and the employee’s actions, rights and responsibilities, as well as their relationship with one another. A well-known, prevalent administrative regulatory body for employment law is the Department of Labor, which exists on both the federal and the state level.The elaws Advisors are interactive e-tools that provide easy-to-understand information about a number of federal employment laws. Each Advisor simulates the interaction you might have with an employment law expert. It asks questions and provides answers based on responses given. * Self-Employment Assistance Self-Employment Assistance offers dislocated workers the opportunity for early re-employment. The program is designed to encourage and enable unemployed workers to create their own jobs by starting their own small businesses. Under these programs, States can pay a self-employed allowance, instead of regular unemployment insurance benefits, to help unemployed workers while they are establishing businesses and becoming self-employed. Participants receive weekly allowances while they are getting their businesses off the ground. * Model Business Corporation Act A corporation is a legal entity created through the laws of its state of incorporation. Individual states have the power to promulgate laws relating to the creation, organization and dissolution of corporations. Many states follow the Model Business Corporation Act.State corporation laws require articles of incorporation to document the corporations creation and to provide provisions regarding the management of internal affairs. Most state corporation statutes also operate under the assumption that each corporation will adopt bylaws to define the rights and obligations of officers, persons and groups within its structure. States also have registration laws requiring corporations that incorporate in other states to request permission to do in-state business.There has also been a significant component of Federal corporations law since Congress passed the Securities Act of 1933, which regulates how corporate securities are issued and sold. Federal securities law also governs requirement s of fiduciary conduct such as requiring corporations to make full disclosures to shareholders and investors. The law treats a corporation as a legal person that has standing to sue and be sued, distinct from its stockholders. The legal independence of a corporation prevents shareholders from being personally liable for corporate debts. It also allows stockholders to sue the corporation through a derivative suit and makes ownership in the company (shares) easily transferable. The legal person status of corporations gives the business perpetual life; deaths of officials or stockholders do not alter the corporations structure.Corporations are taxable entities that fall under a different scheme from individuals. Although corporations have a double tax problem both corporate profits and shareholder dividends are taxed corporate profits are taxed at a lower rate than the rates for individuals.Corporate law has important intersections with contracts and commercial transactions law. * Securities law A generic term for shares of stock, bonds, and debentures issued by corporations and governments to evidence ownership and terms of payment of dividends or final payoff. They are called securities because the assets or profits of the corporation or the credit of the government stand as security for payment. However, unlike secured transactions in which specific property is pledged, securities are only as good as the future profitability of the corporation or the management of the governmental agency. Most securities are traded on various stock or bond markets. Securities law exists because of unique informational needs of investors. Securities are not inherently valuable; their worth comes only from the claims they entitle their owner to make upon the assets and earnings of the issuer or the voting power that accompanies such claims. The value of securities depends on the issuers financial condition, products and markets, management, and the competitive and regulatory climate. Securities laws and regulations aim at ensuring that investors receive accurate and necessary information regarding the type and value of the interest under consideration for purchase. Securities exist in the form of notes, stocks, treasury stocks, bonds, certificates of interest or participation in profit sharing agreements, collateral trust certificates, preorganization certificates or subscriptions, transferable shares, investment contracts, voting trust certificates, certificates of deposit for a security, and a fractional undivided interest in gas, oil, or other mineral rights. Certain types of notes, such as a note secured by a home mortgage or a note secured by accounts receivable or other business assets, are not securities. * The Setting for Buying and Trading Two principle settings for buying and selling securities exist issuer transactions and trading transactions. On the one hand, issuer transactions are the means by which businesses raise capital. These transactions involve the sale of securities by the issuer to investors. On the other hand, trading transactions refers to the purchasing and selling of outstanding securities among investors. Investors trade outstanding securities through securities markets that can be either stock exchanges or over-the-counter. Stock exchanges provide a place, rules, and procedures for buying and selling securities, and the government heavily regulates them. Generally, to have their securities sold and bought on a stock exchange, a company must list its securities on a given exchange. