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Macro and Microeconomics
Name
Course
Course Instructor
Date
Macro and Microeconomics
Question 3 (Test Yourself)
Transactions included in the GDP are; a) Payment by Smith for garage building which raises GDP by $50000.b) $ 60000 used by Smith to build himself a garage which will increase the GDP by $60000. d) Joneses $ 500000 used in purchasing the house which will raise GDP by the same amount. f) $ 25000 used in purchasing a new frame computer from IBM that would increase GDP by $25000, i) $100 gained from the stock market, which will increase GDP by $100 and j) Purchase of a new economic book from the university, which will raise the GDP by $100.
Question 3(Discussion question)
Gross Domestic product is not suitable for measuring well-being of a nation because it does not include inequality in the distribution of income and wealth. The general assumption is that wealth is equally distributed among the citizens yet it is a few individuals who are rich. Secondly, the quality of goods and services that comprises the output and externalities like pollution are not taken into consideration. In addition, increase in output may be attributed to long working hours with less leisure time. There is a lot of money in the black economy like prostitution, which is not included in the GDP computation. Non-market transactions such as volunteer and household chores are also not included. Sustainability of growth is not considered in the calculation of GDP because the country may have exploited its resources hence increasing its GDP.
Computation of college Price index;
Market basket for 1982=(10*1)+(25*1)+(10*3)+(12*12)+(12*3)+(5*11)=300
Market basket for 2009=(25*1)+(55*1)+(3*35)+(12*40)+(3*30)+(11*14)=909
Price Index for 2009=Market basket for 2009* 100=909*100
Market basket for 1982 300
=303
Real GDP for each year; Real GDP=Nominal GDP*100
GDP deflator
a) 1981=3131*100 = 5017.63 1991=5986*100= 6673.36 2001=10206*100=9329.1
62.4 89.7 109.4
b) % change in nominal GDP is calculated by change in the GDP *100; from 1981 to 1991 and 1991 to 2001 , the nominal GDP has changed by 91.18% and 70.50% respectively while the real GDP has changed by 43.75% from 1981 to 1991 and by 21.96% from 1991 to 2001. (b)
Percentage Change in Nominal GDP
Between 1981 and 1991
5986-3131 ÷ 3131 × 100
= 91.18%
Between 1991 and 2001
10206 – 5986 ÷ 5986 × 100
= 70.50 %
Percentage Change in Real GDP
Between 1981 and 1991
6673 – 5018 ÷ 5018 × 100
=32.98 %
Between 1991 and 2001
9329 – 6673 ÷ 6673 × 100
= 39.8%
c) Rate of inflation = Nominal growth Inflation (1981-1991) =5986*5017.63 =1.44%
Real growth 3131*6673.36
Inflation (1991-2001) =10206*6673.36= 1.22%
5986*9329.1
2) Real GDP=Nominal GDP *100
GDP deflator
Question 2
Statistics 1999 2000 2001
Nominal GDP 9269 9869.68 10206
Real GDP 8857 9224 9329
GDP deflator 104.65 107.0 109.4
Nominal GDP 2000
Real GDP × GDP deflator ÷ 100
9224 × 107.0 ÷ 100
= 9869.68
Real GDP 2001
Nominal DGP ÷ GDP deflator × 100
= 10206 ÷ 109.4 × 100
= 9329
GDP deflator 1999
Nominal GDP ÷ Real GDP × 100
9269 ÷ 8857 × 100
= 104.65
Question 3
The last few years after the crisis have witnessed a gradual decline in productivity growth and the situation may persist for much longer (Orszag). Projections indicate that the trend is likely to persist for a much longer period. One of the reasons behind the slowdown in productivity growth is the fact that a significant percentage of the population is not engaged in active productive engagements. An aging population has also been cited as one of the reasons behind the slump in productivity. The author points out that workers usually display less enthusiasm and productivity after a crisis. The impact of the crisis manifests at the level of confidence on the part of the workers as many of them become affected by insecurities that hamper their capacity to produce.
