Learning Theorists

Learning Theories People have been trying to understand the learning process for over 2000 years. It was discussed and debated at great length by the Greek philosophers such as Socrates (469 – 399 SC), Plato (427 – 347 BC) and Unsettle (384 – 322 BC) (Hammond et al, 2001 This debate has carried on through the ages and still goes on today with a multitude of viewpoints on the purpose of education and how best to encourage learning to eventuate.Plato and his disciple Aristotle were Inaugural In this debate and asked if truth and knowledge were to be found inside of us, or whether they could be learned from outside by using our senses. Plato believed the truth would be found from within through reasoning, deduction and self-reflection and so brought about rationalism. On the other hand Aristotle believed the truth would be found through experience and founded the idea of empiricism and so these antithetical views were born.Aristotle approach was far more scientific compared to Socrates' dialectic method of discovery through conversations with fellow citizens. An approach that calls for discussion and reflection, as tools for developing thinking, owe such to Socrates and Plato (Hammond et al, 2001 Learning theory Is about learning as a process and how it may take place. It is about how information can be absorbed, processed and retained and the influence that emotions, environment and mental processes can have on acquiring, augmenting and modifying knowledge and skills.Having knowledge of learning theory equips teachers to better understand the multitudinous categories of learners they will encounter and the numerous strategies they can employ to create an effective learning environment. Although the Greek philosophers are considered to be some of the earliest thinkers on learning, it as not until the mid 1 ass's when psychology emerged as a separate discipline that any new learning theories emerged.The first of these was behaviorism, which was brought to prominence by Ivan Pavlov (1849 – 1936) who won the Nobel Prize in 1904 for his experiments on digestive glands for which he experimented with dogs. Behaviorism are of the opinion that learners are passive and respond to stimuli and do not take in to account internal mental states or consciousness. Gestalts came to prominence In Germany in 1910 when there was social turmoil in Europe but had moved to the US by the sass's to avoid persecution.The lead figures In this movement were Worthwhile, Kafka and Koehler who utilities a holistic approach that sought to reject the mechanistic perspectives of the behaviorist's. Considered to be the first educational psychologist, Edward Thornier continued with the behaviorism theory believing learning was incremental and achieved through a trial and error approach with B. F. Skinner, considered by many to be the father of modern behaviorism, developing this theory further with programmed learning (Seaworthy et al, 2004).Behavio rism learning theory had a substantial influence in education but here was a growing body of evidence that more complex tasks requiring a higher level of thinking were not well learned this way with Jean Pigged (1 896 ? 1 980) being the first to state that learning was a developmental cognitive process. Russian teacher Level Boycotts expanded Piglet's developmental theory of cognitive abilities to were both leaders in the cognitive approach that sees the mind as a â€Å"black box† and this box should be opened and understood.This paradigm did not really come to prominence until the early sass's when it replaced behaviorism as the dominant force (Anon ND). In the sass's we also saw the emergence of Humanist learning theory. Some of the preeminent advocates of this field were Abraham Moscow (1908 – 1970) and Carl Rogers (1902 – 1987) who believed that learning was viewed as a personal act to fulfill one's potential and that it is also necessary to study the person as a whole. Humanists were the first to promote learning as being student-centered and personalized and that you should not teach, but facilitate, the learner (Anon ND).The sass's saw the emergence of social learning theory with its key progenitor being Albert Bandeau (1925 – Present). It posits that we learn through observation, imitation and modeling and this theory is often seen as the bridge between behaviorism and cosmogonist. Although the work that edifies it spans the twentieth century, Constructivism was only mainstreamed through practice in the latter part of the century. Many of the theorists that are drawn upon are linked with other learning ideologies; these theorists include Weights, Lave and Winger, Burner and Pigged.This theory posits that learning is an active constructive process where the learner creates his or her own subjective representations of objective reality. They do not come along as a blank slate (Seaworthy, 2004) but rather bring along their past experiences and cultural perspective. The first theorist I am going to look at is Abraham Moscow who was a prominent Humanist. Early in his career he worked with rhesus monkeys and one of the interesting things he noticed was the way that some needs took precedence over others.For example, if you were hungry and thirsty you would tend to deal with the thirst first, as you can go without food for weeks but thirst will kill you after Just days. Moscow felt that the conditioning theories did not, to is satisfaction, capture the complexities of human behavior and was of the opinion that human actions were driven toward goal attainment. He stated that human motivation is based on people seeking fulfillment and change through personal growth (Anon ND). In 1943 Moscow wrote a paper entitled â€Å"A Theory of Human Motivation† which talked about self-actualization.Moscow described a person who was fulfilled and doing all they were capable of as being self-actualities. Before a perso n can achieve this state however, there are other needs that first need to be met. These needs can be seen in Mascots hierarchy, this is often depicted as a pyramid as shown (Moscow,1943). This hierarchy shows that the basic physiological needs have to be met before the higher needs can be addressed. If the physiological needs are relatively well gratified then there emerges a new set of needs, in this case safety.When a persons physiological and safety needs are satisfied the need for love and belongingness emerges. This process continues until all the needs are fulfilled and the person can achieve self-actualization. It is important to note that Mascots original five stage del has been adapted by other researchers to create both seven and eight stage hierarchies but I am dealing with Moscow so will not go any further in to them. His needs – air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep