Your Argumentative Essay Topics For High School

Your Argumentative Essay Topics For High SchoolWriting an argumentative essay is a difficult thing to do, especially if you are a grade school, because you cannot expect to write your essay on the subject of your current year. It would be better to write an essay on the topic of the year before your current year of education. The reason for this is that the topic of your essay has to be relevant to the current year of your education.Of course, it is possible to adapt the topic of your essay to match the current year of your education. However, there is a great danger in doing so. If you adapt your topic from another year of your education, you may be surprised to find out how much that was considered as the right topic in that particular year of your education.For instance, if you were in sixth grade and were interested in applying to colleges or universities for college in the next academic year, you would have to think about how your essay would fit into the context of the current year. If you chose the right topic for the year before your sixth grade education, then the subject of your essay would probably not be covered by the topic of your sixth grade education. In this case, you would probably be asking yourself why did your college application material need to be in the same genre as the topic of your sixth grade education.Alternatively, if you are writing an essay on the topic of politics or American history, then the topics of your various essays will probably have to be different to make them relevant to the current year of your education. You may also consider having several different topics for each of your essays, so that you can cover each of them independently. This will ensure that each essay in turn can be examined separately, rather than being lumped together to make a unit.Before you begin writing your argumentative essay topics for high school, you should first have a clear idea of the subject matter of the topic you wish to cover. One of th e easiest ways to come up with the right topic is to ask yourself what you have learned throughout the years from the material you have read. What have you learned from reading this book, for example?If you have learned a lot of valuable information through this book, then you may want to use it to help shape the topic of your essay. It would also be best to use the book's material to help you in writing your essay topics for high school. If you haven't found the material particularly useful, then there is no point in using it.As you work to come up with your argumentative essay topics for high school, don't forget to take into account all the information that you have acquired during your schooling. If you had learnt something new through your coursework, don't forget to incorporate that into your topic. You can always consult with your teachers for additional information or tips.

Frankenstein Essays (522 words) - Frankenstein,

Frankenstein Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is filled with various underlying themes, the crux being the effect society has on The Creature's personality. These topics have been discussed and explored on countless occasions, and the novel has been compared with its contemporaries of the Romantic Age numerous times. However, if one were to correlate and contrast Shelly's masterpiece with another, the greatest work would be the creation story in Genesis. Victor and The Creature are obvious representations of God and Adam, and the events in the two accounts parallel and differ from each other in several ways. God breathed life into Adam and created him in his own image and likeness. He placed him in a utopia and gave him authority over everything. With this authority, Adam used his knowledge to distinguish right from wrong, and if he needed help, God was always there with his unconditional love. Victor, on the other hand, assembled body parts from different corpses and made a hideous monster in the heat of his madness. He left The Creature to fend for himself in a world full of ugliness, violence, and hate. There was no mutual feeling of love between Victor and his creation, only that of hate and fear. An all-powerful being who was perfect in every aspect created Adam. God saw that he was lonely and chose to make a mate for him to live with. When Adam sinned, he accepted his guilt, obeyed God, and left the garden. Though his own creation went against him, God loved Adam the whole time. A flawed mad man, whose intentions were only to satisfy himself, created The Creature. He demanded that his creator make a mate for him so he could have someone to share his love with. When Victor refused his request, The Creature swore vengeance, and hate was shared by both. One of the main similarities between Adam and The Creature is the fact that their creators went from one extreme to another at pivotal moments in the stories. Victor had compassion for The Creature as he listened to his story in the cave, and God became angry with Adam when he ate the forbidden fruit. Even though Adam broke the rules, God never stopped loving him. Victor hated The Creature throughout the book. Never will I create another like yourself, equal in deformity and wickedness(160). Although these two tales are different in numerous aspects, both have morals and lessons. Frankenstein teaches that man should not try to defy God, and that no one should be judged by their physical appearance. The creation story shows that man should respect his authorities. Victor, a flawed version of God, made the mistake of abandoning his son at birth, and continuing to shun him the rest of his life. The Creature was flawed, but not by his own fault. He was sent into an ugly world by himself, with no one to help him or teach him. Mary Shelley used a deep, gothic theme to get several different points across, and made it interesting by paralleling the main characters with the characters of a well- known story. Bibliography none English Essays

Building Tension Skills For Crafting Suspense In Your Story - Freewrite Store

Building Tension Skills For Crafting Suspense In Your Story - Freewrite Store Mastering your craft as a writer - especially as a fiction writer - can take years. That’s the bad news. The good news is that you can be proactive in getting to grips with the skills and techniques you need to take your writing from mediocre to masterful. One of the most foundational skills you need to comprehend is that of creating tension (or suspense) in your stories. Why Suspense Matters Suspense is an essential ingredient in fiction. It’s what keeps your readers turning the page long after they’ve declared that they’ll ‘read just one more page before I put the light out’. Without tension and suspense, your story is flat and lifeless. When I first started out as a self-proclaimed fiction writer, I didn’t understand suspense at all. I thought that suspense fiction was a genre all of its own, and so I didn’t realize how important it was to my stories. Suspense matters. You can’t write a great story without it. Unfortunately, writing scenes full of suspense and tension can be tricky. You have to learn about the right balance (otherwise known as pacing) and understand the different techniques you can use to create tension. Authors who rely too much on just one or two tension-building techniques suffer from the unfortunate problem of creating ‘predictable tension’. You might get away with that in one book, but if you build a following of fans, you’ll soon find that they get wise to your predictable