Success of Native Americans Essay Example for Free

Success of Native Americans Essay The authors of the article aimed to decipher the factors that contribute or hinder the academic success of Native Americans attending American universities at the freshman year level. Specifically, they directed their study on the relationship between the culture of Native Americans to their academic grade point average, or GPA. They theorized that Native Americans who conformed to the beliefs, values and interests of Caucasians had higher GPA’s than Native Americans who hold on to their cultural beliefs, values, interests and traditions. The study was conducted in the fall of 1998 where 48 Native Americans participated in a series of examinations designed to ascertain how well the participants are able to conform to Caucasian American culture. The results of the tests are compared to the high school GPA’s and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores of the participants. The results of the study showed that there is a direct relationship between how well Native Americans conform to the Caucasian American culture and their high school GPA’s and SAT scores. It revealed that Native Americans who have strong ties to their own cultures have lower high school GPA’s and SAT scores compared to those who have assimilated the beliefs, values and interests of Caucasians. Although the study conducted by the authors only had a small sample of participants, their findings were supported by studies done by other authors. One study had linked to conflicts brought about by the differences in the traditions, beliefs, values and interests between Native Americans and Caucasians have caused many Native Americans to drop out from universities, widening the gap in academic success between the two cultural groups. The authors concluded based on the information obtained from their independent study and studies carried out by other authors that the cultural background of a student plays a significant role in achieving success in their academic life. Based on this conclusion, the authors recommended that in order for Native American to succeed academically, steps must be taken to help them understand the Caucasian American culture and its importance in their academic life, specifically in university studies. The authors also stated that since the conclusion and recommendation made are based on their independent studies and related review materials, they encourage further research be done to fully comprehend the academic achievement gap between these two cultures in order to ensure that the proper measures are done to close this gap. This article was to my liking since most academic achievement gaps studies between Caucasians and minority groups concentrated on African American, Hispanic and Asian cultures. As what was mentioned in the article, more research must be done to evaluate and address the academic achievement gap between Native Americans and Caucasians. Although the findings of the study is disturbing, it had also made me aware that biases towards the Caucasian culture in the academic world may be the cause for the growing academic achievement gap between Caucasians and other culture groups. Today, our universities are seeing an increase in the diversity of students enrolling, partly in line with universities encouraging diversity in their student population. However, it is apparent that the only way to succeed in an American university, a student from another cultural group must assimilate the â€Å"American† culture. This revelation based on this study contradicts universities’ claim that they encourage diversity in their student population.

Titanic: Death of a Titan :: Expository Essays Research Papers

Titanic: Death of a Titan After years of construction and work, the Titanic was finally ready for her maiden voyage. The beginning of her voyage was to take place on the morning of April 10, of 1912 at approximately 10:00am. The firs of Titanic passengers began to board the ship. Most of these passengers were British residents who had journeyed to Titanic by means of transportation either that a boat train. The real precipitance came when the boat train arrived. People rich or poor were scattered all aver Southampton's bay, attempting to find their gangway. After the second and third class passengers boarded, the firs class passengers were to be escorted to their cabins. Approximately at 12:00pm Titanic was ready to set sail. After Titanic sets out into the open sea, her water displacement causes mooring ropes of the New York, which was a small ship, to brake. Which causes her stern to swing towards Titanic's mighty bow. Titanic official's quick actions prevent a catastrophic collision. After hours delayed th e Titanic finally sets sail into the open sea headed towards Cherbourg, France. The Titanic lowered her anchor when arrived at Cherbourg, France, at about 5:30pm of the same day. More passengers boarded the Titanic. At approximately 8:10pm Titanic raised her anchor and sailed towards Queenstown, Ireland. She arrived at Queenstown at around 11:30am of the next morning to pick up more passengers and 1,385 bags of mail as well. Now Titanic once more raised anchor and by 1:30 she was on her way to New York. It was 11:30pm of the night of April 14, of 1912. As Titanic sped through the darkness towards its doom, the majority of the passengers and crew had not the slightest inkling idea that they were in danger at all. The last games of cards were breaking up. The last conversations were ending. Most passengers were already in bed, but the few who remained, were heading towards their cabins. Though the passengers settled, the officers on the bridge kept a sharp look out for anything in Titanic's path. Ice reports had been sent to the Titanic all day form other ships but Titanic's wireless operators chose to neglect the messages and so Titanic sailed in to history. High up in the crows nest, were lookouts Fleet and Lee. They to kept a sharp look out. Fleet peered into the darkness. He saw an object darker than night it self, coming towards the Titanic.

