Summarize the articles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Summarize the articles - Essay Example le being that additional emphasis should go into preparing teachers to think outside the box especially when faced with various setbacks (Wright & Wilson, 2011). It is also important for teacher trainers to adapt and familiarize themselves with emerging technologies that boost student engagement and participation in class. The purpose of this research was to establish, test and verify the attitudes of junior high school students towards the use of technology using the Attitudes Toward Technology Scale for Junior High School Students as developed in 2005 by Yu et al. The study was to specifically establish a model of junior high school students’ attitudes toward technology, determine the relevance of the model and analyze the correlations among the various factors in the model. These factors are based either in the affective domain or PATT and its related studies. (Yu et al, 2012). The study also identifies three theoretical schemes of attitude towards technology as perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and behavior and intention use. The findings of this study show that identification with technology and experience with technology curricula were the primary factors influencing the students’ intentions to pursue careers in technology (Yu et al,

Civil Rights Movements Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Civil Rights Movements - Essay Example The United States is a diverse country racially and ethnically. It comprises of six distinct races namely; whites, Asians, African-Americans, American Indians, Native Americans and other races.As a result, there are constant cultural differences resulting in friction and warfare. Before political independence, the Americans depended on the Europeans for survival through provision of labour and other essential services. America was thus under the control of British until 1776 when it declared its independence. America was divided into North and South and differences existed between the two. The south was dependent on cotton plantations and depended solely on agriculture and therefore required cheap labour in the cotton plantations. This prompted slavery in the region as a source of cheap labour. On the other hand, the north depended on industries and turned cotton into finished goods. Urbanization was also rampant due to growth of cities and immigration and did not advocate for slaver y. This often brought about conflicts between the north and south prompting the civil war in 1861-1865 (Jones, 1996). The whites were considered a superior race compared to the others. Racial discrimination was therefore evident and continues to plague America in all aspects of life including social, political, economic and cultural areas. The American independence declared all humans as equal and has inalienable right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness and the constitution defended these rights. On this basis, civil rights movements were formed to fight for the rights of the minorities especially segregation and racial discrimination. The movement was particularly powerful in the south where minorities were often mistreated especially due to their conservatism nature and existence of Ku Klux Klan who were resistant to change. This paper discusses and analyzes civil rights movements operations and the varying ideas about how social, political, economic and cultural change co uld be achieved in the United States. American Civil War In order to understand the civil rights movements, it is essential to understand the circumstances surrounding the civil war as it formed the basis for the movements. The war had the worst casualties than all the other wars that had been fought in America including the world wars. According to McPherson (1990), America was experiencing rapid growth in population, territory size and economy as a whole. The population explosion was due to immigration and high birth rates in the north due to industrialization and urbanization. America was also involved in acquisition of new territories through conquering and purchasing such as the Indian Territory hence territorial expansion. Economic growth was a result of industrialization and increased incomes and cheap labour from slavery. The growth led to inequalities in wealth distribution, cultural erosion and increased slavery for the blacks. This often led to class, ethnic and sectional conflicts between north and south. The civil war was prompted by economic and social differences between the north and the south, state versus federal rights, slavery, growth of abolitionist movement as well as the election of Abraham Lincoln among others (Jones, 1996).The south was an agrarian plantation economy and remained bound by traditional values. Family ties, kinship and hierarchy were still important and the south fought to preserve these values. Slavery was thus essential for the regions economy and culture. There was also slow population growth due to migration of people to the cities in the north. The north on the other hand was an industrial capitalist economy characterized by high population growth. Traditional values are of less importance as people from different races worked together in the industrial economy. These conflicting ideologies often led to sectional conflict between the north and south and consequently the civil war. Another factor that led to the civil war

PMP application Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

