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Studying abroad benefits and drawbacks_ please check it

flash2008 — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 14:06:02 GMT

Â Studying abroad benefits and drawbacks

These days, education is one of the main factors that decide anindividual future; According to that, governments invest more resources toimprove their education systems to be successful and efficient. Subsequently, ina recent decades education systems have improved around the world .However,some countries have reached a advanced standards in education and some stillwork on it. Therefore, students from over the world travel abroad to study .Forexample, Qatari students go to the UK and the USA to study and get the most ofeducation there. Conversely, there are some people who claim that there aresome drawbacks such as homesickness and cost of living. This essay will discussstudying abroad by looking to drawbacks then the advantages.

The drawbacks related to studying abroad can be categorizedto educational problems, social problems and financial problems. Firstly, theeducational problems that could face student while studying abroad is thedifferent between the two countries in terms of educational system such ascourse work, research .moreover, teaching methods could be an obstacle in the earlyyears. To elaborate this idea, some students are familiar with some method ofteaching such as teachers give students all materials that are needed for thecourse, but in the UK, for instance, the focus is on individual work. Secondly,social problems face most students in the first years, including homesickness,which is a desire to return home. Also, breaking lawsdue to unfamiliarity with local law and differences in culture, which is likelyto happen for new students. Moreover, choosing friends is a difficulty for somestudents, besides, type of food. For example, Asian students cannot find sameingredients that are used in Asian cuisine. Due to that, many students feeluncomfortable with food. Thirdly, the cost of living in foreign country mightbe expensive. For instance prices of accommodation, university fees andtransportation could be very costly. So that could put more stress on students.

On the other hand, benefits of studying abroadcould be divided into different categories.Â The first one comes to mind is learning new culture. In fact, learningnew culture include many different things such as learning a language, customs,traditions and history. Besides, interacting with new people leads to learningabout their ideas. So, studying abroad not just about learning knowledge butshould be also learning a new way of thinking. Besides, learning different culture,the main purpose of studying abroad is having access to advanced educationsystem. Some countries have an advanced education system for example the UK inEurope, and in North America, Canada and the USA. These countries receive themajority of students from around the world every year because of the variety ofmajors offered and up to date materials. For example, many discoveries occur inthe USA that means there is a very superior education system in universities andin general schools. The last point to be discussed in term of advantages isindividual satisfaction which is a significant these days. Actually, studyingabroad provides people with independence and self satisfaction. Moreover, itprovides the person with open-minded and provides enriching experience and uponcompletion, it leads to a good job.

In conclusion, as everything in life there aretwo sides one is positive and one is negative, but here in this topic thepositive points for studying abroad may be more. In the authorâs opinionstudying abroad is very rewarding experience, and it leads to self satisfactionand the person should make the most of it.

Character Reference Letter to the court

makubexho — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:56:26 GMT

Flat *** / x YYYY Rd

Deeky (<--fictitious name)

July 10, 2008

The Presiding Magistrate:

Re: Character Reference â Judy (<--ficticous name)

My name is Deeky and I am an overseas student from LL and currently, full time doing my master of accounting at *** University. The purpose of this is to provide a character reference for Ms. Judy whom I have known as a friend, university fellow and workmate for a period of 3 years.

I first met Judy in a fast food franchised retail shop (kkk), when we were both part time employees while Judy had been in the shop longer than I was. It was shortly we became friends and noticed we were school mates at the same university.

As a student, Judy was a studious student and enthusiastic in involving group discussions of her studies. Although we were not in the same faculty, we often gathered with some of other students as a study group and did our study in university library until late. In fact, she was quite popular with her fellow students. Judy studied hard and accomplished her degree of bachelor of commerce in professional accounting.

As a workmate, Judy was a great choice. I have worked with her for more than 14 months coincidently in two different companies. The Judy I knew was a responsible, hard-working and caring employee to her jobs. Judy, a girl of full of smile, often received compliments of her customer service from customers she had serviced. Due to her hard-working and excellent working performance, she was once entrusted and appointed by our shop manager to be the shop supervisor. Patience, diligence and devotion were the things I saw from Judy when she taught me through about how the workplace operated. Not to mention, she was also popular among her workmates.

As a friend, Judy is a standout. She is a passionate, honest, smart, considerate and supportive individual who always generously lend out a hand to friends in difficulty. As friends, Judy, friends of ours and I sometimes had outgoings together and lovingly shared fun. Still we have maintained these activities these days.

