Communication in Early Childhood Education Essay Example for Free

Communication in Early Childhood Education Essay Effective communication creates a learning environment where students can learn according to their individual needs in a safe and accommodating environment. Think about your early childhood education (or your child’s early education), was it flexible to suit individual learning experiences or were children required to conform to the teacher’s methods of teaching? If you answered the latter, do you think the former would improve the quality of education? Pedagogues’ in all divisions of education should possess proficiency in different levels of communication, whether  they are teaching primary or secondary students or university alumni, to be able to address a combination of the various age groups (colleagues, students, parents or superiors). Educators will face difficulties in providing a satisfactory level of education without the necessary skills to communicate effectively to these groups of people. Early childhood educators with effective communication skills demonstrate an ability to adapt their teaching methods to suit the needs of their young individual students, which benefits the progression in child development. The teacher’s positive mood determines the emotional climate of the classroom,  creating a healthy and safe learning environment for the children and allows teachers to communicate comfortably with children, parents and colleagues, therefore, resolving issues efficiently. Early childhood educators who communicate effectively with children and parents create a positive classroom atmosphere, where successful learning can take place. Teachers and parents must be able to communicate and cooperate to build a strong relationship for the best interests of the child. Do parents have an innate trust in teachers? (For them to leave their children in the teachers care, in some  cases, almost a stranger) Whether or not this is accurate, teachers must build on this trust to create a supportive parent-teacher relationship. Each situation is different and teachers should be aware of their body language, and use of language, so when speaking with parents their communication should be different when talking to parents than when they are chatting with friends. The first step is establishing a dialogue by approaching the parent first and making them feel welcome and relaxed, as parents may be resistant in making first contact, due to, a bad experience with teachers themselves, as children or bad experiences in other  schools with other teachers (Miller, 2003 Roffey, 2002 as cited by Porter, 2008). There are different strategies teachers can use to maintain effective communication with parents and build strong relationships once they have made communication. Keeping a parents trust is important in maintaining open lines of communication so they can discuss concerns relating to the child and solve issues promptly. Teachers can gain parents confidence by always respecting confidentiality and avoiding rumors. If a parent finds out that, their child’s teacher breached confidentiality or is  a known gossip, parents will find it difficult to confide in them with an issue regarding their child, particularly if it is of a personal nature. Parents are also more likely to approach their child’s teacher if they know they can discuss issues and reach a mutual agreement (Bender, 2005). Teacher-parent communication is all about showing trust and comfort with each other. Frequent communication between these two parties creates less tension, when an issue arises, allowing a constructive discussion to take place and reaching an agreement sooner without hostility. Teachers can increase parent participation in the child’s learning by updating  them in upcoming activities and events, so they can be included in their child’s education, stay informed in their child’s successes and concerns, participate in special events, and contribute to their child’s overall learning process. The activities and responsibilities of the school should not be limited to the school environment and cease once the child has reached home, therefore, teachers and parents should allow room for overlapping (Edwards, 2000). Keeping parents updated on their child’s school progress allows parents to provide the necessary support and encouragement at home, giving them a better understanding of their child’s development. At the same time, teachers should obtain information from parents regarding the child’s progress at home, so teachers can help children accordingly at school. This back and forth communication between parents and teachers will provide students with a supportive network that benefits everyone concerned (Ramirez, 2006). It is also the responsibility of teachers to advice parents when their child is involved in an accident. Teachers should always take detailed notes of incidents, remembering to keep confidentiality (between parents), if more than one student was involved (Koza, 2007).  If a parent became aware about an incident through their child, it may give the parent the impression that the teacher tried to conceal the incident. By keeping parents constantly informed, reinforces the parent-teacher relationship, giving parents’ confidence in the teacher’s ability to care for their child. Teachers need to be flexible in their teaching, to meet each individual’s needs. Teachers must demonstrate various teaching styles to accommodate how each individual â€Å"learnt-to-learn† (Edwards, 2009), by applying the learning methods children are familiar with enables them to accomplish more and feel comfortable in  their new learning environment. The way children learned to do tasks at home is crucial to their learning when they reach early childhood education, since each child learned to follow instructions and complete tasks differently, it would be insensitive to treat all children the same without taking into account their cultural differences and experience (Marotz, 2009). Educators teaching young children must consider the learning methods each individual is already accustomed to and design their teaching methods around the children’s experiences, and so, communication can be  used effectively by incorporating different teaching strategies such as speaking, writing and visual demonstrations. For example, a child who has learned to complete a task by reading instructions will perform more efficiently if they are able to read from the board or paper, instead of following verbal instructions from a teacher. Teachers should make the effort to understand each child’s previous learning experience and background, so they can identify the best teaching method required by each child. Teachers must adopt appropriate methods and language for teaching and should outline the schools (or teachers) code of conduct regarding  language, to parents, so they can enforce the same rules at home to avoid children bringing inappropriate language to school, causing disruptions in the learning of other children and disgruntling other parents. As teachers gain experience with children and parents of different cultures, religions and abilities, they develop their own communication skills so they can provide improved services to the children they teach in the future. A safe and positive classroom is an important environment for the learning and development of a child. As a classroom leader, the teacher must behave and  communicate in a manner that creates a positive emotional climate in the classroom; firstly, teachers must resolve or reduce stress caused by work and personal issues, doing so outside of the classroom, so they can concentrate on the needs of the children when they are in the classroom. Secondly, by displaying self-confidence, a strong sense of self-worth and control over their emotions creates a classroom atmosphere where children are happy, comfortable and safe, as a result, children respond more positively to their teachers and classmates (Marotz, 2009). Ebbeck Waniganayake (2003) stated that young children generally have a  sense of happiness and positiveness in them, but society depresses this and upsets the way children view the world and future, by creating fear in them (the media showing violence, bad behavior, and superficial concerns). However, teachers can empower children by showing them â€Å"how to take their place in society and create a better now and future† (Ebbeck Waniganayake, 2003) and give them a feeling of optimism in everything they try to accomplish. Teachers who build a trusting bond with their students are also better equipped, in understanding each individual, allowing children to open up and discuss personal problems with them. This enables  teachers to speak and listen to each individual easily and identify signs of possible abuse, bullying or other health and safety concerns. In conclusion, effective communication is essential to all learning environments and without it, teachers will struggle to teach and students will face learning difficulties, resulting in a decline in the quality of education. In early childhood education, it is up to the teachers to ensure that each child’s education environment is safe and comfortable for the child, by showing flexibility in teaching to meet individual requirements and showing care and understanding to assist children with concerns. A strong parent-teacher relationship creates a support network where information is exchanged and issues are solved, to allow the child to concentrate on his or her learning and development. Early childhood educators are there to guide and support children in all aspects of life. References Ebbeck, M. Waniganayake, M. (2003). Early childhood professionals: Leading today and tomorrow. East Gardens, Australia: Maclennan Petty Pty Ltd Edwards, MC (2000) Center for effective parenting is a collaborative project of: The Jones center for families, 3. Retrieved from http://www. parenting-ed. org/handout3/Parental Involvement/Communicating with. Teacher Handout. pdf Edwards, S. (2009). Early childhood education and care. Castle Hill, Australia: Pademelon Press Koza, W. (2007). Managing an effective early childhood classroom. Huntington Beach, USA: Shell Educational Publishing. Marotz, L. R. (2009). Health, safety, and nutrition for the young child (8th ed. ). Australia: Cengage Learning Porter, L. (2008). Teacher-parent collaboration: Early childhood to adolescence. Camberwell, Australia: ACER Press Ramirez, L (2006) Parent teacher The benefits of creating a supportive parent teacher relationship. Retrieved from http://www. parenting-child-development. com/parent-teacher. html.