The studies indicate that the levels of productivity have been going down even before the crisis reached its peak in 2007 (Orszag). This is an indication that much of the challenges in productivity are rooted in certain structural and environmental realities that adversely influence the capacity of the economy to recover from the crisis. The study points out that much of the negative implications of the crisis are felt on a long-term basis. Total factor productivity is one of the areas that was adversely affected by the crisis. In essence, the reality poses practical challenges in the relationship between capital and labor. A disharmonious relationship between the two naturally impacts negatively on the score of productivity.
According to the author, the crisis also poses a negative effect at the level of spending. Many factories and businesses usually cut down on capital expenditure. There is less spending on improvements, investments, or expansions. As a result, the economy experiences a drastic reduction in development, which may persist for a long time with the attendant effects such as increased unemployment and a reduction in the productive capacities of the existing systems. The author points out that the reduction in productivity could bring down economic growth to the point of 2.1 percent.
INCLUDEPICTURE “http://www.oecd.org/media/oecdorg/directorates/statisticsdirectorate/42580241figure2.jpg” * MERGEFORMATINET
Source: HYPERLINK “http://www.oecd.org/employment/labourstatistics/therealeconomyandthecrisisrevisitingproductivityfundamentals.htm” http://www.oecd.org/employment/labourstatistics/therealeconomyandthecrisisrevisitingproductivityfundamentals.htm
Works Cited
Orszag, Peter. It’s too Soon to Celebrate a Recovery. Bloomberg. 30, Jan 2012. Web. 11 Feb, 2013.
Digital Online Learning
EDU110 Exploring Play MOOC
Students Name
University Affiliation
Date
Digital/Online Learning
Digital or online reading is considered to be a form of learning where the use of technology is involved. Technology motivated learning methods are included to support learners by use of many other ways of virtual learning. This method of learning is slowly but surely taking over from the traditional methods of learning with resources such as; Future learner.Com, Google, YouTube, and Evernote as the major platforms which are facilitating this form of learning. In the course of this assessment, we are going to evaluate and analyze the Exploring play MOOC developed. By the University of Sheffield will get its inclusivity to the diverseness of learners. We are also going to explain the merits and demerits associated with this theory.
Massive open online courses (MOOC) are a type of courses that are offered online, which are set to provide unlimited access and participation of learners via the Internet. Learning by use of this new technology, therefore, opens up many opportunities to the learners mainly as a result of the nature of the web, which is quite resourceful. The use of tutorials and imagery tools, e.g., PowerPoint, enables the students to better/ quickly capture the information being taught to them and also retain it in their head for a longer time CITATION War07 l 1033 (Warschauer, 2007). This assessment will help us better understand the Exploring play MOOC with some references from Futurelearn.com and also understand how different learners use the technology resource instead of the traditional way in their learning process.
Critical Evaluation
For some time now, we have been living in a world where technology is almost applied in every field. On this note, the education sector has not been left behind in using technology to enhance and assist in the teaching process. Technology, in the education process, however, has proven to have setbacks that would cover in the course of Exploring the MOOC. Hence it has left many education stakeholders wondering about the effectiveness of this learning tool. Massive open online courses (MOOC) have allowed more and more students to enroll in classes and interact with tutors who, on the other hand, gain better skills in expanding their teaching methodologiesCITATION Hew03 p 31 l 1033 (Hewitt, 2003, p. 31). According to research conducted by seaman (2007), he found out that there was a sharp increase in the number of students enrolled in digital learning across America from 2002-2006. More universities have also tapped into this new technology. By the end of 2014, over 400 universities had started on massive open courses offering more than 2500 such courses to nearly 19 million students around the world (Shah, 2014). These results indicate the need to design and implement the existing Exploring play massive online course (MOOC) and also invent new ones. MOOCs can be presented in centralized platforms, for example, learning management systems (LMS), which can be located in a school as well as decentralized networks, for example, Blogs, social media sites, and education websites.
The inclusivity of learning theories in digital learning is clearly outlined by Egbert and Thomas (2001). Therefore, the first step in our evaluation of the Exploring play MOOC is to look at the critical theories in learning. The first theory is the behaviorism theory; this theory explains why a particular behavior happens as a result of external or internal factors. With the help of this theory, skills such as behavioral conditioning can be applied to enhance the learning process. Coming up with a rewarding system after the successful completion of a massive open online course can serve as an excellent example of behavioral conditioning as learners will now take this course more seriously, therefore, resulting in a massive success of the program.