To tell the truth, after being informed of Judy's recent incident at Myer (<---a complex department store), I really can not think of anything of consequence on the negative side of the personality ledger when it comes to Judy. Moreover, so far as I know Judy has just granted her Permanent Residence few months ago and also has been just employed by a local company as a sale assistant two months ago. Last not the least, her attention and eligibility to becoming an Australian citizen has become forthcoming. All in all, with my utmost good faith I would have to say that Judy is a fine, well-balanced person with positive qualities.

If you need any further information, please contact at 000 000 000.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
Deeky

Re: anybody to correct my English

Anonymous — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 15:16:19 GMT

It's now grammatically correct, but I still have a comment about organization. It's not obvious what country you're talking about until the middle of the article. That's quite unclear to the reader and confusing.

Survey: People Have a Feeling That Price Increase Is Much Higher Than It Really Is

People Think They Are Worse Off Than They Really Are

The average person's perception of cost of living increases is quite different from reality. Contrary to popular belief that the increase was 3.5% this year, cost of living expenses really went up by 5%. People thought last yearâs price increases were 5 times higher, when they were actually lower than in recent years.

Unemployment was estimated more realistically. The real figure was 19.2% in January, whereas people guessed 25% on average, according to a survey by the INEKO Institute.

Only one in every nine responses had a realistic view. Even in the most optimistic group of people, which was represented by the young, the university-educated, businessmen, and citizens of large cities, only about 16 â 20% estimates were accurate.

This distorted view of reality influences both peopleâs feelings and their growing dissatisfaction, and moreover, âhas a negative impact on the economy,â said Gabriel Sipos from INEKO Institute.

Psychologist Zuzana Jarossova explained that people are already born with a certain amount of pessimism.

âA born pessimist unconsciously organizes his/her life in an unsuccessful way and the loss he/she is expecting will be brought about,â Jarossova said.

Pessimism appeared right after 1989, according to Michal Vasecka, a sociologist and analyst of Institute of Public Question. It is connected with the challenges brought by the new era.

Another reason is that we compare Slovakia with the most developed countries and not with those that are at the same level, for example with Poland.

The fact that âthe rest of the world considers us as a country which is even at a lower level than Poland plays another role. This persuades Slovaks that there is something wrong,â says Vasecka.

Sipos blames the media for this "bad" mood. âThe mass media forms peopleâs behavior and expectations. It concentrates too much on the 20% unemployment, but says nothing at all about the inflation,â he said.

He said the extent of pessimism was not almost influenced by economic measures from the beginning of this year. âIn January, 85% of the respondents considered the economic situation of 2002 as worse or the same as in 2001. Similarly, it was estimated this way in October 2002, before the new government measures were introduced,â he explained.

Even the growth of real income, which was the highest in the last 5 years, did not influence the pessimism of the public.

A short writing about art. Please read and help?

Lawrence H. Song — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 11:16:15 GMT

Â Hi, if you please read and correct this, it would be great!

StartFragment>

http://mam.org/collections/printsanddrawings_detail_walker.htm

you can see the work the website. Â

EndFragment>StartFragment>StartFragment>

A Means to an End: A Shadow Drama in Five Acts (1995)

Â Despite the limitation of colorâblack and whiteâand the large negative space,Â A Means to an End: A Shadow Drama in Five ActsÂ at Parsons gallery looks active. By creating diagonal lines between figures, Kara Walker who is âa contemporary American artist who explores race, gender, sexuality, violence and identity in her work. She is best known for her room-size tableaux of black cut-paper silhouettes,â[1]Â could make not only active movements of figures but also balance and rhythm between the black shapes and the white negative space; triangle composition repeats right side up and upside down.