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) must approve the stock exchanges rules before they take effect. Transactions that do not take place on a stock exchange occur in the the residual securities market, known as the over-the-counter market. Only dealers and brokers registered with the SEC may engage in securities business both on stock exchanges and in over-the-counter markets. Most of the broker-dealers serving the public used to be members of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), which served the NASDAQ stock market, but in 2007, the NASD merged with the dealers from the New York Stock Exchange to form the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) a national securities association registered with SEC. * Securities Regulation Securities regulations focus mainly on the market for common stocks. Both federal and state laws regulate securities. On the heels of the Great Depression, Congress enacted the first of the federal securities laws, the Federal Securities Act of 1933, which regulates the public offering and sale of securities in interstate commerce. This Act also prohibits the offer or sale of a security not registered with the Securities Exchange Commission and requires the disclosure of certain information to the prospective securities purchaser. Then, needing an agency to enforce those regulations, Congress established the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which created the SEC. Since then, Congress has charged the SEC with administering federal securities laws. The 1933 Acts registration requirements aimed to enable purchasers to make reasoned decisions by requiring companies to provide reliable information. The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 also regulates officers, directors, and principal share holders in an attempt to maintain fair and honest markets. The Act requires that issuers, subject to certain exemptions, register with the SEC if they want to have their securities traded on a national exchange. Issuers of securities registered under the 1934 Act must file various reports with the SEC in order to provide the public with adequate information about companies with publicly traded stocks. The 1934 Act permits the SEC to promulgate rules and regulations to protect the public and investors by prohibiting manipulative devices and contrivances via the mail system or other means of interstate commerce * Partnership Law A partnership is a for-profit business association of two or more persons. Because the business component is defined broadly by state laws and because persons can include individuals, groups of individuals, companies, and corporations, partnerships are highly adaptable in form and vary in complexity. Each partner shares directly in the organizations profits and shares control of the business operation. The consequence of this profit sharing is that partners are jointly and independently liable for the partnerships debts.Creation, organization, and dissolution of partnerships are governed by state law. Many states have adopted the Uniform Partnership Act. A partner relationship is generally the result of a contract either express or implied with no formal requirements (such as a signed document). This is not the case of a limited partnership where one or more general partners manage business operations and assume personally liable for partnership debts while other contributing/profit sharing partners take no part in running the business and incur no liability beyond contribution obligations.) Limited partnerships are governed in many states by the Uniform Limited Partnership Act . State property law also impacts partnerships by defining ownership in a partnership and determining how the death of a partner changes the partnership structure. Federal law plays a minimal role in partnership law except in the context of a diversity action, or in instances where a partnership agreement contains an effective choice-of-law provision designating the application of federal law. Federal law also governs whether a partnership exists for federal tax purposes. For state and federal tax purposes, a partnership is not a taxable entity. Partnership income is taxable to the partners in proport ion to their share in the companys profits. * Small Business Advocacy Despite their importance to the economy, small businesses are heavily burdened by the costs of government regulation and excessive paperwork. Advocacy research shows that firms with fewer than 20 employees annually spend 45 percent more per employee than larger firms do to comply with federal regulations. Advocacy is an independent voice for small business within the federal government and is the watchdog for the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA). Advocacy advances the views and concerns of small business before Congress, the White House, the federal agencies, the federal courts and state policy makers. * Mortgage Law An arrangement under which a borrower puts up the title to real estate as security (collateral) for a loan to buy the real estate. The borrower typically agrees to make regular payments of principal and interest to repay the loan. If the borrower falls behind (defaults) on the payments, the lender can foreclose on the real estate and have it sold to pay off the loan. A mortgage involves the transfer of an interest in land as security for a loan or other obligation. It is the most common method of financing real estate transactions. The mortgagor is the party transferring the interest in land. The mortgagee, usually a financial institution, is the provider of the loan or other interest given in exchange for the security interest. Normally, a mortgage is paid in installments that include both interest and a payment on the principle amount that was borrowed. Failure to make payments results in the foreclosure of the mortgage. Foreclosure allows the