The Father-Daughter relationship of Atticus to Scout Essay Example for Free

The Father-Daughter relationship of Atticus to Scout Essay The relationship between a father and a daughter is something that has been cherished throughout the ages. Each plays a large role in the development and growth of in each others lives and personalities. The same is true for the relationship between Atticus and Scout in the novel To Kill a Mocking Bird. The stereotypical father to a daughter is usually large, protective, and very kind. Atticus, however, does not fit the stereotype. He is kind, but unlike most fathers, he is tall and skinny, and just tends to read all day. Atticus does not fill the stereotype; however he is a father that parents his daughter with values and tolerance. He does play a role of father figure, but Atticus seems to be less of a father and more of a teacher in Scouts life. The way he instructs her about life, and about how to deal with people, it seems Atticus is attempting to be a teacher to Scout. Atticus, in his wisdom and age, understands Scout very well, if not too well. We see Atticus as being almost omniscient in Scout, and Jems lives. He is the rock and ever unchanging constant factor in their life and his influence is very heavy. Scout is almost a challenge to Atticus, as to how to rear his child to the best of his ability to shape her for the best of circumstances. Though he is her father, Atticus is a teacher and a mentor. His influence affects a lot of Scouts decisions, and Scout helps teach him about life as well. Scout, being a young developing girl, has many changing aspects and thought processes. She tends to be unreliable, and ever-changing, and not at a slow pace either. Scout shows Atticus that kids dont yet know the basics; they need to be taught from the beginning, and need to learn quite a bit about etiquette and how to deal with other human beings. Her relationship with Atticus tends to be mostly that of a pupil to a teacher, but sometimes shifts slightly. In some instances, she fills the role of Atticus daughter, and acts upon love as if related, rather than reason. For sure, Scout knows that she loves Atticus, and she knows he is her father and she respects him. She just does not always treat him like a father, and when she doesnt, she is his pupil. Scout has limited knowledge because of her age, and thusly, cannot understand Atticus as well as he understands her. Atticus tends to be  an enigma to Scout, and reveals himself only when she asks questions, but not revealing himself all the way. She does not understand him in a way a daughter gets a father, but she does have the general knowledge of understand of how a student understands a master. This just furthers the point of their distant relationship. Thought Scout does not understand Atticus as Atticus does Scout, they still have a profound relationship that is almost air tight. The sacred bond between daughter in father comes in many varieties and fashions, one of which being Teacher and Student. This happens to be the way that Atticus and Scout are, which does mean that they arent as close as others. Scout is still developing in life, and her role in Atticus life is changing, and eventually will take on an entirely different form. But as of now, Atticus tends to be the understanding teacher, while Scout is the ignorant pupil. Sources: To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Effects of School Funding on Student Academic Achievement

