The life of an international student Research Paper

The life of an international student - Research Paper Example The basic reason as to why most people become international students is that the education standards in their home countries do not meet their needs. As a result, these students opt to learn in other countries whose education matches their expectations. However, in most cases, it is not easy to settle down in a foreign country as an international student. For some, the change is too overwhelming and they may opt to go back home, while others persevere and work towards achieving their goals and dreams. Luckily, some countries like the United States and Canada have programs in their universities and colleges that help international students cope with the new life. The life of an international student The transformation that an international student undergoes once they move to a foreign country cannot be understated. In most cases, being an international student means leaving your family and friends behind and adjusting to a completely new lifestyle. One is forced to learn a new languag e, learn the culture of the people, adjust to their schooling system and basically learn how to live in a new country. Before getting used to these changes, most international students feel like aliens, thus preferring to keep to themselves as they assess the people around them. With time, however, they start looking for other international student from their home countries so that the latter can help them adjust. ... Differences between the United States and the Saudi Arabian systems of education One of the challenges that international students face is the difference in education systems between their home countries and their host countries. For example, the education system of the United States differs from that of Saudi Arabia in a number of ways. One of the differences, for example, is in regard to the conduct of students in class. At the beginning, I was always the quite type in class because that is the culture of Saudi Arabian classrooms. The students in Saudi Arabian classes do not speak much but in America classrooms, the story is different as students are very opinionated. They also challenge the teachers directly in case they do not agree with what the teacher says. In addition, whereas Saudi Arabians are very disciplined in class, in terms of modes of dressing and behavior, American students have a lot of freedom. For example, students come to class in casual clothes and some even tak e snacks and sleep in class. Additionally, being from Saudi Arabia, I was accustomed to official dressing while attending class, and a lot of discipline during sessions. I, therefore, always felt odd when I went to class dressed formally and almost everyone else was in casual wear. Although I have tried to adapt to the American classroom culture, is still find myself being formal in dressing as I attend class and reserving some of my opinions during lectures. In addition to the classroom setting, I was also confused at the beginning because the American system seems to place so much emphasis on education and leaves little space for socialization. Here in the United States, one is expected to either be in class, in a study group, doing research, or participating in

Humanities The Age of Reason;Revolution, Reaction, Cultural Essay

Humanities The Age of Reason;Revolution, Reaction, Cultural Response;The Triumph of the Bourgeoisie - Essay Example Different classes of people did their things in a specific manner to avoid collision with the other social classes. The upper class was the most respected class, and it led in many activities. Rise of middle class in politics and culture who supported equality and social justice. The spirit of law and the social contract law was written. All humans were considered equal and had equal rights. All citizens had right to vote. There was a clear separation of powers. There were laws and regulations that governed the people in a particular state. The laws did not favor any individuals irrespective of the social class that one belonged. The intellectual and cultural movement. The great thinkers embraced humanism through the study of literature, music, arts and philosophy. They believed that nature was good and orderly and could be studied. They advocated for religious, political, and economic institutions. According to the neoclassicist, man was guided by his head while on the romanticists; they believed that man was guided by his heart. This is a clear indication that the two schools of though believed that man had a conscience in doing things. Ingres and David painted pictures that were of old Greek and honor. All the figures had a smooth texture and the men had muscles regardless of their origin or background. The neoclassicist painted with invisible brush strokes which made their paintings appear smooth. In romanticism, there was use of brush strokes to show the movement of artwork. Goethe reacted to the neoclassicist to show them that their subjects were too idealized and had no emotion. The romanticist painted dynamic pictures by a variety of colors making them appear real. The industrial revolution had a tremendous impact on the social and cultural change. There was a significant change in the classes and their welfare. The rich culture was about greed, material wealth and social status while the poor culture was to strive

