Reforms in Tourism Industry of Australia Free-Samples Myassignment

Question: Write an Essay on Reforms in Australias Tourism Industry. Answer: Introduction: The tourism industry of Australia is the most growing sector of the country. There has been a tremendous rise in the number of international visitors to the country in the past two decades, to 7.4 million in 2015 from 2.5 million in 1992. This industry contributed almost 10.9% of the GDP in 2016, which is approximately 183.2 billion AUD. According to Sherry (2015), the tourism industry is outgrowing the mining sector in terms of revenue and employment. This sector employs almost 6 million people by the end of 2016, which is more than the employment in mining sector. In the next twenty years, the industry has the potential of contributing almost $250 billion AUD to the GDP of the country. There has been an addition of $11 billion AUD in the Gross State Product of Australia in 2013-14 by the tourism sector (Hooper Zyl, 2012). However, there are rooms for reform in this industry. The government plans to increase the visitor spending to double by the end of 2020. It also plans to redecorate Sydney to attract more people to live and visit. To make this plan a success, the NSW government is putting efforts in the improvement of the infrastructure of Sydney. Although it is an already established global city, still it needs big ideas and innovation to attract more tourists. However, it requires proper strategies and right direction to exploit the huge scope for improvement. Proper reform actions should be taken to make Sydney a tourist hub in the near future (Australias International Tourism Industry, 2015). Analysis of the tourism sector: Australia is a country with over 20 million populations. Here, cultural tourism is an integral part of the total tourism sector. This part of the industry is the one of the major attractions for the international tourists. The tourism industry comprises of accommodation, transport facilities like on road, air, and water, retail trades like restaurants, cafes, and other cultural services, events and festivals. The NSWs gross value added was $27.6 billion. The visitor exports and imports is also a part of the total export and import of the country (Australias International Tourism Industry, 2015). The contribution of travel and tourism industry has grown significantly in the past 10 years, as shown in the diagram below. (Source: Data.worldbank.org. 2017) Outline of the tourism business 2015 (Source: tra.gov.au, 2016) Travel and tourism sector is a demand driven sector. The products of this sector are consumed by both the tourists and the citizens. Therefore, not only the tourists, but the local citizens also contribute in the growth of the tourist locations as well as the products and services. The regional development of tourism is more evident in Australia. The government websites show that, there has been a huge boost in regional growth, employment, foreign currency imports, improvement in the transport services and other services, which led to a significant growth of the overall tourism industry. Many reform measures has been taken in regional sections, such as, national parks of Tasmanian Island would be reformed to attract more visitors (Arid, 2017). In the last 5 years, the increase in the total visitor nights was by 3.8%, and numbers of visitor increased by 2.2% annually. The consumption of tourism products grew from $103 billion to $121 billion. 66% of the total earnings come from small and medium businesses of this industry (Tra.gov.au., 2017). (Source: Austrade.gov.au., 2016) Reform policies for the growth of tourism industry: The tourism industry of Australia has introduced a reform plan, named, Tourism 2020 to address the growth opportunities and challenges. It has a growth framework. It also plans to help the businesses in staying competitive in the dynamic market of global tourism. The key points of this policy are to ease the rigidities and regulations of the industry and encourage a high quality of tourism, creating innovative marketing strategies for pushing the demand and supporting infrastructural development. The policy aims to double the amount of spending by overnight global and local tourists, up to $140 billion. For this, the sector needs to develop 6,000 to 20,000 rooms of international standard, by 2020. The international flying capacity should be increased by 40% to 50% and domestic capacity by 23% to 30%. This requires addition of almost 1.9 million seats in the flights, employment of 152,000 people and more efficient promotion strategies (Austrade.gov.au., 2016). Recommendations for the industry: The following reform policies could be adopted by the travel and tourism industry of Australia: The visa processing should be done on a priority basis to make it faster and more competitive. Especially, the visa applications from markets like China, should be processed at a lower cost and without much rules and regulations (australia.com., 2017). More restrictions should be put on the secondary airports and not on the primary airports, which acts as gateways for the visitors. The jobs should be more of permanent nature rather than being contractual or part time. The city tours should be made easier to access. For