Overview Of Chomskys Theory English Language Essay

Overview Of Chomskys Theory English Language Essay Introduction: The question to consider is how children acquire language and at which stage they could improve their speaking and listening skills. In particular, syntax and vocabulary are the main concern of the language acquisition domain. The task of psycholinguistics is to discover the relationship between language and the human mind (Field: 2003). Many theories, therefore, have emerged in exploring this relationship, which seek to explain the way in which children understand and acquire language. Over the last five decades these theories have offered various ideas and interpretations of the relationship. For example, in Behaviourist theory, which is associated to skinners research into language, language acquisition is considered a collection of habits. It is thought that children learn how to form correct utterances through positive reinforcement from the people around them (Patten and Benati: 2010). Cognitive theory, which is associated with Piaget, is considered a way of discovering how ind ividuals create and use language in their social context (ibid, p71). Interaction theory, related to Bruner, holds that language comes from the interaction between children and their environment (ibid, p99). There are, however, two theories in the relevant acquisition literature which oppose one another and provoke countless debates: Chomskys theory and Tomasellos theory. In Chomskys theory, children biologically possess an innate ability to acquire their language. This ability is mainly specific to language. Whereas, in Tomasellos theory language is acquired through language use by means of social skills, such as, joint attention and general learning mechanisms (Behrene: 2009). This paper seeks to explore these two theories in order to contrast them. The first and second parts of the paper present an overview of the main ideas in the two theories. The third part focuses on their different aspects, including the: poverty of stimulus argument, linguistic creativity, modularity and language specific domain versus domain- general learning mechanisms. The fourth and final part, discusses some weak points in the two theories. Overview of Chomskys (Innatist) theory: In language acquisition domain, Chomskys theory is called an innatist theory, because he proposed that children biologically possess suitable abstract knowledge for the task of first language learning .This abstract knowledge shapes the linguistic system which they learn. In fact, through this innate knowledge children can discover the rules of their language system and reduce hypothesis formation and guessing. (Patten and Benati: 2010). Chomskys main argument is that all human beings are born with an innate knowledge which is particularly designed for language acquisition (ibid). This argument is indeed, opposed to the one that language is a result of the interaction between human beings and the environment or item-usage learning (e.g. Skinner, 1957; Tomasello, 2003). Furthermore, The term Language Acquisition Device (LAD) was coined by Chomsky in this context to refer to such innate knowledge or the little black box (Patten and Benati: 2010).The (LAD) comprises the universal princi ples of all languages, by which children can be kept on track and not confused by all the complex rules of particular languages. When this (LAD) is activated, the child can discover the structure of the language s/he is to learn by matching the innate knowledge of basic grammatical relationships to the structures of the special language in the environment (Lightbown and Spada: 1999). However, since the 1960s, instead of (LAD) universal grammar hypothesis (UG) was introduced by Chomsky. It was given much concern by him instead of, the (LAD), because, in Chomskys view this hypothesis means that there is an innate knowledge source which governs the shape of natural language (Patten and Benati: 2010). It should be noted that the first appearance of Chomskys theory was in 1959 in his critical review of Skinners book Verbal Behavior in 1957. Chomsky in his review pointed out many shortcomings in applying Skinners theories to language acquisition. For example, Skinners experiment using rat boxes is not relevant to language because the behaviour of rats is unlike human behaviour. As a result, Skinner has a mistaken understanding of the nature of language. Furthermore, the environment considered solely as learning mechanism can not be the basis of language acquisition and therefore, mans ability to acquire language must be innate (Aitchison, 2007). Overview of Tomasellos theory (usage-based theory): The account of language acquisition provided by Tomasello comes under the umbrella of usage-based theories. Recently, a new view of language and human linguistic competence has emerged (Tomasello: 2003). This view comes from a set of theories usually called cognitive-functional linguistics, and also called usage -based linguistics in order to emphasize their main ideas that language structure is produced or appears from language use (e.g. Langacker, 1987a ; Croft, 1991; Tomasello, 1995, 2003). It is note worthy that this view stands in direct opposition to Chomskys innatist theory. Because, Tomasello in his theory is mainly concerned with the question of how children get from here to there from the constructions of infant level speech to the abstract constructions of adult thought through one set of processes of acquisition (Tomasello: 2003:3). In Tomasellos theory it is impossible that humans can have been born with a specific collection of communicative behaviours only for language . This collection more probably learned by children during their years from the linguistic conventions used around them. They must possess flexibility in order to learn both the different words and the suitable expressions of each language and the different types of abstract constructional pattern which historically these languages have grammaticized (ibid). Tomasello emphasizes, however, four points in his theory: First, the innate skills which people have are not specific to language but can be used as means for language learning. Second, theory of mind is central to symbol use, because humans can understand symbols while nonhuman do not possess this ability, because they use signal system. Thirdly, word-learning skills include: joint attention, which means the ability that children possess in their first year old whereby they can understand other people as intentional agents and interact socially through an object to which both pay attention; children note this attention to both it and themselves; Intention reading, means the ability to understand the social world around them through imitating adult acts; the construction-learning skills encompassing: analogy and pattern-finding. The latter means the distributional analysis based on statistical information in the primary linguistic data and the ability to form perceptual and conceptual figures of similar objects or situations (Tomasello: 2003). The differences between the two theories: It is noteworthy that the accounts provided by Chomsky and Tomasello comprise many opposed aspects, of which the main ones are as follows: 3.1. Poverty of stimulus argument: The basic argument of the nativist theory is based on Chomskys assumption of the poverty of stimulus (1965).This assumption means that the data provided by the input to which people exposed are not rich enough to account for language acquisition (Patten and Benati:2010). In other words, it means that the language to which children are exposed as their input or the primary linguistic data is solely a set of individual utterances yielding some abstract principles of grammar which seem ambiguous for language acquisition .The best solution he can provide is the universal grammar hypothesis (UG), which means that all humans are born with an innate universal language containing a number of abstract principles which can lead the acquisition process (Tomasello: 2003). Despite the fame of the poverty of stimulus argument in the language acquisition domain and childrens language research, it has certain, if we contrast it with the account provided by Tomasellos usage-based theory. We find that the research into the developmental psychology of language acquisition has provided many arguments which support the richness of stimulus in usage-based theories (e.g Clark2003, Tomasello 2003). In fact, the significance of social pragmatic interaction in language