ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction One of the most challenging jobs existing, being a teacher requires a nearly impossible task of complying with the existing standards for teaching and adopting a unique approach towards every student, therefore, increasing the chances for the learners to evolve and become engaged with the subject taught. In his book, Spectacular things happen along the way – lessons from urban classrooms , Brian D. Schultz explores the significance of addressing unique teaching strategies for reaching every single student in the classroom, as well as the strategies that allow a teacher be flexible enough to find an approach towards any student, including student with special needs, ESL students, etc. Despite the undeniable attractiveness of the idea of teaching students what they can use in real life instead of the “teaching to the test” (Schultz, 2008) approach, the importance of following the established curriculum is also undeniable, since students need to not only train their skills in unusual settings and adopt them in creative scenarios, but also develop the required motor skills, which can only be attained through consistent drilling without the regard for the students’ background. Therefore, a combined approach seems a legitimate solution to the specified dilemma. Schultz’s Key Arguments: Informed Instructions Schultz’s argument is, in fact, quite simple – according to the researcher, it is imperative that the teacher should view the learners’ individual needs, wants and aspirations as the top priorities, which the educator must satisfy. Consequently, Schultz makes it obvious that a teacher must design the strategies for introducing the learners to a specific topic based solely on the needs and wants of the students. However, it would be wrong to limit Schultz’s argument to the concept of introducing modern schools to a comparatively looser system of education – instead, the approach coined by the researcher should be viewed through the prism of the students’ vision of education. According to the author, even young learners already have a rather well defined idea of what they need and what they should strive for, whereas the role of the teacher can be identified as that one of a mediator between the students and their goals. What Speaks in Favor of Schultz’s Concept of Learning Much to Schultz’s credit, though, he has a range of important points to make, and he delivers them in a very convincing manner. For example, the fact that Schultz focuses on the quality of the students’ skills and the amount of information that they have learned in the course of the studying process instead of shifting the emphasis onto their performance during the test is very rare. As a rule, tests are the major focus of teac
Introduction The Hausa community is one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa. The Hausa are culturally homogenous people, who are predominantly concentrated in the western part of Africa. The Hausa people have also spread in other parts of Africa, such as the Northern region, through trade. They live in isolated settlements, and they practice subsistence farming together with animal keeping and local trading. The Hausa language dominates the other languages in sub-Saharan Africa, with most of them living in Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Chad, and Sudan. The question of what it entails to be Hausa is briefly addressed to uncover the dynamic nature of Hausa culture and the religion that plays the main role. Despite their ethnic affiliations, the majority of the Hausa people practice the Islamic religion. The study of the Hausa art offers a rich account of the acculturation of the Islamic people in Africa. The Hausa religious beliefs have contributed to the design of the most renowned walled Islamic Hausa buildings as well as dressing.1 This paper will show that the strong Islamic beliefs shared by the Hausa people have been predominantly rooted in their lifestyle to the extent that it defines the dress code and building designs, among other issues. This interrelationship defines the similarities that are depicted in the Hausa clothing and architecture. The Hausa “indigenous architecture is famed for its ribbed vaulting and doming, which have social implications on the mode of dressing”2. The majority of the Hausa building designs have a direct implication on their lifestyle, relationship with other people, and mode of dressing. This homogeneity is developed and sustained by strong religious beliefs, which are shared by the Hausa people. Islamic art Although the Hausa people are not purely Muslims, Islam has played a continuing role to the extent where today, being a Hausa is interchangeably defined as being a Muslim. In the Hausa land, both traditional and innovative elements of Hausa art were considered when determining the dress code and building designs. One aspect that became persistent throughout the workshops was the community’s tradition of religious tolerance and respect, which differentiated religious groups through dress code, architecture, literature, and trade. The Hausa artistic products have been affected by the interplay between art and the in
