Free Essays on Ramsey Campbell Analyzed

John (Ramsey) Campbell, a twentieth century British writer, has been said to be creating â€Å"his own patented brand of short horror tale[s],† (â€Å"Horror Fiction,† 86). From the 1970’s to present day, the comparisons to H.P. Lovecraft and the examinations of his short stories have been numerous. These findings give evidence to Campbell’s concern with the psychological horror. Ever since he picked up his first issue of â€Å"Weird Tales† he has been enthralled with these terrors. In his short story, â€Å"The Sneering†, it can be analyzed in regard to symbolism, tone and characterization. Campbell’s most memorable childhood memories were those of being petrified. He had begun to read adult horror fiction at age eight to crave his hunger for terror. He soon began writing at eleven years of age. He knew that â€Å"most writers start by imitating their favorites† (PSFG, 1), so he pursued in imitating his favorite author, H.P. Lovecraft. Further more his own home life affected his work. His mother went mad, and the fear of his father was tremendous. Even Campbell himself declared that â€Å"while the supernatural elements in these tales weren’t autobiographical, the feelings were,† (PSFG, 2). John Ramsey Campbell, born in 1946, originates from a town called Liverpool. He publicated his first novel Demons by Daylight in 1973, and released his debut work of fiction in 1976, entitled The Doll Who Ate His Mother. While writing his early novels he had been working at the tax office and library as well. After he published his second collec tion he decided to write full time. He received his first literary award, the World Fantasy Award, for â€Å"The Chimney† in 1978. He later received this award again in 1980. Another award he earned was the British Fantasy Award, which he grasped in 1978 for â€Å"The Bag.† This award was also received in 1980, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1994. In 1992 he commemorated thirty years of... Free Essays on Ramsey Campbell Analyzed Free Essays on Ramsey Campbell Analyzed John (Ramsey) Campbell, a twentieth century British writer, has been said to be creating â€Å"his own patented brand of short horror tale[s],† (â€Å"Horror Fiction,† 86). From the 1970’s to present day, the comparisons to H.P. Lovecraft and the examinations of his short stories have been numerous. These findings give evidence to Campbell’s concern with the psychological horror. Ever since he picked up his first issue of â€Å"Weird Tales† he has been enthralled with these terrors. In his short story, â€Å"The Sneering†, it can be analyzed in regard to symbolism, tone and characterization. Campbell’s most memorable childhood memories were those of being petrified. He had begun to read adult horror fiction at age eight to crave his hunger for terror. He soon began writing at eleven years of age. He knew that â€Å"most writers start by imitating their favorites† (PSFG, 1), so he pursued in imitating his favorite author, H.P. Lovecraft. Further more his own home life affected his work. His mother went mad, and the fear of his father was tremendous. Even Campbell himself declared that â€Å"while the supernatural elements in these tales weren’t autobiographical, the feelings were,† (PSFG, 2). John Ramsey Campbell, born in 1946, originates from a town called Liverpool. He publicated his first novel Demons by Daylight in 1973, and released his debut work of fiction in 1976, entitled The Doll Who Ate His Mother. While writing his early novels he had been working at the tax office and library as well. After he published his second collec tion he decided to write full time. He received his first literary award, the World Fantasy Award, for â€Å"The Chimney† in 1978. He later received this award again in 1980. Another award he earned was the British Fantasy Award, which he grasped in 1978 for â€Å"The Bag.† This award was also received in 1980, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1994. In 1992 he commemorated thirty years of...

