The asset pricing models CAPM Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The asset pricing models CAPM - Essay Example For instance, if investor A buys more of stocks of X than Y, then every investor in the market will react the same by buying of stocks X and less of Y. Therefore, from this illustration and the aforementioned explanation, it is evident that the two models assumes that the investors in the market evaluate the information they have in the same way, hence arriving at the same decisions regarding their investment activities. However, given that investors have homogeneous expectations concerning their returns, level of risk inherent and investment strategies, they will always tend to remain risk averse (Sharpe, 1964). From the explanation above, it is clear that the models of APT and CAPM depend on the publicly available information concerning the returns and level of risk inherent in specific securities (Watson and Head, 2007). Therefore, the models do not specify any particular information that investors should use regarding their investment decisions but assume the investor will use the most current information available in the market concerning the different securities, thus, helping them choose the best investment strategies. The proponents of the APT argue that the model is the best alternative to the CAPM because it has more assumptions requirements that are flexible (Reilly & Brown, 2011). For instance, whereas the capital asset pricing model uses the expected return of a security, APT uses a security’s risk expected return, in addition to, the risk premiums of a couple of macro-economic elements. Therefore, from this proposition it is undeniable that CAPM has more strong assumptions compared to the APT. For instance, whereas the CAPM assumes that there exists a risk free rate in the market, the APT model tries to identify risk premium to enable investors take advantage of any mispriced securities, which is different from the

Recruitment and Selection Policies Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Recruitment and Selection Policies - Case Study Example referral based, and for fresh positions via campus recruitments. The selection process is more rigorous and depending on the nature and intricacy of the job, competence of the staff involved in the selection, the costs and benefits associated with the position to be recruited for and most importantly, the time factor. The methods for selection includes just sorting through resumes, conducting tests to judge individual's or potential employee's aptitude, intelligence, trainability and personality, group discussion, interviews and also the assessment centers. Each will be elaborated in detail going forward. Some issues also emerge in the selection process, these will be discussed soon. As discussed earlier, recruitment process begins from identification of the need that the organization needs to fill in a certain vacancy up to the point where the organization receives the application forms or has to decide between whom to hire for the position. The firm has option to recruit either internally from within the firm or external sources. Hiring candidates from within the organization has its own advantages. Firstly, hiring from inside saves the organization considerable amount of money and time because individuals within the organization already has an idea regarding what the company is like, an in depth knowledge of its products and services and how a business functions overall. Thus, lesser investments might be required to develop the fit that is required; thus, saving potential time and the money that is required for training a completely new (external) recruit. More important, these internal promotions incentivize people to worker harder and move up the organizati onal ladder, they become more committed and work harder within the organization. Secondly, since a firm very well knows the individual's strengths and weaknesses as the person has served in the organization for quite some time, all the areas are pre-assessed; when in fact, hiring an outsider has risks attached to it and success might only be on the resume and not the person's practice itself. But, obviously, the advantages do not come alone; some of the disadvantages to the internal recruitment practices for the firm starts with replacing the position of the person which has been left vacant due to the promotion. Besides, hiring an outsider might bring in more diversification to the organization's skills, which might otherwise be limited because of phenomenon such as groupthink. As opposed to the internal recruitment, externally recruiting helps firms to hire people who are diversified in talent and in experience; but has its own disadvantage such as the firm may end up hiring someone who is ineffective and unsuitable for the organization. Selection Whereas, recruitment was a one way step, selection is a two way process of communication and establishment of a positive psychological contract; the sole aim being contacting and employing the best people for the job. The selection process results in either of the two outcomes, it either results in hiring of effective employees or rejection or exit of the non competent employees. The selection process is always faced by limitations such as validation, review and organizational constraints. For selection

Nursing and American Nurses Association Essay Example for Free