PMP application - Essay Example I laid out an effective technical plan as to how system upgrades and server migration would take place. I served as the liaison to internal and external auditors. I chaired the monthly patch review meeting. In the execution phase, I directed the system administrators make a journal that would record all changes being made to the desktop systems so that we could recover in case of a mistake. I held meetings on daily basis to keep a track of every step. My company wanted to move to a server which had different PHP deployment method. I created, on the destination server, duplicates of each extra SSH/SFTP user, database and application that were on the original server, copied all files to the destination server, and created DNS overrides for the testing part. I told my teammates to make entries in the website to access the content of destination server. I told them how to upgrade the DNS overrides to point to the migrated server. Lastly, we waited for these changes to propagate, and clea red the original server. I was responsible for the first four phases of project management in this project. I helped my teammates with the concept development for the website. I defined the purpose, stakeholders, the basic outline of the organization’s biases, limitations and initial requirements, and the deliverables. I analyzed the executive requirements, business benefits and goals, implementation requirements, functional and financial requirements, infrastructure requirements, and technical analysis and design which included an analysis of the hardware and software tools needed. I, along with other members, wrote down the briefs, set the milestones, and assigned tasks. After briefing the client visually, I laid down basic components of the website and plotted out how they were going to work along. Risk evaluation was one important step in which I balanced the project’s time and cost. I created the staging environment and began the production guide to which I added all the

Measurement and Instruments for a Quantitative Research Plan Coursework - 1

Measurement and Instruments for a Quantitative Research Plan - Coursework Example It is against this background that the levels of measurement to be selected for the study would follow the principle of ordinal scale of measurement. This means that grading shall be assigned to the students according to their performance rate. The levels of measurement shall therefore be a grading system to be tagged or labeled as ‘A’, ‘B’, and ‘F’. As an ordinal scale, these levels of measurement shall be directly linked or related to the performance rate of students. In the given situation, students who score grade ‘A’ shall be given the classes they applied for whiles students who score ‘B’ shall be placed in one class below the class they applied for. Finally, students scoring ‘F’ shall be rejected a place in the schools. Given the levels of measurement that will be used in the study, the researcher shall design a multiple-indicator instrument or test. The multiple-indicator instrument will be used because it has the potential of ensuring validity on a number of scales. Cherry (2012) explains that â€Å"When a test has content validity, the items on the test represent the entire range of possible items the test should cover.† This means that the study shall ensure content validity by setting out questions to cover all aspects of the course content to be given to the students (Rodchua, 2009). By so doing, the test items shall represent the entire range of possible items because no aspect of the course content shall be left out. On empirical validity, it has been said that for empirical validity to be achieved, it is important that the researcher creates a criteria with which the results obtained can be compared for confirmation (Cheng, 2009). In the present study, the empirical validity can be measured by means of comparing the scores of the test, to the continuous assessment results that the students will bring from their respective

Animal Farm Summative Essay Example for Free

Animal Farm Summative Essay Animal Farm is an allegorical novel by George Orwell. It is considered to be an allegory because the farm and the various controversies within it are representing Russia’s condition before and after its overthrow of the tyrannical tsar. The novel explores more than just political conflicts – it shows the lengths human nature and gluttony can go, how surplus of power can destroy the truest of morality, how greed is present in every governing system, and no book, rule, or law can obliterate avarice. It also cleverly observes how humans alter their relationships and mask their true feelings towards others for their own security, and this course of action is evident in the relationship between Napoleon and Mr. Pilkington. Napoleon plays a greater role in the aftermath of the rebellion, rather than evoking the rebellion itself, and Mr. Pilkington does not play a great role in the novel until after the rebellion. Napoleon, from the very beginning, is made out to be an antagonist as he indulges in all sorts of suspicious activity, and constantly engages in arguments with Snowball, his partner in looking after the new â€Å"liberal† Animal Farm. The Seven Commandments are against everything man stands for, including Pilkington of Foxwood, and even if they do not have a direct relationship with each other in the beginning, Mr. Pilkington and Napoleon are enemies, because, as Old Major had once said, â€Å"Man is the only real enemy we have. Remove Man from the scene and the root cause of hunger and overwork is abolished forever† (4). Napoleon and Snowball have a very idealistic view of Animal Farm, but Napoleon’s attitude towards everything is noticed to be changed after the overthrow of Snowball. His hatred towards the other farmers had already started to falter when their rations fell short, but it is perceived that Napoleon started favoring Mr. Pilkington as he was against Frederick of Pinchfield, where Snowball was rumored to have resided. But their relationship is much like a seesaw as Napoleon goes through a phase of indecisiveness