LITERATURE REVIEW ON EFFECTIVENESS OF SOCIAL STORIES ON THE SOCIAL Essay

LITERATURE REVIEW ON EFFECTIVENESS OF SOCIAL STORIES ON THE SOCIAL BEHAVIORS OF AUTISTIC CHILDREN - Essay Example It can use pictorial tools for elaboration. It has descriptive, affirmative, perspective sentences and directive sentence. For every 0 to 1 directive sentence, the ratio of descriptive, affirmative, and perspective sentences should be 2 to 5. Later, cooperative and control sentences were added in an enlarged definition. Delano and Snell (2006) study was conducted on three Autism affected students Derrel, Sean and Thomas aged 6, 6, and 9 years respectively. Six peers, two each for autism affected child were used. One was a training peer and the other a general peer. Social engagement, its absence, appropriateness and inappropriateness with the peer were studied. The social story was used to increase social interaction and improve target skills This study was the fourth ever study done in history on use of social stories to study improvement in social skills for autistic child. Sean used only text story but Derrel and Thomas were given picture-symbol text. Data was collected over ten minute social sessions. For comparative analysis of intervention and non-intervention phase, a baseline was accepted and the behavior of the students was noted. Duration data in second in 45 sessions for appropriate, in appropriate social engagement and absence of social engagement amongst the affected children and peers was noted in a typical setting of interaction with a training peer, in the story intervention phase, decrease of intervention phase (fading) and absence of story(no story) phase. The first author and an educational teacher were appointed as the observers for study. They were trained on Procorder DV system till they obtained kappa coefficient. All the sessions were video graphed and exported to the Multi-Option Observation System for accurate analysis. There was marked improvement in the social behavior of the target children in the intervention phase. In the fading and no story phases, though the data of social engagement