In addition, the artistâs color scheme itself has a strong voice in âa shadow drama.â Walkerâs message for African-American severely treated merely because of their skin color gives contrasts to black and white even more distinctly.[2]

A Means to an End: A Shadow Drama in Five ActsÂ reveals unfair treatments African-American people have gotten so directly that the audience might feel uncomfortable.Â Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw notes in his book,Â Seeing the Unspeakable:

The printÂ A Means to an End: A Shadow Drama in Five ActsÂ was deemed too controversial by the administration of the museum and its advisory group, the Friends of African and African American Art. The work consists of five connecting scenes set in a linear, rectangular format. In the first section is a half-clothed woman with a naked boy hanging from her breast, followed by the small figure of a young girl riding a fox backwards, then a woman leaping across what has been described as a river using partially submerged heads for stepping stones; next, a head and hand rise from the water, and last, a corpulent man strangles an emaciated young girl.[3]

In conclusion, not only does this set of pieces create dynamic feeling with diagonal and triangle composition, but it also succeeds in presenting political issues by means of the contrast of black and white.

[1]Â Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kara_Walker.

[2]Â Milwaukee Art Museum. http://mam.org/collections/printsanddrawings_detail_walker.htm.

[3]Â Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw,Â Seeing the Unspeakable: The Art of Kara WalkerÂ (Durham: Duke University Press, 2004), 103-104.Â Â

EndFragment>

Re: Any or some

Clive — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 00:00:54 GMT

Hi,

I'm a Russian student. On the courses of interpreters in my university there was a task to put sentences into the interrogative form. One of sentences was: Ann always brings some flowers with her when she comes to the office.
I answered "Does Ann always bring some flowers...".
But my teacher said that it is "Does Ann always bring any flowers..." as by general rule some in questions is changed to any with some exceptions and this case doesn't fall under any of these exceptions.
If not "always" I would write as she said "Does Ann bring any flowers...". But "always" changes situation. I've asked 4 people who speek English well how would they write, and they said to use "some" or may be not to use any word at all, like "Does Ann always bring flowers...", but in any way they refused to put there "any".

Yes, 'some' is correct and 'any' is not correct.

Still I can't prove my teacher that I'm right as I can't find any official rule explaining use of "some" here. My explanation is that "always" changes the meaning of this sentence to checking of "does it happen sometimes or always" but the fact of her brining flowers at least sometimes is considered to be true. And there is an exception rule which states that if the subject of a question is expected to be true, then some is used. <<<<< That's true. Still she doesn't take such an explanation. How can I prove her that I'm right? Or may be I'm wrong? You're right.

'Any' is used in statements like these that really have a negative meaning. eg

She did not bring any flowers. She came without any flowers. She hardly ever brings any flowers. She never brings any flowers. Ann never brings any flowers when she comes to the office.

You certainly can't say 'Does Ann always bring any flowers?', but you can say 'Does Ann never bring any flowers?', because it makes a question that has a negative meaning. When you use 'always', you are not forming a question that has a negative meaning.

Best wishes, Clive

PleasePlease proofread my report

Anonymous — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 03:49:29 GMT

Hey, sorry to repost, but the other came out really difficult to read so i have delete tables etc. Could someone please proof-read my work. I am dyslexia and find proof-checking my work near impossible. It is long but will probably only be stupid mistakes.

***

Introduction

Due to social and media pressures the ideal body shape is becoming thinner and this contributes to eating disorders in both males and females Harrison & Cantor (1997).

Anorexia nervosa is defined by the DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994) as being 15% under recommended weight for height, age and gender. The patient also has to have a distorted body view and a drive to become thin.

Gordon, (2000) states the ratio of females suffering from an eating disorder compared to males at 9-1. He recognises a gender difference in eating disorders but urges people to acknowledge the existence of the male sufferers. He describes a male patient had visiting a doctor, who had replied to the patients anorexia as âa problem that only happens to girlsâ. He claims that being labelled as suffering with a âfemaleâ disorder can lead to the male feeling ashamed and emasculated and therefore more hesitant to get help, and for this reason some believe that male anorexia is largely unreported. Gordon claims this feeling of shame is enhanced when even female anorexics are judgemental at group therapy.

This negative attitude towards male anorexia causes health risks. It may result in professionals and the males themselves not recognising their early symptoms and therefore may develop chronic anorexia nervosa before they are diagnosed. (Margo, 1987, cited in BMA publication 2000)

Whitney et al (2005) studies individual experiences of people who carers of anorexic people. The femalesâ reports were more emotional than the males who appeared to be less attached with a less sympathetic viewpoint, suggesting males have a more negative attitude towards anorexia nervosa than females do.

Support that males have unhealthy eating patterns in addition to females comes from Forman-Hoffman (2004) who conducted a study involving 9,118 adolescents, 7.3% of females and 3.1% of males reported unhealthy eating patterns over the previous week.