as to whether or not trust Mr. Pilkington as he had declined him any help during the Battle of the Windmill. For instance, when he had sent the pigeons to ask for help, Mr. Pilkington only replied with, â€Å"Serves you right†. As the novel progresses, the commandments are slowly altered, and this shows that Napoleon’s mind is slowly changing, his attitude towards the commandments are changing, and his attitude towards the humans are changing as well. For instance, the commandment â€Å"No animal shall sleep in a bed,† is altered to â€Å"No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets,† for Napoleon’s own luxury, and this not only shows that Napoleon has a new outlook on life, but also a new outlook on humans – not only that, but he alters all commandments, showing he is becoming more and more like a human every day, until finally, the day comes when he stands on his hind legs, indulges himself in alcohol, and is seen to be playing poker with Mr. Pilkington. The most important chapter concerning Napoleon’s relationship with Mr. Pilkington would be the last chapter of the novel when the pair are chatting and laughing, when they both draw aces in a game of poker. This sig nifies the looming power struggle between the two. Both Napoleon and Pilkington are striving to be the stronger party and will stoop to any level to emerge the winner. At the beginning of the novel Napoleon treats Pilkington with heavy disdain, and tries to form an isolated community of self-sufficient animals. As the novel progresses Napoleon engages in trade with Pilkingtons farm, and conspires with him to frame Snowball and make him appear a traitor. His relationship with Pilkington is purely selfish and both of them after the same end, to be the stronger of the two farms. To conclude, in Napoleon’s pursuit of creating his idealistic socialist utopia, he ended up turning into the evil he set out to banish, and turning into what all the animals dreaded – turning into a human, just like Pilkington, which is why â€Å"it was impossible to tell which was which†(89).

Accounting and Finance Degree Reflection

Accounting and Finance Degree Reflection Accounting has always been an interest of mine. Since I was a child, I have always been good in calculation, which makes it clearer that accountancy would be a good choice. After years of studying it, I realised accounting is not only about numbers but theory that require various skills in order to perform a good accounting. The increase number of students in the accounting field has made employment extremely competitive. Major findings suggest that, employers require a broad range of generic and professional skills in graduates to add value to business. In the past, generic skills was broad in that it was usually associated with those skills developed outside the technical curriculum. More recently the scope of the term generic skills has extended to emphasize relevance to graduate outcomes in terms of the world of work and, more specifically, employability (Barrie, 2004). The mixture of skills is necessary by the employers as it helps them solve the diversity of business challenges . Generic and professional skills that employers require The embedding of generic and professional skills in higher education curriculum has been of interest for many years. Skills are important for life-long learning and employability. B. Jackling and P. De Lange (2009) suggested that the skills most desired by employers include communication skills, analytical skills and team skills. Communication skill is particularly essential to accounting profession for which interaction between the providers and the recipients of information. For accounting it is important to starts with gathering and processing of information and end with communication of processed information. Previous research shows that accounting graduates experience communication problem in early employment (McLaren, 1990: Pattern and Williams, 1990). Despite that accounting curriculum has positively contributed to the development of written communication skills (Zaid, O. and Abraham, A. 1994) Analytical skills is relating to using analysis or logical reasoning to solve a problem. It is the ability to visualize and solve complicated problems while making accurate and informed decision. Employers are looking for people that are able to think critically and its consequence. For example, one could be good at spread sheets, can manipulate data effectively but they arent good at figuring out whether the information is reasonable or realistic (Ballantine, J. A. Larres, D. M. 2004). There are an increasing number of companies that want employees to work in a collaborative environment in order to respond quickly in an environment with intense complexity. Avery (2001) proposes teamwork as and individual skills, meaning each individual in a team must take responsibility for the process necessary to accomplish a similar goal. Teamwork is used a lot in the field of accounting such as complete tasks, evaluate clients and report and analyse financial statements. Learning outcomes that are relevant to achieving these skills The degree that Im currently pursuing is Accounting and Finance. The module chosen from this course is Financial Accounting and Reporting (U50035), delivered in semester two of the 2011-2012 academic year, and Financial Accounting Theory (U50081), delivered in semester one of the 2012-2013 academic year. As a credit entry student, I took a module in year one similar to Introduction to Accounting delivered in semester one 2010-2011 academic year. The learning outcomes from the modules in the area of financial accounting were designed to provide students with opportunities to build their employability profile alongside developing their knowledge. The modules were designed to encourage students to build their skill base