Nursing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 4

Nursing - Essay Example This will ensure that that person understands what the institution like and hospital believes in and stand for. If everyone understand what is expected of him or her, it is very easy while in the course of business because it will just be about reminding them. Health institutions offering nursing services must give priority to its own staff by letting them understand where the institution is leading. A people without direction have no motivation at all. The vision gives a direction and objective as well as clearly outlined plans of how to achieve the set goals. Engaging staff while formulating these goals is very important for it encourages them to have a sense of ownership of the institution. This makes them see that they also have the power to make a contribution in making contribution towards success of their own institution. Workers may be having great ideas that can turn around the state of health. Nurses always have better solutions to solve their own problems but the management teams always think that it can solve all the problems of the people. Another wonderful strategy is allowing workers to form their own unions, which can help them air their views. When one is employed, the needs increases with time with the focus shifting from only salary to other needs in an order called hierarchy of needs. Every institution should ensure that nurses are given the freedom to form their own associations so that their opinions may be heard equally as for the executive team. While making critical decisions that affects the lives of all the staff, it is crucial to consult the staff through their unions and

Plato and Aristotle Essay Example for Free

Plato and Aristotle Essay Plato and Aristotle were two philosophers who made an impact on philosophy as we know it as today. Plato is thought of as the first political philosopher and Aristotle as the first metaphysical philosopher. They were both great intellectuals in regards to being the first of the great western philosophers. Plato and Aristotle each had ideas in how to better life by improving the societies in which they were part of during their lives. The views of Plato and Aristotle look different but they do have some similarities to them. Plato is mostly known for his Theory of Forms and Aristotle is known for his thoughts in universals. Even though they both thought a bit differently they did agree in a few things. Plato and Aristotle not only had an impact on society in the past but today’s society as well. Plato was a teacher to Aristotle and lived during the Peloponnesian War, which lead to the end of the Athenian democracy. He had eyewitness account of Socrates, his mentor, trial and execution. Unhappy with the political corruption that plagued the Athenian democratic government, he removed himself from politics. He strongly felt that neither a moral individual nor a state could be established in a democratic environment. Plato felt that the common man was not intelligent enough to deal with concepts that influence the state such as economics, policies and other relative matters. He thought of philosophers as being the most intelligent among men. He viewed political incumbents in the Athens government basically as bought individuals in office for the good of themselves and not society as a whole. Another danger was that extreme liberties given to the people in the democratic society could potentially lead an anarchy. Aristotle was a student of Plato’s and teacher of Alexander the Great. He created his own school in Athens. He thought of metaphysics to be the first philosophy, which was a large interest to him. Aristotle’s stated that forms were universal. According to Aristotle, notion of Essential properties makes something what it is, and accidental properties are the differences of that item. Aristotle believed the state and the individual are similar and democracy would be the better government. In Book VII of The Republic by Plato, Socrates describes the Allegory of the Cave. It is a metaphor to illustrate the effects of education on the human soul. It can also be understood as what is real and what is believed to be real in life. Eventhough Plato had his ideal city, the forms was really what people could connect with. There is so much one can take from his thoughts on the forms that could be applied to society today. Plato starts out comparing people that are uneducated to prisoners chained in a cave, unable to turn their head. All they can see is the wall of the cave in front of them. A fire behind them burns bright. Between the fire and the prisoners, there is an area for puppeteers to move around and hold up the puppets to cast shadows on the wall that is in front of the prisoners. This is what the prisoners see every single day. This is all they know; shadows, echoes, the smell of the fire, and darkness. They believe that that shadows are reality. One of the prisoners is allowed to go outside of the cave. Once they reach the outside of the cave, they are blinded by the light because they have not seen such. Once their eyes start to adjust, they start seeing shapes and objects around them. They see that the sun is what creates light and that the tall objects with leaves are trees. They are colorful with moving parts. They go back outside to tell the prisoners, but they are not believed. Those still inside of the cave thinks the person just came in from the outside ill because that is not what they see in the cave, they did not see the outside for themselves, so therefore, it does not exist. So now the person that just came in from the bright sun light cannot see very well in the darkness of the cave, their eyes have not adjusted to the darkness, and people think they are crazy. This is where this view fails for Aristotle because it is not realistic. Aristotle rejects Plato’s Theory of Forms, and makes the way for his realistic approach, which underlines observation first and abstract reasoning second. Being a student of Plato’s, I believe he was indebted to justify at lengths why he disagrees with doctrines of his teacher. He provided detailed arguments against many of Plato’s doctrines, a lot of his major works, focusing in particular on the Theory of Forms. In Aristotle’s critique he thinks this theory is essentially an assertion of the superiority of universals over particulars. Plato argues that particular instances of beauty or justice exists only because they participate in the universal Form of Beauty. Say a there are two objects, one is colorless and the other one is red. The colorless one goes where the red on is located. Since the colorless object and the red object are participating, they areboth red objects. They have a certain nurture and nature. However, Aristotle argues that universal concepts of beauty and justice derive from the instances of beauty and justice in this world. We only arrive at an idea of beauty by observing particular instances of beauty. This universal quality of beauty has no existence beyond this idea that we build from particular instances. He is staying that the particulars come first and the universals come after and therefor, Aristotle places emphasis on the importance of observing the details of this world. Which leads me to understand his thoughts on happiness a little more. With putting the weight on observing happiness can measured by a person’s life. Aristotle lays out in Book X in the Nicomachean Ethic’s, the continuation of his thoughts on pleasure, happiness and the end of life, and ethics and politics. His view on happiness and the end of human life really made me question his way of thinking. Aristotle suggests that happiness is the final end of life because nothing is greater than happiness or the good life and it goes against his universal theory. Aristotle proposes that happiness, or the good life, is taken to be a most final end. â€Å"We said, then, that happiness is not a characteristic, for in that case it could be present even to someone asleep thought his life, living the life of plants, and to someone undergoing the greatest misfortunes. † (Nicomachean Ethics, 1176a-1176b). The good life for humans is the life of choosing to life the life according to the virtues. â€Å"For we choose everything, so to speak, for the sake of something else-except happiness, for it is the end. † (Nicomachean Ethics, 1176b). Also, it seems that only humans can be happy because the happiness is an important nature of every individual human and it is unique to humans in that the function of humans is what distinguishes them from other kinds of things. Happiness is a self-sufficient activity desirable for its own sake. One seeks nothing from happiness beyond the actual experience or performance of it as an activity. Activities that are desirable in themselves are activities in conformity with virtue and indicates that the greatest happiness must be activity in conformity with the highest virtue. It is wrong to confuse happiness with various kinds of amusements involving bodily pleasures, as many people do. Such amusements are neither virtuous nor ends in themselves,but are merely relaxing diversions in which one occasionally engages for the sake of future activity. The greatest happiness is activity in conformity with the highest virtue is excellence. Intelligence is mans highest possession and the objects of intelligence are the highest objects within his grasp. It is clear that the life of contemplation and theoretical wisdom must be the greatest of human virtues and the highest form of happiness. The objects of the contemplative life are the unchangeable and eternal verities that underlie and govern the universe. From contemplation of these truths the soul derives a feeling of purity and stability. â€Å"Further, this active is most continuous, for we are more able to contemplate continuously than we are to do anything else whatever. † (Nicomachean Ethics, 1177a). Also, the wise person is able to contemplate by himself, the wiser he is the more adept he will be doing so. Contemplative happiness is not dependent on other men. It is the form of life in which human beings come most nearly to being divine, the life that harmonizes with intellect, and that life seems to be the happiest, according to Aristotle. There is another kind of happiness, based on moral virtue and practical wisdom, which is concerned with feelings that spring from mans bodily nature. It can be defined as the harmonious coordination of all parts of mans complete being. This kind of happiness is not as exalted as the contemplative, but it helps prepare us for the higher happiness and, since man is not all mind and reason, gives us something to fall back upon when we are unable to remain continuously at the higher level. â€Å"For if there is a certain care for human things on the part of gods, as in fact there is held to be, it would be also reasonable for gods to delight in what is best and most akin to them – this would be the intellect – and to benefit in return those who cherish this above all and honor it, on the grounds that these latter are caring for what is dear to gods as well as acting correctly and nobly. † (Nicomachean Ethics, 1179a). This person is the happiest and a wise person would be extremely happy. I believe this idea has some hints of Plato’s forms. The one person who went outside of the cave and saw it all was brought down by all the people in the cave that didn’t see the outside. Aristotle states that you cannot be happy with a lot of friends because they are not true friends. I believe those excess friendships would be a similar situation in the cave. They would not bring your happiness, only suffering. Aristotle and Plato have similaritiesin their city states as well. Plato gives a place to women, but Aristotle does not seem to care for women. When reading Plato, the texts are in Socrates’s voice. It makes it hard to connect what he is saying, especially in the Republic since it is a play. Also, one cannot tell if Socrates, Plato, is being serious or straightforward or if it’s Socrates’s thoughts or Plato’s. In Nicomachean Ethics, the text is Aristotle’s lecture notes and he is the author of them. While reading, it seems that Plato comes out and gives his opinion on matters, but Aristotle presents them, but does not come out and say what his thoughts are. Plato and Aristotle were two philosophers who made a huge impact on philosophy. They were both great western philosophers. Plato and Aristotle each had ideas in how to better life by improving the societies in which they were part of during their lives. Although they are thought to have completely different views, when laid out, their views have some similarities.