Reflection On Separation Of The Church And State History Essay

Reflection On Separation Of The Church And State History Essay In the early sixteenth century there was only one religion in Western Europe. This was the Roman Catholic religion. For a long time, the Catholic Church had been involved in the political life of Western Europe. As a result of their involvement in politics, the Catholic Church became very rich and powerful. This caused the church to become weakened spiritually. The church had become a lot more interested in or had become corrupted by power and wealth causing it to pay very little interest to its actual purpose which was handling the spiritual problems of the masses. This caused the church to begin a number of malpractices, such as the sale of indulgences to the masses. Indulgences were documents signed by the pope that forgave or absolved people of all their sins and gave them access into heaven. Indulgences could also be purchased on the behalf of a dead relative, to reduce their time in purgatory before entry into heaven. The relationship between the church and the masses soon beca me solely based on money. Most of these practices, especially that of the sale of indulgences caused a number of people in different European states to start questioning the church, which was labeled as an act of heresy by the church. This people were the likes of Martin Luther in Germany, Erasmus of Rotterdam, John Calvin in Switzerland, and Henry VIII in England. Martin Luther was actually the main person behind the reformations which took place in Germany, and eventually spread to other parts of Europe. His actions started with the letter and 95 theses he wrote against the church in 1517(). In his writings, he questioned the churchs sale of indulgences as well as other malpractices. His writings spread throughout Germany and eventually most parts of Europe causing people to begin to see the malpractices carried out by the Catholic Church. As a result of this, Luther was excommunicated by the Catholic Church in 1521. This did not change anything as Luthers ideas had already spread throughout Germany. Luthers reforms led to a number of wars against the church, which eventually led to the separation of the church. Luther formed the Lutheran church. Another important figure that contributed to the reformation of the Catholic Church was John Calvin. Most of John Calvins works, such as the Institutes of Christian Religion were published in Switzerland which was a more liberal place as compared to France where he was born and escaped from. The Institutes of Christian religion was published in 1536(). He would have been persecuted by the king and the church if he had published his works in France. Calvins ideas were hugely successful in Switzerland and majority of the Catholics became protestant. Like Luthers ideas, the Catholic Church was against them and labeled them to acts of heresy. Calvin formed the Calvinist church. The king of England at the time, King Henry the VIII also played a major role in the reforms against the Catholic Church. English reformations against the church began under his reign. He pulled England away from the rule of the Catholic Church, making himself the supreme head of the English church by an act of parliament in 1534(). Although the English church had been cut off from the popes control, the English people were still predominantly Catholic. It was only later that the Church of England was to be known as the Anglican church of England and Anglicanism became a religion. Although Henrys actions were for personal reasons, he questioned the Catholic Churchs authority, something that would spread throughout England. There were many others who contributed to the reformations against the Catholic Church, but the likes of Martin Luther, John Calvin and King Henry VIII were at the fore front. The reforms that took place against the church helped most governments to break away from the control of the pope and the church. Most countries such as England and North Germany could to some extent make political decisions without the churchs permission. The population did not have to pay any more taxes to the church. The Catholic Church hit back against the protestant reformers with what was known as the Counter Reformation. The Counter Reformation was led most notably by pope Paul III in 1534. He hit back with the approval of the new religious order called the Jesuits in the convocation of the council of Trent to deal with disciplinary and doctrinal questions asked by the Protestants 1545 1563() . He also readily deployed military assistance when necessary to act against the Protestants. The Catholics succeeded to save some of its territories from the reformers as well as obtain new territories in North and South America. This was done through a number of wars against the Protestants. Although most of Europe still remained predominantly catholic, the church lost the grip it had on the masses. People began to ask questions unlike before. The reformations against the church had a major impact on the separation of the church from the state. After the reformations, the next period that really affected the church was the period of revolutions in science and political thought. During this period, ideas such as geocentrism accepted by the church where being questioned by scientist. The likes of Nicolas Coperincus, Johannes Kepler, Gallileo Gallilei and Isaac Newton proved the idea to be wrong and came up with the idea of heliocentrism. William Harvey discovered the circulation of blood, which was previously and unattainable feet because the church did not permit dissection of the human corps. More aspects of the catholic religion were questioned and yet again were proven to be wrong. Although the church threatened