Assessment Methods Essay Example for Free

Assessment Methods Essay What is assessment? Black and William (1998) declare that the term assessment is generally used to refer to all activities teachers use to help students learn and to gauge student progress. There are many different forms of assessment, however they can generally be divided into two main categories; formative and summative which can be formal or informal. Formative assessment focuses on the gap between where a learner is in their learning, and where they need to be. Marshall (2006) states that formative assessment gives you more flexibility, your assessments can focus on the individual needs of your learners. Formative assessment is usually carried out during the learning process and is a form of giving feedback to the learner, in order for them to understand how they are progressing and to identify areas that may require further attention and what they need to do to achieve the learning outcome. Summative Assessment on the other hand tends to be a formal measuring of the learning and focuses on the achievements of the learner at a particular time. This could be at the end of a term or at the end of a particular program of study. It is generally used to identify if the learner has achieved a level of competence and/or knowledge. Summative assessments can take the form of test, exams Practical, oral or written, the individual is usually given a score which can result in a pass or fail. Assessments can be Objective or Subjective. When assessments are objective, the questions asked have a single correct answer; these questions can take the form of multiple choice or true and false answers. When assessments are subjective, the questions asked may have more than one answer and can take the form of a written response such as an essay. There are also criterion-referenced and norm-referenced assessments. A criteria-referenced assessment measures what a learner can actually do (their competence) and it is measured against a set standard, an example of this is the current driving test. Whereas, norm-measured assessment compares learners one against each other, an example being the IQ test. As a teacher in my teaching practice I use a variety of assessment processes. I use criteria based formative assessment in the skills-based Basic First Aid course; learners are expected to be able to perform effective CPR and to be deemed competent they are measured against a set criteria defined by the Resuscitation council and Health Safety Executive regulations. I use observation to measure whether they meet these criteria. However the assessment required for the First Aid at Work course, which is more in depth, requires a summative assessment, which takes the form of objective questioning to ascertain if the learner has gained clearly defined knowledge base and a practical skill test to ascertain if the learner is able to perform effective first aid. This assessment is a defined pass or fail. All learners on our NVQ program are measured by performance criteria which define the context for assessment laid down by the accrediting bodies, and both formative and summative criteria-based assessments are used. This allows the assessor to give students feedback on their development and on areas that may require further attention and also to observe when they have reached occupational competency. All assessment processes must first start with an initial assessment. Black and William (1998) suggest that this initial assessment (for learning) focuses on the gap between where a learner is in their learning, and where they need to be. This assessment is a good starting point to discover what skills your learner has and to direct them to the next stage. I carry out an initial assessment on candidates undertaking NVQ training. This is used as a tool to develop an individual learning plan for them. During this assessment process we would ask the candidates to complete different forms and questionnaires in order to gather the information for their plan. This would include a numeracy and literacy test to judge their level of skills and to ascertain if they will need to be referred for extra help and a learning styles questionnaire so that we can tailor any training towards their preferred learning style. Initial assessment can also be used informally at the beginning of a course as a tool to establish learners existing knowledge and expectations. This information can be used to bias the teaching towards the needs of the learners and also focus the learning towards the learners’ expectations. Other types of assessment can be used to judge whether a learner has made progress such as self-assessment. This is where the student reflects upon their own progress and assesses their own development and achievements made during their learning journey; or it can be a peer-assessment, where the learners peers (who are on the same learning journey) assess the learners developments and achievements through observation of their practice during the journey; or third party, which is where another person not on the learning journey, assesses the learners progress by examining how they have put the knowledge/ skills they have learnt into practice, (these would be a supervisor or manager). Assessment can occur in a number of ways including observation, watching and evaluating the learners progress which works well for practical skills-based courses; written questions to gain an understanding of the learners knowledge in their own words, although this can discriminate against those whose written English skills are less developed; Multiple Choice questionnaires, again this is to assess their understanding of the taught material, and ensures equal opportunities for everyone as it is suitable for those who may be concerned about their writing / spelling or who may be nervous. Please see assignment 8. 3. 6 record keeping in regard to assessment record keeping. REFERENCES Black, Paul, William, Dylan (October 1998). Inside the Black Box: Raising Standards Through Classroom Assessment. Phi Beta Kappan. Available at http://www. pdkintl. org/kappan/kbla9810. htm. Marshall B. (2006) Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector BTEC Level 3 Edexcel Limited London (page 81) Wikipedia (2009) Assessment (online) available at http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Assessment accessed on 11/12 Oct 09Ã'Ž

