Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Montessori Philisophy Essay Example for Free

Montessori Philisophy Essay Introduction The child at birth appears almost nothing. He cannot walk, cannot talk and he can’t even eat on his own. The same child within two years learns so much. He can walk, run, talk continuously. Maria Montessori calls the child during this formative period, â€Å"a Spiritual Embryo†. The human being is provided with two embryonic periods. One is pre-natal and another one post-natal. The pre-natal period is the period when the physical development takes place. All beings have only pre-natal period. But the human being has another embryonic period which is post-natal. Any animal immediately after birth starts to walk, eats on his own and it will be a complete animal whereas the man has a prolonged infancy in order to become independent. Montessori biography An Italian educator of the early 20th century Maria is remembered as the founder of the famous Montessori Method of education Maria Montessori was born in the town of Chiaravalle in the province of Ancona, Italy on 31 august; 1870She developed interest and biology became her great passion. She persisted and became the first woman in Italy to earn the degree of doctor of medicine. She was appointed at the psychiatric clinic in the University of Rome. She worked with special need children and became deeply interested in their education. In 1904 she was appointed as professor of anthropology at the university. She died in 1952. Birth of a method In 1906, she was appointed as a co-director of a new training institute for special education teacher. Her studies led her to observe the method of teaching children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Many of the children made unexpected gains and the program was proclaimed success. In 1907, Maria accepted a new challenge to open infant school in a slum clearance rehousing program in Rome. The first school, in sanLorenzo, It was called Casa dei bambini, a quality learning environment for young children. Utilising scientific observations and experience gained from her earlier work from young children she designed learning materials and environment that foster the children natural desire to learn. In 1910, the Montessori Method became worldwide creating a new education. New Education The new education is a revolution; but a revolution without violence. It is the non-violent revolution†. (Maria Montessori, The Absorbent mind, Translated from Italian by Claude A.claremont.Newyork,1967,p.215)   Dr. Maria Montessori called for a revolution in society to human development and education. According to ‘the philosophy of new education’ character building is a question of auto construction and children must be helped in their own work of constructing their character. â€Å"There is only one problem, and it is human development in its totality; once this is achieved in any unit-child or nation everything else follows spontaneously and harmoniously† (Maria Montessori, To Educate the human potential, kalashetra publication,adyar,madras,1961,p 13.) The aim of education is the balanced development of personality-the whole personality, the integrated personality. Spiritual embryo Montessori compared the process of psychological and spiritual development to the physical unfolding of human organism. This post natal work is a constructive activity which is carried on the baby what may be called the â€Å"formative period† and it makes the baby into a kind of spiritual embryo. A new born child has no hereditary models of behaviour to follow nevertheless he has â€Å"potentialities â€Å"able to bring about his development, and these are done by making use of outer world. â€Å"The times have changed, turning its attention and energies to the discovery of the child and the development of the great potentialities of the human personality in course of construction† (Maria Montessori, Discovery of the child, ABC-clio ltd,1948) Maria Montessori called these potentialities as â€Å"nebulae† as they are the creative energy which guides the child to absorb from his environment. The growth and psychic of child’s development are driven by an will power and a vital force called â€Å"horme† that makes the child to do what he needs to develop. Only nature, which has established certain laws and determined the needs of the human being in course of development, can dictate the educational method to be followed. According to Montessori there are eight natural laws. Law of work Montessori describes through work the urge of child is met and his concentration to activity also increases and the child reaches a psychic integration state of normalisation Law of independence The child conquest of independence is the basic step in what is called his natural law of development. At birth the child leaves his mother womb and this makes him independent of his bodily process. To be independent the child must function without the help of others. Development of will Montessori believes that decision made by the child on any activity and action taken by the child is the basic for will development. There are three stages of development in will. In first stage the inner urge directs him to do the activity several times by which he gains control over himself and his environment. In second stage he gains power over himself and gets disciplined and accepts the responsibility for his action. In third stage the child gains power to obey. The child turns his power of obedience towards someone else. Power of attention When the child is placed in a environment favourable to his spiritual growth, the child fix his attention upon an object, will use it for the purpose for which it was constructed and will continue to repeat the same exercise .In fact, the attention of the little child was not artificially maintained by a teacher, it was an object which fixed that