mortgagee to declare that the entire m ortgage debt is due and must be paid immediately. This is accomplished through an acceleration clause in the mortgage. Failure to pay the mortgage debt once foreclosure of the land occurs leads to seizure of the security interest and its sale to pay for any remaining mortgage debt. The foreclosure process depends on state law and the terms of the mortgage. The most common processes are court proceedings (judicial foreclosure) or grants of power to the mortgagee to sell the property (power of sale foreclosure). Many states regulate acceleration clauses and allow late payments to avoid foreclosure. Some states use instruments called deeds of trust instead of traditional mortgages. Three theories exist regarding who has legal title to a mortgaged property. Under the title theory title to the security interest rests with the mortgagee. Most states, however, follow the lien theory under which the legal title remains with the mortgagor unless there is foreclosure. Finally, the intermediate theory applies the lien theory until there is a default on the mortgage whereupon the title theory applies. The mortgagor and the mortgagee generally have the right to transfer their interest in the mortgage. Some states hold that even when the purchaser of a property subject to a mortgage does not explicitly take over the mortgage the transfer is assumed. Mortgages employ due-on-sale and due-on-encumbrance clauses to prevent the transfer of mortgages. These clauses allow acceleration (having the principal and interest become due immediately) of the mortgage. The law of contracts and property govern the transfer of the mortgages interest. If the mortgage being foreclosed is not the only lien on the property then state law determines the priority of the property interests. For example, Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code governs conflicts between mortgages on real property and liens on fixtures (personal property attached to a piece of real estate). When a mortgage is a negotiable instrument it is governed by Article 3 of the Uniform Commercial Code. A mortgage may be used as a security interest by the mortgage. * Strangely enough, the word mortgage comes from the French word â€Å"mort† which means â€Å"dead† and â€Å"gage† from Old English, which means pledge. The term came from the doubtfulness of whether or not the mortgagor would pay the debt. In the 1500’s, if the mortgagor did not pay, then the land pledged as security for the debt was taken away. The land was then considered â€Å"dead† to the mortgagor. Nowadays, the term mortgage is used as a term for purchasing a property. We no longer associate anyone’s death with it. Although a few lucky people may be in a position to pay all cash for a property, home mortgages are required to purchase a home. Mortgages all have a term (typically 15, 20 or 30 years) representing the length of time before your home is paid off and a rate which determines the principal and interest payment that will be required to be paid during this term. * Bankruptcy Bankruptcy law provides for the development of a plan that allows a debtor, who is unable to pay his creditors, to resolve his debts through the division of his assets among his creditors. This supervised division also allows the interests of all creditors to be treated with some measure of equality. Certain bankruptcy proceedings allow a debtor to stay in business and use revenue generated to resolve his or her debts. An additional purpose of bankruptcy law is to allow certain debtors to free themselves (to be discharged) of the financial obligations they have accumulated, after their assets are distributed, even if their debts have not been paid in full. Bankruptcy law is federal statutory law contained in Title 11 of the United States Code. Congress passed the Bankruptcy Code under its Constitutional grant of authority to establish uniform laws on the subject of Bankruptcy throughout the United States.States may not regulate bankruptcy though they may pass laws that govern other a spects of the debtor-creditor relationship. There are two basic types of Bankruptcy proceedings. A filing under Chapter 7 is called liquidation. It is the most common type of bankruptcy proceeding. Liquidation involves the appointment of a trustee who collects the non-exempt property of the debtor, sells it and distributes the proceeds to the creditors. Bankruptcy involve the rehabilitation of the debtor to allow him or her to use future earnings to pay off creditors. Under Chapter 7, 12, 13, and some 11 proceedings, a trustee is appointed to supervise the assets of the debtor. A bankruptcy proceeding can either be entered into voluntarily by a debtor or initiated by creditors. After a bankruptcy proceeding is filed, creditors, for the most part, may not seek to collect their debts outside of the proceeding. The debtor is not allowed to transfer property that has been declared part of the estate subject to proceedings. Furthermore, certain pre-proceeding transfers of property, secured interests, and liens may be delayed or invalidated. Various provisions of the Bankruptcy Code a lso establish the priority of creditors interests. * Small Business Financing Loans and Grants Federal, state and local governments offer a wide range of financing programs to help small businesses start and grow their operations. These programs include low-interest loans, venture capital, and scientific and economic development grants. * Uniform Commercial Code The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC or the Code), first published in 1952, is one of a number of uniform acts that have been promulgated in conjunction with efforts to harmonize the law of sales and other commercial transactions in all 50 states within