The Effects of Missing Letters to the Reading Comprehension

CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY (CvSU) DON SEVERINO DE LAS ALAS CAMPUS Indang, Cavite ( (046) 415-0021 ( (046) 415-0012 E-mail: [email  protected] com â€Å"The Effects of Missing Letters to the Reading Comprehension of 2nd year IT Students of Cavite State University† In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Subject Experimental Psychology Prepared By: Ersando, Shalom G. Suansing, Glenda Mae E. March 2012 BIOGRAPHICAL DATA Shalom G. Ersando was born in J. P Rizal Memorial Hospital Dasmarinas Cavite on January 15, 1994. She is now residing at Brgy. Cabezas, Trece Martires City,Cavite.She is the eldest among the two siblings of late Mr. Carlito B. Ersando and Mrs. Victoria G. Ersando. She finished her elementary at Palawit Elementary School at Brgy. Cabezas Trece Martires City,Cavite in 2006. She completed her secondary at Tanza National Trade School at Paradahan I Tanza Cavite. At Present she is now taking up Bachelor of Science in Psychology at Cavite State University Inda ng Cavite. BIOGRAPHICAL DATA Glenda Mae Suansing was born on August 23, 1994. She is the second child of Nerissa and Alexander Suansing. She is currently residing at St. Michael Village, Sungay East, Tagaytay City.She has two siblings, Glen Mark and Gladys Suansing. She graduated her elementary at Tagaytay Elementary School. She was a consistent character awardee. She finished her secondary education at Tagaytay City Science National High School. She is currently studying at Cavite State University taking up Bachelor of Science in Psychology. After graduating college she is planning to pursue Industrial Pschology. She wants to become a Human Resource Practitioner. ACKNOWLEDGMENT This experimental research will not be complete without encouragement,assistance,support and inspiration proved by several people.The authors wish to express their sincerest appreciation and gratitude to the following persons who helped in the realization of this piece of work; To Ms. Alodia Mercado, our adv iser for her sound academic guidance and moral support which enabled her to pursue this study; To Ms. Alma Fatima Reyes, for her useful comments and suggestions that improved the study; To Ms. Ivy Valerie Garcia for letting the researchers use her laptop; To To the family of the researchers,for their love and support they gave me throughout the study; My greatest praise and honor to our Lord Almighty who guided me through my most difficult moments and problems.ABSTRACT SUANSING GLENDA MAE, ERSANDO SHALOM â€Å"The Effects of Missing Letter to the Reading Comprehension of 2nd year IT Students of Cavite State University. † Experimental Research. Bachelor of Science in Psychology. Cavite State University. March 2012, under the supervision of Ms. Alma Fatima Reyes. As reading plays an important role in our lives, reading comprehension is important for human progress. This experimental research proposes to investigate the effects of missing letters to the reading comprehension of students. The research is conducted at Cavite State University, Indang, Cavite.Fifteen respondents were needed for the Pre-test and the Post-test. Same person will be taking the Pre-test and Post-test. All fifteen respondents are 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University. The general objective of the study was to determine the Reading Comprehension of Students with missing letters. Specifically, the study aimed to determine if there was a difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post- Test. Data and information were gathered through the help of the respondents by answering the questionnaires regarding to their Reading Comprehension Skills provided by the researchers.TABLE OF CONTENTS APPROVAL SHEET. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BIOGRAPHICAL DATA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ACKNOWLEDGM ENT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ABSTRACT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIST OF TABLES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIST OF FIGURES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIST OF APPENDICES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . INTRODUCTION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Statement of the Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Objectives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hypotheses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Significance of the Study. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scope and Limitation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Definition of Terms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Theoretical Framework. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conceptual Framework. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . METHODOLOGY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Design Notation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sampling Technique. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Respondents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Instrument. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Data Gathering Procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Statistical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APPENDICES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BIBLIOGRAPHY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .LIST OF TABLES †¢ Table 1. A Distribution Table of the Pre-test Scores †¢ Table 2. A Distribution Table of the Post-test Scores †¢ Table 3. Difference of Pre-test and Post-test Scores LIST OF FIGURES †¢ Figure 1. Parallel Letter Recognition †¢ Figure 2. Research Paradigm †¢ Figure 3. Graphic Representation of Pre-test Scores †¢ Figure 4. Graphic Representation of Post-test Scores LIST OF APPENDICES †¢ Budgetary Estimates (Appendix A) †¢ Calendar of Activities (Appendix B) †¢ Instrument (Appendix C) †¢ Statistical Analysis of Data (Appendix D) †¢ Curriculum Vitae (Appendix E) THE EFFECTS OF MISSING LETTERS TO THE READING COMPREHENSION OF 2nd YEAR IT STUDENTS OF CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY† Glenda Mae Suansing Shalom Ersando | An experimental research prepared to the faculty of the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities, College of | |Arts and Sciences, Cavite State University, Indang Cavite in partial fulfillment of the requirements for Experimental Psychology| |with Contribution No. ER1. Prepared under the supervision of Ms. Alma Fatima Reyes. | INTRODUCTION Reading is a cognitive process of decoding characters or symbols in order to create a meaning.It is a means of communicating and sharing of information. We do it automatically. It requires development, practice and understanding. When we read, we use our eyes to receive written symbols such as letters and we use our brain to convert them into words, sentences and paragraphs that communicate something to us. Many people read books, newspapers, magazines, comic books, etc. It is considered as a daily routine of other people who loved to read. Readers integrate the words they have read into their existing framework of knowledge or schema.Reading helps a lot in our vocabulary. It wi dens our knowledge about words. Sometimes when we encountered unfamiliar words we can’t understand it, but when we encountered the same word we already knew what its meaning because we’ve read it already read it in the past. Reading also helps us in communicating in many way for example say, your job or any job for that matter, and you need to read a contract for business purposes or even if you work at a supermarket, don’t you need to know how to read in order to send the food that a person get to the right address.So as you see reading is just an element we need for day to day life. Statement of the Problem The study aimed to determine the reading comprehension of students with missing letters. 1. What is the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Pre-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University? 2. What is the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Post-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University? 3. Is there a significant difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post-test? . Do the missing letters affect the reading comprehension of students? Objectives Generally, the study aimed to determine if there is a significant difference between reading with missing letters and reading with complete letters. Specifically, the study aimed to: 1. to determine the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Pre-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University. 2. to determine the highest rating of the scores obtained in the Post-test by the 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University. 3. o determine if there is a significant difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post-test. 4. to determine the effects of missing letters to the reading comprehension of students. Hypotheses Ha: There is a significant difference between reading the words with missing letters and reading with complete letter s in the comprehension of the students. Ho: There is no significant difference between reading the words with missing letters and reading with complete letters in the comprehension of the students. Significance of the StudyThis study will benefit the following beneficiaries: Respondents This study will help the respondents to be familiarized in this type of reading. The respondents will also enhance their vocabulary. Community This study will be a great help for the community in order for the people to be aware in this style of reading. School This study will benefit the school by teaching this style of reading not only for students but also for the teachers. Future Researchers This study will be a guide for the future researchers in order for them to have a background regarding to this study.This will also serve as their related literature. Scope and Limitation This study is about on how the students read and understand the meaning of a word if there is a missing letter on the word . This study will also test the vocabulary of the students. This study only involves 2nd year IT students of Cavite State University. It is composed of 15 respondents from IT students. The study also limits the short period time given to conduct this research. Definition of Terms These are some terms used in the study: Cognitive Psychology – it is the study of internal and external processes of the brainWord Superiority Effect – refers to the increase in efficiency of letter identification within words Reading Comprehension – level of understanding when reading Pattern Recognition – organization of stimuli Pre-Test – test given before the Post-test Post-Test – test given after the Pre- test Schema – past experiences Treatment – levels of the independent variable Theoretical Framework This study justified the Parallel Letter Recognition. It is the model that most psychologists currently accept as most accurate is the parallel le tter recognition model.This model says that the letters within a word are recognized simultaneously, and the letter information is used to recognize the words. This is a very active area of research and there are many specific models that fit into this general category. The figure below is one popular formulation of this model. [pic] Figure 1: Parallel Letter Recognition Figure 1 shows a generic activation based parallel letter recognition model. In this example, the reader is seeing the word  work. Each of the stimulus letters are processed simultaneously.The first step of processing is recognizing the features of the individual letters, such as horizontal lines, diagonal lines, and curves. The details of this level are not critical for our purposes. These features are then sent to the letter detector level, where each of the letters in the stimulus word are recognized simultaneously. The letter level then sends activation to the word detector level. The  W  in the first lett er detector position sends activation to all the words that have a  W  in the first position (WORD  and  WORK).The  O  in the second letter detector position sends activation to all the words that have an  O  in the second position (FORK,  WORD, and  WORK). While  FORK  and  WORD  have activation from three of the four letters,  WORK  has the most activation because it has all four letters activated, and is thus the recognized word. Conceptual Framework Fig. 2 This study aimed to know the difference between the Pre-test and Post-test scores of the students in their reading comprehension. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE This chapter presents the related topics and studies regarding this study. It also presents the synthesis of all the topics.Pattern Recognition Our ability to recognize familiar types of things is a spectacular human characteristic. This attribute allows us to recognize an old friend in a sea of faces, to identify an entire musical theme f rom a few notes, to read words, to enjoy the taste of a vintage wine, or to appreciate the smell of a rose. It is a cognitive endowment that we mostly perform seamlessly, rapidly, and without much effort. In our everyday life, we use pattern recognition all the time, yet the cognitive structures which support pattern recognition are only recently understood. Cognitive Psychology, 6th edition, Robert Solso, p. 109) Researchers have discovered that top-down processing can influence our ability to recognize a variety of objects. It also influences our ability to recognize letters during reading. Most of the research on this topic examines how context helps us recognize letters of the alphabet. Psychologists who study reading have realized for decades that a theory of recognition would be inadequate if it were based only as the information in the stimulus. (Cognition, 5th edition, Margaret Mathin, p. 42) Immediacy of InterpretationOne of the important principles to emerge in studied of language processing is called the principle of immediacy of interpretation. Basically this principle says that people try to extract as much meaning out of each word as it arrives, and they do not wait until the end of sentences or even the ends of phrases to decide or how to interpret a word. For instance, Just and Carpenter (1980) studied the eye movements of subjects as they read a sentence. While reading a sentence, subjects will typically fixate or almost every word. Just and Carpenter find that the time subjects spend fixating or word is basically proportional to the amount of information provided by a word. Thus, if a sentence contain or relatively unfamiliar or a surprising word, they pause in that word. (Cognitive Psychology & Its Interpretation,John R. Anderson) Reading Comprehension Reading comprehension is a complex undertaking that involves many levels of processing. One of the most fundamental aspects of comprehension is the ability to deal with unfamiliar words encoun tered in text. Readers who struggle with word-level tasks use up valuable cognitive space that could be allotted to deeper levels of text analysis.It is not enough to rely on context cues to predict the meaning of new words, since this strategy often results in erroneous or superficial understandings of key terms, especially in content-area reading (Paynter, Bodrova, & Doty, 2005). Mature readers need to possess a basic knowledge of â€Å"how words work† and a set of strategies for approaching new words encountered throughout the day. (http://www. edu. gov. on. ca/eng/research/mcquirter. pdf) How word knowledge affects reading comprehension Vocabulary knowledge is one of the best predictors of reading achievement (Richek, 2005).Bromley (2004), in a comprehensive review of research on vocabulary development, concludes that vocabulary knowledge promotes reading fluency, boosts reading comprehension, improves academic achievement, and enhances thinking and communication. Spellin g is also an important consideration in reading comprehension. The concepts about sound patterns that children learn in the early years through invented spelling and direct spelling instruction help them to decode new words in their reading. As they mature and begin to spell longer and more complex words, children apply the concepts of base words, prefixes, and suffixes to their spelling.This knowledge of morphology, in turn, helps them to deconstruct longer words encountered in their reading. Templeton (2004) argues that spelling knowledge provides the basis for explicit awareness and understanding of morphology, which, in turn, may guide the systematic growth of vocabulary knowledge. Considering the strength of vocabulary knowledge in predicting reading achievement, the complex interrelationships among these areas are significant. (http://www. edu. gov. on. ca/eng/research/mcquirter. pdf) Missing letter effectIn cognitive psychology, the missing letter effect refers to the finding that, when people are asked to consciously detect target letters while reading text, they miss more letters in frequent, function words (e. g. the letter â€Å"t† in â€Å"the†) than in less frequent, content words. The missing letter effect has also been referred to as the reverse word superiority effect, since it describes a phenomenon where letters in more frequent words fail to be identified, instead of letter identification benefitting from increased word frequency.The effect is usually measured using a paper-and-pencil procedure, where readers are asked to circle a target letter every time they come across it while reading a short passage. The missing letter effect is more likely to appear when reading words that are part of a normal sequence, than when words are embedded in a mixed-up sequence (e. g. readers asked to read backwards). The missing-letter effect for common function words It has been proposed that function words such as for and on conceal their let ters because their higher familiarity allows fast access to their unitized representations.However, this study shows that letter detection in function words varies with their linguistic role in text. When such words were embedded in a phrase where they were forced into a content role by the surrounding context (e. g. , for or against or on switch ), letter detection improved markedly and did not differ from that of matched content words. The result was replicated when the context preceding the function word and the overall sentential meaning were equated for both function and content usages.The results support a late-stage structural account of the function-disadvantage effect, where the syntactic units that support the structural frame of a sentence are lost in the transition from structure to meaning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) Word superiority effect In cognitive psychology, the word superiority effect (WSE) refers to the phenomenon that people a re more accurate in recognizing a letter in the context of a word than they are when a letter is presented in isolation, or when a letter is presented within a nonword (e. g. â€Å"WXRG†).Studies have also found a WSE when letter identification within words is compared to letter identification within pseudowords. (e. g. â€Å"WOSK†) and (e. g. â€Å"WERK†). The effect was first described by Cattell (1886), and important contributions came from Reicher (1969) and Wheeler (1970) . The WSE has since been exhaustively studied in the context of cognitive processes involved during reading. Large amounts of research have also been done to try to model the effect using connectionist networks. (http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Word_superiority_effect) Several studies have shown a correlation between working memory and reading comprehension.Daneman and Carpenter (1980) used a dine-task procedure in which both tasks (reading and remembering) use a single verbal memory state. A compromise position suggests that the phonological component of working memory acts as a sort of back-up memory. When sentences are short or easily comprehended it is not needed with syntactically more complex or lengthy sentences processing may lay behind the input and so the representation in the phonological store needs to be consulted. (McCarthy and Worrington, 1990) Transfer to Long Term MemoryVerbal rehearsals may be necessary in acquiring some kinds of knowledge such as learning new vocabulary words. New words need to be first remembered by sound like a representation cannot be retrieved to long term memory. Ebbinghaus discovered another unique findings the serial position effect. It can be found in memory for lists even when serial anticipation is not required. Working Memory Working memory  has been defined as the system which actively holds information in the mind to do verbal and nonverbal tasks such as reasoning and comprehension, and to make it available for furthe r information processing.Working memory tasks are those that require the goal-oriented active monitoring or manipulation of information or behaviors in the face of interfering processes and distractions. The cognitive processes involved include the  executive  and  attention  control of  short-term memory  which provide for the interim integration, processing, disposal, and retrieval of information. Working memory is a theoretical concept central both to  cognitive psychology  and  neuroscience. Synthesis We use pattern recognition in our daily lives, most likely in reading in how we recognize letters.It is an ability where only humans can do. One of the most widely demonstrated phenomena in the research on recognition is the Word Superiority Effect. According to the word superiority effect, we can identify a single letter more accurately and more rapidly when it appears in a word that it appears alone by itself or in a string or same letter. As we are reading a bo ok or any reading material, our brain process the meaning of a word. It is naturally done by our brain. By the help of our schema or past experiences, when we encountered a familiar word, we can easily recognize it.But it's quite difficult for us to understand the meaning of a word if we never encountered it in our past. METHODOLOGY In this chapter, the researchers will describe the research design, sampling technique, respondents, research instrument, data gathering procedure and the statistical analysis that they used. Research Design The research design that the researchers used was the Within Subject Design. A within-subjects design is a type of experimental design in which all participants are exposed to every treatment or condition. For the Pre-test, the respondents we’ll be not exposed to treatment.For the Post-test, the students will be now exposed to the treatment which is the missing letters in the passage. Psychologists often use them to test the relative effective ness of a new treatment, often a difficult proposition. One of the greatest advantages of a within-subjects design is that it does not require a large pool of participants. Generally, a similar experiment in a between-subjects design would require twice as many participants as a within-subjects design. A within-subjects design can also help reduce errors associated with individual differences.In a between-subjects design where individuals are randomly assigned to a treatment condition, there is still a possibility that there may be fundamental differences between the groups that might impact the results. In a within-subjects design, individuals are exposed to all levels of a condition, so the results will not be distorted by individual differences. Each participant serves as his or her own baseline. Design Notation O1XO2 O1 = Pre-test O2 = Post-test X = Treatment (Missing Letters) Sampling Technique Random sampling method was used.The researchers used the table of random sampling fo r choosing the respondents. The respondents were 2nd year IT students of Cavite State University. In random sample, each individual in the population has an equal chance of being selected. If more than one individual is to be selected for the sample, there must be constant probability for each and every selection. Respondents The researchers need 15 students for pre-test and post-test. Same person were taking the pre-test and post-test. Research Instrument The instrument that the researchers used was a test questionnaire. The est questionnaire is composed of a short passage or story and then it is followed by a 10 item question. Treatment For the first passage in the pre-test, a normal passage with complete letters is given. For the post-test, the passage contains words with missing letters. This treatment will be given to 15 respondents. This will tests if it is good or effective to use. Data Gathering Procedure The researchers need to provide questionnaires for the respondents reg arding to their Reading Comprehension skills. The researchers need to provide questionnaires until they meet the minimum ( 15) respondents.After that Pre-test will be given in the respondents. And the post-test will be given to know if missing letters will affect the Reading Comprehension of the respondents. Statistical Analysis The researchers used the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. The Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test is a non-parametric statistical test for testing hypothesis on median. It is used when we wish to compare two sets of scores that come from the same participants. This can occur when we wish to investigate any change in scores from one time point to another or individuals are subjected to more than one condition.As the Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test does not assume normality in the data it can be used when this assumption has been violated and the use of the  dependent t-test  is inappropriate. The advantage with Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test is that it neither depends on the form of the parent distribution nor on its parameters. It does not require any assumptions about the shape of the distribution. For computing the mean, the researchers used the formula below. The researchers summed up all the scores and divided the total by the number of scores. [pic] Where: [pic] is the symbol for the mean [pic] is the symbol for summationX is the symbol for the scores N is the symbol for the number of scores For computing the standard deviation, the researchers used the formula: [pic] Where: S is the symbol for standard deviation [pic] is the value of the mean [pic] is the symbol for summation Xi represents each data value from i=1 to i=N.. N is the sample size RESULTS and DISCUSSION This chapter contains the analysis and interpretation of the results that we have gathered. The results gathered were organized, tabularized, discussed and analyzed in this section. The table contains the scores obtained by the students in the Pre-test and Post-Test.Table 1. A Distribution table of the Pre-test scores |Rating |Frequency(f) |Percentage(%) | |Excellent |0 |0 | |Very Good |4 |26. 