Average National SAT Scores for 2012

Average National SAT Scores for 2012   Over a million high-schoolers registered for the SAT  in 2012. Their average scores provide some interesting insights into this group. Whether they wanted admission to the  top public universities  or another school of their choice, see how they performed. Overall SAT Scores for 2012 The mean is the average score of every student who took the SAT from the fall of 2011 through June of 2012. Here are the mean scores for all testers by section: Overall: 1498Critical Reading: 496Mathematics: 514Writing: 488 (subscores: multiple-choice: 48.1 / essay: 7.3) See how these compare: SAT Scores for 2013 SAT Scores by Gender As is often seen, boys were better on average in the Mathematics section and they also slightly outperformed girls as a whole in the Critical Reading Section. But females outperformed them on average in the Writing section. You can compare your scores with the average for your gender. Critical Reading:  Males: 498. Females: 493Mathematics:  Males: 532. Females: 499Writing:  Males: 481. Females: 494 SAT Scores by Reported Annual Income Higher parental income is associated with a higher SAT score. This doesnt necessarily mean that wealthier families produce smarter children. But it likely has some relationship to parents sending their children to better schools and being more willing to purchase SAT prep. They may also be more willing to spend money on retakes of the examination. $0 to $20,000: 1323$20,000 to $40,000: 1398$40,000 to $60,000: 1461$60,000 to $80,000: 1503$80,000 to $100,000: 1545$100,000 to $120,000: 1580$120,000 to $140,000: 1594$140,000 to $160,000: 1619$160,000 to $200,000: 1636$200,000 and more: 1721 SAT Scores by AP/Honors Classes It is helpful to know which courses in school tend to produce the highest SAT scores. You could guess that students who take AP courses or rigorous Honors courses are going to score higher on the SAT, but the degree to which they score better is significant. The question is which came first, the chicken or the egg? Do these students score higher due to their natural abilities, or do the courses themselves prepare students better for the SAT? Check out the stats: AP/Honors Math 1698: Mean SAT score for those enrolled in AP/Honors Math1404: Mean SAT score for those not enrolled Percentage of SAT Testers Enrolled in AP/Honors Math by Ethnicity All students: 36 percentAfrican American: 25 percentAmerican Indian: 31 percentAsian: 47 percentHispanic: 31 percentWhite: 40 percent AP/Honors English 1655: Mean SAT score for those enrolled in AP/Honors Math1404: Mean SAT score for those not enrolled Percentage of SAT Testers Enrolled in AP/Honors English by Ethnicity All students: 42 percentAfrican American: 34 percentAmerican Indian: 40 percentAsian: 44 percentHispanic: 39 percentWhite: 46 percent AP/Honors Natural Science 1698: Mean SAT score for those enrolled in AP/Honors Math1414: Mean SAT score for those not enrolled Percentage of SAT Testers Enrolled in AP/Honors Natural Science by Ethnicity All students: 35 percentAfrican American: 24 percentAmerican Indian: 28 percentAsian: 43 percentHispanic: 28 percentWhite: 38 percent 2012 SAT Scores Summary The statistics say youd have the best advantage on the SAT if you were a male of Asian ethnicity whose family who made more than $200,000 per year. You could always prepare regardless of your ethnic heritage or familial status. These statistics represent the mean but do not, of course, represent the individual. If you have nothing in common with the groups scoring the highest on the SAT, it does not mean that you cant secure a top-notch score. Start with some free SAT practice quizzes, grab some free SAT apps, and prepare yourself the best way you can.

