Plato\s Republic Essays - Socratic Dialogues, Dialogues Of Plato

Plato?s Republic is a profound philosophical treatment of the meaning, nature, and application of justice by way of describing the perfect city-state and the use of comprehensive allegory. As Ancient Athens was the prototype for the modern ideas of Democracy, Republic is still incredibly relevant. The discussion of justice is not only explored from a political standpoint, but it also informs Epistemological views on nature, beauty, and truth, adding even more weight and importance to the term. During the time of Republic (circa 380 B.C.E.) Two prominent philosophical groups were splitting Athens apart, a rivalry from which the beginning of Republic is spawned. Plato belonged to epistemology, a branch of philosophy dedicated to the nature of knowledge. Plato and his colleagues believed in logic and reason as a means of reaching the truth while criticizing emotions and sensory perceptions. The Sophists, the archenemy of Plato?s ideas, were merely concerned with rhetoric and applying la nguage in any means necessary to gain a desirable outcome. The effect that these differences rendered on the topic of justice is brilliantly displayed in ?Book 1? through dialogue by Plato?s analogue, Socrates, and a temperamental Sophist called Thrasymachus. The argument between Socrates and Thrasymachus sets the tone for the remainder of the book and gives Plato a place from which to start explaining justice, and specifically what justice is not. ?Book 1? of Republic is distinctively different than the remainder of the book, both stylistically and in intent. Plato established the logistics of his argumentative tactics and engages in a heated discussion about justice that will necessitate the explanations and proofs provided in ?Books II ? X.? The so-called meat of ?Book I? begins with a confrontation between the hotheaded Sophist, Thrasymachus, and Socrates as they enter into a disagreement about the worth of justice; a diversion from Socrates? original task to define justice itself. Thrasymachus? assertion can be encapsulated in the phrase, ?Justice is the advantage of the stronger.? He believes that justice is unnaturally imposed upon humans and is contrary to their desires, as well as entirely unprofitable. In terms of external gain, Thrasymachus points out that the perfectly unjust will necessarily profit where the just will not because they will be unfettered by a notion of morality. Perfect injustice will allow one to a cquire more money, power, status, etc. at the expense of the unjust. This follows the basic Sophist idea that no such thing as morality really existed, but only what was advantageous or disadvantageous to a person. It stands to reason, then, that if a man were to be faced with cheating his way into greater profit or honestly gaining less, the unjust path would make more logic sense. The intrinsic value of injustice, Thrasymachus thinks, is also far greater than that of justice. A person who is able to gain money and power, even through disreputable means, will be happier as a result having the spoils of his injustice to enjoy. Though Thrasymachus? confidence is deceiving, there are considerable flaws in his ad hominem argument, specifically the wording and his fluctuating and interchangeable definitions of ?justice? and ?injustice.? Socrates wastes no time cleverly evaluating the statements of Thrasymachus and then using them for his own benefit to prove that justice has significant worth and necessity. One of the most important things to note about the argument posed by Thrasymachus is his attempt to use rhetoric instead of logic. It is even noted in ?Book I? that Thrasymachus is equating justice with injustice. Likening opposites to make a point is clearly the weaker strategy as it doesn?t actually make sense, and this is something Socrates must work around, as he is objecting to the idea the justice is the advantage of the stronger. Rhetoric aside, the first objection by Socrates lies in human fallibility. Because all humans are fallible (and this can not be disputed by even Thrasymachus) an unjust person would eventually make a mistake that may undermine his own success. For instance, an unjust man might kill someone he suspected to be an enemy and that man actually could have been an ally; this would be a mistake that could ultimately reduce the unjust man?s power. Socrates second objection is

