Philosophy of Education Essay Example for Free

Philosophy of Education Essay Introduction No doubts that the demand for English language proficiency is high as Malaysians enter the international arena. Ergo, the purpose of this paper is to discuss on one of the hottest issues that perturbs the nation – low English language proficiency among Malaysian students. In order to understand more about the issue, we sought to dig the root causes of the issue and in doing so we discovered that the teaching methods applied by teachers because of the factors are contributing to the issue as well. In other words, the factors are interrelated to the reasons why such ill teaching methods are being applied and all these are resulting in low production of good English speakers in Malaysia. First of all, low English language proficiency is the unsatisfactory ability of an individual to speak or perform in English. The overriding concern with this issue is not unreasonable as we need the language to thrive in this 21st century. On the other hand, teaching methodology refers to a set of different principles and methods that are used to instruct students in a teaching and learning environment. In the educational settings, it is rather important to induce the peak performance from the students. This simply means that, we have to conquer the deterrent (i. e. the factors of the issue), whether we modify them or we eliminate them. Like any other issues, there is no such theory as â€Å"one-size-fits-all† solution to handle it. Therefore, we, as the future English teachers want to bring forth several possible recommendations as ways to overcome this issue in hopes that these approaches can truly be implemented and make a difference in the history of English Education in  Malaysia. Issue The pressing issue with low English language proficiency among Malaysian students has been revolving in the ministry of Education. Most students had no problem coping English Language during preschool whereby they were only exposed to the alphabet and very simple words. The real problem began to exist in the elementary level when most of the students were unable to follow the lessons. Students who cannot master English basic skills in this elementary level will breed more problems during the secondary and tertiary level in schools. In primary education, students are not being placed in a very conducive English language learning environment in which they will be given bountiful opportunities to use the language (Ali, 2003). Students fail to use English on a daily basis and when they are forced to use English to communicate, they speak pejorative English which causes the flow of communication to be stymied. This is probably the main reason why students converse in their own mother tongue more often than they do in English. In the modern age of technology, students with low English language proficiency will not make the most out of the internet because most of the websites are in English. If they cannot understand English used in the websites, they will have a hard time attempting to utilize the device. Not only that, the demand of high English language proficiency is around the globe. We can survive here in Malaysia with national language (i. e. Bahasa Malaysia) and our proud dialects yet we need English Language if we want the whole world to know us. Without a good grasp of the English language, students will be deprived of many opportunities in life since English is the international language. Hence, if we want to make a difference in this situation, we will have to start with the primary education. We believe that this issue shall no longer haunt the Malaysians once the root problems have been improvised or rather, solved. Factors The issue with the low English language proficiency among Malaysian students has arisen because the educators are not aware of the manipulative factors behind this tragic scenario. In this section, we will explore these contributory factors. First of all, the number of students is crucial in determining the quality of teaching and learning process. In Malaysia, most of the schools place 30-40 students in one class. In spite of the level of English standard of each student is different, teacher attempts to teach students in the same way. Due to this large number of students in one class, the teacher often has no choice but to apply the boring method – lecture method. To a certain extent, lecture method is appropriate but if that is the only method the teacher is going to apply in class, it will result in dullness and inefficiency. In addition, the large number of students inhibits the teacher to give attention to every single student thus passive learning ensues. Another factor of impeding the students’ ability in English language is that students themselves fall short of initiative and participation in the classroom (Juhana, 2012). Students show no interest in a so-called foreign language and hence very reluctant to get involved with the teaching and learning session. They are inactive to put their own effort in seeking knowledge. For instance, when a student does not understand a certain word in an essay, he or she expects the teacher to provide the meaning. So, instead of waiting for the students to take the initiative to check on the dictionary (which takes time), teacher simply resorts to spoon-feeding method (i. e. providing every material for the students). In the end, only the teacher is learning and the students will