Wto Summary Essays - World Trade Organization, Global Exchange, WTO

Wto Summary The courage and dedication that was displayed by the protestors in the video was what I took to heart. It was something else to see a group of people come together to protest something that they believed so strongly despite being pepper sprayed, shot at with rubber bullets, and thrown into jail..But why would anyone go to these lengths to protest against an organization? The World Trade Organization was created in Jan. 1 1995 and has 140 member countries. According to their official website www.wto.org the organizations main purpose is to, help trade flow as freely as possible-so long as there are no undesirable side-effects. This partly means removing obstacles. However the organization isnt a democratic organization. Instead the WTO rules are written by and for corporations with inside access to the negotiations. Citizen input by consumer, environmental, human rights and labor organizations is consistently ignored as WTO meetings are held in secret. According to the video, out of the 100 largest economies in the world, 51 are corporations and only 49 are countries. As a result it is no wonder why so many came to protest this secret meeting held in Seattle, WA. According to the video many protestors argued that the WTO and its motto of free world trade is stomping over labor and human rights in countries throughout the world as the use of cheap labor and child labor are continually ignored by the WTO. The magazine Global Exchange states that the WTO is blocking human rights abuses since they have ruled that, 1) It is illegal for a government to ban a product base on the way it is produced and 2) Governments cannot take into account the behavior of companies that do business with vicious dictatorships such as Burma. The protestors in the video also felt that the WTO was destroying the environment. Evidence of this, dates back to 1993 when according to the Global Exchange , The very first WTO panel ruled that a regulation of the US Clean Air Act, which required both domestic and foreign producers alike to produce cleaner gasoline, was illegal. Recently, the WTO declared illegal a provision of the Endangered Species Act that requires shrimp in the US to be caught with an inexpensive device that allows endangered sea turtles to escape, and the WTO is currently negotiating an agreement that would eliminate tariffs on wood products, which would increase the demand for timber and escalate deforestation. As a result I believe that these corporations should not be allowed to continue to get away with such actions. The people in Seattle honored their legal right to assemble. The actions taken by the city of Seattle against these protestors were too extreme and Im still unclear for what reason they took such extreme measures against the protestors. These were peaceful protests and the city freaked out over a few broken windows at corporations such as Starbucks and Nike. In my point of view the steps taken by the city of Seattle was way over the line and its disgusts me that peaceful protestors were thrown into jail for demonstrating a legal right in the constitution. Social Issues

Tips For Writing the Essay Prompts in the SAT Test

Tips For Writing the Essay Prompts in the SAT TestMany students that take the SAT now know about sample essay prompts but many don't think it is the same as the one used for their whole test. It isn't, but it can help you get a better idea of what to expect. The sample can help you remember what it is like to write an essay so you will be ready when the real one comes up.So what are these sample essays? They are your guides to what to expect. They are similar to the whole test, but they are not there to tell you how to complete the tests.The sample essay prompts are also a way to get an idea of how long the sample tests will be and to see if the entire test is going to take an hour or two. The length of these samples is usually listed on the sample essay prompts or on the test packet itself. You will need to check these things out to make sure you know how long the sample test will take.Once you have the sample test in hand, you will need to make sure that you follow the directions p roperly. This can vary depending on the sample essay prompt that you use. The sample tests all seem to be slightly different, but the writing that you need to do will usually come down to just following the instructions.The most important thing you need to do with the sample essay prompts is to make sure that you make your outline first. The outline is where you list the main points of the essay and make sure that you start at the beginning and finish it. Doing this will help you get the flow going and make sure that the essay doesn't turn into a maze.If you can't find a key point that you want to emphasize, try to make it up on the spot. Even if it doesn'tfit the topic at hand, you might be able to find something else that fits somewhere else. Try to think of something that is relevant to the essay so that you will be able to use it.Another thing you will need to look for is something that will allow you to jump ahead a couple of pages so that you can present the key point that you want to emphasize. The key point should be really easy to write because you want to get it across fast and easily. This will make the essay easier to read and to understand.Remember that your essay prompts aren't a substitute for practice. If you are trying to figure out how to write an essay, you need to practice writing a paper. This is why you need to know what to expect when taking the test.

