Contract of Hire Purchase Answer

Contract of Hire Purchase Answer FOUNDLING FINANCE LIMITED Claimant and MISS DIANE DALY and MR DEREK DOBSON Defendant OPINION I am asked to advise Miss Diane Daly and Derek Dobson (â€Å"the defendants†) with regard to their contract of hire-purchase with Foundling Finance Limited for the purchase of a ‘Nuffield’ knitting machine from Saffron Supplies Limited. This contract is the basis of an action in the Dover County Court against Miss Daly and Mr Dobson for repayment of arrears, and interest thereon, for the period from 3rd January to 3rd April. I am asked to advise whether Miss Daly and Mr Dobson are still bound by the terms of the hire-purchase contract, and if not, what type of compensation they may recover by way of damages. Conclusions In summary, I would advise that the defendants were entitled to disregard the hire-purchase contract after they found out the representations of Mr Stone about the fitness of the ‘Nuffield’ for the intended type of work were false. That this right probably subsisted and was exercisable on the 16th January 2006 but can only be determined with further information. The compensation available largely depends on the success of the rejection action. If the defendants are successful then they will be able to recover their money that they have paid and hand back the knitting machine as if they had never been in the contract. If they are unsuccessful they will be left with the residuary claim in damages for the purchase price of the ‘Newmark’ knitting machine and breach of contract but will be liable to keep paying the hire-purchase contract. I have also advised that some more investigation may be required to ascertain whether any further losses have been incurred. Finally, I have been cognisant of Miss Daly’s concerns surrounding the high APR of the hire-purchase agreement and have therefore attached a consideration of whether the bargain may be considered extortionate. Contract On the 3rd October 2005 the defendants went to Saffron Supplies in Sandwich. They entered into a hire-purchase contract for the supply of a ‘Nuffield’ knitting machine for their fashion design business. According to Miss Daly, their business specialises in the knitting of thick wool garments. They took samples of their wool and made it clear to Mr Stone that the sewing machine had to be capable of knitting those types of fibres. Mr Stone replied that the machine was ‘man enough’ to handle such fibres and on the back of which the defendants entered the hire-purchase contract with Foundling Finance Limited. A matter of importance in the formation of this contract is whether or not you entered as a consumer. If you’re not then clause 12 of the hire-purchase contract may exclude any implied term of fitness for purpose. It appears as though the key matters are whether the contract is one which is regularly entered into by the buyer or bought for a distinctive business purpose (R B Customs Brokers Co Ltd v. United Dominions Trust [1988] 1 ALL ER 847). This will depend on the nature of the business and whether this particular sewing machine was integral to the defendants business. These are again facts which the Instructing Solicitors will need to ascertain in particular look at whether there have been any other sewing machines purchased? How was the ‘Nuffield’ used in the business? Was it used for any personal purposes? Breach of Contract The first issue is whether or not the hire-purchase contract was breached when it became evident that the ‘Nuffield’ knitting machine was unfit for knitting the type of fibres that the defendants use in their business. The difficulty will be whether or not we can establish the conversation between the defendants and Mr Stone as to its fitness for the knitting of the thick wool because it was purely oral. The evidence of both the defendants will be critical – Could instructing solicitors please ascertain more details of the conversation. Was Mr Dobson party to the conversation with Mr Stone? If so, what did he hear? How much was the issue of fibres stressed as important to Mr Stone? The obvious difficulty will be that the evidence of Mr Dobson could turn out to be hearsay unless he was party to the conversation. The strength of this argument will become clearer when we have an indication of Foundling Finance’s or Mr Stone’s stance on the issue; currently I only have Miss Daly’s statement as to the matter. It would seem pragmatic to assume that Mr Stone will be a difficult witness for two reasons; he presumably deals with many customers which may make his recall of a conversation that he had seven months ago rather vague and a fear of losing his job could cause him to be a completely useless witness for us. It isn’t clear from my instructions whether Foundling Finance have acknowledged this claim by the defendants but it seems safe to assume that they will deny it given that an admission would bar their current action in the County Court. However if we can establish the oral assurances by Mr Stone then breach of contract will be more likely. The Implied term of fitness for purpose under Consumer Credit Act 1974 will have been breached as long as the facts bear out consumer status, as I advised above. If we cannot establish consumer status we may have to rely on more general common law considerations .In particular Harlingdon Leinster Ltd v. Christopher Hull Fine Art Ltd [1991] 1 QB 564 which argues that even where the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 doesn’t apply the totality of the negotiations will be looked at and the exclusion of an implied term of fitness for purpose, as Foundling Finance Limited have done, maybe disregarded. The strength of this argument will largely depend on the oral evidence which is lead at trial and will depend on the information which I have requested above. Repudiation of Contract The success of maintaining the breach of contract will also rely on whether we can establish the defendants effectively rejected the contract by their letter of the 16th January. This is fundamentally an issue of fact which will need to be ascertained by the Instructing Solicitors. Short of an outright denial, as suggested above, Foundling Finance will likely attempt to argue that either the defendants accepted the breach through acting inconsistently with the ownership of the seller or through lapse of a reasonable time. In order to give my opinion on the strength of this argument could the