Change & Continuity over Time of Religion in Europe from the 1500-1900 Essay Example for Free

Change Continuity over Time of Religion in Europe from the 1500-1900 Essay The period between 1500 to 1900 also refers to the time period from the Middle Ages to the modern world. The period witnessed significant strides in state building in England, France, and Spain, where growing bureaucracies levied taxes to finance large-scale warfare and territorial expansion. At the same time encroachment on the longstanding powers of the nobility caused feudal reaction, while the breach with tradition, particularly by creating new taxes in an era plagued by war, famine, and disease, caused peasants to revolt. A number of historical trends emerged to give the period clear definition: the fragmentation of Christianity and growing secularism; pronounced demographic and economic fluctuation; the development of the European state system; and the emergence of a global, Europe-centered system of production and trade. In the second decade of the sixteenth century, the Christian church experienced the first in a series of religious divisions along geographic lines. The sequence of splits, beginning in the Holy Roman Empire and spreading to the whole of Europe by the end of the century, transformed the relationship of the reformed churches with state, society, and the people. Christianity also spread to the indigenous people of the Americas and Asia. There was a strong desire for religious unity, marked by mandatory conversions of Moors and Jews to Catholicism in Spain and an enthusiastic missionary effort both in Europe and abroad. At the same time in nearly every area of Europe religious conflict and calls for a redistribution of power became virtually unavoidable, causing crisis in authority at state and local levels. Religious evangelism encouraged stronger spiritual education of young people. During the same time period, the advances of scientific information provided new, conflicting methods of learning. For this reason, children of educated classes were brought up in a world of competing models of knowledge advanced by churchmen and scientists, while the children of ordinary people were exposed to combinations of evangelical claims, folk wisdom, and the overpowering and repressive Reformation churches. Protestant and Catholic teachers tried to clarify and define the boundaries of official doctrine. Their interactions with the commoners caused serious tensions. Popular beliefs were judged as pagan. Evangelists tried to impose religious uniformity and eliminate groups or individuals who could not be brought into the mainstream Christianity. In particular, the office of the Holy Inquisition denied the lay peoples claims to spiritual powers in an effort to give all powers to the clergy. It was an attempt to take away the spiritual dimension of the lay people, medicine and science. The religious campaign to denounce magic and witchcraft helped prepare the ground for the late-seventeenth-century and eighteenth-century scientific claims that the cosmos was mechanized. In the modern age, science would undermine magical beliefs and reduce the spiritual influence of the clergy. The religious Reformation, together with the critical and undemocratic nature of Renaissance humanism, shattered the unity of intellectual thought, developments that were vital to the advancement of science. The discovery of new worlds and people and that the earth was round; the invention of movable type; the development of firearms and of a lens that improved the visibility of the stars and planets; improved mechanical clocks; and the development of shipbuilding and navigation opened up new intellectual perspectives and methods of discovery that relied increasingly on rational thinking rather than religion. Scientists made new claims to authority and objectivity, and began explaining the world in mechanical terms. Separating the observable world from the spiritual sphere represented a fundamental shift in thought. To see the world operating on basic principles discoverable by reason created hope that humans could control their environment, a change in attitude that helped pave the way for nineteenth-century industrialization.

Origins Of Alternative Education In India Education Essay

Origins Of Alternative Education In India Education Essay According to one of the view, education has been derived from the Latin word educare which means to bring up or to raise. According to this view, education is process of imparting to an individual certain information and knowledge which was considered by the society. Education implies the modification of the behaviour of the individual by imposing standards of society upon him. Thus, this derivation gives the concept of teacher-centred rather than child-centred education. There is another group of thinkers who believes that the term education has been derived from the Latin word educere which means to lead out or to draw out. Education therefore, means to lead out or draw out the best in man. It is the process of drawing out from within rather than imposing from without. In the Indian Context the Education means The Indian Synonyms of Education are the words Shiksha and vidya. Shiksha is derived from the Sanskrit verbal root Shas which means to discipline to control to instruct or to teach. Similarly Vidya is also derived from Sanskrit verbal root vid which means to know. Hence the disciplining the mind and acquisition of knowledge have always been the dominant theme in Indian approaches to understanding the education. Experimental learning The experimental education is an organic and constantly evolving approach to learning .According to them they believe that anyone can do it. The ideas advocated can be replicated almost anywhere, and can be used, as some are doing, in mainstream (government and private) schools. This type of pedagogy helps in Enhancement in Education. It explores the ways in which children can discover their own talents and interest, at their own talents and interest, at their own places, in their own ways, assisted by teachers, parents, and friends and others-learning in and from their neighbours, their village, their community and the environment in which they live. It tells that how education can be successful in terms of childs own need for knowledge. This kind of education therefore relies heavily on experiential learning which compiles of innovative approaches, method, and idea of learning, aim to be child centred). The relevant and liberating education should include:- Being child-focussed- the child is the centre. The child dictates the pace and interests. Allowing learning in multiple ways. Enhancing the senses through learning. Not being exclusive, there is a (government-prescribed) examination for school completion, nor it should exclusive in the terms of class, gender, caste or religion. Meeting a childs life -enriching needs in compliance with child rights, imparting spiritual values, knowledge of moral, social norms and duties and finally, it should try out to meet life-development needs of functional training of innate talents, and vocational education. The importance of education being child-centred, starting from what the child knows and is interested in, and at the pace preferred by the child. Now Approach to primary education has been formally accepted not only by the one country but also by the whole world including the developed and under developing countries as a human right for almost half a century. Yet, today even we enter into the era of 21st Century; there is only about three-quarters of children of school-going children are able to attend a primary school. In a developing countries large number drop-out of children took place before reaching Class V and there are many others who are never able to reach schools. Although the country like India in which the government had placed a high priority on education in policy statements, every time fails because of proper implementation is lacking in the policy. Thus an India stand with 30 per cent of the worlds illiterates has female literacy rates much lower than in sub-Saharan Africa [PROBE 1999]. The worlds largest number of children who are out-of-school is reached the mark which is close to 59 million are in India, ou t of which 60 percent are girls (Human Development Report 2000, UN).37 percent of the children from India are unable to reach Class V [Haq and Haq 1998]. And this despite the Directive Principles in Article 45 of the Indian Constitution which prescribes that the state shall try to provide, within a tenure of ten years from the commencement of the Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children until they reach the age of 14. Although after this decision the number of primary schools has increased 2.82 times since 1951 and enrolments have improved, the responsibility of the government for creating a satisfactory infrastructure has in practice not been matched by corresponding out-lays which continue to remain woefully inadequate at around 3 per cent of the GDP. The vast number of maze of literature on primary education in India has identified various reasons for its abysmal state; why children drop out and why they remain un enrolled or not going in the school. In th is space several studies have been done which indicated that the poor quality of schooling is responsible for low retention [Colclough 1993; Bhatty Kiran 1998; PROBE 1999; Banerji 2000; Dreze and Gazdar 1996]. However, most of these studies look at the problem of education within the confines of the classroom. They tend to ignore or underplay the fact that besides poor quality, demotivated or un interested teachers and inadequate infrastructure, there are larger other structural constraints which impede access of children to schools. There are several literature written on primary education in India also reveals that access and retention remain problem areas in this sphere. Origins of Alternative Education in India History Overview The present mainstream educational system was inaugurated in India in the mid-nineteenth century. Over the next century; it almost completely supplanted earlier educational institutions. There had, earlier, been a wide network of small village schools- pathsahlas, gurukuls and madarasas. There was a concept of One Village-One School and was become the norm in various parts of the country, up to the earlier nineteenth century. A large number of such learning schools-reportedly100, 000 was just in Bihar and Bengal. They played important social role and were, in fact watering holes of culture of traditional communities. (Dharampal, 2000).Students from various castes studied in these schools, although there was no such discrimination on the basis of castes, creed and colour. It was open for all but there must have been disproportionately representation in the school, the boys outnumbered girls. Most of the girls learnt a range of skills within their homes; from parents, relatives, and pr ivate tutors- including Arts, crafts, practical skills, agriculture, health and languages. Harking back to the tradition of monasteries and ashrams, schools interspersed training in practical life skills with academic education. As the time goes on within the overall context of decline of local economies, these went into decline and decay under colonial rule. Intentionally the policy was employed by the government to wipe out this community based schooling, and replace it with an alien model. In 1931, Gandhi alleged that today India is more illiterate than it was 50 or a 100 years ago (M.K.Gandhi 1931, Dharampal 2000). He also added that British administrators had à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.scratched the soil and begun to look