The Complete Guide on How to Write a Physics Essay

The Complete Guide on How to Write a Physics Essay Some students view writing an essay, especially one in physics, as a frightening and excruciatingly complicated process. However, it does not necessarily have to be such a negative experience. Creating an essay is a significant part of the learning process which can serve to develop the critical thinking abilities as well as broaden the understanding of the subject Physics. To make this process more accessible, it is essential to fully comprehend the task. Thus, it is only logical to ask: â€Å"What is an essay in Physics and what basic rules does it have to follow?† Incidentally, it is necessary to review the fundamentals of the physics essay structure. All the practical information is found in this physics essay writing guide. Find enough time to get the grasp of each point we state here. Don’t forget to make use of all the physics essay writing prompts you’ll read in this article. A Physics Essay: What Is It? This type of writing is usually shorter than a paper and should be readable to a less professional audience. However, it is also a scientific work and has to meet certain specifications. Similarly to an essay in humanities, this assignment typically requires the writer to show an understanding of the concept and give a personal viewpoint on the matter. Hence, it has to follow one of the basic types. The answer should also be supported with information and examples from reliable sources. In short, this assignment can be imagined as a precise and formal explanation of a physics matter to a peer. Despite being vague, this concept helps to form a better understanding of the writing task. This guide will elaborate on dealing with the challenges of writing a Physics essay. Choosing a Topic for a Physics Essay Quite frequently instead of a handout topic, the writer has the opportunity to decide on it. In this case, one of the most important steps towards a successful essay is picking the research theme. Selecting a subjectively interesting topic is necessary. Also, if the issue is inappropriately broad or narrow, research becomes overly complicated due to the lack of information available to support and formulate the arguments. Another helpful strategy is to phrase the topic as a question. Applying this method ensures that the writer can focus on answering it throughout the essay and not stray from the task. Moreover, the topics can usually be grouped according to the type of writing that is required. Considering this form before choosing the subject can help generate ideas in a faster and more efficient manner. Types of Essays with Examples: Descriptive (detailed explanation of how the subject works), Explain how a combustion engine works. A brief introduction to the electromagnetic induction effect. Compare Contrast (similarities and differences of concepts), Alternating and direct current comparison. Explain the difference between diode and triode. Process (experiment and the analysis of its results), Use a marine aquarium to calculate the salinity levels and the density of the water. What works best for the fish? What happens when these levels are changed? Narrative (historical description), History of cameras. Creation of the first nuclear bomb. Cause Effect (sequence and effect of events), What led to the tragedies of Chernobyl and Fukushima? Which experiments proved the inconsistencies behind Newton’s laws of motion. Argumentative (persuades the reader to accept the writer’s position on a debatable issue), Can time travel to the future or the past ever be possible according to the laws of physics? Furthermore, these types can be grouped according to the kind of information that is needed to have a strong essay. History (Narrative). This type generally does not require a deep understanding of scientific principles and is based on analyzing history and modern day events. Fundamental physics (Descriptive, Compare Contrast, Process). This category requires knowing the laws and principles of physics under discussion. As a result, it is necessary to be well-informed on the matter to take such a subject. Modern research (Cause Effect, Argumentative). These essays are among the most complicated because the writer has to overview the current opinions of the scientific community on the topic, which typically requires already having the basic notions about it. All in all, the selected type of the essay dictates the needed amount of knowledge in the particular field. Although it is acceptable to not be fluent in the technical side before starting the work, it should be taken into account that learning can be immensely time-consuming. Therefore, it is recommended to choose a familiar topic to allow more time for in-depth research. Tips for Physics Essay Writing The following tips should be considered prior to writing the physics essay: The physics concepts require precision and may be complicated to grasp without proper explanation. Therefore, the essay should, by all means, have a clear structure and flow well. It is also necessary to avoid wordiness and long sentences. Similarly to other types of academic writing, the essay should also be written in a formal and impersonal style. Grammar and other language flaws must be omitted and can be found using Grammarly and other online resources or checked with a dictionary. It is important to keep in mind the audience the essay is going to be presented to. The work should avoid detailed explanations of commonly known concepts if the target audience is at the required level. For instance, if it is written for an undergraduate class Newton’s Laws of Motions can be presented without further explanation. However, the essay should elaborate on all of the significant matters that are crucial to its understanding. Any supplementary information can be assisted in the further reading section. Scientific essays repeatedly use mathematical equations, graphs, and diagrams, which can be helpful to present significant amounts of data. Incidentally, these tools require specific formatting to prevent hindering the readability of the work. Graphs and diagrams should be accompanied by a caption and a figure number and positioned in the text where they are referred to. Equations should be considered as part of the text, punctuated like any other sentence and numbered if they are referred to again. The essay should avoid generalizations and colloquial tropes including â€Å"some scientists think†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , â€Å"it is believed that† etc. Consequently, citations and other unique notions should be included with references to the sources. Copying the work