example, an Opal card should be issued by the tourism department to the visitors, which would make city tour easier. A city, which is more livable, will attract more tourists also. The amenities should be developed according to international standard. Workforce should be trained more for a better customer service. Better marketing promotion opportunities and partnerships should be identified and implemented for attracting more international tourists. The national and state tourism plans must be integrated to develop the regional infrastructure. The cross portfolio collaboration must be done by the government of Australia to drive the visitor economy reforms (Hooper and Zyl, 2012). Conclusion: The travel and tourism industry of Australia has emerged as an economic powerhouse in the past few years. The industry has contributed significantly in the total GDP, GVA and GSP of the country. However, the industry needs some reform measures to improve the products and services. The policy of Tourism 2020 is a reform policy formulated to develop the industry further and increase the number of visitors. The policy also includes the plans for innovations and big ideas to make the major cities more attractive and livable. Hence, to achieve these objectives, the tourism department and the government of Australia should work hand in hand. References: Arid, H. (2017). Tasmanian tourism industry pushes for reform of 'outdated' parks and reserve legislation. ABC News. Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-28/tasmanian-tourism-wants-national-parks-act-updated/8219790 Austrade.gov.au. (2016). About Tourism 2020 - Austrade. Retrieved 28 April 2017, from https://www.austrade.gov.au/Australian/Tourism/Policy-and-Strategy/tourism-2020 Australias International Tourism Industry. (2015) (1st ed.). Retrieved from https://www.pc.gov.au/research/completed/international-tourism/international-tourism.pdf Data.worldbank.org. (2017). International tourism, receipts (current US$). Retrieved 28 April 2017, from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ST.INT.RCPT.CD Hooper, K., Zyl, M. (2012). Australias Tourism Industry. RBA. Retrieved 28 April 2017, from https://www.rba.gov.au/publications/bulletin/2011/dec/pdf/bu-1211-3.pdf Sherry, A. (2015). Australias tourism industry needs innovation and big ideas to continue to grow. The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved from https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/australias-tourism-industry-needs-innovation-and-big-ideas-to-continue-to-grow/news-story/53078ef6405ad0c433612722c6fdbde7 Tourism.australia.com. (2017). Tourism Statistics - Research - Tourism Australia. Retrieved 28 April 2017, from https://www.tourism.australia.com/statistics.aspx Tra.gov.au. (2017). Tourism Research Australia. Retrieved 28 April 2017, from https://www.tra.gov.au/

PRINCIPALS OF ORGANIZATION Essays - DraftNoah Cronbaugh

PRINCIPALS OF ORGANIZATION SHAWNTIL COTTON POST UNIVERSITY If you really look at things in life what can you really control. Breathing do you really take the time to think about how your breath. When your happy does your breathing remain the same absolutely not. When your sad does your breathing stay the same absolutely not. When you're tired does your breathing stay the same nope. With each mood your breathing changes weather it speeds up or slows down. It is up to you to controls how fast or slowly you breath. Body language weather good or bad. If you want to seen like you hold all the power on the face of this earth then you would stand bold and the confidence will show in your body language. If you want someone to feel sorry for you then that sad pitiful act that you put on will come out in your body language. If you want a certain job. You will go into the interview with confidence that you already have the job. You will wear that confidence so good to the point where it comes out through your body language. Your attitude both mental an d physical. Weather your mentally upset or physically you control how you are going to release the anger if it is released in a good or bad way it all falls on you. Your attitude at work falls on you if you like your job your attitude towards work would be good verses if you hate your job and you hate to get out of the bed to go to work then it's going to show in your work and your attitude is going to be horrible. Your diet is another thing that you can control. If you want to be fit and healthy then you are goung to make it your business to eat the right foods do the proper exercises to maintain that healthy diet. On the other hand, if you don't care to exercise that often and eat every snack that you see then your diet is going to see that in your diet and your health. Those are some things that you can control other things in life you can't really control in my eyes. Your own success can be sabotaged by one person and that one person is you! If you stop having self-belief in yourself then you are going to fail. If you start having regrets then you fail. If you lose focus on the goal in front of you then you're likely to fail. If you stop challenging yourself every step of the way then you are going to fail.as stated be (Tony Robbins) you end up taking two steps forward and three steps back and as a result