Vampire Academy Chapter 21

TWENTY-ONE I'D NEVER BEEN COMPLETELY NAKED around a guy before. It scared the hell out of me – even though it excited me, too. Lying on the covers, we clung to each other and kept kissing – and kissing and kissing and kissing. His hands and lips took possession of my body, and every touch was like fire on my skin. After yearning for him for so long, I could barely believe this was happening. And while the physical stuff felt great, I also just liked being close to him. I liked the way he looked at me, like I was the sexiest, most wonderful thing in the world. I liked the way he would say my name in Russian, murmured like a prayer: Roza, Roza†¦ And somewhere, somewhere in all of this, was that same urging voice that had driven me up to his room, a voice that didn't sound like my own but that I was powerless to ignore. Stay with him, stay with him. Don't think about anything else except him. Keep touching him. Forget about everything else. I listened – not that I really needed any extra convincing. The burning in his eyes told me he wanted to do a lot more than we were, but he took things slow, maybe because he knew I was nervous. His pajama pants stayed on. At one point, I shifted so that I hovered over him, my hair hanging around him. He tilted his head slightly, and I just barely caught sight of the back of his neck. I brushed my fingertips over the six tiny marks tattooed there. â€Å"Did you really kill six Strigoi?† He nodded. â€Å"Wow.† He brought my own neck down to his mouth and kissed me. His teeth gently grazed my skin, different from a vampire but every bit as thrilling. â€Å"Don't worry. You'll have a lot more than me someday.† â€Å"Do you feel guilty about it?† â€Å"Hmm?† â€Å"Killing them. You said in the van that it was the right thing to do, but it still bothers you. It's why you go to church, isn't it? I see you there, but you aren't really into the services.† He smiled, surprised and amused I'd guessed another secret about him. â€Å"How do you know these things? I'm not guilty exactly†¦just sad sometimes. All of them used to be human or dhampir or Moroi. It's a waste, that's all, but as I said before, it's something I have to do. Something we all have to do. Sometimes it bothers me, and the chapel is a good place to think about those kinds of things. Sometimes I find peace there, but not often. I find more peace with you.† He rolled me off of him and moved on top of me again. The kissing picked up once more, harder this time. More urgent. Oh God, I thought. I'm finally going to do it. This is it. I can feel it. He must have seen the decision in my eyes. Smiling, he slid his hands behind my neck and unfastened Victor's necklace. He set it on the bedside table. As soon as the chain left his fingers, I felt like I'd been slapped in the face. I blinked in surprise. Dimitri must have felt the same way. â€Å"What happened?† he asked. â€Å"I-I don't know.† I felt like I was trying to wake up, like I'd been asleep for two days. I needed to remember something. Lissa. Something with Lissa. My head felt funny. Not pain or dizziness, but†¦the voice, I realized. The voice urging me toward Dimitri was gone. That wasn't to say I didn't want him anymore because hey, seeing him there in those sexy pajama bottoms, with that brown hair spilling over the side of face was pretty fine. But I no longer had that outside influence pushing me to him. Weird. He frowned, no longer turned on. After several moments of thought, he reached over and picked up the necklace. The instant his fingers touched it, I saw desire sweep over him again. He slid his other hand onto my hip, and suddenly, that burning lust slammed back into me. My stomach went queasy while my skin started to prickle and grow warm again. My breathing became heavy. His lips moved toward mine again. Some inner part of me fought through. â€Å"Lissa,† I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut. â€Å"I have to tell you something about Lissa. But I can't†¦remember†¦I feel so strange†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I know.† Still holding onto me, he rested his cheek against my forehead. â€Å"There's something†¦something here†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He pulled his face away, and I opened my eyes. â€Å"This necklace. That's the one Prince Victor gave you?† I nodded and could see the sluggish thought process trying to wake up behind his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he removed his hand from my hip and pushed himself away. â€Å"What are you doing?† I exclaimed. â€Å"Come back†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He looked like he wanted to – very badly – but instead he climbed out of the bed. He and the necklace moved away from me. I felt like he'd ripped part of me away, but at the same time, I had that startling sensation of waking up, like I could think clearly once more without my body making all the decisions. On the other hand, Dimitri still wore a look of animal passion on him, and it seemed to take a great deal of effort for him to walk across the room. He reached the window and managed to open it one-handed. Cold air blasted in, and I rubbed my hands over my arms for warmth. â€Å"What are you going to – ?