most of them and ordered their works not be read, the damage had already been done. The church began to lose its supremacy over the masses. The works and discoveries by scientist greatly affected philosophers of the next century. Like scientist, a lot of philosophers also started coming up with new ideas which enc ouraged people to begin thinking. A lot of these philosophers gave ideas concerning political thought and reasoning. They included the likes of David Hume, John Locke, Francis Bacon, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Franà §ois-Marie Arouet (Voltaire), Charles-Louis de Secondat Baron de Montesquieu, Immanuel Kant and many others. Most of this philosophers or philosophes came from the enlightenment (Age of Reason) period in the eighteenth century. The idea behind most of their work was the reduction of power from the kings in Europe. The kings in Europe at the time were absolute monarchs, and exercised authority over their subjects as the head of state and government. Most of the philosophes at this time were against this form of government, and strongly encouraged a form of power reduction. Montesquieu, for example came up with the idea of the separation of power into three distinct branches. These three branches included; the executive, the legislative and the judiciary. Most governments tod ay such as those of France and Germany are being ruled with the idea of separation of government. John Lockes idea was that a rulers authority was supposed to be conditional and not absolute. In his book entitled Two Treatises of Government (1680 1690), he defines political power to be A right of making laws with penalties of death, and consequently all less penalties for the regulating and preserving of property, and of employing the force of the community, in the execution of such laws, and in the defense of the common-wealth from foreign injury; and all this only for the public good (195). The United States of America is an example of a country that uses this form of government today. The ideas introduced by these philosophers led to revolutions in Europe, such as the French revolution and in European colonies abroad such as the American Revolution. The people sort to end the reign of absolute monarchy and introduce a new form of government. The French philosophe Voltaires ideas were also very influential. He directly questioned religious dogma at the time. He strongly routed for the separation of the state from the church. At the time the government was integrated with religion. What the church saw as an offense against its doctrines, the government laid out a sanction for the crime. No one could speak freely, choose his religion, or think without being persecuted. Revolts against absolute kings in a way were revolts against the church. As different European countries reluctantly accepted the change from absolutism, they became open to many other things including Protestantism. The Catholic Church slowly lost its grip over political affairs of the state thus leading to secularism and eventually, separation of the church from the state. With this, punishment was not given out to the citizens on the bases of religious laws or doctrines. In 1648, after the thirty years wars (a war that caused a transition from medieval to modern politics), secularism was really put into effect. Church lands were transferred to the state during the treaty of Westphalia, as well as the tolerance to other minor religions (Protestants). With the coming of secularism and the separation of the church from state, most countries picked up what was known as sovereign nation-states. The treaty ended the Holy Roman Empire as an institution and began what was known as a modern European system. England was the first European country to end the reign of the absolute monarchs in Europe. This happened at the end of the seventeenth century through the glorious revolutions under James IIs rule. These revolutions saw the complete over throw of absolute monarchs in England. The power of the monarchs became supplementary to the powers of branches of government. Parliament then drew up a Bill of Rights which restricted the power monarchs over the parliament and individuals in the society. It would not be for another century that absolutism would end in other parts of Europe. Absolutism ended mainly in most of Europe with the coming of the French revolution. The French revolution began in France in 1789 under the reign of Louis XVI. The revolution ended with the execution of Louis XVI in January 1793 (). This brought an end to absolute monarchy in France. This period was followed by Robespierres reign of terror under a new form of government called the National Convention from 1793 1794 (). The system in France eventually led to a consulate form of government in 1799. Napoleon Bonaparte became the emperor of France in 1804. Napoleon Bonaparte was strongly for the removal of the church from state affairs. France and the Catholic Church were not on good terms during the period of the revolutions. Regardless of this, Napoleon signed the Concordat 1801, which was an agreement that Napoleon would recognize the church and Pope Pius VII would recognize the revolution. All this was a formality for Napoleon as he did not really care what the Catholic Church thought. He was very displeased with the amount of power the Catholic Church had. During Napoleons coronation by the pope in 1804, he seized the crown from the pope and crowned himself emperor. This was in a way to show that he was not going to share his power with the pope. Napoleon was also in favor of religious tolerance and this was clearly seen through his Napoleonic code. her minor religions (protestants) thus followed. the bases of religious laws or doctrines s including protestianism

