Exceeding
1 Million Readership
July 2015 - Vol. 18 - No. 7
Education
MONITOR
Study Skills
page No.
46
How to Keep Your Mind
Sharp: Effective Action
page No.
54
Transforming Your Negative
Self-Talk into an Inner Coach
page No.
07
Study Skills
page No.
61
Moments of
Parenting...
page No.
78
Changing Your
Thinking – Change
Your Life
Would you like to know :
Would you like to :
What you really are and What you
Become what you want to be,
want to become... What you want
Obtain what you want and
and
Attain your happiness?
What your happiness is?
Here is
AGREATOPPORTUNI
T
Y
for you!
For Personal counselling and coaching
John A. Joseph Foundation
2, Santhome High Road, Mylapore, P.O., Chennai - 600 004.
E : [email protected]
3
•
I spend too much time studying for what I am learning.
•
I usually spend hours cramming the night before an exam.
•
If I spend as much time on my social activities as I want to, I don’t have enough time left
to study, or when I study enough, I don't have time for a social life.
•
I can’t sit and study for long periods of time without becoming tired or distracted.
•
I go to class, but I usually doodle, daydream, or fall asleep.
•
My class notes are sometimes difficult to understand later.
•
I usually seem to get the wrong material into my class notes.
•
I don’t review my class notes periodically throughout the semester in preparation for tests.
•
When I get to the end of a chapter, I can’t remember what I’ve just read.
•
I don’t know how to pick out what is important in the text.
•
I lose a lot of points on essay tests even when I know the material well.
•
I study enough for my test, but when I get there my mind goes blank.
•
I often study in a haphazard, disorganized way under the threat of the next test.
•
I often wish that I could read faster.
•
I can’t seem to organize my thoughts into a paper that makes sense.
Education
MONITOR
Editorial
4
Do you think you can identify with any of these statements? It’s OK!
Knowing how to study is like knowing how to fish. It’s a set of learning skills that lasts a lifetime
and brings many rewards. Just as there are ways to know that you are a competent fisherman,
there are also ways to develop study skills competency.
A skill is an ability, usually learned and acquired through training, to perform actions, which
achieve a desired outcome. By modelling successful practices in a field we tend to standardize
the successful practices that have produced the desired results. Such successful practices can be
modelled and theorised as norms for practice.
We also should take into consideration that no two people study the same way, and there is little
doubt that what works for one person may not work for another. However, there are some
general techniques that seem to produce good results. No one would argue that every subject
that you have to take is going to be so interesting that studying it is not work but pleasure. We
can only wish.
For some students, studying and being motivated to learn comes naturally. As a student your
success in high school and college is dependent on your ability to study effectively and
efficiently. The results of poor study skills are wasted time, frustration, and low or failing grades.
It’s your life, your time, and your future. Time is precious and not to be squandered, no matter
what you believe right now.
Studying any material requires work! However, by using the techniques and by applying yourself,
you can gain a valuable edge in understanding material, preparing for tests, and, ultimately,
learning.
Effective study skills must be practised in order for you to improve. It is not enough to simply
“think about” studying; you have to actually do it, and in the process use information from what
you do to get better. There is a saying that goes like this: “Practice doesn’t make perfect; perfect
practice makes perfect.” If you want to be an achiever, take this saying to heart.
Editor:
John A.Joseph,
[email protected],
[email protected]
Assistant Editor:
Thilagavathi G.Joseph
Education
MONITOR
Sub Editors:
Shilton J.R. JoJo, Greaton A. JoJo
Publisher:
Jacob Benjamin,
Deemsys Inc,
www.deemsysinc.net
5
Contents
Main Feature – Study Skills
Study Skills
Managing Your Study time
Good Listening in Class
Reading Comprehension: The REDW
Strategy
Using Acronyms to Remember
Information
Taking Notes in Class
Using Abbreviations to Write Notes
Quickly
A Strategy for Reading Texts
A Strategy for Reading Novels
Becoming a Flexible Reader
The RQWQCQ Strategy for Solving
Math Word Problems
Using Reference Sources
Building Vocabulary
Study Groups
Procrastination
Test Anxiety
The DETER Strategy for Taking
Notes
.......07
.......09
.......11
.......13
.......15
.......17
.......19
.......22
.......24
.......26
.......27
.......29
.......31
.......34
.......38
.......41
.......44
Regular Features
Editorial
Students’ Corner
Students Clarify
Staff Room
Teachers’ Concerns
Dear Parents, for Your Eyes only
Parents Ask
.......03
.......46
.......50
.......54
.......57
.......61
.......64
Special Features
Teaching tolerance
Education
MONITOR
.......68
Contents
6
Teaching & Learning
How to Keep Your Mind Sharp:
Effective Action
.......46
Parenting
.......61
Moments of Parenting
Strengths and Weaknesses of Children .......75
Personality Development
Transforming Your Negative Self-Talk
into an Inner Coach
Changing Your Thinking – Change
Your Life
.......54
.......78
Life Anchors
The Blame Game
Warning Signs
Don’s Stop – Keep Moving
.......81
.......82
.......84
Did You Know?
Fascinating Animals, Birds, Trees
.......86
The Fine Art of Living?
DON'T MESS WITH MOM
How to Improve Your Life with
Thankfulness
.......88
.......90
General Knowledge
Test Your General Knowledge
Quiz Facts – Answers to Test
Your General Knowledge
Education
MONITOR
.......93
.......98
7
STUDY SKILLS
Setting Goals
A goal is something you want to achieve. A short-term goal is something you want to achieve
soon. Examples of short-term goals are finishing your homework and doing well on tomorrow’s
test. A long-term goal is something you want to achieve at some later date. Examples of
long-term goals are writing a paper and passing a class.
To set appropriate goals, you must know what is important for you to accomplish. Then you
must set specific and clearly stated goals. If you do not have clearly stated goals, your effort will
lack direction and focus. Write your goals to have a record of them.
Education
MONITOR
STUDY SKILLS
8
The Three Ws of Goals
Each goal you set should state what you will do and when you will do it. For example, a
goal relating to writing a research paper might be stated as follows: I will finish gathering
information for my research paper by November 20.
Characteristics of Appropriate Goals Your goals should be:
1. within your skills and abilities. Knowing your strengths and weaknesses will help you set you
you can accomplish.
2
realistic. Setting a goal to learn the spelling of three new words a day is realistic. Trying to
learn the spelling of fifty new words a day is not realistic.
3 flexible. Sometimes things will not go the way you anticipate and you may need to change
your goal. Stay flexible so when you realize a change is necessary you will be ready to
make the change.
4. measurable. It is important to be able to measure your progress toward a goal. It is especially
important to recognize when you have accomplished your goal and need to go no further.
Failure to measure your progress toward a goal and recognize its accomplishment will
result in effort that is misdirected and wasted.
5. within your control. Other than when working as part of a group, accomplishment of your goal
should not depend on other students. You can control what you do, but you have little or
no control over what others do. You may do what you have to do, but if others don’t, you
will not accomplish your goal.
Many times your parents, teachers, and counsellors will set goals for you. Be accepting when
they do. These are people who know what is important for you and are very concerned with your
success. They can also help you accomplish the goals they set.
SET GOALS THAT PROVIDE YOU WITH DIRECTION AND LEAD TO SUCCESS.
Education
MONITOR
Managing Your Study Time
9
There are only so many hours in a day, a week, and a term. You cannot change the number of
hours, but you can decide how to best use them. To be successful in school, you must carefully
manage your study time. Here is a strategy for doing this.
At the beginning of a term, prepare a Term Calendar. Update it as the term goes on. Here is
what to do to prepare a Term Calendar.
· Record your school assignments with their due dates and your scheduled tests.
· Record your planned school activities.
· Record your known out-of-school activities.
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Managing Your Study Time
10
Each Sunday before a school week, prepare a Weekly Schedule. Update it as the week goes
on. Here is what to do to prepare a Weekly Schedule.
· Record your daily classes.
·
Enter things to be done for the coming week from your Term Calendar.
· Review your class notes from the previous week to see if you need to add
any school activities.
· Add any out-of-school activities in which you will be involved during the week.
·
Be sure to include time s for completing assignments, working on projects,
and studying for tests. These times may be during the school day, right after
school, evenings, and weekends.
Each evening before a school day, prepare a Daily Organizer for the next day. Place a next
to each thing to do as you accomplish it. Here is what to do to prepare a Daily Organizer.
·
Enter the things to do for the coming day from your Weekly Schedule.
·
Enter the things that still need to be accomplished from your Daily Organizer
from the previous day.
·
Review your class notes for the day just completed to see if you need to
·
Add any out-of-school activities in which you will be involved the next day.
add any school activities.
Your Weekly Schedule should have more detail than your Term Calendar. Your Daily
Organizer should have more detail than your Weekly Schedule. Using a Term
Calendar, a Weekly Schedule, and a Daily Organizer will help you make the best use
of your time.
Education
MONITOR
Good Listening In Class
11
It is important for you to be a good listener in class. Much of what you will have to learn will be
presented verbally by your teachers. Just hearing what your teachers say is not the same as
listening to what they say. Listening is a cognitive act that requires you to pay attention and think
about and mentally process what you hear.
Here are some things you should do to be a good listener in class.
Be Cognitively Ready to Listen. Come to class cognitively prepared to listen. Make sure
you complete all assigned work and readings. Review your notes from previous class sessions.
Think about what you know about the topic that will be covered in class that day.
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12
Good Listening In Class
Be Emotionally Ready to Listen. Come to class emotionally ready to listen. Your
attitude is important. Make a conscious choice to find the topic useful and interesting. Be
committed to learning all that you can.
Listen with a Purpose. Identify what you expect and hope to learn from the class session.
Listen for these things as your teacher talks.
Listen with an Open Mind. Be receptive to what your teacher says. It is good to question
what is said as long as you remain open to points of view other than your own.
Be Attentive. Focus on what your teacher is saying. Try not to daydream and let your
mind wander to other things. It helps to sit in the front and center of the class, and to
maintain eye contact with your teacher.
Be an Active Listener. You can think faster than your teacher can speak. Use this to
your advantage by evaluating what is being said and trying to anticipate what will be said
next. Take good written notes about what your teacher says. While you can think faster
than your teacher can speak, you cannot write faster than your teacher can speak. Taking
notes requires you to make decisions about what to write, and you have to be an active
listener to do this.
Accept the Challenge. Don't give up and stop listening when you find the information
being presented difficult to understand. Listen even more carefully at these times and
work hard to understand what is being said. Don't be reluctant to ask questions.
Triumph Over the Environment. The classroom may too noisy, too hot, too cold, too bright, or
too dark. Don't give in to these inconveniences. Stay focused on the big picture - LEARNING.
Education
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Reading Comprehension:
13
The REDW Strategy for Finding Main Ideas
REDW is a good strategy to use to find the main idea in each paragraph of a
reading assignment. Using this strategy will help you comprehend the information
contained in your assignment. Each of the letters in REDW stands for a step in the
strategy.
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14
Reading Comprehension:
Read
Read the entire paragraph to get an idea of what the paragraph is about. You may find it
helpful to whisper the words as you read or to form a picture in your mind of what you are
reading. Once you have a general idea of what the paragraph is about, go on to the next step.
Examine
Examine each sentence in the paragraph to identify the important words that tell what
the sentence is about. Ignore the words that are not needed to tell what the sentence is
about. If you are allowed to, draw a line through the words to be ignored. For each sentence,
write on a sheet of paper the words that tell what the sentence is about.
Decide
Reread the words you wrote for each sentence in the paragraph. Decide which sentence
contains the words you wrote that best describe the main idea of the paragraph. These
words are the main idea of the paragraph. The sentence that contains these words is the
topic sentence. The other words you wrote are the supporting details for the main idea.
Write
Write the main idea for each paragraph in your notebook. This will provide you with a
written record of the most important ideas you learned. This written record will be helpful if
you have to take a test that covers the reading assignment.
Use REDW to help you understand the information in your reading assignments.
Education
MONITOR
Using Acronyms to Remember
Information
15
Forming an acronym is a good strategy to use to remember information in any order that can
be remembered. An acronym is a word that is formed from the first letter of each fact
to be remembered. It can be a real word or a nonsense word you are able to
pronounce.
Here is how to form an acronym.
·
·
·
Write the facts you need to remember.
Underline the first letter of each fact. If there is more than one word in a fact, underline
the first letter of only the first word in the fact.
Arrange the underlined letters to form an acronym that is a real word or a nonsense
word you can pronounce.
Education
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Using Acronyms to Remember Information
16
“HOMES” is an example of an acronym that is a real word you can use to remember the
names of the five Great Lakes: Michigan, Erie, Superior, Ontario, Huron: In HOMES, H is the
first letter of Huron and helps you remember that name; O is the first letter of Ontario, and so
on.
“Telk” is an acronym that can be used to remember the following animals: tiger, lion,
elephant, kangaroo. “Telk” is not a real word, but you can easily pronounce it. You could
also have used “kelt” as an acronym. Notice that in this example, you cannot form a real
word using the first letter of each fact to be remembered.
Sometimes two or more of the facts you must remember each begin with the same first letter.
For example, the acronym “capp” can be used to remember the following fruits: pear, apple,
peach, cherry. You can use the first letter “p” in the acronym to remember either “pear” or
“peach” and the second letter “p” to remember the other.
Use the acronym strategy as a way to remember information.
Education
MONITOR
Taking Notes in Class
17
In classes, your teachers will talk about topics that you are studying. The information they
provide will be important for you to know when you take tests. You must be able to take
good written notes from what your teachers say.
Taking good notes is a three-stage process in which there are certain things you should
do before class, during class, and after class. Here are the three stages of note taking and what
you should do during each stage.
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Taking Notes in Class
18
1. Get Ready to Take Notes (Before Class)
·
·
·
Review your notes from the previous class session before you come to class. This will help
you will help you remember what was covered and get you ready to understand new
information your teacher provides.
Complete all assigned readings before you come to class. Your teacher will expect that you
have done this and will use and build upon this information.
Bring all note taking materials with you to class. Have several pens and pencils as well as your
notebook.
