True or False: Teaching ESL Abroad is the Job For You?

Look before you leap - Know yourself, and what you want in a job teaching English as a second language, before jumping into a position abroad. Enlist the help of your friends, family, or anyone you trust, who will help you answer the questions below as completely and candidly as possible. There are no right answers here; the only correct answers are honest ones.1. First, take an inventory of who you are. This is not who you want to be. This is who you are, today.- How would you describe yourself: physically, emotionally, intellectually, spiritually?- How would your best friend describe you?- Your parents? Siblings?- Your enemies?2. Next, gauge your knowledge of English. Are you qualified to teach ESL? Begin by listing all the English classes you have ever taken. Specify whether these were literature, grammar, or writing courses. Also list any foreign language classes - these classes are helpful, since they are where most Americans learn English grammar.- List the classes.- How well did you do in these classes?- Did you enjoy these subjects?- In general, do you enjoy expanding your vocabulary, learning languages, exploring speech and communications concepts, analyzing literature, reading, writing, or any related activities?- Have you taken at least one grammar or linguistics class? (Very helpful.)- What English language skill do you enjoy using most? (i.e., listening, speaking, reading, writing, grammar, or vocabulary)- What English language skill(s) do you think you can teach? Which do you think you can enjoy teaching?3. Third, analyze your preferences around working with people and teaching ESL:- Do Rosetta Stone Italian you like working with people?- What type of people energizes you the most? Children? Adults? Teenagers? Students? Professionals? Other groups?- Which ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds are you drawn to work with? Why? What experience have you had working with people with these backgrounds?- Do you do well, or are you willing to try, facilitating large groups of people (e.g., 19+)? Mid-sized (10-18) or small groups (3 to 9)?- Do you prefer working with individuals, one-on-one?- Have you had experience teaching or tutoring? What did you enjoy about these experiences? What did you dislike?- Are you an extrovert or an introvert?- Are you a perfectionist?- As a teacher, would you view yourself as the imparter of knowledge or a facilitator of learning?- Have you ever been in a situation where a person was angry? How did you interact with that person?- How about someone who was depressed?- Do you have clear boundaries?- Are you ready to step outside your comfort zone?4. Now, list your past job titles. Next to each job title, list the skills you employed and those that you learned. It doesnt matter how easy, or how unrelated the skill may seem to you, write it down.

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Secrets of car insurance adjusters

Beware psychologically loaded questionsA written record helps when it's time to give your statement. Don't ever do this without talking to your own insurance agent first. If you've hired a lawyer, request that all statements go through your legal representative.Car insurance horror stories When you do make a statement, watch out for loaded questions. A member of Asif Latif's family was treated rudely by a claims adjuster who "tried to get her to admit the accident was her fault." This inspired him to start the After Car Accidents website to offer tips on how to work with insurance companies.According to Latif, an adjuster might ask things like:How could you have avoided the auto crash?How much do you think you are responsible?Do you think the weather (snow, rain, wind or fog) affected you?Did you have any previous injuries like back or neck pain before the car wreck?Can we get access to your medical records and the name and address of the doctor who is treating you? (Don't do this, as it potentially gives access to your entire medical history.)According to Gusner, an adjuster might offer to come to your home. There he or she will hit you with psychologically sneaky questions. A young mother might be asked, "You can still take care of your kids, right?""No mom wants to say, 'No, I'm not taking care of my kids,'" Gusner says. "The claims adjuster might be friendly and nice, and you might want to think of him as a friend. But he might get paid a bonus to settle as quickly as possible."Don't let yourself be hurriedThe faster you settle, the less likely your rights will be fully protected. Suppose a claims adjuster shows up at the scene, runs some numbers and offers you a check for $1,000 to fix your car, plus an additional $500 for the "inconvenience"?Don't take it, advises J.D. Howard of the Insurance Discount Rosetta Stone Consumer Advocate Network. You might have a soft-tissue injury that you can't feel right away but that three days later will hurt like a tax audit."Which is why the insurance claims adjuster wants to get to you as soon as possible," says Howard, himself an adjuster for 26 years.It is possible to get those release forms set aside. But it's not a sure thing, and it costs time, aggravation and attorney's fees.Philip Reed, a senior consumer editor at Edmunds, interviewed a former adjuster who recalled one accident victim who took the first offer, saying he trusted that the company would be honest.The adjuster admitted to "almost" feeling bad about that. "I wanted to say, 'Wait! Wait! Don't you want to negotiate?' But being a good claims adjuster, I would never do that."Refuse to be rushed. Would you take the first offer if you were buying a car instead of trying to get it fixed?Do your homework Depending on your situation, it can be hard not to feel rushed. Commuters need to get to work. One-car families find themselves stranded without a way to shop for necessities. People caring for elderly parents need to get Mom or Dad to a doctor.Insurance policies generally allow for a rental car while yours is being fixed. Keep the receipts and insist on reimbursement. (More on that below.)If you don't already have an auto shop you trust, find one pronto. (Read "Can you trust your mechanic?" on MSN Autos.) That's because a claims adjuster will almost certainly steer you toward a "preferred" repair place.

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Protein-folding game taps power of worldwide audience to solve difficult puzzles

in Physics ChemistryA cooperative online game that puts volunteer "gamers" to work folding proteins has attracted 50,000 players whose "distributed thinking" has, in some cases, proven more powerful than computers in predicting the three-dimensional structure of proteins. Extension of these efforts could one day pay off in the design of new proteins that help fight disease, sequester carbon, or clean up the environment. The free game, called Foldit, is the brainchild of David Baker, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute biologist, and colleagues Zoran Popovic and Seth Cooper, who are in the computer science department at the University of Washington. The online community of Foldit players is now helping the researchers as they attempt to crack "the protein-folding problem," one of molecular biology's toughest challenges."The positive response to Foldit makes me very optimistic for getting the general public involved in science," says Baker. "There's a lot of creativity and energy out there that is being spent on computer games that could go into solving scientific problems. I'm very pleased we've been able to harness some of that energy." Proteins are the miniature machines that carry out almost all the important functions in the body. Scientists have long known that the three-dimensional structures of proteins are completely determined by their linear amino acid sequence. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. Researchers now know the amino acid sequence of every protein encoded in the human genome. Until recently, however, it seemed nearly impossible to compute the structures of proteins from their amino acid sequences, and solving this problem has been one of Baker's obsessions.In creating Foldit, the researchers partly drew inspiration from "World of Warcraft" and other online games that have attracted millions Rosetta Stone of players who compete and cooperate to solve puzzles. Baker calls Foldit a success in "distributed thinking" – presenting scientific problems to the masses and attracting a talented crowd that contributes new solutions. An article describing Foldit is published in the August 5, 2010 issue of the journal Nature.Foldit presents players with the challenge of folding proteins into their lowest energy shape. A set of online tools built into the game lets players tug, twist, and otherwise tweak individual segments of each protein, and they can direct traditional computer algorithms to carry out fine-tuning. As the target protein scrunches into a lower energy shape, the player's score rises. Players can compete individually or in teams, and a chat window lets players communicate as they wrestle with their structures. These social aspects of the game have helped draw a crowd: Not only do players enjoy the rewards of solving puzzles, they do so while interacting with other like-minded people. "The cooperative aspect really adds to the appeal of the game," Baker says. An informal survey of 150 Foldit players revealed that many are non-scientists. For instance, the top five solo players contacted by Baker's team each reported no more than a high-school level biochemistry background. Non-scientists can excel at Foldit because the game requires no previous knowledge of protein folding. Instead, the game draws on visualization skills.