Affirmative Action Essay -- Discrimination Race Racism Essays

Affirmative Action Affirmative action is a blanket term that refers to â€Å"the set of public policies and initiatives designed to help eliminate past and present discrimination based on race, color, sex or national origin,† (Sykes). Before the Civil Rights Acts of 1965 and the 1954 Scott v. Topeka decision, there were â€Å"unwritten laws and protection for white men† against competition from women and ethnic minorities in prestigious professions, creating blatant inequality (Alsbrook). Affirmative action policies designed in part to counteract such â€Å"unwritten laws† were first employed in 1965 to provide equal opportunity among federal contractors; now however, they are used widely in many industries, both public and private (Kahn). In the 1970’s, the scope of the initiatives expanded to the arena of college and university admissions as well. Debate over affirmative action has revolved around myriad issues ranging from diversity to the relevance of past injustices to so-called â€Å"reverse discrimination.† The paramount key issue that is constantly asked regarding affirmative action is, â€Å"Does affirmative action achieve its goal of equality?† Having considered the arguments from many perspectives, we recommend a general position that supports affirmative action policies. However, this support is not unmitigated—certain constraints and amendments are required. Those who oppose affirmative action often claim that it simply does not succeed in helping the occupational and educational status of minorities. Some support for this claim apropos policies in the workplace can be culled from the fact that women only earn approximately seventy-seven cents for every dollar men earn, the figure dropping to sixty-six cents for non-white women (... ...pdf> {popular news, print via Internet; apparently credible} Wilcher, J. Shirley. â€Å"The History of Affirmative Action Policies† Americans for Fair Chance Washington D.C (2003): In Motion Magazine. 26 April. 2004 http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/aahist.html {distinguished news; print via internet; reputable} Yates, Steven. â€Å"Affirmative Action: The New Road to Serfdom.† The Freeman. (1990) Vol. 40, No. 12. Foundation for Economic Education Inc. 6 April 2004 http://www.libertyhaven.com/politicsandcurrentevents/affirmativeaction/roadserfdom.shtml {unrestricted; print modified; plausible} Zauberman, Renee and Rene Levy. â€Å"Police, Minorities, and the French Republican Ideal*.† Criminology 41.4 (2003): 1065-1100. Research Library. ProQuest. NYU Bobst Library, NY, NY. 21 April. 2004 http://www.proquest.com/ {scholarly primary; print via Internet; authoritative}

