Chinese Music Instruments Essay

In this research paper I will introduce four Chinese music instruments: Chinese drum, Guzheng, Qin and Chinese lute. Chinese drum is still very popular in china for the old generation, and they use drum as an exercise for body training. GuZheng is a Chinese traditional instrument; furthermore, I remember when I was in the secondary, one of my classmate played GuZheng very well. In every public holiday, she will show GuZheng; moreover, it’s really specially. The third one is Qin; we still can see this instrument display in some Chinese drama, but this instrument does not have lots of people know how to play it. Last one is Yu Pipe that is a very ancient Chinese instrument; in addition, I don’t think lots of people heard this before and I cannot find more information about it. So I choose Pipa to instant of Yu Pipe. Pipa is rarely instrument and never see it in western country; however, Pipa is not that rare almost all the classic music group will have the people who play Pipa in the group. History of Chinese Drum The drum occupies a prominent place in Chinese culture. Though the exact origin of the Chinese drum is still subject to debate, ancient literatures show that it is about as old as Chinese history itself. The earliest documentation of its application in ancient China occurs in Oracle Inscriptions (Jiaguwen â€Å"Jiaguwen is an ancient Chinese word, it usually write on animal’s shell†) of the Shang Dynasty (16th-11th century BC), that is, inscriptions carved on tortoise shells and animal bones. As an old and wonderful form of art, the drum finds application in almost every aspect of Chinese social life, including sacrificial and worshiping ceremonies, farming, and warfare, and throughout the centuries it has been imbued with profound cultural implications. The history of the popularization of the Chinese drum is also the history of its continuous borrowing and assimilation of other artistic forms and expressions. During the process, Chinese drum performance arts have undergone a lot of regional as well as ethnic variations. As a result, today they produce different visual impacts and bring to the viewers different senses of beauty some are masculine, giving off a sense of invincible might; some are more delicate with nimble and graceful dancing steps; and there are still others that possess both qualities. This rich array of artistic expressions from the Chinese drum culture gives full expression to the vitality of the Chinese nation. History and Introduction of GuZheng The modern-day guzheng is a plucked, half-tube zither with movable bridges and 21 strings, although it can have anywhere from 15 to 25 strings (a customized version exists with more than 34 strings). the guzheng‘s strings were formerly made of twisted silk, though by the 20th century most players used metal strings (generally steel for the high strings and copper-wound steel for the bass strings). Since the mid-20th century most performers use steel strings flat wound with nylon. The guzheng has a large resonant cavity made from wu tong wood (paulownia tomentosa). Other components may be made from other woods, usually for structural and decorative purposes. For the introduction, the guzheng has existed since the warring states period and became especially popular during the qin dynasty. The ancient guzheng had 12 strings, which gradually evolved into it current forms. Until 1961, the common guzheng had 18 strings. In 1961 xu zhengao together with wang xunzhi introduced the first 21-string guzheng after two years of research and development. In 1961, they also invented the â€Å"s-shaped† left string rest, which was quickly adopted by all guzheng makers and is still used today, whether in the shape of the letter â€Å"s†, â€Å"c†, etc. the 21-string zheng is the most commonly used, but some traditional musicians still use the 16-string, especially along the southeastern coastal provinces of china and in taiwan. The guzheng is tuned to a pentatonic scale; the 16-string zheng is tuned to give three complete octaves, while the 21-string zheng has four complete octaves. Playing styles and performers there are many techniques used in the playing of the guzheng, including basic plucking actions (right or both hands) at the right portion and pressing actions at the left portion (by the left hand to produce pitch ornamentations and vibrato) as well as tremolo (right hand). These techniques of playing the guzheng can create sounds that can evoke the sense of a cascading waterfall, thunder and even the scenic countryside. Plucking is done mainly by the right hand with four plectra (picks) attached to the fingers. Advanced players may use picks attached to the fingers of both hands. Ancient picks were made of ivory and later also from tortoise shell. The guzheng‘s pentatonic scale is tuned to do, re, mi, so and la, but fa and ti can also be produced by pressing the strings to the left of the bridges. Well known pieces for the instrument include yu zhou chang wan (singing at night on fishing boat), gao shan liu shui (high mountains flowing water) and han gong qiu yue (han palace autumn moon). Two broad playing styles (schools) can be identified as northern and southern, although many traditional regional styles still exist. The northern styles are associated with henan and shandong while the southern style is with the chaozhou and hakka regions of eastern guangdong. both gao shan liu shui (high mountains flowing water) and han gong qiu yue (han palace autumn moon) are from the shandong school, while han ya xi shui (winter crows playing in the water) and chu shui lian (lotus blossoms emerging from the water) are major pieces of the chaozhou and Hakka repertories respectively. The GU Qin While the music of the Gu Qin represents Chinese culture at its most historical and refined, its sound can be challenging for Westerners to appreciate on first hearing. Many students are struck If you were to experience it live, you would also wonder how an audience could possibly hear such music, because it is extremely quiet. The qin is one of the most ancient instrument in the world to have remained in continuous use. Known also as guqin ( meaning â€Å"ancient zither†), it is a roughly 51-inch-long rectangular board zither made of paulonia wood painted black, and has seven stings, traditionally of twisted silk, running lengthwise from end to end, without frets or bridges. There is also a series of 11 inlaid mother-of pearl circles along one side marking the acoustical nodes or vibration points for each string. To the player’s left, the strings pass over the end and are tied underneath to two small peg-like feet attached to the instrument’s lower board. At the right end the strings run over a slight ridge that acts as a bridge, then pass through holes to the underside where each is tied to a small wooden peg. The instrument is tuned by twisting these pege to loosen or tighten the string’s tension. The player, seated on a chair with the instrument on a table or frame, plucks the strings with the fingers of the right hand and stop the strings with the fingers of the left hand. History of Pipa The pipa is a plucked Chinese string instrument. Sometimes called the Chinese lute, the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body. It has been played for nearly two thousand years in China, and belongs to the plucked category of instruments. Prototypes of the pipa already existed in China in the Qin Dynasty (221 BC – 206 BC). At that time, there were two types of pipa. One was straight-necked, with a round sound box constructed from lacquered Paulownia wood, and two faces mounted with leather. The other was believed to be inspired by the primitive forms of zheng, konghou, and zou. It also has a straight neck, a round sound box, and also four strings, along with twelve standards of notes. This model was later developed into the instrument known today as the ruan. The modern pipa is closer to the instrument which originated in Persia/Middle-East (where it was called barbat) and was introduced into China beginning in the late Jin Dynasty (265-420 A.D. ). I am not very sure how this instrument works on every rhythm, but I know that song is good. No matter it plays alone or plays with other rhythm, you always can hear its special sound. There are still a lot of different music instrument in this huge world. Although, the instruments are from different place, it place same music and music don’t have different nation. Hopefully, we never lost any music instruments and pass it to the next generation. Music instruments also are culture, and they are important in our life. Work Cited Lency. â€Å"Chinese Drum’ First Stop: Shells and animal bones. † Chinaculture. org Offers 01 October 2004 http://www. chinaculture. org/gb/en_artqa/2006-02/06/content_79017. htm Han, Mei. â€Å"Guzheng. † In The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell (London, 2001). Montreal, Quebec, Canada. â€Å"Pipa’ First Stop: With a wooden plectrum. †  ©2000-2009 Philmultic Management & Productions Inc. http://www. philmultic. com/pipa/ Zha, Fuxi (1958). Cunjian Guqin Qupu Jilan . Beijing: The People’s Music Press. ISBN 7-103-02379-4.

More Money More Problems

Literary Analysis More Money, More Problems The Great Gatsby was written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. In this story, there are a lot of twists and turns with several characters. Two characters that stand out the most are Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby. Even though they are alike in some ways, in others they were completely different. The main areas that showed their greatest differences were the way that they obtained their wealth, their relationships with Daisy, and the way they treated Nick. Even though Tom was married to Daisy, Jay Gatsby was not willing to give up on his true love Daisy.First of all, even though they both were wealthy, Tom actually came from wealth as stated â€Å"His family was enormously wealthy†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (6). He enjoyed showing off his wealth off in order to make others feel bad and make himself feel important. An example of this would be when Tom told Mr. Wilson â€Å"No, he doesn’t,† said Tom coldly. â€Å"And if you feel that way about it, maybe I’d better sell it somewhere else after all†. Gatsby on the other hand, earned his wealth starting young and working for it. He bought a house across the bay from Daisy just to be close to her.While he also showed off his wealth by having lavish parties, he did it only to be seen and impress his true love, Daisy. This is proven by to Jordan’s statement, â€Å"I think he half expected her to wonder into one of his parties some night† (79). Another way that they were different was the relationship they had with Daisy. Even though Tom was her husband, he cheated on her several times and caused her shame. One occasion he had an affair with Myrtle Wilson, when he said â€Å"I want to see you†¦. Get on the next train† (26).The other occasion was when, †The girl who was with him got into the papers, too, because her arm was broken-she was one of the chambermaids in the Santa Barbara Hotel† (77). This shows that he had absolutely no respec t for her. He also treated her more like property. On the other hand, Gatsby rebuilt his life in hopes to see Daisy and have a life with her. Gatsby told her several times that he loved her and waited five years. He was also very careful about respecting her and her marriage as evidenced when trying to arrange a meeting with Daisy.He did not â€Å"want to do anything out of the way† (79) in order to avoid putting her in an awkward position. Finally, the way that Tom treated Nick was demeaning and almost servant like. Tom put Nick in the middle of his extramarital affair without any warning or thought. When the trio travelled to New York, Nick was about to go about his business but Tom told him, â€Å"No, you don’t†¦Myrtle’ll be hurt if you don’t come up to the apartment† (28). He had absolutely no regard for Nick’s feelings despite him being related to his wife.He had little regard for his feelings and demanded his presence. Gatsby, how ever, took the time to actually befriend Nick and was never disrespectful even when arranging to meet Daisy. He had such an effect on him that Nick remained his friend until the very end. The ways that Tom and Gatsby they obtained their wealth, their relationships with Daisy, and the way they treated Nick were some of the major differences between the two. While they were alike on some levels, they were morally different.