Effects of School Funding on Student Academic Achievement Education Policy Analysis Maya Boyle Mike  Robinson Introduction Background For the past 50 years, SAT scores for high schools across the nation have been steadily falling. Because the SAT is a fairly consistent method of testing the academic aptitude of high-school age children, this trend is concerning. As it stands, by the standards of the College Board, high school academics are preparing students less and less adequately for the rigours of secondary education. This paper seeks to address what policy initiatives can be taken by states to raise these scores. Research I hypothesised at the beginning of the study that per capita expenditures on primary and secondary education would have a significant effect on SAT scores. By using multiple data sets: population data from the US Census Bureau, education expenditure results from the Department of Education, a partial data set from STATA, and participation levels by the College Board, I amassed a collection of variables that I considered to be most valuable to determining the relationship between state education policy and SAT scores Mean scores of college-bound seniors The SAT Stacks of college test prep books Basic Conclusions By analysing what I determined to be the most significant factors affecting SAT performance, I concluded that the factor which could most effectively boost SAT scores came on the heels of SAT participation. SAT scores were strongly correlated with participation levels. A greater percentage of high school students taking the exam in each state resulted in a weaker performance. A disproportionately high number of high-scoring participants take the SAT whether or not initiatives are undertaken by state governments or schools to boost participation. Those students typically score higher. The increase in participation of students taking the SAT will come from a portion of the population who otherwise would transition straight to career paths out of high school. Education initiatives typically give these students an opportunity to take the test, and these students typically score lower. Ultimately, from a policy perspective, the best way to boost scores is to ready the portion of students who are being given the opportunity to take the SAT through funding and other education initiatives. It is useless for them to take the exam if all it does is prove that they are not ready for college. Literature Review Zajonic, Robert B., Bargh, John A. Birth order, family size, and decline of SAT scores. American Psychologist 79.1 (1989): 179-197. http://www.apa.org. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. The survey of SAT scores and birth order demonstrated that a negligible fraction of the decline in SAT scores can be explained by changes in family dynamics. In general, SAT scores showed little variation with birth order and family size, which was far less than that which was found in other data sets. Murray, Charles, and Richard J. Herrnstein. Whats Really behind the SAT-Score Decline?. Public Interest 106 (1992): 32-56. This survey of SAT scores and population distinguished between the separate populations of high school students who took the SAT and those who did not. Suggested that the greatest effect on the SAT-score decline was the regression of academic capabilities of high-school age teenagers. This possibly came from the ‘dumbing-down’ of textbooks Wharton, Yvonne L. List of Hypotheses Advanced to Explain the SAT Score Decline. (1976). The hypotheses analysed in this study suggested that changes in schools, society, population, and an increase in problems with the tests themselves are the greatest contributors to the decrease in SAT Scores. A list of variables: â€Å"The first major category (changes in the schools) is further broken down into hypotheses related to curriculum, institutional policies, teachers, and students. The second major category (changes in society) lists hypotheses related to family, religion, civil rights, crisis of values, national priorities, economic, labor movement in education, and technological changes. (Abstract)† Model Objective In this report, I will attempt to determine which two variables would most significantly positively effect mean SAT scores in college-bound high-school adolescents. An exhaustive list of the variables I used were: Mean Composite SAT scores, Mean Verbal, Mean Math, Geographical Region (dummy variable), Population, Per pupil expenditures (primary and secondary education), Government education spending, Median household income, Percent of High School graduates taking SAT. Models The primary models I used to determine which two variables that could be affected by state education policy were: Regressing SAT scores against government spending and income Regressing SAT scores against state population and percentage of high school students who took the SAT Regressing SAT scores against per pupil expenditures on primary and secondary education and percentage of high school students who took the SAT Finally, I developed a model with each of the variables that ultimately seemed most relevant: Regressing mean SAT scores, controlling for population, per pupil expenditures, median household income, and the percent of students taking the SAT. Hypothesis Before I ran the regressions, I hypothesised that the main factors affecting SAT performance would be median household and per pupil expenditures for primary and secondary education. I anticipated that states with a higher portion of domestic wealth would score better because there would be more local money going into infrastructure, and assumed that states with higher levels of spending on primary and secondary education would be higher because they reflect a greater education initiative. Methodology/Data Testing the Hypothesis For each regression, I focused most specifically on the coefficient, t-statistic, and r-squared result. Regression 1 I hypothesised that an increase in government spending will increase states’ SAT scores, controlling for median household income Null hypothesis was not proven What does this mean? R-squared: accounted for about 1/4 of the variance Coefficients were both negative