Category: Goals

The study of a degree course in Digital technology and culture is significant to a student with career aspiration in multimedia business. This helps in creativity and critical thinking, which is very significant to employers to improve the quality of output in order to meet the consumers demand as well as expectations. The great influence has been due to the emerging trends because of improved technologies that are different from the past, with the understanding that the future largely depends on the past.

There is a great passion in multimedia where it will be upon a student to synthesize information to present to people via technology and use past occurrences among various cultures to explain solutions to problems that they might encounter. Digital technology and culture ensures that the knowledge people have in art is updated depending on the modern technology and everyone for communication to be effective understands the language used.

Culture has been the way a particular group of people live in their communities, where there are believes and values which they share in their day-to-day life. Different tribes have different cultures that largely depend on their affiliations such as the learning institution, religious gatherings, and even place of work. The emergence of technology makes most people to discard their own culture and drown themselves into the cyber culture, which the whole world accepts.

There are problems that people would experience if they ignore the original culture and embrace the culture that results from modern improved technology. Initially there was a reason why people developed a code of conduct and their daily activities seemed to run smoothly. This is because with good behavior they would live together in harmony, love and accept one another. When people segregate themselves, they suffer confusion and encounter difficulty in relating with those who still uphold the culture.

The digital technology on the other hand has its own etiquette and as much as it takes less time to master, those who are not interested in it sometimes find it offensive. People find themselves in a position where both digital technology and culture are at loggerheads and it is upon them to merge the two and make both ways of life compatible and even complimentary.

Multimedia is a very important field that goes into depths of culture through its research to unravel documentaries of news. The researchers interact with members of communities to gather all the relevant information, while on the other hand Multimedia uses digital technology in collection of information, its storage, processing, and transmission to the people. The awareness creation receives transmission through the same platform and it is set to reach many people in different locations.

There are professional photographs, which have featured in magazines on how to take videos as well as edit them. The writing skills that have slowly developed through experience enable one to write brief articles and report on the findings. Previous work in a local media house and after the degree will enable one to look forward to establish himself or herself as a freelancer and take the stories, edit them and present them to various media houses.

In the future, one would look forward to starting a speech training school, which would equip the young people with various skills of technology and how to use them to pick up from their own respective cultures and make both worlds compatible.

The main reason for choosing better and advanced education in a competitive field of study lies in a personal perspective of life. It is also a challenge and over persistence or needs to advance knowledge, especially in this era of computerization and technologically advancing platforms. Considering the current situation all over the world, everything seems to involve some change in technology and way of life as a measure to aggressively meeting the harsh economic experiences.

Most people will agree that life depends on information technological panache such as the internet, cable or mobile television, and another phenomenal advancement. Technology completely saturates the current lifestyles. To computer scientists, technology is a useful tool for confronting future problems, thus the need to accept and probe deeper.

Understanding the technological world is inevitable, and it is the only essential strategy for anyone living in the 21st century. Everybody ought to understand that technology is here to stay. Other than the great opportunity of creativity and innovativeness, computing is a pillar to careers, offering a wide range of lucrative choices. Lastly, there is a need to mention that future opportunities are almost impossible to predict; they have no boundaries, and the need for advancement will constantly cause one to wait in anticipation for a better lifestyle.

Involvements

As a student, I have had some rewarding and equally challenging experiences. Regardless of the field, one has to venture into or engage, majoring in a certain field gives one competitive advantage and great chances of gaining extra unique knowledge or skills, problem-solving tactics, and logical thinking formulas.

Integrating the theoretical knowledge into the practical world requires one to acquire competence in solving tough multi-dimensional problems that necessitate deep imagination and sensitivity to quite a number of apprehensions. Digital advancement is the main catalyst for positive development or innovations in almost every field. Considering some of the general challenges, for one to make a positive difference in learning, there is a need to incorporate technological advancement into the normal or current challenges. Advancement calls for creativity and patience to deliver the required output. Some knowledge of computation assists one to integrate some individual flairs and imaginations in any field to make it better, interesting, and easier.

Challenges

Having participated in an excellent competition as a team-leader, anyone would have guessed that the main gain from such a forum would be in the advancement of knowledge or strategies. Such forums or educational competitions come with a lot more than knowledge-gain. As a leader, I acquired meaningful existence and interpersonal relationships through a built-up rapport among people of the same career interest but different backgrounds.

Besides the academic skills, the challenge gave the team a social and teamwork development platform. The competition gave students a chance to interact with a diverse group of participants and collaborate in celebrating their accomplishments and passions. Because of the diversity of the contestants, the presentations were technologically up-to-date in comparison to our team.

Besides the interactions, our team had to engage in some critical thinking, analysis and thus change some aspects in the presentation as a way of ensuring our acquired skills had a close link to future development or modernization. It was a learning experience that critical thinking presents the power to engage precarious advances, to meet the situations. Top leadership enables one to gain critical guidance skills to meet situational demands. A good leader has to make smart choices or decisions, such as a change of strategies.

Conclusion

Life challenges will increase, but the biggest of them all is the ability to manage technology and accept it as the catalyst for positive change in society. Computation is a channel of information, which is very useful in solving most current and future challenges in all careers, but we must work in close reference to Martin Luther King, saying, The true goal of education is intelligence and character.