Soung And That Fury :: essays research papers

There are four Compson children, and four chapters in The Sound and the Fury. Each of the three previous chapters has been narrated by one of the Compson children; the only one left is Caddy. Since Caddy is in many ways the most important character in the book, it would be natural to expect Caddy to be the narrator of the fourth section. But instead, Caddy is cut out of the novel completely: this chapter is narrated by a third-person omniscient narrator, and the focus of the section, bewilderingly, is on Dilsey, the Compsons' Negro cook. The end of the novel, and the symbolic ending of the Compson clan, does not occur with a climactic bang, but rather with a kind of fizzling away into insignificance. Jason's loss of the seven thousand dollars--four of which did not belong to him (hence his claim to the sheriff that he had lost three thousand dollars)--and his subsequent, ineffectual chase of Miss Quentin and the man in the red tie are hardly exciting, moving, or tragic events. More important is Dilsey's simple, strong, protective presence, the only thing holding the Compson family together. Dilsey's simple piety enables her to love Benjy and feel unashamed when she takes him to church. Faulkner once called the Compsons "tragic" people and Dilsey a "good" person. This contrast sheds light on the roles of the characters throughout the novel. Dilsey is not obsessed with the passage of time, and is not overcome by the chaos of experience in the same way as the "tragic" characters. Rather, she simply endures through happiness and sadness with the same incorruptible faith and the same will to protect those she cares about. For just a split second at the end of the novel we are taken back into the mind of Benjy,

Religion in Public Schools Essay -- Prayer In Public Schools

Religious Rights in Public Schools "JESUS in the classroom!" Are you feeling uncomfortable yet? Religion in the public school systems is among the top of the list of controversial topics in American society, We've long been advised to avoid this and other religiously politically intertwined subjects in polite conversation. If you're like most Americans, this topic makes you frustrated, high strung, or at least a little queasy. From the day the 1st amendment right appeared in the U.S. Constitution, to this present day, and surely into our nation's tomorrows, the proper role of religion in public schools has been, is, and will continue to be a subject of great debate. It is important for school officials, parents, and students to have a clear understanding of the 1st amendment and how it affects their religious rights and the religious rights of others in a public school setting. Unfortunately, most people are confused or misguided when it comes to this issue. The purpose of this paper is to guide the reader throu gh a clear understanding of the 1st amendment; the impact it has had in education, the religious freedoms it grants to students, and the religious freedoms it grants (or doesn't grant) to teachers. The Constitution exists precisely so that opinions and judgments, including can be formed, tested, and expressed. These judgments are for the individual to make, not for the Government to decree even with the mandate or approval of a majority (Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, 1999). In knowing that, the 1st amendment states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting free exercise thereof…" As you can see there are two clauses in this part of the amendment. ... ... First Amendment Court Cases. Schenck v. United States (1919). Riley, R. (1998). Secretary's statement on religious expression. Retrieved November 15, 2001, from, the World Wide Web: http://www.ed.gov/Speeches/08-1995/religion.html Staver, Mathew. Teachers' Rights on Public School Campuses. Retrieved November 16, 2001, from the World Wide Web: http://www.lc.org/OldResources/teachers_rights_0900.html United States Supreme Court. (1993). Lamb's Chapel v. Center. Washington DC. Government Printing Office. United States Supreme Court. (1994). Mozert v. Hawkins County Board of Education, 827 F.2d 1058 (6th Cir. 1987). Washington DC; US Government Printing Office. United States Supreme Court. (1969). Tinker v. Des Moines School Districk, 393 U.S. 503, 89 S. Ct. 733, 21 L. Ed. 2d. 731. Washington DC; US Government Printing Office.

“Back to China”: the Reverse Brain Drain in China

â€Å"Back to China†: the Reverse Brain Drain in China Every autumn, American students are busy with applying for undergraduate or graduate schools, so are an increasing number of Chinese students. Chinese get to realize the significance of being transnational. â€Å"Transnational† means involving in many countries. Now, human capital, especially those who have international experience, is significant to the development of a country in the internationalized world. However, plenty of overseas students from developing country tend to stay abroad for a better future, which is a great loss of developing countries.But, recently, more and more Chinese students go back to China after they complete their study, which is a good news to China. Looking through this new trend, there are three main factors that may drive overseas scholars to come back to China: the growth of economy in China, the support from the government to overseas scholars, and the bond between overseas scholar s and home land. Reverse brain drain is a term of migration. The definition of this term is the phenomenon that talented people who once studied or worked in developed country go to a less developed country which is developing in high pace.Recently, this has been common in developing countries, such as India, Brazil, and China (Llana, Ford, Marquand, Pflanz, & Ibukun, 2012). Conversely, in the past, People’s Republic of China (PRC) was not as open as it is now. PRC even ceased the communication in education with other countries once because of the Chinese Culture Revolution which lasted from 1966 to 1976 (Liu, & Li, 2010). Not until 1978 when China renewed the policy of international academic communication did China send students to go abroad (Yao, 2004).As China’s policy became looser, â€Å"outgoing tide† and â€Å"incoming tide† appeared (Zhang, 1997). â€Å"Outgoing tide† is a description of the phenomenon that plenty of students go abroad and the â€Å"incoming tide† means those students go back. Since 1978, according to China statistical yearbook 2011, more than 632,000 Chinese, or 33 percent of those who studied abroad, have returned home and both the rate of increase of overseas Chinese students and the rate of increase of returning Chinese scholars have grown sharply in recent years. For instance, in 1989, 3,329 went abroad to study.In 1990, the number of students who went abroad even decreased to 2,950 , only 1,593 scholars went back to China. In contrast, the total of students who studied abroad in 2010 increased to 284,700. In the same year, 134,800 students return after their study in foreign country, up 24. 7 percent from 2009 (National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2011, 20-10). Statistics show that the reverse brain drain to China has already begun. In the past, the reason why the majority of overseas scholars chose staying abroad instead of returning was that they found there were obstacles blocking t heir way back to China.Those scholars were concerned about the factors linked with money, especially the living condition and career. Compared with working in China, it would be easier for scholars to have convenient places to live and earn relatively high salary when working abroad (Li, 1998). As for career, in China, when some young scholars applied for research funds, they were not able to get funded, which means they could only be assisted by institutions and companies abroad or study further overseas. Ruizhang Guan is one of the scholars who went abroad because of lack of fund.He did not have a Ph. D. at that time. He said, â€Å"It was difficult to get any funds without a Ph. D. , and without funding it was very hard to produce any results† (Yan, 1998, p. 59). Furthermore, Zweig, the chair professor of Social Science of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology who is known for his research on Chinese politics and political economy, pointed out in his paper â⠂¬Å"Competing for talent† (2006) that the economy of China was in poor condition, most of the institutes and research centers did not have enough money to update the facilities.Then scholars believed that they could not develop further in their fields with the deficient equipment in Chinese institutes. To have promising future, these scholars were willing to develop their careers in developed countries. It is undoubtedly true that there were many factors motivating the migration of scholar in that period. However, two decades have passed, and the living and working environment in China has changed dramatically, owing to the development in economy. The growing economy has given China opportunities to improve Chinese people’s living condition.And now when scholars consider the question whether to stay abroad or to go back to homeland, better living condition there can make life abroad less attractive. To illustrate the changes in living condition, Engel's coefficient is o ne of the index numbers. Engel's coefficient means the proportion of spending on food in total spending. A decreasing Engel's coefficient shows the average income has increased and life is getting better for a population. According to China statistical yearbook 2011 (National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2011), Engel's coefficient there dropped from 54. in urban areas and 58. 8 in rural areas to 35. 7 and 41. 1 relatively (10-1). Also, the housing condition has been improved, for the rates of population with access to tap water and gas have increased to nearly 100% respectively and the per capita living space has been enlarged (National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2011, 10-1). Although the living condition in China is still not comparable to that in developed countries, it is much better than what it was 20 years ago, and this is acceptable to returnees.When compared with the rapid growth of China’s economy, the financial crisis in other parts of the world has disappoint ed overseas students recently, in terms of employment and advancement opportunities. In developed countries, scholars’ work and life seemed the same as before, and hardly can the pattern of life and work be changed. Whereas, China usually presented a better appearance to overseas scholars every time they came back to China (Liu & Li, 2010). Usually, opportunities appear in changes. Therefore, scholars believe there are better and more opportunities in their career in China.For example, in the report on October 21st, 2012, Sophie Tao, an ex-fund manager in New York who went back to China to promote her career further, states, â€Å"China is one of the few bright spots in the world economy† (Ford, 2012). In China, many academic fields have not been explored enough yet, and some are even virgin lands. For this reason, those returnees, equipped with the experience and knowledge gained from abroad, can lay foundations in their own field in China. The possibility of success attracts scholar to do research in China (Engardio, & Engardio, 2009).In fact, the 2008-2009 financial crisis tested the economic stability worldwide and the harm caused by the global economic crisis still affects the economics of the rich nations (Llana et al. , 2012). Moreover, it increased the unemployment rate of immigrants in developed countries and it became difficult for overseas students to find a job there. According to Stephen Castle, a Research Chair at the Department of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Sydney, the unemployment rate for immigrants increased by 3. 4% in the European Union in 2008. And that rate in the USA has increased by 4. % (2012, p1847). Chinese students found out that it was difficult for them to find a suitable job overseas. Then, they started to think about whether the developed countries were their only choice of destination, or whether their homeland would be a feasible choice. And China did not disappoint them. China entered World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001. And in 2002-2009 international companies have invested 683. 