The North And South Gap In Economic Development

The North And South Gap In Economic Development According to dependency perspective has globalization increase or reduce the North and South gap in economic development? The international political economy is determined by two significant income gaps. The first is the significant gap between the rich and poor nations, and the second is the growing differences between groups of LDCs. When we analyze North-South differences, we observe the North and Souths problems -Western system-. North-South debate had became great significant at the end of the 20th century. The return from an investment on a sustainable basis gap between North and South is growing. Also, the objects produced by the states of the South become lesser costly for developed countries. Such situation enables the less developed nations to create more in order to buy even lesser goods from the wealth countries. It decreases the skills of the less developed countries to direct the global economy because their goods are not needed and their view is not taken into account by the rich countries. Therefore less developed countries are usually discomfort with the direction of the global economy because of the little role that they play in its organization. The North-South issue was studied by the three different philosophical approaches, which argued whether this gap could be decreased in the global economic system. Liberal theory of economic improvement is the theories in the International economy. Globalist or Marxist approaches look the problem in the free-trade system. Structuralists are between liberals and globalists because they claim that the system is not optimal however can be in peaceful manner reformed and organized again. All theories can be made judgments at many point, but all of them contain significant information for the complex view of the issue. Marxists keen on the economics of South by North, which is an initial pattern of the capitalist system. They claim that free-trade represents a non equal exchange between the North and the South in the economy dominated the North. Thats why because of its direction ability, a requirement for the raw materials and markets abroad, the North decreases prices on the materials exported from the North. The problem with this approach is that the Third World is not any longer very important to the wealth nations. Its exports goods dont have affect on the North because each consumptions of raw materials reduces because of changing growth patterns, conservation, substitution and technological developments. Structuralists has same view with Marxists that free trade is not equal exchange with most of its benefits belonging to the rich countries. But, they argue that it is not a required view of the system. They say the two structure of society when some people has primal conditions and some has the global economy due to their job in export industry. By regional integration structuralists say creating of trade associations among many developing nations to require attractive and reliable to the foreign investors. This theory problem is the question of its practical act of implying. There is a political trouble connected to the economic realm: how can the weakest state change their situation against the will of the strongest state? Another question is whether regulation can be do and what is needed to do for its strengthened. Since the end of World War ll, developing countries have searched several different ways in an effort to change their dependence. In the Bretton Woods era, developing countries were dependent on the developed North and pursued national strategies designed to isolate or protect themselves from the international economic system. The major aims of the developing countries are to handle poverty and inequality, growing and to has an important role in the global economy decision process. Developing nations demand to change the system or to adapt to it with the lowest cost to their economy. There are many general Southern strategies to achieve these aims, which were acquired many years later of samples and mistakes, such as the attempt to delink themselves from some aspects of the International economic system, the try to change the economic rule itself, and the try to increase the greatest level the gains from integration into the common system. After the decolonization period, the non wealth countries made political independence however did not provide economic level. In many situations developing countries experienced suffering in having some countries but their main state as their financial suppliers. The Developing states economies were limited of capital and technical skills. Both factors comprised the dependence of the Southern states on the technology realm and economic resources of the more developed countries. The other wave of dependence was that developing countries depend their economies on one exporting material and so soon became dependent on their main countries. Bad result of the dependence situation of the developing countries on a only one commodity was that the price decreased this very commodity effected the all economy and destabilized it. Free-trade system looked like to advantages all however the developing countries; therefore they were distrustful of its effectiveness. To restrain their dependence, d eveloping states began two new strategies; the import substitution strategy (IS) the export substitution strategy (ES). The other strategy to achieve economic improvement for developing nations was to want the United Nations assisting in the