Lord of the Flies - 1264 Words

Lord of the Flies Essay Arthur Golden wrote â€Å"Adversity is like a strong wind. It tears away from us all but the things that cannot be torn, so that we see ourselves as we really are.† Adversities are unavoidable, and when they arise; people may not know how to handle the difficulties they are faced with. While in the middle of misfortunate situations, certain individuals reveal their true character and qualities they have that would not be present in normal circumstances. In the novel â€Å"Lord of the Flies† by William Golding, Golding suggests that people’s true characteristics and qualities are revealed when faced with adversity. In the beginning of the novel Jack Merridew is seen as just another young and†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Listen all of you. Me and my hunters, we’re living along the beach by a flat rock. We hunt and feast and have fun. If you want to join my tribe come and see us. Perhaps I’ll let you join. Perhaps not.† Pg. 154 Jacks transition puts him on a collision course with Ralphs elected authority, and when he decides to leave the tribe, he bribes the boy’s with the promises of meat, play, and freedom. This in return, awards him with the majority of the boy’s following him. They soon embrace Jack’s savage ways, which only motivates Jack to take his power even further. He tortured and threatened the boy’s that did not join his tribe, and brainwashes the ones that were already in his tribe to be the torturers. These actions of Jack’s just prove that he is evil and savage by nature, and when he is given power it only amplifies his characteristics, making him even more vicious. By the end of the novel we can see that jack has turned into the evil person that he had always naturally been, it just took a misfortunate situation to bring it out of him. He loses the innocent young boy and becomes this immoral savage character with no empathy or remorse towards anybody. Jack had evolved to being chief of the boy’s, and used their fear of the beast and the unknown to control them, and make them complete tasks that involved the use of violence. He uses his power over the boy’s to get back at the RalphShow MoreRelatedThe Lord Of The Flies1262 Words   |  6 Pages2015 Lord of the Flies Research Paper Evils are what drive all of the negative things in society. Characteristics of evil are all around us in our everyday lives. political leaders, celebrities, People we idolize show characteristics of evil. Even small insignificant roles in society hold certain evils in their motives. Throughout this story these evils were for once boldly stated for all to understand. The games the boys play,the fire they set, and their rescue, in the Lord of the flies showsRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies1468 Words   |  6 PagesThe Lord of the Flies tells the story of a group of English schoolboys marooned on a tropical island after their plane is shot down during a war. Though the novel is fictional, its exploration of the idea of human evil is at least partly based on Golding’s experience with the real-life violence and brutality of World War II. Free from the rules and structures of civilization and society, the boys on the island in Lord of the Flies descend into savagery. Golding’ s experience in World War II had aRead More Lord of the Flies1827 Words   |  8 Pageswhich desire to follow through with. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies and John Polson’s Hide and Seek are two prime examples that demonstrate the conflict between civilised behaviour and savagery through their characters’ cultured manners, savage impulses and struggles as they decide who they really are as people. The instinct to follow rules and act in a civilised manner is highlighted throughout the first four chapters of Lord of the Flies, but is especially perceptible in the boys’ behaviourRead MoreLord of the Flies1669 Words   |  7 PagesLord Of The Flies Summary [pic] |Lord Of The Flies Summary - The Island | |Lord of the Flies is set during World War 2 on a tropical island in the Coral Sea. A group of boys survive a plane crash and are| |left stranded on a deserted island with no adults. At first the boys cling to the principles and laws they were taught during | |their upbringing. They call a meeting where they establish rules,Read MoreLord of the Flies642 Words   |  3 PagesThe book Lord of the Flies shows us how humans act when there is a weakly constructed system of power. We see how a group of civilized young men change into a bunch of crazy animalistic beasts over a very short period of time when there is no one who is â€Å"above† them to order them around and set rules. In The Hunger Games we see a society of people grouped into districts who follow the strict rules of the capital. If you question the capital or disobey one rule or show any sign of treasonRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies1262 Words   |  6 Pages2015 Lord of the Flies Research Paper Evils are what drive all of the negative things in society. Characteristics of evil are all around us in our everyday lives. political leaders, celebrities, People we idolize show characteristics of evil. Even small insignificant roles in society hold certain evils in their motives. Throughout this story these evils were for once boldly stated for all to understand. The games the boys play,the fire they set, and their rescue, in the Lord of the flies showsRead MoreLord of the Flies2048 Words   |  9 PagesIn William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, symbols are illustrated through people, objects, and colors. In this novel, a group of children are faced with the difficulty of living isolated from society after their plane crashes on a deserted island. With no formal civilization, parents, or rules, the kids have the freedom to do as they choose. Throughout the novel, the boys find and use objects on the island that symbolize