However, theory correlates with the attitudes as many eating disorder theories are specific to women. For example some psychoanalysists argue that anorexia nervosa is developed during whilst females experience separation anxiety from their mothers. (Darvell, BMA, 2000)

Literature on male anorexia nervosa is limited and there does not appear to be any prior research into the difference between attitudes towards male anorexia nervosa and gender. Furthermore, there appears to be a fair amount of ignorance when it comes to male anorexia nervosa, present in medical professionals as well as psychological theories not even accepting its existence might be suggesting that additional education about male anorexia needs to be put into place.

To clarify an attitude is a negative, positive or neural feeling towards an âattitude objectâ, which does not have to be a physical object; it could be an event for example. Attitudes are formed by affective and cognitive responses and behavioural intentions. The following study only examines explicit attitudes, which are attitudes which are self-reported, which can be easily measured on a likert scale.

The aim of this study is to investigate the different attitudes towards male anorexia nervosa between males and females by use of a questionnaire will remain reliable over time.

The hypothesis for this study is gender will affect attitudes towards males suffering from anorexia nervosa.

Method

50 male and 50 female students were selected by opportunity sampling to be participants for the study. Each participant was asked to fill out two questionnaires a week apart. The males were either part of a university football club or an engineering society, while the females were psychology students.

A 5-point likert scale was used.. The questionnaire used 18 affective, 18 behavioural and 14 cognitive. 25 of the questions were testing for a negative attitude, and 25 for a positive attitude.

The first questionnaire conducted had 50 questions but after the analysis had been carried out questions were removed from the questionnaire. Below is a table showing the removed items and why they were removed.

The overall design was a survey. The independent variables (IVs) of this study were gender of the participant and which questionnaire was completed. Gender is a between subjects IV, which has two levels; male and female. Which questionnaire completed is within subject IV, as each participant completed both questionnaires. This IV has two levels, the first questionnaire and the second questionnaire. The dependent variable (DV) is the scores on the questionnaire. The predictor variable (PV) in this study was the scores of the first questionnaire, while the criterion variable (CV) in this study was the scores of the second questionnaire.

The participantsâ details were anonymous and were only identified by their mothersâ maiden name and consent was gained from all participants involved who were briefed beforehand and understood that they could withdraw at any time.

First a questionnaire was constructed by brainstorming statements indicated positive and negative attitudes towards male anorexia nervosa and a mixture of affective, behavioural and cognitive, (18,18,14 respectively) with 25 negative attitude questions and 25 positive attitude was deliberately used. Then the questionnaire was typed up with a 5-point likert scale, with the options of â1. Strongly Disagreeâ, â2. Disagreeâ, â3. Neither Agree Nor Disagreeâ â4. Agreeâ â5. Strongly Agreeâ beneath each question. A brief and a form of keeping the participants details anonymous by using their motherâs maiden name, was also constructed and then potential participants were approached and asked to partake in the study. Once 50 male students and 50 female students had completed the questionnaire the results were coded into numbers as shown above. Then the negative attitude questions were recoded so that 5=1, 4=2, 3=3, 2=4 and 1=5, and then the questionnaires were both qualitatively and quantitatively analysed.

Qualitative analysis was done by looking at the questionnairesâ results and seeing if there was any reason why any particular question shouldnât be there. For example, if most people selected âneither agree nor disagreeâ then the question clearly did not serve its purpose. Quantitative analysis involved looking at the mean, and deleting any items which lay considerably outside 2.5-3.5 margins. Any items with a significantly larger standard deviation or lower correlation figures were also deleted. Then with the questions deleted new quantitative analysis was conducted to check that the results were significant. Then the questionnaire was handed out to the same participants to complete. The second set of data was then reanalysed and a t-test was carried out to compare the totals of each participant for either questionnaire to check the questionnaire was reliable over time, and Leveneâs test was perform to check for a homogeneity of variance. None of the participants where told we were comparing male and female attitudes until after the questionnaires were completed at which point they could disagree for their data to be used.