acquisition is evidenced by extensive findings in this domain (Tomasello: 2003). To put it more simple, Tomasello in his theory emphasizes that: There is no poverty of the stimulus when a structured inventory of construction is the adult endpoint (Tomasello: 2003:7). He notes that the hypothesis of an innate universal grammar has two major problems, namely, first, the linking problem and the problem of continuity. The first problem is how children can connect their abstract universal grammar with the particular language which they learn. The second problem deals with the developmental changes in childrens language, for example, how people can understand childrens language during their developmental change if we accept that universal grammar is always the same. It, therefore, seems useful to provide a description or explanation of child language acquisition which ignores any hypothesis of universal grammar which creates these problems (Tomasello: 2003). Accordingly, it is important to note that Chomsky and Tomasello are opposed on the argument of the poverty of stimulus. Tomasellos view, however, seems stronger, because nativists provide no support for their claims. As Pullum and Scholz (2002:47) point out, the poverty of stimulus argument still a waits even a single good supporting example. Moreover, Akhtar (2004) seems to agree with this criticism, in that she indicates that this argument was the basis for a number of nativist claims, yet indeed lack supporting empirical evidences. 3.2. Language is creative: Another difference between Chomsky and Tomasello is the formers belief that language is creative. From Chomsky perspective, creativity in language has three- fold support. First, people possess the ability to understand and produce strange sentences which they have never before heard or spoken (Aitchison: 2007). Second, the creative use of language is free from the external and internal affects of the stimulus control (Chomsky: 1968). Third, the way in which people use the language considered to be coherent and appropriate to the situation (Hegde: 1980). By the way of contrast, we can see that Tomasello does not ignore creativity in language, but he has little concern for it. According to him, it results from the attempt of humans to create categories in their own language (Tomasello: 1995). Chomsky asserts that the creativity in language is something which can not be acquired solely through environmental learning methods (Aitchison: 2007). Tomasello contrastingly asserts that, during a period of time, children obtain the communicative conventions are obtained step by step from the people around them. For example, their social cognitive skills and developing cognition are utilised to internalise these conventions. Childrens basic abilities are used to learn their first words. They create concepts so as to understand adult speech and then to produce suitable new words in their communicative contexts (Tomasello: 1995). It is thought, however, from the contrast between the two views that Chomskys view about the creativity of language has some limitations. For one thing, nativists assert that every utterance we hear and say is completely novel and accepted. This assertion seems to be wrong. The reason is that to accept it we would need to assume that each word or sentence has a separate existence. Moreover, we have to assume that our past language experience is sufficient to provide a clear understanding of the present utterances. But, if these assumptions are accepted, the result will be that human communicative behaviour has no continuity (Hegde: 1980). The second point, on the creativity of language free from the control of stimulus, seems to be weak, because, as discussed above in section (3.1) no evidence has been offered in its support. Furthermore, with regard to the third point, in Chomskys view the way that people use language is coherent and appropriate to the situation. It could be argued that this point is somewhat vague, since Chomsky admits that he can give no clear meaning to the terms appropriateness and coherent in this context (ibid). However, he stresses that the creative aspect of language is common. Humans constantly create novel utterances and many who lack this ability might be brain damaged (Aitchison: 2007). This view would be more popular if it took into account the effect of environmental learning methods in producing our utterances, since the one question that needs to be asked here is, how humans can produce them without communication with their input. 3.3. Modularity: In the areas of linguistics and philosophy of mind, the idea of modularity has raised a great deal of concern (Garfield: 1987). There seems to be another difference between Chomsky and Tomasello, about the modularity of mind in language acquisition. To illustrate, the definition of modularity according to Crystal (1998: 246) is: A term used in recent discussion of language in two slightly different ways. On the one hand, it is proposed, especially in J. A. Fodors The Modularity of Mind, that the mind is modular in the sense that it consists of a number of different systems ( modules) each has its own distinctive properties , such as the language system and the vision system. On the other hand, it is suggested, especially in government-binding theory that language system itself is modular in the sense that it consists of a number of different subsystems which interact in specific ways. The concept of modularity is that the brain is divided into separate parts, an idea to which Chomsky gives much attention (1965).He identifies the language area as a separate faculty of mind, in that language is autonomous in the mind and a separate module in the brain (Aitchison: 2007). Furthermore, he goes on to argue that the human mind is, like other complex biological systems, modular in its internal formation (Chomsky: 1984). The main idea of modularity, according to him, is that the modularity of syntax means that the structures of syntax are not the same as the structures exist in other cognitive (Chomsky: 1968 cited in Tomasello: 1995). By the way of contrast, we can see that Tomasello does not agree that language is a separated module in the brain, because, by his reasoning, in order to have a perfect grammatical theory the syntactic abilities should be combined into cognition and not like an autonomous sub-system (Parisse: 2005). To sum up, Chomskys view is a modular view in which there are different sub-parts in the mind each one possessing special characteristics. Tomasello, however, take the non-modular view that there are general principles employed in all cognitive domains which control the mind (Archibald: 1993). However, to return to the account of modularity provided by Chomsky, one of the difficulties with this account is the claim that syntactic structures are not like the structures which exist in other cognitive domains. This seems to be wrong, because it gives the idea that the syntax module is innate, yet if we give the example of the game of chess, we find that it possesses a number of unique structures, such as, the images of a knight fork or queen-a side attack- in human cognition. But there is no need to presume that this uniqueness chess- playing form needs an innate mental form (Bates et al. 1991). Moreover, the structures of cognitive thought which adults utilise in order to play the game of chess come through a process in which people employ general cognitive processes to face their problems in their social interaction which they may have had in learning to play a constructed game (Tomasello:1995). Hence, it is thought that Chomskys view seems to be weak because it is difficult to specify which part of the brain is responsible for language. As Bates asserts, it still far from knowing perfectly which parts of the brain are responsible for language (Bates in press, cited in, Tomasello 1995). 