something of different importance. In Lord of the Flie s, William Golding usesRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies1385 Words   |  6 PagesLord of the Flies In a life or death situation, desperate people resort to drastic measures. Some people were taught how to survive in brutal situations while others were never taught how to hunt if they were lost in the forest. In this life it’s either we know how to survive in a life or death situation or we learn as we go and do everything possible to stay alive. It is normal for people to experience immoral behavior due to the environment they are in and there is not much that can be done. IRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies1111 Words   |  5 PagesThe Lord of the Flies Research Project While the World War II was in act, Adolf Hitler once incited â€Å"You only have to kick in the door, and the whole rotten structure will come crashing down†(Adolf Hitler). The structure coming down symbolizes the fact that the boys’ structure of order, and civilization came crashing down as well. This is found throughout the book. Adolf Hitler is known for his dictatorship, his exquisite leadership skills, and violent warfares.. He uncovered that leadership skillsRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies2105 Words   |  9 PagesBefore starting The Lord of the Flies, a lone question that summed up the entire book was proposed: Are humans good or evil? Though it may not seem like a puzzling question at first, everything inside, and outside of the book makes it more complicated. If we are evil, then everyone would be turned against everyone else from the start, and if we are good, we would always be for everyone else at the beginning. Neither is present in the real world, bring up the question, what is humanity’s true goal

Account and Financial Management for Traded- myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theAccount and Financial Managementfor Traded Company. Answer: Summary of Findings This study deals with examining the financial performance of a publicly traded company known as Woolworths Limited for the year 2015 and 2016 (Woolworths.com, 2017). For this study, information is generated from the annual reports of Woolworths Limited for the year 2015 and 2016. The main motive of business is to generate profit with the resources available to the company. The financial manger is responsible for assessing the profitability of a business in order to evaluate whether or not adequate returns can be generated on its assets as well as investments (Deegan, 2013). To that, there are different ratios that can be used for evaluating the profitability. In this study, the profitability ratio used is gross profit ratio, return on assets and return on equity. In the year 2015, gross profit of Woolworths Limited arrives at 40.96% and 40.59% in the year 2016. Return on assets is one of the profitability ratios that allows for assessing the way on how efficiently assets of Woolworths Limited are being managed and looks at the ability of the management team for controlling the expenses. In the year 2015, return on assets of Woolworths Limited arrives 0.075 and 0.087 in the year 2016. The figures show that Woolworths Limited has achieved better results as comp ared to its peer groups or industry. Therefore, Woolworths Limited earned more operating profit per dollar of investment in assets as compared to its peer groups. After analyzing the financial ratio for the year 2015 and 2016, it is understood that Woolworths Limited records poor profit results that in turn act as an indicator that there is problem with overall performance of the firm (Chan et al., 2016). Liquidity ratio is calculated as it predicts the ability of any business whether they can pay their short-term obligations, bills and pay down debt on time. Here, it is important to assess the liquidity position of Woolworths Limited and compare it with the industry standards. In this study, current ratio and quick ratio are calculated for the year 2015 and 2016. To explain in detail, current ratio is calculated by taking current assets and dividing it by current liabilities. In the year 2015, current ratio of Woolworths Limited arrives at 0.91 and 0.94 in the year 2016. The industry average is 2:1. Hence, Woolworths Limited is trailing slightly behind in terms of overall liquidity. It is important to note that neither Woolworths Limited nor the industry average shows enough liquidity for covering all liabilities without the need for raising additional funds. By looking at ratios, it is quite evident that Woolworths Limited has managed a current ratio closer to 1. The reason behind t he figure is poor sales results as well as high venture caused by the Masters venture. It is because of cost incurred in business and cost of operating an underperforming business (Bushman, 2014). Capital structure ratio is also known as solvency ratio that indicates in which firms selection are made to finance their assets, either through debt or equity. In this study, debt to equity and equity ratio are calculated for Woolworths Limited that explains the solvency position of the business organization (Beatty Liao, 2014). Reference List Beatty, A., Liao, S. (2014). Financial accounting in the banking industry: A review of the empirical literature.Journal of Accounting and Economics,58(2), 339-383. Bushman, R. M. (2014). Thoughts on financial accounting and the banking industry.Journal of Accounting and Economics,58(2), 384-395. Chan, S. H., Song, Q., Rivera, L. H., Trongmateerut, P. (2016). Using an educational computer program to enhance student performance in financial accounting.Journal of Accounting Education,36, 43-64. Deegan, C. (2013).Financial accounting theory. McGraw-Hill Education Australia. Woolworths.com. (2017).Very | Womens, Mens and Kids Fashion, Furniture, Electricals More!. [online] Available at: https://www.woolworths.com [Accessed 27 Aug. 2017].