the United States of America. The goal of harmonizing state law is important because of the prevalence of commercial transactions that extend beyond one state. The UCC therefore achieved the goal of substantial uniformity in commercial laws and, at the same time, allowed the states the flexibility to meet local circumstances. The UCC deals primarily with transactions involving personal property (movable property), not real property (immovable property). * US Department of Commerce The U.S. Department of Commerce has a broad mandate to advance economic growth and jobs and opportunities for the American people. It has cross cutting responsibilities in the areas of trade, technology, economic development, environmental stewardship and statistical research and analysis. The products and services the department provides touch the lives of Americans and American companies in many ways, including weather forecasts, the decennial census, and patent and trademark protection for inventors and businesses. What is the UCC? The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), a comprehensive code addressing most aspects of commercial law, is generally viewed as one of the most important developments in American law. The UCC text and draft revisions are written by experts in commercial law and submitted as drafts for approval to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (now referred to as the Uniform Law Commissioners), in collaboration with the American Law Institute. The Commissioners are all attorneys, qualified to practice law, including state and federal judges, legislators and law professors from the United States and its territories. These quasi-public organizations meet and decide whether to endorse these drafts or to send them back to the experts for revision. The revision process may result in several different revisions of the original draft. Once a draft is endorsed, the Uniform Law Commissioners recommend that the states adopt these rules. The UCC is a model code, so it does not have leg al effect in a jurisdiction unless UCC provisions are enacted by the individual legislatures as statutes. Currently, the UCC (in whole or in part) has been enacted, with some local variation, in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands. UNIFORM COMMERCIAL CODE Act 174 of 1962 AN ACT to enact the uniform commercial code, relating to certain commercial transactions in or regarding personal property and contracts and other documents concerning them, including sales, commercial paper,bank deposits and collections, letters of credit, bulk transfers, warehouse receipts, bills of lading, other documents of title, investment securities, leases, and secured transactions, including certain sales of accounts and contract rights; to provide for public notice to third parties in certain circumstances; to regulate procedure, evidence and damages in certain court actions involving such transactions, contracts or documents; to make uniform the law with respect there to; to make an appropriation; to provide penalties; and to repeal certain acts and parts of acts. * 1-101. Short Titles. (a) This [Act] may be cited as the Uniform Commercial Code. * 1-102. Scope of Article. This article applies to a transaction to the extent that it is governed by another article of [the Uniform Commercial Code]. * 1-103. Construction of [Uniform Commercial Code] to Promote its Purposes and Policies: Applicability of Supplemental Principles of Law. (a) [The Uniform Commercial Code] must be liberally construed and applied to promote its underlying purposes and policies, which are: (1)to simplify, clarify, and modernize the law governing commercial transactions; (2) to permit the continued expansion of commercial practices through custom, usage, and agreement of the parties; and (3) to make uniform the law among the various jurisdictions. (b) Unless displaced by the particular provisions of [the Uniform Commercial Code], the principles of law and equity, including the law merchant and the law relative to capacity to contract, principal and agent, fraud, misrepresentation,mistake, bankruptcy, and other validating or invalidating cause supplement its provisions. * 1-104. Construction Against Implied Repeal. [The Uniform Commercial Code] being a general act intended as a unified coverage of its subject matter, no part of it shall be deemed to be impliedly repealed by subsequent legislation if such construction can reasonably be avoided. * 1-105. Severability. If any provision or clause of [the Uniform Commercial Code] or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of [the Uniform Commercial Code] which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of [the Uniform Commercial Code] are severable. * 1-106. Use of Singular and Plural; Gender. In [the Uniform Commercial Code], unless the statutory context otherwise requires: (1) words in the singular number include the plural, and those in the plural include the singular; and (2) words of any gender also refer to any other gender. * 1-107. Section Captions. Section captions are part of [the Uniform Commercial Code]. * 1-108. Relation to Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act. This article modifies, limits, and supersedes the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, 15 U.S.C. Section 7001 et seq., except that nothing in this article modifies, limits, or supersedes Section 7001(c) of that Act or authorizes electronic delivery of any of the notices described in Section 7003(b) of that Act. * 1-201. General Definitions. (a) Unless the context otherwise requires, words or phrases defined in this section, or in the additional definitions contained in other articles of [the Uniform Commercial Code] that apply to particular articles or parts thereof, have