merely passively wait on the teacher for answers. In an English class, the reason students failed to use English effectively also attributes to the Eastern philosophy whereby a teacher has the tendency to criticize students’ mistakes very harshly. It demotivates students, making them fearful of speaking the next time and in the worst scenario, students hate the subject and pass up the opportunity of learning. Teachers are impatient with the students’ slips of tongue and they consider such mistakes as a sign of failure. When the students do speak correctly, the teachers think it is how it should be done and they rarely give any words of encouragement or compliments (Hassan Jamaludin, n. d. ). This tendency indirectly renders the teacher to apply autocratic teaching style which is not helpful for English language learning. This method emphasizes on the teacher’s authoritative identity hence it is very hard for such strict-and-powerful autocratic image to smile and give compliments. Furthermore, due to the exam-oriented platform, many teachers rush through the year in order to push the students to sit for the examination (Ali, 2003). In the English classroom, many teachers have no time to concern with the understanding of students regarding to the rules of grammar, the structures of the sentences and whatnot. For example, they give students essays and require them to copy and memorize. The way to prepare the students for examination the teachers deem best is by drilling. However, such rote learning will only result in stress instead of meaningful learning experience. Eventually, the students are drilled to become competent only on papers but failed completely in daily usage of English. All these factors are equally pernicious in taking a toll on the second language performance among Malaysian students. As educators, we have to generate the strategies to overcome these factors and make the impossible possible. Solutions Previously, we have discovered many factors that indirectly cause the teacher to implement inappropriate teaching methods and so result in low English language proficiency. These factors sum up in one word: teacher-centered. This explains why the teachers are hardly implementing various innovative teaching methods. Teacher-centered method applied in today’s classroom is not effective anymore. Instead of using teacher-centered method, student-centered method which derived from the Modern and Western philosophies should be implemented. Progressivists believe that education should focus on the whole child, rather than on the context or the teacher. Hence, since the number of students is large, the schools should bring in more facilitators in a class to assist the students. This will help the facilitator pays close attention to the students. With the assistance of facilitators in a classroom, there is no reason why active learning cannot take place. For example, one leading teacher can carry out the group discussion and enable the children to experience hands-on learning. A French philosopher, Jean Paul Sartre, suggested that for youth, the existential moment arises when young people realize for the first time that choice is theirs, that they are responsible for themselves. The nature of reality for Existentialists is subjective, and it lies within the individual. They have the freedom to take charge of their own learning as  they are given the opportunity to manage their own learning process. We as teachers are responsible to facilitate the students in their learning process rather than teaching them what to do. This indirectly helps to provide opportunity for the students to take control of their own learning process. As they are interested in what they have chosen to read or learn, they will be the ones who solve the problem (e. g. meaning of a word) instead of being spoon-fed by the teachers. In this way they will be able to make progress in their lessons and participate more. Western philosophers stress on active participation on their learners but to criticize and demotivate the students is not proper in the western philosophy. Western education philosophy believes that providing compliments to the students is an important task for a teacher as it will motivate the students to strive hard. For example, compliments given to the students when they score well in their examination or did a good job in the task or assignments given by the teacher. However, teachers should not only provide compliment when they excel but also to give encouragement when they are not doing so well in the examination. For instance, during an English class, teacher distributes the test papers after the examination, it is not encouraged for the teacher to read out loud the score as it will demotivate and also embarrass the student. It is better that the teacher gives a word of encouragement so to push them to work harder next time. Furthermore, the education ministers should really abolish the exam-oriented system. Instead, the 50% coursework assessment should enter the system. Coursework can include all kinds of fun activities that require students to apply the language learned. This is to overcome the agonizing drilling method. With that, Western philosophy that emphasizes on understanding the subject matter can be very handy in this scenario. For example, the students should learn by understanding the reasons why each part of speech in grammar has different functions. In a nutshell, according to the Western