at the root, and left the root like that and beautiful tree perished. Indigenous education was replaced by an alien and rootless, deliberately set up, as it was explained by Lord Macaulay (1835), to form a class who interprets between us and the millions we govern. Despite the transfer of power in 1947, Indian schools continued in the same mould. Some changes were introduced: the government expanded its reach and network of schools in both rural and urban areas and local vernacular languages were accepted as medium of instruction in these schools. Today we have vast network and number of government in our country and growing number of private run institutions. Yet, the basic format remained the unchanged, a large number of school today based on derivative and mechanistic model. They are designed to produce individuals who fit into modern society and its (Consumerist and competitive) Values, and are easy to govern since they learn to be highly disciplined within hierarchical, centrally administered institutions. Schooling thus, tends to reinforce social inequalities-Class, caste and gender. Affluent Children go to privately run schools, while poor attend schools run by the state because for poor access to private school has become the dream. Despite of Vital differences in facilities and funding, all these schools share a similar ethos. The ascent is on absorbing information rather on original thinking and imagination. The set up is centralised and bureaucratic, teachers distanced from students mostly merely doing a job, while school act as a delivery points for a set curriculum and content. Schools generate failures in large scale-contributing to crises of confidence at national level. Early Pioneers Alternative or the experimental learning to the educational system began to emerge as early as the late nineteenth and the early twentieth centurys. Some of these efforts really mark a significant change and their efforts are still visible. Social reformers began exploring alternative education by the late of nineteenth century. Swami Vivekananda, Dayanand Saraswati, Syed Ahmed Khan, Jyotiba Phule, Savitribai Phule and others promoted the idea of education as a force for social regeneration, and set up schools/institutions toward this end. Vivekananda and Dayanand Saraswati combined religious revitalisation with social service/ political work, through the Rama krishna Mission and Arya Samaj Schools respectively. Syed Ahmed Khan set up the Aligarh Muslim University (originally, Mohammadan Anglo Oriental College), with the goals of imparting modern education without compromising on Islamic Values. Jyotiba and Savitribai Phule were actively concerned with overcoming the social inequalit ies. They mainly work with the dalit children and girl schooling in Maharashtra. There were some Significant educationists emerges in half of the twentieth century included Rabindra Nath Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi, Jiddu Krishnamurthy, Gijubhai Badheka And Sri Aurobindo. By the mid of the 1920s and 1930s, these stalwarts had created the number of viable models of alternative learning, as a considered response to the ills of mainstream education. Some of the ideas were in alliance with the struggles for national Independence and the revitalisation of Indian society. The alternatives emphasised commitments, and reciprocal links between school and the society. Rabindranath Tagore pointed out several limitations of school set up by colonial authorities, in his writings Shikhar Her Fer (1893) and Shikhar Bahan (1915). As a child, Tagore had refused to attend School; he later wrote, What tortured me in my school days was the fact that the school has not the completeness of the world. It was a special arrangement for giving lessonsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦But children are in love wit h life, and it is their first love. All its colour and movement attract their eager attention. And are quite sure of our wisdom in stifling this love? We rob the child of his earth to teach him geography, of language to teach him grammarà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Child-Nature protest against such calamity with all its power of suffering, subdued at last into silence by punishment. (Tagore, in Chakravarty1961,pg 218; in Prasad2005, pg81). Tagore set up his own alternative to the prevailing educational system: Vishwa Bharati in Shantiniketan, Bengal. Classes here, were- and still are held in the lap of nature. Vishwa Bharati becomes a centre for excellence in art and aesthetics, creative activities and awareness of local as well as world cultures. Gandhis view resembles Tagores in the emphasis on contextually relevant education, mother tongue as the medium of instruction, and opposition to examination-oriented bookish reaching. He translated his vision into practice through a series of school, starting in Phoenix Farm and Tolstoy Farm in South Africa and continuing into schools set up in Champaran, Sabarmati, Wardha and many other parts of India. Gandhi developed Nai Taleem or Basic Education in which students devoting few hours daily to academic pursuits, and the rest of the day to the performance of Bread Labour that includes craft work, agriculture, cooking, cleaning and related tasks. His approach to education aimed at strengthening village life and communities. As early as 1917, When Gandhi began five small schools for peasants children in Champaran, then he said, The idea is to get hold of as many children as possible and give them an all round education, a good knowledge of hindi or urdu and through that medium, knowled ge of arithmetic, rudiments of history and geography, simple scientific principles and some industrial training. No cut and dried syllabus has yet been prepared because according to him I am going on a unbeaten track. I look upon you present system with horror and distrust. Instead of developing the moral and mental faculties of the little children it dwarfs them. Stage crafts, arts, sports and celebration of festivals from all religion were important parts of Nai taleem. In Nai Taleem there were no textbooks as such, but students were constantly encouraged to use library and can get the knowledge of diverse field. In the library education is not only the motive but exposure to different field or subjects are also required. Educationist Gijubhai Badheka emphasised on childrens need for an atmosphere nurturing independence and self-reliance. He gave this idea an institutional basis by establishing Bal Mandir in Gujarat in 1920, and in his writings, he identified the different facets of idea. Gijubhais Divaswapna (1990) is the fictitious story of a teacher who rejects the orthodox culture of education. This classic piece of writing by him yields rich insights into effective teaching, as it describes experiments in education undertaken by an inspires teacher in a ordinary village school. Gijubhai explains and clearly showed that how to teach history, geography, language and other subjects through stories and rhymes, in a way that appealed to children. He believed in arousing the childs curiosity in a thousand and one things ranging from insects to stars, rather than routine textbook teaching. Gijubhau wrote a number of books and booklets for parents, teachers, general readers and captivating stories and ve rses for children. J. Krishnamurti too thought of education in connection with the whole of life. It is not something isolated, leading to alienation. He looks closely at the process of learning in relation to human life. In the biography of Krishnamurti, pupul jayakar quotes him speaking of that period in his life some 75 years later.The boy had always said, I will do whatever you want. There was an element of subservience, obedience. The boy was vague, uncertain, and unclear; he didnt seem to care what was happening. He was like a vessel, with a large hole in it, whatever was put in, went through, nothing remained.( J. Krishnamurti: a biography. Arkana,1996). He noted that the teachers have a responsibility to ensure thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦when child leaves the school, he is well established in goodness both outwardly and inwardly. Krishnamurti set up two schools in the 1930s, Rajghat Besant School in Varanasi, UP and the Rishi Valley School in Andhra Pradesh, over the decades, the KFI (Krishnamurti Foun dation of India) has kept alive its commitment to meaningful education, expanding its network of schools to Chennai, Uttarkashi, Bangalore and Pune. Like Gijubhais and Gandhis schools, KFI has shown that alternative education can be made accessible to those from underprivileged backgrounds as well. Learning goals are individualised for each child, and teaching aids are carefully designed using cards, books, puppets, stories and local material. A visit to any of this school of Krishnamurti bring to his thought: Education is not just to pass examination, take a degree and a job, get married and settle down, but also to be able to listen to the birds, to see the sky, to see the extraordinary beauty of a tree, and the shape of hills, and to feel with them, to be really, directly in touch with them. Mainstreaming Alternatives Innovation of Alternatives Schools can spread to mainstream Education? Though it might seem fragmented and confusing, the landscape of alternative schooling is certainly fertile! From the range of schools discussed earlier, it is clear that there are people scattered across the different parts of the country, dreaming of a different kind of education, and many who are actually living out their dreams. Most of the experiments are small but fundamentally replicable. They reached out their target population in a meaningful ways to diverse children, from the different economic backgrounds and from diverse social settings. Several Experiments are clustered in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra with the sprinkling in other places including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bengal, Gujarat, Delhi, Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and others. It is instructive to remember that sometimes, there is no hard and fast line dividing the mainstream from the alternative. Even hardcore mainstream schools gradually adopt some elements of alternative learning in their pedagogy to teach the children. Lots of primary and nursery schools across the country have for instance have adopted the some elements of Montessori and play way methods, through which children enjoy the learning and grab the technique more quickly and efficiently. Widespread questioning has propelled even the government to usher in some improvements. Thus, non formal education campaigns links education to social awareness. The Bihar Education Project ( in partnership with UNICEF) has opened Charwaha Vidyalayas (for children grazing animals) and Angana paathshalas (courtyard schools for girls in remote areas). The Central governments Education Guarantee Scheme, and Alternative and Innovative Education Scheme employ flexible strategies for out of school children, incl uding bridge courses, back to school camps and residential camps for accelerated learning. In some of these, learning outcomes have proved to be of quite a high standard (Education for All 2005). Premier teacher training institutions such as the District Institutes for education and training (DIET) have incorporated a few creative, child centred pedagogies. The NCERT has devised a new, state of art curricular framework for school education. Yes all this is still a far cry from the realisation from the full blown alternatives. It is really sad to know that mainstream education still dominates the lives of the vast majority of Indian children. It mainly depends