The connectivism theory suggests that in comparison to the traditional forms of learning, learning on the technology era does not stop after completion of the necessary formal education. Instead, knowledge is bound to continue from other platforms, for example, job experiences, networking, and the use of the Internet as source information. Therefore, this allows the learner to be well equipped with knowledge that will be relevant to the learnerCITATION Ros l 1033 (Rose, 2002). The connectivism theory is also a learning theory that explains how technology has created new opportunities for learners to learn and share information
The humanism theory explains that learning happens naturally to learner’s right from birth, helping them in self-actualization and in performing their day to day activities. This theory has very little demerits, as all learners are open to going through this process of learning. The cognitivism theory (Jean Piaget) illustrates how a child learns how to respond to experiences. The (agent theory) categorizes the child development process into four stages, which a child goes through in the learning process.
The sensorimotor stage: birth to 2 years
The preoperational stage: ages 2 to 7
The concrete operational stage: ages 7 to 11
The formal operational stage: ages 12 and up
Piaget, in his study, revealed that children take an active role in their learning process, playing a character like that of a scientist as they perform experiments and later learn from those particular experiments after observing what happens during their operation and in that process learn about the word.
The theory of our emphasis on this essay is the constructivism theory. The constructivism theory founded by a philosopher is based on observations and study of how learners grasp information. It states that different learners come up with their understanding and knowledge based on their experiences before starting their education. This theory can be traced back to Jean Peagant in his educational psychology study. He lay most of his attention on how humans made meaning of their encounters and their ideologies and not what people learn from one another. Lev Vygotsky, on his study on social constructivism, showed the importance of interactions with people, for example, interactions with adults, interactions with teachers, and interactions with well-behaved peers, which are then internalized by the learner to form mind constructs. John Bruner, with the help of some of his career friends, advanced on this study and came up with the concept of Instructional Scaffolding, which describes how the environment plays a role in the learning process.
Teachers who use tech to facilitate their teaching tend to take a constructivist perspective about instructing their learners. According to this theory, the teachers are expected to not only to teach the learners but also play the role of an expert learner who can guide the learners into gaining skills. For example, asking questions and self-assessments, therefore, guiding the students into becoming expert learnersCITATION Hil94 p 30 l 1033 (Hillman, 1994, p. 30). The teacher should assist the students in making assessments on how various learning activities are helping them in gaining knowledge.
Constructivism is the best theory for digital learning as it focuses on knowledge construction about the student’s prior experiences hence assures that learning is taking place among the learners. The goal of constructivism in digital learning is to:
Encourage the learners to tap on to the knowledge gained from social experiences
Assist the digital learning process by encouraging the use of multiple representation styles.
Equip the learners with significant problem-solving skills
Koohang (2008) describes the three elements of constructivism as:
The design of learning activities
Learning evaluation
The teacher’s role
The goal of this student cantered model for designing digital learning activities is to encourage the students to gain new knowledge. The teacher gives the students a real-life situation, and the students are expected to come up with their ways based on their previous experiences or the knowledge they have gained to tackle the job. For example, a teacher might consider giving an individual self-assessment to his students, asking them to overview the business strategy of a company.
Constructivism enhances the ability to not only solve problems at a personal level but also in a group. Online collaborative learning (OCL) is not a new term in digital learning. It is the process where learners facilitate their digital learning by having a discussion using technology mediums to come up with solutions. Digitally mediated research methods, which include online surveys and text messaging for research, have a huge advantage over the traditional forms of research.
First of all, it is very convenient and cheap to use this method. This is as a result of the resourcefulness of the Internet where it is much easier to find a specialist or other research partners who can assist the learner in gaining new knowledge. Less money is also spent as compared to the traditional methods where one would have to pay for library fees to access information needed in their learning process. Lastly, information sourced digitally is more timely and easy to access. Learners using technology in their research and studies are more likely to retrieve the information they are after faster compared to those who still use the traditional ways. This is with the help of powerful search engines, for example, Goggle, Chrome, Yahoo, Bing, and Wikipedia, which can filter through information on the Internet and give the desired search result. The most common disadvantage seen since the introduction of technology in education is the risks and threats common in the cyber world. This threat may include malicious cyber-attacks, false information put by unqualified persons on the Internet, device viruses which target to spoil the technology devices, and the most common of all accessibility. Most people, especially in developing third world countries, may be disadvantaged when it comes to digital learning and digital research.
