Critical thinking Essay Example for Free

Critical thinking Essay The Curriculum and Instruction In an idealistic perspective, general education should be given much emphasis. True enough, even in the tertiary level in the Philippines, general subjects are still taken for the development of wholeness and excellence as human beings. The curriculum of our education system is also cumulative. Therefore, there is progression in learning while harnessing our past knowledge. Idealism in education gave importance to the subjects like philosophy, theology, history, literature and arts. This is evident especially in college. In some universities, the students are mandatory to take philosophy and theology in 12 units each. These subjects invoke the students to be conscious truth seekers as they step out in the real yet materialistic world. Whereas the science subjects, it help the students in dealing with cause and effect relationships. Language, too, is given high importance as our tool for communication. Moreover, critical thinking is highly imposed on the students so that we may not be deceived by our senses. Ideally, all of the subjects should be values-integrated and deals with real-life problems. The education system in the Philippines may not be too concerned with the Macrocosm concept but usually, especially in the Catholic schools, the curriculum is theocentric and there is the emphasis on acting in Christ-like ways, which can be considered as the ideals. The Educator All the people that make up the school especially the teachers are bound to be the students’ moral and cultural models. It’s with them that the students aspire to be upright individuals. Moreover, the teachers make use of references about inspirational models such as heroes, exemplars, etc. so that the students, too, will embody their good traits. In an idealistic method, the teachers incorporate effective communication with the students, especially Socratic dialoguing. This evokes the students to be critical thinkers through questioning and rationalizing. The Philippines is known to have a lot of heroes, from epic stories to real life stories. We are taught to identify the qualities of their heroism and be like them. We are trained to communicate, debate even, what is good, what is beautiful and what is true. We are shaped to be intuitive learners because learning does not stop, for the search of the truth is part of our lives. The Goals for the Students Again, the students in an idealistic set-up are expected to be truth seekers as they study the subjects that elicit critical thinking. In the journey of studying, they made use of their senses but more importantly, they process all of their observations and feelings through reflection. In this way, the learner examines his own mind and compares or shares it with others in order to seek for the truth. This I believe is harnessed in our education system because, at least from the schools I came from, we are trained to be intuitive and have introspective explorations. All of these goals boil down to an ultimate objective which is for self-development. This can be attained if we are values-driven, intrinsically motivated and if we are immersed with our cultural heritage. These again are highlighted in the Philippine education.

A Concert Performance to Remember Essay -- Journalistic Descriptive

Teacher Comment: As a part of the requirement for this course, each student must attend two live performances and submit a concert report on each. The reports should demonstrate â€Å"Active Listening† and not be merely reviews or critiques. I am interested in the student’s experience at this particular performance. There is no obligation to use fancy terminology. Just tell me what happened, how it affected you, how this experience will influence your plans for future concert attendance? I am particularly moved by a report that helps me to relive the concert or one that makes me sorry that I missed it. This essay does just that. The University Symphony Orchestra conducted by I. M. Conductor and featuring Young Virtuoso on piano performed in Freeborn Hall on December 3, 2004. Included in the program were works by the German twentieth-century composer Paul Hindemith and the German romantic composer Johannes Brahms. Although both pieces were quite long, the audience, comprised mainly of students (the concert was free), seemed dazzled by Holoman’s masterful command and Boriskin’s virtuosic display on the keyboard. The first piece performed, Hindemith’s Symphony: Mathis der Maler, called for the entire orchestra featuring an enormous string and brass section as well as a percussion section complete with glockenspiel and triangle. After a brief intermission, Michael Boriskin appeared on stage with the orchestra for a splendid performance of Brahms’s Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major for Piano and Orchestra, opus 83. Since both pieces were quite long, this discussion will be devoted to the work by Brahms. The first movement, Allegro non troppo, opened with a lone French horn stating the theme, which was then emulated ... ...ement seems the perfect release from the various passions of the first three.† The piano and strings seemed to be blended more in the fourth movement. Often the two would play the thematic rhythmic pattern in unison, heavily accenting and separating the notes. A rapid run up the keys of the piano and a final swell in the strings brought Allegretto grazioso to an abrupt end. Prior to attending this concert, I had never seen a performance involving piano and orchestra, and quite frankly, I wasn’t sure if it would work. I thought that the piano might overpower the orchestra, or vice versa, or that the combination would be too busy. I found that with a proper balance in the arrangement between piano and orchestra, and a skillful conductor such as D. Kern Holoman collaborating with a virtuoso such as Michael Boriskin, the genre can be most satisfying.