Instructing Solicitors ascertain facts regarding the dates of the various repairs and more details about the communications between Saffron Supplies and the defendants regarding the repairs. What date was the third repair? Were the repair men’s concerns communicated to the defendants orally or in writing? Were both defendants present at all of the repairs? Was the Knitting machine used at any point between the third repair and the purchase of the ‘Newgate’ knitting machine? The ‘lapse of a reasonable time’ is the test for acceptance of a breach under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 therefore these factors will be critical. If there was a significant period of time between the third repair and the 16th January then I would advise that the Defendants attempt to argue rescission by misrepresentation under the Misrepresentation Act 1967 which is not subject to the same time-constraints as the rejection argument under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. However, I have some doubt as to the strength of this argument not least because it appears never to have been attempted in any reported cases. A critical issue for the success of refuting any defences by Foundling Finance will be the ability to prove that the letter was actually sent. Therefore could the Instructing Solicitors please find out whether Miss Daly has any proof of postage or proof that Foundling received the letter? The copy letter that I received looks as though it was word processed and it may be possible to establish postage through the creation date of the file. According to Miss Daly, she also telephoned the finance company to express her concerns; it would be extremely useful if the Instructing solicitors could ascertain more details about these telephone calls. Does Foundling Finance record phone-calls? When were they made? What exactly was stated in those telephone calls? In my opinion, in order to clarify the issues in dispute between the parties, we should contact Foundling Finance’s representatives to see whether they dispute either the letters or the telephone calls. It maybe that we could then avoid applying for disclosure of evidence Compensation There is a distinction to make between the situation where we can establish that the defendants effectively rejected the contract and where they failed to do so therefore I have treated the separately under this heading. Many of the grounds of damages will be interlinked between the various substantive claims in law. However, if we cannot realistically establish a breach of contract at all then as I am sure Instructing Solicitors will appreciate we have no defence or counterclaim to the current action. If the latter occurs my opinion is that you enter a defence and counter-claim in any case and attempt to settle and avoid some of the interest. (i) If rejection is effective The difference between the two grounds turns on whether or not the sums paid, by my calculation  £3194.57 (that being the November, December and January payments and the two-thousand pound deposit paid on 3rd October 2005), will be recoverable and whether the hire-purchase contract is at an end. I appreciate what a big difference this will make to the defendants. If the rejection is effective then the aim of the court is to put the two parties back in the same position so the money paid will be recoverable and there will be no obligation to continue paying the hire-purchase agreement. However, if rejection is not effective there is in most cases still an action for damages for breach of contract but there is no possibility of ending the contract other than the statutory termination powers in the Consumer Credit Act 1974. (ii) If rejection is not effective As the Instructing Solicitors will appreciate in these circumstances we are limited purely to claiming for purely breach of contract financial losses rather than any emotional losses. However, it is clear that there have been certain losses that will have been caused by the breach in contract. The defendants will remain liable to pay the instalments, including the arrears, if they fail to establish their rejection this is because all the express conditions of the contract will still be enforceable and as a result the defendants will be in breach of contract until they remedy the arrears, along with interest which has been contractually included. (a) Purchase of the ‘Newgate’ It is unclear whether the defendants can claim for the purchase of the ‘Newgate’. It certainly can be characterised as a cost of mitigating the loss which they had initially suffered by Foundling’s breach of contract (as per Bacon v. Cooper (Metals) Limited [1982] 1 ALL ER 397). However, the question of whether it is reasonable will depend on a number of factors which would perhaps require the opinion of an expert. It would be necessary to quantify whether the price paid was reasonable for the product? Whether there were cheaper alternatives available on the market? It seems likely that it would be possible to claim for the whole purchase price of the ‘Newgate’ despite the fact that it may be a better product and leave the defendants in a better position. It seems analogous to Bacon where the court held that replacement of a new item for an old item which became broken didn’t entitle the defendants to reduce the damages to the value of the old item. (b) Loss of Earnings / Damage to Wool. Aside from the purchase of the ‘Newgate’ Miss Daly is of the opinion that her business has not suffered through the breach of contract. However, with all respect to Miss Daly, she is not to my knowledge legally qualified and it would be a breach of professional ethics if we just accept her judgement on this issue. It would be useful if the Instructing Solicitors can check this. In particular: Did the machine not stop being workable for at least three separate twenty-four hour periods? Was there any wool damaged by the machine? What about wasted time waiting for repairmen? It is likely that we can claim these as damages and I am of the opinion that there will be something other than the replacement sewing machine which the defendants can claim for. (c) Extortionate Bargain According to Miss Daly, she feels horrified at the level of the interest that she had to pay for the knitting machine which naturally leads to concerns over whether this hire-purchase agreement could be considered extortionate under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. This could