The use of Graphic Novels as an Educational Tool Research Paper

The use of Graphic Novels as an Educational Tool - Research Paper Example One school of thought holds that the nineteenth-century Swiss Artist Rodolphe Topffer was the first cartoonist in the modern sense. Scott McCloud argues in Understanding Comics that the Bayeux Tapestry, which was probably created in the eleventh century, is an example of sequential visual narrative and therefore counts as comics† (Wolk 29). However, it seems that the audience remains unaffected by such scholarly debate over inception of comics as a separate art form; rather they are more concerned over deriving the pleasure of reading and involving themselves with the ambiance created through color, expression, and beautifully crafted emotions. Prior to the Great War II, American comic market was mainly dominated by superheroes. However, the situation started changing gradually since the post-Great War II period, as the Japanese Manga comics first intruded the market. At the initial stage heroes with humane attribute did not have the capacity to combat the superheroes but it did not take much time that manga heroes emerged as triumphant against American superheroes. Another benefit of these Japanese manga comics was that those were highly appreciated by women and teenage girls section of the society. David Okum observes, â€Å"Japanese manga developed a strong following after World War II. The themes and stories reflect popular culture and national tastes†¦.There is a wide audience of women, men, boys and that accepts comics and animation as just another medium of storytelling. Manga is produced for every possible group and interest† (Okum 8). No matter how much it is discussed about massive audience patronage i n favor of the graphic novels or manga, but the enormity of such popularity does not become clear unless we come across proper statistical data of the existing market condition of the manga comic.

Gene Therapy Essay -- Genetic Engineering

Gene Therapy Parents can now pick a kid’s sex and screen for genetic illness. Will they someday select brains and beauty too? In the ever- advancing technological world, scientists discover new and efficient ways to advance society each and every single day. Imagine being able to choose your child’s body type, or personality, or IQ. It is not as farfetched as it sounds. It’s a process called â€Å"Gene Therapy†, and is being perfected right now. This process rules out any unknown’s in childbirth. It will not only allow us to determine the child’s sex, but also his future. In natural child conception, the mother provides the the two X chromosomes and the father provides the X and Y chromosomes. The balance of genetic make up is determined by the father since he is the only one that has the diversity of genes. With all this, the genetic combinations are completely random, allowing much room for fault. With science controlling the joining of such chromosomes, many of the fatal or physically impairing infant diseases will disappear. Scientist’ say they can pick out disease causing genes in the pre-natal stage before they grow. Controlling infant disease is only one aspect of the new technology. Determining a child’s sex is also under discussion. As a very controversial topic, determining a child’s sex will also reflect on society’s views of gender rolls in the world today. Many societies value men over women immensely, so will this reflect on the diversity...