or its parts from other sources is plagiarism, and it is considered a severe issue in the scientific community. Therefore, all of this external information should be referenced as direct quotations or paraphrases. It is also vital that these references match the AIP format, which is standard for scientific works in Physics. Common requirements for citations are outlined in the table below. The Physics Essay Structure to Follow Title Choosing the title is a crucial part of writing an essay because it allows the reader to understand the primary focus of the work. Moreover, a precise title will enable it to be found by a straightforward key-word search. Thesis Statement A thesis statement is a tool that helps the author to outline the main idea or topic and the author’s position on it. It typically consists of one or two sentences. An appropriate thesis serves as the backbone to the essay, helping the writer not to drift from the initial viewpoint. Therefore, it should avoid being a topic, an opinion or a fact. â€Å"Creation of the first nuclear bomb† can be a topic; â€Å"The nuclear bomb was created during WWII† is a commonly known fact. â€Å"Creation of the first nuclear bomb is the worst thing that happened to humanity† is a subjective opinion. Whereas, a successful thesis like ‘Despite having horrifying consequences including Hiroshima and the Cold War, the creation of the nuclear bomb made the use of atomic energy possible, questioning the world’s dependence on fossil fuels’ should not only elaborate on the views but also explore the argumentation for having them. Some helpful ideas to consider choosing the thesis of the essay include: Despite not being obligatory, it is widely accepted to place the thesis statement at the end of the introduction; Exploiting contrasting arguments by analyzing sources with an opposing view can create tension, which results in a stronger statement; An efficient thesis should be a complete statement in itself and avoid generalization. Hence it cannot be formed into a question or list the arguments without context; In case the essay is based on an experiment, its thesis should present the hypothesis the research was based on. Introduction, Body Paragraphs Conclusion It is globally agreed that academic essays should have a fixed structure that consists of an introduction, several body paragraphs, and a conclusion. An introduction allows the writer to establish the foundation for the whole essay. It usually starts with broader notions to introduce the topic or its context followed by an outline of the main points, which leads to the thesis statement. A brief action plan for writing an introduction: Definition of the central issue/area that is going to be explored; Background context of the research; Introduction/outline of the established theoretical framework in this field; Thesis statement. The body paragraphs elaborate on the thesis statement serving the purpose of the particular essay type. There are typically three body passages in an essay. It is practical to consider a suggested universal layout to present information throughout the body of the essay: The first paragraph should present an overview of the relevant data on the matter. The writer should explain various perspectives of the problem by critically examining multiple external sources and presenting own research (if applicable) in a neutral and factual manner. Consequently, the second paragraph is based on the previously presented data and focuses on interpreting it through the theoretical framework mentioned in the introduction. The writer then needs to synthesize data and theory to illustrate how the evidence supports the selected position on the subject. Finally, the third paragraph may concentrate on introducing and evaluating the major opposing views or identify where the data is incomplete or weak. This analysis should provide reasons for why this position it is less acceptable than the one promoted in the essay. Furthermore, the so-called TEEL strategy helps to form individual paragraphs using a template structure. It is based on a sequence of topic sentence (contains the main idea) explanation (of the concept in the topic sentence) evidence and example (includes references) link (sums up the whole paragraph). The conclusion of the essay should summarize the points made in work and link it to the field as a whole. In other words, it elaborates on the importance of the essay as to where it fits within the broad scientific field. It may also mention the ways in which this work could be extended or improved. However, this self-criticism should not undermine the significance of its results. Helpful Additional Sources of Information Our Writers Use Advise Tips on the essay structure: https://www.citewrite.qut.edu.au/write/essay.jsp cws.illinois.edu/workshop/writers/tips/thesis/ http://writing.umn.edu/sws/assets/pdf/quicktips/titles.pdf Analyzing the experiment results: batesville.k12.in.us/physics/APPhyNet/Measurement/how_to_analyze.htm Credible resources for information search: https://physics.info https://www.britannica.com https://www.jstor.org https://scholar.google.com Proofreading a Physics Essay As the final step, the writer is required to examine the finished work to correct major logic flaws. This process may be difficult, but it is necessary to make sure that the essay is clear and consistent with the task. An effective strategy is to go through a checklist of revision questions that cover most of the general issues. Finally, it is more complicated to find the problems in the writer’s own essay. Therefore, an efficient method is to ask for assistance from a peer or professor after finishing the work. Much more confident of essay writing in Physics? Don’t put off your physics essays. Write them all right now!

Recent biotechnological approaches that have been used to enhance the Essay