form part of the counter-claim if it can be established. The salient point of the credit agreement is the extremely high APR of 46.2%. In line with A.Ketley Limited v. Scott [1981] ICR 241 the correct approach is to look at whether the rate of interest is extortionate in comparison to other sorts of transactions. I am of course not an expert and thus not qualified but given that the amount repayed will be 161% of the value of the item and that the APR seems to be extremely high at a period of time when interest rates are relatively lower than they have been in the last couple of decades it certainly seems arguable. I think it would be necessary for the Instructing Solicitors to obtain some sort of expert evidence on this point or perhaps some diligent research. In particular – what level of risk is assumed by Foundlings Finance? What sort of experience and means did the defendants have at the time of the agreement? The purpose of arguing this would not so much be as compensation but if Miss Daly was unable to establish a rejection of the contract it could be extremely useful in making the remainder of the payments more equitable. In particular I could ask the court to alter the terms of the credit agreement under s.139 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. I am not overly confident about the success of this argument because generally the court have been reluctant to find bargains extortionate because of the ordinary principles of fair dealing and even where high APR’s have existed such as in Grangewood Securities v Ellis (unreported 23 November 2000) an APR of 35.4% on its own was not held to be extortionate. My largest reservation is that both Miss Daly and Mr Dobson will be construed by the court as business people who ought to have been more aware (this was a factor in A.Ketley). Next Steps I would advise that we enter a defence and counter-claim to the current action that Foundlings Finance has risen. However, before it calls I would suggest that a letter setting out the key elements of our case be sent to the other side because until now they haven’t appeared to have responded to our claims. I would hope that the Instructing Solicitors would be able to settle this case in the meantime. In that event I would be happy to advise on the terms of such a settlement or a Part 36 offer. In particular, it would put the defendants in a strong bargaining position if they can establish whether or not any other damages were sustained by the defendants such as loss of earnings or destruction of property. If you do wish me to advise then please could such instructions include further items of evidence that I have requested throughout this opinion. IN THE DOVER COUNTY COURT Case No. DV6/49215 BETWEEN FOUNDLING FINANCE LIMITED Claimant / Part 20 Defendant and MISS DIANE DALY MR DEREK DOBSON Defendants / Part 20 Claimants DEFENCE AND COUNTERCLAIM Paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of the Particulars of Claim are admitted. Save that the Defendants admits that they have not paid instalments on all the relevant dates, it is denied that they are due to be paid as alleged in Paragraph 4 or at all. On 16th January 2006 the Defendant’s rejected the contract for breach of the implied condition of fitness for purpose under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 . A copy of the Defendant’s letter to the Claimants confirming the above is attached to the defence and counterclaim. Paragraph 5 is admitted. The defendants are and were at all relevant times a partnership carrying on business as fashion designers. The Claimants are and were at all relevant times a limited company carrying on business as a provider of consumer credit. The ‘Nuffield’ knitting machine was supplied to the defendants by Saffron Supplies Limited, 6 Shadwell Street, Sandwich (â€Å"the suppliers†) in terms of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. Whereas it is admitted that a hire-purchase contract was entered into as set out in Paragraph 5 of the Particulars of Claim, prior to the signing of said contract, on 3rd October 2005, it was orally agreed by Mr Scott Stone of the suppliers that the said ‘Nuffield’ knitting machine would be capable of knitting specific thick wool as used in the Defendants fashion design business. A sample of said wool was exhibited to Mr Stone by the first defendant for the confirmation of the same. It is averred that in consequence of this conversation, the defendants entered the said contract and that it was implied term that the said knitting machine would be fit for the said purpose. On the 3rd October 2005 The Defendants paid a deposit of  £2000 to the Claimants and paid instalments on 3rd November 2005, 3rd December 2005 and 3rd January 2005. The amount of these instalments plus the deposit was  £3194.57 Between 3rd October 2005 and 16th January 2006 the Defendants complained on three occasions to Saffron Supplies Limited that the said knitting machine had broken. On the first two occasions representatives of the suppliers diagnosed the same as being due to minor problems which were rectified without charge. On the third occasion they diagnosed the breakage as being due to the inability of the said knitting machine to knit the said thick wool fibres. The Defendants refused to pay for the cost of repairing said knitting machine in consequence of which the suppliers thereafter failed and/or refused to repair the said knitting machine at the time. By various phone-calls to the Claimant in or about January 2006 the Defendants demanded the repair of the said knitting machine. Despite this, the Defendant thereafter unlawfully failed and / or refused to arrange repair of said knitting machine. By reason thereof the Defendant sent the said letter of the 16th January 2006 which duly informed the Claimants within a reasonable period of time of their intention to reject the said hire-purchase contract because they had breached the said implied condition and the Defendants are consequently not liable thereon, further the Defendant’s demanded (without prejudice to his claim for damages herein) return of the said  £3194.57 and stated that they would exercise a lien over the said knitting machine until the same had been done.. In the circumstances it is denied that the Claimant is entitled to the relief claimed or any relief for the reasons alleged or at all. Further or alternatively, the Defendants will seek to set off against the Claimant’s claim the matters