One of my goals during my placement will be to improve my interviewing skills. This will play a vital role in ensuring that important information is obtained from the clients visiting the Working Women Community Centre.

I intend to be part of the interviewing team in the first month of my placement. After the first month, I intend to manage interviews in Working Women Community Centre. Thus, by the end of my placement period, I aim to be fully equipped with interviewing skills that will aid me in interviewing women to determine the support services that they need.

I am certain that improving my interviewing skills will play an essential role in achieving the goals of the Working Women Community Centre. The organization must have adequate information about its clients so that appropriate actions are taken to assist them. This aspect can be enhanced through effective interview processes.

I will do a lot of research on communication skills. This is aimed at gathering appropriate information on effective listening skills. Furthermore, I plan to apply the knowledge gained on communication skills during my mentorship before I am allowed to oversee interview exercises. This will equip me with infinite knowledge that will help me to oversee interview processes in the organization.

My second goal will be to acquire relevant experience in programs and activities carried out by community support organizations such as the Working Women Community Centre. I plan to provide suggestions and ideas that will address the needs of women and their children in the organization.

This goal is relevant to the Working Women Community Centre because the experience gained will allow me to take part in program implementation and evaluation. I will also provide additional manpower to the organization in offering support services to women and their children.

One of my strategies to accomplish this goal will be to work as a program assistant during my placement. I will keenly observe and assist my bosses to carry out their duties. The other strategy will be to go through various deliverables and reports on the activities and programs already completed by the organization. I will also be involved in writing reports and making follow-ups on activities being carried out.

This will enhance documentation of deliverables and writing of reports on programs being implemented, activities being done and services being given to clients. The next outcome will be to implement programs and activities for the organization. The last outcome will be to monitor and evaluate the support programs offered by the organization.

The final goal will be to improve my typing speed to assist me to take notes during interviews and program implementation. By the end of my placement period, I intend to attain a typing speed of 40 words per minute. This will be relevant to the organization because I will be able to provide a soft copy, and hard copy reports in good time. This will also enhance the safety, storage, and retrieval of important information within the organization.

I will put extra effort into training to see to it that I have increased my typing speed from 25 words per minute to 40 words per minute. Besides, I will use my PC to take all notes and write reports on all activities of the organization. This will result in an improved typing speed and management of information within the organization.

Role of Experience Into Future Goals

Defining the key lessons that I have learned in the course of the learning process, I must mention the skills in conflict management, which I have acquired after handling a project that I and my colleagues had to deliver in the Tanweer United to display the methods of reducing the costs for the companys logistics strategy, particularly, the transportation issues.

In most cases, implementing a project requires working with at least one partner, and being in a team is never an impeccably smooth process  somewhere along the way, there will be conflicts and misunderstandings due to the differences in the temper, character traits, and mentalities of the project participants. As far as my experience is concerned, I had to deal with a problem of poor time management and the following conflict among the members of the team.

The experience that I have gained is truly priceless; it can be linked to the key postulates of the social conflict theory tenets, as well as the basics of psychology and sociology. Indeed, choosing between the methods of conflict solution, I had to wander into the great area of sociology by integrating the key principles of the theory of cooperation and competition (Deutsch, Coleman and Marcus 24) and incorporating the basic methods of conflict management.

Needless to say, I also had to utilize my knowledge of psychology to help the members of the project reconcile and work for the solution to the problem. First and most obvious, it was required to identify the source of the problem (as it turned out, poor time management and the lack of social responsibility have led to major disagreement among the members of the team). Next, the premises for developing open communication needed to be introduced; the environment for open communication was created with the help of recognition of the group members values and interests. Luckily, when I came to identifying the key interests of those involved in the project, each of us agreed to share a range of similarities in our goals (i.e., we wanted to finish the project as soon as possible and attain encouragement and recognition for our efforts). Besides, I learned that empathy was the key to solving practically any conflict; indeed, until I started analyzing the conflict and take actual measures to address it, all that I felt was frustration because of the lack of responsibility that my partners displayed. However, as soon as I realized what exactly made my partners slacken the process (i.e., the lack of confidence, the fear of failure, etc.), I started empathizing with them and, therefore, making a consistent effort to design the solution that would satisfy each of us.

Even though the aforementioned experience concerned the dimensions of sociology and psychology to a greater extent than those of philosophy, the elements of the latter were also to be incorporated into the location of the viable solution to the problem. To be more exact, I had to incorporate the key tenets of the Kantian ethics (the Categorical Imperative) to make sure that the interests of every single member were satisfied and that the project was going to be delivered on time. This experience has provided me with an excellent opportunity to train my skills as a negotiator and at the same time learn to compromise for the sake of a greater goal.

Being an accountant is not an easy task, and developing a project that was supposed to make the Tanweer Taxi Company increase its net income by cutting some of the logistics related losses made my experience even more complicated. However, the results were well worth the efforts that I had to make in the process. Apart from significant professional growth as an accountant, I have also improved my negotiation skills. As far as the career opportunities are concerned, the issues that I have faced and handled in the course of managing the project described above is going to further my career, since being an accountant requires working with a lot of people to collect information from different departments of a company and, therefore, may ensue a range of conflicts because of the number of elements that need to be incorporated into reports. Hence, from the sociological perspective, the experience that I have received when designing the project in Tanweer United is truly priceless.