attention, corresponding to some internal pulse. Development of intelligence According to Montessori, Intellectual development is important as it helps a child to know as well as explore the environment. Through the developing senses, a child is endowed with the necessary mechanism of interacting with the environment Development of imagination and creativity Imagination helps provide understanding to knowledge; it is a fundamental facility through which child makes sense of the world, and it also plays a key role in the learning process. A basic training for imagination is the listening to storytelling. The things that we touch, see and hear coalesce into a picture via our imagination. Imagination is the power of forming a mental image of something not present to the senses or never before wholly perceived in reality. That is the spiritual embryo self-constructs him to become a unified personality. This self-construction is aided internally (mentally) and externally. Internal aid includes the absorbent mind and the sensitive periods. Absorbent mind Montessori observed that young children learn in a unique way from prenatal life to about six years old. Since the neonatal has to learn everything, (he has no tools other than reflexes to survive)he must acquire his survival skills in some other way. A child absorbs knowledge directly into his psychic life. A child learns by taking in everything around him and constructs himself. Using his senses he creates himself without thought or choice. This mentality of child is absorbent mind. Montessori saw absorbent mind in two phases. Unconscious mind (0-3 yrs) At birth, the spiritual embryo has no knowledge or impression in him, it is totally empty. It has to start from nothing. At this stage the child absorbs all impressions from his environment unconsciously. (I.e. the child does not know that he has taken all this with in him) To do this he has no other tools other than his reflexes to survey. At this point the child is like a sponge. He absorbs all information’s without any filters. This process takes place naturally without any thought or choice. This is called unconscious mind or unconscious creation mind. Once these information are incorporated in his schemas, it will be end of his third year, and he has developed his mental muscles. This preparation of the unconscious mind is used for later development and activity, after three years, a trans takes place from unconscious mind to another phase called conscious mind or conscious work mind. Conscious mind (3-6 yrs.) In this stage the child’s ability to focus, use his energy, and capacity to absorb, information in tremendous. This helps in developing emotions and intellectual aspects. From three years of age he moves to the conscious mind using the impressions developed and created during his first three years. This memory which absorbs images into individual’s life is called gifted memory or mneme. Any impedance which lessons the creativity in this age reduces the perfections. At this age they have a good creative power and imagination. He learns how to understand, ability the reasons and his mathematical mind compels him, to perfect himself. Sensitive periods Montessori observed a cognitive plan which determines the unique emotional and intellectual qualities of each child. These qualities develop through what Montessori referred to as the sensitive periods. Montessori identified six different sensitive periods from birth through age six. Sensitivity to order During this period there is a need for a precise and determined environment, which can be observed by the joy which children show at seeing things in their proper places. The presence of this period is more evident when the order is somehow interfered with. â€Å"Order is one of the needs of life which, when it is satisfied, produces a real happiness† (Montessori, The Secret of Childhood. Ballantine Books, 1973, 52). Learning through their five senses Child is sensitized to sensory order in other words, to the difference s things, that some are soft or hard, that objects have colour, different colours, and shapes of the same colour. He needs to freely explore his prepared world so he can differentiate these qualities There is nothing in the intellect which was not first in some way in the senses, and senses being explorers of the world, opens the way to knowledge.† Maria Montessori. Sensitive to movement The sensitive period for movement is most intense during the first year of life. By about twelve months many babies take their first steps. An infants need to walk is so strong that he becomes upset if he is impeded. The childs rhythm is so much slower than our own. He walks to perfect his walking; whereas we walk with purposeful intent. Sensitive to language During sensitive period for language, no one teaches the child to talk. His language develops naturally like a spontaneous creation of all auditory stimulation surrounding the baby, it is the human voice that he deeply hears and imitates. By six months, he is uttering his first syllables, and by about two years old he explodes into language. He talks and talks non-stop. Sensitive to small object A child has the urge to pay attention to small objects from two years of age. Sensitivity to small objects is an important development because it helps widen the child’s power of observation and allows the child concentrate his intellectual power on a specific problem. Principles of Prepared Environment â€Å"The first aim of the prepared environment is, as far as it is possible, to render the growing child independent of the adult†. (Maria Montessori. The Secret of Childhood: Fides Publishers, 1966.) Her life and work,cosmo publication.newdeldi,2009,p246) Montessori’s idea of the prepared environment was that everything the child came in contact with would facilitate and maximize independent learning and exploration. Children are free to choose and work on activities at their own pace. There are generally six aspects, or principles, to the Prepared Environment, Freedom, Structure and Order, Beauty, Nature and reality, Social Environment, Montessori materials. Freedom Montessori believed that a child must be free to explore and follow his own natural impulses, thus developing his potential and increasing his knowledge of the world around him. â€Å"Young people must have enough freedom to allow them to act on individual initiative. But in order that individual action should be free and useful at the same time it must be restricted with certain limits and rules that give the necessary guidance.’’ (Montessori, M. (1994). From Childhood To Adolescence, Oxford: Clio press, p73) Within the prepared environment, the child must experience freedom of movement, freedom of exploration, freedom to interact socially, and freedom from interference from others. Structure and Order Structure and Order in the Montessori classroom accurately reflect the sense of structure and order in the universe. By using the Montessori classroom environment the child begins to internalize the order surrounding him, thus making sense of the world in which he lives. If there is not order to his environment, the child’s sense of reason may be off since he will not be able to validate his findings. Atmosphere and Beauty Montessori environments should be beautiful, reflect peace and tranquillity. The environment should invite the learner to come in and work. This atmosphere is easily seen by the attitude of those working there, both child and adult. Nature and Reality Montessori believed that we should use nature to inspire children. She continually suggested that Montessori teachers take the children out into nature, rather than keeping them confined in the classroom. This is why natural materials are preferred in the prepared environment. It is here where child-size real objects come into play. Furniture should be child-size so the child is not dependent on the adult for his movement. Social Environment As children develop, they become more socially aware, preparing to work and play in groups. This social interaction is supported throughout the environment and is encouraged with the nature of multi-age classroom settings. A prepared environment only with a Montessori teacher becomes a whole. The children and the teacher unite to form education whole which is dynamic and continuous process of development for both of them. Montessori materials The materials must aid the internal formation of the child. The material must correspond to the child’s inner needs. This means that materials must be presented at the right moment of the child’s development. Periods of development The four Planes (or phases) of development is an overall vision of Montessori’s developmental psychology from infancy to adulthood. 3 9 15 21 Birth first 6 second 12 third 18fourth 24 24 First period (0-6 years) This period is marked by rapid and intense changes in the overall development physical, cognitively, socially, emotionally. Second period (6-12 years) Montessori observed changes in children focus and direction in their development. Children’s focus change from one of self-creation to the development of social being. Third period (12-18 years) Montessori regarded adolescence as a period of great vulnerability and a period of self-construction. The Role of the Teacher Dr. Montessori believed that the teacher should focus on the child as a person rather than on the daily lesson plans. Although the Montessori teacher plans daily lessons for each child, she must be alert to changes in the child’s interest, progress, mood, and behaviour. Child [observer][Provider] Teacher Environment [Preparer] Teacher and child has two folds of role to play. Teacher is an observer observing the child in the environment. Preparer-prepares the friendly environment for the child.Maria Montessori offered some general principles of behaviour for teachers in the Montessori classroom. The teacher becomes the custodian of the environment. All the apparatus is to be kept meticulously in order, perfect condition the teacher also must be tidy and clean, calm and dignified When the child begins to show interest in any activity, the teacher must not interrupt, because this interest corresponds with natural laws and opens up a whole cycle of new activities exist. The duty of the teacher is only to present new things when she knows that a child has exhausted all the possibilities of those he was using before. Montessori teachers are the dynamic link between children and the Prepared Environment. They systematically observe their students and interpret their needs. They are constantly experimenting, modifying the environment to meet their perceptions of each childs needs and interests, and objectively noting the result. They prepare an environment meant to facilitate children’s independence and ability to freely select work that they find appealing. They observe and evaluate each child’s individual progress. They respect and protect their students independence. They are diagnosticians who can interpret patterns of growth, development, and behaviour in order to better understand the children and make necessary referrals and suggestions to parents. Conclusion From birth to adulthood a child undergoes development and transformation within him. To be able to develop themselves fully, children need a special inner tutor which Montessori referred to as absorbent mind and sensitive period. The natural laws that govern the child normal psychic developmentsduring the varies period of development are revealed during his construction. With his inner potentials, and the sensitive periods with a prepared environment and a teacher, the childhood period undergoes varies transformation. By this the child gets normalised and become an unified personality in the society.