sense of aid from foreign and special trade choices for example lower tariffs. As a result of this together cry for changes G-77 was made to behave as last indefinitely political parts representing the interests of the developing nations in the UN. The structure of the (UNCTAD) -United Nations Conference on Trade and Development- which deliver the opinion of structuralists about the greater aid flows, limiting of free trade and control of MNCs, showed the confrontations between LDCs and wealth countries in UN. The tries of the LDC to establish their assembly to affect the wealth countries went beyond. In 1974 developing nations called for a New International Economic Order, which promises to solve the economic crises. Its achievement depended on the integrity of the Southern nations, credibility of their export goods and meaning their vulnerability by North. The New International Economic Order failed because of these three steps was not completed. Firstly, there was a high gap between the Newly Independent Nations and the less developed countries. In addition, the commodity became less costly for North, whose want raw materials were reducing. The other factor was that the North did not demand to make any changes besides what they were eager to do. The North suggest its help by agreeing to send the funds, to offer advise to learn about export strategies, to avoid degradation of the global circumstances and to decrease the flow of the Souths people to the North.   Ã‚  Ã‚   The shortcoming of the New International Economic Order did not solve the North-South issue. After 2. shock it became clear that oil suppliers and developing nations succeeding the export substitution strategy very well. Criticisms of Washington Consensus The term  Washington Consensus  was firstly coined in 1989  to describe a set of ten important economic policy offers that he considered should constitute the reform package provide for  crisis-wracked  developing countries  based institutions such as the  International Monetary Fund  (IMF),  World Bank, and the  US Treasury Department. It has been criticized by people such as  Joseph E. Stiglitz. This is the most important point of Stiglitzs criticisms of the IMF neo-classical approach in the South. They simply do not have the institutions or information transparency for the neo-classical model to work. Stiglitzs criticisms are about the disadvantages of globalization. He stated some problems about this consensus. The South is getting screwed by asymmetrical trade opening. The South is getting a raw deal on the opening up of services and intellectual property rights. The South would gain more from trade than aid. The IMF is too doctrinaire and ideological in applying its one size fits all to countries around the world. The IMF screwed up in East Asia, by mis-diagnosing the basic causes of the problem. The result of capital account crises combined with the IMFs classic medicine has been disaster. There is a huge market failure in world capital markets. All of the risk is being carried by the South because they cannot borrow long-term in their own currencies. Hence, the borrowers, not the rich lenders take the risk. CONCLUSION While both Liberals and Marxist advocate growth ideology, especially economic growth, these approaches do not give importance to power structures and relations. The main aim of these approaches that how can developing countries reach the standart of developing economy in the North. Whereas, social transformation is of highly importance for this transformation. After examining many different views to deal with the North-South issue, It can be said that solution of this problem is not simple. Gap between North and South can be decreased by some reforms. In light of these reforms, economy of developing countries must be developed. On the other hand, social development is of highly importance in terms of reducing of North-South gap. Equality of member in society must be provided.

Essay: Analysis of Sonnet 83 :: Sonnet essays

Analysis of Sonnet 83 I never saw that you did painting did need, And therefore to your fair no painting set. I found, or thought I found, you did exceed The barren tender of a poet's debt. And therefore have I slept in your report, That you yourself, being extant, well might show How far a modern quill doth come too short Speaking of worth, what worth in you doth grow. This silence for my sin sis you impute, Which shall be muost my glory, being dumb, For I impair not being beauty being mute, When others would give life and bring a tomb. There lives more life in one of you fair eyes Than both you poets can in praise devise. In some of Shakespeare's Sonnets we the reader can see that he was against the use of cosmetics. Commonly referred to as "painting", we see this sonnet to prove his dislike for the use of beautifying agents. 1-2: 'I never thought, because of the way you appear to me, that you ever needed cosmetics, and therefore, you don't need a cosmetic kit to make you beautiful.' "Set" here can also be read as a verb, as in the drying of the make-up. (Make-up in Elizabethan England was quite different from today's, including some such elements as lead in the composition). 3-4: "Exceed" does refer to "the barren tender", but it wouldn't be inappropriate to infer that Shakespeare is reflecting upon an 'exceeding' amount of cosmetics applied. But better is the 'exceeding in the absent [or of no worth] payments (of flattery) of a poet's debt. "Debt" is taken to mean both the debt that poets have to beauty, as their duty to praise it, and also a pun on monetary deficiency. This then refers back to "ten der", meaning both soft and supple as well as currency. All of these words create a theme of finance, perhaps outlining the worth of the addressee. 5: "Report" meaning description. 6-8: 'Because your (still) existing self very well may show just how far a modern quill [writing instrument at the time] comes too short in speaking of your worth, the worth that grows in you'.