Government spending raises, SAT scores decrease As median income increased, SAT scores decreased T-statistics Both are statistically significant y=-6.62*1071+-4.4581992+1107.044 Regression 2 I hypothesised that larger states receive more funding, and thus would have higher scores. Additionally, more people would lead to greater variance in scores Null hypothesis was not proven What does this mean? R-squared: accounted for about 82% of variance Coefficients: Negative relationship between both population and participation T-statistics: Participation is highly significant, population minimally. y=-1.24*1061-2.82+1021 Regression 3 I hypothesised that primary/secondary education funding would significantly play a role on SAT scores. Additionally, a larger pool of participants accounts for a wider breadth of performance Null hypothesis was not proven What does this mean? R-squared accounted for about 82% of variance Coefficients: Weak, positive relationship with funding, yet a stronger negative relationship with student participation T-statistics: Participation is highly significant y=.00432771-1.9841922+999.483 Regression 4 I hypothesised that funding for primary and secondary education and the percentage of high school students who take the exam will be most important Hypothesis proven true What does this mean? R-squared: accounted for about 88% of variance Coefficients: Expense, Participation, and Region 1 were negatively correlated; all the rest had positive effects T-statistics: Only participation was under -1.96; Regions 2 and 4 were over 1.96. These were the most significant. The t-statistic of population was at -1.94, which I considered significant for the intents and purposes of this data. y=-1.36*1061 + .00002822 .00660463 + 1.7964 -2.05165 2.3291556 + 45.0287 + 23.81498 + 989.8613 Analysis Regression 1 Government spending as a whole ultimately does not aid SAT performance. Regardless of whether or not it builds infrastructure, it seems as if funds set aside specifically for primary and secondary education are the most necessary to boost SAT scores. Additionally, I determined that- at least when it comes to SAT scores in high schoolchildren, Wealth does not denote academic success. As was determined from the methodology of regression 1, the statistical relevance of income and insignificance of government spending led me to reason that income played a greater role in determining SAT scores than government spending. Further, I questioned if the results for regression 1 had anything to do with causality, because the states that score more poorly on SATs will receive more money from the government to ameliorate educational infrastructure. Regression 2 Participation was negatively correlated with SAT scores, and significantly so. I reasoned that a base participation rate includes a skewed population of students who intend to go to college regardless of domestic initiatives to send high school students to college before allowing them into the workforce. Therefore, if more students choose to take the SAT, those students will be those who had not necessarily planned their high school education to ready them for the SAT. There scores thus will be lower. Regression 3 While the results of my first regression clearly suggested that government spending as a whole has little to no effect on SAT scores, I aimed to determine that per pupil expenditures on education for primary and secondary schooling had a strong positive correlation with students’ SAT readiness. This was not the case. Government education expenditures was loosely correlated with SAT scores, but not significantly so. This result could possibly have come from different years of availability for each variable. Many of the variables were derived from an old STATA data set that suited my intents, but I added other variables to develop a more individual project. Government spending was one of these variables, and the data may have been more recent than others. Further, as was the case with regression 2, the levels of participation played a strong and significant factor in determining the rate at which students would score on the SAT. The t-statistic was highly significant, so I trust that this correlation is true. I expect the population shift that I described in my previous analysis will still stand. Regression 4 Ultimately, I determined that as much as I had hoped that income and per-pupil education expenditures would have strong effects on the scoring of high schoolers on the SAT, because such effects are easily fixable through initiatives. I was wrong. Expense and income both were determined to be insignificant, with expense ultimately having a negative correlation with SAT scores. This cannot show the whole picture, however. Wealthier states traditionally have stronger educational infrastructures and students who perform better on the SAT. I can only assume that wealthier states are those which have educational initiatives to give more students the chance to take the SATs in the first place, and thus have a pool of lower-scoring students. Conversely, students in states with low median incomes had to have a significant personal initiative to take the Test in the first place. Therefore, the relationship between income and infrastructure is that which renders the relationship negative. Tables Table 1: Table of Means Table 2: Description of Data Variable | Obs Mean Std. Dev. Min Max -+ state | 0 region | 50 2.54 1.128662 1 4 pop | 50 4962040 5459782 454000 2.98e+07 area | 50 70759.14 85796.76 1045 570374 csat | 51 944.098 66.93497 832 1093 -+ vsat | 51 447.8431 31.87562 395 515 msat | 51 496.2549 35.58418 435 578 percent | 51 35.76471 26.19281 4 81 expense | 51 5235.961 1401.155 2960 9259 income | 51 33.95657 6.423134 23.465 48.618 -+ high | 51 76.26078 5.588741 64.3 86.6 college | 51 20.02157 4.16578 12.3 33.3 spending | 51 1.75e+07 2.03e+07 270000 1.03e+08 participat~n | 51 39.33333 32.1538 3 93 Table 3: Regression 1 Table 4: Regression 2 Table 5: Regression 3 Table 6: Regression 4 Table 7: College Board Participation Rates Table 8: College Board Participation Rates (cont.) Basically this isn’t really done. 80 Mount Holyoke CollegeSAT Scores: An Econometrics Perspective 1

