Monday, July 29, 2013
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Saturday, June 8, 2013
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Web Development - Reasons for Using a Content Management System (CMS)
A Content Management System (CMS) not just makes websites more impressive but also makes it easier to develop high quality websites. In addition, they are better for developing sites with multiple users or a lot of content. Some other reasons for using a content management system are:
Easily Manageable
With the features like Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), changing the site structure is like a nightmare because then one has to modify each page, which not just needs more effort but also takes a lot of time, whereas, CMS web developers can easily avoid this hassle because the content management systems use templates and once the template is changed all the internal pages will be updated. Thus, CMS website development makes the managing process much easier.
Web Development - Reasons for Using a Content Management System (CMS)
Easy Updates
Content Management System makes it easy to update a site from any computer. All you need to have is the login page and a password. Whereas, with no content management system the user needs to have all the files they are using, which makes it impossible in some instances.
Saves Money
Along with easy to update features, CMS web development also helps cut down the project costs because it is usually free. Although it is recommended to hire expert CMS web developers from a professional web development company if you want to customize your website according to your business, which is also not very expensive.
Higher Flexibility
A content management system displays your website content using current web standards, which makes it more user-friendly and it becomes more "future proof." The CMS also has built-in search capability, which helps you modify and add or delete pages using the built-in browser based editor so that when the new pages are added, deleted or moved the page navigation menu links are automatically adjusted on the pages of your website.
Content management Systems help develop a professional looking website that is easy to use and update and that is the reason why a lot of CMS web developers and publishers appreciate the easy to use features of CMS website development and use it to develop both e-commerce and custom websites.
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Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Electronic Keyboards - Their History and Development
The term "electronic keyboard" refers to any instrument that produces sound by the pressing or striking of keys, and uses electricity, in some way, to facilitate the creation of that sound. The use of an electronic keyboard to produce music follows an inevitable evolutionary line from the very first musical keyboard instruments, the pipe organ, clavichord, and harpsichord. The pipe organ is the oldest of these, initially developed by the Romans in the 3rd century B.C., and called the hydraulis. The hydraulis produced sound by forcing air through reed pipes, and was powered by means of a manual water pump or a natural water source such as a waterfall.
From it's first manifestation in ancient Rome until the 14th century, the organ remained the only keyboard instrument. It often did not feature a keyboard at all, instead utilizing large levers or buttons that were operated by using the whole hand.
The subsequent appearance of the clavichord and harpsichord in the 1300's was accelerated by the standardization of the 12-tone keyboard of white natural keys and black sharp/flat keys found in all keyboard instruments of today. The popularity of the clavichord and harpsichord was eventually eclipsed by the development and widespread adoption of the piano in the 18th century. The piano was a revolutionary advancement in acoustic musical keyboards because a pianist could vary the volume (or dynamics) of the sound the instrument produced by varying the force with which each key was struck.
Electronic Keyboards - Their History and Development
The emergence of electronic sound technology in the 18th century was the next essential step in the development of the modern electronic keyboard. The first electrified musical instrument was thought to be the Denis d'or (built by Vaclav Prokop Dovis), dating from about 1753. This was shortly followed by the "clavecin electrique" invented by Jean Baptiste Thillaie de Laborde around 1760. The former instrument consisted of over 700 strings temporarily electrified to enhance their sonic qualities. The later was a keyboard instrument featuring plectra, or picks, that were activated electrically.
While being electrified, neither the Denis d'or or the clavecin used electricity as a sound source. In 1876, Elisha Gray invented such an instrument called the "musical telegraph.," which was, essentially, the very first analog electronic synthesizer. Gray discovered that he could control sound from a self-vibrating electromagnetic circuit, and so invented a basic single note oscillator. His musical telegraph created sounds from the electromagnetic oscillation of steel reeds and transmitted them over a telephone line. Grey went on to incorporate a simple loudspeaker into his later models which consisted of a diaphragm vibrating in a magnetic field, making the tone oscillator audible.
Lee De Forrest, the self-styled "Father Of Radio," was the next major contributor to the development of the electronic keyboard. In 1906 he invented the triode electronic valve or "audion valve." The audion valve was the first thermionic valve or "vacuum tube," and De Forrest built the first vacuum tube instrument, the "Audion Piano," in 1915. The vacuum tube became an essential component of electronic instruments for the next 50 years until the emergence and widespread adoption of transistor technology.
The decade of the 1920's brought a wealth of new electronic instruments onto the scene including the Theremin, the Ondes Martenot, and the Trautonium.
