Cross-Cultural Reviews

Putting it out there...

2012-01-21T17:51:00.000+09:00

Angkor Wat, Siem Reap Tour Recommendation: Botra Tuk Tuk Driver

2012-01-03T11:57:00.001+09:00

Are you planning a couple hours or multi-day tour of Angkor Wat? Do you have a small budget? I recommend Botra a Tuk Tuk driver who lives in the village across from the Angkor Wat Complex. He worked for a Canadian NGO CIDA for nearly a decade and is an agricultural engineer technician and instructor. His English is excellent and you will find him honest, kind and informative. He was an excellent tour guide. Ask him how much he wants for the tour and then double it. Botra, Tuk Tuk DriverHis email is botra.angkor@hotmail.com Mobile phone number: (855) 1729-19097

2011-12-24T10:21:00.001+09:00

2011-12-23T12:20:00.000+09:00

Raising cash at Christmas bash

2011-12-21T22:32:00.000+09:00

A Christmas bash in Bucheon is to raise cash for Korean orphans on Friday night. The event at the Park bar in Jung-dong, Bucheon, will see gifts and cash collected for various orphanages in Gyeonggi Province.

Australian varsity forays into India

2011-12-21T20:55:00.004+09:00

With India becoming a preferred destination for foreign universities, it is of no surprise that the University of Wollongong is all set to open its campus in India.

UOW Business School a rising star

2011-12-21T20:24:00.000+09:00

The University of Wollongong's thriving Sydney Business School has jumped five places in the latest rankings of the top Asia-Pacific business schools.The multi-campus facility bucked the trend of some other Australian institutions, rising from 18th to 13th in the list of schools most favoured by international employers.It placed third in Australia, behind Melbourne Business School and the University of NSW.

You can almost reach out and touch them in NS

2011-12-20T13:45:00.002+09:00

Interesting Korean Neighbour

2011-12-17T20:35:00.002+09:00

"China's navy has hundreds of vessels at its disposal, among them nuclear submarines and an aircraft carrier, but it still does not come close to the huge naval firepower wielded by the United States.

Chinese President Hu Jintao called Tuesday for the country's navy to "make extended preparations for military combat", further fuelling fears over Beijing's ambitions in the highly strategic maritime area that surrounds it."

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/us-navy-still-eclipses-chinas-expanded-fleet-105412801.html

2011-12-13T02:03:00.001+09:00

Backwater - Ode to Rural Nova Scotia?

2011-12-12T16:51:00.001+09:00

Backwater
We're sailing at the edges of time
Backwater
We're drifting at the waterline
Oh we're floating in the coastal waters
You and me and the porter's daughters
Ooh what to do not a sausage to do
And the shorter of the porter's daughters
Dips her hand in the deadly waters
Ooh what to do in a tiny canoe

Black water
There were six of us but now we are five
We're all talking
To keep the conversation alive
There was a senator from Ecuador
Who talked about a meteor
That crashed on a hill in the south of Peru
And was found by a conquistador
Who took it to the emperor
And he passed it on to a Turkish guru

His daughter
Was slated for becoming divine
He taught her
He taught her how to split and define
But if you study the logistics
And heuristics of the mystics
You will find that their minds rarely move in a line
So it's much more realistic
To abandon such ballistics
And resign to be trapped on a leaf in a vine

STATEMENT OF TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

2011-12-07T14:27:00.002+09:00

STATEMENT OF TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

DANIEL J. COSTELLO, BA (ACADIA), MIB (UOW)

This statement of teaching philosophy is written to meet general application requirements. The discipline of international business excites me because world trade has expanded more than twenty-five fold since 1950. I believe it is a flexible area of teaching and research due to the nature of its growth and rewards my approaches to applying it in the field of education. My teaching path is permitted due to its growth.

My motivational strategy is assisted by the needs of my students. For example, Korea’s economic growth relies on an export market economy where business English skills are vital and essential to acquiring new markets and trade representatives abroad. So while I encourage students’ innate curiosity and desire to seek out international opportunities, I do not need to “sell them” on its relevancy. One of my inspirational teachers said that a man should carry his business in his briefcase. This impacts my teaching and learning role in international business and willingness to work almost anywhere. So my teaching and lessons are a form of customer designed service.

My lesson planning skills have become more refined over fifteen years and following graduate studies in international business, two key strengths have emerged. First, my experience of teaching English as a second language has been an advantage in international business teaching as a large proportion of students and researchers are English as second language learners. Second, my desire to improve my teaching skills has positively influenced my record of achievement in acquiring further postgraduate certificate education.

In my classroom, the basis of my lessons rely on students’ textbook knowledge preparation with extensive pair work and group work with teacher and student led discussions, short presentations, and brief introductions to general topics, shallow and wide in focus and scope. Over a regular semester syllabus as many as twelve core topics are covered at an introductory undergraduate level. These topics are halved in sophomore and junior level classes all designed with respect for departmental request that students be given an opportunity to speak about and gain confidence in the topic of international business. As a result, while I seek to minimize my focal role, I do give students clear direction in their tasks and classroom activities when they play listening roles. However their core group discussions and classroom discoveries are facilitator led and directed by me. Due to social upbringing, Korean and Chinese students are often challenged by cooperative small group activities and I believe this helps prepare them for the realities of the international business working world.

My learning outcomes are measured in a few simple ways. First, I design and deliver online based homework which reviews the classroom based lesson topics. Then, I give a written midterm and final exam based upon the homework. Midterm exams are reviewed in terms of areas requiring future improvement. Finally, speaking presentations are evaluated to measure students’ depth of interest in self-selected topics as well as public speaking skills with full rubrics.

While rare, I enjoy teaching smaller groups of students because I have more chances to focus on each individual learner that way. I have learned that I am a flexible teacher with good common sense approaches to student and classroom management. I have acquired this self-knowledge through time, trial and error. I encourage students to visit my office for regular visiting hours or appointment or to connect by telephone, by email or through online wiki services. I evaluate my teaching effectiveness by monitoring students’ level of participation in class as well as through general required student evaluations, suggestions, consultation and comments of my working peers.

I have learned that teaching is an evolving skill which requires consistent renewal and good humor. While further education is always helpful, witnessing my students’ successes is also affirming. For example, following one of my lessons about online sales and marketing a Chinese student set up a website selling Skype card accounts. He has since returned to China and joined the Skype China Head Office. Another graduate joined The Import Export Bank of Korea; still another started an auto export business to South East Asia. A recent graduate told me she will soon be locating to China as a regional manager of a global restaurant chain where she started ladling soup in the kitchen as a freshman. Another fellow has been posted to Chennai, India to head up an offshore trade office while yet another handles apparel orders for JC Penny. There is even one enterprising character that spent a year managing a large team on a corporate service account at a five star hotel in Florida on a study break.

While I cannot profess to a record of published research I am not incorrigible in this regard. I work and teach in isolation from my own culture and take my holidays on frequent trips around Asia and the Middle East and I value my free time. Following the high altitude of graduate studies rather than continue to a PhD program, I chose to learn the nuts and bolts of international trade and have not been idle in this regard. It is a form of practical hands on research that I have conducted. Even while a humanities undergrad my weekends and evenings were on call at a local lobster pound scaling, packing, loading, shipping and receiving live seafood for air cargo exports.

The best learning experience I have had so far is my current teaching position rewarded due to diligence and patience in my job search. Here I was kindly managed and allowed to freely grow my knowledge base and my ability to design stimulating courses for my students. But it was never my intention to live in Korea forever. So as the time comes to leave, I am confident, I will attain my next successful teaching post through further diligence and patience and be one step closer to greater mastery of my craft as I am not finished yet. ”For our pupil, a little room, a garden, table and bed, solitude, company, morning and evening; all hours shall be alike to him, and all places will be his study.” Michel de Montaigne

Bruce Cockburn - Night Train

2011-12-05T17:36:00.001+09:00

Bruce Cockburn - Night Train

Not a knife throw from here you can hear the night train passing
That's the
sound somebody makes when they're getting away
Leaving next week's hanging
jury far behind them
Prisoner only of the choices they have
made

Night Train...
Night Train...

Ice cube in a dark drink
shines like starlight
The moon is floating somewhere out at sea
On an
island in the blur of noise and color
Alcatraz, St. Alina, Patmos and the
Chateau D'if

Night Train...
Night Train...

And everyone's an
island edged with sand
A temporary refuge where somebody else can
stand
Till the sea that binds us like the forced tie of a blood oath
Will
wear it down, dissolve it, recombine it

Anyone can die here they do it
every day
It doesn't take much effort though it goes against the
grain
And the ultimate forgetfulness of violence
Sweeps the landscape
like a headlight of a train

Night Train...

Ice cube in a dark
drink shines like starlight
Starlight shines like glass shards in dark
hair
And the mind's eye tumbles out along the steel track
Fixing every
shadow with its stare

Night Train...
Night Train...

And in the
absence of a vision there are nightmares
And in the absence of compassion
there is cancer
Whose banner waves over palaces and mean streets
And the
rhythm of the night train is a mantra

Dreams for Sale: Lehigh Acres and the Florida Foreclosure Crisis

2011-11-28T20:05:00.000+09:00

I liked this video a lot so sharing it here.

Ain't Too Proud to Beg

2011-11-22T08:22:00.002+09:00

Ain't Too Proud to Beg

I know you wanna leave me,
But I refuse to let you go
If I have to beg and plead for your sympathy,
I don't mind coz' you mean that much to me

Ain't too proud to beg, sweet darlin
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me, girl, don't you go

Now I heard a cryin' man,
Is half a man with no sense of pride
But if I have to cry to keep you,
I don't mind weepin' if it'll keep you by my side

Ain't to proud to beg, sweet darlin
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go

If I have to sleep on your doorstep
All night and day just to keep you from walkin' away
Let your friends laugh, even this I can stand
Because I want to keep you any way I can

Ain't too proud to beg, sweet darlin'
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go

Now I've gotta love so deep in the pit of my heart
And each day it grows more and more
I'm not ashamed to come and plead to you baby
If pleadin' keeps you from walkin' out that door

Ain't too proud to beg, you know it sweet darlin'
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Ain't to proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me girl, don't you go
Baby, baby, baby, baby (sweet darling)

Stan Rogers - Guysborough Train

2011-11-14T09:38:00.001+09:00

Now there's no train to Guysborough,
Or so the man said,
So it might be a good place to be...
I sit in this station,
And I count up my change,
And I wait for the Guysborough train...

Now I've sat in your kitchens,
And talked about walls,
And I've sung about your withering pain,
Shattered your temples,
And I've brought on your fall,
Now I wait for the Guysborough train...

CHR: And I ride for all time, on the Guysborough line,
And I grow by the North Country rain,
And the North Shore's begun, the man I've become,
In rags, on the Guysborough train...

No train to Guysborough
Now ain't that a shame,
Though I know there will be one in time,
And the house that's alone,
It soon will be gone,
Razed for the Guysborough line

CHR: And I ride for all time, on the Guysborough line,
And I grow by the North Country rain,
And the North Shore's begun, the man I've become,
In rags, on the Guysborough train...

People are simple,
Like the rain clouds sweet,
Both grown by that North Country rain,
The Interval is clear,
Will it soon disappear,
Under the Guysborough train?

CHR: And I ride for all time, on the Guysborough line,
And I grow by the North Country rain,
And the North Shore's begun, the man I've become,
In rags, on the Guysborough train..

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T13:12:00.001+09:00

Bravado

If we burn our wings
Flying too close to the sun
If the moment of glory
Is over before it's begun
If the dream is won --
Though everything is lost
We will pay the price,
But we will not count the cost
[ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsfreak.com/r/rush/bravado_20120045.html ]
When the dust has cleared
And victory denied
A summit too lofty
River a little too wide
If we keep our pride
Though paradise is lost
We will pay the price,
But we will not count the cost

And if the music stops
There's only the sound of the rain
All the hope and glory,
All the sacrifice in vain
And if love remains
Though everything is lost
We will pay the price,
But we will not count the cost

This is the point?

2011-10-17T16:03:00.000+09:00

KA-BREW'S Han River Boat Cruise Halloween Party 2011

2011-10-16T13:25:00.001+09:00

Read full details here.

Friday's "Save the Weiner" Benefit

2011-10-05T22:01:00.001+09:00

VIDEO: Grand Pre to show off views to public - Nova Scotia - CBC News

2011-09-26T15:14:00.001+09:00

VIDEO: Grand Pre to show off views to public - Nova Scotia - CBC News

Grand Pre

Ready for the Storm

2011-09-22T19:58:00.001+09:00

"Just a Boo-Boo"

2011-09-21T09:44:00.000+09:00

I think I'll be playing this at The Road King in Cheongju tomorrow night?