you become stuck in the endless cycle of self-sabotage. Some of the reasons people don't apply what they learn and know is because if there are breaks in-between the learning process then no one thinks to use the far transfer technique by (Susan Ambrose book How Learning Works: Seven Research- Based Principals for Smart Teaching). Do people forget what they learn due to short memories. Some people don't care to apply what they have learned. I am doing all of this for me first and foremost, because I know all my life that I wanted to be known for being a professional of many areas. To also have more income in my household. To breathe life into dreams that I always had and that is to start not one, two, but three different businesses that I can start a franchise with to always have a steady income for my family. To also give myself a pat on the back for accomplishing what I set out to do. The businesses I want to open are a soul food restaurant, a beauty salon, and a beauty supply store. To have learning experiences. To be an example for my family especially my children. To show them that anything is possible and if they put their mind to it they can accomplish any dream that they might have. I can make sure that I always think big and do not settle for what life is throwing my way. Always

Free Essays on Phillip The 2nd

Phillip the 2nd’s Mistakes â€Å"Leadership determines the fate of a country.† There has never been a truer quote. For a country depends on it’s leaders for guidance and decision making. Phillip the 2nd showed a perfect example of how a terrible leader can royally screw up a country. Phillip the 2nd was the ruler of Spain from 1556 to 1598 and had the opportunities to become one of the greatest rulers of all time. He came in at the right time period, the golden age of Spain, and at one point was the king of England, Spain, and France, and all of America belonged to him. He controlled almost all of the ships at sea and could have been immensely powerful if he had not let his fanatical Catholicism get in the way. Phillip the 2nd was a devout Catholic that took it upon himself to head the Catholic counteroffensive, and he was willing to put in all the sweat, blood, tears, and not to mention money to see it through. He did not care about his country, or anything else for that matter, as much as he did for this. Phillip let economic and material matters slip away and deteriorate, thus beginning the downfall of Spanish culture and Spain. But, while Phillip could slowly destroy Spanish culture, he could not stop the Golden Age. Spain entered it’s Golden Age, and Phillip continued to pump money into the Catholic church. Phillip and Spain were so Catholic that the archbishop of Toledo had so much power and esteem, that he could address the king as an equal, and at one point it was estimated that one third of the population of Spain worked for the Catholic church in some way shape or form. Phillip built a new royal house for himself that was called the Escorial, it was a magnificent building that honored St. Lawrence (another sign of his fanatical Catholicism) because it was on that saints feast day that Phillip won a battle against the French. It was thirty miles from Madrid, on the plateau of central Castile, and was built in... Free Essays on Phillip The 2nd Free Essays on Phillip The 2nd Phillip the 2nd’s Mistakes â€Å"Leadership determines the fate of a country.† There has never been a truer quote. For a country depends on it’s leaders for guidance and decision making. Phillip the 2nd showed a perfect example of how a terrible leader can royally screw up a country. Phillip the 2nd was the ruler of Spain from 1556 to 1598 and had the opportunities to become one of the greatest rulers of all time. He came in at the right time period, the golden age of Spain, and at one point was the king of England, Spain, and France, and all of America belonged to him. He controlled almost all of the ships at sea and could have been immensely powerful if he had not let his fanatical Catholicism get in the way. Phillip the 2nd was a devout Catholic that took it upon himself to head the Catholic counteroffensive, and he was willing to put in all the sweat, blood, tears, and not to mention money to see it through. He did not care about his country, or anything else for that matter, as much as he did for this. Phillip let economic and material matters slip away and deteriorate, thus beginning the downfall of Spanish culture and Spain. But, while Phillip could slowly destroy Spanish culture, he could not stop the Golden Age. Spain entered it’s Golden Age, and Phillip continued to pump money into the Catholic church. Phillip and Spain were so Catholic that the archbishop of Toledo had so much power and esteem, that he could address the king as an equal, and at one point it was estimated that one third of the population of Spain worked for the Catholic church in some way shape or form. Phillip built a new royal house for himself that was called the Escorial, it was a magnificent building that honored St. Lawrence (another sign of his fanatical Catholicism) because it was on that saints feast day that Phillip won a battle against the French. It was thirty miles from Madrid, on the plateau of central Castile, and was built in...