philosophy, students learn by meaningful learning, they do not memorize what they have learnt but rather understand what they are learning. These philosophical resolutions are only useful provided the government, educators, teachers, parents and students and community at large give their best cooperation into making them a success. If we are serious about improvising the English language proficiency among Malaysian students, nothing can stop us, not even the factors of the failure in the first place. Conclusion In conclusion, teaching methodology contributes towards the effectiveness and success of the teaching and learning process. As what we have explored there are several factors that hinder the English Language proficiency among Malaysian students. Among those contributory factors discussed are the number of students, students’ shortfall of motivation, harsh criticism for students’ mistakes and the exam-oriented education system. All these factors are very much harmful in the process of second language acquisition (i. e. English Language). As such, we have provided remarkably appropriate strategies as the solutions to overcome this issue. They are the implementation of student-centered teaching which focuses on the students’ their ideas and opinions, providing more teachers as facilitators in class, hands on learning (Progressivism), place importance on individual choice (Existentialism), giving compliments instead of criticism (Western Philosophy), and learn through understanding rather than mere memorization (Western Philosophy). Hence, by utilizing all the four education philosophies in moderation which are Modern philosophies such as Progressivism and Existentialism, also the two Western approaches that focus on students rather than the teachers. We strongly agree with usage of the Modern Philosophies and the Western Philosophies according to the needs and suitability of class as what we have discussed. We believe that we can produce an ideal education transformation to develop individual holistically and thus enhance the English Language proficiency by applying and practicing appropriate teaching methods to encounter the troublesome factors. References Ali, M. S. (2003). English Language Teaching in Primary Schools: Policy and Implementation Concerns. IPBA E-Journal, 2-3. Hassan, A. Jamaludin, N. S. (n. d. ) Approaches Values in Two Gigantic Educational Philosophies: East and West. Retrieved on March, 22, 2013 from http://www. oerj. org/View? action=viewPaperpaper=7 Juhana, J. (2012). Psychological Factors That Hinder Students from Speaking in English Class (A Case Study in a Senior High School in South Tangerang, Banten, Indonesia). Journal of Education and Practice, Vol 3, No 12. , 103.

The Role of the Princess in Jean Cocteau’s Film Orpheus Essay examples

The Role of the Princess in Jean Cocteau’s Film Orpheus â€Å"As he lay in his bed, Orpheus’ Death would watch him sleep.† This is one of the most notable reoccurring behaviors of the princess of death in Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus. As made apparent, one of the many differences between Cocteau’s version of Orpheus and the Greek version is that death is personified through a female princess, rather than that of a male god. How does Cocteau embody death through the princess, is she all powerful, does she escape mortal tendencies, and finally, what does all this suggest about death? Throughout history death has been a fascination to many authors, often personified as cruel, rigid, and ugly. In Cocteau’s Orpheus, however, death (or perhaps merely a face of death), is personified through a beautiful and strong, young woman. While this faà §ade fools Cocteau’s characters, he uses many clues to indicate the princess’s role such as appearance, dialogue, and actions. In the first scene we are introduced to the princess when she appears at the social cafe with Cegeste, a distinguished and unruly young poet. While her role at this point remains unclear, her powerful stature is clear. She steps out of her car with grace yet confidence, making eye contact with no one, yet holding her head high. Immediately she is noticed by Orpheus, by both her beauty and authority. Her clothing is dark; black long skirt and black jacket, and her hair is worn sleeked back in a pony tail. All this indicates authority, but the color choice further indicates a cool, dark presence. Throughout the film, as the princess’s mood changes, her wardrobe also changes, from business like to more romantic and seductive. Despite these changes, one thing remains constant, the co... ...ponding to her abuse of power. While she did possess powers, she did not possess the authority of when to exercise those powers. In Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus, he has personified death through a beautiful princess. Throughout the film, many common beliefs of death were challenged, from those more trivial such as how death may appear, to whether it be an all-powerful occurrence, or managed under some higher power. By using the princess as death’s personification, he weakened the idea of death; suggesting that while it is beyond the hands of mere mortals a higher power is in control. As the princess took life through personal motive, perhaps there, too, is motive behind whatever power controls death. I believe Cocteau is suggesting that we live in a world where death comes to not only those deserving, but to bystanders who happen to be in the way of a personal goal.