tension techniques, so your writing loses much of its suspense. You want to keep your readers gripped, which means you need a whole arsenal of tension techniques that you can mix up in your writing to avoid the death-knell of predictability. I’m going to teach you three essential suspense skills you need to write unputdownable fiction. #1. Create Crucial Conflict Conflict is one of the key ingredients of suspenseful writing. Conflict automatically creates tension in scenes, so naturally, it’s an author’s best friend. What makes conflict even more important is its versatility. There are different types of conflict too. For example: Character versus nature (e.g. when a character faces some kind of natural disaster) Character versus self (e.g. a character who has some kind of internal struggle to deal with) Character versus society (e.g. characters pitted against an oppressive government regime, or a character that’s part of a minority group who struggles with marginalization) Character versus character - relational type (e.g. unrequited love or some kind of drama within a family) Character versus character - hero/villain type (e.g. the traditional good-guy versus bad-guy situation) Character versus technology (e.g. science fiction scenarios where technology is the antagonist) Character versus the supernatural (e.g. scenarios where characters are faced with battles against prophecies about their own fate) As you can see from this list of conflict types, conflict in fiction is always rooted in characters - the conflict is between the character and something else. If you try to create conflict by any other means, your story will fall flat, unfortunately. At its heart, conflict is about something keeping your character(s) from their goals. That means that you need to know - and make clear to your readers - what your characters’ goals are. Without this fundamental first step, you can’t create the tension you need to create a gripping story. Spend some time brainstorming your character’s goals and the types of conflict that might keep them from achieving those goals. Pick two or three scenarios out of your brainstorming session and write a scene for each where your character is pitted against the literal or figurative nemesis to their goal. Creating conflict is a skill you need to practice until it becomes an automatic part of writing. Don’t just practice when you’re writing your novel, either. Honing your craft as a writer means spending time developing your skills before you sit down to write your masterpiece. Here’s some prompts you might want to try: Davy is about to leave the house and embark on a trip when an unexpected guest arrives†¦ Allison has planned the speech she’s going to make to break up with Drew, but then, just as she’s about to open her mouth, Drew gets down on one knee and proposes†¦ Craig has just accepted a place at CalTec when a news story breaks that threatens his entire future†¦ Becca is hiking in the mountains alone, trying to come to terms with something that’s happened, when a fierce storm unexpectedly hits. #2. Raise the Stakes You know your characters, you know their goals - but your goal as a writer is to keep your characters from achieving their goals (at least until you’re ready for the climax of your story). One thing that startled me when I started writing full time was how much I came to sympathize with my protagonists, so much so that I felt bad for pitting them against so many obstacles to keep them from their goals. You can’t afford to let sentimentality get in the way of your tension-creating skills. I learned that the hard way. One of the most effective ways of creating tension in your writing is to keep raising the stakes. This means that the more your characters fight against the things opposing their goals, the further away they seem from achieving their goals. There’s a range of ways you can raise the stakes in your novel - but before you get to writing your story for real, try practicing these different stake-raising techniques: The Ticking Clock Nothing raises the stakes more than a time limit. In practice, that means that you give your character a goal that has to be achieved in a certain time frame. The reason why the limit is there is up to you. When you use this technique, every time your character makes a failed attempt to overcome the obstacle in their way, the more aware the reader becomes of how little time is left. It keeps your readers gripped. The Fun-House Floor If you’ve never been in a fun-house, this won’t mean anything to you, so I’ll explain. In a fun-house there is often a section made up of platforms that move up and down and side to side, making it really difficult to cross to the other side. In fiction, the fun-house floor technique introduces change and uncertainty for your character, unbalancing them and making them (and your reader) wonder how to move forward. There’s plenty of things you can introduce to create uncertainty - the death of a loved one, the revelation of a secret, the loss of a job. The Shock Revelation To use this technique effectively, you need to understand foreshadowing (you can check out my guide to using foreshadowing if you want to brush up on those skills). Making a shock revelation is a great way of raising the stakes - as long as you ensure that it’s a revelation that in some way keeps your character from their goals. You can’t just dump a shock revelation into your story, however. It needs to be set up (using foreshadowing - but carefully) so that your readers get the ‘ah-ha’ moment. Chucking in a revelation that you haven’t hinted subtly at using foreshadowing isn’t going to make your readers happy. It can be a shock to your character, but your readers might already have their suspicions. Practicing Raising the Stakes Use these prompts to practice your stake-raising skills: Amelia’s nephew has gone missing while she was taking care of him, and his parents are due home in 36 hours†¦ The deadline is in three days... Juan has just 24 hours to gather evidence to prove that his partner is innocent of the murder†¦ Carrie receives an anonymous letter with the words â€Å"I know what you did† on it... Ethan’s secret is out†¦ Michael’s uncle dies suddenly†¦ Stefan has just paid the deposit on his condo when his boss fires him... #3. Partner Tension With Pacing When I realized that my fiction was missing tension, I kinda went to the extreme with it, and tried to throw tension into every scene, every conversation, every moment my characters took to think†¦ It wasn’t pretty. It was the precise opposite of pretty. When you’re working with tension and suspense, you need to have a balance. That’s where pacing comes in. Pacing gives your characters (and your readers) time to breathe between intense scenes filled with tension. You can’t have your character going from tension-filled-scene to tension-filled-scene without having some kind of ‘normality’ in-between. That’s not how real life works, and it doesn’t work in fiction, either. Understanding pacing creates a more realistic flow to your fiction, which is why it’s important you learn to pace your writing in parallel with tension. There are two types of pacing - fast pacing and slow pacing. Let’s take a look at them and see how you can partner pacing with tension for fabulous fiction. Fast Pacing Essentially, fast pacing is where most of your tension lives. These scenes carry urgency and spend less time on unnecessary details. When you’re writing these kinds of scenes, you want your writing to be punchy to reflect the pace. This is not the place for long descriptions