Book Review Culture, Literacy, and Learning Taking Bloom in the Midst of the Whirlwind by Carol D. Lee

Book Review Culture, Literacy, and Learning Taking Bloom in the Midst of the Whirlwind by Carol D. Lee Introduction In this book, Carol Lee brings into play her experience as a participant viewer to offer an exceptional and detailed opinion of both planning and employing a cultural receptive strategy to enhance learning and teaching in a particular subject.Advertising We will write a custom book review sample on Book Review: Culture, Literacy, and Learning: Taking Bloom in the Midst of the Whirlwind by Carol D. Lee specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Through clear reports from real classrooms, Lee explains how AAVE helps students motivate themselves and learn. She describes the way students respond to improved scheme and the way teachers modify the cultural background of the language or English arts program. As the book emphasizes on literacy of African-American students, Lee assesses the role of culture in supporting learning. She provides approaches of changing cultural knowledge to support the issue, particularly the educational learni ng. Lee argues that attainment gap to some extent is affected by the restrictions of knowledge based on hypotheses which enlighten decisions concerning pedagogy, curriculum, evaluation, teacher qualification and situations which teachers follow while working. In this book, Lee reports on her three-year program while teaching students how to respond to literature at Fairgate High School; she states that teachers can achieve their targets if they realize the discourse, practices, and content of their field. Teachers will also succeed if they have precise understanding regarding the cognition, language, incentive, culture, and social certainties of urban learners. Cultural Modeling The approach which the author employed is based on her practices on cultural modeling, which serves as a learning plan to facilitate solving the issue in learning institutions. This helps both learners and teachers discuss the differences between the school-based and community-based standards. For example, A frican American learners are supported to generate clearly their understanding and responses of their cultures which are used outside the school. Their knowledge and answers are then implemented in the sphere of educational learning. In this manner, learners are offered support to create their culture applicable in the school environment and classrooms. They use certain languages to address the problem-solving lessons which help them create links between what they have done and what they are expected to perform with school based issues. When teachers and students assess the function of satire in literary understanding, cultural modeling contains outlines of this issue which students practice daily using oral traditions, songs, television, and film. Students create clear approaches of distinguishing satire set up in music lyrics, film, and television.Advertising Looking for book review on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More They may keep on looking for satire in African canonical performances and in non-African, American canonical performances which help them improve their knowledge. Another issue for students is to distinguish the functions of symbolism in literary reasoning. Lee starts with students examining closely the cultural relics of their daily practices, such as hip hop lyrics, hip hop records, etc., observing and intuitively interpreting the difficult views in Toni Morrison’s Beloved. Most influential are the transcripts which are there in classrooms. These disclose discussion of student and teacher in interpretive reasoning articulated in AAEV. They also reveal daily language used by students, method of thinking, and significance of complex text applied in classrooms. Lee, in her book, describes the readers a classroom where animated discussions concerning the significance of satire and symbols prosper are aroused, and students experience a great desire to express their understanding openly. Correcting the Way Students Talk Lee persists that teachers can attain better outcomes and success if they only appreciate the strength of instructional talk derived of the standards of AAEV. They should put more focus on supporting students reasoning in a perspective of literary rather than correcting the manner they are used to communicate. Lee chooses not to correct students when they are responding to literature and states that they should feel that their views are well-considered and taken into account. She argues that selecting a student who will speak should not be regulated by the teacher. Lee continues to state that teachers should have both the content and educational understanding, and these two issues needed for the effective teaching are both valuable and compound. The teacher in this situation should be able to teach using various approaches which will help students struggling against literary problems. Lee argues that teachers should be aware of what students understand and value. Teachers should hear and respond to a wide range of students’ debatable questions with proper understanding. Additionally, Lee shows some important pedagogical understanding including some abilities, such as possibility to evaluate what students know and do not know. Other abilities include understanding several ways to capitalize learning and the way to know developmental progression. Lee considers that teachers should enter modern reading areas susceptible to the usual range of social and developmental issues displayed by students who are identified as incompetent. She considers that this is a requirement which almost all learning institutions or schools disregard.Advertising We will write a custom book review sample on Book Review: Culture, Literacy, and Learning: Taking Bloom in the Midst of the Whirlwind by Carol D. Lee specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Lee specifies her instructional c hoices in many examples in her book. She uses Taquisha’s conflict to discuss this issue. Taquisha seems to be reading a newspaper instead of attending to Sax Cantor Riff. This is evident when Taquisha questions the function of the film in their study programs. Lee mentions that she employs her understanding of adolescent growth as a basis for managing the conflicts which Taquisha have. Lee also states that she uses her knowledge of Taquisha as an individual African American communication experiences to reconstruct the condition. Moreover, she offers the readers and students six guidelines for teaching which clearly create a precise reasoning to difficult theme or issue as well as provides interesting instances. Her example is re-voicing learners’ expressions to guide students to huge plans within the area under discussion. Lee favors responsibility but is uncertain of problematic evaluations which are not genuine and rigorous in corrective reading at the resultant stag e. Hence, these do not bring about students to find out ways to participate in very complex and analytical reasoning concerning the theme. In chapter seven, Lee offers instances of the post and pre evaluations of literary learning, and I hope Lee will add example of students’ essay. This could portray the language of literary reasoning. Several books and journals are used by teachers so that they can improve the students’ language through the application of literature and culture. Lee’s book can be recommended since it addresses this issue. The book begins with an issue concerning literacy, culture and learning, then it suggests values of student’s culture and understanding in the service of attaining educational success. Lee proposes that achievements in urban schools are not easy for the teachers to gain and need plainly a profound understanding of the theme of the book, language, language socialization and the way students learn. They should also under stand the process of the children and teenagers maturation. Teachers should improve their teaching skills and knowledge used in urban schools.