2011-09-16T22:42:00.002+09:00

You, Yes You, Stand Still Laddie!

When we grew up and went to school, there were certain teachers who would hurt the children anyway they could
by pouring their derision upon anything we did
exposing every weakness however carefully hidden by the kids.

But in the town it was well known that when they got home at night
their fat and psychopathic wives
Would thrash them within inches of their lives!

ooooooooooooo, oooooooo, ooooooooooo, ooooooooo, ooooooooo, ooooooooo,oooo.

We don't need no education
We don’t need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave them kids alone
Hey! Teacher! Leave them kids alone!
All in all it's just another brick in the wall.
All in all you're just another brick in the wall.

(A bunch of kids singing) We don't need no education
We don’t need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave them kids alone
Hey! Teacher! Leave us kids alone!
All in all it's just another brick in the wall.
All in all you're just another brick in the wall.

Spoken:
"Wrong, Guess again!
Wrong, Guess again!
If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding.
How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?
You! Yes, you behind the bikesheds, stand still laddie!"

[Sound of many TV's coming on, all on different channels]
"The Bulls are already out there"
Pink: "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrgh!"
"This Roman Meal bakery thought you'd like to know."

I don't need no arms around me
And I dont need no drugs to calm me.
I have seen the writing on the wall.
Don't think I need anything at all.
No! Don't think I'll need anything at all.
All in all it was all just bricks in the wall.
All in all you were all just bricks in the wall.

Cool tune, I like it.

2011-08-31T23:10:00.001+09:00

If you need me, I will run to you
And if you call me, out of the blue
I will run to catch you as you fall on me

And it's no surprise that you'll soon forget about me

So slow it down
And take it easy

If you want me, I will be right here
And if you love me, you will notice me here

And it's no surprise that your eyes are crying my name
And it's no surprise that my eyes are seeing the same

So slow it down
And take it easy

Joni Mitchell: Hejira - perfect for rainy days

2011-08-08T15:43:00.003+09:00

Joni Mitchell

I'm traveling in some vehicle
I'm sitting in some cafe
A defector from the petty wars
That shell shock love away
There's comfort in melancholy
When there's no need to explain
It's just as natural as the weather
In this moody sky today
In our possessive coupling
So much could not be expressed
So now I'm returning to myself
These things that you and I suppressed
I see something of myself in everyone
Just at this moment of the world
As snow gathers like bolts of lace
Waltzing on a ballroom girl

You know it never has been easy
Whether you do or you do not resign
Whether you travel the breadth of extremities
Or stick to some straighter line
Now here's a man and a woman sitting on a rock
They're either going to thaw out or freeze
Listen...
Strains of Benny Goodman
Coming thru' the snow and the pinewood trees
I'm porous with travel fever
But you know I'm so glad to be on my own
Still somehow the slightest touch of a stranger
Can set up trembling in my bones
I know - no one's going to show me everything
We all come and go unknown
Each so deep and superficial
Between the forceps and the stone

Well I looked at the granite markers
Those tribute to finality - to eternity
And then I looked at myself here
Chicken scratching for my immortality
In the church they light the candles
And the wax rolls down like tears
There's the hope and the hopelessness
I've witnessed thirty years
We're only particles of change I know, I know
Orbiting around the sun
But how can I have that point of view
When I'm always bound and tied to someone
White flags of winter chimneys
Waving truce against the moon
In the mirrors of a modern bank
>From the window of a hotel room

I'm traveling in some vehicle
I'm sitting in some cafe
A defector from the petty wars
Until love sucks me back that way

Nova Scotia Renewable Energy Feed-in Tariffs

2011-08-03T21:59:00.002+09:00

An opportunity in Nova Scotia renewable energy exists with the Nova Scotia Government’s process of implementing a Feed-in Tariff (FIT) policy. FIT policies typically increase the amount of renewable energy produced in a region by paying people a higher than the retail price for electricity they produce. On July 4th 2011, the NS Community Feed in Tariff (COMFIT) rates were announced:

• Wind Power over 50 kW: $0.139/kWh
• Wind Power under 50 kW: $0.452/kWh
• Biomass (combined heat and power): $0.156/kWh (to be reviewed regularly)
• In-stream Tidal Power under 0.5 MW: $0.652/kWh
• Run-of-the-river Hydroelectricity: $0.14/kWh

Information on Nova Scotia’s COMFIT is provided online (http://www.nsrenewables.ca/feed-tariffs/community-corporations/quick-guide) and participation in the program can be achieved through the formation of a CO-OP.

The Colchester Regional Development Association (CoRDA) is proposing to support the forestry and farming industries in Nova Scotia through a process of sector consultations and workshops that will allow foresters and farmers to participate in the COMFIT program.

If there are any questions please contact CoRDA at ewicks@corda.ca

Tracy M. Thompson

Forestry Extension Assistant

Department of Natural Resources

P.O. Box 698

Halifax NS B3J 2T9

thompstz@gov.ns.ca

Phone: (902) 722-1066

Fax: (902) 424-7735

Rock and Roll Girls

2011-07-31T14:07:00.000+09:00

Sometimes I think life is just a rodeo,
The trick is to ride and make it to the bell.
But there is a place, sweet as you will ever know,
In music and love, and things you never tell.
You see it in their face, secrets on the telephone,
A time out of time, for you and no one else.

Chorus:
Hey let’s go all over the world,
Rock and roll girls, rock and roll girls.

Yeah, yeah, yeah!

If I had my way, I’d shuffle off to buffalo;
Sit by the lake, and watch the world go by.
Ladies in the sun, listenin’ to the radio,
Like flowers on the sand, a rainbow in my mind.

Chorus
Chorus
Chorus

Yeah, yeah yeah!

Great sax tune

2011-07-31T13:49:00.002+09:00

Blue Jean-I just met me a girl named Blue Jean

Blue Jean-she got a camouflaged face and no money
Remember they always let you down when you need 'em

Oh, Blue Jean - is heaven any sweeter than Blue Jean
She got a police bike
She got a turned up nose

Sometimes I feel like
(Oh, the whole human race)
Jazzin' for Blue Jean
(Oh, and when my Blue Jean's blue)
Blue Jean can send me
(Oh, somebody send me)
Somebody send me
(Oh, somebody send me)

One day I'm gonna write a poem in a letter
One day I'm gonna get that faculty together
Remember that everybody has to wait in line
Blue Jean-look out world you know I've got mine
She got Latin roots
She got everything

CertIBET Pass with Distinction

2011-07-28T19:17:00.004+09:00

2011 Trinity CertIBET Pass with Distinction.

CertIBET – Written Assignment

Question Two

i) Select, adapt and or develop a set of materials for a six hour segment of a business

English programme. Relate your materials to an individual business English learner or

group at a level of your choice.

ii) Provide an outline lesson plan for the six hours indicating language focus, skills and/or

purposes that the materials will support.

iii) Provide a rationale for your choice of materials and their exploitation.

Name:Daniel J. Costello Course Provider: The Consultants-e Date: January 2011

Word Count: 3364 (including cover page) 3310 (excluding cover page)

TO SEE THE COMPLETE BEAST

Trimming back the alders on Dan's Land - Baxter's Harbour

2011-07-22T08:29:00.001+09:00

Dan's Land - Baxter's Harbour from Dan Costello on Vimeo.

Couple Adopts Gorilla

2011-07-13T03:40:00.001+09:00

Saw this in Maclean's.

7th Annual Kempt Shore Acoustic Maritime Music Festival

2011-07-09T11:30:00.000+09:00

http://valleyevents.ca/images/poster/8950.png

Avoid Asiana?

2011-06-18T21:18:00.001+09:00

South Korean troops shoot at passenger jet

South Korean troops have shot at civilian passenger jet after mistaking it for a North Korean military aircraft.

Full story here.

Acadian Forest Restoration Workshop June 25th

2011-06-15T22:05:00.001+09:00

You are invited to attend a free workshop, hosted by the Mersey Tobeatic Research Insitute, on Acadian Forest Restoration. The workshop will be held at MTRI in Kempt, NS on Saturday, June 25, 1-4pm.

In this afternoon session, you will learn all about sustainable, small-scale forestry operations. Topics will range from growing trees from seed, to feeling trees in tight spots, to sawing custom lumber with a portable sawmill. Come to learn about the beginning to end of a simple forestry operation.

To register, please call (902) 682-2371. For more information, you may visit their website atwww.merseytobeatic.ca or e-mail info@merseytobeatic.ca.

Please see the attached poster.

Kind regards,

Tracy Thompson

Tracy M. Thompson

Forestry Extension Assistant

Department of Natural Resources

P.O. Box 698

Halifax NS B3J 2T9

thompstz@gov.ns.ca

Phone: (902) 722-1066

Fax: (902) 424-7735

Tracy M. Thompson

Forestry Extension Assistant

Department of Natural Resources

P.O. Box 698

Halifax NS B3J 2T9

thompstz@gov.ns.ca

Phone: (902) 722-1066

Fax: (902) 424-7735

Fattening Frogs For Snakes

2011-06-13T18:46:00.001+09:00

Fattening Frogs For Snakes

by
Sonny Boy Williamson II (Rice Miller)
recording of 19
from
The Essential Sonny Boy Williamson (Chess/MCA 9343)

It took me a long time to find out my mistakes
Took me a long time to find out my mistakes
it sho'h did man
But I bet you my bottom dollar I'm not fattenin' no more frogs for snakes
I found out my downfall back in nineteen and thirty eight
I started checkin'
I found out my downfall from nineteen and thirty eight
I'm tellin' all of my friends I'm not fattenin' no more frogs for snakes
All right now
Yeah it is nineteen and fifty-seven I've got to correct all of my mistakes
Whoa man nineteen and fifty-seven I've got to correct all of my mistakes
I'm tellin' my friends includin' my wife and everybody else
not fattenin' no more frogs for snakes

South Korea to Weigh Rate Increase as Household Debt Poses Risk for Growth

2011-06-10T09:48:00.001+09:00

Financial liabilities of individuals in South Korea were 155.4 percent of disposable income at the end of 2010, “one of the highest ratios globally” and still climbing, Young Il Choi, an analyst at Moody’s Investors Service, said in a report last month.

Read more here.

Sonny's Dream: Ron Hynes

2011-06-01T22:03:00.000+09:00

Sonny's Dream
(Ron Hynes)

Sonny lives on a farm on a wide open space
Where you can take off your sneakers and give up the race
You could lay down your head by a sweet river bed
But Sonny always remembers what it was his Mama said

Sonny carries a load though he's barely a man
There ain't all that to do, still he does what he can
And he watches the sea from a room by the stairs
And the waves keep on rollin', they've done that for years

cho: Oh, Sonny don't go away, I am here all alone
And your daddy's a sailor who never comes home
And the nights get so long and the silence goes on
And I'm feeling so tired, I'm not all that strong

And it's a hundred miles to town, Sonny's never been there
And he goes to the highway and stands there and stares
And the mail comes at four and the mailman is old
Oh, but he still dreams his dreams full of silver and gold

Sonny's dreams can't be real, they're just stories he's read
They're just stars in his eyes, they're just dreams in his head
And he's hungry inside for the wide world outside
And I know I can't hold him though I've tried and I've tried

Oh, Sonny don't go away, I am here all alone
And your daddy's a sailor who never comes home
And the nights get so long and the silence goes on
And I'm feeling so tired, I'm not all that strong

Broken Bells - The High Road: For those who miss playing pong?

2011-05-31T09:14:00.002+09:00

Broken Bells - The High Road

We're bound to wait all night.
She's bound to run amok.
Invested enough in it anyhow,
To each his own...

The Garden needs sorting out.
She curls her lips on the bow,
And I don't know if I'm dead or not,
To anyone...

Come on and get the minimum,
Before you open up your eyes.
This army has so many heads,
To analyze...

Come on and get your overdose.
Collect it at the borderline,
And they want to get up in your head...

Cause they know and so do I.
The high road is hard to find.
A detour to your new life.
Tell all of your friends goodbye.

The dawn to end all nights,
That's all we hoped it was.
A break from the warfare in your house,
To each his own...

A soldier is bailing out.
He curled his lips on the barrel.
And I don't know if the dead can talk,
To anyone...

Come on and get the minimum.
Before you open up your eyes.
This army has so many hands,
Are you one of us?

Come on and get your overdose.
Collect it at the borderline,
And they want to get up in your head...

Cause they know and so do I.
The high road is hard to find.
A detour to your new life.
Tell all of your friends goodbye.

It's too late to change your mind,
You let loss be your guide.