7 | |Good |8 |46. 7 | |Poor 3 |26. 7 | |Total |15 |100 | |Mean |2. 0 | | |Standard Deviation |0. 75593 | | |Verbal Interpretation |Poor | | Legend: Poor 0-3; Good 4-5; Very Good 6-7; Excellent 8-10. Table one shows the pre-test scores by 2nd year IT students of Cavite State University. Out of fifteen students, 3 or 26. 7% of the students got Poor rating; 8 or 46. 7% of the students got Good rating; 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Very Good rating; and no one got Excellent rating. According to Anderson and Freebody (1981), it is well established that good comprehenders tend to have good vocabularies. This correlation, however, does not mean that teaching vocabulary will increase readers’ comprehension, for that is a causal conclusion.As it turns out, however, when reading educators conducted experiments in which vocabulary was either taught to students or not, compre hension improved as a function of vocabulary instruction. In the pre-test, the researchers included some difficult or unfamiliar words that the researchers think the students didn’t encounter before. As shown in the pre-test scores, the respondents tend to have poor reading comprehension and vocabulary. The low scores they got was a proof that if a word is unfamiliar and unrecognizable you can’t easily understand it. Table 2. A Distribution table of Post-Test Scores Rating |Frequency(f) |Percentage(%) | |Excellent |4 |26. 7 | |Very Good |3 |20 | |Good |4 |26. 7 | |Poor |4 |26. | |Total |15 |100 | |Mean |2. 5 | | |Standard Deviation |1. 18723 | | |Verbal Interpretation |Poor | | Legend: Poor 0-3; Good 4-5; Very Good 6-7; Excellent 8-10. Table 2 shows the post-test scores from the same students who took the pre-test. Out of fifteen students, 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Poor rating; 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Good rating; 3 or 20% of the students got Very Goo d rating; and 4 or 26. 7% of the students got Excellent rating. According to a research study, there are much more effective ways to teach comprehension. Much work has been done in the area of teaching novice readers a bank of â€Å"reading strategies,† or tools to interpret and analyze text.There is not a definitive set of strategies, but common ones include summarizing what you have read, monitoring your reading to make sure it is still making sense, and analyzing the structure of the text. Some texts, like in philosophy, literature or scientific research, may appear more difficult to read because of the prior knowledge they assume. Because the texts were unfamiliar, readers don’t understand it. Analysis of research findings reveal that if a reader is to become very good at comprehending what he reads he must meet two principal learning requirements. They must: (1. know words; and (2. ) be able to reason with physical text. In the post-test, the treatment was adminis tered. Some words in the passage have missing letters. According to Just and Carpenter (1980), who studied the eye movements when reading, if a sentence contains unfamiliar words, the reader will pause in that word. Thus, when the respondents were reading the passage, whey saw the words with missing letters, they paused as their brain processed to recognize that word. The respondents extract meaning to that word as they read it. Table 3. Difference of Pre-test and Post-Test Scores Rating |Pre test frequency |Post-test frequency | |Excellent |0 |4 | |Very Good |4 |4 | |Good |8 |3 | |Poor |3 |4 | |Total Mean |2. 0 |2. 5 | *Legend: Poor 0-3; Good 4-5; Very Good 6-7; Excellent 8-10. Table 3 shows the difference of pre-test and post-test scores. As a whole, it shows that most of the students got high scores in the post-test. The total mean scores of the students in the pre-test is 2. 0 which is equivalent to Poor rating. The total mean of scores of students in the post-test is 2. wh ich is equivalent to Poor rating also. Thus, there is a 0. 5 difference in the mean scores. After computing the difference of the pre-test and post-test scores using Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test, the result of the asymptotic significance is 0. 01. Thus, the researchers should reject Ho because the result of asymptotic significance of the study is less than 0. 050. The results have showed that the students were more capable in answering the passage with missing letters. The results gathered by the researchers showed that the missing letters affect the reading comprehension of the students. It positively helped the students to understand well the passage.According to Paynter, Bodrova and Doty (2005), one of the most fundamental aspects of comprehension is the ability to deal with unfamiliar words encountered in text. In the passage, maybe the students have encountered it before so that they understand the passage. Readers who struggle with word-level tasks use up valuable cognitive space that could be allotted to deeper levels of text analysis. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS The summary provides comprehensible summary on how the study was conducted. It also presents the list of findings, state the conclusion and some of the recommendations. Summary The study aimed to determine whether there are differences between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters.Specifically, the study aimed to 1) determine the rating of IT students in the Pre-test; 2) determine the rating of IT students in the Post-test; 3) determine the significant difference between the scores obtained in the Pre-test and the scores obtained in the Post-test; 4) determine the effect of missing letters to the reading comprehension of the students. The researcher conducted their study at Cavite State University from February 17 to March 8, 2012. The researcher used the within subject design for their study. The researcher used random sampling method where they used the table of random numbers to choose their respondents. Their respondents were 2nd year BS IT students, 15 students in pre-test and another 15 students in post-test. The researchers used a survey test questionnaire that was composed of a short passage and followed by 10 questions.The formula to determine the level of students in Pre-test was frequency tallies and percentage. The formula used to determine the level of reading comprehension in Post-test was also frequency tallies and percentage. In determining the significant difference between the Pre-test and Post-test scores, the formula that the researchers used was Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. The findings resolved that there is a significant difference between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters. From the asymptotic significance obtained from the pre-test and post-test we should reject Ho and accept Ha. Conclusions Based on the findings and the data gathered the following conclusions were drawn: 1. Based on the scores of the respondents in the pre-test, the respondents got the highest rating of Very Good which ranges from 0-7. The students were not familiar to the words in the passage. The researchers conclude that those words were not in their long term memory so it was hard for the respondents to understand the passage; 2. )Based on the scores of the respondents in the post-test, the respondents got the highest rating of Excellent which ranges from 8-10. Thus, the student’s performance was excellent and they meet the highest rating compared to the pre-test. The respondents could really read fairly well even if only half of the letters are present; 3. )Based on the mean scores of the students, there is a 0. difference between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters. The researchers conclude that the treatment, which is the missing letters, is effective in reading comprehension. As the results showed, post-test is higher than the pre-test. Thus, there is a sig nificant difference between reading with complete letters and reading with missing letters; 4. )Missing Letters affect the reading comprehension of the students. The researchers conclude that it is effective to use. Based on the scores the respondents achieved, post-test scores were higher than the pre-test scores. Thus, the students understood the passage with missing letters. RecommendationsBased on the results of the study, the researchers highly recommend the following: Students. To the students, they should use this type of reading as a practice for them in reading comprehension and for their vocabulary. Teachers. To the teachers, the researchers recommend to use this type of reading to increase their inferential comprehension. Future Researchers. To anybody who wants to pursue the same study or related to this study this will help to improve the student’s style of reading. The researchers also recommend having further study regarding this study and they should also use larger amount of participants/respondents to show the comparison in our study. APPENDICES Budgetary Estimates (Appendix A) |Cost | |Print |100 | |Computer Rent |250 | |Transportation |100 | |Total |450 Php | Calendar of Activities (Appendix B) February 13 – Chapters 1,2,3February 13,14,15 Instrumentation February 17 to March 8 – Conducting of experimental research Data Gathering March 15 – Data Analysis March 19 – Chapter 4,5 March 21 – Chapter 1,2,3,4,5 March 26,27 – Poster Presentation April 10 – Soft Bound Statistical Analysis of Data (Appendix D) Frequencies pre test level |Statistics | |Level | |N |Valid |15 | | |Missing |0 | | |Mean |2. 0000 | | |Std. Error of Mean |. 19518 | | |Std.Deviation |. 75593 | | |Minimum |1. 00 | | |Maximum |3. 00 | |level | | | |Level | |N |Valid |15 | | |Missing |0 | | |Mean |2. 5333 | | |Std. Error of Mean |. 30654 | | |Std. Deviation |1. 18723 | | |Minimum |1. 0 | | |Maximum |4. 00 | |le vel | | | | | | | |N |Mean Rank |Sum of Ranks | |level – group |Negative Ranks |4a |8. 00 |32. 00 | | |Positive Ranks |19b |12. 84 |244. 0 | | |Ties |7c | | | | |Total |30 | | | |a. level ; group | |b. level ; group | |c. level = group | |Test Statisticsb | | |level – group | | Z |-3. 351a | |Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) |. 001 | |a. Based on negative ranks. | |b.Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test | Curriculum Vitae ( Appendix F ) Contact Information Name: Glenda Mae Suansing Address: St. Michael Village, Sungay East, Tagaytay City Contact Number: 09159727469 E-mail Address: [email  protected] com Personal Information Date of Birth: August 23, 1994 Place of Birth: Indang, Cavite Citizenship: Filipino Gender: Female Educational Attainment Primary Tagaytay Elementary School Secondary Tagaytay City Science National High School College Cavite State University Bachelor of Science in Psychology Interests: Playing guitar, Reading books, Watching films Contact Information Name: Shalom E rsando Address: Brgy.Cabezas Trece Martires City Contact Number: 09107232128 E-mail Address: [email  protected] com Personal Information Date of Birth: January 15 1994 Place of Birth: Dasmarinas Cavite Citizenship: Filipino Gender: Female Educational Attainment Primary Palawit Elementary School Secondary Tanza National Trade School College Cavite State University Bachelor of Science in Psychology Interests: Reading books, watching movie, Hanging with friends and playing badminton INSTRUMENT (Pre-test) INSTRUMENT (Post-test) ———————– Reading Comprehension of 2nd year BS IT students of Cavite State University Post-test Scores Missing Letters (treatment) Pre-test Scores