etc. Safety needs – protection from elements, security, order, law, limits, stabil ity, etc. : belongingness and love needs – work group, family, affection, relationships, etc. : esteem needs – self-esteem, achievement, mastery, independence, status, dominance, prestige, managerial responsibility, etc. : self-actualization needs – realizing personal potential, self- fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences. Through knowledge of Mascots hierarchy I can better understand the needs of the individual and the impact this has on their motivation and learning.To be truly effective in its implementation I would have to appreciate the needs of every learner, which could be at different stages for each individual in the class. These individuals could also be in a state of flux from one week to another. It is unrealistic to expect to comprehend all their requirements, even with a deep understanding of this theory. I believe the best use of this theory is to inform me of their possible state so that I might be more homeopathic towards the m and understand the issues they may have. The best way to help them work towards self-actualization is for them to be self-aware and understand their own needs.When they arrive at class they will already have had a long day at work, often without enough time to eat. They will also be tired; although my class is at least theory, so is less physically demanding than their practical lessons in the workshop. I do try to take some of these things in to account and will allow them to bring food and drink in to the class if they so desire. I am able to meet heir safety needs such as protection from the elements, security, order, limits and stability. These needs are part of the College safeguarding policy so should always be in place.If I can manage to help them feel belongingness, which I feel they do achieve, then I am also creating a more inclusive environment for them. I feel it is important to be aware of these needs to create a better learning situation for my students. A criticism I have is that Moscow made an assumption that the needs must be satisfied in order, so that the basic physiological need must be satisfied before hey can achieve safety and only once safety is achieved can they go to concern themselves with belongingness and so on through the hierarchy.This is shown to be false, for example, if you were to study large cultures where large numbers of the population live in poverty, like India or Brazil then you see that these people can still achieve higher order needs such as love and belongingness (McLeod, 2007). According to Moscow this should not occur. If we were also to look at many creative people, such as artists like Rembrandt or Van Gogh, it could be argued that they achieved self-actualization yet lived their lives in poverty (McLeod, 2007). I will still apply this theory even with its flaws because it is not abjectly wrong and still believe it holds a lot of truth.Another humanist that I feel bears great relevance to my current teaching p ost is Malcolm Knowles (1913 – 1997). He was a champion for androgyny, self-direction in learning and informal adult education (Smith, 2002). I will not talk about informal adult education, as it does not apply to my situation. The concept of androgyny had been in sporadic use since the sass's but it was popularized for usage in English language by Malcolm Knowles. He believed that adults learned differently from children, which caused him to enquire further. His work on informal adult education and his charting of adult education in the United education.He used androgyny to bring these elements together, which was premised on at least four critical presuppositions about the characteristics of adult learners that differed from child learners, on which traditional pedagogy is based. Later a fifth assumption was added. These were as follows: self concept: As a person matures his self concept moves from one of being a dependent personality toward one of being a self directed hum an being. Experience: As a person matures they accumulate a growing reservoir of experience that becomes an increasing resource for learning. Readiness to learn: As a person matures their readiness to learn becomes increasingly orientated to the developmental tasks of their social roles. : orientation to learning: As a person matures their time perspective changes from one of postponed application of knowledge to immediacy of application, and accordingly their orientation toward learning shifts from of subject centeredness to one of problem centeredness. : motivation to learn: As a person matures the motivation to learn is internal (Knowles 1984:12).Knowles has caused considerable debate with his assertions and claims of difference between androgyny and pedagogy with useful critiques of the notion being found in Davenport (1993), Jarvis (1987) and Tenant (1996). He has taken ideas from psychologists working in two quite different and opposing traditions, that of the humanist and the behaviorism. From the one side he has extensively used a model of relationship derived from humanistic clinical psychology, in particular drawing on the work of Carl Rogers who argued the qualities of good facilitation.He has also drawn on other elements that owe a great deal to scientific curriculum making and behavior modification. It has been suggested that because he has used ideas from two opposing traditions that there is a lack of evidence around this model. Knowles is not clear whether he has provided us with a theory or a set of guidelines for practice (Heartier, 1984). The assumptions could be read as descriptions or as prescriptive statements about what the adult learner should be. Tenant (1988) made a point that there was a lack of interrogation within a coherent and consistent conceptual framework.It seems that Knowles did not temper his insights with enough analysis and interrogation of the literature of the arena. Malcolm Knowles also introduced us to self-directed l earning, which is where the individual takes the initiative to realize their needs, resources and goals for learning and to evaluate the outcomes. There are three immediate reasons identified for self-directed learning. First those who take the initiative in learning are pro-active learners and will learn better than those who wait to be taught, reactive learners.Second is that it is far more natural that as we mature we take more responsibility for our own lives and become far more self-directed. Finally the third reason is that developments in education are putting a greater emphasis on students to take the initiative for their own learning. This can also be seen as a long-term reason as the purpose of education is evolving, it is moving away from merely transmitting what is known to