2. Take Notes (During Class)
·
Keep your attention focused on what your teacher is saying. Listen for “signal statements”
that tell you that what your teacher is about to say is important to write in your notes.
Examples of signal statements are “The most important point…” and “Remember that . . . “
Be sure to include in your notes information that your teacher repeats or writes on the
chalkboard.
quickly so that you can include all the important information in your notes. Do this
· byWrite
writing abbreviated words such as med for medicine, using symbols such as % for
percent, and writing short sentences.
·
Place a ? next to information you write in your notes, but about whose meaning you are
not sure.
3. Rewrite Your Notes (After Class)
·
·
·
·
Rewrite your notes to make them more complete by changing abbreviated words into
whole words, symbols into words, and shortened sentences into longer sentences.
Make your notes more accurate by answering any questions you had when writing your notes
in class. Use your textbook and reference sources to obtain the information you need to
answer your questions. If necessary, ask your teacher or other students for help.
Check with other students to be sure you did not leave out important information.
Having good class notes will help you to be better prepared for tests.
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19
Using Abbreviations
to Write Notes
Quickly
Many of the questions you find on class tests will be based upon the information your teachers
orally present in class. Therefore, you need to write class notes that completely and accurately
include the most important information presented by your teachers. This is hard to do because
your teachers can talk faster than you can write.
It would be nice if your teachers talked slower so that you could keep up with what they are
saying as you write your notes. This is not realistic though. It is up to you to write more quickly.
One way to do this is to write abbreviations for words. An abbreviation is a shortened form of a
word used when writing to represent the complete word. You must be able to recognize the
complete word from its abbreviation.
Many words have a commonly used abbreviation. Here are some examples of words that have
a common abbreviation:
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Using Abbreviations to Write Notes Quickly
20
You can form your own abbreviation for just about any word. Here are three ways you can do
this.
Write just the beginning of a long word. Here are some examples of long words that have been
abbreviated by writing just the beginning of the word:
Leave out the vowels when writing a word. Here are some examples of words that have
been abbreviated by leaving out the vowels when writing the word:
For words that have just one syllable, write just the first and last letter of the word. Here
are some examples of words that have been abbreviated by writing just the first and last letter
of the word:
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Using Abbreviations to Write
Notes Quickly
21
Use common abbreviations of words whenever you recognize them. For other words, form
abbreviations by using one of the three ways you just learned. Use the way that best fits the
word for which you are writing an abbreviation. Do not try to abbreviate every word you write in
your notes. Abbreviate those words that are important and for which you can quickly form an
abbreviation. REMEMBER: YOU MUST BE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE THE COMPLETE
WORD FROM ITS ABBREVIATION. Knowing the context in which you wrote the word will
help you recognize the complete word from its abbreviation.
Using abbreviations for words will help you take good notes more quickly. Having good notes
will help you do better on tests.
Education
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22
A Strategy
for Reading
Textbooks
SQRW is a four-step strategy for reading and taking notes from chapters in a textbook. Each
letter stands for one step in the strategy. Using SQRW will help you to understand what you read
and to prepare a written record of what you learned. The written record will be valuable when you
have to participate in a class discussion and again when you study for a test. Read to learn what
to do for each step in SQRW.
Survey
Surveying brings to mind what you already know about the topic of a chapter and prepares you
for learning more. To survey a chapter, read the title, introduction, headings, and the summary or
conclusion. Also, examine all visuals such as pictures, tables, maps, and/or graphs and read the
caption that goes with each. By surveying a chapter, you will quickly learn what the chapter is
about.
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A Strategy for Reading Textbooks
23
Question
You need to have questions in your mind as you read. Questions give you a purpose for
reading and help you stay focused on the reading assignment. Form questions by changing
each chapter heading into a question. Use the words who, what, when, where, why, or how to
form questions. For example, for the heading "Uses of Electricity" in a chapter about how
science improves lives, you might form the question "What are some uses of electricity?" If
a heading is stated as a question, use that question. When a heading contains more than
one idea, form a question for each idea. Do not form questions for the Introduction,
Summary, or Conclusion.
Read
Read the information that follows each heading to find the answer to each question you
formed. As you do this, you may decide you need to change a question or turn it into several
questions to be answered. Stay focused and flexible so you can gather as much information
as you need to answer each question.
Write
Write each question and its answer in your notebook. Reread each of your written answers to
be sure each answer is legible and contains all the important information needed to answer
the question.
As you practice using SQRW, you will find you learn more and have good study notes to use
to prepare for class participation and tests.
HINT: Once you complete the Survey step for the entire chapter, complete the Question,
Read, and Write steps for the first heading. Then complete the Question, Read, and Write
steps for the second heading, and so on for the remaining headings in the chapter.
Education
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A Strategy for Reading Novels
24
A story is a fictitious tale that is written to entertain, amuse, or instruct the reader. A novel is
the same as a story but it is longer and more complex. To understand a story or novel, you
need to understand the six elements used by authors when they write a story or novel.
Characters
Characters are the first element to look for when reading a story or novel. Characters are
most often people but can be animals or even fictionalized beings like those seen in
cartoons or movies. The main character plays the biggest role and is often the first
character to be introduced. Most often the story is seen through the eyes of the main
character. Secondary characters play a smaller supporting role and are introduced
throughout the story.
Setting
The setting is the second element you should look for when reading a story or novel. The
setting is the location where the story takes place. A story may take place in a home,
countryside, town, school, or wherever the author chooses to have the action occur. The
setting is usually revealed very early in a story.
Time
The time when the story takes place is the third element you should look for when reading a
story or novel. A story may take place very recently or many years ago. Usually the time
when the story takes place is introduced very early in the story.
Problem
The problem is the fourth element you should look for in a story or novel. The problem most
often grows out of a conflict between the main character and another character in the story.
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A Strategy for Reading Novels
25
But the problem can also involve a circumstance such as a hurricane, a war, or one of the
many obstacles that produce a conflict in life.
Events
Events are the fifth element you should look for when reading a story or novel. An event is
an attempt at solving the problem in the story. In a story there are usually a number of
attempts to solve the problem and these events make up most of the story.
Solution
A solution is the sixth and final element in a story or novel. The solution is how the problem
is resolved or brought to an end. Most often the solution is revealed near the end of the
story. Sometimes the solution is not revealed until the very last page or even the final
paragraph of the story.
Recognizing these story elements will help you better understand and enjoy a story,
remember the story facts, and appreciate different writing styles used by authors.
Education
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Becoming a Flexible Reader
26
To become a flexible reader, you need to know how to select and use a reading style that
is consistent with your purpose for reading. There are three important reading styles you
should learn to use. Each has its own purpose. Knowing when and how to use these three
reading styles will make you a flexible reader. Read to learn about the three reading
styles used by flexible readers.
Study Reading is the reading style used by flexible readers when their purpose is to read
difficult material at a high level of comprehension. When using the Study Reading style, you
should read at a rate that is slower than your normal reading rate. Further, as you read you
must challenge yourself to understand the material. Study Reading will often require you to
read material more than once to achieve a high level of comprehension. Sometimes, reading
the material aloud will also help you improve your comprehension.
Skimming is the reading style used by flexible readers when their purpose is to quickly
obtain a general idea about the reading material. The Skimming style is most useful when
you have to read a large amount of material in a short amount of time. When using the
Skimming style, you should identify the main ideas in each paragraph and ignore the details in
supportive sentences. Because you are only looking for the main idea in each paragraph
you read, a lower level of comprehension is to be expected than when using the Study
Reading style.
Scanning is the reading style used by flexible readers when their purpose is to quickly
locate a specific piece of information within reading material. The piece of information to be
located may be contained in a list of names, words, numbers, short statements, and
sometimes even in a paragraph. Since you know exactly what you are looking for, move
your eyes quickly over the reading material until you locate the specific piece of information
you need to find.
Before you begin your next reading assignment, identify your purpose for reading. Decide if
you are reading for a high level of comprehension, trying to get a general idea about what
you are reading, or looking for specific information. Then use the reading style that is
appropriate for your reading purpose.
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27
The RQWQCQ Strategy for Solving
Math Word Problems
RQWQCQ is a good strategy to use when solving math word problems. Each of the letters
in RQWQCQ stands for a step in the strategy.
Read
Read the entire problem to learn what it is about. You may find it helpful to read the problem
out loud, form a picture of the problem in your mind, or draw a picture of the problem.
Question
Find the question to be answered in the problem. Often the question is directly stated. When it
is not stated, you will have to identify the question to be answered.
Write
Write the facts you need to answer the question. It is helpful to cross out any facts presented
in the problem that are not needed to answer the question. Sometimes, all of facts presented in
the problem are needed to answer the question.
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28
The RQWQCQ Strategy for Solving
Math Word Problems
Question
Ask yourself “What computations must I do to answer the question?”
Compute
Set up the problem on paper and do the computations. Check your computations for
accuracy and make any needed corrections. Once you have done this, circle your answer.
Question
Look at your answer and ask yourself: “Is my answer possible?” You may find that your answer
is not possible because it does not fit with the facts presented in the problem. When this
happens, go back through the steps of RQWQCQ until you arrive at an answer that is
possible.
Use RQWQCQ to help you correctly solve math word problems.
Education
MONITOR
Using
Reference
Sources
29
As you go through school, you will need to use reference sources to find information about
topics, locate facts, and answer questions. Here are five types of reference sources you
should use. Each type is available in print forms, on CD-ROMs, and on the Internet.
1. Dictionary
A dictionary provides information about the meaning, pronunciation, and spelling of
words. Unabridged dictionaries attempt to be complete by including all words currently
in use in a language. They provide extensive information about the words included.
Abridged dictionaries omit words that do not regularly appear in books, magazines, and
newspapers. Specialized dictionaries provide detailed information about the words that apply
to a particular subject such as space, math, biology, psychology, and many more. They
include technical words that are rarely used outside of the subject.
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Using Reference Sources
30
2. Thesaurus
A thesaurus contains synonyms for commonly used words. A synonym is a word that has
the same meaning or nearly the same meaning as another word. For example,
"simple" is a synonym for "easy." A thesaurus contains many more synonyms for a
word than does a dictionary. A thesaurus can help you precisely express your ideas
when writing.
3. Encyclopaedia
An encyclopaedia contains articles on a variety of subjects. The articles are written by experts
on each of the subjects. In addition to articles, encyclopaedias may include illustrations
and diagrams, definitions of some words, and references to additional information. A
general encyclopaedia includes overview articles on a wide range of topics. A subject
encyclopaedia contains longer and more detailed articles on specific topics, events, or
fields of study.
4. Almanac
An almanac is an annual single-volume reference source that contains useful facts about a
wide range of topics. You can learn about countries of the world, government, historical
events, and many other topics. Because almanacs are revised each year, the information is
current.
5. Atlas
An atlas is a collection of maps. The most common atlas contains maps that show the
political and physical features of countries throughout the world. A political map shows
government boundaries. A physical map shows the features of the earth's surface such
as mountains, deserts, and bodies of water. You may also use a road map to learn how to
get from place to place. There are also specialized atlases for such things as weather across
the world, oceans of the world, and even the anatomy of the human body.
Wherever you study, be sure you have access to each of these important reference sources.
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Building
Vocabulary:
31
Using Context Clues to Learn Word Meaning
When authors write, they often include context clues to the meaning of words they use but
think that some of their readers may not know. The context clue is usually presented in the
sentence or paragraph in which the word occurs. Sometimes a visual such as a picture is
provided. Here are six types of context clues used by authors to help the reader understand the
meanings of words. An example is provided for each.
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Building Vocabulary:
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1. Definition context clue
The author includes a definition to help the reader understand the meaning of a word. In
the following example, “tainted” is defined as having a disease.
The people of the town were warned not to eat the tainted fish. The local newspaper published
a bulletin in which readers were clearly told that eating fish that had a disease could be
very dangerous. This was especially true for fish caught in Lake Jean.
2. Synonym context clue
The author includes a synonym to help the reader understand the meaning of a word. A
synonym is a word that means the same as or nearly the same as another word. In the
following example, the synonym “pity” helps the reader understand the meaning of
“compassion.”
After seeing the picture of the starving children, we all felt compassion or pity for their suffering.
3. Antonym context clue
The author includes an antonym to help the reader understand the meaning of a word.
An antonym is a word that means the opposite of another word. In the following
example, the antonym “eager” helps the reader understand the meaning of “reluctant.”
Joe was reluctant to take on the position of captain of the basketball team. He was afraid that
the time it would take would hurt his grades. On the other hand, Billy was eager for the chance
to be captain. He thought that being captain of the team would make him very popular in
school.
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Building Vocabulary:
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1. Description context clue
The author includes one or more descriptions to help the reader understand the meaning of
a word. In the following example, descriptions of President Kennedy as having charm,
enthusiasm, and a magnetic personality help the reader understand the meaning of
“charismatic.”
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, our 35th president, improved human rights and equal rights for
all people. He was a very charismatic president. People were attracted to his charm
and enthusiasm. His personality was described as magnetic.
2. Summary context clue
The author makes a number of statements that help the reader understand the meaning of
a word. In the following example, statements about being rude, showing no respect, having
poor manners, and being impolite help the reader understand the meaning of “impertinent.”
Andrea was a very impertinent young lady. She was so rude that she talked while her
teacher was explaining a lesson. She showed no respect for other students. Her manners were
very poor. Even her parents thought that Andrea was impolite.
3. Visual context clue
The author includes a picture, drawing, chart, graph, or other type of visual to help the
reader understand the meaning of a word. For example, to help the reader understand that
"exultant" means great joy, a picture of a girl with a joyful expression on her face might
appear. A caption under the picture might read "She was exultant." Using the context clues
provided by authors can help you learn the meaning of many new words.
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Study Groups
A study group can be helpful when you are trying to learn information and concepts
and preparing for class discussions and tests. Read to learn about the benefits of a study
group. Then read on to learn about how to start a study group and the characteristics of a
successful study group. Finally, be sure to read about the possible pitfalls of a study group.
Benefits of a Study Group
A study group can be beneficial in many ways. Here are the most important benefits:
1. A support group can “pick you up” when you find that your motivation to study is slipping.
The other group members can be a source of encouragement.