as part of their way to higher level of intellectual development. In my second year I did Financial Accounting and Reporting module. Throughout this module, I manage to develop some skills and achieve some learning outcomes. For instance outline the regulatory framework for financial reporting which applies to UK and international companies and also using financial and other reports to appraise the performance, financial situation and cash position of companies. We were given two coursework assignments: one individual and one group. The individual coursework is regarding IAS 19, Employee Benefits that has been amended. At a glance, the coursework is intimidating because there are substantial amount of research and reading. They reduced my motivation. However, as I started to read, common key term such as International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), defined benefits, termination benefits, service cost, net interest, re-measurements tend to appear in most of the articles. The skimming phase confirmed that my initial problems came from jargons and new terms about the IAS 19. It taught me to use critical and analytical skill in order to find key words and phrases, which help me to read long articles. The second assignment of this module is to do a group presentation on the financial performance, financial situation and cash position of Good Energy Group plc. Further, I have improved my presentation and writing skill because this coursework is presented in a professional report with graphs and financial data. We have limited time to carry out research and we were worn off by the intensive lectures. This is where I found out how time management and teamwork skills play as important elements for success. We distributed the workload among ourselves and set a time frame for completion. Group members were to adhere to the time frame stipulated. This is how we manage to complete a simple presentation, with many hidden hard work behind our success. Currently Im doing Financial Accounting Theory module. There are several learning outcomes from this module one of it is to understand the function and operation of Accounting in a range of contexts, informed by current thinking and research in the discipline. We were given homework almost every time after a seminar. In week 4 we were asked to read a few articles regarding revisiting the conceptual framework. This article refers that the framework needs updating and refining, the inconsistencies need to be eliminated because framework being less helpful in providing guidance for standard setting decisions. During the seminar in week 5, we then discussed our findings in a small group of three. Through this Ive learned a lot more than self-reading, the interaction has definitely improved my communication skills. One strategy describes by Cunningham (1998) to develop creative and critical thinking skills in students are by analysing real life case studies. During the seminars, students were asked to analyse articles provided by the lecturer. Learning outcome such as able to demonstrate the use of current accepted technical language of accounting and accounting practices internationally is achieved. A constructive feedback is given on the spot after a question is raised. This will assists students to develop a questioning attitude as well as able to update their knowledge. Introduction to Accounting is a first year compulsory module, which introduces student to certain principles and techniques of accounting. The module will be concerned with the processes used to record, summarize and present accounting data. The objective of this part of the module is to enable students to prepare company financial statements. Learning outcome after having completed this module is the ability to prepare a set of financial statements for a company from a trial balance and incorporating a variety of simple adjustments. For example when learning how to produce a financial statement, it requires technical and theoretical knowledge once I discovered how to present the information, thats when I develop non-verbal communication skills (Ballantine, J. A. Larres, D. M. 2004). When I started my first semester, I find myself struggling for time. My lifestyle has become chaotic, as I have to juggle between school, work and family. I felt tired everyday and have no motivation to complete my tasks. This is mainly due to my poor time management. As part of the module, an educational talk from one of the accounting firm, Ernst and Young has made me realize that many things could be achieved with proper time management. A person that works at least 12 hours a day still find himself some time spend with family and for his favourite sports. Conclusion This reflective statement is a learning tool, which will help students better understand, learn and reflect on issues covered in the entire course and in other relevant areas. I believe that a strong academic background is a fundamental issue for student but might not be enough in indicating whether or not a student will be successful in a particular work environment. Throughout this course I personally think that the modules I have taken have been benefiting me in terms of the aspects in which I have learned. It is designed to encourage communication skill, teamwork, critical thinking and analytical skill. This is what employers seek for in a potential candidate. Researching on coursework have opened my eyes and made me aware of any jargons that come across during reading. In the final (third) year, I feel as if I have a great deal of knowledge of the information that I looked at for these modules. The use of case studies, group-based learning, and task designed to address communica tion and presentation skills are suitable for developing appropriate competencies in accounting graduates for future employment.