Results

The item means statistics are as would be expected when testing two opposing attitudes on a 5-point likert scale. From table 2 it is clear that all the means and standard deviations are similar. With the standard deviation being around 1. The item means are as they should be, with the mean around 3, (M = 3.137) with a few deviations, (Range = 1.290, Variance = 0.124,) no items having a mean of much less than 2.5, (Min = 2.470), or much higher than three point five, (Max = 3.760). The item variance is fairly low (M=1.011) and deviates little (Range = 0.634, Variance = 0.33)

These show similar results to those found in the 1^st questionnaire. Standard deviation are around 1. Means are around 3, (M = 3.128) with a few deviations, (Range = 1.320, Variance = 0.136,) These very similar results would suggest that the questionnaire had consistency over time; however this is tested for and discussed further later.

Reliability analysis of 1^st and 2^nd questionnaires

A reliability analysis of the items of the first questionnaire was performed to explore to what extent the scale was internally consistent. The results showed strong internal consistency in both questionnaires (Cronbach's Alpha = 0.891). The result suggest that the scale is not unidimensional (Inter-Item Correlation = 0.289) Similar findings were found with the reliability analysis of the second questionnaire, there was a similar strong internal consistency (Cronbrachâs Alpha = 0.882) and the scale still appeared to be multidimensional (Inter-Item Correlation = 0.270)

Test-Retest Reliability

The results above show that both tests are internally consistent but to discover if the test was consistent over time a test-retest correlational analysis was conducted, scores from the same individuals, on the same items on both questionnaires should be similar to indicate reliability over time. Each participantsâ total score was calculated for questionnaire one and questionnaire two and then the relationship between the two variables was examined. A significant strong correlation between scores on the two questionnaires was found (R = 0.949, p = 0.001). These results indicate that the test was reliable over time. The strong correlation between the two tests is illustrated below in a scatter-graph.

The hypothesis for this study was 1-tailed. The females scored a mean of 70.04 while males scored a mean of 55.06. An independent t-test was conducted to explore the influence gender had on attitudes towards male anorexia. A Leveneâs test of homogeneity of variance was carried out and found to be non-significant (p = 0.183) and therefore it can be assumed that there are no significant differences between variances. Gender was shown to have a significant effect on attitudes towards male anorexia, (df = 98, t = 8.045, p = 0.001).

Discussion

To summarize the results, internal consistency and consistency over time were present in the questionnaires; homogeneity of variance was assumed an independent t-test yielded significant results indicating that there is a difference between male and female attitudes towards male anorexia with males holding the negative viewpoint, while the average female has a more positive attitude towards male anorexics. This is supports the hypothesis that gender affects attitudes towards male anorexic.

Although these findings are highly significant it would be beneficial to conduct research where the scale was unidimensional as opposed to multidimensional.

These results support that Gordonâs viewpoint (2000) was correct that males suffering with anorexia nervosa are stigmatised, however Gordon also expected females to have negative attitudes towards anorexic males which this study does not find supportive evidence for. To ensure that it is not just female anorexics that stigmatise male anorexics a study could be conducted to investigate the difference between female who are suffering with anorexia nervosa and females who are not.

Negative attitudes towards male anorexia may be due to males being undereducated about anorexia as the condition is mainly associated with females. These results could be the consequence of a lack of media coverage. Female bias in academic publications about male anorexia may also contribute (Darvell, 2000). According to Margo, (1987) this will indirectly cause anorexic males health to become worse.

All the participants where students, with no mature students included, which served as a control, however further research to see if the results can be generalised would be worthwhile.

All the participants completed the questionnaires in similar conditions and the use of a questionnaire meant all the questions were standardised. Opportunity sampling was a suitable method for this study due to limitations on time, and the results were highly significant, but if a random sampling method was used for similar research in the future it would reduce possible criticisms. Because none of the participants where told we were comparing male and female attitudes until after the questionnaires were completed, the likelihood of demand characteristics was minimised.

To conclude, the results show a significant difference between male and female attitudes towards anorexia. Males showed a more negative attitude. The questionnaires internal consistency and reliability over time, along with homogeneity of variance of the results can all be assumed. The negative attitudes theorists suggest could be affecting the sufferersâ physical and mental health (Margo, 1980; Gordon, 2000) so it is a vitally important area of study to as evidence will in itself raise awareness and encourage other means of doing so

Please proof read my report

Anonymous — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 03:40:06 GMT

I am dyslexic and find proof-reading really hard. Please proof-read my work. I know that its kind of long, but its all in 3rd person and under the right headings etc. its only the prose and silly spelling mistakes I am conserned with which would be obvious to others. Thankyou so much. Obviously the stats arent relevent at all but thought that it might be really annoying reading something so out of context.