A need for offender Programs and Treatments before Release Research Proposal

A need for offender Programs and Treatments before Release - Research Proposal Example In fact, it is apparent that one of the major fueling factors to such incidences is the lack of self esteem, which is worsened by continued psychological torture. Studies have documented that such people can be helped by a way of instilling some appropriate programs that can mentor them. If this is done, Alabama Department of Corrections would benefit from advantages accrued to the use of these programs in terms of helping the offenders correct their behaviors. This has the end results of reducing prison overcrowding. In essence, this is true because once an offender is subjected into these programs; he/she is able to start a new life free from crimes. Although the criminal justice system helps the community by arresting and incarcerating criminals, it is apparent that there are many criminals walking freely in the streets. Some of these criminals are associates of incarcerated persons (May, 2008). In this regard, if the incarcerated persons are reformed through offender programs and prelease programs, they can influence their uncaught counterparts in changing their behaviors. Therefore, this goes a long way in enhancing security and sanity in the community. It is also apparent that once these measures have been taken by Alabama Department of Corrections, other correctional centers will emulate steps taken by Alabama Department of Corrections in order to advance their services too. In fact, this translates to savings by government. For example, it is evident that correctional facilities consume a lot of Dollars annually in the bid to reform offenders. In light with this, the government can save the money used to reform offenders since the number of cases of recidivism will be reduced by the introduction of offender programs and preleases treatment. Furthermore, studies have also suggested that states with high levels of crimes experience low economic growth. Therefore, the findings of this research will help to develop a framework that can elucidate the use of offender programs and prelease treatment, which in turn will be of great help to the economic development of Alabama State. The budget With these facts tabled, it is apparent that this research is indispensable. However, there are some requirements for the research to take place. One of them is the ability by the researcher o gather comprehensive data both from literatures and fast hand information, which is intended to be obtained from offenders, former incarcerated persons, and officers from Alabama Department of Corrections. For this to happen, the research would require enough time and resources to carryout the research. The first ingredient of the budget involves project/research planning. It is vital to carefully plan on such an important project. This will involve outlining the project and making all necessary consultations from relevant authorities. The first group of people to consult/confirm their participation in the study is the offenders and ex-offenders. In order to ac hieve this, phone call, and several visits will be required. This translates to spending money in terms of fares and airtime to use on calls and other resources. It is also important to visit several libraries in order to gather some information on theories that articulate on crime and behavior. This means that the research will

THE POLITICAL EVENTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES THAT INFLUENCED GABRIEL GARCIA Essay

THE POLITICAL EVENTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES THAT INFLUENCED GABRIEL GARCIA MARQUEZ IN THE LEAF STORM - Essay Example Colombia is a South American country that is influenced strongly by Spanish rule and is the site of several international trade for countries like USA, France and Britain for over four centuries now(Henderson 2). Gabriel Garcia Marquez is a Colombian writer who has written books that reflect the economic and social realities of his coutry. This paper examines the book, Leaf Storm which presents the vivid facts about an imaginary town, Macondo located in Colombia. It looks at the political events and factors that acted as foundation for Marquez to write the book and its implications in relations to that era of Colombian history. Leaf Storm is a narrative about the thoughts and views of three generations of a family; a grandfather (Colonel), a daughter and a grandson. Each of them give their views and opinions about a conflict involving the Colonel’s family and the people of Macondo who have an extreme hatred for a dead man who was the guest of the house for many years. The deceased, who happened o be a doctor, was seen by the townsfolk as cruel because he refused to treat members of the town who were wounded in the country’s civil war though he was qualified to. The people of Macondo therefore thought that the deceased did not deserve a normal Christian burial. On the other hand, the Colonel had made a vow to the deceased to perform his burial, since he had no known family members. In honor of his promise, the colonel sought to get the dead doctor a normal burial and as members of his family, his daughter and grandson had to support him in their conflict against the people of Macondo. The book therefore gives accounts of the events from three perspectives; an older man, a young lady and an innocent child. All these descriptions show strong links to Colombia’s political and social history. The narration appears to be set in 1909 (Marquez 2), a period linked with the numerous transformations that occurred in Colombia’s history including the Thousand Day War (1899 – 1902) and the establishment of numerous banana plantations including the United Fruit Company, which became a common entity in most of Latin America in that point in history. These two events came with so many complications and strive that determined the politics of the era. Pelayo(28) identifies three major events in the history of Colombia that are defined subtly through the writings of Leaf Storm. They include: 1. The arrival of the Banana Company 2. The people that the Banana Company attracted (the leaf storm) 3. The end of the Colombian Civil War The Thousand Day War Prior to 1909, the y ear the narration was set, there was a war in Colombia between 1899 and 1902 known as the Thousand Day War. It involved the members of the two major political traditions of the country: the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party. The liberals accused the conservatives of retaining power through election fraud and this led to the commencement of a war that saw massive destruction of properties and human lives across the country (Henderson 54). This war was also fueled by economic crises caused by the falling coffee prices on the international market. This trend showed the need for the diversification of the country’s economy by planting other crops like bananas to support Colombia and prevent overdependence on coffee exports. Although Marquez does not refer to the Thousand Day War directly in the book, it can be inferred logically that the 10 or so men who were wounded and demanded treatment from the deceased doctor were involved in that war. Also, they appear to be fighting on the side of the rebels and the dead doctor seemed to be preserving his integrity by abstaining from the treatment of rebels. This clearly shows the extent people went to take and protect their positions in the Thousand Day War. This shows that there were some elites and conservatives who stuck to the ruling government when the war prevailed. This also shows the

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Write about the picture and the artist - Essay Example This is evident from the main object’s piece protruding piece from the right and casts shadow just beneath it in relation to both the man and machine like forms found in the background. Diverse forms comprising this artwork their placements occupy the background whereby most of them seem to concentrate in the right side corner. This creates a negative space between the viewer and the main objects. Besides, there are scattered snow like objects characterizing the space between the viewer and the background. These objects and those forming the portrait’s ground do not appear as if the painter utilized brush, but formed them by â€Å"ripping off† technique after applying paint. Hence, revealing underlying paints but via forming patches, which gives the ground snow like forms, scattered in the entire forefront space. The background objects’ colors exhibit bold and heavy brush strokes giving them their true colors except the protruding piece that has a grey color. The protruding image seems as if the painter after applying paint embarked on â€Å"ripping off† method, which he utilized to create the forefront objects. In this image, Clyfford still’s portrait via his painting offers the audience adequate information meant to predict the time and season of the day. The snow-like objects confirm this was a summer day and in the afternoon whereby the latter depiction is evident from the long object’s shadow cast beneath it. The entire artwork’s objects and incorporation of colors gives a feeling of an ordinary atmosphere in the countryside with its normal on goings. This is evident from the busy man undertaking his activities. In addition, the depiction of varied agricultural machines emphasizes society’s daily on goings. Clyfford despite being born in Dakota, he spent 35 years of his early life in Eastern Washington and Alberta (Wà ¼nsche & Crowther 135). Clyfford’s parents were farmers while staying in Alberta, whereby these settings influenced

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Macroeconomics - Term Paper - Essay Example In the regulation of the money in circulation, central bank makes adjustments to the interest rate that entails the price of borrowing money. This paper keenly discusses fiscal and monetary policies theories and application. Fiscal policy In their efforts to regulate spending and maintain taxation at an affordable level, governments emulates three types of fiscal policies. The first one is neutral fiscal policy. This type of policy is adopted when the economy is in equilibrium. One of the key aspects of neutral fiscal policy is that all the fund that the government uses to establish projects such as roads, factories, ports among others, is full obtained from tax revenue (Hansen 34). Another type of fiscal policy that government can use to achieve economic development is the expansionary fiscal policy. This entails a situation whereby government spending exceeds tax collected from the residents. This will mean that governments must look for donors to fund them so that they are able to maintain their economy at a competitive level. The policy must be looked keenly to make sure that funds borrowed from the donors are not diverted to other unplanned project .The third policy is contractionary fiscal policy. ... The federal government controls how the money is shared according to the financial year and how they have planned for the budget. The budget must be gone through by the stake holders that include president and the congress. The two bodies must work together so as to come with a comprehensive report that is going to make life bearable to its citizens (Larch and Nogueira 46). The president makes sure that the proposed budget is passed to the congress so that they can decide how much money the government is going to spend on public needs for example, the issue of security is a problem world wide and health care .On the other hand expansionary fiscal policy is commonly used by the federal government to make sure that their business problems are stabilized. Another application area in expansionary policy is the issue of unemployment to its citizens. The unemployed high number of people has to borrow money and return the same money with low interest. In contrast, contractionary fiscal poli cy is mainly used by the central bank or the finance ministry to make sure that the rapid economy growth of a country is put under control. This means that the government must come up with the measures to control it. The government has to increase the interest rates, the central bank then regulates the money their customers are going to deposit and the notes the other bank are going to hold. Monetary policy Monetary policy refers to the process by which the government through central bank regulates the money supply to its citizens with aim of controlling price fluctuations (Heyne et al, 19). This means that the government must make sure that the prices of commodities are stable. The government must still ensure that the interest rates and exchanges rates are guarded fully against

Stress among Student Nurses Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

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Inflation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Inflation - Essay Example Economists have defined inflation as the sustained general increase in the price of goods and services (Hart, 2010 p.10). When the prices goes up more money can only pay for fewer goods and services and the currency is said to have lost its purchasing power as the medium of exchange as well as the unit of account in an economy. when the prices goes up the situation is said to be price inflation while the money is in large supply the situation is referred to as monetary inflation((Hart, 2010 p.12). Several other concepts are related to inflation such as deflation which refers to a fall in the price levels generally while disinflation refers to a rate decrease in inflation. Hyperinflation is when the price increase is beyond control (Dwivedi, 2010 p.447). A general belief among economist is that inflation is caused by excess money supply in the economy which pushes demand for both goods and services. The measure of inflation is done through rating the increase in prices over a specified period of time. Inflation rate is expressed as a percentage and is calculated by working out the change in the price index and more so the consumer price index (Frisch, 1983 pg 9). The price index on itself cannot give the rate of inflation but it becomes useful when calculating the inflation rate. This rate is the percentage change rate of price index over a period of time. To calculate the inflation rate the formula below is used The widely used examples of indices to calculated inflation include consumer price index (CPI) which measures change in prices of goods and services(in a fixed basket) purchased by a consumer( Frisch, 1983 pg 12). This fixed basket has goods and services put together and are representative of the economy. The producer price index that measures price change in average as received by domestic producers. It measures the price paid by producers. It differs from the CPIs in that subsidizes in price, tax and profit may cause change in amount