Overview Americans for the Arts is a nonprofit organization that was established in 1996. It operates in the United States and focuses on advancing the place of the arts in the country on the local, state, and federal levels. According to the nonprofit’s latest strategic plan, it pursues four primary goals. The first one is to help people and organizations in serving communities through the arts and creating a positive environment for the promotion of the arts. The second goal is concerned with the individuals’ awareness of the role of arts in the state of the nation. Americans for the Arts also aim to create and promote effective public policy for arts and arts education in the US. Finally, the fourth goal is to advance the organization to withstand future challenges (Americans for the Arts, 2018). Funding As a nonprofit organization, Americans for the Arts relies on the combination of government, corporate, and individual funding channels. Governmental support comes from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), although its focus is on other artists rather than the organization. Americans for the Arts collaborates with Americans for the Arts Action Fund that is supported by several prominent businesses and national funds, including Blick Art Materials and the David Rockefeller Fund (Americans for the Arts Action Fund, n.d.). A substantial part of all donations comes from local and international foundations, colleges of arts and media, as well as such companies as American Express, Scholastic, Vans Customer Culture, Aetna, and others. The number of patrons of the organization seems to remain undisclosed, but Americans for the Arts offers several ways for both individual and corporate donations. Target Audience The target audience of the nonprofit is people engaged in the arts, including students and workers (self-employed and working for other organizations). The sphere of the arts is vast – visual, performing, and literary branches seem to be included in the organization’s plan. Here, it is vital to note the stamen on cultural equity created by the nonprofit several years ago. In it, the organization aims to elevate the voices of vulnerable populations whose access to arts education, career, and livelihood were historically limited. Thus, the policy of Americans for the Arts should positively impact people discriminated on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, age, disability, geography, socioeconomic status, religion, and citizenship status ( Statement on cultural equity , n.d.). Strengths and Weaknesses As is common for most nonprofit organizations, the main weakness of Americans for the Arts is its limited financial capability. The nonprofit depends significantly on its corporate and individual donors, which may impact its advocacy directions. Nonetheless, it seems that many of these companies
Human development life span is a process that begins between conception and birth of a child and proceeds till old age. The process involves personal growth both mentally and physically, however, the rate of growth differs from one individual to the other such that some children or adolescents will be more physically developed (height and muscles) than others of the same age. Despite genetic and environmental factors having an influence on physical development, some concepts including cephalocaudal, proximodistal, and Orthogenetic principles explain the pattern of human growth and development. Indeed, the physical posture of an individual becomes more balanced as he/she develops from infancy to adulthood. The physical body of an individual during infancy is largely disproportional. According to the cephalocaudal principle, the head occupies 50% of the body size of a two-month fetus but as physical development occurs, the body becomes more proportional with the head accounting for 12% of body length and 2% of body weight while the legs accounting for 50% of body length in an adult person (Siegleman and Rider, 2008, p.128). This concept views physical growth and development to progress from the head downwards, with the trunk growing fastest during the first year after birth and the legs growing fastest thereafter. Siegelman and Rider (2008, p. 128) also describe the physical growth in terms of proximodistal concept where the internal organs and chest are said to grow faster during the early period of infancy and then the growth spreads to the extremities (arms) thereafter. The third concept, Orthogenetic, provides a different view with the body being seen to initially grow universally with no differentiation and then thereafter the body organs become differentiated and organized as the developmental process progresses. Given that physical growth is influ
Every person works in an organization to earn money. Money is considered the prime reason for a person to be motivated to work thus again emphasizing the earnings. Since money is so important, it is very important for employers to communicate with their employees all the pay policies well in advance before an employee joins the company. Employees should be given ample information regarding the breakup of their salary and each item in the breakup should be clearly quantified. Pay policies should be such that they clearly identify and explain the nature of their job so that they can analyze whether they are being provided with appropriate wages. This information should be disseminated in an organized manner that is easily understood by even a layperson. The method of posting should be adopted for this purpose so that the privacy and secrecy of each employee are maintained and also to avoid conflicts among the different employees working at the same level. By clearly highlighting the pay policies, the organizational benefits that are achieved can range from increased employee morale to better productivity at the workplace. This contributes a lot to achieve the organizational goals. The pay policies include the date of payment, bonuses, pay cuts, etc. thus these controversial policies must be applied too. On the contrary, if the payment policies are not communicated