A Clean, Well-Lighted Place Essay -- Literary Analysis, Ernest Hemingw

Human Life: Torture of the Mind Ernest Hemingway captures the essence and origins of nihilistic thought in â€Å"A Clean, Well-Lighted Place†, written in a time of religious and moral confusion shortly after The Great War. The ideas expressed in this short story represent the post World War 1 thinking of Hemingway, and the notoriously nihilistic Lost Generation in Paris, which was greatly influenced by the many traumas of war. Learning from his unnerving experiences in battle, Hemingway enforces the idea that all humans will inevitably fade into eternal nothingness and everything valued by humans is worthless. He develops this idea by creating a brilliant mockery of two coveted religious documents, revealing authority figures as typical, despicable, human beings, and he reduces life into the most raw, simplistic, and frightening reality imaginable. Hemingway states that all humans will naturally die alone and literally be â€Å"in despair† about â€Å"nothing† (494), and that people will eithe r seek a â€Å"calm and pleasant cafà ©Ã¢â‚¬  (496), or a self-inflicted death simply to escape despair. Undoubtedly, Hemingway eliminates any consideration of a higher meaning because he believes that â€Å"[life is] all a nothing, and a man [is] nothing too† (496). By viewing the actions of three different generations, Hemingway’s â€Å"A Clean, Well-Lighted Place† elaborates on the idea that human life is not continual enlightenment and growth, but gradual despair, and an inevitable death into â€Å"nada† (497). The youthful and confident waiter, representing the youngest of the three male generations, is the only apparent spec of existentialist thought in the story. However, this young man is simply an unconcerned existentialist due to his age; he is not in despair bec... ...ed Place†, represent the opinions and views of one typical person, in one ordinary life. The theme of a world of nothingness is overwhelming to the human brain, and almost inconceivable, and everything we do in this life is simply designed to help us take our mind off of death; suicide is the ultimate escape from â€Å"despair† over â€Å"nothing† (494). Hemingway’s brilliant transitions in time explain how life eventually grows worse with age, and humans will succumb to suicide, drunkenness, or something comforting and safe, much like a clean, well-lighted cafà ©. Further, Hemingway has shown the world that man has created many bogus ways to cope with the insurmountable fear of nothingness, namely religion. Bluntly, people can try to kid their selves into feeling soulful, genuine, or meaningful, but there is no need to â€Å"fear for [the human] soul†, as it is non-existent.

Laura Robertsons: “Girl Unprotected” Essay

Personal fulfillment is not a genetic attribute; it is evolved individually over time, and changes in time it takes to achieve. Personal fulfillment is not deteriorated by lack of action, therefore it is subject to change, it may increase or decrease in a person’s life. A individual can acquire personal fulfillment through family, friends, exposure and environment. The Rez Sisters is a play written by Tomson Highway. Readers are introduced to seven extravagant characters, all of whom are residents of Wasaychigan Hill Indian Reserve, in Manitoba Island, Ontario. These seven characters are sisters, half ­sisters, a sister ­in ­law and an adopted niece, known all together as the Rez sisters. Each one of these women are on their own journey to self ­fulfillment, wanting to acquire confidence, peace of mind and simply, to be satisfied with their life. The women raise money to fund a trip to The Biggest Bingo in the World, where they could potentially win the jackpot and fulfill their most desired wishes. In the preparation and on the journey, the women reveal their stories and their relationships with each other. In the play The Rez Sisters, Tomson Highway uses Bingo to symbolize the risks and gambles that life possesses, Pelajia’s hammer to symbolize the ability to create, build and even reshape destiny, and the color black which signifies strength and empowerment in order to depict the essentials an individual must have in order to acquire personal fulfillment  ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­ whatever it may be. First, when readers are introduced to Pelajia Patchnose she is dressed in men’s attire and â€Å"is alone on the roof of her house, nailing shingles on† (1113). It symbolizes a woman who is not bound by culturally defined gender roles, is independent and therefore strong. From this initial introduction to the moment when the seven women are in an argument, Pelajia’s hammer almost seems as if it never leaves her side; the mental and emotional strength she possesses never truly diminishes but only gets stronger. Pelajia uses her hammer on other occasions as well; when all seven of the women get into an argument â€Å"she raises her hammer at veronique† (1132), with the intention to scare her and obtain dominance through fear. Some may view the hammer as a weapon and/or a symbol of defense such as Thor’s hammer. In Germanic mythology Thor’s Hammer is called ‘Mjollnir’, meaning ‘crusher’(Davidson Ellis, 1965), unlike the symbol depicted in The Rez Sisters, Thor’s hammer symbolizes a weapon used to kill. In many myths, â€Å"Thor sometimes uses the hammer as a blunt instrument, to shatter the skulls of his opponents†(Dav idson, Ellis. 