Discrimination and Prejudice to Control and Protect Interest Assignment

Discrimination and Prejudice to Control and Protect Interest - Assignment Example Social difference and socialization exist, these are passed from parents to children. Fear and ignorance are the two greatest concepts of prejudice. Some are concerned with a loss of power and control and therefore prejudice and discriminate the certain group of people (Whitley & Kite, 2010). Â  I encountered racial discrimination when I was the young adult. This was at a time when I went to an office to inquire about a license to hold a convention in a communal place. This was during political campaigns and I was campaigning for a local office. I wanted to hold a small rally on the local ground but I had to have a license for the same. The local police told me that I had to pay more money for the license because I was not white skin. They added that they would offer me the license at their mercy but not because I needed it. I felt so embarrassed but I did not give up with holding the rally. Â  The police officers told me that I could not hold the rally at the ground because I was not supposed to hold a public rally at the ground. They told me that that place was a reserve for the right members but not me. This was pure prejudice and discrimination. They discriminated me because I was not white and showed prejudice to me because I did not belong to their social class. They thought that I was competing with them for the support of the local people to be elected as a local office holder. This was very hurtful and offensive as well. While it is true I offered my candidature for the local office, my aim was not to offer competition but to improve the life of the local people by bringing services to them. This was discrimination and prejudice. Â  The police used their power and control to prejudice and discriminate me.

Role of Technology in Education Research Proposal

Role of Technology in Education - Research Proposal Example With the rapid advancement of technology, the suggestions are expected to remain viable for a maximum of ten years. Research Methodology Research will initially be conducted by use of questionnaires. Learning institutions that are using technology will share their experiences before and after making the shift. The results will then be presented to technology experts for review. Scholarly materials will also be presented to them for viability checks and suggested improvements. Terminologies and Key Concepts Proposed These are computers, the internet, websites, teleconferencing and mobile devices. Computers are the fundamental interfaces between man and technology. The internet and websites will refer to the network of private and public connections and resources. Teleconferencing is the technology that allows geographically separated parties to speak while viewing the other person and any communications to be shared visually. Mobile devices, like computers, serve as interfaces between man and technology, only that they are portable and an be used while one is mobile. The Study and Literature Reviews Researches in the past two decades (Grauwe 9) and a report from the United States Congress Office of Technology Assessment have indicated that learning via computer and telecommunications technologies are the factors bridging the gaps between society and learning institutions. In this literature, most of the emphasis was placed on the relevance of what the education processes could offer with or without using new technologies. It was unanimously concluded (Grauwe 12) that the impact of technology in education was only beginning to be felt and teachers... This paper approves that the scope of this research will be restricted to primary, secondary and university education and how technology has shaped them in the past two decades. The study has been necessitated by the need to understand how education may benefit from the ever growing technology and impart better quality education to students. Material for the study will be sourced from scholarly journals, reports, websites and interviews. Interviews will include teachers, students and technology experts. This paper makes a conclusion that the research will initially be conducted by use of questionnaires. Learning institutions that are using technology will share their experiences before and after making the shift. The results will then be presented to technology experts for review. Scholarly materials will also be presented to them for viability checks and suggested improvements. while it is evident that technology is not attempting to replace education, it is time to ensure that each student owns a digital device for various beneficial reasons and have them in class, just like they have always had their textbooks. Most of the literatures used in this study suggest that the greater value of technology should be seen in the content it lends to learning experiences. Technology is part of the tools that makes learning more affordable, universal and interesting. To start with, digital devices are being developed exponentially and at affordable costs. Then, the quality and volume of digital learning content is bursting its borders and online interactive environments are getting more useful and easier to use and navigate through. The digital devices can be used to update and maintain portfolios, obtain grade updates, access information and news while managing the learning life.