set out in the Counterclaim below, so as to reduce it or extinguish it altogether. COUNTERCLAIM The Defendants repeat their Defence herein. The hire-purchase agreement has an Annual Percentage Rate (APR) of 46.2% which it is averred is much higher than hire-purchase agreements for other knitting machines and comparable items. In the Circumstances, the said hire-purchase agreement is extortionate pursuant to section 139, Consumer Credit Act 1974. By reason of the Claimant’s said breach of contract the Defendant’s were unable to knit their wool fibres and by reason thereof the Defendants have suffered loss and damage. PARTICULARS By reason of the Defendant’s said breach of contract, the Claimant suffered additional loss and damage, in that they were forced to purchase a similar knitting machine elsewhere, about January 2006 the Defendants purchased a ‘Newgate’ knitting machine at a price of  £9,500. Wasted Time during said repair visits. Cost of Wool Material damaged by said ‘Nuffield’ knitting machine.[1] Further the Defendants are entitled to and counterclaims interest on the sum found due to them for such period and at such rate as the court may think fit pursuant to section 69, County Courts Act 1984. The value of this action exceeds  £5,000 but does not exceed  £15,000. AND the Defendants Counterclaim: Refund of the said Deposit and three instalments of  £3194.57 Interest pursuant to statute as aforesaid. Further or Alternatively; Damages for breach of contract Further or Alternatively; An order that the said hire-purchase agreement is extortionate and that the APR be judicially altered to a more reasonable APR. Statement of Truth I believe (the Defendant believes) that the facts stated in this Defence and Counterclaim are true. Signed†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ DATED thisDay of2006 Bibliography Atiyah, P.S., Adams, John MacQueen, Hector ‘The Sale of Goods’ 2005 / Pearson-Longman / 11th edition. Bridge, Michael ‘The Sale of Goods’ 2000 / Oxford University Press / 1st edition Doonan, Elmer Foster, Charles ‘Drafting’ 2000 / Cavendish Publishing / 1st edition. Inns of Court School of Law ‘Opinion Writing’ 2003 / Oxford University Press Marshall, Enid ‘Scots Mercantile Law’ 1997 W.Green / Sweet Maxwell Edinburgh / 3rd edition. Rose, William M. ‘Pleadings Without Tears: A Guide to Legal Drafting Under the Civil Procedure Rules’1999 / Blackstone Press Limited / 5th edition. 1 Footnotes [1] I have added these in the case that they can be proved as per my opinion.

Assessing the Level of Environmental Literacy of Teachers

Assessing the level of environmental literacy of teachers in Epe division of Lagos State, Nigeria Fatona P. Olugbenga School of Environmental Health Science Ogun State College Of Health Technology P. M. B 2081 Ilese – Ijebu Email: [email  protected] ca 08033835621, Akinyele C. Babasope School of Environmental Health Science Ogun State College Of Health Technology P. M. B 2081 Ilese – Ijebu Email: [email  protected] com 08037221905 & Musah K. Toyin School of Public Health Nursing Ogun State College Of Health Technology P. M. B 2081 Ilese – Ijebu Email: musahk. [email  protected] com 08033708027 Abstract The crucial role that teachers’ environmental literacy plays in realizing the goals of environmental education and its importance cannot be overemphasized. Therefore, this study sought to measure the environmental literacy of teachers who are saddled with responsibility of imparting environmental ideas and knowledge into the school-going population. The tudy employed a descriptive research design and administered questionnaires on four hundred (400) male and female teachers drawn from government controlled secondary schools that were randomly selected from the teachers’ corps in Epe division of Lagos Nigeria. However, three hundred and fifty-two (352) copies were retrieved and analyzed. A self-designed instrument that has a reliability coefficient of 0. 945 was used in gathering data which was analyzed by using analysis of variance (F-te sts and T-tests). Three (3) null hypotheses were formulated and tested in the study; two (2) were accepted while one (1) was rejected. The findings revealed a tendency regarding the impact of training of teachers on their environmental literacy among others. Consequently, the study suggested the need for pre-service as well as in-service environmental education training of teachers and that the existing curriculum at all levels of education should be reviewed to richly include environmental sustainability. Keywords:Environmental literacy, education, teachers Introduction The earth is primarily life supporting system. It consists essentially biochemical processes that imbue it with the capacity to sustain life. As an ecosystem, the earth however, has a threshold within which it can effectively absorb or withstand interruptions and radical changes in the biochemical processes that help to sustain life. Unfortunately, development-oriented activities of man over the last century or so have primarily restructured the environment and upset the delicate balance of nature. It has resulted in a number of changes on the planet, earth. These changes are essentially inimical to the continued existence of man and other life forms here on earth (United Nations, 1992). For example, the air we breathe is constantly being overloaded with carbon dioxide and other poisonous material from vehicular emission, exhausts of industrial and power plant etc. Land are stripped bare of vegetation or polluted with oil spills and human waste. The use of ozone- depleting substance such as products with chlorofluorocarbon, halons and methyl bromides (from which plastics and foams are made) allow excessive levels of harmful ultraviolet rays to reach the earth, resulting in increased rates of skin cancer, eye damage and weakened immune system. There is higher rate of exploitation and use of natural resources and higher levels of waste become a global issue (United Nations, 1992). According to the Council of Ministers of Education (2005) sustainable development is both a goal and a concept. As a goal, it is an idea of a world where people protect the environment as they carry out their daily activities. As a concept, it involves conceptual probing about limits on natural resources, capacities of ecosystem and interactions among social, economic, political and environmental systems. In other words, it works towards a sustainable quality of life, now