Recent biotechnological approaches that have been used to enhance the yield and diversity of amino acids, vitamins, antibiotics - Essay Example These enrichments are only possible with Biotechnology. In the agriculture sector, many technologies are used such as genetic manipulation and gene transfer, development of recombinant vaccines, molecular markers, DNA-based disease diagnosis and characterization, embryo transfer and in vitro propagation of plants. In the food industry, the food processing is the main part where biotechnology intermission is required. For the improvement of the bacterial strains, genetic modification of the strains for the food processing microorganisms by the identification, characterization and alteration is done. Thus biotechnology has vast applications in many fields. Biofuels: As the fossil fuels are very limited, the search for the alternative methods that are renewable and safe are looked upon. The biological fuels such as ethanol, methane, hydrogen etc., are increasing day by day. To improve the production quality of these biofuels, the biotechnological approaches are used. The drawbacks of th ese methods such as low yield, high cost of feed, ad lack of active micro organisms can be overcome by using biotechnological approaches. ... Here the metabolic pathway is altered. The glucose metabolism towards the metabolic pyruvate formate lyase pathway by interrupting the succinate producing and lactate producing pathways. (Yoshida et al. 2006). By this technique the yield of hydrogen was increased from 1.08 mol/mol glucose to 1.83 mol/mol glucose which is 190 percent increase in the yields when compared to the wild strain hydrogen production. (Yoshida et al. 2006). The maize is used for the production of biofuel nowadays. The distillery soluble waste obtained after the ethanol production called as dried distiller grain soluble (DDGS), is usually left out as cattle feed. The researchers have found that this DDGS has a lot of nutritional value and if the feed is improved with amino acid and vitamin content, it can be used for swine and poultry. (Ufaz and Galili 2008). Lignocellulostic biomass is widely used as the main source of sugars for the fermentation to biofuels and other energy sources. These sugars are present b ound to the plant cell walls. The process of overcoming these barriers by the use of some break through technologies is termed as â€Å"biomass recalcitrance†. (Tomes and Lakshmanan 2010). Pretreatment of the biomass and then using it as the raw material for biofuel production will result in better yield. As lignin is not degraded easily by the protease enzymes, some modification to the substrate is very essential. Lignin hinders its active site form the enzymes and also binds reversibly to the proteins, because of this nature of lignin the enzymatic conversion is very less. So an alternative approach of increasing the pore size of the biomass can help to increase the enzymatic activity. Enzymes such as cellulase and hemicellulase are used for the

Why Do Chinese Students Choose To Study For First Degrees In UK Essay

Why Do Chinese Students Choose To Study For First Degrees In UK Universities - Essay Example Why Do Chinese Students Choose To Study For First Degrees In UK Universities? UK degrees are perceived to have greater career value than those offered in Chinese universities (Agelasto, 2001). Research question Why do Chinese students choose to study for first degrees in UK universities? Background This research study will basically involve the global expansion of Chinese students studying at UK universities. There has been declaration of policies in the UK for the expansion of both the absolute numbers of foreign students and their share of this huge Chinese market. Mainland China has been the largest component of this growth in the UK. Currently, they are by far the largest national group of overseas students in the UK, with numbers increasing by a factor of almost twenty over the ten years from 1994/5 to 2004/5. This study will focus on Chinese undergraduates, for whom the growth in numbers has been particularly marked – from 245 to 20,820 in that ten-year period (Denscombe, 2010). These Chinese students comprise of a major input generally to the UK economy and particularly to the financial health of universities. Strategies for the expansion of the market share will benefit from a vivid understanding of the kind of demand and the customers in the market. There have been no detailed studies assessing the relevance of various factors believed to influence students’ decisions to study abroad. ... foreign students, this study will also contextualize and develop our understanding of the processes which are involved in individuals’ decision-making (Agelasto, 2001). Other information The Chinese students’ decisions to study in the UK however, should be understood based on the relevant conditions in the home country, which will include the various university options available there. This study therefore will also briefly include Chinese students who have opted to study at their local universities, so as to have a whole picture of the involved decision-making process and its theorization. Two broad theoretical positions have been used to account for developments in patterns of educational enrolment and the choices that lie behind them: human capital theory and positional competition theory. The former argues that expansion of demand for education reflects increases in the skill levels demanded by the economy, with increasing components of technical and scientific know ledge that require longer periods of more advanced education and training, precisely the situation in contemporary China, and the basis of the policy of ‘massification’ of higher education. Rates of return on educational investment can be calculated and it is these that motivate social and individual decisions to invest in education (Hechanova-Alampay et al., 2002). Positional competition theory on the other hand, argues that the expansion of educational demand at increasingly higher levels of the system, as currently experienced in China, is the outcome of competition to increase one’s educational standing relative to others. The labor market and education relationship is not one of providing necessary technical skills, but one which is mediated by the use of credentials as a screening device

Using Research Evidence. (paper subject - Health and social care) Essay

Using Research Evidence. (paper subject - Health and social care) - Essay Example However, the definition that really caught my attention was the one that defined research as a systematic, planned, investigation of a stated problem with a pre-established or decided outcome, which will contribute to understanding the issue in question (Carnwell, 2015). In all the above definitions, there is the element of systematic, and planned even if not directly but may synonymously be implied by the used words. In other words, research must be systematic and planned. This is a research that basically depends on collection and gathering of quantifiable or measurable data. It may be defined as a method that involves collecting numerical data under controllable conditions and the subsequent statistical analysis of information generated afterwards (Burns & Grove, 2001). In summary, it has the following characteristics that make it distinct from qualitative research: Under this research, there is a single objective that defines the study plus, the report must be based on statistics. Correlations and other measures of central tendencies are calculated and reported (Johnson & Christensen, 2008). This research involves collecting and analyzing systematically materials, using personal feelings through procedures in which there tends to be a minimum of researcher control to minimize bias of the researcher (Polit & Hungler, 1993). In this type, there is mostly personal feelings involved and most of the findings are not quantifiable. Evidence can be said to be either valid, relevant, reliable or valid and relevant or valid and reliable. When it comes to evidence based practice, there is need to use the best evidence for decision-making. For this reason, the evidence needs to be one that can be reliably be depended upon since life is at stake. They would want o use the best evidence available from the previous research. Evidence may be valid with regards to a particular case or person, but may fail the relevancy test for which