POLITICAL LEANINGS AND CHOICE OF VEHICLES Essays - Bumper Sticker

Running head: POLITICAL LEANINGS AND CHOICE OF VEHICLES1 Political Leanings and Choice of Vehicles Are Cars, Trucks and SUVs Democrats or Republicans Jonathon McNeil Middle Tennessee State University Running Head:Political Leanings and Choice of Vehicles2 Abstract It might be argued that liberals drive small vehicles in an effort to save the planet, from their belief in global warming. Many conservatives do not believe that scientific evidence supports global warming as a whole and hence are not as likely to buy and drive small vehicles. You are to test this hypothesis, that liberals (democrats) drive small cars and conservatives (republicans) drive larger cars. Go to parking lots and look for cars with political stickers that suggest whether they are liberal/democrat or conservative/republican. Note also whether the vehicle is small or large. You will have to operationally define small and large. Collect data for 24 liberals/democrats and 24 conservatives/republicans. Running Head: Political Leanings and Choice of Vehicles3 Introduction: I went into the Walmart parking lot off of South Rutherford Boulevard in Murfreesboro and observed 48 vehicles in total. I observed 24 vehicles that were determined to be liberal bumper stickers the other 24 vehicles were determined to be trucks and SUVs as having conservative bumper stickers. Throughout my research I have observed bumper stickers that were ambiguous stated I love dogs and other stickers stated Peace, love and happiness and Show support for the NRA which I could not determine whether the individuals bumper stickers to be Democrat or Republican. I spent a total of three hours walking in each parking lot collecting data such as vehicle information and whether the vehicle has a bumper sticker. One of the weaknesses with my research is observing bumper stickers and coming to a final determination whether the vehicle is a Democrat or a Republican. The factual data based solely on observation is limited to my interpretation of the bumper stickers. Hypothesis: Based on the data I have collected using the significance of .033 and one degree of freedom. Df= n-1 using two different population studies in this sample cars and politics. The cutoff from the Chi Square table is 4.547 for one degree of freedom .05 by using the Chi Square table and my value on the Pearson Chi Square model based on the data .033 there was a high degree of significance the data produced that SUVS and trucks that are conservatives and cars and small cars are democrats. Running Head: Political Leanings and Choice of Vehicles4 Method: Population 1: Cars was available and used to determine if the population is associated with being or not being liberal or conservative. Population 2: Politics category used to determine whether trucks, cars, and SUVs are branded on their bumper sticker Conservative or Democrat. For example: The value n are the number of cars, SUVs and trucks. Participants: The research is based solely on observation and recording of factual data. Apparatus: Pen and a paper was provided along with a clipboard to count the number of vehicles in a parking lot of Walmart and count the number of bumper stickers on a vehicle to tally up. Procedure: Observing 24 cars that were deemed liberal and 24 Trucks and SUVS were republican. Results: The Chi Square was performed and the result has a high degree of significance .033. Discussion: To make a conclusion about the hypothesis with 95% confidence, the value labeled Asymp. Sig. (which is the p-value of the Chi-Square statistic) should be less than .05 (which is the alpha level associated with a 95% confidence level). By researching the data allows me to assess whether the association seen between cars, trucks and SUVs in a particular sample is likely to represent an actual relationship between political leanings between democrats and conservatives choice in a population.