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This isn't just a made up notion

Conflict resolution and the repairing of relationships are skills that should be consistently taught from early ages, and schools are the perfect social environments to teach them. Relatively unstructured times such as recess are the best opportunities for children to learn how to navigate?interpersonal conflict. And since cooperative learning has been shown to be more effective than individualistic learning, students need to be taught group learning skills before they are thrown into groups and expected to work together.8. Get rid of homework. Homework is bad. It stresses out children and their families. Studies show it does not improve academic performance or retention of knowledge. Some adults believe that homework will help teach responsibility. But, we generally think it a bad thing to take our work home with us as adults. We understand that there should be a separation of work and home life. We need time to relax and recharge. Many teachers only give out homework because they are expected to by other adults: administrators and parents. And, those adults expect homework because when they were children they had homework. Even those teachers who know enough to be opposed to homework will generally give it to children to prepare them for... homework! That's right. You get homework in 5th grade so you'll get used to it because you are going to have it in 6th grade. It's a pointless, self-perpetuating system. In my current school, there are students who would be passing their classes - they do well on classwork and tests - but they are failing because they don't get their homework done. In other words, there is clear evidence that they are learning yet they may have to repeat a grade of school because they aren't going along with homework oppression. In the end, it's a form of violence against children. It's child abuse. Stop it.9. "Our Schools Are Not Enclaves of Totalitarianism." Those are the wise words of Supreme Court Justice Abe Fortas. And yet, the adults who run many of our schools spend much of their energy trying to Rosetta Stone Spanish (Spain) control students in meaningless ways. For example, it's almost universal that kids aren't allowed to wear hats in school. Why not? Apparently, it was considered rude some time in our culture's past. But look around - adults wear hats indoors! ?I've seen teachers grab the hats off children who are on their way outside. Kids get yelled at for wearing hats. How can anyone learn in such an oppressive environment that feels like the adults are just waiting for them to make a mistake with arbitrary rules? Educator should also be clear about what the reason is behind their efforts to control children's behavior. We need to ask ourselves, "Am I trying to control this child for the benefit of the child, of the class, or for my own benefit?" I once shadowed a 5th grade student for a day and counted how often she was told to be quiet by adults. About 20 times per hour hour, she or the whole class was told, in one way or another, to shut up. Imagine being told by people in charge of your life to sit still and shut up every three minutes, all day, every day. Now imagine being a kid, with the energy of a kid, and enduring your days like that.10. Siestas. OK, this one may seem silly at first, but hear me out. Half-way through the school day, kids (and adults) get sleepy. We have our lowest energy ?about 12 hours from our deepest sleep. When I taught 2nd grade, the kids were always asking me for a nap, but I felt obligated to forge ahead even though I felt like taking a nap, too. There should be a nap period for kids over kindergarten age. Alternatively, some people benefit from exercise, instead of sleep.If you would like to be a part of the North American Siesta Movement,?join my Facebook group.

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Why Is It Important To Choose An Accredited School?

There comes a time in everyones life where we need to choose the subject for our post secondary education and the college that we should attend. It is a tough choice since there are many factors that need to be considered before making the final selection. Some of these factors that influence these decisions are the workload at the college, if their friends are joining a particular college, if it is closer to home or if one is going back to the alma mater.However, if one was to choose one aspect that should dictate the choice, the primary criteria for selection should be to check if the course and the college under evaluation are accredited or not.Why is choosing an accredited school important? Is it really that important? Well, accredited schools have an edge over the other schools in that it meets the standards that are set by the accrediting agency. In simple terms, it means that the school is providing an education that is more specialized in that particular area. The accrediting agency insures that the school is concentrating on providing the excellence in education that each particular field needs. It has an impact in your employment opportunities as well. If there are two Rosetta Stone students with similar qualifications, the student with a degree from an accredited school will have an edge over the other candidate.Do not be surprised if the decision of students on which school to select depends more on factors like my best friend is joining that school or it is very close to my home. It is possible that one would save on some money in the short term, if the school that is chosen is a few minutes walk from home. But if that school is not accredited, you will realize that the money spent on earning the degree would be a waste in the long run since it could become a limiting factor in securing gainful employment.Having seen the benefits of choosing an accredited school, there is one more important thing that you should check before making a final selection. It is possible that the school you are considering has been accredited for a different program but not the one that you plan to pursue.Seems baffling? Well, many big schools offer prospects of studying in multiple areas. Such schools may have accreditations in several of these areas but it does not necessarily mean that all of their programs are accredited. So ensure that you do a thorough check on that.The good news is that accredited schools are not limited only to the universities. There are technical and community colleges and trade schools that also offer accredited programs. So choose a program and a school that is accredited and insure your future.