the meanings stated. (b) Subject to definitions contained in other articles of [the Uniform Commercial Code] that apply to particular articles or parts thereof: (1) Action, in the sense of a judicial proceeding, includes recoupment, counterclaim, set-off, suit in equity, and any other proceeding in which rights are determined. (2) Aggrieved party means a party entitled to pursue a remedy. (3) Agreement, as distinguished from contract, means the bargain of the parties in fact, as found in their language or inferred from other circumstances, including course of performance, course of dealing, or usage of trade as provided in Section 1-303. (4) Bank means a person engaged in the business of banking and includes a savings bank, savings and loan association , credit union, and trust company. (5) Bearer means a person in possession of a negotiable instrument, document of title, or certificated security that is payable to bearer or indorsed in blank. (6) Bill of lading means a document evidencing the receipt of goods for shipment issued by a person engaged in the business of transporting or forwarding goods. (7) Branch includes a separately incorporated foreign branch of a bank. (8) Burden of establishing a fact means the burden of persuading the trier of fact that the existence of the fact is more probable than its nonexistence. (9) Buyer in ordinary course of business means a person that buys goods in good faith, without knowledge that the sale violates the rights of another person in the goods, and in the ordinary course from a person, other than a pawnbroker, in the business of selling goods of that kind. A person buys goods in the ordinary course if the sale to the person comports with the usual or customary practices in the kind of business in which the seller is engaged or with the sellers own usual or customary practices. A person that sells oil, gas, or other minerals at the wellhead or minehead is a person in the busine ss of selling goods of that kind. A buyer in ordinary course of business may buy for cash, by exchange of other property, or on secured or unsecured credit, and may acquire goods or documents of title under a preexisting contract for sale. Only a buyer that takes possession of the goods or has a right to recover the goods from the seller under Article 2 may be a buyer in ordinary course of business. (10) Conspicuous, with reference to a term, means so written, displayed, or presented that a reasonable person against which it is to operate ought to have noticed it. Whether a term is conspicuous or not is a decision for the court. Conspicuous terms include the following: (A) a heading in capitals equal to or greater in size than the surrounding text, or in contrasting type, font, or color to the surrounding text of the same or lesser size; and (B) language in the body of a record or display in larger type than the surrounding text, or in contrasting type, font, or color to the surrounding text of the same size, or set off from surrounding text of the same size by symbols or other marks that call attention to the language. (11) Consumer means an individual who enters into a transaction primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. (12) Contract, as distinguished from agreement, means the total legal obligation that results from the parties agreement as determined by [the Uniform Commercial Code] as supplemented by any other applicable laws. (13) Creditor includes a general creditor, a secured creditor, and any representative of creditors, including an assignee for the benefit of creditors, a receiver in equity, and an executor or administrator of an insolvent debtors or assignors estate. (14) Defendant includes a person in the position of defendant in a counterclaim, cross-claim, or third-party claim. (15) Delivery, with respect to an instrument, document of title, or chattel paper, means voluntary transfer of possession. * International trade law Includes the appropriate rules and customs for handling trade between countries. However, it is also used in legal writings as trade between private sectors, which is not right. This branch of law is now an independent field of study as most governments has become part of the world trade, as members of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Since the transaction between private sectors of different countries is important part of the WTO activities, this latter branch of law is now very important part of the academic works and is under study in many universities across the world. International trade law should be distinguished from the broader field of international economic law. The latter could be said to encompass not only WTO law, but also law governing the international monetary system and currency regulation, as well as the law of international development. The body of rules for transnational trade in the 21st century derives from medieval commercial laws called the lex mercatoria and lex maritima — respectively, the law for merchants on land and the law for merchants on sea. Modern trade law (extending beyond bilateral treaties) began shortly after the Second World War, with the negotiation of a multilateral treaty to deal with trade in goods: the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). International trade law is based on theories of economic liberalism developed in Europe and later the United States from the 18th century onwards. International Trade Law is an aggregate of legal rules of â€Å"international legislation† and new lex mercatoria, regulating relations in international trade. â€Å"International legislation† – international treaties and acts of international intergovernmental organizations regulating relations in international trade. lex mercatoria the law for merchants on land. Alok Narayan