1965). A hammer is seen as a tool used to construct and reshape. This is evident when Pelajia physically uses her hammer in the opening scene to rebuild her home. A hammer also represents the ability to change, Pelajia was not only able to change the physical state of her home, but has the ability to change any aspect of her life and manipulate it in order to fulfill her personal desires. In her words: the â€Å"trusty silver hammer† (1114) is her source of strength, the strength an individual needs to overcome obstacles and barriers in order to conquer life and their own destiny in a way that leads to the best results. The symbolism amplifies the theme of the passage because an individual must be tough like the iron end of a hammer, have the ability to mold themselves to changing circumstances and acquire an intense drive and commitment to get through challenging times if they want to fulfill their personal aspirations. Next, when the topic of The Biggest Bingo in the World is brought up, readers learn   what a big deal the bingo was to Wasy women, it symbolizes the tempting gambles life has to offer. No individual can truthfully say they have had enough willpower to overcome the wrath of temptation. It is like a bad cold; everyone attempts to avoid it as much as possible, but at some point, it gets the best of everyone, including the Wasy women. Each woman had her own desires but they all shared a collective journey towards them. In order to attend The Biggest Bingo in the World the women had to overcome an obstacle which was to raise enough money to travel to Toronto where it was being held. On the journey to self ­fulfilment a person is bound to face obstacles, it is up to the individual if they want to let that hurdle stop them, or gain the inner strength to overcome it. The Wasy women chose the latter; â€Å"the women start[ed] their funding activities with a vengeance†(1143) raising a total of at least â€Å"$1,400†(1143) which was a large sum of money especially on the Wasaychigan Hill Indian Reserve, since there were â€Å"no jobs† (1115). The women had to ask themselves another tough question; Considering the possibility of returning home empty handed, was risking this much money to win The Biggest Bingo in the World worth it? By using bingo as a symbol, Highway suggests that in order to accomplish personal fulfillment you need to take chances in life even if they may seem risky at first. Taking risks empowers you to establish new limits in your mind. As Stacia Pierce, a columnist from the Huffington Post states â€Å"we all have boundaries or a comfort zone where we [would] like to stay and many have misconstrued visions of what we think we deserve or are capable of accomplishing†(Huffington Post, 2013). When you take risks, you can basically destroy such a mindset and continue to establish new boundaries, improve your perspective on life   and your ability to achieve on high levels. Finally, throughout the play there are numerous reoccurances of the color black, it symbolizes the depths of the unknown and encourages the imagination of a different world from that of everyday realities. Tomson Highway uses this symbolism when he describes the transition of Nanabush from a Seagull to the Nighthawk. The Nighthawk is the dancer in dark feathers with â€Å"black wings†(1154) as Zhaboonigan describes. In Native American culture the color black was perceived as a â€Å"living† color and worn on the face to prepare for war (WarPaths2PeacePipes, 2014). Black is an extremely aggressive color. Black meant strength. It also indicated that the wearer was a powerful warrior who had proved himself in battle, therefore black was also used to symbolize victory and human life. By using the color black as a symbol, Highway shows readers that there is no boundary to the extent of personal fulfillment; the amount of things an individual can accomplish in their lifetime is endless. Highway utilizes three components: Bingo, Pelajia’s hammer and the color black to embody the necessities a person needs in order to be successful in achieving any form of personal fulfillment; A person needs to be able to take risks, have strength to construct their own destiny and to explore beyond their imaginations. All these qualities are binded together with one common aspect that is easily relatable: self ­confidence. Initially, once an individual builds self ­confidence they easily surpass their goal which then creates a type of  momentum, where they fulfill every single one of their desires to the point where they are not only satisfied with life, but truly happy with it as well.

Ellen Foster Object Relations Essay

Ellen Foster is a ten-year-old, Caucasian, female who experiences a series of traumatic events during her childhood. These traumatic events include her witnessing domestic violence in the home, her mother’s suicide and subsequent physical, sexual and psychological abuse by her alcoholic father, her maternal grandmother and other relatives (aunts and cousins on the mother’s side). Ellen shuttled from home to home, staying for a short time at the home of her teacher, then to different relatives’ homes, to finally a foster home where she eventually resides. Ellen’s â€Å"new mama†, as she refers to her, is a much better role model then she has ever experienced before. New Mama is supportive and nurturing towards Ellen. Ellen reports that government and church funding support the foster family. She has no siblings. Ellen is intelligent and enjoys doing art. She often rides a pony at her new foster home. Ellen misses her mother, and longed for a caregiver before she had new mama. This is evident when she reports eaves dropping on a â€Å"colored† family and â€Å"started making a list of all that a family should have. Of course, there is the mama and the daddy but if one has to be missing then it is OK if the one left can count for two. But not just anybody can count or more than his or herself (p. 67)†. She often sought help from her Aunt Betsey and neighbors. Her mother, father and grandmother, or â€Å"mama’s mama† as Ellen calls her, are all deceased. The grandmother was old and abusive