Effective Written Communication Essay -- essays research papers

â€Å"Even the best ideas are of small value unless communicated well.† People write in response to situations that call on them to put their thoughts and feelings into words. For example, a boss may ask an employee to write a report on how to market a new product line or the company for which an employee works is requesting assistance in designing a home page on the World Wide Web. In a labor force full of mediocre writers, someone who writes well is bound to stand out and succeed, while someone who writes poorly is bound to do just the opposite. It is not to say that the mediocre writer will not be successful, but the success of a person who possesses excellent writing skills will certainly be far greater. Sponsorship of a workshop for employees to improve writing skills would certainly assist in empowering employees, serve as a motivator for boosting company morale, and ultimately result in an increase in business profits. According to Dr. William C. Byham,â€Å"the successful organizations will be the ones best able to apply the creative energy of individuals toward constant improvement† (5). Yet, constant improvement is a value that cannot be imposed upon people. It has to come from the individual. The only way to get people to adopt constant improvement as a way of life in doing daily business is by empowering them. Empowering employees definitely motivates them to take ownership of their jobs so that they take personal interest in improving the performance of the organization. Formal training in empowerment skills and related areas are conceived via personal and organizational success. Personal and organizational successes are achieved through good advertisement as well as excellent relations with the public. Both of these rely heavily on one’s ability to communicate thoughts and ideas effectively. The heart of effective communication is excellent academic writing skills. Participative management stems from the idea of involving employees in the decision-making process. â€Å"In the Fifties, managers thought it meant being friendly to employees. In the Sixties, they thought it meant being sensitive to the needs and motivations of people. In the Seventies, managers thought it meant asking employees for help. In the Eighties, it meant having lots of group meetings.† The very name â€Å"participative management† seems to imply that it is something that management does whi... ...it.† The effect that a positive tone can have on a company’s image is amazing. A simple â€Å"please† or â€Å"thank you† renders desired results and shortens response times as well. Eliminating negative-tone communication and promoting positive-tone communication guarantees phenomenal yields and profits. Thanks to an effective formal writing program utilized by Brown & Brown at the end of the year 2001, the firm’s net income rose sixty percent, from $38.7 million to $61.7 million for the year 2002. Finally, through sponsorship of a workshop where employees can improve writing skills it affords the employee the opportunity to be taken seriously. It allows the employees to feel as if they are personally contributing to the overall success of the organization. When an employee can influence how things get done or when her efforts are recognized and accomplishments are rewarded it empowers the employee to tackle challenges with undying fervor, therefore; increasing quality, customer satisfaction, and productivity. These kind of positive results ultimately render skyrocketing increases in business profits. Isn’t it amazing what a little workshop on enhancing academic writing skills can do?

The Sniper :: essays research papers

War is a very controversial dilemma, which could be solved in an orderly fashion rather then a callous disaster where young men and women die. This cataclysmic story takes place in a short story written by Liam O'Flaherty, the story takes place in Dublin, Ireland during the 1920's where a Republican sniper is involved with a terrible accident. He suffers dramatic injury to the soul and heart when someone that he loves dearly is shot. The story's theme is intensified through situational irony, which shows the pointlessness of armed conflict. Unexpected senseless occurrences happen when situational irony comes to effect. Like the time the Republican sniper unnecessarily lights up a smoke, which glows and shows his location on a rooftop; the irony unexpectedly occurs when an old lady whom is a spy descries the Republican sniper. This incident is ironic because one doesn't expect for an old lady to be a spy because old crumbly elders can barely move. This shows that the sniper commits such an imprudent occasion as to light up a smoke, which could have gotten him killed right on the spot. Many other ironic moments take place such as the time a free state sniper was in a armored truck, which is basically like a tank, and he gets out of the his cage and then gets capped. This is ironic because why would someone do something as foolish as getting out of protection and giving himself a death wish, which concludes why war is pointless because all that’s going to happen is doom. This also shows that war is needless because all one is doing is hurting himself by killing a related specie. Furthermore, war can be even more ironic like the time when the Republican sniper unknowingly shoots his loved one, whom is his own brother. This is ironic because people usually that are family, don't have very many different beliefs. This also unveils that war is pointless and ironic because after a war everybody seems to regret what had happened. This short story was exposed in a way that shows how ironic and meaningless war and expresses the pain, sorrow, and agony one suffers caused by war. The theme of this story essentially illustrates a sequence of ironic occasions to impart a message that war is pointless. The first ironic event is the lighting of the glowing smoke and how it is abnormal that someone at an altitude so high can be seen with the tiny lighting of a cigarette.