5 billion in China (Wang, 2012). The main method of their investment is to start their branch offices in China. Furthermore, China had to compete with other countries in the world.As a consequence, the â€Å"golden time† for overseas students to go back to China began (Ye, 2000, p. 20). Returnees believe that they can have their own contribution to the development of China. Ma Jianghe, who gained his doctorate of Law in the United States, chose to develop his career in China after the agreement on China’s accession to WTO was signed. He believed: â€Å"After China joins the WTO, I will have a big advantage in China’s law service market. My good understanding of Chinese and American laws will convince businessmen from both countries to trust me. † ( Ye, 2000, p. 1) As Ma said, the abilities that returnees possess are what a country or a company needs to succeed i n international competition. Their multi-cultural background, their communication skills and their ability of adaptation in their own field make them outstanding among employees. Besides the economic factors, in the past, another reason that would stop overseas scholars from returning was the strict control of scholars made by the government. Because of the control, the most violent issue happened in 4 June 1989. Students died, for their political status went against the government.Scholars were afraid of being deprived of freedom, both physically and politically (Zweig, 2006). They thought once they went back to China, they could never go abroad again and hardly could they communicate with international scholars. Considering of the life in future, many scholars refused to return home. Indeed, policies at that time were not open enough. Chinese government noticed that China was confronted with a serious problem that plenty of overseas talents chose to stay abroad. Only 20% of Chines e overseas scholars thought they might go back home according to Zweig’s survey which was done in 1993 (Zweig, 2006).Facing this obstacle, the authorities decided to support overseas scholars to come back to home and began to create friendly environment to welcome scholars. To encourage returning, the government has provides financial support to scholars through plenty of programs in recent 20 years. To illustrate how those programs work, the â€Å"thousand talents program† that was launched in 2008 is an appropriate example. The aim of this plan is to lure overseas scholars to go back to China and help their homeland to â€Å"raise its global competitiveness† and become â€Å"an innovative society† (Ford, 2012, para. 0). The Chinese government launched it to bring top scientists and high-tech entrepreneurs back home in the next five to 10 years. In this plan, the government is going to grant 1 million Yuan (about $146,000) per person as salary and resear ch fund. Then the government offers them insurance, housing and pensions, too. Thanks to this plan, over 2000 experts in varied field have gone back to China to start a new career during the last three years(Zhang, 2012,para. 1).The financial supports make the returnees’ road back to China easier. Not only the central government but also the local government attempts to attract overseas scholars. â€Å"Enterprise incubators† have been set up to offer opportunity to returnees to start their own business since 1994 (Zweig, 2006, & Liu, & Li, 2010). An â€Å"Enterprise incubator† is a special zone that provides preferential policies and service for overseas entrepreneurs, which makes it an appropriate zone for overseas scholars to begin from.According to the statistics cited in â€Å"Zhongguo liu xue tong shi† (The history of Chinese student studying abroad, Liu, & Li, 2010), in 2003, there were over 110 such zones in China, more than 6000 companies were fou nded in those zones, and over 15,000 overseas entrepreneurs were attracted to those zones. The annual output value of 2003 was 32. 7 billion Yuan (about $5. 24 billion). The success in these enterprise incubators may lure more overseas scholars to go home. Cultural binding with homeland also lures overseas scholars to go back to China.In a foreign country, it is probable for someone to suffer from nostalgia, discrimination, and other problems. And they would miss home and return to their familiar culture to avoid those problems. Family is an essential part of one’s cultural background. As a consequence, it acts as a firm bond between overseas scholars and their homeland. First, Kellogg, a researcher working on international migration at UCLA, did a survey on the future plans of Chinese students in America in 2012. According to the survey, the top one reason why they want to return home is family (Kellogg, 2012).It is suffering to stay far away from relatives and friends for a long period of time. Furthermore, because of one-child policy, the only child is what parents can rely on except for the welfare and pension when parents get old. In Chinese traditional convention, children should take care of the elder family members (Smith, 1973). So parents and children would like to live together, at least live nearby each other (Settles, Sheng, Zang, & Zhao, 2008). This will lead to an increasing number of overseas students to come back to China.Moreover, China, a familiar environment, may comfort these scholars and give them confidence in their career, which is an attraction to scholars who stays abroad. Integration into the local society is a troublesome problem to Chinese students. In a survey done by a website named deyi which is a popular website among Chinese students in Germany (2007) about the students’ situation in the local society, only seven percent of students assert that they have no problem to join the main stream. Others encountered prob lems more or less (as cited in Liu & Li, 2010, p. 88-491) To evade this, some of them tend to limit their social contact to a small group of Chinese people and confine their career to lab when they graduate, which lead to the result that they have less communication with the main stream and it becomes more troublesome for them to integrate into the society (Miller, 1992 & Liu & Li, 2010). On the other hand, their situation in China is different from that abroad. An overseas scholar has both a native knowledge of his or her homeland and the ability to use Chinese fluently.That is the basis of overseas scholars’ confidence. When they strike root in their homeland, they gain confidence. Chaoyang Zhang, the CEO of sohu (Sohu is one of the most successful Internet companies in China. )and a returnee, shares his experience: â€Å" When I was an official at MIT, I met Zhangliang Chen (He is a famous experts of tropical botany in China and he studied in Washington University in St. Louis. ) once. From his expression and the look in his eyes, I could see the authority and firmness that he gained during the years when he was in China.His confidence and pride are what overseas students and successful overseas scholars do not have. That is result of striking root in homeland. The difference is so enormous to make me shocked, which strengthen my determination to go back to China. † ( Liu & Li, 2010, p. 587) The confidence based on living in homeland cannot usually be gained elsewhere. On the other hand, the cultural binding with homeland may be a disadvantage of Chinese scholars when they live abroad. Chinese scholars and those who have already mmigrated to foreign country may experience discrimination from others. The glass ceiling exists, which according to Joseph Tsien, a American neuroscientist from China, is â€Å"an unspoken truth† (Mervis, 2005, p. 607). A glass ceiling means that a certain barrier blocks the advancement to a relatively high pos ition faced by minority in a society. Because of culture gap and language barrier, most of the scholars from China find they can not totally understand the foreign culture (Liu, & Li, 2010).As a result, many of them can have fame and achievement in their own field as scientists but only a few of them can get a job of senior management in their field (Mervis, 2005). Alice Huang, a successful virologist who came from mainland China to America when she was 10 years old, encountered the barrier in her application to a high- level job in New York University in 1991. During her interview, she found out that what the committee was searching for is a WASP (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant) candidate and the committee set barriers to make Huang give up that position. In the end, she lost that position (Miller, 1992).Since evaluation, which may be subjective, is a key step in process of promotion, one, not belonging to the main stream, may be afraid of the unequal judgment done by the evaluating committee which consists of the majority. Scholars want to prove their value and be accepted by the society. But the existed barriers prevent scholars from getting higher positions and realize their plans. Under this condition, scholars would believe that they will be minority and nearly impossible to be integrated to mainstream, which may hurt scholars and drive them to go home (Liu, & Li, 2010).However, the racial discrimination to those overseas scholars will be eliminated in their homeland. They will be honored in China. Experiences of studying and working abroad are called â€Å"paint a little gold† (du jin) in Chinese (Zweig, Chen, & Rosen, 2004, p. 736), which means returnees are regarded precious in China. To conclude, the three keys to Chinese reverse brain drain are dramatic growth in the economics, proper policies that encourage overseas scholars to return and a cultural environment that can give returnees a sense of belonging.Through the success of China’s alluring scholars back, power plays a significant role. To encourage more overseas scholars to go back, the authorities should concentrate on developing the economy to gain more hard power. Moreover, an open political environment is necessary, for overseas scholars have experienced freedom in political status. Furthermore, for moving the trend of returning further, the government should not only concentrate on the quantity of the returnees but also the quality of the returnees. Reference: Alsop, R. (2007). TRACK: More Chinese Graduates Return Home.The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://online. wsj. com/article/SB11737448221373 4773. html Castles, S. (2012). Cosmopolitanism and freedom? Lessons of the global economic crisis. Ethnic & Racial Studies, 35(11), 1843-1852. doi:10. 1080/01419870. 2012. 715662 Confucius, C. (2006). â€Å"Lun yu† ming yan =: Aphorisms From LUNYU. Di 1 ban. Jinan: Qi lu shu she. Engardio, P. ,& Engardio, P. (2009). China's Rev erse Brain Drain. BloomberBusinessweek. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://www. businessweek. com/magazine/content/ 09_48/b4157058821350. tm Ford, P. (2012). Reverse brain drain: China engineers incentives for â€Å"brain gain†. Christian Science Monitor, Retrieved from http://www. csmonitor. com/World/Global-Issues /2012/1021/Reverse-brain-drain-China-engineers-incentives-for-brain-gain International Rankings and Chinese Higher Education Reform. (2006). World Education News and Reviews. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://www. wes. org/ ewenr/06oct/ practical. htm. Jianshu, Z. (2000). Students Returned from Abroad in the 1990s. Chinese Education & Society, 33(5), 8. Kellogg, R. (2012).China's Brain Gain? : Attitudes and Future Plans of Overseas Chinese Students in the US. Journal Of Chinese Overseas, 8(1), 83-104. doi:10. 1163/179325412X634319 Liu, J. , & Li, X. (2010). Zhongguo liu xue tong shi: Zhongguo liuxue tongshi. Di 1 ban. Guangzhou: Guangdong jiao yu chu ba n she Llana, S. , Ford, P. , Marquand, R. , Pflanz, M. , & Ibukun, Y. (2012). Reverse brain drain: Economic shifts lure migrants home. Christian Science Monitor, N. PAG. National Bureau of Statistics of China. (2011). China statistical yearbook 2011. Beijing: China Statistics Press.Settles, B. , Sheng, X. , Zang, Y. & Zhao, J. (2008). The one child policy and its impacts on Chinese families. Research Committee on Family, 12-13. Smith, D. (1973). Confucius. London: Temple Smith. Wang, Z. (2012). Ten years of international companies since China entered WTO. International Financing. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://www. zcom. com/ article/51886/ Yan, J. (1998). My heart turns toward the homeland. Chinese Education & Society,31(2), 57. Ye, L. (2000). Overseas students coming back at a golden time. Beijing Review, 43(6/7), 20. Zhang, Y. (2012).Thousand Talent Program brings more pros. China Daily, Retrieved from http://www. chinadaily. com. cn/bizchina/2012-04/28/content_15168335. htm. Zweig, D. , Changgui, C. , & Rosen, S. (2004). Globalization and transnational human capital: Overseas and returnee scholars to china. The China Quarterly, 735-757. Zweig, D. (2006). Competing for talent: China's strategies to reverse the brain drain. International Labour Review,145(1), 65-0_6. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com. ezproxy. library. wisc. edu/docview/224008850? accountid=465 ———————– 1 â€Å"Back to China†: the Reverse Brain Drain in China â€Å"Back to China†: the Reverse Brain Drain in China Every autumn, American students are busy with applying for undergraduate or graduate schools, so are an increasing number of Chinese students. Chinese get to realize the significance of being transnational. â€Å"Transnational† means involving in many countries. Now, human capital, especially those who have international experience, is significant to the development of a country in the internationalized world. However, plenty of overseas students from developing country tend to stay abroad for a better future, which is a great loss of developing countries.But, recently, more and more Chinese students go back to China after they complete their study, which is a good news to China. Looking through this new trend, there are three main factors that may drive overseas scholars to come back to China: the growth of economy in China, the support from the government to overseas scholars, and the bond between overseas scholar s and home land. Reverse brain drain is a term of migration. The definition of this term is the phenomenon that talented people who once studied or worked in developed country go to a less developed country which is developing in high pace.Recently, this has been common in developing countries, such as India, Brazil, and China (Llana, Ford, Marquand, Pflanz, & Ibukun, 2012). Conversely, in the past, People’s Republic of China (PRC) was not as open as it is now. PRC even ceased the communication in education with other countries once because of the Chinese Culture Revolution which lasted from 1966 to 1976 (Liu, & Li, 2010). Not until 1978 when China renewed the policy of international academic communication did China send students to go abroad (Yao, 2004).As China’s policy became looser, â€Å"outgoing tide† and â€Å"incoming tide† appeared (Zhang, 1997). â€Å"Outgoing tide† is a description of the phenomenon that plenty of students go abroad and the â€Å"incoming tide† means those students go back. Since 1978, according to China statistical yearbook 2011, more than 632,000 Chinese, or 33 percent of those who studied abroad, have returned home and both the rate of increase of overseas Chinese students and the rate of increase of returning Chinese scholars have grown sharply in recent years. For instance, in 1989, 3,329 went abroad to study.In 1990, the number of students who went abroad even decreased to 2,950 , only 1,593 scholars went back to China. In contrast, the total of students who studied abroad in 2010 increased to 284,700. In the same year, 134,800 students return after their study in foreign country, up 24. 