now developing the skills of enquiry. Knowles then put the idea of self- direction in to packaged forms of activity and created his five step model. This involved: diagnosing learning needs. Formulati ng learning needs. : identifying human material resources for learning. Choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies. : evaluating learning outcomes. There is research that indicates that adults circumstance (Smith, 2002) and I feel that this is certainly true of many of my learners. The opportunity arose within their current life circumstances to participate in the course and if there were places available they took them. If all the places had gone they may not bother to take up a learning opportunity again, unless of course the circumstances were again in their favor.I feel that the ideas' of Malcolm Knowles are useful to guide what I ought to term my ontological approach to my earners. They are no longer children and should not be treated as such. His approach can inform me of what characteristics my learners may exhibit so that I may better facilitate their learning and create a more inclusive environment. It could certainly be said that my students need to be self- directed as the qualification they are taking is equivalent to a full time course but only has part time contact hours.It requires them to do a lot a reading around the subject, being self-directed in their approach. Overall I must be critical of Knowles for his own lack of a sharp critical edge with much of his writings being more descriptive and his lack of analysis of the literature within his field. Finally, I shall examine Jean Lave and Tontine Winger (1991) who developed the theory of situated learning, sometimes referred to as situated activity. This has a central defining characteristic known as legitimate peripheral participation which is not itself an educational form, much less a pedagogical strategy or a teaching technique.It is an analytical viewpoint on learning that makes a fundamental distinction between learning and intentional instruction. Rather the process of legitimate peripheral participation is usually unintentional. Situated learning contrasts with traditiona l classroom learning activities where abstract knowledge is learnt out of context with intentional instruction. This approach lends itself very well to vocational courses and especially apprenticeships where much of the learning takes place in the situation where the learning will be applied. It is not dissimilar to cognitive apprenticeship.Lave and Winger (1991) with their model of situated learning proposed that learning involved a process known as â€Å"communities of practice†. These communities are everywhere and we are often involved in a number of them. People with a shared domain of human endeavourer can engage in a process of learning by forming communities of practice. To put it more simplistically, learning takes place through social interaction. To this end, learning in these situations does not have a beginning and an end to the process, rather we are constantly learning through experience of everyday life.Their theory can be illustrated by observation of differe nt apprenticeships. When people initially Join the community they learn at the periphery, then as they become more competent they an become more involved in the processes in that particular community. Understanding this theory is very useful in my sector as when we get the students it is their initial training and they are not always involved in the industry they are training to enter. The situated learning will probably not play a big part in this initial training, but once they have gained the qualification and go out to work then they will be Joining their community of practice.Over time, through interaction with more experienced others within the industry, they will learn and become more proficient ND play a bigger role in their community. In this respect it could be argued that this is an important theory for all educators as ultimately we are educating our learners strong links between this and embedded learning that also takes place on vocational qualifications. I would strug gle to see how this theory could be applied to more formal qualifications where much of the knowledge will often remain abstract because that is its nature.Mathematics would be an example of this; it can be conceptualizes, as engineering math's for example, but is not really a subject matter o be situated. In conclusion learning theories can inform us on our learners and guide us through our teaching practice. They can be used to develop activities to bring otherwise dull subject matter to life and to create a more inclusive learning environment by applying different teaching methods based on these theories. The trouble is that the modern teacher is struggling for time, most of the time and these theories and their practice will involve some dedication for them to be implemented effectively.

Native American beliefs are deeply rooted in their culture Essay

They didn’t have one single religion, but they did have many beliefs. They believed in a mysterious force in nature and in spirits that were higher than human beings and influenced their lives. People depended on them when they searched for food or when people were ill. They believed EVERYTHING is sacred from the largest mountain to the smallest plant and animal. A lesson can be found in all things and experiences and everything has its own purpose. Native Spirituality; is about honor, love, and respect. Not only do they love, honor, and respect our Creator and Mother Earth, but also every living thing. They are in touch with themselves and everything around them. It is about knowing and understanding that they were a part of everything, and everything is a part of them. Native Americans valued many things like animals; buffalo, deer, and small rabbits. Meat could be cooked fresh or smoked, and stored for long journeys or winter months. They also ate vegetables and plants; berries, squash and fruits. They valued God because he created everything. Some tribes believed in one or many gods whom more powerful than others. Shamans were religious people who had close contacts with spirits. They were often medicine men and treated sick people . There is no power greater than the Natural Laws. These powers were set up by the Great Spirit in a way that the human being has no access to it, except by obeying. If they choose not to follow the Natural Laws, their life will be filled with confusion, tension, anxiety and stress. If they were to poison the Earth, they would poison themselves. If they were to poison the Water of the Earth, they were to poison themselves. What they would do to Earth, would happen to them and their children, even the children that were unborn.

