Performance Assessment Essay - 1860 Words

Performance Assessment Not since the development of the objective paper and pencil test early in the century has an assessment method hit the American educational scene with such force as has performance assessment methodology in the 1990s. Performance assessment relies on teacher observation and professional judgment to draw inferences about student achievement. The reasons for the intense interest in an assessment methodology can be summarized as follows: During the 1980s important new curriculum research and development efforts at school district, state, national and university levels began to provide new insights into the complexity of some of our most valued achievement targets. We came to understand the multidimensionality†¦show more content†¦The purpose of this digest is to provide a summary of those attributes of sound assessments and the rules of evidence for using them well. The various ways the reader might take advantage of this information also are detailed. THE BASIC METHODOLOGY The basic ingredients of a performance assessment may be described in three parts (Stiggins, 1984): (1) the specification of a performance to be evaluated, (2) the development of exercises or tasks used to elicit that performance and (3) the design of a scoring and recording scheme for results. Each contains sub- elements within it. For example, in defining the performance to be evaluated, assessment developers must decide where or how evidence of academic proficiency will manifest itself. Is the examinee to demonstrate the ability to reason effectively, carry out other skills proficiently or create a tangible product? Next, the developer must analyze skills or products to identify performance criteria upon which to judge achievement. This requires the identification of the critical elements of performance that come together to make it sound or effective. In addition, performance assessors must define each criterion and articulate the range of achievement that any particular exami nees work might reflect, from outstanding to very poor performance. And finally, users can contribute immensely to student academicShow MoreRelatedPerformance Assessment : School Based Assessment5474 Words   |  22 PagesPerformance assessment is a tool that is use to evaluate whether the student have mastered the skills or knowledge that they learned. It is a process that needs to be done continuously and have to modify accordingly. Performance assessment can be done within the class and can be in any form. The result of performance assessment is not only based on their exam but also from other aspect. That will help the student to know what they are good in and what they lack of. It is different from the traditionalRead MoreAuthentic Assessment And Performance Based Assessment Essay1869 Words   |  8 PagesAuthentic assessment is also referred to as classroom assessment, alternative assessment and performance based assessment. An authentic assessment is a form of assessment in which students are asked to perform real-world tasks that demonstrate meaningful application of essential knowledge and skills. Or, as Grant Wiggins (1993) describes it, authentic measures are â€Å"engaging and worthy problems or questions of importance, in which students must use knowledge to fashion performances effectively andRead MoreInformal Assessments : Observation Of Everyday Performance1274 Words   |  6 Pages Informal assessments includes the observation of everyday performance. This is the method in which teachers collect information about their students’ performance in usual classroom conditions. Informal assessments are a part of the instructional process and can include â€Å"systematics observations, work sample analysis, task and error analysis, interviews and questionnaires’† (Sacks, 2011). It is done without establishing test conditions such as in the case of formal assessment. Teachers must be roleRead MoreEvaluation Of The Performance Based Assessment1179 Words   |  5 PagesAssessments play an integral part in the classroom. The book, Content Area Reading states that an assessments purpose is to â€Å"gather and synthesize† information about a student’s learning. Teachers utilize a variety of assessments in the classroom to gauge a student’s strengths, weaknesses, and gains. Assessments exercised in the classroom are in several formats: performance-based, formative, and summative. However, assessments must be authentic to be effective in the classroom. An authentic assessmentRead MoreDynamic Assessment And Intervention Of A Childs Performance1150 Words   |  5 PagesDynamic Assessment and Intervention According to Gillam, Peà ±a, and Miller (1999) assessment of discourse is a challenging but important aspect of assessing language, highlighting that cultural and experiential differences may be a factor in a child’s performance. Simply, some children may not have been exposed to these types of narratives or been expected to generate them in their home environment. The authors suggest that good language learners usually learn the new forms or overcome the differencesRead MoreQuestion 1: Importance Of Performance Assessment. Understanding1445 Words   |  6 PagesQuestion 1: Importance of Performance Assessment Understanding your business is a crucial component of it operating efficiently and economically. Performance