7 percent from 2009 (National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2011, 20-10). Statistics show that the reverse brain drain to China has already begun. In the past, the reason why the majority of overseas scholars chose staying abroad instead of returning was that they found there were obstacles blocking t heir way back to China.Those scholars were concerned about the factors linked with money, especially the living condition and career. Compared with working in China, it would be easier for scholars to have convenient places to live and earn relatively high salary when working abroad (Li, 1998). As for career, in China, when some young scholars applied for research funds, they were not able to get funded, which means they could only be assisted by institutions and companies abroad or study further overseas. Ruizhang Guan is one of the scholars who went abroad because of lack of fund.He did not have a Ph. D. at that time. He said, â€Å"It was difficult to get any funds without a Ph. D. , and without funding it was very hard to produce any results† (Yan, 1998, p. 59). Furthermore, Zweig, the chair professor of Social Science of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology who is known for his research on Chinese politics and political economy, pointed out in his paper â⠂¬Å"Competing for talent† (2006) that the economy of China was in poor condition, most of the institutes and research centers did not have enough money to update the facilities.Then scholars believed that they could not develop further in their fields with the deficient equipment in Chinese institutes. To have promising future, these scholars were willing to develop their careers in developed countries. It is undoubtedly true that there were many factors motivating the migration of scholar in that period. However, two decades have passed, and the living and working environment in China has changed dramatically, owing to the development in economy. The growing economy has given China opportunities to improve Chinese people’s living condition.And now when scholars consider the question whether to stay abroad or to go back to homeland, better living condition there can make life abroad less attractive. To illustrate the changes in living condition, Engel's coefficient is o ne of the index numbers. Engel's coefficient means the proportion of spending on food in total spending. A decreasing Engel's coefficient shows the average income has increased and life is getting better for a population. According to China statistical yearbook 2011 (National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2011), Engel's coefficient there dropped from 54. in urban areas and 58. 8 in rural areas to 35. 7 and 41. 1 relatively (10-1). Also, the housing condition has been improved, for the rates of population with access to tap water and gas have increased to nearly 100% respectively and the per capita living space has been enlarged (National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2011, 10-1). Although the living condition in China is still not comparable to that in developed countries, it is much better than what it was 20 years ago, and this is acceptable to returnees.When compared with the rapid growth of China’s economy, the financial crisis in other parts of the world has disappoint ed overseas students recently, in terms of employment and advancement opportunities. In developed countries, scholars’ work and life seemed the same as before, and hardly can the pattern of life and work be changed. Whereas, China usually presented a better appearance to overseas scholars every time they came back to China (Liu & Li, 2010). Usually, opportunities appear in changes. Therefore, scholars believe there are better and more opportunities in their career in China.For example, in the report on October 21st, 2012, Sophie Tao, an ex-fund manager in New York who went back to China to promote her career further, states, â€Å"China is one of the few bright spots in the world economy† (Ford, 2012). In China, many academic fields have not been explored enough yet, and some are even virgin lands. For this reason, those returnees, equipped with the experience and knowledge gained from abroad, can lay foundations in their own field in China. The possibility of success attracts scholar to do research in China (Engardio, & Engardio, 2009).In fact, the 2008-2009 financial crisis tested the economic stability worldwide and the harm caused by the global economic crisis still affects the economics of the rich nations (Llana et al. , 2012). Moreover, it increased the unemployment rate of immigrants in developed countries and it became difficult for overseas students to find a job there. According to Stephen Castle, a Research Chair at the Department of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Sydney, the unemployment rate for immigrants increased by 3. 4% in the European Union in 2008. And that rate in the USA has increased by 4. % (2012, p1847). Chinese students found out that it was difficult for them to find a suitable job overseas. Then, they started to think about whether the developed countries were their only choice of destination, or whether their homeland would be a feasible choice. And China did not disappoint them. China entered World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001. And in 2002-2009 international companies have invested 683. 5 billion in China (Wang, 2012). The main method of their investment is to start their branch offices in China. Furthermore, China had to compete with other countries in the world.As a consequence, the â€Å"golden time† for overseas students to go back to China began (Ye, 2000, p. 20). Returnees believe that they can have their own contribution to the development of China. Ma Jianghe, who gained his doctorate of Law in the United States, chose to develop his career in China after the agreement on China’s accession to WTO was signed. He believed: â€Å"After China joins the WTO, I will have a big advantage in China’s law service market. My good understanding of Chinese and American laws will convince businessmen from both countries to trust me. † ( Ye, 2000, p. 1) As Ma said, the abilities that returnees possess are what a country or a company needs to succeed i n international competition. Their multi-cultural background, their communication skills and their ability of adaptation in their own field make them outstanding among employees. Besides the economic factors, in the past, another reason that would stop overseas scholars from returning was the strict control of scholars made by the government. Because of the control, the most violent issue happened in 4 June 1989. Students died, for their political status went against the government.Scholars were afraid of being deprived of freedom, both physically and politically (Zweig, 2006). They thought once they went back to China, they could never go abroad again and hardly could they communicate with international scholars. Considering of the life in future, many scholars refused to return home. Indeed, policies at that time were not open enough. Chinese government noticed that China was confronted with a serious problem that plenty of overseas talents chose to stay abroad. Only 20% of Chines e overseas scholars thought they might go back home according to Zweig’s survey which was done in 1993 (Zweig, 2006).Facing this obstacle, the authorities decided to support overseas scholars to come back to home and began to create friendly environment to welcome scholars. To encourage returning, the government has provides financial support to scholars through plenty of programs in recent 20 years. To illustrate how those programs work, the â€Å"thousand talents program† that was launched in 2008 is an appropriate example. The aim of this plan is to lure overseas scholars to go back to China and help their homeland to â€Å"raise its global competitiveness† and become â€Å"an innovative society† (Ford, 2012, para. 0). The Chinese government launched it to bring top scientists and high-tech entrepreneurs back home in the next five to 10 years. In this plan, the government is going to grant 1 million Yuan (about $146,000) per person as salary and resear ch fund. Then the government offers them insurance, housing and pensions, too. Thanks to this plan, over 2000 experts in varied field have gone back to China to start a new career during the last three years(Zhang, 2012,para. 1).The financial supports make the returnees’ road back to China easier. Not only the central government but also the local government attempts to attract overseas scholars. â€Å"Enterprise incubators† have been set up to offer opportunity to returnees to start their own business since 1994 (Zweig, 2006, & Liu, & Li, 2010). An â€Å"Enterprise incubator† is a special zone that provides preferential policies and service for overseas entrepreneurs, which makes it an appropriate zone for overseas scholars to begin from.According to the statistics cited in â€Å"Zhongguo liu xue tong shi† (The history of Chinese student studying abroad, Liu, & Li, 2010), in 2003, there were over 110 such zones in China, more than 6000 companies were fou nded in those zones, and over 15,000 overseas entrepreneurs were attracted to those zones. The annual output value of 2003 was 32. 7 billion Yuan (about $5. 24 billion). The success in these enterprise incubators may lure more overseas scholars to go home. Cultural binding with homeland also lures overseas scholars to go back to China.In a foreign country, it is probable for someone to suffer from nostalgia, discrimination, and other problems. And they would miss home and return to their familiar culture to avoid those problems. Family is an essential part of one’s cultural background. As a consequence, it acts as a firm bond between overseas scholars and their homeland. First, Kellogg, a researcher working on international migration at UCLA, did a survey on the future plans of Chinese students in America in 2012. According to the survey, the top one reason why they want to return home is family (Kellogg, 2012).It is suffering to stay far away from relatives and friends for a long period of time. Furthermore, because of one-child policy, the only child is what parents can rely on except for the welfare and pension when parents get old. In Chinese traditional convention, children should take care of the elder family members (Smith, 1973). So parents and children would like to live together, at least live nearby each other (Settles, Sheng, Zang, & Zhao, 2008). This will lead to an increasing number of overseas students to come back to China.Moreover, China, a familiar environment, may comfort these scholars and give them confidence in their career, which is an attraction to scholars who stays abroad. Integration into the local society is a troublesome problem to Chinese students. In a survey done by a website named deyi which is a popular website among Chinese students in Germany (2007) about the students’ situation in the local society, only seven percent of students assert that they have no problem to join the main stream. Others encountered prob lems more or less (as cited in Liu & Li, 2010, p. 88-491) To evade this, some of them tend to limit their social contact to a small group of Chinese people and confine their career to lab when they graduate, which lead to the result that they have less communication with the main stream and it becomes more troublesome for them to integrate into the society (Miller, 1992 & Liu & Li, 2010). On the other hand, their situation in China is different from that abroad. An overseas scholar has both a native knowledge of his or her homeland and the ability to use Chinese fluently.That is the basis of overseas scholars’ confidence. When they strike root in their homeland, they gain confidence. Chaoyang Zhang, the CEO of sohu (Sohu is one of the most successful Internet companies in China. )and a returnee, shares his experience: â€Å" When I was an official at MIT, I met Zhangliang Chen (He is a famous experts of tropical botany in China and he studied in Washington University in St. Louis. ) once. From his expression and the look in his eyes, I could see the authority and firmness that he gained during the years when he was in China.His confidence and pride are what overseas students and successful overseas scholars do not have. That is result of striking root in homeland. The difference is so enormous to make me shocked, which strengthen my determination to go back to China. † ( Liu & Li, 2010, p. 587) The confidence based on living in