The experience gained in the course of being employed at the Tanweer Taxi Company should not be limited to the improvement of my professional qualities, though. In addition to getting more opportunities to advance in my future career, I have also learned a range of essential skills that will help me in my social life, not to mention the tremendous impact that the conflict management process has had on my pattern of interaction with my family members. Indeed, the conflicts that used to lead me and my family nowhere, only alienating us from each other, are now perceived as crucial experiences, the solution of which brings us even closer and helps us understand each other even better. Rationalizing my emotions and understanding what makes me feel personal about certain things that my family members say, I cognize myself and work on improving my relationships with the family. With each conflict solved, we become closer to each other and have fewer obstacles on our way to understanding each other.

More to the point, the experience of conflict solving, which I have gained at the Tanweer Taxi Company, has also made my life in the community considerably easier. Before starting to work for this organization, I used to adopt the strategy of avoiding conflicts, therefore, refusing to handle disagreements and leaving the negotiation process to other people. Working at the Tanweer Taxi Company, however, has taught me that the avoidance strategy may be the easiest one, yet it does not necessarily presuppose that an appropriate solution will be located. On a much deeper personal level, training at the Tanweer Company has taught me the basics of personal and professional responsibility, as well as the ability to be flexible enough to satisfy the demands of every single stakeholder involved in the conflict without taking major losses. This is an important skill for a community member to have; seeing that my community has a lot of diversity, the people that it is represented by often have demands that may conflict with my interests and conviction. Therefore, I often have to work for a solution that could meet the requirements of every single member of the community, and working with the people at the Tanweer Taxi Company has taught me how to handle such situations efficiently.

Works Cited

Deutsch, Morton, Peter Coleman and Eric C. Marcus. The Handbook of Conflict Resolution: Theory and Practice. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. 2011. Print.

Elementary School

During this stage, the students should be made aware of the different jobs and associated roles. Commensurate with the ASCA national model, the development of this lesson for elementary, middle, and high school students will be enabled by the Hallway 5 software to enhance information management and accountability (Pathways Software & Resources 2015).

Lesson: 40 Minutes

References Used: The School Counselor Kind (2015) and the American School Counselor Association (2014).

Middle School

This group has a high energy level and curiosity is at its peak. About the School Counseling Program Implementation Survey, according to Clemens, Carey, and Harrington (2010), the lesson plan will focus on the use of counseling software to enhance outcomes. During elementary, the students learned about the various careers, roles, and relevant skills required of each career and the skills possessed by the students for the different career choices.

Lesson: 40 Minutes

High School

Students at this level have a higher level of understanding, and they are more reserved.

Evolution

The lesson plans indicate a progressive change in concepts and associated activities to suit the ages of the children. In elementary school, students understand simple drawings and pictures; hence, pictures are largely utilized here. In middle school, the students have an elevated level of understanding and can role-play the careers very well and deduce lessons from videos. The high school acts as the transition from one form of learning to another, and students can understand complex and attentively understand complex assistive educational materials.

References

American School Counselor Association. (2014). Mindsets and behaviors for Student Success: K-12 College- and Career-Readiness Standards for every Student. Alexandria, VA: American School Counselor Association.

Clemens, E. V., Carey, J. C., & Harrington, K. M. (2010). The School Counseling Program Implementation Survey: Initial Instrument Development and Exploratory Factor Analysis. Professional School of Counseling, 14 (2). Web.

Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. (2016). Secondary Education: Career Ready Lesson Plans for Grades 6-12. Web.

Pathways Software & Resources. Management Hallways 5 for School Counselors. (2015). Web.

The School Counselor Kind: We are one of few. (2015). Web.

UW-STOUT University Library. School Counseling and Psychology. (2016). Web.

Education goals

Education goals are written in general terms and they each touch on a specific aspect of the society and the learner as an individual. They do not have specific criteria for achieving them. The learners only achieve educational goals after exposure to a particular part of a study program. Instructional goals are more specific and focus on one or two areas of the curriculum. They target the entire group of students taking a program and not the achievement of individual students. The educational goals that I have set for my instructional unit are:

1. Education must meet the needs and requirements of the development of the country
2. Education has to depict national images by the inclusion of the diverse culture of the country
3. Education must give provisions for the development of learners personality, abilities, and talents
4. Education has to provide an avenue for justice in society, an avenue for morality, social responsibility, and social obligation
5. Education has to promote a positive and conscious attitude towards other countries
6. Education has to create a wholesome individual who is developed mentally, spiritually, and morally
7. Education has to foster the necessary skills needed for the learners to make contributions to societal development
8. Education has to ensure that the learner has developed cognitive, psychomotor, and affective skills
9. Education has to lay up a good foundation for individual learners to be able to advance themselves in their career choice and also in furthering their training