assessment is a tool to assist Yacker Transport in understanding their business and ensuring it is meeting its objectives. If a business is not meeting its objectives there could be negative financial, and even social or environmental implications. In the case of YT if one objective is to ensure at least 2 tonnes of freight are on each truckRead MoreAssessment For Students And Schools Performances2729 Words   |  11 PagesIntroduction Assessment for many years has been used in a summative manor to quantify student’s abilities to compare students and schools performances. Although necessary to some degree this assessment of learning is using assessment ineffectively as assessment when used properly is a very effective learning tool. Assessment for Learning is defined as â€Å" the process of seeking and interpreting evidence for use by learners and their teachers to decide where learners are the their learning, where theyRead MoreUnit Goals Assessments Performance Criterion1084 Words   |  5 PagesAssessment Plan Unit Goals Assessments Performance Criterion Comprehensive Assessment Pre- Each student will be given a chart that says, â€Å"Plants can, have, are†. Under each section they will need to tell me what they know about what plants can do, what they are, and what they have (referring to structure of the plant). I choose this as my pre-assessment because I think this will be an overall indication of their knowledge and the beginning of this unit. A writing assessment is a better assessmentRead MoreMy Performance And Portfolio Assessments From Using Assessment Data Drive Instructional Decisions841 Words   |  4 Pagesshowcase is my performance and portfolio assessments from Using Assessment Data to Drive Instructional Decisions. The performance assessment focused on a Pizza Party assignment. Students were required to add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals using pictorial models and algorithms in order to calculate the cost the cost of pizza and drinks at each pizza parlor. They used their calculations to determine w hich restaurant had the best price. Students were scored on a performance rubric regardingRead MorePerformance Management Project Assessment One4807 Words   |  20 PagesPerformance management project Submission details Candidate’s Name | Ellen Palmer | Phone No. | 0438463239 | Assessor’s Name | n/a | Phone No. | n/a | Assessment Site | Manage People Performance Assignment Onehttp://ecampus.mciinstitute.edu.au | Assessment Date/s | Completed Unit Due 28 March 2014 | Time/s | | The assessment task is due on the date specified by your assessor. Any variations to this arrangement must be approved in writing by your assessor. Submit this document with any

Essay Communication Law Worksheet - 827 Words

University of Phoenix Material †¢ Communication Law Worksheet Short Essay IN AT LEAST 150 TO 350-WORDS, WRITE AN ESSAY RESPONDING TO THE DETAILS OF THE FOLLOWING THREE QUESTIONS AND STATEMENTS: 1. Communication Law is primarily about the First Amendment. What different types of speech can you identify that may have different protection under the first amendment? Under the First Amendment many types of speech receive the most stringent levels of protection while others receive little to no protection at all. Political or religious speech are two of the biggest and most important areas of speech that receive the most protection and seem to be at the core of the First Amendment rights. These two types of speech receive a†¦show more content†¦Freedom of expression was and is used today as having no prior censorship. It also protects people from punishment after publication. Freedom of expression is quite different today, and today there can be nine different definitions of freedom of expression and are usually based on Supreme Court justices. Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 â€Å"forbade false, scandalous, and malicious publications against the U.S. government, congre ss, and the President† (Pembert Calvert, 2011, p. 48). The law was used to punish those who sought to cause problems and urged resistance to the government. There were 15 prosecutions under this law, many of which belonged to leading papers in the nation at that time. This law was overturned in 1801 and President Jefferson pardoned all those convicted under this law. Today people are allowed to criticize the government and publicly hold views that do not go along with the government or the current administration with little to no prosecution. Taxation of the presses is another area und the First Amendment that has come under scrutiny. Taxing of newspapers and other press outlets was deemed unconstitutional. Government could not tax some members of certain branches over others, and taxing against the content of a publication was also found to be unconstitutional. It is unconstitutional also to â€Å"rule that selective taxation of the press through the narrow targeting ofShow MoreRelatedRisk Threat Vulnerability Essay731 Words   |  3 Pagesassessment findings, risk assessment impact, and recommendations to remediate areas of non-compliance Lab #4: Assessment Worksheet Perform a Qualitative Risk Assessment for an IT Infrastructure Overview The following risks, threats, and vulnerabilities were found in an IT infrastructure. Consider the scenario of a Healthcare provider under HIPPA compliance law and what compliance to HIPPA involves. 