The Vodafone New Zealand Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

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Declaration of Independence Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

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023 Understand Child and Young Person development Essay Example for Free

023 Understand Child and Young Person development Essay Age range Explain the sequence and rate of development 0-3 months When born, babies show innate reflexes, such as swallowing and sucking, rooting reflex, grasp reflex, startle reflex, walking and standing reflex; in the first month babies become less curled up and the startle reflex is starting to fade; toward the end of the third month babies start lifting and turning their heads. 3-6 months When lying on front babies can lift their arms and legs balancing on their tummies; they can reach and grab a toy and they can pass it from one hand to another; they can also roll from their backs to front; around sixth month babies are becoming able to sit with support (e. g. high chair). 6-9 months Babies can sit without support; they are beginning to crawl or find other ways of being mobile (bottom-shuffling); starting to use fingers to feed. 9-12 months Babies are becoming very mobile, fast crawling, standing up by the furniture, some babies walk along the furniture using their hands to hold on; developing abilities to handle objects and putting them into containers; babies able to feed themselves with fingers. 1-2 years At the beginning of this period babies are beginning to walk and around 18 months they are becoming more and more skilful on their feet, moving faster; toddlers around this age begin to sit and push with their legs to move on the sit-and-ride toys. Towards their second year children walk confidently, they can run and climb; towards the end of the second year some children are becoming ready to start potty training. 2-4 years In the third year children start potty training; they become able to push with feet or peddle a tricycle; children can walk upstairs alternating their feet; towards the end of the this period children are skilful enough to feed and dress themselves; they are able to do threading, pouring and they can use scissors. 4-7 years Physical development less rapid, however skills are becoming more refined and movements more coordinated. Ability to kick and control ball; development of fine motor skills essential for handwriting. 7-12 years Good coordination of small and large movements; growing physical skilfulness means task can be done quicker, more accurately and more confidently; neater drawing and writing; accurate cutting. Between 9 and 12 children gain even better coordination and speed in fine and gross motor skills. Around 11th year the bodies of some girls are starting to change (growing breasts) and some might start their periods. 12-16 years Gradual body changes in both girls and boys (girls physically mature quicker [around 15/ 16] than boys [around 17/18]. Fast body changes may affect spatial awareness which can become occasionally poor as a result. 16-19 years The maturing of the body is finishing with the full development of sexual organs; the body is taking a distinctive female or male shape. 023 Table 2: Intellectual and cognitive development Age range Explain the sequence and rate of development 0-3 months Quite early on babies are able to recognise the smell of their mother and her voice; later they become familiar with voices of important others and they can be calmed when they hear them; they are interested in faces. In their 3rd month babies start to differentiate between day and night (settled routine); babies become interested in mobiles and other objects around them. 3-6 months Babies are becoming interested in what is happening around them, turning their head in the direction of interest; objects are being explored by hands and mouth. 6-9 months Developing fine motor skills allow babies for a better exploration of objects by handling and touching with fingers; around 8 or 9 months babies understand object permanence (objects continue to exists even when out of sight). 9-12 months Babies are more aware of what is happening around them, they are starting to understand routines through signals (bib = food) 1-2 years Children enjoy pop-up and posting toys and in their 2nd year they are starting to have a go at simple jigsaw puzzles and building bricks. 2-4 years Children pretend play with miniature world; they more interested in books, mark making and painting. In their fourth year children are able to concentrate and focus longer on activities which which caught their interest. 4-7 years Children begin to do some simple counting and calculations, recognizing letters is followed by gradual decoding of simple words and later by reading. 7-12 years Reading and writing is becoming easier, children start reading silently to themselves. Play becomes more organized and follows rules. Development of thinking and reasoning is demonstrated through independent problem solving. 12-16 years Further development of reasoning and problem solving; children are gradually starting to understand more abstract concepts. 16-19 years Cognitive abilities are becoming further refined, leading to high level skills in young people. 023 Table 3: Communication development Age range Explain the sequence and rate of development 0-3 months To start with babies express their hunger, tiredness or other discontent through crying; around 5th/6th week babies start to coo when content; in the third month babies start smiling and reciprocate smiles. 3-6 months Babies starting to understand a little of what is being said and they are starting to give some communication signals themselves (e. g. raised arms when they want to be picked up). 6-9 months Babies become quite vocal, babbling with a differentiated tuneful string of sounds. They are also starting to understand various important key words connected with their routines (e. g. ?dinner? ). 9-12 months Babies clearly show they understand more of what is being said around them/ to them. Babbling is still main way of communication. 1-2 years First meaningful sounds/ words are beginning to emerge around 13 months, and at the end of 2nd year children might have a vocabulary of about 200 words. 2-4 years Language is becoming a powerful means of communication. From connecting two words first children are beginning gradually to build up sentences and their talking is becoming understandable even to those who are not in regular contact with the child. Even though there might be the odd mistake in the sentence structure, the language toward the end of this period is becoming fluent and children ask questions and generally enjoy expressing themselves through language. 4-7 years Children are becoming involved with written language – they are starting to learn to read and write. 7-12 years Reading and writing becomes easier now; at the beginning of this period children enjoy telling jokes to others; apart from chatting, children are beginning to be able to form a simple argument and be persuasive, they are becoming increasingly able to negotiate with others. Their writing shows more grammatical awareness as well as own imagination. 12-16 years Reading and writing skills are becoming very good and children are becoming increasingly skilful in negotiating and persuasion of others (peers and adults). 16-19 years Communication with peers is becoming very important; differentiation between formal and informal language and its use in real life is becoming more and more important; young people use different means to communicate (via phones, mobile messaging, emails, facebook, etc. ). 023 Table 4: Social, emotional and behavioural development Age range Explain the sequence and rate of development 0-3 months First social contacts are being established mainly during feeding; at the end of the first month babies start to show first smiles which then gradually become response to familiar faces. 3-6 months Babies smile and squeal with delight when playing with familiar others. 6-9 months Babies try to stay close to their primary carers and around 8 months babies may become distressed when their primary carer leaves. 9-12 months Babies are fixed on their carers and do not want to be with strangers. 1-2 years Children start notice other children around them and they show some interest in them and later start parallel play. They also start show some frustrations and tantrums as they gradually discover some boundaries. 2-4 years Children play alongside others and may start copying their actions. Around the third year children become more aware of others and their needs which also reflects in their play which is gradually starting to be more and more cooperative. Children enjoy being praised by adults. 4-7 years Developing language is helping children to form better relationships and children begin to show some preferences in friendships. 7-12 years Friendships are becoming more stable and more important and may influence decision making (if my friend is doing something I might be more likely doing it also). Gender specific play is becoming more apparent. Children start to compare themselves to others. Children enjoy being given some responsibilities. 12-16 years Friends and friendships are very important and gradually opinions from friends might feel more important that those of parents/ carers. This leads to exploration and challenge of the boundaries of relationships as well as learning to deal with disagreements, arguments, etc. There are anxieties coming from pressures from school. 16-19 years Young people enjoy being with their friends, they are finding discovering their own identity and sense of belonging to a group/ groups of specific characteristics which defines for them who they are (religious groups, sport group, goth, etc. ) 023 Table 5: Moral development Age range Explain the sequence and rate of development 0-3 months 3-6 months 6-9 months 9-12 months Children might start paying attention to â€Å"no† and might stop their behaviour for a moment. 1-2 years Children are beginning to understand â€Å"no† and they start using it themselves. 2-4 years At the beginning of this phase still no understanding what is right or wrong but children understand when they are said â€Å"No†. Later they become able to follow some simple rules. Around 4 years children are becoming thoughtful at times but most of the times will decide what to do on the basis of adult approval. 4-7 years Children are beginning to understand rules; they try to understand them, follow them and may attempt to create their own rules where no rules are given (made-up game with friends). 7-12 years Children share their knowledge of rules with others and will readily point out if someone breaks the rules. Later they are becoming more aware of behaviour consequences and they are generally becoming more thoughtful. 12-16 years Children are beginning to be aware of a bigger picture – rules of communities and societies and they are beginning to understand the need for that. 16-19 years There is a interest in moral issues, finding out that right and wrong is not always black and white. Questioning and testing of rules. A2 Answer the following questions. 1. What is the difference between ‘sequence’ of development and ‘rate’ of development? 2. Why is the difference important? (Ref 1. 2) Q1. What is the difference between a sequence of development and rate of development? Sequence of development is the order in which development occurs, e. g. children are able to sit before they learn to crawl. The order of the sequences in development are always the same (even though there might be some individual differences: babies always learn to move about before standing up and walking, but some babies bottom-shuffle instead of crawling). Rate, on the other hand, is the speed in which individuals go through the stages/ sequences of development. Most children learn to walk when they are about 12 months old. However, some babies might be ready to walk when they are 10 months old and others when they are 15 months old. Individuals might also be developing with different rate in different areas, e. g. some children might be developing quickly physically, but their speech might be delayed. These individual differences are results of genetic predispositions and other biological influences as well as environmental stimulation. Q2. Why is the difference important? Knowing the sequences of development in different areas is important for practitioners to be able to plan accordingly and therefore to support the development in individuals. The rate of the development is important in terms of recognizing any atypical development and recommending/ searching any additional interventions when needed. TASK B Complete table; Research and report B1 Complete a table as shown on the following page, identifying the different personal and external factors that influence children and young people’s development. (Ref 2. 1, 2. 