Broken Heart Poem by John Donne

The broken heart is a love poem . In this poem John Donne has a broken heart and he embodies his suffering in a various dramatic ways. As he wants to show us that the grief in love is much more than any other kinds of griefs in life. In the title of the poem John Donne depicts his heart as somethig material such as a broken mirror or glass. So he pointes out that when someone's heart is broken , it makes his life miserable and can not be able to fall in love any more.He also describes how his beloved shattered his heart into a million of pecies. Firstly the broken heart poem is consists of 4 stanzas in ab ab cc dd rhyme. the title of the poem revealed to what extent love kills our soul. The poet takes to his audience and readers as he begins his poem with a strong statement that anyone who disagrees with his argument about love is (stark mad) indicating that we may fall in love quickly but we can not recover from it easily. He adding that he himself suffered from love.When John says (I have had the plague) he do not mean the diseases itself but he means the suffering in love and the effects of broken heart is similar to the plague. Even the one who fall in love for just t an hour,would suffers (decays). He also uses (a flash of powder) to declear the burning of love. In the second stanza John personificates love in cruel imagery as adestroyer,killer or wild fish. Moreover he compares the griefs and suffering in love with other kinds of griefs. rom his point of view ;even other griefs are not selfish as the grief in love moreover other griefs and sadness come to by nature but we go to love by our own will , Johne Donne personificates love by calling it (he) and he also embodies it as agun or cannonball which may kill a whole town or army of soldiers by one shot( by chain'd shot , whole ranks do die) or as wild fish who swallows smaller fish without ant mercy(a tyrant pike) consequently the speaker showed that love has no mercy. In the third stanza the speaker ta lkes about his beloved;the woman who broke his heart.He depicts his miserable love story as he walking into aroom carring his heart and suddenly he sees his beloved ,offering his heart for her but what a disappointment!! She refuses his love, breaking his heart by her rejection. John embodies his heart like a mirror or glass which broke into a lot of sharp pieces. we now deduce that his love is a one- sided love. In the final stanza he tells his audience the negative effect of love on his heart which makes him enable to live his normal live again. His heart's wound never gone, besides keeping it in his breast.He may recollect the pieces of his heart but his heart will never be fixed again( those pieces still,though they not be unite). He concludes his poem by saying that his broken heart can like,wish and admire but he never fall in love again. The tone of the poem is sad and melancholy. In this poem John uses avarious of imagery such as a visual images as in (I saw /a flash of powd er/draws/pieces/ abroken glasses/a hundred lesser faces), auditory images as in(says /swear/ laugh ),gustatory images as in (swallows/chaws). He uses alliteration such as (says /decays ) (say /day) (show /know).We all know that one of John Donne ‘s quality in poet ; his hyperbole as he exaggerates in his feelings and this is declear in his title (broken heart)and his description for his suffering (broken glasses / hundred lesser faces),he also depicts love in the image of destructive tool (the chain'd shot,whole ranks do die) or in awild fish (tyrant pike). As well he uses figure of speech ;metaphore as in (broken heart /trifle is a heart /plague/flash of powder/the tyrant pike) and simile as in (by him as by chain'd shot). To sum up we could deduce some of 17th century –love features and to what extent they hyperbole in their feelings .

