Review Of Genesis A Novel Written By Bernard Beckett

Influences mold ideas and ideas craft one s mind. Ideas cannot remain constant in reason since influences are frequently reproducing and changing them. Ideas are the building blocks of the mind. They are those good and bad minuscule orientations of the mind that affects one s actions and behaviors. Influences are those primary signals that trigger the production of ideas in the mind. Without influences, there would be no mind. No mind means one cannot make decisions hence any evolvement in character. Genesis, a novel written by Bernard Beckett follows a young girl, Anaximander s examination for the Academy which reveals her society s history beginning with Adam Forde and Art. Art is an incomplete programmed android who is put in a†¦show more content†¦His shining hands closed around Adam s neck. Adam nodded... Art squeezed the life from his human companion. Art is going against his set program to pursue what he feels is right. He learns this from Adam after he explained his reason of being incarcerated. Adam was captivated because he tried to rescue a foreign girl instead of killing her like he was supposed to. He did not abide the society s norm and decided to follow his heart over his mind, even after knowing the consequences. Art was definitely influenced by Adam since he did the same thing, but in a different application. Beckett exemplifies how even a machine has a brain of its own. Even though Art states the Idea resides as independent in one’s mind (pages 95 – 96), he would have never thought of going against his program without the interference of an outside influence. He even stated, â€Å"I’m not programming you. Yes, you are. Through my interactions with others, I learn who I am†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Beckett 74) Art is programmed to learn from others therefore make decisions of his own. He is not a machine stored with intelligence. He will constantly pick up ideas and advance his thinking. Art learned to view a different spect rum of a situation through communicating and spending time with Adam Forde. Adam not only impacted Art, but also others such as Anaximander, in short, Anax. Anax was always enlightened by the history of Adam Forde to the point where she considers him, her role model. She is

Should We Be Lenient With Corrupt Officials - 2024 Words

As a passionate marketer for FIFA, and a lifelong fan of the organization, the recent scandals involving top FIFA officials have been heartbreaking for me. With all of the media presence and accusations that have been surrounding FIFA for the last few decades, I am truly worried about our future. In order for us to rebuild our organization, we need to take decisive actions to ensure these types of scandals never happen again. Despite the protests of those who think we should be lenient with corrupt officials, we must ensure justice is served and these crimes are never committed again. This presents an ethical dilemma because imposing these strict regulations may reduce the success of our historic organization. Nonetheless, I propose a range of solutions, including making sure every call throughout the FIFA organization is monitored, triple-checking all transactions that occur involving top FIFA executive officials, and creating a new process where officials are constantly switched o ut. Unraveling the Thread of Corruption It is truly unfortunate to see such a successful organization go down in flames. With the worldwide growth in success that the FIFA organization has had over the past few years, many are still wondering what went wrong. How could an organization go from being successful and loved to being known as corrupt and untrustworthy? The level of suspicion and legal inquiry facing FIFA started to increase exponentially in 2015, when investigators decided they hadShow MoreRelatedSusceptibility to Corruption1286 Words   |  5 PagesPower Corrupts? Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men† ( Martin ). 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We can travel all over the globe for what is usually aRead MoreAmerica s Free Trade Agreement1614 Words   |  7 Pagesfor the ones they left behind. Another sad truth why the Welton 26 and most Mexicans chose to migrate illegally here in the United States was because the economy of Mexico is in a dilapidated situation because of the corruption of their government officials. Most Mexicans would say that they are suffering because they are neglected by their politicians no matter how hard they work (The Other Side of Immigration). Urrea shares, â€Å"and in the economy of hunger, which the fat men of the governments did notRead MoreHuman Trafficking Of Thailand s Fishing Industry3043 Words   |  13 Pagesthe unregulated fishing industry allows for victims be more vulnerable to trafficking so it is crucial for the government to implement strict laws within the Thai fishing industry, Thai navy, and local police officials. 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Instead, shaken rodney king offered a simple phrase: â€Å"Can we all get along?† King made the remark at a news conference as local, state and national officials tried to quell the lawless looting and violence that tore appart the city after a Simi Valley jury on April 29, 1992, acquitted Los Angeles Police Department officers accused in Rodney King’s beating.Read MoreEverything You Ever Needed to Know about Gratuities but Were Afraid to Ask3228 Words   |  13 Pagesand ethics of law enforcement have resulted in multiple definitions of gratuities. Scholars and practitioners have developed these definitions through their research. The first definition of corruption is by M. McMullan. He stated, A public official is corrupt if he accepts money or moneys worth for doing something he is under a duty to do anyway, that he is under a duty not to do, or to exercise a legitimate discretion for improper reasons (Corely, 2005). 