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Finding the Best Home

Finding the best home is not easy especially for first time buyers. Before purchasing our own home, we have to learn how to find the property with a right price and we also need to consider such as the type of home you want to buy, location, the neighborhood, and finding the right real estate agent and a lot more. Determine the mortgage you can afford, its terms and risks. Know where you can find the best loan including the advantages and the disadvantages. Check out on some federal agencies that sell properties, and try to find one that you are searching for.Review your monthly earnings, cash you have for down payment and your total savings . Look for a home with great increasing home value and find selling price of similar homes in the neighborhood.When searching for a home, know the available types of properties such as single family homes which are detached, green homes, vacation, townhouse and condo. It depends on your life situation and your lifestyle .You have to know how much home you can afford, and with easy access to schools, public transportation, hospitals and malls.As you tour your prospective home, see if the house has everything that you need, if the house is well-maintained and if you like the neighborhood . Check also on the amenities you possibly would like to have.Think of your future needs so you can indicate many factors like enough rooms for your growing family, ceilings and more.If you are going to visit a homes for sale find out the importance of how long the house been in the real estate market, the repairs needed and the recent improvements done. Rosetta Stone Language Prioritize more on your family needs and determine what are your must haves rather than the nice to have. This ranges from regulation guiding school programmes, interpersonal relationship among students, teachers and students' relationship and students' behaviors outside the schools (stone and church 1979).In the past, the rules of seniority in school were seriously followed and respected unfortunately these are no longer in existence or are not firmly followed. Unfortunately, students that need to be properly disciplined lack good leaders to follow, because some of the teachers who suppose to show them good example lack self- discipline (Ozigi, 1976). The responsibility of our school towards the inculcation of high standards of morals into our youths is highly necessary; because a nation without morals be taken by our schools if we still want this nation to develop (Getzel and Guba, 1969).Causes of immorality in the schools Immorality can be caused by either internal or external factors or both.The internal factors may be teachers' lack of commitment, teachers' immorality or indulgence and ambiguous school rules and regulation, interest of students in school affairs, and planned or unchallenging school curriculum, or poorly executed curriculum. These are also applicable to school among athletes (Adesina and Ogunsaju, 1984). The internal factors for athletes will include inadequate coach, inadequate knowledge on rules and regulations, bad team management, athletes' lack of exposure and experience to mention but few.

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The company is based in Harrisonburg

ALPHARETTA, Ga. -- Optio(R) Software,(OTCBB:OPTO), a leading provider of BPI solutions dedicated to helping customers achieve unprecedented speed, accuracy, functionality and quality in their inbound and outbound document processes, announced today thathas selected Optio's document output management applications in order to enhance the flexibility and global scalability of their document-intensive processes.(R) is the #1 language-learning software in the world. Millions of learners in 150 countries use its interactive programs to gain the confidence that comes with learning a new language. In addition to its use by individual learners, thousands of government agencies, corporations, libraries, schools and other institutions useto teach 30 languages."The benefits of Optio's solutions are very apparent, both in form and function," said Sue Ganey, director of IT for . "Their technology will allow us to accelerate business processes and increase control as we continue to expand and serve our customers on a worldwide basis." "We're honored to be 's provider of choice for document management technology," said Chris Beecroft, senior vice president of Rosetta Stone Chinese enterprise sales and services, Optio Software. "Our proven offering, based on years of industry experience developing and implementing best-in-class business solutions will helpto increase customer satisfaction, while optimizing their document-intensive processes." About is a revolutionary language-learning program acclaimed for the speed, power and effectiveness of its Dynamic Immersion(TM) method. Teaching 30 languages to millions of people in over 150 countries throughout the world,is the key to language-learning success. The company was founded in 1992 on two core beliefs: that the natural way people learn languages as children remains the most successful method for learning new languages; and that interactive CD-ROM and online technology can replicate and activate that immersion method powerfully for learners of any age. The company is based in Harrisonburg, Va. and Dynamic Immersion are trademarks of . About Optio Software,Optio Software, with 25 years of experience and more than 5,000 clients, worldwide, provides software solutions dedicated to helping customers achieve unprecedented speed, accuracy, functionality and quality in their inbound and outbound document processes, while extending the value of their Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Hospital Information Systems (HIS) applications. More than 5,000 organizations rely on Optio Software for innovative business process improvement solutions that allow them to reduce transactional activities and focus on core responsibilities. Headquartered in Alpharetta, Ga Optio Software maintains European, Middle Eastern and African headquarters in Paris, France and sales offices in the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom.

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Motivation in foreign language teaching has an affective dimension

Motivation is one of the most important factors required for effective foreign language teaching (L2). In many studies it has been demonstrated that there is an important relationship between motivation and language learning achievement (Clement, Dornyei, & Noels, 1994; Guilloteaux & Dornyei, 2007; Oxford, 1994; Sprinthall, Sprinthall, & Oja, 1994). According to Brown (2001), motivation determines the goals that one wants to achieve and how much effort one expends to achieve these goals. That is, motivation is an internal drive, stimulating power, wish, or desire. Dornyei and Otto (1998) define motivation as a state of arousal determining the priority of the wishes and desires of an individual and negatively or positively affecting his/her learning. Motivation can be construed as a state of cognitive and emotional arousal, which leads to a conscious decision to act, and which gives rise to a period of sustained intellectual and/or physical effort in order to attain a previously set goal (or goals) (Williams & Burden, 1997). According to Keller (1983), motivation refers to the choices people make as to what experiences or goals they will approach or avoid, and the degree of effort they will exert in that respect. An individual's motivational tendency is directly related to his/her opinions, beliefs, and judgments about objects, events, and subject areas (Boekaerts, 2002). Consequently, the term motivation has been used as "a general cover term--a dustbin--to include a number of possibly distinct concepts, each of which may have different origins and different effects and require different classroom treatment" (McDonough, 1981, p. 143). MOTIVATION IN L2 LEARNINGMotivation in L2 learning does not only mean having a desire to start learning L2 but also includes willingness to make the required effort. Therefore, motivation in L2 is Rosetta Stone Latin Spanish directly connected with how much effort the learner and teacher are willing to contribute. Motivation in foreign language teaching has an affective dimension. Affective learning cannot take the form of information transfer; students cannot learn emotions by studying. Emotions usually emerge as a result of success or failure (Ramizowski, 1981, cited in Erden & Akman, 1995). The readiness level of the student is an important factor in learning a foreign language. There are important differences between a motivated and an unmotivated student learning a foreign language. Factors such as interest and paying attention, making an effort, willingness to spend the required time, not giving up when challenges appear, strong willpower to reach the goal, being determined, and using strategies to achieve the goal are important in motivation (Dornyei, 2001b). A sufficient level of motivation may lead a person to believe that he/she can get over the difficulties and be successful despite the challenges. According to Tagaki (2005), factors such as ability to use L2, meeting personal expectations during in-class interactions, activities suited to the level of the student, and experiencing success in positive motivation in language learning. Learning of any language is a process. Motivation is a natural part of any learning process and classroom situation (Sivan, 1986). Here, different characteristics of the learner such as age, gender, educational background, level of motivation, language aptitude, desire to learn a language, and performance are of importance (cited in Dornyei, 2001a). As suggested by Au (1988), the socioeducational model can be summarized in terms of five factors: the integrative motive, cultural belief, the active learner, causality, and the two-process factor (as cited in Crookes & Schmidt, 1991). According to Dornyei's (1994) motivation theory, there are three levels of motivation.