and in the future. Thus, Noibi and Lawal (1993) sees it as a development strategy wherein the physical assets, natural and human resources as well as available funds are managed in a manner that ensures increasing health and wealth for both the present and future generations on planet earth. The essences of sustainable development is to meet the needs and aspirations of the present generation of man and other living creatures, both plants and animals, without compromising the capacity of future generations to meet their own needs and aspirations (NEST, 1991). The United Nations (1992), Uche (1995), UNESCO (1997) and Inyang-Abia (1998, 2001) all assert that education is humanity’s best hope and most effective means for the quest to achieve sustainable development at national or global levels. This may be due to the fact that sustainable development calls for the particular skills, knowledge, values and attitudes regarding the environment, the economy and the well-being of people. Perhaps, in response to the calls by UNESCO and United Nations, education for sustainability has become the norm in most countries of the world in recent years. In Nigeria, there have been some activities aimed at creating awareness and educating the masses on environmental issues. Initially the mass media, various Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and government agencies were used to create awareness of the nature of the environment and the need for its sustainability, as Uche (1995) observed. The birth of Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) in the 1980’s, the rising interest among policy makers on the need for a sound environmental base for development, launching of national conservation strategy (NCS) in 1986, the natural resources conservation council (NRCC) in 1988 and the ultimate launching of the national policy on the environment in 1989 were all critical steps in the national drive towards environmental awareness and resources conservation. In order to facilitate the education of the citizenry for sustainability, the Nigeria government has infused environmental sustainability topics into the 2003 version of the national curriculum for primary schools (NERDC, 2003). The topics infused include population, pollution, soil management, waste and waste disposal, drugs and drug abuse, etc. The idea is to start education for sustainability from the foundation. While arrangements are made to do the same in higher levels of education, teachers are encouraged to incorporate environmental sustainability issues in their instruction (NERDC, 2003). The potential of environmental literacy as a vehicle to realize the educational agenda of sustainable development cannot be over-emphasized. According to Disinger and Roth (1992) environmental literacy is a prerequisite to maintaining and improving the quality of the environment and life as such. The development and fostering of environmental literacy need, therefore, to be a key objective in any general education programme (Roth, 1992). Apparently, the term â€Å"environmental literacy† does not mean the same to everyone. Since the first general reference to the concept â€Å"environmental literacy† appeared in 1969 (Roth, 1992), various researchers have made an effort to define it or to refine description of it. Example can be found in, inter alia, Clacherty (1992), Roth (1992) and Subbarini (1998). A definition of environmental literacy was developed from the various efforts of researchers such as Leeming, Porter, Dwyer, Cobern and Oliver (1997), Loubser (1994), Smith-Sebasto and Smith (1997), Pohorille (1985) and Buethe and Smallwood (1987). This definition was used for the purposes of this research and it stated that: Environmental literacy is the ability to be aware of one’s environment. It enriches one with the knowledge to realize the imbalances and threats the environment faces and enables one to form positive attitudes towards it with the aim of developing skills to resolve and prevent environmental problems and urge to protect and improve the environment for the present and future generations by active participation. A study was also made of various models comprising concepts researchers regard as important to environmental education and environmental literacy. From these attempts by, inter alia, Munson (1994), Odum (1992), Roth (1992) and Loubser (1994), ten concepts that were regarded as necessary for teachers to have a grasp of, before being able to really do justice to environmental education were identified. The ten concepts are in line with the definitions, aims, objectives and guiding principles of environmental education and preceding definition of environmental literacy. Each of the ten concepts is a cluster of related sub concepts representing aspects of environmental literacy. These ten concepts were selected mainly from major environmental area such as ecology and interactions in the environment, participation in the identification and prevention of environmental problems, decision making on environmental issues and environmental ethics. The ten concepts are biosphere, ecological perspective, interrelationship in an ecosystem, environmental changes, basic human needs, resources, maintaining environmental quality, the ability to make choices, decision-making on environmental issues, as well as environmental ethics. In most of these concepts there is a close link between knowledge, affect, skills and behaviour. Environmental literacy, therefore, is considered to be continuum of competencies raging from zero competencies to a very high competency. There is a broad spectrum of environmental literacy, from complete unawareness to deep, thorough understanding and concern (Buethe and Smallwood, 1997). For the purposes of this research a few distinguishable, but not separable, disposition levels on this continuum were identified, namely awareness, knowledge, attitude and participation. Teachers- more than any other professional group- can probably promote environmental literacy, by virtue of their interaction with society (more specifically learners, parents and colleagues). Teachers at all levels and subject areas have a role to play in this regard, i. e. contribute to the development of citizens who possess the basic understanding and skills to make informed decisions in matters affecting the environment and whose personal lifestyles support sustainable development. Teachers can, however, hardly assist learners to become