Nursing and American Nurses Association Essay Describe the definition of nursing as put forward by the American Nurses Association. How does it address the metaparadigm theories of nursing? According to the American Nurses Association (ANA), the definition of nursing is â€Å"the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations.† Metaparadigm theories of nursing consists of theories that describe the four interrelated concepts, which are persons, environment, health and illness, and nursing. Persons are the recipients of nursing care and include individuals, families, and communities. Environment refers to the surroundings of the client, internal factors affecting the client, and the setting where nursing care is delivered. Health and illness describe the clients state of well-being. Nursing refers to the actions taken when providing care to a patient. ANA’s definition of nursing has included three of the four concepts that make up the metaparadigm theories of nursing. Its definition strongly emphasizes the concept of nursing. It listed many functions that nurses perform such as: protecting, promoting, optimization of health and physical abilities, preventing illness and injury, alleviating suffering, and advocating for patients (ANA website, n.d.). All these nursing actions are related to the care of health and illness, which is the second concept of the metapardigm theories of nursing. The ANA’s definition of nursing describes in more detail the concept of health and illness in terms of health, abilities, illness, and injury. These physical conditions affect the state of well-being and may lead to one’s own suffering and negative responses (ANA website n.d.). Persons is the third concept. According to the ANA definition of nursing, persons include: individuals, families, communities, and populations that receive nursing care. The fourth concept is environment. It is directly related to the other three concepts mentioned above. The environment is the surroundings or the settings in which nursing care is delivered and includes the in the hospital, home, theater, etc†¦

Political Application of Liberty and Rights

Political Application of Liberty and Rights The concept of freedom A general definition of liberty or freedom defines it as immunity from subjective exercise of authority. However, philosophers of the seventeenth and eighteenth century seem to explore deeper aspects of this concept. Among these philosophers are Thomas Hobbes and Rousseau, who held strong philosophies of liberty but somewhere along the line, their views differed. To begin with, Hobbes presents two categories of freedom in a persuasive manner where he argues that the first category of freedom is granting individual’s liberty to choose from alternatives, while the second category of freedom is freedom to approve individual’s choice in an instance (Tuckness, 2002, p,105). Analysts claim that Hobbes concept of liberty or freedom is persuasive in nature because the philosopher argues that only the exercise of a power has the ability to reduce people’s freedom. In this case, Hobbes is a determinist because he perceives that any happenings including human action is trig gered by the effect of ancestral or unpreventable causes. Therefore, man exists in a state of withdrawn liberty because the law of nature determines it; hence, freedom is of little use because it benefits no one and that whoever desires to live in freedom end up contradicting oneself (Tuckness, 2002, p, 105). Rousseau on his part brings forth two types of liberties namely, civil or moral liberty and natural liberty. He further explains that natural liberty is the freedom to influence personal desires, while civil liberty is the freedom to convince the general will (Tuckness, 2002, p, 105). Rousseau seems to dig deeper into freedom analysis where he explains that man is extremely free because the cruel state or fellow man does not dominate him nor does the spirituality of artificial needs that exist in the current society enslaves him. However, the scholar claims that man is enslaving himself with needs, which result to the ills experienced in the society today. The concepts outlined by the two scholars present the fact that both of them have similar perception on liberty but they differ in the sense that Hobbes supports negative liberty, while Locke supports the negative side of it. Locke’s positivity exhibits in the sense that he focuses on the positive aspects of what result the law can accomplish because it is only the law that do not restrict freedom (Tuckness, 2002, p, 105). However, this is the point through which differences chip in because Hobbes claims that law restricts peoples many choices; hence, restricting them from freedom (Tuckness, 2002, p, 105). However, he advocates for this kind of freedom by asserting that people should learn how to part with much liberty in order to acquire security and peace. Political application of the theory The two authors seem to disagree on political application of liberty theory. Hobbes believes that liberties must comply and surrender to a sovereign in order to flee the state of nature (Tuckness, 2002, p, 106). He further argues that the government should solely pass rules that govern the society in order to curb human conflicts and that no one should interfere with the government’s business. Hobbes meant that as long as people had basic freedom, acquired after letting go of the much-needed freedom, adhering to the government laws was not a hard task. This is the reason why the philosopher argued that equality is established in covenant form between people and not between people and sovereignty; hence, denying the many the decision making process. Conclusively, Hobbes meant to simplify that people should embrace a little liberty as long as their existed security and peace and grant the sovereign liberty to rule them. Rousseau on his part claims that the most fundamental objective of any government is to