Conflict in the Niger Delta Essay

The conflict happening in the Niger Delta stated in 1990. The tensions involve foreign oil corporation and members of some Niger Delta’s minority ethnic groups, particularly the Ogoni and the Ijaw. The instability continued from the 1990s until recently even though there are major changes in the government structure. The area surrounding the Delta is now heavily militarized by the Nigerian army and police forces, and numerous armed groups belonging to the ethnic groups (Barrett). According to the Center for International Development and Conflict Management (â€Å"Minorities at Risk. A Country Case Study†) violence and high crime rate is a common scenario in the Delta because of the stiff contest for oil. Government atrocities with civilian as victims are also recorded in the area. One of the most conflicted areas in the Delta is Oganiland. Located in the southeast of the Niger Delta, Oganiland is a region comprising 404-squale-mile of the area. Shell and Chevron set up their exploration and drilling facilities in the area upon the discovery of oil deposits in 1957. The rich oil deposit in Oganiland is considered as Nigeria’s first petroleum deposit for commercial purposes. During the exploration of the two largest foreign oil companies, government authorities and agents forced residents of the area to leave. This government-initiated forced evacuation on the area affected almost half a million ethnic minorities belonging to the group Ogonis and other ethnic groups (Agbu). They also attest that the government and the foreign oil companies did not conduct any consultation with them and offer any damages. Despite the strong opposition from the affected minorities, the federal government supported the atrocities by amending the Constitution that the government has the full ownership on all lands within Nigeria and compensation will be based on the crops and products located in the land during the taking and not the actual value of the land. These further allow the taking of foreign oil corporations on almost all of the lands in Oganiland with the help of the government (â€Å"Minorities at Risk. A Country Case Study. †). In the 1980s, the situation of Oganiland and the Oganis deteriorated economically, socially, politically and environmentally. Dissatisfaction and discontent among the people in Oganiland steadily mounts that in 1992 they formed the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP). It became the main organization campaigning for various issues of the Oganis, primarily ethnic and environmental rights. MOSOP became the main opposition of the Nigerian government and foreign oil companies in Oganiland (Agbu). The conflict between MOSOP and oil companies escalated that it resulted to violence disrupting some of the oil companies’ major activities in the area. MOSOP required $10 billion as royalties since the companies started and for the degradation of the environment in Oganiland (Olusakin). However, according to Agbu (2004) the oil companies, Shell, Chevron and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, with the help of government authorities answered the MOSOP’s demand through violence also. Mass actions and protests started to occur in a daily basis in Oganiland that resulted the banning of public assembly by the government. It also pronounced as acts of treason any disturbances of oil production and related activities in the area. Militarization and repression rose in 1994 where in four village chiefs were murdered. The head of MOSOP, Ken Saro-Wira was detained because of the killings. Hundreds were also arbitrarily arrested and detained because of the killings. By June of the same year, there were almost 30 villages totally ruined, almost 2,000 deaths and leaving nearly 100,000 Oganis as internal refugees (Human Rights Watch). In 1994 Saro-Wira with other eight Ogani activist were arrested and sentenced to death. They are executed though hanging by the Nigerian government. The deaths of Saro-Wira and his companions enraged the people of Oganiland that resulted to more disruptive and violent actions against the oil companies. The militancy of the Oganis inspired other ethic groups to start their own struggle against the government and the foreign oil companies (Olusakin). The Ijaws organized the Ijaw National Congress and Ijaw youth organized the Ijaw Youth Congress. These two groups raise the political consciousness and militancy of the Ijaw people. They started to lay down their demands