environmentally literate if they themselves lack environmental literacy. Despite the important role teachers’ play in educating students, research into teacher’s level of environmental literacy has been extremely limited. The few studies that were reported indicated a relatively low level of environmental literacy. An example is a study by Buethe and Smallwood (1997) which stated that the environmental literacy of Indiana teachers is far from optimal. In addition several researchers, for example, Schreuder (1995), Braus (1995) and Papadimitriou (1995), mentioned that most teachers are not trained to do justice to environmental education. It seems, therefore, imperative to be able to determine the state of affairs regarding the environmental literacy of the teacher corps. Hypotheses The following hypotheses were formulated and tested in this study: 1. There is no significant difference between the levels of environmental literacy of teachers if they are divided according to learning area in which they offer tuition. 2. There is no significant difference between the levels of environmental literacy of teachers if they are divided according to learning area in which they offer tuition. 3. There is no significant difference in the level of environmental literacy between teachers who receive training in environmental education and those who did not receive any training. Method Research design This is a descriptive survey research design of ex-post facto because the variables being studied had occurred and were not manipulated by the researchers. Instrumentation The questionnaire developed in this study consisted of two sections- section A which comprised items on background demographic information of respondents and section B which comprised 30 items dealing with the various aspects of environmental literacy assessed in this study. The items were developed according to a matrix with the ten central concepts representing environmental literacy on one axis and the disposition level of the respondent on the other axis. A 4-point scale ranging from ‘strongly agree’ to ‘strongly disagree’ was used as a response-measuring scale. Sample The study sample was drawn from the entire population of teachers in public secondary schools in Epe division of Lagos State. It consisted of 400 teachers randomly selected from 40 secondary schools randomly selected from the 4 local governments that make up the division. Questionnaires were however, adequately completed by 352 teachers. These respondents were representative of gender, age, learning area taught and qualifications obtained. Procedure Three research assistants were employed to assist in administering the printed questionnaires on the teachers in their respective schools. In some cases the filled questionnaire were returned on the spot while in other cases the research assistants went back on a different day to collect the completed questionnaires. Data analyses The data obtained from the questionnaire was analyzed by using analysis of variance (F tests and t tests). Results and discussion Hypothesis 1 ‘There is no significant difference between the levels of environmental literacy of teachers with different academic qualification’. Table 1:Level of environmental literacy of teachers with different qualifications |Qualification N Means SD | |NCE 103 416. 31 35. 71 | |B Ed 64 418. 88 37. 62 | |B A 24 417. 50 51. 4 | |B Sc 12 446. 00 41. 59 | |Other 149 422. 58 40. 48 | F (4. 347) = 1. 70; p>0. 05 The respondents were divided into five categories based on highest academic qualification as indicated in table 1. In order to compare the mean scores of the five groups an analysis of variance (F test) was carried out. The results of the F test, which appear in table 1, revealed that the null hypothesis could not be rejected (p>0. 5). It can, therefore, be concluded that there is no significant difference between the average environmental literacy of teachers with different academic qualification. It appears that this result contradicts research results reported by Buethe and Smallwood (1997), if one assumes that almost all secondary school science teachers in the USA have a BSc degree. According to them, science teach ers had higher levels of environmental literacy than other teachers. Hypothesis 2 ‘There is no significant difference between the levels of environmental literacy of teachers if they are divided according to learning area in which they offer tuition’. In order to test this null hypothesis, the respondents were divided into eight categories. According to an analysis of variance (F test), the null hypothesis cannot be rejected when the means of the total score obtained for the questionnaire are compared [F (7. 344) = 1. 81; p>0. 05]. This result is in line with a finding from a study by Abraham and Chacko (1999), according to which teacher training college lecturers have average environmental literacy, irrespective of the subjects they teach. An analysis of the mean scores (F test) obtained for the four dl fields in the eight categories revealed, however, an interesting picture. The results for the Knowledge dl field are indicated in Table 2. Table 2:Knowledge dl field scores of teachers in different learning areas |Learning area N Mean SD | |Language, literacy and communication 133 98. 62 11. 1 | |Human and social science 47 100. 49 9. 60 | |Maths, maths’ literacy and maths’ science 66 99. 36 8. 69 | |Natural science 76 103. 66 10. 89 | |Arts and culture 12 100. 2 4. 40 | |Economic and management science 9 103. 33 16. 12 | |Life orientation 7 90. 43 5. 06 | |Technology 2 100. 00 2. 83 | F (7. 344) = 2. 74; p

Origin Of And Role Played By Manifest Destiny - 1323 Words