or explanations. Fast pacing works by building tension to a crescendo. These are the scenes that will keep your reader urgently turning the pages to find out what happens. Slow Pacing To give your character a breather, slow pacing after a particularly tense scene works really well. Here’s where you can focus on the details, explore your character’s psyche and begin to build up towards the next tense scene. Slow pacing can be filled with emotion or packed with emotive and atmospheric details. You can still add tension in these slower scenes, but you’ll do it differently. In slow-paced scenes, you’re not using action to create tension, but rather focusing on building tension with atmospheric details. This works particularly well in thrillers or horror fiction, where things like the rustling of leaves or footsteps on the pavement can create suspense. Some slow-paced scenes are pretty identical to ordinary, non-tension-filled scenes, so if you can write an ordinary scene, then you can write one of these. Writing slow-paced atmospheric scenes with undercurrents of more gentle tension, however, take a bit more practice. Here are some prompts you can try out: Describe the shadows in the room The light flickers†¦ Phoenix is sitting in the basement. Describe the atmosphere†¦ Sam is taking a walk to clear his head. He heads into the forest, his favorite place in the world. Describe the sounds, smells, sights. Then, there’s the crack of a twig†¦ Making Tension Come Naturally You can’t write fiction without tension, so if writing is your passion, then you have to master the art of creating both fast-paced and slow-paced tension. For most people, this takes time and patience before you get it right - but once you do, you’ll find that it soon starts to come naturally, and you’ll find yourself putting just the right amount of tension into your scenes without having to consciously think about how you’re going to do it. The more you practice, the easier it becomes!

Why is the family dysfunctional (Hunger, Lan Samantha Chang) Essay

Why is the family dysfunctional (Hunger, Lan Samantha Chang) - Essay Example However, sometimes families fail to fulfill the emotional and physical needs of their children. In addition to this communication pattern of the family limits the expressions of the feeling and needs of the children. Children who grow in such families end up developing low self-esteem. They start thinking that their feelings are not important and therefore there is no need to express them, as they believe that no one will take them seriously. The end result of this is that as adults they may form unsatisfying relationships. One of the main reasons behind the dysfunction of families is that one of the parents have compulsion or addiction (e.g. alcohol, drugs, gambling, promiscuity, overeating or overworking) which has a negative influence on the family members. Sometimes one of the parents as a primary mean may also use physical violence, in order to get control. In such cases there are chances that children must have watched violence or they must have been a part of violence, like they have been forced to punish their siblings or they may also live in fright of an explosive outburst. Another reason of family dysfunction can be that parents usually threaten to withdraw their children from or are unable to provide their children with the basic physical and financial care. Similarly one of the parents may also be unsuccessful in providing emotional support to their children. Sometime one of the parents may also exert powerful authoritarian control on their child. Such families are often adhering to some particular beliefs, which may be personal, religious, political or financial. Compliance with expectations related to a specific role and with certain kind of roles is expected without any kind of flexibility. A great deal of variability is found in the ways through which dysfunctional behaviors and interaction occurs amongst families and in the severity and kinds of these dysfunctions.

Positivism and Interpretivism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Positivism and Interpretivism - Essay Example While positivism deals with the ideation of a plan and research concept, interpretivism is a function of perception in the philosophical context. They have been further defined and described in terms of epistemology and ontology as follows. Epistemology: Being related to philosophy, epistemology, through the definition of theories and concepts, depends on the presentation and perception of knowledge. Thus, as far as understanding knowledge is concerned, this field follows a subjective point of view and shares similarities with ontology. With the use of tools for interpretation, the use of epistemology depends on a body of ready to use knowledge rather than new knowledge creation, which gives it an interpretive outlook, making it different from ontology. (Duberley et al, 2000) In order to use various generalisations that have to do with facts, and beliefs, this field makes use of a philosophical perspective with a leaning towards reasoning and logic where findings of analysis need to be justified through statistical means. (Johnson et al, 2000) For example, the use of a LAWSEQ Questionnaire to study the self esteem level of students is the use of epistemology. Ontology: Being more objective in nature than epistemology is the first difference between the two. As ontology depends more on gathering first hand data, it adheres to the positivism approach as far as the use of philosophy and structuring of knowledge is concerned. It comes up with greater depth of research than epistemology due to the fact that it studies the hypothesis from the perspective of new data thus giving it a positivist approach and greater scope. The parameters that arise in this course are also different which give the generalisations a more accurate and deeper ring. (Duberley et al, 2000) (Johnson et al, 2000) For example, the use of literature in order to prove a hypothesis and garner data is based in ontology. Positivism Vs Interpretivism Epistemology and ontology are basically research designs that help in the collection, interpretation and analysis of facts for further presentation. It gives a structure to the vast knowledge base that one deals with during research and is thus philosophical in nature. Positivism and Interpretivism are the philosophical tools that are used in this regard. (Duberley et al, 2000) While ontology uses the objective way out, epistemology tends to incline towards the subjective thus making it more philosophical in nature. Ontology on the other hand that deals with and presents knowledge on the basis of hardcore facts and analysis from scratch. With a more objective outlook, ontology depends on the positivist approach in depicting facts while epistemology depends on using an already existing field of knowledge for analysis. (Lango, 1972) Research areas are better defined with the use of epistemology or the interpretivist point of view due to the fact that it depends on well researched work from the past where the data is simply customised for varied uses by various researchers. The writing and research method are an outcome of the various philosophical perspectives that individual researchers tend to follow. This gives it an interpretivist outlook as it is more subjective in nature. Epistemology manages to make best use of various philosophical perspectives within its research definition and design owing to its interpretivist approach as far as knowledge structuring and philosophy are concerned.