upon its philosophical foundation which rest on large scale, centralised, examination oriented teaching, with flexible daily schedules and rigid syllabi. In India they are many such examples which can be illustrated to a number of groups who were engaged in putting in their best efforts to bring about significant change in the field of education. They believe in their own work it does not matter to them that their effort was not in the large scale or that it was not visible to all people in the country. They think that if they or their work even influence the few young minds, they set us thinking about the enormous possibilities that would open up if the if local or national government support this changes. The government policy to set up a National Institute of Op en Schooling (NIOS) was found to be the most popular and significant step toward improvement in the field of education. Such a step opens the door to informal and individualised pace of learning, which was welcomed by most of the alternative schools. Indeed it was the first time when alternative learning was coming on their path of main stream professional education. With this government initiative to open NIOS has made possible the following: The opening of school for slow learners Inclusive education for the differently able along with normal children. Delinking of the methodology of a learning programme from the stringent requirements of the Board Examination. Addressing the different pace of learning. Giving a point of entry to the mainstream from an alternative paradigm. In Pedagogy of Hope, Freire writes, I do not understand human existence, and the struggle needed to improve it, apart from hope and dream'(Freire 1996). Keeping the hope alive is not easy. To even identify and explore existing alternatives-however they may be possibility of being imperfect and incomplete but still it is an exercise in hope. So today it is very necessary need to reach and stay close to mainsprings of alternative educational thinking-which nestles within the visions of wider transformative socio-political changes. These alternatives will continue to develop, expand and widen. We are required to shed the notion that There is No Alternative and instead, work toward bringing and actively increasingly cohesive, meaningful alternatives to the society. Why such Education is needed? According to Martha C. Nussbaum, she explains in one of her article that Public education is crucial ingredients for the health of democracy. Recently there are many initiatives has been taken around the world in the field of education, however they are mainly narrow down their focus on science and technology, neglecting the important subject such as arts and humanities. They also focus on the internalization of information, rather than on the formation of the students critical and imaginative capacities. The author demonstrated the live example which she has experienced in Bihar with the one of the Patna centred Non government organisation named Adithi. When they reached a place near to Nepalese border, they found very meagre facilities. Teaching is done mostly outside the classroom on the ground, or under the shade of barn. Students were suffering from basic facilities such as paper and only few slates were available that has to be passed hand to hand. However it was creative educa tion. Next she visited the girl literacy program, house in a shed next door. The daily schedule of girls were little busy as in the morning they went for herding of the goat, So there classes began around 4p.m. about 15 girls in total comes to this single classrooms age 6-15 years for three hours of after work learning. There are no desks, no chairs, no blackboard are available, and there is only few slates and bit of chalks but these problem does not stop girls from coming to the class and the passion of the teacher is also one of the major factor of this binding. The teacher is themselves among the poor rural women assisted by the Adithi program. . Proudly the girls brought in the goats that they had been able to buy from the savings account they have jointly established in their group. Mathematics is taught in part by focusing on such practical issues. Author thinks that there are many things to learn from given examples but few of them can be: first, the close linkage between education and critical thinking about ones social environment; second, the emphasis on the arts as central aspects of the educational experience; third, the intense passion and investment of the teachers, their delight in the progress and also the individuality of their students. Now the author elaborates model of education for democratic citizenship. According to her there are three types of capacities are essential to the cultivation of democratic citizenship in the todays world (Nussbaum, 1997). The First is a Capacity stressed by both Tagore and Jawaharlal Nehru. They emphasise on the capacity for critical examination of oneself and ones traditions, for living what we may follow Socrates; we may call the examined life. This capacity can only be obtain if we train one self, Training this capacity requires developing the capacity to reason logically, to test what one what he or she reads or says for consistency of reasoning, correctness of fact, and accuracy of judgment. Testing of this sort frequently creates new challenges to tradition, as Socrates knew well when he defended himself against the charge of corrupting the young But he defended his activity on the grounds that democracy needs citizens. Critical thinking is particularly crucial for good citize nship in a society that needs and required to come to grips with the presence of people who differ by ethnicity, caste, and religion. Then after she describes the second part of the her proposal Citizens who cultivate their capacity for effective democratic citizenship need, further, an ability to see themselves as not simply citizens of some local region or group, but also, and above all, as human beings bound to all other human beings by ties of recognition and concern. It is very essential that they have to understand both the differences that make understanding difficult between groups and nations and the shared human needs and interests that make understanding essential, if common problems are to be solved. This means learning quite a lot both about nations other than ones own and about the different groups that are part of ones own nation.This task includes showing students how and why different groups interpret evidence differently and construct different narratives. Even the best textbook will not succeed at this complex task unless it is presented together with a pedagogy that fosters critical thinking, the critical scrutiny of conflicting source materials, and active learning (learning by doing) about the difficulties of constructing a historical narrative. This brings me to the third part of my proposal. As the story of the dowry play in Bihar indicates, citizens cannot think well on the basis of factual knowledge alone. The third ability of the citizen, closely related to the first two, can be called the narrative imagination. This means the ability to think what it might be like to be in the shoes of a person different from oneself, to be an intelligent reader of that persons story, and to understand the emotions and wishes and desires that someone so placed might have. As Tagore wrote, we may become powerful by knowledge, but we attain fullness by sympathy à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ But we find that this education of sympathy is not only systematically igno red in schools, but it is severely repressed (Tagore, 1961, p. 219). Finally, the arts are great sources of joy and this joy carries over into the rest of a childs education. Amita Sens book about Tagore as choreographer, aptly entitled Joy in All Work, shows how all the regular education in Santiniketan, which enabled these students to perform very well in standard examinations, was infused with delight because of the way in which it was combined with dance and song. Children do not like to sit still all day; but they also do not know automatically how to express emotion with their bodies in dance. Tagores expressive, but also disciplined, dance regime was an essential source of creativity, thought, and freedom for all pupils, but particularly for women, whose bodies had been taught to be shame-ridden and inexpressive (Amita Sen, 1999). Story of a Bird A very beautiful story has been demonstrated by the author about the education that if there is no proper guidance is given to teacher towards the children, then it led to the severe damage to childs mind. According to her there is no more wonderful depiction of what is wrong with an education based on mere technical mastery and rote learning than Tagores sad story The Parrots Training. A certain Raja had a bird that he loved. He wanted to educate it, because he thought ignorance was a bad thing. His pundits convinced him that the bird must go to school. The first thing that had to be done was to give the bird a suitable edifice for his schooling: so they build a magnificent golden cage. The next thing was to get good textbooks. The pundits said, Textbooks can never be too many for our purpose. Scribes worked day and night to produce the requisite manuscripts. Then, teachers were employed. Somehow or other they got quite a lot of money for themselves and built themselves good houses. When the Raja visited the school, the teachers showed him the methods used to instruct the parrot. The method was so stupendous that the bird looked ridiculously unimportant in comparison. The Raja was satisfied that there was no flaw in the arrangements. As for any complaint from the bird itself, that simply could not be expected. Its throat was so completely choked with the leaves fro m the books that it could neither whistle nor whisper. The lessons continued. One day, the bird died. Nobody had the least idea how long ago this had happened. The Rajas nephews, who had been in charge of the education ministry, reported to the Raja: Sire, the birds education has been completed. Does it hop? he Raja enquired. Never! said the nephews. Does it fly? No. Bring me the bird, said the Raja. The bird was brought to him, guarded by the kotwal and the sepoys and the sowars. The Raja poked its body with his finger. Only its inner stuffing of book-leaves rustled. Outside the window, the murmur of the spring breeze amongst the newly budded Asoka leaves made the April morning wistful. (Tagore, 1994) This wonderful story hardly needs commentary. Its crucial point is that educationists tend to enjoy talking about themselves and their own activity, and to focus too little on the small tender children whose eagerness and curiosity should be the core of the educational endeavour. Tago re thought that children were usually more alive than adults, because they were less weighted down by habit. The task of education was to avoid killing off that curiosity, and then to build outward from it, in a spirit of respect for the childs freedom and individuality rather than one of hierarchical imposition of information. I do not agree with absolutely everything in Tagores educational ideal. For example, I am less anti-memorization than Tagore was. Memorization of fact can play a valuable and even a necessary role in giving pupils command over their own relationship to history and political argument. That is one reason why good textbooks are important, something that Tagore would have disputed. But about the large point I am utterly in agreement: education must begin with the mind of the child, and it must have the goal of increasing that minds freedom in its social environment, rather than killing it off.

