Final Writing Test

The effects of branding

The word branding is defined as a '' name, term, sign, symbol, design, or a combination of them intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group sellers and to differentiate them from the other sellers. '' The objectives that a brand will achieve are to deliver their message clearly, confirm their credibility, and motivate the buyer. The most important is to know the wants and needs of the consumers and prospects. Brands represent the first impression that consumers have.

First of all, the primary goal of producers is actually to make money. Despite the fact of enjoying some privileges, branding is a way to manipulate the consumers, and actually we are those people. Nowadays, almost every company has a trading name, from the smallest to the largest trade. By cons, only a minority of these companies have a brand. An important brand will project the image of a very popular and established business to your potential consumers. People often associate branding with larger business that has the money to spend on ads and promotion. If you can create effective branding, it can make your business appear larger than it really is. In fact, a good image can be especially important when a consumer wants to ensure that the business will be around in a few years time. These facts are all ways to attract customers to make money and to compete with other brands. Basically, they all want to be the best in what they do. For example, Coca-cola and Pepsi come out regularly with new products to compete with each other. And gradually as time passes, more and more brands will compete with each other.

Each company uses different strategies to attract their consumers. Many companies know the weaknesses of consumers and they come out regularly with new products to attract just as many people as possible. For example, McDonalds had added to their menu salads that look very healthy, but when you look at the nutritional facts, you realize that the dressing contains almost as much fat as a big Mac. In this case, it shows that they do not add salads in their menu to improve the health of their clients since it's not very healthy, but in the bottom it's to attract as many consumers as possible and make the most money possible.

Finally, as a consumer, it is very important to be aware of branding. Indeed, the strategies used by different businesses to approach customers are very manipulative. The companies try to entice people by offering them goods and services that may seem interesting, but that are not necessary. It's easy to yield to temptation, but we must resist.

Learning Express Library

Course 3

a) Interest level:

I love to learn, so I was determinate to respond correctly to each question and I must say it helped me a lot. I must say that the course was very interesting. Even if I didn't learn many new concepts, it's always good to reviews former subjects.

b) Difficulty level:
The course was not as difficult as I thought it would be. I must say there were small difficulties from time to time, but I managed the course in general quite well. It helped that the questions were clear and relevant. Briefly, I must say the course was not tough.

c) What I learned:

I learned different types of writing, for example, narrative, persuasive and informative. I am more comfortable with these types of writing and I am now able to make good use of them. Moreover, I learned to focus and that it will allow me to improve my thesis statement. The listing and the free writing are two brainstorming techniques that I didn't know before, and with this test, I now know they exist. Aside from these notions, I haven't learned many new things, but it helped me to rework some concepts, which is very good.

d) My score:

I got 95 / 100

e) Course rating:

I give a 9/10 because this test is very pertinent. The test helped me to remember concepts that were far in my head. For cons, the only thing I would change is the length of the course.

Course 4

Reading Comprehension practice

a) Interest level:

The course was very interesting and practical. Even if I have good grades usually in reading comprehensions, I forced myself to have a good note in this course.

b) Difficulty level:

I found this test difficult. It's not necessarily the answers that I found hard, it was more the fact of having to concentrate a lot and analyse each response options to achieve the good one. For cons, I found it amusing that it was difficult because it is a challenge for me.

c) What I learned:
First, I learned that I must reread the text in order to answer the questions and it makes it easier to find the right answer. Then I noticed that I had more difficulty in the texts of literature then in informational texts. I think it is due because of my interest in the subject. Indeed, I am less focused when I read a text that I do not find interesting. I never noticed that before and thanks to this course, I'm more alert.

d) My score:
85 %

e) Course rating:
I give 8 / 10 on this course since it's very interesting and fun. The only reason why I do not give 10 /10 is because I think the test is not perfect. Indeed, i though the subjects weren't too interesting, sometimes I even found it difficult to follow. In short, it really helped me realize things I hadn't considered before. I would advise this course to other students.

Pascua Lama Simulation

• Bias : was shown by the judge in the play: he was not always objective.
  -> Ex 1: he allowed the signreading: ''Read The Bible''
  -> Ex 2: he disallowed the reading of Darwin.
  -> Ex 3: he disallowed the 15 experts.
  


• Who?
  Pascua Lama is a open pit mining project located between 2 countries, Argentina and Chile. Many companies are involved in the project. The main company in charge is the Canadian Barrick Gold Company. Due to its proximity to the glaciers, Pascua Lama has caused many controversies.