2. You may be reluctant to ask a question in class. You will find it easier to do so in a
small study group.
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Study Groups
35
1. You may become more committed to study because the group members are depending on
your presentation and participation. You will not want to let them down.
2. Group members will listen and discuss information and concepts during the study sessions.
These activities add a strong auditory dimension to your learning experience.
3. One or more group members are likely to understand something you do not. They may bring
up ideas you never considered.
4. You can learn valuable new study habits from the other group members.
5. You can compare your class notes with those of the other group members to clarify your notes
and fill in any gaps.
6. Teaching/explaining information and concepts to the other group members will help you
reinforce your mastery of the information and concepts.
7. Let’s face it - studying can sometimes be boring. Interacting with the other group members
can make studying enjoyable.
Getting a Study Group Started
Study groups don’t just happen. Here is what you should do to get a study group started:
1) Get to know your classmates by talking with them before class, during breaks, and
after class. When selecting a classmate to join your study group, you should be able to
answer YES for each of the following questions:
a) Is this classmate motivated to do well?
b) Does this classmate understand the subject matter?
c) Is this classmate dependable?
d) Would this classmate be tolerant of the ideas of others?
e) Would you like to work with this classmate?
2) Invite enough of these classmates to work with you in a study group until you
have formed a group of three to five. A larger group may allow some members to avoid
responsibility, may lead to cliques, and may make group management more of an issue than
learning.
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Study Groups
36
3) Decide how often and for how long you will meet. Meeting two or three times a
week is probably best. If you plan a long study session, make sure you include time for
breaks. A study session of about 60 to 90 minutes is usually best.
4)
Decide where you will meet. Select a meeting place that is available and is free from
distractions. An empty classroom or a group study room in the library are possibilities.
5)
Decide on the goals of the study group. Goals can include comparing and updating notes,
discussing readings, and preparing for exams.
6) Decide who the leader will be for the first study session. Also decide whether it will be the
same person each session or whether there will be a rotating leader. The leader of a
study session should be responsible for meeting the goals of that study session.
7) Clearly decide the agenda for the first study session and the responsibilities of each group
member for that session.
8)
Develop a list of all group members that includes their names, telephone numbers, and email
addresses. Make sure each group member has this list and update the list as needed.
Characteristics of a Successful Study Group
Once started, a study group should possess the following characteristics to be successful:
1. Each group member contributes to discussions.
2. Group members actively listen to each other without interrupting. Only one group
member speaks at a time.
3. The other group members work collaboratively to resolve any concern raised by
a group member.
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Study Groups
37
4. Group members are prompt and come prepared to work.
5. The group stays on task with respect to its agenda.
6. Group members show respect for each other.
7. Group members feel free to criticize each other but keep their criticisms constructive. This can
encourage group members to reveal their weaknesses so that they can strengthen them.
8. Group members feel free to ask questions of each other.
9.
At the end of each study session, an agenda including specific group member responsibilities
is prepared for the next session.
10. Above all, the positive attitude that “we can do this together” is maintained.
Possible Pitfalls of a Study Group
A study group can be a very positive learning experience. However, there are pitfalls to be
avoided. Here are some cautions:
1. Do not let the study group get distracted from its agenda and goals.
2.
Do not let the study group become a social group. You can always socialize at other times.
3.
Do not allow group members to attend unprepared. To stay in the group, members
should be required to do their fair share.
4.
Do not the let the session become a negative forum for complaining about teachers
and courses.
5.
Do not allow one or two group members to dominate the group. It is important
that all members have an equal opportunity to participate.
The information you just read will help you decide when a study group is appropriate for you
and will help ensure its success.
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Procrastination
What is Procrastination?
Procrastination is putting off or avoiding doing something that must be done. It is natural
to procrastinate occasionally. However, excessive procrastination can result in guilt
feelings about not doing a task when it should be done. It can also cause anxiety since the
task still needs to be done. Further, excessive procrastination can cause poor
performance if the task is completed without sufficient time to do it well. In short,
excessive procrastination can interfere with school and personal success.
Why Do Students Procrastinate?
There are many reasons why students procrastinate. Here are the most common reasons:
1.
Perfectionism. A student’s standard of performance may be so high for a task that it does
not seem possible to meet that standard.
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Procrastination
39
2. Fear of Failure. A student may lack confidence and fear that he/she will be
unable to accomplish a task successfully.
3. Confusion. A student may be unsure about how to start a task or how it should
be completed.
4. Task Difficulty. A student may lack the skills and abilities needed to
accomplish a task.
5. Poor Motivation. A student may have little or no interest in
completing a task because he/she finds the task boring or lacking in relevance.
6. around that distract him/her from doing a task.
7.
Task Unpleasantness. A student may dislike doing what a task requires.
8. Lack of Priorities. A student may have little or no sense about which tasks
are most important to do.
How Do I Know if I Procrastinate Excessively?
You procrastinate excessively if you agree with five or more of the following statements:
1.
I often put off starting a task I find difficult
2.
I often give up on a task as soon as I start to find it
difficult.
3. I often wonder why I should be doing a task.
4. I often have difficulty getting started on a task.
5. I often try to do so many tasks at once that I cannot do any of
them.
6. I often put off a task in which I have little or no interest.
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Procrastination
40
What Can I Do About Excessive Procrastination?
Here are some things you can do to control excessive procrastination.
1.
Motivate yourself to work on a task with thoughts such as
“There is no time like the present,” or “Nobody’s perfect.”
2. Prioritize the tasks you have to do.
3. Commit yourself to completing a task once started.
4. Reward yourself whenever you complete a task.
5. Work on tasks at the times you work best.
6. Break large tasks into small manageable parts.
7. Work on tasks as part of a study group.
8. Get help from teachers and other students when you find a task
difficult.
9. Make a schedule of the tasks you have to do and stick to it.
10.
Eliminate distractions that interfere with working on tasks.
11.
Set reasonable standards that you can meet for a task.
12.
Take breaks when working on a task so that you do not wear
down.
13.
Work on difficult and/or unpleasant tasks first.
14.
Work on a task you find easier after you complete a difficult
task.
15.
Find a good place to work on tasks.
Above all, think positively and get going. Once you are into a task, you will probably find
that it is more interesting than you thought it would be and not as difficult as you feared. You
will feel increasingly relieved as you work toward its accomplishment and will come to
lookforward to the feeling of satisfaction you Educationwill experience when you have
completed the task.
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41
Test
Anxiety
WHAT IS TEST ANXIETY?
Too much anxiety about a test is commonly referred to as test anxiety. It is perfectly
natural to feel some anxiety when preparing for and taking a test.
anxiety can jump start your studying and keep you motivated.
In fact, a little
However, too much
anxiety can interfere with your studying. You may have difficulty learning and
remembering what you need to know for the test. Further, too much anxiety may block your
performance during the test. You may have difficulty demonstrating what you know
during the test.
HOW DO I KNOW IF I HAVE TEST ANXIETY?
You probably have test anxiety if you answer YES to four or more of the following:
1.
I have a hard time getting started studying for a test.
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Test Anxiety
2.
When studying for a test, I find many things that distract me.
3.
I expect to do poorly on a test no matter how much or how hard
42
I study.
4.
When taking a test, I experience physical discomfort such as
sweaty palms, an upset stomach, a headache, difficulty breathing, and tension in my
muscles.
5.
When taking a test, I find it difficult to understand the
directions and questions.
6.
When taking a test, I have difficulty organizing my thoughts.
7.
When taking a test, I often “draw a blank.”
8.
When taking a test, I find my mind wandering to other things.
9.
I usually score lower on a test than I do on assignments and
papers.
10.
After a test, I remember information I couldn’t recall during
the test.
WHAT CAN I DO ABOUT TEST ANXIETY?
Here are some things you can do before, during, and after a test to reduce your test anxiety.
1.
Use good study techniques to gain cognitive mastery of the
material that will be covered on the test. This mastery will help you to approach the
test with confidence rather than have excessive anxiety.
Employ the tips we
provide at Preparing to Study.
2.
Maintain a positive attitude as you study. Think about doing
well, not failing. Think of the test as an opportunity to show how much you have
learned.
3.
Go into the test well rested and well fed. Get enough sleep
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Test Anxiety
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
43
Stay relaxed during the test. Taking slow, deep breaths can help. Focus on
positive self-statements such as “I can do this.”
Follow a plan for taking the test such as the DETER strategy we describe at A
Strategy for Taking Tests. Don’t panic even if you find the test difficult. Stay
with your plan!
Don’t worry about other students finishing the test before you do. Take the
time that you need to do your best.
Once you finish the test and hand it in, forget about it temporarily. There is
nothing more you can do until the graded test is returned to you. Turn your
attention and effort to new assignments and tests.
When the graded test is returned to you, analyse it to see how you could have
done better. Learn from your mistakes and from what you did well. Apply this
knowledge when you take the next test.
You have to know the material to do well on a test. You have to control test anxiety
to show what you know.
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The DETER Strategy
for Taking Tests
To do well on a test, you must have good knowledge of the information that
is being tested. But you must also have a strategy for taking the test that allows
you to show what you know. The DETER strategy can help you do your best on any
test. Each letter in DETER reminds you what to do.
D = Directions
·
·
·
Read the test directions very carefully.
Ask your teacher to explain anything about the test directions
you do not understand.
Only by following the directions can you achieve a good score on
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The DETER Strategy for Taking
Tests
45
E = Examine
·
·
Examine the entire test to see how much you have to do.
Only by knowing the entire task can you break it down into parts
that become manageable for you.
T = Time
·
·
·
Once you have examined the entire test, decide how much time you
will spend on each item.
If there are different points for items, plan to spend the most
time on the items that count for the most points.
Planning your time is especially important for essay tests where
you must avoid spending so much time on one item that you have little time left for
other test items.
E = Easiest
·
·
The second E in DETER reminds you to answer the items you find
easiest first.
If you get stuck on a difficult item that comes up early in the
test, you may not get to answer items that test things you know.
R = Review
·
If you have planned your time correctly, you will have time to
review your answers and make them as complete and accurate as possible.
• Also make sure to review the test directions to be certain you have answered all
items required.
Using the DETER strategy will help you do better on tests and get better grades.
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Teaching & Learning
Students’ Corner
How to Keep Your Mind
Sharp: Effective Action
Worried about memory loss? Here are tips you can follow now to help prevent memory loss in
the future. Keeping memory loss at bay as you age isn't just about keeping your mind in
shape, though that's a major component. You can maintain your sharp mind, as you get older
by making healthy choices that keep the rest of your body in top form. Follow these tips now to
prevent memory loss later.
Exercise your mind
Just as physical activity keeps your body strong, mental activity keeps your mind sharp and
agile. One way to do this is to continually challenge yourself by learning new skills. If you
continue to learn and challenge yourself, your brain continues to grow, literally. An active brain
produces new connections between nerve cells that allow cells to communicate with one
another. This helps your brain store and retrieve information more easily, no matter what your
age.
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How to Keep Your Mind Sharp: Effective Action
47
How can you challenge yourself?
Try:
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
Learning to play a musical instrument
Playing Scrabble or doing crossword puzzles
Answering trivia quizzes
Interacting with others
Switching careers or starting a new one
Starting a new hobby, such as crafts, painting, biking or bird-watching
Learning a foreign language
Volunteering
Staying informed about what's going on in the world
Reading
Keep your brain active every day:
·
·
·
Stay curious and involved, commit to lifelong learning.
Read, write, and investigate interesting topics on the Internet.
Attend lectures and plays, or take courses at local colleges or community centres.
Be social:
·
·
·
Stay active in the workplace.
Join social groups like bridge clubs or square dancing.
Travel.
Eat smart:
· Certain foods like kale, spinach, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, corn, and eggplant are high in
antioxidants and can reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. Cold water fish like halibut,
mackerel, salmon, trout, and tuna are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Almonds, pecans, and
walnuts are a good source of Vitamin E, an antioxidant.
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How to Keep Your Mind Sharp: Effective Action
48
Stay in shape:
·
Physical exercise maintains good blood flow to the brain and reduces the risk of heart
attack, stroke, and diabetes, which are risk factors for Alzheimer's.
Choose Your Focus
Driving down the road of life, we all look through our windshields. We focus on where we are,
what’s going on around us, and where we want to go. But we also look at the rear view mirror
to see where we’ve been and what happened back there.
Now, what’s in your mind’s rear view mirror? Bad drama, bad experiences, bad relationships,
past mistakes, and old beliefs? Let’s categorize all of that as baggage. You’ve got baggage in
your rear view mirror.
If I were to ask you to share with me a name from a bad relationship you once had, I’m sure
you’d be able to produce that name. That person’s name and the memory of that bad
relationship - that baggage - are all in your rear view mirror.
Now, here’s where this gets interesting. Oftentimes we’re tempted to drive down the road of
life focusing only on the rear view mirror: “That idiot so-and-so. What he did to me . . .” If you
drove down any road focusing only on your rear view mirror, what do you think would
happen? You’d end up where you don’t want to be, or worse - you’d probably crash. When
you don’t look through your windshield, and instead focus on the past and what happened
“back there,” you have no control over where you’ll end up. You’re an accident waiting to
happen.
Ask yourself, ‘Where do I predominately choose to focus: on the road ahead or on my rear
view mirror, filled with the past?’ If you focus on the past, you may notice that you tend to
worry about the future because your focus carries the negative experiences from your past
into your present.
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How to Keep Your Mind Sharp: Effective Action
49
I’m not saying to pretend those bad things never happened. Denying them has no merit or
value in your pursuit of being nice to yourself in the future. That’s not what “positive mental
thinking” means. I’m simply suggesting that you put your bad experiences into perspective, and
just glance into your rear view mirror every once in a while. Maybe you’re driving down the
road of life toward a new relationship. Look through your windshield to the fun and excitement
that lies ahead, and occasionally check out that rear view mirror for useful information: “Uh-oh,
I learned that from my last relationship. I’ve been there before, and I’m not going to repeat that
again.”