allow its citizens exercise freedom. Therefore, the endorsement and existence of certain government codes can grant a certain level of freedom to the society. In this regard, the philosopher meant that the government should not be extremely rigid towards its people in terms of passing laws that could lead to enslavement but rather should advocate for the society’s views and opinions in order to foster the needed freedom (Tuckness, 2002, p, 106). Unlike Hobbes who advocates for sovereign powers to restrict peoples’ freedom, Rousseau seems to advocate for equity and coordination between the sovereign and its people as a form of liberty. The concept of rights According to Hobbes, rights are liberty to do things without facing any sort of restriction and that Man is equal to the other. The philosopher outlines two types of rights namely basic and civil rights, where basic right is the right to cloth, shelter, food and other basic needs, while civil right is the right to freedom of expression, life and other fundamental rights (Edmundson, 2012, p, 23). However, a deeper perspective reflects that Hobbes generalizes the concept of rights on a social platform because he differs with the manner in which rights apply between society and the government. John Locke’s philosophy concerning rights is reviewed in a wider dimension because he believes that human beings are entitled to every necessary right that include the right to live, the right to freedom among other rights (Edmundson, 2012, p, 24). Unlike Hobbes who believes in social rights, Locke differs greatly because he believes that man should posses the right to dominate the society in every means possible. The difference between the two scholars is that Locke involves rights with larger moral complexity compared to Hobbes who views rights as doing whatever one pleased for their own survival. Political application of the rights concept Hobbes clarify that sovereign should safeguards people’s rights but in a shallow dimension because he advocates for government control over its citizens (Edmundson, 2012, p, 24). The reason why the philosopher argues that government should safeguard its people is because people undergo different aspects of conflicts that in one way or another will need superior intervention. The purpose of government at this point is to advocate for equality in the social context because it will ensure that people’s enacted rights are safeguarded (Edmundson, 2012, p, 24). However, sovereign safeguarding of rights occurs due to people’s inferiority and lack of adequate liberty to safeguard their own rights. Hobbes advocates for this type of liberty and the right to protection where the sovereign is the overall determiner of what rights befits the society. This concept drives to the fact that ordinary citizens will suffer because what the sovereign decides is final because no invol vement or negotiations between the two parties exist. Therefore, Hobbes political theory of rights is problematic because it enhances absolute obedience of sovereignty above the rights of millions of people in the society (Edmundson, 2012, p, 24). The philosopher further asserts that once the government is in place, people have no right to criticize or change its form; hence, defying peoples’ right to freedom of expression. Locke seems to challenge Hobbes view on sovereignty and rights because he believed that people had numerous rights that they could safeguard without the dictatorship of the sovereign. Among these rights is the right to challenge the government, which further grants people the right to overthrow an oppressive government (Edmundson, 2012, p, 24). This clarifies the fact that people’s rights should not face any sovereign dictatorship but rather the sovereign should grant its people the right to criticize injustices from any horizon including their rulers because they possess the liberty to do so. The two philosophers differ greatly because Hobbes advocates for the sovereign safeguarding people’s rights while Locke believes in peoples’ empowerment to the extent that they can fight for their own rights. The concept of private property Lock held strong views on property institution due to its importance to humankind and sacredness. Locke begins by reminding everyone that God the creator gave the world to man to dominate it and no one has an elite claim to anything. However, different versions of laws and policies have modified God’s will by allowing man to share the properties of the world according to sovereign constitutions and codes. These institutions grant human beings the right to property because it is the fruit of their labor. In this regard, Locke advocates for the right to own private property through labor and hard work. More so, the scholar advocates for heredity form of property ownership where an individual should not only acquire property through labor but also acquire it through inheritance (Bhargava, 2008, p, 216). This clarifies the point that man has fundamental objectives in the society that include ownership of property because it is beneficial to both the society and the sovereign. Lock ’s theory of property resulted from the reason that man mixes his labor with then earth in order to acquire as much as he needs. On the other hand, Karl Marx held a different view on property ownership because he advocated for its abolishment in all possible means. On his argument, Marx believed that a community should exercise equality in the sense that the community should not undergo any form of separation in form of classes. Resources that include private property ownership bring about these class variations within the society (Bhargava, 2008, p, 216). Marx argued that