Free Essays on Prejudice In Education

Prejudice in Education â€Å"Prejudice, may be formally defined as the judgment of people, objects, or situations in a stereotypical way (Popenoe 2000; 246). It is a belief that is based upon unsubstantiated generalizations and ignorance toward those un-favored. Prejudgments such as a college student choosing a type of roommate or a business executive hiring someone occur on a daily basis. However, when an individual fails to discard prejudgments because of new evidence their thoughts become prejudices. Sociologists emphasize that prejudice is learned from friends and family (Popenoe 20002; 247). But, what about at school, where a child is suppose to be fostered? Do children learn prejudices while learning the three R’s? The typical public school teacher is a middle-class white female. The typical curricula, tests, and learning tools used in public schools were created by middle-class educators and are geared toward the needs of middle-class children. Educators may not always be able to communicate as well with lower-class students as they can with middle class student. A poor minority student may have trouble understanding English if English is not his/her first language or if English is not spoken in his/her home. These factors and so many more are what cause students to learn their differences and are what foster future prejudices says J. Oakes, an educational sociologist. Oakes suggests that one of the reasons this happens is because of the existence of a â€Å"hidden curriculum,† one in which teachers’ expectations and judgments are based on behavior traits that are a part of each student’s home life and are brought to the classroom. Oakes found that schools can help stu dents to overcome class barriers by responding to cultural differences as well as by using the same types of skills in all levels of tracking. Though the school cannot separate students from their family environment and peer group they can help ... Free Essays on Prejudice In Education Free Essays on Prejudice In Education Prejudice in Education â€Å"Prejudice, may be formally defined as the judgment of people, objects, or situations in a stereotypical way (Popenoe 2000; 246). It is a belief that is based upon unsubstantiated generalizations and ignorance toward those un-favored. Prejudgments such as a college student choosing a type of roommate or a business executive hiring someone occur on a daily basis. However, when an individual fails to discard prejudgments because of new evidence their thoughts become prejudices. Sociologists emphasize that prejudice is learned from friends and family (Popenoe 20002; 247). But, what about at school, where a child is suppose to be fostered? Do children learn prejudices while learning the three R’s? The typical public school teacher is a middle-class white female. The typical curricula, tests, and learning tools used in public schools were created by middle-class educators and are geared toward the needs of middle-class children. Educators may not always be able to communicate as well with lower-class students as they can with middle class student. A poor minority student may have trouble understanding English if English is not his/her first language or if English is not spoken in his/her home. These factors and so many more are what cause students to learn their differences and are what foster future prejudices says J. Oakes, an educational sociologist. Oakes suggests that one of the reasons this happens is because of the existence of a â€Å"hidden curriculum,† one in which teachers’ expectations and judgments are based on behavior traits that are a part of each student’s home life and are brought to the classroom. Oakes found that schools can help stu dents to overcome class barriers by responding to cultural differences as well as by using the same types of skills in all levels of tracking. Though the school cannot separate students from their family environment and peer group they can help ...

St.Paul's and St.Peter's Baroque Styles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

St.Paul's and St.Peter's Baroque Styles - Essay Example It is worth noting the significance of the two church buildings: St.Peter’s Basilica is the seat of the papacy, while St. Paul’s Cathedral is the Anglican’s biggest cathedral and one of the most recognizable sights in the City of London (Murray, 1970). As such, St.Peter’s Basilica reflects the Roman Catholic aspirations while St. Paul’s Cathedral is a manifestation of the Protestants’ authority. Brigg and Martin (1967) explain that in the 17th Century the Roman Catholic church fought off the encroachment by protestant reformation; The society of Jesus(Jesuits), making it their duty to defend the ways of the church against what they considered to be protestant attacks. In order to fully highlight the variations in Baroque style across Europe and with St. Paul’s and St.Peter’s as the case-studies, it is imperative to identify the design constants and unique features that identified Baroque Art and Architecture. Both Zirpolo (2008 ) and Summerson (1964) found that Baroque Architecture manifested the following salient features: (1) Use of undulating motifs in interior and exterior spaces - even columns was designed to undulate. (2) Distinctive use of vaults arches and buttresses - Churches were characterized with vaulted ceilings. (3) Flamboyant use of sculptures, statues and paintings in spaces. (4) A faà §ade characterized by a prominent dome, and an interior marked with a grand nave, and (5) Stylish exploitation of the play of light in interior spaces. It is these distinctive features. that the author will use as parameters to gauge the regional variations in the architecture of both St. Peter’s Basilica and St. Paul’s Cathedral. However, both churches have their own unique elements that might not be present in the other. For instance, St.Peter has a unique Baldachin below the dome. A major cause

