Saturday, January 25, 2020

Reflective Report on Psychology Presentation

Reflective Report on Psychology Presentation This is a reflective report on my presentation on 4th February, 2015. Topic: What pressures do children of immigrant families face, in adjusting to a new culture and what are the implications of this for counselling? Introduction This was an individual presentation that was assessed by Tim Wilkinson who is the lecturer for Christian Integrative Therapeutic Counselling II, for Year 3. The second assessor was Dr. Barth Orji. I put in a lot of effort in preparing for this presentation. I visited the British Library twice and I engaged several scholars listed in my bibliography. I was really amazed to find that there was an enormous amount of materials on the topic. I critically analysed the views and the materials that I engaged. I also consulted my lecture notes and even the Tutor and Peer feedback forms so that I prepared not only for the content and materials but on the presentation too. I had a rehearsal at home in the presence of my wife and I asked her to critique the presentation. She gave me some valuable advice which I took on board. As with all my assessments, I had mixed feelings leading to the day. I was anxious because I was to be assessed and I was also exhilarated in anticipation of receiving some very constructive feedback that will further enhance my counselling skills, as I have known the two assessors involved to be very objective. On the day, I arrived in time but the second assessor was a bit late which in the end gave me ample time to relax my nerves. I was the first to present which ordinarily would have been nerve racking but surprisingly, I was very calm, composed and confident all through my presentation. Upon reflection, I think that it is the result of my quest to raise the bar and improve. Many will avoid starting first so as to learn from the feedbacks of those that present ahead of them but I would rather have an assessment of my genuine ability and take on feedbacks that will be useful to help me to the next level. The presentations went on as scheduled. Every student attended and took part in peer assessment. Everyone gave feedback which made it more interesting because there were diverse perspectives to the feedbacks. Summary of my presentation There are issues that Immigrant children face in a bid to adapt to a new culture. I grouped these issues into six sub themes: Educational, New community, Emotional, Language, Racism and Identity. In the course of my research, I discovered that there is another side to the coin; there are also benefits. Such benefit will include Bi-cultural competence (Garcia-Coll Magnuson 1997) and development of the mental ability to cope with stress. Some children adapt easily while some others struggle. There is a great variation in how the children adapt. These variations are so much so that they pose a challenge in drawing conclusions. There are implications that these issues could have on counselling. I realised that even though parents expect that the Counsellor will put their child right, not very much is known about these issues. I think the Counsellor must strive to equip himself to be effective. Pre-migration and post migration circumstances combine to influence how these children navigate this adaptive process. However, I think that more research is required to formulate effective models of interventions to support immigrant children. This will support immigrant children in establishing the foundation for their futures. (Szapocznik Kurtines,1993). The Counsellor requires an in-depth understanding of the aforementioned issues. Again, I think that the government can support immigrant children by establishing counselling services in schools; this will enhance mental wellbeing, bi-cultural abilities and stronger community among immigrants’ children. Questions and Feedback from Peers and Tutors My colleague Israel, who was one of the peers assessors questioned my definition of immigrants’ children and wanted more clarification. I reiterated that a child born abroad and brought to live in the United Kingdom as well as a child born to a first generation immigrant parent, is an immigrants’ child. The lecturer, Tim Wilkinson concurred with my definition and in his contribution, gave an example of a child born to a Caucasian family who lived as missionaries in Africa; upon returning to the United Kingdom, the child struggled to cope with the culture and eventually moved back to live in Africa. The peer assessors were Israel, Tuoyo, Ayo, Chikere and Bernardine. Tuoyo noted that the content was extremely rich and well researched. He thinks that the strongest part of the presentation was the definitions. Israel observed that it was well referenced with enough scholars. Ayo thinks that the presentation was thorough and that I exhibited confidence, Chikere and Bernardine agreed with the rest but pointed out that I needed to improve on my time management. There was a consensus that it was a very good presentation. Dr Barth observed that I did not use visual aids but handed them printed copies of my presentation. He observed that the communication was very good, subject well researched, indicating that I know and mastered the subject. He also said that there was good eye contact, gesture and body language was good, stance was good and voice projection was excellent. He also commended me for remaining focused even when there was distraction from peers. Tim Wilkinson did not want to repeat what had been said; he added that research was thorough, but that the material was too much hence I exceeded the allocated time. He observed that there was evidence of good knowledge of the subject, clear English, voice projection was good. However, he thinks that the eye contact can be better. Reflection and Conclusion: I think that my presentation was hitch free. I engaged several scholars in the course of my research and I found the topic very interesting. I put in all effort but I am aware that there is still a lot more research to be done in developing intervention models for immigrants’ children. I reflected and listened to myself as I was presenting, and I was quite surprised at how confident I came across. At the end, I still felt that I did not do my best and so I was amazed at the feedbacks that I received. I think that overall, having evaluated the whole exercise including feedbacks, it was a good presentation. However, it was a learning process for me and I have taken note of the feedbacks on areas highlighted for improvement. I will endeavour to use visual aids in the future, work on my time management and improve on my eye contact. (1073 words) Bibliography Cropley, A.J. (1983). The education of immigrant children. London: Croom Helm. Das, A. and Kemp, S. (1997). Between two worlds: Counselling South Asian Americans. Journal of Multicultural Counselling and Development, 25, 23 – 33. Garcia-Coll, C and Magnuson, K. (1997). The psychological experience of immigration. In A. Booth, A. Gibson, M. (1988) Accommodation without assimilation: Sikh immigrants in an American high school. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. Kim, E, and Diaz, J. Immigrant Students and Higher Education: ASHE Higher Education Report 38:6 ONS (17 December, 2013) http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/dcp171776_346219.pdf [Accessed 02/02/2015] ONS (May, 2014) Portes, A. (1995). Children of immigrants: Segmented Assimilation and its determinants. Rumbaut, R.G. (1995). The New Californians: Comparative research findings on the educational progress of immigrant children. In R.G. Rumbaut W.A. Cornelius (Eds.), California’s Immigrant children: Theory, research, and implications for educational policy (pp. 17 -70). La Jolla: Center for U.S. Mexican Studies, University of California, San Diego. Sam, D.L. (1992). Psychological acculturation of young visible immigrants. Migration World Magazine, 20, 21 24. Szapocznik, J. and Kurtines, W. (1993). Family psychology and cultural diversity: Opportunities for theory, research, and application. American Psychologist, 48, 400 – 407. Vernez, G. and Abrahamse, A. (1996). How Immigrants Fare in U.S. Education. Santa Monica, C.A.: RAND Corporation. Peter Emordi COU 3000 Task 2 1

