Middle East History Free Essays

The war between Iran and Iraq occurred when Iraq invaded Iran in September 1980 in an attempt to regain border territory it had ceded in 1975. Iraqi forces seized control of some Arab-populated border regions. After Iran drove Iraqi forces put of most of the invaded territory in 1982, the war turned into a stalemate. We will write a custom essay sample on Middle East History or any similar topic only for you Order Now A cease fire went into effect in 1988. The factors that had let to this war were likely because of the conflict between the two countries regarding the border debate or argument. In Iraq, internal guerilla warfare began in 1961, when Iraq refused to grant self-government to its Kurdish tribesmen in the north. The in 1963, their leader was overthrown was overthrown in a military revolt. The new government followed a socialist, Arab nationalist policy, but was wracked by rivalry between factions supporting and opposing Egypt’s President, Nasser. A peace with the Kurds was concluded in 1966, but skirmishes continued. Iraq was a member of the Arab Alliance that was defeated in the Six Day War against Israel in June, 1967. However, few Iraqi troops were involved in combat. In 1968, the Kurds resumed hostilities against the government. In 1970, Kurdish autonomy was recognized, but many Kurds, supported by aid from Iran, continued the Rebellion. During the 1970’s, large increases in oil prices made it possible for the shah to accelerate the modernization of Iran and to build up the country’s military strength on a massive scale. In 1978 protests over the shah’s rule began to grow. Much of the opposition came from conservative religious leaders, led by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who opposed modernization because it was contrary to traditional Islamic ways. Many opponents, however, some of them socialists and Communists, demanded a more equal distribution of wealth and an end to dictatorial rule. In 1974, the country started giving weapons for war to the Kurds. In 1975 Iran agreed to end its aid to the Kurds in exchange for some disputed territory. The Kurdish rebellion then collapsed. Saddam wanted to occupy Iran’s near to the oil and its feeble military which Saddam though for revolutionary disorder. The aggressor was Saddam Hussein. Because he wanted that the river which they were arguing will be owned by Iraqi- Arab, to bring back the essence through the history and that they had all the rights over the river. The only thing that hinders or stops the two countries from fighting was the Arvand Rud waterway, where in they had an agreement. Saddam wanted to display to the whole nations his conquering of other place but was just using the area of dispute as a front. Reference; Marr, Phebe. The Modern History of Iraq (West view Press, 1985). How to cite Middle East History, Essay examples

Effects of Restaurant Environment-Free-Samples-Myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about the Effects of Restaurant Environment on Consumer Behavior. Answer: Background of Study: The power of atmospherics in the context of marketing is based on the principle that the environmental design is supported on means like sounds, colors, temperature and layout, stimulating the perceptual and poignant responses in consumers and influencing their behavior (Hyun and Kang 2014). There are three segments of atmospherics that is being termed as SERVICESCAPE: spatial design, ambient conditions and functionality. Spatial layout submits the ways in which equipment, furnishings and machinery are being prearranged, the size and shape of the same along with the spatial relationship existing among them (Garson 2013). Functionality indicates those items ability in facilitating the performance and goal accomplishments. A layout is said to have a direct outcome on the perception of quality for consumers, levels of excitement and an indirect upshot to return o the same place (Parsa et al. 2015). Ambient conditions are stated to be the ethereal facet that has a tendency to influence t he senses of non-visual nature and might have a subconscious consequence on consumer. This takes into account the factors like noise, music, temperature and lighting. Things like the music tempo affects the spending time of the consumers at their tables. The feasibility of the project lies in the fact that it would look to focus on the influencing factor of atmospherics on the behavior of the consumers so that the owners of the restaurants along with managers find this study meaningful and understand the things that plays a major role in attracting the new consumers and retaining the old ones for a longer period of time. Objectives of Study: The overall study objective is to enable the managers and restaurant owners in understanding the key offering of the atmospherics in effecting consumer behavior. The main questions that would accompany the research work would be: What outcome does the environment of restaurant have on behavior of consumers? Will the different intentions of consumers behavior be impacted by various aspects of restaurant atmospherics? Research Problem: The factors that appeals to the preferences of the customers are not the beverage and food, but also the environment for dinning, which plays a major role for the customers to decide where to visit for a meal with family, friends and colleagues. Attention is duly given to not only the pricing factor and the food they eat, but also the provision of enjoyable and probably exciting dining atmosphere (Zhang, Zhang and Law 2014). Moreover, there has been a growing academic interest in the ways atmospherics persuades the behavior of consumers. A large number of studies has gone into focusing of the influences of the environment of restaurants on the consumer behavior in the retail sector. However, only a handful of the studies investigate the impact of atmospherics on the behavior of consumers and satisfaction in hospitality industry, especially in the business of restaurants (Brown 2014). Even though some researchers have been able to conduct surveys for investigating the impact of certain atmospheric dimensions, the study number that abridges the impact of measurement of consumer behavior are inadequate. Design of Study: This study would take into account a targeted telephonic survey among 20 restaurant owners and 10 managers along with 20 customers in and around Sydney that takes care of the above mentioned three factors. Sydney boasts of some big restaurants that faces stiff competition in retaining their customers, so this place provides the perfect background for the survey. All the respondents would be monitored based on the previous six months. Areas of Questioning: The questionnaire would be developed keeping in mind the three that would be tested, the tentative survey topics would take in: Present restaurant environment and consumer behavior Awareness of the restaurant owners and managers about the SERVICESCAPE factor along with things that are essential in providing a consumer with the perfect environment. Rating of the restaurants and the major factors according to the consumers. A brief analysis on the emerging restaurants in Sydney and how much importance they give to these aspects. Each of the respondents would be uncovered to the portrayal with one of the possible situation. This would be resulting in the decipherable sample size for the factor of environment. The overall rating factor of the restaurants as stated in some of the major websites that deals with evaluating various aspects of the restaurants. Expected use of the factors by new restaurants and the value of consumer behavior (high/medium/low). Literature Review: For dealing with the interaction between the responses of the individual along with the environment to the environmental stimuli, there has been a presentation of