1. Given the list below, perform a qualitative risk assessment: Determine whichRead MoreWeek Five Acc/280 Final Exam1687 Words   |  7 Pages1) Bookkeeping differs from accounting in that bookkeeping primarily involves which part of the accounting process? A. Analysis B. Identification C. Communication D. Recording 2) Which list below best describes the major services performed by public accountants? A. Cost accounting, production scheduling, recruiting B. Bookkeeping, mergers, budgets C. Employee training, auditing, bookkeeping D. Auditing, taxation, management consulting 3) Which of theRead MoreRunning An Estate Planning Practice1577 Words   |  7 PagesBARLAY BARLAY LAW GROUP LLC CONYERS, GEORGIA Disclaimer: The material in this presentation has been prepared by Barlay Law Group LLC and is general background information about that practice current as at the date of this presentation. This information is given in summary form and does not purport to be complete. Information in this presentation, including any information, should not be considered as advice or recommendations to anyone in relation to running and estate planning law practice andRead MoreJob Description and Recruiting Strategies Worksheet Essay889 Words   |  4 Pagesï » ¿University of Phoenix Material Job Description and Recruiting Strategies Worksheet Conduct an interview with someone who has a career or job position that is different from your own. Identify the duties associated with his or her position, as well as any skills and abilities necessary for the position. Use the information gathered in the interview, as well as the Week 3 readings, to complete the following worksheet. Answer each question in paragraph format. JOB ANALYSIS 1. What are theRead MoreIntercultural Competence Worksheet Essay1151 Words   |  5 PagesIntercultural Competence Worksheet Part 1: Short Paragraph Instructions: Respond to each question below with at least 150 words, using complete sentences. Additionally, include an example from the reading materials that supports your position. 1. What does â€Å"intercultural† communication mean to you? Intercultural communication to me means many things. It mainly means the way that people communicate throughout the different cultures that they derive from. Intercultural communication is basically theRead MoreNo Child Left Behind Act1282 Words   |  6 Pagespercent of fourth graders are proficient readers, No Child Left Behind requires schools to use research-based reading programs: A primary focus of this law is the requirement that school districts and individual schools use effective research-based reading remediation programs so all children are reading at grade level by the end of third grade. The law authorizes funds to provide assistance to State educational agencies and local educational agencies in establishing reading programs for students inRead MoreInformation Technology3745 Words   |  15 PagesIntensive and extensive reading skills in technical and non-technical reading materials. – skills in writing description, official letters and letters of application, proposals and formal technical reports. Course in detail: Unit 1: Oral communication A. Fundamentals of effective speaking: Posture, gesture, facial expression, voice, eye contact, space distancing etc. B. Group discussion on subjects of general and technical interest. Meetings a. Notice preparation Read MoreEssay on AllenAprilME1415 Wk3 Assign Worksheet V630 Words   |  3 Pagesthis week, guarding the physician-patient relationship is serious business. In this assignment you will practice what you have learned in chapters 5 and 7 in the Medical Law and Ethics textbook: Federal privacy laws that pertain to healthcare and the Patients Bill of Rights Privacy, confidentiality, and privileged communications Filing birth and death certificates Examples of communicable diseases which must be reported to local, state and/or federal authorities The Controlled Substance Act TipsRead MoreWeek Three Discussion1061 Words   |  5 Pagesweek, guarding the physician-patient relationship is serious business.In this assignment you will practice what you have learned in chapters 5 and 7 in the Medical Law and Ethics textbook: * Federal privacy laws that pertain to healthcare and the Patients Bill of Rights * Privacy, confidentiality, and privileged communications * Filing birth and death certificates * Examples of communicable diseases which must be reported to local, state and/or federal authorities * The Controlled SubstanceRead MoreMedical Laws and Ethics Record Management1160 Words   |  5 Pagesthis document to your computer. You will need to submit your answers in the area indicated below. | The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a national law that protects a patient’s rights to privacy. As a Medical Administrative Assistant, it is important for you to understand and uphold this law to protect your patients’ health information. In this assignment, you will practice applying HIPAA regulations. Click here to download the Personal Health Record (PHR) to answer