private property ownership oppressed the poor and should not be encouraged. The communist further differs with Locke’s view on property ownership as man’s own labor because he argues that man did not acquire property through labor, but rather became a victim of this property because it ended up exploiting them (Bhargava, 2008, p, 216). Marx wished to see equity especially on the amount of labor applied as well as its rewarding system because as much as he faced critics concerning man’s labor to acquire property, he saw a vacuum through which workers would face exploitation (Bhargava, 2008, p, 216). This leads to the conclusion that the two philosophers greatly differed on property ownership concept because Locke perceived property ownership as the main fundamental aspect to both the government and the society. This is the reason why he advocated for property ownership right and looked forward to a period when all citizens would acquire their own property. Marx on his perspective argues that property ownership does not necessarily imply to home or land ownership as perceived by many, but rather as a means of production, that ended up contributing to unequal distribution of wealth and exploitation of many. Therefore, as much as Locke campaigned for property ownership, Marx called upon its abolition. Political application of the private property concept Concerning legislative, Locke argues that the government should not interfere with an individual’s property without his consent irrespective of the existing constitution (Bhargava, 2008, p, 216). Such government involvement arises in form of taxes, where the philosopher argues that sovereign should not inflict tax payments on property owners if possible. Locke further argues that government should adhere to the will of the people by meeting their vast needs that include empowerment to acquire property rather than oppressing them through taxation. Marx on the other hand did not contribute much on issues concerning the government but he still depicted his mistrust in it. This came up because Marx claimed that most of the ruling class in the society supported the government and vice versa. This leads to the notion that the government will not foster the much-needed change in the society in terms of class equity but rather the solution lies on the society itself. Therefore, property ownership has led to social class emergence that even the government cannot help equate; hence, abolition of private property seemed to be Marx’s final option (Bhargava, 2008, p, 216). Conclusively, the two scholars seem to agree on government’s inefficiency in handling property ownership issues and the impact it inflicts towards the society. References Bhargava, R. (2008). Political Theory. Pearson Longman. Edmundson, W. A. (2012). An introduction to rights. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Tuckness, A. S. (2002). Locke and the legislative point of view: Toleration, contested principles, and law. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press.

Dramatic Tension in The Crucible by Miller Essay -- Miller Crucible

Dramatic Tension in "The Crucible" by Miller The Crucible Coursework Excitement, nervousness, stress, anxiety, suspense, unease, and apprehension are all forms of dramatic tension that Miller creates throughout the Crucible. Dramatic tension is created by Miller throughout the Crucible in many ways. Straightaway, the title of the play, â€Å"the Crucible† implies to the audience of the tension that is to come in the play. Miller names the play â€Å"the Crucible† to represent the puritanical society of Salem, the historic people of Salem wanted to purify each other from the Devil’s work, they even went to the extent of killing their fellow neighbours in order to purify them. The variety of characters involved in the witch trials all combine to create suspense. Miller creates vivid personalities for the main characters in the play, the characters are contrasting and their relationships between each other create tension. Speech directions influence how the characters speak and act. The stage settings crafted by Miller create tension, especially in Act 3, in the court room scene where there is dramatic tension created by the characters arguing vigorously with each other. Miller uses the setting of â€Å"The Crucible† to create dramatic tension. The play took place in a newly made colony called Salem at the time of 1692. Miller describes the in such a way that it creates an atmosphere of tension throughout the play. Salem was surrounded by wilderness; some of Salem’s people were killed from tribes that were from these forests. The religious leaders were fiercely puritanical and protective of their religion, a form of protestant Christianity. The religious leaders were so zealous and paranoid about their religious be... ...to end the play, responding to Hale’s plea that she convince Proctor to publicly confess: â€Å"He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!† Miller uses speech directions and descriptions of action in the play to create an atmosphere of tension throughout â€Å"The Crucible†. In the last page of the play Miller uses speech directions to show how desperate Hail is to stop Proctor from hanging himself, Miller shows him â€Å"dropping to his knees† to show his desperation. Hail does all he can to stop Proctor from hanging and surprisingly so too does Parris, this creates tension because even Parris, who hated Proctor, wants the ridiculous hangings to stop because they have gone out of control. Miller describes the beating of the drum rolls to create an atmosphere of suspense, the drum rolls are a gradual sign of the music of Proctor’s heroic yet tragic death.