Photovoltaic cells Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Photovoltaic cells - Research Paper Example PV cells energy conversion efficiency has now crossed mark of 20 percent. Several companies, universities and research institutions are doing intense research and development work to reduce the cost further so that its economics fare favorably to other competing energy systems. There has been considerable headway in the research and it is quite likely that it will become one of the most prominent technologies among all renewable sources of energy in next 10 years. Being eco friendly, it has the capacity to meet the current and future energy needs of mankind. Introduction Photovoltaic Cell is a technique to generate direct current through solar radiation using semiconductors. The PV cell technology is useful to produce electricity particularly, at the location where grid system is not available. This paper will study the technology, types of photovoltaic cells, current status, its economics, engineering issues, technological advances, future scope and the direction that the industry m ake take. Off-the-Grid Systems Off-the-grid system is useful when electricity demand cannot be met through grid due to its isolated locations. The benefit of the off-the-grid system is that it is self reliant, not dependent on any outside source, using some renewable source of energy such as solar. ... Solar radiation falls on PV cell to energize the electron producing DC current. Inverter converts DC current to AC. Energy is stored in array of batteries. The efficiency of photovoltaic cells is a key parameter to convert solar energy into usable energy. Van Geet home is a typical off-grid system for generating energy based on solar power. It is a remote location near Denver in Colorado. Several renewable-energy features along with energy-conservation measures have been incorporated in this home. The design of this home is studied as an ideal research home. It has photovoltaic based solar power system. The house is said to have achieved 89% energy savings. The system uses 1000-watt amorphous silicon PV with a tracking controller. It surpasses the norms of 70% HVAC and energy savings for Building America research homes. It has been now recognized as a model home and taken for further study and research as energy saving designs in US. (Barley et al 2004) Below mentioned diagram shows a typical off-grid energy system. Source: http://homepower.com/basics/solar/#MainDCDisconnect Mobile homes also use similar PV based energy system to meet their energy needs. Major components in such systems are PV Cells, Charge controller, Battery Bank, and inverter. PV Cells Working of Photovoltaics Solar energy is converted to electricity through photovoltaics. The technology exploits the photoelectric property of certain material that absorbs photons of light to release the electrons. These free electrons cause electric current to flow that can be used for our needs (Knier 2002). PV Cell is a chief component and the heart of such energy systems. More than 50 percent of the cost of the energy system is attributed to PV module. For this reason, the

Design of Stormwater Drainage System Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Design of Stormwater Drainage System - Term Paper Example In line with this, the engineers performing such work are expected ethically to perform the work through high standards of honesty and integrity given that the profession has the necessary impact on the quality of life of the people. Secondly, the services provided in the design of the stormwater drainage/storage system require the highest degrees of honesty, impartiality, fairness and equity. Above all, the project must be dedicated towards the protection of the health of the public, as well as their safety and welfare. Hence, under the standards of professional behavior, the design engineers must exhibit the highest principles of ethical conduct (Dym & Little, 2000). Morality on the other hand requires adherence towards the laws that governs the design and construction of the stormwater storage systems. This requires that all the stakeholders of the project right from the engineers, the workers and the community abide by the law guiding the same (Whitbeck, 1998). This law in most cases is guided by the natural flow rule, which requires acceptance for the benefit of all by the parties affected incase of this project. Ethics in the handling of the design of the stormwater storage system requires that a high degree of ethics be upheld. This is due to the sensitivity of water as a resource and the ethics is concerning creation of safety most so to the users of this resource. One of the interests comes with the interests of the interested parties like the political class who shelve individual interests. This may compromise the quality of the storage systems since the engineers may be compromised if not for anything then due to intimidation (Schrier & Gibson, 2011). The fact that the storage system designed is likely to serve a wider region also presents a dilemma. The planners may be overwhelmed about the control of the resource in terms of who is bestowed the control. Is it the government or

Aspects Of Contract Essay Example for Free

Aspects Of Contract Essay Task: 1.1: Explain the importance of the essential elements required for the information of a valid contract? Offer A valid offer identifies the bargained-for exchange between the parties and creates a power of acceptance in the party to whom the offer is made. The communication by one party known as the offeror to the another party called the offeree b) Acceptance To constitute a contract, there must be an acceptance of the offer as noted above. Until the offer is accepted, both parties have not assented to the terms and, therefore, there is no mutual assent. Offeree in a manner invited or required by the offer. Whether an offer has been accepted is a question of fact. The effect of acceptance is to convert the offer into a binding contract. To form a contract it is necessary that there is a party capable of contracting and a party capable of being contracted with on the other side. In other words, to enter into a valid, legal agreement, the parties must have the capacity to do so. Consideration No contract will exist without sufficient consideration due to agreement with the other two party has agree with the term and condition as well. Mutual Assent There must be mutual assent or a meeting of the minds on all negotiated