Jalan Ampang Muslim Cemetery Essay

Everyone have their own idol. An idol defined as someone that we admired and respected very much. We proud with his achievement and his attitude towards everyone besides idol can be a good role model to us. The person that we can take them as our example to succeed in our life. P.Ramlee is one of artise who successful and achieve many awards in his career. Let’s talk about his background first. The real name of P.Ramlee is Teuku Zakaria Bin Teuku Nyak Puteh. As known as P.Ramlee since 1947. He was born in Penang at his grandmother’s house on 22nd of March 1929, on the Wednesday morning of Aidilfitri for that year. P.Ramlee’s father is Teuku Nyak Puteh Bin Teuku Karim who was an immigrant, a sailor from Lhoksemauwe in Acheh, Indonesia while his mother’s name was Che Mah Hussein, originated from Kubang Buaya, Seberang Perai, Penang. For our information, P. Ramlee had a step brother who is Sheikh Ali Mohamad who shared a same mother with P.Ramlee, who was Che Mah Hussein. P.Ramlee received his early schooling at the Malay School in Kampung Jawa and later at the Francis Light School until standard five. He subsequently continued his education at the Penang Free School. During the Japanese Occupation of Malaya, he was unable to continue with his schooling. In order to make a living, he worked as an office boy at a tine mine. At the same time, he also enrolled at the Japanese Army School and had brief opportunity to acquaint himself with the Japanese language and music. His hardworking and friendly disposition made him popular with the Japanese soldiers. When World War II ended, P. Ramlee continued his schooling at the Penang Free School, up to standard seven. He was active in sports and had a liking for football and sepak raga in 1939, he represented his school in the football team. Moreover, P. Ramlee had a great love for the arts. He was born with an artistic flair. That was an undeniable fact and it was obvious even in his early youth. Starting his familiarization in the musical arts at the age of around 13, the Ukelele and Violin were among the early instruments he took up.He displayed his musical talents with contemporary songs and melodious ‘Keroncong’ tunes together with his friends. It was through this that he received his first commission from Radio Malaya to entertain at social gatherings and events around Penang. P. Ramlee’s affinity for singing and music overshadowed his academic studies at school, this is widely attested to by the teachers who taught him. While singing at official functions, P. Ramlee would often be accompanied by a band, such as the Pancaragam Teruna Sekampung (All Kampung Youth Orchestra) and the Bintang Sore. His melodies voice soon became the talk of the town and soon many wanted to know more about his new star, a thin and pimple faced teenager. Besides became a singer, P.Ramlee also involved in directorate films. The beggining of this career where when he was in Singapore, his voice was initially used in background songs for Malay films. P.Ramlee was also a clapper boy and camera assistant. Noticing his interest and affinity for acting, his superiors auditioned him and eventually gave him small parts in films. The first film in which P. Ramlee had a role in was Chinta, released in 1948. Consequently, after acting in some 20 films, P.Ramlee eventually ventured into film direction, with his first effort Penarik Beca which was released in 1955. P.Ramlee is a great guy. He can be a singer, actor, composer and a director. His song and his voice very popular in Singapore. He is a abilities guy and a kind man. He loved to help people who asks his help. Although he is a well known guy, he never arrogant with his achievement. Many people liked with his behaviour towards anyone around him. On 1950, P.Ramlee married a woman who is Junaidah Daeng Harris , daughter of actor, Daeng Harris. Married in the early 50’s after the film Bakti, their relationship fell apart even though they had a child, Nasir. In February 1955, he get married for the second time with a woman who is Norizan. Unfortunately, his marriage failed for the second time and ended in divorce. Failure in a marriage does not discourage his spirit. Later on, P.Ramlee met a singer named Salmah Ismail whose stage name was Saloma. They got married in November 1961 in Tembeling Road, Singapore. Nevertheless, this third marriage was considered an ideal match because they were so right and suitable for each other, even in their duets. Moreover, P.Ramlee had gave many contribution to this country. Even after his death, we celebrate and appreciate his effort, and his achievement. For sure, P.Ramlee really deserved to be an idol to everyone. He had prove that, if we have a spirit to successful in our life and give effort on it, for sure, we can make it become a reality. Our teenagers should followed P.Ramlee’s step. What he doing untill he success in his life. Last but not least, we should remember his duty to our country.