Act460 Week 3 Essays

Act460 Week 3 Essays Act460 Week 3 Essay Act460 Week 3 Essay Original Data: selling price: 40. 00 Variable Expenses: Invoice Cost: 18. 00 Sales Commission: 7. 00 Total Variable Expenses: 25. 00 Fixed Expenses: Rent: 80,000. 00 Advertising: 150,000. 00 salaries: 70,000. 00 Total Fixed Expenses: 300,000. 00 1. Calculate the annual break-even point in dollar sales and in unit sales for Store 36. Unit Contribution Margin = selling price per unit variable Expenses Unit Contribution Margin = 40. 00 25. 00 Unit Contribution Margin = 15. 0 per shirt Break even point = (target profit + fixed expenses) / unit contribution margin Break even point = (0. 00 + 300,000. 0) / 15. 00 Break even point = 20,000 units Break even point in sales = 20,000 x 40 = 800,000 up to 30,000 shirts sold each year. Clearly indicate the break-even point on the graph. 3. If 19,000 shirts are sold in a year, what would be Store 36s net operating income or loss? Sales (19,000 shirts x 40 per Variable Expenses (19,000 shirts x 25 per shirt) (475,000) Cont ribution Margin 285,000 Fixed expenses (300,000) Net operating Loss (15,000) 4. The company is considering paying the store manager of Store 36 an incentive commission of $3 per shirt (in addition to salespersons commissions). If this change s made, what will be the new break-even point in dollar sales and in unit sales? $3. 00 added commission increases the new variable price to $28 New Data: Manager Commission: 3. 00 Total Variable Expenses: 28. 00 Contribution Margin = 40. 00 28. 00 = 12. 00 0 new contribution margin Break even point = (0. 00 + 300,000) / 12. 0 = 25,000 0 breakeven point in units Break even point in sales = 25,000 x 40. 00 = 1,000,000 0 break even point in sales paying the store manager a $3. 00 commission on each shirt sold in excess of the break-even point. If this change is made, what will be the stores net operating ncome or loss if 23,500 shirts are sold in a year? Sales: 23,500 Original Break Even Point: 20,000 overage: 3,500 Profit to the store = overage in units x contribution margin 3,500 x 12. 00 = 42,000 Oprofit to the store 6. Re fer to the original data. The company is considering eliminating sales commissions entirely in its stores and increasing fixed salaries by $107,000 annually. a. If this change is made, what will be the new break-even point in dollar sales and in unit sales in Store 36? Selling Price: 40. 00 Total Variable Expenses: 18. 00 Additional salaries: 107,000. 00 Total Fixed Expenses: 407,000. 00 Contribution Margin = 40- 18 = 22. 00 0 new contribution margin Break even point = (0+407,000) / 22 = 18,500 0 new break even point in units Break even point in sales = 18,500 x break even point in sales. . Would you recommend that change be made? Explain. It is hard to recommend the proposed change from commission to salary based on the information provided. Additional information would be necessary to make an educated recommendation. What have the previous quarters shown in regards to sales? Although the change from commission to salary would increase the contribution margin and drop the break even point there are many fact ors that hould be considered before implementing this change. If sales teams are changed from variable pay to fixed pay, it may reduce their incentive to sell more shirts to clients. If the shirts essentially sell themselves and dont needed a motivated sales person then the switch may be beneficial. Ultimately it is most companys goals to reduce their break even point, but without further information it is undetermined as to whether this change would be beneficial for Shirts Unlimited. Garrison, R. H. , E. W. Noreen, and P. C. Brewer. Managerial Accounting. Fourteenth. New York: McGraw-Hill/lrwin, 2011 Print.