2) B2 Produce a report to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of differing theories of development. This report should identify how these theories have influenced current practice and include the following: Cognitive (e. g. Piaget) Psychoanalytic (e. g. Freud) Humanist (e. g. Maslow) Social learning (e. g. Bandura) Operant conditioning (e. g. Skinner) Behaviourist (e. g. Watson) Social pedagogy. Over the years there have been many theories trying to explain certain aspects of development, behaviour, learning, etc. In the following text we will look at the most influential theories which are being used by practitioners in better understanding as well as day to day work with children and young people. After a brief description of how an individual theory was founded, we will discuss the key points for work at nurseries. Theory of cognitive development (Constructivist approach) Theory of cognitive development is connected with the name of Jean Piaget (1896-1980) who through work on intelligence tests started to notice how children at same stages make very similar mistakes in their tasks and problem solving approaches. Piaget then closely observed his own children, capturing their development in details and later using these observations to create a theory of cognitive development. Piaget considered children as active learners who create ? schemas? (believes) about the world based on their experiences. This is how they make sense about what is happening around them. However, a child? s schemas are going to be challanged time to time by new and unexpected experiences and as a result existing schema will have to adapted to fit these in (e. g. touching something hot will alter the notion that everything is safe to touch and child will learn that certain objects can hurt when being touched). Piaget? s theory influenced the practice by having a ? child-centred? approach. In our setting, for example, we make regular observations on what our children are interested in and what they like to play/ do. After careful evaluations and identifications of possible next steps of development we plan activities which as well as reflecting children? s interest also further challenge them to encourage the development. Psychoanalytic theory of personality Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) suggested that every personality has got three parts to it – id, ego and superego. We all are born with id, which is the part of our personality that is driven by our desires and reflects in pleasure-seeking behaviour. Id is selfish and passionate and it is purely after satisfying its needs, known as ? gratification?. However, through social contact and learning babies/children gradually learn to be aware of the outside world and eventually of needs of others. They will be developing ego, which is able to plan the actions so the needs of the individual can still be met but in more socially desired way, e. g. ability to wait for once turn when the food is being served at pre-school settings. This is called ? differed gratification?. Later, as a result of further parenting and learning about social and cultural values, the superego is developed. Superego could be described as an internalised parent as the child is starting to be aware of what is good and what is bad without external reminder – e. g. I must not hit because it hurts. If the behaviour trespasses the imperatives of the superego, the individual will feel guilt as they are now aware that their behaviour was bad (this is referred as ? conscience? ). Apart from judging conscience, superego has got a notion of an ego-ideal to which it will strive. When ego demonstrates good behaviour the ego-ideal part of superego will reward this, e. g. feeling good after doing something for someone else even when external praise is not present. Even though Freud has been criticised for basing his description and explanations of development on sexual motives, some of his theoretical concepts are now widely accepted (e. g. the concept of unconscious mind – id and most of superego). One could say that orientation on children? s needs might be partly inspired by Freud? s ideas about the dynamics of id, ego and superego. Too strong superego and suppressed unconscious id will lead to many problems in adult life, where individual tries to live mainly by what is required by the outside world rather than allowing themselves to follow own desires. In early years healthy development of ego can be supported by putting the child and their needs in the centre of our attention; activities and work with children is individualized and child-led, yet still well planned and safe. For example, in our setting we might notice that a particular child enjoys opening and closing doors, gates, etc. Instead of completely discouraging him from doing that we might identify situations when it might be appropriate for him/her to do so and explain the necessary things around it in a child-friendly way (e. g. : When everybody has got their shoes on, you can open the door, Henry. , We will keep the gate closed now, because we are going to play in the yard now. , Mind your fingers when closing the door – you could close them in and that would really hurt. , etc. ). If we say ? no? to children it is good to make sure that the child knows about the reasons behind our decisions (even though they might find it hard initially anyway, they are more likely to come round and understand it in their own time). Humanistic theory of motivation and personality – Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) Maslow studied motivation in people and came up with what is now known as Hierarchy of Needs. Maslow divided the needs into five categories (physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, self-actualisation) and put them in hierarchical order from the most essential and basic needs to higher-order needs. Maslow argues that it is necessary to fulfil the needs from from the bottom of the hierarchy first to be able to meet the needs of higher order. Only when all the other lower needs are met, an individual can focus on fulfilling the highest needs of self-actualisation, such as creativity, problem solving, morality, etc. In our practice we are aware, that when a child is for example overtired and hungry (the most basic physiological needs), there is no space to try to fit in other things, e. g. ?wait for your turn? , ? say please? ,. (which would be working on their higher order needs, such as love/belonging (friendship) or esteem (respect for others, respect by others). This child at that stage needs to be fed and put to sleep as soon as possible and other input has to wait until the child is again able to tune to it/ receive it. Social cognitive theory Social cognitive theory has its roots in behaviouristic approach. However, Albert Bandura (born 1925), even though accepting learning by conditioning, argued that lots of learning happens through social observations (? observational learning? ). Observational learning is when children copy what other children or adults do; in comparison to conditioning, observational learning happens spontaneously and often without the need for reinforcement. Cognitive abilities seem to play an important role in observational learning as children need to be capable to notice the activity itself as well as remember it accurately. As staff we need to be mindful in the way we act and interact in front of children as they are likely to copy our behaviour. In accordance with the social cognitive theory we try to set good examples to the children in our settings by showing good manners and being courteous to them as well as to one another. Behaviourist approach to learning – operant conditioning Operant conditioning is based on classical conditioning (I. P. Pavlov; J. B. Watson), which teaches that certain behaviour/ reaction can be connected with a stimulus through conditioning, e. g. fear of cats after a bad experience with a cat. F. B. Skinner (1904-1990) however took this a bit further and through experiments mainly with pigeons and rats showed that learning can be strengthen by reinforcements, such as positive reinforcement (praise, sticker, attention, etc. ), negative reinforcement (this is removing something which is negative from the situation so it no longer poses a ? threat? or causes negative emotions and the whole experience becomes more positive, e. g. child does want to play with a toy because it is scared of the noises it makes – by switching the sound off, the child is able to explore the toy) and punishers (negative consequence which is likely to prevent individuals to repeat their behaviour – e. g. touching hot iron). Skinner researched most effective ways to retain the learnt behaviour and he found out that even though continuous positive reinforcement is good at the beginning of the learning, later unpredictable positive reinforcement keeps the learnt behaviour in place for longer period of time. This is because even though the reward comes frequently, we are not sure when it is going to come next and therefore we keep doing the behaviour. At our setting we might be using operant conditioning for example when we are helping a child to potty train. First every sitting on the potty, regardless of results will be rewarded. When the child gets into the habit of sitting on the potty, then only successful potty session will be rewarded with a sticker (however praise for trying when unsuccessful remains). When starting to do regularly this stickers might gradually become praise and sticker will be awarded if the child successfully asks for potty when they need it. Behaviourist approach to learning – Classical conditioning J. B. Watson (1878 – 1958) followed I. P. Pavlov? s work on classical conditioning with animals (dogs salivating when food arrived became then salivating even at the mere sight of the bowl; Pavlov took this further by conditioning completely unrelated food stimulus, such as bell or light, which after regular presence at the mealtimes would later on its own initiate the salivating response in dogs). Watson showed that classical conditioning is possible in humans as well (famous Little Albert experiment, where a baby was conditioned to have fear of rats). Classical conditioning is not really used in practice as a active way of teaching, however its theory can be used for observational purposes (e. g. recognising when sucking thumb signals hunger etc. ). Social pedagogy Social pedagogy is a discipline which brings together theory and practice in order to assure the best and holistic way of supporting children in their development and education. The overall aim of social pedagogy is to give children and young people the best possible chances for their future lives. In accordance with social pedagogy the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework (EYFS) has been devised to capture the development in early years and to help professionals to monitor, plan and support effectively individual development. For better and focused understanding the development has been divided into seven areas, out of which three are recognised as prime areas (Personal, Social and Emotional Development; Communication and Language; Physical Development) and four are described as specific areas of development (Literacy; Mathematics; Understanding the World; Expressive Arts and Design). The support the professionals can provide is differentiated into helpful advice in positive relationship and suggestions for enabling environments. In EYFS we can see influence of Piaget? s work in enabling environments where the focus is predominantly on individual? s own experience. We can also strongly identify the theory of ? zone of proximal development? by Vygotsky (cognitive development) in EYFS as we can easily identify where children are in their development, what is the next developmental stage for them and how we can support this next step. 023 Personal and external factors influencing development B3 Personal Factors: Give ONE explanation of a positive influence on the development of children and young people Health status: given by genetic predispositions as well as environmental factors, such as diet, pollution, stress, etc. If obesity is genetically passed on in the family than healthy diet together with developing positive attitude towards regular exercise will help the child to maintain a good health. Disability: Physical impairment, such as missing or underdeveloped limb Wheel chair together with barrier free environment (e. g. lifts, ramps, low sinks, etc. ) will help to support independence of an individual. Sensory impairment: visual impairments, hearing impairments, death-blindness, When working with individuals with visual impairment, we can use the other senses to compensate and provide necessary stimulation which helps the development, e. g. using special toys/ learning material which uses touch and sound as a mean of gaining information. However, if there is some vision left (which usually there is), the environment can be adjusted by using contrast colours, non-reflective material, good lighting, etc. Learning difficulties: Dyslexia, dyspraxia, dysgraphia, dysortographia, ADHD, ADD Children with ADHD benefit from having a regular routine. Activities needs to be short and well planned with simple and easy to follow instructions. Hands-on activities with regular physical exercise and lots of praise are essential. External Factors: Poverty and deprivation: poor diet, inadequate housing, lack of education, lack of access to play and leisure, low aspirations and expectations Good education can help the individual to break from the poverty and secure them a better brighter future. Family environment/background: neglecting parents, abusive parents, parents with alcohol or other drug-taking problems, ill parents who are not able to provide adequate environment for their children, etc. Parents who are ill and no longer able to fully provide for their children could be provided with carers who would help with the overall smooth running of the household, caring for needs of the disabled parent and the needs of the children, while keeping the family itself together. Personal choices: from certain age children/ young people make some decisions for themselves which can have effect on their development, e. g. taking drugs, changing their diet, etc. To help to prevent drug-taking it is important to support the development of a positive self-image and healthy self-esteem; education and raising awareness of dangers of drug-abuse is also a helpful preventative measure. Looked after/care status: children in residential care, in foster families, in their own family but having care status (they are the responsibility of local authorities). If children are being fostered it is beneficial if siblings can stay together. Education: Educational system, through family itself, through other groups (religious groups, sport groups, hobbies and interests, etc. ) Finding out strengths of an individual (which do not have to necessarily academic) and building upon those to build a healthy self-esteem and recognition of self-worth – this can help to compe with other weaker areas in a positive way. 023 Task C Report Produce a short report in the form of an induction pack for new staff at a setting, covering the following. a. Give two examples of assessment methods that could be used to monitor a child/young person’s development. (Ref 3. 