3.4. Language- specific versus domain- general learning mechanisms: Another point of difference between Chomsky and Tomasello concerns the way in which children acquire language. is another different point between Chomsky and Tomasello. The difference lies in the contention over whether language should be a specific domain or a domain general learning mechanism. A specific domain in this context means a domain specific to language, whilst, domain general refers to learning mechanisms which are not specific to language, yet applied generally. From Chomskys perspective, since, human beings are able to learn language and animals are not, this ability is considered genetically inherited (Aitchison: 2007). Nativist theory, in fact, hypothesises that children are born with universal grammar (UG), a set of innate principles and parameters. This possession helps children to learn language without making errors as they learn (Conroy and Thornton: 2005). Therefore, this assumes that children possess a pre- existing domain- specific innate form which specifies the form of their language knowledge. Moreover, in language learning in particular, syntax children obtain ability without exposure to adequate stimulus (Chomsky; 1986, Pinker; 1994). However, Tomasello believes that it is false to suppose that children have genetically endowed grammar (Tomasello: 2003). To his mind, children in order to learn their language employ item-based learning integrated with some general learning mechanisms that are used in other cognitive domains , such as, analogy (Conroy and Thornton: 2005). Moreover, in Tomasellos view the properties of language structure come from joint attention figures and not from innate language specific mechanisms (Segalowitz: 2001). As a result, Tomasello significantly did not ignore language universals; however, to him they not universals of form or a special type of syntax or linguistic symbols but are instead, the universals of human communication and cognition. For example, human beings use language in similar social contexts in order to provide solutions in language for communicative tasks, such as, describing specific entities (Tomasello: 2003). Consequently, Chomskys view that language has a specific-do main is weak , because languages differ in their grammatical relations, of subject and object, for example, Acehnese, an Indonesian language, and Tagalog, a Philippine language, do not possess these grammatical relations ( Tomasello:1995). 4. Some weakness in both theories: Tomasello, then, introduced a new model of usage-based theories in language acquisition in which he paid attention to a main set of skills, namely, intention reading, joint attention and pattern-finding skills. These skills are general skills utilised also in other types of cognition and not in language alone. Furthermore, although they are innate, they are not like the universal grammar (UG) invented by Chomsky, because they are not specific to language (Tomasello, 2003). But Tomasellos account seems to entail some limitations. It is thought that he does not provide a clear explanation for the fact that these skills are sufficient for language acquisition. As Wilson (2006:138) points out: Tomasellos central claim is that joint attention and intention reading are foundational and prerequisite for language acquisition. It does seems reasonable to assume that they are necessary for language development, but the big question is, are they sufficient? Can they entirely account for all of the complexities of language à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ from parsing speech stream to the emergence of complex grammatical structures? Hollich et al. (2000), on the other hand, seems to agree with this criticism, because they assert that Tomasellos theory, which is one of the social constructivist theories, does not possess a complete or sufficient explanation for the fact that children can produce increasingly inserted sentences in their utterances. Moreover, the problem with these theories is that they still offer no clarification of childrens ability to discover the relationships between language units. In contrast to this, Chomskys theory is considered one of the famous theories in the language acquisition domain. It has indeed, affected the entire literature language acquisition, because of the controversy surrounding it. Yet this theory too attracts a number of criticisms. In this section, we focus on four critical points made against this theory. A major criticism concerns the universal grammar hypothesis (UG) which has been discussed above. Although (UG) aroused widespread interest in language acquisition debates, it is thought, that it is based solely on abstract thinking and lacks empirical support. As Kadarisman (2007a) points out, the concept of universal grammar must be without meaning unless it has empirical evidence. But, without adequate explanations, it seems to be more a slogan than a scientific effort. Moreover, due to its abstraction, (UG) neglects the local importance of language used in the cultural context (Becker: 1995). Second, Chomskys theory is criticised for relying on logical arguments only. As Palmer (2000) indicates, Chomskys nativist claims remain are still the same as they have been fir the past two decades. Because his claims are based on logical arguments instead of, direct evidences or reasonable interpretations, his argum ents have no external support. Tomasello seems, agree with Palmer in this criticism because he states that Chomsky in his account relies strongly on logical arguments, not using the scientific study of human behaviour and cognition (Tomasello: 1995). Third, it is criticised because it can not be tested. This creates some contention around Chomskys account. The reason is that his theory has no clear cut procedures which could be examined. To put it more simple, Chomsky considered theory-construction in linguistics as similar to theory- construction in the physical sciences, particular, physics. Yet, there is a deference between these two domains, because, the mathematical model in physics depends on physical phenomena and is testable, whereas, Chomskys model relies on subjective judgments made by individual native speakers who may disagree with each other. Consequently, it can not be tested (Moor and Carling: 1987). Fourth, Chomskys theory is criticised in terms of its ideas, if considered as philosophical ideas, for instance the adoption of such innatist ideas as, the universal grammar (UG) hypothesis which is based on the hypothesis of an innate language faculty. Subsequently, many linguists (e.g. Hegde, 1980; Moore and Claring, 1987) have strongly criticised these ideas. For example, Hegde asserts that the concept of a nativist theory is merely part of an ancient philosophical idea. Furthermore, Moore and carling believe that Chomskian linguistics are linked by these ideas to philosophy, in particular, epistemology, the part of philosophy concerned with knowledge theories. Conclusion: The domain of language acquisition possesses a varied collection of theories. Their main concern is to discover the way in which people, in particular children, can acquire language. The accounts given by Chomsky and Tomasello can be critically contrasted, as seen above. They obviously stand on two opposite sides. In Chomskys theory, children are born with an innate ability by which they acquire their language, whereas, in Tomasellos theory, language is acquired through language use and not by biologically innate ability. Furthermore, the innate abilities which children have are not specific to language. However, the main aspects which have been contrasted in this paper comprised: first, the poverty of stimulus argument, in which, according to Chomsky, the input is not sufficient to acquire language, while, from Tomasellos perspective there is no poverty of stimulus; second, Language to Chomsky is creative, because it is free from the control of stimulus while in Tomasellos view lang uage results from the attempt of humans to create categories in language; third, modularity, Chomskys assertion that the mind is separated into sub-parts, whereas Tomasello believes, that general principles control the mind; and fourth, Language- specific versus domain- general learning mechanisms; either there are universals specific to language, as in (UG) hypothesis of Chomsky or, as Tomasello states universals is not specific to language but apply to all human communication and cognition. Hence, we can conclude that Chomskys account strongly relies on the hypothesis of universal grammar (UG) to support his view on the poverty of stimulus argument, creativity of language, modularity and the language- specific domain. It should be noted that the universal grammar hypothesis (UG) brought a great deal of debate among scholars of language acquisition, even though one of its limitations is that it has no empirical evidence to support it. Tomasellos account, conversely, depends on general skills in language acquisition, such as, joint attention, intention reading and pattern finding skills. Yet he did not provide adequate explanation to convince us that these are sufficient for language acquisition.