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Homeschooling or Public School Where do I start?

Parents often ask about home schooling, does it actually work. They are well aware of the fact that public schools have problems, but really wonder whether they can do any better. One natural response for some parents is to try a little harder to see if they can afford private schooling but, even if this were possible, are the private schools really?any better than public schools? There are many, quality studies which show that, on average, home schooling produces superior students. To an extent of course this is understandable as parents clearly have an effect on education no matter which route they take. A parent who is genuinely interested in the education of his or her children will help to motivate them, producing better results and individual support is certainly an added bonus. But there is certainly more to it than this, in a variety of situations, to take even this into account and still come to the conclusion that home schooling vs public school produces better results. Even the United States Education Department agrees. In one study which they sponsored themselves home schooled students produced exceptionally high test scores. The median scores in every grade were far higher than those of public schools and even higher than those of private school students. The average home schooled student in grades one through to vgfour was a grade level above that of public school peers Rosetta Stone English and, by the time home schooled students reached the equivalent of the 8th grade, they were as much as four years ahead of students attending public school.However , costs were also lower. On average, government schools spent $6,500 per student each year and private schools spent $3,500. By contrast, parents undertaking home schooling spent about $550 per student each year. This figure for home schooling does not of course take into account the time spent by parents on home schooling for which a public school teacher would be paid. The public school system as we know it today evolved during the second half of the 19th century as one state after another made school attendance compulsory. Perhaps the most interesting question however, and one which rarely seems to be asked, is why, if public schooling offered such superior value, it was necessary for the states to make it compulsory and to force parents to put their children into the public school system. It could be, and sometimes is, argued that this was due to the ignorance of rural parents who did not see the value of education. However, it is interesting to note that adult illiteracy rates in 1840 Massachusetts were as low as 2% and that, by 1995, this figure had risen to 19%, in spite of apparently enormous advances in the intervening years. In 1840 libraries were rare and today they are everywhere as books are both relatively inexpensive and easy to trade. Today over a million children are home schooled in the United States and thousands of home schooled students have attended colleges and universities, including many of the most prestigious and difficult to get into. Whatever your own thoughts about home schooling vs public school there is no doubt that the results clearly show the advantage of home schooling. provides advice and information on many aspects of homeschooling and public school and can also be your best home school resource with information on such things as the advantages and disadvantages of home schooling and much more.

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How to Home School Your Child Part Two - Getting Started

In the last article, we talked about how to prepare yourself for home schooling. Now we are going to jump right on in and discuss how to get everyone else ready and begin home schooling. So sit back and get ready because this is where the fun really begins and the hard work begins too!Prepare Your Child If your child is still young, you can start pumping them up for the big day. Circle it on the calendar as when "school starts." Make it as much like you would when they would start school. Tell them what will happen and how their day will change.If they are older, you will need to tell them how they will not be leaving friends, but how they won't be going to school. At first, this may be hard for them. You will need to give them extra adjusting time. Do not spring it on them and pull them out all in one day.Prepare Friends and Family You will have to tell your friends and family. Prepare yourself for all kinds of reactions. Not everyone will be supportive of your decision. Some will be downright rude and mean. Plan to explain over and over. How you plan on educating your children. They will be concerned. Remember, they love your kids and have their best interest at heart. However, it is often best to have these discussions away from the children.Adjusting to Home School Schedule Opinions vary greatly on this issue. Personally, I am on the side of day one, we have a schedule and we follow the schedule Rosetta Stone German . I do not believe in letting the children ease into the schedule as I think it creates confusion on "why could we watch TV yesterday and not today?"Of course, teachers let children ease into a schedule at school too. However, I was never one of those teachers either. I was always a day one teacher. This was always my preference and it always worked for me. This is your decision as you are the teacher. Welcome to teaching!Get Supplies Together Are you ready to pay a fortune? Teaching is expensive when you have the district pay for books and parents pay for some supplies but you pay for both. However, you can use the library and the Internet. Make friends with the librarian as the librarian can tell you all the books that will be very helpful, especially in the early years.Have everything ready as you do not want to lose time looking for things when you need them. Gather them up the night before.Plan Your Week As a teacher, I was required to plan my week out. This should be your goal too. This way you know what books, supplies and materials you will need. You cannot leave everything until last minute. You need to plan tests, exams and have idea what you will do each day, so you can clearly teach. (This is why a good curriculum guide will come in handy).Your first year follow the guide. It really will help you get an idea how to teach and what you will need to do each day. It won't be long and you will see what you will do. You will get into a groove and know what to do each day.Next Time: Collecting Grades Everyone needs some way of displaying progress. In the final article, I will show you a fair method of collecting progress on children. Teachers have used this acceptable method for years. In fact, there have been talks about changing to this type of records keeping. Until next time, happy teaching!

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Counting the Home Schooling Costs For Yourself

There are a lot of different things that need to be taken into consideration whenever you're homeschooling a child. Watching your child develop into a healthy adult is certainly one of the greatest benefits of teaching your child at home but there are a few other things that warrant some attention. For example, keeping home schooling costs in mind is important if you are going to be successful for the long-term.The fact of the matter is, there are a lot of things to take into consideration whenever you are trying to determine the home schooling costs. Things such as purchasing books, taking your child on field trips, paying for the curriculum as well as numerous other things are all going to end up very quickly. Although the average is about $3000 per year in order to teach your child at home, that number can vary by quite a bit depending on what you put into it.There are also some other home schooling costs that you need to take into consideration. For example, will one of the parents have to forgo working as a result of teaching the children at home? This can take you from a two income family down to a one income family and can seriously impact your budget. It is important Rosetta Stone Chinese for you to consider what is coming into the house as well as what is going out of the house whenever you are trying to determine home schooling costs. Only after you have done this, will you be able to make a good decision as far as whether this will work for your family or not. GCSE reform next month would also mean more varied questions. New Conservative plans for A-levels and GCSEs emerged last night. Some of the proposals being considered include giving more points in school league tables for A-levels achieved in "hard" subjects, such as maths and physics, and fewer points for so-called "soft" subjects such as media studies; and removing vocational qualifications, including the government's flagship new diploma, from league table rankings because they are "nowhere near as academically demanding". Michael Gove, the shadow children's secretary, told the?Sunday Telegraph?that Labour's "meddling and micromanaging of exams" had "dumbed down" the system. Homeschooling vs public school you decide?

