Letter to Newspaper Essay Example for Free

Letter to Newspaper Essay Traditionally adult learners are students who are pursuing education in either, college (undergraduate or graduate degrees), vocational or occupational programs, continuing education or noncredit courses, correspondence courses and tutoring, as well as courses and other educational activities provided by employers, community groups, and other providers (Adult Learner, 2012). The average age of an adult learner is 25 years or older, it usually is a diverse group of people (Adult Learner, 2012). These adult learners can be an independent student, employed full time, a person with dependents, a person who as a result of a death or divorce, is now single and wishes to complete a degree program and a veteran of the United States military (Adult Learner, 2012). There also the lifelong learners who generally have additional responsibilities such as family, career, military, or community, and are seeking a degree or other educational offering to enhance their professional and or personal lives (Adult Learner, 2012). Education is any formally structured learning activity in which there are an instructor and curriculum. According to Bringhamton University (2012), the largest and fastest expanding market segment for higher education is the adult learner. Universities and colleges need to adjust their infrastructure to attract better and serve adult learners. There is less high school graduates entering colleges versus the adult learner (Demographics, 2012). With less traditional aged students and more non-traditional or adult learners there will be less public support, political leverage, and legislative support to finance an educational system that is designed primarily to serve the needs of traditional aged students without considering the special needs of a more age diverse student body (Demographics, 2012). There is a push in Washington for more federal dollars in adult training. They believe the  return on investment (ROI) from adult education and training is positive as billions of dollars could be earned, saved, and pumped back into the struggling economy (Gonzalez, 2011). The argument at capital is that adult education actually saves governments money by reducing societal healthcare, public assistance, and incarceration costs. It also improves and expands the nation’s available pool of workers by helping motivated, but undereducated people get jobs (Gonzalez, 2011). The theory of adult learning is the assumptions about how adults learn. Emphasizes the value of the process of learning in adults (Adult Learning Theory, 2007). Malcom Knowles and American practitioner and theorist of adult education defined is as an art and science of helping adults learn (Adult Learning Theory, 2007). Knowles also defined six adult learning principles as adults are internally motivated and self-directed, adults bring life experiences and knowledge to learning experiences and are goal orientated. They also relevancy oriented and are practical learners who like to be respected when in the classroom (Adult Learning Theory, 2007). As educators, we need to foster the adult learner’s internal motivation to learn. Develop a rapport with the adult learner, encourage them to ask questions and explore concepts. Some adult learners come with years of experience and knowledge, with this as an instructor or teacher we need to harvest this information and have them apply it to their new learning experiences. The need to for effective adult education over the past few years have increased. It is important we support adult learners. As with the increasing adult learning population, we are also increasing our nation’s available pool of workers. It is important that we invest in adult education as it nurture’s creativity, imagination and fulfilling lives. Investing in adult education is also important for families, communities and our country as a whole. Education is an important first step for some adult learners as it is a second chance in learning. Adult education is a great way for students that didn’t finish high school to get their high school diploma and continue on with their lives. Adult education is usually at night, so that the adults who attend it may still continue to go to work. This allows theses adults to continue to progress in their lives while adding more education to their resume and mind. References Becoming familiar with adult learning theory and the six principles of adult learning. (2007). Retrieved from http://www.qotfc.edu.au/resource/?page=65375 Gonzalez, J. (2011). Adult-education leaders visit capitol hill to push for more federal dollars. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/Adult-Education-Leaders-Visit/127448/ The effects of changing demographics on higher education. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.binghamton.edu/cice/documents/NYSTAKeynotePPT.pdf Who is an adult learner? (2012). Retrieved from http://universitycollege.illinoisstate.edu/adult/who.shtml

Napster :: essays research papers

Napster In 1998 a university dropout, Shawn Fenning, nicknamed napster, spent days without sleep in his uncle's office producing a new music-swapping programme now known as napster. Napster is an MP3 file sharing programme that lets you connect to millions of other users world-wide and swap music with them for ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, even Napster itself as a programme is FREE and is available to ANYONE with a PC and the Internet. Napster spreads all types of music ranging from unknown and up and coming bands to famous names like Craig David and Artful Dodger this is all at absolutely NO COST. So as you can imagine as Napster grew more popular than ever its total users topped 50MILLION in November 2000. Nearly 75 percent of college students have downloaded music from the Net, according to a recent study by Greenfield Online, an international research firm. Nearly two-thirds of the 1,135 college students surveyed say they download music as a way to sample music before buying it. So does this prove that the artists are actually benefiting out of Napster as people will hear there songs and possibly go and buy there singles. Many people believe music labels should have been donating money to Napster users, not threatening to sue them. And so the much-libelled Napster users are dedicated music buyers, quick to reach for their wallets. Greenfield research says it found that 45 per cent of online music fans are more likely to have increased their music purchases than online fans who don't use Napster. The study of Napster users found that 71 percent of users say they're willing to pay to download an entire album. A maker of MP3 portable players said "The year 2000 is a fantastic year for digital music,we had this earthquake called Napster who's aftershocks are still happening". Napster gives publicity to unsigned groups and gives people a chance to listen to their music and so possibly they may get a record deal form the record companies. But in the shops people are paying  £3.99 for these singles and to some they simply can't afford it, so why not use Napster and get it fo nothing??? After all would you pay for something you could get for free? Using napster gives everyone a chance to get all their favourite music for nothing, all new bands singles are featured on the programme but not forgetting many, many old songs for the older users of the site.