The next major breakthrough in the history of electronic keyboards came in 1935 with the introduction of the Hammond Organ. The Hammond was the first electronic instrument capable of producing polyphonic sounds, and remained so until the invention of the Chamberlin Music Maker, and the Mellotron in the late 1940's and early 1950's. The Chamberlin and the Mellotron were the first ever sample-playback keyboards intended for making music.
The electronic piano made it's first appearance in the 1940's with the "Pre-Piano" by Rhodes (later Fender Rhodes). This was a three and a half octave instrument made from 1946 until 1948 that came equipped with self-amplification. In 1955 the Wurlitzer Company debuted their first electric piano, "The 100."
The rise of music synthesizers in the 1960's gave a powerful push to the evolution of the electronic musical keyboards we have today. The first synthesizers were extremely large, unwieldy machines used only in recording studios. The technological advancements and proliferation of miniaturized solid state components soon allowed the production of synthesizers that were self-contained, portable instruments capable of being used in live performances.
This began in 1964 when Bob Moog produced his "Moog Synthesizer." Lacking a keyboard, the Moog Synthesizer was not truly an electronic keyboard. Then, in 1970, Moog debuted his "Minimoog," a non-modular synthesizer with a built-in keyboard, and this instrument further standardized the design of electronic musical keyboards.
Most early analog synthesizers, such as the Minimoog and the Roland SH-100, were monophonic, capable of producing only one tone at a time. A few, such as the EML 101, ARP Odyssey, and the Moog Sonic Six, could produce two different tones at once when two keys were pressed. True polyphony (the production of multiple simultaneous tones which allow for the playing of chords) was only obtainable, at first, using electronic organ designs. There were a number of electronic keyboards produced which combined organ circuits with synthesizer processing. These included Moog's Polymoog, Opus 3, and the ARP Omni.
By 1976, additional design advancements had allowed the appearance of polyphonic synthesizers such as the Oberheim Four-Voice, and the Yamaha series CS-50, CS-60, and CS-80. The first truly practical polyphonic synth, introduced in 1977, was the Sequential Circuits Prophet-5. This instrument was the first to use a microprocessor as a controller, and also allowed all knob settings to be saved in computer memory and recalled by simply pushing a button. The Prophet-5's design soon became the new standard in the electronic keyboards industry.
The adoption of Musical Instrumental Digital Interface (MIDI) as the standard for digital code transmission (allowing electronic keyboards to be connected into computers and other devices for input and programming), and the ongoing digital technological revolution have produced tremendous advancements in all aspects of electronic keyboard design, construction, function, sound quality, and cost. Today's manufactures, such as Casio, Yamaha, Korg, Rolland, and Kurzweil, are now producing an abundance of well-built, lightweight, versatile, great sounding, and affordable electronic keyboard musical instruments and will continue to do so well into the foreseeable future.
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Preston Champion is an Internet researcher and consumer product and services reviewer. He is also a musician and a music industry professional.
Preston provides unbiased, informative product reviews of many of the most popular and best selling electronic keyboards on the market on his web site: http://electronickeyboardsreview.com.
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Tuesday, February 19, 2013
5 Reasons Why You Do Not Want A Free Weebly Website
I assume if you're reading this article that you're familiar with the free website service known as Weebly. The people at Weebly say that their software is the easiest way to create and publish a website on-line, and I agree, but I have issues.
There are thousands of people just like me who have experience building websites with both Dreamweaver and GoLive. Most of us earn a very good living with these tools and wouldn't think of using anything else. Then along comes Weebly. What kind of a name is Weebly anyway?
Recently I decided to build a little website with this toy of a program know as Weebly. And after doing so, I want to give you my top 5 reasons why you do not want to build your own Weebly website.
5 Reasons Why You Do Not Want A Free Weebly Website
Ease of Use
Weebly is so simple to use that a monkey can do it.* And that's the problem. I've spent years developing my web design skills so that I can charge 0 an hour to create websites for people just like you. If you decide to build your own website with Weebly, the days of me building websites for 0 an hour are over. Who in their right mind would pay me to build a beautiful, functional web site when they can do it themselves without a technician? Please, I have a family to support.
Cost
Weebly is completely free. And when I say free, I mean free. You don't have to purchase software. You don't have to purchase server space from a hosting company. You don't even have to pay a technician to make change for you.
Weebly will not only make it impossible for me to earn money building websites, but it will take away my ability to charge you to host and service your site after I build it. How can I support myself when Weebly is taking away my ability to do so. It isn't right.
Service
I don't think it's right that you as a customer should expect me to get back to you immediately every time you have a simple question about your site. It sets up the wrong impression. If I jumped every time you contacted me with a problem, you would begin to take me for granted. Besides, I have a life.