Profile and Crimes of Teresa Lewis

Profile and Crimes of Teresa Lewis Teresa and Julian Lewis In April 2000, Teresa Bean, 33, met Julian Lewis at Dan River, Inc., where they were both employed. Julian was a widower with three adult children, Jason, Charles and Kathy. He lost his wife to a long and difficult illness in January of that year. Teresa Bean was a divorcee with a 16-year-old daughter named Christie. Two months after they met, Teresa moved in with Julian and they soon married. In December 2001, Julian’s son, Jason Lewis, was killed in an accident. Julian received over $200,000 from a life insurance policy, which he placed in an account that only he could access. A few months later he used the money to purchase five acres of land and a mobile home in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, where he and Teresa began to live. In August 2002, Julian’s son, C.J., an Army reservist, was to report for active duty with the National Guard. In anticipation of his deployment to Iraq, he purchased a life insurance policy in the amount of $250,000 and named his father as the primary beneficiary and Teresa Lewis as the secondary beneficiary. Shallenberger and Fuller In the summer of 2002, Teresa Lewis met Matthew Shallenberger, 22, and Rodney   Fuller, 19, while shopping at WalMart. Immediately after their meeting, Teresa began a sexual relationship with   Shallenberger. She began modeling lingerie for both men and was eventually having sexual intercourse with them both. Shallenberger wanted to be the head of an illegal drug distribution ring, but he needed money to get started. If that failed to work out for him, his next goal was to become a nationally recognized hitman for the Mafia. Fuller, on the other hand, did not talk much about any of his future goals. He seemed content following Shallenberger around. Teresa Lewis introduced her 16-year-old daughter to the men and, while parked at a parking lot, her daughter and Fuller had sexual intercourse in one car, while Lewis and Shallenberger had sexual intercourse in another vehicle. The Murder Plot In late September 2002, Teresa and Shallenberger devised a plan to kill Julian and then share the money that she would get from his estate.   The plan was to force Julian off the road, kill him, and make it look like a robbery. On October 23, 2002, Teresa gave the men $1,200 to purchase the necessary guns and ammunition to carry through their plan. However, before they could kill Julian, a third vehicle was driving too close to Julian’s car for the boys to force him off the road. The three conspirators manufactured a second plan to kill Julian. They also decided they would kill Julian’s son, C.J., when he returned home to attend his fathers funeral. Their reward for this plan would be Teresa’s inheriting and then sharing the two life insurance policies of father and son. When Teresa learned that C.J. was planning on visiting his father and that he staying at the Lewis home on October 29-30, 2002, the plan changed so that father and son could be killed at the same time. The Murder In the early morning hours of October 30, 2002, Shallenberger and Fuller entered the Lewis mobile home through a rear door that Teresa had left unlocked for them. Both men were armed with the shotguns Teresa has purchased for them As they entered the master bedroom, they found Teresa asleep next to Julian. Shallenberger woke her up. After Teresa has moved to the kitchen, Shallenberger shot Julian multiple times. Teresa then returned to the bedroom. As Julian struggled for his life, she grabbed his pants and wallet and returned to the kitchen. While Shallenberger was killing Julian, Fuller went to C.J.’s bedroom and shot him several times. He then joined the other two in the kitchen as they were emptying Julian’s wallet. Concerned that C.J. might still be alive, Fuller took Shallenberger’s shotgun and shot C.J. two more times.   Shallenberger and Fuller then left the home, after picking up some of the shotgun shells and splitting up the $300 found in Julians wallet. For the next 45 minutes, Teresa stayed inside the home and called her ex-mother-in-law, Marie Bean, and her best friend, Debbie Yeatts, but did not call the authorities for help. Call to 9.1.1. Around 3:55 A.M., Lewis called 9.1.1. and reported that a man had broken into her home at approximately 3:15 or 3:30 A.M. He had shot and killed her husband and stepson. She went on to say that the intruder had entered the bedroom where she and her husband were sleeping. He told her to get up. She then followed her husbands instructions to go to the bathroom. Locking herself in the bathroom, she heard four or five shotgun blasts. Sheriff’s deputies arrived at the Lewis home at approximately 4:18 A.M.   Lewis told the deputies that her husband’s body was on the floor in the master bedroom and that her stepson’s body was in the other bedroom. When the officers entered the master bedroom, however, they found Julian severely wounded, but still alive and talking. He was moaning and uttering, â€Å"Baby, baby, baby, baby.†Ã‚   Julian told the officers his wife knew who had shot him. He  died not long afterwards. When informed that Julian and C.J. were dead, Teresa did not appear to the officers to be upset. â€Å"I Miss You When You’re Gone† Investigators interviewed Teresa. In one interview she claimed Julian had physically assaulted her a few days before the murders. Even so, she denied killing him or having any knowledge about who might have killed him. Teresa also told the investigators that she and Julian had talked and prayed together that night. When Julian had gone to bed, she went to the kitchen to pack his lunch for the next day. Investigators found a lunch bag in the refrigerator with an attached note that read, â€Å"I love you. I hope you have a good day.