homeland cannot usually be gained elsewhere. On the other hand, the cultural binding with homeland may be a disadvantage of Chinese scholars when they live abroad. Chinese scholars and those who have already mmigrated to foreign country may experience discrimination from others. The glass ceiling exists, which according to Joseph Tsien, a American neuroscientist from China, is â€Å"an unspoken truth† (Mervis, 2005, p. 607). A glass ceiling means that a certain barrier blocks the advancement to a relatively high pos ition faced by minority in a society. Because of culture gap and language barrier, most of the scholars from China find they can not totally understand the foreign culture (Liu, & Li, 2010).As a result, many of them can have fame and achievement in their own field as scientists but only a few of them can get a job of senior management in their field (Mervis, 2005). Alice Huang, a successful virologist who came from mainland China to America when she was 10 years old, encountered the barrier in her application to a high- level job in New York University in 1991. During her interview, she found out that what the committee was searching for is a WASP (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant) candidate and the committee set barriers to make Huang give up that position. In the end, she lost that position (Miller, 1992).Since evaluation, which may be subjective, is a key step in process of promotion, one, not belonging to the main stream, may be afraid of the unequal judgment done by the evaluating committee which consists of the majority. Scholars want to prove their value and be accepted by the society. But the existed barriers prevent scholars from getting higher positions and realize their plans. Under this condition, scholars would believe that they will be minority and nearly impossible to be integrated to mainstream, which may hurt scholars and drive them to go home (Liu, & Li, 2010).However, the racial discrimination to those overseas scholars will be eliminated in their homeland. They will be honored in China. Experiences of studying and working abroad are called â€Å"paint a little gold† (du jin) in Chinese (Zweig, Chen, & Rosen, 2004, p. 736), which means returnees are regarded precious in China. To conclude, the three keys to Chinese reverse brain drain are dramatic growth in the economics, proper policies that encourage overseas scholars to return and a cultural environment that can give returnees a sense of belonging.Through the success of China’s alluring scholars back, power plays a significant role. To encourage more overseas scholars to go back, the authorities should concentrate on developing the economy to gain more hard power. Moreover, an open political environment is necessary, for overseas scholars have experienced freedom in political status. Furthermore, for moving the trend of returning further, the government should not only concentrate on the quantity of the returnees but also the quality of the returnees. Reference: Alsop, R. (2007). TRACK: More Chinese Graduates Return Home.The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://online. wsj. com/article/SB11737448221373 4773. html Castles, S. (2012). Cosmopolitanism and freedom? Lessons of the global economic crisis. Ethnic & Racial Studies, 35(11), 1843-1852. doi:10. 1080/01419870. 2012. 715662 Confucius, C. (2006). â€Å"Lun yu† ming yan =: Aphorisms From LUNYU. Di 1 ban. Jinan: Qi lu shu she. Engardio, P. ,& Engardio, P. (2009). China's Rev erse Brain Drain. BloomberBusinessweek. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://www. businessweek. com/magazine/content/ 09_48/b4157058821350. tm Ford, P. (2012). Reverse brain drain: China engineers incentives for â€Å"brain gain†. Christian Science Monitor, Retrieved from http://www. csmonitor. com/World/Global-Issues /2012/1021/Reverse-brain-drain-China-engineers-incentives-for-brain-gain International Rankings and Chinese Higher Education Reform. (2006). World Education News and Reviews. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://www. wes. org/ ewenr/06oct/ practical. htm. Jianshu, Z. (2000). Students Returned from Abroad in the 1990s. Chinese Education & Society, 33(5), 8. Kellogg, R. (2012).China's Brain Gain? : Attitudes and Future Plans of Overseas Chinese Students in the US. Journal Of Chinese Overseas, 8(1), 83-104. doi:10. 1163/179325412X634319 Liu, J. , & Li, X. (2010). Zhongguo liu xue tong shi: Zhongguo liuxue tongshi. Di 1 ban. Guangzhou: Guangdong jiao yu chu ba n she Llana, S. , Ford, P. , Marquand, R. , Pflanz, M. , & Ibukun, Y. (2012). Reverse brain drain: Economic shifts lure migrants home. Christian Science Monitor, N. PAG. National Bureau of Statistics of China. (2011). China statistical yearbook 2011. Beijing: China Statistics Press.Settles, B. , Sheng, X. , Zang, Y. & Zhao, J. (2008). The one child policy and its impacts on Chinese families. Research Committee on Family, 12-13. Smith, D. (1973). Confucius. London: Temple Smith. Wang, Z. (2012). Ten years of international companies since China entered WTO. International Financing. Retrieved November 14, 2012 from http://www. zcom. com/ article/51886/ Yan, J. (1998). My heart turns toward the homeland. Chinese Education & Society,31(2), 57. Ye, L. (2000). Overseas students coming back at a golden time. Beijing Review, 43(6/7), 20. Zhang, Y. (2012).Thousand Talent Program brings more pros. China Daily, Retrieved from http://www. chinadaily. com. cn/bizchina/2012-04/28/content_15168335. htm. Zweig, D. , Changgui, C. , & Rosen, S. (2004). Globalization and transnational human capital: Overseas and returnee scholars to china. The China Quarterly, 735-757. Zweig, D. (2006). Competing for talent: China's strategies to reverse the brain drain. International Labour Review,145(1), 65-0_6. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com. ezproxy. library. wisc. edu/docview/224008850? accountid=465 ———————– 1

Maria Montessori Her Life and Work Essays

Maria Montessori Her Life and Work Essays Maria Montessori Her Life and Work Paper Maria Montessori Her Life and Work Paper Essay Topic: Life Is Beautiful Montessori Education SA Montessori, Pre-Primary Philosophy 2 1Write a page about Maria Montessori’s family, 4 where they lived, her father’s profession, her mother and her siblings 2Where did Maria Montessori go to school, what did she study and why5 3Write about Maria Montessori’s Medical training, why, where6 4Note where she first practised medicine, why, and what did she learn7 5What was the ‘Children’s House’, where was it located, 9 what was Maria Montessori’s role 6When did Maria Montessori first start writing and why11 Why do you think Maria Montessori never married, substantiate with research12 8Who was the father of Maria Montessori’s son and why did they never marry 13 9Mario Montessori, write about his part in his mother’s life14 10What happened to Maria Montessori in Italy before World War II15 11Where did Maria Montessori Spend World War II16 12What effect, if any, did Maria Montessori’s 17 stay in India have on the spread of her method? 13How did the teaching colleges start and where18 14How did Maria Montessori spend her last few years of life, 19 where and when did she die Extracts from Maria Montessori’s Last Will and Testament20 15Try and find out what events and inventions took place in her life-time21 16Who were her contemporaries? 22 Important Dates In Maria Montessori’s Life24 Question One: -Write a page about Maria Montessori’s family, where they lived, the profession of her father, her mother and her siblings? Maria Montessori ?Maria Montessori’s parents were married in the spring on 1866; both mother and father were devoted to the liberation and the unity of Italy this was the common ground on which Maria Montessori’s parents met. They were devout Catholics. ?Alessandro Montessori was a descendant of a noble family from bologna, ? In his youth he was a soldier and then an accountant in the civil service in his later years, he was well known for his courteous politeness. ?â€Å"He was an old fashioned Gentleman, with a conservative temper and was of military habits†. (Rita Kramer, 1976, pg22). In the year 1865 Alessandro Montessori, aged 33 came to the town of Chiaravalle which was a provincial agricultural town and here he met the love of his life Renilde Stoppani then aged 25. Renilde Stoppani Montessori was the niece of the great philosopher-scientist-priest Antonio Stoppani a monument of him was erected at the University of Milan on the event of his death. ?Renilde was a beautiful a well educated woman for her time she loved to read books, this was incredible because in Chiaravalle, persons who could read and write their own names were praised, she was a firm believer in discipline, but loved her dau ghter and supported her in all she did, Renilde was very patriotic and was devoted to the ideals of the liberation and union for Italy, she was a lady of singular piety and charm. Renilde Montessori passed away in 1912. ?Alessandro Montessori and Renilde Stoppani were married within a year of his placement as a government civil service accountant in the small town of Ancona. ?After two years in Venice the couple moved back to Chiaravalle and it was a year later 1870 there were two major events the one being Italy became a unified and free nation the second being Alessandro and Renilde were blessed with a beautiful buddle of joy on August 31 and they named her Maria. ?In 1873 the government transferred Alessandro to the city of Florence and then his last move was to Rome in 1875. It was in Rome that Maria grew up. Maria Montessori did not have any siblings. Question Two: -Where did she go to school, what did she study and why? ?Maria was six when her parents enrolled her in first grade just 2 yrs before public education became mandatory. The first few years Maria was uncompetitive, receiving awards for good conduct and her needle work, she wanted to become an a ctress like most young girls of the time. ?At the age of twelve the family moved to Rome here she could receive a better education. ?At fourteen a keen interest in mathematics developed and Maria really enjoyed it, this was an interest that she carried throughout her life. Her parents suggested that she follow a career in teaching as this was one of the only professions available to young woman in the male dominated society in which Maria Montessori lived. She would not even consider it at this point. ?Due to her mathematical mind she decided she would like to follow a career in engineering which was seen as a very unusual career for a young lady. ?Maria Montessori attended a technical school for boys and graduated in 1886 and received very high marks in all her subjects her final score being 137 out of 150. After this she â€Å"attended Regio Instituto Tecnico Leonardo da Vinci from 1886 to 1890 (Kramer 1976)†. It was here that she studied modern languages and natural scienc es her favourite of all her classes was math. Question Three: -Write about her medical training, why, where, etc? ?When she was ready to graduate she was very drawn to the study of biological sciences her family were shocked to say the least but her father was very disapproving of her desire to study medicine he stopped short of forbidding her to continue with this idea. Maria first checked with the University of Rome and spoke to â€Å"Dr Guido Bacelli the head of the board of education†. Dr Bacelli explained to her in no uncertain terms that her desire to study medicine was not going to be happening, with this Maria stood up, shook hands cordially, thanked the Dr politely and then quietly remarked â€Å"I know I will be a Doctor of Medicine† she then bowed and left the room. ?Taking a new look at this problem Maria enrolled at the University to study physics, mathematics and natural sciences. In 1892 she passed her exams with and eight out of ten and received a †Å"Diploma di licenza† this made her eligible to study medicine. ?There was still the small matter of her being a woman that was standing in her way (there is not much recorded information on how she did it) but Maria persisted until she was accepted into the school. In the biography by Kramer it is mentioned that Pope Leo XIII helped her somehow. ?Montessori stood out not just because of her gender, but because she was actually intent on mastering the subject matter. She won a series of scholarships at medical school which, together with the money she earned through private tuition, enabled her to pay for most of her medical education. ?Her time at medical school was not easy. She faced prejudice from her male colleagues and had to work alone on dissections since these were not allowed to be done in mixed classes. ?She was a dedicated student and on July 10th 1896 Maria presented her thesis to a board of ten men, they were truly impressed with her and granted her the degree of doctor of medicine. ?This made her the first woman to graduate from Medical School in Italy. She graduated with a very impressive score of 105 considering anything over 100 was considered brilliant (Rita Kramer 1976) ? Her first post was in the universities psychiatric clinic ? Research work in psychiatric medicine and continued her education in philosophy, physiology and education. ?In 1904 Maria Montessori was appointed professor of anthropology at the University of Rome Question Four: -a) Note where she first practised Medicine, why? b) What did she learn? ?On graduation Maria was immediately employed in the San Giovanni Hospital attached to the University. It was later in that year she was asked to represent