Environmental sustainable development

Environmental sustainable development Introduction Sustainability can be described as a state in which humankind is living within the carrying capacity of the earth. This means that the earth has the capacity to accommodate the needs of existing populations in a sustainable way and is therefore also able to provide for future generations. Humankind is nowadays facing the fact that, with its intensive industrial activities, pollution, and resource exploitation has exceeded the earths carrying capacity. This means we must make strong and concerted shift of development in direction where earth can sustain humankind needs. This concerted and integrated action and change of direction can be referred to as sustainable development. Changes and integrated action can be first applied on micro level sectors like mining industries, where cumulative effects of such small changes can give very good results, in terms of sustainable development, (B. Clayton et al, 2002). The Brundtland Commissions (1987) vision of sustainable development is to mee t the needs of the present generation without undermining the capacity of future generations to meet their needs. . Sustainable development can be looked at as a process; this process involves the economic, social and cultural aspects of mankind as well as the environmental health of the planet, (Brundtland, 1987). This report is to elaborate on the Mining and Minerals sector how Sustainable development can be applied to the sector to confront present challenges. Jonathon Porritt puts it: Sustainable development is the only intellectually coherent, sufficiently inclusive potentially mind-changing concept that gets even half-way close to capturing the true nature and urgency of the challenge that now confronts the world and there is really no alternative, (D.Clayton et al., 2002). In the past decade, the mining and minerals industry has come under tremendous pressure to improve its social, developmental, and environmental performance, (http://ccsenet.org/jsd). Like other parts of the corporate world, companies are more routinely expected to perform to ever higher standards of behaviour, going well beyond achieving the best rate of return for shareholders. They are also increasingly being asked to be more transparent and subject to third-party audit or review. In response, a number of companies, either independently or with other actors, is establishing voluntary standards that often go beyond any law. But even so, some observers remain suspect that many businesses are merely engaging in public relations exercises and doubt their sincerity. In particular, the industry has been failing to convince some of its constituencies and stakeholders that it necessarily has the social licence to operate in many areas of the world. Despite the industrys undoubted importance in meeting the need for minerals and its significant contributions to economic and social development, concerns about aspects of its performance prevail. Mining, refining, and the u se and disposal of minerals have in some instances led to significant local environmental and social damage. It is not always clear that mining brings economic and social benefits to the host countries, as the minerals sector sometimes operates where there is poor governance, including corruption, and is thus associated with it, (G.J. Coakley, 1999). In some cases, communities and indigenous groups near or around mines allege human rights abuses. Many countries and communities depend on minerals production as a source of income and a means of development. And with growing trade liberalization and privatization, much of the investment in minerals exploration and production has turned to developing and transition countries. Mining is important in 51 developing countries accounting for 15-50% of exports in 30 countries and 5-15% of exports in a further 18 countries, and being important domestically in 3 other countries. About 3.5 billion people live in these countries, with about 1.5 billion living on less than US$2 per day, (World Bank, 2002). Minerals development can create many opportunities, including jobs, a transfer of skills and technology, and the development of local infrastructure and services. However, there is sometimes a lack of capacity, knowledge, and incentives to turn investment into development. The industry has generated wealth in direct and indirect ways but, it is alleged, there is a mismatch of opportunities and problems the wealth often being enjoyed far from the communities and environments that feel the adverse impacts. Sustainable development objectives A review of literature on sustainability suggests that sustainability can be described in terms of social, economic and environmental states that are required in order for overall sustainability to be achieved. The World Summit on Sustainable Development Plan of Implementation provides range of sustainable development objectives that should be aimed in order to achieve sustainability. Environmental Sustainable Development Objectives: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Size, productivity and biodiversity: Ensure that development conserves or increased the size, biodiversity and productivity of the biophysical environment. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Resource management: Ensure that development supports the management of the biophysical environment. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Resource extraction and processing: Ensure that development minimizes the use of support of environmentally damaging resource extraction and processing practices. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Waste and pollution: Ensure that development manages the production of waste to ensure that this does not cause environmental damage. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Water: Ensure that development manages extraction, consumption and disposal of water in order not to adversely affect the biophysical environment. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Energy: Ensure that development manages the extraction and consumption of resources in order not to adversely affect natural systems (Gibberd, 2005). Economic Sustainable Development Objectives: Vol. 3, No. 1 Journal of Sustainable Development, (http://ccsenet.org/jsd). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Employment and self-employment: Ensure that development supports increased access to employment and supports self-employment and the development of small enterprises. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Efficiency and effectiveness: Ensure that development (including technology specified) is designed and managed to be highly efficient and effective, achieving high productivity level with few resources and limited waste and pollution. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Indigenous knowledge and technology: Ensure that development takes into account and draws on, where appropriate, indigenous knowledge and technology. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Sustainable accounting: Ensure that development is based on a scientific approach that takes in to account, and is formed by, social, environmental and economic impacts. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ An enabling environment: Develop an enabling environment for sustainable development including the development of transparent, equitable, supportive policies, processes and forward planning. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Small-scale, local and diverse economies: Ensure that development supports development of small-scale, local and diverse economies, (Gibberd, 2005). Social Sustainable Development Objectives: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Access: Ensures that development supports increased access to land, adequate shelter, finance, information, public service, technology and communications where this is needed. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Education: Ensure that development improves levels of education and awareness, including awareness of sustainable development. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Inclusive: Ensure that development processes, and benefits, are inclusive. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Health, Safety and Security: Ensure that development considers human rights and supports improved health, safety and security. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Participation: Ensure that development supports interaction, partnerships and involves and is influenced by the people that it affects. This description provides simple definitions for sustainability and sustainable development. A useful aspect of the definition is that it provides both an ultimate state that must be strived for a swell set of actions or objectives, which if addressed and implemented, will lead towards sustainable development, (Gibberd, 2005). Sustainable Development Framework for the Minerals Sector Applying the concept of sustainable development to the minerals sector does not mean making one mine after another sustainable. The challenge of the sustainable development framework is to see that the minerals sector as a whole contributes to human welfare and well-being today without reducing the potential for future generations to do the same. Thus the approach has to be both comprehensive taking into account the whole minerals system and forward looking, setting out long-term as well as short term objectives, (D. Clayton et al, 2002). Moving from the concept of sustainable development to action requires: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ a robust framework based on an agreed set of broad principles; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ an understanding of the key challenges and constraints facing the sector at different levels and in different regions and the actions needed to meet or overcome them, along with the respective roles and responsibilities of actors in the sector; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ a process for responding to these challenges that respects the rights and interests of all those involved, is able to set priorities, and ensures that action is taken at the appropriate level à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ an integrated set of institutions and policy instruments to ensure minimum standards of compliance as well as responsible voluntary actions; and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ verifiable measures to evaluate progress and foster consistent improvement. If the minerals sector is to contribute positively to sustainable development, it needs to demonstrate continuous improvement of its social, economic, and environmental contribution, with new and evolving governance systems. The sector needs a framework within which it should judge and pursue any development. The Challenges of Implementation One of the key challenges for minerals sector is implementation. I n other to facilitate putting sustainable development into practice in the mining and minerals sector, policy makers will need to select a mixture of the principles of sustainable development outlined above. Putting sustainable development into practice also requires actors in the minerals sector to be publicly committed to explicit and well-understood goals and objectives. Leadership from the top is a must, as is the need to ensure that all employees understand what sustainable development entails. This is necessary not only for companies but also for government ministries and departments at all levels, as well as labour, civil society organizations, and communities. Capacity building is also a key to moving forward, (D.clayton et al, 2002). Conclusion The concept of sustainable development is not new for it brings together ideas from a long history of human development into one common framework. This is becoming an increasingly important guide and judge for many actors whether from government, industry, or civil society. There is little disagreement about the broad principles contained in the framework, although different groups and individuals accord different priorities to the various spheres economic, environmental, social, and governance depending on their interests and their level of understanding and implementation. These priorities will determine the paths of action for implementation of the principles. The differences do not detract from the high level vision of sustainable development, which allows for different iterative and ever improving approaches. For improvement this actions have to be enforced: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Consistency with the sustainable development framework; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Continuous and clearly defined objectives and incentives to change towards better practice; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ SMART specific, monitorable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound approach; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Enforcing higher levels of trust and cooperation; and, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Where possible, built on existing structures and institutions. In many ways the picture today is already more positive than it was some decades ago. There remains much to be done in improving the sectors contribution to all aspects of sustainable development. But the largest companies and their newest operations at least are now being held to higher standards. Indeed, the best mining operations are now in the sustainable development vanguard not merely ahead of what local regulations demand, but achieving higher social and environmental standards than many other industrial enterprises. Reference:  · Brundtland: World Commission on environment and Development (1987). (pp.43).  · Dalal-Cayton.D.B and Bass.S (2002). The Nature of Sustainable Development Strategies.(pp.66-77,115,261).  · George J. Coakley, 1999. The minerals industry of Ghana in the US Department of the interior, US Geological survey, minerals yearbook. Area Reports: International 1997, Africa and the Middle East. Volume III  · Gibberd J. T., (2005). Developing a Sustainable Development Approach for Buildings and Construction Processes Smart Sustainable Built Environments. Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Chapter 27. (pp 300-310).  · Maja Mitich : Sustainable Approach to A Reform of Coal Mining Industry in Serbia. University of Singidunum, Belgrade, Serbia. http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/jsd/article/viewFile/4797/4461 (Accessed: 06/05/2010).  · Vol. 3, No. 1 Journal of Sustainable Development, http://www.ccsenet.org/jsd (Accessed: 07/05/2010).  · World Bank International Finance Corporation (2002) Treasure or trouble? Mining in developing countries. Draft.