Teaching Mathematics and Science in Schools

The way teachers go about their teaching; each day in their classrooms is reflected as ‘teaching style’ or ‘approach’. This approach is better understood when the teachers are observed while they teach. Some teachers prefer activities for children associated with the curriculum, allowing students to chose their activity and complete it by themselves. Some other teachers would want the class to be attentive to them for most of the time. Certain teachers would like students to work in groups. Thus the methods adopted in the teaching-learning process is broadly reflective of the teacher’s viewpoint of what is ‘learning’ and how it should be brought into children.The process of learning is more successful when children are fully involved with the subject or topic of their learning. This is all the more important when teaching science. Life sciences involving plants and animals; and non-living things are real and can be felt. Experiencing the reality through interaction, makes science not only more interesting, but also easier to understand. Mathematics on the other hand involves a bit more abstract level.Yet, the symbols, signs and figures associated with mathematics with which children work, are self-created reality. In their effort to learn science and mathematics, children proceed further into the subjects, than just at the surface or base encounter. They analyze and interpret the object of focus and attempt to understand ‘how it works’, ‘why its required’ etc. Thus the child begins to develop reasoning for the facts it sees or understands. It may be the development of a new concept, or altering a previously thought concept, or even rejecting an assumption held till then. The teacher  who wants to interestingly engage children in learning science and mathematics must personally sense excitement in learning so as to share it with the children.The teacher should approach the topic of learnin g and the query asking children in a balanced and parallel manner. The teacher must be sensitive to the requirements of the children and help them to see relationships and understand explanations. For teachers to be proficient and confident in their teaching, it is essential that they understand the triple interactions involved in learning. The teacher must be conscious that while the child is interacting with him or her, the child is also simultaneously interacting with the focused subject. The focused subject or subject matter interacts with both the teacher and the child; while the teacher also interacts with the querying children and the focused subject.It is important to know the development of a child’s understanding and ability to reason, with their growth. Such an understanding is absolutely necessary in developing appropriate contents. For instance in the grades K-4, a child associates a comparison, a description, or a manipulation for all objects, it sees around. Al though the child doesn’t understand the science of motion while in this grade; activities like pulling, pushing, dropping of objects gives the child an idea of the cause of motion and its control.Similarly sound, heat, light, magnetism, electricity are broadly perceived through learning, observation and experimentation. However, the child would not be able to identify elements of temperature, magnetic forces, static electricity etc. In the grades 5 to 8, the concept of energy is developed through investigations into the properties of light,  sound, electricity and magnetism. In these grades, there is a considerable shift towards quantitative aspects of subjects. In the 9 –12 grades, students are geared up completely to deal with motion, force, energy; being familiar with theoretical observations and laboratory investigations (NJSC). Here they understand the reasoning behind the laws of motion and why energy is conserved. They are also capable of dealing with technolo gical designs and its problems, using the concepts and principles learnt.The association of brain functioning and educational practices is increasingly becoming an important factor in education. Brain-based findings have been closely monitored by specialists involved in education. The findings of cognitive neuroscience research has considerable bearing on the methodology of education. A new approach connecting brain functioning with education was emphasized in 1983. Leslie Hart, in his book ‘Human Brain, Human Learning’ suggested that by ignoring the brain functioning of students, the success of students is not achieved to its fullest potential.The philosophy of the newly developed ‘brain-based’ education is that the brain is used for everything we do; we should therefore know more about it and use it effectively. Contemporary models of brain-based education are multidisciplinary, relying on several disciplines like psychiatry, psychology, cognitive science , sociology etc. Brain plays an important role in the effect of classroom groupings, assessments, physical activity, lunchroom foods etc. Schools’ can affect students’ brain in several ways including through social conditions, stress, nutrition etc. These factors induce brain-based  influences by altering cognition, memory and attention.Neuroscientists Gerd Kempermann and Fred Gage discovered that the new neurons in the brain are intensely associated with memory, mood and learning. The process of neurons can be enhanced through good nutrition, low stress and proper exercise. The brain has the ability to remap itself due to its neuroplasticity (Jenson, 2008). This process can be influenced through reading, meditation, skill-building, career and technical education, and thinking skills, which contribute to student success.The importance of physical education is also emphasized by brain research. Cognitive scientists, physiologists, educational psychologists and physica l educators have strongly endorsed this view. Today more and more schools of education are incorporating the knowledge gained from brain research. Harvard University’s Mind, Brain and Education or MBE program produces postgraduates and doctors who eventually get engaged in interdisciplinary positions, both in research and practice.A report by the National Research Council Committee in September 2006, on the state of K-8 science education, has determined that science instructions offered in schools today are outdated. These are predominantly based on research findings of about three to four decades early. The report offers groundwork for the next reforms and is based on the recent understandings of how children learn, and recommends a narrower and better focus on important areas of science. It seeks to improve professionalism among teachers and have each aspect of instruction and  learning, better integrated with each other.The Council’s Committee on Science Learning, responsible for science learning in kindergarten to eighth grade had reviewed both, the reforms undertaken in science education in the last decade and the recent understandings of learning and cognitive science. The committee emphasized that young children are capable of intricate thinking and that each student develops an individual understanding of the nature around him. It also stated that the current debate on the importance of teaching content versus teaching process skills, should be put aside and both be replaced by interweaved aspects of science expertise.The committee has suggested that the curriculum, instruction and assessment should be properly integrated with the focus of fewer, central elements in each discipline, rather than surface level study of a wide topic. It points out that the current science education is based on relatively old assumptions. The current science education underestimates children’s ability of complex thinking and is more attributed to dif ficulty level in children rather than their ability.For instructions to be successful, teachers need to have a sound understanding of the subject, know how to teach it effectively and also be familiar with the recent research on student learning (AIP, 2006). Proper, effective instructions can clear misunderstandings and bring understanding closer to perfect. The instructions should include student encounters with science in a sequentially designed and strategic way. Students identified as proficient in science must be capable of explaining the scientific perception of the natural world. They need to be capable of introducing andn  analyzing scientific explanations, understand all aspects of scientific knowledge development, and participate in science-based exercises/discussions.The role of philosophy in developing the intellectual skills of children has been widely acknowledged. The induction of philosophy into the high school academic curriculum is gaining momentum, emphasizing n ot only the importance of the subject among them, but also the capability of the children for philosophical thinking. Dr. Matthew Lipman (1991), a philosophy professor at Montclair State College in New Jersey, emphasized that bringing philosophy into schools would only enhance the educational experience of children.The argument here was, philosophy could contribute to critical thinking, which is vital for all other subjects. Empirical evidence also shows that the cognitive and academic skill of children is vastly improved by teaching them reasoning skills early in life, banking on children’s natural inquisitiveness and sense of wonder. Obviously, such development would also contribute to the understanding of science and maths.It is estimated that about half the secondary teachers in the United States quit teaching within five years. Studies on the selection and services of secondary science and maths teachers reveal their inhibitions of isolated profession, lack of mentoring and dwindled prospects (KSTF, 2005).It is also important to address these issues, for the success of teaching and learning reforms. The new methods of education for school  children, particularly for maths and science should reflect the latest research into children’s ability and brain functioning. Engaging children in philosophical dialogues, also contributes to their ability of sophisticated thinking.REFERENCESAmerican Institute of Physics. (AIP, 2006) NRC Report Finds Much of Current K-8 Science Teaching Outdated.   FYI Number 142: December 20, 2006 [Electronic Version] downloaded on 24th Feb. 2007 from https://www.aip.org/fyi/2006/142.html