Noodles industry in India with market share Essay

‘Growing Up’ The Instant noodles market in India is finally coming of age after over 25 years The instant noodles category in India was, in a sense, created by Nestlà © with the introduction of their Maggi brand in mid-1980s. The concept of ‘2-minute noodles’, positioned as a quick snack option for children, found acceptance with both the children and their mothers as well. Having built and nurtured the category’s evolution, the brand name â€Å"Maggi† almost became a synonym for the instant noodles category itself. During the 1990s and 2000s, Maggi faced little competition. Despite the entry of players like Top Ramen (Indo Nissin Foods) in 1991, Ching’s Secret (Capital Foods) in 1996, and Wai Wai (CG Foods) in 2005, Maggi continued to retain its dominant position. However, in the past few years, we have seen consumer goods giants ITC (Sunfeast Yippee!), Glaxo-Smithkline (Horlicks Foodles), and Hindustan Unilever Limited (Knorr Soupy Noodles) foray into this lucrative market with differentiated product offerings. These brands have brought a competitive intensity to the space. This market now also comprises private labels like Feasters (AV Birla Retail), Tasty Treat (Future Group), and Smart Choice (Spencers). Even though ‘Maggi’ continues to dominate the market with a share in excess of 75%, the entry of multiple brands and the increasing aggression of existing brands has taken away several percentage points from Maggi’s market share. The category’s strong growth, and ever widening consumer acceptance, makes it a lucrative option for various players. The instant noodles market is estimated at ~INR 2200 crore (USD 402.7 million) and is projected to grow at a healthy annual rate of ~15% over the next few years. There are several reasons behind the growth this category has realized, in India, some of which are mentioned below. ï‚ · Changing consumer lifestyles – Over the years, the change in consumers’ preferences and eating habits, and their wider global exposure, along with an increasingly younger population, the growth in the middle class, with more nuclear families, and the growing time-poverty (as a result of the rise in the number of working couples) has given a boost to the convenience food segment. As a result, the instant noodles market has charted a high growth trajectory thanks to its availability, affordability, anytime-anywhere consumption and convenience, being a quick meal requiring minimal cooking. Instant noodles have also emerged from being a snack food or an occasional, alternate eating option to a mainstream food item of choice featuring regularly in consumers’ grocery baskets. ï‚ · Growing customer base – The emergence of instant noodles has added a new dimension to consumers’ meals; noodles are being consumed not just by kids (who are the core target audience) as an evening snack or a ‘tiffin’ meal but by consumers across all age groups, as an eating option beyond the ‘mundane’ ones. While it continues to be a home snack, it is also increasingly being consumed at workplace, colleges, etc. Geographically too, the appetite for instant noodles is growing with players now eyeing the semi-urban and rural markets. The category’s penetration is low in India (~20-25%), thus presenting a lucrative opportunity for growth. ï‚ · More options and variants: Players present in the space are innovating and adding value to establish a unique brand proposition in the consumers’ mind. Some of the major developments in this direction include: o Introduction of new flavors: To kindle the consumer’s interest in the category and also cater to the diverse and changing tastes of the consumer, instant noodles brands constantly enhance their product offerings by adding new flavors. In addition to the classic Masala and Chicken flavors, a wide range of flavors including Indo-Chinese, Chinese, tomato, etc. have been launched. 1 o Growing focus on health: Despite their fondness for instant noodles, consumers in India hold the notion that noodles are unhealthy, being made from ‘maida’ which is seen as not being as healthy as ‘atta’. To address this concern, brands are proactively introducing ‘healthy’ offerings as part of their product portfolio. Maggi and Top Ramen have their ‘atta’ noodles, while Horlicks Foodles was launched entirely on the health platform, with the noodles made from wheat or multiple grains and including a vitamin-supplying â€Å"Health Maker†. Additionally, HUL has also positioned its Knorr Soupy Noodles as a healthy, fun-filled snack. o More packaging variants: Brands have introduced packs in different sizes, right from single noodle packs of 50-75 gm. to value eight noodle packs. Further, to increase the category’s penetration, brands like Maggi and Wai Wai have extended product offerings in an even smaller pack size, priced at INR 5. o Category extension from pouch to cup noodles: A vital development in the market was the extension from pouch noodles to cup noodles that are ready-to-eat, on adding hot water, unlike pouch noodles that require to be cooked. The driving factor here is that convenience (the need for an on-the-go meal) is gaining in prominence in consumers’ lives owing to the rise in a younger working population and a migrant population, the increasing population of double income households with more working women, etc. Top Ramen offers different flavors in cup noodles, mini cup noodles, and mug noodles. Maggi and Wai Wai have extended to cup noodles as well. Modern formats, which provide high product visibility and good product displays, are acting as a good marketing platform for brands to promote their product offerings via consumer schemes like price discounts, bundled offers, sampling for new launches, etc. However, about 80-90% of instant noodles sales takes place through traditional formats (mom and pop stores), which is not surprising since noodles are a regular grocery item. Thus players need to invest significantly in distribution and establish a widespread retail reach and tap into a larger consumer base. Therefore, distribution remains an important enabler for this category. Another key challenge for players is to maintain price points and margins given the fluctuations in input costs. Usually, they opt to reduce pack sizes, while keeping prices constant, to counter the challenge. In its journey of 28 years, the instant noodles market has undergone several changes, viz. the entry of several new players, innovations in products and value-addition in packaging, the emergence of modern formats, a shift in consumption towards convenience foods, etc. Going forward, this market will continue to register a doubledigit growth and will witness higher competitive intensity. The strength of the distribution networks and media campaigns of the new entrants has the potential to be a game-changer and may eventually cause Maggi to face some serious competition, and perhaps even make this pioneering brand fight to defend its dominance. This category is finally coming of age and promises to be an interesting space to watch in the next few years. Authored By: Pragya Singh – Associate Director, Retail Ashima Anand- Senior Consultant, Retail