Contrastive Analysis And Error Analysis

Contrastive Analysis And Error Analysis Contrastive analysis is a method to distinguish between what are needed and not needed to learn by the second language learner by evaluating languages (M.Gass Selinker, 2008). In addition, contrastive analysis is a technique to identify whether two languages have something in common which assess both similarities and differences in languages, conforming to the belief in language universals. (Johnson, 1999). Both statements indicate that contrastive analysis holds a principle which is important in order to identify what are required by the second learner and what are not. If there is no familiar characteristic in the languages, then it is not necessary to compare the languages. While much could be said about comparing languages, a more important aspect is about influence from L2 in L1. Contrastive analysis stresses the influence of the mother tongue in learning a second language in phonological, morphological, lexical and syntactic levels. It holds that second language would be affec ted by first language (Jie, 2008, p. 36). On the same score, Wardhaugh asserts that first language of second language learners can clarify all errors that are constantly made them. These arguments prove that the common mistakes make by the second language learner are explainable in the first language if there is a relation in both languages. Indeed, this idea is conform to the rule of contrastive analysis which believes in language universal. On the other hand, contrastive analysis is used to identify one language origin and connection between the languages with other languages if it does. In Robert Lados words (1957:p.2): The fundamental assumption is transfer; individuals tend to transfer the forms and meanings, and the distribution of forms and meanings of their native language and culture to the foreign language and culture. I agree with Robert Lado since the second language learner tends to use direct translation to make a complete sentence. However, this might become a problem when the placement of the part of speech is not the same. For example, Malaysian who use Malay language as their first language and English as their second language might have a problem in placing the adjective. This is because in Malay language, adjective is put after the noun, such as; Rumah yang cantik but in English, adjective is placed before noun, for instance A beautiful house (adj) (Noun) This may cause confusion for the second learner but if they make a sentence, it is still understandable. The degree of clarity of the sentence can be a positive transfer of negative transfer. This example is supported by Jie (2008): In the course of language learning, L1 learning habits will be transferred into L2 learning habits. Therefore, in the case of L1 transfer into L2, if structures in the MT have their corresponding structures in the TL and L1 habits can be successfully used in the L2, learners would transfer similar properties successfully and that would result in positive transfer. Contrastingly, in the case of negative transfer or interference, certain elements of the MT have no corresponding counterparts in the TL, L1 habits would cause errors in the L2, and learners would transfer inappropriate properties of L1 It is important to know that L2 learners be likely to apply their L1 grammatical system in L2 grammar (Smith, 1994). They would opt for L2 words those they familiar, blending them using L2 grammar to formulate a sentence. For example; a Malay speaker would say; Saya makan epal semalam (Pronoun) (Verb) (Noun) (Adverb) Or in English; Yesterday, I ate the apple (Adverb) (Pronoun) (Verb) (Determiner) (Noun) If the L2 learners apply Smith argument, they would say; I ate apple yesterday As mentioned earlier, this statement is logical at one point but in other point, it shows that errors and transferred inappropriate properties those made by L2 learners are noticeable and this should apply the rule of contrastive analysis. However, this analysis has disadvantages. In Susan M. Gass and Larry Selinker words, they believe that this analysis is questioned because of the concept of difficulty as the basic theory of the contrastive analysis is concerning the difficultness. If an error is made by a person, this shows that the person has problem in some area, not because of the native language. Thus, we cannot presume that fluency of a L2 learner in L2 is depending on the nature of L1. There are more aspects that related to this matter. There are other factors that may influence the process of acquisition such as innate principle of language, attitude, motivation, aptitude, age, other language knownà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (M.Gass Selinker, 2008). Next, contrastive analysis cannot d etect some difficulties experienced by the L2 learners. For example, Je vois les/elle/la/le . I see them/her/her/him(this phrase is not possible in French) (Choi, 2009). Error analysis is a type of linguistic analysis that focuses on the errors learners make (M.Gass Selinker, 2008). This analysis is almost the same with the weak version of contrastive analysis which is comparing the errors which made by L2 learners. However, error analysis is not evaluating the errors with L2 native language, but it compares with the target language. Error analysis provides a broader range of possible explanations than contrastive analysis for researchers/teachers to use account for errors, as the latter only attributed errors to the native language (M.Gass Selinker, 2008). I do agree with Gass and Selinker because as Corder (1967) says that by producing errors, it shows that the learners are progressing and participating.

Essay --

Raluca is from Bucharest, Romania. At the age of seven, her family had a computer, a library, and more than a majority of the time, quality food to eat. Raluca’s parents believed in order for her to succeed in the free market economy, education was critical. Throughout the film, it was evident that Romania was a work in progress due to it’s transition to capitalism. Raluca commuted everyday to a public school in a wealthy neighborhood where she received an advanced curriculum of French, Science, and Humanities. Raluca’s future looked promising, as a high school diploma was not enough to provide financial security. At the age of thirteen, Raluca had access to computers and the Internet considering her country valued education. In fourth grade, Raluca continued to receive a high-quality education and an advanced curriculum in Bucharest. In order to stay in a superior school, Raluca had to do well on extremely difficult exams at the end of fourth grade. In Romania, during 2003, the structure of the education system was, to an extent, hard to understand. The various schooling system consisted of pre-school education, primary school, lower secondary school, high school, vocational school, apprentice school, long-term higher education, short-term education, post secondary school, and post graduate school. Children entered pre-school education between the ages of three and six. At the age of six, the child entered primary education, which was the first four years of compulsory education. According to the 2003 amendment to the Education law, children entered school at the age of six. However, children had the option to begin their compulsory education at the age of seven at the family’s request or before the age of six if ... ...a implemented a three-cycle structure, with completion in a minimum of ten years. Romania, overtime, began the process of educational reform. Since this occurred, the population of student growth in schools increased dramatically. Resources for education also improved overall, with the adoption of new curriculum. However, the Romanian education system was slow to change due to efforts and budgets were limited. As a future educator, I would thoroughly enjoy working in Romanian schools. Even though the resources and technologies may not be available, student objectives and curriculum are in place, ensuring student success. A quote from an unknown source reads, â€Å"The best teachers teach from the heart, not from the book.† From my point of view, as long as the student feels safe and comfortable, while having the will and motivation to learn, anything can happen.