Ideas From Response to Intervention Research Paper

Ideas From Response to Intervention - Research Paper Example The model introduces inclusiveness into the education model through introducing more accommodating models of instructions and a need-based allocation of the learning facilities to the targeted learners’ teams. One of the models concentration areas is addressing the learning difficulties detected in learners at earlier stages before they adjust to them, to the extent that they will need exposure to special education programs. From exposing students to high quality instruction models and interventions at the very initial stages of the problems detected, the model is able to prevent these subjects from falling behind their counterparts. This paper is an appraisal of RTI models to determine the ideas that are familiar, those that are new and intriguing, and those that seem confusing and impractical (Hale 16-27). Discussion Some of the assumptions adopted by the RTI model form the core aspect of learning of different students, and provide a framework for understanding the reality s urrounding the learning ability of all learners. Some of the ideas contained in the assumptions adopted by RTI clearly define the dynamics that need to be introduced into the delivery of education towards realizing a more accommodative model of education for all learners. These ideas are discussed below (Sahlberg 167). The educational structure can successfully teach all learners – despite the imminent personality and intellectual variations between one learner and the other. From the study of Sahlberg (167), the ability of teachers to offer instructions from research based approaches depending on the success of the given model improves the performance of different students in a significant manner. The use of innovative models in offering instructions to learners can also accommodate both slow and fast learning students, including support of abstract ideas with diagrams, demonstrations and descriptions, all supposed to create better understanding. The problem-solving abilitie s of teachers also contribute greatly to the success of low-performing students as these are cultivated into the learning model. Some of the traits introduced into this approach include planning, reflection, evaluation and action to integrate what is taught at classes (Sahlberg 10). Based on these reviewed facts, it is clear that the introduction of research-based instructions, adopting those that work best, instructing using innovative models and cultivating instruction absorption models among the students can greatly influence the performance of different learners – both fast and slow. These facts, therefore, can be applied to prove the credibility of the idea presented by RTI that an effective learning system can effectively teach all students. From class and group work during my course, I have experienced the fact that student-based instruction models can foster the performance of different learners including those that are intellectually challenged. An example is a case where diagrams were greatly helpful in cultivating the success of group members, especially those who could not comprehend abstract ideas substantially (Sahlberg 167). RTI models also work on the basis of the principle that early intervention is vital towards avoiding the development of learning-based problems. From the case of Finnish schools explained in Sahlberg (155), the training of teachers to make them highly capable of detecting and diagnosing problems among their students, classrooms and schools has been a great step towards addressing the learning

Statistics of Migrants in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 8250 words

Statistics of Migrants in the UK - Essay Example Migration is a prevalent issue especially in developed nations and even those surrounded by relatively low-income economies. People are generally found to traverse from one place to another for a number of reasons, varying from the propensity of being employed to an increased level of per capita income. But, the question of migration turns out to be a glitch owing to social factors more than those arising from economic aspects. The problems which crop up in such instances are those related to ethnicity and the country of origin which operates behind the culture that the migrants are habituated to, as well as their compatibility with the citizens of the nation where they decide to move in. Matters associated with the employment of the migrants are dependent upon the labour rights of the respective nations; in most of the cases, they are related to matters aligned with their nationality which however, could be taken care of officially. In fact, the member nations of European Union do n ot face any difficulty in such matters, given that their labour markets provide an automatic entrance to the migrants from the co-member nations. Nevertheless, the concern about being able to integrate socially is actually a major point to be stressed upon while discussing migration factors. Inability to integrate with the local environment is often treated as a primary reason behind reduced levels of labor productivity. Thus, the nation which faces the problem of migration might suffer from an economic shortfall from this aspect, with an almost unchanged demographic stance and lowered levels of per capita income that tilts its domestic growth rate in a negative way. The present paper is an empirical work in this area with regard to the case of the United Kingdom that witnessed a net immigration of 100 thousand per annum between  the years 1991 and 2000, prior to which it had experienced a trough in the statistics. In fact, migration statistics had been exhibiting a hike in its tr ends hitherto, with the latest figure standing at 176,000 compared to 143,000 in the phase 2001-2002 itself.