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Construction Effectiveness of Risk Management †MyAssignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about the Construction Effectiveness of Risk Management. Answer: Introduction: The paper investigates an issue of quality failure or adverse environmental outcome caused due to construction fault. The assignment is executed in the light of the collapse of the West Gate Bridge in 1970 into the Yarra River. The purpose of the report is to analyse a failure of a construction work and its after effect on the environment. The report shows that failures of construction companies to execute and maintain civil construction structures efficiently lead to catastrophes affecting hundreds of people and causing massive damage to the environment and its structures like rivers. It shows that loss of resources and stakeholders. This West Gate Bridge collapse in 1970 was an issue of extreme quality failure, failure to deliver quality product (the bridge over here) and immense loss of life and property. The collapse resulted in immense multitude of environmental pollution when tons of concrete, dust and building material fell into the river below and also spread over the surrounding areas. The section would delve into the material facts of the catastrophic building failure and issues it created. The West Gate Bridge was the most ambitious project in Australia, a part of which collapsed into the Yarra River on October 15, 1970. The accident happened when the construction company, John Holland Construction Company failed the deliver a quality construction. The bridge killed 35 people and left many injured when the span between 112 metres between piers 10 and 11 collapsed 50 metres to the land and the river below. The collapse resulted due to faulty construction, negligence and lack of governance on the part of the contractors and the union. It resulted in huge quantities of concrete, metal, debris and other wastes like immense quantities of dust falling into the Yarra River below which resulted in river pollution. The fire, dust and debris spread in the surrounding area aggravating the environmental pollution and degeneration. The West Gate Bridge collapsed due to building failure on the side of the contractor John Holland Construction Company that was awarded the contract by Victorian State Government. The Victorian Government gave power to Lower Yarra Crossing Authority, a business consortium to build the bridge, the later floated tender for the purpose and John Holland Construction Company got the contract. Maunsell and Partners, a Melbourne based firm was the consultant for the concrete work and Freeman Fox Firm, a London based company acted as the consultant for steel work. It can be pointed out the later had constructed Milford Haven Bridge which collapsed killing four people. The faulty construction was use of low quality materials and maintenance of the bridge by the construction companies and its engineers. Sources also cited the conflict between the management and the union resulted in lack of coordination and planning while constructing the bridge that ultimately led to the collapse (Heraldsun.c om.au. 2017). The collapse of the West Bridge into and around the Yarra River caused massive environmental damage, perhaps one of the most important long-term issues it created. The bridge piers of concrete weighing 200 tonnes of concrete fell into a river causing immense amount of river pollution. The dust and the concrete settled on the bank and the surrounding areas causing massive damage to the environment. The mud and the concrete fell onto the building around and caused damage to them as well. The collapse led to explosion of the concrete, which caused fire. Lubricants and oil added to the multitude of environment damage the collapse resulted in. This analysis shows that the collapse led to massive damage to the environment and the environmental structure below, the Yarra River. Project delivered on time and excessive cost: The slackness on the side of the civil engineering construction company John Holland Construction Company and its consultants, negligence in maintenance and several other factors led to extension of the project and increase in the cost. Ede (2013) in his work states that use of poor quality building materials result in collapse of constrictions like bridges. The reason of the collapse was a small gap of 4.5 inches between two girders. The people tied to balance between two spans, which led to cracks which was a structural failure. The construction companies decided to remove the buckle. The engineers ordered the workers to remove the bolts and that led to the bridge to collapse. The faulty construction and the consequent led to increase of construction from $44 million to a whopping $200 million. The fall of the West Bridge and the subsequent investigation by the authorities uncovered several legal, moral and ethical issues. The commercial organizations functioning in Australia come under the ambit of Safe Work Australia 2008. The act mandates all the commercial organisations including the construction companies follow the act. They are obliged by law to enforce and adopt codes of practices to ensure employee safety. The Act mandates the CEOs of the Australian companies to ensure that their organisations follow it and require them to frame strategies according to the act. The CEOs are supposed to inform the progress their organisations achieve in adopting and implementing Safe Work Australia 2008 (Legislation.gov.au. 2017). This shows that the construction company John Holland Construction Company and its consultants have breached the act. The construction company did not adhere to the safety laws that every civil construction company is mandated to follow while operating in Australia. The investigations also unearthed several ethical and moral issues revolving around the construction of the bridge and its collapse. Freeman Fox and Partners, one of the consultants had reputations of an ethical and irresponsible construction work. There are records of collapses of a number of bridges constructed by the company. The involvement of the company in spite of its bad reputation in the civil construction market internationally points out to the lack of ethics on the part of the main construction company, John Holland Construction Company (Glatzenberger 2015). There are also proofs of conflicts among the company, the engineers and the workers regarding the construction of the bridge. The investigators on moral