You program the future - you program tomorrow with today’s thoughts and beliefs. If today’s
beliefs include statements like “Relationships just don’t work,” and if today’s thoughts are about
how you messed things up in the past, what’s tomorrow going to be like? Exactly the same, if
not worse. When you continually focus and worry about how bad things were in the past, you
might be destined to repeat them. Worry is a form of negative goal setting.
The bad experiences in your rear view mirror are meant to be valuable lessons and discoveries
you’ve made in life, but creating a different future requires you to choose your focus carefully.
Life is a choice, and how you feel about yourself today is the result of choices you made in the
past.
Winn Claybaugh, author of Be Nice (Or Else!) with foreword by CNN’s Larry King, has worked
in the beauty industry since 1983. He is the National Motivational Expert for John Paul Mitchell
Systems and the founder of Paul Mitchell The School, with several locations throughout the
U.S. Winn has helped thousands of businesses build their brands and create successful
working cultures; his clients include Vidal Sassoon, the Irvine Company, Entertainment Tonight,
Mattel, For Rent magazine, Structure/Limited Express, and others. In 2004, the North
American Hairdressing Awards (NAHA) recognized Winn’s outstanding contributions to the hair
and beauty industry by naming him to their Hall of Leaders. In its November 1997 “Super
Heroes” section, American Salon magazine called Winn a “mover of mountains” and “Mr. Fix-it.”
Winn has also served as vice president of the AIDS Relief Fund for Beauty Professionals, and
he continues to pursue many fundraising projects.
From the book BE NICE (OR ELSE!) By Winn Claybaugh
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Students Clarify
Are You an Object to be Marketed?
In a market driven economy every human being with a skill or capability has turned out to
be an object to be marketed or sold in order to find a good job or thrive in a profession.
How can one face such a situation and get placed without undergoing any agony?
- Ratna Purohit, Hyderabad
Dear Ratna Purohit,
It is true that whatever the situation we may be in our career, the one common feature is that we
are all the time trying to sell ourselves whether at an interview, a sales call or a presentation for
a business proposal. We cannot escape the fact that we will have to sell our product or ourselves
or business and it is often a long and time-consuming process.
First of all, one has to consider that unique ability of one that sets one apart from others. This
can be found out if one is willing to assess and identify those selling skills one has been using in
the past six months and zero in on those that resulted in a sense of satisfaction.
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Are You an Object to be Marketed?
The second thing is to refuse to be let down by rejections. As humans we all tend to take
rejections seriously and end up becoming pessimistic and start doubting our own abilities.
Self-doubt can be a dangerous trend and it can ultimately lead to failures. The important thing
is to believe in ourselves. This is because when we do not believe in ourselves, we fail to fully
back what we are trying to sell (this can either be the skills on our resume or the product
we are selling) then we cannot expect others to believe in them.
When we start believing in ourselves and our selling skills, then we are in a better frame of mind
to face those rejections that may come in our way and our optimism will be unaffected.
The important thing is to sincerely believe in whatever we are selling, then the self-confidence,
intensity and perseverance to achieve our goals will automatically follow. These are the secrets to
sell anything and everything.
What is happening to world poverty? Is it getting reduced or still growing in spite of
globalisation?
- Somini Sengupta, Ahmedabad
Dear Somini Sengupta,
Spectacular growth in China and India has pushed the number of people around the world living
on less than a dollar a day below the 1 billion level, but masks entrenched poverty in Africa and
Latin America, the World Bank said recently. Reporting an 80 million drop in extreme poverty in
the two years to 2004, it said this was entirely due to the rapid expansion in Asia’s two most
populous countries.
It said that since 1990, there had been a 260-million drop in the number of people living on
less than a dollar a day, but this was more than accounted for by the 300 million taken out of
extreme poverty in China.
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Are You an Object to be Marketed?
In sub-Saharan Africa, extreme poverty had risen by 60 million, the Bank said, “The
Millennium Development Goal of halving the proportion of poor people is still within reach at
the worldwide level, with a projected decline from 29 per cent to 10 per cent between 1990
and 2015,” the Bank said in its annual report, World Development Indicators.
The Bank’s data show that the number of people in extreme poverty has fallen from 1.489
billion in 1981 to 986 million in 2004. Excluding China, however, there has been no
improvement: the total rose from 855 million in 1981 to 857 million in 2004. Latin America
and sub-Saharan Africa both have more people living on less than a dollar a day than they did
at the start of the 1980s.
The population is expected to increase from 6.7 billion now to 9.2 billion by 2050. I
wonder why the world that was talking about population explosion does not mention it in
the discussions of global warming and ensuing climate change?
-Hema Khanna, Bangalore
Hema Khanna,
The global population is rising by the equivalent of Britain every year. Some population
activists argue that the world can only support a population of two to three billion, even as few
as 500 million in future. But even if reducing the world’s population is unlikely or distasteful, it
is incredible that there is not even a debate about limiting and may be one day reversing
growth. There are many understandable reasons for the prevailing reluctance to talk about
population.
As a former Prime Minister Britain commented Britain does not need a population policy, as
Britain’s population grows only because of immigration.
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Are You an Object to be Marketed?
At a global level, optimists say advances in science and technology will provide the solution;
more aggressive estimates suggest we could double consumption and halve our impact on the
planet.
Even if huge advances can be made on slashing greenhouse gases, there is an argument that
densely populated countries cannot cope with local environmental stresses such as
home-building, fresh water use, waste, traffic, light, pollution, and noise. More worryingly, the
evidence that technology can solve the problem is not yet convincing: the recent failure of
European car-makers to meet voluntary emission reductions is a reminder that a decade after
the international community made a serious pledge to tackle global warming emissions are
still rising.
Another
deterrent
to
discussing
population
is
the
uncomfortable
suspicion
that
environmentalism is a soft cover for more objectionable population agendas to stop or reduce
immigration or growth in developing countries. Sometimes it might be. But that does not take
away the underlying fact that more people use more resources and create more pollution.
It is understandable that people are worried about discussing population, but fear of
misrepresentation, offence or failure are not good enough reasons to ignore one half of the
world’s biggest problem - the population effect on climate change.
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Transforming Your Negative
Self-talk into an
Inner Coach
54
Staff Room
Your thoughts have a powerful effect on you. They affect your attitude, your physiology, and
your motivation to act. Your negative thoughts actually control your behaviour. They can make
you stutter, spill things, forget your lines or breathe shallowly.
Research indicates that the average person talks to himself or herself about 50,000 times a
day. According to psychological researchers, it is 80% negative; things such as I shouldn’t have
said that... They don’t like me... I don’t like the way my hair looks today… I can’t dance… I’ll
never be a good skater… I’m not a speaker… I’ll never lose this weight… I can’t ever seem to
get organized… I’m always late.
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Transforming Your Negative Self-talk
into an Inner Coach
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We also know from lie-detector tests that your body reacts to your thoughts. These physiological
changes, such as heart rate and breathing rate, occur when you’re lying but also in reaction to
every thought you think. Every cell in your body is affected by every thought you have.
Negative thoughts affect your body negatively, weakening you. Positive thoughts affect your
body in a positive way, making you more relaxed, centred and alert. It is your job to control and
master your thoughts. You are 100% responsible.
But there is a core principle you need to understand about self-criticism and self-judgment: It is
always motivated by love and has always some positive intention or positive goal attached to it.
Now, this positive intention doesn’t show immediately. It needs some reflection at first. But with
some practice, like everything else, it comes within seconds and here comes the change.
Here are four steps you will need to take to master your thoughts and to transform your inner
critic into an inner coach.
It’s Time to Step Back
The first step of any strategy to change your emotions or personal history is to step back and
reflect on what is going on inside of you. It is as if you were stepping back from your thinking
and were looking at it. By doing this you go to a higher psychological level where change can
take place. As Albert Einstein said, “The significant problems we face cannot be solved by the
same level of thinking that created them.”
Look for the positive intention
One of the most magnificent beauties of the human mind is self- reflexivity. This means that you
not only think about an event, but you think about what you just thought about that specific
event. It’s like layers of thoughts that are formed at the back of your mind in a fraction of a
second.
Education
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Transforming Your Negative Self-talk
into an Inner Coach
56
Now, you can peel away the layers and discover the positive intention of that negative thought
by asking yourself the following question: “What is the good or the positive intention of that part
of me that just thought …” or “What does that part of me that just thought… wants that is good
for me.” Were you able to find it?
Feel how your emotions are changing
When you find that positive intention, you discover a whole new part of you. The part that wants
you to be better, to feel better and to be everything you're capable of. That way, your
self-esteem increases, you have more confidence in yourself, you trust yourself more and you
achieve more.
Thank yourself for caring about you
Now, you’re going to play the appreciation game and that is to thank yourself for the beautiful
human being you are. Because you understand your unique value, your importance in the world,
you can more quickly and more easily go for your dreams and live a more prosperous life.
Negative thoughts happen to everybody
The difference between a successful person and another is just that he or she has learned how
to master his thoughts and emotions. With these four little but powerful steps, you can beat your
negative thoughts and therefore your negative emotions. You will radiate more energy to
accomplish your goals and you will function more efficiently.
- Emmanuel SEGUI
Education
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57
Psychological
effects of the
virtual world
Teachers’ Concerns
The world celebrates the virtual world enumerating its advantages. Will anyone take note of
the psychological effects the virtual world is ready to show?
- Meera Srinivasan, Madurai
Dear Meera Srinivasan,
Years ago, about a hundred visitors to an Internet chat room witnessed an English father of two
hang himself in front of his web cam. Some of Kevin Whitrick’s fellow chatters must have
imagined he was play-acting, but others were happy to goad him into killing himself. As
Whitrick’s face turned purple and he began to die, one chatter punctured the heady atmosphere
by wondering: “Is this real?”
Education
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Psychological effects of the virtual world
58
The web has morphed into a vast virtual suburbia to which many of us have retired to stare
idly at each other’s lives. To Internet geeks this is known as “peer-to-peer”
communication or “Web 2.0”; the rest of us could just as easily call it cyburbia. In
the course of the last decade, many of us have quit watching the box in the corner
of the room and turned to fiddling around with gadgets through which we can watch
each other instead.For millions, this online culture is the only culture that matters.
Websites such as YouTube and MySpace have become pleasure parks through which
almost every kind of human experience can be funnelled.
Thus far, however, the sociologists and social critics have been notable only for their
absence. What about the psychological effects of constant watching and being watched?
From the people who Google themselves and love obsessively, to those who stare at
strangers on a webcam, there is good evidence that our time spent in cyburbia is less about
“social networking” than about an obsessive desire to see and be seen. When we stare out
the window on to cyburbia, what we see is a place that thrives on feverish rumour, populated
by voyeurs, exhibitionists, and even trainee terrorists.
Our celebration of life in cyburbia needs to be balanced with serious social investigation of
what happens to people who spend so much time there, and what it says about our society
that they should want. Why has there not been one? The reason is that many of us have so
much invested in Web 2.0 that we have hurled our critical faculties out of the window.
The danger of life in cyburbia is that we don’t really get to know our neighbours. We risk
huddling into small tribes defined by prejudices, urged on by the rhetorical anger of those who
are never sure whether what they are so urgently participating in is entirely for real.
It is opined that companies looking for new recruits often find themselves caught in a deadend because finding new talent has become a difficult proposition.The increasing talent
Education
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Psychological effects of the virtual world
59
crunch and the trend of a global workforce have made it tough for companies to find the
right people at the right time.Should not inner resources be first option for HR?
- Mehana Sonavane, Pune
Dear Mehana Sonavane,
In the search for new talents, organisations tap all possible resources from posting
advertisements in newspapers and on the Internet to using placement agencies. But at times
the search can be futile. If they learn to look around and search among their own employees,
they may find the perfect person for the job right under their nose. Organisations have
realised that it is a better proposition to use internal talent and make provisions to train them
in the requisite skills. These employees can be given a better hike in compensation, which
will be by far less than what needs to be spent on recruiting, training and paying a decent
compensation package to retain them. The option is both cost effective and time saving.
Moreover, employee loyalty and commitment are enhanced in the process, as they feel their
work is valued.
Existing employees require less training, as they already possess enough knowledge and
experience to do well in the new position. They will be also familiar with the business goals
and policies of the company and will continue to work towards them. They are already aware
of the company structure and operations.
Internal sourcing is not the only foolproof or best solution. At times even the best employees
in the company might not be suitable for the job. Finding fresh talent becomes inevitable in
such situations. In essence, a company should decide on the best recruiting option based on
the expertise they need.
What could be considered as the most important innovation?
- Shyamola Krisnan, Chennai
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Psychological effects of the virtual world
60
Dear Shyamola Krishnan,
Rockets, the World Wide Web, a method for copying DNA, and even the humble wireless
have been hailed as some of humanity’s greatest innovations in a list drawn up by scientists
and opinion formers. More than 100 contributors, including six Nobel laureates, were asked
to nominate the most important innovation in their field. The list was put together by the
online publication Spiked.
Development biologist Lewis Wolpert, at University College London, nominated the
microscope. “When I became a biologist, changing from engineering, I was fascinated looking
down the microscope at amoebae moving and sea urchins developing,” he said. “Pioneers
like Robert Hooke in 1665 used it to identify the cellular structure of living things for the first
time. Without it cells would not have been discovered.”
Science writer Matt Ridley chose “random research”, the ability to find information on the
Internet using search engines such as Google.
“Random search has revolutionised the checking of facts, the discovering of new information,
the gleaning of leads,” he said. “If my profession is writing truthfully but interestingly about the
world then this must be the best innovation one could wish for.”
Sir Tim Hunt, principal scientist at Cancer Research U.K. and Nobel laureate, plumped for the
set of techniques used by molecular biologists to manipulate DNA. “Recombinant DNA
technology has made the biggest difference to the way my kind of biologists work today,” he
said. “We could not have got anywhere without it.” He shared the 2001 Nobel Prize for work
on molecular factors that regulate cell division.
We can move from one to another looking at each innovation’s contribution to human growth
and well being. Isn’t it amazing?
Education
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Moments of Parenting…
61
Dear Parent, for Your Eyes Only
Ways to involve yourself in your child’s education
Encourage routines that involve one to one interaction between the parent and child.