In this case, the problem isn't with Weebly, it's with the entire community of Weebly users at TakeOnTheNet who are on the net day and night ready to answer Weebly questions for anyone with a Weebly website. All I can say to those people is, "Get a life."
Features
Dreamweaver and Golive are the most comprehensive website development programs on the planet. They can do everything. When you have a site built with one of these programs it's the same as telling your friends that you have the Mercedes-Benz of websites. Think of the pride you'll feel.
Yes, Weebly can do everything you want on your site, but that's not the point. You can add photos, text, slide shows, video, audio, credit cards, advertising, contact forms, flash files, maps, calendars, custom headers, unlimited pages and blogs. You can choose from over 20 beautiful designs and have your own domain name too, but again, that's not the point. The point is, you want to be able to tell people that your website is better because it was built with Dreamweaver and it was expensive. When I build a website for you, you'll be proud of it.
Marketing
Web designers like myself don't just design web sites for people like you, we help you market your sites too. This is one of the main ways we earn money from you after your site is built. It's also one of the most profitable things we do in our business.
Weebly is trying to lure you away from that part of our business by telling you that you can do this yourself without our help. They've even creating links to popular social networking sites to help you get started. Worse yet, sites like TakeOnTheNet offer a Weebly website marketing course loaded with tips on SEO, SEM, PPC, linking strategies and social networking to help you market your site for free. They're giving away our secrets and taking money out of our pocket. It's just not fair.
Please, don't go to Weebly to build your own website. While you're at it, don't go to TakeOnTheNet to learn how to use this software either. It's not fair to our brotherhood of web developers if you're capable of building a website in two hours without going though an apprentice program first. And don't tell your friends about this software either. Just say, "No!"
* The monkey must have basic computer skills
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Learn to build your own Weebly website by watching Weebly Videos by Bob Sommers. Get Weebly help [http://members.takeonthenet.com/forum/f14] with these 36 videos available on the Internet and learn how to create and promote your Weebly website. Add audio, video, slide shows, text, photos, credit cards and more.
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Wednesday, February 6, 2013
How Much Does it Cost to Develop a Website?
If you're wanting a large website with scores of features, you're going to have to shell out the money for it. The more unique in its complexity a website idea is (i.e. never done before), the more it's going to cost for you to have it developed. Sure, you could hire your youngest nephew John who did a year-long course in web design - Just don't be too shocked if you find out further down the line that your website looks like crap and that it doesn't work properly. If you want a good website, you had better pay good money. The same goes for cars, houses and practically everything else that can be bought.
I remember a few months ago when a potential client gave me an outline for a website that he wanted done. He wanted a full Ajax-driven website with a flashy Web 2.0 design. Fine I thought, as I continued on reading his email. Everything was going great until I got to the end of his project outline and seen what his budget was - US Dollars. He wanted a large website for . I felt so insulted by such a proposal that I didn't reply to him - half afraid that he was joking and that the joke was all on me.
I usually find that people either expect to pay nothing for a website, or they expect to pay far too much. I've often had to tell somebody that their budget was too high for the kind of website that they were wanting. Sure, I could have fleeced them and accepted a large stack of cash for just a tiny bit of work - but besides the guilty conscience that I'd inevitably end up harbouring, there's always the slight chance that they'll find out I robbed them blind and blacken my name. Which would be entirely understandable.
How Much Does it Cost to Develop a Website?
The cost of having a website developed varies from designer to designer. However, a few constants usually remain the same. Complexity is a key part of the pricing process. If you're just wanting a regular small business website, the price should remain pretty low. However, if you're wanting a website that needs custom programming, you should definitely expect the cost to rise. The more unique features that you want, the higher the cost. A lot of web designers can't code in server-side programming languages such as PHP. They'd much prefer to use off-the-shelf software packages that they can download and then design a template for. The problem with these packages is that they're often bloated in size (too many features) and don't do exactly what you want them to do. If the designer feels as if there isn't a software package that addresses your needs, they'll either try to pressure you into accepting their use of a similar off-the-shelf software package or they'll hire a freelance programmer to take part in the project. The hiring of a freelancer programmer will of course, bloat the cost of developing your website.
For a small business, you don't need a large website. You really don't. I've had people who own small local businesses ask me for forum boards and and even social networks. And sure, that's no problem - IF that's what they really really want. However, I do let it be known to them that this "forum" they're intending on having built probably won't get the amount of users that they're expecting. A small business website should have a homepage, an about us page and a contact us page. Anything else is just a luxury.
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Monday, February 4, 2013
Tattoos and Diabetes
I was recently asked a question on our website that I thought deserved a lengthy answer.
J.C. of Buffalo, NY asks: "I have diabetes and I take insulin. Is there any reason I should be concerned about getting a tattoo?"