Introduction

Due to social and media pressures the ideal body shape is becoming thinner and this contributes to eating disorders in both males and females Harrison & Cantor (1997).

The aim of this study is to investigate the different attitudes towards male anorexia nervosa between males and females by use of a questionnaire will remain reliable over time.

The hypothesis for this study is gender will affect attitudes towards males suffering from anorexia nervosa.

Method

A 5-point likert scale was used.. The questionnaire used 18 affective, 18 behavioural and 14 cognitive. 25 of the questions were testing for a negative attitude, and 25 for a positive attitude.

Item Number deleted

Item Question

Exclusion Method

I would not find it odd if a straight male told me he longed to have the body shape of another male.

I believe any man with an eating disorder is not a âreal manâ.

3,4

It would not affect me if I heard a close male friend had dealt with anorexia alone

If a male told me he desired to be a underweight body size it would be fine with me.

1,3

I would be more worried about a female who was not eating than I would a male.

1,3

I would feel more uncomfortable discussing a maleâs body shape with himself than I would a femaleâs body shape with herself.

I would be equally worried about a male who wasnât eating just as much as I would a female.

1,3

I would feel unsympathetic to a male with anorexia.

1,3

The gender of a person would not affect how much I would intervene if they were suffering with anorexia.

I believe males who suffer from anorexia are effeminate.

I believe all males with anorexia are attention seeking.

I would actively try to discourage a male friend that I was worried was anorexic.

I would be equally likely to assume a male had an eating disorder than a female.

1,3

I would be just as likely call a female friend âfatâ as I would a male friend.

1,3

I would try to be supportive to any friend or family member with anorexia.

I would reassure a female friend that she is not overweight just as much as I would a male.

I would feel ill at ease if a male told me he desired to be a worryingly underweight weight.

1,3

I believe only homosexual males suffer from anorexia.

I would not be supportive to any friend or family member with anorexia.

1,3

I believe it is unlikely that a male that suffers with anorexia would be good at football.

1,3

I would spend as much time with a clinically underweight male as I would with a male of normal weight.

I would feel upset if I felt a close male friend or family member had suffered from anorexia alone.

I believe anorexic males should be treated differently than anorexic females.

I would reassure an insecure average/ underweight male that he is not overweight as much as I would a female.

2,3

I do not believe male anorexic is related to testosterone levels.

I would be more likely to call a male friend âfatâ in a jokey manner.

I would be faster to assume an underweight female has an eating disorder than I would a male.

1,2,3

I believe anorexic males should be treated the same as anorexic females.

It is just as normal for a male to suffer with anorexia as it is a female.

I believe it is weirder for a male to suffer from anorexia than it is for a female.

1, 3

Table 1 â A table showing the deleted items and reason for exclusion, 1 = Excluded due to mean, 2=Excluded due to standard deviation 3=Excluded due to item total correlation, 4= Other reasons, mainly qualitative (ie: Participants commented question was unclear or did not appear attitudes towards anorexia well)

Results

Descriptive Statistics from 1^st Questionnaire after items removed

Item

Mean

Std. Deviation

item4

3.57

1.07

item6

3.76

1.00

item8

3.35

0.98

item14

3.41

1.03

item21

3.33

1.00

item22

3.25

0.86

item27

3.15

1.09

item28

3.45

1.13

item30

2.95

1.11

item31

2.92

0.99

item32

3.03

1.13

item33

3.43

1.07

item36

2.96

1.03

item41

2.47

0.94

item42

3.38

0.81

item43

2.65

0.99

item44

3.39

1.03

item46

2.73

0.96

item47

2.97

1.01

item48

2.59

0.81

Table 2 â A table showing the descriptive statistics for each item of the first questionnaires after items removed (to 2dp.)

Mean

Minimum

Maximum

Range

Maximum / Minimum

Variance

N of Items

Item Means

3.137

2.470

3.760

1.290

1.522

.124

Item Variances

1.011

.648

1.282

.634

1.977

.033

Table 3 â A table summarising the descriptive statistics for 1^st questionnaire.