Performance of The Computershare Samples †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Performance of The Computershare. Answer: Introduction: Investors must analyze the market efficiently before analyzing their amount into that security and the market. There are mainly 2 ways to calculate the performance of the security and a company which are technical analysis and fundamental analysis. In this report, technical analysis study has been performed over the Computershare limited to analyze the performance of the company and the capital structure of the company. Through this report, it has been found that from which Source Company must enhance the funds so that the cost of capital of the company could be reduced and risk mitigation could also be done. Company overview: Computershare limited is an Australian public company which has been registered into the ASX (Australian stock exchange). It is an Australian stock transfer company which offers corporate trust, employee share plan and stock transfer services in numerous countries. 20 offices are currently owned by the company including Australia, Ireland, United States, United Kingdom, Canada etc. this company has been founded in 1978 at Australia. Head office of Computershare is at Yarra falls, Victoria, Australia (Computershare, 2017) Calculation of WACC: Return on equity: Return on equity (ROE) is an evaluation technique which is used to examine the profitability position of a firm in context of shareholder equitys book value. This evaluation is mostly done to investigate the firms functions concerning that how the firm uses its amount and investments to enhance the growth in companys earning. For measuring the ROE (return on equity) of Computershare, DDM and CAPM methods have been analyzed. Calculations of both methods are as follows: DDM (Dividend discount model): Dividend discount model (DDM) explains that the ROE of the Computershare is 4.09%. It explains that the firm would offer 4.09% of net profits to stockholders of the company (Morningstar, 2017). CAPM Model: Capital asset pricing model (CAPM) explains that the ROE of the Computershare is 2.45%. It explains that the firm would offer 2.45% of net profits to stockholders of the company (Morningstar, 2017). Return on debt: Return on debt (Kd) is an evaluation technique which is used to examine the profitability position of a firm in context of debts book value. This evaluation is mostly done to investigate the firms functions concerning that how the firm uses its amount and debts to enhance the growth in companys earnings (Reuters, 2017). Beta Coefficients: Study of beta coefficient over Computershare expresses that the companys beta is 0.1633 from last 5 years (Yahoo finance, 2017). The graph of beta coefficient of index return and Computershare return has been given below. Risk free rate: Further, Australias risk free rate (Rf) is 2.75% of 10 years (Bloomberg, 2017). Growth rate: In addition, Growth rate of Computershares stock has been investigated and found that current growth rate of Computershare is 4% (yahoo finance, 2017). Weighted average cost of capital: WACC estimations of the Computershare express about the total equity and debt cost of capital. Currently the WACC of the company is 0.01225 while measuring the total cost of capital, Ke and Kd of the firm has been identified. The Ke and Kd of the company is 2.454% and 0.15%. Consequently, the weight is 0.65 and 0.34 of debt and equity respectively. So, the total Ke and Kd is 0.01127 and 0.00098 (Yahoo finance, 2017). Calculation of gearing ratios and Difficulties in calculating the gearing ratios: Gearing ratio is a financial ratio that offers a brief classification of companys assets and liabilities. These classifications compare the equity and debt of the company. Calculation of gearing ratio of Computershare depict that the gearing ratio is 0.65554. This depict that the debt and equity relationship of the company is 0.655:1 (Morningstar, 2017). While measuring the gearing ratios of the company, not any particular difficulties have been faced by the company. Entire data related to calculation has easily received from the annual report, Morningstar and yahoo finance. And the formulas have been studied from the books. So it was quite easy to calculate the gearing ratio (Strebulaev, 2007). Findings: Capital structure theory is referred to a systematic approach which is useful for managing and financing the business activities. Capital structure theory explores the association of debt financing; equity financing and firms market value. In this technique, the growth of the company is analyzed according to the different source of funds. In this study, WACC of the company is 0.01225 while measuring the total cost of capital, Ke and Kd of the firm has been identified. The Ke and Kd of the company is 2.454% and 0.15%. Consequently, the weight is 0.65 and 0.34 of debt and equity respectively. So, the total Ke and Kd is 0.01127 and 0.00098. Recommendation and conclusion: Through the above study over Computershare, it has been analyzed that the Computershares gearing ratio and total cost of capital are quite competitive. It has been found that the debt and equity ratio of the company is perfect and the cost of capital of the company is also lower. The cost of debt is lower than the cost of equity. Consequently, the weight of debt in the company is higher than the equity of the company. Company is just required to mitigate the risk as the debt part in the company is more than the equity part. Reflection: I have performed this study to analyze the stock performance of the computer share. I have