grounds blamed the Victorian Government, the consortium, the contractors and even the workers for the collapse and the consequent catastrophe. There were also reports of frequently conflicts between the parties involved like the construction companies, the union and t he workers led to faulty building planning and calculations. These legal and ethical issues led to investigation and hearing of the matter at the Royal Commission (Ngundo 2014). Briefing of the issues or the problems: The above analysis of the issues involving the fall of the West Bridge in 1970, points out to four primary issues. First issue was failure to construct the bridge according to the expectation of the client and key stakeholder, the Victorian Government (Prov.vic.gov.au. 2017). The second issue was the massive environmental pollution caused due to collapse and spreading of materials into the river below and the surrounding areas. The third issue was rapid increase in the construction cost and extension of construction time, which was in fact encouraging high cost. The fourth issue was breaches of law, morality and ethics by the authorities and the construction companies. Li, Ng and Skitmore (2013) point out that civil construction companies manufacture bridges and faults in their products (bridges and roads) results in massive damage to the stakeholders. The analysis of the above issue clearly shows that John Holland Construction Company did not act responsibly towards the stakeholders . The collapse resulted in massive wastage of resources and pollution, thus affecting the society and the environment. The collapse led to death and injury to workers and damaged houses surrounding the structure. It shows that the construction company did not protect the interest of the stakeholders like the people, workers and the society at large (Jin et al. 2013). The evidences like photographs, drawings and plans show that actual performance f the construction company, John Holland Construction Company pertaining to the construction of the West Gate Bridge was way below the performance the principle the Victorian Government, expected or specified in the tender documents. The photograph above shows a collapsed portion of the West Gate Bridge. It shows the structures like the span, girder and pillars after the collapse (Savage 2013). The drawing below shows the structure of a cable stayed bridge, the category to which the West Gate Bridge belongs. The diagram evidently shows that the bridge decks hangs on cables and the entire load is transferred to the base through the pillars. The governments build these bridges with the expectations that they would be able to support heavy load of traffic and connect different regions. Adopting of a plan to construct bridges and getting approval from the top ministries involves several legal and political complications and are very time consuming. The ministry building the bridges pay a huge amount of money to the contractors who build the bridges. Langenmayr (2017) states that the governments accumulate this huge amount of resources to offer the contractors from the taxes they collect from the people and the companies. This analysis shows that the contractors by neglecting their responsibility of executing the civil construction work actually breach the expectations of the go vernments employing them for the work and the people (Moreu and Spencer Jr 2015). The figure below is a plan of a cable stayed bridge which showing the pillars or piers and the deck. The figure clearly points out that the deck hangs from the cables, which are in turn attached to the towers, which transfers the weight of the structure to the base. An analysis of the structural fault in case of the West Gate Bridge shows that the crack appeared in the in between the spans. The decks hang from the cables hence, when the decks cracked, the entire super structure of the bridge collapsed. The figure shows the present status of the West Gate Bridge which John Holland Construction Company completed. The bridge is supports a large number of traffic and is the third longest bridge in Australia. The finally has finally proved to be success and the construction company is working towards expansion of the bridge. The above discussion regarding success of John Holland Construction Company in meeting the expectation of the principle client, the Victorian Government can have two inferences based on the evidences. The project of building the West Gate Bridge was one of the most ambitious projects of the Victorian Government and involved a lot of expenditure. So, when the bridged collapsed and the slackness from the side of John Holland Construction Company was proven, it can be construed that the construction company failed to keep up to the performance expectations of the principle (Herps, Buntinx and Curfs 2016). However, the last picture bears evidence to the fact that construction finally succeeded in meeting the performance expectations of the Government of Victoria and the common people who use it to travel. Conclusion: The above discussion shows that failure and negligence from the side of the construction companies result in collapse of bridges. The collapse results in death and injuries to hundreds of people including workers. These bridges collapse into rivers and lakes over which they stand. This causes massive amount of environmental pollution to both the water bodies and the surrounding areas. It can be recommended to the construction companies that they must supervise, plan, control and maintain the civil construction work more strictly to ensure high quality of execution. This can prevent or at least minimise future collapses of bridges and damages to the people and the environment. References: Design 2017.Towers of Suspension and Cable Stayed Bridges -Functions, Design. [online] The Constructor. Available at: https://theconstructor.org/structures/suspension-cable-stayed-bridges-towers-functions-design/18139/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017]. Ede, A.N., 2013. Building collapse in Nigeria: The trend of casualties the last decade (2000-2010).International Journal of Civil Environmental Engineering,10(6). Glatzenberger, E., 2015. Leadership and Growth: The connection between leadership