1) b. Give three examples of why sometimes child/young person’s development does not follow the expected pattern. (Ref 3. 2) c. Give one explanation of how disability can impact and affect development. (Ref 3. 3) d. Give three examples of different types of intervention that could promote positive outcomes for the child/young person, where development is not following the expected pattern. (Ref 3. 4) a. In our setting we use several assessment methods to monitor our children? s development. The most used one is a short free description on sticky labels – these capture a specific short observation in a specific area of development (e. g. Physical Development); the date and the identified area/ areas get recorded on the label. This method of recording information is useful for gathering evidence of the progress of development in specific areas and building a developmental profile of an individual child. We also use specific observation sheets, on which we capture a more detailed and complex observation. In the next section on the sheet the observation is evaluated and areas of the development are identified (often more than one). In the last section we identify the next steps for the child and how we can help the child to achieve that. We have two types of observation sheets in our settings following this format – one is purely written observation, the other one is a photo observation sheet. This method of recording and evaluation allows us not only to add to the developmental profile of each child but also to plan effectively to further support the child? s development. b. There are many possible reason why at times the development might not follow the expected pattern. Apart from the most obvious ones, such as disabilities and special learning needs, the development can get affected by external factors, such as environmental reasons, cultural reasons, social reasons; and specific individual reasons, such as emotional reasons, physical reasons and communication difficulties. Environmental reasons: Among environmental reasons which may affect child? s development is for example where and in what conditions a child lives and what type of school they attend. Social reasons: There might be big differences between children in terms of wealth of their families, family status and family structure (big family with strong bonds in comparison to divorced parents with negative mutual relationship), education of parents as well as their ability to tune themselves to the needs of their children – all of these will affect the way children will be developing. Communication skills: Slower developing communication skills have got potential to negatively influence the development in other areas. The inability to effectively express themselves may result in frustrations in children and aggressive behaviour as well as consequently lower literacy skills. Similar effects can be observed in children whose families? language is not the dominant language of the country. If the dominant language is not fully acquired the child may significantly struggle once at school. c. Disability can affect more than one area of development as children can become frustrated and their self-esteem can be lowered. The attitudes of low expectations and stereotyping by others will also have a secondary negative impact on a child? s development. d. There are several ways how difficulties in development can be recognised, monitored and positively supported. Educational establishments will have appointed SENCO, a person who is responsible for identification and organising further support for children with special needs. If appropriate Educational psychologist will be contacted to make a full assessment and recommendations in how to support individuals in education (behavioural problems and learning difficulties). Suggested interventions may be discussed with parents and with learning support assistants and individual educational plan might be written up and followed. If there are any issues with speech and communication, Speech and language therapist will be consulted – the outcomes of the assessment will lead to a specific plan of action, often involving regular contact in which special exercises will be explained, practised and taught to children and their parents/carers/other professionals for them to be able to support the children outside the sessions. If a child? s physical development is affected, physiotherapist can provide help with special exercises and massages to aid the physical development, maximize the range of movement and develop the appropriate movement control. Task D Report Produce a report which explains the following: a. Why is early identification of speech, language or communication delay important for a child/young person’s well-being? (Ref 4. 1) b. What are the potential risks for the child/young person’s well-being if any speech, language or communication delay is not identified early? (Ref 4. 1) c. Analyse the importance of early identification of the potential risks of late recognition to speech, language and communication delays and disorders. (Ref 4. 1) d. Who might be involved in a multi-agency team to support a child/young person’s speech, language and communication development? (Ref 4. 2) e. How, when and why would a multi-agency approach be applied? (Ref 4. 3) f. Give four different examples of play opportunities and describe how you would put them into practice to support the development of a child/young person’s speech, language and communication. (Ref 4. 3) a. Early identification of the language and communication difficulties is important as it can support the development to prevent further (secondary) impact on other areas. Also, as the brains in young children have not finished their development, the earlier we can intervene, the better prospects of success we have. b. Problems in language and communication can have a negative effect on other areas of development, such as cognitive and social development. Children with language and communication difficulties are more likely to struggle at school in learning to read and write, which can have further negative impact not only on other subjects but more importantly on their self-esteem. Children with such problems can become gradually isolated. c. Early identification of the potential risks of late recognition to speech, language and communication delays and disorders is very important in terms of putting the most appropriate interventions in place to support the development and benefit the children? s needs. Well timed and well tailored intervention has got the potential to optimize the development and to minimize potential negative impact for other areas of development. d. In the multi-agency team to support the child with speech, language and communication there will be the child? s GP or a health visitor, who will make a referral to a speech and language specialist. If there is a suspicion that the communication difficulties are connected with learning difficulties Educational Psychologist will be consulted. When it is decided on the type of intervention needed, the parents, the educational setting professionals and the rest of the team should work together in order to implement the chosen intervention in order to meet the needs of the child. e. Multi-agency approach is used when parents and/ or other professionals (such as GP, early years settings, etc. ) have recognised that a child is in need of additional help to aid the development. Different professionals are involved in the assessment of the needs (e. g. GP to assess potential hearing or other impairments) and speech and language therapist devises the best possible individual support. Multi-agency approach brings together different fields of expertise to assure the best possible outcome for the child. f. There are many informal opportunities how children? s communication and language development can be supported. These might often be more effective than formal exercises as they naturally meet the child in they world of play, making it more motivating and fun. Nursery rhymes and songs Children enjoy joining in nursery rhymes and songs. These are short and memorable and their rhythmical pattern make them perfect little exercises for developing language, pronunciation and fluency (good practice when dealing with stutter). Books are perfect for developing passive and active vocabulary, understanding meaning of words and learning correct sentence structure informally. Books are a wonderful way to spark children? s imagination as well as teaching them to express themselves about the world around them by providing the relevant vocabulary. Pictures in books make it possible for children from the earliest age to actively engage with the story as well as to engage in a dialogue with another person. Dressing up and role play again helps the child in an informal way to engage in talking and communication with others whilst enjoying the imaginative play. Puppets are a fantastic way how to involve children in communication through play. Children are fascinated by puppets and enjoy adults taking active part in their play, which again allows for an opportunity to develop language and communication in a fun way. 023 Task E Complete table Complete the table on the next page, showing how the different types of transitions can affect children and young people’s development and evaluate how having positive relationships during this period of transition would be of benefit. Additional Guidance Different types are: a. Emotional, affected by personal experience, e. g. bereavement, entering/leaving care. b. Physical, e. g. moving to a new educational establishment, a new home/locality, from one activity to another. c. Physiological e. g. puberty, long-term medical conditions. d. Intellectual, e. g. moving from pre-school to primary, to post-primary. (Ref 5. 1, 5. 2) Give ONE specific example of a transition Give ONE possible effect on children and young people’s development Evaluate the benefit of a positive relationship during this period of transition ~ provide ONE example Emotional: Bereavement Depression which may affect sleep pattern, children may become lethargic and less interested in engaging in any activities which may affect they social, emotional and cognitive development Positive relationship with open communication and listening skills allows for a child to ask difficult questions and share their worries and sadness, to talk over difficult memories and anxieties about the future. This may help with overcoming the past and the sadness. Physical: Moving home Moving home may effect the children social development as they may lose previous friends and find themselves unable to fit in new friendship groups. Some children might start having food issues, such as overeating to deal with anxieties. This can affect their emotional, social and physical development. Positive relation can provide a helping hand with dealing with the new situation while supporting the self-esteem and encouraging the confidence in a young person. Positive relationship can also act as model of skills of how to establish a new relationship. Physiological: Gaining a physical disability – e. g. lost limb Withdrawal – children may become very solitary, unable and unwilling to join in with their peers, which can affect their physical, emotional, social as well as cognitive development. Positive relationship will communicate acceptance and healthy support in dealing with a life-changing situation; this should help in dealing with difficulties as they come Intellectual: Moving from pre-school to primary school Lack of concentration and motivation as the child might feel overwhelmed by new routines and new demands which they might find very difficult – this may affect their natural cognitive development and they might regress into safer younger stage of development. Positive relationship will allow for a child to feel safe, valued and as achieving (in their own pace) by identifying the appropriate approach of working with the child with the sensitivity to their specific needs and pace of development.