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Egypt Live Report

1732: In Cairo, Egypt's powerful Islamist opposition group the Muslim Brotherhood hailed the resignation and "thanked the army, which kept its promises." 1729 GMT: In Washington, US Vice President Joe Biden has also opted, like German Chancellor Merkel, for the cautiously diplomatic word "historic". Lebanon's Hezbollah also used the word, though adding crucially that it was a "historic victory", as car horns blared and fireworks exploded in Beirut. Advertisement: Story continues below 1727 GMT: Turkey's foreign minister has congratulated the Egyptian people on toppling Mubarak and said he hoped a new system would emerge in the wake of the veteran president's departure. "Congratulations to the Egyptian people. And we hope that a system meeting the expectations of the Egyptian people will emerge," Ahmet Davutoglu said in a message on his Twitter page. 1720 GMT: Cyberactivist Wael Ghonim has tweeted "congratulations to Egypt, the criminal has left the palace" in Arabic. "Welcome back Egypt," he added in English on his Twitter page , as celebrations continued in cities around Egypt. Ghonim, 30, a Google regional marketing executive, emerged as a spokesman of the uprising after his release on Monday following 12 days in custody. 1714 GMT: In Amman, Jordan's powerful Muslim Brotherhood said Mubarak's decision should be a "lesson" to all Arab regimes. "Arab regimes should learn a lesson from what happened. All Arab peoples suffer from the corruption of their regimes," Jamil Abu Baker, the movement's spokesman, told . 1710 GMT: In Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed Mubarak's decision to resign as a "historic change". We can expect a lot of these sorts of rather guarded comments from Mubarak's former western allies. 1707 GMT: "As Mubarak decided to step down, geopolitical concerns eased and (New York) crude oil prices retreated toward $86," said Sucden analyst Myrto Sokou. "The potential shutdown in the operations at the Suez Canal looks very unlikely for the near-term." Rosetta Stone Portuguese 1704 GMT: World oil prices slide and European stock markets bounce following news of Mubarak's resignation. Brent North Sea crude for delivery in March sank to $100.43 per barrel, before pulling back to $100.75, down 12 cents from yesterday closing level. 1703 GMT: Iran says Egyptians have achieved a "great victory" with the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak. 1700 GMT: Palestinian faction Hamas hails Mubarak's resignation as "the start of the Egyptian revolution" as scenes of jubilation erupted across the Gaza Strip enclave, squeezed between Israel. and Egypt. 1654 GMT: Outside Mubarak's fortified presidential compound, Lubna Darwish weeps. "I'm crying because I'm happy," the 24-year-old tells . "I'm happy, but we have much more to do. The people need to control this. We love the army, but the people made this revolution and they should control it." Mohammed Gouda, an 18-year-old student, echos her concern. "We don't want another 1952. That was a coup, not a revolution. Has Mubarak resigned or has the army taken over? The youth should remain alert," he said, referring to Egypt's last military takeover. 1652 GMT: "Congratulations to Egypt, criminal has left the palace:" Wael Ghonim tweet 1646 GMT: Wall Street investment bank Brown Brothers Harriman says: "We think having the military take over was the best solution in ending the deadlock between the protesters and Mubarak." However, the bank warns in a comment: "there are still more questions than answers with regards to Egypt?s ultimate fate and so investors must be prepared for ongoing volatility." 1642 GMT: Jubilation erupts in Gaza Strip, the Palestinian enclave hemmed in between Israel and Egypt. 1640 GMT: Israel hopes the transition of power in Egypt after the departure of Mubarak will be conducted "smoothly," a government official tells . 1638 GMT: Tunisians dance in the street and blare their horns in celebration at the toppling of Mubarak today, only four weeks after their own long-time ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was ousted.

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'24 hour party' on cruise ship trapped in ice

A ship carrying hundreds of passengers stuck in the ice in the Saint Lawrence Seaway off Matane in eastern Canada has been freed, news reports said. Ice breaker Terry Fox succeeded to clear a path for the stricken CTMA Vacancier with 300 people on board on Tuesday afternoon. However, a second ship, the GeorgesAlexandreLebel, a cargo ship owned by Canada's COGEMA shipping company, remained caught in the ice off Matane. Advertisement: Story continues below Passengers on the CTMA Vacancier ship were cruising their way to a oneweek cross country ski tour on Monday when the ship became enmeshed in the ice, but the detour has not dampened their holiday mood. "It's a 24 hour party on board," passenger James Gray told the broadcaster by telephone. "Its an absolutely incredible experience. I think it's a historic moment to be on a passenger ship stuck in the ice on the St Lawrence in the middle of winter. It's about 40 Celsius outside right now," he added. COGEMA general director Andre Landry told the Frenchlanguage newspaper Le Soleil that ice of that thickness has not been observed in the seaway that early in the year for many years. "That is usually expected in February and March," Landry said. Initial attempts to help the ship by the ice breaker Terry Fox failed. A 5squarekilometrelarge ice blanket has been blocking access to the port at Rosetta Stone Software Matane since the weekend, Le Soleil wrote. The Saint Lawrence Seaway connects North America's Great Lakes with the Atlantic. "There are some areas where the homes are all sold, but thereare no lights on at night," Xu said in an interview. While most tourists to Hainan are mainland Chinese 18 millionlast year against just 750,000 overseas visitors the governmentis working hard to attract affluent foreigners, who it hopes willboost the island's reputation and coffers. The goal is to "within five years, attract 20 famousinternational hotel management groups, and make the number of fivestar, internationalstandard resorts rise to 60 or more",provincial tourism bureau head Zhang Qi said last month. As developers drool over the tourism boom, tales of the usualshenanigans are emerging. In the rural township of Longqiao, about a 40minute drive fromHaikou, rust red earth is tilled up in long, wide swaths across thelow hills, golfing fairways in the making. Locals say officials convinced them to sell their land for agolf course. In early April, when a rumour circulated that thegovernment had sold the land to the golf course developer for some10 times what the locals were paid, they were irate. An angry mob flipped a police car. Later, when a crowd gatheredin a nearby schoolyard, police fired tear gas, witnesses said. In the southern town of Sanya, some say bottlenecks and corruption are starting to take a toll. One Western investor saidhe was having trouble getting a project off the ground due to "offthe charts" graft. "The permit process has taken months longer than we expected,"he said. Yet despite the hassles, the bullishness about Hainan's naturalprospects in tourism is diehard. "I think what you see in Sanya is only the tip of the iceberg.The island of Hainan is still very big. You have beaches more orless all the way up to the capital Haikou. The island is 350 km indiameter," said Banyan Tree Sanya's Pedersen. "The sky's the limit here".