• What?
  This project will involve the removal of 20 hectares of ice. Barrick Gold Company estimated that Pascua Lama contains 17 million ounces of gold, 625 million ounce of silver. There's a controversy surrounding this project.


• Where?
Pascua lama is located in the Andes mountains (south of Atacama) between Chile and Argentina. It is close to the glaciers.

• When?
  The project started in 1991. However, the construction hasn't begun yet. There were a lot of trials between 2000 and 2008.


• Why?
Pascua lama is a controversial project because it has economic and environmental consequences. Some farmers are directly affected by this project because the company has to move glaciers to find gold. The government imposed conditions to the Canadian company to develop their project in the mine but they do not agree.

• How?
  There was an agreement for mineral exploitation between Chile and Argentina in 1997. An environmental commission also gave its approval to the project in 2006.

Inherit the Wind [Study Questions]

1) X

2) What does Meeker, the bailiff's, willingness to let Cates out of jail to meet Rachel tell us both about his offence and the town?
It shows that the bailiff believes that Cates's crime isn't really a crime or leastways not adequately important to go to jail for it. Also, the fact that Meeker doesn't want Rachel to go to jail and that he prefers that Bertram comes out to see her shows that Cates isn't dangerous for the people in his environment.

3) What kind of town does Hillsboro seem to be in its preparations for Brady's arrival?
Hillsboro seems like a very religious town. The reverend and the Bible are very important factors. Furthermore, everyone is happy with Brady's arrival and they want to impress him and show him that Hillsboro is a very believing town.

4) What does Brady's relationship with his wife tell us about his character?
Brady seems to be insecure and dependant on his wife.

5) What does Brady's conversation with Rachel, and subsequent behaviour afterwards tell us about his character?
Brady appears to be manipulative, opportunistic and cunning.

6) How is Drummond characterized by the townspeople? Later when we meet him do they seem to be correct?
Drummond is characterized as the devil, doing anything to win, even things that are unethical.
7) What role does Hornbeck play in the action of the play? What is the significance of the way he speaks?
-Hornbeck is a controversial journalist. In the action of the play, Hornbeck, who thinks Cates is a hero, defends his cause in public instead of in court. It shows Hornbeck is a confident man and when he speaks, he supports his own opinions and affirms what he thinks no matter what happens.
-Hornbeck plays the role of opposition to what the townspeople think: he is a city guy vs rural people.

8) Do the elements of the trial seem fair to you? Why or why not?
-I think the trial was not fair. The judge and one of the juror looked like they were leaning on one side. Also, the other juror was illiterate so it didn't seem fair to me. In addition, Drummond didn't present the witnesses so it was hard to advocate his client without these testimonies.
-No because the judge didn't approve of Drummond's scientific experts as witnesses. On the other hand, it is just when the judge gives Drummond the title of '' temporary colonel. ''

9) What do you think Rachel's motivations for asking Cates to drop the trial and admit his guilt stem from?
I think she asked Cates to drop the trial and admit his guilt because she wanted Bertram to have a shorter jail sentence or perhaps simply to avoid jail.
Her motivation is based on respect for her father. It's based on her desire to avoid problems.

10) What does Brady's intervention in Reverend Brown's sermon say about him? Does this contradict what you thought about him as a character?
Yes it contradicted what I thought about him. He believes that there's a limit about how noble-minded a person can be. He's not as radical as I thought he was.
Brady isn't as fanatical as we thought. Yes, it does.

11) What is the central issue that Drummond is arguing for in the courtroom?
He's arguing about the religious authorities of Hillsboro who want to ensure that people can't have their own way of thinking. In fact, he's defending the right to think. The central issue is the to think for yourself, but not impose it on others.

12) Do you think it is fair that none of Drummond's expert witnesses are allowed to act as witnesses?
-No I don't think it's fair because these witnesses could have given him enormous help and they would have seen things from a different angle. Brady doesn't want them to get involved because he wants to help Drummond's cause.

13) What is it that Brady reveals about his religious beliefs while he is being questioned in court by Drummond?
Brady reveals that, without any doubts, he believes in everything that is said in the Bible. Brady believes blindly everything he reads and takes it literally.

14) How does Drummond win over the support of the audience in the courtroom in his examination of Brady?
Drummond wins over the townspeople's support by showing that Brady was illogical and close-minded.

15) What is it that Drummond says about progress? How is it significant to the play's main message?
Drummond says that progress makes society go forward and is based on scientific thinking; however, progress has a negative side.