and sustainable growthperceived from a companys and governmental perspective in Sweden and Austria in the construction industry. Heraldsun.com.au. 2017.Who was to blame for West Gate Bridge horror?. [online] Available at: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/law-order/melbournes-west-gate-bridge-collapse-left-scene-of-carnage-and-35-dead-in-1970-horror/news-story/ad2863720aefc0b70a6eb4869af7eaea [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017]. Herps, M.A., Buntinx, W.H. and Curfs, L.M., 2016. Individual support planning with people with ID in The Netherlands: Official requirements and stakeholders expectations.ALTER-European Journal of Disability Research/Revue Europenne de Recherche sur le Handicap,10(4), pp.281-288. Jin, Z., Deng, F., Li, H. and Skitmore, M., 2013. Practical framework for measuring performance of international construction firms.Journal of Construction Engineering and Management,139(9), pp.1154-1167. Johnholland.com.au. 2017.West Gate Tunnel : John Holland. [online] Available at: https://www.johnholland.com.au/our-projects/west-gate-tunnel/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017]. Langenmayr, D., 2017. Voluntary disclosure of evaded taxesIncreasing revenue, or increasing incentives to evade?.Journal of Public Economics,151, pp.110-125. Legislation.gov.au. 2017.Safe Work Australia Act 2008. [online] Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2009A00084 [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017]. Li, T.H., Ng, S.T. and Skitmore, M., 2013. Evaluating stakeholder satisfaction during public participation in major infrastructure and construction projects: A fuzzy approach.Automation in construction,29, pp.123-135. Moreu, F. and Spencer Jr, B.F., 2015.Framework for consequence-based management and safety of railroad bridge infrastructure using wireless smart sensors (WSS). Newmark Structural Engineering Laboratory. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.. Ngundo, J.M., 2014. Factors affecting effectiveness of risk management in public housing construction projects in Kenya: a case of Kibera slum upgrading housing scheme in Nairobi. Prov.vic.gov.au. 2017.West Gate Bridge collapse | PROV. [online] Available at: https://www.prov.vic.gov.au/explore-collection/online-galleries-and-exhibitions/west-gate-bridge-collapse [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017]. Savage, I., 2013. Comparing the fatality risks in United States transportation across modes and over time.Research in Transportation Economics,43(1), pp.9-22. Skyscrapercity.com. 2017.Colorado River Bridge - Page 4 - SkyscraperCity. [online] Available at: https://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=363201page=4 [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017]. Westgatebridge.org. 2017.The collapse | The West Gate Bridge Memorial. [online] Available at: https://www.westgatebridge.org/node/114 [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017].

Literacy free essay sample

Moreover, in many states, secondary teacher preparation programs include a requirement of a content area reading course, whereas in other states there is no equivalent requirement. This has remained literally unchanged for years, even as secondary students continue to struggle with reading and writing throughout the high school curriculum. The wide-spread standards movement has made some impact in requiring newly certified teachers to demonstrate competency on specific literacy knowledge and performance indicators. However, the depth of what is needed to teach content area literacy in secondary schools requires more than one course, and/or a few standards. Connecting Two Distinct Communities Education can no longer be seen as an exclusive function, and the traditional structures cannot remain isolated from social change. Faculties in colleges and universities and the practicing teachers in secondary schools have no choice but to adjust to new paradigms. While it is now more common to find partnerships and institutional collaborations between university faculty and secondary teachers, many of these need redefinition. In many partnerships, practicing teachers have related there has not been a high level of reciprocity, as the universities are too dominant (Campbell, 2002, p. 22). Each entity must put into the equation improvement strategies that are meaningful to their respective organizations; that is, they need to identify areas where they truly need help from one another. Then institutionally and programmatically, they need to find ways to work together to make those intended improvements a reality (Howey amp; Zimpher, 1999, p. 299). High school teachers and teacher educators alike are looking to move beyond yet another good idea to realize reconceptualization and transformation for secondary literacy education. This means engaging high school teachers in the process of secondary teacher preparation, determining what factors pose the greatest challenges to literacy development and using this knowledge as a cornerstone for improving Secondary Teaclher Literacy Clhallenges literacy practices in schools. Failure to confront these challenges effectively will undoubtedly compromise the ability of teachers to serve as effective agents of change. Purpose The purpose of this study was to identify the problems secondary teachers face that impede literacy learning in the classrooms and to yield information that may inform the preparation of future secondary teachers. Two broad questions emerged to guide this study: o What are the greatest literacy challenges facing high school content area teachers? e What will help to diminish these challenges for current and/or future high school teachers? The Study ParticipatingS chools and Teachers The schools that participated in this study included eight high schools, seven public and one private. The researchers purposely selected the schools to ensure ethnic diversity as well as urban and suburban representation. Six of the high schools represented grades 10-12 and two included grades 9-12. The school principals granted permission to graduate students enrolled in a Masters Degree Program in Reading to place the High School Literacy Survey in the school mailboxes of the teachers. A