the well-recognized model in the environmental psychology field. The model of M-R when formed was not being used for the purpose of evaluating the impact of atmospherics on the behavior of consumers in various settings of consumption (Chen, Peng and Hung 2015). The model of M-R displayed that the responses to the environment can be segmented as either approach or the avoidance activities. Environments of favorable nature are said to root the approach behavior, inclusive of the satisfaction enhancement with the task being performed along with the aspiration to stay and communicating to others. Conversely, environment of unfavorable nature are declared to source the avoidance behavior. Moreover, some of the researchers have found that the atmospherics have been directly affecting the behavior of the consumer. The persuasion of the atmospherics of restaurants on the intentions of behavior is generally been mediated by emotions and apparent value. Nonetheless, certain researchers have found that consumer behaviors are not been directly affected by the physical environment. Physical environment is stated to have no considerable return purpose in a undeviating way, instead its influence was found to be interceded through the satisfaction of the consumers (Bujisic, Hutchinson and Parsa 2014). The main of this research proposal is in investigating the effects of the environment of the restaurant on the behavior of consumer (Solomon 2014). Several journals on the related topic have been taken up that are applicable to the existing relationship between the consumers behavioral intent and the environment of the restaurant. Methodology Design: The main aim of this research study is to find out the impact of the environment of restaurant on the behavior of consumers. For obtaining of the primary data, the self-administered questionnaire would be distributed to the owners, managers and customers in some of the selected restaurants in and around Sydney. The customers who would be questioned would either be waiting for their turn to check-in or the ones who are about the leave the restaurants after having their meals. This approach would be ensuring the fact that the consumers would be offering their responses that can precisely reflect their assessment of the dining incident. The prepared questionnaire would be measuring the perception of the participants of the environment of the restaurants along with the behavioral intention of the consumers. There would be two set of questionnaire for this research study, one that would be intended towards the restaurant managers and owners, and the other one for the consumers. Data Analysis: For this research work, factor analysis will be performed along with the factors that are mostly associated to the total rating of the restaurants that would be recognized. On the basis of such factors, a perpetual plan would be generated in displaying visually the existing relationship between the current environmental factors and the behavior of consumers, based on the factors and their perception (Jang, Chung and Kim 2015). A gap evaluation would also be performed by the researcher in order to understand and highlight the potential differences in the projected image by the atmospheric factors (Jani and Han 2015). Once the survey would be completed, each responses frequency would be computed along with proper summarization. The data analysis would be offering a general idea about the attitude of the consumers to the environment of the restaurant. This research would be beneficial for the managers and owners of restaurants in finding proper ways in developing the satisfaction of the consumers and increasing the profits. Specifications: The estimation of cost of this particular research study would be based on the following supposition: Number of completed interviews: 50 Average length of the interview: 10 minutes for consumers and 20 minutes for the restaurant owners and managers. There would be no open-ended questions Type of sample: Targeted unsystematic or random digits Factor analysis would be taken in, perceptual maps along with the gap analysis. Report Services: Developing of the questionnaire, in combination with the several restaurants in and around Sydney. Generating sample within the target area. Programming of the survey. managing the project and administering of the same. Investigating and overseeing the telephonic (managers and owners) and face-to-face (consumers) interview. Processing of the data and compiling of the statistical tables. Analyzing of the data and preparing of the report. Cost: The cost for conducting of this research would be certainly high, considering the fact that it requires proper amount of time, travelling and materials for conducting of the interviews and analyzing the same. The travelling expenses would be well maintained and would be billed at cost once the research ends. The data collection process needs to be closely monitored for the fact at no time should the actual experience of data collection differ from that of the assumptions and specifications stated within the study. Ethical Consideration: This is another important factor that needs to be maintained by the researcher. There should not be any leakage of the information gathered for this research from the respondents. Complete secrecy needs to be maintained by the researcher. The researcher should be honest with his work and should not be biased on any of the factors while collecting the data, doing which would jeopardize the overall research study. Any kind of biasness from the researcher would be manipulating the research result of the data analysis and the total objective of the research would be inundated. Timing: Once the approval of the final questionnaire comes, the project would involve roughly five to six weeks time as has been outlined below: Programming of the survey along with control of quality: 4-5 days Data collection process: 3.5 weeks Tabulation of the final data: 4 days Final report: 1.5-2 weeks References: Brown, T.A., 2014.Confirmatory factor analysis for applied research. Guilford Publications. Bujisic, M., Hutchinson, J. and Parsa, H.G., 2014. The effects of restaurant quality attributes on customer behavioral intentions.International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management,26(8), pp.1270-1291. Chen, A., Peng, N. and Hung, K.P., 2015. The effects of luxury restaurant environments on diners emotions and loyalty: incorporating diner expectations into an extended Mehrabian-Russell model.International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management,27(2), pp.236-260. Garson, G.D., 2013.Factor analysis. Statistical Associates Publishing. Hyun, S.S. and Kang, J., 2014. A better investment in luxury restaurants: environmental or non-environmental cues?.International Journal of Hospitality Management,39, pp.57-70. Jang, S.Y., Chung, J.Y. and Kim, Y.G., 2015. Effects of environmentally friendly perceptions on customers' intentions to visit environmentally friendly restaurants: An extended theory of planned behavior.Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research,20(6), pp.599-618. Jani, D. and Han, H., 2015. Influence of environmental stimuli on hotel customer emotional loyalty response: Testing the moderating effect of the big five personality factors.International Journal of Hospitality Management,44, pp.48-57. Parsa, H.G., Lord, K.R., Putrevu, S. and Kreeger, J., 2015. Corporate social and environmental responsibility in services: Will consumers pay for it?.Journal of retailing and consumer services,22, pp.250-260. Solomon, M.R., 2014.Consumer behavior: Buying, having, and being(Vol. 10). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Zhang, Z., Zhang, Z. and Law, R., 2014. Relative importance and combined effects of attributes on customer satisfaction.The Service Industries Journal,34(6), pp.550-566.