Infant and Child Development Essay Example for Free

Infant and Child Development Essay This assignment will critically review Howlett, Kirk and Pine’s (2011) study, which aims to investigate whether attendance of gesturing classes affects parental stress. Howlett et al. , (2011) attempt to examine claims, advertised by commercial products, that believe attending gesturing classes can improve child-parent communications, thus reducing parental stress. Participants gave demographic information and completed a Parenting Stress Index (PSI) questionnaire. ANCOVA was used to look at whether attending gesturing classes affected parental stress, mothers attending a gesture group and mothers attending a non gesture group were compared; with ‘sibling status’ and ‘birth order’ controlled. Researchers found that mothers who attended infant gesture classes had higher stress scores than mothers who had attended non-gesturing classes. From these findings the following claims are made: that mothers in the gesture group had higher pre-existing stress than in the non gesture group, * that mothers attended gesturing classes in an attempt to alleviate their pre-existing stress, * that gesturing classes may cause mothers to view their child negatively. This critique will firstly provide an overall evaluation of the article with reference to strengths and weaknesses found. Flaws will also be highlighted with suggestion to how these could be rectified. Points of detail in the evaluation will then be expanded and conclusions discussed. Overall evaluation First and foremost, the overall presentation of the article appears to lack in structure and organisation; this results in a lack of flow and clarity. In the introduction, the research question and key definitions of interest (i. e. ‘gesture, ‘non gesture’ and ‘stress’) are not discussed at the beginning. Characteristics of non gesturing mothers are instead firstly mentioned in the discussion section. The outline of categories in the background demographic questionnaire should have been made aware to readers in the methodology. Furthermore, in the results, findings from the study should have been stated in the opening paragraph. A fundamental flaw consistent throughout the article regards its lack of sufficient detail in ensuring strength of argument. In the introduction and discussion more research is needed in relation to how and why parental stresses occur to support findings. Furthermore unjustified claims are used to sustain argument which questions the validity of the research. The lack of detail regarding the direction of study also instigates ambiguity. More information is also needed about the procedure of the study so as to allow for replication. Further details as to how these flaws can be rectified are discussed later. Fundamental flaws are apparent regarding the non-random sample used and the lack of baseline stress measures. As no baseline pre-test has been conducted authors’ claims, as stated previously, can only be based on speculation. More information is provided on these flaws in the latter section. Strengths highlighted in the article include the demographic information provided. This information is useful as it allows for generalisation of results by ensuring groups are appropriately matched and offers useful information for future research in the region. (Keith, 2010). Furthermore the PSI questionnaire used, is well validated (Colver, 2006); using a creditable measuring instrument like this increases the reliability of the study. Moreover, the correct statistical test has been used, ANCOVA, and results are also provided with appropriate information. Abstract and Introduction The abstract fails to provide a rationale for the study; as this is unclear, readers may misjudge the subject matter. There is also no description of the stimuli used; the meaning of ‘gesturing’ is unexplained. Authors should elaborate upon what they mean by ‘gesturing’ so as to avoid misinterpretation. However, principal findings and design measures used in the study are stated. The introduction appears to lack in structure and organisation. No initial description of research question with reference to what it attempts to demonstrate is present; this is firstly mentioned in the third paragraph. Furthermore, authors first provide a definition of ‘gesturing’ in midpoint of this section. Considering this topic is the phenomenon of the study it would have been more appropriate to be stated at the beginning, rather than after the discussion of the benefits of gesturing; this may prevent misinterpretation. Although an explanation of ‘non-gesturing’ is provided in the discussion section, it would also be helpful for readers if it were included in the introduction; this enables differentiation between the two conditions. Similarly, a definition of the authors’ interpretation of ‘stress’ could have been stated at the start in ensuring readers’ clarity of terms. There is also no statement of hypothesis. nd authors do not provide a rationale or historical backdrop, therefore it lacks in significance and does not substantially contribute to the literature. Moreover, research discussed appears to be framed as a general review of literature and set out in list form with a lack of evaluation. For example, research has been described in relation to a study that has found no relationship between gesturing and linguistic benefits in infants (Kirk, Howlett, Pine and Fletcher), however it has not been evaluated or linked to the aims of the study. Furthermore, there are limited findings provided relating to the negative aspects of gesturing. Considering the paper is directed towards whether these classes affect parental stress, more research should be discussed in relation to the disapproval of gesturing classes, to support findings in the article. In addition, the article has included different research examples to support their