total of 450 questionnaires, including a cover letter and a stamped return envelope, were distributed to 9-12 teachers. Two hunared and two questionnaires were returned, realizing a return rate of 45 percent. There were no follow-up attempts to obtain a higher return rate. Most respondents (71 percent) had advanced degrees beyond the B. A. or B. S. : among these were 68 percent with a M. A. and 3 percent with a Ph. D. Teachers from 18 different subject area fields responded to the survey. English (18 percent), mathematics (16 percent), and science (15 percent) teachers comprised the majority of participants. The remaining teachers represented the following subjects; art (3 percent), 5 ReadingHorizons, 2004, 45, (1) business (4 percent), technology (4 percent), drivers education (1 percent), foreign language (6 percent), history (7 percent), library (1 percent), music (1 percent), physical education (3 percent), reading (1 percent), radio/television (1 percent), social studies (8 percent), special education (3 percent), theology (3 percent), and vocational education (4 percent). Teachers with more than 10 years of experience accounted for 63 percent of the sample, while 37 percent had 10 years or less. Teachers working in suburban areas surrounding the greater Chicago area comprised the majority (67 percent) of the sample population, with the remaining 33 percent coming from urban schools. Forty-four percent described their schools as predominately diverse (gt; 50 percent), 32 percent considerably diverse (30-50 percent minority), 17 percent somewhat diverse (10-30 percent minority) and 7 percent primarily white (less than 10 percent minority). The Questionnaire We collected the data from a survey instrument, High School Literacy Survey, designed and constructed by us. The questionnaire requested two types of information: objective, relating to educational degrees, content field of study, years of teaching experience, diversity of school population * subjective, relating to opinions and values in teaching and learning The subjective portion of the survey was comprised of two broad questions. The first question asked teachers to identify 5 of the 20 factors that posed the greatest challenges in helping their students to attain literacy in t heir subject field. Respondents wrote the numeral 1 next to the statement representing their greatest challenge, the numeral 2 next to the statement epresenting their next greatest challenge, and so forth through the numeral 5. (See Appendix) The twenty statements, defined as challenges, were derived from the literature on content area reading. An extensive review of the literature Secondary Teaclher Literacy Clhallenges 7 resulted in identifying twenty challenges, however, these may not represent all possible factors and they may not represent factors that teachers would have included if they were to construct the questionnaire. A space was provided for teachers entitled other for their convenience in identifying additional factors that pose as challenges. Since no specific theory was identified to serve as a foundation for the selection of factors, they represent an eclectic representation. Additionally, the factors were not defined on the questionnaire, indicating that a singular definition cannot be assumed and that the factors may represent multiple meanings in the field. The second question invited the teachers to respond openly to the question, What do you believe will help to diminish these challenges for current and/or future high school teachers? Findings Percentages were used to report the data on the high school eachers perceptions about the factors that challenge them most in helping their students to achieve literacy in their subject area. Table 1. Percentage Responses of Factors that Represent the Greatest Literacy Challenges Factors Percent 1 2 3 4 5 Total Assessment of student learning 2 1 1 2 2 8 Classroom environment 1 2 1 2 6 Classsize 4 4 6 8 5 27 Cultural and language diversity 1 1 2 among students Curriculum 1 2_ 1A _3 7. 8 Reading Horizons, 2004, 45, (1) Factors Percent 1 2 3 4 5 Total Helping students to construct meaning from text Helping students interpret graphics in text Helping students to learn and use critical thinking skills Helping students to locate and organize information Helping students to understand concepts and vocabulary Homework issues Integrating technology for teaching and learning Selecting materials for teaching and learning Organizing and managing the classroom for learning State/district/school standards for students Struggling readers Student motivation/interest/attitudes 3 6 6 7 7 1 1 3 2 16 8 12 11 12 1 5 5 4 3 8 3 6 11 12 5 8 10 6 7 1 5 2 1 3 1 4 1 2 2 3 1 1 1 1 2 9 9 8 8 8 33 17 17 8 7 1 5 5 5 3 19 29 7 59 18 40 36 12 5 8 6 42 2 Students with special needs Secondary Teacher Literacy Chiallenges Factors Percent 1 2 3 4 5 Total Students who lack study skills 11 13 13 13 7 57 Writing skills of students 2 8 5 7 8 30 (A ranking scale, with 1 meaning greatest challenge, 2 next greatest challenge, and so forth) The top five challenges as reported in Table 1 were: * student motivation, interests, and attitudes (33 percent) o hel ping students to learn and use critical thinking skills (16 percent) o students who lack study skills (11 percent) o struggling readers (9 percent) o helping students to understand concepts and ocabulary (8 percent). The least perceived challenges were cultural and language diversity among students (2 percent) and selecting materials for teaching and learning (5 percent). Examining the data of the largest responding groups of content area teachers, English, mathematics, and science, yielded similar findings. All three of these groups identified the same top two challenges as did the total group. The English, mathematics, and science teachers third, fourth and fifth rankings were: * English gt; (3) homework issues gt; (4) students who lack study skills gt; (5) writing skills of students Mathematics gt; (3) students who lack study skills 9 iO Reading Horizons, 2004, 45, (1) gt; (4) homework issues gt; (5) helping students to locate and organize information e Science: gt; (3) students who lack study skills gt; (4) helping students to understand concepts and vocabulary