Second Language Learning And Age Related Factors English Language Essay

Second Language Learning And Age Related Factors English Language Essay Age is one of the most important affective factors in Second Language Acquisition(SLA). There is some consensus among SLA researchers that age as an affective factor that brings about different performance stages in second language learning. Most experts also agree that individual learners learn differently depending on many variables like learning opportunities, the motivation to learn, individual differences and learning styles in second language acquisition. However, there is little consensus as to how far individuals of the same age group of learners follow a similar and/or linear pattern of language acquisition. The question of how developmental stages interact with individual learning differences is still a question of great debate. It is generally believed that younger learners have certain advantages over older learners in language learning. The common notion is that younger children learn L2 easily and quickly in comparison to older children (Ellis, 2008; Larsen-Freeman, 200 8; Mayberry Lock, 2003). The relationship between age and success in SLA, though complex in nature, is linked to the Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH). CPH, also known as the sensitive period, is defined as the period during which a child can acquire language easily, rapidly, perfectly, and without instruction(Richards Schmidt, 2002, p.145). The CPH suggests that a period of time, between birth and somewhere around the age when a child enters puberty, exists in which the learning a second language can be accomplished more rapidly and easily than times falling outside of this period i.e. post puberty (Larsen-Freeman Long, 2008).SLA theories and research have explained the impact of age in second language acquisition. As reported by Light bown and Spada (2008), learning depends on learners characteristics and the environment. Their findings suggested that older learners have a higher level of problem solving and metalinguistics abilities than younger learners. Researchers discoveries Researchers have focused on learners pronunciation, syntax and grammatical morphemes. Mark Patkowski (1982) examined the level of spoken English of sixty-seven immigrants to the U.S. His finding was that pre-puberty learners acquire second language better than post-puberty learners. He also pointed out that two other factors-length of residence and amount of instruction-are inseparable from the age factor. Johnson and Newport (quoted in Light bown Spada, 2008) found native-like language abilities and the performance levels lower in older children than younger in a study of forty-six Chinese and Koreans speakers. On the other hand, Snow and Hoefnagel-Hohle (1982), from their research carried in Holland, concluded that adults learned faster than children and the rate of second language learning was higher. David Singleton(2003) also declared that the tendency for younger learners to do better in the long run in the matter of second language lexical acquisition is no more than a tendenc y (p. 22). In this paper, an attempt is made to study and analyze the age related research on the basis of critical period hypothesis and other relevant variables. The key question in this paper is how age affects second language acquisition. Do people of the same age group possess the same learning characteristics and learn in the same ratio in SLA? Are there any certain features that the researchers have agreed upon regarding the age factor in SLA and CPH? Critical period The notion of critical period for a second language acquisition has been associated with several hypotheses. Some researchers have focused on the view that the younger learners as the better learners whereas others opine the older learners as the better learners. However, there are different perspectives on how the children and adults learn a foreign or second language. Adults naturally find themselves in such situations that demand more complex language and expression of more complicated ideas whereas children lack pressure and maturity in second language learning. The Experiments David Singleton (1989) offered a number of proposals related to age and second language acquisition. The most popular notions are the younger =the better and the older =the better (Singleton, p. 31). He, on the basis of previous studies and research on age factor, focused on learners pronunciation skill and other linguistics features. There are a number of research to support the younger the better hypothesis. Yamanda et al. (qtd. in Singleton, 1989) studied 30Japanese elementary school pupils of seven to ten ages old. These students did not have any previous experience of English. The researchers used a list of 40 English words and recorded the rate of success of the students. Their finding was that more than average older learners decreased with age i.e. the older the age the lower the score. Furthermore, Mark S. Patkowski (1982) carried out a research on 67 highly educated immigrants to the United States from various backgrounds. In his control subjects, 33 subjects were those who had come to the United States before the age of 15 (pre-puberty group) and 34 subjects who were post-puberty group with similar backgrounds. He examined the spoken English of the subjects, and analyzed a difference between learners who began to learn English before puberty and those who began learning English later after puberty (Patkowski, 1982, p.58). His results showed a strong negative relationship between age of arrival and syntactic rating. He concluded that the pre-puberty group was better in language learning than the post-puberty group. He further