Negative Views Concerning Video Game Violence

There are many different views about video games and the effects violence has on children and society as a whole. Many feel that games are harmful and have no purpose but to serve as an unintelligent and wasteful medium of entertainment. Others feel that games have plenty to offer and will one day be as respected a medium as television, radio or books. Input from both sides of the issue was gathered and a conclusion was drawn based on various studies and opinions. Throughout The course of this report, the issue of violence in video games and the overall worth of games in general will be addressed. There are a lot of negative views concerning video games, particularly of the violent variety. Critics say that violent games are a pretty poison for society, fancy blood and fireworks with no redeeming value. They say that video games take innocent young children and taint them with images of fiery destruction. Many of these critics also see that most of the games on the market are violent and bash the industry for it. Video games are one of the most engaging form of media on the market, there's no denying that. But does the immersiveness of games make them more apt to blur the line between fantasy and reality? Some people say so. At the very least, it is desensitizing, so there can't really be anything good about it. And yet, marathon sessions of Quake have not made the author of this essay into a raging mass murderer, or even any less squeamish at the sight of real violence. Perhaps one may become desensitized to artificial violence, but at the same time not to real world violence. Just how do games effect impressionable young children? Do they effect them at all? No studies seem to be decisive on this issue, but it would seem that upbringing plays a major role in how a video game effects a child's life. Other important factors are the kind of game that is being played, and how â€Å"wholesome† the motives and rewards for killing are. How a parent raises a child really determines everything about a child's young life, and much of what that child will grow to become. If the child can't determine fantasy from reality because they haven't been taught the difference, it doesn't matter whether there is a single video game on the face f the Earth. It is inevitable that some form of media will eventually have the same sort of effect on them that video games would. Rich Fleider of Rogue Entertainment puts it this way: â€Å"Video games are only an extension of human's innate desire to play. Without video games, that desire would only express itself in a different fashion in another medium. † There is no excuse and no remedy for poor parenting and it is wrong to use games or movies or anything else as a scapegoat. Mark Dochtermann of Ritual Entertainment believes that â€Å".. he only thing that can corrupt a young mind is an unhealthy environment in which to grow. Parents who blame their problematic children on Dungeon and Dragons and video games are just beating down the wrong door. † Paul Jaquays, a level designer for gaming industry superpower id Software had this to say about the types of video game violence: â€Å"Although I'm certain I'm doing my share of rationalizing here, I tend to categorize it into two distinct classes: A) Violence against the enemy: War in the name of self defense, necessary actions against violent criminals. B) Violence against the innocent: Acts of violence against non-aggressors, bystanders, children, or those committed as a part of a game which glorifies crime, etc. The former, in game terms, is acceptable to me. The latter is not. Some recent games such as Carmageddon, Postal, and Grand Theft Auto fall into the latter. † Most people find the irreverent treatment to innocent people in these games quite offensive, and for good reason. If any kind of video game violence is harmful â€Å"Type B† violence is definitely that kind of video game What is the worth of video games? â€Å"I just don't understand the point of those games,† many say. Well, that's a valid comment from someone who has never played a game. Anyone who had played a game for any decent amount of time would understand their appeal. They provide hours of entertainment, improve hand-eye coordination, act as a form of communication and help people learn helpful skills. On top of that, many people believe that games provide a positive way to purge anger and frustration. The entertainment value of some video games is tremendous. Just ask anyone who has played Threewave Capture the Flag for Quake, or spent sleepless nights feeding their chronic addiction to Civilization. Raven Software's Jon Zuk had this to say about video games as entertainment: â€Å"Some games are time-wasting entertainment, and that's not a bad thing. The people who complain loudest about games should probably sit down and play one. They might (GASP! ) actually enjoy it,†. Games are a good way for kids to develop good hand-eye coordination and good timing. Without killer reflexes and good aim, one will find some difficulty trying to conquer any action game. Killer reflexes and good aim not only serve to make you better at video games but can help in sports Video games are a good way for people to communicate and make friends. In the words of Dave Taylor, owner of Crack dot Com, â€Å"You can make friends. Ever played a net game and then told stories about how you managed to sneak the commando in unseen and blow up their power plant in C&C? Or retold the beautiful long-range kill you made with a rocket from high atop a ledge in Quake? You can also make friends by going out and drinking beer, smoking cigarettes and partying all night, which can lead to liver disease, lung cancer and depression. As stupid and worthless as some people make games sound, I think games are a more intellectual alternative than the standard way to make friends. † Games can also provide a lot of valuable skills that are transferrable to every day life. With the exclusion of learning how to circle strafe and rocket jump, games can teach you a variety of useful tidbits. Dave Taylor has this to say about the kind of things you can pick up by playing games: Adventure games can teach problem solving skills, useful for learning how to research and how to â€Å"get things done†. Strategy games can teach the value of resource management a skill valuable in all sorts of leadership positions. Action games can improve your reflexes, a skill valuable to the military and to athletics. † Games are a method of eliminating stress and anger in a productive and harmless way. Video games may actually be part of the solution rather than the problem. Richard P. Gray a. k. a Levelord says â€Å"†¦ I don't take any grand pride in enjoying the misfortune of others, even if â€Å"they† are â€Å"evil†, but I can not deny this passion is there and I think ignoring it may even be worse than riding it down abstract, non-damaging avenues. † There are many different types of games, and not all of them are violent in the slightest. Why then, do violent games make up the majority of games on store shelves? The reason is not necessarily that game companies are trying to capitalize on violence (Although sometimes that is the case), but that they are limited by design to create violent games. In the words of master game designer Warren Spector, â€Å"We're doing the best we can with the tools available to us in an infant medium. The fact is, it's insanely hard to mimic human behavior on a computer. Heck, it's almost impossible to make a character walk in a convincing manner. It's really hard to create a world simulation deep enough to allow players much freedom to choose how they're going to react to a situation – it's pretty much limited to kill that thing over there, or talk to it (And even talking is way hard†¦ ). On the other hand, it's really easy to put a monster on the screen, tell it to dodge around a bit and let the player kill it†¦ † â€Å"†¦ I guarantee you will see games where the layer can do more than kill things – we're getting closer every day. † In conclusion, the research done in this project suggests that games are slightly more (To paraphrase the old Transformers cartoon) than what meets the eye. Like Shakespeare was persecuted for his works and like movies and television took their share of heat, video games are simply the newest thing to have all of society's ills piled on top of them. In the future, things will change.