16) How does Brady react to the courtroom's support of Drummond instead of him?
He was furious. He yelled and threw the Bible on the floor. At that moment, his wife comes to comfort him while he's complaining. Brady says that Drummond wants to destroy everyone's faith.

17) X

18) What is the difference in the way the two lawyers, Brady and Drummond respond to the radio?
Drummond is not interested because he is censured. Brady uses it to give the best impression; however, the townspeople don't listen.

19) Why is Cates sentenced the way he is?
He's sentenced lightly because he did break the law; however the offence is not that serious.

Inherit

Characters:

1. Bertram Cates
24, teacher, defendant (accused), quiet, shy, well-mannered, believer in evolutionism

2. Matthew Harrison Brady
Politician from Nebraska, he has strong Christian beliefs, he's a man of people, talented orator, died shortly after the Scopes Monkey trial

3. Henry Drummond
He's mistaken for the devil in his first appearance on stage, stark contrast to Brady, low-key in his presentation style, passionate, he would rather look at the unpleasant truth than a decorative or pleasant lie, based on the real life figure of Clarence Darrow

4. E. K. Hornbeck
Cynical journalist, travels to Hillsboro, positive character, dismissive attitudes contrast

5. Reverend Jeremiah Brown
Representative of fundamentalist Christian belief

6. Rachel Brown
22, daughter of Reverend Brown, grade 2 teacher, very close to Cates, loyal, feels conflicted

7. The Judge
He is as impartial as his deep belief in the Bible will allow him to be.

8. The Townspeople
It represent a rural small town life of conventions and religious beliefs while showing the way in wich the world is moving forward and modernizing.

Branding

• Food
  My favorite: Mc Donald's
  Global favorite: Coca Cola
  Reason: -700 products, -200 countries, -''open happiness'' , -3% up


• Technology
  My Favorite: Sony
  Global favorite: Google
  Reason: -25% up, -Google chrome, -Very large and diversified


• Cars
  My Favorite: Audi
  Global favorite: Toyota
  Reason: -decreased 21%, -Sales dropped 15%, -create eco-friendly showrooms, -2011: 100 green dealerships.


• Entertainment
  My favorite: WB
  Global favorite: Disney
  Reason: -3% down, -innovate new formats online and offline, -Succes of Up, -Sucess of Toy Story 3


• Computers
  My favorite: Apple, Dell
  Global favorite: IBM
  Reason: -2% up, -170 countries, -65% of the revenue generated outside of the U.S.


• Financial
  My favorite: HSBC, Bank of America
  Global favorite: American Express
  Reason: Extensive investments, iconic status


• Clothes
  My favorite: GAP
  Global favorite: Louis Vuitton
  Reason: 425 stores


• Electronics
  My favorite: Apple, LG
  Global favorite: Nokia
  Reason: Fast developping market, targeting younger audience


• Household
  My favorite: J & J
  Global favorite: GE
  Reason: touch consumers on an emotional level


• Software
  My favorite: Apple
  Global favorite: Microsoft
  Reason: Game console, Bing

Mid-term Writing Test

Many of the food we enjoy everyday are grown by people who struggle to keep food on their own tables. Fair trade provides hope for these small-scale farmer and farm workers. Fair trade gives you the power to make a difference. Fair trade is internationally recognized approach to trading which aims to ensure that producers in poor countries get a fair deal. It includes a fair price for goods and services and decent working conditions.

First of all, my coworkers and I asked people in our entourage to complete a survey on Fair trade so that we can point out who is aware of the existence of Fair trade. Each person had to go on survey monkey and had to answer a total of 9 questions. We divided the population concerned in two groups, the first one was addressed to people from sixteen to twenty-five years old and the second group concerned the twenty-five years old and more.

The first question was: What is fair trade for you? When I looked up the replies, I noticed that the responses were pretty much the same. I have to say that they were all very good and I was impressed to see that a lot of people know what Fair trade is. After our survey was done, we learned that 94.7 % of the people between 16 and 25 years old have bought Fair trade products in their life. For the 25 years old and more, 100% of the persons questioned have bought Fair trade products in their life. That was impressionning news. Fact makes, we may think that people don't often buy Fair trade but most of the persons questioned by survey monkey responded that they buy these products once a month. The results shows that Fair trade products are often bought in specialized stores or in grocery stores. But regrettably, sometimes the high prices of fair trade products influence consumers to choose normal products instead. What would help the fair trade market, is to invest more in publicity. Indeed, 78, 4% of the persons who answered the questionnaire thought there wasn't enough advertising for Fair trade.