addressed: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the only factor which was highly associated with the level of syntactic proficiency attained by learners was the age at which acquisition of English began. Practice and instructional variables showed little or no association with the dependent variables. The result, then, appeared to strongly support the hypothesis of an age-related limitation on the ability to acquire full command of a second language. (Patkowski, 1982, p. 59) He also concluded that the age factor is highly related to other several factors like the numbers of years spent in the United States, amount of information exposure to English and amount of formal instruction in English. One of the supporting evidences in the field of second language acquisition comes from the experience of immigrants. A group of researchers have shown a relationship between age of entry, length of residence and level of language acquisition (Singleton 1989; Ekstrand 1982; Asher Gracia 1989; Lightbown Spada 2008). Asher and Gracia examined acquisition of pronunciation of 71 Cuban immigrants to California. The subjects were of aged groups from seven to 19 years. The majority of them had been in the United States for about five years. They concluded that not one of the 71 Cuban subjects was judged to have American native pronunciation (qtd. in Singleton, 1989, p. 83). They also figured out a fact that the younger a child had been when entering the United States, the higher the probability of a native like accent. The Lenneburgian notion of CPH that puberty as a milestone for SLA has been reversed by the other researchers. Carroll (1963) suggested that the ability to acquire a native like accent declines toward puberty. Ekstrand (1982) carried out a research on age and length of residence of 2400 Swedish pupils. The test consisted of six areas including pronunciation, diction, listening, reading, oral and written production. Ekstrand grouped the total population into 26 categories according to third month of year of birth and observed effects of age and effects of length of residence in the process of second language. He found that language learning ability goes almost linearly with age. He also noticed that social and emotional adjustment did not seem to be related to age. He deduced that age was strongly correlated with grade levels because quality and quantity of instruction was an important factor in second language learning. For Ekstrand, the more developed the brain was, the better it was suited for second language learning. Susan Oyama (1976) studied 60 male Italian immigrants who entered to the United States at ages ranging from six to 20. She examined the degree of American accent and proficiency in English listening. She concluded that age is as an important factor to achieve native like accent. The youngest arrivals performed a better accent. She has shown the relation of age and listening comprehension as follows: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦those subjects who began learning English before age 11 showed comprehension score similar to those of native speakers, whereas later arrivals did less well; those who arrived after the age of 16 showed markedly lower comprehension scores than the native. (Oyama, 1982, p. 23) A further immigrant study appeared in support of the younger the better hypothesis. Johnson and Newport (qtd. in Lightbown Spada, 2008) selected 46 Chinese and Korean experimental subjects in their research. They tested some rules of English morphology and syntax among the participants of aged groups from three to 15 and with those aged groups from 17 to39. The result was that those who began learning later did not have native like language abilities and their performance on the test varied more widely. Robert Dekeyser (2000) conducted a replication of the Johnson and Newport with a group of Hungarian immigrants to the United States. On the contrary, he concluded that adult learners were better than the younger ones. The second strong hypothesis is that older learners are more successful that than younger language learners in SLA. This notion was highly supported by a number of short term experimental researchers. These studies and research were based on teaching projects and second language immersion programs. Some of these studies have highlighted adolescents and adults of different ages where results have indicated that the older learners are far better than the younger ones. In 1967 Ashor and Price (as cited in Singleton, 1989) have carried out an experiment with96 students from the second, fourth and eighth grades of a school and 37 undergraduate students from a college. The subjects did not have any previous knowledge of Russian, the targeted language. After three short trainings conducted in Russian language, the results showed that the eight graders performed significantly better than the second graders and the fourth graders. They also noticed a consistently positive relationship with advancing age because of above average mental ability of the adults. Politzer and Weiss (as quoted in Singleton, 1989) have conducted another study in which they found that an advantage of SLA for older learners than younger ones. Their subjects were second, fifth, seventh and ninth graders. The experimental procedures were consisted of an auditory discrimination test, a pronunciation test and a reading test among 257 pupils. They recorded a gradual improvement of scores with an increase age in all three tests. Similarly, Olson and Samuel in the 1970s (qtd. in Singleton, 1989) have investigated the relative capacity of native English speakers in three different age groups on 20 elementary pupils, 20 junior high school pupils and 20 college students. On the test of pronunciation, it was found that two older groups performed significantly better than the elementary age group. In other studies on age and SLA, many researchers have mentioned a similar finding that adult subjects performed better than the children (Bland Keislar, 1966; Smith Braine, 1973; Burstall her colleagues, 1974; Singleton, 1989). Bland and Keislar took six fifth graders and four kindergartners in their study. They conducted an individualized program of oral French. They mentioned that amongst the fifth graders this time ranged from 4.5 to 11 hours, the mean being 6.9 hours, whereas amongst the kindergarteners the ranges from 12.5 to 17.5 hours and the mean was 15.1 hours (Qtd. in Singleton 1989, p. 98). In other words, the younger learners took more than twice as long as the older learners. A large scale experiment was conducted by Burstall and her colleagues (Qtd. in Singleton 1989) in the 1970s. The study