Prayer By Thomas Keating, Contemplative Prayer - 1515 Words

Introduction According to Thomas Keating, â€Å"Contemplative prayer is a conversation initiated by God and leading, if we consent to a divine union. It is the way to pure faith.† Unlike with vocal prayers, in which we call out to God asking for things we need, with contemplative prayer our role is to allow God to be God. In other words, God directs Contemplative prayer, His grace opens our hearts and minds to the His presence inside us. Consequently, contemplative prayer begins with a centering prayer, which is a silent prayer that prepares us to receive the gift of contemplative prayer. Keating noted that, â€Å"Centering prayer is an effort to renew the teaching of the Christian tradition of contemplative prayer.† Similar to other methods of prayer, the foundation of centering prayer is the Triune God. Keating noted that, â€Å"The practice is based on the wisdom saying of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount.† The scripture reads, â€Å"But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you† (Matt. 6:6). Practicing contemplative prayer will strengthen our spiritual commitment and enrich our personal lives. I will discuss the origin, methods and benefits of contemplative prayer. Origin of Contemplative Prayer For centuries, the definition for contemplation evolved. According to Keating, â€Å"Gnosis was used by St. Paul in the Epistles to represent the knowledge of God proper to those who

Wireless Networking Communication Management-Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Wireless Networking Communication Management? Answer: Introducation IT is commonly known as Yagi Antenna and it is an antenna of directional type. Yagi antenna has multiple parallel elements in a particular line (Yin et al., 2013). It has mainly three part, a reflector element, some directors. The reflector element has a longer size than the driven dipole and the directors have a smaller size. For this kind of design it has higher gain and better directivity. Strengths It has a higher directivity. It has lower power consumption. It has a low maintenance cost. This type of antenna has a larger frequency range. It can achieve very high magnitude of gain. Weakness It has a limited bandwidth and frequency level. Noise and environmental changes can affect the Yagi antenna. Applications The Yagi antenna is mainly used to achieve high value of gain and directivity. It is used in case of frequency modulation for narrow band region. Horn Antennas Horn antennas are also well known as the microwave antennas (Yang Marzetta, 2013). It has given this type of name as it is consisted of a flaring metal waveguide that has a shape like horn. It functions over a frequency range of 300 MHz. The main advantage of the Applications It is used mainly in case of speed enforcement cameras and also it is used in small distance radars (Yin et al., 2013). Cellular antenna Cellular antennas are those which are mainly used in the mobile phones and the cell phones (Inui et al., 2015). Cellular antennas are useful in case of long distance communication. Strengths The cellular antennas are used for the communication along very long distances and it is approximately 45 miles. The capacity of data transfer is very high. It can achieve the connection among any places among the globe. Weakness The main issue regarding the cellular antenna is the connection problem. The size of this type antenna is very big. The number of antennas in every base station has increased value. Applications Cellular antennas are used in mobile phones. It is also used for long distance communication. These antennas are used in the cellular base stations. Selection of antenna type for medium and long distance In case of long distance communication cellular antennas are used in a wide range. In case of global communication this type of antennas are used (Sarkar, Srivastava Saurav, 2014). This type of antenna has a very suitable value of bandwidth and gain. Comparison and contrast of FDMA and CDMA CDMA refers to code division multiple accesses and it is a method that has the access of different channels and it is a blend of several radio communications (Lo Lee, 2013). It is created by spreading the codes using orthogonal codes. It is a suitable example of multiple accesses. FDMA refers to Frequency Division Multiple Access and it is a method that utilises the channel for accessing and it also acts as a channelization protocol (Yang Marzetta, 2013). It provides the users several bands of frequency and is mainly used in satellite communication. CDMA FDMA It has no absolute limit of channel capacity. Cell capacity is limited. It distributes orthogonal codes in the main channel. In case of FDMA the frequency band is consisted of several disjoint sub bands. All terminals can act simultaneously. Individual frequency level is present in every terminal of FDMA. It is flexible and needs less frequency planning and soft handover. It is simple, established and robust. The transmission is simultaneous in nature and each user uses different band of frequencies. When the channel is inactive, it is also inactive. Most recent advanced wireless technologies RFID or Radio Frequency Identification detector is used to keep track of several objects (Han et al., 2015). The RFID acts on the principle of radio frequency which has a range of 134 KHz and for high frequency RFID systems; the value is almost 13.56 MHz Strength RFID is very useful in case of using in inventory management system. RFID is very helpful in case of tracking vehicles. RFID is used in automated tracking system and more advantageous in case of logistical tracking. Weakness The range of RFID is limited and it is not more than 100m. As RFID is a very new technology, people should be aware about it and should have proper knowledge about RFID. Best type of Antenna for future applications Antennas take an important role in wireless communication. Antennas are of different kinds and different types which are already discussed above (Ding et al., 2015). According to the types of antennas the applications are also different in nature. In future the main field of communication will be based on long distances and faster response (Aouani et al., 2014). In that case the cellular antennas will be most effective in terms of gain, bandwidth and directivity. References Aouani, H., Rahmani, M., Navarro-Ca, M., Maier, S. A. (2014). Third-harmonic-upconversion enhancement from a single semiconductor nanoparticle coupled to a plasmonic antenna. Nature nanotechnology, 9(4), 290-294. Ding, Z., Zhong, C., Ng, D. W. K., Peng, M., Suraweera, H. A., Schober, R., Poor, H. V. (2015). Application of smart antenna technologies in simultaneous wireless information and power transfer. IEEE Communications Magazine, 53(4), 86-93. Han, S., Chih-Lin, I., Xu, Z., Rowell, C. (2015). Large-scale antenna systems with hybrid analog and digital beamforming for millimeter wave 5G. IEEE Communications Magazine, 53(1), 186-194. Inui, T., Koga, H., Nogi, M., Komoda, N., Suganuma, K. (2015). A miniaturized flexible antenna printed on a high dielectric constant nanopaper composite. Advanced Materials, 27(6), 1112-1116. Lo, Y. T., Lee, S. W. (2013). Antenna Handbook: theory, applications, and design. Springer Science Business Media. Sarkar, D., Srivastava, K. V., Saurav, K. (2014). A compact microstrip-fed triple band-notched UWB monopole antenna. IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, 13, 396-399. Yang, H., Marzetta, T. L. (2013). Performance of conjugate and zero-forcing beamforming in large-scale antenna systems. IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications, 31(2), 172-179. Yin, H., Gesbert, D., Filippou, M., Liu, Y. (2013). A coordinated approach to channel estimation in large-scale multiple-antenna systems. IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications, 31(2), 264-273.