[WEBINAR] Put Your Content to Work!

Quality content is the key ingredient of a successful digital marketing strategy, and every brand wants to leverage it for maximum results. But many businesses are still struggling to get it right. If you’re not 100% satisfied with the results of your content marketing strategy, you’re not alone. The difficulties we see small to medium sized business owners constantly struggling with are often related to content marketing. How do you optimize your content strategy, even when you’re on a tight budget? Which content formats should you focus on to engage potential customers and generate better leads? These questions and more will be addressed in our first exclusive webinar of 2015: â€Å"Put Your Content to Work! How to Get the Most from Your Content Strategy† Date: Thursday, July 23rd at 10AM PST/1PM EST To produce quality content on a consistent basis, you need more than luck; you need a winning content strategy. Learn how to maximize your content marketing strategy now and for years to come. Topics we will cover: – What is content marketing and why is it important to your business? – The essential elements of every successful content marketing strategy – Concrete examples of how to build your own content strategy on any budget Reserve Your Seat Here Constant Content Teams Up With Qzzr We’ll be teaming up with Qzzr – an awesome, dynamic young company that has created the world’s simplest, most beautiful and mobile-friendly quiz creation tool. Put simply, they make it easy for anyone to create shareable quizzes that can be embedded on websites and used on social media to drive social traffic and generate qualified leads. Speakers: Chris Reid, Web Content Specialist – Constant Content Chris works with numerous clients to build content strategies that both engage customers and increase search engine rankings. He constantly finds unique ways to enhance his clients’ content strategy and helps match them with the perfect Constant Content writers. Eric Hoppe, eCommerce Manager – Constant Content During his five years with the company, Eric has helped hundreds of clients develop content and execute content marketing plans, as well as navigate the ever-changing content marketing landscape. He’s seen various content marketing tactics rise and fall in popularity and adjusted to more Google algorithm and policy updates than he can count. Owen Fuller, Chief Qwizard – Qzzr Owen Fuller is the Chief Qwizard at Qzzr where he works with top publishers, brands, and agencies, including Yahoo!, NBC, LinkedIn, Ogilvy and Marketo. Qzzr makes it easy to create, embed and share quizzes with the world. Prior to Qzzr, Owen built and sold Fit Marketing, an inbound marketing agency that rode 100%+ annual growth over five years to recognition as one of Utah’s fastest growing companies. Who Should Attend Whether you’re a small business owner, marketer, publisher, social media manager, blogger, or writer you’ll learn how to improve your content strategy for the long term, with tips and tricks from experienced content marketing professionals. The webinar will last about 45 minutes because we want to devote time afterwards to a QA session. This means you can ask us anything about our business, your business, content marketing, or whatever you can think of. So start jotting down some questions now and remember to book your place. Register here to reserve a seat:Reserve Your Seat We look forward to seeing you there!

Are we living in an Age of Empire

Are we living in an Age of Empire The term â€Å"Empire† has a common meaning of the notion of a state headed by an emperor or a monarch together with culturally distinct people. The most salient political in the empire were customarily between noble elite and the lower. An Empire is a systematically organized governing organ that formulates and amends state’s policies. Empires act as a bridge between the government and its colonies in overseas countries. An Empire play a significant role in the importation and exportation of products.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Are we living in an Age of Empire? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More An empire can be an official or casual association, in which a nation rules the political dominion of another government. An empire is earned through dictating. It is also achieved by using supreme power, taking sides, unions, fiscal manipulations and communal or literal reliance. Imperialism is any course of action together with martial belligerence through which a state builds and implements its authorities over other countries. Imperialism is the segregation and sustenance of an economical, cultural, and defensive affiliation between two or more countries. The primary objective of modern imperialism is to face out slavery, which act as a way manipulating and employing free labor in abroad countries. Imperialism is the act of emphasizing and investing in the local economy in order to increase the output and earning per capita in the country. This will help the state to exercise her political rule over other states to control and dictate their markets. Examples of empires include Akkadian, Babylonian, Bornao, British, Egyptian, Median, Ottoman,Oyo, Roman and the Soviet Empire. The British Empire has remained the single source of investment before the Second World War. The export of capital from Britain for investment in colonial territories was estimated to be roughly five percent of earning per capita in the period between 1871 and 1915. The averaged national income increased to six percent between the periods 1904 to 1914. It later increased to ten percent in the subsequent years. The British Empire ruled many overseas countries. South American was a British and its counties include Falklands Island and British Guiana. Honduras is a Central American state which colonized by the British. West Indian countries such as Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad, Grenada, Bahamas and Bermuda made up the British Empire. Some Africa states such as Gambia, South Africa, Somalia, Sudan, Egypt, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Sierra Leon, Nigeria and Gambia were colonized by the British. Indian Oceans counties such as Tristan da Cunha, St. Helena and Ascension made up the British Empire. Pacific Islands consisting of Solomon Islands, New Hebrides, Tonga and Fiji were British colonies. Other countries include Hong Kong, Singapore, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India, New Zealand, Ca nada and Australia.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More British imported more commodities from overseas. She exported less and her expenditure was more than the income. This led to an existence of a trade deficit between imports and exports. The British Empire played a key role in reclaiming the economic instability by reducing the trade deficit. The empire controlled the inflow of goods from India. The imperial government had the mandate to dictate, force the citizens to pay taxes and lay siege to the industries. The governors stopped the boats, disrespect their economic, social, cultural and personal rights. The British Empire promised to maintain a well-equipped Navy before declaring war. The governors claimed that if they did not set free the territories of their Indian and American associates from the French imperialism, their land and wealth would be compromised or taken. Th e British Empire controlled the whole of Indian land and other hundred of thousands of people in the overseas. A combination of economic factors and the strong navy enabled Britain to emerge as Europe’s strongest nation. The Roman Empire consisted of three spheres. The first sphere is the outer ring of the frontier province in which the defensive armies were stationed. There was an inner ring of relatively rich tax-exporting provinces such as Egypt, Syria, Minor, Asia, Northern Africa, Southern Gaul and Spain. The Roman Empire also had a Center ring consisting of the city of Rome and Italy, the seat of the court and of the central government, which like the armies of the frontiers, consumed large volume of taxes. The Roman Empire model implies an increased monetization of the Roman economy, the commercialization of the Roman exchange rate, and elongation of the links between producers and consumers. The growth of the bankers, shippers, and traders propelled the level of urban ization. Even as the sphere of monopoly enlarged, the Roman Empire had no influence on the printing of money and minting of silver coins by the conquered states. In the 70Bc, Spain began using Roman coins as a means of exchange. Some trade agreements include Bilateral, Multilateral, regional (NAFTA and EU), non-regional (AESAN) and Global (from GAAT to WTO). The roles of World Trade Organization (WTO) include promoting world trade, providing a framework for trade negotiations and providing a mechanism for resolution of trade disputes. The United States of America holds seventeen percent of the total votes required to make changes. The U.S therefore, plays a key role in voting in favor or against trade agreements or disputes.