included three age groups of pupils from selected primary schools in England and Wales. Among the 11 year old, 13 year old and 16 year old students, the results indicated that older students dramatically achieved higher score in listening and speaking tests than the younger ones. Other researchers of SLA interested in assessing phonological skills of learners suggest a common belief that younger learners acquire a native like accent in the target language. Dunkel and Pillet (reported in Singleton, 1989) compared the proficiency in French between elementary school pupils and beginning students of French from the university. They found that the younger learners pronunciation was better than that of the older ones. However, in both written and aural tests, the university students had better performance than the younger ones. In another study, Fathman and Precup (reported in Singleton, 1989) tested oral proficiency in English on 20 children and 20 adults in a formal setting in Mexico. Their finding also brought a similar conclusion that the children scored better in English pronunciation than the adults but the adults scored better then the children in syntax. Some studies, on the other hand, have focused on the issues of culture and variations of accent among the speakers of the same language. Lobov (1920) has claimed that people rarely acquire the accent of a particular region if they move into that region after puberty (qtd. in Singleton, 1989, p. 111). While considering younger learners in long run, Stephen Krashen (1979) has forwarded three proposals in the domain of morph syntax. Krashens positions in SLA are as following: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Adults proceed through early stages of syntactic and morphological development faster than children (where time and exposure are held constant). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Older children acquire faster than younger children (again time and exposure are held constant). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Acquirers who begin natural exposure to second languages during childhood generally achieve higher second language proficiency than those beginning as adults. (qtd. In Singleton, 1989, p. 117) Krashen et al. studied syntax and morphology of children in formal and informal learning contexts. They claimed that older learners proceed through the early stages of second language grammatical development more quickly than younger learners. Anan Fathman (1982) observed a difference in the rate of learning English phonology, morphology and syntax based on the differences in age. She focused on the children aged 11 to 15 years who received significantly higher scores in learning the morphology and syntax of a second language than those children of aged six to ten years. One of the most significant studies related to age and SLA comes from the research of Catherine E. Snow and Marian Hoefnagel-Hohle (1982). They investigated 51 English subjects in five age groups whose target language was Dutch. The subjects accomplishments at three points in the Netherlands were compared with the accomplishments of two advanced speakers of Dutch and native speakers. The beginners were tested three times at 4 to 5 month intervals, but the advanced learners were tested only once. The subjects were tested individually at school or at home in various categories-pronunciation, auditory discrimination, morphology, sentence repetition, sentence translation, sentence judgment, Peabody picture vocabulary test, story comprehension and storytelling. The results of their study gave strong evidence against the critical period hypothesis. All the tests showed a rapid learning by the 12 to 15 years old and adults during the first few months of acquisition. T hey mentioned: The adultsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦fell increasingly behind because their subsequent improvement was very slow. The teenagers had achieved almost native performance extremely quickly, within a few months of starting to speak Dutchà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.The crucial findings of relevance for evaluating the CPH were that the 3 to 5 years old scored consistently worse than the older groups on all the test and that the 12 to 15 years old showed the most rapid acquisition of all the skills tested. (Snow Hoefnagel-Hohle, 1982, p. 103) The Results Their finding rejected the notion of younger learners as better learners in L2 acquisition. In the second study, Snow and Hoefnagel-Hohle took 81 subjects. Of them, 51 were beginners and31were advanced learners. In the result, it was found that in all cases the adolescent and adult subjects outperformed the younger subjects. The research has shown non-liner relationship between age and second language acquisition. Whether the long term or short term studies are conducted on syntax and morphology or pronunciation of a second language, there are as many conflicting views as the researchers. To address this situation, it is opted to quote Singleton (1989) that beyond the strict terms of Krashen et. al.s hypothesis the evidence concerning short term versus long term language attainment is more confused (p.119) and there is no common argument agreed by all the research. David Birdsong (2006) has studied theoretical issues and empirical findings of age related research of second language acquisition. He had found that brain memory, learning conditions and second language processing speed are connected with age factor. He has pointed out that morphological changes and cognitive process are different in young and adult learners. The next component besides Critical Period Hypothesis of second language acquisition is the variables related to the age factor. These variables can be motivation, anxiety, self confidence, attitude, learning styles and so on. They are responsible in language acquisition in both children and adults. Their direct relationship to age as an indicator of language learning has been studied by various researchers. John Archibald (2005) has said that it is hard to say whether critical period exists or not. He argued that it is much more difficult to predict knowledge or ability in any of the other areas of communicative competence (syntax, cohesion, sociolinguistics, etc.) based on age of acquisition (Archibald, 2005, p. 420). Rather he valued individual differences, the L2 classroom, modified input, modified interaction, and learning environment in second language learning context. Mary Schleppegrell (2008) has focused on health, classroom practices and learning styles as age related factors in second language learning. She says that older adults learn a foreign language