Italy at the International Congress for Women’s Rights and in her speech to the Congress she developed a thesis for social reform, arguing that women should be entitled to equal wages with men. A reporter covering the event asked her how her patients responded to a female doctor. She replied â€Å"†¦they know intuitively when someone really cares about t hem†¦ It is only the upper classes that have a prejudice against ? Women leading a useful existence. † 1 ?In November 1896 Montessori added the appointment as surgical assistant at Santo Spirito Hospital in Rome to her portfolio of tasks. Much of her work there was with the poor, and particularly with their children. As a doctor she was noted for the way in which she ‘tended’ her patients, making sure they were warm and properly fed as well as diagnosing and treating their illnesses. ?In 1897 she volunteered to join a research programme at the psychiatric clinic of the University of Rome and it was here that she worked alongside Giusseppe Montesano As part of her work at the clinic she would visit Rome’s asylums for the insane, seeking patients for treatment at the clinic. She relates how, on one such visit the caretaker of a children’s asylum told her with disgust how the children grabbed crumbs off the floor after their meal. ?Montessori realised that in such a bare unfurnished room the children were desperate for ? Sensorial stimulation and activities for their hands, and that this deprivation was contributing to their condition. ?She began to read all she could on the subject of mentally retarded children and in particular she studied the groundbreaking work of two early 19th century Frenchmen, Jean-Marc Itard, who made his name working with the ‘wild boy of Aveyron’ and Edouard Seguin, his student. She was so keen to understand their work properly that she translated it herself from French into Italian. Itard developed a technique of education through the senses which Seguin later tried to adapt to mainstream education. Highly critical of the regimented schooling of the time, Seguin emphasised respect and understanding for each individual child. He created practical apparatus and equipment to help develop the child’s sensory perceptions and motor skills, which Montessori was to later develop in new ways. During the 1897-98 University terms she sought to expand her knowledge of education by attending courses in pedagogy, studying the works of Rousseau, Pestallozzi and Froebel. Some sixty years earlier, Froebel had established a school for very young children which placed an emphasis on play in early learning. In these ‘Kindergartens’ Froebel devised a series of toys or apparatus which he called ‘gifts’. ?Research work in psychiatric medicine and continued her education in philosophy, physiology and education. ?In 1904 Maria was appointed professor of anthropology at the University of Rome. Question Five: -a) What was the ‘Children’s house’ and where was it Located? b) What was Maria Montessori’s role? ?Maria was given a menial task: to try to educate the idiots and the uneducable in Rome ? On 6 January 1907 Maria Montessori opened her first school â€Å"Casa dei Bambini† (Children’s House), in probably one of the poorest areas in Rome the notorious â€Å"Quartered di San Lorenzo. † ? Within six months of opening the Casa dei Bambini, people from all walks of life, from every continent came to see Maria Montessoris miracle children. In observing all these developments in the children, Montessori felt she had identified significant and up till then unknown facts about childrens behaviour. She also knew that, in order to consider these developments as representing universal truths, she must study them under different conditions and be able to reproduce them. ?In this spirit, a second school was opened in San Lorenzo that sam e year. ?A third in Milan and a fourth in Rome in 1908, the school in Rome was for children of well-to-do parents. By the autumn of 1908 there were five Casa dei Bambini operating, four in Rome and one in Milan. Children in a Casa dei Bambini made extraordinary progress and soon five year olds were writing and reading. News of Montessori’s new approach spread rapidly and visitors arrived to see for themselves how she was achieving such results. Within a year the Italian speaking part of Switzerland began switching its kindergartens to the Montessori approach and the spread of the new educational approach began. The school was for children between the ages of three and six, each of these children came from extremely poor families, and most of the parents were illiterate. ?The children themselves were â€Å"rough and shy in manner† they were very tearful and frightened, their faces expressionless and their bewilderment in their eyes was as though they had never seen anyt hing in their lives. ?These children were referred to as â€Å"idiots† and uneducable ? Maria Montessori was quoted in saying: It was January 6th (1907), when the first school was opened for small, normal children of between three and six years of age. I cannot say on my methods, for these did not yet exist. But in the school that was opened my method was shortly to come into being. On that day there was nothing to be seen but about fifty wretchedly poor children, rough and shy in manner, many of them crying, almost all the children of illiterate parents, who had been entrusted to my care They were tearful, frightened children, so shy that it was impossible to get them to speak; their faces were expressionless, with bewildered eyes as though they had never seen anything in their lives. It would be interesting to know the original circumstances that enabled these children to undergo such an extraordinary transformation, or rather, that brought about the appearance of new children, whose souls revealed themselves with such radiance as to spread a light through the whole world. ? By 1909, all of Italian Switzerland began using Montessoris methods in their orphan asylums and childrens homes. Question Six: -When did Maria Montessori f irst start writing and why? ?Maria Montessori’s book â€Å"The Montessori Method† was published in 1909. The book was originally titled â€Å"The Method of Scientific Pedagogy as Applied to Infant Education and the Childrens House† and it was later re-titled to â€Å"The Discovery of the Child†. ?Maria Montessori began writing to document her findings and to share her knowledge with all people. ?Word of Montessoris work spread rapidly. ?Visitors from all over the world arrived at the Montessori schools to verify with their own eyes the reports of these remarkable children. ?Montessori began a life of world travel- -establishing schools and teacher training centres, lecturing and writing. The first comprehensive account of her work, The Montessori Method. Question Seven: -Why do you think Maria Montessori did not marry – substantiate with research. ?It was very difficult for Maria Montessori to become a doctor as this was a male dominated profession , it was unheard of that a woman do medicine, all of the other student doctors were men. They men made fun of her and threatened her. The only way she could do what she wanted to was to block them out completely and I think this was one of the reasons Maria never married. I think it was also due to Dr Montesano’s dishonesty (as discussed in Question 8) that destroyed her faith in men; Dr Maria Montessori was a woman with great integrity and high moral standing. ?I also believe that she was totally emerged in her work and perhaps did not want the distraction, she was totally devoted to her work, and this is clearly evident in her writings. Question Eight: -Who was the father of Maria Montessori’s son and why did they not marry? (You may have to research this one). ?When Maria Montessori was at the Orthophrenic School, she worked with Dr. Giuseppe Montesano. One thing led to another, and they had an affair. Maria Montessori’s mother was devastated and knew that a scandal could destroy her daughters career. It was not the done thing in the day to have a child out of wedlock and therefore everything was kept quiet. ?She gave birth to a son, Mario Montessori. ?Mario was sent to a wet nurse and then lived with family in the country near Rome. ?There are many different takes on this part of Maria Montessori’s life one group said that Dr Maria Montessori and Dr Giuseppe Montesano agreed not to marry, they would also keep their relationship a secret and by doing so they would not reveal that he was Mario Montessori’s Father. They agreed that neither of them would ever marry another person, it was not long after this that Dr Montesano fell in love and married some-one else, Montessori and Montesano still worked together on a daily basis in constant contact and it was this betrayal of trust that prompted her to leave the Orthophrenic School ? Biographer Kramer speculated that Maria Montessori’s pregnancy as well as the break up w ith Dr. Montesano must have occurred in 1901 as this is when Maria Montessori suddenly resigned from the Orthophrenic School, and for about a year M. M was out of the public eye, she also abandoned her successful work with defective hildren at this time. Question Nine: -Mario Montessori – Write about his part in his mother’s life. ?On 20th December 1912 Maria Montessori’s her mother died at the age of seventy-two. ?Maria was deeply affected by this event and in the year following her mother’s death she brought her fourteen year-old son Mario to Rome to live with her. ?His dedication to her was of his own free will and it can not be said that it was because of a mother/son attachment. ?Mario Montessori had many loves in his life but none compared to the love he had for his mother and her work. His love for her was encompassing and it dominated his entire existence. He lived for her, with her but definitely not through her. ?Mario Montessori had no real scholastic or academic background but his total understanding of his mother’s work. His intuitive intelligence and openness of spirit allowed him to keep abreast with her quantum leaps from the first to the nth dimension even sometimes arriving just ahead, thus enabling her to soar even further. There was nothing his mother deducted, developed or stated that ever surprised him. It was said that thanks to Mario Montessori his mother never suffered the isolation that is common to genius, he was not just a sounding board for her ideas; he helped her to clarify them and give them shape, by doing this she was able to continue developing her unique mind to the end. Mario Montessori also presented his mother with fresh, new ideas. ?He began taking more of the workload from his mother as she grew older He would do the organi zing of courses, examining students, lecturing on materials, practical life etc. He coped with any unexpected complications during the training courses. By doing this he enabled Maria Montessori to concentrate fully on her creative work. As the years progressed, their complicity became total. Without him she would have grown frustrated by the lack of understanding of those around her, she would have retreated spiritual isolation, unable to cope and fight alone to preserve the purity of her work. ?It was because of his understanding, his enthusiasm and belief in her vision for the development of mankind; he became a pillar of her work. ?Even after she died, Mario Montessori continued the fight for the child the child, father of man. Here is an extract form the Last Will and Testament of Maria Montessori, and perhaps we can understand from this the importance of her son in her life. Question Ten: -What happened to Maria Montessori in Italy before World War II? ?The Spanish government invited Maria to set up a research institute which she did in 1917. She began conducting a series of teacher-training courses in London in the year 1919. ?In 1922, Benito Mussolini took over the government of Italy. Mussolini being a politician wanted Maria on his side. So, initially he encouraged and fully supported the Montessori movement in Italy. The government of Italy funded the Montessori schools and also helped Maria establish a training centre for teachers. ?Mussolini was nurturing colonial ambitions and in 1934 he was planning an attack on the African state of Abyssinia. ?To carry out his designs he needed the people of Italy, especially the youth, to be war-minded. To achieve this he set up a Fascist youth organisation whose members wore uniform at all times and gave the Fascist salute. ?Mussolini insisted that all children should enrol into this organisation. This meant even children from the Montessori schools should join. Maria disagreed with this and would not compro mise her principles and her beliefs to comply with his wishes. ?With this Mussolini ordered the immediate closure of all Montessori schools, and with this Maria was exiled from Italy. ?She moved to Spain and lived there until 1936. This again was a mistake. A civil war broke out in Spain. General Franco another fascist took over the government of Spain. She was rescued by a British cruiser. Maria opted to stay in the Netherlands for sometime. In 1938, she opened the Montessori Training Centre in Laren in the Netherlands. She continued with her work in the country till 1939. Question Eleven: Where did Maria Montessori spend World War II? ?Maria Montessori Spent World War II in India. ?It was here that she developed her â€Å"Education for Peace†, and developed many of the ideas taught in her training courses today. ?The outbreak of the World War II made Maria extend her stay in India. ?In 1940, when India