Unit 9 Nvq Level 3

Unit 9 1. 1 As a nursery nurse you need to contribute to a programme of age-appropriate activities designed to stimulate the children you are working with: †¢ Keep an accurate record of achievement file on your key children †¢ Be a pro-active team member, offering appropriate support to your colleagues †¢ Liaise with and support parents and other family members †¢ Attend ALL out of working hours activities, e. g. training, monthly staff meetings, parents’ evenings, summer fayre, Christmas party, etc. †¢ Be flexible within working practices of the Nursery.Be prepared to help where needed, including domestic jobs within the Nursery, e. g. preparation of snack meals, cleaning equipment etc. †¢ Work with the Manager and her team to ensure that the Nursery’s philosophy is reflected †¢ Record accidents in the accident book. Make sure that parents read and sign the report. †¢ Look at the Nursery as a ‘whole’, where your help is most needed and how you can most effectively meet the needs of the children in your care †¢ Make sure that every child is collected by someone known to the Nursery †¢ Respect the confidentiality of information received Develop your role within the team, especially your role as a key worker †¢ Specified Child Care Tasks: a. Prepare and complete activities that match the child’s stage of development b. Make sure that mealtimes are a time of pleasant social sharing c. Wash and change children as required d. Provide comfort and warmth to an unhappy or sick child †¢ Help to make sure that the environment meets the needs of Nursery children, reflecting their cultures and religious backgrounds, and stages of development †¢ Be aware of the high profile of the Nursery and to uphold its standards at all times. . 2 In my role I am expected to support the staff, to be reliable and build a good relationship with the children, encouraging them to the best of th eir ability in their learning, to assist their growth in knowledge and assist in enhancing their development, so they can grow holistically. To be aware of any weak areas that I come across whilst working with the children, for example a child that may need extra support within their numeracy, literacy or phonics time. I am also expected to deal, to the best of my ability, with challenging aggressive, rude or traumatised children.Whilst I may need to do this at times I am also aware that the class teacher is there for support. I have had to deal with bad language used by a pupil when dealing with the child I explained that the words used where not words that should be used. I found out why the pupil had said those words and asked what words we could use instead. As well as working with my own class teacher I can be asked at times to go and support another teacher in another class. I am expected to adapt very quickly to the other class and to the lesson there having.My role also mean s that I will support the children so they are confident in their journey though the school. It is important that I conduct myself in the correct manner within the school as children will often mirror others actions. I remain professional at all times and act appropriately. 2. 1 As part of our job role it is important to carry out reflective practice especially because we work with children/young people and our effectiveness will have an impact on them and their learning.Reflective practice means thinking about and evaluating what you do and discussing any changes which could be made. This means focusing on how we interact with colleagues, service users and the environment. It means thinking about how we could have done something differently, what we did well, what we could have done better. How we can improve what you have done. It also means reflecting our own values, beliefs and experiences which shape our thoughts and ideas.This will allow us to obtain a clearer picture of your own behaviour and a better understanding of our strengths and weaknesses- so that we can learn from our own mistakes and take appropriate future actions. Improving the quality of our performance: – Allows us an objective look at our practice in order to improve    – Helps us to recognise what we do well so that we can apply these skills in other situations    – Improves professional judgment – Helps us to learn from successes and mistakes to enhance development    –Helps us to plan for future situations and therefore respond more positively to change    – Enables us to apply the skill of reflection to the personal development cycle Reflective practice allows us to support the children better and better- if we have concerns about how the session went we can look back and work out what more we could have done. We may have used one resource and found it useful and then choose it again with another child. 2. 3 Everyone has different valu es, beliefs and preferences.What you believe in, what you see as important and what you see as acceptable or desirable is an essential part of who you are. The way in which you respond to people is linked to what you believe in, what you consider important and what interests you. You may find you react positively to people who share your values and less warmly to people who have different priorities. When you develop friendships, it is natural to spend time with people who share your interests and values. However, the professional relationships you develop with people you support are another matter.As a professional, you are required to provide the same quality of support for all, not just for those who share your views and beliefs. This may seem obvious, but knowing what you need to do and achieving it successfully is not the same thing. 3. 1 It is a nursery nurse’s duty to provide a safe, warm and caring environment where children feel welcomed and loved and are able to lea rn and develop at their own pace, with guidance and supervision as appropriate, in order that parent may have peace of mind to go to work knowing that their child’s well-being is paramount.The duties and responsibilities are: †¢ To listen to parents as experts on their own children, to respect families traditions and childcare practices and to follow parents’ wishes as closely as possible within the context of caring for children from several different families. †¢ To plan and provide activities and resources appropriate to each child’s age, stage of development and individual needs and interests with due regard the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). †¢ To provide a safe environment, both at the child minders property and on outings.To teach children safe practices and to hold a current first aid certificate. †¢ To maintain discipline and encourage positive behaviour. †¢ To be aware of the signs and symptoms which i ndicate the possibility of abuse and to be aware of the current procedure for reporting concerns. †¢ To provide a varied nutritional menu with due regard to the dietary requirements of each child, parents wishes and the current professional recommendations for children’s diets. †¢ To provide a healthy environment and to encourage children to make healthy choices. To liaise with and, where necessary, to seek advice from professionals, with due regard to confidentiality, including preschool leaders, school teachers, health visitor. †¢ To adhere to requirements set out by relevant authorities such as Ofsted, insurance providers, inland revenue. †¢ To comply with relevant legislation such as that covering health and safety, food hygiene, fire or planning requirements and to keep appropriate records with due regard to confidentiality. †¢ To meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).A child minder should also love and nurture every ch ild so they grow confident and strong and develop into healthy and caring young people and adults. 4. 1 While at work it helps me when I have an appraisal meeting with the manager, this is because I can pick out the things I think I do best and the things I don’t do as good as I should be doing. This is also useful as the manager will have some points to speak to me about things so then I can use these to help me become a professional nursery practitioner. It’s also useful when I get supervised through new things e. when I first got key children I got so much help and supervision through this that it made me become stronger at work. 5. 1 The reasons why it is important to evaluate learning activities are: †¢ To see what is working and what needs removing or changing       †¢ To assess how the activities are being delivered and how they could be improved       †¢ To see how the activities are being received by the participants Evaluation is import ant as it helps out when planning and helps you to think about the learning that has taken place.Spending time going through the learning activities and seeing how students have responded to a certain task or question, can really help re-shape it for future classes. It is also important to look back at the learning objects so you can measure what the children have learned. If you do not think carefully about learning objectives at the planning stage, it will not always be possible to evaluate whether pupils have achieved them. Learning objectives need to be clear for this to be possible. †¢ Learners must understand what the outcomes mean. †¢ They must be achievable. †¢ We must be able to assess pupils against them.Evaluating helps you to see if something is succeeding or may need changing. If students whizzed through the activity and then looked rather bored then it would be obvious that the task was a bit too easy and not really suitable or beneficial for that group. Therefore you would need to try and make it more engaging and stimulating, perhaps by making it more difficult or time-consuming so the students really have to work to complete it. If the activities are taking longer than expected and you can see that the students are really struggling, things again would need to be addressed.

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The predominant theme in â€Å"The Lesson† composed by Toni Cade Bambara is creating an understanding to adolescents of all the opportunities life has to offer; a lesson on social class and having a choice which society you choose to live in. Miss. Moore who takes on the responsibility to educate the young ones has intentions of more than just taking the children to the store for amusement. Miss Moore’s informal lessons are aimed at educating the neighborhood children about how their lives differ from those of rich white children, nonetheless Miss Moore wants the children to see they can live the life of the rich and high society. An essential element that adds to the depth and enhances a reader’s comprehension of â€Å"The Lesson† is the author’s use of symbolism throughout the story. Sylvia, the narrator of the story, is a born leader. She is used to being in charge of what the rest of her friends think and do. Sylvia resents the appearance of Miss Moore in her life. Miss Moore is a new kind of black woman. She has no first name but is always addressed with her title. She has â€Å"nappy hair and proper speech and no makeup†(Bambara 98). The neighbors are not quite sure how to respond to her, which is illustrated by the way Sylvia describes her as someone to laugh at, â€Å"the way we did at the junk man,† (Bambara 98) who is considered arrogant and acting above his place. Sylvia also describes Miss Moore in terms of being an unpleasant obstacle, like the winos â€Å"who cluttered up our parks and pissed on our handball walls†(Bambara 98). Clearly the author shows the extent of which Sylvia dislikes Miss Moore. Although the people in the neighborhood are unsure of Miss Moore the parents of the children allow her to take them on an outing. Miss Moore, the children’s self appointed mentor, takes it upon herself to further their education during the summer months. She feels this is her civic duty because she is educated. She used F. A. O. Schwarz, a very expensive toy store, to teach them a lesson and inspire them to strive for success and attempt to better themselves and their situations. The extreme differences between the children’s neighborhood and the neighborhood of the toy store are first illustrated by the fact that the white people on Fifth Avenue wear furs and stockings even on a hot summer’s day. Then we check out that we on Fifth Avenue and everybody dressed up in stockings. One lady in a fur coat, hot as it is†(Bambara 99). The children are thrown off balance in this neighborhood, as if it were a foreign country where even the approach to temperature is different. To Miss Moore, education is the key to more money and improved social conditions. To Sylvia, being educated means seeing things as they are. Sylvia and Miss Moore both have a considerable amount of pride. Sylvia thinks Miss Moore shows disrespect when she describes their neighborhood as a slum and their families as poor. Bambara has indicated that Sylvia’s family is striving for better conditions through the mention of the piano rental. Miss Moore views the children’s acceptance of their economic condition as ignorance and their ignorance as disrespect for their race. Miss Moore wants to change this attitude and encourages the children to demand more from the society that keeps them down. By the end of the story, both of these characters have made their points. Sylvia realizes that she feels in competition not only with Miss Moore, but also with her good friend Sugar, who is ready to slide back into their usual behavior after having had some surprising insights about the day. Rather than accompany Sugar, Sylvia decides to go her own way and makes a promise to herself that no one will get ahead of her in the future. Miss Moore’s character, with her emphasis on education, is the symbol of one way to fight the usual, fatalistic acceptance of economic conditions by the poor â€Å"The Lesson† is a wonderful work of fiction because of its use of language, humanistic theme, and symbolism.