The Cause and Effects of Terrorism

The Cause and Effects of Terrorism In this modern world, terrorism has become a hazardous threat to all the countries around the world as it will cause devastating casualties and economy impact in any of the countries. According to Krueger and Maleckova (2003), the term terrorism is defined as premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience. Terrorism is basically an act of the terrorists to convert a message such as ideological, religious or political object through violence or destruction. The more destructive it is, the more audiences they will have. Thus, terrorists will be greatly increased if they can influence people around the world to achieve the objectives or goals that the terrorists group has plotted. In addition, there are factors that made other people to join terrorism and the effects of it. While terrorism is still in active around the globe, what has causes this dreadful act that harm many people live and property and what are the reasons behind this Keet (2003) stated that one of the causes is formation of nationalist or separatist. He emphasize that colonized nations which made nationalist movement has a high chances to become a terrorism organization. Mahatma Ghandi was the only one who gets along with the freedom movement without using any violence act. Extreme nationalism, on the other hand, has set up or upholds language rights, religious belief and symbols. They persuade on a regional-ethic party and less accentuate on the political rights and privileges. Lawson (2001) too claimed that resistance against an oppressor is a contributing factor that will lead to terrorism. He remarked that the dominance of terrorists land and their people from any oppressor are apparent to have high chances of conducting terrorism. The IRA, the Basque separatist group ETA, the Pale stinians, the Tamil Tigers, the Chechens, and Iraqi insurgents are some of the examples of organization that used forces to fulfill their political goals (Lawson, 2001). Keet (2003) reviewed an important factor that is related to terrorism was social stratification and disproportion of division of limited resources such as food, water and clothing. In this study, lack of economic management has give a huge impact on civilian for their survive needs. Based on the studies shown in Keet (2003) 15% of the population for the poor countries consumes 85% of the overall resources. He stated that if those people cant get a satisfactory amount of resources they needed, they will use force or violence to get what they wanted in order to keep them alive. Thus, these circumstances have formed a new society or organization that will lead to terrorism. The contradictory of theory of disaffected intelligentsia, which is simple minded people that are lack of moral and social knowledge, were the ones that mislead the people (Keet, 2003). They are the reason that dehumanizes terrorists and, in this manner, they wanted to be heard, and acknowledge by the society or the world, that they have the equivalent of human rights. This indicates the inner reason of terrorism, decreeing from the point of its viewpoints, mindset, method of approach and the consequences as studied by Keet (2003). In addition to the dehumanization of terrorists, Keet (2003) claimed that religion is essential cause for the terrorism as it stressed on the Muslim extremists in the Middle East. The research showed that Islamic terrorism rejects the ideology of democracy and individualism, while Islamists dislike the concept of capitalism and believe in Caliphate (the idea of leading Muslim community in worldwide). People believed that the social issue was connected to the war is the religion and realm which indicates on different belief have a higher chance to engage in a battle than those share the same belief (Keet, 2003). Despite of the above, all religion accentuates that we must treat others as we are wished to be treated and killing is prohibited on most of the religious teaching. In 2004, Borum studied the behavior among terrorists and found out that most of them were perceived from injustice, wanted identity and unfortunately, they were the targeted victims of terrorism. Traumatize from the childhood abuse, they felt injustice as well as humiliated and as a result, they joined the terrorists group as they are the majority in the organization (Borum, 2004). People who search for their identity often trap by the terrorist organization in many ways as one of them is referred to identity foreclosure when the idea or mindset of a terrorist organization is being accepted without serious inspection (as cited in Borum, 2004, p. 25). They often accept the mindset as they couldnt take any more of the complexity and stressful world and they are usually classified as lifeless or monotonous person. Similarly, the studies based on Borum (2004) has emphasizes on the motivation of terrorists as a root to terrorism. Motive is defined as the passion or aspiration to get something done. The opportunity to get into action, the belonging needs, the wish to get acknowledge in society and the acquirement of material rewards are the motivations go get involve in terrorism (Borum, 2004). Moreover, Borum (2004) stated that the remedies of an injustice were the essential motivation for terrorism as it can help them to get their revenge back and the best motivation is to help others to avenge but not themselves. The need of belonging that was remarked earlier on has great impact on radical extremist groups as they felt connected and associated with the group. They were expelled and rejected from their society but the organization accepted them and they felt the warmth and kindness just like a family does (Borum, 2004). The causes on terrorism in this world are unavoidable indeed. On the other hand, the effects on terrorism as stated in Bennett and Bray (n.d.) are on tourism industry. After the incident on 9/11, the impact on world travel and tourism council has reported that over 10% of the travel and tourism demand on worldwide has decreased and consequently, 8.8 million people have lost their job in airlines, hotels, tour operators, car rental and credit card companies, thus it decreased 1.7% of total GDP for the world economy (Bennett and Bray, n.d.). With the attacks on the world trade centre, Bennett and Bray (n.d.) reviewed that international arrivals around the world in 2001 has greatly decrease which estimated 4 million that were less than the previous year and it was indicated clearly that people have the fear to take flights. Bennett and Bray (n.d.) stated that it was disastrous for the airlines companies as the passengers numbers were declining. Similarly, AFP (2010a) stated airports and other travel centers as well as tourist attractions across Europe have been heightened with security forces as al-Qaeda has linked with terror plot that targeted in London, Paris, Berlin and other European countries. On the other hand, AP (2010) mentioned on terrorism that was on the alert to those Americans living in or traveling to Europe. The economy around the globe has badly influenced from the act of terrorism. As Abadie and Gardeazabal (2007) reviewed that the capital stock, either in physical or human form, has greatly reduced after the act of terrorist in a country. In addition, the country itself needs to increase expenditures on counter-terrorism and in order to get the resources or capital; they need to obtain from their productive industries for the sake of the countrys security (Abadie Gardeazabal, 2007). The incident of September 11th terrorist attacks on US economy have affected the total production assets which decreased 0.06% of it. Walters, Sachsida and Sandler (2006) indicated the stocks in US direct investment has lower drastically after the terrorist assaults against US interest in OECD countries. Similarly, Persitz (n.d.) claimed that due to intense terror in Pakistan, the consumption and government-expense section increases while investment, exports, and imports of production decreases. In the market, people are devastated from terrorist acts as human tragedies happened most of the time. Because of fear, many people didnt want to take the risk to start a business as terrorism could strike anytime and anywhere and eventually it brings down the economy (Market, n.d.). Furthermore, the costs that cover the security purposes were a burden for most of the companies as they might decrease the price of the stock that will lead to disappointment from the stockholders. Market (n.d.) stated that resilience will occurred even if a terrorist attacks, the society will united together to overcome the catastrophe that changes the security system and become more secure and confident than before. For examples in the Kennedy assignation, the World Trade Center Bombing, and the Oklahoma City Bombing. Whats more about effect of the market is the human loss in a terrorist act is heartbreaking news for the victims loved ones. The loss of potential labor workers in a company suffered more hardship than losing profits (Market, n.d.). In 2007, Creekmore (2007) claimed that after the incident of September 11th, social conflict has been arising due to fear and horrified by the incident among citizens. After past few days of the incident, people were lined up around the gas station before gas prices rose two dollar a gallon. The governor of Mississippi took immediate action against local gas suppliers as they were found guilty on raising the gas prices (Creekmore, 2007). Eventually this has set off havoc between the local gas suppliers and customer in different states, and people were fighting for the gas. In addition, Creekmore (2007) mentioned about the rumors which were spread about the shortage of food due to the gas prices and soon everyone felt the state of panic. Media (2008) reviewed that the Internet has many useful functions for the terrorist, such as cyber-terrorism, coordination of plans of attack, communication with cells, or propaganda and information. Convenient, easy to use and access, much quicker to send precious information and inexpensive are the factors for terrorists to use the Internet. As the functions mentioned above, it