for a specific purpose to be more effective professionally, to be able to service in an anticipated foreign situation or for other instrumental reasons (Schleppegrell, 2008, p. 3). On the other hand, younger learners may not have extrinsic motivation or may not see a specific goal in learning another language. It is also noticed that children and adults do not always get the same quality and quantity of language input in both formal and informal learning settings (Lightbown Spada, 2008). It is also hard to say how these variables work as a filter or barrier in learning process of young and adults. As in Colliers study (1987) (qtd. in Singleton, 1989), the barrier of anxiety sometimes makes the adults less successful in second language. Language input is another factor linked to age. Stephen Krashen believes that the learner improves when he or she receives second language input at a level of comprehensible input (i+1). For Krashen the natural comprehension input has become the fundamental principle in SLA. This comprehensible input may change with age where older learners get an advantage over younger ones (Lightbown Spada, 2008). Conclusion Summing up, age is one of the characteristics that determine the way in which an individual learns second language. Age is highly associated with critical period in many research studies. There are a number of controversial issues related to second language acquisition and critical period hypothesis. As Singleton (2005) has predicted, a multiplicity of CPs, like mythical hydra, whose multiplicity of heads and capacity to produce new heads rendered it impossible to deal with (p. 288). He declares the end of critical period. Some researchers limited the CP between per inatality and puberty, while the others extended it after the puberty. In the realm of pedagogy, the researchers have advocated CPH into two main categories-the younger the better and the older the better. A group of researchers including Singleton, Yamanda et al., Carroll and et al, and Patkowski believed that the young learners have higher learning potentiality than the adults whereas Johnson and Newport, Dekeyser, Asher and Price, Politzer and Weiss, Olson and Samuel opined the opposite. The young learners are considered fluent in communication of the second language and achieve native like accent. Learners after the age of puberty do not acquire native like accent of a second language but have complex learning pattern. Research suggests that children and adults L2 learners pass through different developmental states in second language learning. Learning depends on the cognitive maturity and neurological factors. Julia Van Sickle and Sarah Ferris (as quoted in Singleton, 2005) have shown the relation between age and second language acquisition as, One of the dangers of the emphasis on critical periods is that it prompts us to pay too much attention to when learning occurs and too little attention to how learning might best occur (p. 105). Age is not everything in second language learning. However, factors related to the age, for example the learning opportunities, the motivation to learn, individual differences, and learning styles, are also important determining variables that affect the rate of second language learning in various developmental stages of the learners.

A Doctor In The House Essay -- essays research papers

A Doctor in the House Henrik Ibsen's character, Dr. Rank, in "A Doll's House" is an important component of the play, though he is not a lead character. Rank enhances the story in his own right as a character, but mainly serves a greater purpose as an accentuation of Nora'a character. Nora's relationship with Rank is equal, and perhaps it implants in Nora's mind the idea that relationships should be equal. Their relationship brings up questions about social correctness and even the values necessary in a marriage. Essentially, Dr. Rank's purpose is to refine the audience's understanding of Nora's character. Dr. Rank's presence establishes the lack of communication between Nora and her husband. Nora confides in Dr. Rank, involving him in secrets and everyday conversation. For instance, Rank is the first character to be let in on Nora's secret plan to take Helmer on a "vacation," supposedly paid for by her father. Also, Rank refers to Christine Linde as "a name I have often heard in this house," when Helmer is virtually unaware of Linde's existence (Ibsen 542). The quote further indicates Rank and Nora share things in which Helmer is not included. Rank is like a messenger for the couple on one occasion when Nora finds out about Helmer's new job from the doctor. Nora asks Rank, "Tell me Dr. Rank--will everyone who works at the bank come under Torvald now?" (542). These conversations help to conclude that most of Nora's meaningful and informative conversation is not with her own husband. Furthermore, the doctor encourages Nora to confide in him; "You can say it to us†¦say it, here he is," says Rank, urging Nora to do as she wishes around him (542). Nora seems to divulge her thoughts to Rank and not Helmer, relaying an inward struggle in Nora to do as she wishes. She lies to Helmer about the macaroons, but hastily reveals her hidden snack to the doctor. Rank and Nora's relationship shows Nora's longing for independence from Helmer and society's rules. Even Mrs. Linde, a relatively liberated woman, feels Nora's intimate relationship with the doctor is curiously inappropriate. Linde is shocked that Nora would speak with Rank about the debt behind Helmer's back, to which Nora replies, "I've got to get out of this other busine... ...ra's father, and then subsequently, how they see Nora. Ibsen makes the hereditary flaws available in Rank in order to make the theme clear. While Rank's flaws end with his death, Nora's bad traits threaten to rub-off on her children, continuing the line of bad heredity. According to Helmer, Rank's dark life "accentuates the light of their marriage," but the importance of the character, Dr. Rank, is to accentuate the darkness of Nora's life. Rank's life parallels Nora's situation until the role reversal at the end. Throughout the play, both suffer the consequences of morally corrupt fathers; Nora has her secret debt and Rank with his illness. Rank's announcement of death also marks the end of the masquerade, literally and figuratively speaking: Nora's masquerade of a content marriage is over as well as the ball that are her last moments of "fun." Instead of dying when Rank dies, however, Nora is reborn as an independent woman in society. Her situation may again parallel Rank's; there is uncertainty associated with death as there is definite uncertainty as to Nora's fate.