Impact of Caste System in India Essay

1. Introduction 1.1 Brief introduction of the background: Feminist translation rose in the process of â€Å"cultural turn† proposed by Bassnett Susan and Lefevere at the end of the 1970s and in the early 1980s, it was the product of the latest advances in translation theory and the vigorous development of the feminist movement that first launched in Canada by some outstanding Canadian translators, like Susanne de Lotbinià ¨re-Harwood, Barbara Godard and Kathy Mezei.(Susan 1990) A strong movement of French-language feminist experimental writing in Quebec stimulated their desire to promote and to theorize activities of literary mediation. Since then, some feminist theorists came up and made a lot of critics about the feminist translation theory, the most typical and influential ones are: Sherry Simon’s Gender in Translation: Cultural Identity and the Politics of Transmission; Luise Von Flotow’s Translation and Gender : Translating in the Era of Feminism; and Barbara Godard’s Views on feminist translation studies. The purpose of feminist translation theory is firmly opposed to placing women in the lower social class and making translation subsidiary to literature. They are against that, as John Forio summarized:â€Å"translators are handmaiden to authors, women inferior to men.† This is the core of feminist translation theory, which seeks to ‘identify and critique the tangle of concepts which relegates both women and translation to the bottom of the social and literary ladder’. We can see that it stressed the subjectivity of translation, hold the idea that original is equivalent to the translation and the gender discrimination can be eliminated by rewriting the translation. (ç ®â‚¬Ã¤ ¸ ½Ã¤ ¸ ½2012:1-27) From this point of view, the theory is accepted by most, especially translation theorists, since it has provided a new learning perspective for them in translation theory research and translation practice. 1.2 The application of the feminist theory in literature. As one of the most important foundational texts of our Western culture. However, there are many masculine language, image and metaphor in the early Bible so that it is hard to avoid not to consider God as male. With the rising of feminism, women Christian became awakening to the situation of women’s oppression, so they reacted strongly against the overwhelmingly masculinist bias of the Bible, and the way it had for so long been used to constrain women. While the method they adopted is to reinterpretate the Bible from a feminist point of view, to translate the Bible by means of â€Å"neutral† or â€Å"gender-inclusive language† and propose several amendments of the translation of the Bible, which resolves the concept of feminist translation. However, some people think that the rewriting of the Bible may lead a misunderstanding of it, for the fact is that the social status of female in that era is extremely low. We can judge from the following: The Bible teaches that woman brought sin and death into the world, that she precipitated the fall of the race, that she was arraigned before the judgment seat of Heaven, tried, condemned and sentenced. Marriage for her was to be a condition of bondage, maternity a period of suffering and anguish, and in silence and subjection she was to play the role of a dependent on man’s bounty for all her material wants, and for all the information she might desire on the vital questions of the hour, she was commanded to ask her husband at home. Here is the Bible position of woman briefly summed up. (Stanton l972:7) Different translation versions of the Bible are allowed nowadays, on condition that the religious rules and the historical truth of the original text not be violated. Otherwise it won’t become an authorized and popular one. With the rapid development of the feminist translation theory, there sprang up numerous recomments on the reinterpretation of feminist literature in China and abroad. Some main research texts are: Pride and Prejudice; Zhang AIling’s translations; Jane Eyre; Diary of a Mad Black Woman; A Frolic in the Snow; The Color Purple;《王å ®â€°Ã¥ ¿â€ Ã¯ ¼Å¡Ã§â€ ·Ã¤ º ºÃ¥â€™Å'Ã¥ ¥ ³Ã¤ º ºÃ¯ ¼Å'Ã¥ ¥ ³Ã¤ º ºÃ¥â€™Å'城å ¸â€šÃ£â‚¬â€¹and so on. Through the recomment on the feminist literature, and the comparison of different versions from gender point of view, more and more people were awakened by the feminist consciousness, it earned widespread attention to some extent, it even changed the position of men and women in an unnoticed , fast way. For example, there are two different translated versions of Li Limei and Sun Zhili to Pride and prejudice. As far as Austen’s ideas on marriage are concerned. Li Limei’s preface for her translation of Pride and Prejudice:She criticized most of the marriage at that time†¦(she thought) the base of an ideal marriage should be mutual love and understanding†¦but she never put money and love ai the opposite position; instead, she showed that money played a key role in an ideal marriage. In Sun Zhili’s preface for his translation of Pride and Prejudice : she accepted Collin’s proposal just for the purpose to have a good home, a â€Å"safe box† whi ch ensured that she can be protected from cold and hunger. She didn’t mind the fact that she couldn’t enjoy the happiness