Nursing - Special Care of the Newborn Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Nursing - Special Care of the Newborn - Essay Example I have one other midwife working with me in the SCN. The workload was not much. It was 11 pm, and there were 8 infants under our care. There was a call from the Delivery Suite about a patient, Suzy who presented to the Labour and Delivery accompanied by her husband John. They wanted SCN midwife to attend the delivery. I enquired about the history. The Delivery Suite personnel told me that Suzy is a primigravida at 33 weeks of gestation. This was an unexpected presentation to the Labor and Delivery for her. There was onset of established labour pain. On examination, it was found that labour has progressed already to the extent that the cervix was fully dilated, and Suzy would birth soon. After talking to John, her husband, Suzy was admitted, and the birthing would occur soon. Since this was a preterm delivery, there is a high chance that the baby would be low birth weight, premature, and would have every chance of many catastrophic events during delivery putting the baby at risk. Ther efore, the Delivery Suite wanted SCN presence there for immediate resuscitation of the baby post delivery and assessment and arrangements for admission to the SCN. This was a very rational approach on the part of the Delivery Suite personnel to contact Special Care Nursery on the verge of this preterm delivery. Newborn period encompasses the first four weeks of extrauterine life, but it is an important link in the chain of events of transition of the fetus to adulthood. The morbidity and mortality rates in the newborn infants are high, and most occur during the newborn period. Any neonate born before 37th weeks of pregnancy irrespective of birth weight is termed as preterm. Since the fetus had not had enough time to grow appropriately within the uterus, the birth weight of the baby will be low. Along with that, a preterm baby will be small in size. There

Water Pollution Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Water Pollution - Assignment Example This essay declares that the problem of water shortage is not due to global warming but is more due to the increase in population and the wastage of water by a large number of people throughout the world. More 20% of the world population does not have access to clean drinking water. The United Nations water program has set a target, in Millennium Development Goals, of supplying 85% of world population with safe drinking water by the end of 2020. But with the increasing population and increased wastage and pollution of water this target cannot be achieved before 2030. This paper stresses that a large quantity of water is used for household washing purposes. This water which can be reused after proper treatment is normally wasted and thus contributes to the problem of water shortage particularly in the arid regions of the world. Qatar being one such region can also utilize its wastewater for fulfilling the increasing demand of water in the country. Wastewater does not only fulfill the increasing water demand but it is also very effective in controlling water pollution and various water-borne diseases particularly in countries like Qatar where people are unaware of the hygienic procedures through which they can stop water pollution. Wastewater reuse has is being practiced in various countries for providing fresh water resources. Desalination is the removal of the salt and minerals from sea water by the application of various processes.

Int Trade Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Int Trade - Essay Example As a result, these countries choose to trade domestically or locally. To note, international trade brings in more income to a country than local trade (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2009). When a country engages in international trade, it could have the greatest number of customers as well as investors. A substantial amount of income could be expected. In such case, it is proper to review the current international trade policy of the world towards an equal opportunity for countries to grow and develop. The freedom to trade or free trade shall be thoroughly discussed and analyzed. Free Trade Free trade is defined as an economic system wherein labor, goods and capital flow freely between countries without barriers that could hamper the trade process (Smith, n.d.). This means that a country could trade whatever goods and services to other nations. There is equal opportunity to trade for the participating countries. There is no barrier such as tariffs, import qu otas and taxes (Smith, n.d.). In other words, there is no intervention from the government (Anon. â€Å"What’s,† n.d.). The area in trade is open to everyone who is interested. There is no restriction of some sort. This economic policy allows foreign individuals and companies to trade smoothly and efficiently as the domestic producers (Smith, n.d.). Stated otherwise, in this system, both the foreign and domestic producers have the same autonomy with regard to trade. They both have the same rights in trading. For nations to apply this system, they make free trade agreements (FTAs). Countries actually adopt this economic policy for economic and political reasons. According to Arnold Miller (2004), there is easy â€Å"access to one another’s markets† if free trade agreement is formed. This is logical since in FTAs, members are prioritized. This is to say that a free trade agreement creates a reciprocal obligation between the members (Organisation for Economi c Co-operation and Development, 2005). A member is obliged to observe the free trade rules all throughout the life of the agreement. If a member grants free trade rights to another member, the other member is also obligated to accord the same right. In another aspect, there are countries which decide to form an FTA to encourage investment liberalization and trade (Miller, 2004). Developed and developing countries usually create FTAs under this reason. Politically, FTAs are used to reaffirm and strengthen relations between countries (Miller, 2004). For instance, the United States of America created an FTA with Israel in 1985 as a sign of economic cooperation and strong relation (Hassanien, 2010; Bard, n.d.). Basically, to make trade completely free would create an economic system wherein all types of government protection and intervention would be absent and borders would be open to â€Å"unlimited amounts of imported goods† (Anon. â€Å"What’s,† n.d.). It is con tended that the result of such trade policy would be very beneficial to developed and industrialized countries. It would be easy for such countries to introduce and market their products to the domestic producers. On the other side, as to the developing countries, allowing a trade which is completely free would cost them inequality and poverty (Anon. â€Å"What’s,† n.d.). Take for instance, countries such as Nepal, Haiti, Zambia, Peru and Mali have adopted free trade in their

Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Finance - Essay Example Analysis of Short-run IPO under Pricing Phenomenon in Australian Stock Market The phenomenon of under pricing of Initial Public Offer (IPO) is often considered as an anomaly that is mostly visible in the primary markets throughout the world. But the degree or extent of under pricing varies from country to country and further from sector to sector. Under pricing is defined as the phenomenon when the offer price of a new issue is lower than the price of first trade. It is calculated as difference close price on the date of listing and offer price of issue expressed as percentage of offer price of issue. In the US market, the short run under-pricing is a well known phenomenon but in order to investigate whether this phenomenon exists in the Australian stock markets or not the researcher will have to measure the short-run IPO performance by analysing the returns of IPOs that were listed between chosen time frame and remained listed up to at least 2 year holding period (Rhee, 2002, pp.1-7 ). By carefully analysing the IPO data of Australian stock markets since 2011, with special reference to the issue price of IPO shares and the last trading close price of the IPO stocks at the end of first day of trading after listing, it can be said that short-run IPO under-pricing phenomenon does exist in Australian stock markets. This is because the issue price of the IPO stocks were significantly underpriced compared to last trading price at the end of first of trading after IPO and listing. A careful analysis of IPO under pricing reveals that when the offer price of new issue is lower than first trading price after listing, then the stock is considered to be under priced. Now, a stock should generally be under priced when there is lack of demand in the market and that the phenomenon should be temporary since under pricing will eventually motivate investors to hold shares which will increase the demand for the shares and thus will consequently increase the price of shares (Bansa l and Khanna, 2012, pp.107-108). But, in case of IPO under pricing in US market or Australian stock markets, it is often believed that IPOs are under priced on concerns of uncertainty and liquidity regarding the level of probable trade in the market after listing. Hence, in general any stock which is expected to be less liquid and less predictable will be under priced to greater extent for two primary reasons. The first reason is to compensate the investor for taking risk of holding the stock and secondly increase the liquidity of trading. The general explanation for such phenomenon is that since the issuing entity tends to have more knowledge regarding the stocks and their values compared to investors, the company must under price the stocks to motivate investors to participate in the IPO (Ritter, 1995, pp.1-4). When the firms issue their shares to public through IPO they incur both direct and direct costs. The direct cost includes underwriting fee, registration, legal, and audit f ees. The indirect cost includes cost associated with under pricing. In the calculation of under pricing, the first day’s closing price represents investor expectation regarding what they are willing to pay for holding the firm’

France In 1799 - 1815 And Napoleonic Wars Term Paper

France In 1799 - 1815 And Napoleonic Wars - Term Paper Example To many, the Napoleonic wars fought between 1799 and 1815 remained as an extension of the French Revolution.1 Napoleonic wars became fought for over 2 decades and entailed a number of certain distinct campaigns. First of all, the French revolution majorly entailed other dynastic rulers in Europe and the Habsburgs combined in an attempt to conquer the French that had attempted to conquer the world. The First Coalition wars occurred in 1792 to 1797 and entailed the French Revolution and some Italian campaign. Other campaigns included in the Napoleonic wars included Napoleonic war in Egypt, between 1798 to 1801, the second Coalition, between 1798 to 1801, the Third Coalition, in 1805, Fourth Coalition, between 1806 to 1807, Fifth Coalition, in 1809, the Peninsular war, between 1808 to 1814, invasion of Russia, in 1812, Germany invasion in 1813, France invasion in 1814, and finally the 100 days campaign carried out in 1815. 1. First Coalition of Napoleonic War This occurred in the year 1 793 to 1797. In the war, France fought to oppose certain things in the French rule and did it in association with countries like Prussia, Austria, Spain, Great Britain, Sardinia and the Netherlands. 2At that time, Bonaparte became assigned with the role of conducting armed forces operations towards Austrian forces in the given Northern Italy part after a directory from the French administration. a. French Revolution Napoleonic wars and the French revolution occupied 25 years of the late 18th and early 19th century. The wars represented the first European war that remained general since the given Seven Years’ war between 1756 and 1763. The wars also represented continuity among the European alliance systems plus ideologies with an exception of the noted first 2 years of the given French Republic between 1792 and 1794. During the wars, six European countries made a coalition challenging French expansion. Moreover, to counter the number of opposition the French got from the Euro pean nations, French also formed allies to help it in wars. It is via the wars that various radical changes became made in the international system. The war majorly brought radical changes in the French government as its policies regarding its enemies changed. As the war progressed, and policies changed regarding whom to trust and who to wage war against, at some point the French threatened the German princes existing on the western bank of the given Rhine and the Austrian Netherlands that had been in the given Habsburg possession since the year 1724. Acquisition of conquered regions led to French cultural domination over these regions. 3 Napoleon Reforms As a ruler, amidst the French revolution, Napoleon set forth to make major reforms in the legal system since the given old feudal plus royal laws proved inefficient and contradictory to the people. Before Napoleon came with changes in France law, France did not possess a given set of laws. France used to be governed by local laws t hat gave the nobles some privileges above the law. This made the citizens angry about the rules and hence revolted. It is during the French revolution that feudalism became abolished. Therefore, the laws that Napoleon introduced at that time became referred to as Napoleon code. The Napoleon code never biased people in relation to their birth, and allowed the concept of freedom of religion to become practiced in France. Furthermore, the codes specified that jobs in the government remained to be awarded to only the most