Lepenski Vir - Mesolithic Village in the Republic of Serbia

Lepenski Vir - Mesolithic Village in the Republic of Serbia Lepenski Vir is a series of Mesolithic villages located on a high sandy terrace of the Danube River, on the Serbian bank of the Iron Gates Gorge  of the Danube river. This site was the location of at least six village occupations, beginning about 6400 BC, and ending about 4900 BC. Three phases are seen at Lepenski Vir; the first two are whats left of a complex foraging society; and Phase III represents a farming community. Life in Lepenski Vir Houses in Lepenski Vir, throughout the 800-year-long Phase I and II occupations, are laid out in a strict parallelepiped plan, and each village, each collection of houses is arranged in a fan shape across the face of the sandy terrace. The wooden houses were floored with sandstone, often covered with a hardened limestone plaster and sometimes burnished with red and white pigments. A hearth, often found with evidence of a fish-roasting spit, was placed centrally within each structure. Several of the houses held altars and sculptures, sculpted out of the sandstone rock. Evidence seems to indicate that the last function of the houses at Lepenski Vir was as a burial site for a single individual. Its clear that the Danube flooded the site regularly, perhaps as much as twice a year, making permanent residence impossible; but that residence resumed after the floods is certain. Many of the stone sculptures are monumental in size; some, found in front of houses at Lepenski Vir, are quite distinctive, combining human and fish characteristics. Other artifacts found in and around the site include a vast array of decorated and undecorated artifacts, such as miniature stone axes and figurines, with lesser amounts of bone and shell. Lepenski Vir and Farming Communities At the same time as foragers and fishers lived at Lepenski Vir, early farming communities sprang up around it, known as the Starcevo-Cris culture, who exchanged pottery and food with the inhabitants of Lepenski Vir. Researchers believe that over time Lepenski Vir evolved from a small foraging settlement to the ritual center for the farming communities in the areainto a place where the past was revered and the old ways followed. The geography of Lepenski Vir may have played an enormous part in the ritual significance of the village. Across the Danube from the site is the trapezoidal mountain Treskavek, whose shape is repeated in the floor plans of the houses; and in the Danube in front of the site is a large whirlpool, the image of which is repeatedly carved into many of the stone sculptures. Like Catal Hoyuk in Turkey, which is dated to roughly the same period, the site of Lepenski Vir provides us with a glimpse into Mesolithic culture and society, into ritual patterns and gender relationships, into the transformation of foraging societies into agricultural societies, and into resistance to that change. Sources This glossary entry is a part of the About.com Guide to the European Mesolithic, and part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Bonsall C, Cook GT, Hedges REM, Higham TFG, Pickard C, and Radovanovic I. 2004. Radiocarbon and stable isotope evidence of dietary change from the Mesolithic to the Middle Ages in the Iron Gates: New results from Lepenski Vir. Radiocarbon 46(1):293-300. Boric D. 2005. Body Metamorphosis and Animality: Volatile Bodies and Boulder Artworks from Lepenski Vir. Cambridge Archaeological Journal 15(1):35-69. Boric D, and Miracle P. 2005. Mesolithic and Neolithic (dis)continuities in the Danube Gorges: New AMS dates from Padina and Hajducka vodenica (Serbia). Oxford Journal of Archaeology 23(4):341-371. Chapman J. 2000. Lepenski Vir, in Fragmentation in Archaeology, pp. 194-203. Routledge, London. Handsman RG. 1991. Whose art was found at Lepenski Vir? Gender relations and power in archaeology. In: Gero JM, and Conkey MW, editors. Engendering Archaeology: Women and Prehistory. Oxford: Basil Blackwell. p 329-365. Marciniak A. 2008. Europe, Central and Eastern. In: Pearsall DM, editor. Encyclopedia of Archaeology. New York: Academic Press. p 1199-1210.