What Clothes to Bring to College

Figuring out what to bring to college is challenging enough before you even start thinking about clothes. (And, lets be honest, its especially challenging if youre a girl.) How can you decide what clothes to bring to college and what to leave at home? While your own fashion sense and clothing needs might differ a bit, there are some guidelines to consider when it comes to bringing clothes to college: Ditch Your High School Garb Dont bring anything that refers to high school or has a high school logo on it. Youll feel like a dork as soon as you realize no one wears anything that has to do  with  high school once they hit college. Bring All the Basics Definitely bring the basics to cover the following: class (jeans, t-shirts, etc.)date/dinner out with friends (guys: nice top/pants, girls: dresses/cute skirts/etc.)something niceguys: not necessarily a suit but a button-down, tie, and nice pantsgirls: little black dress for sure, but leave the prom dress at home Youll need other basics like jackets, sweaters, gym clothes, pajamas, robe (not everyone likes to walk from the bathroom to their room in a little towel), and a swimsuit. Stock Up on Underwear Bring a lot of underwear. This may sound strange, but many students only do laundry when their underwear runs out. Do you want to be doing it every week or every 2 to 3 weeks? Think Seasonally, Not Annually Think about the weather and when youll be seeing your family next. You can always bring summer/fall stuff and then do a clothes swap for winter when you come home a few weeks after classes start, over Thanksgiving  or for the holidays. If you really want to bring everything you wear but dont want to worry about bringing everything you own, focus on what youll wear over the next 6-8 weeks. At that point, you will be better able to gauge what youll want/need/have space for and possibly do a swap as the weather cools down. Pack a Just in Case Box You can always bring what youll need for the next 6 to 8 weeks but leave a just in case box back home, i.e., a box of stuff you may want but arent sure until you know how much space youll have. Then, if you end up wanting it, you can just ask your folks to ship it. You can also use that box for warmer-weather stuff that you can ship as the weather cools down. Pack Light and Save Room for New Stuff Keep in mind, too, that you should err on the side of not bringing too much instead of overdoing it. Once you get to campus, chances are youll sport for a new sweatshirt when theyre on sale in the bookstore, go shopping around town with some friends one weekend, end up with tons of t-shirts from events or clubs on campus, and even swap clothes with other people in your residence hall. Clothes have a tendency of multiplying suddenly on college campuses, so as long as you have some basics with you when you arrive you should be set.