properly and they aren’t implemented, the employees lose the morale to work and may form different unions of the laborers. Yet having an open policy for everyone may also be harmful for an organization in the form of employees competing and comparing their policies with their colleagues’ policies (Miner, 1974). It results in complaints and misunderstandings among the employees. Different researches state that the open system results in demoralizing the employees rather than motivating them due to the above-mentioned fact. I have been working in an organization that keeps its pay policies open and this policy has been in place since the company was incepted five years ago. The policies are explicitly mentioned and the rules have been discussed elaborately. This assists me in outlining my way of work, avoiding the policies and situations in which I might suffer from a cut-down or fine in the salary. Open pay policies have a positive effect on the motivation and morale of the employees. It gives them the authority and stability to plan out the working hours, methodologies, strategies, etc. Money is no doubt a motivating factor and if the employees are aware of the salary they will be paid, they work harder, putting in maximum devotion and effort. However, if the payment policies are k
Introduction The September 11 th attack in the New York marked a turning point for the approach towards terrorism both for the terrorist organizations and the United States; and indeed the world. The terrorist organization got a mixed bag; on one hand, to have managed to inflict such a devastating blow on the US gave them a new found respect an admiration among parties that feel they stand to gain from such an attack; and made it easier for them to recruit new members and source for more funds. On the other hand, this attack sparked the war on terror; with the full force of the US security machinery coming down on terrorist activities; resulting in the loss of training bases (for example in Afghanistan for al Qaeda; and widespread arrests and detention of their operatives. In order to survive, the organizations have had to adapt better methods of recruitment; so as to avoid detection and ultimate destruction. One the other hand, the United States (and allies) has had to expand its priorities beyond simply destroying the capability of the organization to launch an attack; the main focus now has been preventing the regeneration of these organizations. One way of doing this is by making interventions to ensure that these groups cannot recruit more members; this would have a devastating blow to them since they depend heavily on manpower both to carry out the attacks and to run the day-today operations to support the attacks. Understanding Terrorist Recruitment The first step in successfully preventing the recruitment of new members in terrorist organizations is by understanding why a person would volunteer him/herself to engage in the definitely/potentially fatal activity. In the past, there have been misconceptions about who joins terrorist networks; the general belief was (and still is in some quarters) that the average recruit is poor and uneducated; or mentally ill. This assumption is grossly inaccurate; terrorist organizations have a profile from which they favor during recruitment processes; generally, the average recruit is young and dissatisfied (Borum, 2004; Carlton-Ford et al, 2008). However, these organizations are very deliberate and careful about who is brought into the organization. For instance, the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C) in Turkey is very particular about the recruits personality and motivation; if it fits their desired profile, such a person is drawn into the organization (rather than volunteering). The Structure of Recruitment The ability to convince a youth to leave home and join a military or paramilitary organization is tricky; this becomes more complicated if such an organization is illegal and faces direct opposition from a government. In this scenario, there is very little room for error; and the consequences of failure can be fatal to the group members and the organization. In order to remain below the government radar, these groups have to be ve
The introduction of e-commerce into the vast range of tools used for selling and purchasing products has changed how people perceive companies and choose products. The idea of shopping as a process that involves direct interactions with shop assistants and physical contact with a selected product has been redefined as the environment of e-commerce excludes face-to-face, tangible experiences (Lai 2017). Therefore, to improve the efficacy of marketing and promotion as well as increase customer loyalty, an organisation will require an in-depth analysis of the changes under discussion. Determining the effects of e-commerce on customer behaviour is especially important for an organisation that offers medicated products (MP). In particular, potential customers seem more inclined to buy this category of goods online (Wang, Wang & Liu 2016). In addition, the availability of product recommendations to aid online shoppers is important in selecting needed MP. The tools and services that a firm chooses to provide can make the companies producing the goods on offer seem sympathetic and caring to their customers, in turn leading to a steep rise in customer loyalty to the brand (Kim & Peterson 2017). However, the changes in consumer behaviour that can be attributed to the introduction of e-commerce are more nuanced than merely a shift towards a less frequent use of retail outlets. To explore the effects of e-commerce on customer behaviour in the MP industry, it is necessary to begin by defining the phenomenon of e-commerce. According to Hajli (2015), the broad definition of e-commerce includes a vast array of activities and interactions that involve promoting a product to buyers who go on to make purchases, as w