Friday, January 17, 2020

Advantages and Disadvantages of Computers Essay

Computers are a mainstay in most homes, allowing individuals and families to access the Internet from home and complete a myriad of other tasks through the use of computer software. There are advantages and disadvantages to using home computers depending on how you use them. As computer hardware becomes faster, easier and more cost effective to develop, home computers also become more affordable for consumers. It is constantly becoming easier to put computers in the average American home, since both desktop and laptop computers come in such a wide range of price points. One of the greatest advantages of home computers is that they are affordable by the average family. A great advantages of home computers is that they allow individuals and families to achieve a variety of tasks at home. Families can use word processing programs for homework, spreadsheets to manage bills, and the Internet for social networking and entertainment. While students can use computers at home, and adults at work, the convenience of being able use a computer at home is a great advantage in itself. Many businesses also allow their employees to work from home via computer, thus saving travel expenses to and from the office, as well as saving company resources. Disadvantages With use of the Internet for online shopping and Internet banking, home computers offer the potential for identity theft. If you share your information online, such as your name, address, phone number or banking information, then there always is a chance that your information is at risk. This is an important consideration to make if you plan on using your home computer to access the Internet. The technology industry is constantly changing and evolving, and technology can become outdated quickly. If you are only looking for a system that will get you online and let you do basic tasks, then this is not as much of a concern. If you are looking for a comprehensive gaming system or one that can handle a variety of tasks at once, then it can become expensive to keep up with the latest hardware advances, making some computer systems a money drain.