found this study very interesting. In this report, every aspect such as beta, return on equity, return on debt, market return etc has been analyzed and on the basis of that, WACC of the Computershare has been analyzed. Further, the study of gearing ratios has been done according to the data from annual report and Morningstar. This report depict about the performance of Computershare and through this report, it has been found that company is just required to enhance the funds from equity to manage the risk. Cost of capital is quite competitive. References: Bloomberg. (2017). Australian bonds and rates. https://www.bloomberg.com/markets/rates-bonds/government-bonds/australia on 19th Sept 2017. Morningstar. (2017). Computershare limited. Viewed from https://financials.morningstar.com/balance-sheet/bs.html?t=CMSQFregion=usaculture=en-US on 19th Sept 2017. Reuters. (2017). Computershare limited. Viewed from https://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CPU.AX on 19th Sept 2017. Strebulaev, I. A. (2007). Do tests of capital structure theory mean what they say?. The Journal of Finance, 62(4), 1747-1787. Computershare. (2017). Home. Viewed from https://www.computershares.com.au/ on 19th Sept 2017. Yahoo Finance. (2017). Computershare limited. Viewed from https://in.finance.yahoo.com/quote/CPU.AX/history?period1=1309458600period2=1467225000interval=1mofilter=historyfrequency=1mo on 19th Sept 2017.

Postwar Essays - American Culture, Suburb, , Term Papers

Postwar In the 1950s the number of people living in the suburbs came to actually equal the number of people living in cities. This wave of people was due mainly to the availability of affordable housing; which allowed middle-class Americans to move to an area previously inhabited only by the wealthy. The houses and neighborhoods built in mass numbers on assembly lines came to look identical to each other. As a result of this, a model American life was created. People all around the country began to follow this model, and before they knew it a race to conform had begun. People no longer strove to be different, neither by ethnicity nor religion; they strove to be the same. David Farber, the author of The Age Of Great Dreams, says that while people were intentionally conforming into model Americans, they were forming their own identities as well. Women began to take on new roles as housewives and mothers. They had to adjust to staying home alone all day, and began to take pride in the appearanc e of their homes and families. The men, on the contrary, had to adjust to lives of commuting. They were away from their homes all day and had to drive on highways or take trains just to go to work. In the great move to the suburbs on the quest to conform to what was known as the good life, people had to undergo many changes; this enabled them to develop new identities and ways of life. During the 1950s the gap between white-Americans and African-Americans grew vaster than it had ever been before. The increase in the gap is due mainly to the creation of large suburb towns such as Levittown. By 1960 Levittown had 82,000 whites and no blacks. African Americans were told that they should not bother to apply for housing; the houses were sold strictly to whites. This living situation caused a huge gap to grow between the two races. Prior to the 1950s people of all different cultural backgrounds lived side-by-side in cities; the drastic change damaged race relations forever. The gap between men and women also grew in the postwar era. The men who returned from war were forever changed by the experiences they had there. This, as David Farber explained, gave them something to differentiate themselves from their wives. The women, who had held jobs while the men were away, were told to return to the home. This gave the women something to resent the men for. The 1950s were a difficult time for men and women due to the large gap that had grown between them as a result of the war. The baby boom of the postwar era is a real marvel to society for the simple reason that it has never happened before. Farber states that he is not sure exactly why the baby boom occurred; however, he implies that there were many factors leading to the occurrence of the phenomenon. During the 1950s seventy percent of women were married by the age of 24, and families were having an average of 3.8 children each. There are no records of a baby boom after World War I, nor were there any records of a baby boom after any major European wars. Therefore, the postwar baby boom was due to factors that had nothing to do with the war directly. It was perhaps that America was in a state of extreme prosperity, people had money, houses, back yards and appliances. They then felt it was a good time to settle down and have a large family. When Farber says that people are forming these large families as sort of a haven from a crazy world, he may be correct. The country was so prosperous at the time that people were afraid it wasnt going to last. They, therefore, rushed to achieve their American dream while it was still within their reach. After the war America became without a doubt the most supreme power the world had ever known at the time. We were in a state of extreme prosperity where our economy was soaring. Most families had the money to buy houses, television sets, and sometimes even more than one car.