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Discuss an economics-, business- ,or finance-related book you have read all the way through and its influence on your thinking - Essay Example This information is vital as it expands on the investment knowledge that I learnt in class. Apart from sharing the financial information with the three young people, Roy, the main character offers financial advices to his customers at the barber shop. Roy had a plan of becoming a lawyer when he was growing up, but he later changed his mind. He takes over the barber shop that belongs to his father and begins running it well after a visit to Mr. White, who was one of the wealthiest individuals in the town. The financial advice he gets from Mr. White opens up the way for the accumulation of wealth. After reading the book, I realized that I don’t need a lot of money before I can begin investing. Saving and investing ten percent of my monthly income for a long term can enable me to accumulate a lot of money (Chilton, 8). I was able to understand that it is better to pay off non-tax deductible debts rather using the same amount of money in other investments. The best investment begins with paying off loans and other debts. An individual should start paying off loans that have high-interest rates. I have realized that in order to be wealthy, I have to ensure that my money works for me. These is because, my salary is quite smaller compared to less amount of money invested over time. In order to keep track of finances, an individual needs to write down all the expenditure in a month. I was able to understand that the financial assessment can help identify areas of wastage and thus plan for the money effectively in future (Chilton, 10). Additionally, the book offers knowledge on how to save more tax money. Most people require assistance from a tax expert or an accountant so as to able to identify how to save on tax. Even though, the experts can be of help in offering advice, it is important for a people to fill the 1040 long forms by themselves so as to

Coffee and Mission Essay Example for Free

Coffee and Mission Essay Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Of Nokia Essays and Term Papers Search Results for analysis of mission and vision statement of nokia Displaying 1 30 of 1,500 * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Toyota Indus Motor Company Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement TOYOTA INDUS MOTOR COMPANY LTD. VISION STATEMENT: To be the most respected and successful enterprise, delighting * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Toyota and working toward creating a prosperous society and clean world. ANALYSIS: The vision statement of Toyota Indus Motors Company Ltd is clear and powerfully * Starbucks Coffee Mission And Vision Statement: concise, and direct for the target audience. Starbucks combine Mission and Vision statement can be broken down into six key elements which are the followings: Coffee * Mission And Vision Statement seems a bit unnecessary. KHULNA SHIPYARD LIMITED (KSY) Mission and vision statement of this organization have been written tactfully and they are praise worthy * Mission And Vision Statement exact, measurable, and time-sensitive goals to guide my development; however, the mission and the vision statement offer a solid foundation for building these goals * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Of Nokia. complex and challenging environment. Nokias mission/vision statement analysis In analysing Nokias mission/vision statement Ill be using the 9 essential * * published this * no reads * no comments * Saved * Mission And Vision Analysis Of Pso And Coca Cola order to meet the needs and satisfy the customers. Vision Analysis Conclusion: Overall, Coca-Colas mission and vision statement defines its goals, policies * Analysis Of Mission And Vision Statement Of Nokia. B: SAMPLE RESUME PERSONAL DETAILS * * published this * no reads * no comments * Add to your reading list * Tcs Mission And Vision Analysis Leading change, Learning and Sharing etc are getting reflected in its mission and vision statement. The core value excellence is getting clearly reflected in the * * published this * no reads * no comments * Add to your reading list * Mission Vision Statements theyve got their mission and vision confused. One is definitely not the other and both are mixed up in this statement. Today, our mission is to connect people * * published this * no reads * no comments * Add to your reading list * Starbucks Vision And Mission Statement obtain the organizations desired end state. Within the organizations mission and vision statements Starbucks Corporation states that listening to its customer needs.

The Current Scenario And Its Causes Economics Essay

The Current Scenario And Its Causes Economics Essay INTRODUCTION: The current picture of the economic and financial state has caused a huge literature study evaluating its origin and how to respond with the pertinent strategy. Before going in depth let us discuss about general financial crisis [1] ( Charles,P et al 2005) . The situation can be termed as an economic crisis when a financial institution or an asset lose a large part of its value. It takes many factors into account when defining a global recession, but the International Monetary Fund  (IMF) states that general recession can be declared when the worldwide economic growth is 3 percent or less than that [12] (Rogoff,K.2002). FINANCIAL CRISIS- AN OVERVIEW: Financial crisis occurs when there is a sudden drop in market after a steady growth. It can be said that, it is the harbinger for the decline of market. Due to the volatility of the market and economic growth, this becomes the crux of the financial crisis. Stocks and real estate properties will reach the rock bottom after a period of growth. When the investors predict the market and invests in any sector, due to the market instability, the demand of that investment may decrease and their value of the estimation substantially diminishes. This trend follows a period and significantly investors huge investment does not return the expected revenue and this in turn affects their loan payment. They abruptly stop further investments and they begin to sell assets. [2] ( Aiginger,K. 2009) This trend persists in individuals private income too, they also follow the same practice by selling their assets and luxury objects. Over-optimistic companies and such individuals are the main cause for the crisis during the preceding economic growth epoch. They lean to believe that the general market growth will persists forever without any suspension. This optimism makes everyone to borrow colossal quantity of principal and invest them in homes, luxury objects and expansion of their business. Another cause are executives in banking companies tempted to lend out as much money as possible to the borrowers, regardless of the consequences for the bank and the borrowers, because this behavior gives the executives an enormous short term personal gain. When the supply decreased, the demand too got reduced. Hinder all the financial institution which lends out more money to the borrowers who pays back when they are comfortable [7]( carmassi et al, 2009). The government should interfere and has to lay proper regulations to set clear criteria that must be satisfied when the money lending process is done. Employment contrac ts for the bank executives should be forbidden by the bank which rewards them directly for the amount of mortgages they establish. When did it happen? The global financial crisis hit when there is a blooming economic trend persists. It happened in number of occasions, but the Great depression (1930) and the current financial crisis (2007-2010) are the core calamities which collapsed the global economy. [1] ( Charles,P et al 2005) THE CURRENT SCENARIO AND ITS CAUSES: The current financial crisis period started during 2007. It is the worst economic meltdown since the Great depression. The collapse of the US sub-prime mortgage market and the housing boom turnaround had a ripple effect around the world. Some financial goods and tools have become so difficult and abnormal, and things start to disentangle. The trust in the whole system started to fail. The origin of this present state is due to the extravagant lending of money by banks which permitted various groups to buy expensive assets that they could not afford. This was welcomed and encouraged by the politicians and was cleverly sold by the middle men. This created the trigger for the current scenario [9] ( Cooper,G. 2008) .The survival of excessive land use regulation which helped to drive up the prices. Innovations and internationalization are also cause for the regulation failure. Oligopoly structures in the agencies, insufficient regulation followed in the market, neglected cumulative system ic risks are the additional grounds involved in this trigger. Heterogeneity of profits across businesses, novel forms of equity standards, leveraging of banks, the firms and consumers are the factors which caused misinterpretation that the expected returns will be high. Bubbles in currency, oil and food shortages, short-term view on profits, inappropriate accounting rules and analysts reports, shortages of raw materials, energy deficit and unequal income and wealth distribution are the other aggravating factors which influenced the crisis [7]( carmassi et al, 2009). Consequently the demand decreased as the supply increased. This forms the nucleus of the present crisis. EFFECTS: As a result of this, unemployment increases and companies lay-off the employers in order to muddle through this recession, many banks filed bankruptcy and shortage of food supply too had its effects. The Gross domestic product (GDP) of the world declined for the first time since the Great depression of 1930. World economy growth dropped from 5% in 2007 to 3 % in 2008. USA and Europe economies already shrank during 2008 last quarter and those GDP from 2% to 4% [2] ( Aiginger,K. 2009). During the first quarter of 2009 production and orders declined when compared to the previous years. In order to compensate the cutback in the stipulated private sector caused by the crisis, the government passed large fiscal stimulus. During 2008-2009 alone US implemented two stimulus packages, totaling nearly $1 trillion [3] [2] ( Aiginger,K. 2009). The government has also bailed out many organizations due to large financial obligations. About 70% of GDP growth attained in the euro area and 40% of the same in the US due to the financial sector leverage [7]( carmassi et al, 2009). This is the key issues for the prevalent pressure in the European banking system. United States may be precursor of this current scenario, but the fragility persists in the European financial sector caused them badly and exposed to losses from US assets. An additional feature that made Europe more exposed to the crisis situation like the US is asset price bubble [7]( carmassi et al, 2009). Europe experienced the same real estate price bubble. During 2006-2007 house prices are less in US when compared to Europe, this is the key distinction involving the United States and the Europe [7]( carmassi et al, 2009). The banks in United States and Europe had excessive leverage and also the renovated maturity which are mistakenly manipulated by the regulatory system and allowed by the monetary policy. AGE WAVE THEORY: The additional cause for this economic slowdown was given by Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D in his Age wave theory [4] (Dychtwald, Ken, 1989). According to him, the persons who were born during 1947 to 1966 are called as baby boomers. According to the statistics the economic trend suitably followed as the baby boomers grow. Baby care books sales recorded a high during those initial years. Baby foods were consumed more during 1950s. The toy industry sales also reached record growth as the children grows. When they reached the teenage soft drinks sales and movie tickets sales reached the maximum. When the boomers enter the workforce during 1970s there was a record growth of 29%. Mini vans and SUVs dominated the automobile industry during 1980s and 1990s as the baby boomers started to raise their families. During 2007-2009 the workforce growth is just 12% due to the retirement of the baby boomers , and this may also be one of the reasons which kindled the crisis [5] (Dychtwald, Ken et al 2006). FUTURE REMEDIES: In order to tackle future recession, the UK government needs to follow some regulations. The economic policy should support the total demand by increasing the public demand or by providing inducements to encourage private expenditure [2] ( Aiginger,K. 2009). Monetary policy should be reintroduced to increase the money supply which has reduced interest rates. To improve the structure of taxation, fiscal policy is to be followed. It includes national and international stimulus packages. The European model to be followed [2] ( Aiginger,K. 2009), it includes strategic spending i.e., to invest in future technologies, education, research and development and green technology. Government and financiers should try to compress the scam and increase the capital requirements for banks .They also should follow the regulations and it would be compelled to hold sufficient funds to cover their normal operations. In order to reduce the jeopardy, the bank should bear all the risks and also increase their transparency, their accounting ethics are to be modified accordingly and also to be included in the asset definition. It is crucial that the current land rationing policies should wither as soon as possible. Capital requirements are to be set adequately so that it cannot be evaded by the mediators to raise liquidity [8] (Minsky, H. (2008) .The simple way of doing it is to set capital requirements with reference to total assets and no gimmicks allowed. The main cause for the delude information for investors and obstinate incentives are the assets with maximum risk. [6] (Gros, D. (2009). These assets should be scrapped to maintain the economy. The government should provide guarantees by affording small pensions and loans and also it should fight poverty by employment. The youth unemployment problem can be tackled by training and also making informal jobs more professional. By increasing the choices the supply and demand stability can be maintained. These aforementioned strategies are to be followed by the UK government in order to maintain the stability and also to prevent the arrival of the current scenario [10] (Greenspan ,A. 2009). CONCLUSION: Brian Cowen, the former finance minister says that, If I am right, the next financial crisis, when it comes, stands to make the last two years look like a warm up [11]. So the optimism and complacency natures should be discarded and follow the policies and also the remedies as mentioned above to restore the trust and balance in the system.