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The line to Sydney was not completed until 1889

Local history walks and talks are conducted by Carole Frazer, (02) 4967 5969. Two books concerning local walking trails are Walks in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, and Coastal Walks from Newcastle to Sydney, both by Ken Scott. Events Some of Newcastle's major annual events include the Newcastle Maritime Festival (January), the Newcastle Longboard Pro Am (February), the Newcastle Regional Show, Surfest and the Autumn Racing Carnival (March), the Beaumont St Jazz and Arts Festival (April), the Shoot Out Filmmaking Competition and the Hunter St Festival of Sport (July), the Conservatorium Keyboard Festival, the Newcastle Jazz Festival and the Newcastle Cathedral Flower Festival (August), the Spring Horse Racing Carnival, the Newcastle Cathedral Festival and the Newcastle Young Writers Festival (September), Fiesta (in Beaumont St, Hamilton), Mattara (aka the Festival of Newcastle) and the Mattara Hill Climb in King Edward Park (October), the King St Fair and Carols By Candlelight (December). 6.HERITAGE BUILDINGS Newcastle has numerous buildings and sites of historical value, some of them of considerable architectural quality and interest. Customs House The former Customs House is a large and graceful building adorned by a prominent clock tower. One of Newcastle's most impressive architectural monuments, it was designed by colonial architect James Barnet and built in 187677 with the Watt St wing added 18981900. To the rear is the old railway pay office (1879). This whole block of land was once occupied by a convict stockade, established in 1805 under the supervision of Charles Throsby. It functioned as the major work area for convicts, being principally a lumber yard. It was destroyed by fire in 1851 by which time it was in commercial use. Railway Station Opposite the Customs House is Newcastle Railway Station. Considered a major example of Victorian railway architecture it constitutes five buildings, symmetrically arranged and was built in 1878. The line to Sydney was not completed until 1889. The fact that these civic buildings stand virtually adjacent to and overlook both city and harbour is entirely appropriate as it reflects the integration of what is very much a working harbour into the city's public Rosetta Stone Software life. Hunter St (PWD Building, Police Station and Post Office) Proceed up Watt St then turn right into Hunter St. The three buildings on the righthand side of the road occupy an entire block and together they make a major contribution to the quality of the inner city streetscape. They also represent the work of three of NSW's four most significant government architects. To the immediate right, on the corner, is the old Public Works Department Building, originally a post office (1860) but redesigned by James Barnet in 1872 for the PWD with the upper floor added in 1877. A plaque on the building reminds us that several of Newcastle's major thoroughfares are named after noted engineers George Stevenson, Thomas Telford, James Watt, Matthew Bolton, Thomas Newcomen, Arthur Wolfe and the Perkins family. Next door is the police station, a twostorey sandstone building designed by Mortimer Lewis in 1859 and extended by James Barnet in 1890. It now houses the John Paynter Gallery and the lock up which features the original padded cell and exercise yard of the old lockup. On the corner of Hunter and Bolton Sts is the post office a fine piece of Edwardian Classical architecture designed by W.L. Vernon and erected on the site of the old courthouse in 1903. With its groundfloor arcade, firstfloor colonnade, parapet and cupolas it was apparently based on Palladio's Basilica at Vicenza. The Bolton St annex was formerly a Bond Store (18751903). Further west along Hunter St is the mall which retains a large number of Victorian and Edwardian facades above groundfloor level. Longworth Institute Turn right down Bolton St then left into Scott St.

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A health spa that's top of the drops

Amy Cooper prefers her algae to come with a glass of wine. I've always been a spa commitmentphobe. Anything longer than a day treatment is too daunting. Tried it once, got caught with a bottle of wine behind a tree on the second day, was made an example of by an angry naturopath and that was that. The French think similarly, so they tend to combine their spas with luxury hotels. This way, you can detox within your comfort zone, knowing the safety of your room and the wine list are close by. Meanwhile, everyone on the outside believes you're suffering in a fulltime health farm. Genius. At the Sebel Resort and Spa in Windsor, the reassuring bulk of the 41/2star hotel snuggles close to the pretty, colonnaded Villa Thalgo, home to a host of Thalgo French hydrotherapy treatments. The villa was Australia's first purposebuilt day spa and you can treat yourself to as much time as you like there while staying in the hotel. Advertisement: Story continues below I'm shown to a balcony suite overlooking the spa entrance, and from here I can watch the stressed, scrunchedup new arrivals enter the spa below before floating out again later. Right now, I prefer to enjoy the peace and privacy of the room, a generous space (about 47 square metres) full of reclining options: big, multipillowed bed; sofa with squishy cushions; leather armchair in a corner just made for curling up with a book. There's a writing desk, too, but I won't be using that as enthusiastically as the spa in the en suite bathroom. The view is an expanse of green rural idyll part fields, part golf course stretching into the distance. I'm only an hour out of Sydney, but feel much further away. The Hawkesbury region, with its historical villages, picturesque countryside (70 per cent of it is national park) and five rivers is an antidote to big city malaise. The Sebel itself, beside Windsor Rosetta Stone Language in the valley's south, has sanctuaries aplenty shady trees, pretty courtyards, a lake with secluded benches around it and of course, Villa Thalgo. I'm booked in for a body scrub and marine algae wrap and first take a dip in the villa's generous pool. There's another pool with six hydrotherapy exercise stations. You stand chesthigh in water, grip the handrails, press a button and jets pummel you all over. This is called an "analytic pool", which makes me feel a bit like a lab sample, but that's the language of French spas. Here, staff wear white coats and rooms have intriguing names on the doors: Blitz hose room, Hydrobath, Rain massage. Not that it isn't decadent. Jessica, my therapist, explains the body scrub feels particularly good because the beads are rounded for extra comfort. Towels are huge and impossibly soft, and the affusion shower with which I rinse off the scrub is an eightjet, toptotoe delight. Next, Jessica mixes up marine algae from powder into warm goo. This isn't a cosmetic, chemically created "marine" fragrance it's the salty, seaweedy real deal, almost overpowering. I'm smothered in it and wrapped in foil so the algae's detoxifying properties can begin their work. Twenty minutes later, I step into the affusion shower again and rinse off my dark green coating. Underneath is a shinier, smoother me. Then it's time to boost my healthy glow in the hotel's Harvest Restaurant. The wine list has plenty of delicate drops to complement a newly cleansed system, and the menu's hearty dishes make good use of fresh local produce. Once I'm up in my room only the odd peal of laughter from below dents the peace. The combined effects of pinot and algae kick in surprisingly early and I have no trouble sinking into a deep, delicious sleep. Trip notes Address: Sebel Resort and Spa, 61 Richmond Road, Windsor.Bookings: Phone 4577 4222 or contact Mirvac central reservations on 131 515.Rates: Rooms from $130 a night. Prices for individual therapies and treatments range from $20 to $675.Getting there:A 60minute drive from the Sydney CBD via the M2. Verdict:A peaceful retreat surprisingly close to town.