† The answer hit me, and I sprang out of bed, just as the necklace flew out the window. â€Å"No! Do you know how much that must have – ?† The necklace disappeared, and I no longer felt like I was waking up. I was awake. Painfully, startlingly so. I took in my surroundings. Dimitri's room. Me naked. The rumpled bed. But all that was nothing compared to what hit me next. â€Å"Lissa!† I gasped out. It all came back, the memories and the emotions. And, in fact, her held-back emotions suddenly poured into me – at staggering levels. More terror. Intense terror. Those feelings wanted to suck me back into her body, but I couldn't let them. Not quite yet. I fought against her, needing to stay here. With the words coming out in a rush, I told Dimitri everything that had happened. He was in motion before I finished, putting on clothes and looking every bit like a badass god. Ordering me to get dressed, he tossed me a sweatshirt with Cyrillic writing on it to wear over the skimpy dress. I had a hard time following him downstairs; he made no effort to slow for me this time. Calls were made when we got there. Orders shouted. Before long, I ended up in the guardians' main office with him. Kirova and other teachers were there. Most of the campus's guardians. Everyone seemed to speak at once. All the while, I felt Lissa's fear, felt her moving farther and farther away. I yelled at them to hurry up and do something, but no one except Dimitri would believe my story about her abduction until someone retrieved Christian from the chapel and then verified Lissa really wasn't on campus. Christian staggered in, supported by two guardians. Dr. Olendzki appeared shortly thereafter, checking him out and wiping blood away from the back of his head. Finally, I thought, something would happen. â€Å"How many Strigoi were there?† one of the guardians asked me. â€Å"How in the world did they get in?† muttered someone else. I stared. â€Å"Wh – ? There weren't any Strigoi.† Several sets of eyes stared at me. â€Å"Who else would have taken her?† asked Ms. Kirova primly. â€Å"You must have seen it wrong through the†¦vision.† â€Å"No. I'm positive. It was†¦they were†¦guardians.† â€Å"She's right,† mumbled Christian, still under the doctor's ministrations. He winced as she did something to the back of his head. â€Å"Guardians.† â€Å"That's impossible,† someone said. â€Å"They weren't school guardians.† I rubbed my forehead, fighting hard to keep from leaving the conversation and going back to Lissa. My irritation grew. â€Å"Will you guys get moving? She's getting farther away!† â€Å"You're saying a group of privately retained guardians came in and kidnapped her?† The tone in Kirova's voice implied I was playing some kind of joke. â€Å"Yes,† I replied through gritted teeth. â€Å"They†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Slowly, carefully, I slipped my mental restraint and flew into Lissa's body. I sat in a car, an expensive car with tinted windows to keep out most of the light. It might be â€Å"night† here, but it was full day for the rest of the world. One of the guardians from the chapel drove; another sat beside him in the front – one I recognized. Spiridon. In the back, Lissa sat with tied hands, another guardian beside her, and on the other side – â€Å"They work for Victor Dashkov,† I gasped out, focusing back on Kirova and the others. â€Å"They're his.† â€Å"Prince Victor Dashkov?† asked one of the guardians with a snort. Like there was any other freaking Victor Dashkov. â€Å"Please,† I moaned, hands clutching my head. â€Å"Do something. They're getting so far away. They're on†¦Ã¢â‚¬  A brief image, seen outside the car window, flared in my vision. â€Å"Eighty-three. Headed south.† â€Å"Eighty-three already? How long ago did they leave? Why didn't you come sooner?† My eyes turned anxiously to Dimitri. â€Å"A compulsion spell,† he said slowly. â€Å"A compulsion spell put into a necklace he gave her. It made her attack me.† â€Å"No one can use that kind of compulsion,† exclaimed Kirova. â€Å"No one's done that in ages.† â€Å"Well, someone did. By the time I'd restrained her and taken the necklace, a lot of time had passed,† Dimitri continued, face perfectly controlled. No one questioned the story. Finally, finally, the group moved into action. No one wanted to bring me, but Dimitri insisted when he realized I could lead them to her. Three details of guardians set out in sinister black SUVs. I rode in the first one, sitting in the passenger seat while Dimitri drove. Minutes passed. The only times we spoke was when I gave a report. â€Å"They're still on Eighty-three†¦but their turn is coming. They aren't speeding. They don't want to get pulled over.