The Three Main Goals Of Research Psychology Essay

The Three Main Goals Of Research Psychology Essay Research is the examination of a particular topic using a diversity of reliable, scholarly resources. The three main goals of research are establishing facts, analyzing information, and reaching new conclusions. The three main actions of doing research are searching for, reviewing, and assessing information. This KAM will examine the different research paradigms available for my study. The paradigms will be compared and contrasted against other research methods that are available in order to determine which the best methods to use are. There are many different paradigms available which include: the positivist/empiricist view, the constructivist/naturalist worldview and the pragmatic model. Abstract Depth There are many research paradigms and research methods available to be used by researchers depending on the nature of the study that is being undertaken. This thesis paper on the depth component explores the strengths and weaknesses of each paradigm and outlines the key research methods that can used to ensure successful use of the approach. The depth portion will include the traditional annotated bibliography addressing the research paradigms and their use in accounting research. This report employs secondary research on the internet and most of the information gleaned is from the content and literature. Additionally this paper lays the grounds for further research in research methods and their uses. Abstract Application In the application section both the breadth and depth will be brought together with other research in regards to developing or discussing uses of the different research paradigms. The breadth section of this thesis paper will lay out in detail all of the available research paradigms and how the relate to accounting research. When looking at these paradigms this paper will try to focus on the one that will be chosen for my research, and how it compares and contrasts to the rest. This paper will particularly detail the chosen research paradigm and how it relates to the concept of auditing practices and their effects on the corporate governance of a company with a conceptual focus on international accounting principles. This report employs secondary research on the internet and most of the information gleaned is from the content and literature from non-profit organizational case studies, applications and on-going research on auditing practices on an international level. Breadth Section Organizations use research, especially in market research activities. Market research is used to identify potential markets, the needs and wants of each, how those needs and wants can be met, how products and services could be packaged to be most accessible to customers and clients, the best pricing for those products and services, who the competitors are and how best to complete against each, potential collaborators and how to collaborate with each and many other applications of research. Organizations can conduct this research without having to have advanced skills (Free Management Library, n.d.). Academic research is research and development (RD) undertaken in the higher education sector, including universities, polytechnics, etc., and research centres that have close links with higher education institutions. Higher education research has grown during the past 20 years. Between 1981 and 2003, the share of RD carried out by the higher education sector increased from 14.5% to 17.4% of the total RD effortà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦(Vincent-Lancrin, 2006, p. 170). Drivers of this growth include professionalization of the academic profession (including specialization and standardization of the trade), the importance of the quantitative research output in academic career paths and the emergence of strong external incentives to publish following the introduction of research assessment exercises in several countries. The well-known publish or perish rule is rather recent (Vincent-Lancrin, 2006). Research Paradigms A paradigm offers a theoretical framework for seeing and making sense of the social world. The implication of paradigms is that they shape how one sees the world and are reinforced by those around us and the community of practitioners. Contained by the research process the attitudes a researcher holds will reflect in the manner they research is planned, how data is both gathered and analyzed and how research results are presented. For the researcher it is significant to distinguish their paradigm, it permits them to identify their role in the research process, decide on the course of any research project and differentiate other perspectives (Methodology, n.d.). There are numerous research paradigms that are used across and within different disciplines. These include (a) the positivist/empiricist view, which supports the use of quantitative methods, (b) the constructivist/naturalist worldview, which supports the use of qualitative methods, and (c) the pragmatic model, which supports the use of quantitative, qualitative, or a combination or mix of both methods (Tashakkori Teddlie, 1998). Other paradigms that will be looked at in this paper include post-positivism and interpretivist view. Paradigms guide how we make decisions and carry out research. As a researcher, it is important to know where ones discipline belongs, that there are different ways of viewing the world and that ones approach to knowledge is one of many. Paradigms can be characterized through their: ontology (What is reality?), epistemology (How do you know something?) and methodology (How do go about finding out?). These characteristics create a holistic view of how people view knowledge: how they see themselves in relation to this knowledge and the methodological strategies they use to discover it (What is your paradigm, n.d.). Positivist/empiricist View The positivist paradigm of exploring social reality is based on the philosophical ideas of the French Philosopher August Comte. According to him, observation and reason are the best means of understanding human behaviour; true knowledge is based on experiences of sense can be obtained by observation and experiment. At the ontological level positivists assume that the reality is objectively given and is measurable using properties what are independent of the research and his or her instruments; in other words, knowledge is objective and quantifiable. Positivistic thinkers adopt scientific methods and systemize the knowledge generation process with the help of quantification to enhance precision in the description of parameters and the relationship among them. Positivism is concerned with uncovering truth and presenting it by empirical means (Research Methodology and Design, n.d.). Using scientific method and language to investigate and write about human experience is supposed to keep the research free of the values, passions, politics and ideology of the researcher. This approach to research is called positivist, or positivist-empiricist and it is the dominant one in social research. Positivist researchers believe that they can reach a full understanding based on experiment and observation. Concepts and knowledge are held to be the product of straightforward experience, interpreted through rational deduction (Ryan, n.d.). According to the positivist epistemology, science is seen as the way to get at truth, to understand the world well enough so that it might be predicted and controlled. The world and the universe are deterministic; they operate by laws of cause and effect that are discernable if we apply the unique approach of the scientific method. Thus, science is largely a