Go for a walk/cycling/on long drives together.
Help to sort and classify books, things or material.
Provide different coloured racks for storing files, books and stationery as also attractive holders
for pens, sketch pens etc., help the child remember the place where each thing is to be stored
and make best use of available space and resources.
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Moments of Parenting…
62
Talk about cause and effect in all walks of life.
In any situation instead of apportioning blame, it is better to talk in terms of “when this happens,
in turn something happens.” E.G.: When you leave food out, ants gather around it.
Inculcate a sense of family pride.
Stories about the accomplishments and special talents of ancestors and relatives told around
the dinner table help children to have confidence and belief in their own abilities and develop
their prospects for success in life.
Read to the child, point out the names of new objects and meanings of new
words.
Early reading and conversation of this kind builds larger vocabulary. Language ability creates a
cascade of effects in the school years such as good grades, high self-esteem, intellectual
curiosity and ambition.
Play games together.
Children treasure playtime. Your involvement with them brings you closer to each other. You
could teach children new games. Playtime is also a time for togetherness where a lot of
informal talk, regarding life in general, takes place.
Have dinner together.
Dinnertime should be treated as sacred. The family should not watch T.V. or entertain phone
calls during that time. Alternatively, the phone can be kept off the hook or one member of the
family can be delegated to answer calls with, “Sorry, we are having dinner now. Can we call
you back after some time?”
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Moments of Parenting…
simple language along with your own inputs and observation on the subject. Respect children’s
wishes to watch certain programmes, but steer them away from irrelevant programmes that
might affect them adversely.
Be ready to listen to anything at anytime.
Be open to children when they want to speak to you. Even if parents are doing some other
work, offering positive inputs as and when required makes children feel that you are really
listening. Be prepared to drop all your work, if children seem really upset or sad to give
undivided attention.
- Eklavya Education Foundation, Ahmedabad
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Parents Ask
64
Are You a Workaholic?
There is a fear lurking in parents and housewives that globalisation has made their
children/husbands workaholics. The IT industry is a blatant example. My son, just four
months in an IT occupation, for instance, has forgotten his food and hobbies. Nay more, he
has forgotten sleep and moves about like a somnambulist and walks into and out of home
like a robber. Can you give some tips so as to get over this problem?
Dear Raga Chanania,
- Raga Chanania, Lucknow
W.E. Oates coined the term ‘workaholic’ and used it in his book Confessions of a Workaholic.
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Are You a Workaholic?
65
`He defines workaholism as an addiction to work, the compulsion or the uncontrollable need to
work incessantly’. Like alcoholics, workaholics have a tendency to let work take over their lives
completely. It is, indeed, a disease.
Workaholics have their hearts in the office and home is another office to them. They are highly
driven, ambitious, competitive, and overly committed to their work. They consider work to be
their only source of happiness and satisfaction in life. They would rather work than eat, sleep
or play. They are driven by a need to constantly improve upon their work, even after they have
put in their best.
They, in the long run, become tired, irritable, socially isolated, and might become a victim of
physical stress symptoms such as headaches, insomnia, shortness of breath, palpitations,
muscle tension, or ulcer.
If your son is a workaholic, you have to take good care of him. Get a medical check-up to rule
out problems of stress. Pay attention to his diet and sleeping patterns. Exercise, soothing
music, yoga, meditation perhaps, or even a moment spent in reflection when sitting down at
his desk can help him calm down and beat the stress, tension, and the resulting aggressive
behaviours that tend to build up in him.
Make him take regular breaks and vacations. Let him keep his mind off the job, when on a
break. Some physical activities such as tennis, yoga or swimming, which demands total
concentration, will help.
Help your son identify the root cause and take direct action to alleviate the same. If you are
not able to help your son, you could seek professional advice. A good counsellor will be of
great help.
In short, addiction is chronic and workaholism is no less than alcohol, hence the term. Better
not to fall a prey to this near fatal disease.
Education
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66
Are You a Workaholic?
`These days we hear a lot about multitasking. Does it make you a more effective worker?
- Ajay Dubey, Mumbai
Dear Ajay Dubey,
Trend predictors never get sick of telling us about how, in a few years, we will all be working
part-time from a hammock in the Caribbean and video-conferencing with the lunar colony, and
we had just better be ready for that. But let us not forget that the brave new world of work will
mean being able to do new things. This might be called acquiring a differentiated skills set and
if I knew what that meant I could tell you for sure. But you will need to learn how to balance
your laptop and a mid-afternoon cocktail in your Caribbean hammock while keeping sand out
of both, just for a start.
Many of the necessary abilities have already been identified. These days, it is so much less
about being nifty with an inkwell and quill pen, and so much more about communication and
flexibility, and enabling individual proactive behaviour within a dynamic group setting. And one
can get on board with all of that, since basically what it boils down to is being able to have a
nice chat with people in the office.
However, the jewel in the crown of any self-respecting modern worker is the ability to
multitask. Does multitasking make you a more effective worker? Does it sharpen the mental
faculties? Is it helping ideas crystallise before our eyes like frost on windowpanes? Is it
allowing words to gush from one’s mind like a rushing stream after the thaw?
In reality multitasking might mean allowing people to distract you whenever they like; suddenly
having to be an expert in things you are not interested in; it is, essentially, doing more work.
The gruesome Nithari killings have drawn our attention to child sexual abuse in India. Is it
just the tip of the iceberg?
Education
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`
- Satish Jaggi, Jamshedpur
Are You a Workaholic?
67
Dear Satish Jaggi,
A study carried out by Prayas, an NGO, says that close to 50 per cent of Indian children are
subject to various forms of abuse and exploitation. The study has found that every second
child interviewed had experienced some form of physical, economic, emotional or sexual
abuse. The study indicates that 25 per cent of the children were victims of sexual abuse with
about 30 per cent being abused by close relatives. Seventy per cent of the children also
reported that they had been beaten and over half said that they had injuries from being
assaulted.
The dire plight of these millions of Indian children, who endure exploitation on the one hand
and poverty and deprivation on the other, need to be addressed urgently.
Crimes against children ranging from trafficking to rape and child pornography often go
unreported. Experts have pointed out that there is no database available for the large number
of children (reportedly over 45,000 a year) who go missing from their homes, become
victims of crime and exploitation, and die far from the protection of their families.
It is responsibility of one and all and especially of the agencies that are instituted to ameliorate
child abuse to make sure that children have a joyful childhood supported by adults and not
abused by those who are supposed to be role models to children.
Education
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Teaching Tolerance
68
The ultimate test of a relationship is to disagree
Special Feature
Tolerance is respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world’s
cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human. It is fostered by
knowledge, openness, communication, and freedom of thought, conscience and
belief. Tolerance is harmony in difference. It is not only a moral duty; it is also a political
and legal requirement. Tolerance is the virtue that makes peace possible and
contributes
to
the
replacement of the culture of war by a culture of peace
(UNESCO,1995).
According to Shri Chaitanya Charan Das, ISCON, Pune, “Tolerance empowers us to not let
irritating circumstances steal our peace of mind. Lack of tolerance makes us a victim of our
circumstances, whereas tolerance brings the freedom to choose an intelligent response
and stay fixed in our values and goals, irrespective of our circumstances.
When people lack tolerance, they respond to adverse situations and inimical people in one
of two ways: depression or violence. Chronic depression, self-martyrdom, inferiority
complex, addiction and even suicide are fallouts of the first response, where as divorce,
larceny, murder, and even war are results of the second.”
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Teaching Tolerance
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Srila Prabhupada, founder of ISCON, has rightly said, “One’s greatness has to be estimated
by the ability to tolerate provoking situations”.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that, ‘Everyone has the right to freedom of
thought, conscience and religion’ (Article 18), ‘of opinion and expression’ (Article 19), and
that education ‘should promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations,
racial or religious groups’ (Article 26).
According to the Declaration of Principles on Tolerance (1995) by the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), “Education is the most
effective means of preventing intolerance. The first step in tolerance education is to teach
people what their shared rights and freedoms are, so that they may be respected, and to
promote the will to protect those of others.
“Education for tolerance should be considered an urgent imperative; that is why
it is necessary to promote systematic and rational tolerance teaching methods that will
address the cultural, social, economic, political and religious sources of intolerance major roots of violence and exclusion. Education policies and programmes should
contribute to development of understanding, solidarity and tolerance among individuals as
well as among ethnic, social, cultural, religious and linguistic groups and nations.
“Education for tolerance should aim at countering influences that lead to fear and exclusion of
others, and should help young people to develop capacities for independent judgment, critical
thinking ethical reasoning.”
According to a research done by Daniel Goleman, “From generation to generation intelligence
is increasing but emotional intelligence is decreasing.” Emotional intelligence is the ability to
work with self and others and tolerance is one of the main components of it. His findings are
further validated by different reports and increasing crime rates especially teen-age crimes.
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Teaching Tolerance
70
India Today (February 28, 2005) published a survey report, some of the findings being
very disturbing. According to the survey, “An estimated 70% of divorces now involve
couples below 35 years of age driven apart by stressful lifestyle and intolerance.” The
report further emphasizes, “Intolerance for each other’s personality traits is
very intense among young.”
According to the demographic survey of India, by 2015 more than 50% of the population
will be less than 20 years of age i.e. a Young India and the need of the hour is to help
future citizens develop tolerance towards others so that their energy can be canalised
for the good cause leading to national development.
Tips for the Parents and Teachers
Inculcating
tolerance
among
young
generation
is
a
joint
responsibility of
parents and Teachers. We can do many activities to help children have a belief that we can
disagree; we can have difference of opinion; we can follow different faith, religion and yet we
can coexist. Some of the activities are as follows.
Role modelling
Teaching and parenting is all about role modelling. Many skills, values and habits like
tolerance, punctuality are easily caught and imbibed by children. Tolerance towards
individuality can be b e s t l e a r n t w h e n c h i l d r e n s e e t h e i r p a r e n t s r e s p e c t i n g
individuality of each other and when they observe teachers respecting and taking
care of individual needs and learning styles while teaching. It can be further reinforced if
children observeus treating our day-to-day helpers like servants, drivers, cooks etc with
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Teaching Tolerance
It is worth recalling and learning from an anecdote related to Alexander. He defeated the King
Puru and when the King Puru was presented before Alexander for trial, he asked, “Puru, how
should I treat you. What should be my conduct towards you?” To this Puru replied fearlessly
with all dignity, “You should treat me as one king would treat another king.” While speaking
there was a tone of self-respect in Puru’s voice. This pleased Alexander. He freed Puru and
gave him his kingdom back. This story teaches us to take care of the self-esteem and
respect of others. While dealing with others we should be human and take care of others’
points of view
Delaying
One
of
the
components
immediate
this
of
most
Tolerance
gratification
jet
everything
important
age
is
i.e.
to
to
delay
wait.
youngsters
In
want
instantaneously. In fact today’s
generation
has
become
instantaneous generation we have to teach our
children to wait for small little things like
food,
going
to
toilet
etc.
In
the
classrooms students should be taught to
respond to a questionto a question or ask
questions one by one. This will train them to
control their impulse, wait for their turn and
listen to others. After all life is not just two
minutes.
Delaying will help them develop tolerance and also teach them good problem
solving skills
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Teaching Tolerance
72
Giving Information
We should attend prayers at various places of worship like churches, synagogues, mosques
and temples along with children to help them learn about different faiths. We can also
organise seminars on religion for the students of higher classes where speakers from
different religions can be invited to give information about their respective religions.
we can give students a project to prepare a chart of number 1 to 10 in different languages
at least in the mother tongues of all the students who are a part of the class. While teaching
language we can ask them to learn greetings, days of the week, months etc in other
languages. Similarly while teaching EVS we can ask them to know the names of different
food stuffs, clothes, utensils used etc in the languages of other class mates. While telling
stories we can tell them stories related to different cultures and faiths. This will bring different
cultures in the class closer and help children know each other better as well as enrich the
curriculum.
Celebrating festivals
We should celebrate festivals related to all the religions representing the society
at home and school. This will help children get firsthand experience and realise
that there are different ways of celebrating. While celebrating festivals we should be
as authentic as possible.
Diverse classrooms
Our classrooms should be true representatives of the society. It should consist of
children from all the diversities; may be ability, economic, religion and social
background etc. This will help children develop acceptance for other children who
are different from them leading to high tolerance for others.
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Teaching Tolerance
73
Generally children form their own clicks or groups and never come out of them
till they leave the school. We should encourage them to mix up with others by
changing seating arrangements periodically in the class and school bus and other
places and events. We can make use of many team-building games and activities
for helping them know each other.
Discussion about tolerance
Students, Parents and Teachers need to have open and honest discussion
regarding different religions, cultures and other diversities and need to move beyond
textbooks and actively engage the students in real life. We can do many activities to
promote tolerance, some of them being displays, quotations in different languages, plays
and role-plays in the assembly, debate, case studies etc. We can also discuss the news
related to intolerance with older children .
International day for tolerance
On the 16th November 1995, member states of UNESCO proclaimed and signed
“Declaration of Principles on Tolerance” and in order to generate public awareness declared
the 16th November as the Annual International Day for Tolerance. We should celebrate this
day by organising and participating in different activities related to Tolerance.
Co-curricular activities
We can organise many co-curricular activities related to promoting tolerance. Some of the
activities are: fancy dress competition with special theme of different religions, display of
different religious scriptures, utensils used for worships by different sects, marriages in
different religions and many more can be done. This will help children know more and more
about different faiths and appreciate diversity.
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Teaching Tolerance
74
Last but not the least we should help future citizens mix up with others and help them
accept the individuals in the form of colleagues, spouses, boss, etc. After all most of
the things in life we do not get by choice. Life is not full of choices; none of us has got
our parents by choice. We accept them as they are.
By giving too many choices we give children an impression that there is alternative to
every thing. Life is not full of options and choices. From childhood we keep on fulfilling
their desires e.g. if a child does not like a vegetable we immediately cook something
else, if a child does not like playing or sitting with some class mates, teachers and parents
immediately tell them to look for someone else and so on. This makes them
impulsive, individualistic and reduces their ability to face reality. Politely and
firmly we should train children to accept and love all things and people irrespective of
taste or beliefs.