gt; (5) helping students to construct meaning from text The teachers were also asked to respond to the following openended question, What do you believe will help to diminish these challenges for current and/or future high school teachers? Seventyseven percent of the teachers wrote responses to this question. The resppnses were grouped by similar topics from which themes emerged. Table 2 reports the percentages of the most frequently occurring responses to the open-ended question. Table 2. Themes and Percentages of Responses for Confronting the Greatest Challenges Most Frequent Responses by Theme Percent Better basic skills instruction in elementary schools 64 More parent responsibility and support 58 Mandatory inclusion of critical 39 thinking questions on all assessments Study skills classes for incoming students 33 I Iimprove teacher preparation/more methods for 28 secondary teachers Greater respect and support from society 20 Practical/useful staff development 11 Secondary TeachterLiteracy Challenges 11 Most Frequent Responses by Theme Percent Teacher task forces making policy decisions 9 instead of politicians and administrators Complete restructuring of the current traditional 7 education model A center at each high school for struggling readers The most common responses cited by the majority of teachers to confront the greatest challenges (Table 2) were better basic skills instruction in elementary schools (64 percent) and more parent responsibility and support (58 percent). Sample responses given by less than 50 percent of the teachers were mandatory inclusion of critical thinking questions on all assessments (39 percent), study skills classes for incoming students (33 percent), and improvement of teacher preparation with more methods for secondary teachers (28 percent). Discussion The results of this study provide insight for the continuing efforts to improve the literacy levels of secondary students. They are, however, neither exclusive nor exhaustive. They are offered with no claim for the universality or total generalizability, but they are offered as a common ground for thinking. Student Motivation andA ttitudes High school teachers identified student motivation to read, write, and do other literacy-related activities as their greatest challenge. The teachers written comments on questionnaires indicated that much of the class-assigned reading is often boring and not relevant to the students own interests and experiences. They also stated that the students who will not read are as much at a disadvantage as those who cannot. Student 12 Reading Horizons, 2004, 45, (1) motivation was ranked the greatest challenge of all for the participating teachers. The dilemma of identifying and implementing strategies to motivate adolescents is not new to literacy practice. The data from this study confirm what the research (Alexander amp; Filler, 1976; Au amp; Asam, 1996; Benware amp; Deci, 1984; Collins-Block, 1992; Guthrie amp; Alao, 1997; Schraw, Brunning, amp; Svoboda, 1995) has documented over time: that student motivation, interests, and attitudes are indeed authentic challenges. Teaching adolescents to become active, motivated, and selfregulated learners is a continuing issue in secondary schools. It is during the adolescent years when reading motivation and attitudes appear to worsen, especially for poor readers (McKenna, Kear, amp; Ellsworth, 1995). Serious attempts to advance literacy skills require interventions that address motivation and attitudes as much as interventions that assure cognitive changes in the learners (Verhoevan amp; Snow, 2001). This generally does not happen. Motivational constructs are usually not given significant vigilance in relation to student cognition and thinking, and at best, are given only passing and superficial attention. A further problem is that standard reading texts and uniform curricula make life somewhat easier for teachers and administrators, but they make it very difficult for students to get involved with the material at the level that is right for them, and therefore to find intrinsic rewards in learning. In the classroom, the teacher is the key element in motivating students to learn. The responsibility is great and the ramifications even greater, yet many responding high school teachers stated they were not adequately prepared in their teacher preparation programs with the knowledge, skills, and instructional strategies to ignite the spirit of their students. These teachers indicated they want more ideas, support, and freedom within the school curriculum to take the lead, and more ways to experience first-hand, in-field, motivational issues in their teacher preparation programs. Critical Thinking Skills Teaching critical thinking skills was the second greatest challenge for teachers. Large numbers of teachers indicated they feel underSecondary Teachter Literacy Clhallenges 13 prepared in pedagogical methods to help studenis conceptualize problems and solutions. Assisting adolescents to become proficient with these skills is a prodigious challenge for secondary teachers. The capacity for abstraction, for discovering patterns and meanings, generalizing, evaluating, and theorizing is the very essence of critical thinking and exploration. For most students in the United States and throughout the world, formal education entails just the opposite kind of learning. Rather than construct meaning for themselves, meanings are imposed upon them. Frequently, students often accumulate a large number of facts along the way, yet these facts are not central to their education; they will live their adult lives in a world in which most facts learned years before (even including some historical ones) will have changed or have been reinterpreted. Whatever data they need will be available to them at the touch of a computer key. If students are to learn critical thinking skills, teachers must teach them and engage their students in genuine problem solving discussion. Generally these skills are best, and likely only taught and assessed, through extended discourse. This is difficult to do in crowded classes where it is near to impossible to carry out extended discussions. The commitment to teaching these skills in all content areas means gaining