New Content
The digital divide remains to be the biggest challenge laying between the inclusivity of all learners in the digital studying platforms. Learners living in poor neighborhoods are usually left out, in this case, limiting their full potential. This is as a result of their economic status where internet access and a computer are a luxury.
A case study conducted during the global epidemic 2020, showed that many students from poor neighborhoods were being forced to fail, due to lack or poor connectivity of the Internet. This is a result of the school shutdown, which had resulted in all classes being done digitally. The saddest part is that some of the learners are excellent performers before the global epidemicCITATION Jia00 p 317 l 1033 (Jiang, 2000, p. 317). If a student does not have the same opportunity as the other, how do you then test them using the same standards?
Digital division greatly trembles education in poor neighborhoods. Learners living in these societies are truly limited to their full potential; this is because they do not have the same opportunities that the learners who can access the Internet have. The Internet is a quick and easy way for learners where they can fetch information that is important towards their further educational endeavors. Computers and the Internet are, therefore, of extreme importance to learning and being successful in their studies and other endeavors. My solution to finish the digital divide between the rich learners and the poor learners is to be able to access the Internet free of charge. This should be the responsibility of the leaders in the society and the major education stakeholders to whom it is their duty to ensure that every learner gets a fair share of the education programmer. As an example, the local government could install high capacity metropolitan Wi-Fi networks, which could reach a huge number of learners in a given area. This Wi-Fi network would be of great help in covering the huge mobile data costs the people in these areas cannot afford. The local authorities, in collaboration with the major education stakeholders, should also ensure that every learner has access to any digital communication electronic egg tablets, phones, laptops, etc. In areas where this appliance is not available, this authority should install well-equipped act centers or cyber cafes where the learners can access the internet resources CITATION Kir02 l 1033 (Kirschner, 2002). These learners may vary from kindergarten kids to a high level of education learners. Therefore, the relevant authorities should come up with initiatives for all learners from all groups.
As a result, the global economy is now shifting to a digital economy where every activity is converting its operations from manual operations to technological operations. Such change means that all learners should be well equipped with technological skills before completing their studies in readiness for their career lives. Countries like Singapore and China are best known for their technology inclusive education curriculums. Countries in the (third world) category fall last in this transformation.
The education stakeholders should come up with plans to construct well-equipped ICT rooms where students can access video conferencing services with their tutors and get the required assistance needed. The teacher and student must meet face to face at regular intervals. Both the teachers and all the students should be involved in this process.
Teachers handling kindergarten learners should also come up with creative presentations to deliver to the children virtually. This incentive could include animations for educational purposes and songs and poem presentations CITATION Gri141 l 1033 (Griffin, 2014). It is because children at that age are more likely to grasp information presented in that manner more as compared to the traditional ways of theoretical learning.
Conclusion
Digital/Online learning is, without a doubt, the future of learning in years to come. With the correct adjustments made, this form of education could yield better results. Due to the corona epidemic, many of us learners have turned to digital learning. According to my perspective, I don’t find this method of teaching favorable for everyone, but I like it. Suddenly I have more time to myself as compared to before the schools were shut down where I would spend most of my time at school and have little time for myself. However, there has been an enormous cut of interactions between my peers with whom together we would hold constructive discussions on various issues and me. There is also the problem of power blackouts and down Internet times. Power blackouts are a result of harsh weather or sometimes just other factors. The Internet sometimes is slow, and this dramatically affects my studies as it interferes with my connectivity with schooling resources, which was not the case before this. Digital learning has positively impacted the lives of many learners during this global pandemic. It has enabled learners to take up courses alongside their careers. Digital learning has also been helpful to education institutions in guiding the students in their studies while online during the school shut down period. As a recommendation, the school should put into consideration the factors discussed in this essay for not all students have access to reliable Internet. Assignments should also be reasonably marked, putting into account that students are making most of their interpretation by themselves with little assistance from the tutors. It is also upon the institutions to make sure that all its learners are included in this digital learning rollout.
References
BIBLIOGRAPHY Griffin, P. &. (2014). Assessment and teaching of 21st-century skills: Methods and approach. Springer.