Aristotle Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Aristotle - Essay Example For this reason, happiness seems to be unreachable. Yet if one would look at happiness not on the basis of fulfilled desires, perhaps, happiness is indeed attainable – but undiscovered by many. Hence, this draws to the question on how happiness can be used to measure life’s worth. In such case, it seems appropriate to rely on moral principles dictated by ethics. Aristotle (12) defines happiness to be a measure of good life and good action. While it is understandable how happiness is equated to good life, the concept of ‘good’ often remains subjective. For a peasant who has been enduring months of labor, an abundant harvest defines a good life. Yet this may not mean anything to a powerful landowner who has already been living in abundance all his life. In the same sense, it is common to think that the children of the peasants, who inherited slavery from their parents, are bound not to live a good life. However, Aristotle (13) pointed that life is already goo d in itself. This is to say that regardless of the condition, whether it be of the landowner or the peasant, life is always good for goodness is a state of soul (Aristotle 13). It is essential, therefore, to discover the goodness in one’s life even though at times, goodness is not blatantly laid before us. It has to be realized for it to be discovered. To illustrate, it is said that there are people born with inborn talents. However, without practice, the talent will remain undiscovered. If a dancer is too shy to perform, no one would appreciate the talent no matter how good the person is and as such, the person would not be recognized as talented even if the truth is, the talent is inborn to that person. Through time, the talent will remain hidden, unpracticed and never discovered. Moreover, with regards to the landowner in the previous example, despite the abundance of harvests, life for him may remain to be not good, perhaps due to lack of satisfaction. Therefore, this is to say that what seems to be good to some may not necessarily be considered as so by others even if in reality, it is indeed good in itself. Nevertheless, the above example shows how something which the majority is likely to consider ‘good’ may still be perceived otherwise by the one who failed to discover its goodness. However, there are also things which the majority would agree to be ‘not good’ such as ugliness and poverty. But then again, in line with principles of Aristotle, this agreement is not true for everything is innately good (13). Take for instance, slavery. While it is uncommon to realize its goodness, doing so is still possible. In Alice Walker’s novel, The Color Purple, poor Celie has been praying to God whom she has always thought of as a male white man. Yet despite her prayers, she continues to experience exploitation and was even forced by her father to leave the house and marry an abusive husband. But then, if she were not born to this situation, she would not have met the people who would teach her the meaning of life in deeper perspective. There was Shug, her husband’s lover, who made her realize that her image of God is simply what the society dictates her and Sophia who showed her that women are not born oppressed and it is possible to be superior over men. These people define goodness in the life of Celie. One cannot assign qualities to things despite of what the society agrees on for even poverty and slavery carry innate goodness. But then again, one may

Annotated Bibiograpgies of 6 SPANISH works Bibliography

Bibiograpgies of 6 SPANISH works - Annotated Bibliography Example El fama mas destacado de Dario esta derivado de estos tres. Sin embargo, Azul, reconocido como la obra que mas defina el movimiento modernista, es una coleccion de prosa y verso que representa la interpretacion de Dario. Esta intepretacion incluye principios artisticos de la escuela de parnassismo frances. Este enfoque en el parnassismo frances incluye restriccion, objetividad, y descripcion precisa, en su lengua nativa. Con sus temas y sintaxis directo, las escrituras en Azul reanimen a la literatura espanola. Desde su titulo enigmatico a la estructura de de la obra, que consiste de historias y poemas, es la obra mas representativa del periodo modernista. Ya esta aceptado que con esta coleccion de poesia, Dario se ha dado un nuevo sentido y ritmo a la lengua espanola. Su obra Azul es una parte de trabajo que de veras merece reconocimiento ancho. Annotated Bibliography (cont'd) Franco, Jean. An Introduction to Spanish-American Literature. 3rd ed. Cambridge University Press, 1995. sta es una edicin revisada, actualizada de la obra clsica de Jean Franco que se llama Introduction to Spanish-American Literature. Primero publicada en 1969, esta obra se ha sido recomendada mucho puesto que ese tiempo. El alcance de esta obra se extiende a partir de las pocas coloniales hasta hoy en dia. Los captulos posteriores fueron refundidos radicalmente para tomar cuenta de la mayora de los recientes desarrollos en literatura y crticas. Las traducciones inglesas se proporcionan para las citas espaolas en el texto, y las listas de lectura extensivamente actualizadas de material primario y secundario. Estas listas se refieren no slo a los textos espaoles pero tambin, donde disponibles, para las ediciones en ingls. En su...Con sus temas y sintaxis directo, las escrituras en Azul reanimen a la literatura espanola. sta es una edicin revisada, actualizada de la obra clsica de Jean Franco que se llama Introduction to Spanish-American Literature. Primero publicada en 1969, esta obra se ha sido recomendada mucho puesto que ese tiempo. El alcance de esta obra se extiende a partir de las pocas coloniales hasta hoy en dia. Los captulos posteriores fueron refundidos radicalmente para tomar cuenta de la mayora de los recientes desarrollos en literatura y crticas. Las traducciones inglesas se proporcionan para las citas espaolas en el texto, y las listas de lectura extensivamente actualizadas de material primario y secundario. Estas listas se refieren no slo a los textos espaoles pero tambin, donde disponibles, para las ediciones en ingls. En su estudio importante, Jean Franco dedica su introduccin a la literatura de Amrica espaola. Esta cubierto el periodo entre la Conquista y circa 1750, y dentro de sa, da el apenas un por ciento de su paginacion al tratamiento de la literatura indgena. Desde la publicacin de este libro, sin embargo, la nocin de las obras literarias hispanoamericanas ha alterado drsticamente y la