So, J.C, you're thinking about getting a tattoo, but you have diabetes. Is this a good idea? Well, in most cases it's not a problem. But there are some things you should be thinking about before during and after the inking process.
During my 18 years in podiatric practice I thought I had seen everything, that is until one day I was called to the emergency department for a consultation. A 45 year old female diabetic patient decided to get a tattoo on the top of her foot. She said she thought nothing of it at the time. It was a rendering of her late cat whom she loved so much. About 3 days after the inking she began to develop some redness around the site. She followed the directions given to her, but the redness got worse. She applied more ointment but now she could see the redness spreading away from the tattoo. She consulted her tattoo artist who intuitively had her call her physician who sent her immediately to the emergency department.
Tattoos and Diabetes
A tattoo for all practical purposes is an intentional wound. This young woman had gotten an infection and because she had the circulation of an 80 year old and because of neuropathy she did not feel any pain. What she did have was an abscess on the top of her foot. This led to the circulation becoming worse leading to gangrene of the toes. She ultimately lost half her foot. I was able to save the remaining foot, by cleaning out the infected bone and soft tissue, and using high tech state of the art wound healing products and treatments.
Let's discuss a little about diabetes first. Diabetes is the leading cause of non-traumatic foot and leg amputations in the United States and approximately 14 to 24 percent of patients with diabetes who develop a foot ulcer and infections go on to have an amputation. Research, however, has shown that the development of a foot ulcer is preventable.
Anyone who has diabetes can develop a foot ulcer or an infection. Native Americans, African Americans, Hispanics and older men are more likely to develop ulcers. People who use insulin are at a higher risk of developing a foot ulcer, as are patients with diabetes-related kidney, eye, and heart disease. Being overweight and using alcohol and tobacco also play a role.
Diabetic complications develop due to a combination of factors, such as lack of feeling in the foot, poor circulation, foot deformities, irritation (such as friction or pressure), and trauma, as well as duration of diabetes. Patients who have diabetes for many years can develop neuropathy, a reduced or complete lack of feeling in the feet and legs due to nerve damage caused by elevated blood sugar levels over time. The nerve damage often can occur without pain and one may not even be aware of the problem. "
"Vascular disease can complicate a healing tattoo, reducing the body's ability to heal and increasing the risk for an infection. Elevations in blood glucose can reduce the body's ability to fight off a potential infection and also slow down the entire healing process."
Most tattoos do not get infected; however if your physician diagnoses an infection, a treatment program of antibiotics, wound care, and possibly hospitalization will be necessary.
necessary.
The science of wound care has advanced significantly over the past ten years. The old thought of "let the air get at it" is now known to be harmful to healing. We know that wounds including tattoos and ulcers heal faster, with a lower risk of infection, if they are kept covered and moist. The use of full strength betadine, peroxide, whirlpools and soaking are not recommended, as this could lead to further complications.
Appropriate wound management includes the use of dressings and topically-applied medications. These range from normal saline to advanced products that have been shown to be highly effective in healing problem tattoos.
For a tattoo to heal there must be adequate circulation to the inked area. A circulation specialist (vascular surgeon) or a podiatrist can determine circulation levels in the feet and legs with noninvasive tests.
Healing time depends on a variety of factors, such as tattoo size and location, pressure on the area from walking or standing, swelling, circulation, blood glucose levels, wound care, and what is being applied to the wound. Healing may occur within weeks or require several months.
The old saying, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" was never as true as it is when preventing a diabetic tattoo complication.
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Dr. Hal Abrahamson is a Board Certified Podiatrist in New York, and the Chief Medical Officer of Biker Skin Care Products [http://www.bikerskincare.com], a company that produces tattoo aftercare products [http://www.bikerskincare.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=7] and foot care products [http://www.bikerskincare.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=3]. Dr. Abrahamson is also a member of the Suffolk County Board of Health and Tattoo Advisory Panel, and is a motorcycle and muscle car enthusiast.
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Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Net Income, EBIT, EBITDA And SDCF - What Is The Right Metric To Use For Business Valuation?
The most commonly used "earnings figures" used for small to mid-market business valuation are Net income (NI), Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT), Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) and Seller's Discretionary Cash Flow (SDCF). With a variety of metrics to choose from it is natural for a business owner to ask "which is the right one to use for my business". To answer the question, first we need a quick background on what these earnings metrics are.
Ø NI: NI is the net profit of the business after deducting all expenses of the business including all operational expenses, owners' or officers' salary, interest expense, taxes, etc. Some people consider this as the "true earnings" but for many small to mid market companies, which are on a constant quest to minimize taxes, this number can be grossly understated and is not a true reflection of the company's earnings stream.