terms between the parties and on all the essential elements in terms of the contract to form a binding contract. Intention to create legal relation In some jurisdictions, the parties must also have a present intent to be bound by their agreements. It is not necessary that the assent of both parties be given at the same time. Also, it is not necessary that communication of the assent be simultaneous. Task 1.2: Discuss the impact of different types of contract? A bilateral contract is an agreement between at least two people or groups. A bilateral contract is enforceable from the get-go; both parties are bound the promise. For example, one person agrees to wash the other’s car in return for having his/her lawn mowed. Acceptance of the offer must be communicated for an agreement to be established. A unilateral contract is one where a party promises to perform some action in return for a specific act by another party, although that other party is not promising to take any action. Acceptance may take effect through conduct and need not be communicated Task 1.3: Analyse terms in contracts with reference to their meaning and effect? Terms of contract set out duties of each party under that agreement. Generally, the terms of a contract may be either: Wholly oral, wholly written and partly oral and partly written. Terms are to be distinguished from statements made prior to the contract being made. Express terms When a contract is put down in writing, any statement appearing in that written agreement will usually be regarded as a term, and any prior oral statement that is not repeated in the written agreement will usually be regarded as a representation, due to the assumption Implied term These are terms that courts assume both parties would have intended to include in the contract had they thought about the issue. They are implied on a â€Å"one-off† basis. Two overlapping tests have been trade used to ascertain parties’ intention. Business efficacy test: terms must be implied to make contract work. There are terms which the law will require to be present in certain types of contracts (i.e. not just on â€Å"one-off† basis and sometimes irrespective of the wishes of the parties). Task 2.1: Apply the elements of contract in given business scenarios? Offer can be seen from the case when Tam’s college offers admission to it student who under take s the vocational qualification. Acceptance can also be seen from the student when they agree to bound by the school regulations. Consideration is when the student promise to act in certain way. This is particularly important where the agreement involves a promise to act in a particular way in the future. Task 2.2: Apply the on terms in different contracts? Conditions These are the most important terms of contract. Serious consequences if breeched. Innocent party can treat contract as repudiated (and thus is freed from rendering further performance of contract) and can sue for damages. Description in contract of term as â€Å"condition† is not necessarily determinative of question whether term is condition. Courts tend to search for evidence that parties really intended term to be such. Task 2.3: Evaluate the effect of different terms in given contract? Conditions are so important that without them one or other of the parties would not enter into the contract. Consequently, to make a condition  falsely, or to breach a condition, is viewed so seriously that the wronged party will be entitled to treat the contract as void, voidable or at least rescinded. Where the term is a warranty, the wronged party will only be able to seek monetary damages for any loss suffered. Task 3.1: Contract liability in tort with contractual liability? The non-breaching party has a duty to mitigate damages. If it does not do so, its damages will be reduced by the amount that might have been avoided by mitigation. In employment contracts, the employee is under a duty to use reasonable diligence to find a like position. Liquidated Damages A liquidated damages provision will be valid if (i) damages (ii) the amount agreed upon was a reasonable forecast of compensatory damages. If these requirements are met, the plaintiff will receive the liquidated damages amount even though no actual money damages have been suffered. If the liquidated damages amount is unreasonable, the courts will construe this as a penalty and will not enforce the provision. Task 3.2: Explain the nature of liability in negligence? The primary function of the Law of Torts is to provide remedies to claimants who have suffered harm, loss, or an infringement of rights. The harm includes physical injury to persons or property, damage to persons’ reputations or financial interests, and interference with persons’ use and enjoyment of their land. However, just suffering such a loss does not necessarily mean the law will provide a remedy; a claimant must show that the person committing the tort owed them a duty of care and that the tort caused the loss. Task 3.3: Explain how a business can be vicariously liable? The company is liable when the manager is under the control of the employer that the employer tell the employee how to the work and when to the work. the work that the employee does forms part of the general business of the organisation. There is a contract of service between the organisation and the employee. Daniels v Whetstone Entertainments Ltd [1962] A nightclub bouncer forcibly ejected Mr Daniels from the premises following a disturbance. Once outside, the bouncer assaulted him. Task 4.1: Apply the element of the tort of negligence and defences in different business situations? Negligence is an important tort that covers a wide range of situations where persons negligently cause harm to others. In order to succeed in an action for negligence, it is necessary for a claimant to establish the following three elements: 1. The defendant owed the claimant a duty of care. 2. The defendant breached that duty of care. 3. Reasonably foreseeable damage was caused by the breach of duty. Task 4.2: Apply the elements of vicarious liability in given business situations? Employers are vicariously liable for Employee acts authorized by the employer Unauthorized acts so connected with authorized acts that they may be regarded as modes (albeit improper modes) of doing an authorized act. There is normally rarely an issue as to whether a given act falls within the first category The difficult cases involve assessing the connection between the act and the employee’s employment. Bazley established that the connection between the employment and the tort contemplated in the second branch of the Salmond test had itself to be addressed in two steps: The Court must first examine â€Å"whether there are precedents which unambiguously determine on which side of the line between vicarious liability and no liability the case falls.