of love after she got marriage. And to some extent, it reflects the miserable fate of women. It shows us that how the subjectivity influences the translation, in the example above, the female translator, influenced by gender consciousness, can better grasp and reproduce the details related to feminine in the original text. However, the male translator, lacking the gender consciousness, often neglects these details, and even weaken or distorts the feminist purpose in the original text. 2. Theory foundation and their strength and weakness 2.1 Sherry Simon and her Gender in Translation: Cultural Identity and the Politics of Transmission Sherry Simon and her Gender in Translation: Cultural Identity and the Politics of Transmission, which is one of her most significant monographs of translation studies and is also the first comprehensive discussion of the western translation studies from feminist perspective. The book mainly explored the influence on translation theory and practice on the part of feminism based on political and literary movement. In Simon’s words, the book is the product of feminism and translation studies from the perspective of culture. It abandoned the traditional translation theory and held that translation was not a simple mechanical language conversion ,but also the constant extension the renewal of an unlimited number of text discourses. Therefore, translation, considered as an act of writing through highlighting the subjectivity of the translator, is also a rewriting behaviour in specific social, historical and cultural context. Sherry Simon concentrated on the discussion of replacing those hackneyed language by means of the positive discourses that enable to convey the function of identity in translation practice. Sherry Simon’s feminist theory has broken the shackles of translational translation theory, promoting the play of individual initiative, advocating individual interest and needs and recognizing the individual world view.(Simon 1996:105-108) Simon focus on underlining the importance of the cultural turn in translation. Cultural studies brings translation an understanding of the complexities of gender and culture. It allows us to situate linguistic transfer within the multiple ‘post’ realities of today: poststructuralism, post colonialism and postmodernism. (Simon 1996:136) Thus Simon links gender and cultural studies to the development in the post colonialism. The exact scope of post colonialism is open to some debate; however, it is generally used to cover studies of the history of the former colonies, studies of powerful European empires , resistance to the colonialist powers and, more broadly, studies of the effect of the imbalance of power relations between colonized and colonizer. The consequent crossover between different contemporary disciplines can be seen by the fact that essays by her and Lefevere appear in collections of postcolonial writings on translation, and Simon herself makes extensive reference to the postcolonialist Spivak.(Jeremy 2010:133) 2.2 Luise Von Flotow’ Translation and Gender : Translating in the Era of Feminism Followed by Sherry Simon, Luise Von Flotow wrote her Translation and Gender : Translating in the Era of Feminism . After the publication of this book, there came into being a lot of thesis about the feminist translation theory almost at the same time. The importance of it is quite evident. However, does it rightly or properly criticize and comment on the feminist translation perspective? We know that (a) the book systematically expounded the origin, development of the feminism, as well as its relationship with translation. (b) And it perfectly combined theory and example by citing abundant cases. The most heating topic was her three feminist translation strategies: â€Å"supplementing†, â€Å"prefacing† and â€Å"footnoting† as well as â€Å"hijacking†. She explained to us those methods the translators use in their work elaborately. (c) More importantly, as a women, Luise did not hold a bigoted idea, but a justice one to feminism. All of those are strengths, but (a) the language she studied focused on Hebrew, French, and German which all of them have typical gender, number and case. It is not convincing for the Chinese, Japanese and Korean readers for their language can not be obviously distinguished. (b) her criticizes from Outside Feminism and Within Feminism leave us an impression that the feminism overemphasize their manipulative and political act by tampering and the authors’ writing style, without regard to the readers’ feeling. Presenting to us their colonialism in translation. (Flotow 2004) 2.3 Barbara Godard’s Views on feminist translation studies. Barbara Godard was born in Toronto in 1941, she was one of the most famous feminist translators who were the first to engage in feminist translation. She published six translation works including dozens of translations of poetries, proses and fiction excerpts. Godard emphasized on the profiling of women and the translator in the translation. She wrote prefaces all her translators, showing her rejection of invisible women, translators and translations. An important discovery she found was that the language differences between women and men, she found that women must put female language translated in to