view that parental stress can inhibit parent-child relationships, however there is no development in argument of how or why these stresses occur. To rectify, in ensuring clarity, more detail should be provided whereby these examples should be put in context with direct reference to the research question. Moreover, unjustified claims have been used in an attempt to sustain argument; for example, Howlett et al. , (2011) highlight ‘‘advertising claims that baby sign will reduce parental frustration and stress have little empirical foundation’. As this statement is not explained, it may seem misleading and as an ineffective use of argument. There is also no valid reference provided. In improving the structure and validity of their argument, authors should use evidence from influential papers to provide further detail in supporting their claims. The direction of study also appears ambiguous as authors switch between terms when stating the aim of the research. It is unclear whether authors are focusing on gesturing affecting stress or gesturing reducing stress. Howlett et al. , (2011) firstly state, ‘there are valid reasons to suggest that gesturing with an infant could reduce parental stress, this paper evaluates that claim’, (p. 438) they continue by stating, ‘this research investigates whether gesturing with an infant affects parenting stress’ (p438). One clear statement of what is being intended to measure needs to be used throughout the article so as to avoid confusion. The final paragraph includes a vague definition of variables whereby readers are left to determine their own assumptions. For example, it is stated that the frequency and duration of gesture use was used to measure the relationship between gesture use and stress, however it is unclear at this stage whether authors are implying ‘gesturing’ in terms of when mothers’ attended gesturing classes or their general use of gesturing; in and out of classes. The PSI is outlined, however researchers have not explained its benefits or why it have been use; this may leave readers questioning its credibility. Furthermore, it is important for researchers to include a statement of predictions, however this is not present. Methodology The authors recruited 178 participants (mothers) from the south-east of England; the sample size represents regional bias as mothers’ solely attending gesturing classes in this region is not representative of the whole country. Age range of infants used in the study is firstly mention in this section. It is stated infants ranged between 3 and 36months; however research discussed in the introduction only refers to the importance of gesturing from 9 months. Therefore authors have not justified the relevance of focusing on infants younger than 9 months; in certifying readers understanding, this could have been mentioned in the introduction. Authors have stated the measuring instruments used in the study. A strength regards the sufficient detail provided about the PSI booklet; examples of typical features such as the subscales of both the child and parent domains have been described. However no further details are provided about the background demographics questionnaire; categories are presented in the results section, however, it would be helpful for readers if details were included in this section. The potential confounding effects of using self-report questionnaires should also be noted. Social desirability bias may be apparent whereby participants may respond in a favourable light; mothers may not want to admit they are experiencing difficulties and respond untruthfully. Furthermore, as questionnaires are standardised, ambiguous questions cannot be explained; this may lead participants to misinterpret questions. Motivation for parents to complete questionnaires may also be scarce, resulting in superficial responses. In helping overcome these difficulties, authors could have stated whether participants were informed about why the information was collected and how the results will be beneficial; if participants knew the importance of their responses and were informed that negative responses were equally as helpful as positive, it may have made them want to answer more honestly. A fundamental flaw in methodology regards the fact that authors have not measured parental stress levels before conducting study. As there is no baseline stress measures prior to class attendance, there is no way of knowing if gesturing classes caused an increase in stress or what would have happened regardless of the implementation of the program; to rectify, researchers should use a pre-test methodology. Furthermore, another weakness in the methodology regards the fact that no ethic considerations are discussed. For example, authors could have included whether participant confidentiality was taken into account and whether de-briefing was offered subsequent to the study to respondents who may have expressed signs of upset. Description of procedures appears to lack in detail whereby there is no sequential pattern to how the research was carried out. There is also no precision in relation to what is investigated, to whom, and under what conditions. For example, Howlett et al. , (2011) state ‘contact was made with the infant groups’ (p. 39); more information should be provided such as how and when participants were contacted. Furthermore, no information is provided on how many classes parents had attended before the study or when the questionnaires took place; more sufficient detail is needed so as to allow replication and in ensuring consistency. There are also issues surrounding the amount of time participants were given to complete the PSI; it is stated the questionnaire takes approximately 30 minutes to complete, however, the procedure of collection differed between participants. Some gave completed questionnaires to a group leader, others were returned by post; the same conditions