† If the prior case law does not clearly suggest a solution, then the Court is to resolve the question of vicarious liability based on a policy analysis directed at ascertaining whether the employer’s conduct created or enhanced the risk that the tort would occur. Task 4.3: Discuss three methods you can use to apply elements of tort properly in a work a place? CONTROL One of the traditional explanations of vicarious liability is that the employer should be vicariously liable since the employer controls the activities of her employees. The relationship between the parties As duties in tort are fixed by law, the parties may well have had no contact before the tort is committed. Unliquidated damages The aim of tort damages is to restore the claimant, in so far as money can do so, to his or her pre-incident position, and this purpose underlies the assessment of damages. Tort compensates both for tangible losses and for factors which are enormously difficult to quantify, such as loss of amenity and pain and suffering, nervous shock, and other intangible losses.. LIST REFERENCE Atiyah P S — Introduction to the Law of Contract (Clarendon Press, June 1995) ISBN: Beale/Bishop and Furmston — Contract — Cases and Materials (Butterworth, October 2001) Cheshire/Fifoot and Furmston — Law of Contract (Butterworth, October 2001) ISBN: Cooke J — Law of Tort (Prentice Hall, May 1997) ISBN: 0273627104

Characteristics Of Communicative Language Teaching English Language Essay

Characteristics Of Communicative Language Teaching English Language Essay The focus of every lesson or part of a lesson should be the performing of some action learning how to do something, to communicate something which he/she could not do before learning the lesson. Learner can get answer to his/her question i.e. why is he/she learning a particular lesson or any linguistic item. The learner understands the importance of learning the same as it is going to help him/her in day-today communication. So, here a learner understands and then acts. All these actions can be approached on a variety of different levels of sophistication, and bearing them in mind throughout the teaching/learning process. The Whole is more than the sum of its parts One of the most significant features of communication is that it is a dynamic and developing phenomenon. In other words it cannot easily be analyzed into component features without its nature being destroyed in the process. It is possible to identify various formal features of the way language is used communicatively and these can be studied individually. But the ability to handle these elements in isolation is no indication of ability to communicate. What is needed is the ability to deal with strings of sentences and ideas and in the oral modes processed in real life situations. Thus, a crucial feature of a communicative method is that it operates with stretches of language above the sentence level, and operates with real language in real situations. Interestingly, this principle may lead to procedures which are themselves either synthetic or analytic. A synthetic procedure would involve students in learning forms individually and then practicing how to combine them; an analytic procedure would introduce complete interactions of texts and focus for learning purposes on the way these are constructed. So, language used in the whole context is more useful than only studying the parts of it. The processes are as important as the forms A method which aims at developing the capacity of the learners to communicate in a second language will focus at repeating continuously until they are able to communicate well in a target language. So that the learners are able to practice the forms of the target language, i.e. English within a given framework. It simply means when the language is used for communication, the language forms are used for a process of communication. There are three such processes Information gap Communication is part and parcel of every human being. When two or more people are conversing in day-today life, one may know something which is not known to the other. The purpose of the communication is to bridge this information gap. In classroom situation pair work undertaken to complete an incomplete picture is the best example of transferring information as each member of the pair has a part of total information and attempts to convey it verbally to the other. Choice Another crucial feature of communication is that the learners have option, both in terms of what they will say and, more particularly, how they will say it. From the point of view of the speaker this means that s/he must choose the ideas which s/he wants to express with appropriate linguistic forms. Foreign language learners may face problems in making choice in this regard. Feed back This process is implicit in the above two processes. When two persons take part in an interaction, there is normally some aim behind communicating and in what way other person reacts is evaluated in terms of that aim. So, the strategies involved in this process are important. Learning by doing It is now widely accepted that education must be ultimately learner-centred more than the teacher-centered. The teacher may go on teach, but if the learner is not making any effort, then there is no point of teaching. The teacher must involve the learner and must be judged in terms of its effects on him/her. Another consequence is that learning becomes to a large extent the learners responsibility. The teacher helps, advises, and teaches, guides, the learners themselves have to learn. The learner has to be involved in the activity. Only by practicing, acting, actually doing, the learners can learn to communicate. Mistakes are not always a mistake While developing communicative ability of the learners, trivial mistakes of grammar or pronunciation does not matter as long as the learner gets his/her message across. In the initial stage of learning to communicate in a foreign language, mistakes are bound to happen. The learners commit mistakes because they are trying to do something which they have not been told or shown how to do, how to speak which they have not mastered. It means they are not really making mistakes. If the teacher corrects each and everything at every level, the learners may lose their confidence of using the language for communication. 