Characteristics of Tilapia Fish

Characteristics of Tilapia Fish Tilapia is generic name of an African cichlids endemic group. This group is composed of three aquaculture important kind of Oreochromis, Sarotherodon and Tilapia. Various characteristics differentiate these three genera, but the main critical concerns to reproductive conduct. All species of tilapia are nesting in builders; a brood parent guards the fertilized eggs in the nest. Both species of Sarotherodon and Oreochromis are mouthing incubators; eggs gets fertilized in the nest but the parents instantly pick up those eggs in mouths and keep them through brooding and for many days after hatching. Brooding in mouth is found only in Oreochromis species, while in case of Sarotherodon either male or both female and male are holding brooders (SRAC, 2005). During the last half of 20th century fish farmers all over the tropical and semi-tropical world have commenced farming tilapia (FAO, 2000). Today, commercial production of important tilapia goes to genus Oreochromis beyond Africa, and more than 90 percent of the farmed tilapia are Nile tilapia outside of Africa. (Balarin and Haller, 1982) reported that Nile tilapia is the most popular tilapia species for aquaculture and is widely distributed in many countries other than native Africa. Adaptability: Oreochromis niloticus is a quickly growing species which can live in various types of waters. It is extremely adaptable and can use a wide range of various food sources (along with plants), but feeds mainly on phytoplankton along with benthic algae. Even though Nile tilapia is assumed as a freshwater species it has shown a great margin towards salt and can survive in briny situations (Beveridge et. al., 2000). Stickney et al., (1979) reported that Nile tilapia can tolerate to a wide range of environmental conditions, fast growth rate, efficient to convert organic matter into high quality protein and have a favorable taste. Feeding Habits: Tilapia has broad variety food organisms that are natural, along with plankton, some aquatic benthic invertibrates, macrophyte, plank tonic and benthic larval fish, breaking up organic matter, and detritus. With heavy auxiliary feeding, natural food beings typically account for 30 to 50 percent of growth of tilapia. Tilapia is often referred as filter feeders as they can efficiently reap water plankton. The gills of tilapia release a mucous which traps plankton. Then mucous rich with plankton or bolus, is swallowed (EL-Sayed A.F.M., 2006). Tilapia is an omnivore; means feeds on both plants and animals food sources. However, feeding behavior depends with size and age. Larvae usually feed on phytoplankton (algae), fingerlings feed on zooplankton (artemia, moina, and rotifer), and while adults consume both plants and animal food sources near the surface because are floating feeders. In this regard, Caulton 1976; Saha and Dewan 1979; Brummett 1995; Turker et al. 2003 bumped that little tilapia filtered substantially more phytoplankton regarding than larger ones. In addition, Azim et al. (2003) looked into consequence of periphyton quantity and size of fish (7 and 24 g) on ingestion rate by Nile tilapia, and they observed that ingestion rate between small fish significantly increased with density of periphyton, but not for fish with medium size. Protein Requirements: Including Tilapia Proteins are important nutrients for all living organisms for their structure and function. Continual use of protein is being used for maintenance, growth and reproduction. Therefore, continuous supply of proteins or their component amino acids are necessary. Many studies indicated that fish does not have true protein necessity, but instead needs a well equilibrized mixture of dispensable and indispensable amino acids. Insufficient intake of protein will result in retardation of growth due to withdraw of protein from fewer vital tissues to maintain the function of critical parts. Too much supply of protein, however, only part will be used to synthesize new tissues and remainder will be converted to energy (NRC, 1983). Many findings have been carried out about the optimum dietary protein level for tilapia. This level for tilapia appears to be influenced by size or age of the fish and ranges from 28% to 50%. For fry dietary protein levels ranging from 36 to 50% have been shown to produce best level growth (Davis and Stickney, 1978; Santiago and Laron, 1991; El-Sayed and Teshima, 1992). That for juvenile 29 to 40% has been determined to produce optimum growth (Cruz and Laudencia, 1977; Teshima et al., 1978); for young adult fish up to 40g 27.5 to 35% appears to be maximum (Jauncey and Ross, 1982; Siddiqui et al., 1988; Wee and Tuan, 1988; Twibell and Brown, 1998). Practical diets for grow out of tilapia usually contain 25 to 35% crude protein. In ponds, however, fish may have access to natural food that is rich in protein, thus dietary protein levels as low as 20 to 25% have been estimated to be adequate (Newman et al., 1979; Lovell, 1980; Wannigama et al., 1985). Proteins are made up of amino acids. Arginine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan and valine are the amino acids have been shown to be necessity for fish (Moyle and Cech 1982). The main problem is that quantity for each type required differs from species, and excessive quantity might be damaging a fishs health (Moyle and Cech 1982). Scoliosis (curvature of the spine) can result due to lack of amino acids in fish (Moyle and Cech 1982). Proteins are vital in the fish growth. Research has shown that due to certain proteins lack, growth will be scrawny. In the nature, omnivorous fish generally feed on ample alive organisms, protein enriched, that provide a valuable energy source (Moyle and Cech 1982). However, many commercial foods lack ample protein as it is expensive. Fish use large amount of energy to crush large and complex proteins. Due to this, carbohydrates and lipids are replaced as energy sources (Moyle and Cech 1982). Lipid requirement: On other hand, lipids are found in tissues of both animal and plant and are digestible completely (Moyle and Cech 1982). Symbiotic bacteria are present in guts of many herbivorous fish that helps to digest the carbohydrates and liberate its energy to fish. Lipids supply higher energy than do carbohydrates, and also render fatty acids, that are used for the energy construction reserves in fish. Predaceous fish normally have a maximum growth rate due to their diet of live fish, which are naturally high in lipids (Moyle and Cech 1982). Dietary lipids are the main source of essential fatty acids needed by fish for normal growth and development. They are vital carriers and assist in absorption of vitamins with fat-soluble. Lipids, especially phospholipids, are important for cellular structure and maintenance of membrane flexibility and permeability. Lipids serves as precursors of steroid hormones and prostaglandins, improve the flavor of diets and affect the diet texture and fatty acids composition of fish (Webster I. et al., 2002). Takeuchi et al. (1983) reported that essential fatty acid requirement of Nile tilapia was found to be 0.5% linoleic acid (18:2à Ã… ½6). Complete diets and Feeding Levels: Complete diets are important in semi intensive culture systems of Nile tilapia, for a provision of all essential nutrients to the fish. In order to develop such diets it is also necessary to know the specific nutrient requirements of the animal and optimize feed formulation in order to obtain fast growth of high quality fish at low costs, (Moore, 1985). Nutrient requirement of supplementary feed for Nile tilapia: Many studies have been done to find out the suitable optimum nutrient level for tilapia. Fineman and Camacho (1991) observed that 30% protein with 3500 kcal was better than 30% protein with 3000 kcal for supplementary feed for Oreochromis niloticus in brackish water ponds. Watanabe et al. (1990) found that final mean weight were high in 28% protein to 32% protein under all densities. Hanley (1990) found that increasing dietary lipid has no significant effect on growth rate, feed conversion ratio and protein gain. De Silva and Perera (1985) and Siddiqui et al.(1988) cited by Zonnveld and Fadholi (1991) found that optimum protein levels for fry and young Nile tilapia reared at maximum growth should be 28-30% respectively. Water Quality Requirements: Nile tilapia would grow well in water with a temperature range of 20-35 °c and optimum between 28 ° and 30 °C and productivity can be assumed at a maximum within this temperature range (Ballarin and Haller, 1982). Tilapia cannot survive at a temperature below 10 °c for more than few days. When it exposed to cold water, disease resistance is impaired and death may result in only few days (Lovell, 1989) The tolerance level of DO for Nile tilapia is as lower as 0.1 mg/L (Magid and Babiker, 1975). Chevrvinski (1982) reported that O. niloticus could survive by using atmospheric oxygen when dawn DO concentration drops to less than 1 mg/L. Colt (1987) demonstrated that Nile tilapia growth reduces as DO level reaches below 5mg/L.. However, its survival depends on the duration of low dissolved oxygen in the culture system. In tanks, fish survive at the oxygen level of 1.2 mg/L by gulping oxygen from the atmosphere for up to 36 hours if other water quality parameters remain at an optimum level (Balarin and Haller, 1982). Nile tilapia has a lethal pH limit at approximately 4 and 11 respectively and pH between 6.5 and 9 is the desirable range for fish culture (Swingle, 1969) Nile tilapia is more tolerant of high ammonia level than any other species of fish. The lethal ammonia level for tilapia is 2.3 mg NH3-N/L., but it was reported that by prolong exposure, it can tolerate levels of up to 3.4 mg/L (Stickney, 1985). A level of unionized ammonia above 0.5 mg/L frequency results in mortality when fish are further stressed by low oxygen, handling (Ballarin and Haller, 1982). Nile tilapia is not directly affected by alkalinity and tolerance level as high as 700 to 3,000 mg/L CaCo3 (Morgan, 1972). A total alkalinity range of 20 400mg/L is considered satisfactory for most aquaculture purpose (Tucker and Robinson, 1990 cited by Lawson, 1995). Phosphorous requirement The dietary requirement for phosphorus in tilapia varies from 0.9% (Watanabe et al., 1980), 0.45-0.6% (Viola and Arieli, 1983), 0.3-0.5% (Robinson et al 1984, Robinson et al., 1987) to 0.46% (Haylor