patriarchal language when they got involved in to the public domain, so women were â€Å"bilingual†, with at least two kind of visions of looking at reality. However, men has a single perspective because of their power positions of masters. When it came to the translation of women’s work, this narrow perspective of men were fully exposed. What she sought was not the â€Å"one to one correspondence† between the translation work and the original texts, but the recreation of the translation to the feminism in the original text. Godard was absolutely a pioneer in western feminist translation and her feminist translation practice and theory were extremely important for us to study the western feminist translation. However,(a) her works were so radical that it was almost impossible for the translators to find the so-called equivalence of the original work and the translation work. (b) Godard’s translation were indeed limited to the highly educated elite readers for she thought it was one of the strategies of feminism that required the text of elitism to make the text more readable. 3. Conclusion It is regarded as a good way to improve the women’s social status with language and translation, we are also delighted to see the improvement of the subjectivity and the translators, but it will become debateable if the translators attempt to change the style of the original work, or rewrite it to serve their political act. If the translation is not fidelity ,we won’t care whether it is beautiful or not. What we should do is not to rewrite all the works forcefully, but fully analyzing and translating the feminist works with female consciousness, so that our voice can be heard,and our female consciousness can be released from the male-centered one.(ä ¹ Ã© »â€ºÃ¤ ºâ€˜ 2002) The translation theory and translation practice now mainly focus on some typical literary translation and texts, but not spread to the people at bottom. It is suggested that the mass reading and some other aspects should also be involved. As for China, we still did not have any formal feminist movement, plus we lack of the deep research about translation. Hence we haven’t achieved a remarkable achievement concerning the feminist translation. We should avail ourselves of this opportunity to call on Chinese translators apply this feminist consciousness into their translation. Because it benefits not only the development of feminism, the gender study, but also the translation studies. The revolution of the translation may be a revolution of literature, and a revolution of human culture.

The Financial Crisis and The Great Depression Free Essay Example, 1000 words

The recovery that was seen in the periods after 1933 was rapid, but not rapid enough to completely reverse the effects of the depression. Another point of similarity is that both of them were preceded by asset price booms and bursts. There was a housing boom and burst in the 1920s and the Wall Street boom and crash around 1929. Similarly in 2006, there was a mortgage related housing boom and burst, leading to the 2008 crisis. Another similarity lied in the fact that both the crises led to massive unemployment resulting from layoffs. When the industrial production shrunk, the industries had no choice but to send a portion of the employee’s home. The differences between the two economic hardships the world faced were their causes and the times they occurred. It is often thought that the great depression was a result of the effects of the world war during which a lot of destructions happened, and some of the things that held the world economy together were affected severely. We also have generational differences in the sense that one took place in 1929 and another about 80 years later. We will write a custom essay sample on The Financial Crisis and The Great Depression or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now There was deflation in the industrial output, meaning a decrease in the overall size of production in the manufacturing sector. The layoffs meant that the disposable income reduced. Much of the recovery started in the times around and after 1933. Some of the differences between the great depression and the current economic difficulties including the 2008 credit crunch lie in a number of things, which include a number of things. In 1929, there was a concentration of industrial activities in the European nations and the United States. In 2008, even the nations that hadn’t invested in industry by the 1920s had some amount of industrial production going on in them. The effects of the two economic periods are similar in the sense of shrunk industrial production (Cooper, 2008). The difference here is that whereas the 1929 situation only affected the then industrialized nations, sparing those that hadn’t invested in industry, the 2008 situation affected each and every country of the world, because virtually all the countries of the world have an industrialized economy, no matter how small. Another difference between 1929 and the 2008 situation was that the great depression of the late 1920s and the early 1930s was an old fashioned version of banking liquidity crisis that resulted from the failure by federal bank to serve as a lender of last resort. The 2008 crisis resulted from a bank solvency crisis.