Curriculum Assessments †Paper Two Essay Example for Free

Curriculum Assessments – Paper Two Essay Curriculum assessments have a variety of purposes depending upon the aim. Overall they have been positive experiences for me throughout my education in their attempt to construct an anonymous forum for feedback in the name of improving the curriculum. They can also prove to be troublesome for particular types of professors and for students who believe they are simply a formality and that they are not actually taken into consideration. In my opinion, this can be a troublesome obstacle in the path of achieving greater transparency between professor performance ratings and the faculty boards that are responsible for the career paths of these professors. An example of a positive experience using curriculum assessments was my freshman year of college. I had an astronomy professor that was very aloof and seemingly arrogant in his lectures, but in his office hours was personable and humorous. He handed out the assessment after our midterm in the hope of improving the course for the second half. He received overwhelming feedback in the same spirit as mine and he made a conscious effort to become more compassionate during his lectures. Needless to say the second half of the semester was much more enjoyable, hopefully for him as well. On the other hand, I had a negative experience with a tenured sociology professor. She had been at the university for over 35 years and she believed since she had been there for so long she would not benefit from student assessments. We took the assessment after midterms and when she reported the results back to the students, she was visibly upset. She took the feedback as a personal attack instead of constructive criticism. The rest of the semester seemed forced and unnatural as she grudgingly held to her tactics. I believe the main purpose of the assessment is to provide students with an anonymous forum to voice their opinion about the professor and the course without fear of repercussion. In addition, assessments can be used by the faculty board to determine which professors deserve a raise, or consideration for tenure. That being said, they have to be taken seriously, by the students, the professors, and the faculty boards. If they are discarded as simple formalities instead of given thoughtful interpretation and implementation, then they become a wasteful bureaucratic process. In this regard, assessments can have a great value as long as they are completed in good faith and are not personal attacks against a professor or a course. They can provide specific examples and criteria on which to judge the success of not only a professor, but the course in general. Furthermore, assessments can be used across the board to map overall trends of the courses and the professors that teach them. Some institutions favor great professors while others are more focused on high profile research projects or on having their professors be powerful publishing presences. If the goal of the institution is on the students themselves, then student assessments are vital parts of determining which professors best suit this aim. I think assessments are an overall positive approach to improving curriculum. They have to remain anonymous in order to maintain their integrity and honesty. Professors need to learn from them in the manner they are intended, that is that they are implemented with the greater good in mind; for the students, for the professors, and for the institutions of guiding principle.

Biomechatronics Essay -- physics biomechatronic

When Luke Skywalker's hand was sliced off by Darth Vader in the trilogy Star Wars, he received a new prosthetic hand which was fully functional in use and appearance.Today, this science fiction is becoming reality as an exciting new technology called Biomechatronics is promising revolutionary advances in the field of prosthetics. As the name implies, biomechatronics merges man with machine. It is an interdisciplinary field including biology, neuroscience and physics. Biomechatronic scientists create devices that interact with human muscle, bone and the nervous systems with the goal of "assisting or enhancing human motor control that can be lost or impaired by trauma, disease, or birth defects." Today there is a great need in advances in the field of prosthetics. This demand is being generated in large measure by wounded veterans needing prosthetics. While new advances in body armor is saving lives, it is also leading to many limb injuries in soldiers who would not have usually survived. In the first two years of the Iraq war, over 200 soldiers lost limbs. While health care is still servicing wooden hands designed in the World War I era, many patients are unsatisfied with the unnatural movements, aesthetics, weight and lack of motion in these outdated prosthetics. Colonel Geoffrey Ling, a program manager for the Defense Advance Research Projects Agency (DARPA) who is overseeing a project to improve prosthetics says, "The best hand prosthetic one can get is a hook, right out of Peter Pan. It's heavy, it's clumsy and cosmetically, it's just horrid." That is why DARPA along with 70 million dollars to John Hopkin's Applied Physics Laboratory are spearheading the work. The projects goals are lofty: APL hopes to design an arm ... ...zine. (2007) On-line. http://www.baltimoremag.com Freudenrich, Craig Ph.D.. How Biomechatronics works. (2007) On-line. http://www.howstuffworks.com/biomechatronics.htm Su, Y. Fisher, M.H. Wolczowski, A. Bell, G.D. Burn, D. Gao, R. Basics of MRI-I. 19 May 2005 'Towards an EMG Controlled Prosthetic Hand Using a 3D Electromagnetic Positioning System' Instrument and Measurement vol. 1, p. 261-266. Guinnessy, Paul. Sept 2006. 'DARPA joins industry, academia to build better prosthetic arms' Physics Today p. 24-25. Unknown author. (2007) On-line. Nerve cells. http://www.cidpusa.org/physiology.htm Herr, Hugh Ph. D. White House/VA Conference / Emerging Technologies in Support of the New Freedom Initiative: Promoting Opportunities for People with Disabilities October 13-14, 2004. (2007) On-line. http://www.rehab.research.va.gov/whc2004/day1/pan-herr.html

China and India: the Challenge and Opportunity

Sources: Capell, Kerry. â€Å"IKEA: How The Swedish Retailer Became A Global Cult Brand†. BusinessWeek. 14 Nov. 2005: 96-106. Ikea. com CASE 2 CHINA AND INDIA: THE CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY OVERVIEW China and India are the two nations that will transform the global economy as we now know it. China has state-of-the-art manufacturing and India is boosting its competitive edge through innovation hubs. While the United States is deciding if â€Å"Chindia† is a threat or an opportunity the massive low wage, highly educated, and forward thinking work force is transforming these two poor nations into global powerhouses.Yet, all is not perfect. While governments and business pour mass amounts of investments into the countries there are huge obstacles to continued growth. There are social, political, and environmental challenges. Important is keeping growth at a steady pace that will eliminate the unemployment lines. Pollution and environmental challenges, political backlash, de bt and currency crises, inadequate medical care, threats of epidemics, and war are continuing challenges. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1.Discuss the innovation implications for the leading developed nations concerning China’s and India’s rapidly escalating capabilities. 2. Examine the collaboration potential and hurdles of greater collaboration between China and India regarding innovation and other commercial ventures. 3. What are the potential market opportunities for developed nations in China and India? 4. Evaluate the evolving balance of economic power shift from the west to the east. 5. Discuss the future competitive threats of China and India for industries in developed countries.

Using Physics to Design a Riffle - 2438 Words

The use of physics is incredibly important in design and engineering, I will be explaining how our knowledge of physics has helped us create machines suited to a purpose. For this example of the use of physics in design I am explaining the use of physics for the design of a rifle as it incorporates many important aspects of physics. I find this combination of intelligent design fascinating. It shows how our use of a complex and interesting subject as well as a certain degree of common sense has made it possible to create whatever we may need for any purpose. The oxford dictionary defines a rifle as a gun, especially one fired from shoulder level, having a long spirally grooved barrel intended to make a bullet spin and thereby have greater accuracy over a long distance. I will explain how physics makes these devices be made the way they are. An effective rifle needs to be efficient, efficiency is defined as [useful energy given off]/ [total energy in]. An efficient rifle converts as much of the chemical potential energy stored in the propellant into kinetic (movement) energy. For example for a .300 Hawk ammunition the energy use in percentage is: Barrel friction 2% Projectile Motion 32% Hot gases 34% Barrel heat 30% Unburned propellant 1%. Therefore the efficiency for this bullet in the gun it was fired is 32%. Using physics we can improve the efficiency by increasing barrel length this is because more propellant can be burned and as the bullet is in the barrel