Ø EBIT: EBIT is the net profit of the business before factoring in financing and taxes. The rationale for using this metric is that tax payments are highly accounting and owner dependent and a pre tax view of the profits would be a better indicator of the profit stream. Similarly, interest payments that are a function of the company's financing strategy and vary widely depending on the debt to equity ratio preferred by the ownership. The resulting leverage factor can artificially inflate or deflate the NI. EBIT shows an earnings number that is adjusted for these variables to reflect a truer picture of the earnings.
Net Income, EBIT, EBITDA And SDCF - What Is The Right Metric To Use For Business Valuation?
Ø EBITDA: The accounting treatment of Depreciation and Amortization for many businesses is substantially different from the real cash flow impact these elements have on the business. EBITDA allows for looking at the profitability of the business before factoring in these two items. One needs to be aware that this can be a highly misleading indicator based on the depreciation and amortization characteristics of the business and adjustments to EBITDA are almost always necessary to get a true picture of the earnings.
Ø SDCF: For smaller businesses, where the owner may see the business as a "job", the true measure of profitability may be the sum of all the monies the owner derives from the business including salary, benefits and other perks.
Effectively,
Ø EBIT = Net Income + Interest + Taxes
Ø EBITDA = EBIT + Depreciation + Amortization
Ø SDCF = EBITDA + Owner/Officer's Salary + Benefits + Perks
So, the answer to the question, "Which earnings is the right one for my business?" depends on the nature and size of a business and an understanding of which metric may more accurately reflect the true earnings. For many mid-market businesses the appropriate metric is likely to be EBIT or EBITDA.
Once the correct metric is identified, the business owner needs to understand the range of multiples that may be applicable to the chosen metric. For example, the earnings multiples for most small companies tend to vary between 1 to 3 times SDCF and the earnings multiple for mid-market companies are more likely to be 3 to 5 times EBIT or 3 to 7 times EBITDA.
However, businesses tend to be more unique than typical and a multiple that is good for one business may be too low or too high for another. The more exceptional the business is, the more likely it is that the multiplier will be outside of the typical range.
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Chak Reddy is a Merger and Acquisition Advisor with Elite Mergers & Acquisitions, Inc http://www.EliteMandA.com Elite Mergers & Acquisitions specializes in selling California Central Valley businesses with revenues between million and 0 million - Businesses too large for business brokers to adequately handle but too small for the national M&A firms. Mr. Reddy is a business M&A and Marketing expert, and is the chief deal maker at Elite. Whether you are planning to market your business or looking to expand your business, Mr. Reddy's hard work, professionalism and integrity will assure a smooth, successful, and effective transaction. You can reach Mr. Reddy at 916-220-3052 or by email at creddy@elitemanda.com
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Saturday, January 26, 2013
Cognitive Development
While there is no general theory of cognitive development, the Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget is credited with developing some of the seminal ideas about how we mature on a cognitive level. Cognitive theory concerns itself with the way children and adolescents process information. The manner in which we learn is truly procedural in nature, and it is dictated by the physiological state of the brain.
Learning and cognition have their origins as a basic survival tool. In order to thrive, animals must have a good understanding of their environments and adapt to new challenges accordingly. However, a baby not born with its brain's potential fully realized. It takes most of childhood to develop it and Piaget conjectured that cognitive development occurs in stages. As these stages progress, the child's thought processes become more and more sophisticated.
We should first step back and understand how information is processed. According to Piaget's model, adaptation occurs when people encounter a previously unknown stimulus. This can be done in two ways: by assimilating the information into existing schema, or accommodating the information into a new schema.
Cognitive Development
As an example, let's imagine that a young child is told that an animal that has four legs and barks is a dog. On a camping trip, the child sees a wolf and it begins barking. This child (correctly) concludes that a wolf is a type of dog. This would be an example of assimilation.
On the other hand, imagine the child is watching television and draws the (incorrect) conclusion that any animal with four legs and fur is a dog. At a relative's house, he sees a cat and exclaims "Mom, look at the dog!" The mom explains to the child that not all furry, four-legged animals are dogs-this is a cat. The child accommodates this new information and learns that dogs and cats are different types of animals.
With an understanding of how information is processed, we can now explore the cognitive stages of Piaget's model. The sensorimotor stage occurs from birth until age two (Papaj, 2006). In addition to having an inexperienced and underdeveloped brain, toddlers lack the language skills necessary for self-reflection. Their ability to interact with the outer world and evaluate it is limited to experiencing it via the five major senses. This is why infants are often seen placing things in their mouths.