Name Institution Course Date Task 1: Origin of and Role Played by Manifest Destiny John O’Sullivan, a newspaper editor, coined the term Manifest Destiny in 1845. Since then, scholars have used the term to refer to the expansionistic excitement that defined the 1840s. During that time, the United States’ population had more than quadrupled and Americans believed God had destined that they span the entire North America from one coast to the other. Although the term â€Å"Manifest Destiny† was used to typify the 1840s American expansionistic exuberance, it can be broadly used to characterize any country’s imperialistic thrusts (Harriet). In this regard, Utah, the indigenous American Indians, faced expansionistic archetypes with the Americans, Spanish imperialists, European and French fur traders. However, this essay focuses on the origins of the Manifest Destiny, as well as the part the concept played in the push to settle the west On the one hand, some Americans believed that the doctrine of manifest destiny was founded on the idea that United States of America had divine providence and frugality. In their wisdom, they believed God had destined Americans to limitlessly expand the American territory, conquer, Christianize, wield control and populate as they deemed necessary. On the other hand, a section of pro manifest destiny viewed it as the historical inevitability of United States’ dominance of North America from coast to coast. Manifest Destiny influenced the manner inShow MoreRelatedThe United States Essay1243 Words   |  5 Pagesknown as Manifest Destiny. Over the five decades that Manifest Destiny lasted politics and the government changed along with the geographic face of the United States while the country expand to cover most of North America. Of these political changes, the death of the Federalists, birth of the Whigs and reformation of the Democratic party were among the most prominent. However an underlying conflict began to progress with each new purchase and acquisition of territory. Manifest Destiny led to multipleRead MoreThe Civil War And The American War1318 Words   |  6 PagesThe question of what caused the Civil War is debatable because there are several events that may have influenced the war such as the Western Expansion, Manifest Destiny and the Mexican-American War. The war also stems from slavery, the North and South basically fought over whether or not slavery should be permitte d. Another point that may have influenced the Civil War is the economic and social structure of the country, which also falls under slavery because the South main source of income was slaveryRead MoreManifest Destiny the Mexican-American War Essay2187 Words   |  9 PagesDiscuss the motivations from both sides for the Mexican-American war of 1846-1848? Was Manifest Destiny the driving factor or was it something else? The Mexican-American war fought between 1846 and 1848 remains a topic of much contention amongst modern historians. Differing accounts and conclusions of the war are often presented and one must remain pragmatic when analysing both primary and secondary sources regarding the war. There is a clear time line of events that led to the outbreak ofRead MoreRacism- An Aid to American Society2184 Words   |  9 Pagesby many, negative characteristics on these actions will be dominant. Many perceive racism as disrespect to one’s rich culture and heritage, thus causing a lot of hatred. Despite my strong objection on the act of racism, I believe that racism played a major role in the development and rise to power of the Americans. I focused on the economics, socio-political and arts and culture of the US during the era where racism is widely recognized and deduce the positive effects of it that caused the growthRead MoreAnalysis Of Y Tu Mama Tambien1571 Words   |  7 PagesThe dominant feature that the films share is the use of narration to guide the viewer through each plot. They are the same in how they are used to describe settings and some situations. In Amelie, this manifests at one point as the narrator describing the activities of the local nuns on a warm and humid day. In Y Tu Mama Tambien, there are many examples of the narrator describing the political and economic climates that Mexicans exist in and must deal with. The use of narration is different in severalRead MoreThe Agricultural Facets Of Appalachia Essay1676 Words   |  7 Pageshunter-gatherer ontogeny and subsistence farming, gender roles in Native American society began to shift as there was no longer a prominent need for male hunters th us placing, â€Å"women in the forefront of meat production† (429). Gender roles were being altered, while at the same time, the land was being ravished. European and Spanish settlers who arrived in the sixteenth century brought an array of new crops, animals, diseases, and a sense of Manifest Destiny. With the introduction of hog, cattle, and chickensRead MoreConfucianism And Its Influence On Society2178 Words   |  9 PagesXue (the Learning of the Principle/Reason) (Yau 8). Neo-Confucianism was adopted into Korean, Japanese, and Vietnamese schools. While it was mentioned that it was mostly Buddhism that lead to new changes in Confucianism, other religions played an important role in adapting and changing the method as well and were adopted by different Asian countries. The Christian approach towards Neo-Confucianism was mostly practiced around Korea, China, And Vietnam; the Islamic adaptation was practiced in otherRead MoreRailroads and Their Rising Impact on the 19th Century American Society 2253 Words   |  10 Pagestheir rights and property. Because of the rise of new technological advancements and resources, railroads in the 19th century American society quickly boomed cities and came across as the most dominant source of transportation, as it predominantly played a role in the expansion of industry across the United States. Also, it was a movement most efficient in creating their own monopoly and was quickly adopted by many other countries that s ought influence. In order to detail the rise of railroads throughoutRead MoreMexican American Culture2155 Words   |  9 Pagesbecame part of the United States did not have to cross any borders. Instead the borders crossed them. Spanish speaking people have lived in Northern provinces since the Spaniards colonized Mexico in the sixteenth century. They have always played an important role in the Continents culture and history. Mexico won its Independence from Spain in 1820. The War of Independence with Spain in 1820’s left Mexico with difficulty settling in its Northern provinces. A policy initiated by Spain that allowed AmericansRead MoreAmerican Isolationism Essay1668 Words   |  7 PagesDuring the 1920’s, the economy of America was thriving. The First World War had created new jobs and industries; members of society, such as women, were becoming more profound in society and their roles were becoming redefined. The United States was emerging as the industrial giant of the world. To protect the American consumers from imported goods from Europe and encourage American products, the government of the United States imposed high tariffs. Essentially, the United States no longer desire

The Historical Development And Influences On Physical...