Large-Scale Change at Wssc free essay sample

This was the alert that the company needed to change immediately. In October of 1999, John Griffin was hired as the new WSSC’s new general manager in order to implement the appropriate changes the organization needed. Griffin was the first outsider manager in the company for very long time and he had to find a way to lead the change, overcome resistance and earn credibility and support of the employees. Every change made in an organization lurks some risks that every manager has to be prepared to face. A change may cause resistance and panic around the organization. People tend to fear change, and employees may be reluctant to see their familiar processes and software programs thrown out. In situations of change, employees tend to move from their ‘comfort zone’, where they feel secure confident and in control of their lives and work, to the ‘no zone’ that they become paralyzed at news of the change of their work, they are affected and performing bad because of the sock and then they move to the ‘gap zone’, where they are trying to find ways to react. We will write a custom essay sample on Large-Scale Change at Wssc or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The challenge for the manager who is implementing the change is to move the employees to the ‘go zone’, where everyone is going ahead the change. There are many ways to combat resistance to change. One way is to ensure that employees see that the management is completely committed to ensuring the change occurs. Second, it is important for the change vision to be communicated clearly to all employees so that everybody understands what to expect. Part of why people resist change is the fear of the unknown. Furthermore, scope creep is a risk of every project. This risk involves the scope of the project becoming larger over time. This is especially a threat in change management situations. After a period of time when many people interfere, the scope of the report change has widened so broadly as to require things like a clip art image of a giraffe on the fourth page and a coffee stain on the back. In order to avoid scope creep in change management, it is vital that the scope of the change be explicitly stated and communicated to all whom the change affects. Griffin had to come up with the right ways to implement changes in a high-urgency situation. The time was pressing and the employees were separated between enthusiasm and resistance, while he was a totally brand new person in the organization. In order to gain the trust of the employees and credibility he used high communication levels in order to approach a low disruptive approach through the mobilize phase and gradually he proceeded to movement and sustain phase. To be more accurate he tried to create an in person open and honest communication around the organization. He tried to explain what exactly the issues were without trying to hide the truth or creating confusion about his goals; his purpose was just to make the company competitive and efficient and not just compared to other government agencies but also to the private own industry . The next step was to create the strategic business plan and so he did. The strategic plan was ranging from business strategy to individual growth and development. The change plan as WSSC managers believed required both personal and corporate transformation and needed to implement through a value-driven culture. First step was the Competitive Action Program (CAP) by creating a steering committee consisting of 12-15 member of a cross section of work functions and hierarchical levels whose task was to review and approve for implementation best-in-class practices in the industry. Although most of the goals were encompassed in CAP other aspects, such as an effort to increase management diversity to better represent the customer base served by the organization, had to be changed to support these efforts. Another step that Griffin preceded was binding a fiscal plan committing to freeze rates for the next five years and to reach external shareholders and gain their support. On the way to change and in order for the company to be more cost efficient and culture reorganization was needed. Actually between 1996 and 2002 there was a 30% reduction in personnel when CAP identified the competitive gap but also by offering the incentive of early retirement. In the effort of the WSSC to reduce costs beside the cut of the number of the employees also the staffing levels were reduced. This means that they decided to have less staff at night because usually at the night the consumption and the emergencies are low regarding that their clients sleep and do not need to consume at these hours. Furthermore several groups of managers were sent to a local training facility to participate in team building and leadership programs. Griffin tried also to motivate his staff using direct discussions about their problems and concerns and empowering the vital side of their existence inside the organization. Team-base incentive system was also implemented. Team performance incentives were accompanied by 360-degree evaluations with great emphasis on continuous improvement and goal transparency. Another major staff development was the grouping of teams that assigned a responsible party to a project from start to finish and the successful new customer care programs. A customer care newsletter called ‘Connections’ to spread information internally while externally WSSC hosted fairs and educational programs for the