710 words

Factors promoting and inhibiting second language acquisition

Low level of linguistic distance (learning a Romantic language like Portuguese is relatively easy for a native Spanish speaker) versus a high level of linguistic difference (learning a tonal language like Chinese is a greater challenge for native non-tonal language speakers)

~4 min read

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553 words

The Iroquois Confederacy's influence on American democratic formation

Contact between Europeans and Native Americans undoubtedly shaped the course of New World history. Political alliances enabled strategic partnerships for trade as well as land settlements.

~3 min read

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596 words

Assessment strategies for diverse learners in standards-based classrooms

As an aspiring educator, I understand the need for judicious and comprehensive assessments. I also understand the limitations of assessments. This course has addressed many of my main concerns about how to teach within a standards-based framework without leaving any child behind.

~3 min read

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787 words

Robert Hooke's Micrographia and scientific illustration in the seventeenth century

Hooke compiled his Micrographia. This 17th century text offers incredible drawings of the inner workings of the natural world from leaves to gems.

~4 min read

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1,174 words

Schoolyard conformity and cultural identity in Bless Me, Ultima

"Ultima came to stay with us the summer I was almost seven. When she came the beauty of the llano unfolded before my eyes...The magical time of childhood stood still, and the pulse of the living earth pressed its mystery into my living blood," (1).

~6 min read

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1,052 words

The Miracle Worker as an inspiring play for students

Miracle Worker is an inspiring play for both students and teachers. Teachers can thrill to the story of a young woman, Annie Sullivan, who truly makes a difference in the life of a child.

~6 min read

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626 words

Why don't we complain: William F. Buckley's analysis of social complacency

Buckley, Jr. In the article Why Don't We Complain, William F. Buckley says that it is matter of social etiquette. as, anyone who speaks up: against the kind of service that they are receiving or are unsatisfied with what is taking place are labeled as a trouble maker.

~4 min read

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674 words

Comparing American and Mexican sign language vocabulary and structure

American Sign Language (ASL) & Mexican Sign Language (LSM). The purpose of this review is to look at another language outside of ASL.

~4 min read

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1,300 words

Colonial violence and cultural oppression in South African liberation struggles

Colonialism, Racism, and Violence: The History of the Struggle for Liberation in South Africa The colonialism that began to take over the world in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and that still arguably exists in certain economic as well as overtly political schemas today has had an enormous…

~7 min read

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1,391 words

The Iowa Tests of Basic Skills: standardized assessment and uses

What will one find? Are they standardized or not? Do aptitude and achievement tests exist? Are a variety of choices possible? One will study the "Iowa Tests for Basic Skills," and discuss the information (University of Iowa, 2011).

~7 min read

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