Historical Developments in Supply Chain Management

------------------------------------------------- Historical developments in supply chain management Six major movements can be observed in the evolution of supply chain management studies: Creation, Integration, and Globalization (Movahedi et al., 2009), Specialization Phases One and Two, and SCM 2.0. 1. creation era The term supply chain management was first coined by a U.S. industry consultant in the early 1980s. However, the concept of a supply chain in management was of great importance long before, in the early 20th century, especially with the creation of the assembly line. The characteristics of this era of supply chain management include the need for large-scale changes, re-engineering, downsizing driven by cost reduction†¦show more content†¦Outsourced technology hosting for supply chain solutions debuted in the late 1990s and has taken root primarily in transportation and collaboration categories. This has progressed from the Application Service Provider (ASP) model from approximately 1998 through 2003 to the On-Demand model from approximately 2003-2006 to the Software as a Service (SaaS) model currently in focus today. 6. supply chain management 2.0 (SCM 2.0) Building on globalization and specialization, the term SCM 2.0 has been coined to describe both the changes within the supply chain itself as well as the evolution of the processes, methods and tools that manage it in this new era. Web 2.0 is defined as a trend in the use of the World Wide Web that is meant to increase creativity, information sharing, and collaboration among users. At its core, the common attribute that Web 2.0 brings is to help navigate the vast amount of information available on the Web in order to find what is being sought. It is the notion of a usable pathway. SCM 2.0 follows this notion into supply chain operations. It is the pathway to SCM results, a combination of the processes, methodologies, tools and delivery options to guide companies to their results quickly as the complexity and speed of the supply chain increase due to theShow MoreRelatedHistorical Developments in Supply Chain Management1151 Words   |  5 Pages------------------------------------------------- Historical developments in supply chain management Six major movements can be observed in the evolution of supply chain management studies: Creation, Integration, and Globalization (Movahedi et al., 2009), Specialization Phases One and Two, and SCM 2.0. 1. creation era The term  supply chain management  was first coined by a U.S. industry consultant in the early 1980s. 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