It's too late to change your mind,
You let loss be your guide.

It's too late to change your mind,
You let loss be your guide.

It's too late to change your mind,
You let loss be your guide.

Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul

2011-05-25T15:12:00.000+09:00

Faculty members (full-time) needed for Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul

Position Opening

1. Period: September 1, 2011 – August 31, 2012 (The contract can be extended every 1 year, posterior to the performance evaluation)

2. Qualifications: Candidates should have at least an MA (or equivalent) in Business Administration such as Strategic Management, International Business, Finance, Marketing, Supply Chain Management, Operational Management, Information Management, Service Management, or Management Science

* Recruitment: 3-4 faculty members.

3. Salary:
- Full Professor (e.g. Person possessing at least 11 years education experience at Universities): 4,652,500 Won per month (Korean Currency)
- Associate Professor (e.g. Person possessing at least 6 years education experience at Universities): 4,148,000 Won per month
- Assistant Professor (e.g. Person possessing at least 2 years education experience at Universities): 3,627,200 Won per month
- Full-time Lecturer (e.g. Person who doesn't have education experience at Universities): 3,108,700 Won per month

* 1. Successful candidate will receive 12 months salary for the first year.
2. If you work for one year you will receive 13 months salary from the second year.
3. For reference, approximate exchange rate is $1,100-1,150/USD.

4. Travel: One-way air plane ticket from (departure) to Seoul (economy class for the faculty member and his/her spouse)

* University will purchase an air plane ticket and send it to foreign faculty by E-Mail (electronic ticket form)

5. Accommodations: Dormitory for foreign professors (single room or family room)

6. Documents required: Curriculum vitae at the initial stage

* Successful candidates will need to submit Certificate of employment in English, Photo Copy of diplomas (such as BA, MA, Ph.D), Research / publications list in English, Copy of passport (including your family, incase come with a family), Certificate of marriage if possible, Certificate of children's birth if possible, family member's photos in Korea.

7. Other benefits:

- Publication in Korean domestic journals
Support of 1,000,000 won will be given as a basic for one academic paper, and an additional 2,000,000 won will be given as support for one additional paper. Maximum frequency of support is twice per year for each faculty member.

- Publication in international journals indexed in SSCI (i.e. social science citation index)
8,000,000 won will be given for each paper. Maximum frequency of support is twice per year for faculty member.

* 1. The amount is decreased for the articles written by more than one author.
2. University will provide 70% of the total grants for collaboration publishment (2 authors)
3. All academic papers supported by Hankuk University of Foreign Studies are required the citation at the bottom of their first pages as described below:
This work was supported by Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Research Fund

8. Deadline: May 31, 2011.

9. Documents should be mailed to leedspark@hufs.ac.kr

Johnny Cash: Ghost Riders in the Sky

2011-05-25T13:05:00.001+09:00

Hello Love

2011-05-24T09:32:00.001+09:00

Hello Love sung by Hank Snow (written by Aileen Mnich and Betty Jean Robinson)

Well, look who's comin' through the door
I think we've met somewhere before. hello love, hello love
Where in the world have you been so long
I've missed you so since you've been gone, hello love, hello love.

Make yourself feel right at home
I hope you plan on staying long, come in love, come in love
I must say I was sure surprised
You're the last thing I expected by, hello love, hello love.

I've heard it said time and again
You often go back where you've been
I really didn't believe it was true
But I left the door unlocked for you.

I'll try to please you in every way
Assure you of a pleasant stay this time love, this time love
I've been so blue since you've been gone
Now you're back with me and nothing's wrong, hello love, hello love.

--- Instrumental ---

I've heard it said time and again
You often go back where you've been
I really didn't believe it was true
But I left the door unlocked for you.

And it's wonderful now you're back with me
And things are like they used to be, remember love, remember love
You're back with me now and my world's complete
So don't mind me if I repeat, hello love, hello love, hello love, hello love...

Tuvan Throat Singing

2011-05-24T08:53:00.001+09:00

Always enjoy a little Tuvan throat singing from time to time.

Full-time faculty position, Department of e-Trade, Keimyung Univ.

2011-05-12T13:41:00.000+09:00

Full-time faculty position, Department of e-Trade, Keimyung Univ.

Position: Tenure or non-tenure track full-time faculty position Salary: Around $50,000 for tenure track faculty (negotiable) and minimum 3.0 million won per month for non-tenure track faculty Institution: Department of e-Trade, College of Social Science, Keimyung Univ. Location: Daegu, South Korea Date posted: 4/26/2011 Application deadline: 6/30/2011

Faculty of the department of e-Trade in the College of Social Science at Keimyung University invites applicants for a tenure-track faculty position (non-Korean international staff only). Keimyung University, founded in 1954 to provide Christian higher education just after the Korean War, is a well-established academic institution in Daegu, South Korea. Keimyung University proudly leads the globalization of the region, raising future international leaders and experts who can contribute to the world peace and welfare.

Required Qualifications Candidates must have a doctorate degree for tenure track in general management (e-Business/e-Commerce). For non-tenure track, candidates must have a master’s degree in applied economics and management or related fields. Candidates are expected to demonstrate excellence in teaching; an ability to collaborate with department and university faculty members; and a commitment to supervising and advising students.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities

The tenure-track candidate will have primary responsibility for teaching 9 hours a week, research, advising students, and administrative tasks. For a non-tenure track, candidates should teach 12 hours a week.

Salary and Housing Successful tenure-track candidate will get minimum $50,000 (USD) per year (negotiable). For a non-tenure track, candidates will get minimum 3.0 million won per month. Housing (on-campus) can be provided.

Application Procedure

Submit the required documentation below to the contact address (prints by airmail or scanned files by an e-mail). Finalist(s) will be individually informed of the interview.

Required Documentation - Cover Letter - Resume (including an e-mail address, education, research list, and others) - Diplomas (for BA, MA, and PhD) - Transcripts (of BA, MA, and PhD courses)

Finalists will be required to submit the original copies of the above documentation and other relevant materials (e.g. PhD dissertation, career certificates, and others)

Contact Information

Professor Kunwoo Yang (Department Chair)

Email: kwyang@kmu.ac.kr

Phone: 82-53-580-6959

Address: College of Social Science, Keimyung University

2800 Dalgubeoldaero, Dalseo-Gu, Daegu, Korea 704-7

Information about Keimyung University can be found at www.kmu.ac.kr/e_kmu/.

Ducks and the Deep Hole

2011-05-11T15:11:00.000+09:00

The Deep Hole

Two guys are walking down a road when they come across a deep hole beside it. Being curious, they go over and check it out. When they look down, they are surprised to find they can't see the bottom. So they drop a couple of rocks down the hole and listen... Nothing. One of them says, "Man, that's a deep hole!"

Thinking they might hear something larger hit the bottom, they find a big, old cinder block and pitch it over the side. The pause and listen intently... They hear a sound, but it is coming from behind them! They quickly turn around to see a goat bearing down on them with it head lowered, flying along, its feet barely touching the ground, its moving so fast!

The two men dive out of its way just in time and the goat plunges past them, into the seemingly bottomless hole, to its doom. The two look at each other and say, "Boy that was close! We'd better get away from this thing before we end up with the goat!".

So they continue on their way down the road until they happen across this farmer working near it. The men again put their heads together and figure that the goat belongs to the farmer and the decide to tell him what happened.

"Hey Mr. Farmer. Do you happen to own a goat?", one of the men asked.

The farmer replies, "Yeah, why do you ask?"

The men then tell what happened at the hole and how they narrowly avoided death in the hole from the speeding goat.

The farmer said, "Well boys, I don't think that was my goat. You see, my goat is really old and crippled up with arthritis. There is no way he could have been moving that fast. Besides, I have him tied to a big, old cinder block."

Amen!

2011-05-11T09:54:00.002+09:00

GOD, FOR TODAY, help me to choose wisely in my relationships next time...if there is a next time. Guide me to a relationship where I am free to be myself, warts and all - a relationship where I'm free to have a time out of giving (during a physical illness, a deep grieving over the death of a loved one) without being punished.

I want a relationship where my partner is able to step forward in my time of need to lovingly care for me. I am a good caring person. I deserve to receive the kind of love that I offer. (Lynne Melville)

Challenging the Abyss: Dharma on Edge and The Drama Triangle

2011-05-10T17:19:00.004+09:00

Challenging the Abyss: Dharma on Edge and The Drama Triangle from Fleet Maull

“Sweet is revenge, especially to women.”

"Lord Byron, who wrote those famous words, discovered that a woman’s revenge can be lifelong. He became caught up in what is nowadays a recognised psychological and social model: The Drama Triangle."

The Gambler

2011-05-10T16:51:00.001+09:00

Kenny Rogers - The Gambler

On a warm summer's eve
On a train bound for nowhere
I met up with the gambler
We were both too tired to sleep
So we took turns a-starin'
Out the window at the darkness
The boredom overtook us, he began to speak

He said, "Son, I've made a life
Out of readin' people's faces
Knowin' what the cards were
By the way they held their eyes
So if you don't mind my sayin'
I can see you're out of aces
For a taste of your whiskey
I'll give you some advice"

So I handed him my bottle
And he drank down my last swallow
Then he bummed a cigarette
And asked me for a light
And the night got deathly quiet
And his faced lost all expression
He said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy
You gotta learn to play it right

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
Know when to run
You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

Every gambler knows
That the secret to survivin'
Is knowin' what to throw away
And knowin' what to keep
'Cause every hand's a winner
And every hand's a loser
And the best that you can hope for
Is to die in your sleep"

And when he finished speakin'
He turned back toward the window
Crushed out his cigarette
And faded off to sleep
And somewhere in the darkness
The gambler he broke even
And in his final words
I found an ace that I could keep

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run
You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

You've got to know when to hold 'em
(When to hold 'em)
Know when to fold 'em
(When to fold 'em)
Know when to walk away
And know when to run
You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run
You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

My Reading List and On Order List

2011-05-10T16:19:00.003+09:00

My Reading List and On Order List

1. The Wizard of Oz and Other Narcissists: Coping with the One-Way Relationship in Work, Love, and Family (20002) Eleanor Payson

2. Why Men Love Bitches (2009) Sherry Argov

3. Vampires: Emotional Predators Who Want to Suck the Life Out of You (1998) Daniel and Kathleen Rhodes

4. Emotional Blackmail: When the People in Your Life Use Fear, Obligation and Guilt to Manipulate You (1998) Susan Forward

5. Emotional Vampires: Dealing With People Who Drain You Dry (2002) Albert Bernstein

6. Say Goodbye to Your PDI: Recognize People Who Make You Miserable and Eliminate Them from Your Life for Good! (2007) Stan Kapuchinski

7. No More Mr. Nice Guy! (2003) Robert A. Glover

Boomerang Love: Getting Unhooked from Abusive Borderline Relationships

2011-05-10T16:07:00.002+09:00

Boomerang Love: Getting Unhooked from Abusive Borderline Relationships

"Deborah Harper, President of Psychjourney interviews Ms. Lynn Melville, author of Boomerang Love: Getting Unhooked from Abusive Borderline Relationships published by Melville Publications.

Lynn Melville has served as Executive Director of the Mental Health Association in her hometown. Working with an all-volunteer board and community volunteers, she worked to educate people about mental health issues. Since the publication of her book, she's been very busy educating domestic violence victims about this disorder and telephone-coaching people all over the country who are struggling to leave these Borderline relationships."

Podcast: Boomerang Love: Getting Unhooked from Abusive Borderline Relationships

Stephanie Price: Fusion Anxiety In Borderline Relationships

2011-05-10T15:57:00.001+09:00

"What causes people with borderline personality disorder to push and pull in relationships? Stephanie explains how death anxiety and fears of intimacy and abandonment play a key role in contributing to the stormy nature of borderline relationships."

Disarming the Narcissist Podcast: Wendy T. Behary and Armand DiMele

2011-05-10T15:42:00.002+09:00

Radio Interview (4/9/08) Wendy T. Behary with: Armand DiMele, The Positive Mind 99.5 WBAI

Asia faces significant barriers to long-term growth

2011-05-09T17:37:00.000+09:00

Asia faces significant barriers to long-term growth

BY JONATHAN MANTHORPE, VANCOUVER SUN MAY 9, 2011 1:05 AM

It is not preordained that Asia will come to dominate the global economy during this century, the president of the Asian Development Bank, Haruhiko Kuroda, said last week.

Commenting on a report on Asian economies prepared by the bank for its annual meeting held in Hanoi, Kuroda said the region faces several daunting challenges and risks if it is to fulfil its potential.