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Are we living in an Age of Empire? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The United States has voted against new international agreements and rejected the unilateral v iolation of old agreements. Agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol on climate and the international criminal court go against the interest of humans and therefore, they have been rejected. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a firm owned by a hundred and eighty-eight states trading together in order to enhance international economic cooperation, stabilize the fiscal and monetary aspects, promote global trade, increase employment level, boost economic progress, and face out deficiency around the world. The World Bank is a global financial institution that seeks to provide financial and technical assistance to the underdeveloped countries. The mission of the bank is to reduce poverty. The period between1997 and 1998, a research showed that African countries’ gross domestic product paid to the International Monetary Fund was estimated to be nine hundred and fifty thousand dollars. This was comparatively more than what the bank loaned to the continent. In 1998, internationall y underdeveloped nations owed the lenders from private banks to the World Bank approximately three trillion dollars. In 1997, the countries owed a hundred and fifty billion dollars. Unless the International Monetary Fund approves or adheres to the economic policies recommended, the underdeveloped nations may not automatically get the money they borrowed from the lenders. Some countries have been classified as poor and relentlessly indebted low incomers. Most of these counties are found in the sub-Saharan Africa. The gross domestic product increased from twenty-eight percent to Chad in the year 1987 to sixty percent in the year 1997. Tanzania’s budget is greatly diminished by the payment money owed to various lenders. This is estimated to be five times greater than the country’s expenditure on the primary education. The life expectancy in Niger is forty-seven years. Niger’s expenditure on the payment of debt is greater than the expenditure on education and medica tion. The sub-Saharan countries expenditure on the payment of debt is five times more than the expenditure on medication. The United States of America has a great military influence. U.S regulates global policies by using commands. It has implemented a strong navy in the sea to monitor the movement of sea vessels and fight pirates. The U.S has promised sustenance of the counties lying from Korea to Israel.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The U.S controls the global economy and the balance of trade. The U.S fulfills the needs of everyone in the world. The budget of the American military has been high with a gross domestic of five percent. This is high, compared to other economies for example China, Britain, Japan whose gross domestic products are two percent, three percent and one percent respectively. George W. Bush said the United States of America is a country dedicated delivering freedom to everyone despite the background affiliations. He said that America do not have any intentions to establish an Empire It is true that we are living in an age if empire. This is because of the decentralized system of governance, large flows of trade or large scale of inter-regional flows, the transfer of resources from the periphery to the centre, specialization, circulation of different currencies, and huge military spending and application of force by the governments.

Phase 4 Individual Project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Phase 4 Individual Project - Assignment Example In cases where the producing the duplicates is burdensome or exists as a public record, producing an original copy is not a must. Another exemption applies when the parties to a trial admit to the existence of the evidence through a written record. Judges have the power to determine whether a piece of evidence satisfy the rules guiding the use of duplicates as outlined in rules number 1001 to 1008, and 1004 to 1008. Judges derive these powers by virtue of rule number 1008. However there is an exception to these rules which allows the jury to look into the evidence to determine whether an original copy of the duplicate ever existed or the evidence in question is an original copy. The jury also reviews whether the unoriginal duplicate represents correctly the facts and opinion’s contained in the original copy. These rules are implemented by the United States court system for the purpose of proving the content of a written document, photography and recording. The rationale in the application of these rules is to ensure that the best available evidence is used in a trial (Garland, 2006). This is to avoid inaccuracies that arise in the following scenarios, In the case Olmstead v. United States of America, there are restrictions in the use of wiretapping as evidence in a trial court. This case occurred in 1928, and involved the legality of producing wire tapped private conversation as pieces of evidence by United States law enforcement officers. The use of these pieces of evidence was examined according to the provisions of the Fourth and Fifth Amendment of the American constitution. These sections outline the rights of the defendants in a trial. The Supreme Court was of the opinion that use of such evidence does not violate the provisions of the Fourth and Fifth Amendment concerning the rights of the defendants. The decision of the Supreme

America Between Dream and Reality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

America Between Dream and Reality - Essay Example The dream held that citizens had rights, including the right to life, the pursuit of happiness, and liberty. Such rights were believed to have come from God and were neither derived nor conferred by the state. The dream provided that every man was an air of dignity, legacy, and worth (Dyson, 2000). In reality, citizens have professed for great democratic principles, but have failed in the practice of such principles. America is still challenged in achieving its dream more than ever because the nation is not permitted for an anemic democracy. The price that America is obliged to pay for the perpetual oppression of minority groups, may lead to its own destruction. The existence of a dream is necessary to challenge America on the need to ensure justice, brotherhood, and love among the citizens. Martin Luther had declared his mission of saving America’s soul. He used protests and demonstrations in order to bring out redemptive measures that would heal America. His concerns were pa rticularly revolving around issues of race. The picture chosen describes Martin Luther King Jr. during his famous speech â€Å"I have a dream†. The way he was acting during his speech reinforced what he was saying as he had a very strong posture. You can see from Martin Luther King's body language that he was quiet and grounded as he conveyed his discourse. Despite the fact that you cant see his feet as he's talking, Id envisions him to be intensely planted to the ground, with a strong carriage that says, "Here I am. I'm not moving. Right away, you come to me." No one from the 200 000 people that were at the Washington rally could have stopped his speech or made put him off track if they tried because of how strongly determined he was during it.  