Contemporary issues of surrogacy and birthing technologies Essay

An Estimated 10-15 per cent of Australian couples who want to start a family are infertile, similarly same-sex couples are unable to reproduce and this has led to the use of surrogacy and birthing technologies to provide a means to overcome such barriers in having children. The changing views of society along with the corresponding reforms of the law in relation to these procedures have been main contributors to contemporary issues within the area being addressed, however the effectiveness of legal and non-legal measures in place is questionable. With diverse perspectives and interpretations on what is a just outcome for all parties involved, it is difficult to evaluate such a controversial matter. Issues relevant today in relation to surrogacy include the exploitation of women overseas through commercial surrogacy as well as the presumption of parentage and parentage orders, even with the approval of legal measures dealing with such problems, conflict of views indicate many people do not agree and feel there is a great need for reform. Birthing technologies hold many interrelated issues of concerns with difficulties in defining legal parents in relation to birth certificates as well as the roles and responsibilities of gametes donors. The amendment of previous laws in addition with the introduction of new ones aim to better reflect the changing values of society with non-governmental organisations and the media attempting to assist in informing the public and creating awareness with current issues. Surrogacy is a difficult issue, especially in Australia where the law varies from state to state. Many infertile Australian couples seek the services of surrogate mothers overseas in the United States, India and other countries, spending up to $80,000 and risking breaking the law. The current issue of concern in this, is not only the exploitation of poor women but also the Australians being overcharged by these clinics as well as the legal status and protection of children caught up in the booming overseas surrogacy trade. Currently under Australian law, altruistic surrogacy is acceptable however commercial surrogacy is banned in all states, excluding the Northern Territory with no current legislation targeting surrogacy. The Surrogacy Act 2010 was designed to accommodate altruistic surrogacy moving against  commercial surrogacy, while setting out safeguards to achieve the best interest of the child and attempt to uphold all surrogacy agreements. This can be seen as an effort to sufficiently reflect societal views within the law as a 1993 survey revealed community attitudes towards commercial surrogacy had a 30% approval rate whereas 59% disapproved. Since its commencement in March 2011 overseas commercial surrogacy arrangements have also been made illegal in NSW, Queensland and the ACT, with the NSW Parliament introducing extraterritorial provisions that extend the offence to outside the jurisdiction for residents, who could possibly face fines of up to $100,000 or up to 2 years prison if caught. This legal measure however is questionable in its ability to achieve the best outcome for the child, being a punishable offence and enabling the imprisonment of parents or subjecting them to a financial hardship could only worsen the situation for a child involved. Moreover this amendment to the bill was willfully added with little review of its consequences, motivated to reduce the exploitation of poor women in developing countries, it fails to ensure the best interest of the child and that justice is achieved. Failure of existing law has led to a further need for reform as the criminalization of overseas arrangements is difficult to police and unenforceable which has created issues of compliance and non-compliance. Currently an estimated 40 per cent of India’s $2.5 billion commercial surrogacy industry is made up of Australian clientele, however complaints about the overcharging nature of these clinics are increasing. This is problematic as there are few protections for intended parents in India with its unregulated industry as well as the legal restrictions in Australia, creating difficulty in the ability to monitor such arrangements. Chief Federal Court Magistrate, John Pascoe issued a statement in December proposing Australia should legalise commercial surrogacy to ensure that agreements are properly regulated to protect children, surrogates and commissioning parents. This statement attempts to introduce a different approach similar to that of California, which relies on executed contracts between intended parents and the surrogate, defining the legal status of the child as well as the responsibilities of all parties. NSW Greens MP David  Shoebridge commented on the present act saying â€Å"What began as a progressive legislation giving equal rights to all children has ended up as regressive legislation which will force parents underground and create uncertainty around many children’s parenting†. Pascoe’s proposal would allow for better control of the issue, avoiding the criminalisation of parents and the need for intending parents acting outside of the law, which has been the result of pr esent legislation. Surrogacy Australia is a non-governmental organisation and advocacy group, which is currently addressing the concern for intended parents involved in overseas arrangements who are being cheated and taken advantage of by clinics. Increasing complaints to the organisation as well as research collected, suggests Australians are being overcharged by up to 40 per cent and more so being billed for unnecessary medical procedures on surrogates. Surrogacy Australia is a support organisation assisting those who require help and access to information, with a present focus on warning and creating awareness of this concern, for those in the future considering the surrogacy option. Research by the group also suggests the ineffectiveness of the existing laws, revealing the ban on commercial surrogacy, deters only 7 per cent of considering parents and this places a certain pressure on the government to reconsider its prohibition. A further issue arising from the inconsistent laws targeting surrogacy in Australia is the presumption of parentage, whether in cases of genetic or gestational surrogacy. Under the previous legislation, with cases governed by the Status of Children Act 1996, a child’s legal parents were its birth mother and her husband or de facto partner, irrespective to whether birthing technologies were used. For intending parents this caused a number of legal problems as they could be subject to tumultuous legal obstacles when applying for full parental rights and therefore led to the commencement of the Surrogacy Act on the 1st of March 2011. The reformed Surrogacy Act 2010 (NSW) has recognised certain altruistic surrogacy arrangements and created a process for transferring legal parentage from the surrogate mother to the intended parents in a more time-effective manner. The eligibility requirements and preconditions to  