The Spinning Wheel, Impermanence and Amelia

2011-05-09T15:30:00.003+09:00

"All is impermanent. And what is the all that is impermanent? The eye is impermanent, visual objects [ruupaa]... eye-consciousness... eye contact [cakku-samphassa]... whatever is felt [vedayita] as pleasant or unpleasant or neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant, born of eye-contact is impermanent. [Likewise with the ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind]" (SN 35.43/vol. iv, 28)

Joni Mitchell
Amelia

I was driving across the burning desert
When I spotted six jet planes
Leaving six white vapor trails across the bleak terrain
It was the hexagram of the heavens
It was the strings of my guitar
Amelia it was just a false alarm

The drone of flying engines
Is a song so wild & blue
It scrambles time & seasons if it gets through to you
Then your life becomes a travelogue
Of picture post card charms
Oh Amelia it was just a false alarm

People'll tell you where they've gone
They'll tell you where to go
But till you get there yourself you'll never really know
Where some have found their paradise
Other's just come to harm
Oh Amelia it was just a false alarm

I wish that he was here tonight
It's so hard to obey
His sad request of me to kindly stay away
So this is how I hide the hurt
As the road leads cursed and charmed
I tell Amelia it was just a false alarm

A ghost of aviation
She was swallowed by the sky
Or by the sea like me she had a dream to fly
Like Icarus ascending
On beautiful foolish arms
Amelia it was just a false alarm

Maybe I've never really loved
I guess that is the truth
I've spent my whole life in clouds at icy altitude
And looking down on everything
I crashed into his arms
Amelia it was just a false alarm

I pulled into the Cactus Tree Motel
To shower off the dust
And I slept on the strange pillows of my wanderlust
I dreamed of 747s
Over geometric farms
Dreams Amelia
Dreams & false alarms

From the album Hejira

Gillis Mountain

2011-05-09T01:17:00.000+09:00

Gillis Mountain

I took a trip up Gillis Mountain
On a sunny summer day
There were ruts in the road,
And the 4 wheel drive
Spun its wheels in the rocks and the clay
Yes it spun its wheels in the rocks and the clay

On our way up Gillis Mountain
On that sunny summer day
There were spruce trees growing on the fields
Where'r forefathers once made hay,
Where our forefathers once made hay,
And Oh Ooh Ooh, Gillis Mountain
Oh Ooh Ooh, Where'r forefathers once made hay

The Gillis's lived on the mountain
For about a hundred years
Where we picked berries, they cleared land
Spent their blood and sweat and tears
They spent their blood and sweat and tears
And Oh Ooh Ooh, Gillis Mountain
Oh Ooh Ooh, Spent their blood and sweat and tears

When we arrived on Gillis Mountain
You could see for miles in the light
The whitecaps on the sea of blue
Sparkled like diamonds in the night
They sparkled like diamonds in the night
And Oh Ooh Ooh, Gillis Mountain
Oh Ooh Ooh, Sparkled like diamonds in the night

And Oh Ooh Ooh, Gillis Mountain
Oh Ooh Ooh, sparkled like diamonds in the night

Rise Again!

2011-05-09T00:30:00.001+09:00

The Mary Ellen Carter

She went down last October in a pouring driving rain.
The skipper, he'd been drinking and the Mate, he felt no pain.
Too close to Three Mile Rock, and she was dealt her mortal blow,
And the Mary Ellen Carter settled low.
There were five of us aboard her when she finally was awash.
We'd worked like hell to save her, all heedless of the cost.
And the groan she gave as she went down, it caused us to proclaim
That the Mary Ellen Carter would rise again.

Well, the owners wrote her off; not a nickel would they spend.
She gave twenty years of service, boys, then met her sorry end.
But insurance paid the loss to them, they let her rest below.
Then they laughed at us and said we had to go.
But we talked of her all winter, some days around the clock,
For she's worth a quarter million, afloat and at the dock.
And with every jar that hit the bar, we swore we would remain
And make the Mary Ellen Carter rise again.

Rise again, rise again, that her name not be lost
To the knowledge of men.
Those who loved her best and were with her till the end
Will make the Mary Ellen Carter rise again.

All spring, now, we've been with her on a barge lent by a friend.
Three dives a day in hard hat suit and twice I've had the bends.
Thank God it's only sixty feet and the currents here are slow
Or I'd never have the strength to go below.
But we've patched her rents, stopped her vents, dogged hatch and
porthole down.
Put cables to her, 'fore and aft and birded her around.
Tomorrow, noon, we hit the air and then take up the strain.
And watch the Mary Ellen Carter Rise Again.

For we couldn't leave her there, you see, to crumble into scale.
She'd saved our lives so many times, living through the gale
And the laughing, drunken rats who left her to a sorry grave
They won't be laughing in another day. . .
And you, to whom adversity has dealt the final blow
With smiling bastards lying to you everywhere you go
Turn to, and put out all your strength of arm and heart and brain
And like the Mary Ellen Carter, rise again.

Rise again, rise again - though your heart it be broken
And life about to end
No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend.
Like the Mary Ellen Carter, rise again.

Al Green-How Can You Mend A Broken Heart

2011-05-07T22:25:00.001+09:00

Al Green-How Can You Mend A Broken Heart

I can think of younger days when living for my life
Was everything a man could want to do
I could never see tomorrow, but I was never told about the sorrow

And how can you mend a broken heart?
How can you stop the rain from falling down?
How can you stop the sun from shining?
What makes the world go round?
How can you mend a this broken man?
How can a loser ever win?
Please help me mend my broken heart and let me live again

I can still feel the breeze that rustles through the trees
And misty memories of days gone by
We could never see tomorrow, no one said a word about the sorrow

And how can you mend a broken heart?
How can you stop the rain from falling down?
How can you stop the sun from shining?
What makes the world go round?
How can you mend this broken man?
How can a loser ever win?
Please help me mend my broken heart and let me live again

Cosmic Journeys: How Large is the Universe?

2011-05-06T17:40:00.000+09:00

Homeless and Forgiveness

2011-05-01T23:08:00.003+09:00

"Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness.” William Arthur Ward

Give me one reason

2011-05-01T16:59:00.002+09:00

Give me one reason

Give me one reason to stay here and I'll turn right back around Give me one reason to stay here and I'll turn right back around Said I don't wanna leave you lonely You got to make me change my mind  Baby I got your number and I know that you got mine You know that I've called you, I've called too many times You can call me baby You can call me anytime, but you got to call me  Give me one reason to stay here and I'll turn right back around Give me one reason to stay here and I'll turn right back around Said I don't wanna leave you lonely You got to make me change my mind  I don't want no one to squeeze me They might take away my life I don't want no one to squeeze me They might take away my life I just want someone to hold me And rock me through the night  This youthful heart can love you, yes, and give what you need This youthful heart can love you, girl, and give what you need But I'm too old to go chasing you around wasting my precious energy  Give me one reason to stay here, yes, and I'll turn right back around Give me one reason to stay here, whow, and I'll turn right back around Said I don't wanna leave you lonely You got to make me change my mind  Baby just gives me one reason Give me just one reason why Baby just gives me one reason Give me just one reason why I should stay Because I told you that I loved you and there ain't no more to say

Like a River

2011-04-27T14:56:00.000+09:00

Cambodian Temples: Spiritual Doorways

2011-04-25T20:01:00.011+09:00

A La Claire Fontaine

2011-04-25T17:38:00.000+09:00

Song of the Candle

2011-04-25T16:08:00.000+09:00

SONG OF THE CANDLE (1972) - Stan Rogers

capo second fret
                          
G                         C
I took up my pen tonight, I couldn't seem to write

G                   Em       C
It's like I got religion, and then I lost the light

G                 Em             C                 A
An old woman once told me, she'd always felt that way
         C              G     C                  D
She said "Taken from the mold, while it still can run

Em                                    Bm
a candle might not keep you from the cold.

C                                Bm
But buy another candle son, it's not too much to pay."

   C                                                    G  C G C
For one more try, and I had to smile before I walked away

CHORUS 1

  Em                     Bm
Tonight in a room full of candles

C                                 G
Another cup of ashes drains away

     Em                    D
And at times it gets so hard to handle

C                               Bm
Knowing one more simple song has swiftly taken wing

      C                                            G      C G C
And I'm left alone to hear the song a lonely candle sings


Coffee houses bother me, I cannot tell you why
But it never seems hello sounds as sweet as goodbye
And the waitresses in passing, remeber all your names...
They say "Look around and try to meet a single eye."
And "Empty cups will mock me if I stay, but
buy another coffee Stan, it's not too much to pay
and we will try to raise your smile
before you walk away."

TO CHORUS 1

The priest I found was nervous. He cleared his throat a lot
But framed in staned glass windows, his eyes were lost in thought
And I said "Father can you tell me, is some happiness my right?"
He said "Rather seek you joy, in the blessing of your God
and happiness from worship in His sight."
And "Buy another candle son, before you start to pray,
and don't forget to cross your breast before you walk away."

TO CHORUS 1

One too many cigarettes, slowly burning down
And the final cup of coffee was cold and full of grounds
And maybe one last pipeful might send the words around
Still underneath my hand, this night has slipped away
And leaves me as empty as this page
One more candle flickers out, the night is turning grey
And I just can't watch the dying flame
I have to walk away

CHORUS 2

Tonight I have burned all my candles
Leaving only ashes in their wake...
And at times I get so hard to handle
'Cause simple songs leave me behind, they all have taken wing
And I'm left alone to hear the song a lonely candle sings

The Rose and the Amaranth

2011-04-25T15:44:00.003+09:00

The Rose and the Amaranth

A Rose and an Amaranth blossomed side by side in a garden,

and the Amaranth said to her neighbour,

"How I envy you your beauty and your sweet scent!

No wonder you are such a universal favourite."

But the Rose replied with a shade of sadness in her voice,

"Ah, my dear friend, I bloom but for a time:

my petals soon wither and fall, and then I die.

But your flowers never fade, even if they are cut;

for they are everlasting."

"Greatness carries its own penalties."

Aesop's Fables 6th Century B.C.

You guessed it - more Cambodia pics

2011-04-24T18:47:00.007+09:00

More Cambodia Pics

2011-04-24T18:30:00.008+09:00

Hail, Festive Day!

2011-04-24T16:37:00.001+09:00

Redemption Song

2011-04-23T21:44:00.002+09:00

Redemption Song

Songwriters: HAWKINS, EDWIN R./MARLEY, BOB

Old pirates, yes, they rob I;
Sold I to the merchant ships,
Minutes after they took I
From the bottomless pit.
But my hand was made strong
By the 'and of the Almighty.
We forward in this generation
Triumphantly.
Won't you help to sing
These songs of freedom? -
'Cause all I ever have:
Redemption songs;
Redemption songs.

Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;
None but ourselves can free our minds.
Have no fear for atomic energy,
'Cause none of them can stop the time.
How long shall they kill our prophets,
While we stand aside and look? Ooh!
Some say it's just a part of it:
We've got to fulfil de book.

Won't you help to sing
These songs of freedom? -
'Cause all I ever have:
Redemption songs;
Redemption songs;
Redemption songs.

[Guitar break]

Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;
None but ourselves can free our mind.
Wo! Have no fear for atomic energy,
'Cause none of them-a can-a stop-a the time.
How long shall they kill our prophets,
While we stand aside and look?
Yes, some say it's just a part of it:
We've got to fulfil de book.
Won't you help to sing
Dese songs of freedom? -
'Cause all I ever had:
Redemption songs -
All I ever had:
Redemption songs:
These songs of freedom,
Songs of freedom.

Good Friday

2011-04-22T08:53:00.000+09:00

Blackfield - Glass House

2011-04-21T15:02:00.002+09:00

Blackfield - Glass House

Goodbye, old friend, my paranoid
We'll meet again someday
Life is running out
I guess I had enough, I need to go now

I used to live in a house of glass
Where no one comes or goes
Watching life outside

I used to stand behind the door
And hope the wind won't blow
And mess my fears around
It took me so long to find out where they're hiding

Music like rain
Over my deepest feelings
And you're faking that?
Music like rain
Over my deepest feelings
And you're faking that?

Faking that?

Goodbye, old friend, my paranoid
We'll meet again someday
Life is running out
I guess I had enough, I need to go now

Guster - Either Way

2011-04-21T13:09:00.003+09:00

"Either Way"

You were almost kind, you were almost true
Don't let me see that other side of you
You have learned in time that you must be cruel
I'll have to wait to get the best of you

Poison in everything you say
Don't you, don't you?
Wonder what difference does it make......Either way

You were almost kind, you were almost true
Why give away that other side of you
Happens every time, so it must be true

Step on a kid, he'll grow up hating you

Poison in everything you say
Don't you, don't you
Wonder what difference does it make....Either way

Were you ever kind, were you always cruel?
Who's ever seen that other side of you?
Happened every time, so it must be true?
Where did you learn it's either him or you?