entered the war, she and her son were interned as enemy aliens, but Maria was allowed to conduct training courses. ?She continued to stay in India till 1946 well after the war. ?She returned to Europe for a brief period. In 1947, she founded the Montessori Centre in London. ?In 1949 Maria Montessori travelled to Pakistan and also toured Europe in the same year. ?In 1951 Maria toured Austria. Question Twelve: -What effect, if any, did Maria Montessori’s stay in India have on the spread of her method? ?In 1939, the Theosophical Society of India extended an invitation to Maria Montessori who was 69 years of age. She accepted the invitation and reached India the same year. The journey from Holland in those days was very tedious. But this did not seem to trouble Maria. She was full of energy and keen to start work in India. She made Adayar, Chennai her home and lived there along with her son, Mario. Here, Dr. Maria came in close contact with Rukmini Devi, a Bharat Natyam dancer and the founder of the world famous centre for music, dance, and other fine arts Kalakshetra and her husband George Sidney Arundale, who was the president of the Theosophical Society of India. ?Between 1939 and 1949, Maria Montessori, with the help of her son Mario, conducted sixteen Indian Montessori Training Courses, thus laying a very sound foundation for the Montessori movement in India. Question Thirteen: How did the teaching Colleges start and where? In 1909 she gave her first Montessori course, expecting to have as students only Italian teachers. ?There were about 100 students that atte nded ?To her amazement people attended from many different countries. Probably that was the origin of what would become a serious handicap in the evolution of Montessori pedagogy. Since the beginning Montessori pedagogy has been appropriated, interpreted, misinterpreted, exploited, propagated, torn to shreds and the shreds magnified into systems, reconstituted, used, abused and disabused, gone into oblivion and undergone multiple renaissances. There are various reasons why this should be so. Perhaps the most important is that although Montessori pedagogy is known as the Montessori Method, it is not a method of education, in other words, it is not a programme for teachers to apply. Maria Montessori was not a teacher. ?In the summer of 1909 Dr Montessori gave her first training course in her approach to around 100 students. ?Her notes from this period developed into The Montessori Method, which was published in the United States in 1912, reaching second place in the US non-fiction bes t sellers. Soon afterwards it was translated in to twenty different languages. It has become a major influence in the field of education. Question Fourteen: How did Maria Montessori spend her last years of life? When and where did she die? ?Maria Montessori was nominated for the Nobel Peace for three consecutive years, 1949, 1950, 1951. But sadly the Nobel Prize eluded her on all three occasions. ?In 1951, Maria Montessori went to Holland from India. She made Noordwijk aan Zee, which is a coastal town, her home. The last few days of Montessoris life were characterized by the same activity and zeal she had shown throughout her career. ?Her long and self-sacrificing labours on behalf of the child came to a sudden end on the 6th of May, 1952. Maria was 82 years when she passed away. ?Her work lives on till today through the thousands of proud Montessorians all over the world who are continuing with her good work. Extracts From Maria Montessoris Last Will and Testament I declare that i t is my wish that Mario Montessori be the general executor of this my Will. ith regard to my property, I declare that this belongs both materially and spiritually, to my son: that is, to him belong by right not only the material goods of every kind or sort that I may eventually possess at any time of my life until the end; but to him belongs by right also, everything that may accrue from my social and intellectual works, either because they were inspired by him or because, from the time that he was able to act in the world, they were undertaken with his actual and constant collaboration, since he totally dedicated his life to helping me and my work. Therefore he is the sole heir to my work, and the only one qualified to be entrusted with the safekeeping and preservation of my work; and thus the legitimate and rightful successor to the work that I have embarked upon and that I hope he may continue and successfully complete, for the benefit of that humanity that together we have loved, finding in our shared ideals and actions the highest solace of our lives. So be it: and may his children bring him consolation; and may the world render him justice, according to his merits, which I know to be great and sublime. Revoking all preceding Wills, I declare this to be my last and only valid Will. I sign with my name. And so may friends and all those who benefit from my work, feel their debt toward my son! Question Fifteen: Try and find out what events and inventions took place in her life-time? The telephone and patent issues ?Bell filed an application to patent his speaking telephone in the United States on February 14, 1876, ? On June 3, 1880, Alexander Graham Bell transmitted the first wireless telephone message on his newly invented photo phone. ?Bell believed the photo phone was his most important invention. The device allowed for the transmission of sound on a beam of light. ?Of the eighteen patents granted in Bells name alone, and the twelve he shared with his collaborators, four were for the photo phone. Colour Photography ?Was explored throughout the 1800s. Initial experiments in colour could not fix the photograph and prevent the colour from fading. ?The first permanent colour photo was taken in 1861 by the physicist James Clerk Maxwell. ?The first colour film, Auto chrome, did not reach the market until 1907 and was based on dyed dots of potato starch. Other systems of colour photography included that invented by Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii, which involved three separate monochrome exposures of a still scene through red, green, and blue filters. ?The first modern colour film, Kodachrome, was introduced in 1935 based on three colour emulsions. ?Most modern colour films, except Kodachrome, are based on technology developed for Agfa colour (as Agfacolor Neue) in 1936. ?Instan t colour film was introduced by Polaroid in 1963. Question Sixteen: Who were her contemporaries? A few of Maria Montessori’s contemporaries were Helen Keller (1880 – 1968) It was with a great deal of willpower and determination that Helen Keller became a world-famous speaker, author, lecturer and activist. ?She was an extraordinary lady because when she was 19 months old was struck by a fever that left her blind and deaf for the rest of her natural life. ?At the age of 7 she had invented over sixty different signs that she could use to communicate with her family. ?Graduated from Radcliffe, ?Gave many speeches on behalf of the physically handicapped and wrote several books ? Helen Keller made it her life’s mission to fight for the sensorially handicapped in the world Aletta Jacobs (1854 – 1929) Aletta Jacobs was the first woman in Dutch history to be officially admitted to university. ?This took place in 1871. As a schoolgirl she had written a letter to Prime Minister Thorbecke requesting permission to be allowed to attend â€Å"academic classes†. ?Aletta Jacobs’ dream was to become a doctor. ?Thorbecke answered within a week, but did not write to Aletta herself. Instead, he wrote to her father that permission had been granted. ?So, thanks to a seventeen-year-old girl, in 1871 universities in the Netherlands were opened to women. Prior to this time, universities and most schools as well, were only open to young men. It was with the exception that Anna Maria van Schurman, an educated woman (she had a command of no less than ten languages) who lived in the seventeenth century, had ever been allowed to attend any lectures (in Utrecht). However, she had had to sit behind a curtain so as not to cause a distraction for the young men. ?Throughout her life, she fought for the rights of women. ?As a doctor, for example, she opened a practice that assisted women with contraception so that they did not have to be pregnant every year. ?She also fought against the abuses of the retail trade. Aletta Jacobs also fought for the right to vote for women. ?It was only in 1919 that the right to vote for women was established. In 1922, Dutch women voted for the first time. Aletta Jacobs was 68 years old at the time. Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 – 1962) ?Was an American human rights activist, a diplomat and of course she was Franklin D. Roosevelt’s wife who was president from 1933-1945 making her, the longest serving First Lady of The United States Of America. ?Eleanor Roosevelt was active in the formations of numerous institutions most notably the United Nations, United Nations Association and Freedom House. She chaired the committee that drafted and approved the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. ?President Harry S. Truman called her ‘The First Lady of the world† in honour of her extensive travels to promote human rights. ?She travelled for President Roosevelt during World War II visit ing troops at the frontline. ?She was a first-wave feminist and an active supporter of the American Civil Rights movement. Amelia Earhart (1897 – 1937? ) ?A famous American aviator, known for breaking new ground for female pilots. She is remembered for her mysterious disappearance during a flight over the Pacific Ocean? While trying to fly around the world. ?She was the first American woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean alone. Alexander Graham Bell (3 March 1847 – 2 August 1922) ?He was a scientist, inventor and the founder of the Bell Telephone Company as the â€Å"Father of the telephone. ?In to his work in telecommunications technology, he was responsible for important advances in aviation and hydrofoil technology. Researched by Alana Jane Polyblank Information from Wikipedia and other sites on Maria Montessori

19th-Century Military History

19th-Century Military History The documentation of military history begins with the battle near Basra, Iraq, circa 2700 B.C., between Sumer, now known as Iraq, and Elam, called Iran today. Learn about wars of invasion, revolutions, wars of independence, and others, and track the guideline below to learn more about military history. Military History February 9, 1801 - French Revolutionary Wars: The War of the Second Coalition ends when the Austrians and French sign the Treaty of Lunà ©ville April 2, 1801 - Vice Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson wins the Battle of Copenhagen May 1801 - First Barbary War: Tripoli, Tangier, Algiers, and Tunis declare war on the United States March 25, 1802 - French Revolutionary Wars: Fighting between Britain and France ends with the Treaty of Amiens May 18, 1803 - Napoleonic Wars: Fighting resumes between Britain and France January 1, 1804 - Haitian Revolution: The 13-year war ends with the declaration of Haitian independence February 16, 1804 - First Barbary War: American sailors sneak into Tripoli harbor and burn the captured frigate USS Philadelphia March 17, 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: Austria joins the Third Coalition and declares war on France, with Russia joining a month later June 10, 1805 - First Barbary War: The conflict ends when a treaty is signed between Tripoli and the United States October 16-19, 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon is victorious at the Battle of Ulm October 21, 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: Vice Admiral Nelson crushes the combined Franco-Spanish fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar December 2, 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: The Austrians and Russians are crushed by Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz December 26, 1805 - Napoleonic Wars: The Austrians sign the Treaty of Pressburg, ending the War of the Third Coalition February 6, 1806 - Napoleonic Wars: The Royal Navy wins the Battle of San Domingo Summer 1806 - Napoleonic Wars: The Fourth Coalition of Prussia, Russia, Saxony, Sweden, and Britain is formed to fight France October 15, 1806 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon and French forces defeat the Prussians at the Battles of Jena and Auerstdt February 7-8, 1807 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon and Count von Bennigsen fight to a draw at the Battle of Eylau June 14, 1807 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon routs the Russians at the Battle of Friedland, forcing Tsar Alexander to sign the Treaty of Tilsit that effectively ended the War of the Fourth Coalition June 22, 1807 - Anglo-American Tensions: HMS Leopard fires on USS Chesapeake after the American ship refused to be allowed to be searched for British deserters May 2, 1808 - Napoleonic Wars: The Peninsular War begins in Spain when the citizens of Madrid rebel against French occupation August 21, 1808 - Napoleonic Wars: Lt. Gen. Sir Arthur Wellesley defeats the French at the Battle of Vimeiro January 18, 1809 - Napoleonic Wars: British forces evacuate northern Spain after the Battle of Corunna April 10, 1809 - Napoleonic Wars: Austria and Britain begin the War of the Fifth Coalition April 11-13, 1809 - Napoleonic Wars: The Royal Navy wins the Battle of the Basque Roads June 5-6, 1809 - Napoleonic Wars: The Austrians are