Information and communication technologies Essay Example for Free

Information and communication technologies Essay Even though the ICT sector is itself worth between 6-8% of the EU’s GDP in the last few years, ICTs are much more important than that figure suggests, as they are central for the current situation and development of much more spheres of contemporary society as a whole and of national economies in Europe in particular. Today ICTs play a crucial role in: improving competitiveness throughout the economy in the face of globalisation, by boosting innovation, creativity and efficiency; scientific and technological development in various areas (including medicine and physics); modernising sectors as diverse as education, security, energy and transport, and making Europe’s public sector more efficient; tackling social challenges and improving quality of life and meeting the challenge of an ageing society. The EU policy framework for the information society and media i2010- also promotes a European Information Society for all citizens[2]. Actions implemented under this i2010 priority aim to ensure that the benefits of the information society can be enjoyed by everyone (e-Inclusion). Areas of eInclusion policy, as defined in i2010, are: ageing, eAccessibility, broadband gap (overcoming the so called â€Å"digital divide†), inclusive eGovernment, digital literacy and culture. Actions under this priority also aim to encourage provision of better public services (eGovernment and eHealth). Here are the main spheres where ICTs have even bigger potential and are expected to develop in the short run: Growth and Competitiveness ICT is a driver for productivity. The gains from ICT stem directly from investment in ICT, a fast growing and innovative ICT sector, and indirectly from improvements in business processes through wider use of these technologies across the economy. According to a study[3], the overall contribution to labour productivity growth from ICT investments and from technical progress in the production of ICT goods and services accounted for about 40% of EU labour productivity growth over the second half of the 1990s, compared with 60% in the US. The ICT sector, as a whole, performs fairly well in comparison with the US in terms of size (10% of GDP in the US against 8% in the EU, and also in productivity and employment creation), but less so in terms of contribution to RD (in the US, ICT account for 30% of RD). However, in these developments the EU has suffered from lower and delayed investments in ICT and, possibly, a less efficient use of ICT. Using Information and Communication Technologies can also further be used to manage finite natural resources and energy consumption much more efficiently, so that improving environmental protection without holding back economic development[4]. Convergence More and more, convergence of technologies, infrastructure and applications is developing to provide consumers with an access to a great diversity of attractive services and rich media and content on a wide range of devices. Availability of content and services is becoming critical as the market moves to a phase where value-added services and content are key to revenue growth. The policy focus for 2010 will probably be the creation of a favourable environment that stimulates the competitive deployment of new converging services. Broadband networks EU countries are global leader in high-speed internet. The number of fixed broadband internet connections in the EU keeps growing: 14 million more in 2008, reaching over 114 million in total. Denmark and the Netherlands are world leaders in broadband, with take up over 35% of population. They lead, along with Sweden, Finland, the UK, Luxembourg, Belgium, Germany and France, the US, which was at 25% in July 2008. This has produced a critical mass and there is already evidence that markets for high-quality content and service development are taking off. Furthermore, new developments in wireless broadband have made spectrum availability crucial to new services and applications, and the efficient management of spectrum key to further broadband developments. Finally, the enhancement of interoperability and security are essential to and increase consumers’ choice and facilitate take-up. In the beginning of 2009 1 billion euro has been earmarked by the European Commission to help rural areas[5] get online, bring new jobs and help businesses grow. Competitiveness, job creation and protection, sustainable development, spatial balance and fighting the digital divide are the main goals that the broadband internet access could achieve. Contents and information society services Convergence is creating a promising range of opportunities for the development of content and information society services making the most of ICT. The challenge for the single information space is to create the appropriate environment that will meet both business and consumer expectations while promoting the European content industry. This requires a competitive environment, where interoperability allows cross-platform competition and usage. This also requires a clear European regulatory framework with respect to content regulation and a secure environment for the distribution of digital content. Ensuring consumer acceptance pass by offering access to a great variety of flexible content and services adapted to user needs. Improving security and privacy as well as minor protection and media literacy are needed to allow European citizens to benefit fully from these content and services. Innovation and research In order Europe to catch-up with the levels of productivity growth of other regions of the world, it should strengthen innovation and concentrate these efforts in those sectors, like the ICT, where the value added is the highest. A pre-requisite is to increase investment in research: at present the EU devotes only 18% of research expenditure to ICT whereas the leading OECD countries allocate more than 30%[6]. In absolute amounts, Europe’s investment in ICT research is only two thirds of that of Japan and one third of that seen in the USA. Research and development is making technology simpler to use, more available and affordable; providing new ICT-based solutions that are trusted, reliable, and adaptable to users’ contexts and preferences. However, research alone is not sufficient as it needs be consolidated by organisational innovation. ICT must be widely adopted and supported by adequate reorganisation of business processes and by a skilled workforce. Businesses in the EU are increasingly adopting advanced ICT and are engaging in on-line transactions but are lagging behind in the adoption of integrated business applications (particularly the European small and medium enterprises). Skills and work The development of the ICT sector and the wide-spread diffusion and use of ICT in the economy and in the society bring opportunities for new employment and more creative and fulfilling jobs. Changing needs for ICT and e-Business skills (e-Skills) in the future heavily depend on innovation and the introduction of new technologies. The greatest challenge is to assess forward-looking innovations and understand what new skills will be needed, to be able to anticipate and manage changes and be effective, quick and efficient in creating new, innovative jobs. e-Business Though nearly all enterprises are connected to the internet, a large section of the business community is only beginning to exploit the potential of ICT. E-commerce is expected to continue to grow rapidly. More efforts are needed to improve business processes in European enterprises and fully integrate ICT providing new opportunities to reduce their costs and improve performance. Factors which will contribute to increase e-Business include promotion of take-up of e-business solutions and best practices security, addressing privacy and security concerns, availability of content and new services, increase automation of business processes, acceptance of payment for content and services, e-invoicing and e-procurement. Public services Public services are at the heart of the European social model, playing a key role in growth, innovation and cohesion. There is increasing evidence that a better exploitation of ICT through combined improvement of facilities, working processes and skills can significantly enhance public service’s organisation provision. However, the potential remains unfulfilled due to technical, legal or organisational obstacles. For example, government services are widely available online but the demand is not sufficient and efficiency gains from back-office reorganisation are still largely underexploited. Specific challenges relate to friendly user-centric services, back-office streamlining, interoperability of key infrastructures and facilities, identity management, or privacy and trust. e-Inclusion Increasing impact of ICT on social inclusion and participation creates new opportunities. Significant progress on ICT penetration across all EU regions and socio-demographic groups helps to decrease disparities. However, some specific challenges concern accessibility of ICT equipment and user-friendly interfaces, digital literacy or improved confidence and support for ICT use. Some important concerns are â€Å"design for all† of ICT equipment; human mediation and support for e-services; intuitive use of affordable value-added e-content and services accessible; and efficient solutions for threats to privacy, security and harmful content threats. Quality of life and environment ICT have a direct impact on the environment but also indirect social and economic consequences as a result of its application. ICT positive impact on the environment includes environmental modelling (forecasting), the miniaturisation of devices (which reduces the resources needed for manufacture and distribution), micro/nano technology and embedded systems which improve disaster management, and reduce the environmental impact of farming and fishing. ICT also enables a less resource-intensive production, thereby reducing the environmental impact of economic activities. e-Work contributes to environmental sustainability as travelling to work is reduced. Innovative transport planning systems can ease traffic congestion and optimise transport capacity. ICT can also contribute to quality of life by delivering more efficient and more effective public services and goods to individuals which in turn can improve their life chances. ICT support for comprehensive life-long learning policies (through e-learning, digital competence actions) can enable all individuals to adapt and keep the pace with the continuous social, economic and technological changes. Climate and energy policy The combined climate and energy policy is central at the EU’s political programme. Its aism are to bring about alternative ways of running our daily lives so that Europe can continue to create growth and jobs while leading the global effort to tackle climate change and energy efficiency. Europe faces three main challenges in this field tackling climate change, guaranteeing secure, sustainable and competitive energy, and making the European economy a model for sustainable development in the 21st century[7]. The resolve of the European Council[8] to transform Europe into a low-carbon, high energy efficiency economy means that the continued growth of the European economy, essential to achieve full employment and inclusion, needs to be decoupled from energy consumption. The current trends are unsustainable. Indeed, if nothing were to change, final energy consumption in the EU is predicted to increase up to 25% by 2012, with a substantial rise in greenhouse gas emissions. ICTs have an important role to play in reducing the energy intensity and increasing the energy efficiency of the economy, in other words, in reducing emissions and contributing to sustainable growth. In addition to that, ICTs will not only improve energy efficiency and combat climate change but will also stimulate the development of a large leading-edge market for ICT enabled energy-efficiency technologies that can foster the competitiveness of European industry and create new business opportunities.