Eulogy for Grandfather :: Eulogies Eulogy

Eulogy for Grandfather My grandfather taught us so much. When my sister and I were little, he taught us how to paint with oils on smooth pieces of wood, instructing us on how to blend colors or make certain brush strokes, telling us that "there are no straight lines in nature," to help us paint better trees. He taught us how to work with clay, too, and made us our own clay-working tools. He taught us how to roll pennies from the piggy bank he'd fill up every week. He taught us about the birds flying into the birdfeeder next to the family room window. He taught me about words, too, in one memorable exchange advising me to use the words "equine posterior" rather than their more common alternative. But most of what my grandfather taught us he taught us indirectly, without speaking. Going to museums with him was often a chore for me as a kid, because he would have to stop and read every plaque next to every painting or item, every so often calling us back to something we'd tired of already to explain what he'd just learned-but mostly, just observing, drinking in everything he could see with quiet patience. He never went to college, but he taught me more about education-and the value of being a self-educator-than I could learn in any school. My grandfather made miraculous things with lumps of clay and blocks of wood. It wasn't until much later that I realized how well-outfitted his workshop was, full of specialized tools; he'd taught my father how to be the same kind of hands-on man, and I thought all Grandpas and Dads had special lathes, band saws, table saws, jig saws, buckets of nails, vast arrays of screwdrivers and dozens of varieties of sandpaper in their basements. One birthday, I remember, he made special. After we'd unwrapped our other toys, my sister and I were presented with identical boxes with the Hallmark logo on them. They were presented with great ceremony, and we were confused but excited. We opened them at the same time. Inside my sister's box was a diorama of our dog Lady playing with a soccer ball out on the lawn. Her back paw was stomping tiny silk flowers into garden dirt rendered in sawdust. Mine was a black horse leaping over a stone wall-perfect down to the textured wood that formed the rock. Eulogy for Grandfather :: Eulogies Eulogy Eulogy for Grandfather My grandfather taught us so much. When my sister and I were little, he taught us how to paint with oils on smooth pieces of wood, instructing us on how to blend colors or make certain brush strokes, telling us that "there are no straight lines in nature," to help us paint better trees. He taught us how to work with clay, too, and made us our own clay-working tools. He taught us how to roll pennies from the piggy bank he'd fill up every week. He taught us about the birds flying into the birdfeeder next to the family room window. He taught me about words, too, in one memorable exchange advising me to use the words "equine posterior" rather than their more common alternative. But most of what my grandfather taught us he taught us indirectly, without speaking. Going to museums with him was often a chore for me as a kid, because he would have to stop and read every plaque next to every painting or item, every so often calling us back to something we'd tired of already to explain what he'd just learned-but mostly, just observing, drinking in everything he could see with quiet patience. He never went to college, but he taught me more about education-and the value of being a self-educator-than I could learn in any school. My grandfather made miraculous things with lumps of clay and blocks of wood. It wasn't until much later that I realized how well-outfitted his workshop was, full of specialized tools; he'd taught my father how to be the same kind of hands-on man, and I thought all Grandpas and Dads had special lathes, band saws, table saws, jig saws, buckets of nails, vast arrays of screwdrivers and dozens of varieties of sandpaper in their basements. One birthday, I remember, he made special. After we'd unwrapped our other toys, my sister and I were presented with identical boxes with the Hallmark logo on them. They were presented with great ceremony, and we were confused but excited. We opened them at the same time. Inside my sister's box was a diorama of our dog Lady playing with a soccer ball out on the lawn. Her back paw was stomping tiny silk flowers into garden dirt rendered in sawdust. Mine was a black horse leaping over a stone wall-perfect down to the textured wood that formed the rock.