defeated by Napoleon at the Battle of Wagram October 14, 1809 - Napoleonic Wars: The Treaty of Schà ¶nbrunn ends the War of the Fifth Coalition in a French victory May 3-5, 1811 - Napoleonic Wars: British and Portuguese forces hold at the Battle of Fuentes de Oà ±oro March 16-April 6, 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: The Earl of Wellington lays siege to the city of Badajoz June 18, 1812 - War of 1812: The United States declares  war on Britain, beginning the conflict June 24, 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon and the Grande Armà ©e cross the Neman River, beginning the invasion of Russia August 16, 1812 - War of 1812: British forces win the Siege of Detroit August 19, 1812 - War of 1812: USS Constitution captures HMS Guerriere to give the United States the first naval victory of the war September 7, 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: The French defeat the Russians at the Battle of Borodino September 5-12, 1812 - War of 1812: American forces hold  out during the Siege of Fort Wayne December 14, 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: After a long retreat from Moscow, the French army leaves Russian soil January 18-23, 1812 - War of 1812: American forces are beaten at the Battle of Frenchtown Spring 1813 - Napoleonic Wars: Prussia, Sweden, Austria, Britain, and a number of the German states form the Sixth Coalition to take advantage of Frances defeat in Russia April 27, 1813 - War of 1812: American forces win the Battle of York April 28-May 9, 1813 - War of 1812: The British are repulsed at Siege of Fort Meigs May 2, 1813 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon defeats Prussian and Russian forces at the Battle of Là ¼tzen May 20-21, 1813 - Napoleonic Wars: Prussian and Russian forces are beaten at the Battle of Bautzen May 27, 1813 - War of 1812: American forces land and capture Fort George June 6, 1813 - War of 1812: American troops are beaten at the Battle of Stoney Creek June 21, 1813 - Napoleonic Wars: British, Portuguese, and Spanish forces under Sir Arthur Wellesley defeat the French at the Battle of Vitoria August 30, 1813 - Creek War: Red Stick warriors conduct the Fort Mims Massacre September 10, 1813 - War of 1812: U.S. naval forces under Commodore Oliver H. Perry defeat the British at the Battle of Lake Erie October 16-19, 1813 - Napoleonic Wars: Prussian, Russian, Austrian, Swedish, and German troops defeat Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig October 26, 1813 - War of 1812:  American forces are held at the Battle of the Chateauguay November 11, 1813 - War of 1812: American troops are beaten at the Battle of Cryslers Farm August 30, 1813 - Napoleonic Wars: Coalition forces defeat the French at the Battle of Kulm March 27, 1814 - Creek War: Maj. Gen. Andrew Jackson wins the Battle of Horseshoe Bend March 30, 1814 - Napoleonic Wars: Paris falls to coalition forces April 6, 1814 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon abdicates and is exiled to Elba by the Treaty of Fontainebleau July 25, 1814 - War of 1812: American and British forces fight the Battle of Lundys Lane August 24, 1814 - War of 1812: After defeating American forces at the Battle of Bladensburg, British troops burn Washington, D.C. September 12-15, 1814 - War of 1812: British forces are defeated at the Battle of North Point and Fort McHenry December 24, 1814 - War of 1812: The Treaty of Ghent is signed, ending the war January 8, 1815 - War of 1812: Unaware that the war has ended, Gen. Andrew Jackson wins the Battle of New Orleans March 1, 1815 - Napoleonic Wars: Landing at Cannes, Napoleon returns to France beginning the Hundred Days after escaping from exile June 16, 1815 - Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon wins his final victory at the Battle of Ligny June 18, 1815 - Napoleonic Wars: Coalition forces led by the Duke of Wellington (Arthur Wellesley) defeat Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, ending the Napoleonic Wars August 7, 1819 - Wars of South American Independence: Gen. Simon Bolivar defeats Spanish forces in Colombia at the Battle of Boyaca March 17, 1821 - Greek War of Independence: The Maniots at Areopoli declare war on the Turks, beginning the Greek War of Independence 1825 - Java War: Fighting begins between the Javanese under Prince Diponegoro and Dutch colonial forces October 20, 1827 - Greek War of Independence: An allied fleet defeats the Ottomans at the Battle of Navarino 1830 - Java War: The conflict ends in a Dutch victory after Prince Diponegoro is captured April 5-August 27, 1832 - Blackhawk War: U.S. troops defeat an alliance of Native American forces in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Missouri October 2, 1835 - Texas Revolution: The war begins with a Texan victory at the Battle of Gonzales December 28, 1835 - Second Seminole War: Two companies of U.S. soldiers under Maj. Francis Dade are massacred by the Seminoles in the first action of the conflict March 6, 1836 - Texas Revolution: After 13 days of siege, the Alamo falls to Mexican forces March 27, 1839 - Texas Revolution: Texan prisoners of war are executed at the Goliad Massacre April 21, 1836 - Texas Revolution: The Texan army under Sam Houston defeats the Mexicans at the Battle of San Jacinto, winning independence for Texas December 28, 1836 - War of the Confederation: Chile declares war on the Peru-Bolivian Confederation, beginning the conflict December 1838 - First Afghan War: A British army unit under Gen. William Elphinstone marches into Afghanistan, starting the war August 23, 1839 - First Opium War: British forces capture Hong Kong in the opening days of the war August 25, 1839 - War of the Confederation: Following defeat at the Battle of Yungay, the Peru-Bolivian Confederation is dissolved, ending the war January 5, 1842 - First Afghan War: Elphinstones army is destroyed as it retreats from Kabul August 1842 - First Opium War: After winning a string of victories, the British force the Chinese to sign the Treaty of Nanjing January 28, 1846 - First Anglo-Sikh War: British forces defeat the Sikhs at the Battle of Aliwal April 24, 1846 - Mexican-American War: Mexican forces rout a small U.S. cavalry detachment in the Thornton Affair May 3-9, 1846 - Mexican-American War: American forces hold out during the Siege of Fort Texas May 8-9, 1846 - Mexican-American War: U.S. forces under Brig. Gen. Zachary Taylor defeat the Mexicans at the Battle of Palo Alto and the Battle of Resaca de la Palma February 22, 1847 - Mexican-American War: After capturing Monterrey, Taylor defeats Mexican Gen. Antonio Là ³pez de Santa Anna at the Battle of Buena Vista March 9-September 12, 1847 - Mexican-American War: Landing at Vera Cruz, U.S. forces led by Gen. Winfield Scott conduct a brilliant campaign and capture Mexico City, effectively ending the war April 18, 1847 - Mexican-American War: American troops win the Battle of Cerro Gordo August 19-20, 1847 - Mexican-American War: The Mexicans are routed at the Battle of Contreras August 20, 1847 - Mexican-American War: U.S. forces triumph at the Battle of Churubusco September 8, 1847 - Mexican American War: American forces win the Battle of Molino del Rey Septebmer 13, 1847 - Mexican-American War: U.S. troops capture Mexico City after the Battle of Chapultepec March 28, 1854 - Crimean War: Britain and France declare war on Russia in support of the Ottoman Empire September 20, 1854 - Crimean War: British and French forces win the Battle of Alma September 11, 1855 - Crimean War: After an 11-month siege, the Russian port of Sevastopol falls to British and French troops March 30, 1856 - Crimean War: The Treaty of Paris ends the conflict October 8, 1856 - Second Opium War: Chinese officials board the British ship Arrow, leading to the outbreak of hostilities October 6, 1860 - Second Opium War: Anglo-French forces capture Beijing, effectively ending the war April 12, 1861 - American Civil War: Confederate forces open fire on Fort Sumter, beginning the Civil War June 10, 1861 - American Civil War: Union troops are beaten at the Battle of Big Bethel July 21, 1861 - American Civil War: In the first major battle of the conflict, Union forces are defeated at Bull Run August 10, 1861 - American Civil War: Confederate forces win the Battle of Wilsons Creek August 28-29, 1861 - American Civil War: Union forces capture Hatteras Inlet during the Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries October 21, 1861 - American Civil War: Union troops are beaten at the Battle of Balls Bluff November 7, 1861 - American Civil War: Union and Confederate forces fight the inconclusive Battle of Belmont November 8, 1861 - American Civil War: Capt. Charles Wilkes removed two Confederate diplomats from RMS Trent, inciting the Trent Affair January 19, 1862 - American Civil War: Brig. Gen. George H. Thomas wins the Battle of Mill Springs February 6, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces capture Fort Henry February 11-16, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate forces are defeated at the Battle of Fort Donelson February 21, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces are beaten at the Battle of Valverde March 7-8, 1862 - American Civil War: Union troops win the Battle of Pea Ridge March 9, 1862 - American Civil War: USS Monitor fights CSS Virginia in the first battle between ironclads March 23, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate troops are defeated at the First Battle of Kernstown March 26-28, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces successfully defend New Mexico at the Battle of Glorieta Pass April 6-7, 1862 - American Civil War: Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant is surprised, but wins the Battle of Shiloh April 5-May 4, 1862 - American Civil War: Union troops conduct the Siege of Yorktown April 10-11, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces capture Fort Pulaski April 12, 1862 - American Civil War: The Great Locomotive Chase takes place in northern Georgia April 25, 1862 - American Civil War: Flag Officer David G. Farragut captures New Orleans for the Union May 5, 1862 - American Civil War: The Battle of Williamsburg is fought during the Peninsula Campaign May 8, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate and Union troops clash at the Battle of McDowell May 25, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate troops win the First Battle of Winchester June 8, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate forces win the Battle of Cross Keys in the  Shenandoah Valley June 9, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces lose the Battle of Port Republic June 25, 1862-   American Civil War: Forces meet at the Battle of Oak Grove June 26, 1862 - American Civil War: Union troops win the Battle of Beaver Dam Creek (Mechanicsville) June 27, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate forces overwhelm the Union V Corps at the Battle of Gaines Mill June 29, 1862 - American Civil War: Union troops fight the inconclusive Battle of Savages Station June 30, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces hold at the Battle of Glendale (Fraysers Farm) July 1, 1862 - American Civil War: The Seven Days Battles ends  with a Union victory at the Battle of Malvern Hill August 9, 1862 - American Civil War: Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Banks is defeated at the Battle of Cedar Mountain August 28-30, 1862 - American Civil War: Gen. Robert E. Lee wins a stunning victory at the Second Battle of Manassas September 1, 1862 - American Civil War: Union and Confederate forces fight the Battle of Chantilly September 12-15, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate troops win the Battle of Harpers Ferry September 15, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces triumph at the Battle of South Mountain September 17, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces win a strategic victory at the Battle of Antietam September 19, 1862 - American Civil War: Confederate forces are beaten at the Battle of Iuka October 3-4, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces hold at the Second Battle of Corinth October 8, 1862 - American Civil War: Union and Confederate forces clash in Kentucky at the Battle of Perryville December 7, 1862 - American Civil War: Armies fight the Battle of Prairie Grove in Arkansas December 13, 1862 - American Civil War: The Confederates win the Battle of Fredericksburg December 26-29, 1862 - American Civil War: Union forces are held at the Battle of Chickasaw Bayou December 31, 1862-January 2, 1863 - American Civil War: Union and Confederate forces clash at the Battle of Stones River May 1-6, 1863 - American Civil War: Confederate forces win a stunning victory at the Battle of Chancellorsville May 12, 1863 - American Civil War: Confederate forces are beaten at the Battle of Raymond during the Vicksburg Campaign May 16, 1863 - American Civil War: Union forces win a key victory at the Battle of Champion Hill May 17, 1863 - American Civil War: Confederate forces are beaten at the Battle of Big Black River Bridge May 18-July 4, 1863 - American Civil War: Union troops conduct the Siege of Vicksburg May 21-July 9, 1863 - American Civil War: Union troops under Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Banks conduct the Siege of Port Hudson June 9, 1863 - American Civil War: Cavalry forces fight the Battle of Brandy Station July 1-3, 1863 - American Civil War: Union forces under Maj. Gen. George G. Meade win the Battle of Gettysburg and turn the tide in the East