You were almost kind, you were almost true
Don't let me see that other side of you
You have learned in time that you must be cruel
I'll have to wait to get the best of you

Poison in everything you say
Don't you, don't you?
Wonder what difference does it make......Either way [2x]

In Memory of The Dead: The Killing Fields and S-21

2011-04-21T11:13:00.006+09:00

Welcome Lamb

2011-04-21T08:13:00.001+09:00

He take the thunder from the mountain
He take the lightning from the sky
He bring the strong man to his bended knee
He make the young girls mama cry

You got to hidey-hide
You got to jump and run
You got to hidey hidey-hide
The old man's down the road

He got the voices speakin' riddles
He got the eye as black as coal
He got a suitcase covered with rattlesnake hide
And he stand right in the road

You got to hidey-hide
You got to jump and run away
You got to hidey hidey-hide
The old man's down the road

He make the river call your lover
He make the barking of the hound
Put the shadow across the window
When the old man comes around

You got to hidey-hide
You got to jump and run again
You got to hidey hidey-hide
The old man's down the road

The old man is down the road
The old man is down the road

"Ruby Falls" by Guster

2011-04-20T16:42:00.000+09:00

"Ruby Falls"

by Guster

Tonight
Where do we go from here?
The road to Ruby Falls has reached the end
And now we're digging in the sand
They're promising that help is on the way

Love, confession number one
Impossible and sorry
And judge, can you look the other way?
Some things are best unsaid

And now where can we go from here
When all the morning birds have gone away
Two wrongs won't navigate tonight
The afterlife is all in the end
The afterlife is ours in the end

Love, don't look me in the eye
Just wash it all down
And judge, can you let me know the way
We're outta here, straight outta here

Somewhere down buried in the sand
Two birds give out a song
And all of Ruby Falls is singing along

Sing along...

(...gone and turned away (?))
(...gonna make you pay (?))

Various Temple Shots Siem Reap Cambodia

2011-04-20T13:16:00.003+09:00

Fading Guardian Angel of Bang Melea Temple, Cambodia

2011-04-20T11:17:00.003+09:00

Alive and Kicking

2011-04-20T08:35:00.000+09:00

Control Emotions To Negotiate Successfully

2011-04-19T18:07:00.002+09:00

My students completed a case study on emotions and their impact on negotiation today and included this video in their presentation. I enjoyed the impact of Mr. Murray's excellent visuals.

Sykurmolarnir from Iceland = Niceland can seduce me anytime!

2011-04-19T09:44:00.002+09:00

Gudrun has shared her latest marketing campaign slogan, "Iceland = Niceland" and a taste of its world famous nightlife culture.

Now and Then There's A Fool Such As I

2011-04-18T00:55:00.002+09:00

Now and Then There's A Fool Such As I

by Hank Snow

Now and then there's a fool such as I
Pardon me, if I'm sentimental
When we say goodbye
Don't be angry with me should I cry
When you're gone, yet I'll dream
A little dream as years go by
Now and then there's a fool such as I

Now and then there's a fool such as I am over you
You taught me how to love
And now you say that we are through
I'm a fool, but I'll love you dear
Until the day I die
Now and then there's a fool such as I

Now and then there's a fool such as I am over you
You taught me how to love
And now you say that we are through
I'm a fool, but I'll love you dear
Until the day I die
Now and then there's a fool such as I
Now and then there's a fool such as I
Now and then there's a fool such as I

And finally The Blue Train...

2011-04-17T22:40:00.003+09:00

Carlotta sent me a wonderful slideshow of the First Class Blue Train of South Africa and it got me thinking about my life's train journeys. The longest train trip I ever took was from Kerala to Bombay and was something like 36 hours but I really can't remember. I was in a bunk for most of the trip with two wooden carved and authentic Hindu temple stanchions and a 16 kilogram rosewood carving of a male and female elephant kind of trunks reaching and touching each other.

The most amazing train trip I ever took was with Lynn on the Nilgiri Mountain Railroad from Ooty to Mettupalayam in Tamil Nadu. I found an interesting video which was apparently filmed on the roof of that train called Chaiyya Chaiyya. It should give you a sense of its majestic passage. Wikipedia describes it as, "The 'Nilagiri Passenger' train covers a distance of 26 mi (41.8 km),travels through 208 curves, 16 tunnels, and 250 bridges.The uphill journey takes around 290 minutes (4.8 hours), and the downhill journey takes 215 minutes (3.6 hours) It has the steepest track in Asia with a maximum gradient of 8.33%" The song itself has quite a message as well with English subtitles by clicking on CC.

Slideshow of Travels 2001-2011

2011-04-17T20:08:00.001+09:00

View Photo Slideshow

Make a Free Flash Slideshow

Canada Trip Summer 2011 Homeward Leg

2011-04-17T18:01:00.009+09:00

Canada Trip Summer 2011 Homeward Leg

It is Sunday April 17, 2011 and I have confirmed my bookings for a summer trip to Canada 2011. I have tired of taking the long and extremely boring flights to Nova Scotia via Newark which often exceeds ten or twelve hours in duration in favour of continued stop-overs in Amsterdam. I have managed to score two fairly low priced tickets at about 25% less cost than my last summer trip to visit mom at the Victoria General.

My departure date is June 22nd and I will arrive in Amsterdam following a couple hours brief stop-overs in both Beijing and Copenhagen airports arriving in downtown centrum probably around 7:30-8:00 PM. I will be staying for three nights at at a small boutique hotel (without curfew) on Jan Luijkenstraat directly on Museum Square across from Rijksmuseum.

Early Saturday afternoon (just before 1 PM) June 25th I will take a Thalys train to Paris arriving at The Gare du Nord just after 4:30 PM and have booked two nights accomodation nearby south of the station on Rue de Chabrol at a hotel ten minutes walk from Montmartre and supposedly near the Eiffel Tower? It's supposed to be a dumpy neighborhood but it has more character than Sun Dan Dong in Pocheon for sure. I hope to meet Fati and Pauline as Sacré-Cœur and Montmartre as well as Versailles are all on my agenda.

A return to Amsterdam on Monday evening will bring me to another boutique hotel on the Oudezijds Achterburgwal a couple of canals across from the Oudekerk in the old city centre.

My departure on Wednesday June 29th I am bound for Reykjavik where I will arrive just before midnight and remain until the evening of the next day. There I shall meet Gudrun (Kriemhild?) whom I have not seen for as long as Fatima at least seven years since I left the green fields of Fairy Meadow in Wollongong. While in Iceland I hope to sample the pickled shark (h ákarl) or smoked puffin ~reyktur lundi~ while trying to pass up the léttsteiktar svartfuglsbringur which appears to be a guillemot or seagull's cousin? Prior to after or during these Icelandic feastings I hope to take a dip in The Blue Lagoon.

Then final arrival will be Nova Scotia and the Annapolis Valley the Canadian home of my ancestors, friends and family. Perhaps in a couple of weeks I will plan the return leg. But I am halfway there.While I admit my home valley is probably one of the most beautiful places in the world the only way to confirm that is to just keep visiting.Who knows? Maybe there actually is somewhere more beautiful? I still haven't found it yet.

Take the Blue Train...

2011-04-17T15:43:00.004+09:00

* My sister Cathie introduced me to James Keelaghan as well as Oliver Schroer some years ago. This is one of his songs that really "jumped the fire lines" with numerous renditions.

ARTIST: James Keelaghan TITLE: Cold Missouri Waters Lyrics and Chords

My name is Dodge, but then you know that

It's written on the chart there at the foot end of the bed

They think I'm blind, I can't read it I've read it every word, and every word it says is death

So, Confession - is that the reason that you came

Get it off my chest before I check out of the game

Since you mention it, well there's thirteen things I'll name

Thirteen crosses high above the cold Missouri waters

/ D - Bm - / G - D A / : / Bm - G D / Bm - G A / / Bm - G D / Em G A Bm /

August 'Forty-Nine, north Montana

The hottest day on record, the forest tinder dry

Lightning strikes in the mountains

I was crew chief at the jump base, I prepared the boys to fly

Pick the drop zone, C-47 comes in low

Feel the tap upon your leg that tells you go

See the circle of the fire down below

Fifteen of us dropped above the cold Missouri waters

Gauged the fire, I'd seen bigger

So I ordered them to sidehill and we'd fight it from below

We'd have our backs to the river

We'd have it licked by morning even if we took it slow

But the fire crowned, jumped the valley just ahead

There was no way down, headed for the ridge instead

Too big to fight it, we'd have to fight that slope instead

Flames one step behind above the cold Missouri waters

Sky had turned red, smoke was boiling

Two hundred yards to safety, death was fifty yards behind

I don't know why I just thought it

I struck a match to waist high grass running out of time

Tried to tell them, Step into this fire I set

We can't make it, this is the only chance you'll get

But they cursed me, ran for the rocks above instead

I lay face down and prayed above the cold Missouri waters

And when I rose, like the phoenix

In that world reduced to ashes there were none but two survived

I stayed that night and one day after

Carried bodies to the river, wonder how I stayed alive

Thirteen stations of the cross to mark to their fall

I've had my say, I'll confess to nothing more

I'll join them now, those that left me long before

Thirteen crosses high above the cold Missouri waters

Thirteen crosses high above the cold Missouri shore

Sharp Takes Bach

2011-04-17T01:07:00.001+09:00

Make and Break Harbour

2011-04-16T21:48:00.001+09:00

Make and Break Harbour (Stan Rogers)

How still lies the bay, in the light western airs
Which blow from the crimson horizon
Once more we tack home, with a dry empty hole
Saving gas with the breezes so fair
She's a kindly cape islander, old but still sound
But so lost in the long liners shadow
Make and Break and make do, but the fish are so few
That she won't be replaced should she founder

Now it's so hard to not think of before the big war
When the cod went so cheap, but so plenty
Foreign trawlers go by now with long seeing eyes
Taking all where we seldom take any
And the young folk don't stay with the fisherman's ways
Long ago they all moved to the cities
And the ones left behind old and tired and blind
Won't work for a pound, for a penny.

In Make and Break Harbour the boats are so few
Too many are holed up and rotten.
Most houses stand empty old nets hung to dry
Are blown away lost and forgotten

Now I can see the big draggers that stirred up the bay
Leaving lobster traps smashed on the bottom
And they think it don't pay to respect the old ways
That make and break men have not forgotten
For we still keep our time to the turn of the tide
In this boat that I built with my father
Still lifts to the sky, "One Lunger" and I
Still talk like old friends on the water

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - From The Beginning (Lyrics)

2011-04-12T16:09:00.000+09:00

Hadn't heard this for awhile...what a wonderful bass line!

PARTONS, LA MER EST BELLE

2011-04-10T14:05:00.004+09:00

PARTONS, LA MER EST BELLE
(traditionnel)

Amis, partons sans bruit;
La pêche sera bonne
La lune qui rayonne
Éclairera la nuit.
Il faut qu'avant l'aurore
Nous soyons de retour
Pour sommeiller encore
Avant qu'il soit grand jour.

Friends, let us leave without sound;

The fishing will be good

The moon that shines

Will illuminate the night.

As it must before dawn

Let us return on our way

To sleep again

Before it is daylight.

REFRAIN:
Partons, la mer est belle;
Embarquons-nous, pêcheurs,
Guidons notre nacelle,
Ramons avec ardeur.
Aux mâts hissons les voiles,
Le ciel est pur et beau,
Je vois briller l'étoile
Qui guide les matelots!

As we leave the ocean is beautiful;

We embarque, fishermen,

We guide our small boat,

We row with great heart.
On the masts we hoist our sails,

The sky is pure and beautiful,

I see the star shine brilliantly

Which guides the sailors.

Ainsi chantait mon père
Lorsqu'il quitta le port.
Il ne s'attendait guère
À y trouver la mort.
Par les vents, par l'orage,
Il fut surpris soudain,
Et d'un cruel naufrage
Il subit le destin.

And that is how my father was singing

While he left port.

He just barely noticed

And that is where he found his death.

By the winds, by the storm,

It was surprising and sudden,

And in a cruel abandoning wreck

He suffered his destiny.

REFRAIN

Je n'ai plus que ma mère
Qui ne possède rien;
Elle est dans la misère,
Je suis son seul soutien.
Ramons, ramons bien vite,
Je l'aperçois là-bas,
Je la vois qui m'invite
En me tendant les bras.

I have nothing more than my mother

She possesses nothing;

She lives in poverty,

I am her only support.