Finally, I believe our survey opened the eyes of several persons and maybe it helped them to learn a little bit more about fair trade products. Fair trade really makes a difference in people lives. Consumers like us are changing the world one purchase at a time. Fair trade farming communities are enjoying higher living standards today. We must not forget to look for the label. Only the Fair trade certified label guarantees that fair trade social environmental standards were met.

437 words

Learning Express Library

Course 1
Grammar Practice 1


a) Interest level :
I thought the test was very interesting. It's an original way to help us learn better. It took me a good 30 minutes to answer all the different questions and during all that time, I wasn't distracted at all because it was quite a fun test.


b) Difficulty level :
At first, I wasn't shure what the questions would be like, but I soon realized that they weren't so hard. Of course, there were some questions harder then others so I took more time to think of the right answer. I believe that we must take a few minutes to answer each question correctly.

c) What I learned :
I learned that I'm good with verbs. In that department I had 6 / 6 so i'm really proud of myself. On the other hand, I realized that I need to improve my notion of adverbs, adjectives and pronouns. It should'nt be too hard to accomplish because I'll continue to do a lot of different exercices on the Learning Express Library. I also learned that the first letter of a direct quotation takes a capital. It's good to know because when we write texts in English, there is often a need to put a direct quotes.



d) My score: 30 / 40


e) Course rating:
This test helped me a lot. It's not simply an amusant questionnaire, it allows us to understand our mistakes so that after we can improve our grades.



Course 2
Writing Diagnostic : Sentence Structures

a) Interest Level
I have to say that the second course was less interesting then the first one. First of all, the topic was not really captivating, but I have to say that it's a subject that we use frequently every day and it's good that there are some exercices on internet to practice sentence structures.

b)Difficulty Level:
All the exercices were very well explained and organized. In most of the questions we had to read a sentence and tell wich of the sentences, in the multiple choice, used pronouns most precisely. It wasn't as easy as it looks like, I really had to concentrate to get the right answers and that is what I liked about this test, it wasn't easy at all.

c) What I learned:
What I learned? I think it's a hard question because when I was taking the course, I stopped to think of the right answer for each question. At the end, when I looked at the correct answers and I saw my mistakes, I was really surprised. In deed, there was a lot of answers that I was absolutely shure of my response but I actually didn't get them right. It only shows me that I have much more to learn and that taking different kind of tests in LEL is a good way to improve my skills.

d) My Score: 60%

e) Course rating:
I would give this test a 8 out of 10. This course helped me to use precise word choice, to use correct, varied, and precise sentence structures and all of that in a very original way. The only thing I would change is the lenght of time.I thought it was a bit too long.

Sentence Variety

Independant Clause:
a)Thomas and Alex work together to pay their school furnitures.
b)Bryan has a very nice bag.

Phrase + IC:
a)At first, she decided to go train later.
b)In 2003, Sheila won the title of little miss late.

IC+Phrase:
a)Jonathan left his notebook in the cafeteria.
b)Marie isn't really happy with her math class.

DC+IC:
a)When he went to high school, he was very popular.
b)Even though he's small, he's a really good basketball player.

Strategies

Guessing Meaning:

1.Tome = Book 2. Treacherous = Dangerous 3. Vanished = Disappeared

4. Anticipating = Thinking ahead, Expecting 5. Appease = Satisfy

6. Dispute = Argument, Debate 7. Sapped / Sap = Take away, drain

8. Obscure = To hide 9. Giggle = Laugh

Prefixes :

1. My cat is really untouchable.


2. I totally disagree with your last argument.


3. Everytime we talk together, you overreact.


4. That gesture you made at the table was completely unnecessary.


5. I want to upgrade my Blu-Ray.


6. My best friend is so unhappy.


7. These colleague are doing great work together.


8. I am heterosexual.


9. I never knew someone who can predict the future.


10. My high school supervisor wasn't very nice with the students.

Suffixes:

1. I know a young girl who wants to become a professional actress.


2. My oncle is an alcoholic and I think he should do something about it.


3. My mom worked very hard to become dentist, I'm proud of her.


4. When you look in a microscope, you can see very small things.


5. Personnally, I don't like speaking on the telephone.


6. My sister and her boyfriend have been in a relationship for about two years.


7. I will never travel to Afghanistan.


8. Internet is very useful for homeworks and projects.