communities. To go even further, a major innovation and step towards change was the creation of the flexible worker program. Employees were receiving additional compensation through diversifying their skills and on the other hand this cross training helped the company to maximize the skills and availability of its workers overcoming the previous needs for the help of experts. The union was consulted and briefed at any significant stage, especially when setting the flexible-worker steps and compensation grades creating even more friendly and warm atmosphere inside the organization. Finally, the Entrepreneurial team was searching for new opportunities of making profits such as selling specialized laboratory services to the government (for example in the army) and the private sector. The decision of the change of WSSC eliminated many risks and dangers if we consider that there was a division between the employees. Half of the working labor was enthusiastic about the changes but the rest of them were strongly resisting. After evaluating the company’s outcomes between 199-2002 we can realize the great importance of the restructuring plan. WSSC was a company with many disappointed customers because of the unstable pricing policy, dissatisfied government owners because on the budget conflicts and due to the unprofessional behavior of the whole company towards competition. Baring in mind that the consultants found after research that the gap between WSSC’s efficiency and that of the best-in-class private companies was 21% and after the changes implemented was dropped to3. 5% there is no space for doubting about the change plan. The work labor of the company was more skilled and efficient, the services and the price policy were more competitive the costs were significantly reduced and all leaded the company to a better business perspective. The company also through these changes managed to create strong relationships between its consumers and its business partners. The outcome of a well established change plan as that of WSSC company and John Griffin is beyond any further questioning. Every step of the change was carefully thought and smoothly implemented and that was the major reason of its success. Now WWSC and John Griffin have to face a new challenge. Is it healthy for an organization to go through so many changes in such a short period of time? Is there any space for further improvement? That is the main question. The entrepreneurial team and its manager John McLeod are looking to find new opportunities in order to increase revenues. The expansion of the core business of the company on outside activities such as selling specialized laboratory services to local country and to the private sector. Moreover, the company was considering providing the local military bases with water and sewer services. One more opportunity in the horizon is the option of WSSC partnering with community businesses and industry in order to reduce costs even more. The expansion of WSSC in more activities can lead the company to a greater success. It is very possible for the company to manage with further changes to be more competitive, increase its revenues and its market share and in the meanwhile create new challenges for its employees. The new opportunities can create better personal development chances for the employees and can work as motivation for personal improvement. It is wise to keep in mind that the company’s environment after the first changes has completely changed. WSSC’s work labor is now more skilled, ambitious and willing to work and develop through the company’s hierarchy.

What is Modernity essays

What is Modernity essays The 17th century was a horrible age of wars and it was during this time period that the 30 Years War took place. Religion also played a large part in modernity. It was starting to separate from the government at this time, and at the same time, the rise of scientific knowledge began. The 18th century is where things really started to take off and is really the beginning of modernity as we know it. Civilization went from horses and carriages in the early 1700s to steam engines by the 1780s. Also, in the early 1700s, art was more neoclassical and governed by the aristocracy, whereas by the late 18th century, art had turned more towards the middle class and romanticism. The 18th century is where modern culture begins with a movement aptly named the Enlightenment. With the Enlightenment came a new use of thought, a more humanistic way of thought. Also with the Enlightenment came the rise of science. Throughout the lifetime of man, we as humans have always been searching for the solid foundation of what our existence is built on. This search became even more important with the new, enlightened form of thinking. Overall there are five parts of the Enlightenment: empiricism, utilitarianism, self-interest, reason, and universalism. Empiricism is knowledge based on the scientific approach. It is always looking for answers through a series of laid out questions. It is very inductive, and after this knowledge of thought has been used, it generally decreases ones spirituality. All the person is seeking out is the proven facts. Utilitarianism is reality based on the greatest good for the greatest number. When searching for the truth, we should find the truth with the most good. John Locke is seen as being a person of utilitarian thought. Self-Interest is a large part of the Enlightenment, mainly due to the book published by Adam Smith in 1776 entitled The Wealth of Nations. This book p...