Essentialist and Post Structuralist Theories of Race and Ethnicity Essay

Identity Analysis Toward Productive Pedagogies: An Essentialist and Post Structuralist Perspective Race and ethnicity will be used to analyse the central theme of identity from an essentialist and post structuralist perspective. Definitions of race and ethnicity will be presented and distinctions made between the two categories. The character Eva from the film The Freedom Writers will be used as a medium and present an argument that race and ethnicity are social constructs but not absent of essentialist influences. Following a self reflection of my own identity the similarities between Eva and I show a congruence between essentialist perspectives of race and ethnicity to the existence of ethnic tensions and prejudice. In the context of Post structural theory it will be argued that it offers a more realistic and progressive appraisal of identity as fluid and changing through social contexts. Differences between Eva’s and my own identity serve to highlight the inequality of dominant culture over ethnic minorities. Therefore, pedagogical strategies will be examined from a post structural perspective as a means to promote inclusivity and authentic Indigenous perspectives within the classroom. Essentialist theories about ethnicity and race present these identity themes as fixed and unchangeable. Weber (1978) defines race identity as â€Å"†¦ common inherited and inheritable traits that actually derive from common descent† (p. 368 ). The character Eva from the film The Freedom Writers identities her race as â€Å"†¦ those south of the border†, or specifically Hispanic. Ethnicity from an essentialist perspective differs from race as Zagefka (2008) ascribes to the notion that â€Å"†¦ essentialist accounts of ethnicity maintain that ethnic groups have a certain ‘essence’ which determines their character† (p. 1). Therefore, essentialist ethnicity elaborates on race identity informing that behavioural traits are also biologically determined. Eva’s statement â€Å"We fight over race, pride and respect† illustrates the essentialist nature of fixed, unchangeable boundaries that exist between her group and other ethnic groups. Eva’s racial hatred of the other ethnic groups is evident through her gang affiliations and violent behaviour toward them. An essentialist perceptive would assume that Eva’s racial hatred is determined at birth but as Eva’s character develops throughout the film the essentialist perspective loses validity and Eva’s sense of identity is seen to be socially constructed. Post structural theory maintains that race and ethnicity are socially constructed presenting Eva’s identity as fluid and evolving. However, Morning (2006) concludes that â€Å"†¦ the conception of race as rooted in biological difference endures, at least in the United States today†. Therefore, ethnicity offers a more authentic analysis of Eva’s identity formation from a post structuralist perspective then the residual of essentialism that exists in relation to her racial conceptualisations. In Eva’s formative years her subjectivities about race were essentialised from her fathers’ emphasis of her origins and therefore the â€Å"†¦ need to protect your own†. The violence from other ethnic groups and the arrest of her father because of his ethnic background resulted in an intense hatred for white people. Eva â€Å"†¦ hated white people on sight†. Eva’s hatred developed over time through social contexts involving ethnic and racial violence. Eva’s changing identity is represented from a post structural perceptive through narrative and social interactions in Mrs Gurwall’s classroom. Marra (2005) states that â€Å"Narrative is a powerful means of constructing different kinds of social identity, including ethnic identity†¦. † (p. 2). Using a diary as an artefact Eva is able reflect on her own subjectivities about identity to better understand her beliefs and values (J Nailer, 2005 p. 152). Through social interactions in the classroom under the guidance of her teacher Eva’s ethnic identity is reconstructed to establish a type of class ethnicity involving students from different races. As a self reflection process my own personal identity can be examined through essentialist and post structural perspectives centred on themes of race and identity. During my childhood years race identity was represented from an essentialist perspective. I identified as a member of the white race and was educated from a white, colonial historical perspective. Instilled from an early age was the notion that being black meant being inferior. Not only did I perceive Indigenous people as those who sat in the park and got drunk but I engaged in racist language such as ‘nigger’ and ‘coon’. My prejudice is highlighted by Brickman (2009) who suggests â€Å"Indeed, for social categories based on race, increased endorsement of genetic theories (one component of psychological essentialism) has been linked to increased prejudice† (p. 2). My parents assisted in the facilitation of my racial essentialism as did many other adults and peers of my own