†   She had also drawn a picture of a smiley face on the bag and had written inside it, â€Å"I miss you when you’re gone.† Money Was No Object Teresa called Julians daughter Kathy on the night of the murders and told her that she had already made the necessary arrangements with the funeral home, but that she needed the names of some of Julian’s family members. She told Kathy that it wasnt necessary for her to come to the funeral home the following day. When on the next day Kathy showed up at the funeral home anyway, Teresa told her that she was the sole beneficiary of everything and that money was no longer an object. Cashing In Later that same morning, Teresa called Julian’s supervisor, Mike Campbell, and told him that Julian had been murdered. She asked if she could pick up Julian’s paycheck. He told her the check would be ready by 4 P.M., but Teresa never showed up.    She also informed in  that she was the secondary beneficiary of C.J.’s military life insurance policy. Booker told her she would be contacted within 24 hours as to when she would receive C.J.’s death benefit. money. A Braggart’s Demise On the day of the funerals, Teresa called Julians daughter Kathy prior to the services. She told Kathy she had had her hair and nails done, and she had bought a beautiful suit to wear to the funeral. During the conversation she also asked if Kathy was interested in buying Julians mobile home. Investigators learned that Teresa had tried to withdraw $50,000 from one of Julians accounts. She had done a bad job of forging Julians signature on the check, and the bank employee refused to cash it. Detectives also learned Teresa was aware of how much money she would receive upon the deaths of her husband and stepson. Months before their deaths, she was overheard telling a friend the amounts of the cash payouts coming to her, should Julian and C.J. die.   ...Just as Long as I get the Money Five days after the murder, Teresa called Lt. Booker to request she been given C.J.’s personal effects. Lt. Booker told her that the personal effects would be given to C.J.’s sister Kathy Clifton, his immediate next of kin. This angered Teresa and she continued to press the issue with Booker. When Lt. Booker refused to budge, she again asked about the life insurance money, reminding him again that she was the secondary beneficiary. When Lt. Booker told her that she would still be entitled to the life insurance, Lewis responded, â€Å"That’s fine. Kathy can have all of his effects as long as I get the money.† Confession On November 7, 2002, investigators again met with Teresa Lewis and presented all the evidence that they had against her. She then confessed she had offered Shallenberger money to kill Julian. She falsely claimed that Shallenberger had both Julian and C.J. before Julian’s money and leaving the mobile home. She said that Shallenberger had expected to receive half of the insurance money, but that she had changed her mind and decided that she wanted to keep all of it for herself. She accompanied investigators to Shallenberger’s home, where she identified him as her co-conspirator. The following day, Teresa admitted that she had not been totally honest: she confessed to Fuller’s involvement in the murders and that her 16-year-old daughter had assisted with planning the murder. Teresa Lewis Pleads Guilty When a lawyer is handed a murder case as heinous as Lewis case was, the goal switches from trying to find the client innocent, to trying to avoid the death penalty. Under Virginia law, if a defendant pleads guilty to capital murder, the judge conducts the sentencing proceeding without a jury. If the defendant pleads not guilty, the trial court may determine the case only with the consent of the defendant and concurrence of the Commonwealth. Lewis appointed lawyers, David Furrow and Thomas Blaylock, had a lot of experience in capital murder cases and knew that the appointed trial judge had never imposed the death penalty on a capital defendant. They also knew that the judge would be sentencing Fuller to life imprisonment under a plea agreement he had made with the prosecution, were Lewis to testify against Shallenberger and Fuller. Also, they hoped that the judge would show leniency since Lewis had eventually cooperated with investigators and turned over the identities of Shallenberger, Fuller, and even her daughter, as accomplices. Based on this and the heinous facts that had surfaced in the murder-for-hire-profit crime, Lewis lawyers felt that her best chance to avoid the death penalty was to plead guilty and invoke her statutory right to be sentenced by the judge. Lewis agreed. Lewis IQ Prior to Lewis plea, she went through a competency assessment by Barbara G. Haskins, a board-certified forensic psychiatrist. She also took an IQ test. According to Dr. Haskins, the testing showed that Lewis had a Full Scale IQ of 72. This placed her in the borderline range of intellectual functioning (71-84), but not at or below the level of mental retardation. The psychiatrist reported that Lewis was competent to enter the pleas and that she was able to understand and appreciate the possible outcome. The judge questioned Lewis, making sure that she understood that she was waiving her right to a jury and that she would be sentenced by the judge to either life imprisonment or death. Satisfied that she understood, he scheduled the sentencing proceedings. Sentencing Based upon the vileness of the crimes, the judge sentenced Lewis to death. The judge said that his decision was made more difficult by the fact that Lewis cooperated with the investigation and that