obtain a parentage order are also contained in this act and this is for purposes of creating a more structured system, considering the best interest of the children and also to regulate arrangements, as they cannot be enforced, except by the birth mother. The stated aim of surrogacy laws in Australia has been and remains to be the prevention of exploitation of vulnerable adults, to avoid the commercialization of reproduction and to protect the best interests of children. However children born overseas through surrogacy are not the legal children of their Australian intended parents; none of the state inquiries directly address the problem of parentage for children when adults travel out of the jurisdiction and or pay a birth mother to carry the pregnancy and this creates another challenge for parentage orders. Intending parents cannot lodge an application for a transfer of parentage until they return to Australia and currently the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 excludes commercial surrogacy. This is a contradiction in the attempt to protect the child, with courts torn between two irreconcilable concepts, finding on one hand parliaments intention to prevent commercial surrogacy with a clear policy across the country, and on the other the courts duty to mitigate such policy by consideration of the child’s welfare, who may end up a stateless orphan if orders are not made. Recent changes to commercial surrogacy in India however, may be of assista nce in preventing such situations from occurring. The Indian government has issued a directive that only couples who have been married for more than two years can enter into commercial surrogacy arrangements, and only if it is legal in their home country and this will have a huge impact in making Australian law unavoidable. Moreover on parentage orders, the increasingly complex web of eligibility rules developed through successive reforms to safeguard the interest of children, appear to also be inadequate with the family formation behaviours of those involved in surrogacy. This was demonstrated in the case of AP v RD (2011) NSW, which took place prior to the commencement of the Surrogacy Act on The 1st of March, with its provisions and requirements remaining, AP applied for a parentage order under the Surrogacy Act in the Supreme Court. This parentage order could only be made with all the preconditions met and in this instance the court was satisfied that the arrangement was made prior  to conception, however declined to make the parentage order due to the provision of a counselor’s report and evidence confirming the parties consent was not to a satisfactory level . This shows the courts ability to protect and ensure the rights of the surrogate mother and her partner, as consent is a dominant requirement in surrogacy arrangements. Although indicates an ineffectiveness in achieving justice for intending parents, demanding an excessive amount of evidence to allow parentage orders. With the intention to create better circumstances and gain parentage rights regulated by the law, these precautions can be seen to make it somewhat difficult for arrangements to be followed through as seen in this particular case. The reform inquiries were commenced by hastily arranged parliamentary inquires, where only six to nine months was allocated for the entire hearing and reporting process. This implies the new laws in Australia are based not on evidence of the actual behaviour or needs of families formed through surrogacy to date, but rather on inaccurate ideas and assumptions about the threats and problems with surrogacy and how they can be ‘improved’. The Federal Attorney-General, Phillip Ruddock, is calling on the states to bring â€Å"some uniformity† to the widely different laws covering surrogacy and this is an indication for a further need to reform. Prior to reforms made to the Family Law Act 1975, a birth mother that used an artificial conception procedure to conceive, in a same-sex relationship, was unable to legally identify her female partner as a parent, whereas in the case of heterosexual relationships, the law allowed the husband or male partner to be recognised as a parent. Before 2008 children born to lesbian couples only had one legal parent, and it was not uncommon for a sperm donor’s name to be recorded in recognition of their biological relationship. The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission found this to be inequality in the law and an issue of discrimination. The fact that the Family Law Act was designed to accommodate and emphasise the heterosexual family also caused difficulty for judicial officers to resolve cases and disputes within same-sex families. In response to this, the NSW government in 2008 amended the Status of Children Act 1996 (NSW) and the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1995 (NSW) with the Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Same Sex Relationships) Act 2008 (NSW). This created a parenting presumption in favour of women of same-sex relationships, through recognising the female co-parent of children born through birthing technologies as well as allowing both mothers to be listed on the child’s birth certificate. Accomplishing the best interest of the child who no longer will only have one legal parent, the act also successfully reflects the change in community attitudes as negative societal outlooks on homosexuality has decreased with recent years presenting a more accepting nature. A birth certificate creates a rebuttable presumption of parentage however a presumption arising out of use of a fertilization procedure is certain. The case of AA v Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages and BB (2011) focused on a man who donated sperm to a lesbian couple, considering himself to a father to the child conceived while forming a loving relationship with her and contributing thousands in support payments. This was the first case of its kind after the amendments made to the law in 2008, attempting to forcibly remove BBs name from the child’s birth certificate in a court battle that succeeded. Bringing forward the notion of legal parents versus biological parents creates the potential for complex issues surrounding children born to same-sex couples. Sperm donors have no legal parental status even if they’re on a birth certificate, with partners of lesbian mothers gaining that right automatically with the introduction of the act in 2008. Judge Walmsley, involved in the case, suggested allowing for three parents to be on the birth certificate as he recognised its powerful symbolism. However it is not possible under NSW law to have three parents with legal responsibilities, had he had sexual intercourse with the mother or married her, he would have gained this legal status. This essentially highlights the inadequacy of laws dealing with multi-parent families. Janet Loughman the Principal solicitor of Women’s Legal Services NSW stated, â€Å"Contrary to popular belief birth certificates do not make you a parent, they are just proof, like a drivers