Sterilizing the World of ‘Dumb’ People . . . Why It Won’t Work :: Argumentative Persuasive Intelligence Essays

Sterilizing the World of ‘Dumb’ People . . . Why It Won’t Work â€Å"If we could just keep dumb people from having children, eventually there would be nothing but smart people and this would be a better place.† After reading this statement once and not really fully considering it, a lot of people may agree. At some point in their lives, many people may look at certain parents and their children and say, ‘those people really should not be allowed to have children.’ Usually these thoughts are just thoughts, for who are we to say who can and cannot have children. However, what if a government official proposed to sterilize everyone with less than an average IQ of 100. Would preventing ‘dumb’ people from reproducing really make this world a better place? Is the status of our society based on the intelligence of its people alone? The answer to solving the world’s problems and making this a better place to live are not that simple. There are many complex issues around defining and measuring intelligence. Even if we knew for sure that only ‘smart’ people make this place better, would sterilizing the ‘dumb’ work? How important is it to take into account other things that may affect a person’s development? Intelligence is influenced by the interaction of genetics, environment, and culture; therefore, sterilizing people would probably not keep the world free of people with an IQ of less than 100. If the world were cleansed of ‘dumb’ people, it would not guarantee a perfect world. Having a high IQ does not mean that a person will necessarily make this world a better place. Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber, had the IQ of a genius. He spent years of his life terrorizing, injuring, and killing people. On the other hand, just because a person has a low IQ does not mean they cannot make this a better place. Take, for example, the ‘Forest Gumps’ of the world or the mentally challenged. They may not be very smart on what our society subjectively calls intelligence, but they may bring joy and purpose to someone else’s life. Making this world a better place is not something left strictly up to the intelligence of the people in it. Anyone supporting the government official’s proposal is assuming that people’s intelligence alone causes the condition of the world, and there is no proof of this.