mechanistic or mechanical affair in positivism. Deductive reasoning is used to postulate theories that can be tested. Based on the results of studies, we may learn that a theory does not fit the facts well and so the theory must be revised to better predict reality. The positivists believe in empiricism, the idea that observation and measurement are at the core of the scientific endeavor. The key approach of the scientific method is the experiment, the attempt to discern natural laws through direct manipulation and observation (Krauss, 2005). The social scientist must study social phenomena in the same state of mind as the physicist, chemist or physiologist when he probes into a still unexplored region of the scientific domain. Objectivity is then defined by being the same as that of natural science and social life may be explained in the same way as natural phenomena. This tradition may therefore be characterized in terms of the prediction and explanation of the behaviour of phenomena and the pursuit of objectivity, which is defined as the researchers detachment from the topic under investigation. The results of research using this method of investigation are then said to produce a set of true, precise and wide-ranging laws (known as covering laws) of human behaviour. We would then be able to generalize from our observations on social phenomena to make statements about the behaviour of the population as a whole. Positivism thus explains human behaviour in terms of cause and effect and data must then be collected on the s ocial environment and peoples reactions to it (May, 2001). In its broadest sense, positivism is a rejection of metaphysics. It is a position that holds that the goal of knowledge is simply to describe the phenomena that we experience. The purpose of science is simply to stick to what we can observe and measure. Knowledge of anything beyond that, a positivist would hold, is impossible. predict how people will behave everything else in between (like what the person is thinking) is irrelevant because it cant be measured. Positivists believe that reality is stable and can be observed and described from an objective viewpoint, without interfering with the phenomena being studied. They contend that phenomena should be isolated and that observations should be repeatable. This often involves manipulation of reality with variations in only a single independent variable so as to identify regularities in, and to form relationships between, some of the constituent elements of the social world (Positivism Post-Positivism, 2006). In empiricism knowledge is only validated through sense experience, or in more recent versions through the surrogates of scientific instrumentation (which in the social sciences would include survey questionnaires and interview data). Its importance to scientific method in the natural and social sciences lies in the centrality of emphasis placed on empirical hypothesis testing. Thus if we formulate a hypothesis such as industrialization leads to worker alienation, this is only meaningful if it can be verified empirically; anything less is metaphysical speculation. Moreover empiricists (unlike realists) eschew claims of causal necessity, because (after Hume) it is maintained that although event A may precede event B in time, we cannot be sure A brought about B. In social science this principle is exemplified by the social survey where the strength and direction of association between variables is expressed, but no necessary function claimed (Williams, 2006). Post- Positivism Post-positivism is a wholesale rejection of the central tenets of positivism. A post-positivist might begin by recognizing that the way scientists think and work and the way we think in our everyday life are not distinctly different. Scientific reasoning and common sense reasoning are essentially the same process. There is no difference in kind between the two, only a difference in degree. Scientists, for example, follow specific procedures to assure that observations are verifiable, accurate and consistent. In everyday reasoning, we dont always proceed so carefully (Positivism Post-Positivism, 2006). Constructivist/Naturalist Worldview Constructionism is a perspective that considers facts, descriptions and other features of objective reality to be inescapably contingent and rhetorical. This is a more recent formulation of constructionism (without the social) which follows the traditional view of social constructionism as a perspective wherein people are seen as produced (constructed) through social interaction rather than through genetic programming and biological maturation (Hepburn, 2006). Naturalism is the hypothesis that the natural world is a closed system in the sense that nothing that is not a part of the natural world affects it. More simply, it is the denial of the existence of supernatural causes. In rejecting the reality of supernatural events, forces, or entities, naturalism is the antithesis of supernaturalism (Augustine, 2012). The naturalist or constructivist view says that knowledge is established through the meanings attached to the phenomena studied; researchers interact with the subjects of study to obtain data; inquiry changes both researcher and subject; and knowledge is context and time dependent (Krauss, 2005). Constructivists maintain that scientific knowledge is constructed by scientists and not discovered from the world. Constructivists argue that the concepts of science are mental constructs proposed in order to explain sensory experience. Another important tenet of Constructivist theory is that there is no single valid methodology in science, but rather a diversity of useful methods. Constructivism is opposed to positivism, which is a philosophy that holds that the only authentic knowledge is based on actual sense experience and what other individuals tell us is right and wrong (Guba Lincoln, 1994). Pragmatic View The pragmatic approach to science involves using the method which appears best suited to the research problem and not getting caught up in philosophical debates about which is the best approach. Pragmatic researchers therefore grant themselves the freedom to use any of the methods, techniques and procedures typically associated with quantitative or qualitative research. They recognize that every method has its limitations and that the different approaches can be complementary. The pragmatic approach to science involves using the method which appears best suited to the research problem and not getting caught up in philosophical debates about which is the best approach. Pragmatic researchers therefore grant themselves the freedom to use any of the methods, techniques and procedures typically associated with quantitative or qualitative research. They recognize that every method has its limitations and that the different approaches can be complementary. Being able to mix different approa ches has the advantages of enabling triangulation. Triangulation is a common feature of mixed methods studies. It involves, for example: the use of a variety of data sources (data triangulation) the use of several different researchers (investigator triangulation) the use of multiple perspectives to interpret the results (theory triangulation) the use of multiple methods to study a research problem (methodological triangulation) (The four main approaches, 2012). Research is a necessary ingredient for a knowledge-based society, which includes a knowledge-based economy and its growth. A professional publication process is indispensable for the dissemination of knowledge and the advancement of knowledge through further, innovative research. These goals of publishing are best reached by means of an open access