Biblical Symbols and Symbolism in John Steinbecks East of Eden :: East Eden Essays

Biblical Symbolism in East of Eden    John Steinbeck includes more of the tale of Genesis: 4 than is actually told in the bible.   The basis of this is a Jewish story involving twin sisters of both Cain and Abel.   The two disputed over Abel’s twin whom Abel was to marry.   Cain murdered Abel and wed the twin sister of his brother (Fonterose, Joseph. p.3380).   The story differs also in that it is Abel who leaves his home instead of Cain.   Abel found his Eden, represented by Salinas Valley, but lost it after fathering a second generation very similar to the first, Caleb representing Cain and Aron representing Abel (Fonterose, Joseph. p.3379).   The story is changed by Steinbeck to illustrate the idea that men naturally have both good and evil tendencies within them, and that this mixture compels men to choose between the two.   The story told is similar to an alternate interpretation of Genesis: 4 called timshel.   This alternate reading introduces the idea that Cain feels evil and kills Abel beca use of the jealousy he feels towards his brother and God’s love for Abel (Levant, Howard. p.243).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The relationship of good to evil is found in many different ways throughout East of Eden.   One way is the opposition between the two.   Such a relationship is illustrated through the Cain and Abel allusions in the novel.   Another relationship is that the two must coexist.   This relation is represented by the arrival of both the church and the brothel in town at the same time.   Good comes from evil is the third relationship.   Cathy making Adam appear all the more pure shows this relation.   The last relationship is that both terms are relative (Fonterose, Joseph. p.3381).   Caleb Trask is illustrated as being a man more evil than others are. This innate wickedness varies from the immoral values of other characters such as Charles or Cathy-Kate.   The wickedness is attributed to Caleb’s ability to choose between good and evil and his choosing of the latter (Levant, Howard. p.240).   In East of Eden, good is associated with individual morals.   Examples of such would be abstinence from sexual activity and virtues like generosity and self-respect.   Evil is illustrated through acts such as prostitution and murder (Fonterose, Joseph. p. 3381).   Sex is treated as a carnal act that cannot be good.   It is a sin; where in other Steinbeck novels, it would be easily accepted.

Is Your Sore Throat Strep?

Is Your Sore Throat Strep? By Kristin Hayes, About. com Guide Updated October 06, 2009 About. com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by the Medical Review Board Question: Is Your Sore Throat Strep? It can be difficult to tell if your sore throat is strep or simply a cold virus. However, in most cases of strep throat there are some key differences. Answer: The only way to know for sure if your sore throat is strep is to have a rapid strep test or a throat culture.These tests must be performed at a physician's office, but let's face it you can't go running in to the doctor every time your throat gets a little scratchy. Characteristics of strep throat include a severe sore throat that may cause pain or difficulty swallowing. The back of the throat is usually very red and there may be white patches in the back of the throat or on the tonsils. The tonsils and lymph nodes also may be swollen. Some people get a fever. It is not uncommon to be very tired and achy or to lose y our appetite.In some cases you may get a rash. The biggest difference between strep throat and a cold virus is that strep throat usually does not cause runny nose, congestion, sneezing or coughing. All cases of strep throat must be treated with an antibiotic to avoid serious complications including heart problems, kidney problems or Scarlett fever — especially in children. For these reasons, it is very important to see the doctor if you or your child have symptoms of strep throat.

Case Analysis of Lenovo M&A IBM PC department Essay

Lenovo Group Limited is a Chinese transnational computer hardware and electronics company. Its operational headquarters are located in Morrisville, North Carolina, United States and its registered office is in Hong Kong. It produces personal computers, tablet computers, mobile phones, workstations, servers, electronic storage devices, IT management software and smart televisions. Lenovo has operations in more than 60 countries and sells its products in around 160 countries. Lenovo was founded in Beijing in 1984 and incorporated in Hong Kong in 1988 under its previous name, Legend. Lenovo is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and is selected as a  constituent stock of the Hang Seng China-Affiliated Corporations Index. In the 1980s, when market reforms were in progress, the Chinese government hired Liu Chuanzhi to distribute imported computers. In 1984, Liu founded Lenovo with a group of ten engineers and 200,000 yuan in Beijing. Their first significant effort to import televisions was failed. The group could rebuild itself within a year by carrying out quality checks on computers for new buyers. Shortly afterward, Lenovo started developing a circuit board that would allow IBM-compatible personal computers to process Chinese characters. This product was Lenovo’s first major success. Lenovo started to manufacture and launch computers tagging its own brand name in 1990. In 1996, Lenovo’s market share went up to the first place in China, and it launched its first PC. Since then, it developed rapidly and in 2000 it became a constituent of the Hang Seng China-Affiliated Corporations Index. However, Lenovo’s diversification strategy and the competition with the computer manufacturers around the world made Lenovo to loss position. In 2003, the three business lines which include mobile phone, IT and the internet unit lost over hundred million Hong Kong dollar. Even in the line of the PC, the most profitable unit of Lenovo, it should compete with the DELL and HP. The fact that the global market made DELL stronger encouraged Lenovo to focus on its comparative advantages of operational area, the PC and go back to the internationalization strategies. After nine years, Lenovo became the world’s largest PC vendor in 2012 marketing the ThinkPad line of notebook computers and the ThinkCentre line of desktops. Lenovo could success because of its long-term concentration on emerging markets and successful overseas M&As suffering from a low profit margin in the PC business and intense competitions from tablet PCs and smart phones, the company is initiating to diversify its businesses. The most famous M&A case is the merger and acquisition of IBM’s PC unit. In fact, in early 2000, IBM had already represented its willingness to sell their PC unit to Lenovo. Why would IBM sell its renowned PC unit? According to the financial report submitted by the IBM in the year 2004, the PC division lost 397million dollar in 2001, 171 million in 2002, 258 million in 2003, and 139 million in the first half of the 2004. For the successive years, IBM was in a lost position. The active pricing strategies of companies such as Dell, Hewlett-Packard (HP) had a serious impact on the sales of the IBM PC which  means, for IBM, the PC unit is â€Å"tasteless†. Therefore, IBM was to leave unprofitable PC market, and put in more effort in the profitable high-end servers, software and IT services business. However, the acquisition price then is up to 4 billion in US dollar, Lenovo was unable to afford that much. Moreover, Lenovo played a dominant role in the market of mainland China then, so it didn’t accept this proposal. In May 2002, IBM’s CEO Sam Palmisano visited Lenovo to revisit the issues of the two sides. Lenovo had then enthusiasm about the implementation of diversification strategy, but also aware of the importance of the internationalization. Hence, it was possible for later further negotiations. From the end of 2003 to December 8, 2004, this merger continued for an entire year. December 8, 2004, Lenovo publicly announced that the acquisition of IBM’s global PC business is complete. Lenovo’s acquisition of IBM’s personal computer division accelerated entry to foreign markets while improving both its branding and technology. Lenovo paid $1.25 billion for IBM’s computer business, including $650 million in cash, 600 million shares and an additional $500 million of IBM’s debt. This acquisition made Lenovo the third largest computer manufacturer in the world by volume then. After the acquisition completed, Lenovo wanted to take over IBM’s notebook and desktop businesses and other related businesses including its customers, distribution and marketing channels worldwide. With regard to the purchase of IBM’s personal computer division Liu Chuanzhi said, â€Å"We benefited in three ways from the IBM acquisition. We got the ThinkPad brand, IBM’s more advanced PC manufacturing technology and the company’s international resources, such as its global sales channels and operation teams. These three elements have shored up our sales revenue in the past several years.