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Essay --

3.1 Introduction A research is an investigation to discover new knowledge by collecting numerous information on the certain ideas or theories. The research methodology is the ways to solve the research problem systematically by using various steps. 3.2 Research Method The researcher has used the quantitative method for this research. The quantitative method is a method to collect various numerical data by using mathematically methods. The purpose of using quantitative method is to measure various perspective and opinions in a chosen sample. 3.3 Data Collection Method The data collection is involved in collecting as much information as possible for the research topic by relying on the desk study and the field study. The field study is collected as a primary data while the desk study are collected as a secondary data. 3.3.1 Field Study The researcher has used the survey method to measure the characteristics and the opinion of the populations as well as observing the behaviour of certain people. The survey method is a technique used to gather information from the people by using the questionnaires. 3.3.2 Desk Study The desk study is the reviews of the research information available before the field study had taken place. The data from the desk study are collected from the journals, newspapers, Utar library and Malaysia government official website of Economic Planning Unit. 3.4 Research Design The quantitative method gives an emphasis on the measurement of objective and the numerical data analysis collected through the questionnaires. The questionnaires for this research have been given to the degree graduates of built environment professional in West Malaysia area. 3.4.1 Survey Questionnaire A questionnaire ... ...the method of the probability sample, each element of the population has non-zero chance of being selected for the sample. On the other hand, non-probability sampling is the method that we do not know chances for the each element of the population to be selected. The convenience sampling has been chosen from the non-probability sampling method for this research. The convenience sampling can also be known as haphazard sampling. The researcher has selected this method for the research because it is convenience and easy to be used. The convenience sample is used any participant available for the research. 3.5.2 Instrument of Data Collection The researcher has used iPhone 4 mobile phone with 5 megapixels camera as a tool to take the pictures for the research. The reason is because iPhone 4 mobile phone is easy to carry around whenever the researcher need it.

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Marketing James Patterson Books Essay

Over the last decade James Patterson has published an unprecedented number of best-selling books, cemented a powerful brand image amongst a loyal following, and redefined the process by which authors create content to meet reader demand. From November 2000 through June 2003, Patterson had cumulative sales of over six million dollars, trailing only John Grisham during that time frame. He has generated the majority of his sales through a loyal readership that consistently lines up to buy his next installment. Keenly aware of this dedicated following, Patterson successfully sought to augment the proliferation of his titles with co-authors familiar with his brand that could share the workload, creating a virtual assembly-line of best-sellers. Despite this enormous success, the Patterson brand still has a sizeable opportunity for growth. Patterson cites a need to broaden his, relative to other best-selling authors, narrow reader base to capture a greater percentage of the â€Å"omnivorous† readers, amongst whom his brand penetration was much lower. There are two possibilities for Patterson to consider, both involving his relationship with book clubs. The book clubs provide an excellent source of individualized customer information, but have not themselves yielded an enormous amount of profitability for already-established authors such as Patterson. The first option would be to negotiate higher club royalties with the existing book club partnerships. Patterson himself has advocated this approach, citing that the clubs often erode profits from bookstore store sales, and the clubs need him more than he needs the clubs. The second possibility is for Patterson to embrace the book club marketing model, using the club’s customer information to market directly to the customer. Patterson could identify on an individual and international basis the â€Å"omnivorous† reader that has not yet embraced his books. He could then tailor a marketing campaign centered around the promotion of his titles directly to these readers. Recommendation: The first option would not really address the concern about Patterson’s narrow reader base. While it may be true that the club needs Patterson more than he needs the club, it is still a means to reach a broader audience. It seems more likely that Patterson has merely under-used the club channel, which is why the second option would provide a better opportunity for  Patterson to reach a larger target audience. He mentions that he has not yet become a â€Å"badge† author, meaning that he has not been able to break out of his genre and create a â€Å"buzz† across a wide range of readers. He does not yet have the name recognition as some of his best-selling counterparts, and without this name recognition he needs to seek other means to create a buzz for his next title. I would advocate allowing book club members exclusive access to his next release before it is released in book stores or other retail channels. Clubs, with exclusive rights to the pre-released book, would now have incentive to push Patterson as its preeminent selection. This would help create the powerful, and international, word-of-mouth campaign that he is seeking. First, those already loyal to the brand would now have the opportunity to create