The selection criteria that would meet both the instructional objectives and the educational goals should be based on the following aspects: the scope or how much the content needs to be covered, the relevance of the material, balance in terms of all the important disciplines, transferability of the content in terms of being able to be utilized in a real-life situation, feasibility, and significance. The instructional goals are hence supposed to be written based on Blooms Taxonomy level of cognitive, affective, and psychomotor (Bloom, 1986). The instructional objectives for the unit are:

1. The learners have to demonstrate an understanding of important concepts in mathematics by being able to apply them in different mathematical problems
2. The learner must demonstrate a sense of self-confidence when approaching or doing mathematical problems
3. The learner must be able to show interest in the subject content by appreciating its use in the different areas of its application
4. The learner must be able to apply the basic and important concepts of mathematics learned during instruction in a real-life situation or other disciplines
5. The learner must be able to develop a capacity to conduct their inquiries and research in mathematics
6. The learners must be able to respond to the situation by reasoning mathematically, analytically, synthetically, and logically to situations where mathematical concepts are applied.
7. The learners have to demonstrate the ability to be able to argue based on evaluation or use of mathematical evidence
8. The learners have to be able to relate the concepts learned in the unit to life

Curriculum mapping

Curriculum mapping is gathering all the information that relates to the curriculum, identifying all the important content and skills that need to be taught, coming up with an appropriate instructional method that will be employed, and designing an effective and efficient means of assessment. One such example of a curriculum map that depicts a cohesive curriculum is the interdisciplinary mathematics curriculum map from the Kentucky Department of education (Kerr, 1996). The map also includes a scoring rubric that measures students understanding of concepts and skills in mathematics.

A curriculum map is very useful as it can identify all the important activities for curricula. It is an effective guideline for an instructor to use in the classroom to effectively cover all the important content and classroom activities that are needed to complete a program. It provides a clear range or scope of the knowledge and skills that the learners have to gain over a specific period. Through the designing of a curriculum map, the necessary resources can be linked and used appropriately for the effective delivery of subject content.

Such a curriculum map is also useful in the classroom in making modifications to instruction. The maps can be used as a means of assessing an instructors delivery of content and instruction methodology. Through mapping, it is possible to identify weak areas of the delivery process that need modification to strengthen instruction. This helps in the overall evaluation process that is required to improve the process of instruction in the classroom. The maps are therefore important in establishing classroom activities that enhance and facilitate student learning.

The advantages of using curriculum maps are several. Since they are used in analysis, evaluation, planning, and communication of all aspects of the curriculum, they are important tools in education (Kerr, 1996). One advantage is that they allow the stakeholders in education to evaluate the curriculum and find out if there are any weaknesses, inconsistencies, redundancies, and misalignments. The main goal for this evaluation is to improve on the curriculum content, resources used, and instructional method.

Another advantage is that the documents can identify the relationship between the intended learning outcome for the students and all the components of the curriculum. Through this, the components that may not be contributing to producing the intended learning outcome can be modified or realigned in a way that it will achieve its goals (Kerr, 1996). Curriculum maps can also be used to identify areas where different disciplines can be integrated. For instance, there are a lot of opportunities in other disciplines where mathematics can easily be applied. Through mapping the curriculum, such opportunities can be identified.

Lastly, curriculum maps can be used for reviewing the methods of assessment used by educators. They identify whether a particular method has proved effective or not. Educators can identify the knowledge that the students have acquired after some time. Once the instructors have identified the learners knowledge background, they are in a position to build on the students capacity to retain this knowledge (Kerr, 1996). Despite many benefits that accompany curriculum mapping, the main disadvantages are only upon the educators and not the curriculum or the learners. It may be a tedious activity to keep records of the implementation process.

References

Bloom, B. (1986). Taxonomy of Educational objectives: the classification of educational goals. New York: David Mackay Company.

Gerald, B. (1999). Curriculum development: a text book for students. London: McMillian Publishers.

Kerr, J. (1996). Changing the curriculum. London: University of London Press.

Introduction

Self-directed learning is central to andragogy. It has been acknowledged that adult learners prefer having a great deal of autonomy when acquiring knowledge (Merriam, Caffarella & Baumgartner, 2012). Of course, to be effective, the learning should be structured and well-thought. People have different learning styles, and it is essential to understand ones most effective approach. Mezirow identified three major learning styles (instrumental, dialogic and self-reflective), and the individuals should choose strategies consistent with their styles (Kitchenham, 2008). However, prior to choosing the necessary strategies, materials and so on, it is crucial to identify the goal and major objectives of the learning.

Goals and Objectives

To start any learning process, it is essential to identify reasons for such learning. Thus, I want to learn how to bake cakes. I have a sweet tooth, and I have tried thousands of types of pastry. I have become quite picky, and it is difficult to surprise me so my friends and relatives often say that I should bake myself if no one can satisfy my needs in the delicious dessert. I have tried to bake a sponge cake and failed completely. Therefore, the primary objective of my learning will be the ability to bake a sponge cake. At that, I will also aim at baking a good cake in a week.

