Country Comparisons Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Country Comparisons - Assignment Example Japan has been experiencing declining birth rates together with low immigration rates over the last few years which have greatly contributed to the low population growth rate. Japan’s population is estimated to decline over the next coming years by about one million people each year (Connelly, 2008). United States has the best performing economy in the world with an annual average Gross Domestic Product of US$ 5337.70 billion. According to CIA World Fact book, United States GDP for the year ended 2011 was estimated at 17720 billion US dollars. This GDP has an annual average estimate growth rate of 3.25% with a 1.6% growth recorded in the year 2011 over 2010. Japan on the other side, has an annual Gross Domestic Product of US$ 2266.10 billion with an annual average growth of 2.15%. According to the CIA World Fact book, Japan’s 2011 GDP was reported to be US$ 5855billion with a growth of 0.6 percent over 2010. This shows that both countries have a high GDP as well as high growth rates (survey 2003), (CIA). Japan was reported to have a high per capita income of $39310 in December 2010. The average per capita income over the last few years has been $26593.62. United States on the other hand has an average per capita income of $25892.70 with $37,527 recorded for 2010 which is slightly below the Japan’s (Greenaway, 2012). United States has had an average inflation rate of 3.38% while Japan has had inflation rate of 2.97%. Japan recorded 0.3% inflation in February 2012 whereas United States recorded a 2.7% in March 2012 (CIA). Due to the adoption of China’s one-child policy, the population is reported to have a low population growth rate of 0.47 percent. This policy is the reason why the population consists majorly the aged. China is the most populous country in the world 1,226,718,015 people. This consists 20% of the world’s population.

The Role Of The Catholic Religious Education Specialist Teacher Article

The Role Of The Catholic Religious Education Specialist Teacher - Article Example Religious education encompasses various areas such as evangelisation, catechesis, giving witness, introduction to church, prayer, experience of faith, and knowledge of other faiths. At the same time, the Religious Education specialist teacher’s duties need to be performed on the basis of what the Catholic church teaches; what the government states: the curriculum for excellence; and what schools expect from them in the context of any extracurricular duties which are not expected of other teachers in the school. Thesis Statement: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of the Catholic Religious Education (RE) specialist teacher, the various areas of religious education, and the influence on the RE’s role by the Church, the government and the school. Religious teaching can be understood as a ministry with a professional dimension (Cook & Hudson, 2006). Catholic educators need to think and act sentire cum ecclesia which refers to the ideal form of thinking and feeling with the church on the basis of individuals’ identity as Catholics. ... ng to Cook & Hudson (2006: 399), assessment of religious teaching as a profession can be based on a framework composed of the following characteristics: "essential service to society, motivation by a call to serve, special knowledge and skills, specialized and advanced university training, public trust and status, code of ethics and performance standards, and professional organization".Religious Education helps in students' development of the self, socially, morally and spiritually (SCAA, 1994). Research conducted by Sikes & Everington (2001) indicates that a religious education teacher's life history plays a vital part in determining their teaching skills and approach to work. Further, "the quality, range and flexibility of teachers' classroom work are closely tied up with their professional growth - with the way they develop as people and as professionals" (Hargreaves, 1994: xi). This evidence would be useful in screening potential candidates for training as RE specialist teachers, by addressing negative identities unsuitable to carry out the important work. Evangelisation and Catechesis Ecumenism is the essential task of the whole Church to bring the Gospel to the entire world. Ecumenism and mission, evangelisation and Church community converge in a common witness to the same God (Houtepen, 1998). The Church's evangelistic mission is expected to be carried forward by the RE instructor by imparting the Faith to all students in the classroom, including those students who do not share the Christian faith, in the interests of sharing the wisdom and benefits of the Catholic religion (Francis et al, 1996). Teachings of the Catholic Church are mainly through catechesis. Bishop O' Donoghue (2008) believes that the key element or essence of the aims of a