Referential Cohesion In The Construction Of Magazines English Language Essay

Referential Cohesion In The Construction Of Magazines English Language Essay Texts are categorized according to different genres, which are placed within a context. For example, articles in magazines are arranged in a way of coherence so that readers are able to interpret from what is being read. Yet, there are argument in terms of the word text and discourse. Like cohesion and coherence which needed to be distinguished, the inconsistencies of both terms have brought upon much confusion in studies done. Some researchers claimed to be doing text analysis but instead, have provided a study on discourse analysis albeit the basis of distinction of text and discourse as defined by Widdowson (1973; extracted from Widdowson, 2002); are the structure of sentences and usage of such sentences, respectively. But Widdowson (1978; Ibid.) himself did not maintain his definition and claimed later on, that discourse consists of sentences with properties such as cohesion and coherence. Much confusion led to many researchers to conclude that text is only used to refer to physi cal arrangement of linguistic signals on paper (Tadros, 1981), whereas discourse is used to refer to every investigation on the structure (supra-sentential) of any range of spoken or written language. Otherwise, this distinction is deemed unnecessary. Cohesion and coherence are analyzed based on individual texts and ergo, need to be distinguished. Cohesion correlates with the overt semantic relations whereas coherence deals with the relationship aspects of semantics, as well as pragmatics, within the text which are interpretable against the readers prior world knowledge (de Beaugrande Dressier 1981). In other words, cohesion deals with the surface level of text, whilst coherence serves as the underlying phenomenon in the text. Coherence is otherwise known as texture, features the combination of semantic configurations which is made up of register and cohesion. Cohesion, being the main focus of Halliday and Hasans work, is said to be a display of existing ties, between a presupposed item and a presupposing item that occurred in the text; thus making the text cohere. That said, Cohesion does not concern what a text means; it concerns how the text is constructed as a semantic edifice.(1976:26). Cohesion, thus contributes to the conn ectedness of the surface elements in the text (Berzlanovich, 2008), and builds the structure of the text in form of coherent sentences; which in the case of this paper, cohesion will be analyzed in the context of a local fashion magazines article. The way cohesion revolves around the text also depends on the varieties of discourse. Discourse here refers to verbal communication in its situational and social context (Ibid.). Since the roles of both cohesion and coherence occur interdependently with the type of genre, in some articles like academic discourse; it is found that conjunction is favored more as a cohesive link between sentences. Also, register-specific vocabulary in the text seems to be denoting as a primary factor for stronger cohesive effect, rather than general vocabulary (Teich Fankhauser, 2005). As for narrative structured articles like those from the fashion magazines, previous studies have found that the dominant characteristic typically found in narrative texts is referential cohesion especially when participant chains, anaphoric links, temporal and spatial progression are being investigated (Fox 1987, Berzlanovich, 2008). Lexical items are necessary in the organization of a discourse in order to consider its meanings semantically and whether those sentences are in association with the intended meanings in the text. Thus, lexical items are categorized into two groups: grammatical cohesion and lexical cohesion (Table 1, Appendix 1). Grammatical cohesion encompasses reference, substitution, ellipsis and conjunctions, whilst lexical cohesion is classified into two types which are reiteration and collocation (Halliday Hasan, 1976). Previous studies have been published in abundance regarding textual cohesion and its devices. Nevertheless, so far to my knowledge, none of them has considered fashion magazine articles as a genre for analysis in the corpus of linguistic research, albeit many studies had been done in the area of language and gender but not from the linguistics aspect. Hence, an article from a local fashion magazine (Cleo) will be analyzed in relation to grammatical cohesion on one of its components- reference, which will be detected via the three dimensions as aforementioned: personal pronouns (determinative, possessive), demonstratives and comparatives (Appendix 2). Other dimensions of grammatical cohesion and lexical cohesion will be considered for future works, whilst in this paper referential cohesion is chosen to observe the linkage between sentences within the text, with the context in existence. The significance of this paper underpins the twofold objectives. Firstly, it is hoped that this stu dy will be able to provide better understanding regarding the use of referential links in the way a cohesive text is constructed on the surface level of sentences. Secondly, the frequent use of cohesive links with functions and purposes, within sentences will help us gain insights in the aid of the readers interpretation of the text based on the type of genre examined (magazine article). As a result, the study on cohesion will help to put up with effective reading and writing altogether with word choices and paragraphing in texts and discourses. Finally, the present study provides a surface-leveled analysis of grammatical referential device; employed in the usage of English in this informal context. Literature Review Halliday and Hasan (1976) have provided the fundamental framework in the functional grammar studies; a lot especially on the studies of cohesion in many research conducted in this field. Although, other researchers like Werlich (1983) and Brinker (2005) have also made contributions in this field of study. Yet, none has offered detailed and distinguished differentiation in terms of cohesion and coherence. Halliday Hasan (1976) only uses cohesion whereas Werlich (1983) emphasizes in coherence whereas Brinker (2005) points out that the distinction between cohesion and coherence is not necessary. On the other hand, researchers like de Beaugrande Dressier (1981) offers explanation on the surface for both terms, and others followed suit. Most of their classification of cohesive devises branches out, primarily, into grammatical and lexical cohesion; in which the former will be the subject of concentration in this present study, primarily on reference. Apart from that, Halliday also claims from the view of a functionalist in grammar; that language structure is explained by derivation from function and that he and Hasan has established a diversified functional/ text unity, mostly on structural elements like lexical repetition, lexical inclusion and many others which have contributed to the studies of cohesion. According to Halliday and Hasan (1976), grammatical cohesion is divided into four different devices as follows (Querol 2004, Mohamed-Sayidina, 2010): Reference: one element of the text is related to another one as aforementioned for its interpretation, with the use of pronouns (personal, comparative and demonstrative) Semantic relation is required in this mechanism. It in the subsequent sentence refers to being normal. E.g.: Look at what being normal involves in this culture. A lot of it is what the rest of the world aspires to- à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Substitution: the replacement of an item with another word to substitute a word or sentence. Others here is used to substitute some areas from being repeated. E.g.: Also, we have our own set of abilities and talents; in some areas, well be above average, while in othersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Ellipsis: the head noun, main verb, or even the whole clause is subsequently omitted in the following sentence. Consider this statement, whereby the making of sacrifices is omitted from the line that continues. Supposedly; People who have extraordinary lives often have to make sacrifices that many of us wouldnt consider worthwhile (of making the sacrifices). E.g.: People who have extraordinary lives often have to make sacrifices that many of us wouldnt consider worthwhile. Conjunction: an invariable  grammatical particle to connect two words, sentences, phrases and clauses to create discursive connections. There are several types of conjunctions namely coordinating, correlative and subordinating conjunctions. E.g.: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦But when most of us wake up, life is much more prosaic, so we wonder what were doing wrong. Specifically, reference as defined by Halliday, is a participant or circumstantial element which is being introduced within the text at one point; either as a reference point preceded for the following phenomenon, or functions as a basis for comparison. Referential cohesion can be realized in three ways: personal pronouns (determinative, possessive), demonstratives and comparatives (Appendix 2). But in the in-depth analysis of referential cohesion, it does not only matter that these items exist in the text. It also matters if they (personal pronoun,  demonstrative  or  comparative) refer forward (anaphora) or backward (cataphora) to items  within  the text (endophora) or  outside  the text (exophora). Then again, readers might encounter some problems in relation to vague reference item, which neither refers to earlier  or  later  items  within  the text nor to entities  outside  the text, even if confined within the context. Thus, self-referential occurs w hen readers interpret the text based on their cultural or world knowledge. This situation is also known as homophora. All these may function as clue items to provide more information to words and phrases (Muto, n.d.). But in the case of this paper, the main concern of the study is solely to detect the frequent use of referential cohesive links in order for the text to flow from one interpretation to the next; personal pronouns (determinative, possessive), demonstratives and comparatives are the focus analysis. Hence, the present study does not include in-depth analysis on cohesion elements like anaphora, cataphora, endophora and exophora, or even other elements like ellipsis, substitution and conjunction are omitted, because this current study deals solely on the surface level of referential cohesive links (reference) although it is suggested that future studies should looked into those aspects aforementioned. For future studies, M.A.K Hallidays scope on references encompasses a wid e range of aspects to be looked into especially in the field of systemic functional grammar where more elaborated, technical works of grammar classification could be done in relevance to this current study. From lexical cohesion to grammatical cohesion, there are many research conducted in the field of cohesion and coherence, linguistically (Oliveria et.al, Klebanov Shamir 2006) or pragmatically (Kruijff-Korbayova Wolska 2008, Taboada 2004); yet, studies in this area are sensitive towards types of discourse, genre and text organizations (Berzlanovich, 2008). The study of this topic provides many helpful references and even contribute to the educational field (Muto, n.d., Mohamed-Sayidina, 2010), whereby analysis on lexical cohesion has been done on numerous students works. Also, the study on cohesion has led a group of researchers formulating a software called WordNet, to detect synsets (set of synonyms). As a result, more quantitative studies are conducted in the area of linguistics with the use of WordNet (Teich Fankhauser 2004, 2005). Consequently encouraging mixed method amongst the research done in analysis or application of the device. In the analysis of cohesion, the study is presented either in systemic inventory of cohesion or instances of cohesion in texts (Kunz 2008). Then, variations also play a part in the determination of the purpose of study. There are four types of variation which are variation over time, across registers, across languages, and across originals and translations. All the analysis can be done via theoretical and example-based analysis, in-depth text analysis or empirical analysis. In the present study, the instances of cohesion are analyzed from the text in a particular variation of a register (fashion magazine); in regards to how often the distribution of referential cohesions occur, via the method of surfaced text analysis per se. Methodology Data Collection An article was extracted from the local fashion magazine, namely Cleo. One article was adopted because it was due to pure intentions to merely detect the frequency of referential cohesive links throughout the text. In addition, these links are observed in terms of its occurrence in text apart from its connectivity within sentences. Fashion magazine was chosen because not many research have been done in this area of informal discourse, particularly in the feature of referential cohesion; most of the studies reflect on the academic (Mohamed-Sayidine 2010, Muto, n.d.), news (Oliveria et. al., n.d.), and formally written articles in magazines. No comparisons amongst genres were intended in this research; hence explains the reason for one article. Albeit comparisons amongst frequency of cohesive links used in various genres could lead to more future studies to be done. The researcher analyzed the article to detect types of referential cohesion based on an adaptation of methodology from Querol (2004) and its frequency of occurrence for each of the component- personal pronouns (determinative, possessive), demonstratives and comparatives, in order to observe the patterns of sentence construction with these cohesive elements. Firstly, personal pronouns will be observed from the determinative and possessive forms respectively. Then, demonstratives will be divided into specific demonstrative and non-specific demonstrative. Lastly, comparatives will be in terms of general and particular comparatives. The results are listed in Table 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively. Results Data Analysis Table 2 presents the total of occurrences of 74 for personal pronouns which include determinatives and possessives; as well as 50 and 10 for demonstratives and comparatives, respectively. Referential cohesion Total occurrences (Percentages) Personal Pronouns (determinative and possessive) 74 (55%) Demonstratives 50 (37%) Comparatives 10 (8%) Table 2: Total of occurrences according to types of reference. Then, in second place with total of 22 occurrences is calculated for determinative you/ yourself, preceded with determinative we /us, scoring the highest with a total of 24 occurrences. Determinatives such as they / them and it scored reasonably lower than the others with 9 and 10 occurrences respectively, whereas possessives pronouns like their/ theirs (3 occurrences) and its / our/ ours (6 occurrences) hardly occur throughout the text. Personal Pronouns Determinatives (No. of occurrences) Possessives (No. of occurrences) You/ yourself 22 She/ Her He/ Him They/ them 9 It 10 We /us 24 His Her/hers Their/ Theirs 3 Its / our/ ours 6 Table 3: Total of occurrences for Personal Pronouns (Determinative, Possessive). As for Table 4, specific demonstratives such as this, these, here, those, that are found quite common (27 occurrences) within the text if compared to non-specific demonstratives like it and the (23 occurrences). Otherwise, the