defines lex mercatoria as any law relating to businesses which was criticised by Professor Julius Stone. and lex maritima the law for merchants on sea. Alok in his recent article criticised this definition to be too narrow and merely-creative. Professor Dodd and Professor Malcolm Shaw of Leeds University supported this proposition. Contract: the elements of a contract The first step in a contract question is always to make sure that a contract actually exists. There are certain elements that must be present for a legally binding contract to be in place. The first two are the most obvious: * An offer: an expression of willingness to contract on a specific set of terms, made by the offeror with the intention that, if the offer is accepted, he or she will be bound by a contract. * Acceptance: an expression of absolute and unconditional agreement to all the terms set out in the offer. It can be oral or in writing. The acceptance must exactly mirror the original offer made. * A counter-offer is not the same as an acceptance. A counter-offer extinguishes the original offer: you can’t make a counter-offer and then decide to accept the original offer! But†¦ * A request for information is not a counter-offer. If you ask the offeror for information or clarification about the offer, that doesn’t extinguish the offer; you’re still free to accept it if you want. It is very important to distinguish an offer from an invitation to treat – that is, an invitation for other people to submit offers. Some everyday situations which we might think are offers are in fact invitations to treat: * Goods displayed in a shop window or on a shelf. * When a book is placed in a shop window priced at  £7.99, the bookshop owner has made an invitation to treat. * When I pick up that book and take it to the till, I make the offer to buy the book for  £7.99. * When the person at the till takes my money, the shop accepts my offer, and a contract comes into being. * Adverts basically work in the same way as the scenario above. Advertising something is like putting it in a shop window. * Auctions: * The original advertising of the auction is just an invitation to treat. * When I make a bid, I am making an offer. * When the hammer falls, the winning ‘offer’ has been accepted. The seller now has a legally binding contract with the winning bidder (so long as there is no reserve price that hasn’t been reached) An offer can be revoked at any time before it is accepted, so long as you inform the person you made the offer to that the offer no longer stands. * Consideration: each party to the contract must receive something of value.Consideration is the price paid for the other’s promise. There are four legal maxims that apply to consideration: * Consideration must move from the promisor; * Consideration need not move to the promisee; * Past consideration is not good consideration; * The consideration given must be sufficient, but it need not be adequate. Arrangements of a social nature are presumed not to be legally binding, whilse commercial arrangements are presumed to be intended as binding contracts. Of course, these presumptions can always be rebutted in court by producing evidence to the contrary. * Importance of Business Law It is essential to know about business law before starting a business, as it will help you operate your business without the hindrances of ignorance. It is better to seek the expert guidance of an accountant and an attorney to learn about the latest business laws that will affect your business.. There are different laws for different business entities. Be certain you learn about the business laws that govern the kind of business entity that you choose to start. The major types of businesses are C, S and closed corporations, limited liability companies, and sole proprietorships. Zoning Laws: It is essential to know about zoning laws, as certain zones are restricted in certain areas. It deals with the kind or type of business allowed in certain areas, how the land surrounding a business is used, signboards, advertisements, and parking. Licensing Laws: In order to operate a business certain licenses are required and there are some important business laws you need to know. If a business operates without these licenses, it is illegal and the business may be dissolved or forced to close. Trademark and Patent Laws: These are laws that deal with ownership; intellectual property rights, and inventions. They are necessary to protect the business. Employment Laws: These are laws regarding the hiring and firing of employees, their rights, compensation, safety, work place discrimination, child labor laws, overtime pay structure, disability laws and unemployment laws. Tax Laws: This section deals with filing of tax returns and depends on the kind of business entity and the state the business operates in, sales tax. These include franchise tax, income tax and other state and federal tax requirements of a business. These are very important business laws you need to know before starting a business. Environmental Laws: The government enforces the environmental laws for the discharge of hazardous waste and the recycling laws pertaining to the business. Health Department Permits: This is necessary if your business deals with food products. You must get health department permits to operate your business. Fire Department Permits and Air and Water Pollution Control Permits: There are laws that certain kinds of business entities must get permits from these departments to operate. The list above contains basic business laws you need to know before starting a company. It is necessary to take precautions that you are not violating any law by operating your business. You must obtain all the necessary permits and licenses from the appropriate authority.