3.6.4 Principles of Communicative Language Teaching Richards (2006) summarizes the following principles of CLT: Authentic language in real context should be introduced in the classroom whenever possible. It is the language used for day-today communication or functional purpose. By teaching language, learner should be able to make out speakers or writers intention. So that they will be communicatively competent. There should be connectivity among all the language skills such as listening, speaking, reading and writing together since they are regularly used in real life. The target language is a vehicle for classroom communication, not just the object of study. Hence, attention should be given to teaching language for communication. One function may have different linguistic forms. As the language is taught for the functional purpose, a variety of linguistic forms are presented together. Students have to learn language properties i.e. cohesion and coherence which are helpful to combine sentences together. It is essential for them as they work with language at the discourse or super sentential (above sentence) level. In CLT, games, role plays, group work, pair work, etc. play an important role as they have certain feature in common to learn language effectively. Errors are tolerated and treated as a natural outcome of the development of communication skills. Proper situations should be created by the teacher so as to promote communication in the classroom. The social contexts of the communicative situations are essential for giving meaning to the utterances. The grammar and vocabulary that the students learn follow from the functions, situational context and the role of the interlocutors. 3.6.5 Communicative Ability and Communicative Competence For effective communication one must have ability to communicate properly and have communicative competence. According to H. G. Widdowson, communicative abilities are those skills in which the system is realized as use. Communicative abilities embrace linguistic skills but not the reverse. Communicative abilities are ways of creating or recreating discourse in different modes. (Widdowson, 1978. 67) These opinions about communicative abilities suggest that these are the abilities which involve linguistic as well as other skills essential for conversation, communication or discourse to take place. On the other hand communicative competence has been defined in various ways. According to Littlewood, communicative competence means, a degree of mastery of a very considerable range of linguistic and social skills which depend in part on the learners sensitivity to meaning and appropriacy in language and on his/her ability to develop effective strategies for communicating in the second language. (Littlewood, 1981.87) K. Johnson and K. Marlow say that communicative competence is the ability to be appropriate, to know the right thing to say at the right time. (Johnson and Morrow, 1981.2) International Encyclopedia of Education defines communicative competence as the effective use of language in social contexts. (The International Encyclopedia, 1985.834) According to Widdowson, communicative competency is the ability to produce sentences for communicative effect. (Widdowson, 1978.1) It is revealed from the above definitions that communicative competence is The ability to use language appropriately in a given social context. The ability to be appropriate to know the right thing at the right time. Linguistic competence plus an understanding of proper use of language in various contexts. Knowledge which is additional to linguistic competence. Ability to communicate something which is grammatical, proper, socially accepted, formally possible, fluent in a particular context. In this way communicative competence includes both grammatical knowledge and the ability to use this knowledge to perform different kinds of functions like enquiring, suggesting, greeting, denying, advising, reporting, apologizing, inviting and promising. 3.6.6 Dimension of Communicative Competence Grammatical Competence Sociolinguistic Competence Communicative Competence Strategic Competence Discourse Competence Fig No.3.3: Components of Communicative Competence Grammatical Competence Grammatical competence, which refers to Chomskys notion of linguistic competence, is indispensable for the practice of linguistic formation of the language. The focus is on suitable structure which helps the learners to use the language appropriately and freely. Sociolinguistic Competence Sociolinguistic competence refers to an understanding of the social context in which communication takes place, including role-relationships, the shared information of the participants and the communicative purpose for their interaction. Discourse Competence Discourse competence refers to the interpretation of individual message elements in terms of their inter-connectedness and of how meaning is represented in relationship to the entire discourse or text. Strategic Competence Strategic competence refers to the coping strategies that communicators employ to initiate, terminate, maintain, repair, and re-direct communication. In CLT classrooms, the teachers need to create activities that would necessitate learners to practice well in the target language. 