publishing business model. It is essential that open access becomes the standard and does not remain the exception. Open access publishing should become a requirement for publicly funded research. In order to make open access publishing a success, the enthusiastic cooperation of the professional publishing companies active on the market is highly desirable (Engelend, 2011). Interpretivist View Interpretive researchers believe that reality consists of peoples subjective experience of the external world; thus, they may adopt an inter-subjective epistemology of the ontological belief that reality is socially constructed. Some believe that interpretivists are anti-foundationalists who believe that there is no single correct route or particular method to knowledge. It has also been argued that in the interpretive tradition there are no correct or incorrect theories. Instead, they should be judged according to how interesting they are to the researcher as well as those involved in the same areas. They attempt to derive their constructs from the field by an in-depth examination of the phenomenon of interest. Interpretivists assume that knowledge and meaning are acts of interpretation, hence there is no objective knowledge which is independent of thinking, reasoning humans (Research Methodology and Design, n.d.). The interpretivist research paradigm emphasizes qualitative research methods, which are flexible, context sensitive and largely concerned with understanding complex issues. Researchers widely debate how the trustworthiness of interpretivist research efforts is evaluated. Positivist researchers, who emphasize the issues of validity, reliability and generalizability, often regard qualitative research methods as unscientific. Several researchers suggest new criteria for evaluating qualitative enquiry and many different approaches to evaluating qualitative research have been discussed in the literature (Carcary, 2009). In the interpretivist paradigm, the researcher is not perceived as being entirely objective; rather he/she is a part of the research process. Interpretivism recognizes the difficulty in making research value-free and objective. In terms of this view, a single objective reality does not exist. The social world does not lend itself to being understood by physical-law-like rules. Multiple realities need to be considered. These include an external reality, which is what actually occurred in the physical world, and internal realities, which are subjective and unique to each individual. Because each situation is different, the researcher needs to delve below the surface of its details to understand the reality. The meaning derived by the researcher is a function of the circumstances, the people involved and the broad interrelationships in the situations being researched (Carcary, 2009). The interpretivist paradigm emphasizes qualitative research methods where words and pictures as opposed to numbers are used to describe situations. In qualitative research, the researcher is actively involved and attempts to understand and explain social phenomena in order to solve what Mason (2002:18) calls the intellectual puzzle. It relies on logical inference (Hinton et al, 2003) and is sensitive to the human situation as it involves dialogue with informants. In general, the researcher collects large quantities of detailed evidence. Thus, qualitative research may achieve depth and breadth. Further, qualitative methods are useful when the researcher focuses on the dynamics of the process and requires a deeper understanding of behaviour and the meaning and context of complex phenomena. It is the most appropriate approach for studying a wide range of social dimensions, while maintaining contextual focus (Mason, 2002). Conducting qualitative research requires considerable reflection on the researchers part, and the ability to make a critical assessment of informants comments. It involves debating the reasons for adopting a course of action, challenging ones own assumptions and recognizing how decisions shape the research study (Carcary, 2009). Once a paradigm for research is chosen one must then decide on which research methods to employee in order to conduct their research. There are three different types of research methods that are available to those who are undergoing research. These include: quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods. These methods will now be explored in great detail throughout the rest of this paper. There have always been important differences between the research findings derived from quantitative research and those of qualitative research. The two methodologies have different approaches and their intended goals are not the same. In many ways, they also have competing visions of what constitutes truth. Despite these differences, however, the two methodologies often work in effective symbiosis with each other and each brings to the other a level of understanding that it would not otherwise achieve (Barnham, 2012). Quantitative Research Research involving the collection of data in numerical form for quantitative analysis. The numerical data can be durations, scores, counts of incidents, ratings, or scales. Quantitative data can be collected in either controlled or naturalistic environments, in laboratories or field studies, from special populations or from samples of the general population. The defining factor is that numbers result from the process, whether the initial data collection produced numerical values, or whether non-numerical values were subsequently converted to numbers as part of the analysis process, as in content analysis (Garwood, 2006). Quantitative research tends to be associated with the realist epistemology, the approach to knowledge that maintains that the real world exists, is directly knowable (although not necessarily at this moment) and that the real world causes our experiences. That is, real things exist, and these can be measured, and have numerical values assigned as an outcome measure, and these values are meaningful. These values can only be meaningful if researchers accept some of the criteria associated with the positivist standpoint (Garwood, 2006). Gaining numerical materials facilitates the measurement of variables and also allows statistical tests to be undertaken. For example, descriptive statistics can be used to illustrate and summarize findings, detect relationships between variables, as in correlation coefficient values, or inferential statistical analysis can be undertaken to establish the effects of different interventions, as in analysis of variance, analysis of covariance and multivariate analysis of variance. Interactions between variables can also be investigated within experimental designs and also as part of the analysis of data from surveys or secondary sources. Changes over time can be more easily tracked using quantitative methods, as measures of the same properties can be taken at several points during an intervention (Garwood, 2006). Quantitative studies provide data that can be expressed in numbers-thus, their name. Because the data is in a numeric form, we can apply statistical tests in making statements about the data. These include descriptive statistics like the mean, median, and standard deviation, but can also include inferential statistics like t-tests, ANOVAs, or multiple regression correlations (MRC). Statistical analysis lets us derive important facts from research data, including preference trends, differences between groups, and demographics (McClain, 2012). Quantitative research design is the standard experimental method of most scientific disciplines. These experiments are sometimes referred to as true science, and use traditional