“We will not remember the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
- Martin Luther King
- Dr. Shailendra Kumar Gupta
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75
Strengths and
Weaknesses
of Children
Parenting
All too often, children with learning disabilities are seen through their weaknesses.
Like anyone else, however, they have many strengths. It is of the greatest importance to focus on
the strengths that your child has and show them to other people. Not only will it help others who
are involved in her life understand her better, but also it will help the child herself know that she
is loved and valued for who she is.
I always found that one of my biggest questions was, “How do I see all of my daughter’s
strengths, in addition to her weaknesses, so I can get a picture of her as a total person?" The
answer lies in what is called ‘quality time.’”
Here are some important way is to spend quality time with your child.
1) Do things with her. What activities do you both like? Do things with her that she likes to do,
and ask her to do things that you like to do.
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Strengths and Weaknesses of Children
76
2) Go places with her. You don’t have to travel far. Just go outside, or downtown, or to the mall,
or to a movie.
3) Sit quietly with her. Silence says a lot.
4) Hear her when she speaks. Don’t just listen - hear what she has to say.
5) Listen to and try to understand her frustrations.
6) Talk with her to find out about her likes and dislikes.
7) Know what is going on with her outside the home. Allow her to talk about it without being
judgmental.
8) Provide a safe, understanding atmosphere that allows her to express her feelings and
preferences.
9) Provide positive feedback when she talks about the good things she does.
10) Provide a structure that allows her to make mistakes and learn from them.
Allowing your child to have friends play with her at home can give great insight into your child’s
strengths and weaknesses. When we allowed Michele to have friends over, we could see that
she was a great organizer of creative activities and was very social, but we also saw that she got
very defensive at times. Having this information allowed us to know what to help her with. We
also communicated this information to her teachers, so we could all work together on this issue.
Providing an opportunity for positive, open communication with her teachers and the other
professionals that work with her allow you to get a picture of her strengths and we. There may be
times when there will be disagreement, but these issues can always be worked out.
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Strengths and Weaknesses of Children
Listen to the opinions of the others on the team. And don’t be afraid to add your viewpoints. It
is only through this honest, open communication that you will be able to see the total picture of
your child's strengths and weaknesses.
To get a good picture of her academic strengths and weaknesses, the school is the place to go.
As your child’s parent, you are entitled to have access to her records at school. You have
probably received copies of that information, but you do have the right to view what is in her
records in the school office.
Past and current report cards give you some information, as do any notes, reports, etc., that have
been written by her teachers. The results of special education testing are also great indicators of
what she does easily and what she struggles with. All this information should be in her school file.
If you don't understand what those results or reports are trying to say, talk with the special
education professionals who do understand it.
Remember, your child is not just a partial person. She is not just made up of weaknesses. She is
a whole person. Her strengths are a large part of her.
Value her strengths; work with her on her weaknesses. But you can't do either of these things
unless you know what they are. Take charge. Find out.
For more plain talk about learning disabilities, please visit us at www.ldperspectives.com.
- Sandy Gauvin
Sandy Gauvin is a retired educator who has seen learning disabilities from many
perspectives - as the parent of a daughter with learning disabilities, as the
teacher of children with learning disabilities, and as an advocate for others
who have diagnosed and unrecognized learning disabilities. Sandy shares her
wisdom and her resources at www.LDPerspectives.com
Education
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Change Your Thinking
78
-Change Your Life
Personality Development
We each have hundreds of habits we unconsciously practice each day. Many of them are
helpful, like putting your keys in the same place every day, practicing gratitude when waking
up, or having a certain routine for getting ready in the morning. Other habits are ones most
people want to change, like overeating, not choosing healthy food, not exercising, or quitting
smoking. Even negative thinking is a mental habit you can learn to change. You've heard the
expression, 'change your thinking, change your life.' It's true!
1. Identify one habit you want to change. (Hint: Rather than a huge change, like 'eating
healthy,' or 'exercising a lot,' be specific. Focus on smaller changes that can build one at a
time. For example, take a short walk at lunchtime or choose an apple instead of a candy bar
for a snack.
2. Do you mentally criticize yourself for having a 'bad' habit? Stop criticizing right now!
Criticizing yourself or feeling guilty actually KEEPS the habit in place.
Education
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Change Your Thinking – Change Your Life
79
What you resist, persists. Change your thinking. Instead of criticizing, accept yourself with the
habit, knowing you want to change it. Patricia learned this tip many years ago when she was
trying to quit smoking. She tried so many times and failed! She was angry at herself for not
being able to 'control' this habit. Finally, she quit trying and just accepted herself as a
smoker. A few days later, she quit almost effortlessly. Along the way to changing your habits,
if you 'slip' a bit, look at yourself in the mirror and tell yourself it's OK. Then back on track.
3.
Develop awareness about your habit patterns. If you smoke and want to quit, notice what
'triggers' you wanting to smoke. If you want to eat less, notice what prompts you to eat,
including how you feel. If you want to exercise more, be aware of the excuses you make for
why you don't have the time.
4.
Write down the reasons WHY you want to change the habit. Read them every day for
motivation.
5.
Use intentions, goals, and affirmations to support the change. An intention sets you in a
direction. 'I want to quit smoking.' The resolutions many people make at the beginning of the
year are really intentions for some change. A goal is specific and measurable. 'I will lose 10
pounds in the next five weeks.' An affirmation claims that you have already reached your
goal and changes your subconscious mind to fit the new habit. 'I am so delighted I am eating
healthy and enjoying my new choices so much.' All three of these approaches will help you
change.
6.
Keep the decision to change your habit(s) somewhat private if possible. If you've announced
you are quitting smoking and then your friends see you still smoking, they might make
negative comments. These don't help the change process!
7. Write affirmations that support the change you want. For example, if you are changing
negative thought patterns, you could affirm, 'I easily choose positive thoughts that nourish
me.' If you are changing eating or exercise habits, write affirmations that enthusiastically
claim the new behaviours you want.
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Change Your Thinking – Change Your Life
80
8. Take some quiet time to write in your journal a good-bye letter to the habit(s) you want to
change. Acknowledge how they have served you in some way, and now it's time to let them go.
9. Take a few minutes every day to visualize yourself with the new habits. Imagine how you
feel, how you look, what your family and friends say to you, etc. By imagining yourself with
the new habits, you are creating that reality in your subconscious mind. This technique is
very powerful.
10. Reward yourself along the way. Look at yourself in the mirror and thank yourself for making
the effort to change! Give yourself encouraging words on a daily basis. Buy something special
(within your budget!)
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Life Anchor
81
Remember that joke about the man who makes an indelicate sound during a dinner party and
immediately yells at his dog to be quiet? It’s a classic example of how we look for a scapegoat
when we make a mistake. In fact, some people spend more time and energy deflecting blame
than fixing the problem. Searching for a scapegoat never solves a problem – it only makes it
bigger.
Take your life in your own hands and what happens?A terrible thing: no
one is to blame.
- Erica Jong
The search for someone to blame is always successful. - Robert Half
Bruno’s commentary
We have no control over the fact that we’re going to make mistakes - after all, we’re human.
But we do have control over how we respond to those mistakes. We can take the easy way out,
by immediately pointing the finger at others or at the situation we are in. Or we can get to work
figuring out what the underlying problem is, how to fix it, what can be learned from it, and how
not to repeat it in the future. Both approaches take energy, but where blaming uses us up and
spits us out, exhausted, taking responsibility actually renews our strength…
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Warning
Signs
82
Life Anchor
Has something in your life gone wrong? Ask yourself if there were any warning signs. But don’t
interpret these signs too quickly. Give everyone the benefit of the doubt. For example, if someone
hasn’t answered your email, maybe he didn’t receive it. If your boss didn’t return your smile,
perhaps he forgot to bring his glasses to work. When warning signs are repeated, however,
connect the dots and be on full alert. Be proactive. Don’t think, “It will be all right”. Sometimes it
will, but too often it won't.
Vision is the art of seeing things invisible.
- Jonathan Swift
Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do
with what happens to you.
- Aldous Huxley
Bruno’s commentary
Why is it so important to learn how to read warning signs? To help you avoid similar problems in
the future. In fact, when a problem is resolved, your task is not done. The next, much more
important step is for you to find out why the problem occurred in the first place.
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Warning Signs
83
Every single problem carries hidden information that will show you what went wrong and why it
went wrong. Once you have dug out this information, you'll be able to interpret the warning
signs and save yourself a lot of time and frustration.
Have you noticed a warning sign recently? Take it seriously.
- [email protected]
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Don’t stop keep moving!
84
Life Anchor
“If you’re not going forward, you’re going backwards.” This psychological truth is grounded in a
powerful law of nature. Everything around us is permanently moving - the earth around the sun,
the four seasons, plants, animals - and so are we, both in our private and our business lives.
Resisting this law causes stagnation. It’s only a small step from there to a life-destroying
self-satisfaction.
Life is like riding a bicycle.
To keep your balance you must keep moving.
- Albert Einstein
Keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done...
- Rocky Balboa
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Don’t stop - keep moving!
85
Bruno’s commentary
It’s not enough just to be alive - we must feel alive. For that to happen we have to move
forward all the time, constantly asking the why question, developing new ideas, and trying new
ways of doing things. Our past is an important part of our life and it’s good for us to treasure it
and to apply the lessons learned. But whatever happened in the past, joyful or sad, is history
and we have to focus on the future. So move forward. It’s the law of nature and no one can
overturn it. Are you stuck in a rut? Move forward!
Speaking of new ideas, did you notice how the logo at the top of this One Minute eMail
changes?
- [email protected]
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Did You Know?
86
Fascinating Animals,
Birds, Trees
·
·
·
SNAILS have 14175 teeth laid along 135 rows on their tongue.
A BUTTERFLY has 12,000 eyes.
DOLPHINS sleep with 1 eye open.
·
A BLUE WHALE can eat as much as 3 tonnes of food every day, but at the same time can live
without food for 6 months.
·
The EARTH has over 12,00,000 species of animals, 3,00,000 species of plants & 1,00,000
other species.
·
The fierce DINOSAUR was TYRANNOSAURS which has sixty long & sharp teeth, used to
attack & eat other dinosaurs.
·
DEMETRIO was a mammal like REPTILE with a snail on its back. This acted as a radiator to
cool the body of the animal.
·
CASSOWARY is one of the dangerous BIRD, that can kill a man or animal by tearing off with
its dagger like claw.
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Fascinating Animals, Birds, Trees
·
·
·
The SWAN has over 25,000 feathers in its body.
·
·
KIWIS are the only birds, which hunt by sense of smell.
OSTRICH eats pebbles to help digestion by grinding up the ingested food.
POLAR BEAR can look clumsy & slow but during chase on ice, can
reach 25 miles / hr of speed.
ELEPHANT teeth can weigh as much as 9 pounds.
OWL is the only bird, which can rotate its head to 270 degrees.
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87
DON’T MESS WITH MOM
The Fine Art of Living
My son came home from school one day, with a smirk upon his face.
He decided he was smart enough, to put me in my place...
“Guess what I learned in Civics Two, that’s taught by Mr. Wright?
It’s all about the laws today, the ‘Children’s Bill of Rights’.
It says I need not clean my room, don’t have to cut my hair.
No one can tell me what to think, or speak, or what to wear.
“I have freedom from religion, and regardless what you say,
I don’t have to bow my head, and I sure don’t have to pray.
I can wear earrings if I want, and pierce my tongue and nose.
I can read and watch just what I like, get tattoos from head to toe
“And if you ever spank me, I’ll charge you with a crime.
I’ll back up all my charges, with the marks on my behind.
Don’t you ever touch me, my body’s only for my use,
Not for your hugs and kisses, that’s just more child abuse.
“Don’t preach about your morals, like your Mama did to you.
That’s nothing more than mind control, and it’s illegal too!
Mom, I have these children’s right, so you can’t influence me,
Or I’ll call Children’s Services Division, better known as C.S.D.”
Of course my first instinct was to toss him out the door.
But the chance to teach him a lesson made me think a little more.
I mulled it over carefully, I couldn’t let this go.
A smile crept upon my face; he’s messing with a pro.
Next day I took him shopping at the local Goodwill Store.
I told him, “Pick out all you want, there’s shirts & pants galore.
I’ve called and checked with C.S.D. who said they didn’t care
if I bought you K-Mart shoes instead of those Nike Airs.
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DON’T MESS WITH MOM
I said, “No time to stop and eat, or pick up stuff to munch.
And tomorrow you can start to learn to make your own sack lunch.
Just save the raging appetite, and wait till dinnertime.
We’re having liver and onions, a favourite dish of mine.”
He asked, “Can I please rent a movie, to watch on my VCR?”
“Sorry, but I sold your TV, for new tyres on my car.
I also rented out your room; you’ll take the couch instead.
The C.S.D. requires just a roof over your head.
“Your clothing won’t be trendy now; I’ll choose what we eat.
That allowance that you used to get, will buy me something neat.
I’m selling off your Jet Ski, dirt bike and roller blades.
Check out the ‘Parents Bill of Rights’ ... it’s in effect today!”
-Contributed by Diane who lives in New South Wales, Australia
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89
How to Improve
Your Life
with
Thankfulness
90
The point of Thanksgiving is to remember the things we have to be grateful for. It’s our special
time to give thanks... not just for the obvious, like food, but for the thousands of fortunate
moments, the multitude of blessings that we receive each year. That’s not always as easy as it
sounds. We tend to remember the bad things much more easily than the good. That’s where
this article comes in. using the tips below, you can make thankfulness an everyday habit. It’s a
skill that will benefit you throughout the year.
Begin by keeping a gratitude journal:
Don’t write down negative things; only positive ones. For example, “I’m grateful that I made it
through that heavy rush hour traffic safely.” “I’m grateful that I got to see a beautiful sunset.” “I’m
grateful that I have a class at school that I really like.”