Discuss the effects of hazardous materials on the fire service Essay

Discuss the effects of hazardous materials on the fire service - Essay Example They are produced due to incidents in plants or other such activities. There are a large number of hazardous materials that are used as chemicals in various walks of life such as in agriculture or cultivation of land. These chemicals get dissolved in the soil and contaminate the water sources as well as compromise the hygiene. The waste from the industries is also a main source of increasing amount of hazardous materials in the environment. These wastes are discharged in rivers, seas, and oceans hence polluting the water sources as well as the aquatic life. In order to understand the effect of hazardous material we must take into considerations the main causes of these hazards, the ways in which they can affect the human body, the precautions that must be taken in order to perform a safe rescue operation during fire service and also the handling of the situation from the beginning to the end with correct decisions and safety as the prime concern. Contamination is simply defined as the contact of a hazardous material with the clothes or some part of a body such as hair, skin e.t.c. while exposure happens when a hazardous material enters a human body through respiration or other means or is in direct contact with human body. To avoid these issues fire service men are provided an apparatus and special kind of clothing that resists exposure as well as contamination. Exposure can happen without contamination however in certain case contamination usually results in exposure unless only the clothing is affected by the hazardous material. For example many gases can enter a human body without coming in contact with the parts of the body or the clothing through the process of respiration or breathing. The human skin has an ability to absorb certain substances which it comes in contact with. But this depends upon certain conditions namely the time for which the substance comes in contact with the skin. If a hazardous material comes

9.2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

9.2 - Essay Example Apart from this lack of orderliness, other mistakes can be easily corrected and then the work written to make a more cohesive and coherent document. Such an action of rearrangement will entail subdividing the paper into sections with clear subheadings. The focus of this paper is on why need-based scholarships should replace merit-based scholarships. Although this should be a thesis based argument or paper, what appears to be the thesis is unfortunately found in the third paragraph. It claims that the need-based scholarships will increase access to education for students from low income and minority families which will eventually increase the gap between the rich and poor. Apart from the heading that gives a hint of what the paper is about, it is not until the third paragraph that one starts to get an idea of what the paper is talking about. There are no sections and what the paper does is to provide reasons that support the thesis without giving clear indications on what perspective the reasons are based. The subject matter of the paper has been explained thoroughly through supportive ideas but it has not been subdivided into sections. In terms of argument, the article has adopted argument by authority whereby it closely follows ideas of others although in many instances it fails to quote the originators of the ideas. Many of the arguments are well thought and logical which make the overall reasoning of the paper very strong. As such, there are no hasty generalizations and supporting ideas are well balanced and thought out. Generally, the introduction and conclusion have not been well done. The introduction lacks the thesis statement owing to the fact that the first paragraph is always considered the introductory paragraph where the thesis is usually located. On the part of the conclusion, there is no special technique applied and it should have summarized the main points of the paper besides re-stating the

Study of Integrated Science Essay Example for Free

Study of Integrated Science Essay The importance of science in today’s world is overwhelming and therefore the education system throughout the world has geared itself to provide the required training in scientific skills to meet this growing challenge. Many countries have transformed themselves from poor feudal type economies through the increasing application of science and technology. China and India are two outstanding examples as they have grown to become economic and industrial power houses and in several ways compete effectively with developed countries. Any country which does not give the needed assistance to the study of science usually lacks development. Through science, bridges are constructed, vehicles manufactured, roads constructed and knowledge expanded. In spite of the relevance of science mentioned above, the pupils of Mampamhwe M/A JHS 2 have difficulty in studying and understanding science. The three aspects of pure science and one applied science (Agricultural science) have been combined to form the basis for the study of science at the junior high school. Collectively, they are known as integrated science. During the end-of-term examination, less than 40% of the thirty five (35) pupils in the class barely get above the average mark of fifty (50) in integrated science. The pupils mentality that, integrated science is difficult and poor methods of teaching can be counted as factors that have facilitated the poor performance of the pupils in the subject. Not using the scientific method of solving problems in the teaching of scientific problems and solving practical questions raises an eyebrow on how pupils can grasp the concepts of the subject. With pupils living in a community which major occupation is farming (cocoa to be precise) and pupils themselves engaging in farming activities, it would have served as a good ground for the application of agricultural science and biology which forms part of integrated science. But this seems not to be the case with the pupils. With the relevance of the study of science to the improvement of the pupils’ mind and life and also to the community as a farming one, prompted the researcher to study and investigate ways of improving the study of integrated science at JHS 2. Statement of the problem The problem which prompted the researcher to carry out this research is the poor performance of pupils in integrated science among the JHS 2 pupils of Mampamhwe M/A. It is therefore against this background that the researcher has decided to use the experiential approach to help solve this problem. Purpose of the study The reason why the researcher is carrying out this research is to: a) Identify the causes of the poor performance of pupils of Mampamhwe M/A JHS 2 in integrated science. b) Assess the effects of the poor performance in integrated science on the pupils. ) Establish possible solutions that can help solve the poor performance in integrated science. d) Provide teachers with some guidelines in improving the teaching and studying of integrated science. e) Help parents understand the conditions that they can put in place to help their wards improve their performance in integrated science. f) Provide suggestions to managers of education in Ghana when planning the syllabus. Rese arch questions Research questions for this study include the following: i) What difficulties do pupils of Mampamhwe M/A JHS 2 face in the study of integrated science? i) What are the major causes of the poor performance of the pupils in integrated