Native American educational traditions passed Essay Example for Free

Native American educational traditions passed Essay Before contact with Europeans, Native Americans developed an effective system of informal education call aboriginal education. The system included transmitting knowledge, values, skills, attitudes, and dispositions to the next generation in real world settings such as the farm, at home, or on the hunting ground. Education was viewed as a way to beautify and sharpen the next generation and prepare them to take over the mantle of leadership. The purpose of education was for an immediate induction of the next generation into society and preparation for adulthood. Education was for introducing society with all its institutions, taboos, mores, and functions to the individual. Also, education was intended for making the individual a part of the totality of the social consciousness. Native American education delineated social responsibility, skill orientation, political participation, and spiritual and moral values. The cardinal goals of Native American education were to develop the individual’s latent physical skills and character, inculcate respect for elders and those in authority in the individual, and help the individual acquire specific vocational training (Franklin, 1979). Native American education was also for developing a healthy attitude toward honest labor, developing a sense of belonging and encouraging active participation in community activities. Both boys and girls had equal access to education. Boys were taught by their fathers, uncles, grandfathers, and other male elders. Girls were instructed by their mothers, aunts, grandmothers, female elders and other members of their families. Sometimes, both boys and girls received instruction at the feet of either male or female elders (Mould, 2004). There were barely any dropouts and the community ensured that every child received a full education. Youth appropriate information and knowledge was not hidden from any child. Several teaching strategies, including storytelling, were utilized to pass on knowledge and culture to the youth. In fact, Mould (2004) believed that storytelling was a sacred and vital part of a Native American youth’s education. Knowledge and culture were passed down orally, â€Å"crafted into stories that would instruct, inspire, provoke, question, challenge, and entertain† (Mould, 2004). Often, the youth would gather together to listen to the elders as they related the knowledge once entrusted to them when they were children (Mould, 2004). The philosophy of education was that of the development of the individual as well as the whole society (Johnson et al. , 2005). Educational philosophy also emphasized the importance of nature. The pursuit of knowledge and happiness were subordinated to a respect for the whole universe. According to Johnson, knowledge was equated with an understanding of one’s place in the natural order of things and educators were encouraged to study and teach the physical and social world by examining the natural relationships that exist among things, animals, and humans. Studying ideas in the abstract or as independent entities was not considered as important as understanding the relationships among ideas and physical reality. The essential components of an educational experience included hands on learning, making connections, holding discussions, taking field trips, and celebrations of the moment (Johnson et al. , 2005). These highly effective teaching methods were utilized by adults to transmit culture to or educate the next generation. The youth learned at their own pace and barely competed against one another. The youth were taught to be supportive and nurturing of one another in the learning process. As a result of the holistic education that all youth were exposed to in the period before their contact with Europeans, there were barely any miseducated Native American children. At the time of European contact with Native Americans (from 1492), an advanced system of informal/aboriginal education had been developed by Native Americans as noted earlier. That system was misunderstood by Europeans who thus made efforts to impose their formal system of education on Native Americans. After contact with Europeans, formal education for Native Americans was initially conducted by missionaries and private individuals until the 1830s. There were increased European government efforts to formally educate Native Americans after the passage of the Indian Removal Act (1830) which forced Native Americans onto reservations (Tozer 2009). The purpose of formal education of Native Americans, as far as Europeans were concerned, was forced acculturation or assimilation to European culture (Tozer 2009). The aim of the European system of education was to â€Å"civilize†, Christianize, and Europeanize the Native Americans in European-controlled schools. To achieve this purpose and aim, many Native American children were forcibly removed from their homes and enrolled in European-controlled schools. By 1887, about 14,300 Native American children were enrolled in 227 schools run by the Bureau of Indian Affairs or by religious groups (Tozer 2009). The schools were operated based on an Anglo-conformity assimilationist approach. The Anglo-conformity