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The ultimate trip

If money was no object and you could go anywhere in theworld, where would you roam? We asked a poet, a model, apolitician, a chef and a writer to devise their dream travelitineraries. Cheyenne Tozzi, 20, grew up in Sydney's Sutherland Shire.She is amodel and lives in New York. My dream holiday is a firstclass trip to Paris with three of mygirlfriends for a few days of fabulous shopping. I would celebratethe French love for all things classic by staying at the beautifulearly20thcentury Hotel Le Bristol in SaintHonore. We would bookinto the presidential suite, which overlooks the hotel's amazinggardens. Advertisement: Story continues below After a dip in the rooftop pool, I would treat my friends to ashopping spree at Colette on Rue SaintHonore the best fashionstore in the world. We'd go for the Jo De Mer bikinis, Marc Jacobsruffle skirts, Current/Elliott boyfriend jeans, Chrome Heartshandbags if money is no object, the list goes on! Next stop would be the Four Seasons Hotel George V, on AvenueGeorge V, which is famous for its beauty treatments. Forget Jet Lagincludes reflexology and a tonic aromatherapy massage, and theyeven serve you water from the Alps. My dream trip would not be complete without a visit to Michelin starred chef Alain Ducasse's Plaza Athenee Restaurant onAvenue Montaigne. There, we would order steamed langoustines withIranian osetra caviar, purple artichokes, black truffle zabaglioneand whatever unbelievable desserts pastry chef Frederic Robert (whohas worked with Ducasse for more than 25 years) comes up with. After a visit to the Louvre, Notre Dame Cathedral and the CentreGeorges Pompidou, we would take a road trip in a hybrid car (weneed to look after our beautiful planet) with surfboards on top, toBiarritz on France's southwest coast. Once there, we would stay inthe luxurious Rosetta Stone American English Hotel du Palais. It's right on the beach and has the most sensational pool thatoverlooks the waves. I spent quite a bit of time in Biarritz with an exboyfriend he surfed while I hung out, shopped, read and ate the mostwonderful food. The 1920s architecture is amazing and the beachesare fantastic. If you can, try to get a spot next to the oystervendor and enjoy a glass of wine with your freshly shucked huitres.Biarritz is such a relaxed and beautiful location and, justquietly, when those French boys speak my heart flutters alittle! Skye Gyngell, mid40s, was born in Sydney and is head chefat Petersham Nurseries Cafe in London and the author of A Year InMy Kitchen and My Favourite Ingredients. I went to San Francisco 30 years ago when I was much younger,but I'd love to go again as there are lots of restaurants I wouldlike to visit predominantly Judy Rogers' Zuni Cafe and Alice Waters' Chez Panisse. Both are led by female chefs with an emphasison local produce, and the roots of their cooking lie in traditionand craftsmanship. The restaurants are convivial; they have acasual and busy feel, but a warm and friendly atmosphere. I have always admired the work of Alice Waters I have all hercookbooks and I met her at Petersham Nurseries Cafe but havenever managed to pay a visit to her restaurant. She encourageslocal farmers to have a commitment to produce. She believes that healthy eating starts with a connection to the land, and has worke dtirelessly in schools and prisons, helping them to create vegetablegardens. There are also many producers I would love to visit.

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Wave to the PC! It's Paying Attention

Nintendo Corp.'s Wii game console is a breakout hit in large part because users control the play by waving around a motionsensing wireless controller. Many new gadgets are taking the idea of such an intuitive interface several steps further. Soon, you may be able to control computers, television sets, even cell phones with hand gestures alone. In one demonstration by 3DV Systems at the International Consumer Electronics Show here this week, users stood in front of a large screen and controlled a Windows computer with hand gestures: thumb left to go left, index finger right to go right, victory sign for Enter. JVC, also known as Victor Company of Japan Ltd., demonstrated a prototype TV with controls based on the same idea: gestures and sounds like snaps and claps turn the set on or off, control volume or change the channel. Advertisement: Story continues below The prospect of never again having to search the sofa for a remote is sure to be welcome in many homes, but the traditional fight over the remote could become worse: imagine two kids engaged in a signlanguage duel to control the set, with the picture and sound changing frantically to keep up. In another demo, when a 3DV employee did boxing motions an avatar on the screen in front of him mimicked the movement of his entire upper body quite a step up from the boxing game of the Wii, which only senses the movement of the controllers. A particularly popular Wii game is bowling, where the user swings the remote as if it were a ball. Two phones that hit the Japanese market in May include bowling games that work the same way Canada Goose Expedition , but without the Wii: Swing the whole cell phone and you launch the ball down the lane shown on the screen. The motionsensing technology in those phones comes from GestureTek, a Sunnyvale, Calif., company. While the Wii's remote uses a combination of tiny mechanical springs and a camera to sense motion, GestureTek uses only cameras quite conveniently, since most cell phones and quite a few laptops already come with cameras. GestureTek's technology is already found on some Verizon Wireless cell phones, which contain a game were the user can roll a ball through a maze by tilting the phone. Another application is the EyeToy for Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 2, which lets you play simple games by moving in front of the camera. The technology isn't just for fun: it can be healthy too. Francis MacDougall, GestureTek's chief technology officer, said the company has run studies of stroke patients playing a snowboarding game by moving in front of a camera and found it improved their balance. Wiis also have been used for physical therapy. To take these relatively simple applications further, GestureTek and 3DV are looking at adding a third dimension: depth. A regular camera produces a twodimensional picture. Two cameras together can sense how far away an object is, just like two eyes enable humans to perceive depth. "We think the interactivity of all this stuff improves with depth," said MacDougall. "You can use that in very novel ways compared to 2D." MacDougall demonstrated a prototype of the Airpoint, a footlong bar with an upwardfacing camera at either end. When MacDougall held his finger above it, it sensed the finger's angle and position, letting him control a cursor on the computer screen by pointing. "We see it initially as a gimmicky businesspresentation type device, but you could see it built into the corners of a laptop," MacDougall said. That approach would compete with touchscreen, but the Airpoint has something extra going for it: no fingerprints on the screen. Reactrix Inc. makes commercial displays that you may have seen in movietheater lobbies: an image projected on the floor that reacts to people walking on it.