brings huge impact on the media because the Internet act as a direct medium (Media, 2008). A Mexican-based terrorism organization, EZLN, also known as Zapatistas, has brought catastrophe to its country as it uses Internet to leak information throughout the world. Media (2008) has also remarked that Internet media offensive was started by al-Qaida that their message were translated into European languages and as a result, radicalization process is happening much faster, broader, more mysterious in the Internet era. Instead of having traditional weapons such as sword and spear, The Effects (2006) claimed that terrorists weaponry has stepped forward to a more advance technology, that is chemical and biological weapons. It was dated back then after Persian Gulf, thousands of US troops went home after the war has ended. Unfortunately, they have come across an illness which includes symptoms like chronic fatigue, severe joint pain and headaches, intestinal track problems, internal bleeding, and memory loss (The Effects, 2006). The veterans were then diagnosed with Gulf War Syndrome as a result of war. The Effects (2006) reviewed the terrorists have been doing many illegal activities such as counterfeit the document and statements as well as take apart the equipments and tear down important documents in order to conceal their production of biological weapons. AFP (2010b) remarked the Taliban militants have claimed two raids which around 60 trucks were torched and three people died in this incident. O n the other hand, Pakistani authorities have reported 24 attacks since September 3rd which have claimed more than 140 lives. Over the years, terrorism has caught international attention as it has destructive goals that would bring casualties and economical impact around the world. The research on terrorism was insufficient and the data is not fully complete yet. There are still many unknown causes that would lead to terrorism. However, as times goes by, the secrets behind terrorism will eventually reveal to the world and it must be eradicate as soon as win-win solutions are being discovered and implement into the society.

The Withered Arm by Thomas Hardy and Farthing House by Susan Hill :: Thomas Hardy Farthing House Hill essays

The Withered Arm by Thomas Hardy and Farthing House by Susan Hill I am going to be comparing two short stories; The withered arm by Thomas Hardy, which was written before 1900 and Farthing house by Susan Hill which was written more recently. The themes in each of the two stories are quite similar. They are both based around women, their needs and their wants and illegitimate children. Both stories have obvious similarities especially with the types of women in the story. 'The withered arm' was a story written before 1900. At the time when The Withered Arm was written, there was a very high child mortality rate. Babies died at an early age due to poor health care and repeated pregnancies. Many women died during childbirth. There were some forms of birth control but they were condemned by the church. Society believed that a woman's main purpose in life was marriage and motherhood. For many, this was not possible. There was a high mortality rate amongst male babies, early death amongst adult males and emigration among marriageable young men. There were hierarchies in society. Quite often, rich males would commit adultery with poor, working females. Once the woman got pregnant, she would be left on her own as marriage was not possible. Single mothers would then become outcasts in society. Generally, people knew what was happening. They were against sex outside marriage but they did nothing to stop it. Now in the 21st century, the roles of women have changed. They are no longer expected to just get married and have children. There is more equality in today's society. Although women still get married, they are also allowed a career and life of their own. They have more freedom and independence. There is better health care and birth control but sex outside marriage still continues. Today, there are many single mothers. Although they are no longer the outcasts they once were, they still have not been entirely accepted by everyone and are sometimes treated as inferiors and thought of as sluts. In the Withered Arm, Rhoda Brook, a poor, once beautiful, milkmaid was used by the rich farmer Lodge. After she became pregnant, she was tossed aside like some used toy. Lodge wanted nothing to do with her. He was rich, she was poor; there was no way they could marry. Rhoda had a child without a husband. Everyone in their village knew about the affair but did nothing to help. They knew that Rhoda had been used and then discarded of but still continued to treat her as an outcast in society. She was the thing to gossip about when there was nothing

Communication Patterns of Children During Conflict Essays -- Communica

As we grow up, we are socialized into the proper norms to be successful in society. The socialization process starts right from birth. Babies observe and try to mimic their parents and eventually their siblings or peers. Conflict is a part of life that children need to use to develop skills on resolving disagreements; conflict is not always bad. Peer conflict, however, can lead to aggressive behavior because of significant emotional and physical harm. Many youth lack the social skills needed to handle their aggravation. Peer conflict communicates joint disagreement or aggression between peers or peer groups. Peer conflict is characterized as conflict between people of equal or similar power also known as friends. These types of conflicts occur occasionally, are unplanned, and do not involve violence or result in serious harm. The instigating party of peer conflict does not want power or attention. However, peer conflict can snowball into violence. Those engaged in violence and hostility usually have similar emotional reactions; most demonstrate some remorse and dedication when trying to resolve the problem. Conflict resolution education can do well only if children actively share in communication, that is if they speak for themselves and socialize with both adults and other children. Baraldi and Iervese’s article Dialogic Mediation in Conflict Resolution Education validates that taking into consideration children as competent social agents allows healthier understanding of conflict resolutio n education (2010). The article also establishes that coordination linking adults and children enhances the dialogic mediation in circumstances of conflict that involves children. Conflict can block the ongoing communication process. On acc... ...nteraction before conflict and conflict resolution in pre†school boys with language impairment. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 41(4), 441-466. Doi:10.1080/13682820500292551 Randell, A. C., & Peterson, C. C. (2009). Affective Qualities of Sibling Disputes, Mothers' Conflict Attitudes, and Children's Theory of Mind Development. Social Development, 18(4), 857-874. Doi:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2008.00513.x Sidorowicz, K., & Hair, E. (2009, October). †¢assessing peer conflict and aggressive behaviors: a guide for out-of-school time program practitioners. Retrieved from http://www.childtrends.org/files/child_trends-2009_10_29_rb_assessingpeer.pdf Wallenfelsz, K. P., & Hample, D. (2010). The Role of Taking Conflict Personally in Imagined Interactions about Conflict. Southern Communication Journal, 75(5), 471-487. Doi:10.1080/10417940903006057

Process Safety Management in the Oil and Gas Industry

Abstract This paper provides a discussion of process safety management applied to the global oil and gas industry. The importance of maintaining regular risk assessments and environmental impact assessments has been indicated upon the completion of this research. The focus of the study is on integrating different management tools, such as EIA and HSE-MS, to evaluate the potential risks pertaining to development projects in the oil and gas industry. In addition, the report explores specific lessons learned from the defence industry, indicating that HSE management systems may be effectively applied to the oil and gas industry as well. Introduction The occurrence of various incidents and hazards occurring in the oil and gas industry is quite frequent, thereby necessitating the adoption of effective and reliable measures to mitigate such risks (Ovind and Sneve, 2004). It has been argued that Health, Safety and Environment Management Systems (HSE-MS) have a positive impact on the functioning of global oil and gas companies considering the high level of accuracy of assessments provided by this management tool (Bergh et al., 2014). The objective of the present report is to explore the feasibility of process safety management in the oil and gas industry. Process Safety Management in the Oil and Gas Industry Significant aspects can be learned in improving human factors in the oil and gas industry from industries, such as aviation, nuclear power and defence. However, the oil and gas industry demonstrates specific challenges that can make it difficult to apply design process and standards that have led to positive results in other industries (Ramirez et al., 2013). The development of various processes and standards has adhered to meet the needs emerging in the global oil and gas industry. Scientific research extensively focuses on the psychology of how irrationality and cognitive biases may lead to inadequate risk assessment and improper decision-making processes. Thus, the necessity to create practical and simple solutions is urgent than ever (Bergh et al., 2014). The introduction of Health, Safety and Environment Management Systems (HSE-MS) is important part of this process. Basic elements of HSE-MS include commitment to appropriate leadership practices, setting of clear goals and objectives, and undertaking strict risk evaluation and control procedures (Ash, 2010). When organisations in the oil and gas industry adhere to these aspects of their overall management, positive results can be expected in the long term. Communication among all divisions of organisations should be ensured in order to meet the expectations of all stakeholders