† He nodded, not looking at me. He most definitely was speeding. Giving him a sidelong glance, I replayed tonight's earlier events. In my mind's eye, I could see it all again, the way he'd looked at me and kissed me. But what had it been? An illusion? A trick? On the way to the car, he'd told me there really had been a compulsion spell in the necklace, a lust one. I had never heard of such a thing, but when I'd asked for more information, he just said it was a type of magic earth users once practiced but never did anymore. â€Å"They're turning,† I said suddenly. â€Å"I can't see the road name, but I'll know when we're close.† Dimitri grunted in acknowledgment, and I sank further into my seat. What had it all meant? Had it meant anything to him? It had definitely meant a lot to me. â€Å"There,† I said about twenty minutes later, indicating the rough road Victor's car had turned off on. It was unpaved gravel, and the SUV gave us an edge over his luxury car. We drove on in silence, the only sound coming from the crunching of the gravel under the tires. Dust kicked up outside the windows, swirling around us. â€Å"They're turning again.† Farther and farther off the main routes they went, and we followed the whole time, led by my instructions. Finally, I felt Victor's car come to a stop. â€Å"They're outside a small cabin,† I said. â€Å"They're taking her – â€Å" â€Å"Why are you doing this? What's going on?† Lissa. Cringing and scared. Her feelings had pulled me into her. â€Å"Come, child,† said Victor, moving into the cabin, unsteady on his cane. One of his guardians held the door open. Another pushed Lissa along and settled her into a chair near a small table inside. It was cold in here, especially in the pink dress. Victor sat across from her. When she started to get up, a guardian gave her a warning look. â€Å"Do you think I'd seriously hurt you?† â€Å"What did you do to Christian?† she cried, ignoring the question. â€Å"Is he dead? â€Å"The Ozera boy? I didn't mean for that to happen. We didn't expect him to be there. We'd hoped to catch you alone, to convince others you'd run away again. We'd made sure rumors already circulated about that.† We? I recalled how the stories had resurfaced this week†¦from Natalie. â€Å"Now?† He sighed, spreading his hands wide in a helpless gesture. â€Å"I don't know. I doubt anyone will connect it to us, even if they don't believe you ran away. Rose is the biggest liability. We'd intended to†¦dispatch her, letting others think she'd run away as well. The spectacle she created at your dance made that impossible, but I had another plan in place to make sure she stays occupied for some time†¦probably until tomorrow. We will have to contend with her later.† He hadn't counted on Dimitri figuring out the spell. He'd figured we'd be too busy getting it on all night. â€Å"Why?† asked Lissa. â€Å"Why are you doing all this?† His green eyes widened, reminding her of her father's. They might be distant relatives, but that jade-green color ran in both the Dragomirs and the Dashkovs. â€Å"I'm surprised you even have to ask, my dear. I need you. I need you to heal me.†

Factors That Affect A Country s Economic Performance

Introduction National unemployment rates are one of the key macroeconomic figures that indicate to an extent how well a country is performing at a certain point in time. These figures are widely used by economists because they can show economic growth or economic stagnation. One of the most significant steps that must be taken in order to reduce the unemployment rate is to find out what is causing it. There are many different factors that affect a country’s economic is performance, which means that there is also a wide range of policies that can be implemented to reduce unemployment and improve economic performance. Typically there are two major types of employment factors – demand side and supply side. Unemployment – types, causes and effects According to John Sloman and Alison Wride (2010, p.32) unemployed person is considered to be the one who is without work, but is available for a one at current wage rates. Unemployment, however, is not only a personal issue but also a big social and economic problem, which leads to lost in human capital, incomes, production and lowering the standard of living as a whole. Depending on what is the cause of it, unemployment may be divided into frictional, structural and cyclical, where frictional and structural form the so called natural unemployment. Cyclical unemployment is simply caused because of recession – is a typical demand-sided unemployment which means that there is a lack of aggregate demand in the economy and there is lessShow MoreRelatedDifferent Dimensions Of Apple s Products And Services1573 Words   |  7 Pagesforces that influence strategic decisions and performance. Further, the performance of a business is affected by stakeholder groups whose inte rests must be factored in decision-making. Therefore, it is imperative for organizations to have a comprehensive understanding of the nature of the environment in which they operate and the implications of stakeholder’s interests in their long-term and short-term performance. This report will explore the different dimensionsRead MoreStudent s Performance As Cause Effect Phenomen A Multilevel Approach1245 Words   |  5 PagesStudent’s Performance as Cause-Effect Phenomena: A Multilevel Approach Introduction: Education plays a vital role in the human and country development at all stages. There are key determinants that affect the education level which ultimately translate into human and country s development. Quality education ensures the achievement of knowledge and required skills that enable individuals to enhance the productivity and improve their living standard and access to basic needs. ThisRead MoreSmall Business Ent. 1. Investigate Performance of a Selected Small Business Enterprise.1581 Words   |  7 Pages1. Investigate performance of a selected small business enterprise. 