science? iii) What are the appropriate interventions that can be taken to address the problem? iv) What is the effect of the project on the problem? Significance of the study This research will help pupils to recognize effective ways of learning integrated science which can bring about an improved performance in the subject. It will also help teachers of integrated science to vary their techniques or methods of teaching and choose methods according to the nature of the topic. Last but not least, it will also enable curriculum planners to include this practical work in the JHS science syllabus so that pupils at the junior high schools can make use of it. Delimitations This project work is limited to improving the performance of integrated science among only JHS 2 pupils of Mampamhwe M/A. This is because that is the class that the researcher was assigned to teach and has fair knowledge of their learning abilities. Also, out of all the subjects on the JHS 2 timetable, the researcher chose to carry out his research on only integrated science since it’s the subject assigned to him to teach. Last but not least, there were many approaches that could have been used for this study but the researcher deemed it best to use the experiential approach Organization of the study The research work is organized in five main chapters. Chapter one is titled ‘Introduction’ and it comprises the background to the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, research questions, significance of the study, delimitations, limitations and organization of the study. Chapter two is the review of related literature. It consists of the ideas and views of other writers, internet and other sources. Chapter three discusses the methodology which includes the research design, population and sample selection, research instrument, data collection procedure and data analysis plan. Chapter four considers the analysis of data based on the findings and discussions of the findings. The last chapter summarizes, concludes and also makes recommendation after the study.   Literature review Review of related literature in this chapter involves the systematic identification, location and analysis of documents containing information related to the research problem. It is designed to review works on the importance of the study of science in the basic school. The knowledge gained through the study of science plays an important role in the general education of the school curriculum, therefore, a large number of studies pertaining to the teaching and learning of science by many educationist and writers. This chapter considers the contributions of other researchers and their proposal suggestions for correcting these difficulties. The contributions are placed under the following headings in this chapter. Definitions of science. What is integrated science? Importance of science. Importance of science education as a school subject. Causes of poor performance of pupils in integrated science. Experiential method of teaching. Definitions of science According to Websters New Collegiate Dictionary, the definition of science is Knowledge attained through study or practice, or Knowledge covering general truths of the operation of general laws, especially as obtained and tested through scientific method [and] concerned with the physical world. Science refers to a system of acquiring knowledge. This system uses observation and experimentation to describe and explain natural phenomena. The term science also refers to the organized body of knowledge people have gained using that system. Less formally, the word science often describes any systematic field of study or the knowledge gained from it. (http://www. sciencemadesimple. com) According to Wikipedia (2012), Science is obtained from the Latin word scientia, it means knowledge. It furthered on to say that, science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. An older and closely related meaning still in use today is that found for example in Aristotle, whereby science refers to the body of reliable knowledge itself, of the type that can be logically and rationally explained. (http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Science). It goes on to say that, in modern use, science is a term which more often refers to a way of pursuing knowledge, and not the knowledge itself. Dictionary. com (2012) defines science as a branch of knowledge or study dealing with a body of facts or truths systematically arranged and showing the operation of general laws. World English Dictionary (2009) also defines science as the systematic study of the nature and behavior of the material and physical universe, based on observation, experiment, and measurement, and the formulation of laws to describe these facts in general terms. The medical dictionary (2002) also says science is  the observation, identification, description, experimental investigation, and theoretical explanation of phenomena. Such activities restricted to explaining a limited class of natural phenomena. Such activities applied to an object of inquiry or study. The science dictionary (2002) also defines science as the investigation of natural phenomena through observation, theoretical explanation, and experimentation, or the knowledge produced by such investigation. It continues to state that science makes use of the scientific method, which includes the careful observation of natural phenomena, the formulation of a hypothesis, the conducting of one or more experiments to test the hypothesis, and the drawing of a conclusion that onfirms or modifies the hypothesis. In general, science can be defined as the systematic observation and classification of natural phenomena in order to learn about them and bring them under general principles and laws. According to Twumasi (2009), Science has three main branches, namely; Chemistry, Biology and Physics. Chemistry is an experimental study of substances and the useful compounds that can be formed from these substances. Chemistry also has three branches which include inorganic, organic and physical chemistry. Physics is concerned with the forces that exist between objects and the interrelationships between matter and energy. Biology is the study of living things and their interactions with the environment. Biology is also divided into plants, animals and ecology. What is integrated science? Integrated Science is a straight forward, easy-to-read, but substantial introduction to the fundamental behavior of matter and energy in living and non-living systems. It is intended to serve the needs of non-science individuals who are required to complete one or more science courses as part of a general or basic studies requirement. It introduces basic concepts and key ideas while providing opportunities for students to learn reasoning skills and a new way of thinking about their environment. According to wiki. answers. com, integrated science is a combine study of all areas of the sciences or the introduction of some areas in sciences. It goes on to try to differentiate between science and integrated science by explaining that integrated science is a course with merged topics like biology, chemistry, etc. whilst science is a big body of knowledge, it is about everything around us even inside our own body. Importance of science Below are some importance of science as identified by www. mikebrotherton. com. 1. Science exercises the mind and teaches logical thinking. 2. Science encourages skepticism and questioning assumptions and looking at things in different ways. 3. Making important decisions based on science instead of superstition or demagoguery or hatred or fear etc often produces better results. 