We row, we row quickly and well,

I can see that one over there,

I can see the one who invites me

As I reach my arms out.

INTERPRÉTATION:
* Fabienne Thibeault: Les chants aimés, vol. 1 - Kébec-disque KD-561

Happy enough to have a bit of grain and a bit of straw...

2011-04-07T09:35:00.005+09:00

Happy enough to have a bit of grain and a bit of straw...

Edith Butler - Le grain de mil - traditionel

Dam tidelidelam tedidelidelam tam tidelidelam

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai de l'oranger

J'ai du trie J'ai du tricoli

J'ai des allumettes Et j'ai des ananas

Des pierres à fusils Des lauriers fleuris

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai du zi J'ai du zinezi

J'ai du zinizine Et j'ai des zinezo

J'ai de beaux ,j'ai de beaux j'ai de beaux oiseaux

Dam tidelidelam tedidelidelam tam tidelidelam

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I have oranges

Oranges from Tricoli (Palermo, Italy)

And I have matches and my pineapples

The old muskets and flowering laurels

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I zi I have zinezi

I have zinizine And I have zinezo

I have beautiful, beautiful I have beautiful birds

Par derrière chez mon père

Il y a un pommier doux

Les trois filles d'un prince

Sont endormies dessous

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai de l'oranger

J'ai du trie J'ai du tricoli

J'ai des allumettes Et j'ai des ananas

The old muskets Des lauriers fleuris

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai du zi J'ai du zinezi

J'ai du zinizine Et j'ai des zinezo

J'ai de beaux ,j'ai de beaux j'ai de beaux oiseaux

Behind my dad's house

There is a sweet apple tree

The three daughters of a prince

Are asleep underneath

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I have oranges

Oranges from Tricoli (Palermo, Italy)

And I have matches and my pineapples

The old muskets and flowering laurels

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I zi I have zinezi

I have zinizine And I have zinezo

I have beautiful, beautiful I have beautiful birds

La plus jeune se réveille

Dit ma sœur il est jour

Non ce n'est qu'une étoile

Qu'éclairent nos amour

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai de l'oranger

J'ai du trie J'ai du tricoli

J'ai des allumettes Et j'ai des ananas

The old muskets Des lauriers fleuris

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai du zi J'ai du zinezi

J'ai du zinizine Et j'ai des zinezo

J'ai de beaux ,j'ai de beaux j'ai de beaux oiseaux

The youngest wakes

My sister said it is day

No this is a star

Illuminated by our love

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I have oranges

I have the sort of Tricoli

And I have matches and my pineapples

The old muskets and flowering laurels

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I zi I have zinezi

I have zinizine And I have zinezo

I have beautiful, beautiful I have beautiful birds

Nos amants sont en guerre

Ils auront nos amours

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai de l'oranger

J'ai du trie J'ai du tricoli

J'ai des allumettes Et j'ai des ananas

Des pierres à fusils Des lauriers fleuris

Ah j'ai du grain de mil

Ah j'ai du grain de paille

Ah j'ai du zi J'ai du zinezi

J'ai du zinizine Et j'ai des zinezo

J'ai de beaux ,j'ai de beaux j'ai de beaux oiseaux

Dam tidelidelam tedidelidelam tam tidelidelam

Our lovers are at war

They will have our love

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I have the orange

I have the sort of Tricoli

And I have matches and my pineapples

The old muskets and flowering laurels

Oh I have a bit of millet

Oh I have a bit of straw

Oh I zi I have zinezi

I have zinizine And I have zinezo

I have beautiful, beautiful I have beautiful birds

Dam tidelidelam tedidelidelam tam tidelidelam

S.S. France and Multiple Choice Options

2011-03-29T13:10:00.001+09:00

Daniel C. Four possible multiple choice options

1. Barry Tomalin's ECOLE stands for:

a. easterly/cruise/onboard/lifting/embark
b. establish/consider/organize/liberté/égalité
c. expectations/communication/organisation/leadership/etiquette

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60-mNldqbc8

2. The questions, "What will the students be able to do?/How will you know they can do it?" concern:

a. communicative learning
b. task-based learning
c. process-product learning

3. Influences to business English learning include:

a. guided discovery/dogma(e)/total physical response
b. the silent way/lexical approach/I just make things up
c. all of the above

4. According to Pete Sharma blended learning...

a. can be defined in many different ways.
b. can only take place in the classroom.
c. always requires course textbooks.

What's Next Action Plan

2011-03-28T00:30:00.003+09:00

What's Next Action Plan

In review of Self Service Development (Hughes, 2009) I will proceed down the list in Teacher Development Action Plan:

I often formally meet colleagues to share ideas about teaching business English. False. I rarely do this. I have few close colleagues who specialize in BE teaching so take a lone wolf approach to it.

I often informally meet colleagues to share ideas about teaching business English. Somewhat true. There is another Canadian on campus in general studies taking his MA TESOL from Anaheim University. Form time to time over beer and chicken or whiskey we do discuss my classes and my methods of teaching.

I subscribe to a journal with ideas for business English teachers. True. I do now as I just joined Carl's BESIG.

I have a favourite ELT website I visit to get ideas. Not necessarily. I think every website has good points and bad points. I seek out bits and pieces from here and there.

I sometimes write an article or send in an idea to a journal/website. Not yet. But this is something I would not mind doing from time to time.

I attend workshops/teacher training at my school. Never.

I attend external workshops/conferences (eg BESIG). On occasion. KOTESOL but not recently.

I sometimes give workshops to other teachers. Not yet. But I think I would be good at it. KOTESOL rejected my first and only conference seminar proposal so without some great begging on their part I will be keeping some distance. They even spelled my name wrong in the rejection.

I participate in online teachers’ forums / discussion chats. On occasion. But Dave's ESL Cafe Korea section is ten times bigger than it was fifteen years ago and contains ten times the amount of whining and complaining it did then too?

I observe peers and invite them to observe me. Almost never. Usually limited to peaking in a door window and seeing the teacher doing all the talking. I call it, "bak bak bak..." I used to have a couple of Chinese teachers auditing my lessons just for the conversational practice.

I subscribe to a business magazine to improve my knowledge. True. I am usually a AIB list member on top of latest international business research but not learner focused.

I sometimes team-teach with a more experienced teacher. True. However the senior teacher in the general studies department has the same number of years in as me so hard to say he is more experienced. In addition these summer or winter school classes are in unrelated courses.

Two More Ideas

1. I have joined BESIG and become a member April 1st.

2. I am considering two learning development options at present:

A. Continuing to the diploma level in research commercialisation (and attendant thesis preparation) with QUT e-grad school if they will have me back (I requested a break since my mom died recently). I am basically already half way to a second masters degree.

B. Begin a Graduate Certificate in Mathematics with Charles Sturt University. This would assist me in developing some quanitiative skills in terms of a future PhD proposal submission in international business.

I do not feel I am avoiding further studies in BE teacher training by taking unrelated coursework. This CertIBET course is the first directly related teacher training development I have taken in over a decade. However I still see this career path as supporting a future in research and further higher studies. While I did wish to complete a DELTA while still under the age of forty I had once planned to take it in Moscow. At the moment however I would see these other courses as having more relevance to a future divergence where perhaps BE teaching will be my part-time job while I pursue a PhD full-time.

● I can put idea 1 into action in the next month.
● I can put idea 2 into action in the next six months.

PhD Studentship in Marketing at ABS

2011-03-24T09:53:00.000+09:00

The University of Amsterdam Business School (ABS) provides academic courses in accounting, finance, management, marketing, and strategy, based on international research carried out in these areas. Within ABS, the strategy and marketing section is involved in teaching at BSc and MSc levels, as well as in executive education. Staff members publish in top-tier journals including Academy of Management Review, Academy of Management Journal, International Journal of Research in Marketing, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Management, Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Marketing, Marketing Science, Organization Science, Strategic Management Journal.

The Amsterdam Business School’s Strategy & Marketing Section has a vacancy for:

PhD position in Marketing

1.0 FTE (38 hours per week)
vacancy number W11-055

In today’s competitive environment, innovation and new products are essential. Radical innovation is particularly key for the growth and long term success of firms. So far, research on radical innovation in marketing has mainly focused on examining the drivers of radical innovation. In this project, using patent data, we plan to look at the overall innovation portfolio including both radical and incremental to determine the configurations that garner superior performance in various competitive and market conditions. Certain theories indicate that in fact a balance of radical and incremental innovation may provide the greatest gains in performance and competitive advantage yet no research has tested this notion. In addition, the way in which incremental and radical innovation are linked and the role of marketing in this interface have not been addressed in research. The research will involve the analysis of data gathered from multiple sources including CRSP and patent data bases. Extensive preparation of patent data will be necessary to build the metrics required. Other primary data may also be gathered through firm-level surveys as necessary.

Requirements

Master’s (MA, MSc or drs) in any relevant area with interest in marketing and innovation
strong quantitative skills (modeling, data preparation, and analysis)
survey skills, measure development and scale analysis skills are preferred
interest (and preferably experience) in marketing, innovation and new products issues at the organisation level
mastery of both written and spoken English
excellent presentation skills

Further information

Applicants who require further information about this vacancy, may contact the supervisor(s) of this project: Prof. Jean Johnson (j.l.johnson@uva.nl, +31 (0)20 525 4387) or Dr Mark Leenders (m.a.a.m.leenders@uva.nl, +31 (0)20 5256078). Further information about the strategy and marketing section, see http://www.abs.uva.nl/strategyandmarketing

Appointment

The appointment will initially be for 1.5 years, to be extended to a total of 4 years upon excellent performance (two evaluations will be held, one after 10 and one after 14 months). The salary will be in accordance with the University regulations for academic personnel, and will range from €2,042 (first year) up to a maximum of €2,612 (final year) gross per month. The collective employment agreement of the Dutch universities will be applicable. The PhD thesis should be finalised within four years. In this period, the candidate will also be expected to do some teaching (20% of the time).

Job application

Applicants should send their CV and a cover letter to: applications-feb@uva.nl

Please include the job reference number in the subject line. The closing date for applications is 1 May 2011.

Human Resources and Company Feedback

2011-03-22T21:59:00.005+09:00

Human Resources and Company Feedback

I think the most common or easy mistake to make is to forget how important a worker or student’s sense of self-esteem and contributions to the workplace/class and working/learning process also serves the proft/learning goals and objectives of the manager/teacher. A few years back I had a class of education students who literally bubbled over with joy as a collective group of forty during virtually every class. It was as if I was stepping out of a refreshing shower every time I walked out the door. I try to remember how this felt every day I walk into a classroom. While not every group can bubble over like that it does happen on occasion in my current work. When they are in any way appearing like drowsy or dropsy nocturnal animals I begin distributing the equivalent of quarters for dixie cups of green tea or instant coffee at break times.

I think the most important tip is to ask first or get the employee’s or students’ point of view before you state what you think should be done. For example I need to make up two weeks of lessons and have only two nights Monday and Thursday in which to do it. So I had roughly 90% attendance last night and expect roughly the same on Thursday because I asked students which day was preferable to them first. Luckily Tuesday/Thursday chose Monday and Wednesday/Friday chose Thursday. I extended this further to, “what dinner do you prefer at 7:00 PM with a show of hands sweet and sour pork or Korean fried chicken? Yes, it’s on me.” I will spend approximately four hundred dollars on feeding them as I am the one inconveniencing them. However their joy at consuming a few slices or a chicken leg here and there is often never forgotten.