assimilationist approach included the following: 1) Educating the Native Americans away from their culture due to the philosophy of Europeanization or Christianization or â€Å"civilizing† of the Native American through education; 2) Intensive efforts were made to destroy extant Native American cultures by excluding Native American cultures from the school curriculum; 3) Concerted efforts were made to prevent Native American students from following their own culture; and 4) Native American students were punished for speaking their native languages (Feagin Feagin, 2003). This approach motivated European American educators to force Native American students into boarding schools where it was believed that it would be easier and much more effective to Europeanize, Christianize, and â€Å"civilize† them. Students were forced to dress like Europeans, convert to Christianity, and take European names. Students who refused to conform were severely punished. The effects of the Anglo-conformity assimilationist approach on Native Americans cannot be overemphasized. Many of them lost or became confused about their cultural identity. Some tended to know a lot more about European culture, history, philosophy, and languages than about their own culture, history, philosophy, and languages. Europeanization, Christianization and â€Å"civilizing† of Native Americans through formal education seriously undermined the very foundation of Native American cultures and alienated many Native Americans from their own cultures and environment. Formal education forced many Native Americans to absorb European lifestyles and led to individualism as well as serious weakening of traditional authority structure and kin group solidarity. Many Native Americans lost faith in their own cultures and civilizations and absorbed those of Europeans. Some have neither fully adopted European culture nor fully embraced Native American culture and consequently swing between the two in a state of cultural confusion. Eurocentric education has been a miseducation of Native Americans as has been for all minority groups in the United States. These and many other political, social and economic effects of formal education on Native Americans have permeated Native American cultures till today. European American teachers and administrators have blamed Native American educational problems on cultural differences. This is known as cultural deficit theory. According to cultural deficit theorists, disjuncture’s or differences or deficits between the culture of the home and the culture of the school are the reasons for the poor academic achievement of non-European students (Johnson et al. , 2005). European American schools focus only on the dominant culture and expect all students to operate as if they are members of the dominant culture, giving an advantage to students from the dominant group and a disadvantage to those from minority groups (Johnson et al., 2005). What cultural deficit theorists advocate is that students from minority groups, including Native American students, must reject their own cultural patterns and absorb European American cultural patterns in order to be successful in school. Thus, in an effort to assist their students to be high achievers in school, many European American teachers have attempted to make their students â€Å"less Native American† by educating them away from their own cultures and imposing Anglo-European culture on them. Many schools and textbooks exclude Native American experiences and their immeasurable contributions to this society and the rest of the world and provide little to nothing to assist Native American children identify with their own cultures. From the 1930s some boarding schools were replaced by day schools closer to reservations and a bilingual policy of educating Native American students in both Native American languages and the English language was discussed (Feagin Feagin, 2003). Since the 1960s, organized protest has led to increased government involvement and aid for primary, adult, and vocational education for Native Americans on and off the reservations. Federal and local governments have focused more attention on local public schools (outside the reservations) and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) schools in the reservations. For greater inclusion of Native Americans in their own education, Native American advisory boards have been organized in mainstream public schools. More Native Americans have been added to school faculty and staff. Native American art, dances, and languages have been included in the school curriculum. The central curriculum taught in both BIA and mainstream schools have remained the same from colonial times until recently. The curriculum indoctrinates Native American children with the same European American values as in the past (Feagin Feagin, 2003). In many reservations today however, there are efforts to reverse this by teaching students in Native American languages and culture from the early years of their education. In the Choctaw Reservation in Choctaw, Mississippi for example, students are taught in the Chahta and English languages in the first three years of formal schooling and in the English language from the fourth grade onwards. Throughout their schooling to the high school level, they are taught and exposed to Choctaw culture and encouraged to speak the Chahta language in and outside of school. One of the essences of the Annual Choctaw Indian Fair is to educate both the youth and adults in Choctaw cultural practices and traditions and to transmit Choctaw culture to the next generation. The author of this article, who happens to be an African and from a continent which has had similar experiences as those of Native Americans, greatly applauds the new forms of formal education among Native Americans on the reservations, which include an integration of the Native American system before their contact with