Hewitt, J. (2003). How habitual online practices affect the development of asynchronous discussion threads. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 28(1), 31-45.
Hillman, D. C. (1994). Learner‐interface interaction in distance education: An extension of contemporary models and strategies for practitioners. American Journal of Distance education, 8(2), 30-42.
Jiang, M. &. (2000). A study of factors influencing students’ perceived learning in a web-based course environment. International Journal of Educational Telecommunications, 6(4), 317-338.
Kirschner, P. A. (2002). Cognitive load theory: Implications of cognitive load theory on the design of learning.
Rose, D. H. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1703 N. Beauregard St., Alexandria, VA 22311-1714.
Warschauer, M. (2007). The paradoxical future of digital learning. Learning Inquiry, 1(1), 41-49.
Cultural Analysis Maasai Community
Cultural Analysis: Maasai Community
Students Name
Institution Affiliation
Course Number and Name
Instructor Name
Due Date
Cultural Analysis: Maasai Community
Background
Maasai community is one of the semi-nomadic and pastoral tribe in the East Africa. Their lives are mostly dependent on herding cattle and goats. They are one of the few tribes who have kept their tradition despite the revolution and westernization adapted by other tribes. Some of the cultural practices which have been maintained as identified during a cultural background research of Olempai, a Maasai young man, from an ethnographic field trip in the Maasai remote community are:
The Maasai religion form is monotheism. They worship one God whom they call Enkai who is dual; Enkai Narok (Black God) who is benevolent and Enkai Na-nyokie (Red God) who is vengeful (Amin, 1987).
The Maasai have two main family clans or totems: the Oodo Mongi, the Red Cow and Orok Kiteng, the Black Cow who are further divided into clans or family trees. They also have a totemic animal who is a lion who can also be killed. Killing a lion in the Maasai culture earns one honors in the community.
They have a central human figure called laibon who is responsible of divination, prophecy, war success, adequate rainfall, healing and shamastic.
In the community, a man’s wealth is measured in cattle’s and children which makes even the wives part of the property which is different from other communities view as a companion.
The food or a Maasai is dependent on the cattle. They eat meat and drink the daily milk. The cattle blood is during an occasions as well as slaughtering of lambs and goats.
The Maasai have piercings and stretched earlobes as the ears are consider as the most sacred part and also for married women as a sign of beauty. They use thorns, twigs, stones and empty film canisters to do the piercings and earlobe stretching (Adams, 1996).
Circumcision in the Maasai community is done to both girls and boys as a sign of transition from childhood to adulthood. The men are expected to bear the pain in silence as expression of pain showed weakness and brought shame on the man. The ladies undergo excision which is called emorata which initiates them to adulthood and ready for early marriage. A woman who has not undergone the rite of passage is seen as immature (Shell-Duncan, 2013).
The most common diet of Maasai consist of raw milk, milk, honey and raw blood.
The Maasai clothing consist of black, red, white, green and even pink. The colors are mostly stripped and are worn at different stages and occasions. Most of their clothing’s are ‘shuka’ or kikoi.
The Maasai shelter is called a Manyatta which was made of twigs, grass and cattle dung.
Interview Questions
In order to understand the cultural background of the Maasai community, a research is conducted. The main source of data is an interview. Below are the interview questions which will be asked to the interviewee during the data collection;
What is the culture of the Maasai community?
What are the challenges faced by the Maasai while maintaining their culture in the current world?
What are the marital condition for a Maasai man or woman?
Can a Maasai man or woman have more than one wife or husband?
Why do Maasai eat and drink raw food and blood from cattle?
What is the essence of a Maasai killing a lion?
Why are most the Maasai tall?
How are Maasai children named?
Which Maasai cultures and traditions are being wiped off or forgone in the current world?
What has maintained the cultural practices of the Maasai irrespective of the world revolution?
Findings
Culture in the Maasai community is what keeps them together and differentiates them from other communities. The Maasai are among the few communities worldwide who up to the 24th century still uphold their culture strongly irrespective of the civilization and westernization in the world. The Maasai are mostly semi-nomads and pastorals. In most cases, the herding is done in groups by young men in the community (Melubo, & Carr, 2019). Their clothing’s which consist of red stripped blankets and colorful jewelry makes them stand out which is part of their culture. Their culture consist of warrior ship training and fighting competitions using arrows called Orinka.