3.6.7 Classroom Activities in CLT There are various types of exercises and activities in communicative approach which help students to achieve the communicative competence, and engage learners in communication (Richards, 2001). Communicative activities play vital role in communicative language teaching. These activities are helpful for the teachers to broaden their repertoire of techniques and activities so as to enable the learners to communicate more effectively in foreign language. Communicative activities are purposeful and objective oriented. According to Littlewood, the communicative activities can be represented diagrammatically as follows. (Littlewood, 2003.86) Structural activities Pre-Communicative activities Quasi Communicative activities Functional Communicative activities Communicative activities Social interaction activities (This diagram is adopted from Littlewoods Communicative Language Teaching, P.86) In these two major categories, the first types (Pre-communicative activities) serve to prepare the learner for later communication. The two sub-categories of pre-communicative activities are: Structural activities: Focus is on the grammatical system and on ways in which linguistic items can be combined. Quasi- Communicative activities: Focus is on one or more typical conversation exchanges. Some resemble drills, but other is closer to dialogues. Drills and dialogues can be combined so as to provide a bridge from formal exercise to communicative use. Communicative Activities also have two sub-categories: Functional Communicative activities include such tasks as comparing sets of pictures, noting similarities and differences, working out continuously following directions and so on. In these activities learners must work towards a definite solution for a problem. Social interaction activities comprise exchange of words, converse with others, improvisations and debates. Here, teachers prepare learners about the varied social contexts in which they will need to perform outside the classroom using different social interaction activities. There is no clear dividing line in reality between these different categories and subcategories; they represent differences of emphasis and orientation rather than distinct divisions. E.g. cued dialogues can be undertaken both as pre-communicative activity and as communicative activity. Similarly it would be arbitrary if we try to specify how much attention must be paid to communicative function before an activity can be called quasi- communicative, or how significant social meaning must become before it falls into the social interaction sub category. This distinction depends on the varying orientation of individual learner. Difference between pre-communicative and communicative activities The following chart shows the difference between pre-communicative and communicative activities. Pre-communicative (non-communicative) activities Communicative activities A Aims to develop grammatical competence Aims to develop communicative competence B Focus on the product of isolated utterances. Focus on the appropriate selection of utterances for communication. C Practice of language patterns or elements Practice of total skill of communication. D Function is to prepare the learner for later communication. Function is to make the learner to actually communicate. E Learners have controlled practice. Learners use language creatively. F Teacher intervention No teacher intervention G Emphasis on form, not on context. Emphasis in on context, not on form. H One long item Variety of language items. I Examples: drilling, question answers, sentence patterns, etc. Examples: Role simulation, dramatization, group discussion, dialogue, debate, etc. 3.6.8 Learners/Teachers Role in Communicative Language Teaching In CLT classroom teachers play a vital role in teaching/learning process of English. Teachers select learning activities according to the interest of the learners and engage them in meaningful and authentic language use. There are various roles to be played by the teachers in order to facilitate the language learning process. According to Hedge (2000.63), a communicative classroom involves the teacher in setting up activities, organizing material resources, guiding students in group works, engaging contributions, monitoring activities, and diagnosing the further needs of students. Richards Rodgers (2001) also describes the roles of the teacher as: needs analyst, counselor, and group process manager. Similarly, Harmer (1991) as cited in Nunan and Land (1996) describes the roles of the teacher as: Controller, assessor, promoter, participant, resource, tutor and investigator. Of all these roles, Nunan and Lamb suggest that it is the teacher as organizer that is the most important and difficult from the perspective of classroom management. In order to perform all these roles effectively, teachers should be competent enough in all aspects of language teaching. In line with this, Hedge (2000.67) states that, teachers need to build competence and confidence in fulfilling these various roles and in-service training is necessary within institutions to ensure that, in any moves towards implementing communicative approaches in the classroom, teachers are properly supported. 3.6.9 Role and Relevance of CLT Concepts in Present Research Since the main aim of the present research is to investigate teachers and students difficulties in teaching/learning process of English language, and support the teachers with an in-service training programme by using Communicative Approach which is essential in an ESL (English as a second language) environment, it is noteworthy to furnish the role and relevance of CLT concepts in the present study. Language is an inevitable phenomenon which permeates the human life. Of all languages, English is the most important language for communication. Naturally, English has become the language of worldwide communication rather than a language of literature. Hence the prime need of the learners is not to know the theoretical knowledge of English but to have an ability to understand and be understood in that language. In the past it was sufficient to focus only on structural accuracy when learning a language was an entirely academic advantage and an obsession to acquire a new language. But in todays world, language teaching is no longer considered a luxury but an obvious need. The language teaching methods in the past were based on linguistic competence. The