The Related Literature And Studies English Language Essay

The Related Literature And Studies English Language Essay Communication is an integral part of human existence and development. Engaging in it is inevitable particularly in a business setting as it is relative to promoting an idea, product, service, or organization to create value or make a sale (Khan). Successful businesses recognize the value of communication in the workplace which requires proficiency in oral and written communication skills. The latter is engineered to display information effectively on the page in order to get results, to inform, to request, to entertain, or to persuade (Holloway). In fact, 90% of all business transactions involve written communications (DePompa). Hence effective business communication demands ideas, thoughts, and concepts to be expressed and presented in an orderly, formal, and effective manner. English as Second Language (ESL) learners perceive business writing skill as far more challenging than that of oral business communication. The former requires the use of written English based on standards set by prescriptive authorities associated with publishing houses and schools (www.wikipedia.com). Teachers, like the researcher, are faced with the challenge of addressing students lack of business writing skills which emanates from their confusion and difficulty in understanding the concepts governing business writing. Business writing is a highly demanding process that necessitates an organization in the development of thoughts, ideas, and accuracy in word choices. The most common problem that confronts teachers of the writing class does not lie so much on what to ask students to write about; the difficulty is more on how to motivate the students to write interesting and effective materials. Writing for its own sake is a drag, and produces boring output (Ikeguchi). Writing only becomes an interesting activity when the teacher knows how to go about teaching it. One very important point the teacher can consider to increase motivation is to actually become a very good supporter and facilitator in the entire writing process. In this regard, the use of newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of business writing is can be considered. The use of newspaper articles can be an effective intervention to implement in the writing-learning process because it can easily be adapted in Business Communication and Writing class. Newspaper articles offer situations that students are likely to encounter in real life. Through newspaper articles, they can use their experiences and prior knowledge to respond appropriately, and even creatively. This intervention can also help students with low English proficiency to arouse interest so they can actively participate in the class activities. The use of newspaper articles motivates students to write what they want, what they need, and what they feel. Because of the increased responsibility to participate through a variety of writing exercises, students may gain confidence in using the target language in general. Students are more responsible managers of their own learning (Larsen Freeman). This paper intends to find out whether the use of newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of business writing skills of iACADEMY students is effective. Background of the Study Having the mindset of directly addressing the need for ready-to-hire graduates/applicants of both the information technology (IT) and business industries, Mr. Mitch Andaya, former Dean of the College of Computer Studies in DLSU and Vice-President of STI Colleges Head Office, together with the other founders, established the Information and Communications Technology Academy, now better known as iACADEMY, in March of 2002. The school acquired the first and third floors of the PhilCare Building in Ayala Avenue corner Dela Rosa Street in Makati City. At present, the school occupies the third to the fifth floor of the building that has been renamed iACADEMY. iACADEMY offers Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (BSCS) with Specialization in Software Engineering, Bachelor of Science in Information Technology (BSIT) with Specialization in Digital Arts, and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) with Specialization in Marketing and Advertising Management, Bachelor of Science in Animation (BSA), Bachelor of Science in Game Development (BSGD), Bachelor of Arts in Multimedia Arts and Design (AB MMA), and Bachelor of Arts in Fashion Design (ABFD). iACADEMYs library houses a good selection of hard-to-find and imported books, a generous number of local text books and reference materials, and half a dozen desktop computers equipped with the internet, the latest software for IT-related courses and electronic books (e-books) encompassing a variety of subjects to address the needs of its students across all degrees. It also has been on daily subscription with two of the more prominent Philippine broadsheets, the Manila Bulletin and the Philippine Star. Several copies of the daily issues of these broadsheets are accessible to everyone who works for or studies in the institution. However, based upon the school librarians personal observation, only a handful of individuals, most of whom are faculty members, take the time to read these newspapers. Students become interested with these learning materials only when the need arises, like when assignments necessitate them to read and photocopy articles in these newspapers. This study, which aims to improve the students business writing skills, also hopes to make students become active newspaper readers after they discover the real-life learning opportunities it can offer. The advent of computer and internet technology may have invited people to forgo handwritten letters, but definitely not letter writing itself. The existence of the computer and internet in fact has revolutionized letter writing, particularly its speed in creation, transmission, and feedback. And, with the development of electronic mailing system (e-mail), people probably write more than they actually used to. The internet may have decreased the interest of people to perform the task of hand writing but it has also increased peoples preference for written communication (Bly). Two decades or so ago, most managers dictated letters which their secretaries typed. Today, more professionals personally transcribe their letters as computer literacy, including a working knowledge on MS Word and Excel has become a basic managerial requirement (Bly). This goes to show that there is an increase in the number of individuals who are actively performing the skill of writing everyday; therefore, a call for more emphasis on teaching and learning writing skills is an imperative. Majority of iACADEMYs student population comes from the upper-middle to the high-class members of the society. Most of them are graduates of private or exclusive high schools. However, this alone cannot be taken as a guarantee of their English proficiency, both in oral and written communication. Business Communication and Writing course falls under the umbrella of English for Specific Purpose (ESP) course; therefore, it requires a higher level of English proficiency. This is why the course is set as the third English course to be taken by students while the first two English courses are its prerequisites. iACADEMY English faculty are alarmed with their students poor writing performance. These students barely pass or even fail their English subjects because they exhibit below average level of competency, particularly in writing; and when asked why they performed rather poorly, they blamed their very little exposure to the language and uninteresting English subjects as the culprits. English language educators have to admit that ensuring the students improvement in writing