Theoretical Background

To choose the most appropriate strategies and materials, it is helpful to outline the theoretical framework. I believe Mezirows approach is the most relevant in my case. After some reflection, I understood that my learning style was instrumental. I always focus on the ways I can acquire knowledge rather than reasons for learning or environment (Kitchenham, 2008). Hence, I will concentrate on materials and tools to acquire knowledge and skills as well as use them in the future.

Importantly, Gureckis and Markant (2012) stress that decision-making is one of the central peculiarities of self-directed learning. The learner is empowered to craft the entire process, which makes him/her more motivated. It is also necessary to add that Illeris model provides insights into the effective knowledge acquisition. I agree that the three dimensions (cognitive, emotional and social) are central to the learning process. In my case, the social dimension plays an important role as I am motivated to prove to my relatives and friends that I am able to bake. Appraisal or even admiration will be my extrinsic motivation. At that, emotional component is also very strong due to the involvement of my close ones. It is also significant as I will do something I like very much (learn to do something, eat desserts, achieve goals set).

The Process

The reflection on some theoretical points helped me to develop an effective plan. First, I made a simple plan. I focused on timing. I knew I would be invited to a birthday party, so I decided to bring my cake. I had a week, so I had to practice each day. Of course, I had many responsibilities so I could practice several hours a day only.

The first stage was collecting the necessary information. The major source of knowledge was the Internet in this case. It is the fastest way to find some information. Kop and Fournier (2010) note that online students often find it difficult to cope with the abundance of information and resources. I have also faced this issue. There are various books, journals, websites, workshops and so on teaching how to bake. At that, I was not devastated as I knew that I did not have to go through all resources available, but I could choose the ones I find the most effective. First, I found a recipe of the cake I want to bake. I also read some how-to websites. I was especially focused on something I failed to do previously (bake sponge). I also watch some videos on YouTube and found many useful tips. I wrote down some of the most helpful hints.

When I decided I was ready to practice, I started baking. Of course, I had access to the Internet all the time, and I followed the stages in a video. I have to add that there was a social component in my learning as I called my mother. At that, I faced a kind of dilemma. I wanted to surprise everyone, and I did not want my mother to think that I was inexperienced in quite simple things. I believe this is an influential aspect when it comes to self-directed learning.

Many learners face similar issues as they do not want to seem inexperienced, unconfident or unaware of some things, which makes them reluctant to address other people (peers, instructors and so on). I would like to add that I enjoyed a significant sense of autonomy as I knew I was totally responsible for all choices I make (including assessment, which will be my personal assessment). Nonetheless, I have to admit that I limited my autonomy when I practiced the knowledge I obtained. I used the video tutorial during several times as I was not sure I could handle it.

I have to admit that I did everything needed, but the cake was not as perfect as it was in the pictures. At that, I acknowledged errors I made. Those were errors with temperatures, time and technique. After some time, I tried to bake one more time. I used some video tutorials. After several attempts, I focused on the recipe only. I knew the techniques necessary to make the sponge. That attempt was successful, but I spent too much time. I knew that my learning was not complete as I was not a confident baker of the cake in question. At that, my major goal, to bake a cake for the party, was achieved, and people liked my treat. Of course, I intend to make other attempts until baking the cake becomes a simple task for me.

I would like to note that the project considerably enhanced my knowledge of some aspects of self-directed learning. I was able to apply one of the models of learning. I think the understanding of the theoretical framework helped me apply the model effectively. I reflected on the three dimensions, which enabled me to set specific goals and objectives. I also acknowledged the way the context affects my decisions. Thus, I chose the cake that could be to particular peoples taste. I also wanted to learn without any help from people I knew, which could negatively affect my learning as I limited resources available. One of my friends is a chef, and he could help me a lot, but I did not address him.

I think I was quite a successful self-directed learner. I managed to set goals, to develop a plan and implement it. My time-management was efficient as well. I have gained a valuable experience that will be applied later. Of course, there were some difficulties and errors. Thus, I was not confident enough. I limited my autonomy when practicing my knowledge and skills. I believe it can be more effective to be more autonomous during my further projects. I believe my use of videos led to the prolonged time of skills acquisition. I could have learned earlier. I also think that my unwillingness to address some people had an adverse effect on my learning. I will be more open next time. At that, I understand that there will always be some situations when I will be unwilling or unable to use this or that source of information.

Conclusion

On balance, I would like to note that the project was a valuable experience for me. I was able to revisit the theoretical frameworks we studied and use them. Of course, I should also note that the project changed me to a certain degree. For instance, I understood the complexity of autonomy in self-directed learning. I changed my perspective, and I now understand that my sense of autonomy can be limited by many factors even though there can be no formal assessment. I also acquired the necessary experience in developing and implementing the plan. I have become a more efficient self-directed learner. I also intend to continue my attempts to acquire new knowledge and skills. I will also continue my research concerning theoretical frameworks and practical strategies associated with self-directed learning.

Reference List

Gureckis, T.M., & Markant, D.B. (2012). Self-directed learning: A cognitive and computational perspective. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 7(5), 464-481.

Kitchenham, A. (2008). The evolution of John Mezirows transformational learning theory. Journal of Transformative Education, 6(2), 104-123.

Kop, R., & Fournier, H. (2010). New dimensions to self-directed learning in an open networked learning environment. International Journal for Self-Directed Learning, 7(2), 1-19.