Introduction Why the Topic is Interesting The topic is interesting because opera is an entertaining form of art. It has been around for centuries. The amusing aspect of this form of art is influenced by its broadness in terms of presentation and performance. The art brings together musicians and other performing artists in dramatic works. It achieves this by integrating text and musical scores in a theatrical setting.. 1 Luciano notes that opera is a part of the western conventional music custom. Initially, the artists performing this art did two forms of singing. The modes include recitative and arias. The first type of singing involves the adoption of a speech-inflected style. On its part, Arias is characterized by the use of more melodies. Over the years, opera has advanced to incorporate more presentations and styles. The current model of performance integrates different aspects of art, such as scenery, dance, acting, and costume.. 2 The Link between Beijing and Western Opera The two forms of opera affect each other. Since the advent of music traditions in Italy in the 16th century, opera has gained extensive popularity all over the world. Due to this, there was the emergence of different opera groups. They include, among others, the Beijing opera. The Traditional Western and Beijing operas are artworks from two varying worlds. They represent different cultures and heritages. For example, the Beijing opera reflects the culture of the nation. It is also referred to as the Peking opera. On its part, the Conventional opera embodies the western style of music. The art was common in the 1800s and 1900s. 3 Even though the two forms of art represent different cultures, they share a wide range of similarities. For instance, to develop and grow, both Western and Beijing operas borrow some aspects from each other. One of the elements entails the singing techniques. In this paper, the author will provide a comparative analysis of Beijing and Traditional Western opera. The rest of the paper is structured as follows: Chapter two highlights the origins and development of the two operas, Chapter three is an analysis of the similarities and differences between the two, while Chapter four will entail an analysis of the potential consistencies between the two opera. The last section is a conclusion and summary of the whole paper. The Origins and Development of Beijing and Traditional Western Operas The Origin of Beijing Opera Beijing or Peking opera is a traditional Chinese form of art. It has its origins in the 18th century. Kuo-lin thinks that the opera emerged in 1790. It came into being as a result of the Four Great Anhui Troupes. The performers brought Huiju to the country to commemorate the 80 th birthday of Qianlong’s Emperor. At the time, the performance was done for the court. However, the presentation starte
The thesis of Gettier’s article “Is Justified, True Belief Knowledge?” is centralized around methods of substantiating knowledge. According to the author, knowing that something is true takes several dimensions. A person’s claim to knowledge depends on several factors including what the individual knows is true, his/her belief, and his/her right to be convinced. According to Ayer, these three factors form the basis of knowledge and its underlying definition. On the other hand, Gettier argues that justified belief knowledge is false because it does not incorporate the element of ‘sufficient’ truth. Consequently, justified belief knowledge cannot be used to ascertain that a particular person knows that a certain proposition is true. In addition, the article reveals that the concepts of ‘the right to be sure that’ and ‘has adequate evidence for’ only work if the element of ‘justified true belief’ is not introduced in an analysis. Gettier’s argument in the article “Is Justified, True Belief Knowledge?” focuses on the premises of truth, justified knowledge, adequate knowledge, and the right to be sure about something. According to Gettier, in order for someone to know certain information several conditions have to be met. The first important condition for knowing certain information is the truthfulness of the particular suggestion. For instance, for someone to know a proposition, believe in it, accept it, and be sure it is the truth, the ‘information’ itself has to be true. Gettier refutes the premise of justifiable true belief using the arguments of two other scholars; Chisholm and Ayer. According to Chisholm, a person has to accept a proposal and have adequate evidence to prove it in order for the aforementioned proposal to be true. On the other hand, Ayer argues that any proposal is initially true. Consequently, a person becomes sure that the proposal is true, and he/she has the right to believe that it is so. According to Gettier, Ayer and Chisholm’s arguments are only true if the concept of ‘justified true belief’ is not introduced into their assertions. Gettier’s main protest against ‘justified true belief’ is the fact that a person can use it to believe falsehoods. This argument is valid because believing in a proposition chiefly depends on the truthfulness of a conviction. Consequently, ‘believing’ a falsehood cannot be equated to ‘knowing’ it. For example, someone can belief that person X is honest because he/she is justified to believe this to be true. The person’s conviction does not qualify to be termed a