in the industry. Management should provide commitment and personal involvement in health, safety and the environment as a whole (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). A proper expectation that could be indicated relates to setting a personal example of following major HSE rules. The decisions that could be made should consider aspects of quality, cost, morale, and production. In the process of introducing HSE principles in the oil and gas industry, it should be pointed out that allocation of resources should be done effectively in an attempt to carry out some of the most important functions of HSE. The development of local HSE policies should be in line with corporate objectives and standard as relating to the oil and gas industry (Ramirez et al., 2013). Setting objectives for continuous improvement should be the focal point of introducing such policies. All levels of management should be involved in similar processes to achieve optimal efficiency and productivity. In addition, certain objectives should be developed to mitigate risk within organisations operating in the oil and gas industry. The stage of risk evaluation and management should be consistently introduced in oil and gas companies in order to adhere to major HSE management guidelines that may contribute to decreasing the risk of incidents in this industry (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). This step i s associated with the establishment of a proper methodology that outlines acute and chronic hazards including their perceived effects. Moreover, it is important to conduct flexible hazard assessments at the design, development and operating stages. The application of risk management tools may significantly facilitate the process of achieving of the set policy objectives. It has been identified that an effective legislative programme requires three essential dimensions: powerful and well-resources regulations, setting accountability parameters to drive appropriate behaviours in the industry, and ensuring solid industry support (Berg et al., 2014). The globalisation of HSE issues for the oil and gas industry should be explored in order to demonstrate a process of setting high standards of performance in the field. In 2011, the European Commission released a series of legislative proposals to guarantee offshore safety (Ramirez et al., 2013). The focus on preserving the natural environment has been properly maintained. HSE policies are expected to cover oil spill and emergency response preparedness, quality assurance and management systems. The utmost goal of similar initiatives is to ensure a healthy and safe environment for employees in oil and gas companies as well as for residents of different countries (Ash, 2010). The conduct of particular operations from the oil and gas industry should be done with the consideration of strict professional standards for safety. In fact, the safety of employees should be taken into consideration as well as the environment and economic values. In general, oil and gas companies are committed to developing of proper systems for monitoring of their technical facilities and plants. The occurrence of various incidents in the industry, such as the Macondo incident, the US Department of the Interior undertook drastic measures in 2011 to mitigate risks in this sector (Haight, 2013). Two new agencies were created to monitor a series of operations and activities in the Gulf of Mexico, as these are the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and the Bureau of Offshore Energy Management (BOEM). In addition, the Department was responsible for issuing new and more effective regulations to address the specific roles and functioning of these two agencies (Bergh et al., 2014). Product specifications along with emission controls and climate change programmes have contributed to the development of proper and highly effective HSE systems. It can be suggested that these aspects can have a significant impact on the production and profitability of different products introduced by oil and gas companies. Moreover, there are certain environmental laws that require organisations that operate in this industry to restore all areas in which particular incidents or unauthorised release of various hazardous materials have taken place. It can be anticipated that HSE laws and regulations can have a rather positive impact on the operations of oil and gas companies (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). However, it may be challenging to indicate what would be the potential future effects of certain legislations adopted in the context of the global oil and gas industry. There may be risks associated with HSE costs and liabilities, which may be evident in the activities of global oil and gas companies. Thus, such organisations recognise the importance of implementing solid HSE standards and management tools to facilitate the accomplishment of certain outcomes (Ash, 2010). One of the legislative frameworks that provide substantial information on applying HSE standards in the oil and gas industry is the IADC HSE Case Guidelines. These guidelines â€Å"provide a framework for developing an integrate health, safety and environmental management system for use in reducing the risks associated with offshore and onshore drilling activities† (International Association of Drilling Contractors, 2014). The significant of the guidelines reflects in the adoption of high standards that can help in increasing global health, safety and environmental awareness in relation to the oil and gas industry. The worldwide acceptance of the guidelines in countries such as Australia, Canada, South Africa and Cuba implies their universal applicability to solve emerging challenges in the respective industry (Ash, 2010). The need to assist regulatory authorities around the world may contribute to the delivery of standards and principles that are closely tailored to correspon d to the needs of oil and gas companies. Emphasis is put on reassuring that the most proper industry practices have been implemented in terms of health, safety and environmental concerns. Lessons from the Nuclear Power of the Defence Industry Thus, the focus can be shifted to learning important lessons from the nuclear power of the defence industry. One of the crucial lessons learned so far is that of interaction considering that different legislations throughout the world may demonstrate the adoption of similar approaches to mitigate risks in the oil and gas industry (Bergh et al., 2014). Interaction emerging at all stages of the assessments is important to make sure that all needs of the stakeholders in the industry are met. Another lesson that can be learned from the defence industry and applied to the oil and gas industry relates to access to information. It is essential to understand that particular parts of the development projects may contain classified information (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). Such details may be significant in the process of carrying out the intended assessment procedures. Timing also is a valuable lesson that can be drawn from the defence industry in terms of focussing on all points during the proj ect planning stage. It should be initially noted that assessments involving EIA and HSE-MS tools serve as an adequate decision support system that should be available in a timely manner. Analysis of Human Failure Contribution to Process Risk In order to gain understanding of human reliability and accident causation, it is important to focus on various HSE management tools including HAZID, HEMP and HAZOP. One of the most powerful tools for the identification of major hazards and risks, which can be implemented in the global oil and gas industry, is HAZID (Ovind and Sneve, 2004). Its use is recommended to be done early to demonstrate greater precision and accuracy of results. The key benefits of HAZID include fast identification and correction of potential deviations, providing records of hazards to avoid and mitigate further risks in the global oil and gas industry (Rausand, 2013). The method actually represents a design-enabling tool used to enhance the HSE parameters in particular projects. Furthermore, the Hazards and Effects Management Process (HEMP) was designed to present a highly structured approach to analysing various hazards in the life cycle pertaining to installation processes in the industry. This method refers to a three-day session in which participants are provided with significant information on risk management and essential HEMP principles, including HEMP’s role in the HSE management systems (Bergh et al., 2014). The management tool identified as HAZOP has been also found useful in identifying and mitigating risks pertaining to the global oil and gas industry. The initial use of this instrument has been considered for the proper identification of hazards through flowsheets and diagrams. It also implements safety audit after several months of operation (Rausand, 2013). Specific procedures considered by oil and gas companies refer to determining the precise degree of hazard and expected change as well as a consideration of the worst case accident th at may occur as a result of the modification. In addition, the management tool requires the appointment of a competent, qualified person to comply with the strict requirements for HAZOP (Ramirez et al., 2013). Case Study of Operating Events at Commercial Nuclear Power Plants However, it is important to focus on the aspects of human failure contribution to process risk as applicable to various events that take place at power plants. The main tools that have been implemented to identify safety events, in which human failure contribution to process risk was investigated, refer to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Accident Sequence Precursor (ASP) Program and the Human Performance Events Database (HPED). Events in this case were selected on the basis of SPAR analyses that contributed to a proper estimation of human errors that eventually increased risks to the completion of these events (Rausand, 2013). In addition, different human error categories and subcategories have been identified to demonstrate greater accuracy