support from the public. It also means that teachers must gain the knowledge and skills to do so through teacher preparation programs and inservice education, taking into account the real-life situations and parameters in todays classrooms. Study Skills Students who lack study skills ranked as the third greatest challenge to teachers. The importance of study skills has been documented over time in the professional literature (Flood amp; Lapp, 1995). What is known is that many people of all ages have difficulty reading and learning, largely because they are not using appropriate techniques or good learning habits. Often, the adolescents who are dropping out of schools are doing so because they believe they carnot learn. For the majority of these students, they lack suitable reading and study techniques, which 14 Reading Horizons, 2004, 5(1) impede their growth in learning and contribute to their negative beliefs about themselves and school. Although most secondary teachers have a thorough understanding qf their subject, many responding teachers in this study indicated they lack the knowledge of instructional/study strategies by which to help students internalize the concepts. Research shows that with an organized system of study, stu dents can increase their comprehension of subject matter up to 50 percent (Annis, 1983). As nations seek to assist adolescents in gaining higher levels of literacy, the knowledge and skills that teachers need to teach their students effective study habits and strategies may likely become central to the curriculum in secondary teacher preparation programs and in the curriculum of secondary schools. Struggling Readers Struggling readers ranked as the fourth greatest challenge to the high school teachers. Teachers responded that these students can be found hiding out in content classrooms. They frequently are passive and disengaged. Many have found coping strategies to help (them get by, but they do not significantly improve their literacy skills or their knowledge in the content areas. I Although comprehension of text material is difficult and sometimes impossible for struggling readers, there are research-based strategies that have proven to be successful when used with struggling readers. One such strategy is instructional scaffolding, an effective strategy that gives st udents a better chance to be successful than if left on their own (Vacca, 2002). Pedagogy, which includes instructional techniques for diverse learners, is glossed over in many teacher preparation programs for secondary teachers. However, it is as important in the preparation of high school teachers as is cognitive knowledge (Darling-Hammond, 2000). If high school teachers are to make substantial contributions to all adolescents, it will require more knowledge of relevant instructional methodologies. Darling-Hammond (2000) found that teacher subject-matter knowledge was related to student achievement only up to a certain point. Secondary Teacher Literacy Challenges 15 Marzano (2003) asserts that the importance of the relationship between pedagogical knowledge and student achievement has been consistently reported in the research literature. Furthermore, in a study conducted by Ferguson and Womack (1993), they found that the number of courses teachers took in instructional techniques accounted for four times the variance in teacher performance and student achievement than did subject-matter knowledge. Teachers stated that more information about how to assist the struggling readers in their classrooms is sorely needed in preservice teacher education programs. Additionally they need to know that the strategies and support to assist these learners are realistic for todays classrooms. Key Concepts and Vocabulary Helping students to understand concepts and vocabulary ranked as the fifth greatest challenge. Every subject area has its own vocabulary and modes of argument, and its language is the common denominator for learning subject matter knowledge. Vacca and Vacca (2002) agree: they state, Vocabulary must be taught well enough to remove potential barriers to students understanding of texts as well as to promote a longterm acquisition of the language of a content area (p. 60-161). Teachers want more knowledge about ways to teach vocabulary and concepts to adolescents, strategies that will provide adolescents with a deeper and richer entry into the content area of study, and strategies that will work in the classrooms of today. Intriguing Findings It is a noteworthy finding that the cultural and language diversity among students in the classr ooms was not identified among the greatest challenges. The majority of teachers in this study were from diverse schools, and yet only two percent ranked this to be a challenge. Equally notable was the fact that state, district, and school standards, writing skills, and integrating technology were not identified among the greatest challenges. 16 Reading Horizons, 2004, 45, (1) Of all the findings, the most revealing was that provided by the drivers education teachers: whereas every other content-area group of teachers, albeit art, music, business, foreign language, etc. , ranked student motivation as the greatest challenge, they did not. This is not surprising as it supports the findings of this study as well as long standing research in the field, as cited in Marzano, 2003. The hypothesis being that when motivated, students strive to learn. It is likely safe to say that gt;99 percent of all high school students want to learn to drive. Teachers Views for Confronting the Challenges The high school teachers stated that improving literacy for secondary students must begin long before the high school years. They believe it requires better basic skills instruction in elementary schools, more parental responsibility and support for adolescents, and greater respect and support for education professionals from society. The secondary teachers further reported that mandatory inclusion of critical thinking questions on all assessments at local, state, and national levels may lead to improvements in the literacy levels of students. The majority also reported that study skills must become a required part of the curriculum beginning in elementary schools. Teacher