In reports to management ways I would:

increase learner’s self-esteem: I would highlight examples of excellent work contributions, presentations or exam results to be noted to the learner and perhaps by direct supervisor or recommended for special merit. This would include significant increases in exam or performance results from the start to the completion of a study program. I do have “rags to riches” stories of improvement even among the “chicken heads” in the backs of my classes. These transformations from disengaged to engaged learners are often incredibly satisfying to witness and I often believe it is evidence of increasing self-realization among my learners that what they choose to put in to their studies in terms of effort does gain significant positive results at least in my class. Regular feedback throughout a course helps to enable this.

create a productive atmosphere for post-feedback progress: Revisit the students work a week or so later after written and spoken exams one to one with presentation work or as a group with written tests and check on whether or not they know what areas require greater attention in the study program with their current work through a brief face-to face interview at their convenient time. For example areas requiring refocus could include: short answers (more reading and writing preparation), more vocabulary practice (searching for and generating more sample sentences using the vocabulary as a study group) or simply more time spent pre-reading in class practice activities for written exams and content, organization or delivery review in terms of oral presentations. In terms of handing this information over to a supervisor and them revisiting learners in their working environment learners could be revisited post learning program with a brief interview and questionnaire follow-up to enable further task or JIT learning opportunities to be raised for future lessons.

handle the delivery and timing of feedback (would using the course wiki or private voice message be valid alternative to a face-to-face + written report? How often will you submit reports?): If the in company contract is ongoing a regular schedule of informal visits timed to learner availability the schedule could be flexible enough to allow face-to-face visits or conducting a large group follow-up NGT to seek out common frames of reference for what was useful in the past, what worked or didn't work and possibly flushing out future needs and lessons. A course wiki or voice messaging service and a written report might be useful however it would be dependent upon necessary time constraints and what management sought as well as what learners could provide in terms of two to three weeks following project completion. For my current PBworks wiki homework submissions I am visiting every other day or so to provoke feedback which assists learners in completing their tasks. Face-to-face interviews or office visits are usually at the students’ leisure or I request it in cases of absolutely lost sheep.

deal with confidentiality issues (will you provide both the learner and the company with the same reports, who will have access to the report?): A review of company policy for example might reveal a confidentiality issue and in reality learners might prefer to anonymously comment or feedback rather than have their suggestions open for public scrutiny. I hand back midterm written tests to the learners in a large group and if they seek to compare grades it is up to them. With speaking presentations I make notes on the grading sheet and share it with the partners in my office only. In a company situation I would seek out a compromise solution if necessary by which positive attributes and comments can be shared between staff and management while critical improvement points are of the anonymous variety. If for example the company faces known shared challenges requiring creative solutions to learning challenges I would make it a rewards-based challenge and offer a prize for creative fire-fighting or quick fix suggestions. Then publicly reward the best ideas. This should encourage more of them. For example, if the in company course was seeing voluntary but declining attendance I would want to seek out root causes and attempt to amend or eliminate issues related to planning, goals, teacher or course materials. At the same time I would expect some management incentive to ensure learners were participating in an assessment process by which we have noted many companies may perform rather haphazardly. While students are required to complete a survey questionnaire prior to receiving a final grade it is not often relied upon for actual assessment purposes here. I have created my first sample survey monkey questionnaire and I am considering using it this semester. However I more heavily rely on face-to-face suggestions for feedback.

change or modify previous feedback strategies you have implemented: This would reply upon asking questions of the management or learners or even coworkers particularly if the feedback requested, required or desired was somehow not being absorbed or integrated into a continuous learning improvement strategy. For example, I have abandoned the email system of homework submission in favour of a new wiki group worksite. While it is experimental it includes a flavor of adjusting feedback strategy that I may focus more on the “big picture” rather than individual output and as it is accessible to all students it may reduce anxiety or stress over productive capacities. Exemplary student generated homework content can serve as a template for the less confident readers and writers to replicate their own responses where substitution or creative alternatives may exist which may boost learner competence and confidence in reading and writing. What works well must be maintained and what does not must be discarded. While content or methods may change intentions and goals are often consistent over time and what is simple to achieve does not always come easily.

accommodate learners’ skills vs. learners’ attitude to learning: Teaching to the students inherent skills levels is essential and determining a reasonable degree of additional challenge is the only means by which to stretch and improve that skill level. Those with excellent study habits will perhaps innately embody all that a teacher sets out as objectives and goals in terms of improvements in learner skills and abilities or attitude. Regarding pre-experience versus experienced and currently working learners who require better BE skills to improve in their careers the difference may be in the self-awareness of needs of the student him or herself. The means by which the teacher is able to assist in motivating the learner to achieve objective can/do abilities is reached in a teamwork perspective. The important question is not only,” What do you think you need to know?” The other important question is,”What do you already find interesting in terms of business communication skills?” I once read that a class is only as good as its weakest student or to the effect that the progress of a group is determined by the member who makes the most difficult and slow progress. I do believe that good teachers besides being good planners provide relevant tasks and activities already of interest to the learner to borrow the intangible self-inspiration already present there. Activate that and build on that. Focus on the learner.

Learner Feedback Forms

2011-03-22T16:24:00.003+09:00

Learner Feedback Forms

Computing@Aberdeen: This feedback form is so brief it barely merits the term feedback in relation to BE learners at the lower A1 to B1 scale in large classes and would be difficult to process all of the comments. Thankfully the comment box is quite small and limited to a few sentences for informational processing time. However the identity of the student appears known perhaps to moderate their comments and while there are only two classes the sample size could be small. There is only one multiple choice selection which does not provide any critical aspects of liking or disliking the courses so the lecturer must be assessing what proportion of the course should be one of the three choices: lectures, tutorials or practicals and perhaps these are meted out differently from semester to semester based on these results?

University of Liverpool: This feedback form appears to orient to a singular or one-off training event in a routine schedule of perhaps special events training programs. Specific courses and dates are aligned from a managerial perspective perhaps to direct the feedback to various contracted facilitators. It is interesting to note that ancillary services such as accommodations and venue are of interest rather than the learning itself. While I can attest that a comfortable night sleep can make all the difference to learning the next day as well as a suitably sized room it seems to be of extraneous detail. The two questions, “Was it useful/What could be improved?” are dissimilar in the nature of response. The first might more properly be addressed as a yes/no question while the second could be more thoroughly explored in a Likert scale approach with drill down to various learning topics that match can/do abilities or goals of the learning. The space left blank for writing comments is excessively large and could lead with large groups to be unmanageable and take much time to process.

University of St Andrews: This feedback form possesses more diverse use of questions and is the first in our list to respect the anonymity of the feedback in question. It appears the seminars offered have variation in timing and flexibility adding an adult oriented learning approach to the survey itself. Here one sees a first example of Likert scale in usage with five course design goals assessed by the learner. These topics include: appropriate length, interest and relevancy, clear/informative presentations, opportunities to ask questions, usefulness of handouts. But yet again the space given for short answer questions regarding most useful, least useful and suggested improvements or additional comments appear far too long. Overly verbose feedback could take far too long to assess as a tool to evaluate the quality of the course. Self-identification is also a multiple choice selection which is practical and the designated school is optionally included. Depending on the size of the group this might allow the instructor or management team to trace the comments made back to the apparently anonymous source which defeats the purpose of freedom of expression in terms of anonymity. It is not necessarily important to know who said what but whether or not points made are valid, useful and impact upon future quality improvements. I like to think of some of the courses I teach to be much like tinkering with an eighties style engine in which the compartment is large enough to get in there and make adjustments to the scale points of interest.

University of Leicester: Eight courses across three academic years are being assessed through feedback with one form. This is quite a large number of cadres and it would be interesting to note how all of these comments are being collated, reviewed or read. The first four questions seem to avoid Likert scale approaches to drill down of course goals or can/do abilities statements substituting instead what appear to be nearly limitless answer boxes much too long to afford a quick glance at results. The first question might be better assessed with a rank order of key course topic highlights to allow future adjustments. The second question would be better as a self-assessment tool for the instructor if his/her perceived strengths were listed and mixed with other adjectives to give a view of students’ perception. The third question might better be addressed with a selection of weaknesses which the instructor if self-aware already knows he/she possesses. The question about developing the course should include a few selections of possible adjustments that the instructor has already considered or intends to implement. The fifth question is a little underwhelming and appears to be an imperfect Likert scale as the range is insufficiently extensive to provide a reasonable response. For example is good the penultimate form of reference of quality? Good versus average versus needs improvement? It appears inappropriate. The open ended question on suggestions for improvement again indicates an overwhelming review of these materials might be necessary. Question six on the face of it appears sound in a Likert scale approach however again the range does not satisfy this reviewer. Why not include “excellent” at the top of the list rather than “very good” and if you “don’t know” (or didn’t experience) the instructor’s teaching in terms of: performance, expertise, interaction then why would be commenting on it? The further two Likert selections contents (of a teaching style?) and course material would be better served in another course goal question rather than mixed in with assessment of teaching. The open-ended question comments continue and round out in a strange way regarding equality and diversity without a self-declared identification of status of the student in these regards. I would not want to have to review such a possibly extensive list of endless comments boxes.

BusinessBalls: While I liked the first six questions I felt the remainders (all short answer) would take a long time to check?

My Own Sample Feedback Form

I decided to access the Teacher and Class Evaluation Questionnaires at The Internet TESOL Journal to design my own learner feedback form based upon some of their questions and mostly from those listed by Aichi Institute of Technology. Surprisingly I have always avoided filling out "Survey Monkey" questionnaires however they appear incredibly easy to design and adapt as well as edit. However one sticking point, when will size limited short answer text boxes be invented? I would see these text boxes limited to two or three lines if I had my choice.

Measuring Objectives

2011-03-20T22:29:00.001+09:00

Measuring Objectives

Course goals: In my own experience this has often been led by my boss’s expectations to give the students an opportunity to engage speaking activities in business English and gain confidence doing so. I have relied upon the old and new editions of Market Leader Beginner and Pre-Intermediate to support the twelve weekly learning goals as well as collecting a small sample of international business key vocabulary (about five items for each week) disbursed over the twelve weeks.

Benchmarking: In terms of many of the subjects we have covered in this course I would expect to align the students’ real levels of ability to coincide greatly with A1-B1 range of ALTE skills in a parabola of average learners possibly falling in the upper A2 range. Therefore a beginner level text like Market Leader elementary reviews and reinforces prior learning while a pre-intermediate text is challenging their skills levels. However there are benefits to doing so and it is my belief that the performance abilities of international business students should contain motivational and learning desire which outstrips general English students. One semester I assigned the intermediate level text rather than the pre-intermediate text to confirm for myself whether or not it was actually above their collective abilities (which it was).

Can-do statements: While I am glad to review them I have never used them in terms of reviewing course goals or benchmarking but intend to give them more credence and attention in future. It fascinates me to think that there is the possibility that the can-do statements possess possible overlaps from level to level and that the progressive nature of these statements in assignment to various levels of proficiency might be a learner motivator at the bottom of the pyramid. For example I observe a very select percentage of students who a) graduate and proceed to utilize English on a daily basis for their work or b) further proceed beyond a B1/B2 level of skills and abilities to actual academic studies abroad. For the majority of my students this takes place in the US at one of my employer’s transfer program-partnered institutions such as Murray State University in Kentucky or University of Missouri St Louis/Rolla campuses but increasingly they are branching out to other academic programs such as those at The University of Malaysia. While the spots for these seats are competitive in the last five years their numbers from our department have increased hopefully due in some small part to my own efforts. A new partnership program with my own alma mater UOW may have been assisted by my own recommendation. Therefore I may review them more often in future in revising course goals.

Self-assessment: As we learned in Unit 3 there are measures for students to engage as an audience during student presentations and I hope to implement Cleve Miller’s presentations assessments during my next round of midterm speaking presentations to indirectly assist students in monitoring self-assessment. Furthermore I have done away with emailed homework assignments in favour of group based homework submissions on PBworks website. This should assist students in reflecting upon their own homework in terms of comparability with others as well as orient their reading and writing above and beyond internet websites and the course text to actually process language based on observing and commenting on the work of their peers. While this may not strictly consist of self-assessment it certainly increases and encourages peer assessment and influences self-determination. In concert with peer group speaking activities outside class it gives less teacher-fronted approaches to these assignments which I hope has positive influence on their self-motivation/assessment skills.

Goal setting: By selecting a coursebook which I feel confidently delivers generic BE goals in its lessons design I hope I am delivering materials which support and enhance course goals. By being realistic about students level of benchmarked can-do abilities I am hoping to match their skills levels with relevant and "doable" training goals. By setting more learner-determined goals at outside class peer group speaking activities I am hoping that students develop more internalized approaches to BE learning. Using my google news presentations tasks for middle and final exams I am hoping students are pursuing topics of greater personal interest than course texts and teacher fronted lessons can provide. In revising homework from individual to group submissions I am hoping for intangible collaborative skills already inherent in Korean culture and society to transfer to their BE reading and writing abilities.

Using “I learned” statements: These are a new approach I am hoping to integrate above and beyond lesson exit activities. For example at the end of many business English correspondence classes I do ask learners to answer the question, “What did you learn here today?”

Learning journals: Hopefully integrating PBworks into homework assignments will provoke some journal approach to review of reading and writing by students in the courses I teach with it particularly in preparation for short mid and final written exams. While at lower levels I require a daily diary entry on routine events I do not often request or require a learning journal from second year students. It may perhaps be useful however I must plan carefully to avoid students’ worst complaint of too much homework.

How new media can help in monitoring progress (audio/video folios): At the moment video progress while perhaps desirable is still not within my reach in terms of practical application. However at my current rate of digital or blended learning applications enhancements integration of audio/video folios might be a part of the future of my smallest classes. However at the moment this would be inaccessible.