Eugene Pring S3547404 Times are Changing: The History of Physical Education in Australia Topic: Discuss the historical development and influences on Physical Education in Australia and how this has impacted on the current Physical Education programs in Victoria, Australia OHTH2122 Teaching Methods of Health Physical Education 1B Lecturer: Kate Jenkinson Part B - Essay Response (30%) Due: 4pm Tuesday 25th August 2015 (Week 6) Word Count: words. Submitted to the School of Medical Sciences, RMIT, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree, Bachelor of Applied Science (Health and Physical Education) Physical education is a fundamental component of the Australian curriculum that maintains an underlying goal of providing the knowledge and skills to students to allow them to live healthy and productive lives. However, the beginning of physical education in its purest form can be traced back to a time when human society was in its infancy, when the discipline would have been exhibited mainly through necessary survival skills including hunting and spear throwing along with combat skills involving wrestling and swordsmanship (Lumpkin, 2004). The ancient Greeks bestowed great honour and prestige upon those who possessed athletic perfection through the emphasis on the anatomy of an individual and their balanced life. This was coupled with the Olympic Games that were used to adjudicate athletic perfection amongst many individuals. It was theShow MoreRelatedEssay about historical theory850 Words   |  4 Pagesunderstand nursing science, I will discuss the historical development and expl ain the relationship between nursing profession and nursing science. Also, I will discuss how other disciplines can influence nursing science. This will help understand how theoretical thinking has evolved. Theory development and theory thinking was first intiated by Florence Nightingale. She presented the first nursing theory, the environmental theory. Her theory focused on the physical environment such as air, light, and warmthRead MoreSocial Integration Of Older Adults1432 Words   |  6 Pages With development of the world, the number of older adults increasing rapidly. How are their lives now? Some older adults feel happy, other older adults feel lonely, especially in China. Why they feel lonely? Lacking of social integration is one of the most important reasons. There are a lot of factors cause it, for example, feeling void after retirement, leaving their hometown, having a few friends, etc. And most of these reasons are related to life experiences. How it influences older adults? NowRead MoreAsdfghjkl894 Words   |  4 PagesSociology Research Area * * Aging and the Life Course * Alcohol and Substance Abuse * Asia amp; Asian America * Collective Behavior and Social Movements * Community and Urban Sociology * Comparative and Historical Sociology * Sociology and Computers * Crime, Law amp; Deviance * Economic Sociology * Environment amp; Technology * Family amp; Marriage * History of Sociology * International Migration * Latino/aRead MoreHistorical And Contemporary Figures Of The Field Of Education815 Words   |  4 PagesThere are many historical and contemporary figures that have contributed to the field of education. I have chosen Abigail Adam Eliot as my historical figure and Lucy Calkins as my contemporary figure for connection to history and theory in this discussion. Abigail Adam Eliot (October 9, 1892 – October 29, 1992) She was an early leader in nursery and childhood education and in training teachers for nursery schools. Eliot studied nursery education under Margaret McMillan in England in 1921 at theRead MoreBronfenbrenner Analysis Essay1174 Words   |  5 PagesCourse: Tutor: Date: Urie Bronfenbrenner is today credited and known in the psychology development field for the development of the ecological systems theory constructed to offer an explanation of the way everything in a child and their environment affects the whole child development. Bronfenbrenner ecological theory has levels or aspects of the environment containing roles, norms, and rules defining child development namely the microsystem, the mesosystem, the exosytem, the macrosystem and the chronosystemRead MoreHow Has Psychological Science Developed Throughout History?What1532 Words   |  7 PagesHow has Psychological science developed throughout history? What are the implications of these developments? Critically reflect on this in relation to one areas of Psychology (for example those covered in the second half of this module). Health Psychology Introduction The advancement of psychological science creates important influence that are relevant to matters such as prevention and treatment of diseases. (Taylor 2006). Health psychology a field developed in the late 1970’s is an applicationRead MoreHistorical Timeline of Nursing Theorists Essay1136 Words   |  5 PagesRUNNING HEAD: Historical Development of Nursing Timeline 1 Historical Development of Nursing Timeline Jill Dawson, BSN, RN, IBCLC NUR/513 May 7, 2012 Kynthia James Historical Development of Nursing 2 The historical development of nursing has transformed over the years since the beginning writings of Florence Nightingale originating in 1859. Although she did not publish her work as nursing theory, Nightingale’s Notes on Nursing is presented as the first nursing theoryRead MoreCapital Analysis : Capital And Income Inequality Essay1743 Words   |  7 PagesEconomics, the Journal of Political Economy, the American Economic Review and the Review of Economic Studies. He is specialized in the wealth inequality, and he has done a lot of historical and theoretical work on the interplay between economic development and the distribution of income and wealth. Based on historical and statistical methods, his work shows the rate of capital accumulation in relation to economic growth. Some of his major works are Wealth and Inheritance in the Long Run, ShouldRead MoreThe Development Of The Welfare State And Social Policies1563 Words   |  7 PagesThe development of the Welfare State and Social Policies have been based on assumptions about gender, race, ability/disability and age. Discuss this statement with reference to one of the highlighted issues and illustrate your discussion with at least one area of Social Policy Disability is an umbrella term used to cover impairments, activity limitation and participation restrictions. Disability is not just a health problem but a complex phenomenon (WHO 2015). Disability has been a neglected areaRead MoreThe Most Important Influence On An Scholarly Work1318 Words   |  6 Pagesimportant influence on my decision to pursue scholarly work has been my professors. Several professors at Rice helped me refine my interests and focus my life goals, and since coming to Harvard the faculty have provided me with renewed motivation and a model for innovative scholarship. Both as an undergraduate double-majoring in architecture and civil engineering, and now as a graduate student dually enrolled in History of Science and History of Architecture Urban Planning programs, my education has