of findings. The formation of categories took place in line with their frequency of occurrence (Gertman et al., 2001). Major categories included command, control, resource allocation, operator actions, communications, design deficiencies, design change testing, configuration management, as well as procedures of maintenance and monitoring of various work processes (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). It has been argued that human failure substantially contributed to process risk in relation to operating events. For instance, seven human errors have been identified to contribute to the emergence of numerous event failures in the identified power plants. Another challenge that has been observed in this case study referred to the lack of attention to recurrent problems (Ash, 2010). In fact, the lack of attention and care to recurrent problems was estimated in approximately 41% of the operating events (Gertman et al., 2001). Such inattention mostly related to improper NRC inspection findings, industry notices, and vendor notices. Operating with known design deficiencies also created certain problems at the commercial nuclear power plants. Human failure was evident in the inability or error to follow plant and industry trends as well as provide timely responses to industry notices (Ramirez et al., 2013). Active human errors were identified as quite problematic pertaining to command and control and resource allocation failures, amounting to almost 28%. For instance, it has been indicated that command and control between Oconee Unit 2 1992 and Keowee hydroelectric station turned out to compromise or challenge the response from the plant (Gertman et al., 2001). The tasks performed by Keowee staff seemed to have affected emergency power at Oconee without receiving proper notifications from control room management. This is a clear example of how human failure contributed to increased risks of operating events. In this relation, it is essential to separate human actions in pre-initiator categories and post-initiator categories (Rausand, 2013). Pre-initiator actions are recognised as actions that may affect the availability of systems and elements associated with the response to incidents. Such actions mostly include errors in restoring particular systems after maintenance procedures at the plants (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). Post-initiator human actions represent a type of responses to incidents occurring in the power plants, as they may be also recovery actions in terms of restoring certain failed systems. It can be suggested that latent human errors mostly suppose a direct relation with pre-initiator human actions, as they are further related to numerous failures in the system. Therefore, it can be concluded that the results obtained from this case study indicated that human performance contributed essentially to increasing risks in analysed operating events (Bergh et al., 2014). Human failures to correct known problems have been frequently identified along with errors made during design and maintenance activities at commercial nuclear power plants. Thus, the results of this case study demonstrate that multiple errors occurring in operating events contribute to the so-called probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) basic events which are evident in SPAR models (Gertman et al., 2001). Importance of EIA and HSE-MS In order to improve practice of the oil and gas industry, the introduction of HSE management systems should take place in line with the integration of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). It is essential to clarify that EIA is defined as a process by which a project’s impact on the environment is measured (Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, 2013). In case the likely effects are identified as unacceptable, professionals in the field are responsible for developing effective mitigation strategies to reduce such a perceived negative impact. Thus, EIA is a crucial tool used in managing the complex interrelations between development and the environment (Rausand, 2013). The examination of the environmental consequences of development actions is done in a structured manner based on multidisciplinary approaches applicable to the global oil and gas industry. The integration of EIA and HSE-MS tools may adequately facilitate the functioning of oil and gas com panies. The primary goal of these management tools is to ensure strict compliance with relevant legislations and standards in the field of operation (Bergh et al., 2014). It is of crucial importance that all HSE hazards are identified and handled in a timely manner. Their systemic assessment is a proper step towards ensuring that all criteria for adequate performance have been met. The integration of these assessments allows for accurate procedures implemented in the context of risk management for oil and gas companies worldwide. For instance, it may be indicated that various development projects that involve the use of radioactive material and nuclear fuel represent serious risks and hazards, which should be extensively assessed through the frameworks of EIA and HSE-MS (Abaza et al., 2004). Global oil and gas companies are held responsible for ensuring that all dimensions pertaining to human health, environment and security are thoroughly considered prior to the accomplishment of particular projects. Thus, importance is placed on risk assessment and environmental impact assessment of planned activities in the oil and gas industry (Rausand, 2013). As a result, such organisations are committed to improve their internal procedures that play a key role in conducting risk assessment and environmental impact assessment. In this context, a viable measure would be to screen all nuclear safety project proposals to ensure that such assessment procedures are done appropriately. Additional requirements for compliance may be specified by the authorities in particular countries in which oil and gas companies operate (Ash, 2010). International measures should be constantly improved in relation to the integration of EIA and HSE-MS measures (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). This aspect may lead to extensive support for initiating a co-ordinated international action to demonstrate high-quality environmental impact assessment and risk assessment pertaining to projects developed in the oil and gas industry. An overall risk assessment is fundamental in order to ensure that all development projects are completed in a cost-efficient and secure manner. These aspects should be considered in the process of setting certain priorities in the operation of oil and gas companies (Ramirez et al., 2013). Such thorough assessments may direct efforts to generate necessary funds for the completion of more urgent tasks in the industry. Conclusion In conclusion, this paper provided a relevant exploration of process safety management in the global oil and gas industry. Specific arguments have been introduced in order to emphasise the important role of HSE-MS tools, which combined with EIA, may contribute to greater efficiency and safety of work practices in oil and gas companies around the world (Rausand, 2013). The paper focuses on discussing the effectiveness of HSE management systems. In addition, human failure contribution was analysed as related to process risk evident at operating events in commercial nuclear power plants. Another aspect outlined in the report included the integration of EIA and HSE-MS tools that may lead to better recognition and maintenance of risks identified in the oil and gas industry (Bergh et al., 2014). In conclusion, providing accurate assessments is associated with the delivery of positive outcomes in this industry. References Abaza, H., Bisset, R. and Sadler, B. (2004). ‘Environmental Impact Assessment and Strategic Environmental Assessment: Towards an Integrated Approach’. UNEP [online]. Available at: http://www.unep.ch/etu/publications/textONUbr.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Ash, J. (2010). ‘New Nuclear Energy, Risk, and Justice: Regulatory Strategies for an Era of Limited Trust’. Politics & Policy, vol. 38(2): 255-284. Bergh, L. I., Hinna, S. and Leka, S. (2014). ‘Sustainable Business Practice in a Norwegian Oil and Gas Company’. Contemporary Occupational Health Psychology: Global Perspectives on Research and Practice, vol. 3: 198-217. Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government (2013). Guidelines for Planning Authorities and An Bord Pleanala on Carrying out Environmental Impact Assessment [online]. Available at: http://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/DevelopmentandHousing/Planning/FileDownLoad,32720,en.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Gertman, D. I., Hallbert, B. P., Parrish, M. W., Sattision, M. B., Brownson, D. and Tortorelli, J. P. (2001). ‘Review of Findings for Human Error Contribution to Risk in Operating Events’. NUREG [online]. Available at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/contract/cr6753/cr6753.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Haight, J. M. (2013). ‘Process Safety Regulations around the World’. Handbook of Loss Prevention Engineering, vol. 1&2: 463-499. International Association of Drilling Contractors (2014). IADC HSE Case Guidelines [online]. Available at: http://www.iadc.org/iadc-hse-case-guidelines/ [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Ovind, A. K. and Sneve, M. (2004). ‘Environmental Impact Assessment and Risk Assessment in Northwestern Russia-from a Norwegian Perspective’. IAEA Organisation [online]. Available at: http://www.iaea.org/OurWork/ST/NE/NEFW/CEG/documents/ws032004_Ovind.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Ramirez, P. A., Utne, I. B. and Haskins, C. (2013). ‘Application of Systems Engineering to Integrate Ageing Management into Maintenance Management of Oil and Gas Facilities’. Systems Engineering, vol. 16(3): 329-345. Rausand, M. (2013). Risk Assessment: Theory, Methods, and Applications. New York: Wiley. Zimolong, B. M. and Elke, G. (2006). ‘Occupational Health and Safety Management’. Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics: 671-707.