mathematical and statistical means to measure results conclusively. They are most commonly used by physical scientists, although social sciences, education and economics have been known to use this type of research. It is the opposite of qualitative research. Quantitative experiments all use a standard format, with a few minor inter-disciplinary differences, of generating a hypothesis to be proved or disproved. This hypothesis must be provable by mathematical and statistical means, and is the basis around which the whole experiment is designed. Randomization of any study groups is essential, and a control group should be included, wherever possible. A sound quantitative design should only manipulate one variable at a time, or statistical analysis becomes cumbersome and open to question. Ideally, the research should be constructed in a manner that allows others to repeat the experiment and obtain similar results (Shuttleworth, 2008). Qualitative Research Qualitative research is a situated activity that locates the observer in the world. Qualitative research consists of a set of interpretive, mate ­rial practices that make the world visible. These practices transform the world. They turn the world into a series of representations, including field notes, interviews, conversations, photographs, record ­ings, and memos to the self. At this level, qualitative research involves an interpretive, naturalistic approach to the world. This means that qualitative researchers study things in their natural settings, attempt ­ing to make sense of, or interpret, phenomena in terms of the mean ­ings people bring to them (Denzin Lincoln, 2011, p.3) Qualitative research is not a single set of theoretical principles, a single research strategy or a single method. It developed in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, across a range of disciplines, on varied and sometimes conflicting philosophical and theoretical bases, including cultural anthropology, interpretive sociologies (such as symbolic interactionism), phenomenology and, more recently, hermeneutics, critical theory, feminism, post-colonial theory, cultural studies, post-structuralism and postmodernism. These diverse approaches inevitably give rise to substantial differences and disagreements about the nature of qualitative research, the role of the researcher, the use of various methods and the analysis of data (Sumner, 2006). However, qualitative research is often based upon interpretivism, constructivism and inductivism. It is concerned to explore the subjective meanings through which people interpret the world, the different ways in which reality is constructed (through language, images and cultural artifacts) in particular contexts. Social events and phenomena are understood from the perspective of the actors themselves, avoiding the imposition of the researchers own preconceptions and definitions. There is also often a concern with the exploration of change and flux in social relationships in context and over time (Sumner, 2006). The methods used in qualitative research, often in combination, are those which are open-ended (to explore participants interpretations) and which allow the collection of detailed information in a relatively close setting. These methods include depth interviewing, ethnography and participant observation, case studies, life histories, discourse analysis and conversational analysis. It is in the nature of qualitative research, with its emphasis on depth and detail of understanding and interpretation, that it is often small-scale or micro-level (Sumner, 2006). According to Glesne (2006), qualitative methods strive to understand some type of social phenomena through the perspectives of the individuals involved. Two major assumptions include a predisposition that reality is socially constructed and that the variables in a situation are highly complex, interwoven and difficult to measure. The purpose of such research is to contextualize, understand and interpret a situation. Typically, qualitative research begins with some type of inductive inquiry, resulting in a hypothesis or participant generated theory. The researcher is considered the main instrument in a setting that is as naturalistic as possible. The methods involved require a high level of descriptive writing and attention to detail. Moreover, a significant amount of time to collect and process the data is required. The researcher is directly involved with the research in a personal way. The various methodologies of qualitative inquiry allow a researcher to choose a strategy that is best suited for his or her purpose. Examples of qualitative research include ethnographies, grounded theory, case studies, phenomenologies and narratives (Designing a Qualitative Study, n.d.). Each methodology relies on specific protocols such as interviews, observations, content analysis, fieldwork, video and audio-taped transmissions, surveys or open-ended questionnaires. Data resulting from qualitative research should be thick in description, meaning that it go beyond surface explanation, expressing in-depth understanding not possible with quantitative methods. The methods of qualitative research are concerned with process, or how something occurs within the confines of the inquiry. The researcher constructs, analyzes and interprets data in a non-linear, non-chronological fashion (Szyjka, 2012). Participant Observation One of the most frequently used methods for qualitative data collection is participant observation, which is also one of the most challenging. It necessitates that the researcher become a member of the culture or context that is being observed. The literature on participant observation discusses how to penetrate the context, the function of the researcher as a participant, the compilation and storage of field notes, and the examination of field data. Participant observation frequently requires months or years of concentrated work because the researcher needs to become accepted as a normal part of the culture in order to guarantee that the observations are of the natural occurrences (Qualitative Methods, 2006). Advantages These include that it affords access to the backstage culture; it allows for richly detailed description, which they interpret to mean that ones goal of describing behaviors, intentions, situations, and events as understood by ones informants is highlighted; and it provides opportunities for viewing or participating in unscheduled events. It also improves the quality of data collection and interpretation and facilitates the development of new research questions or hypotheses (Kawulich, 2005). Disadvantages Disadvantages include that sometimes the researcher may not be interested in what happens out of the public eye and that one must rely on the use of key informants. Different researchers gain different understanding of what they observe, based on the key informant(s) used in the study. Problems related to representation of events and the subsequent interpretations may occur when researchers select key informants who are similar to them or when the informants are community leaders or marginal participants. To alleviate this potential bias problem, it has been suggested that pretesting informants or selecting participants who are culturally competent in the topic being studied (Kawulich, 2005). Direct Observation Direct observation is notable from participant observation in a number of ways. First, a direct observer doesnt characteristically try to become a participant in the environment. However, the direct observer does attempt to be as inconspicuous as possible so as not to prejudice the observations. Second, direct observation proposes a more disconnected perspective. The researcher is observing rather than taking part. As a result, technology can be a helpful part of direct observation. For example, one can videotape the occurrence or observe from behind one-way mirrors. Third, direct observation tends to be more centered on participant observation. The researcher is viewing certain sampled circumstances or people rather than trying to become engrossed in the complete context. Finally, direct observation tends not to take as long as participant observation. For example, one might observe interactions among people under specific conditions in a laboratory setting from behind a one-way mir ror, looking particularly for any nonverbal cues that are being used (Qualitative Methods, 2006). Advantages Simply observing people bypasses all the prob