Merriam, S.B., Caffarella, R.S., & Baumgartner, L.S. (2007). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Background

Development of higher education in the UAE is one of the major priorities for the countrys leaders. The president of the UAE claims that the country needs professionals in a variety of fields and higher education is one of the ways to ensure availability of high-profile employees (Educating the Next Generation, 2007). Reportedly, the enrolment rates have differed at different times, but now more and more young people apply to higher educational establishment (Educating the Next Generation, 2007). Clearly, there is interest in higher education among young Emiratis. Recent constraints in the countrys economic situation prove that the UAE requires national high-profile professionals. At present, many companies have to rely on professionals coming from oversees.

Admittedly, economy of this country needs home-grown professionals as they will be more interested in the countrys development. Thus, officials point out that there is a positive trend and more young Emirati people are interested in obtaining higher education. However, it is still quite unclear whether those who are enrolled in higher educational establishments have the same life goals throughout the years of their study. It is important to understand whether the interest in professional careers remain when the students are about to graduate from the universities. It is necessary to study whether students have specific life goals during their years at the university and whether these goals remain unchanged.

Research Question

Do freshmen and senior students have similar life goals?

Research Aim and Objectives

To address the research question, it is possible to conduct a quantitative research. The aim of the research is to reveal possible disparity between freshmens and senior students life goals. The research will have the following objectives:

• To explore major life goals of freshmen;
• To explore major life goals of senior students;
• To compare life goals of the freshmen and senior students.

Brief Literature Review

It is important to note that there is certain research on female students expectations and life goals. For instance, Madsen and Cook (2010) explore females expectations and evolvement of their outlook (their viewpoints on females roles in the society). The researchers also claim that females have been encouraged to obtain higher education for a few decades only, but enrollment rates of female students have been increasing.

Another research also focuses on female students in the UAE. Khine and Hayes (2010) concentrate on female students epistemological beliefs. The researchers also note that female students have quite different outlooks in different periods of their study. As far as male students are concerned, the research is not that extensive. Though male students have been encouraged to apply to higher educational establishments, the enrollment rates have always been rather low (Educating the Next Generation, 2007). At present, the Emirati leaders are trying to change the situation.

Obviously, there is certain research on some aspects of higher education in the UAE. However, there is little information on the way students develop their plans for future and set their life goals. It is not clear whether students understand outcomes of their studies and whether they will be able to apply their knowledge and skills in future and become successful. There is no extensive data on the outlooks of female as well as male students in different periods of their study.

Brief Conceptual Framework

To address the existing gap, it is crucial to conduct comprehensive research. The first step in this direction will be conduction of quantitative research. Therefore, the conceptual framework for this research will be developed as a thorough analysis of quantitative data. The hypothesis which will be checked can be formulated as follows:

Freshmen and senior students of higher educational establishments in the UAE have quite different life goals at the beginning and at the end of their studies.

Research Methodology

As has been mentioned above, the present research requires analysis of quantitative data. In the first place, it is necessary to make sure that the data collection will be carried out properly. To obtain enough data for the present research, the research will include 500 samples. 250 participants will be students (both male and female) in their first year of study. 250 participants will be students (both male and female) in their last year. These will be two major groups of samples. Notably, the number of students in the two groups is even to make sure that the analysis is unbiased and reliable. It is also necessary to point out that the samples will be randomly chosen from the enrolled students of several universities of the UAE. All the necessary permission and approval documents will be obtained before the beginning of the research. Gender, age, socio-economic and cultural background will not be taken into account. The number of male and female students within each group will be approximately even. Students will be asked to complete the questionnaire and send it back within certain time limit. The questionnaires will not contain more than 15 questions.

Collection of the primary data will be carried out with the help of questionnaires sent to the participants online. This will help carry out the survey quite quickly and efficiently. The students will also be able to think the questions over at their own pace without being in a hurry. The questionnaires will be developed so that they will include numerical as well as categorical data. The participants will include information about their age, gender, the year of study. They will also choose certain categories concerning their life goals. After the data have been collected, they will be analyzed carefully. It is necessary to add that the major focus of the research is to identify possible disparity in students life goals. Therefore, the exact goals will not be identified and the participants will not include their goals and plans, they will choose specific categories which will help identify the disparity if any.

Expected Findings

From the general reading on the topic, expected findings can be formulated as follows:

• Freshmen students life goals are rather abstract. Even though young people enter a university to obtain specific qualifications or even to obtain certain skills to start working in a particular company, these peoples life goals are not very precise. They are not sure about the way they will be able to apply their knowledge and skills.
• On the contrary, senior students have more definite life goals. They often know the way they will apply their skills and knowledge obtained at the university. They often have particular companies in mind. They are also able to see benefits as well as flaws of the chosen area.
• There will be no or little disparity between female and male students life goals. Possible difference between male and females students outlooks in their first and last years at university can be found. However, both female and male students will have quite similar life goals.

Reference List

Educating the next generation of Emiratis: A master plan for UAE higher education. (2007). Web.

Khine, M.S. & Hayes, B. (2010) Investigating womens ways of knowing: An exploratory study in the UAE. Issues in Educational Research, 20(2), 105-117.