The Evolution Of Dance In Theater Theatre Essay

The Evolution Of Dance In Theater Theatre Essay Dance is defined as the art of movement. It can be used to express feelings, to exercise, to perform, and some can even interact and have nonverbal conversation though the art of dance. Dance is usually performed through the rhythm and beat of music, but it doesnt necessarily have to involve music. Sports even sometimes incorporate a certain dance, or type of dance. For example, a martial arts kata is simply a series of movements put together to be performed with the grace and strength of a dance. Dance is also used in sports such as synchronized swimming, ice skating, and gymnastics. There are many types of dance, ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, modern, and contemporary just to name a few. Most people cant go through the day without seeing a type of dance performed in some way. Whether its seeing kids dance at a prom, a person walking down the street moving to the beat of their iPod, or simply turning on the television, its something thats in our everyday lives. But have you ever wondered where it all started, or how it became what it is today? Angel 2 It was believed that dancing was a ritual in early ancient civilizations; priests would dance to the rhythm of harps and pipes to tell stories to the ancient gods, people also danced at funerals to express their sorrow. Around this same time period ballet was beginning to evolve in France. As it continued to spread through Italy, England, and Russia, it became a concert dance, which is often, even today, seen in movies and events all over the world. Dancing has continued to blossom into what it is today, and the best way to show how it has become what it is today, is though film. One of the first movies that involved sing and dance was the 1952 film, Singing in the Rain, starring Gene Kelly, Donald OConnor and Debbie Reynolds. This movie was more of a Broadway musical, but it is one of the first movies that involved dance at all. The most famous part of this movie is when the main character, Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly), dances through the streets with an umbrella as he twirls and sings the title song. He then grabs onto a pole and swings around it continuing to sing. During the filming of this scene he had a 103 degree fever, but thanks to the help of the camera crew, this scene only had to be shot one time. After the production of this movie, dancing became the new craze. Dances such as, the Bop, the Stroll and the Swing became popular. Also when the song Willy and The Hand Jive was released, it stayed at the top of the charts for 16 weeks. Poodle skirts and pony-tails were the style, and Do Wop music was what everyone wanted to hear. Angel 3 The 60s rolled around quickly and with a new decade, came new traditions. A brand new dance became the new trend. In 1960 Chubby Checker released his song entitled The Twist. The Twist was the first Rock Roll dance in which partners didnt have to touch each other. The Twist was once said to be like, putting out a cigarette with both feet and drying off your bottom with a towel to the beat of the music. It was performed with the feel shoulder width apart, standing straight up, with the arms fully extended and slightly bent at the elbows. Then the next move was simply to twist the body back and forth. Other popular dances during this time period were the Mashed Potato, the Monkey, and the Madison. The Baby Boomers definitely played a role in all the dance explosion of the 60s. Throughout the end of this decade many of these dances were seen in movie productions and on Broadway. Next we enter the retro years of the 70s, KC and the Sunshine Band topped the charts, and Disco was the new craze. Everyone was aware that sooner or later the sex appeal of disco would make its way to the film industry. There isnt a movie that shows this better than Saturday Night Fever starring, John Travolta and Karen Lynn Gorney. Saturday Night Fever became an instant box office hit with the famous dance by John Travolta to the Bee Gees smash hit Stayin Alive. Disco was one of the fast dances of the decade, with 110-140 bmp (beats per minute). It wasnt long before everyone wanted to become a part of the raging disco scene, eventually Angel 4 groups such as Kiss, and The Rolling Stones, and people like Cher and Rod Stewart were all in on the fun. As the years passed Broadway musicals became popular for a short period of time. After the great success of Hair in 1970, movies continued to make it from Broadway to the big screen. Grease, All That Jazz, and Dreamgirls, just to name a few. Toward the end of the 70s came the first big Broadway film to hit the box office. Grease hit the cinemas in 1978 and it soon became a dance sensation. The dances from this film are often recreated in dance classes, at recitals, shows and other events; some of these dances are even trademarked. This movie was not only a musical it was also very popular for its energetic cast and its feel good love story. One of the most famous dance moves from this movie was The Hand Jive. Since then there have been many different variations of how it is done. Grease is one musical that has been said to never get old with the catchy songs and the disco and jive moves of John Travolta. Grease produced one of the best selling soundtracks in the world. Also, once Grease went to Broadway, it was one of the longest running musicals of all time, until Cats overtook it just recently. The next movie of the 70s that shows a definite change in the