Its Not For the Government to Decide :: Free Essay Writer

It's Not For the Government to Decide The decision to relocate one’s life to a far away or unknown place is most likely one of the most important and life changing decisions a person can ever make. Depending on where the move is to can effect the person’s job opportunities, class of people that are socialized with, and ultimately the quality of living either increasing or decreasing. A decision this important is not an impulsive one, it requires much thought as well as imput from others. When a homeless person resolves to move underground they choose to be down there. If they did not want to relocate to the recesses of the earth why else would they do it? None of them were physically forced to move all of their belongings underground and forcibly adapt to that new surroundings against their own wishes, they wanted it and in effect they got precisely what was desired. Their lives are their own and it is up to no one but themselves whether they should move above ground again and since they have chosen to live down there and they should be allowed to. Therefore, it is not up to the government to tell the homeless where they should have to live, if the Mole people wish to live six layers beneath the surface then they should be allowed to. In The Mole People, by Jennifer Toth, the eighty’s are referred to as the â€Å"decade of the tunnels† (Toth 14) because that is when the police found all of the homeless underground. From what the police saw down there they saw it all as not being fit for human living, but isn’t that the case for some above ground as well? There are locations through out the entire world that are seen as unfit to live in, and in some cases, like in third world countries, the entire country is seen in that way. But is it up to government to tell these people that they have to move? No, the government has no right to tell people where they cannot live. If the government is able to do this then what will stop them from stopping people from doing everything that they do not approve of? We all hold our own lives in our hands and the decisions in our lives will always be our own. We will be forced to live with the consequences of our actions, but we also have the power to rectify something if we do not like the direction in which it is heading. It's Not For the Government to Decide :: Free Essay Writer It's Not For the Government to Decide The decision to relocate one’s life to a far away or unknown place is most likely one of the most important and life changing decisions a person can ever make. Depending on where the move is to can effect the person’s job opportunities, class of people that are socialized with, and ultimately the quality of living either increasing or decreasing. A decision this important is not an impulsive one, it requires much thought as well as imput from others. When a homeless person resolves to move underground they choose to be down there. If they did not want to relocate to the recesses of the earth why else would they do it? None of them were physically forced to move all of their belongings underground and forcibly adapt to that new surroundings against their own wishes, they wanted it and in effect they got precisely what was desired. Their lives are their own and it is up to no one but themselves whether they should move above ground again and since they have chosen to live down there and they should be allowed to. Therefore, it is not up to the government to tell the homeless where they should have to live, if the Mole people wish to live six layers beneath the surface then they should be allowed to. In The Mole People, by Jennifer Toth, the eighty’s are referred to as the â€Å"decade of the tunnels† (Toth 14) because that is when the police found all of the homeless underground. From what the police saw down there they saw it all as not being fit for human living, but isn’t that the case for some above ground as well? There are locations through out the entire world that are seen as unfit to live in, and in some cases, like in third world countries, the entire country is seen in that way. But is it up to government to tell these people that they have to move? No, the government has no right to tell people where they cannot live. If the government is able to do this then what will stop them from stopping people from doing everything that they do not approve of? We all hold our own lives in our hands and the decisions in our lives will always be our own. We will be forced to live with the consequences of our actions, but we also have the power to rectify something if we do not like the direction in which it is heading.