she had pleaded guilty, but as the wife and stepmother to the victims, she had engaged in the cold blooded, pitiless slaying of two men, horrible and inhumane for profit, which fits the definition of an outrageous or wantonly vile, horrible, act. He said that she had lured men and her juvenile daughter into her web of deceit and sex and greed and murder, and within an incredibly short period of time from meeting the men, she had recruited them, been involved in planning and completing these murders, and within one week before the actual murders she had already made a failed attempt on Julian’s life. Calling her the head of this serpent, he said he was convinced that Lewis waited until she thought Julian was dead before she called the police and that she allowed him to suffer...without any feelings at all, with absolute coldness. Execution Teresa Lewis was executed on September 23, 2010, at 9 P.M by lethal injection, at Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt,  Virginia. Asked if she had last words, Lewis said, I just want Kathy to know I love her. And I am very sorry.   Kathy Clifton, the daughter of Julian Lewis and the sister of C.J. Lewis, attended the execution. Teresa Lewis was the first female to be executed in the state of Virginia since 1912, and the first female in the state to die by lethal injection The gunmen, Shallenberger and Fuller, were sentenced to life imprisonment. Shallenberger committed suicide in prison in 2006. Christie Lynn Bean, Lewis daughter, served five years in prison because she had knowledge of the murder plot, but failed to report it. Source: Teresa Wilson Lewis v. Barbara J. Wheeler, Warden, Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women

Windows 7 Workgroup Consultation for Sally Chu Assignment

Windows 7 Workgroup Consultation for Sally Chu - Assignment Example Keywords: UAC, user access controls, administrative users, users, Windows 7, workgroup, network Windows 7 Workgroup Consultation for Sally Chu In order for Sally to grant all six of her administrative staff members the same computer-access privileges, to allow them to run applications and use network printers, but not be able to make any accidental changes that can adversely affect their computers, the most effective and efficient way to create user accounts for these employees would be as follows. The first step would be to setup the profile for Sally’s administrators. In order to ensure that the administrators cannot make any changes that would adversely affect the computers themselves, the best bet is to setup the administrators on a standard user profile, instead of an administrator profile, as the administrator profile would have complete access to make any and all changes, while the standard use can use most software and change system settings that do not affect other us ers or the security of the computer itself. Once the standard user is setup, the next step is to setup the parental controls for that standard user, allowing for the use of games to be filtered out, and blocking any specific programs that she does not want the administrators to have access to, by setting the profile to only be able to use the programs from an allowed list, as specified by herself. Once the account is setup, and the parental controls are put in place, the settings in UAC, or User Account Controls, would need to be set, providing notification when programs try to make changes to the computer. This must be done for each profile that needs to be created, for a total of six (Microsoft, 2013). As Sally would like to provide a high level of authentication for her network’s users, she would like a dual authentication process. Two of the different methods that she could use in conjunction with requiring a password for network access are the option to use EAP (Extensib le Authentication Protocol), and setting to allow certain protocols. Selecting â€Å"Use Extensible Authentication Protocol† allows the selection of using one of three protocols for authenticating the VPN connection: Protected EAP (PEAP), EAP-MSCHAPv2, or Smart Card or Other Certificate; all three options will ensure the security and data integrity of the EAP conversation through the use of encryption. The default setting is EAP-MSCHAPv2, which is also known as Secure Password. By selecting the properties for EAP-MSCHAPv2, the ability to configure the connection to use the Windows login credentials in order to authenticate the connection. Selecting â€Å"Allow These Protocols† instead as the other alternative for providing the second level of security to the network connection will allow for the choice between three different connection types, all of which can be set to configure the Windows login credentials to be used; the three different authentication protocols tha t can be used by the connection are PAP, CHAP, or MS-CHAPv2. â€Å"The choice of these three types of authentication methods will only apply to PPTP, L2TP/IPsec, or SSTP tunnels; IKEv2 tunnels can only use EAP-MSCHAPv2 or certificates as their authentication methods† (Sourcedaddy.com, 2008). While there is an advantage into having the user’s use their Windows login credentials, namely that they will not have to remember a third set of login credentials, the disadvantage is that if an unauthorized user obtains that information, that will give them that much more access to the network itself. The user access controls set for the profiles themselves will ensure that the web based applications will run in protected mode, and by allowing the particular programs on the intranet in the