Hazel’s business case Essay

In what ways are Hazel’s customers most likely to judge the quality of her lawn care service? Answer: They will give some feedback regarding the cleaning after done cutting their grass, the duration of how long the lawn care service will be done, length of the grass should not be too long or too short, and the health condition of grass. Hazel is the operations manager of her business. Among her responsibilities are forecasting, inventory management, scheduling, quality assurance, and maintenance. What kinds of things would likely require forecasts? Answer: weather, seasons, and maintenance. What inventory items does Hazel probably have? Name one inventory decision she has to make periodically. Answer: parts of mowing machines, gas, and fertilizer. She has to make inventory decision periodically is the quantity of fertilizer. What scheduling must she do? What things might occur to disrupt schedules and cause Hazel to reschedule? Answer: workers’ timetable, mow machine, and maintenance. Mow machine breakdown, workers get sick, bad weather and any emergencies happen will cause Hazel to reschedule. How important is quality assurance to Hazel’s business? Explain. Answer: It is very important because since Hazel just started her new business which mean she does not has enough number of customers. If she wants to maintain her business, it is important to keep her reputation and quality of the service in order to get repeat customers. What kinds of maintenance must be performed? Answer: oil change, sharpness of the blade, and regular check the mow machine’s engine. What are some of the trade-offs that Hazel probably considered relative to: Working for a company instead of for herself? Answer: She will waste time to find a job. Since she is an employee, she will not worry lots of stuffs and she does not need to take care of so much stuffs compare to own a business. Expanding the business? Answer: She can earn more profit but for doing this, she needs a big capital to support her. Launching a web site? Answer: It costs a lot to have a web site, on the other hand, she can able to get new customers from other neighborhoods. The town is considering an ordinance that would prohibit putting grass clippings at the curb for pickup because local landfills cannot handle the volume. What options might Hazel consider if the ordinance is passed? Name two advantages and two drawbacks of each option. Answer: Advantages 1. It can increase Hazel’s business because the customers would not wait the grasses grow too long to call the mow service. 2. Hazel also can start a new pick up service to help the customers to collect all the grass clippings and throw it away. Drawbacks 1. The working volume is increased which means Hazel needs to hire more employees to assist her. 2. Hazel has to reschedule all her working hours and it might be increased her working hours compare to previous. Hazel decided to offer the students who worked for her a bonus of $25 for ideas on how to improve the business, and they provided several good ideas. One idea that she initially rejected now appears to hold great promise. The student who proposed the idea has left, and is currently working for a competitor. Should Hazel send that student a check for the idea? What are the possible trade-offs? Answer: Yes, Hazel has to pay the student because the student had provided good ideas which help improve her business. Since the student has left and currently working for Hazel’s competitor, she has to make a contract that the information should not be share to anyone accept Hazel’s company. All managers have to cope with variation. What are the major sources of variation that Hazel has to contend with? Answer: Bad weather, workers do not show up during work time, and extra jobs. How might these sources of variation impact Hazel’s ability to match supply and demand? Answer: Hazel will has to do extra jobs and the working hours are not stable. What are some ways she can cope with variation? Answer: Hazel can hire more part-time workers to assist her in case some of the workers take leave. She also can study more about weather forecast, so she can do some preparation when it is bad weather occurs. Hazel is thinking of making some of her operations sustainable. What are some ideas she might consider? Answer: Hazel can do the lawn service by herself, so she can save some costing to hire workers. And she can provide friendly service, and welcome the customers give feedbacks on every service she has done. Hazel Revisited What competitive advantage does hazel have over a professional lawn care service? Answer: Hazel gains trustiness from her neighborhood because Hazel’s company is nearer and they know her for a long time, so this makes her has an advantage from a professional lawn care service. Hazel would like to increase her profits, but she doesn’t believe that it would be wise to raise her prices considering the current state of local economy. Instead, she has given some thought to increasing productivity. Explain how increased productivity could be an alternative to increased prices. Answer: Hazel can cut down the number of the workers to do the lawn care service and decrease her workers’ wages. What are some ways that Hazel could increase productivity? Answer: reward her workers, establish reasonable goals for improvement, and develop their operation for efficiency. Hazel is thinking about the purchase of new equipment. One would be power sidewalk edgers. She believes adgers will lead to an increase in productivity. Another would be a chain saw, which would be used for tree pruning. What trade-offs should she consider in her analysis? Answer: If Hazel purchases the new equipment, she can offer a new service to customers, which can increase her business profit. On the other hand, if she does not purchase, she does not need to spend extra maintenance fees for the new equipment. Hazel has been fairly successful in her neighborhood, and now wants to expand to other neighborhoods, including some that are five miles away. What would be the advantages and disadvantages of doing this? Answer: Advantages : She can earn more profits, more new customers, and more people will know her company exists. Disadvantages: The company will be more hard to handle, needs a big capital to support, and higher risk to lose her business. Hazel does not have a mission statement or a set of objectives. Take one of the following positions and defend it: Hazel doesn’t need a formal mission statement and objectives. Many small businesses don’t have them. She definitely needs a mission statement and a set of objectives. They would be extremely beneficial. There may be some benefit to Hazel’s business, and she should consider developing one. Answer: In my opinion, I will choose B. Mission statement is important to every company as it gives their employees a guide line and show what is the company direction to them.