Marie and Meursault: Meant to Be or Want to Be Essay

â€Å"It occurred to me that anyway one more Sunday was over, that Mamam was buried now, that I was going back to work and that really, nothing had changed. †(1. 1. 15) These are some of the words that ran through Meursault’s mind after his mother’s death. He was very isolated from her so he felt as if nothing had changed. He was not the most outgoing person but the same cannot be said about his love interest, Marie. Throughout the novel, The Stranger, Meursault and Marie reveal just how many similarities and differences they share in the topics of emotion, actions and mannerism. To begin with, emotion was most certainly one of the main factors of the book. Emotion played such a big impact it potentially caused a death. Marie and Meursault very both similar and different in their ways of emotion. They were both very physically bonded to one another. They might not have always seen eye to eye, but when it came to contact, their emotions were hand in hand. Recently after Mamam lost her life, Meursault made a quick connection with Marie. â€Å"Together again, Marie and I swan out a ways, and we felt a closeness as we moved in unison and were happy. (1. 6. 7) Just from a line of Meursault’s thoughts, you could tell he had a serious emotional connection with Marie. For most of the novel, this couple seemed as they were formed together into one person, but on the other hand, their everyday feelings about common things were as different as black and white. Marie was a very energetic, romantic and passionate Mann 2 woman, while her other half rarely every showed any kind of emotion other than physically. Later on in, the Stranger, Marie asked Meursault if he loved her. By responding that it did not matter if he loved her, it put it right out in the open that he did not have a very wide emotion range. Meursault also never really showed any grief for the loss of his mother, especially while at her funeral. †Soon one of the women started crying.   I thought she’d never stop.   I wish I didn’t have to listen anymore. But I didn’t dare say anything. † (1. 1. 16) The way Meursault expresses himself surely reveals just how there are many more differences than similarities when it comes to Marie and his emotions. In addition to emotion, Marie and Meursault have very similar and different actions. As obviously pointed out I the novel, the both enjoy having feeling relations with each other. The both are very good at controlling their actions in the majority of the story. For example, even when Meursault is awaiting execution he does not panic or freak out with the exception of trying to be forced to pray. The two adults are not completely the same in their actions though, they are also very different. Meursault does not stay low key all of the time, sometimes he just has to let it out. While at the beach with Marie, and his friends, they come across the Arab that cause trouble for Raymond. Instead of just going with the flow, Meursault goes and takes charge of the situation. It may not have been his smartest action considering it took away someone’s life; it was a very different way to stand up for something. Meursault clearly had a great deal more of bravery than his girlfriend, Marie. Mann 3 Lastly, the similarities and differences between Marie and Meursault were also influenced by mannerism. Meursault and Marie made very clear throughout their time together that they had a different way of doing things than we do now. In their relationship, they did not take things as slowly as we do now-a-days. Considering they were very close together just on the first day of seeing one another in a great deal of time, you can tell they are not the type of people to kiss and hide. Individually, the two people had extremely different ways of doing things. Meursault was not the type of person to hide in the back while everyone else fought the war. Meursault was the make it happen kind of man. When he took the matters of the Arab into his own hands, it completely spiraled out of control, but still, he took a step forward, not back. Very differently from her mate, Marie was the gal that would wait for someone else to take the first step. Either or, Meursault and Marie had some similarities alongside their differences in mannerism. In conclusion, Marie and Meursault showed many similarities and differences in mannerism, action and emotion. This statement was easily expressed by Meursault’s mind thinking, â€Å"It occurs to me that anyway, one more Sunday, was over, Mamam was buried now, that I was going back to work, and that nothing had really changed. †

MINICASE Luxury Wars

United States, France, Germany, and Western Europe. Hermes International is a multi-billion dollar French business owned and controlled by the Hermes family. The business makes and sells luxury goods across numerous product categories. After being passed down through several generations the company decided to list its share on the public market for the reasons listed below: To provide family members with a means to value their stake in the company To allow partial ‘cash-outs' if dividends alone were insufficient, knowing that some family members were known to maintain lavish lifestylesTo raise capital while still being able to influence important decisions (like electing the CEO or Chairman), and still controlling the strategic and operational decisions of the firm To obtain financing that would support the long term development of the company and to accommodate ease of trading for shareholders in transfer of ownership. B. What risks comes from a public listing? Amidst the seve ral advantages of going public there are equally associated risks for a company to consider when making such decisions.The list below, while not exhaustive, identifies some of the risks associated with a company ongoing public: The agency problem. When a company goes public it runs the risk of minimal interest. The potential for this conflict comes along as the objective of management and owners may not be aligned. Note that in the case of Hermes International for the first time ever the current CEO is not a family member. Without adequate controls going public can distort long-term vs.. Short-term value minimization. Privately held firms usually have long-term value minimization while publicly held firms tend to focus on quarterly earnings.Earnings now have to satisfy shareholders and not just support the Emily. Focus on profitable growth may change as decisions taken may be consistent with impatient capitalism. Things happen in the company and owners are unaware. Note the Renault and Elvis's share acquisition. Loss of control of the company (limited control as to when shareholders go to the secondary market and no control over equity swaps on some amount of the company's shares) Loss of confidentiality and flexibility due to regulations of the security and exchange commission.Vulnerability to take over should the stock price decline significantly. Increased capital can allow Coo's adequate opacity to take on additional projects that are not aligned with the interest of shareholders. With the long list of risks to which company IIS are exposed after going public, there are measures can be taken to minimize the impact of the risks to shareholders, These controls can come in the form of stock options (restricted or open), management compensation packages, or an instituted holding company to represent and manage shareholders.