Economics (merit good) education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Economics (merit good) education - Essay Example Moreover, education makes one be in a position to acquire employment, obtain income and consequently have an improved way of life (Ver Eecke, 2003, p. 701). Other merit goods include goods and services like health services that the government provides for its citizens for the benefit of the community. This is usually conducted because it would lead to under-provision within the community. It also generates difference between the social and private expenses in addition to the advantages of creation and exploitation leading to the risk of not selling the goods and services (Besley and Ghatak, 2003, p. 235-249). Merit goods are also those goods and services that the government thinks consumers will under utilize, and they ought to be provided free for the entire society. Both private institutions and the government offer education, but in case education was left to be an expense, where parents are expected to pay for education then education would be under-consumed by the members of the society. Poor parents might not understand the importance of education. Similarly, their children might not see the benefits of education (Besley and Ghatak, 2003, p. 235-249). In reality, education should provide peripheral benefits that could not be considered by the open market. The benefits include increasing profits and production for present and future productions and expansion in the work-related movement of the work force, which must assist in the reduction of unemployment and consequently lower welfare expenditure (Dixit, 2002, p. 38). The administration provides this merit good to urge its utilization so those particular optimistic externalities related with merit commodities can be realized (Dixit, 2002, p. 38). They also aim at overcoming the failures of information connected to education, not when the private longer-term benefit of utilization is better than the shorter-term advantage of utilization. The government also believes that consumption

Effect of Culture on Differences in Conceptions of Education

Effect of Culture on Differences in Conceptions of Education I chose the following articles which examined the effects of culture on the differences in conceptions of education. Human thought and behavior are heavily influenced by the practices and assumptions of a certain culture and education cannot escape this influence (Brislin, Bochner, Lonner, 1975; Cole, 1996). As the course (AH103) sought to examine educational outcomes in cross cultural settings, I personally believe that a deeper and more critical understanding of how education is perceived, valued and conceptualized across cultures is important. The only opportunity we had to discuss such a topic in class was the short article, â€Å"Mind or Virtue† by Jin Li (2005) and I felt that it was quite limited. In addition, I believe that understanding the ideas of influential thinkers from different cultures such as Confucius, Socrates and Dewey can shed light on how different cultures have perceived education historically and how they continue to be influenced by them. Finally, these articles demonstrate that we can borrow best practices from different cultures to better prepare our students for the globalized world and I feel that it would be helpful for us being future teachers to understand that. Article 1: Cultural Perspectives on Teaching and Learning: A collaborative self-study of two professors first year teaching experiences. (Hu Smith, 2011) The first article (Hu and Smith, 2011) documents the reflective experiences of Hu and Smith, assistant professors of Chinese and American nationality respectively. Throughout their first year at the same university, they utilized the self-study approach to explore their views of teaching and learning and how their different cultural backgrounds could have influenced their perspectives. The approach which included conversations and writing and sharing reflections about their teaching practices helped them clarify their education philosophies. Hu and Smith (2011) shared that their educational philosophies were mainly influenced by Chinese Confucianism and Deweyan pragmatism respectively. The article went on to provide more information about both philosophies but this will not be discussed in this paper owing to the length constraint. Upon reflection, they realized that their educational philosophies heavily influenced their teaching practices. For example, Hu believed that it was more important to be a strict teacher: â€Å"I have been influenced since I was young in China that a strict teacher prepares better students. I thought that I should be a strict teacher, and be responsible for my students; however, it seems that my students really did not appreciate that. (Hu, 10 February 2009)† On the other hand, Smith believed that being an understanding teacher was more important: â€Å"Teaching is making connections with students, inspiring them, showing them many strategies to use in teaching, allowing them time to practice the strategies, make mistakes, revise, and plan again. My duty as an instructor is to do all in my power to assist in the students’ learning. Yet I found that some of my students lacked the desired dispositions to become excellent teachers. (Smith, 23 June 2009)†. There were also other differences in their teaching beliefs (e.g. Smith believed that students should learn to be assertive while Hu believed in the importance of modesty). These differences were mutually exclusive and reflected the different conceptualizations of education in the two countries. However, Hu and Smith (2011) believed that the collaborative self-study experience helped them to understand the teaching values of their own and another culture more profoundly. After