Thursday, January 9, 2020

4 Key Models in Urban Geography That Explain Land Use

Walk through most contemporary cities, and the mazes of concrete and steel can be some of the most intimidating and confusing places to visit. Buildings rise up dozens of stories from the street and spread for miles out of view. Despite how hectic cities and their surrounding areas can be, attempts at creating models of the way cities function have been made and analyzed to make our understanding of the urban environment richer. Concentric Zone Model One of the first models created for use by academics was the concentric zone model, developed in the 1920s by urban sociologist Ernest Burgess. What Burgess wanted to model was Chicagos spatial structure with regards to the usage of zones around the city. These zones radiated from Chicagos center, The Loop, and moved concentrically outward. In the example of Chicago, Burgess designated five different zones that had separate functions spatially. The first zone was The Loop, the second zone was the belt of factories that were directly outside of The Loop, the third zone included homes of laborers who worked in the factories, the fourth zone contained middle-class residences, and the fifth and final zone hugged the first four zones and contained the homes of the suburban upper class. Keep in mind that Burgess developed the zone during an industrial movement in America and these zones worked mainly for American cities at the time. Attempts at applying the model to European cities have failed, as many cities in Europe have their upper classes located centrally, whereas American cities have their upper classes mostly at the periphery. The five names for each zone in the concentric zone model are as follows: Central business district (CBD)Zone of transitionZone of independent workersZone of better residencesCommuters zone Hoyt Model Since the concentric zone model isnt applicable to many cities, some other academics attempted to further model the urban environment. One of these academics was Homer Hoyt, a land economist who was mostly interested in taking a look at rents within a city as a means of modeling the citys layout. The Hoyt model (also known as the sector model), which was developed in 1939, took into account the effect of transportation and communication on a citys growth. His thoughts were that rents could remain relatively consistent in certain slices of the model, from the downtown center all the way to the suburban fringe, giving the model a pie-like look. This model has been found to work especially well in British cities. Multiple-Nuclei Model A third well-known model is the multiple-nuclei model. This model was developed in 1945 by geographers Chauncy Harris and Edward Ullman to try and further describe a citys layout. Harris and Ullman made the argument that the citys downtown core (CBD) was losing its importance in relation to the rest of the city and should be seen less as the focal point of a city and instead as a nucleus within the metropolitan area. The automobile began to become increasingly important during this time, which made for greater movement of residents to the suburbs. Since this was taken into consideration, the multiple-nuclei model is a good fit for sprawling and expansive cities. The model itself contained nine differing sections that all had separate functions: Central business districtLight manufacturingLow-class residentialMiddle-class residentialUpper-class residentialHeavy manufacturingOutlying business districtResidential suburbIndustrial suburb These nuclei develop into independent areas because of their activities. For example, some economic activities that support one another (for instance, universities and bookstores) will create a nucleus. Other nuclei form because theyd be better off far from one another (e.g., airports and central business districts). Finally, other nuclei can develop from their economic specialization (think of shipping ports and railway centers). Urban-Realms Model As a means of improving upon the multiple nuclei model, geographer James E. Vance  Jr. proposed the urban-realms model in 1964. Using this model, Vance was able to look at San Franciscos urban ecology and summarize economic processes into a sturdy model. The model suggests that cities are made up of small realms, which are self-sufficient urban areas with independent focal points. The nature of these realms is examined through the lens of five criteria: The topological terrain of the area, including water barriers and mountainsThe size of the metropolis as a wholeThe amount and strength of the economic activity taking place within each of the realmsThe accessibility internally of each realm in regards to its major economic functionThe inter-accessibility across the individual suburban realms This model does a good job at explaining suburban growth and how certain functions that are normally found in the CBD can be moved to the suburbs (such as shopping malls, hospitals, schools, etc.). These functions diminish the importance of the CBD and instead create distant realms that accomplish approximately the same thing.

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

The Modern War On Drugs - 977 Words

The Modern War on Drugs In the past forty years, the United States has spent over $2.5 trillion dollars funding enforcement and prevention in the fight against drug use in America (Suddath). Despite the efforts made towards cracking down on drug smugglers, growers, and suppliers, statistics show that addiction rates have remained unchanged and the number of people using illegal drugs is increasing daily (Sledge). Regardless of attempts to stem the supply of drugs, the measure and quality of drugs goes up while the price goes down (Koebler). Now with the world’s highest incarceration rates and greatest illegal drug consumption (Sledge), the United States proves that the â€Å"war on drugs† is a war that is not being won. For most of our history, drug use has been legal for recreational, religious, and medicinal purposes. 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