against the irresponsive central Nigerian government and to the foreign oil companies. They are asserting that these companies should have direct and concrete plans to uplift the lives of the people in the Niger Delta (Obi). Recently, armed and more militant groups like Niger Delta Peoples Vanguard (NDPV), Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), Niger Delta People’s Volunteer Force (NDPVF) and the Nigerian Delta Vigilante (NDV) were organized. Although these groups were formed because of the continuous environmental degradation, government neglect and social and political unrest in the area, they are now in conflict on varying ideologies and forms of actions (Obi). Most of them aim to gain control of the area’s rich oil resources. NDPVF and NDV are in conflict with each other. Violence between the groups rose resulting to disruptive activities in Port Harcourt, the Delta’s oil capital. Supporters of NDPVF transferred to NDV escalating more the conflict between the two groups (Agbu). After the local and national elections of 2003, NDPVF announced their all-out war against the government (Olusakin). However, MEND is closely affiliated with NDV. They reached their international reputation when they hijacked oil tankers crossing through the country and nearby countries. They arbitrarily detained workers in the tankers for months and demanding for ransom for their release. Last year, they attacked various oil installations and facilities of oil company Shell that resulted to oil price increase. They also attacked a facility of Chevron, forcing the company to halt operations in the region for that year (Obi). In 2005, the central government called the National Political reform Conference. Representatives of the Niger Delta raised various concerns on the development of the region. Numerous non-government and human rights organization have also called the attention of the central government to introduce reform in the region. There are proposals to divide the region into two, Eastern Niger Delta and Western Niger Delta, to make developmental projects easier to implement (Taylor). The ventral government should also convert new states in the region with at least one city in every state. Taylor (2007) said that federal offices and ministries should also set-up their branches in the region to make government services more accessible to ethnic minorities in the region. The government is also urged to enact legislations compelling oil companies to implement developmental projects in their host communities and strictly follow environmental laws. International civil society groups have also suggested that the central government implement policies to have more transparency in the revenues and fiscal matters on the oil industries. The Washington-based Human Rights Watch (2002) also strongly recommends that state security forces should be investigated and persecuted on their abuses on the civilians in the region (p. 5). The conflict in the region is already decade-old and seems will never end. The Nigerian government should seriously implement reforms and developmental projects in the region to alleviate poverty among its people. The more delay on these developments needed, the more people will be agitated to join the armed resistance fueled by inequality among the oil company and the ethnic minorities of the Niger Delta. Works Cited: Agbu, Osita. (2004). Ethnic Militias and the Threat to Democracy in Post-Transition Nigeria. Uppsala: Nordic African Institue. Barrett, Ejiroghene. â€Å"Why the Troubles in the Niger Delta. † New African 456 (2006): 40-45 â€Å"Minorities at Risk. A Country Case Study. † 2 April 2009. Center fro International Development and Conflict Management. . Olusakin, Ayoka Mopelala. â€Å"Peace in the Niger Delta: Economic Development and the Politics of Dependence on Oil. † International Journal on World Peace 23 (2006): 3 Obi, Cyril (1997). Globalization and Local Resistance: The Case of the Ogoni versus Shell. Ibadan: University of Ibadan. Obi, Cyril (2001). The Changing Forms of Identity Politics in Nigeria under Economic Adjustment: The Case of the Oil Minorities Movement of the Niger Delta. Uppsala: Nordic African Institute. Taylor, Darren. â€Å"Niger Delta and Lack of Infrastructure: Major Issues in Nigeria Elections. † Voice of America. 22 March 2007. 2 April 2009 â€Å"The Niger Delta: No Democratic Dividend. † October 2002. Human Rights Watch. 2 April 2009. < http://www. hrw. org/legacy/reports/2002/nigeria3/nigerdelta. pdf>