1.1 JS furniture is a furniture manufacturing company owned by two brothers John and Smith. JS started operations in 2006 and there is a satisfactory growth in this business since then. However there are fall in turnover in some months as well. JS import wood from Asian countries and manufacture furniture. Company had been able to get massive discounts from its suppliers because of bulk buying so this had helped them to keepRead MoreFactors That Affect a Business Essay640 Words   |  3 Pagesanalyse JCB global environment - Political factor: JCB political risk is not specified in the case study. But as a multinational, it is impacted by the political decisions of countries where it operates. According to the text, JCB is in a position of prevention. The company is implemented in countries where political riks are low. Even if they have potential market to sell compaction equipment in key developing country such as Africa, they are not ready to enter this marketRead MoreEconomics As An Area Of Study And Research1372 Words   |  6 Pages Economics Name Course Tutor Module Institution â€Æ' Introduction Economics as an area of study and research borrows from the social and scientific aspects of life. The interplay between the two principles helps in the formulation of ideals that influence distribution, production, and consumption. Right from the ancient times understanding and definition of the term dwelled on the issue of political economy. Nonetheless, developments by made scholars in the sector saw the formulation of newRead MoreThe American Society Moves Forward Into The Contemporary Era1604 Words   |  7 PagesDebt). The interpretations portrayed ,from these college advertisements, grants the observer a window into American beliefs about the idea of the American dream in society and the false perceptions of it. A primary example can be seen in Mantsios s Class in America-2009 article, where he talks about a common misconception that the United States is a fundamentally classless society (Mantsios 624). The advertisements claim that the American dream is obtainable by attendi ng these particular schoolsRead MoreHow Globalisation has affected developing countries in the Asia - pacific region1609 Words   |  7 Pagesare open to the flows of the world economy. China, which is one of the developing countries, is said to be the next economic super power. Many guru economists such as Lawrence Summers predict that in the opening decades of the 21st century, china will match the US and Japanese economies. China currently ranks seventh strongest economy on a global scale. China s economic success has not been confined to raw economic growth, especially with a huge trade surplus of over 40 billion according to worldRead MoreSuccess Of Friend Z s A Regional Based Coffee House1648 Words   |  7 PagesThe success of Friend-Z s, a regional based coffee house in the United States, is in its tenth year of business. The small business venture, which began as a cooperative college project, has grown into one of the best coffee houses on the college scene. Friend-Z s s uccess has sparked the interest of its partners to take their small business to the next level by expanding into the global market. Competing globally would allow Friend-Z s Coffee House to take advantage of a larger customer base,Read MoreNutrition : An Important Element Of A Healthy Population1341 Words   |  6 Pagesthe level of economic development in an economy. Food policies are directly related to the level of economic performance. Substantial literature indicates that nutrition directly affects the level of population health in the economy. A healthy population is more economically productive compared to a starving population. Nutritional value directs affect significantly the level of economic development in a nation. This study will mainly focus on the role food in economic performance. The study willRead MoreHow The Macroenvironment And The Global National Environment? Sarah Jebreen1601 Words   |  7 PagesMacroenvironment and the Global National Environment - Sarah Jebreen The financial performance of any business in the clothing retail industry depends on the level of consumption and spending consumers are willing to reach, which is affected by the macroenvironmental factors. Those factors include economic, global, technological, demographic and political and legal forces. First we will start with the Macroeconomic factors. Economic factors can ether have positive or negative impacts on the clothing retail industry