racial group. During my formative years my identity based upon being a member of the white race assumed greater intelligence, privilege and more appropriate behaviour than Indigenous peoples. The distinction between race and ethnicity is evident when according to Chandra (2006), an ethnic group is â€Å"†¦ a named human population with myths of common ancestry, shared historical memories, one or more elements of a common culture, a link with a homeland and sense of solidarity† (p.403). This statement relates to when I left my small town and attended an affluent private college whilst undertaking university study. Although surrounded by members of the same white race I identified with an ethnic group in the context of people from my own town. The essentialist and constructiveness theories for identity are distinct yet in practice difficult to separate. Ayirtman (2007) presents constructionist perspectives as â€Å"†¦ the intersubjective formation of individual identities through confrontation and interaction with other(s)† (p.10) whilst Chandra (2006) proposes that changes in ethnicity are constrained by â€Å"descent-based† attributes. In the context of race and ethnicity both statements were appropriate to the way I constructed my own identity throughout my adult years. The immersion in multiculturalism from a large city and university institution influenced me to many different races and ethnic groups. The confrontation of cultural diversity increased fluidity in the boundaries that constituted my identity about themes of race and ethnicity. However, the recognition of cultural differences in relation to my original culture and race still left intact some relatively fixed boundaries around essentialist perspectives. It is evident that Eva and I had different life experiences yet similarities emerge between our two identities. Prominent commonalities between Eva and I relate to the essentialist perspective of race and ethnicity our childhood and adolescence years. Both Eva and I expressed prejudice toward other ethnic groups based on the biological characteristics of race and ethnicity. In relation to ethnicity and race the formative years consisted of seemingly fixed and rigid boundaries around identity groups. Juteau (1996) describes these boundaries as â€Å"†¦ monolithic and static, seen as grounded in common origin, genealogy and ancestry† (p. 57). Similar to Eva the fixed nature of my identity boundaries correlated to racial and ethnic tensions resulting sometimes in violence, in varying degrees. Despite essentialised race and ethnicity in formative years commonalities exist between Eva and me through a post structuralist perspective. Racial prejudice was socially constructed through repeated discourses of conflict between racial groups throughout childhood and adolescence. Narrative through the evolving artefact of a diary allowed both Eva and I to analyse our subjectivities about aspects of our identities and both had the experience of an excellent teacher through which effective social interactions allowed empowerment and progressive reconstruction of identity. A key difference between me and the character Eva in The Freedom Writers is that I identified with the dominant Discourse in society and Eva identified as a member of a minority ethnic group. Thomson states â€Å"A successful school student is one who has acquired much of the dominant ‘habitus’, that is, ways of being in the world, as well as the cultural and symbolic capital derived from their schooling† (p. 8). An analysis of Thomson’s statement works on two levels. At the school level, and identifying as a member of the dominant culture, allowed me to be familiar with school discourse and the knowledge’s valued there in. Eva’s ethnic and racial identity immediately placed her at odds with the school discourse which restricted her acquisition of cultural capital. At the level of society I was able to exert more agency through the social influence that a familiar discourse facilitated. A seemingly natural relationship existed through identification with a common culture, language and physical race attributes. Eva’s race and ethnicity reduced the agency she could exert against the dominant culture. Her common culture and race attributes are at odds in a society where the majority race was white. The similarities and differences evident between Eva’s identity and my own identity offer invaluable understandings to develop positive, productive teacher-student interactions in the classroom. Taking a post structural approach to pedagogy teachers can be aware that their own subjectivities will influence the way they teach. (Nayler 2005). . In a multi-cultural scenario where individual students bring a variety of cultural identities into the classroom a teacher faces the challenge of facilitating inclusive pedagogical practices. Carrington advises that â€Å"†¦ the teacher facilitates a culture of respect and value for all members of the class. † (p. 113). This statement requires student interactions that involve listening to other students and being encouraged to support each other through