license. They record legal parentage,  not genetic parentage. It is the legal parents who need that proof as they go about the daily business of raising the child†. Even so, donors do not often involve themselves in the life of their child and prior to 2010; the Status of Children Act 1996 (NSW) stated that the identity of donors would be concealed allowing them to maintain their right to privacy. However this resulted in concerns arising for the children, as they were likely to suffer from lack of information about their genetic heritage with identity crisis or medical and social dilemmas impacting them negatively. The Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007 commenced on the 1st of January 2010, with it, introducing the National ART Donor Registry. The Assisted Reproductive Technology Regulation 2010 specifies by law what information about both the donor and donor conceived child must be provided and recorded in the registry, which is then accessible by the child at the age of 18. Significantly the rights of the child are being addressed, although this is not concurrent with those of the donor, with the legislation only allowing their access to the child’s date of birth and sex. The commencement of this legislation has provoked a wide range of responses and this in itself speaks for its effectiveness in the view of the community. The opposition health spokeswoman, Jillian Skinner commented on these changes to the bill saying, â€Å"Proposed new laws to assist donor children to know who their fathers are, have been a long time coming†. Suggesting the NSW government had a delayed response to this current problem for children, as drafts for the legislation were introduced to parliament in 2003 implies an unproductive approach in assisting children in these situations. This has now resulted in confusion towards the stance of the law in prioritising the best interest of the child or upholding privacy rights of donors prior to the enactment of the regulation. In the past 10 years, fertility clinics have only allowed donations from men who are willing to provide their identity for recording and this has resulted in the number of sperm donations decreasing by more than half between 1998 and 2008 according to the President of the Fertility Society of Australia, Peter Illingworth. Through the establishment of the ART Donor  Registry it can then be assumed this will lead to an even further decline in the number of sperm donations in Australia. Peter Illingworth also commented on the exposure of donor identities, which may occur due to the introduction of the legal clause giving the government power to demand access to this information. â€Å"We can’t release the information at all without the donor’s consent and it is as simple as that†¦ consent over-rides everything†, emphasising the importance of their right to privacy and the fact that this legislation was not enforceable when they chose to donate sperm plays int o the injustice that will occur if the government chooses to enable such actions. Regardless of this Jillian Skinner feels â€Å"The rights of children will now be enshrined in the legislation so that any child born through ART will, after they turn 18, be able to know the details of their biological parents†. Being the most important focus this understanding emphasises the fact that the current regulation, does provide a legal certainty that the best interest of the child is ensured. The media can be accredited through its release of numerous articles keeping track of the process and government introductions of new laws and regulations. Ensuring the community is aware and informed of changes in legislation that may impact on previous sperm donors or those considering donating, will help avoid any confusion or injustice occurring in the future. The commonwealth government of Australia cannot universally legislate for reproductive technology practice. Therefore each state and territory is responsible for designing and implementing separate legislation. This has resulted in laws and practices that differ from state to state. Advances in birth technology have created a great need for law reform as they challenge the long-standing moral and legal conceptions of ‘family’ and ‘parent’. It is difficult to compare surrogacy with other reproductive methods, as the surrogate mother is undergoing all the emotional, mental and physical feelings of pregnancy, not simply donating an ovum and therefore laws in place protecting surrogate mothers in Australia and overseas are important, however are useless when they compromise the rights of intended parents and the children. The current debate, taking place in Australia reflects the rapidly changing legal landscape and societal attitudes in relation to surrogacy and assisted reproductive technology. The wide divergence in  Australian and international laws are indicative of the range of opinions about surrogacy and assisted reproductive technologies and of the challenges lawmakers face in staying up to date with these new technologies. Thus far the attempt to satisfy and cater for all contemporary issues within the area can be furthered to remove inconsistencies between state and federal, as well as clarify legal rights of all parties involved. However laws relating to these issues have been slow to pass with the government and courts constrained by existing legislation, suggesting the legal and non-legal measures are more so ineffective than they have been efficient.

Marijuana Legalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Marijuana Legalization - Essay Example According to the paper findings positive usages include dealing with allergies relating to respiratory problems , digestive factors such as appetite, and most effectively it is used in sexual inhibition processes in certain individuals, mental state of an individual under certain depression and other stresses, In all these it has been tested to positive impact as a result it has been advocated for permitting its usage on legal grounds for medical purposes.This essay stresses that the debate got more intense when it was found out that it can be used for medical purposes, and seeing its vast usage along with medical implications, number of states took steps towards legalizing and making it a open market item for the adults. Under the garb of federal law, marijuana is strictly prohibited and clearly defined rules exist in which any one found in its possession, or under its influence will be dealt with severely, the law also defines terms and penalties for its users and its possession ho lders and suppliers. It is the individual and municipal laws of respective states, that have thought of entertaining the thoughts of legalizing it and making it part of their legal life. Over fifteen states are enrolled in debate and race for making marijuana legal for medical purposes.  Comparisons are being drawn between the usage of alcohol and that of marijuana and advocates of it say that it has more soothing effect and less negative impact if it is used in a contained manner.