results for total occurrences of demonstratives are quite consistent throughout the text unlike personal pronouns. Demonstratives Specific (No. of occurrences) Non-specific (No. of occurrences) This, these, here, those, that, there 27 It, the 23 Table 4: Total of occurrences for Demonstratives (Specific, Non-specific). The same scenario with almost equal consistency of results is also applicable to comparatives; with 4 occurrences for general comparatives (otherwise, apart from, instead of, also) whilst particular comparatives scored slightly higher with a total of 6 occurrences for words like much more, as many of, better than, pretty great / good and its better to. Thus, from the findings it is prominent that the highest form of occurrences falls on the personal pronoun category with almost half of the text (55%) construction is conformed to this particular referential link. Comparatives General (No. of occurrences) Particular (No. of occurrences) Otherwise Apart from Instead of Also 4 Much more As many of Better than pretty great / good Its better to 6 Table 5: Total of occurrences for Comparatives (General, Particular). Summary of Findings Different types of references will yield various results depending on the purpose of construction within the sentences. Discussion in this section of paper will be based on analysis of the highest occurrences per se from findings of each table (Table 2, 3, 4, and 5). As can be seen in Table 2, the highest total of occurrences is scored by personal pronouns (determinative and possessive) (55%), followed by demonstratives (37%) and lastly, comparatives (8%). Personal pronouns are defined as the pro-form which are  used to substitute the nouns. These pronouns are divided into determinatives (also determiner as the word modifier that determines the type of reference a noun/noun group has) and possessive (showing possession), albeit personal pronouns could sometimes function as a determinative but not in all cases. In the case of this study, the determinatives for personal pronouns are you/ yourself, she/her, he/him, they/them/ it, we/us. There has been much confusion which lies in diff erences of pronouns and determinative to the extent that some linguists viewed both of it to be closely related and that pronouns are in fact determiners without a noun / noun phrase. Nonetheless, a clear distinction between pronouns and determiners can be made with three main features that set the determiner apart from pronoun. A pronoun may be a determiner but a determiner cannot be a pronoun in the case of tagged questions. Examples (extracted from the Cambridge Grammar of the English Language) This is delicious, isnt  this? Also, pronouns cannot appear anywhere else except in between the verb and particle for phrasal verbs whereas determiners could be placed after a particle (example A). In addition, pronouns are said to be in the form of distinct genitive but determiners are not (example B). Example A: pick  it  up (correct) pick up  it (wrong) pick this up OR pick up this Example B: This is mine/yours/theirs. *This is alls. Personal pronouns reached the highest number of occurrences (74) as compared to demonstratives (50) and comparatives (10). The breakdown of the table into respective types of cohesion shows a higher reading generally in determinative (especially for we/us: 24 occurrences), instead of possessive. Such results are probably due to the type of genre and target audience which the text is focused upon. Hence the stylistic writing could be the choice of words used to manipulate readers mind. It shows solidarity and common grounds in terms of word use of we/us; which connotes the idea that readers and writers understand the situation and have common background knowledge for the context (de Beaugrande Dressier 1981). Sometimes, the we pronouns could be inclusive or exclusive if the writer wishes to include or exclude the audience from the text. Extract #1: The pressure to be anything but normal starts out young when were told how important it is to get good grades, and by the time were in our twenties, were suddenly feeling that we should be better paid, better looking and better travelled than our peers-in fact, better equals best. Extract #2: A lot of our fear of normality comes from a misplaced notion that we should be excelling in all areas of our life, otherwise were failing. One issue is that often what we think are our goals arent actually our own dreams-theyre what we believe society wants us to achieveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Hymes (1967) once created the Model of interaction of language and social setting and categorizes speech situation into eight components: namely setting, participants, form and content of text, intent and effect of ends, key, genre, medium, and interactional norms, which it is also stated that the text is formed also as a part of speech situation. Later on, researchers (Halliday, McIntosh and Strevens) offered another explanation for derivation of features from a situation in a text. Three main headings are proposed: Field, Mode and Tenor which describes how a context is able in its function to determine the intended meanings from the text conveyed. The Field is the overall event which includes subject-matter as part of the element in order to function as a text in whole altogether with the purposive activity of the audience. The Mode is the function of the text in the event, that means of its genre and types of discourse to be taken into consideration. Then, the Tenor is the type of role interaction in which the participants are involved in with the text whether its relevant or not. These features could help explain the situation in which the reader experiences with the text. Halliday (1976) also noted that the association of linguistic features with configuration of situational features as mentioned above (field, mode and te nor) forms a register in the text. Since the concept of cohesion as defined by Halliday (1976) is supported with register, the both can be effectively combined to constitute a text. Therefore, when the writer tries to form a purposive interaction with the reader based on the subject-matter of the text (Field) with relevance to its function and appropriateness (Mode), he or she tries to connect and convey the message to the public (Tenor) via the text read. As for demonstratives in the present study of text analysis, they are employed into sentences when the meaning of the context is dependent on other things rather than the relative physical location of the readers at the instance. This is also known as the discourse deixis and in other terms verbal pointing. This, these, here, those, that are specific demonstratives whereas it and the are non-specific demonstratives. Demonstratives, in table 4, have shown an almost equal reading of frequency (27 for specific; 23 for non-specific). Although, it seems that specific demonstratives is used more often throughout the text if compared to its counterpart. Words like this, these, here, those, that are apparent throughout the text compared to it and the. Yet, there has been much confusion in terms of the usage it. Here, it could be perceived as either a demonstrative or pronoun, depending on the semantic purpose of text. If it is a pronoun, it refers to the object of unknown gender or neuter. B ut if it functions as a demonstrative, the meaning of the word needs to fall back on the logic behind the text. For example, But, somehow, its become a byword for mundane and pedestrian. Of course, It in this sentence does not refer to a human being but the situation mentioned in the preceding sentence. The reader cannot simply comply with the meaning of word without referring to the context. The it substitutes a noun and this replaced noun is also known as the pronouns antecedent. In cases of anaphora, it becomes indecipherable without its context and thus the process of determining the intended meaning of antecedent. In addition, it might also be dummy pronouns, which mean that none of the semantic relations are needed in relation to the context. For instance, Its an understandable pressure to feel underà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Extract #3: Its the bright, shiny moments that we feel like broadcasting, so its easy to get the impression that someones life is fabulously fast-paced and exciting, but thats because it is only interesting to document that thrilling fraction. The interpretation of the text relies on the reference items within sentences, which can be interpreted in two ways; either the item is identified with referent in question or it is being implicitly compared to a referent. When identification is involved with the interpretation of the text, the reference item must always be specific and deitic (Halliday Hasan, 1976) because the identifying function for cohesive purposes must also be specific. Hence, this, these, here, those, that are more commonly used throughout the text. These demonstratives could function as modifier and head of the sentence. Based on Extract #4, there in the sentence, Theres some kind of Hollywood ideal out thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ functions as the Head of the former word, whereas the latter there works as a modifier for out. Apart from that, these words could apply anaphorically to mean the previous things which have been said or mentioned before between the interactions of the speaker/ writer and interlocutor/read er (Extract #5). Extract #4: Dr. Chris Day, psychologist and author of 52 Secrets of Psychology (Dennis Jones Associates), says that many young women feel that a normal existence isnt good enough. The pressure to be living this fun ideal life, knowing amazing people, doing amazing things. Theres some kind of Hollywood ideal out there that women aspire to. But when most of us wake up, life is much more prosaic, so we wonder what were doing wrong. Extract #5: Look at what being normal involves in this culture. A lot of it is what the rest of the world aspires to-sun, lifestyle, healthy food, friends, lots of public holidays, travel. Normal here is pretty good. Finally, comparative comes in the form of adjective or adverb, mostly to denote the property and degree of quality in which it is either greater or less in comparison of both entities. It is used in the context of subordinating conjunction (e.g. than, as..etc). Also, in comparatives, particular comparative occurred more often (6) compared to general ones (4). Particular comparatives refer to comparison in respect to quantity or quality. It is also expressed with aids from adjectives or adverbs. Examples of particular comparatives throughout the text are much more, as many of, better than, pretty great / good and its better to. General comparatives include both similarity and differences in comparatives, in terms of likeness and unlikeness whereby comparison of such is irrespective of any particular property. Such general comparatives take forms in phrases like otherwise, apart from, instead of and also. Since comparatives are used to make comparison of the degree in both entities, it is quite common in narrative and expository writings. Regarding the text chosen for this study, albeit its structure seems more alike an expository; but there is a party (psychologist Dr Chris Day) whom narrates and advises on the pertinent matter. Thus the text is written in a narrative style. Using more comparatives to make differentiation of pros and cons, phrases like apart from, instead of, much more, etc is apparent throughout the text. Limitations Much research can be done on the analysis of variations across languages, registers and even original articles and translation ones. In this current study, only general text analysis is conducted whereby the author decides to omit the theoretical and empirical analysis due to time constraints and lacked of sufficient resources. The author is also restricted in terms of systemic functional grammar knowledge; thus planned to look at a more generalized grammatical cohesion as her basis for the study. For suggestions, a more elaborated and in-depth text analysis on systemic functional grammar perspectives could be conducted in another study for reference in the future. Also, the analysis would not be precise because only the author herself is analyzing the text. Probably, another person could help in second analysis of the same text to make comparisons between both findings (number of occurrences). Also, no software is used to detect the readings; neither SPSS nor WordNet is applicable t o this study due to the nature of this study, partly due to the major time constraints that the author decides on a simpler form of method for analysis. Apart from that, more articles are needed for a substantial analysis to justify the substantive issues on grammatical cohesion. Perhaps, more than one genre (magazines, newspapers, etc) and different aspects of cohesion could be looked into; including the elements of anaphora, endophora, exophora and others to name a few. Not only that, such article from an informal context of pure reading pleasure could result in a more informal stylistic writing. Moreover, the quality control of the article also depends on the publishing company; which is vital in this case of the study. An error has been detected during analysis- note that in paragraph 10 of the text- the sentence should read as happier than those jetsettingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ instead of happier that those jetsetting. This could affect the reading of frequency if error not detected, reflecting the unreliability of the text. Conclusion Whilst the present study is focused merely on the grammatical aspect of referential cohesion, other dimensions of this study could be considered in terms of variations, analysis and types of discourse. In addition, the focus on reference in this study could also be expanded for future studies since the scope is widely ranged in this topic of linguistics. Methods could also be diversified with the help of software such as WordNet and even SPSS for quantitative approach. Textual patterns, linkage, ties and chains could be observed from various perspectives either from a formal or informal context. Fashion magazine was chosen because not many research have been done in an informal context of reading pleasure; most of the studies reflect on academic, news, report and formally written articles. Apart from cohesion, coherence could also be distinguished from the former with more studies done in various discourses, not to mention on the aspect of lexical cohesion as well since both cohesion and coherence are important characteristics in prominent texts (Celce-Marcia Olshtain 2000). Such study on the way cohesion links from one sentence to the next might provide suggestions in the comprehension of effective reading and writing, apart from word choices at semantic level in stylistic writing. Nevertheless, results found in the tables as aforementioned have shown reasonable occurrences across the genre to better understand the cohesiveness of text with help from referential links, whilst the frequency of these links occurred within the text indicates that this particular type of genre -narratives-involves particularly a significant use of pronouns in the making of the article. Ultimately, the understanding of cohesion provides a more comprehensive approach towards discourse analysis and text reading. Appendix 1 Grammatical Cohesion Reference Implies that the information is to be retrieved through the reference item is the referential meaning (pronouns and determiners personal, demonstrative and demonstrative)