et al., 1988) depending on species, fish size, food composition or expression of a reported requirement, available or final dietetic phosphorus. The diet containing the complete mineral premix contained 0.9% total phosphorus, whereas the unbalanced calcium and phosphorus diet contained 0.5% overall phosphorus. Although fish could partly absorb phosphorus from its environment (Lall, 1979, Lall, 1989, Lall, 19911, dissolved phosphorus is usually at very low levels of about 0.005-0.05 Mg/L, which is inadequate to meet their requirement (Nose and Arai, 1979 cited in Lall, 1991). Hepher (1954) (as cited in Hepher and Sandbank, 1984) noted that even in fish ponds fertilized with phosphates, the level of phosphorus does not increase much above its normal low level due to absorption to soil colloid and precipitation as insoluble compounds. Phosphorus is a component of phosphoproteins, nucleic acids and phospholipids, which play important roles in energy metabolism. Addition of dietary phosphorus has been reported to decrease the lipid content of muscle and viscera, whereas muscle protein content increased (Murakami, 1970 cited in Lall, 1979; Takeuchi and Nakazoe, 1981 cited in Viola et al., 1986; Shu, 1987; Hung, 1989; Wee and Shu, 1989). Calcium requirement The requirement for calcium in tilapia reared in calcium-free water was found to be 0.65% for 0. areus (Robinson et al., 1984, Robinson et al., 1987). In the calcium and phosphorus uncomplemented diet, the calcium level was about 1%. At this level, even without supplementation, it appears that the calcium level in the soybean-based diet would be sufficient to meet the requirement. The availability of dietary calcium to fish has not been studied. Furthermore, under normal conditions, one cannot demonstrate a calcium requirement in fish (Cowey and Sargent, 1979; Robinson et al., 1984, Robinson et al., 1987; Yarzhombed and Bekina, 1987) because of calcium uptake from the water (Dabrowska et al., 1989; Luquet, 1991). In Nile tilapia, calcium uptake takes place in the skin, particularly by the opercular membrane (McCormick et al., 1992). In contrast to phosphorus, it seemed, therefore, that the calcium requirement could be met from the rearing water. Activities such as liming of ponds are likely sources of calcium. The similarity of calcium levels in the final carcass of fish fed the calcium supplemented, calcium non-supplemented diets and the non-fed fish further support the likeliness of calcium uptake. The calcium is a must in the fish diet for balancing the calcium and phosphorus ratio. Maintaining an optimum Calcium and Phosphorus ratio is important in diets for red sea bream, eels, and brook trout but not for catfish, carp, and rainbow trout (NRC, 1973, NRC, 1983; Ogino and Takeda, 1976; Viola et al., 1986; Hepher, 1988; Lall, 1991). In tilapia, the role of the Ca: P ratio is not well defined and merits further study (Robinson et al. 1987). However, noted that in freshwater fish, dietary Ca: P ratio does not generally impair growth or tissue concentration as long as dietetic phosphorus is adequate and calcium is present in the rearing water. Feeding standards of supplementary feed for Nile tilapia This is a set of tables, which include the quantity of each dietary component required for each age and species of fish for different levels of production and maintenance. When complemented by tables of feeds composition, then it is possible to formulate accurate rations for individual or fish groups, an essential process for a least-cost ration feeding program operation. Marek (1975) composed a feeding chart of common carp and tilapia. The chart was having estimation of natural food in the pond and subtracted from the calculated feed requirements for maintenance and expected growth. The charts are based on the weight of fish, and changes are adjusted according to the daily growth of fish. In most cases, therefore ration is fixed for a longer period of time (Hepher, 1982). Feeding rate of Nile tilapia Underfeeding of fish can result in production loss. Overfeeding will cause a costly feed wastage and a potential cause of water pollution in addition, a condition ensuing loss of animals or needing expensive corrective measures. Hence, both overfeeding as well as under-feeding has serious economic effects that affect the farm viability. Bard et al (1976) stated that most of the supplemented feed is not fully eaten by fish; some drop to the bottom of the water contributes to development of phytoplankton, hence promoting growth of fish both direct and indirect way. Sometimes a vague instruction might be read, like feed 5% of biomass per day as a dry feed. This might be applied during whole growing cycle. This would most likely result in near famishment in the early stages and gross excessive feeding and later water quality problems. Feeding rates must not be steady throughout the whole of the growth cycle till table size. They must be changed according to the fish age and its size to conditions of water. Brown et al (1979) demonstrated that it is uneconomical to balance diets fed to fish in ponds according to the absolute nutrient requirement of the fish. Stocking density and size Feeding level of fish in the semi intensifier system increases with the increase of density of fish. As t density of fish in the semi intensive culture increases per unit area, the food requirement of fish also increases. This increase of biomass does not relate with the increase of raw food and in many cases is associated with a decrease in the production of food from nature due to limited supply to the overgrowing biomass stated (1979) that when the biomass of fish increased, each fish gets a smaller amount of natural food, which may not meet its nutrition requirement. This deficit can be covered by supplementary feed. Natural Food in a semi intensive culture Algae or phytoplankton is an microscopic weeds form the base of the fish food chain. Adequate temperature, sunlight, and nutrients are basic for all green plants needed for growth. In presence of the sufficient light and proper temperature, chemical fertilizers (nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium) nutrients are readily assimilated by phytoplankton and increasing their abundance. Manure comprises the same nutrients, is released and present to phytoplankton during and after decomposition. As phytoplankton absorbs fertilizer nutrients and reproduces to create dense communities pond water changes to brownish or greenish color. This is known as phytoplankton bloom. There are three basic feeding pathways by which input of fertilizer in the pond provides nutrition for fish: Direct consumption of organic matter by fish Autotrophic productivity of algae pursuant to fertilization and their consumption by filter feeding fish. Heterotrophic productivity of micro organisms and benthic micro organisms from manure inputs and their successive consumption by fish. These three basic feeding pathways can operate in a single aquaculture system, even though their relative importance still a subject of intense debate Colman and Edwards, (1987). In Israel experimental work reported that the heterotrophic pathway of organic manure was found to be more efficient than an autotrophic pathway, Schroeder (1980). It was stated that low fish production by an autotrophic food chain was due to the sunlight limitations of phytoplankton with filter feeding fish mainly depend on heterotrophic organisms that are not light dependent. Therefore, the autotrophic food chain is required to provide the necessary DO which limit to the heterotrophic feed chain Colman and Edwards, (1987). The fertilized ponds with nutrients stimulate the microscopic plants growth in the water (phytoplankton). Phytoplankton is food for other water creatures (zooplankton and larger animals) that fish eat. Water becomes turbid or greenish color (called a bloom) Martin et al (1999) because of abundant growth of microscopic plants. Evaluation of the nutritional value of natural food is a difficult because each fish species has its own nutrition requirement from its diet Determination of biomass of phytoplankton, zooplankton and benthos in the fish pond must be related to the food requirement of fishes. Until now, there is not a reliable method developed for determination of secondary production, although primary production can be estimated. Spataru et al (1979) reported that supplementary feed can replace some of the natural food. Aquino and Neilso (1982) supported that Oreochromis niloticus grow well in cages on food. The primary producers which are sourcing of food to different type of fish are not digested equally by fish. Blue green algae Anabaena, Microcystis, Oscillator was reported to be indigestible because they have copious moulage, cellulose wall, or firm periblast, (Zhang, 1989). Recent research work in China indicated that Tilapia can digest green-algae (Zhang, 1989). Mellamena, (1990) reported that algae contain protein, fat, Carbohydrates varies 22% to 48%, 2% to 16%, and 14% to 24% respectively. Zooplankton has more protein and fat content than any other phytoplankton except one gabber. Diatoms which have the more silicious cell wall contain higher quantities of inorganic matter. Tamiya, (1975) found that the average protein content of algae is about 50% on a dry matter basis. The biological value of algae is about 81.5% meaning that 124gram of algal protein corresponds to 100 grams of egg protein. The amino acid composition of algae is similar to that of FAO reference protein except, there is a slight deficiency in cystine and methionine. Lipids found in phytoplankton are typical ester of glycerol and fatty acids having a carbon number from C14 to C20. The major acids in diatoms are palmitic (16:0), hexadecanoic (16:1), Becker (1989). Blue green algae have a larger amount of polyunsaturated fats (25% to 68%) oftotaltriglyceride up to 80% of the totalalgae lipids. Lipid content of Cyanobacteria and green algaein outdoor mass culture is 7% to 15% lipids (Becker, 1989). (Nostocsp., Calothrex sp., Oscallaria and Spirulina sp., Urenima sp.) and 20% to 25% lipids in green algae (Scenedesmus),to 10% in dry weight. All plankton feeders fish reported to digest diatoms such as Silver carp and tilapia (Power, 1960, 1966). Tilapia zillii in Israel revealed that it had a capacity to disintegrate after gelatinous matrix colonies of blue green algae, especially Microcystis (Spataru, 1978).