scrutinizing the philosophies of education in both eastern and western cultures and comparing and contrasting their own views of teaching and learning, they managed to gain insights that went beyond recognizing the differences between the two. In fact, they recognized the strengths of each philosophy and sought to integrate both philosophies to provide more effective instruction (Hu Smith, 2011). For example, Smith helped Hu to obtain a deeper understanding of American classroom culture. As the use of role models in education is prevalent in Chinese culture (Reed, 1995), Hu praised students who had performed well in class with the intention to encourage them and hoped that other students would be encouraged to emulate them. To Hu’s surprise, some students felt that their efforts were not affirmed in the process of being compared to others. Smith helped Hu understand that US students value individualism and working at their own academic level and pace. Consequently, teachers believe in differentiated instruction and praise. In addition, Hu helped Smith to embrace the eastern views of learning: that students should be diligent, respectful, and virtuous. Smith made a conscious effort to share these values with her students and help them appreciate and foster those values. For example, she modeled a strong work ethic and enforced strict grading policies and deadlines. She also requested students to assess themselves on punctuality, participation, completion of assignments and staying focused at the end of each class. Many of her students provided feedback that they were inspired by Smith sharing about and fostering Eastern views of education and felt that it has given them new perspectives towards education. Therefore, Hu and Smith (2011) believed that integrating their cultural views of teaching and learning helped them to achieve the best of both worlds. However, they believed that it is only possible if the teacher is interested to achieve such a balance. However, despite having great interest in achieving the balance, Hu and Smith (2011) realized that their own views of teaching and learning were greatly influenced by their cultural backgrounds and were not easily altered. As such, they worked hard to integrate both cultural beliefs of teaching and learning within their teaching practices. Lastly, Hu and Smith (2011) argued that understanding different educational philosophies can help teachers better serve their students in the increasingly globalized world. I chose this article because I appreciated the authors deeply reflecting about their own educational philosophies and seeking to uncover how their cultural backgrounds have affected them. In addition, I loved the simple message that there are strengths in both the Deweyan and Confucian approaches and that integrating them in our teaching practices can better serve all our students. Article 2: Rethinking Teacher Education: Synchronizing Eastern and Western Views of Teaching and Learning to Promote 21st Century Skills and Global Perspectives. (Smith Hu, 2013) The second article was written by the same authors of the first article. After four years of experience with the integrated philosophy of eastern and western perspectives and receiving positive feedback, Smith and Hu (2013) decided to follow up on their first self-study (Hu Smith, 2011) by investigating how their integrated philosophy have influenced teaching and learning of 21st century skills in their college students (Smith Hu, 2013). The authors firmly believed that 21st century skills such as critical thinking, creativity and problem solving must be embedded into the curriculum because research had shown that students require these skills to succeed in work and life (Association of American Colleges Universities, 2007, Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2007). For the study, Smith and Hu (2013) analyzed different sources from the past four years: 1) monthly self-study meeting notes, (2) self-reflective journals, (3) student and departmental peer evaluations of teaching, and (4) faculty and student feedback on the authors’ invited presentations. Smith and Hu (2013) found that their integrated philosophy was very effective in developing 21st century skills. For example, in the area of career and life skills, the western view helps to develop self-confidence, individuality and democratic education while the eastern view help foster the virtues of hard work, responsibility, commitment, and persistence in students. The integrated philosophy thus developed both sets of skills as both authors upheld rigorous teaching standards and high expectations. Moreover, the integrated philosophy worked well in terms of learning and innovation skills. Smith’s western perspective influenced by Dewey promote creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration through inquiry teaching and active learning. While personalized instruction is valued by the eastern perspective, the integrated philosophy valued collaboration with peers as an important part of teaching and learning. Over the years in their classes, presentations and conferences, Smith and Hu (2013) learned that educators from a diverse range of cultures were interested in cultivating global teaching perspectives. In addition, they all value 21st century skills and believe them to be important student outcomes. Having witnessed firsthand the importance and necessity of incorporating best practices from other cultures, the authors believe that educators across all disciplines should develop a global perspective of teaching and learning and provided some recommendations. Firstly, educators must examine themselves to unearth their personal cultural