towards Ellen forcing her to work the fields with the â€Å"colored† field hands on her farms in the middle of a sweltering hot summer until school started. Ellen eventually becomes the caregiver and housemaid to mama’s mama after the grandmother fires all of her household servants. Despite Ellen’s care and good works for her, the grandmother despises her because she is convinced that Ellen was in â€Å"cahoots† with her father in abusing her daughter, taking her revenge out on Ellen since the father is dead. Ellen has a best friend, an African American girl named Starletta, Since Ellen likes Starletta, and she struggles with her own burgeoning racism. She has beliefs about African Americans that are mainly negative. Ellen eventually realizes that race makes no difference in the quality of the person. Ellen enjoys art and playing with her microscope often fantasying about being a scientist on the brink of a new discovery that will change mankind. She sees a counselor at school on Wednesdays. Ellen does not enjoy doing therapy and has negative transference towards her counselor. Presently she is seeing me for therapy. She can be aggressive, defensive and competitive at times at school. During one session Ellen reported that her counselor asked her about her last name because â€Å"Foster† isn’t her real last name. She did not want to discuss it any further. Perhaps she chose the last name â€Å"Foster† from her label as a foster child. Object Relations As stated by Lesser and Pope (2011) according to object relations theory, â€Å"human development takes place within the context of relationships (p. 69)†. British object relation theorists, Melanie Klein, Ronald Fairbairn, and Harry Guntrip introduce definite and functional ideas about what internal object world, or the inner world, consists of. The inner world includes representations of self and other, representations structured by thoughts, recollections, and occurrences within the external world. A representation has a lasting continuance in the inner world and although it begins as a cognitive structure, it eventually takes on a profound emotional meaning for the person (Berzoff, Melano-Flanagan, & Hertz 1996). The word object is set apart from the subject. The subject is the self and the object is the part outside the self, the object is what the self identifies with, encounters, wants, has uncertainties about, feels denial about, or absorbs. In Freudian drive theory and in ego psychology, the term object is sometimes used in reference to people. The word, object, in drive theory can be to some extent depersonalized, because the word essentially does exemplify a thing not a person as in: â€Å"the object of oral impulse can literally be the breast†(citation). In psychodynamic theory the word object, usually refers to people, but other objects such as cooking, art, pets, or can become objects when they are profoundly and representatively connected to powerful object experiences in the inner world. Some of Ellen’s physical objects are her microscope, her encyclopedias, her money, and her art supply. A conjecture about Ellen’s inner world and what these object represent is that her money could represent an insurance plan, in case things go wrong. And her microscope, her art, and her encyclopedias represent an escape for her and they also represent hopes for the future. Klein (1948) was the first theorist to revise Freud’s notion of the object by giving more consideration to the interpersonal environment in deciding its influence in developing personality. She amongst other object relations’ theorists now defined the target of relational needs as a concept known as relationship seeking. Klee 2005 stated that relationship seeking is the belief that through relationships with significant people in our lives, we take in parts of others (objects) and gradually develop a self-structure that we ultimately call a personality . This mental process by which a person changes the regulatory features of her environment into internal regulations and features is called internalizing (Lesser & Pope 2011). D. W. Winnicot (1958), a pediatrician and psychoanalyst, is influential in the field of object relations theory, gave great consideration to the notion of being alone. He believes that the ability to abide, take pleasure in, and utilize healthy solitude could be refined, ironically, only in the proximity of another. If aloneness is experienced as desolate, isolated, or miserable, it becomes agonizing. This can happen is a child has been neglected. In this situation, the inner world is not filled with enough soothing figures. On the contrary, aloneness becomes too excruciating or insufferable for the child, if the inner world is too crowed with threatening and abusive figures who offer neither protection, reassurance, nor tranquility. The ideal environment for the growing child to share experiences with the soothing figure for a period of time and to experience time alone to reflect and to adventure on the child’s own (Berzoff et al. 1996). Klein (1948) described six early processes and primitive defenses developed from early infant years. Projection is when the infant believes an object has characteristics that are in fact the infant’s own feelings. Introjection is the mental desire in which the infant consumes the perceived in the world. Projective identification is creatively splitting off a part of oneself and ascribing it to another in order to control the other (Berzoff et al. 1996). Splitting occurs when a child cannot separate conflicting thoughts or feelings in the mind at the same time, and therefore instead of integrating the two thoughts or feelings the child focuses on just one of them. A split can take any form, from visual appearance to concepts and ideas. For example, a