Think of all the good things that happened because something bad happened first:
For example, “If that slow driver hadn’t pulled in front of me, I would have gotten a speeding
Ticket.” “If I hadn’t tripped on the playground, I would never have met such a nice person.” “If I
hadn’t experienced unemployment, I would never have acquired the skills that got me a more
fulfilling job.”
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How to Improve Your Life with Thankfulness
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Don’t focus on what you don’t have. Focus on what you do have. For example:
“I’m so fortunate to have a warm place to sleep in the winter.” “I’m so fortunate to live in a safe
neighbourhood where I can take walks.” “I’m so fortunate to be able to see the beauty around me.”
Think about people you've known that have made you thankful for their existence:
They can be family, friends or simply people that you’ve read about or seen on television. Imagine
how many other people there are who might be equally as wonderful. You just haven’t met them
yet.
Think about people who have made life hard for you. Now think about the things you
accomplished because of them:
Did you finish something because they said that you couldn’t? Did you get better at something
because they made fun of you when you did it badly? Did their cruel actions make you vow never
to treat others that way? Even the negative forces in your life can be hidden blessings, worthy of
your gratitude.
Think about the animals that have given you joy:
Dogs that love you with every inch of their hearts, cats that think your lap is the best place to nap
in the whole world,birds whose songs uplift your spirit, squirrels whose antics put a grin on your
face and so on.
Think about the places that make you smile:
A favourite hangout, a wooded trail, an exciting city, a great spot from which to view the sky, a
hill that you once rolled down. Give thanks for all these things.
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How to Improve Your Life with Thankfulness
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Now pass it on. True gratitude involves action:
Lend a hand. Pitch in. Make a gift. Give your time. Listen. Give back as often as you can. Even a
friendly greeting can make all the difference in the world.
Create your own opportunities for gratitude:
Do you know someone who never seems happy? Be ready with a smile and a kind word each
time you see them. It may require patience, but eventually, they’ll smile first when they see you.
Your interactions with them will be much more pleasant. Guess what? You'll have a new reason to
be thankful!
Let others know when they’ve done something that you’re thankful for:
For example, “I’ll never forget how you stuck up for me. It meant a lot.” “That email you sent really
made my day.” “You make shopping here a pleasure.” An attitude of gratitude spreads like ripples
from a tossed pebble, benefiting all it touches.
Remember that hard times make good times sweeter. Also keep in mind that obstacles and
challenges not only make you stronger, but they force you to explore outside of the comfortable
routine that you’ve settled into. Without challenges, there can be no progress. Without obstacles,
there can be no achievement. Be thankful for the opportunities that they provide. In conclusion,
giving thanks is a powerful tool that can dramatically improve your life and the lives of those
around you. Start by embracing gratitude’s special day, then make it a habit!
Reprinted from http://www.knowledgehound.com
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General Knowledge
Test Your General Knowledge
1. National income can be defined as:
A) The total amount of goods and services produced within a nation during a period;
B) The total of factor income received by factors of production;
C) The total wages, interest, rent, profit received by labour, capital, land and entrepreneur;
D) All the above.
2. National energy conservation day is observed by India every year on
A) 14th of December;
C) 8th of September;
B) 15th of August;
D) 26th of January.
3. Mineral can be described as:
A) An element in its pristine form;
B) a compound that is usually crystalline in nature and is a result of geological progressions.
C) All total of metals found naturally on planet earth;
D) A human invention.
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Test Your General Knowledge
94
4. Infrastructure is
A) a basic and usually permanent framework which supports a superstructure and is supported
by a substructure;
B) a moderate permanent foundational capital investment of a country, a firm or a project that
underlies and makes its, all economic activity possible;
C) administrative, telecommunications, transportation, utilities, and waste removal and processing
facilities;
D) All the above.
5. What is foreign trade?
A) It is all that a country exports to other countries of the world;
B) It is all that a country imports for the benefit of its own citizens;
C) It is all about imports and exports;
D) It is all the unwanted things sent to other countries.
6. The structure of earth is
A) in spherical form and is composed of four layers;
B) in helical form having 10 layers;
C) in triangular form with dozens of layers;
D) in spherical form filled with homogenous material all over.
7. A drainage system can be defined as the pattern formed by
A) controlled network of drinking water facilities;
B) the city corporations and municipalities;
C) free flow of wasteful water;
D) the rivers, streams and lakes in a particular drainage basin.
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Test Your General Knowledge
8. The balance of payments is
A) the record of all economic transactions between the residents of a country and the rest
of the world during a given period of time;
B) the statement of debts incurred by a country;
C) the excess borrowings of the residents of a country;
D) the bad debts that the companies that wind up have incurred.
9. An artesian basin is
A) An area in a desert where resorts are developed;
B) A high-lying area where water flows ending up as waterfalls;
C) A river bed rich in fertile land engendering remunerative cultivation;
D) A low-lying region where groundwater is cramped under pressure from surrounding
layers of rock.
10. What is MIGA?
A) Multilevel Indigenized Guerilla Artefacts;
B) Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency;
C) Melbourne Indians’ Gateway Aptitude;
D) Moroccan Incorporation’s Guatemalan Agreement.
11. What do the letters IMF stand for?
A)
B)
12.
Indian Mega Fascination;
International Monetary Fund;
C) International Marketing Foundation;
D) International Medicinal Faculty.
What isa IDA?
A)
B)
Indiana Domestic Airlines;
International Development Association;
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C) Indian Data Association;
D) Irrevocable Dark Ages.
Test Your General Knowledge
96
13. What is the full form of WTO?
A) World Tennis Organization; C) Women’s Travel Organization;
B) Wordsworth Teaching Origin; D) World Trade Organization.
14. What is ADB?
A) Asian Deutch Bank;
B) Arabian Development Bank;
B) Adventurer’s Docking Base; D) Asian Development Bank.
15. State Financial Corporations
A) take care of the loans people are not able to repay;
B) offer financial assistance for the growth of small and medium enterprises in the
concerned states;
C) cater to the financial needs of heavy industries in the respective states;
D) are agencies that come to the rescue of industries that have met with financial losses.
16. What are the types of Direct Taxes?
A) Income Tax, Corporation Tax, Property Tax, Inheritance Tax, Gift Tax;
B) Sales Tax and Value Added Tax;
C) Luxury Tax and Entertainment Tax;
D) Excise Duty and Road Tax.
17.
What is endorsement?
A) It is signing a negotiable instrument for the purpose of negotiation.
B) It is writing on the back of an instrument.
C) Writing of one’s name on the back of an instrument or any paper affixed to it
with the intent of transferring the rights within.
D) All the above.
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Test Your General Knowledge
97
18. What is called Market Segmentation Theory?
A) It is the mechanisms or means for determining price of the traded item;
B) It is all about separating the market into smaller groups of consumers and then marketing
your product only to the group of people that are your potential buyers;
C) It is an attempt to provide accurate information that reflects a true state of affairs;
D) It is about divided market segments that are fighting to grab a slice of the market.
19. What is theory of distribution?
A) The theory of distribution is that incomes are earned in the production of goods and services
and that the value of the productive factor reflects its contribution to the total product.
B) It refers to the way total output, income, or wealth is distributed among individuals or among
the factors of production such as labour, land, and capital.
C) It is the systematic attempt to account for the sharing of the national income among the
owners of the factors of production i.e., land, labour, and capital.
D) All the above.
20. What is El Nino and La Nina?
A) El Nino refers to the warm phase of ENSO and La Nina refers to the cool phase.
B) Warming and cooling of certain areas on earth that affect the weather condition of various
countries.
C) Periodic warm weather condition on the coast of northern Peru and Ecuador and cool
weather in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean.
D)All the above.
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Quiz Facts
Answers to Test Your
General Knowledge
1. D: There are various concepts of National Income such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP),
Gross National Product (GNP), Net National Product (NNP), National Income (NI), Personal
Income (PI), Disposable Income (DI) and Per Capita Income (PCI) which explain the facts of
economic activities.
GDP is money value of all goods and services produced within the domestic domain with the
available resources during a year.
GNP is market value of final goods and services produced in a year by the residents of the
country within the domestic territory as well as abroad. GNP is the value of goods and services
that the country’s citizens produce regardless of their location.
NNP is market value of net output of final goods and services produced by an economy during
a year and net factor income from abroad.
NI is National Income at factor cost which means total income earned by resources for their
contribution of land, labour, capital and organisational ability. Hence, the sum of the income
received by factors of production in the form of rent, wages, interest and profit is called National
Income.
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Answers to Test Your General Knowledge
99
PI is the total money income received by individuals and households of a country from all
possible sources before direct taxes.
DI is the income left with the individuals after the payment of direct taxes from personal
income. It is the actual income left for disposal or that can be spent for consumption by
individuals.
PCI is calculated by dividing the national income of the country by the total population of a
country.
2. A: National energy conservation day is observed by India every year on 14th of December.
The Energy Conservation Act in India was implemented by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency
(BEE) in 2001. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency is a legal organization which serves under
the Government of India and assists in the improvement of policies and strategies so as to
lessen the utilization of energy. The Energy Conservation Act in India desires to utilize the
expert, specialized and optimistic managers and auditors who are qualified in running the
energy, projects, policy study, finance or executing the energy competence projects.
3. C: A mineral is mostly a compound that is usually crystalline in nature and is a result of
geological progressions. Its ancient use comes from the Linnaean taxonomy where everything
can be assigned to vegetable, animal and mineral kingdoms. The study of minerals is called
mineralogy. There are about 4500 known minerals and each possesses an exclusive set of
physical and chemical properties. Minerals are distributed in earth’s crust in small amount
however whenever these are found in bulk amount these form minerals deposits which are
economically very useful.
To be categorised as mineral, a substance must qualify the following parameters:
• Inorganic: means it is not prepared by an organism.
• Naturally occurring: means people did not make it.
• Sequenced internal structure: means its atoms are in an orderly and repeating prototype.
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Answers to Test Your General Knowledge
100
· Solid: means it is not a gas or a liquid at STP.
· Specific chemical composition: means chemical composition of specific mineral ranges
within precise limit.
All of us use products made up of minerals every day. Minerals are used in industries,
construction, manufacturing, agriculture, technology and cosmetics. A number of minerals are
used to produce a wooden pencil or a cell phone. Minerals are used to make roads, vehicles,
houses etc. The salt that we eat is the mineral halite.
4.D: Infrastructure is defined to include electricity, including non-conventional energy,
telecommunications, roads and bridges, railways, ports, airports, irrigation, water supply and
sanitation, storage and gas distribution sectors. The rapid growth of the Indian economy in
recent years has placed increasing stress on physical infrastructure i.e. electricity, railways,
roads, ports, irrigation, water supply and sanitation, all of which already suffer from deficit in
terms of capacities as well as efficiencies.
In a developing country like India, cooperation and support of State Governments is essential
for development of world class infrastructure. The State Governments’ support in maintenance
of law and order, land acquisition, rehabilitation and settlement of displaced persons, shifting of
utilities and obtaining environmental clearances is necessary. Many State Governments have
also initiated several major projects to improve infrastructure.
5. C: Foreign trade is all about imports and exports. The backbone of any trade between nations
is those products and services which are being traded to some other location outside a
particular country’s borders. Some nations are adept at producing certain products at a cost-
effective price. Perhaps it is because they have the labour supply or abundant natural
resources which make up the raw materials needed. No matter what the reason, the ability of
some nations to produce what other nations want is what makes international trade work.
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Answers to Test Your General Knowledge
101
Over the years, India’s foreign trade has come to occupy a pivotal position in the economic
scenario and prosperity of the country. India exports a huge number of products and imports
equally a good number of required products. Major export of products of India is to countries
such as USA, UK, UAE, Hong Kong, China, Germany, Singapore, Belgium, Japan etc. India’s
major import of product is from countries such as USA, UK, Germany, China, Belgium, Japan,
Switzerland etc.
6. A: The structure of earth is in spherical form and is composed of four layers, three solid and
one liquid which is in the form of molten metal, and is hot as the surface of the sun.
In 1692, Edmund Halley brought forward the idea that the Earth’s structure is hollow shell
approximately of 500 miles.
Earth’s
Layer Kilometre
2.
Crust
Mantle
0-35
35-2,890
3.
Inner core
2,890-5,150
4.
Outer core
5,150-6,360
1.
Earth’s Crust
There are 2 types of crusts made up of different types of rock:
i. Thin oceanic crust that’s behind the ocean basins composed primarily of basalt
ii. Thick continental crust that lie beneath the continents composed primarily of granite. It has
low density which allows it to float on mantle which has much higher density.
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Answers to Test Your General Knowledge
102
Earth’s Mantle
Earth’s mantle is mainly made up of olivine-rich rocks. It has varying temperatures at different
depths. The maximum temperature is where mantle is in touch with the heat-generating core.
The increase of temperature is acknowledged as the geothermal gradient which is accountable
for different behaviours of rock. These behaviours separate the mantle into 2 zones. Upper
mantle rocks are cool and fragile which are fragile enough to fracture under pressure and
generate earthquakes, whereas lower mantle rocks are hot and soft. However, rocks in the
lower mantle are supple and in liquid form. The lower limit of this frail behaviour is the edge
amid the upper and lower mantle.
Earth’s Core
It is thought that earth’s core is mainly composed of an iron and nickel alloy. This presumption is
made on the basis of its density and on the information that several meteorites are iron-nickel
alloys and which are considered to be part of earth’s interior. The core contains radioactive
materials that release heat on its break down. The core is divided into 2 different zones:
i. The outer core is liquid because the high temperatures melt the iron-nickel alloy.
ii. The inner core is a solid although its temperature is more than the outer core because the
pressure generated by the overlying rocks is remarkably high and it keeps the atoms tightly
packed together
7. D: A drainage system can be defined as the pattern formed by the rivers, streams and lakes in
a particular drainage basin. They are governed by the topography of the land, whether
a particular region is governed by hard or soft rocks, and the slope of the land.