performance is in their hands. Writing only becomes an interesting activity when the language educator knows how to go about teaching it and by increasing students motivation in engaging students in the writing process. In this regard, the use of newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of business writing of iACADEMY students is recommended for consideration. In the Philippines, there are very limited studies related to the topic. The researcher would therefore attempt to make a modest contribution to this area through a different approach by the use of newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of business writing. https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt_z9dw0vr6EOM0wIGh7Fo2hL_ih6OI91clIsUxiKrn9LxW3gHchYyfaIeQ1nyvLGaOzQr0IZTYefUfVMCsedJrwObVrRSPbhT1Oc2Q7mCcNWNCPL8Pzolw6fkH24hZZiugqxMfJrYHr6y/s1600/iACADEMY.jpg Map of the Location of Information and Communications Technology Academy Figure 1 Theoretical Framework The framework of this research is anchored on two approaches. First is Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) or Communicative Approach (CA) or in its earlier stage, Notional Functional Approach; and second is the Craftsmanship approach in Business Communication. The CLT approach is the result of the works of educators and linguists known as the Council of Europe language experts (Bryam) in the early 1970s and was further developed by David Wilkins, a prominent linguist who used the term communicative approach in 1974 (Wilkins). It can be further traced to the work of Chomsky in the 1960s, when he advanced the two notions of competence and performance as a reaction against the prevalent audio-lingual method of the time. The central theoretical concept and goal of the CLT approach is communicative competence, a term introduced into discussions of language use and second or foreign language learning together with communicative language teaching in the early 1970s (Savignon). Communicative competence can be defined in terms of the expression, interpretation, and negotiation of meaning and looks to both psycholinguistic and socio-cultural perspectives in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research to account for its development (Savignon). Teaching writing in the SLA context is one of the main objectives of foreign language teaching and learning. It involves a preparatory phase known as the decision-making phase. This phase entails defining the rhetorical problem: establishing a purpose for writing, determining the audience and a topic. Secondly, the ensuing writing processes are then determined and established. These processes involve the planning, transcribing, and reviewing of the composed work (Lee). The CLT approach to writing is an effective approach because it allows students to draw from their prior knowledge, actively navigate their way through the various writing processes with the appropriate scaffolding, and finally present their understanding of the content. One application of CLT approach is the use of authentic materials. Proponents of CLT have advocated the use of authentic real-life materials in the classroom which include language-based such as newspapers, magazines, advertisements, or graphic and visual sources in which communicative activities can be built (Jin, Application of Communicative Approach in College English Teaching). The range of exercise types and activities compatible with CLT is unlimited. Moreover, it is not assumed in this approach that the teacher is the center of all classroom activities (Al-Mutawa); therefore, the CLT is a learner-centered approach to language learning; and that the teachers and learners motivation and positive attitude are crucial for effective teaching and learning. Finally, as each classroom is different and is composed of different types of learners, several techniques and strategies may be used to address individual learner differences within the SLA environment (Lee). The second theory that this study will use as framework is the Rhetorical Theory in Business Communication. This theory declares that the communication process is neither a single nor a linear process; but is rather continuous making the entire communication process clear to all parties involved. One of the major approaches that the rhetorical theory offers to business communication is the Craftsmanship approach, which is based upon the well-crafted sales letter. It posits that the purpose of the letter is to convince, inform, and arouse its readers interest; therefore, it should be written with the you attitude, wherein the writer attempts to identify with the readers needs, perspective, language, and desires. This then becomes the master strategy for planning means of stimulating the readers faculties in various letter situations (Brooks). The you attitude is given due attention and emphasis by George Burton Hotchkiss. He says that what is true of sales letters is equally true of all other kinds of business letters. He further suggests that the first thing the writer must do is to form the habit of looking at the subject of his message from the readers viewpoint and language; and more importantly, he must get what is called the you attitude. The ideas and concepts in a letter should be expressed from the point of view of the reader. Whatever is said must be expressed in language directed at the reader himself (Hotchkiss and Kilduff). Aside from the you attitude, principle, Hotchkiss also adds five concepts that should always be observed when writing a business letter correctness, clearness, conciseness, courteousness, and character (Hotchkiss and Kilduff). These concepts are known as the, 5 Cs of business writing, should be evident in any type of business letter. Conceptual Framework The researcher has come up with a conceptual framework (see Fig. 1) based upon the theoretical framework of this study. Experimental (treatment) and control groups are included in the framework design. The process to be used for the experimental (treatment) group will be from a pretest to the use of newspaper articles to the posttest that will provide data for the validation of the hypotheses. The control group will undergo the process of a pretest to the conventional pedagogy to the posttest that will provide data for validation of hypotheses. The teaching methodology to be applied for this group is lecture-discussions. Experimental Group Control Group Pretest Pretest Conventional Teaching Conventional Teaching Posttest Use of Newspaper Articles as Intervention Posttest Improved Business Writing Skills Research Paradigm Figure 2 Statement of the Problem The main purpose of the study was to look into the effectiveness of using newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of business writing performance in the Business Communication and Writing class of iACADEMY during the third trimester of school year 2011-2012. More specifically, the study aimed to answer the following sub-problems: Based on the 5 Cs of writing, what were the writing performances of the experimental and control groups in the following: Pretest Posttest Was there any significant difference between the pretest and the posttest writing performance of the two groups: Experimental group Control group Was there any significant difference in the pretest writing performance of the two groups: Experimental group Control group Was there any significant difference in the posttest writing performance of the two groups: Experimental group Control group Hypotheses: There is no significant difference between the pretest and the posttest writing performance of the experimental group. There is no significant difference between the pretest and the posttest writing performance of the control group. There is no significant difference in the pretest writing performance of the experimental and control