frequent split is into good and bad. The good part is preserved and cherished at the same time the bad part is wrestled with or repressed. In extreme case of schizophrenia, when a part of the self linked with one of the separate thoughts, and another part of the self is linked with another, the person is then split (Berzoff et al. 1996). Idealization is a defense used to keep painful and unacceptable feelings out of consciousness. The feelings that are troublesome are usually the same feelings that people often want to reject: â€Å"anger, disappointment, envy, sadness, desire, and greed (p. 145)†. Devaluation is the opposite of idealization and is a defense mechanism used to reject troublesome feelings such as â€Å"neediness, weakness, insecurity, envy, or desire (p. 146)†. A person who denies desire through devaluation ends up feeling smug and superior but quite alone (Berzoff et al. 1996). An important developmental point in object relations is the depressive position according to Klein (1948). The depressive position is constantly maturing throughout a person’s lifetime. Feelings of remorse, grief, and the yearning for atonement take hold in the developing mind in the depressive position. The person now recognizes the ability to cause harm or push away a person who one undecidedly loves. The defenses attributed to the depressive position include the manic defenses, such as preoccupation for reparation. As the depressive position causes growing integration in the ego, prior defenses shift in the character, becoming less powerful, allowing the character to move into psychic reality (Berzoff et al. 1996). Throughout this turbulent time in Ellen’s life she is experiencing many new relationships and is relationship seeking with many adults. These adults are supposed to be caregivers for her. These people are her mother, father, her grandmother, Julia, Aunt Betsy, Aunt Nadine, and new mama. There is a time after Ellen’s mother dies that I feel she is too alone, in agreement with Winnicot (1958). Ellen often reports that when she would come home from school â€Å"it was already dark and he had the lights on. I went in and did not speak to him. I did not speak to him or else I stayed outside most of the time (p. 24)†. She said that her father was drunk all the time, often passed out, she was alone and eventually she had to take care of the bills. There are other times when Ellen’s life is overflowing with abusive adult figures in her life. On New Years Eve, Ellen claimed that a bunch of black drunk men came into her house with father. â€Å"My daddy showed up at my house less and less†¦he did show up on New Years Eve. Of course I went and hid when I heard him and a whole pack of colored men come in the door (p. 36)†. Ellen is frightened when this happens often trying to escape through a window in her room. In accordance with Winnicot (1958), aloneness becomes too much too bare for Ellen and she feels the need to hide. Her inner world is too crowed with threatening and abusive figures who are threatening her safety. The whole mother’s side of the family overcrowds Ellen’s inner world too. This is a risk for Ellen, because disruptions in object relations may result in an inability to fall in love, emotional coldness, apathy or withdrawal from interaction with others, co-dependency, and/or extreme need to control relationships (Berzoff et al. 1996:70). Ellen attempts to control Starletta as much as she can through projective identification; she splits off a part of herself and attempts to control Starletta. Ellen often tells Starletta what to do, for example one day when Ellen was over Starletta’s house and she wanted to play, however Ellen thought to herself and told Starletta the following: â€Å"Starletta still had on her nightgown and she needed to be washed. ‘You got to wash before I will play with you’ is what I told her (p. 31). She taped Starletta’s crayons back together after she broke them. She would often talk down to Starletta: â€Å"’Tell your Mama I thank her’ I said to her. Say it over in your head and out loud so it will not leave your head (p. 52)†. This relationship may unconsciously aim to get rid of unmanageable feelings for Ellen and help her deal with these feelings. Ellen’s relationship with grandmother is toxic at best. In the beginning, Ellen thought that her grandmother might like having a girl around the house, even though she is not a â€Å"vision†(pg), but Ellen said she had good intentions. In my opinion, â€Å"good intentions† meant she wanted to have a relationship with her grandmother. The grandmother wanted to punish Ellen for Ellen and her father causing her daughter’s suicide. Ellen confronts her grandmother, asking her why she hates her so much. Ellen asked her grandmother: â€Å"Well I know you hated my daddy but what about me? Why can’t you see that I am not like him? (p. 78)†. The grandma lashes out at Ellen with an onslaught of abusive hurtful words directed towards Ellen to break her down. Ultimately, that is what Ellen does she shuts down. â€Å"So I decided to spend the rest of my life making up for it. Whatever it was. Whatever I decided I one day I actually did (p. 78-79)†. Ellen is in the depressive position, she feels guilty about everything for her mothers death, for her fathers death, and then for the grandmother’s death when she passes. Ellen utilizes her manic defenses, in my opinion, when she finds the grandmother dead and decides to dress her in her â€Å"Sunday’s best† clothes and surround her with flowers in order to make amends with her guilty feelings. â€Å"I made her like a present to Jesus so maybe he would take her. Take this one I got prettied up and mark it down by name to balance against the one I held from you before†¦. be sure I get the credit for it and if you can please show me some