Europeans and aspects of the European system as a way of preserving what is left of Native American cultures, preparing contemporary Native American youth for their real world settings, and meeting the needs of Native Americans. The large scale migration of many Native Americans to the cities since the 1950s has led to a decline in the number of children in BIA schools. By the early 1990s less than ten percent (10%) of Native American children attended BIA schools (Feagin Feagin, 2003). Today, most Native American children attend mainstream local public schools due to the fact that majority of Native Americans live off reservations with their children (United States Census Bureau, 2001). The mainstream educational system has however failed to meet the needs of Native American students. The failure stems from the absence of a Native American perspective in the curricula, the loss of Native American languages, the shift away from Native American spiritual values, and the racist and discriminatory activities of many European American teachers and administrators (Feagin Feagin, 2003; Schaefer, 2004). Perhaps, mainstream educators could borrow the new forms of formal education being practiced on the reservations which seem to much better meet the needs of Native American students rather than continually imposing the Eurocentric system which has not worked for Native Americans. With regard to higher education, since the 1960s, many mainstream colleges have established Native American Studies centers to provide facilities for the study of Native American issues (Feagin Feagin, 2003). By the late 1990s, more than 134,000 Native Americans were enrolled in colleges and universities throughout the United States (Schaeffer, 2004). Majority of the students attended predominantly European American public colleges and universities. Some of the students were not very successful due to the ingrained racist and discriminatory practices in those institutions. Consequently, many Native American students dropped out of those institutions. In general, Native American formal educational attainment has remained lower than that of the general population due to the Eurocentricity of the educational system. By 1990, less than two-thirds of Native Americans over the age of twenty-five were high school graduates compared to three-fourths of all Americans in that age range. Native American students in mainstream schools are disproportionately placed in special education classrooms. The proportion of Native American students who drop out after tenth-grade is 36%, the highest of any racial or ethnic group and more than twice that of European Americans (Schaeffer, 2004). In view of the aforementioned issues in education among Native Americans, a Department of Education Task Force organized in the late 1990s recommended the following for addressing Native American educational issues: implementation of multicultural curricula that inculcate respect for Native American history and culture, and establishment of programs that guarantee that Native American students learn English well. The task force assumed that if Native American students learn English very well then they will be successful in school, an assumption which is traced to the cultural deficit theory discussed above. Today, many Native American students attend Native American-controlled community colleges. The community colleges integrate Native American history and culture into courses. More attention is given to students and their cultures in the Native American-controlled educational institutions. Native Americans had established an effective educational system which ensured the smooth transmission of their cultures to the next generation before their contact with Europeans. The system included passing on of knowledge, values, attitudes, skills, and dispositions required for successful functioning of every individual in real world settings. Access to education was denied neither to male nor female while all children were taught to support and nurture one another and not necessarily compete against one another in the learning process. Learning was undergirded philosophically by a reverence for nature and a sense of humans’ responsibility to nature (Johnson et al. , 2005). The arrival of Europeans from 1492 onwards led to the imposition of a Eurocentric educational system which was underpinned by an Anglo-conformist assimilationist approach discussed above. This approach included educating Native Americans away from their cultures as a way of rendering them â€Å"less Native American† and more European American. The Anglo-conformist assimilationist approach in the formal education of Native Americans has left many of them miseducated and quite confused about their cultural identity. The political, economic and social impact of the European aim of Europeanizing, Christianizing and â€Å"civilizing† Native Americans through formal education are discussed at length in a paper presented by the author at the National Association of Native American Studies Conference in 2004. Fortunately, today, Native American leaders are successfully making efforts to reverse the adverse effects of the imposed Eurocentric educational system by synthesizing traditional Native American educational practices with European American practices. Works Citied Feagin, J. R. and Feagin, C. B. (2003). Racial and ethnic relations. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice- Hall Johnson, J. A. ; Dupuis, V. L. ; Musial, D. ; Hall, G. E. ; and Gollnick, D. M. (2005). Introduction to the foundations of American education. Boston, Massachusetts: Allyn and Bacon. Mould, T. (2004). Choctaw tales. Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi. Schaefer, R. T. (2004). Racial and ethnic groups. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc. Steven Tozer (2009) School and Society : Historical and Contemporary Perspectives. McGraw- Hil Publishing Company.