The Financier Alwaleed bin Talal Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Financier Alwaleed bin Talal - Assignment Example l who is currently fifty years old has being able to amass a lot of wealth since the year 1979 after finishing his university education and the latest Forbes ranking placed him as the 26th richest man in the world with a net worth reported to be approximately US $20 billion. Al Waleed Talal’s main investment vehicle is his Kingdom Holding Company where he owns 96% of the total shareholding. Khan (2005) further wrote that despite being a member of the Saudi’s royal family, Al Waleed Talal early childhood was not that rosy since a single mother raised him and this could be perhaps among the driving forces that have propelled him to be a successful man. According to Khan (2005), among the personal initiatives of Al Waleed Talal that have shaped him to become the most prominent Arab businessperson and investor is the military training that he received upon finishing high school that can be assumed made him a strict business man who is fully active on all of his business ventures. According to Khan (2005), the military training hardened him as a person and hence the reason why despite being a member of the Saudi royal family, he is the only member who has been able to amass a lot of wealth on his own, and even become the most influential Arab in the world. According to Khan (2005), in the business world Al Waleed Talal personal character is seen as an aggressive investor eager to tap on potential opportunities that may appear non-lucrative at the time, such as buying Citigroup’s shares while the company was in crisis. Al Waleed Talal is a philanthropic businessperson and through his foundation, he has made numerous donations mostly in a bid to further Islamic education in the world. Al Waleed Talal’s successful career has also being shaped up by his professional initiatives that have given him the skills required to run a successful business and even become a successful businessperson. To begin with, Khan (2005) stated that Al Waleed Talal has a Bachelor of

The mechanism of the money multiplier Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The mechanism of the money multiplier - Essay Example This paper will aim to provide an explanation and illustration of the essential mechanisms behind the concept of money multiplier and intensively the manner monetary authorities can control its size and influence money supply in the economy. First, an overview of money measure will be put forth. Secondly, the mechanism in light of money multiplier will then be explained by use of symbols and equations to elaborate the cyclical variations in the multiplier factor. This will be followed by a scrutiny of money multiplier in the present economic environment which will be explained and lastly a description of the instruments of controlling money supply such as open market operation, reserve ratio and the discount window will be put in details to explain the impact in the size of money supply. A conclusion will then be provided of the general overview of the essay. The Reserve Ratio According to Valdez & Molyneux (2010, p. 111), different measures or dimensions can resolve on the issue of money supply denoted as M via monetary aggregates such as M2 and M4. The monetary aggregate M1 equals to the cash held household whilst M2 refers to the sum of deposit within the bound of retail banks and building societies in addition to the cash held by the household. M4 gives a broader measure of money which comprise of wholesale bank deposits and certificate deposits. These can be expressed as; M1 = Cash held by households M2 = M1 + retail banks and building society’s deposits M4 = M2 + wholesale banks deposits + certificate deposit The measures of money explained above shows the liquidity level of money held in supply even though broader measures indicate less liquidity held. The correlation amidst the bank of England, commercial banks and the households and the behavior which describes the supply of money in the form of deposit ratio of the currency and the reserve ratio. This can be expressed as; M = Deposits (D) + Currency deposit ratio (CU). The money multiplier main tains the mathematical connection amidst the monetary base and the economic supply of money. The monetary base or the high powered money is the summation of the currency in supply in addition to the banking system’s reserves. The money Multiplier can be articulated as; 1/rr this is the inverse of the reserve requirement ratio. For example if the reserve requirement is 20% then the multiplier effect is equal to 5. The extension of a nation’s Money supply that comes from banks ability to lend, the extent of the multiplier effect relies on the fraction of deposits that the banks are stipulated to maintain as reserves. In other terms, it is money used to make more money and is established as division of the total Bank deposits by the requirement of the reserve. The effect of the multiplier is dependent on the reserve requirement that has been set. Thus to get the effect of the multiplier on the supply of money, the first step is to get the amount banks earlier on take in v ia the deposits and then divided it by ratio of the reserve. For example, in case the reserve requirement is about 20% for each ? 200 a customer makes deposits into a bank, then ? 40 must be maintained as reserve. Nonetheless, the remaining ? 160 can be advanced to other banks customers as loans. This ? 160 is then made as deposits by the customers into other banks which simultaneously also keeps 20% or ? 32 in reserve but can loan out the remaining ? 128. This cycle goes on as more customers’ makes deposits of money and more banks proceed with the lending process until the ? 200 earlier deposited makes a total of ? 1000 (?200/0.2) in deposits. These deposits created forms the multiplier effect. It must be noted that the higher the reserve requirement, the tighter the supply of money, which eventually lead to a lower multiplier effect for every pound deposited (Cecchetti, 2008, p. 47). Subsequently, the lower the effect of the multiplier, the greater the supply of