way that you and me are even now (p. 92). Ellen becomes slightly preoccupied with reparation. Ellen begins to move past this phase when she moves in the home of her Aunt Nadine. Object relations can be applied to Ellen’s traumatic past and helps to identify some significant points in her life that she would like to work in future treatment. A pleasant thing about object relations is that as the therapist and patient collectively examine the patient’s internal world and its effect on the patient’s relationships, the patient and therapist are in a relationship as well. In this way, patient and therapist have an existing shared connection that both can study and learn from (Berzoff et al. 996). Sociocultural Theory Sociocultural theory stemmed from the work of psychologist Lev Vygotsky. Vygotsky (1934/1986) felt that human cognition was innately social and language based. Vygotsky believed inner speech is qualitatively distinct from normal external speech. It is language, advanced during the earlier years, and progressively improved during the middle years ( where Ellen’s age lies) that actually aids in giving the older child the capability to organize things mentally rather than by using concrete items (Lesser & Pope 2011). As Berk 2003 stated: Vytgotsky felt that children speak to themselves for self-guidance; he felt language was the foundation for all high cognitive processes, including control attention, deliberate memorization and recall, categorization, planning, problem solving, abstract reasoning, and self-reflection (p. 257). One of Vygotsky’s concepts is the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). The ZPD is the difference between what a child can achieve when working by themselves and what the same child can achieve when given assistance from someone with the necessary knowledge (Wertsch 1985). Vygotsky viewed the ZPD as a way to better explain the relation between children’s learning and cognitive development. The lower limit of ZPD is the level of skill attained by the child working alone; this lower limit can also be accredited to as the child’s actual developmental level. The upper limit is the level of latent skill that the child is able to reach with the assistance of a more capable instructor (Wertsch 1985).. A concept associated with ZPD is the concept scaffolding. It is essential to make a note that Vygotksy never used this concept in his writing; introduced by David Wood, Jerome S. Bruner, and Gail Ross (1976). Scaffolding is a process through which a mentor or more competent peer helps a person in his or her ZPD learn for as long as necessary and tapers off until the student no longer needs the mentor, much like a scaffold is detached from a building when construction is finished or deemed stable (Wood et al. 1976). Vygotsky viewed make-believe play as the vital context for development of self-regulation. Despite the fact that Ellen is ten years old going on eleven years old, this still pertains to her. Make-believe is full of shared dialogue and development-enhancing skills. Vygotsky takes make-believe to the next level making it a important part of development a distinguishing, experiential ZPD in which children try out a wide range of difficult skills and learn culturally valued skills developing a significantly stronger capacity for self-regulation

How Society Shapes the Beliefs of Our Children

We live in a context and not a vacuum. Our culture and the society around us play a very dominant role in the values we choose. Sometimes this is planned, overt, and intentional. Sometimes it is unplanned, unseen and unintentional. Sometimes we choose to accept the values of others. Sometimes we choose to rebel against them. Either way they are influential. The nuclear family is the first part of society that shapes us. Our parents and siblings (good, bad, indifferent) play a major role in how we choose to live. The great poem Children Learn What They Live, by Dorathy Law Nolte expresses this truth very well.Here are just a couple of lines for example. If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn. If children live with hostility, they learn to fight†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness. If children live with fairness, they learn justice. Perhaps the second most influential institution beyond the nuclear family is our educational system. We lo ok up to our teachers and for the most part take what they say and the information in our text books as valid and valuable. However, there may come a time that we don’t agree with what we are being taught.Yet even here our rebellion is in the context of society. Often we know more what we are against than what we are for. The presence or absence of faith and religion in our lives is another source within society that shapes our personal values. Sooner or later you will have contact with a wide variety of spiritual choices. Each exists in our culture and society. Each is a positive or negative influence towards our personal values. Let us not forget advertizing. â€Å"You deserve a break today. † This is a value statement if there ever was one. Who says you deserve a break? Do you agree or disagree with this value?Do you value faster and faster high tech communication? Is it important to be sexy? Do you value professional sports enough to invest in a big screen TV? Last , but not least, nor even finally there is societal politics. Do you value spending or saving? Do you like taxes or austerity? Do you have more kids so you can get more welfare? Do you give to charity so you can have a bigger write-off? These days many people think they are not accepting societal values. â€Å"I pick and choose what I want. † However, even such a view of choice is a current Post Modern societal value. Similar essay: Our Changing Society