music and dance of the decade was All That Jazz in 1979. This film starring Roy Scheider and Jessica Lange is based on the aspects of a dancer, a choreographer, and a directors life and career. It was inspired by the Angel 5 directors effort to edit a film, while also staging a 1975 musical Chicago. This film closed out the 1970s with a bang. It was awarded many honors, and four Oscars. Also, in 2001, the United States deemed the film culturally significant and it is now preserved in the National Film Registry. So to wrap up the 70s the Twist, the Bump, the Jitterbug, the Hustle and the Swing were all very popular dances, but through these years nothing compared to the Americans love for the Disco. It was the last immensely popular move driven by the baby boomers generation, but soon enough came the 80s and with a new decade came new traditions, fashions, and of course a brand new dance. The 80s was definitely one of the best decades for new dance moves, and movies that portrayed this. From the musicals like Fame and Footloose, to the break dancing skills showed in the film Breakin, a rewind of 70s disco in Saturday Night Fever, the mambo and freestyle dance of Dirty Dancing, to the unusual dance moves of the extremely popular Michael Jackson. The 80s was another step to make dancing what it is today. These 10 years were some of the best in dance history. One of the first 1980s dance movies to earn a spot in the all-time movies hall of fame is Fame (1980), starring Eddie Barth, Irene Cara and Laura Dean. Fame mainly took part at a Performing Arts Academy, with many great performances. Fame is considered a musical with a large amount of singing and dancing. It was awarded 3 honors, 2 Oscars, as well as 16 other Angel 6 nominations. It wasnt a huge hit, but it still remembered by some and it showed how the sing and dance of this time period was done. 1983s Flashdance was a major pop culture influence, with a style of its own. This film is the story of a Pittsburgh woman (Jennifer Beals) that juggles two jobs, one as a welder, and the other as an exotic dancer. Of course, during this time exotic dancing wasnt twirling on a pole and taking off clothes, it was much different. She longs to make a career of her dancing and apply to a ballet school, but doesnt have to confidence in her skills to apply. Flashdance had a worldwide box-office gross of 100 million, won 10 honors, one Oscar, and was nominated for 13 other nominations. This was a very stylish movie that entertained millions with the 80s pop music and new dance moves. Flashdance popularized the dance of the 80s with many new hit songs and dances. The next movie that shows an evolution in the dance moves of the 80s is actually a sequel to the 1977 movie Saturday Night Fever. Stayin Alive was a 1983 movie starring John Travolta, Cynthia Rhodes, and Finola Hughes. This film begins five years later with the main character, Tony Manero, dancing on the weekend nights at a disco club to run from his problems. Eventually he decides to leave his life as a dance instructor and club waiter to pursue a career on Broadway. He ends up getting the lead role in a Broadway show called Satans Alley. This film brought in 65 million, it was a lot less than its predecessor in 1977, but it managed to be one of the top 10 successful movies of the 80s. Angel 7 In 1984 Kevin Bacons moves and energy made one of the best high budget dance movies of the 80s. Footloose combines great dance music with dancers and a story of a guy that came from a big city, to a small town where dance is banned. Jazz, Hip-hop and freestyle were the main dances of choice throughout this film. Around this time in the 80s Footloose was a rival to Flashdance, but it was said many times that Footloose was definitely the favorite for most people. This film starring not only Kevin Bacon, but Lori Singer and John Lithgow as well, brought in 80 million, it was nominated for 2 Oscars and 4 other nominations. The next 1984 movie was one of the lower budget movies, and according to some, it put some of the higher budget movies to shame. Breakin was one of those movies that were very different than what most people were used to. Unlike most movies, it used talented dancers, rather than talented actors to dance. The difference with this movie rather than most during the 80s was that its a celebration of dance; it doesnt really have any particular style it was more of a freestyle dance movie. This movie was about a jazz dancer named Kelly (Lucinda Dickey) that meets two break dancers who combine their dance styles. Although the acting wasnt great, the dancing definitely made up for it. The sequel was released a year later, but it wasnt near the hit as this one. Because this movie wasnt like the traditional movies of the 80s it was only nominated for one award and it only brought in 38 million, however this movie was also very different than the rest during this time period that was a major fa ctor in the downfall. Angel 8 In the film industry of the 80s one of the biggest successes was Dirty Dancing. This is a 1987 film starring Patrick Swayze, Jennifer Grey and Cynthia Rhodes. Personally this is my absolute favorite movie of all time. Something that most people dont know was that Dirty Dancing was a true story based on the screenwriter, Eleanor Bergsteins own childhood. This movie was the story of a 17 year old girl and her family who goes on vacation at a resort, eventually Baby Housman (Jennifer Gray) falls in love with the resorts dance instructor (Patrick Swayze), while her family strongly disapproves. She spends