groups. There is no significant difference in the posttest writing performance of the experimental and control groups. Scopes and Limitations This study focused on determining the effects of using newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of business writing performance of iACADEMY students. The research subjects were taken from two heterogeneous groups of students enrolled at the Information and Communications Technology Academy (iACADEMY) in Makati City during the third semester of school year 2011-2012 and who were officially enrolled in ENG103 Business Communication and Writing course. The lecture-discussions for this study were based on the ENG103 (Business Communication and Writing) syllabus designed by the researcher three weeks prior to the start of the third trimester. The institution where he teaches allows members of the faculty to modify the course syllabus provided that such modifications are geared towards better delivery of the much needed learning of the students. Both experimental and control group were provided with the same lectures but with differences in the pedagogical approach. The control group was given only the lecture presentations and practice drills while the experimental group had newspapers articles integrated in the class activities in addition to the usual lecture presentations and practice drills. The newspaper articles chosen by the researcher typified the following principles of CLT approach (Jin, Application of Communicative Approach in College English Teaching): (1) Communicative Principle; (2) Task Principle; and (3) Meaningfulness Principle. Significance of the Study The individuals, who can benefit from this study, include the students, the language and the literature instructors, the curriculum designers, and future researchers. Students. The implementation of the study will benefit college students since newspapers can help them develop not only their reading and speaking skills, grammar, and vocabulary, but also their writing skill. Newspaper articles are considered to be authentic learning materials that provide real-life learning that motivates students to utilize previous life experiences and prior knowledge of a given topic. It can also serve as a model for proper execution of the writing tasks. Language Arts Instructors. The use of newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of the business writing skills of students gives English instructors more up-to-date teaching materials that are readily accessible to them and their students. Newspaper articles can also serve as good examples for students to improve their writing skills. Curriculum Designers. Inevitably, academicians who focus on innovating designs of the English curriculum would need to find better if not pioneering approaches to teaching English as a second language. It is in this light that such professionals might want to consider including and utilizing newspaper articles in developing curricula that would focus on both language and literature. Other researchers. This study can open new doors for researchers to investigate the effects of the use of newspaper articles in the improvement of the writing performance of students in the English classes, and probably in other disciplines as well, such as in science, history, and values education. Definition of Terms The following terms are defined operationally and conceptually in the study: Authentic Materials. These are materials which involve language naturally occurring as communication in native-speaker contexts of use, or those selected contexts where Standard English is the norm. Business Communication. This is sharing of information between people within an enterprise that is performed for the commercial benefit of the organization. In addition, business communication can also refer to how a company shares information to promote its product or services to potential consumers. Business Communication Skill. This is the ability to convey information to another effectively and efficiently. Business managers with good verbal, non-verbal and written communication skills help facilitate the sharing of information between people within a company for its commercial benefit. Character. This is both an intellectual and emotional quality of the business letter that expresses the writers unique personality in a very natural way, with due regard for his subject and his reader, making the letter a more adequate substitute for personal representative. Clearness. This is an intellectual quality of the business letter that shows its quality of impression and is therefore always to be judged from the readers viewpoint. The writer always knows what he means if he means anything at all. If the reader, however, does not know what a statement means, such a statement lacks this quality of clarity. Communication. This is the two-way process by which information is being conveyed between two individuals, a sender and a receiver, through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior in order to reach mutual understanding and create a shared meaning. Communicative Competence. It is a situational ability to set realistic and appropriate goals and to maximize their achievement by using knowledge of self, other, context, and thereby to generate adaptive communication performances. Communicative Principle. This principle uses activities that involve real communication situations that promote learning. Conciseness. This is an intellectual quality of the business letter that demands as little as possible of the readers time and gives the kind of service that builds goodwill. Control group. This is a group of students to be used as standard comparison in a control experiment. Conventional Pedagogy. This is the standard way of providing learning to the students at iACADEMY, which incorporates PowerPoint presentations with lecture-discussions. Correctness. This is both an intellectual and emotional quality of the business letter. It is an intellectual quality because the words, spelling, grammar, and punctuation must all be in conformity with established usage. It is also an emotional quality because incorrectness distracts and irritates, and arouses contempt because it gives a bad suggestion of ignorance, carelessness, or haste on the part of the writer. Courteousness. This is an emotional quality of the business letter that is based upon consideration for the readers feelings and personality by the studious avoidance of any idea that would offend. A writer should have no difficulty in securing this quality if he has a genuine recognition of the readers equality with himself. ENG 103. This is the course code of Business Communication and Writing, which is the third English subject needed to be taken by the students after accomplishing the prerequisite English courses Communication Arts 101 and Oral Communications with Public Speaking. Experimental group. This is a group of students that will under study to determine the effects of using newspaper articles as intervention in business writing performance Learner-centered Approach. This is an approach to education focusing on the needs, abilities, interests, and learning styles of the students with the teacher as a facilitator of learning, rather than those of others involved in the educational process, such as teachers and administrators. Lecture-Discussion. This is a teaching model that uses what students already know by building their own background; presents information in a systematic manner; and uses teacher questioning to involve students actively in the learning process. Meaningfulness Principle. This involves language that is meaningful to the learner supports the learning process. Newspaper Article. This is a written work published in print for the purpose of propagating the news, research results, academic analysis, or debate in a scheduled