peer assisted learning. Classroom organisation must allow students to actively participate in whole class, group collaboration, independent and problem- based learning. These student practices must be based around purposeful knowledge that engage what Thomson (2002) refers to as a student’s â€Å"†¦ virtual schoolbag† (p. 1). Through strong relationships between teacher, parent and community what students have learnt at home and in wider society can be transferred into the classroom. Therefore individual student’s â€Å"†¦ knowledge’s, narratives and interests† can be recognised and built upon with high teacher expectations of connecting them to the valued knowledge’s of the school curriculum. (Thomson, 2002). More specifically, is the need to embed Indigenous perspectives into the classroom. When embedding Indigenous studies into the classroom teachers (non-indigenous especially) need to access authentic knowledge and often admit their shortcomings in relation to skills and knowledge required to teach such units. Miller, Troy and Currell (2005) point out the risk that â€Å"as members of the dominant culture (we are all white Australian), perhaps we found it easy to revert to a knowledge base that we had naturally accepted since early childhood† (p. 61). Teachers must be critical about the resources they select to teach Indigenous studies whilst forging strong relationships with Indigenous communities. These factors will ensure that Indigenous studies are taught from an indigenous perspective and not corrupted by social, political and historical perspectives of the dominant culture of which many teachers identify with. The identity categories of race and ethnicity can be analysed from an essentialist and post structuralist perspective. The post structural perspective of race and ethnicity presents a more authentic analysis of identity as being influenced by different social contexts. Whilst the post structural perspective offers a more progressive application to Eva’s and my own identities essentialist influences are not invisible. The commonality of prejudice through race and ethnicity being essentialised offers an excellent reference point to show the usefulness of a post structural approach to productive teacher pedagogies. A post structural perspective offers the opportunity for teachers to critically reflect upon their own subjectivities in the context of their own identities. Teachers can therefore adopt pedagogical strategies that promote inclusiveness in the classroom and embrace the richness of cultural diversity, whilst linking the diverse array of knowledge’s to the value knowledge’s of the school curriculum. References 1. Marra, M (2005). Constructing Ethnicity and Leadership Through Storytelling at Work. Retrieved from http://www. mang. canterbury. ac. nz/anzca/FullPapers/06WorkCommFINALed. pdf 2. Carrington, S. (2007). Classroom relationships, pedagogy and practice in the inclusive classroom. In M. Keeffe & S. Carrington (Eds), Schools and diversity(2nd ed. ). (pp. 108-127). Sydney: Pearson Australia. 3. Miller, M. , Dunn, T. & Currell, K. (2005). Learning and the importance of knowing: Student perspectives on centralising Indigenous knowledge in their preparation as teachers. In J. Phillips & Lampert (Eds), Introductory Indigenous studies in education: The importance of knowing. (pp. 60-79). Sydney: Pearson Australia. 4. Thomson, P. (2002). Vicki and Thanh. In Schooling the rustbelt kids:Making the difference in Changing times (pp. 1-18). Crow’s Nest: Allen & Unwind. 5. Nailer, J. (2005). Understanding ourselves. In J. Austin (Ed), Culture and Identity (2nd end). (pp. 139-154). Sydney: Pearson Australia 6. Morning, A. (2006). Ethnic Classification in Global Perspective: A Cross-National Survey of the 2000 Census Round. Retrieved from http://as. nyu. edu/docs/IO/1043/Morning_2008_Ethnic_Classification_in_Global_Perspective. pdf 7. Brickman, D. (2009). The Implications of Essentialist Beliefs for Prejudice. Retrieved from http://deepblue. lib. umich. edu/bitstream/2027. 42/63752/1/dbrick_1. pdf 8. Chandra, H. (2006). What is Ethnic Identity and does it Matter. Annual Review of Political Science, 9, (pp 397-424. ) Retrieved from http://www. nyu. edu/gsas/dept/politics/faculty/chandra/ars2005. pdf 9. Juteau, D. (1996). Theorising ethnicity and ethnic communalisations at the margins: from Quebec to the world system. Nations and Nationalism, 2(1), (pp 45-66. ) Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary. wiley. com/doi/10. 1111/j. 1354-5078. 1996. 00045. x/abstract 10. Ayirtman, S. (2007). Recognition through Deliberation: Toward Deliberative Accommodation of Cultural Diversity. Retrieved from http://arts. monash. edu. au/psi/news-and-events/apsa/refereed-papers/political-theory/sayirtman. pdf 11. Zagefka, H (2008). The concept of ethnicity in social psychological research: Definitional issues. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 33(3), (pp 228-241. ). 12. Gruwell, E (Writer), & Lagravenese, R (Director). (2006). In D. Devito, M. Shamberg, & S. Sheer (Producers), The Freedom Writers. Paramount Pictures.