† Besides, Lenovo obtained the 5-year-right to use the brand name of IBM. Acquisition agreement also point that the executive candidate: Stephen Ward (the senior manager of IBM) became the CEO and board directors of Lenovo group. Whereas after the M&A, Lenovo faced various serious problems such as culture differences and the integration of human resources, high salary costs, supply chain issues and the financial distress. However, Lenovo eventually solved the problems and dramatically survived. 1. To solve the problem of the large gap of the salaries between the employees of the Lenovo and the employees of the IBM PC Unit, Lenovo decided not to change the salary of the employees of IBM within 3 years and agreed to transform their stock options into the stock options of Lenovo. And for the three years of time, Lenovo will adjust and establish a unified and equitable salary system. 2. To solve the difficulty of the integration of the brand, Lenovo required at least a five-year-time to launch an independent and prestigious brand. With the agreement between Lenovo and IBM, Lenovo can use the brand name of IBM for five years. After that, Lenovo can only use â€Å"ThinkPad† and â€Å"ThinkCentre†. 3. To solve the supply chain issues, by the end of the year 2005, Lenovo had invited William J. Amalio to charge the position, the CEO of the Lenovo Group, replacing the former CEO, Stephen N. Ward. Amalio made a great effort to optimize and improve the international supply chain system of Lenovo during his tenure. Lenovo started the â€Å"Reconstruction project of the supply chain worldwide† through developing the infrastructure of not only the IT but only the efficiency of the supply chains. 4. The financial distress was a huge obstacle for the progress of Lenovo which carries seriously negative effects. When the acquisition is complete, the net profit of Lenovo decreased significantly from 1092 million Hong Kong dollar in 2005 to 216.528 million Hong Kong dollar in 2006. And the EPS(Earnings per share) of Lenovo also dropped from 14.97 HK cents to 1.95 HK cents. The loss of revenue was due to the loss of the market share of the IBM PC unit. After every possible works, in 2007, Lenovo has basically completed the pre-integration of the PC unit. And the financial indicators seemed all getting better. The profit of Lenovo increased to 1256.88 million Hong Kong dollars, and its EPS increase to 14.35 in 2007. However, Lenovo should endeavor to get a stable condition before they had. In 2008, Lenovo showed the worst financial reports since its acquisition of the IBM PC unit. The profit was only 23.3 million dollar which is 78% of decrease compared with the profit last year. At Feb, 5, 2009, Lenovo announced a loss of 97 million dollar. And at the same time, Lenovo found that it had lost the dominant market share in mainland China. After bearing a really tough time of its own, Lenovo made a right decision during this period of time. Liu’s comeback must be the most correct one. Liu adjusted the company’s business strategies to maintain a desirable share of domestic sales and continue to expand global overseas markets. Lenovo Group  immediately reduced its losses in 2010 and finally, achieved profitability and got a profit of 1,009 million Hong Kong dollar in fiscal year of 2010. Lenovo eventually got survived. 1. The critical successful factors that are the focus of the successful M&A activities 1.1 Synergistic Effect The key of the successful M&A case is whether the merging companies and the merged companies can complement other group’s advantages and make one plus one bigger than two or not. The merging of Lenovo and IBM’s personal-computer department has great synergistic effect in many aspects. It made the remarkable positive value in the synergy of businesses, the synergy of distribution channels, the synergy of the brand and management and the synergy of cost savings. 1.2 Integrated the human resources and resolved the labor cost problem successfully At the first time, there was tremendous difference between Lenovo’s and IBM’s human resources strategies. The major problem was the large salaries gap between Lenovo and IBM, the salaries of previous IBM’s employees made great cost expenses. In order to retain the previous IBM’s employees and reduce the discontent of Lenovo’s employees, Lenovo gave itself three years of transitional period and formed a unified and equitable paying system within three years. 1.3 Resolved the difficulty of blending two brands Many companies try to increase their sales amounts and seek growth of revenue by developing new products. And the co-branding strategy is one of the effective methods to provide a way to produce new and profitable products. Lenovo planned to utilize the well-known brand name of IBM in order to access to the international market hence increase the revenue. However, merging two brands caused brand meaning to transfer in unexpected ways that were never intended. Through signing an agreement to obtain the right which is allow Lenovo to use the trademark of IBM for five years, Lenovo could use the buffering time to make the global computer users worldwide to recognize its half-new name. In 2011, Lenovo took over the Acer and became the world third largest PC supplier globally. We can see that Lenovo has gradually built its reputation in the international market around the world so far. 1.4 Well-designed corporate management plan After the acquisition, Lenovo experienced a tough time in transition, with serious financial hardship as well as plummeting the price of stock. In order to resolve these problems, Chuanzhi Liu designed an accurate scheme with two steps forward to make Lenovo achieve success in the acquisition. Owing the accurate action, Lenovo could eventually break the stalemate and achieve brilliant success in profit again in 2010 as it shows below. 2009 2010 EPSï ¼Ë†HK centsï ¼â€° -19.97 10.37 Net incomeï ¼Ë†million HKDï ¼â€° -1765.83 1009.07 ROAï ¼Ë†%ï ¼â€° -3.42 1.44 ROEï ¼Ë†%ï ¼â€° -17.27 8.06 The profit index of Lenovo in 2009, 2010 2. The summary of lessons learned which made the factors successful 2.1 Synergistic Effect There are several synergistic effects in the case of Lenovo M&A IBM PC department. Complementing IBM’s and Lenovo’s advantages, Lenovo are able to increase its market share and the revenue, reduce the cost and finally manage the firm to be effective in full operation. Firstly, one of key driving forces for the successful M&A was that IBM has already penetrated the global large enterprises’ market whereas Lenovo have relatively the small enterprises’ market in terms of scope of their activities and the consumers’ market. However, after the merge with IBM PC department, Lenovo  expands its business share thus increases the bottom line. Secondly, it was the synergy of distribution channel. Lenovo has an internationalization strategy that â€Å"Attracting-In† and â€Å"Walking-Out† while IBM which is a globally mature large entity has tones of successful distribution channels all over the map and the corresponding sales teams and managing groups. By merging IBM’s PC department, Lenovo is able to combine the domestic and international distribution channels and it gains the international market at a relatively cheaper cost. At the third place, the synergy of the brand and management. After merging, Lenovo processes IBM’s THINK series brand and their patents, two R&D centers and retention of the previous IBM’s top executive board. Lenovo maintains the competitive advantages of IBM’s PS department, the leading R&D as well as the product innovation capability. At the forth place, the synergy of cost saving. Lenovo did not have competitive advantages regarding of invention cycle and the integration of the whole industry chain. After merging, Lenovo cut IBM’s money-consuming outsourcing businesses, and then optimize its supply chain. As a result, save a great deal of cost. 2.2 Integrated the human resources and resolved the labor cost problem successfully At first, there was an immense difference in their strategies between two companies. Lenovo paid attention solely in the internal training among skilled and outstanding people while IBM’s training mechanism was far improved. Lenovo hires employees according to the degree of agreeing its corporate culture whereas IBM focuses on morality. The most practical issue seemed to be the cost of labour. The total amount wages of IBM’s employees was much greater than Lenovo’s. IBM’s employees enjoyed wages about seven times more than Lenovo’s among the same level positions. Lenovo determined to stick to the wage level of the previous IBM’s executives within three years and also their IBM’s stock options exchange to Lenovo’s in the same amount. In three years, they gradually prepared to form an integrated payroll system. In which case, Lenovo retained the IBM previous technicians and the top executive group which are definitely crucial assets for Lenovo. 