Descriptive Statistics from the 2^nd Questionnaire

Item

Mean

Std. Deviation

t2item4

3.60

1.082

t2item6

3.75

1.029

t2item8

3.36

1.020

t2item14

3.40

1.110

t2item21

3.33

1.045

t2item22

3.22

0.894

t2item27

3.20

1.110

t2item28

3.46

1.141

t2item30

2.96

1.127

t2item31

2.91

1.036

t2item32

3.00

1.181

t2item33

3.43

1.057

t2item36

2.94

1.127

t2item41

2.43

0.987

t2item42

3.38

0.862

t2item43

2.61

1.043

t2item44

3.38

1.033

t2item46

2.68

1.062

t2item47

2.97

1.029

t2item48

2.54

0.904

Table 4 â A table showing the descriptive statistics obtained by the 2^nd questionnaire (to 2dp.)

Summary Item Statistics

Mean

Minimum

Maximum

Range

Maximum / Minimum

Variance

N of Items

Item Means

3.128

2.430

3.750

1.320

1.543

.136

Item Variances

1.096

.743

1.394

.651

1.876

.029

Inter-Item Correlations

.270

-.164

.750

.914

-4.576

.028

Table 5 â A table summarising the descriptive statistics for 2^nd questionnaire

Reliability analysis of 1^st and 2^nd questionnaires

Test-Retest Reliability

Criterion Statistics

Gender

Mean

Std. Deviation

Std. Error Mean

TOTAL2

55.06

10.25

1.45

70.04

7.34

1.04

Discussion

Although these findings are highly significant it would be beneficial to conduct research where the scale was unidimensional as opposed to multidimensional.

All the participants where students, with no mature students included, which served as a control, however further research to see if the results can be generalised would be worthwhile.

Re: Your interpretation on this statement.

Forbes — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:44:44 GMT

The basic meaning of "restrict" is "to keep within limits". Membership is restricted to graduates means only graduates can be part of the membership or the membership includes only graduates. If the statement is negated Membership is not restricted to graduates it must mean something different i.e. not only graduates can be part of the membership or the membership does not include only graduates. I think that part of the problem lies in that "restricted" has a something of a negative feel about it and it is therefore puzzling to work out exactly what "not restricted" means - I am sure that is why your lecturer chose the sentence.

An analysis of "is not necessarily" will lead to the same result; think what Members are not necessarily graduates means.

People being admitted to Hong Kong University are not restricted to local students.

and

Some people being admitted to Hong Kong University are non-local students.

both convey the same information.

Re: Your interpretation on this statement.

Anonymous — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:42:22 GMT

An analysis of "is not necessarily" will lead to the same result; think what Members are not necessarily graduates means.

People being admitted to Hong Kong University are not restricted to local students.

and

Some people being admitted to Hong Kong University are non-local students.

both convey the same information.

Re: Your interpretation on this statement.

Forbes — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 11:13:15 GMT

I think we need to forget about whether or not the sentence is good English. Winsonli was attending a lesson in Logic and Critical Thinking - that includes trying to work out what poorly phrased sentences mean.

"Restrict" means to impose limits. The choice at lunch was restricted to spaghetti and salad means that only spaghetti and salad were available. Suppose that the choice was always between spaghetti and salad, but one day there was suddenly a wide choice of dishes; you may write home and say: For a change, the choice at lunch today was not restricted to spaghetti and salad. The meaning is surely clear: the choices included spaghetti, salad and something else.

The problem in grasping the meaning of People being admitted to Hong Kong University are not restricted to local students lies I think in the use of a negative with "restricted". If you take out the "not" you have a sentence that clearly means that only local students are admitted. If you put the "not" back in you must change the meaning.

The structure may appear clearer in the following:

Those permitted to fly our aeroplanes are restricted to those with a pilot's license

We know it is no use asking to fly if we do not have a license.

Those permitted to fly our aeroplanes are not restricted to those with a pilot's license

We know we can have a go if we do not have a license.

When introduced to logic, statements are usually presented in forms such as:

All dogs are mammals

Some mammals are dogs

No fish is a mammal

Or to reduce it

All x are y

Some x are y

No x is a y

However, in "real life" assertions people make do not always appear in such convenient packages and you have to reduce them to a form that you can "play with." As I hope I have shown:

People being admitted to Hong Kong University are not restricted to local students

Can be reduced to:

Some x are y

In logic speak some x are y means y is predicated of some x or to put it another way there is at least one y which is not an x.