My name is Khan Essay

My name is Khan is an Indian film that revolved around the life of Rizwan Khan, a Muslim who suffered Asperger’s Syndrome. Because of his problem in dealing with new places, people, loud colors and sharp sounds, he was given special care by his mother and private tutoring by a scholar which led to jealousy on part of his brother. Khan was taught by his mother that there were only two kinds of people in this world- the good and the bad. After her mother died, Rizwan moved to San Francisco and lived with his brother and sister-in-law. He was then employed by his brother as a sales man for Mehnaz Herbal Beauty Products. While working, he met and fell in love with Mandira, a divorced Hindu hairdresser who has a 6- year old son called Sam. After Khan showed a place that hasn’t been seen before by Mandira, they married and settle down in Banville even against the will of his brother. It was considered blasphemy, according to Rizwan’s brother, to marry a Hindu. Mandira and Sam took Rizwan’s surname. Everything seemed to be perfect for the family when the 9/11 attack happened in New York City and shattered the lives of the Khans. The Khan family, as well as the other Muslims, began to experience discrimination, harassments and hate crimes from the American community. Mandira had to close her job; Rizvan’s sister-in-law was attacked for she was wearing a scarf; Sam experienced bullying and his best friend turned away from him. He got into a fight with few school kids for they were blaming him as a terrorist and was beaten to death. Mandira blamed Rizwan’s surname for Sam’s tragic death. She banished him and told him not to return until he tells the U. S president that even though he is a Muslim, he is not a terrorist. Rizwan then started a long and lonely journey across America to tell the President of the USA: â€Å"My name is Khan and I am not a terrorist. † Along his journey, he met Mama Jenny and her son Joel, helped them when a hurricane hit the place they lived, was arrested by the police after been mistaken as a terrorist in a crowd and was stabbed by one of the followers of a man he reported in the authority after overhearing his violent rhetoric. Amidst the obstacles he underwent, he was able to meet the president, and told him â€Å"My name is Khan and I am not a terrorist†. The film concluded with Mandira and Rizwan going home. Conventionally, real man should be tough and should not show emotions. But seeing the film My Name is Khan, my heart of stone trembled and I caught myself teary-eyed. I was greatly impressed of Rizvan’s special ability to repair mechanical things particularly when the young Rizwan made an alternative pump to drive the water out from his teacher’s house and how he can repair almost everything. I was inspired by how Rizwan overcome his limitation as an autistic man in order to journey on across the different states of America just to meet the president of the USA. I was saddened by how discrimination can tear a family apart; how it can bring damage to the oppressed party especially when discrimination is to be blamed for a death of a loved one. No matter what, Rizwan’s life brought happiness to us and proved that every cloud will always have its silver lining. Faithfulness is the one of the values I have learned in this movie. Rizvan’s strong faith to Allah never waived amidst the prejudice against Muslim by the American community. â€Å"Prayer should never depend upon the place or the people. It should depend upon your belief†, said Rizvan. Second is respectfulness not only to the people, but also to one’s own religion. Mandira and Rizvan respect one another’s religion. They gave each other space to perform their own beliefs. Third is selflesness. Rizvan rushed to Georgia in the middle of hurricane to help Mama Jenny who once sheltered him. His act of kindness moved the world and brought volunteers to Georgia to aid the victims of the hurricane. Fourth is humility. Rizvan never failed to remain humble. When he was ill- treated in the airport, he did not complain. When he was released from being detained, he did not despise the people who imprisoned him. When Mandira asked him to leave, he did not question. Instead he only asked when he can return. Lastly, Rizvan taught me the essence of love. It wasn’t anger or hatred that helped Rizvan succeed in his journey, it was his love for his family and of Allah. It was also love that helped Rizvan and Mandira moved on after the death of Sam. After watching the film, I can say that media took a big role in cultivating the minds of the people to look Muslims as a violent people and Islam as a violent religion using the issues concerning them like the 9/11 attack. One statement from the media can greatly affect the perception of the people towards the issue. We tend to focus on the negative sides of the Muslim and discriminate them. What we don’t know is the brighter side of them, their irrevocable love for Allah and central practices that does not advocate violence and promote peace. Then what about the Muslim terrorists and their actions? For me, they did inhumane acts not for their religion but for their own selfish motives, not religiously but politically. But what happened was that media took blame on their religion and their teachings. I can’t blame the media totally since this practice of blaming is even practice by our society and families. It became traditional that changing it will be difficult and will take a longer time. For example, someone commit a crime. Our society will not blame you totally but also your family, your background, and your religion. Moreover, My Name is Khan taught us that differences in religions cannot hinder two persons in love to have a successful marriage and peaceful living. We may have different names for our God, but all of them have one in common- they all symbolize love.

Hum 176. Week 1 Mass Media

University of Phoenix Material- Effects of Mass Media Worksheet Write brief 250-to 300-word answers to each of the following: |Questions |Answers | |What were the major developments in the |In the early/middle 20th century brought a mass of developments into the world. Some of | |evolution of mass media during the 20th |the extended communication lines begin to extend then with radios, televisions, | |century? newspapers. The late 20th century added other forms of media through internet, social | | |communication, and technology such as video games. Media was the forefront of culture and | | |brought people together. Media is a mixture of mass media and communication outlets. | | |Before mass communication, people wrote letters and sent them through mail to communicate. | |However since the evolution, there are new ways such as email, text messages, video | | |conferencing, chatting, etc. This century has adapted to the media conversion and it has | | |evolved into daily lifestyles. In the average workplace, new waves of technology have | | |begun to embark on the evolution by removing files, the use of paper, more recycling, and | | |using technology to its full potential.The average employer no longer requires paper | | |applications. More applications for employment can be done online, through smartphone | | |services with just one touch. Another major development streamed lined in the early 1900’s| | |with the authority of the printing press. As the invention successfully streamed, it | | |allowed the news press and local media to get more local news out effectively. Theatres | | |embraced the line of cinema.More movies also became famous as part of the century | | |entertainment. There were no longer more outside evening films. The films also gained | | |communication through the development of radio. Radio became the worldwide core to news, | | |entertainment, and the source that people could rely on. The radio started to be the hit | | |location f or many artist to show their talents and for viewers to hear top hit songs.The | | |late 20th century brought on more collaboration of music through the internet, cell | | |phones, and applications downloads on the internet, and more. The major developments have | | |been a great asset to the country and will continue to be embraced by individuals. | |How did each development influence | | |American culture? | |