her entire summer with him as he teaches her to dance. When this film was finished and about to be put in theatres the directors and cast were informed that this film would be a huge flop and possibly one of the worst films made during this time period. Little did they know that Dirty Dancing is considered today, the best dance movie ever made and it would still be the favorite of many people today. As of 2007 this film earned $213.9 million worldwide, and it was the first home video to sell more than a million copies. The Dirty Dancing soundtrack also produced two multi-platinum albums and multiple singles. This film went on to win an Oscar, as well as 9 other awards, and 5 nominations. Although there wasnt a movie about the dance styles of Michael Jackson, I believe that he played a major part in the shift of styles in the 80s. Michael Jacksons career was booming with new dances, songs and styles during this time. In 1982 his album Thriller still remains Angel 9 today, the bestselling album of all time, and remained on the Billboard 200 peak position for 37 weeks straight. It contained 7 top ten hits, and it was only a 9 track album. We Are the World and Bad were also big hits during this time period, making music and dance even more popular. As the 80s continued Michael Jackson was said to be one of the biggest stars of the world. He popularized dances such as the Moonwalk, the Kick, the Soulful Robot and the Never-Ending Spin. The 80s has been said to be the decade of dance, there was break dancing, the Worm, the Moonwalk and more. During the 80s the dancing definitely took a step up to what it is for most people today. Also, many movies through these 10 years showed a change in the dance styles. The beginning of the 90s dance styles was very similar to the 80s. Michael Jackson was still popular; the same dance movies were being watched over and over; and most people were still stuck in their 80s ways of life. As the 1990s continued dance moves such as the Macarena, the Cha Cha Slide, the Running Man, and the Electric Slide. One of the first dance movies in a long time came out in the year 2000, Center Stage, starring Amanda Schull, Zoe Saldana and Peter Gallagher was one of those dance movies with a plot that wasnt so good, but the dancing was excellent. This film revisits styles of ballet, Broadway dancing, and disco, and blends together styles of its own. It also shows the difficulty Angel 10 and common issues of professional dancing and how some people cope with the stress without computer special effects. The next movie isnt exactly a dance movie, but it shows how dancing has recently been incorporated into other activities, such as cheerleading. Bring it On was the 2000; film starring Kirsten Dunst, Eliza Dushku and Gabrielle Union. Bring it On shows how cheerleading involves dance as well, and how had dance has spread to other activities. Not only does cheerleading involve dancing, but many other sports too, such as synchronized swimming its nothing more than a dance in water, or figure skating. Even professional football players are sent to ballet classes to obtain balance and poise. This is an excellent film that shows the importance of dancing in sports such as cheerleading. The year 2004 takes us to a memorable movie where the style changes to ballroom dance. Shall We Dance shows many types of ballroom dance, like the Waltz, Quickstep and Tango. This film was first a Japanese film, but this version starring Jennifer Lopez, Richard Gere, and Susan Sarandon, is the story of a workaholic lawyer who is getting bored with his daily routine, and he decides to take ballroom dance classes to make his life a little more interesting. As the time he dances continues he finds joy in it more and more. This film brought in 57.8 million dollars and was nominated for 4 awards. Angel 11 The next film takes us back to the musicals of the 70s and 80s, Hairspray, starring Zac Efron, John Travolta, Amanda Bynes, Queen Latifah and Michelle Pfeiffer was the fourth highest grossing musical film in US cinema history, behind Grease, Chicago and Momma Mia! This film is set in Baltimore in 1963; the story is about a plump teenager Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) who seeks stardom as a dancer on a local television show. The 1988 original version of Hairspray earned 6.6 million and was nominated for 4 awards, while the 2007 version earned 188.8 million in the box office, was nominated for 3 Golden Globes, won 12 other awards, and had 18 other nominations. This was an energetic dance movie, much like Grease, with plenty of heart, it was said to make people want to get up and sing and dance. The final and most recent successful 2006 dance movie is very similar to Dirty Dancing. Step Up, starring Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan, is a perfect example of what dance has become today. Step Up is the story of a privileged ballet dancer who meets a free style dance rebel with a dream of making it in the real world of dance. In this film there was a mix of hip-hop, ballet, modern and break dancing to make this film perfect for this list of movies that helped our styled evolve today. This movie earned 65.3 million in the box office, and won one award and was nominated for 3 other awards. Things have definitely changed from the 1950s until today, but one thing in common with all of these movies is the real message; follow your dreams, and never give up on the things that you want. Another thing that all these movies have in common, it that it gives most people the urge to get up and dance.