Following the sensorimotor stage is the preoperational stage that occurs until about the seventh year of childhood. This stage marks the beginning of rational thought. No longer is the child limited to experiencing the world via the senses. While the child can now make judgments about his or her environment, this takes an egocentric view. In other words, a child in this stage can not judge an object from another's viewpoint; in fact, a child will not even be aware that other people may have differing opinions. On the other hand, the child has gotten significantly better at evaluating objects. Given a group of items, the child can now arrange them by shape, size, and color.
From about ages seven to eleven, children are in the concrete operational stage. By these ages, children have grown accustomed to using symbols to represent objects; language and mathematical skills have progressed significantly. In addition, thought has become less egocentric. A child in this stage is quite comfortable seeing things from another's viewpoint. Children in this stage can also evaluate objects using more than one criterion at once. For example, a child can estimate how old someone is by studying multiple cues such as firmness of skin, height, and hair. In earlier stages, the child would use a single, unreliable cue such as height to estimate (Papaj, 2006).
The previous stages culminate with the final stage, formal operational. This stage takes place from about age eleven onwards. Beginning at this stage, children can think not only in concrete, tangible terms, but also in the abstract and hypothetical. Deductive reasoning is now possible, and children can use existing knowledge to form hypotheses about new experiences.
It's worth noting, however, that this stage is not always easy to reach. Epstein (2006) asserts that two-thirds of adults lack the critical thinking skills illustrative of the formal operational stage. That is to say, two out of every three adults in the United States does not develop beyond the concrete operational stage. I would posit that this is a serious problem in a society where we expect adults to understand the major political, environmental, and economical issues we face. A greater effort must be made to teach these skills in schools.
With an understanding of Piaget's model, we can now look at a theory by one of his contemporaries. Lev Vygotsky was a Russian psychologist that formulated the social development theory of learning. This theory states that development is shaped by a child's social interactions; physiology alone cannot account for cognitive development. This concept was referred to as the Zone of Proximal Development. Whereas Piaget believed that cognitive development took place mainly in childhood, Vygotsky believed that development is a continuous process. He believed it extended into one's adult life and continued until death, and is too complex to be compartmentalized into stages (Driscoll, 1994; Hausfather, 1996).
The Zone of Proximal Development is worth examining further. This concept is made apparent when a child is taught by someone with a greater skill level. A gap exists between the child's skill and the teacher's skill. As the child learns, this gap narrows and thus it can be argued that learning is a social process. Vygotsky reasoned that the skills, such as language, that developed in the preoperational stage only served to bridge the gap between the sensorimotor stage and higher rational thought. Viewed another way, Vygotsky believed that rational thought could not take place without language.
It's quite possible both Piaget's model and Vygotsky's model have merit. In fact, I don't even consider the models to be incompatible; perhaps Vygotsky simply misunderstood Piaget's intentions of creating an age-based model. The different stages of Piaget's cognitive development theory merely served as guidelines in understanding the way children develop. In addition, the notion that learning is a social process is self-evident-otherwise we could lock a child in a room for ten years and have her come out understanding multiplication and the proper use of analogies. Of course learning is a social process; to suggest otherwise is absurd-at least in the case of children. Finally, I don't believe Piaget thought that development ends during adolescence. The mere fact universities exist would suggest otherwise. Rather, Piaget believed that a properly socialized child would have all the tools necessary to use higher-level thinking by adolescence. From that point, it is up to the child to decide whether honing his or her skills is a worthwhile endeavor.
Now let's briefly explore the manner in which elementary schoolteachers can apply Piaget's theory. Kindergarten and first grade teachers have the responsibility of introducing children to numbers and letters. In this preoperational stage, children learn to read and do basic arithmetic. Perhaps more importantly, children begin the socialization process in earnest, away from parents and family members. The desired result of this socialization process is for children to lose their egocentric view of the world and begin displaying empathy.
In second to about fifth grade, children are in the concrete operational stage. Teachers of these children should provide students with numerous examples and demonstrations when introducing new material. Concepts that involve classification are best introduced during this stage-a good example would be taxonomy, which involves explaining the distinct characteristics of different types of animals.
In middle school and high school, students are in the formal operational stage and are now prepared for more abstract thought. Science becomes a much more important part of the curriculum at this stage, and students are expected to interpret and analyze much more complex ideas.
Applications of Vygotsky's ideas are a bit more nebulous, much like his model itself. Teachers of all grades should strive to improve their students' language skills, as all learning will be dependent upon a child's ability to communicate. Activities should be challenging and social in nature. In the later years of childhood, group work should be emphasized to allow reinforcement of ideas amongst peers; this smaller gap in proficiency may lead to more incremental learning.This may be easier for some students who find the material difficult.