Drainage pattern is an important geographic factor for river basin. Five patterns are classified:
dendritic, parallel, trellis, rectangular and reticulate patterns. The method is based on geometric
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Answers to Test Your General Knowledge
103
indicators, such as the average angle, average sinuosity, and catchment elongation to classify
the patterns automatically. The method was applied on a case study, the Russian river basin,
and the results were discussed. The advantage of this work is that proposed geometric
quantitative indicators are easy to obtain and calculate. Except the river network data itself, no
other information about the terrain is needed. Validation of the results is based on assessments
done on case studies. One limitation is that the qualitative description of the patterns relies on
quantitative variables and depends on threshold values set by the users. A first direction for
further work may be to introduce fuzzy logic in the classification. Fuzzy logic can provide
indication about the likelihood of a network to belong to a pattern.
8. A: Balance of Payments (BoP) is the record of all economic transactions between the residents
of a country and the rest of the world during a given period of time. These transactions are
made by individuals, firms and government bodies and include payments for the country’s
exports and imports of goods, services, financial capital, and financial transfers. It represents a
sum total of country’s current demand and supply of the claims on foreign currencies and of
foreign claims on its currency and are prepared in a single currency, typically the domestic
currency for the country concerned.
9. D: An artesian basin is a low-lying region where groundwater is cramped under pressure from
surrounding layers of rock. These basins are usually found where an aquifer is present in a
syncline, by impenetrable layers above as well as below. Whenever a fissure breaks the
surface, the underground water blows up. This results in the rising of the water level to a point
where hydrostatic equilibrium has been achieved.
A well drilled into this aquifer is known as an artesian well. If the water reaches the ground surface
pressurized naturally by the aquifer, the well is known as a flowing artesian well. For an aquifer to
be artesian, the water table must reach the surface.
The name artesian wells comes from the former province of Artois in France, where Carthusian
monks had drilled many artesian wells.
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Answers to Test Your General Knowledge
104
The Great Artesian Basin (GAB)
The Great Artesian Basin is the largest and deepest artesian basin in the world. It is located
within Australia, stretching over 1,700,000 square kilometres, and is huge enough to fill
Sydney Harbour 130,000 times. The temperatures range from 30-100 °C. This artesian basin
is the only dependable and safe source of fresh water for the rural communities. It holds 23% of
the continent, and is 3,000 metres deep, consisting of 64,900 cubic kilometres of
groundwater.
Geology of the Great Artesian Basin
During the Triassic, Jurassic, and early Cretaceous periods, the water of the GAB was retained
in a sandstone layer placed by continental erosion of higher ground. Going back to the time
when much of the present day inland Australia was below sea level, the sandstone was covered
by a layer of marine sedimentary rock, which formed a confining layer, thus grasping water in
the sandstone aquifer. When the Great Dividing Range developed, the eastern edge of the basin
was elevated. The landforms of the Central Eastern Lowlands and the Great Western Plateau
created the other side of the basin.
10. B: Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) is a member of World Bank Group. The
mission of Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency is to encourage foreign direct investment
(FDI) into developing countries to help sustain economic growth, improve lives of people and
lessen poverty.
The operational strategy of Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency plays to our foremost
power in the market place drawing private insurers and investors into complicated operating
environments. It focuses on indemnifying investments in the regions where it can make the
maximum difference. The Agency offers comparative advantages in all of these regions – from
our unique package of products & skill to reinstate the confidence of business community, to our
enduring collaboration with the private and public insurance market to augment the amount of
insurance available to investors.
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The Board of Directors and Council of Governors representing its member countries direct the
activities and programs of Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency. The corporate powers of
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency are vested in the Council of Governors, which allots
most of its powers to the Board of Directors.
11. B: The International Monetary Fund works to promote economic stability and global growth. It
provides financing and policy advice to members in economic complexities and also works with
developing nations to assist them attain macro-economic stability and decrease poverty.
The International Monetary Fund endorses exchange rate stability, international monetary
cooperation, assists the balanced growth of international trade, and proffers resources to assist
members in balance of payments difficulties or to help with poverty diminution.
The International Monetary Fund has 188 member countries. It is a focused agency of the UN
but has its own charter, finances and governing structure. Its members are symbolized through
a quota system generally based on their comparative size in global economy.
12. B: The International Development Association (IDA) is the part of the World Bank that seeks to
help the poorest countries of the world. International Development Association was established in
the year 1960. It aims to trim down poverty by providing loans and grants for various programs
that enhance economic growth, improve living conditions of people and reduce inequalities.
International Development Association complements the original lending arm of the World Bank
-the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development was recognized to function as a self-sustaining business and
provides loans and guidance to credit-worthy and middle-income poor countries.Same staff and
headquarters are shared by IBRD and IDA.They assess projects with the same meticulous
standards.
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The poorest countries of the world are frequently not capable to draw adequate capital to sustain
their vital development needs and therefore rely on official aid flows as a critical source of funding.
IDA is a multi-issue institution, sustaining a range of development activities, for instance basic
health services, primary education, clean water and sanitation, agriculture, environmental
safeguards, business climate improvements, institutional reforms and infrastructure. These projects
pave the way toward economic growth, equality, job creation, better living conditions and higher
incomes.
13.D: The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization that
deals with the set of laws of trade between nations. It holds the WTO agreements that are
negotiated and signed by the bulk of trading nations of the world and ratified in their parliaments.
The aim is to facilitate producers of goods and services, importers and exporters to carry out
their business.
It is an association for trade opening. It is a medium for governments to discuss trade
agreements. It is a podium for them to resolve trade disputes. It functions according to a system
of trade rules. Fundamentally, the World Trade Organization is a place where member
governments attempt to sort out the trade problems they face with each other.
World Trade Organization is run by its member governments. All main decisions are made by the
membership as a whole, by ministers or by their delegates or ambassadors.
14. D: Asian Development Bank was envisioned in the course of the post war rehabilitation and
reconstruction efforts of early 1960s. The vision was of a financial institution that would be Asian
in character and promote economic growth and cooperation in the area - then one of the poorest
in the world. A resolution was passed at the 1st Ministerial Conference on Asian Economic
Cooperation held by United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East in the year
1963 that set that vision on the way to becoming reality.
Since its origin in 1966, Asian Development Bank has been driven by a dedication and
inspiration to improving lives of people in Asia and the Pacific.
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By targeting our investments shrewdly, in joint venture with our developing member countries
and stakeholders, we can assuage poverty and help create a world in which everybody can
share in the benefits of inclusive and sustained growth.
15. B: State Financial Corporations (SFCs) are the State level financial institutions which play a
vital role in the growth of small and medium enterprises in the concerned States. They offer
financial assistance in the form of direct subscription to debentures/equity, term loans,
guarantees, discounting of bills of exchange and seed/special capital, etc. SFCs have been set
up with the purpose of catalyzing higher investment, engendering greater employment and
extending the ownership base of industries. They have also started offering assistance to newer
types of business activities like tissue culture, floriculture, poultry farming, services related to
engineering, marketing and commercial complexes. In India, there are 18 State Financial
Corporations (SFCs).
16. A: A Direct tax can be defined as a kind of charge, which is enforced directly on the tax-
payer and paid directly to the government by persons (juristic or natural) on whom it is insisted
upon. A direct tax is one that can’t be transferred by the tax-payer to someone else.
Some significant direct taxes enforced in India are as follows:
Income Tax: As per the Income Tax Act, 1961, tax is imposed on the income of the individuals
or firms or Hindu undivided families or co-operative societies as well as trusts or every artificial
juridical person. The addition of a particular income in total incomes of a person for income tax
in India is solely based on his residential status. There are 3 residential status, they are:
(i) Resident and Ordinary Residents
(ii) Resident but not Ordinary Residents
(iii) Non Residents
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A corporation is considered to be resident in India if it is incorporated in India or if it’s
management and control is placed wholly in India. In case of non-resident corporations, tax is
imposed on the income which is earned from their business transactions in India or Indian
sources depending on the bilateral agreement of that country.
Property Tax: House tax or Property tax is a local tax on buildings, together with appurtenant
land, and it is imposed on owners. The tax power is vested in the states and is delegated by
law to the local bodies, indicating the valuation method, collection procedures and rate band.
Inheritance (Estate) Tax: An inheritance tax can be defined as a tax which comes up on the
death of an individual. It is a tax on the estate. Or it is the total value of money and property, of
a person who has died.
Gift Tax: In India, Gift tax is regulated by the Gift Tax Act. The Gift Tax Act was constituted on
April 1, 1958. It came into effect in most places in India except Jammu and Kashmir. As per the
Gift Act 1958, all gifts in exceeding Rs. 25,000, in the form of draft, cash, cheque or others,
received from one person who does not have blood relations with the recipient, were taxable.
However, with effect from October 1, 1998, gift tax got pulled down and all gifts made on or
after the date were free from tax. However in the year 2004, the Gift act was again revived
partially. A new provision was pioneered in the Income Tax Act 1961 under section 56 (2). As
per the provision, the gifts received by any individual or Hindu Undivided Family (HUF)
exceeding of Rs. 50,000 in a year would be taxable.
17. D: In literal sense, the word ‘endorsement’ means, writing on back of an instrument. However
under Negotiable Instruments Act 1881, it means, writing of one’s name on the back of
instrument or any paper affixed to it with the intent of transferring the rights within.
Consequently, endorsement is signing a negotiable instrument for the purpose of negotiation.
The person who results an endorsement is known as ‘endorser’, and the person to whom
negotiable instrument is transferred by an endorsement is known as the ‘endorsee’.
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18. B: A market segmentation theory is a modern theory that tries to explain the relation of
yield of a debt instrument with its maturity period. This theory brings together potential buyers
into segments with common needs. There is no point in spending money for marketing of your
product to certain people, if these people will not buy the product. This is market segmentation.
To summarize, market segmentation theory is all about separating the market into smaller
groups of consumers and then marketing your product only to the group of people that are your
potential buyers.
The aim of marketing in profit-oriented organizations is to meet needs profitably. Companies
must therefore first define which needs and whose needs they can satisfy. For example, the
personal transportation market consists of people who put different values on an automobile’s
cost, speed, safety, status, and styling. No single automobile can satisfy all these needs in a
superior fashion; compromises have to be made. Because of such variables, an automobile
company must identify the different preference groups, or segments, of customers and decide
which group they can target profitably.
19. D: Economists have studied how the costs of the factors i.e., rent, wages, and profits and the
size of their return are fixed.
The great advantages of the theory of distribution is that
• it treats wages, interest, and land rents in the same way.
• is its integration with the theory of production.
• it lends itself to a relatively simple mathematical statement.
The aspects of distribution can be as follows:
Personal distribution is primarily a matter of statistics and the conclusions that can be drawn from
them. The inequality seems to be greatest in poor countries and diminishes somewhat in the
course of economic development.Some authorities point to the natural inequality of human beings
(differences in intelligence and ability), others to the effects of social
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institutions (including education); some emphasize economic factors such as scarcity; others
invoke political concepts such as power, exploitation, or the structure of society.
The theory of functional distribution, which attempts to explain the prices of land, labour, and
capital, is a standard subject in economics. It sees the demand for land, labour, and capital as
derived demand, stemming from the demand for final goods. Behind this lies the idea that a
businessman demands inputs of land, labour, and capital because he needs them in the
production of goods that he sells. The theory of distribution is thus related to the theory of
production, one of the well-developed subjects of economics.
The Theory of Marginal Productivity or Theory of Distribution explains how the prices of the
various factors of production would be determined under conditions of perfect competition and
full employment.
According to the Marginal Productivity Theory, the price of any factor will be equal to the value
of its marginal product. For example, we know that a consumer will demand a commodity up to
the point at which its marginal utility is proportional to the price he pays for it. Similarly, a firm
will go on employing more and more units of a factor until the price of the factor is equal to the
value of the marginal product. This is equal to the value of the additional product, which an
employer gets when he employs an additional unit of that factor, the supply of all other factors
remaining constant.
In many traditional economies, community interests take precedence over the individual.
Individuals may be expected to combine their efforts and share equally in the proceeds of
labour. In other traditional economies, some sort of private property is respected, but it is
restrained by a strong set of obligations that individuals owe to their community.
20. D: El Nino refers to the warm phase of the El Nino Southern Oscillation which is called ENSO,
that is, El Nino Southern Oscillation which is called ENSO, that is,
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El Nino Southern Oscillation is the cycle of warm and cold temperatures measured on the basis
of sea surface temperature of the tropical central and eastern Pacific Ocean.
It is associated with a band of warm ocean water that develops in the central and east-central
equatorial Pacific between the International Date Line and 120°W. It also occurs off the Pacific
coast of South America.
ENSO cycle
· The ENSO cycle includes El Nino and La Nina and is the major cause of global changes in both
temperatures and rainfall.
· El Nino is accompanied by high air pressure in the western Pacific and low air pressure in the
eastern Pacific.
La Nina - the Cool Phase
· The cool phase of ENSO is called “La Nina” with sea surface temperature in the eastern Pacific
below average and air pressures high in the eastern and low in western Pacific. El Nino is defined
by prolonged warming in the Pacific Ocean sea surface temperatures when compared with the
average value.
El Nino conditions and El Nino episode
· The average period length is five years. When this warming occurs for seven to nine months, it
is classified as El Nino “conditions”; when its duration is longer, it is called El Nino “episode”.
Effects of El Nino
El Nino’s warm rush of nutrient-poor water heated by its eastward passage in the Equatorial
Current, replaces the cold, nutrient-rich surface water of the Humboldt Current.
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· When El Nino conditions last for many months, extensive ocean warming and the reduction in
easterly trade winds limits upwelling of cold nutrient-rich deep water, and its economic impact to
local fishing for an international market can be serious.
· El Nino can affect commodity prices and the macro-economy of different countries - and not
always for the worst. It can constrain the supply of rain-driven agricultural commodities; reduce
agricultural output, construction, and services activities; create food-price and generalised
inflation; and may trigger social unrest in commodity-dependent poor countries that primarily rely
on imported food.
A University of Cambridge Working Paper reveals that while Australia, Chile, Indonesia, India,
Japan, New Zealand and South Africa face a short-lived fall in economic activity in response to an
El Nino shock, other countries may actually benefit from an El Nino weather shock, for instance,
Argentina, Canada, Mexico and the United States either directly or indirectly through positive
spillovers from major trading partners.
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