should be applied to all participants in ensuring standardisation. In addition, authors have not provided details of data collection or analysis undergone in the study; to avoid ambiguity it is important to include where the scores used in the analyses have derived from. An apparent fundamental flaw in the procedure relates to the fact that participants were not randomly allocated to the two groups in the study; randomisation is important as it eliminates sources of bias and ensures unpredictability. To rectify, random selection of mothers from a population could participate in the study. Results The beginning paragraph of the results is too vague; the hypothesis is not stated and no information on what statistical tests were used is provided. Furthermore, what the study found has not been not stated; it is firstly mentioned half way through this section. However, a strength in the article regards the demographic information provided for the two groups of mothers. Hours a week mothers’ work, maternal education, family income and siblings were included. It also highlights the similarities and equivalence between the two groups, making the interpretation of results valid. Another strength to this study regards the fact that researchers have applied the correct statistical tests. Two analyses of ANCOVA were conducted to measure the differences between the gesturing and non gesturing groups’ PSI scores. ANCOVA is appropriate to use as it allows to compare one variable (PSI stress scores) in two or more groups (gesture group and non gesture group) ith consideration for variability of other variables; covariates (‘sibling status’ was used as a covariate in the first ANCOVA and ‘birth order’; in the second). Controlling ‘sibling status’ and ‘birth order’ stops these conditions being confounding variables and ensures validity. As ‘sibling status’ and ‘birth control’ covariates have been controlled, it may have been more beneficial for readers if authors ma de aware of these strategies used prior to the results section as there is no discussion relating to siblings until this point. Results found from ANCOVA also confirm to readers exactly what the researchers were intending to measure; after confusion from the introduction, uncertainties are clarified and findings explain that the focus is upon whether attending gesturing classes affects parental stress. Results are also provided with adequate information whereby the obtained F value, df and level of significance have been stated. Furthermore researchers are correct in using a Pearson’s r correlation in confirming results which is used to see if there is a correlation between at two continuous variables. By doing so, it was found that there was no relationship between how long or often gesture groups mothers had been gesturing with their infant, and the mothers’ total stress scores. Therefore mothers stress levels were unrelated to frequency and duration. Furthermore, in this section descriptive statistics have been provided in two separate tables. In ‘Table One’, which shows the ‘mean (S. D) stress scores for each item on the PSI by group’, data does not seem to be explained in full. The scale used is unclear and readers have not been informed on the system used whereby there is confusion as to what the numbers mean. Tables 2 which shows the ‘summary of two ANCOVA results’, is more coherent as a brief description is displayed underneath describing the covariates. Discussion In this section, yet again, the aim of the research remains unclear; it is stated ‘the aim of the study was to investigate the impact of gesturing with an infant upon parental stress’ (p442), authors need to be more specific in their interpretation of ‘gesturing’, whether they are referring to attendance of gesturing classes or general use of gesturing is uncertain. Possible explanations for findings have been discussed, such as the view that there may have been a difference between gesturing and non gesturing mothers due to gesturing mothers feeling more stressed prior to the study. Authors continue by suggesting these mothers chose to attend gesturing classes because of these feelings of stress in hope that they would help. However, authors’ claims can only be seen as speculation as no baseline measurement was used. It should be noted that researchers have evaluated their findings and acknowledged that as baseline measures are not present, no assumptions can be made as to why mothers who attended gesturing classes had increased stress levels compared to non gesturing mothers or whether they were more stressed before attending the classes. Due to the lack of solid findings, like in the introduction, groundless claims have been used in an effort to uphold argument in explaining mothers’ cause of stress. For example, it is stated ‘mothers have high aspirations for their child and the parenting industry may, albeit unwittingly, foster maternal insecurities’(p443); no justification has been provided for this claim. Moreover, additional research is needed to support the authors’ concluding claims that attending gesturing classes may be detrimental and effect mothers’ perception of their infant in a negative light. Only Hyson’s (1991) study relating to mothers who induced academically focused activities on preschool children has been used as evidence to back up this claim, this does not justify the authors’ inflated claims. To conclude, even though this article has used creditable measuring instruments and appropriate statistical tests, Howlett et al’s claims can only be seen as speculation as no pre-test baseline is used. No findings can be validated without measuring the stress levels of mothers prior to class attendance, whether increase in stress has occurred due to attending gesturing classes in unknown. For future recommendations, authors could use a baseline measures to test mothers’ stress scores prior to the study.