Behavior Incentives and Classroom Rewards

Behavior Incentives and Classroom Rewards Classroom incentives, prizes, and punishments are part of a controversial topic for teachers. Many teachers see extrinsic material rewards as an appropriate and effective way to manage behavior in the elementary classroom. Other teachers dont want to bribe the kids to do work that they should be intrinsically motivated to do on their own. Should You Offer Classroom Incentives Early in the School Year? The idea of classroom rewards is an important concept to consider at the beginning of the school year. If you start off the year showering students with rewards, they are going to expect it and will most likely only work for the rewards. However, if you limit prizes from day one, you may find that you can get away from the material aspect a little bit and save yourself a significant amount of money in the long run.  Here is an example of what worked for me and thoughts about the concept of rewards. Rewards in First Classroom? In setting up my first classroom (third grade), I wanted to avoid rewards. I dreamed of my students working for knowledges sake. However, after trial and error, I found that kids respond to rewards well and sometimes you just have to use what works. The teachers before us most likely showered our current students with rewards, so they probably expect it by now. Also, teachers (and all employees) work for a reward - money. How many of us would work and try hard if we werent getting a salary? Money and rewards, in general, make the world go round, whether its a pretty picture or not. Timing When Incentives are Needed At the beginning of the year, I didnt do anything with rewards or behavior management because my kids started out the year quiet and hard working. But, around Thanksgiving, I was at the end of my rope and started introducing rewards. Teachers might want to try going as long as they can without rewards because the prizes start losing their effectiveness after awhile because the kids expect them or get used to receiving the rewards. It also works to change the rewards as the year progresses, just to add a little excitement and a boost to their effectiveness. Avoiding Material Rewards I dont use any material rewards in my classroom. I dont give out anything that costs money for me to buy. Im not willing to spend a lot of my own time and money to keep a store or prize box stocked for daily rewards. Good Work Tickets In the end, positive reinforcement of good behavior worked best for my students and me. I used Good Work Tickets which are just leftover scraps of construction paper (that would have been thrown away otherwise) cut up into little 1 inch by 1-inch squares. I have the kids cut them up for me after school or whenever they want. They love to do it. I dont even have to do that part. Involving Students in Giving Rewards When kids are working quietly and doing what they are supposed to be doing, I give them a good work ticket. They put their student # on the back and turn it into the raffle box. Also, if a child finished his or her work or has been working well, I let them pass out the good work tickets, which they love doing. This is a great thing to do with problem children; kids who are usually in trouble will love monitoring their classmates behavior. The students are usually more strict than I am with handing them out. Since they are free, it doesnt matter how many you give out.   Awarding Incentives On Fridays, I do a little drawing. The rewards are things like: Sit at the teachers desk for the day15 minutes playing an educational computer gameBe the caller for multiplication bingoMake up a math problem for the other children to solveGo to lunch 5 minutes early with a friendStay out for a longer recess with a friendChoose your seat for the dayRead out loud to the class You can tailor these rewards to what the cool things in your classroom are. I usually pick two  or three winners and then, just for fun, I pick one more, and that person is the Cool Person of the Day. The kids and I just thought that was a funny thing to do and a nice way to wrap up the drawing. Also, I keep a bag of candy in my cupboard for a quick reward (if someone catches a mistake I make, goes above and beyond the call of duty, etc.). Its a pretty cheap thing to have around just in case. Just throw candy to the kid and keep on teaching. Dont Overemphasize Rewards I didnt place a large emphasis on rewards. I tried to make learning fun, and my kids genuinely did get excited about learning new things. I had them begging me to teach them harder math concepts because they knew they could handle it. Ultimately, how you use rewards in your classroom is a personal decision. There are no right or wrong answers. Like everything in teaching, what works for one teacher may not work for another. But, it does help to discuss your ideas with other educators and see what others are doing in their classroom. Good luck!