publication such as the broadsheets. Posttest. This is an achievement test that will be used to identify the students level of improvement in their writing skills upon attainment of learning in the given lecture-discussions and activities performed in class. Pretest. This is a diagnostic test which aims to determine the students preparedness in beginning a new course of study. The test helps in the assessment of the student needs in learning the topics to be covered in the instructional design. Proficiency. It is mastery of a specific behavior or skill demonstrated by consistently superior performance, measured against established or popular standards. Second Language Acquisition (SLA). This is the process by which people of a first language learn a second language in addition to their native language. Task principle. This principle involves activities in which language is used to carry out meaningful tasks to promote learning. Writing rubric. This is an assessment tool that attempts to communicate particular level of expected qualities in writing performance areas specifically based upon the 5 Cs of Business Writing. Chapter 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES Presented in this chapter are the foreign and local literatures and studies which are relevant to the present study because such contain written reviews or commentaries of other researchers, theorists, and professionals with regard to the use of newspaper articles as intervention in the improvement of business writing. As a result of some limitations, the researcher acknowledges the fact that there is a possibility that other relevant literatures are still unread, either due to time constraint or distance issues of the location of the resource materials. Despite this discrepancy, the researcher tries to exhaust, to its fullest capabilities, the internet that seems to augment and provide sufficient information to supplement the library materials available. Foreign Literature J.C. Richards (2006) states that the ever-growing demand for good communication skills in the English language has created a huge demand for teaching English and an enormous demand for quality language teaching materials and resources. Learners today set themselves the demanding goal of being able to master English on a high proficiency level. Even employers demand that members of the workforce exhibit good English language skills, both oral and written. The demand for an appropriate teaching methodology is therefore an imperative (J. C. Richards). According to Carol Rzadkiewicz, communication is vital in an organization because it not only connects members within a specific department but also connects them to those from other departments, from other branches, and, in todays global economy, from around the world. Moreover, communication can make the difference between success and failure for a company. Good communication helps ensure the efficient operation of all levels of an organization, from the lowest to the highest, whereas poor communication often results in inefficiency; and as successful business leaders know, inefficiency equals a loss of productivity and, consequently, a loss of profits (Rzadkiewicz). Lee believes that writing must first be given a clear definition so that a philosophy or an approach to teaching writing in SLA classroom maybe utilized. Writing as communication may be defined as how learners put thoughts down on paper and develop them into some kind of coherent text (p.245) (Lee). Writing skill is a difficult task for it requires prior knowledge of the language components such as morphology, phonology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. These components serve as broader aspects of language for the underlying foundation of language skills like vocabulary, capitalization, syllabification, punctuation, sentence structure, sequential order, and initiation and maintenance of thoughts (Brice). Beare (2012) revealed that for many ESL learners, learning to write fluently in English is much more challenging than learning to speak fluently. Even for advanced level learners, written communications can come much more slowly in English than spoken communications because written communication is more formal; spoken communication allows for more mistakes; less reflection goes into spoken English than written English; and expectations are much higher for formal written English. It is important when teaching written English skills especially for business English to be aware of the challenges that learners face when learning to function in a written English environment and considerations should be given to achieve this. One such consideration is that acquiring speech is an unconscious act, whereas learning to write takes a conscious effort on the part of the learner. Another is that written language must be filtered through a system, which can be phonemic, structural or representative, etc. The individual must not only learn to recognize the meaning of words orally, but also go through a process of transcribing these sounds. Lastly, the process of transcribing requires the learning of other rules and structures thereby cognizing a previously unconscious process (Beare). Widdowson ¼Ã‹â€ 1978 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ °enumenrates two aspects in language; one is rules, such as grammar, that determine correctness, and the other is the performative ability that allows people to undertake meaningful communication. He labels the correctness as usage and the performance as use. Since the language functions systematically and communicatively, both spoken and written modes of language cannot leave out either the grammatical and communicative aspects (Widdowson). Communicative writing can be described as the act of corresponding. Of course, as Widdowson ¼Ã‹â€ 1978 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ °acknowledges, the socially reciprocal setting of the written mode is different from that of the spoken mode because, unlike listeners, readers are not always available for immediate responses or, even worse, for any form of interactions whatsoever. However, communicative writing entails the presence of readers as target audience. The important point is that one can write following grammatical rules, and one can compose in order to communicate with others through writing, yet, if the one does not write with the target audience in mind, composition cannot be an act of communication. According to Richards and Rodgers (1986), the theory of CLT approach is holistic rather than behavioristic. It starts with a theory of language as communication which implies knowledge of the grammatical system as well as performance (Richards and Rodgers). Widdowson (1984) stated that in other words, such competence includes both the usage and use of the language (Widdowson). Richards, J. C. (2006) explains that communicative competence embraces three fundamental dimensions: first, the ability to use linguistic means to realize a variety of language functions; second, the ability to use language appropriately with due consideration of the social context in which communication takes place; and third is the ability to develop strategies to manage the negotiation of meaning. This specification of communicative competence is the hallmark of the CLT approach because it cannot be founding the theoretical framework of any other method of or approach to language teaching (J. C. Richards). The CLT approach to teaching writing in the second language acquisition (SLA) context introduces two essential phases: first, a decision-making phase and a second phase whereby the ensuing writing processes are determined and established (Lee). The decision-making phase entails defining the rhetorical problem. It involves establishing a purpose for writing, determining an audience and a topic, ac