4. The techniques of science (logic, testing hypothesis, gathering, data, etc) can be applied in daily life for â€Å"small† personal problems and activities (purchasing decisions, playing games, cooking, debugging software, etc), not just for â€Å"big issues† like physics, astronomy, technological development, etc. 5. Through the study of science, horrible diseases can be cured, or prevented entirely, and it can still provide hope for those with as-yet-incurable diseases. . Through science, people who love each other can talk to each other whenever they want no matter how far apart they are in the world, and can be together the next day through improved ways of communication and transport. 7. Science can show us what has caused mass extinctions and point the way to preventing similar catastrophes in the future. 8. Science can make us feel big and special for understanding the age of the Earth, the nature of stars, and the size of the universe, even if those things dwarf us. 9. Science gives us superpowers, like looking across the universe, seeing atoms, flying across the Earth or to the moon, moving mountains, and harnessing the energy of the sun. 10. Science has helped us to understand ourselves and the environment. 11. It shows the best way of solving problems. Importance of science education as a school subject Science, as a subject is universal and knows no boundaries. The claims of Science for inclusion in the school curriculum came to be recognized after years of active and persistent efforts. Science almost revolutionarized human life and proved indispensable for existence of man. Now, supremacy of Science has been established in every field. In fact, so great is its importance for man and society that the present day people live in an age of science. No one perhaps needs an explanation at present to include science in the school curriculum. Canon Wilson, a famous educationist in 1867, in support of inclusion of science as a School subject wrote, Science teaches what evidence is, what proof is’’. English, History, Geography, Classics etc. re taught because they provide a liberal education. The main object of imparting education is to turn out intelligent citizens able to appreciate and enjoy the beauty and wonder of Nature. They should be efficient in all walks of life and should take delight in the wealth of culture of past generations and civilizations. Hence, Science should form an essential part of the curriculum as it is the only subject which affords k nowledge of certain facts and laws and helps in achieving the main object of education. According to www. preservearticles. om, Prakash (2011), the following are the arguments in favor of integrated Science to be placed in School Curriculum: 1. Science provides unique training in observation and reasoning. Science students reason from definitely ascertained facts and form clear concepts. It makes one systematic and enables him to form an objective judgment. 2. The discoveries have added to the prosperity of human race with vast increase of knowledge. Herbert Spencer in his, What Knowledge is of Most Worth gives information which study of Science furnishes. According to him, Science learning is incomparably more useful for our guidance in life. Other chief subjects too provide an intellectual training not inferior to that of Science. Practically, we live in a world of scientific discoveries. So science education cannot be neglected. 3. Prof. H. E. Armstrong says that Science is taught to provide training in and knowledge of Scientific method, which is useful in the life pursuits. So this needs a School base of Science education. 4. Science has its cultural value. It has a literature of its own. The Scientific discoveries of Galileo, Newton, Faraday, Darwin, Pasteur, Kelvin, Bose, Armstrong and others are treasures of mankind. So, Science has won the first rank of humanistic studies. 5. Science has utilitarian value. It trains the child to use his leisure properly. These are clearly illustrated in scientific hobbies. 6. Modern knowledge of Science provides great intellectual pleasure. An educated person is under very great disadvantage if he is not familiar with that knowledge. 7. Knowledge of the methods of observation and experiment in the different branches of Science helps pupils to develop a logical mind, a critical judgment and a capacity for methodical organization. . Science is useful in that it remedies some of the defects of the ordinary school education. It is found to be the most valuable element in the education of those who show special aptitude. Science provides discipline of mind. Causes of poor performance of pupils in integrated science The poor performance of pupils in integrated science can be attributed to many factors. Alsop (1985) said â€Å"if science is to be learned affectively i t must be experienced, (UNESCO, 1973)†. The laboratory is a unique fact of science education. Tamir (1989) also said that in the developing countries especially sub – Saharan Africa, there are a number of factors contributing to the poor performance in science. Thus low per capital income, predominantly rural populations, economy based on primary products, experience of political independence and limited access to school particularly at the secondary level. The sub — Saharan Africa is the region which has the greatest difficulties in providing the normal facilities of trained teachers, laboratories and equipment for teaching practical science. Also Toh (1990) said, prior knowledge, attitude to school, attitude to cience and academic self concept affect success in the performance in science investigation, and he continued to say that explicit understanding is not adequate for success in science investigation. Moreover, Torto (2003) said, gender disparity in education also leads to poor performance in science especially among woman. She said, female still have low access to education, low participation and poor performance in many subject. Many factors which are home, community and school based, continue to restrict development female education she said further that, factors within the classroom are not only uses of gender imbalances in education. Home based factors which include family size, household income, parents’ education, cultural and traditional beliefs all contributed substantially to poor female enrolment in school. Gott and Mishiter (1987) also added that, science education is in a state of rapid change. In recent years there has been an ongoing debate concerning the importance of concepts and process in our science courses. This debate has been brought into tighter focus since the autumn of 1988 in England and Whales with the advent of the national curriculum in science. Shito (1958) stated in the daily graphic that the community regards science students who are females as witches and ugly. In addition to this, Femsa project staff (1995) conducted and presented a research on the availability of resources and facilities for teaching and learning science as well as mathematics in Africa. They said that, where resources and facilities such as teacher textbooks, laboratories, chemicals, tools, textbooks, laboratory tools and equipment, teaching aids, store, office etc. are inadequate, it makes the teaching of science to become teacher centered. This type of approach is heavily dominated by the teacher as he or she lectures the subject, gives notes and demonstrates the practical aspect of the lessons. The students remain passive participants expected to listen and observe only. July (1925) said if science education is to be lectures and demonstration, then no results could be