Teacher Appraisals

2011-03-20T22:26:00.002+09:00

Teacher Appraisals

While I am reviewed every two years for contract renewal in my current position I have yet to be fired for a poor appraisal? While I am on my third two year contract (five years and a month in) it is my longest held position in fifteen years. I am also my most satisfied with my employers and managers so there appears to be some mutual benefits to positive or possibly few appraisals.

Two points to consider for transfer to teaching when considering appraisals. The first was a Gallup Poll on workplace disengagement in the US brought to my attention by Renée Cormier in her blog that as little as 29% of employees are actively engaged in their work, that 71% are completely disengaged and as many as 17% are engaged in sabotaging the work of their peers. This recalls for me the movie Office Space (with official trailer included) a comedy about the same nation and a comment my boss made once that only 30% of our students really care about their studies. I have a tendency to agree with him.

The second point recalls a course I took in positive versus negative rewards and their influences upon intrinsic motivations. The balance of the topic of annual appraisals were described as being poor at delivering motivational improvements based upon negative comments or events simply because most workers cannot recall a year’s worth of appraised performance. The conclusion was made that when a manager needs to encourage motivational changes based on poor performance the review and appraisal needs to be made as soon as possible after the event to assist employee ownership and identification of the problem. I would say the same thing regarding assessments in the classroom. No news should be good news and bad news should be delivered as soon as possible to be useful in changing a student’s performance?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ND7tU8JME_g

http://reneecormier.wordpress.com/2009/02/13/employee-disengagement-costs-billions/

Past Assessment Experiences

2011-03-17T15:46:00.003+09:00

Past Assessment Experiences

As a learner:

When I was doing my CELTA in Seoul in 2000 I found the post-teaching practicum feedback assessments discussions to be at times excessive bordering on beyond my memory of the actual events during the team teaching sessions. The most challenging peer reviews came from classmates with less (at the time I had four years in) or no experience which were some of the most critical in terms of "constructive criticism." While the CELTA is often sold as a pre-experience training program the majority of those who take it in Korea are already working. I recall one Australian diplomat's housewife who was constantly critical with nary a positive feedback to share. That whole month and a half is a dreary memory of long nights toiling over lesson plans and a classmate from the States somewhere named "Lyle" who wandered the dormitory halls at all times with a raggedy and shaggy bearskin cap from China who eschewed using computers until the final night's deadline when he was scratching at my door like a lost goat. Our teams weren't rotated very often and I remember feeling it wasn't really fair to always have to carry this guy because he was like an assessment albatross and completely unpredictable. I remember one of his sample lessons consisted of asking the same question to each of the students in turn, "Are you OK?/Are you alright?" ad infinitum regardless of what we may have planned on paper a little like Senor Wences?

As a teacher:

I am consistently surprised at the number of students I give an A or A- to who are adamant that they deserve higher grades. I recall my own university days when a lot of blood,sweat and tears went into even a B or B+ in some classes as in English Literature in general and Dr. Edward Eagles' 16th Century Literature in particular which included loads of Shakespeare's Sonnets, The Fairie Queene by Edmund Spenser, etc. Here in Korea each final grade assessment is followed by a "grade discussion week" during which various desperate souls beseech, cajole or attempt to brow beat me via emails to up their grades for one reason or another usually related to continued scholarship endorsements (Daejin University has one of the highest rates and ranges of scholarship students in the country) usually by a flurry of emails. On positive notes in more recent times one student used to encourage me to relax at the end of long days worth of assessing ppt presentations with full back massages after she finished her own work. I am also amazed how many (rare as they are) failed students (due to poor attendance usually) show up a couple semesters later with completely reformed attendance records, attitudes and kindliness to the teacher most notably young Korean men who have returned from completed military duties as genuine gentlemen. Even one sly and foxy shirker known to sit in the front row with micro-mini skirts squeaked by with a pass and a prayer completing her last exams with an untreated broken rib rather than be absent. That one is much perkier nowadays and is really quite pleasant most recently. This is most surprising to me as I almost hated to pass her last time around on a second try in a required course but she convinced me that she cared enough to make a final lunge at the quite low bar.

Business Negotiations

2011-03-15T22:08:00.001+09:00

Business Negotiations

How good are you at negotiating?

I enjoyed the BBC exercise because it was fairly non-punitive and there was no way to get 60% as one must just begin again and do it again until you get it right. Isn't that a little more like life long learning? Is it really about the grades for adult learners? To me this type of activity accords with adult learning principles in that even when you get it wrong you still learn some important points for getting it right hopefully next time. In some ways the rewards of such an activity exceed an outright score or grade.

Expanded (Excessive?) Aside and Preamble/Digression

First of all, it is wonderful to see all of these resources on negotiation gathered in one location. Do I have permission to duly pilfer these materials? When I completed my negotiation certificate from Notre Dame it was with the intended purpose to proceed to design a course based on my boss's expectations that it be a case-study based approach. That was four years ago and over that time I have cobbled together selected resources and made small incremental improvements to meet his demands as well as my own view of perceived needs in combination with those of the students at pre-intermediate levels.

For example, do you have any idea how hard it is to find short, two or three page case studies that address some of the essential topics at Harvard Business Review and do not scare off half of the class in the first week? It took weeks to find even as few as half a dozen I felt were useful for BE learners. What I have done is blended many materials together without any official course book. Through student feedback I made concentrated efforts to collect various short warm-up activities and negotiation role plays from online sources including some of those listed here. It is reassuring to see such a collection.

The body of each lesson of my negotiation class covers four essential areas:

1. Negotiation Role Play/Warm Up

Strengths: Students love these activities and it gets more spontaneous discussion and reflection generated than virtually any other course I teach.

Weaknesses: We can't count and trade chickens, sheep or goats indefinitely. We need to tackle the results and discuss the wrap-up actually using target vocabulary.

2. Post Activity Discussion/Review

Strengths: Students are much more likely to have realizable "take aways" following a warm up activity whose concept and learning points are easily made and enjoyable.

Weaknesses: If the warm activity is too complex its learning points will be lost making it difficult to discuss. Multi-party negotiation practices take more prep time and are more challenging.

3. Formal lecture style simplified slides of basic negotiation concepts supported by short two or three page case studies. I try to provide or elicit real world examples for every concept in class.

Strengths: Contains target vocabulary, expressions , humorous or provocative visuals and concept building which may assist in retention of previous points and gives time for reflection, and further questions.

Weaknesses: Lectures are often just bloody boring. But there is a good book on developing better lectures called, "The Art of Lecturing: A Practical Guide to Successful University Lectures and Business Presentations" by Parham Aarabi which I picked up a couple of years ago and which I do glaze over on occasion.

4. Case studies combined with country profile presentations as previously discussed form the basis for general comprehension questions and students group work presentations followed by short Q & A sessions.

Strengths: Short two page case studies are easily reviewed with comprehension questions on key concepts written by leading negotiation experts.

Weaknesses: Bare minimum of usable information and pretty thin meat on these bones and not exactly communication practice.

The Meat of the Original Question

The ESL resource centre has to be one of my preferred collections of activities not only because it contains one of my students' favourite warm-up games the "zoo animal exchange negotiated role play" but also because I like the manageable short length of these activities. Strengths include easily printed half-pages saving the trees a half page at a time. Any of these would be set as warm up activities and/or the useful phrases and expressions worksheet as well as a consistent reference for the students as conversation starters repeatedly for other various activities throughout the course. As mentioned before the weaknesses amount to warm-ups level of success being dependent upon how much wrap-up and follow-up discussion of cognitive learning points can be bridged from the game to self-assessment across lecture vocabulary, case studies and country profile presentations.

A Little Karmic Give Back

One useful resource I do not see listed here includes Dr. Mary P. Rowe's excellent notes and warm up activities from Sloan Business School. I would also give a list of my entire warm ups wrap sheet but I sent the collected works/stash off to be bound. As a result of my added numbers (the Chinese are swamping my lifeboat) I may even need to multiply my case/country schedule.

http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/sloan-school-of-management/15-667-negotiation-and-conflict-management-spring-2001/study-materials/

http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/sloan-school-of-management/15-667-negotiation-and-conflict-management-spring-2001/assignments/

Barnard and Cady's Business Venture One: Module 7.6 Culture File Job Mobility

2011-03-15T22:06:00.000+09:00

Part 1: Cultural awareness test

•Do you feel this kind of quiz can raise cultural awareness?

This kind of quiz probably requires a lot higher level of reading comprehension, fluency and/or work experience than most of my beginner and pre-intermediate students possess. For higher level learners possibly very useful as they may be able to discuss opposing viewpoints concerning the test answers and why they may have selected one moreso over the other. My own score was in the 60% range but possibly a result of hubris. I even had the Korean question wrong.

•How could getting learners to find out more about their home culture and comparing this information with a host culture of their choice help business relations?

Learning more about one’s own culture can do no harm in terms of self-identity and awareness. In particular I find historical references useful as Korean students generally have a well prepared selection of national heros, legends, myths and folktales to draw upon which among other cultures helps project a sense of humour especially across the generations and generation gaps where due to recent jumps in economic progress often one generation of Koreans has quite little in common with the next especially since the Korean War. As Tomalin, JJ and DB share similar opinions regarding necessary interpersonal skills among cross-cultural learners the best place to inculcate these might be in respect to one’s own individual self and perception of “home culture” first whereby new approaches to perhaps old business relationship problems could be addressed.

•Are the resources listed on Kwintessential useful? Why or why not?

This website has been useful to me however I have had to trim the materials especially in the culture sections I use for one of my courses in global negotiation to suit the learners pre-intermediate level of English fluency. In addition this website has been regularly improved over a number of years with more and more features. For learners however I would think that their level of fluency would need to be quite high to maintain interest or utility.

Part 2: Culture as a business English topic

Barnard and Cady (Oxford, 2009) Business Venture One: Chapter Seven, Company and Personal History, Module 7.6 Culture File Job Mobility (page 46): This staged speaking activity focuses on first review of a four country comparison study graph/chart (Germany/Japan/Korea and USA) which plots the percentages of full or part-time employment among 18-24 year olds in response to the survey question, ”How many times have you changed jobs?” Adverbs of frequency were chosen from a Likert scale-like range which included: never, once, twice, three times, four times or more.

The second stage uses the graph information to fill out five answers to which countries have the highest percentages of each level of job changing frequency.

The third stage poses a discussion question regarding the advantages/disadvantages of changing jobs for both employers and employees in either staying in a job long-term or changing often. Useful gambits and starter expressions are provided such as:

I think it’s a good/bad idea to change/stay in one job because…
Employers like workers who…
If you change jobs many times…
If you stay at one company your whole life…

Classroom Utility: To be honest I have used this activity as “filler” and as it is tagged on to the end of the chapter it is a slight departure from the company and personal history lesson. What I generally do is group the students into fours while they look at the chart and then chalk up the board into large sections while they are preparing their written responses.

Then I divide the class into two groups. The first is to debate the employer opinion regarding pros and cons of long-term or short-term employees while the second is to debate the same on behalf of young employees. Generally I have about five groups on the employer side and five on the employee side so there are often overlaps in terms of opinions and points. Each group must nominate a “writer” to plot up to about three responses each on the board. Then as an exit activity students must select an opposing viewpoint from a different group and agree or disagree with it giving a unique reason. Each time a new point is selected it is removed from the board. Remaining students must scramble to adapt their answers as fewer and fewer possible points remain. I use this activity in this way because I have always felt asking a question which includes advantages and disadvantages as well as employer and employees is asking an awful lot of beginner learners in terms of topics and multiplicity of subjects.

I hope I have painted a reasonable picture of this activity which I have used frequently in an annual beginner level business English class for which Business Venture One has provided the “just right” approach to my learner groups as my copy and scan facilities are next to nil. Some days I feel lucky to have a functioning computer and internet connection in my office (I spent untold hours attempting to get an MS word trial program over the last week). I also appreciate it when such textbooks include South Korean data and can only suspect that the editors have marketing teams helping them to find new target markets on behalf of Barnard and Cady. The previous edition of this series seemed to take a heavy Japanese content approach and I can only suspect that the book gained popularity in Korea over the last half decade since. I have been employing it while remaining in the same job at the same time. On an aside it has come to my attention that in the western world many if not most of those workers perceived to be in any way ambitious by HR recruiters remain on average about six months in any given position. I really cannot imagine leap-frogging from job to job in such a manner and would think one year contracts are as short as I would be willing to take abroad. The other dynamic which I have noticed especially over fifteen years ago are the increasing numbers of pre-experienced students that actually have part-time jobs in Korea. Sadly the minimum wage remains around $3.50 USD an hour.