Madsen, S.R. & Cook, B.J. (2010) Transformative learning: UAE, women, and higher education. Journal of Global Responsibility, 1(1), 127-148.

According to IMF (2012), the Reform Agenda of 2012 has a number of goals regarding financial-regulation; for example, it aspires to modify the entire monetary system into a reliable and secure arena, plans to take the system at the correct track by making marketplaces or organizations further translucent, additionally uncomplicated, free, fair, and consistent, and completely uninfluenced from powerful bodies. Reorganizations are largely at banking-segment; these inflict elevated expenses for persuading them for internalising expenses of some uncertain-activities; it is believed that the needs and goals of the agenda for further improved-quality assets and liquidity-buffers must facilitate bodies to better-endure miseries; banks would regulate fresh-expenses in different methods and the latest banking-standards could promote certain-activities to be moved to non-banking-sector.

With intention of carrying out all these goals to ensure a global financial reform, a number of initiatives were undertaken  a brief illustration of the initiatives is given in the following tables:

Nevertheless, glimpse of the recent international regulatory proposals is illustrated below:

Several analysts anticipated that the reform initiatives would bring groundbreaking changes in the global financial system; anticipated consequences of the regulatory-reforms in monetary arrangement are shown below:

Critical Assessment of the Effects of the Global Financial Reform

International-banks have been enthusiastically regulating the business-models for adapting impending regulatory-requirements; international-banks conducted noteworthy alterations on the respective business-strategies after the recession; however, the following table shows the growth rate (2006  2011) and Ratio-of-Sales-to-Total-Equity of the banks:

On the other had, key divestitures of certain banks offered profitable investment-opportunities to different bodies; therefore, global claims of national-banks augmented as a whole, even though their geological allotment has altered; the graphs below show the augmentation of entire overseas claims (2006-2011):

Nevertheless, due to the global economic downturn, it is predominantly notable from banks productivity viewpoint that there has been a reduction of net-interest-margins as a whole:

It is notable that the reason of these reductions was principally the augments of the interest-expenses that mirrored small but steadily augmenting interest rates in giant markets; the following figure shows this in detail:

On the other hand, there have been major alterations in the net interest margins globally; the following graph shows these fluctuations based on the statistics of the respective countries:

Critical Assessment on the Account of Progress towards the Goals

IMF (2012) has noted that even though the purposes of the official decision- makers were comprehensible and optimistic, the account of progress of the reforms are not impressively significant due to a number of factors  the reforms are not quite widespread in some financial systems across the world, as these still require to result in safer-set of monetary arrangements.

As a result, it is necessary for the reform agenda to get further infallible in order to ensure secure financial regulations; in addition, at certain international markets, the involvement activities (as part of the reform-agenda) require to handle long- term disaster more efficiently, as it still causes hindrance and delay in disaster management and in resetting the arrangement on safer-path. In addition, further critical evaluation about the account of progress towards the goals of the IMF report is pointed out below:

• It is notable that research indicates that in spite of development in certain extents and in a few regions, the configuration, or set up of the financial-systems are still mostly unaffected;
• On the other hand, according to IMF (2012), certain reliable statistics imply that financial-systems are excessively intricate even after the reforms; moreover, banking-assets are strenuous through tough national inter-bank-linkages, whilst the imperative subject matters are unsettled even today;
• There is evidence that fresh financial services are created with intention of avoiding the strictness of a number of latest laws; however, the alarming concern lies behind the fact that such kind of acts were performed earlier as well, which had resulted in the global financial crisis, and this indicates that the financial systems are still enough susceptible; the following figure shows the resultant effects of the accelerating rate of creation of fresh financial services 

It is significant to consider the fact that monetary bodies of developed countries persist to depend profoundly over wholesale-financial support, although under certain situations such activity results in profound dependence over central-bank-liquidity backing; at all situations, the IMF report indicates that susceptibilities of financial support exist.
However, it is notable that due to the reforms, the level of globalisation has increased significantly, especially in the banking sector of Asia Pacific region as well as in the rest of the world; this is shown in the chart below:

The following table shows a brief illustration of the position and current condition of the reform initiatives in India, Japan, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and in the United States:

It is important to note that the global monetary system is still strenuous by means of well-built local inter bank-links; however, the following figure shows the capacity and extent of internal connectivity, financial support, and intensity:

Irrespective of the fact that until now that global financial reform agenda has not been able to bring groundbreaking success vastly, the recent report of International Monetary Fund suggests that the current global financial downturn has indicated some guidance regarding where financial systems need fixing; with this experience, it hopes the goals of new financial regulations to be established soon.

Reference list

IMF, 2012, The Reform Agenda: An Interim Report on Progress Toward a Safer Financial System. Web.

Neighborhoods are a common element in our day-to-day lives. Citizens are free to choose which neighborhoods they want to live in. When it comes to neighborhoods, there is a wide range of choices. People are free to live in suburbs, high-rise buildings, condominium complexes, gated communities, and ranches. I have always assumed that neighborhoods are supposed to happen spontaneously in accordance with human needs. However, I recently came across an article that was touting the concept of neo-urbanism or new urbanism. According to the article, the concept of new urbanism defines a method of developing neighborhoods that does not rely on spontaneity.