education programs need to emphasize study skills knowledge and strategies that are content specific and will assist future teachers with ways to help their students achieve literacy in their subject areas. Staff development needs serious attention and reform. Emphasis needs to be on real issues identified by the teachers, and the staff development needs to be content specific. Some teachers elaborated that schools can do little to improve high school literacy because the things that need to be changed are outside the scope of the educators responsibility. A smaller percentage of teachers stated that teacher task forces, instead of politicians and administrators, should make policy decisions at all levels. Several called for a complete restructuring of the current education model and structuring of schools to contain a center for struggling readers. Others stated that teachers should have a full yearround professional contract: envisioning that students would attend school for 10 months and teachers would work the remaining two Secondary Teaclher Literacy Clhallenges 17 months revising curriculum, collaborating with colleagues, and participating in relevant and rigorous staff developme nt. These teachers held similar views with Brandt (2001), as they see their schools attempting to implement elements of the newer ideologies of literacy into traditional structures and curriculum which results in institutional confusion, vulnerability, and a mismatch of schooling and society in contemporary times. Conclusions and Implications Improving literacy levels for secondary students is too complex for simplistic explanations, yet one thing seems clear: faculties in schools of education need to attend to the voices of secondary teachers. When we fail to do so, we do this at the peril of the students they teach. The voices of the teacher participants in this study identify the greatest challenge to literacy development to be student motivation, and the teachers feel unprepared to deal with this serious challenge. Marzano (2003) states: The link between student motivation and achievement is straightforward. If students are motivated to learn the content, then they will achieve in that subject. If students are not motivated to learn the content, then achievement will likely be limited. The validity of this relationship is supported by a fair amount of research(Bloom, 1976; Geisler-Brenstein amp; Schmeck, 1996; Schiefele amp; Krapp, 1996; Schiefele, Krapp, amp; Winteler, 1992; Tobias, 1994; Willingham, Pollack amp; Lewis, 2002) as reported in Marzano (p. 144). The other greatest challenges, critical thinking skills, study skills, pedagogy for struggling readers, and vocabulary and concept development, need critical attention as well. To successfully confront these challenges, the most critical and urgent need, as stated by the teachers, is to revise secondary teacher preparation. Implicationsfor Secondary Teacher Preparation Faculty in secondary teacher preparation programs have a pivotal role to play in the literacy growth of adolescents, as well as the 18 Reading Horizons, 2004, 4,5(1) preparation of secondary teachers. The results of this study point to the following implications for secondary teacher educators. e Engage in partnerships between secondary teacher preparation faculty and practicing secondary teachers. Partnerships in which the voices of practicing teachers are central to reform in secondary teacher preparation, and the voices of college and university teacher ducators are central to high school literacy reform. e Revise the secondary teacher preparation curriculum to include more opportunities for prospective teachers to experience and understand the real-life literacy challenges identified in this study. o Create a secondary teacher preparation curriculum that gives significant attention to motivational practices, such as incorporating the new media, which has become integrally bound up with adolescents affiliations, identities, and pleasures (Nixon, 2003). e Reform the secondary teacher preparation curriculum that divides subject matter courses and methods courses. Content and processes of learning to teach must be brought together, since how teachers learn, shapes what they learn and is often part of what they need to know (Feiman-Nemser amp; Remillard, 2001, p. 78). The debates that center on the disciplinary boundaries that keep scholars apart and leave students to make their own interdisciplinary connections must invite new initiatives. * Align and teach pedagogical practices, critical thinking skills, study skills, and vocabulary within subject matter content. * Finally, teacher educators need to provide students with more sustained and guided experiences; those which elp prospective teachers learn to teach those things that matter most to students in ways that are meaningful to them, and are grounded in actual classroom practice. Secondary Teacher Literacy Challenges 19 These views provide common ground for discussion and future exploration regarding improving literacy skills and understanding for secondary students. Moreover, they involve a commitment to secondary literacy reform in a context of uncertain challenges and outcomes. What would it mean to build comprehensive, integrated partnerships across institutional lines and across disciplines? What powerful vision might we see if we could finally get hold of the big picture (Schoem, 2002) of secondary education? If secondary teacher education programs were redesigned along the lines of the characteristics identified in this study, teaching and learning experiences would look much different and would represent a newly defined literacy for secondary students and their future teachers. -References Alexander, P. A. , amp; Filler, R. C. (1976). Attitudes and reading. \ Newark, DE: International Reading Association. Alvermann, D. E. , Hinchman, K. A. , Moore, D. W. , Phelps, S. F. , amp; Waff, D. R. (Eds. , (1998). Reconceptualizing the literacies in adolescents lives. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Annis, L. (1983). Study techniques. Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown ,Company Publishers. Au, K. H. , amp; Asam, C. L. (1996). 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