Comparison of The Whole Towns Sleeping, written by Ray Bradbury, and The Landlady, by Roald Dahl Essays

Comparison of The Whole Towns Sleeping, written by Ray Bradbury, and The Landlady, by Roald Dahl Essays Comparison of The Whole Towns Sleeping, written by Ray Bradbury, and The Landlady, by Roald Dahl Paper Comparison of The Whole Towns Sleeping, written by Ray Bradbury, and The Landlady, by Roald Dahl Paper Essay Topic: Literature Ray Bradbury Short Stories The Whole Towns Sleeping, written by Ray Bradbury, and The Landlady, by Roald Dahl, are two short stories that have many facts in common; including the setting, the plot and the main characters. The first one narrates the story of a small town where a woman is strangled every month or so by a serial killer. One evening, a group of friends find the dead body of a girl from the town. From then on, the girls become obsessed with the idea of the killer going after them. On the other hand, Dahls story describes how a man arrives to a town (Bath) late at night and is pulled in by a notice on a window into a Bed and Breakfast. The woman in charge of the place does not seem too weird, but even though the protagonist does not notice anything strange, the reader becomes aware of the old womans immoral intentions. The main common aspects are that they are both tales based on fear and apprehension, as well as having opened endings. The setting, the plot and the attitude of the characters are going to be analysed having as an aim, the need to create tension. One of the main parts of a story is the setting. Both of these stories have two different major settings where the plot takes place. In The Whole Towns Sleeping, which takes place in Illinois, the first place you first meet is Lavinias home. There, she feels secure and comfortable. Home. Oh safe at home. Safe, safe and safe at home! (The Whole Towns Sleeping, 56). This fragment of the short story is of great importance because it explains Lavinias personal feelings towards her home, which later will turn out to be wrong. However, the other main setting where most of the story takes place in is outdoors. The story happens an evening when the main characters have decided to go to the cinema. Outside its cold and dark. To get to the cinema they have to go through a scary ravine. They stood upon the edge of the ravine that cut the town in two. Behind them were lighted houses and faint radio music; ahead was deepness, moistness, fireflies and dark. (The Whole Towns Sleeping, 38). This passage full of imagery, it illustrates the unpleasing look of the appearing place of the narrow valley. The ravine is the place where the dead bodies of the victims of the serial killer are found, which makes it even a scarier place. The Landlady also has two principal settings. The story begins in Bath, where a young businessman has arrived. Outside, the air was deadly cold and the wind was like a flat blade of ice on the cheeks (The Landlady, 80). This section of the book shows the protagonists need to find a comfortable place to stay for the night. After looking around town he finds a Bed and Breakfast, which in this story stands out for being the set where most of the plot happens. It is a comfortable house with a fire warming up the living room. In front of the fire, a pretty little dachshund was curled up asleep ( ) The room itself, so far as he could see in the half-darkness, was filled with pleasant furniture (The Landlady, 81). This passage explains how the protagonist sees the Bed and Breakfast as a great place to stay because of its appearance, which does not come out to be a great idea. Concerning the setting, both stories are quite similar. Both of them have a place where the protagonists feel most secure in (Lavinias house, and the Bed and Breakfast respectively), however, as the story flows, they will turn out to be not as safe as they looked like. When writing the plot of these stories, both authors had one aim in mind; to create tension. However, they turned out to achieve their aim by different means. The Whole Towns Sleeping plot consists mainly on a series of continuous mini-climaxes, thought of to create a steady tension around the fear of being attacked by the strangler. The Lonely One might follow us and kill (The Whole Towns Sleeping, 38). The quotation clearly shows the fright that the women experiment. On the other hand, The Landlady works in a different way. Even though it also creates the reader to become nervous and tense, the author uses little hints throughout the story, which will turn out to be related and predestine the young protagonist to his own fate. Hes still here. (Mr. Mulholland). Mr. Temple is also here. Theyre on the third floor, both of them together (The Landlady, 89). This quote shows how the old lady is giving hints to the young man about the danger he is in, however, he does not get the message. Despite the fact that the authors