establishment of basic principles of CLT was a reaction in opposition to the previously prevailing language teaching methods. Communicative language teaching aims at developing and improving knowledge and skills that facilitate the learners to make their message effective and successful. The main goal of communication is the successful transmission of information, not the achievement of grammatical correctness. By widening the horizons with other kinds of competence, CLT initiated progressive and effective ways of teaching. CLT uses and teaches as it is used in every day real life. Students are given the notion of language as real, lived experience. Socio-linguistic, discourse and strategic competences are integral part of communicative language teaching. The use of CLT in the second language classroom is a means of changing the attitude of the students towards language learning as well as positively influencing their way of learning. Over-emphasis on grammatical correctness and fear of making grammatical mistakes has negative effects on students. Such as being stressed at class and experiencing sense of failure. CLT creates congenial atmosphere in the classroom in different ways: the teachers emphasise on fluency and correctness to learn the target language than correcting the structures and giving instructions on language rules or grammar (Mangubai etal, 2004.292) The focus of CLT is on success rather than failure. The students are encouraged to rely on their own ingenuity and performance skills namely their strategic competence when speaking. Its emphasis is on the learner. (Savignan cited in Magngubhai 2004, 292) The four basic components of communicative competence summarized by Hymes (as cited in Cook, 2003) are argued by some applied linguists as vague theoretical ideas which can hardly be put into practice. The applied linguists draw attention to the fact that ideas of appropriateness and correctness very much depend on the cultural norms of a particular society. They are in a way right in their argument. Language itself is an intrinsic part of culture. Hence, learning a language also implies learning a culture as well. CLT integrates socio-cultural context with language teaching programmes and thus aims at developing students sense of what is right and what is wrong in English. Linguists have pointed out, according to academic research that they have not found one single best method for all learners in all contexts and that no single method appears to be naturally superior to other methods. It is neither possible always nor appropriate to apply one and the same methodology to all learners whose objectives, environments and learning needs are varied and different. CLT is considered one of the best methods for use in the second language classroom for several reasons: One, it gives confidence to the students to learn the second language and use it as and when required. Two, CLT draws attention to the importance of socio cultural skills. Three, the learners are given the realistic idea of language and are provided with a sense of what is appropriate and right in a given culture. Four, the learners learn English language and English culture simultaneously. It is vital and imperative both for teachers and learners, living as they do in a globalized world, to adopt and maintain the effective methods of language teaching/learning offered by CLT. Constant migration of people has become part and parcel of todays globalized world. Hence, English teaching/learning has become inevitable for anyone intending to move onto other states/countries either for higher studies or better careers. In this context, it is necessary to consider the lag between the aspiration for better prospects in life and the existing situation of teaching/learning of English language in schools especially the municipal corporation schools. Hence, the present research study is undertaken to bridge this gap by finding ways and means to know the difficulties of teachers and learners and develop a methodology that will enable them to improve the standards of teaching/learning process of English at school level. 3.7 Procedure of the Test to the Students A total number of 200 students from class VIII and IX standard of various Municipal Corporation Schools were gathered in one of the municipal schools in two spells and the tests on four language skills were given, data was collected, analysed and interpreted in the next chapter. 3. 8 Flowchart of the Research Design The research work during July 2008 to March 2011 was done as per the steps shown in the following flowchart. A Flow Chart Submission of the research report Selection of the problem DTP and binding of final computerized research report Review of related literature Formation of objectives Writing rough research reports and corrections in it Formation of hypothesis Suggestions for further research study Sample selection Findings, conclusions and recommendations Preparation of research tools Implementation of Pilot study Verification of Objectives Testing of hypothesis Data collection with the help of questionnaires and its analysis Analysis and interpretation data Pre-observation of the lessons and its analysis Data collection from students tests in all four language skills Implementation of the training programme for the teachers Post-observation of the teachers lessons Discussion with the teachers and Guidance to the teachers 3.9 Summary This chapter has discussed about the methods and procedures of the research study. It includes research design, the methodology employed for the teachers, procedure used for the research, the sampling design, participants, data collection, in-service training programme, its benefits, and communicative approach for the teachers and its relevance in the present research and analysis techniques. It has also discussed the procedure of the test for the learners. The next chapter includes analysis and interpretation of the data collected through the questionnaires from the teachers and observation of their lessons and also analysis and interpretation of the students tests in all four language skills questionnaire. Data was classified, analysed, interpreted using the statistical method and conclusions are drawn.