achieved in the future. He also added that any school that claims to teach science only theoretically is not a school. Morii (1434) said, a teacher is capable of teaching and implementing quality education if he is given what he is suppose to be given (an ancient scientist. He also added that the poor performance of science is due to low motivation given to teachers. According to Dzama (1999) causes of poor performance of pupils in science is as a results of absence of vocational incentives rather than by conflict between science and African traditional values and beliefs. He argued that conflict between science and traditional beliefs and values is not peculiar to Africans. He also demonstrated that in the growth of science in developed countries, improvement in the performance of students succeeded rather than proceeded industrial and technological development. Experiential method of teaching According to Wikipedia (2012), experiential learning is the process of making meaning from direct experience. Simply put, Experiential Learning is learning from experience. The experience can be staged or left open. Aristotle once said, For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them. David A. Kolb helped to popularize the idea of experiential learning, drawing heavily on the work of John Dewey, Kurt Lewin and Jean Piaget. His work on experiential learning has contributed greatly to expanding the philosophy of experiential education. Experiential learning focuses on the learning process for the individual. An example of experiential learning is going to the zoo and learning through observation and interaction with the zoo environment, as opposed to reading about animals from a book. Experiential learning requires no teacher and relates solely to the meaning making process of the individuals direct experience. However, though the gaining of knowledge is an inherent process that occurs naturally, for a genuine learning experience to occur, there must exist certain elements. According to David Kolb, an American educational theorist, knowledge is continuously gained through both personal and environmental experiences. He states that in order to gain genuine knowledge from an experience, certain abilities are required: 1. the learner must be willing to be actively involved in the experience; 2. the learner must be able to reflect on the experience; 3. the learner must possess and use analytical skills to conceptualize the experience; and 4. The learner must possess decision making and problem solving skills in order to use the new ideas gained from the experience. Experiential learning can be a highly effective educational method. It engages the learner at a more personal level by addressing the needs and wants of the individual. Experiential learning requires qualities such as self-initiative and self-evaluation. For experiential learning to be truly effective, it should employ the whole learning wheel, from goal setting, to experimenting and observing, to reviewing, and finally action planning. This complete process allows one to learn new skills, new attitudes or even entirely new ways of thinking. Most educators understand the important role experience plays in the learning process. A fun learning environment, with plenty of laughter and respect for the learners abilities, also fosters an effective experiential learning environment. It is vital that the individual is encouraged to directly involve themselves in the experience, in order that they gain a better understanding of the new knowledge and retain the information for a longer time. As stated by the ancient Chinese philosopher, Confucius, tell me and I will forget, show me and I may remember, involve me and I will understand’’. According to learning consultants, experiential learning is about creating an experience where learning can be facilitated. How do you create a well-crafted learning experience? The key lies in the facilitator and how he or she facilitates the learning process. An excellent facilitator believes in the creed: You teach some by what you say, teach more by what you do, but most of all, you teach most by who you are. And while it is the learners experience that is most important to the learning process, it is also important not to forget the wealth of experience a good facilitator also brings to the situation. An effective experiential facilitator is one who is passionate about his or her work and is able to immerse participants totally in the learning situation, allowing them to gain new knowledge from their peers and the environment created. These facilitators stimulate the imagination, keeping participants hooked on the experience. Creating an experiential learning environment can be challenging for educators who have been taught through traditional classroom techniques. Identifying activities that allow learners to understand and absorb concepts can be a new and daunting experience. However, by providing direct experience in addition to standard written and visual materials, learners with different types of learning styles and strengths can be accommodated. Sudbury model of democratic education schools assert that much of the learning going on in their schools, including values, justice, democracy, arts and crafts, professions, and frequently academic subjects, is done by learning through experience. Summary Science can be defined as the systematic observation and classification of natural phenomena in order to learn about them and bring them under general principles and laws. Science has been part of man in time past and has even become more of man’s life in recent years. The usefulness of science can be seen by the things around us; the roads, bridges, cars, computers, refrigerators etc. The selection and study of some aspects of science as a whole is what is termed as integrated science. To defend the study of integrated science and science as a whole in schools, Canon Wilson, a famous educationist in 1867, wrote, Science teaches what evidence is, what proof is’’. According to Prakash (2011), Science learning is incomparably more useful for our guidance in life. Many researchers are of the view that, learning is best understood when it is experienced as stated by the ancient Chinese philosopher, Confucius, tell me and I will forget, show me and I may remember, involve me and I will understand’’. According to David Kolb, an American educational theorist, knowledge is continuously gained through both personal and environmental experiences. Also, Aristotle once said, For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them. According to learning consultants, experiential learning is about creating an experience where learning can be facilitated. An excellent facilitator believes in the creed: You teach some by what you say, teach more by what you do, but most of all, you teach most by who you are.   