of these two short stories used different techniques to achieve the same aim, they both decided to give the same type of con clusion to the two of them; an opened ending. An opened ending is a story, which does not have a resolution. The last aspect of the stories to be analysed are the characters thoughts. Bradburys story has Lavinia as its protagonist. Francine and Helen are two friends of her in their thirties too. Lavinia is an adventure seeker. She thinks life is boring and has to be spiced up. Going through the ravine on her own, the narrator gets into the protagonists mind and the reader is able to feel empathy. There, there! she screamed to herself. At the bottom of the steps. A man under the light! No, now hes gone! He was waiting there! (The Whole Towns Sleeping, 53). The quotation shown makes the reader understand Lavinias distress while being followed by a stranger. The Landlady is made up of two main characters; Billy Weaver, a young businessman and protagonist of the story, and the old lady owning the Bed and Breakfast. This time the author does not go through the characters thoughts, however, it is obvious that Billy being seventeen years old is not mature enough and he is blindly guided by his misjudgements. She seemed terribly nice (The Landlady, 83). By making this first-sight judgement, he has prearranged his friendship with the old lady. Once that he trusts her, the old lady has to do something truly bad, for him to end up his confidence on her. As he says, briskness is the common characteristic of all successful businessmen, which probably makes him very vulnerable at the time of taking decisions. Though, they are quite different when the time of expressing the protagonists feelings comes, these two stories do appear quite alike in the aspect of their characters if looking at how they are used in each story. Both narrations have an evil person who tries to harm these protagonists without any apparent reason for doing so. Although two stories may look different at first sight, they surely have common aspects, which can be compared to find similitudes. In the case of The Whole Towns Sleeping and The Landlady, they are very similar stories that can be compared very easily. This occasion, the features contrasted were the setting, the plot and the main characters attitude of the short stories. Every time we were able to find at least one common point between the two stories to make them look alike, which means that they are quite similar. They both have a similar setting where the tale takes place, they have comparable plots with the same type of ending, and they have pretty related major characters, in the way they are chased by evil.

Brand Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Brand Marketing - Essay Example According to the report findings a mass-market product has little differentiation, and is often marketed as a generic, low cost alternative. Of course, no marketing would exist without two driving forces to sustain it. These forces are the consumer and the competition. The consumer can be generally placed into two categories, a hedonic or utilitarian purchaser. Competition is based solely on brand ownership and product differentiation as they are marketed towards the customer. As the paper declares consumer’s can be identified as hedonic and utilitarian. This is an important concept of product and brand marketing, because consumers perceptions of a purchase based on their personal desire to fulfill a need or fulfill a self-indulgence has a strong bearing on why there are different types of products. To better understand the branding of products as prestige, masstige, or mass-market, a short background of the average customer is presented here. The traditional concepts of cost and benefit values are perceived as having characteristics of exclusively product and price, the standard economics of supply and demand where the consumers experience is exclusively based on the products quality and price evaluations to control consumption choices and demands, and yet this does not define the reasoning of consumers emotional connections, where "A fourth definition equates value with an overall assessment of subjective worth considering all relevant evaluative criteria" (Babin and Darden p 645 1994), in a sense the overall assessment is the consumers emotional constructs, the sociological and psychological desire to feel rewarded in more than the physical sense of achievement. Babin and Darden analyze that shopping has both utilitarian and hedonic traits, where a methodology only encompasses the consumable and its dimensional and monetary values lacks the ability to fully measure the shoppers' experience, a concept expressed as having importance in other research, although "Far less research has been conducted to examine whether contrast effects occur among hedonic experiences (i.e., experiences of pleasure or pain)" (Novemsky and