The Role of Activist Agences in Shaping the course of Women’s History

There is no doubt that activists and activist agencies have played a role in shaping the history of women, and a large amount of the historiography of women's history has given excessive attention to the role of activists. Popular history tends to take a Rankeian view of events, focussing instead on the role of the individual, rather than the deeper underlying social, political and economic causes of history. The traditional Liberal view of the struggle to obtain the franchise is that the suffragettes, via their militant tactics and under the leadership of the Pankhursts ensured that women were granted the vote, and that this solved all the injustices between the sexes. This simplistic view of events however ignores the wider changes that were taking place in the economy and society, as well as placing a larger emphasis on certain activists, rather than looking at the broader picture. The militant activities of the suffragettes were never sufficient enough to frighten the government or the wider public into extending the franchise to women, their acts of violence towards property were often small scale and petty. It also ignores the role of the suffragists led by Millicent Fawcett, who were far more significant in obtaining the vote for women, for they were the ones who reasoned rather than fought with men and showed that women could deal with political matters. Activists continued to use similar tactics in the 1970s to demand changes in the law, such as free nursery places (as removed from local councils responsibilities under the 1980 Education Act) and better maternity benefits. The real changes came about however, not due to the prominent high profile activists, but to the grass roots campaign where women won seats on town and city councils. Historians can often look for the big story to write about, sometimes however the big story is made up of lots of little ones. Women's position in the economy changed prior to the war as well. Industrialisation brought about the end of small scale family run workshops and there has been a transition to large workshops. The sexual division of labour in mills and factories was seen as a natural occurrence and women did not object to being paid less and exploited more than male workers. Trade unions did not favour equal roles in industry for women out of the fear that it would take men's jobs from them. The benefits in industry that women gained during WWI were temporary, and as soon as men returned from the war women were forced back out of their jobs. One view of the effects of WWI is that giving the vote to women was a reward for their hard work during the war, in the munitions and armaments factories. At the same period as activists had allegedly gained a better position for women via the vote, laws such as the Restoration of Pre-war Practices Act (1919) which enacted the agreements between the government and trade unions that women's war work was only temporary. Various activist agencies organised resistance to this, however they proved futile. The changing role of women economically in the latter part of the c20 was not due to activists but due to the wider structural changes the war effected on the country by World War 2. Following the Second World War the changing nature of commerce in the UK made it uneconomical to prevent women from working and by 1947 there were more women workers than in 1939 (Bruley). The deindustrialisation of the UK between 1979-1990 saw a large increase in the numbers of women in employment. Margaret Thatcher's economic reforms created huge unemployment, although when employment levels started to recede, women were back into employment quicker than men. This was due to skilled secondary industry jobs being replaced with low skilled tertiary jobs which could get away with paying women less and reducing employees rights due to the reforms Thatcher introduced. In 1990 60% of low paid full time workers were women and Carole Buswell found that in the same year large proportions of women were earning less than the EU recommended minimum wage in tertiary industries, even in jobs such as banking and insurance 40% of the workers fitted this category. This is because even in well paid jobs, such as banking and insuarance, women were restricted from progressing high up the career ladder by having to take maternity leave to bring up children, if they were even considered for promotion in the first place as many of these companies were strongly male dominated. The Women's self image has changed a great deal since the beginning of the c20, when women saw themselves primarily as mothers and wives, though in working class environments this attitude persisted for a lot longer than in wealthier and better educated social groups. Sue Sharpe found in her 1976 book â€Å"Just like a girl† that working class girls in Ealing in the 70's still expected to marry a husband who would take care of them financially and that they would be responsible for childrearing. Women's level of deference has decreased greatly from the beginning of the century when they were almost voiceless, to the present day where girls have become at least as vocal as men, if not more. Deep running social trends such as this cannot be changed over night by activists and this lack of change in the working classes could be interpreted as evidence that women's liberation movements have largely been for and by the white middle classes Many women in the 1970s though who had started to redefine their own roles started to live in new ways, such as communally with other women. A large amount of feminist activists adopted Marxist ideology and blamed the oppression of women on the capitalist exploitation of women as a labour force as well as for the unpaid labour they do domestically. In the 1980s, with its ethos of the individual, women started to appear slowly in positions of power, however their high profile was due to their unusualness. However many women were shocked and against this attitude and the 80s saw many women reject the materialist society and take up campaigns against issues like nuclear disarmament such as the women at Greenham Common. Activists continued to play a role through the 70's and 80s although as in previous times they were often the central figureheads of larger movements based on mass upheavals. As the UK became an increasingly egalitarian society into the 1960s due to the increasing levels of education and the secularisation of society, women started to realise that the restrictions on career options were chiefly the traditional roles of women and a lack of education. Large amounts of feminists were students and so they had the opportunities to study the past and see the oppression that women had faced and also how little women appeared in history. The Crowther Report (1959) released middle class grammar school girls from the â€Å"domestic† curriculum, opening the door to many more job opportunities. However women were still restricted in the workplace by having to be responsible for rearing children as well as attempting to have a career. Viola Klien argued in â€Å"Women's two roles† (1956) that modern societies were unable to afford to not have women working, this capitalised on fears that the UK would fall economically behind the USSR where nearly all women worked. Although activists led the women's liberation movement and campaigned against articles such as Miss World and unequal pay, mainly the reforms came from elsewhere. Equal pay was finally made a reality when the Fawcett Society (a group of feminists) took the government to the EU court to enforce the Equal Value Amendment. How much has changed for women in the last 100 years is debateable. Certainly there have been many legal improvements and women are no longer the second class citizens they were at the beginning of the century. However according to some feminists, women are still oppressed by society as whole, being expected to take care of children and do housework as well as to have a job. Opponents to this argue that women are the natural carers of children and that there are no real obstacles in the way for women to have both a job and family if the women works hard enough and balances her time. This group of opponents is not exclusively male. Both Thatcher and Queen Victoria were against women's rights, Thatcher's attitude being that â€Å"well I made it so why can't they? † and latter believing in the traditional division of the sexes based upon religion and tradition. Men still continue to run the top jobs, with Angela Coyle finding in 1988 that at the very top of companies women made up only 5%. Until 1997 the maximum proportion of women MPs had been approximately 10%. This number was only increased in the 1997 election when Tony Blair supported positive discrimination by adopting an â€Å"Emily's List† policy. This meant that in safe seats women be put forward as candidates, the result was >100 women MPs, however this policy was later declared illegal. As women are still expected to take care of children, maternity leave and career breaks for the bringing up of children harm their promotion prospects, resulting in a â€Å"glass ceiling† that often needs the sacrifice of family life in order to break through. Although women appeared to become visible in the media, this is often because the ones who did make it to the top were so unusual that they were worthy of media interest. Solutions to the problem are hard, some feminists argue that the only way the position of women will change is if men think differently too, however this is idealistic to say the least. Bruley reaches the conclusion that women are still disadvantaged because although women now have the franchise and careers, they still have to bear the brunt of childbearing, caring and networking.