This chapter talks about the research design that the researcher used in solving the problem, the population and sampling solution, research instruments, data collection procedure and data analysis plan. It also describes the type of research used in the study. It also involves the method of data collection, pre-Intervention, intervention and post- intervention stages. Research design Research design is a plan which specifies how data relating to a given problem should be collected and analyzed. It provides the procedural outline for conduct of any given investigation. The research design used is an action research design which is directed towards solving a specific problem at the classroom level. This type of research is usually undertaken by either a teacher or group of teachers in a school to solve a peculiar problem in the classroom or in the school as a whole. The design makes work very easier and simpler. This is due to the fact that, it does not involve inconveniences such as travelling etc. The design deals with a particular group of people in a given area concerned and helps to solve the problems which specifically affect him/her. Action research also helps the teacher to understand what actually goes on in teaching and learning situations. It is important in the sense that, it does not only enhance teacher’s professional status but also promotes teacher’s personal improvement of his/her practices. It is through action research that the teacher can evaluate his or her teaching effectively. Action research is also conducted with the purpose of solving classroom or local school problems through the application of the scientific method. Moreover action research helps teachers to understand better, all aspects of their practices in relation to the subject content, the curriculum, and the methods that are more appropriate to the levels of pupils in their class. Finally, action research helps teachers to be equipped with knowledge on the various approaches or methods that they can use to suit the children they teach. In spite of the outlined strength, the results of the design cannot be generalized. This is because the design does not cover a wide range of people and it seeks to detect and solve a problem affecting a particular group of people. This tends to be a weakness on the part of the action research. Population and sampling selection A population of 113 pupils at the junior high school was used for the study at Mampamhwe M/A JHS in the Obuasi Municipal Assembly. Though this number at the junior high school was considered, JHS 2 class was sampled for the study. The average age of the sampled class was fourteen (14) years. The table below shows the distribution of the sampled class. Table 3. 1 Distribution of pupils’ gender |Gender Number Percentage (%) | |Boys 16 44 | Girls 20 56 Total 36 100 | | | |This class was chosen for the research because the researcher was assigned to teach Integrated Science in that class. | | | Research Instruments I used two main strategies to detect how pupils learnt science. I initially had with pupils an oral discussion on a science topic and afterwards asked pupils oral questions on it. An exercise was later given to pupils based on the same topic discussed. Discussion The discussion method was aimed at finding out how pupils understand the principles of a topic if orally narrated and discussed in class. Discussion method stimulates critical thinking. Frequent questions whether asked by the researcher or the pupils, provide means of measuring learning and exploring in-depth the key concepts of the course. During discussions, pupils’ answers to questions could help the researcher to determine whether they have experienced what they are saying or they just read them from books. Exercise The purpose of the class exercise was to allow pupils to freely express themselves in the way they understood the topic that has just been taught. Pupils’ answers to questions will give the researcher the idea on how best they understand a topic when orally discussed with them. It also gives the researcher a clearer idea of how pupils think science is. Whether they think science is a written down facts that can never be tampered with or they think science is everything that goes on around them and they can verify each and every aspect of it. Data Collection Procedure Pre-Intervention Stage A lesson on corrosion and rusting from page 25 of pupils’ text book was selected and delivered by discussion method. Pupils had the basic concept of corrosion and rusting but could not different between the two. The factors responsible for rusting to occur were also discussed and few points were written for pupils to copy. From pupils’ answers given during the discussion, the researcher observed that pupils knew that rusting occurs on metals when they are left in the rain but cannot exactly tell what is responsible for it. This was explained to pupils. An exercise was then conducted to see how pupils understood the lesson. The exercise required pupils to state whether or not an iron can rust if it was kept a) under a bed b) on the ceiling c) in hot water d) inside a refrigerator e) in a hot water with oil spilt on the surface. Though pupils’ contributions to the discussion were favorable, about one-fourth of the class was able to score 3 out of 5 in the exercise. This showed that, pupils may have understood what was taught in the class but cannot apply it in real life situations. I looked at the exercise and recorded pupils correct answers without marking so that pupils could not tell whether they were correct or wrong. Besides that, there might have been some pupils in the class whose attention was somewhere else or did not understand what was been discussed but since most of the class were contributing, the researcher took it that, the whole class was contributing to the discussion. In practical lessons, this problem cannot be overlooked. Intervention Stage The class was divided into four (4) groups and each group was given an experiment to carry out. Each group was given three (3) new iron nails. The first group was asked to put their nails into a plastic or rubber container, cover it and place it under a bed for a week. The second group was asked to add water to their nails in a plastic container and place it inside the school refrigerator. The container should be left open. The third group was asked to also put their nails in boiled water, cover it and keep it for a week. The fourth group was also asked to place their nails into boiled water, pour oil on the surface and cover it tightly. After a week, pupils presented their experiments to the class and explained to the class the apparatus used for the experiment and what happened at the end of the experiment. Each member of the group had his/her own written report of how he/she saw the experiment go. One member of each group does the presentation with the other group members standing behind him/her. After the explanation, questions are thrown to the group and the other members are to answer. Some of the nails rusted whilst others did not. The absence of atmospheric oxygen in the boiled water covered with oil did not allow those nails to rust. So besides the fourth group’s setup, the rest of the setups caused the nails to rust due to the presence of oxygen or moisture. Post-Intervention Stage The class exercise that was given to pupils during the pre-intervention stage was again given to pupils to answer again. This time the researcher marked the exercise and saw many changes as compared to the answers they wrote before the intervention stage. Many wrong answers pupils wrote in the first exercise were corrected. Limitations Many problems may militate against this study but the few ones I would like to enumerate here include: 1. Problem of finance: The researcher will have to travel to other tertiary institutions to use their libraries if the researcher’s local library cannot provide the necessary books needed. Money will also be spent to buy airtime and data bundles to enable research on the World Wide Web. Without money, all these cannot be possible. 2. Time factor: The time at the disposal of the researcher is very limited and for that matter may not permit such an intensive coverage. Also there might be other written documents which may contain detailed information about this research work but due to the limited time available to the researcher, he may not review those documents.