The ability to think critically is the desired result of walking children through these stages of learning. Critical thought is perhaps the single most important thing a school can do for its students to prepare them for life as an adult. This would suggest that factual information is of secondary importance-the real duty is in teaching students to communicate and analyze information effectively.
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REFERENCES:
Bhattacharya, K. & Han, S. (2001). Piaget and cognitive development. Retrieved June 21, 2007, from Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Web site: [http://www.coe.uga.edu/epltt/piaget.htm].
Papaj, L. (2006). Jean Piaget's stage theory. Retrieved June 21, 2007, from Evolution, Learning and Culture Web site: [http://evolution.massey.ac.nz/].
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Wednesday, January 23, 2013
How to Articulate Your Career Achievements in 7 Steps
It's amazing how many people can't describe their achievements in order to maximize its impact. Whether its in a resume or in a job interview, your ability to describe your achievements is a critical factor for success.
So many people underplay their achievements! Question is, do YOU?
Are you submitting your resume for that job you want, or even need? Or perhaps you're preparing for an interview?
How to Articulate Your Career Achievements in 7 Steps
When you finally get the opportunity to talk about what you have achieved, it's an opportunity you won't want to waste. I've pulled together 7 keys to guide you on describing your achievements for maximum impact.
1. Clarify Your Involvement in the Achievement: Use powerful words that describe your contribution. For example, 'created', 'reorganized' or 'established'. Passive statements like 'did', 'performed' or 'was involved in' don't indicate your level of involvement - they're worthless, so don't use them.
2. Describe a Start, Middle and End: mention the starting conditions, such as 'poor performance', 'high costs', 'unpalatable risk', and follow with a statement on what you made happen (the project, change initiative, etc), and cap it off with the result - was the desired outcome achieved?
3. Quantify the Achievement: use numbers and hard measures where you can. For example, say 'saved ,000' rather than 'saved operating costs'. The more specific you are, the greater the value of your statement of achievement. In almost all cases, a percentage value has a higher-impact than an absolute number. In some cases, what might look like a minor achievement, when quantified, it could be a major achievement as perceived by others.
4. Don't Forget Over-Achievement!: If you set out to save ,000, but instead saved ,000, then make sure this is known. So many people forget to do this.
5. Indicate Your Personal Award: Some achievements warrant special reward, so mention them. If you were promoted, or awarded a bonus, then add it into your statement of achievement.
6. Include details of challenging circumstances: If the achievement was tough due to business events or conditions, then make sure you say what they were. It's important to describe any challenges you faced. For example, if there were many layoffs in your organization whilst you were tasked with improving team morale, then make these conditions clear.
7. State the Effect of the Achievement, 360-degree style: Describe the achievement not just from your own perspective; also describe what it meant for your colleagues, subordinates, management and customers (where appropriate.) Don't forget to quantify the effect for each of these groups of people too.
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The author of this article Simon Stapleton is a coach helping Information Technology professionals with their Career Development, Commercial Development and Personal Development. He has 15 years in the IT Industry and shares his knowledge and tips through his website http://www.simonstapleton.com You can sign up for his free newsletter to enjoy Development too.
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Sunday, January 20, 2013
What is Sustainable Development and How to Achieve Sustainable Waste Management
The Brundtland Commission report provides an excellent definition of sustainable development has been quoted and more recently, the United Kingdom government in the form of its Sustainable Development Strategy, published by the DETR also defined it, and that definition can be found on the web.
However, these definitions shouldn't be left to government only. The idea is after all very simple to understand and we thought we would give you our slant on their definition as follows:
Sustainable development starts with the idea that the most sustainable aim for all is a better quality of life for everyone, not only now, but for generations to come.
What is Sustainable Development and How to Achieve Sustainable Waste Management
To achieve this, sustainable development is concerned with achieving economic growth, in the form of higher living standards. It is definitely not about hair shirts and scrimping and saving, or punishing ourselves for enjoying the use of the world's resources now.
But it IS about our protecting and where possible enhancing the environment, not just for its own sake but for our own enlightened self interest, because a damaged environment would quite soon begin to hold back economic growth and lower the quality of life.
It IS egalitarian, because it to be truly sustainable as history shows, things only work in the long term if we all make sure that economic and environmental benefits are freely available to the whole society and not just a privileged few.
Sustainability is compatible with all the major faiths and can be supported by all.
So, it is commonly accepted that sustainable development must encompass four broad objectives.
These are; social progress which recognises the needs of everyone, the effective protection of the environment, prudent use of natural resources, and maintenance of high and stable levels of economic growth and employment.
One of the most important areas for society to act sustainably is in how it throws away its waste, its trash and detritus. Nothing else, other than fossil fuel energy over-use causing climate change, and war, has the potential to do so much accumulating damage.