2.3 Resolved the difficulty of blending two brands IBM’s brand value is fairly influential and stable, maintaining its name value at top three for 6 years (2001 to 2006) whilst Lenovo did not gain much global reputation before the merging. In order to keep the competitiveness of IBM’s global PC business and settle the problems of blending two brands in a steady state, Lenovo and IBM got in terms that Lenovo would be able to use the trademark of IBM in five years, after five years, Lenovo can only us ThinkPad and ThinkCentre. Hence, the co-branding strategy for Lenovo to merge with IBM’s PC department was quite fruitful which did not hurt IBM’s reputation and during the buffer time, Lenovo are able to increase its popularity worldwide with the brand of IBM, after five years, Lenovo earned its own reputation. 2.4 Well-designed corporate management plan Lenovo has made a pivotal management plan after M&A strived to unravel the financial difficulties. STEP ONE: In order to stabilize overseas customers after the acquisition as well as to learn know-how from advanced International management team, Lenovo selected two foreign managers as CEO in roll, Stephen Ward(the senior manager of IBM) and Amelio (the ex-vice CEO of DELL). During this term, the primary task for the Chinese senior managers is to learn in despite of unpleasant situation. Stephen Ward stabilized the original employees of IBM and customers, which plays a central role in reducing the flow of employees and customers. Amelio constantly induced the efficiency management of DELL to Lenovo, cut uncalled for staff member, and streamlined the whole management structure. During that period, Lenovo accomplished a high level of profit of more than 40 million dollars. Moreover, Chinese managers had acquired a bulk of experience in multicultural corporation management and stored a pool of the capable employees for future development. STEP TWO: Restructured foreign CEOs that are near-sighted and lack in courage to enlarge business and reemployed the reliable and outgoing Chinese senior management crew after 4 years. This step established the desire of original employees of Lenovo and released the inner power of Lenovo storing for 4 years. 3. What should the company do next to improve its post-M&A initiatives Lenovo cannot survive after the M&A if it cannot provide valuable product, so it  should focus on further research and development. Lenovo should adhere to its innovative corporate culture. Lenovo Group has established a R&D team which has three core research locations—China, The US and Japan. And the team is closely connected with the business department. Within Lenovo group, they called this enormous system, â€Å"Global innovation triangle†. After the acquisition, Lenovo was faced with new challenge, that is, the culture conflict; the difference between the two countries may force the former employees of IBM to leave Lenovo. So that Lenovo should respect the autonomy of overseas R&D centers. Powers are returning to the engineers, and even the appearance of the new headquarters of Lenovo in the Raleigh, US, is designed by the senior director David and his American team, and it impossible under IBM’s rule. And this is a very good beginning. Even though Lenovo has a global marketing channel after the acquisition of IBM PC unit, it needs a more proactive marketing team. The sales team of IBM just issued orders for Lenovo but never take active steps to find new customers. The acquisition of IBM PC leads to a loss of the customers such as the US government, so that the marketing team of Lenovo should improve its skills to find new customers. Lenovo should deepen its internationalization achievements. Since Lenovo’s success is attributed to its long-term target on emerging markets and successful overseas M&A, it should run a good business of the corporations it merged. Lenovo should shape itself for the global market. Positioning is always the critical issue that the Chinese companies ignore, and it is the reason why Chinese company can hardly last longer than other in western countries. After the positioning, Lenovo should rationalize their pricing strategy. The value of the product is an important factor to concern; Lenovo can no longer make low-price strategy to survive in the global market. Lenovo should rather concern about the demand of their target customers, and make valuable and long-lasting product for them. Since China is concerning about the industrial upgrading, Lenovo should grasp this opportunity, and actively develop new smart phones, tablet PCs, smart TVs to promote the association to achieve the leap from PC to PC +. Conclusion In conclusion, the traditional era of homogeneous workforce has begun to  change. With the quickly changing social structure and emergence of new technology, a heterogeneous workforce is currently essential to market’s needs. In the past few years, China has emerged as the most potential market with a huge population, rapidly growing domestic demand and low cost of production. Many multinational companies have been trying to get a footing in China in order to obtain their competitive advantages. Consequently, that has posed serious challenges to the Chinese local producers in competing with these large giants. In order to survive and boost businesses growth, many business need to expand its market beyond the home base. There are many entry modes that may help firms business move into the international market. After the M&A has taken place, organization needs to pay extra attention on the strategy it chose to adopt to integrate the culture of the two companies to keep the smoothness of the organisation operation and performance. From the case study of Lenovo and IBM, a number of important conclusions can be drawn. For a Chinese company like Lenovo, the main motives for its embarking on M&A with IBM PC-D were its need for international branding to gain access to international customers as well as its need to be equipped with technology. As mentioned previously, Chinese products have always been marketed at the lower end of the product line with low costs and poor quality. Acquiring a well-known international brand is considered to be the fastest route to changing these intolerable perceptions of the consumers towards Chinese products and booting up its product image. Under this special circumstance, the need for branding is deemed the most important for a Chinese company to expand into international market. The case of Lenovo’s adopting a separate management mode to manage IBM PC department team was different from those described in the literature. The acquiring company is the very one that encourages the acquired team to preserve and maintain its own management system and procedure. Among the reasons behind this move, the most curial factor affecting this decision is fixed length of time agreed by IBM to allow Lenovo to use the brand ThinkPad. With this fixed term of a five-year period posted to Lenovo has to make best effort to build up its own brand â€Å"Lenovo† within this period. Therefore, it is sensible for Lenovo to encourage IBM PC department to maintain its own system and focus on digging the target in time. The use of culture integration committee in the case study of Lenovo has been very useful and helpful for members to  understand and become more aware of the differences it may occur among them. The committee has set up several activities such as culture discovery newsletter and discussion forums to encourage communication between two teams. These arrangements have been well received by the employees with active participation and enthusiasm. Therefore, it is believed that this strategy may well be recommended for organisations to encourage communication between employees.