Therefore, every aspect of a new urban neighborhood is preplanned including the number of its residents, the location of amenities, the traffic flow, and the occupations of its residents. Moreover, the planner of a new urban neighborhood outlines all the improvements and additions that can be made on a neighborhood. I found the new urbanism concept quite interesting and I took some time to do more research on it. I have gained considerable insight into the new urbanism concept but I still plan to explore it further.

New urbanism is not only a concept but it is also a movement. New urbanism promotes the development of simplified neighborhoods that encompass walk-friendly neighborhoods. In addition, new urbanism promotes neighborhoods that contain specific housing concepts. In some instances, new urban neighborhoods are tailored to meet the needs of a specific job group.

New urbanism dates back to the 1980s and it has since become a wide spread concept among urban planners, real estate developers, and administrators. Most aspects of new urbanism are influenced by the problems that were being faced by urban dwellers between the 1950s and 1970s. Therefore, new urbanism solves problems such as sprawling in neighborhoods, traffic jams, unplanned infrastructure, and environmental pollution. New urbanism is closely connected to other modern concepts such as environmentalism, regionalism, and smart growth. All these concepts and movements attempt to solve human problems through controlled activities.

The organization that is behind new urbanism helps to unravel this concept by offering several explanations about the concept. According to the new urbanism charter, the aim of this concept is to develop neighborhoods that can accommodate big and diverse populations. In addition, this concept aims to accommodate pedestrian, transit, and commuter activities. Another aim of new urbanism is to make use of the available public spaces efficiently. When urban growth is uncontrolled, it is likely to under-utilize the available spaces. For example, some areas can accommodate tall buildings but when development is uncontrolled, residents can end up building short buildings. The new urbanism movement insists on thorough use of architectural and landscape designing skills. Interestingly, the new urban concept recognizes the need to celebrate the history of neighborhoods through architecture and development.

There are several elements that outline the basis of new urbanism neighborhoods. First, new urbanism neighborhoods have to have a central point. According to new urbanism, the position of a central point in a neighborhood is defined by the inclusion of a transit centre. Therefore, all the residents of a certain neighborhood have to be aware of the location of this central point. Some new urbanism neighborhoods patent their central points by giving them a memorable name, associating them with a significant historical event, or by planting a distinct green landscape on them. Another element of new urbanism neighborhoods is their ability to have a wide range of houses.

Consequently, new urban neighborhoods can accommodate different sections of the population. For instance, in new urbanism neighborhoods the elderly, the young, married couples, single individuals, the rich, the poor, and the religious people would easily find residential sections that suit them. In other types of neighborhoods, the residents have to conform to their areas of residence but not the vice versa. Before I became familiar with new urbanism, I had always assumed that people found neighborhoods to live in and a single locality cannot attract all types of people. Modern residents are very specific about their neighborhood-needs.

For example, parents who are raising children look for neighborhoods that are family-friendly. On the other hand, some single people often look for neighborhoods that have few children. The new urbanism concept takes note of specific residential considerations and incorporates them in its neighborhood design. The designs in new urbanism neighborhoods are also meant to accommodate the various residential-design tastes. Consequently, new urbanism neighborhoods will often have row houses, apartments, and other types of house designs.

Another element that is common in new urbanism neighborhoods is their proximity to the central point. Most urban designers ensure that all the residents who live in a certain neighborhood are not more than a quarter-mile away from the central point. The accessibility of a central point is helpful to both planners and residents. For example, residents can be able to access means of transportation easily. In addition, new urbanism neighborhoods usually have supply stores in this central point. Therefore, residents can be able to access the stores without requiring an additional means of transportation. Neighborhoods can have offices, eateries, shops, and other basic businesses.

New urbanism neighborhoods do not permit remodels, additional developments, and bold exterior redecorations. However, in some instances residents are allowed to have garage apartments in their backyards. Development of other small and conspicuous establishments such as hobby shops can also be allowed. This controlled development is the hallmark of new urbanism. In other types of neighborhoods, residents are at liberty to develop additional structures within their houses when they acquire the necessary permissions. On the other hand, new urbanism strictly forbids additional establishments and not even the right authorities would allow residents to develop additional structures.

The needs of an individual resident are applied to all residents in new urbanism. For example, elementary schools within a neighborhood are established within a walking distance. Consequently, there are no vehicles for picking up schoolchildren and they can all walk home. New urbanism neighborhoods are also meant to be aesthetically pleasing. Therefore, the designs in the front lawns of houses have to be regulated and adjudicated. Moreover, structures such as car garages are usually situated at the back of the houses. Previously, I was not aware that neighborhood administrations/committees are a product of new urbanism. Under new urbanism, neighborhoods are self-governed through formal associations that include all residents. Currently, this concept is widespread across the United States.

New urbanism is a concept that unearths some of the practices that are common in most modern neighborhoods. Previously, I had assumed that these concepts came about naturally. However, it is now clear that most of the practices that are common in modern neighborhoods were strategically developed. I intend to do more research on new urbanism and its associated theories.