I Remember Reading By The Age Of 3 Essay - 1280 Words

I remember reading by the age of 3. My mom taught English to preschool and middle school students. Looking at albums that had pictures of my childhood, I found that since age 2, I was already surrounded by educational charts, such as the alphabet, shapes, the different land forms and water forms, the traditional attires of men and women across the globe, etc. My mom would tell me about how much I loved to learn since I was a child. At the age of 3, she and my dad would take turns to read me a story. I did not know how to read yet, so I would look at the book’s pictures while either my mom or dad would read off of each page to me. This was a practice every night at home before I dozed off to sleep. Whenever we traveled, my parents would point out things to me and say what they were. Thus, I grew up viewing learning as a fun activity rather than a chore. The first time I held a book that I could recall, I was around 3. Our house was full of books. There were already two shelves in what we’ve been calling the â€Å"play room† since it was not a personal room and since the toys, shelves, and charts were all lined up. This probably further influenced my approach to learning as something that was fun instead of tiring. It was at the age of 3 that my mom began teaching me how to read. It began after I proudly recited the entire alphabet to her. This was one of my childhood memories that served as a transition in my learning experience. I recall reciting the alphabet a couple of timesShow MoreRelatedThe Questionnaire On Learning Styles Essay969 Words   |  4 Pagesskills. The VARK stands for the learning styles: V-visual, A-aural, R-reading/writing, and K-kinesthetic. The visual learner is a person that would be best taught by using some type of graphic form. The would use graphs or drawings or charts and learn by the results of a type of drawing. The aural learner is taught or best learn from listening and like to be informed by talking about what they are learning. The reading/writing learner is best taught by bullet points, and texts books. The kinestheticRead MoreWhat I Learned About My Life During The Decade Of The 1980 S1683 Words   |  7 Pageshistorical timeline. By this I mean that people living through the same decades have went through the same historical events such as with wars, precedencies, and all the signings between countries throughout the world. As I thought about who I wanted to interview for my history report, I concluded that I wanted to learn more about my mom when she was the same age as me. My interviewee that I chose was my mom, Lora Phelps, as she lived through the late 1980’s between the ages of 18-20. I wanted to learn whatRead MoreLiterature As A Form Of Human Expression1359 Words   |  6 Pagesof writing. Being able to identify your literacy is more difficult to understand. Without literacy, our world would struggle and crumble to the very dust from which it rose. During this writing I will personally talk about my literacy history, and how it has influenced, impacted, and developed my life. I was born and raised in Monrovia, Liberia. The name â€Å"Liberia† comes from the English word â€Å"liberty† and refers to the nation’s origin as a colony of free blacks repatriated to Africa from the UnitedRead MoreAnnotated Essay : Literacy Narrative1325 Words   |  6 PagesLiteracy Narrative I Remember that time I had that one page essay assigned back in my 5th grade English class and I thought to myself, â€Å"How on earth will I possibly write one page on something I hardly know anything about or share little to no interest on†. Well that 1 page essay is not looking so terrible now that college is here and the minimum amount of pages for most essays is up to 3 pages. Writing has been something that has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. I was first introducedRead MoreEssay on Does schema affect our memory?1326 Words   |  6 Pages The first study that I came across was a study from the Association for Psychological Science â€Å"Brief memory test ‘ages’ older adults in October 15 2013. The researchers recruited 22 older adults with the years of 65 to 85 asking how old they felt before and after a memory test. Given the stereotypes of associating aging with memory, the hypothesis was that the memory test would emphasis their age and furthermore making them feel old. Results show that their subjective age was considerably youngerRead MoreQ1) How Did You Come To Faith In Christ?. My Earliest Memory1372 Words   |  6 PagesJesus is at the age of 8. My mum bought me a series of books called ‘Alice in Bibleland.’ I thought the books were spectacular, well-drawn and a rich source of comfort, but I didn’t have a clear awareness of God or the gospel, these were just stories like any other. At age 11 I started secondary school. My best friend was a Christian and would tell me about what he and his family believed. One day, during morning break, I went to the school library and picked up a copy of the Bible. I tried to readRead MoreSupporting Literacy for All Children1014 Words   |  5 Pagesis no doubt our educational system is more complex than ever before. There is much to consider when looking at the balance between theories, proven methods, and the reasons why we chose to invest such time into our children’s education. In this paper I will touch on these theories, methods and the importance of the education. There are many theories surrounding education and what lies within our biological functions that can effect how we learn as human beings. Our book, Creating Literacy InstructionRead MoreMbti Reflection Paper1132 Words   |  5 PagesReflection Essay September 3, 2013 My dad attended the Chicago Music Conservatory as a piano proficiency major. Needless to say he is a great piano teacher and taught all of his own kids at an early age. My sister and brother could read sheet music very well. I was a different pupil. For three or four months I had faked my way through song after song without my dad knowing I was not reading the music. When I started taking lessons around the age of five I found that I could remember what the song wasRead MoreEssay on The NYS Early Learning Guidelines641 Words   |  3 Pagesdomains are separated by milestone that children, generally, accomplishes at a certain age. The three age groups are Infancy (birth to 18 months), Toddlerhood (18 months to 3 years) and Preschool (3 to 5 years). These guidelines can assist teachers with helping children cross milestones but at the same time, not rush development. There are strategies that can help teachers along the way. The guideline I chose is Reading: Alphabetic Principles und er Domain V Language, Communication and Literacy DomainRead MoreMy Literacy History And How It Has Been Developed Throughout Portions Of My Life915 Words   |  4 Pages As I think what literacy means to me, the most important thought that comes to mind is my understanding of it: the ability to read and write, I feel that without the ability to read and write, mankind is unable to properly function because there is no foundation for adequate communication. So literacy is reading development, a progression of skills that begins with the ability to understand spoken words and decode written words, and culminates in the deep understanding of text. Everyone has some