The culture of the Maasai is facing turns with the changes taking place in the current world. Introduction of education, migration, westernization, diseases and drought are some of the factors contributing to forgoing some of the Maasai culture. Some cultures that have been affected with the current changes include; elimination of girls rite of passage which is called Female Genital Mutilation. The current system discourages female circumcision or clitoridectomy which makes the ladies who do not agree to the right be viewed as outcasts and immature in the community. The early marriages are also prohibited lowering the wealth target of the Maasai men. All the changes have been brought about by education and civilization. Migration of people has also limited land for herding which has resulted to zero grazing of animals. Diseases and drought have resulted to death among many Maasai as their main source of food has been greatly affected.
A man is allowed to marry as soon as he undergoes circumcision ceremony. A woman was also married off at a young age after circumcision to the betrothed. A Maasai man is allowed to marry as many wives as he can. The children and the wives are considered as wealth in the community (Coles, 2008). A Maasai man with many children is considered wealthy as they are a source of cattle especially girls. A first group young woman is allowed to have more than one sexual relation with young Moran’s and choose one main. The rest are to take part when the main man is not available.
The raw blood from cows during occasions like child birth, circumcision, or a girl’s marriage. The blood is also given to the men to reduce hangover and intoxication. The blood is mostly mixed with milk. The pastoral nature of the Maasai result to their practice of eating raw meat as they survive on hunting along the journey. The hunting also could be done as a sign of bravery and confidence especially when it involved killing a lion. In order for boy to be transitioned to manhood, the rite of passage involved killing a lion.
The Maasai are considered to be among the first three groups of the tallest people in the world. Their diet which is rich in calcium contribute to their long limbs which make them so tall. Their dancing styles which constitute of high jumps also make them seem taller. The Maasai child is not named on birth but he or she is given a temporary name called embolet. After period of time, depending on the clan, the naming ceremony is held called Enkipukonoto Eaji (coming out of seclusion period). Both the mother and the child are shaved the long hair which had grown during the seclusion period as a symbol of a fresh start. If the embolet name has not caused any harm to the child, it’s made permanent.
Some cultures and traditions of the community are slowly but surely vanishing as times goes by. As the world changes and so are people’s mindsets and lifestyles. Some of the cultures that are being wiped out are; the female circumcision. As much as the practice seemed as a transition process, the current education and health practitioners are educating against it. The practice seem to cause more harm to the girl child than good. The government is also providing education to the Maasai leaders to help them understand the danger of the practice. Early marriages are also being forgone as the children are still in school by the time the tradition ripe age is attained (Melubo, & Lovelock, 2019). This gives the children a chance to mature and make personal spouse choices. The polygamy culture, pastoral practice and dress code is slowly being influenced by the western culture. The civilized Maasai no longer marry many wives and they don’t consider them as property but partners. The Maasai are also adapting zero grazing which is substituting their nomad life. Currently, ‘shukas’ are not their only clothes but they are adapting to putting on clothes just like other tribes. Their shelters are also being modernized unlike the traditional manyattas.
The culture of the Maasai has been mostly maintained by their strong leadership among the clans. The passing down of information in the family trees and the fathers acting according to the traditions have made the Maasai not lose themselves in the world revolution. This strong uphold and culture maintenance has made them stand out as one of the communities in the world who still uphold what their forefathers made and they are considered unique.
Conclusion
Cultures and traditions differentiate communities and tribes. For the uniqueness of a community, their cultures and traditions are the main contribution. The Maasai uniqueness is an example of it. People should appreciate and embrace their cultures and tradition and forgo the life endangering cultural practices.
References
Adams, E. W. (1996). A primer of probability logic.
Coles, J. (2008). How the formal education system in Kenya is changing the culture of the Maasai community.
Melubo, K., & Carr, A. (2019). Developing indigenous tourism in the bomas: critiquing issues from within the Maasai community in Tanzania. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 14(3), 219-232.
Melubo, K., & Lovelock, B. (2019). Living inside a UNESCO world heritage site: The perspective of the Maasai community in Tanzania. Tourism Planning & Development, 16(2), 197-216.