Unsustainable waste management poisons watercourses and underground water, leaves litter around everywhere to maim and kill our wildlife, encourages rats and vermin, pollutes the air with odours and unhealthy aerosols and can render vast areas of land damaged or largely unusable.
What is Sustainable Waste Management
There is no one sustainable waste management solution which yet reigns supreme. There are still conflicting views as to the most practical, environmentally beneficial and effective means of achieving sustainable waste management.
The overall policy aims to achieve sustainable waste management, that have been established in recent years across the whole of the European Union and many other nations are:
* to reduce the amount of waste that society produces;
* to make best use of that that is produced; and
* to choose waste management practices which minimise the risks of immediate and future environmental pollution and harm to human health.
Over the last ten years or so the actions needed for the waste industry and individuals to follow, and which are most sustainable have been defined by the policy makers.
A waste disposal method for making the choice between waste treatment and disposal options which puts landfill disposal at the bottom of the list of possible waste disposal routes, has been provided throughout the EU, for use by everyone. It is known as the waste disposal hierarchy.
Landfill does have a role in this strategy in mopping up the residual waste after all pre-treatment of waste has already removed as much of the waste stream as possible, but it is a continually reducing one, and consensus among waste professionals still remains tenuously established at best.
Sustainable Landfill
Flushing bioreactor landfills have been suggested as the only way to achieve sustainable landfills but very real technical problems exist in developing these, not least obtaining enough fresh clean water for the flushing in the first place.
However, there is a general consensus on the objectives of sustainable landfill, which we list as follows:
- The contents of the landfill must be managed so that outputs are released to the environment in a controlled and acceptable way.
- The residues left in the site should not pose an unacceptable risk to the environment, and the need for aftercare and monitoring should not be passed on to the next generation.
- Future use of groundwater and other resources should not be compromised.
The striking point here though is it could be suggested that slow leakage to the environment can be better than a total containment if slow improvement and stabilisation is achieved without any irreversible harm being caused.
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Steve Evans is a Mechanical Biological Treatment processes professional who holds extensive experience across the activities of the waste management industry.
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Saturday, January 5, 2013
Five Stages Of Reading Development
Learning to read doesn't just happen. It has to be taught through systematic, organized instruction. Reading is a skill which is built upon through stages and is an ongoing process.
If a stage of reading development has not been learned, students will flounder in their reading ability, which also affects their writing skills. It is imperative that teachers make certain students fully understand each stage of the reading/writing process before they move on to the next level.
Jean Chall, world renowned reading expert and psychologist for fifty years, and past professor emeritus at Harvard University cites her five stages of reading development below:
Five Stages Of Reading Development
Pre-reading Stage:
Unsystematic accumulation of understandings about reading between pre-school and kindergarten.
Stage 1:
Initial Reading or Decoding Stage (grades 1-2; Ages 6-7 )
Student's central task is learning arbitrary letters and associating them with corresponding parts of spoken words. Learner acquires knowledge about reading. Phonics.
Stage 2:
Confirmation, Fluency, Ungluing from Print, Automaticity Stage (grades 2-3; Ages 7-8)
Consolidation of what was learned in Stage 1. Requires reading many easy and familiar books for developmental reading. Gradual increase in functional and recreational reading. Common use of the basal readers. Functional reading important - content area texts - here's where we fail in our attempts to prepare our students. Range of possible recreational reading increases.
Stage 3:
Reading for Learning the New Stage: A First Step (Grades 4-8; ages 9-13)
Readers need to bring prior knowledge to their reading. Children acquire facts.
Stage 4:
Multiple Viewpoints Stage: (High School; Ages 14-18)
Should include instruction in reading/study skills, and reading strategies for success.
Stage 5:
Construction & Reconstruction Stage: College; Ages 18 & up)
Adult literacy should stress acquisition of skills useful to the participants and the ability to apply those skills.
These are the stair steps of reading development. They are built upon and climbed, as students grow in their literacy development. Sometimes students get stuck in one of the stages. It's my job as a literacy specialist to "unstick" them so they can move on to the next phase and beyond, empowering them to become enthuiastic readers and writers.
Copyright © 2006 by Pamela Beers. All rights reserved.
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Pamela Beers is a freelance writer, educator, and horse trainer. Her work as a literacy specialist, using Jeanne Chall's stages of reading, has changed reluctant readers into enthusiastic readers by making sure each student understands the skills needed in each of the five reading stages.
This article is written in memory of Jeanne Chall whose teachings are immeasureable.
Visit Pamela's website: [http://www.FreelanceWritingEtc.com]
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