anticipation amongst other non-club Patterson loyalists, driving demand for its eventual release in stores. Secondly, and more importantly, club members not loyal to the brand would now have an added incentive to sample a Patterson novel. Being granted exclusive access to what promises to be a best-seller might be the impetus necessary to finally penetrate more of the omnivorous readers. Now Patterson would have a broad spectrum of readers across the globe discussing his novel and creating a buzz before it even reaches a mass audience. This is a similar model to the one employed in the movie industry, where movies are pre-released to create a word-of-mouth campaign before its larger release. Patterson notes that the book industry is generally â€Å"unimaginative†, essentially waiting to retroactively replicate the success of the next blockbuster hit. With an exclusive pre-release to a carefully pre-determined list of customers, Patterson would instead be proactively creating a buzz, and potentially, a blockbuster. In terms of channel management, this pre-release should satisfy all members of the channel. Certainly, the book clubs would embrace the idea of being able to market an exclusive release of a Patterson novel, and with exclusive rights, should be able to retain club members for longer commitments. More importantly, this would not have to come at the expense of the retail chains because club members generally would buy books through the club channel anyways. The retail stores, instead, could benefit from the buzz created by club members, as non-club members may now be clamoring to buy the book their friends have already been talking about as soon as it is released in stores. A true blockbuster would increase the size of the â€Å"pie† for all channel members. Channel (2001): Strategic Resources: Patterson: ?Brand name: dominant in crime fiction genre ?Many titles: 3 per year vs. 1 for Clancy, Cornwell ?Cliffhanger endings leave Patterson readers eager for next installment ? Marketing Expertise: Patterson former Chairman of J. Walter Thompson â€Å"Badge† Authors: ?Name recognition: 90% and 84% for Grisham and Clancy (Patterson 54%) ? Broader range of readers ?Books as a status symbols: read these authors to impress others Book Clubs: ?Individualized customer information ?Name-brand authors ?Capable of tracking all book sales and buying behavior Problems: Resources: ?Patterson name not as well known as his book titles ?Relatively narrow range of readers: mainly â€Å"crime fiction addicts† ? Not as much status in reading a Patterson novel ?Relatively small international readership Incentives: ?Book Clubs push authors with highest name recognition? Patterson books might not be promoted as heavily as books from â€Å"badge† authors ? Deals with clubs risk eroding bookstores’ profits ?Club members often terminate contract after commitment is over Coordination: ?Retail stores can only track purchase behavior through surveys Recommendation: ?Pre-release next best-seller prospect with book club members oPre-release gives book, as well as club members, premium status oGenerates a â€Å"buzz† before retail release in domestic and international markets with Patterson loyalists and â€Å"omnivorous† best-seller readers oCreates anticipation to drive demand for purchases at retail stores.

Saturday, January 4, 2020

The Y2k Hysteria By Richard Landes - 2027 Words

This phrase and the belief that the world was formed in 6 days with a 7th for rest, gave the early Christians a view that the world would last for 6000 years. According to scriptures the world had a beginning, it had a â€Å"now† in which they were living and a promised end. This end was proclaimed in the Olivet discourse (Matthew 24, Luke 21, Mark 13), but with warnings that none on Earth would know when. The Y2K hysteria caused many scholar to wonder how the millennial dates past where thought of by those that lived in that time. This essay is a discussion on whether merging of dates with the idea of six millennia (1000 year) periods was just an intellectual exercise or directly gave rise to apocalyptic thought. Richard Landes’ papers†¦show more content†¦This was part of the problem chronologists had in merging dates systems. Landes’ diagram showing the various chronological systems, that highlights when they hit the 6th Millennium. Note: the vertical dotted lines, of the changing a date system to avert the â€Å"dangerous† millennium. From this it seems obvious that the church fathers of Augustine and later Boniface must have made the decision to change dating to avoid the Millennium fever. But that is not quite the full picture. It does not consider the intervening centuries of learning, translation and scholarship creating better methods of calculations. Figure 1 - chronographical shifts and apocalyptic target dates. (illustration by Richard Landes.) The study of chronology has been a pursuit of many a scholar over the ages. We should note that it was not just early Christians who were interested in this. Rabbi Yossi ben Halafta, a 2nd century scholar, calculated the beginning date of the Hebrew calendar from when Adam Eve were created (Year 1 of Jewish calendar) which (adjusted for modern calendar) was October 7, 3761BC. . The old Testament part of the Bible was a collection of the religious writings from Jewish Torah, giving a chronology from Genesis to well before the Coming of Jesus. VariousShow MoreRelatedNew World Order in Conspiracy Theory13987 Words   |  56 Pagesseeped into  popular culture, thereby inaugurating an unrivaled period of people actively preparing for  apocalypticmillenarian  scenarios in the  United States  of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. These political scientists warn that this  mass hysteria  may not only fuel  lone-wolf terrorism  but have devastating effects on Ameri can political life,[8]  such as the  far right  wooing the  far left  into joining a revolutionary  Third Position  movement capable of  subverting  the established political powers