philosophy of teaching and learning (possibly using self-study like the authors). In addition, professional development sessions with other colleagues can be a good way to develop cultural understanding. Next, educators should consider collaborating to integrate cultural perspectives to promote 21st century skills. Finally, teaching and learning must alwa ys respect and take into account the diverse cultures of all students and families. I chose this article because it was a rich qualitative study which clearly articulated the benefits of utilizing an integrated philosophy in fostering 21st century skills. I think it would really encourage future and current educators to rethink their own educational philosophies and utilized the integrated one proposed by the authors. Article 3: Learning Considered Within a Cultural Context: Confucian and Socratic Approaches (Tweed Lehman, 2002) The last article (Tweed Lehman, 2002) used a Confucian–Socratic framework to analyze how academic learning is influenced by culture. At the start of the article, the authors clearly examined how different education processes are valued differently by Socrates and Confucius from the Western and Eastern cultures respectively. While Socrates encouraged students to question widely accepted knowledge privately and publicly and to create and articulate their own hypotheses, Confucius valued respectful, effortful, and pragmatic acquisition of essential knowledge so as to result in behavioral reform. While recognizing that examples of both Confucian and Socratic approaches can be found in both cultural contexts, Tweed and Lehman (2002) helped readers understand the impact of each approach in a different culture. Firstly, in some Western educational contexts, the Confucian approach may be advantageous- for example, in the case when students are expected to gain and utilize foundational knowledge to familiar and novel situations. However, the Confucian approach may be a disadvantage in other contexts- for example, students heavily influenced by the Confucian approach may speak up less in class and be perceived by their teachers to be less capable. In addition, it is also important to note the impact of the Socratic approach in Eastern educational contexts. The Socratic approach can potentially result in the disruption of the learning environment due to the lack of sensitivity to the social consequences of public criticism. In addition, Yang (1986) argued that the Socratic Method co uld lead to disorientation in Chinese classrooms because students may not be well prepared to engage in arguments, leading to poor student outcomes. However, there are also instances when a Socratic orientation has merits in Eastern educational contexts, such as when instructors yearn to be questioned (there are times when even Confucius wished that his students doubted his teachings). After examining the impact of each approach in a different culture, Tweed and Lehman (2002) argued that students who are academically bicultural and can adapt their learning approach according to cues in the academic environment may be more successful. Therefore, Tweed and Lehman (2002) agreed with the authors of the previous two articles (Smith Hu, 2011) that educators should encourage both inquiry (Socratic) and thoughtful acquisition (Confucian). This will help students gain knowledge and thinking skills that become useful in many domains beyond the current academic context. Although Tweed and Lehman (2002) did not refer to the above skills explicitly as 21st century skills, it is safe to assume that they would agree with Smith Hu (2013) about their importance too. Furthermore, Tweed and Lehman (2002) argued that students and educators alike may not entirely acknowledge the influence of culture on students’ academic role and behaviors. Wollenburg (1995) had identified the poor treatment of students of Asian descent in Western educational institutions and argued that it is partly due to a lack of understanding of different conceptions of learning. Therefore, Tweed and Lehman (2002) posited that an increased understanding of these conceptions can potentially inform changes at the institutional level that can improve education for all. Before concluding, Tweed and Lehman (2002) suggested several additional avenues for future research. Firstly, they believed that we should explore the nature and feasibility of academic biculturalism. For example, it would be beneficial if we can answer the following question: what distinguishes students who possesses both Confucian Socratic approaches to learning? Secondly, they believed that future research could examine the utility of the Socratic-Confucian framework as an educational tool in both unicultural and cross-cultural environments. Tweed and Lehman (2002) found out through informal discussions with their students that learning about the framework has helped them understand their own approaches to learning and become more flexible learners. I chose this article because it provided more evidence on the benefits of utilizing the integrated approach. In addition, it helped readers understand the ideas of another influential thinker in education, Socrates. Conclusion To conclude, I hope that these three articles can help students in the course develop a more nuanced appreciation of the influence of culture on the different educational philosophies, namely Confucian, Deweyan and Socratic. Rather than simply recognizing that certain educational processes are valued differently across cultures, I hope that students can go on and appreciate the strengths of each of the three educational philosophies and seek to utilize the integrated approach to better serve their students.