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Cleary hints at changes to reverse decline

Photo: Glen Mccurtayne WARRIORS coach Ivan Cleary has implored his team to sticktogether 133; but at the same time said he would probably have totear some of it apart. The third consecutive loss worried Cleary, but the thirdconsecutive year worried him more. It was the third straight seasonthe Warriors had started the competition well, only to appear tobelieve in their own hype. "Maybe we're not as good as we think we are," Cleary said."We've done this for the last three seasons, to be honest. It's atrend I'm not really too happy to follow, but what we've done inthe past 133; we've never imploded on ourselves and that'ssomething that's been really important, so that'll be somethingthat we'll have to manage well this week, starting now, I guess that we don't start turning on each other. But we really need alift from somewhere, from someone, to get that confidenceback." Advertisement: Story continues below And he admitted it may come from outside the current squad. The3812 loss to Canberra yesterday, one described by halfback StaceyJones as "not good enough", may be the catalyst for changes, if thelanguage by Cleary and the body language of the players who wereawfully quiet in their dressing room were anything to go by. "We've just got to stick together and keep working hard andbelieve in ourselves, and that's not easy," Cleary said. "Butthat's part of the trick. It's not Rosetta Stone Outlet fingerpointing or blaminganyone else. Everyone's got to look at themselves and work hard andlift when it really counts. I hope we've hit the bottom because Ifeel like the only way is up. "But we obviously need to have a look at how we're doing thingsand maybe make a couple of changes, because it certainly wasn't working out there today." After a loss of significant magnitude, Jones was significantlyalso lost for words. "I don't know what to say," he said. "It was prettydisappointing. "But that's footy. We've got to stay tight. Ivan's going to makesome tough calls he says he's going to have to look at it andit's understandable that he does. After that performance and last week [against the Cowboys], it's just not good enough." Captain Steven Price bemoaned the fact it was his side's secondstraight defeat by 30plus points since a bye. "It's obviouslyattitude defensively that's letting us down at the moment," hesaid. "We're not far off it, we've just got to all get on the samepage on the same day. There's not too much more time we've got todo it this week. We've got to bounce back immediately." That much is clear, because the Warriors are playing like pretenders rather than contenders. "We were just beatenevery where," Cleary said. "They ran harder, they ran faster they just did everything better. We were just outplayed totally 133;maybe we're just a lot happier playing without pressure. I don't think there'll be any on us any more."

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The super is deferred, earned salary

Kym Sheehan Rozelle Perhaps the RTA's successful ''pinkie'' campaign should be modified to target the size of executive pay packets. Debby O'Brien Armidale Ethical voting Howard Packer's assertion that ''there would be quite a few votes in it'' if Verity Firth allowed ethics classes may just be the tipping point she needs (''Parents line up to give ethics lessons'', September 30). But would it be ethical? Pam Connor Mollymook Beach A leader out on his own It is refreshing to see Malcolm Turnbull's attempt to pull the Opposition rabble into line over their disjointed stance on climate change (''Back me or sack me: Turnbull'', October 2). While some members of the Coalition seem intent on ''do nothing on climate change'', other visionary politicians seem determined to use this as an opportunity to whiteant their leader. Turnbull shouldn't worry, issues of greater importance are at hand, specifically the annual ''fading of the curtains'' problem, which will no doubt occupy the minds of the National Party this weekend. Bob Harris Sawtell It seems to me Wilson Tuckey is saying that the leader of the Liberal Party, Malcolm Turnbull, should be doing as Tuckey says that the leader should not be the leader, but a follower. So why isn't Tuckey the leader of the Liberal Party? Frank Alley Ashtonfield ''Forward, charge!" And the solitary figure of Malcolm Turnbull rode into the valley of death as his followers were nowhere to be seen. Vincent Scoppa Leichhardt Overseas Chinese enjoy democracy Ross Cameron is sure the Chinese people are happy with their Government (''The protesters won: no democracy, but a true Great Leap Forward'', October 1). I don't think the Government is quite so confident. Evidence? It banned the public from the National Day celebrations and has spent the past couple of months arresting citizens it thinks may not share Cameron's high opinion of it. He trots out the usual nonsense about Chinese culture not valuing democracy. Strange, then, that Chinese in the West do value freedom and democracy, as they have come to do in Canada Goose Jacka Taiwan and, to the extent they are allowed it, in Singapore and Hong Kong. The students did not win. Have a look at the old fellas taking the salute in Tiananmen they are the ones who ordered the 1989 crackdown. Zhao Ziyang, who tried to stop the massacre, was placed under house arrest and lived the last 16 years of his life "in seclusion". Jack Hoysted Hong Kong Two articles, same story. While the US, funded by Chinese credit, sinks further into the Afghan mire, China's military capacity continues to expand beyond expectations. The big picture is changing so rapidly that by the time the US looks up from its Afghan involvement, any "gains" there will be irrelevant. Margaret Kerr Mona Vale Women neglected Katie Page is in serious denial (''Forgiving fans in a league of their own'', October 2). There is no compassion in her piece for women who have been degraded, attacked and abused by NRL players. While she lauds fans and the players, she has no sympathy for women who have been victimised by the ''what happens on tour stays on tour'' culture. Ms Page has been on the NRL board for many years and bears some responsibility for that shocking culture. If she cannot see there is a problem, she should let someone else have a go. Lisa TaitMcLean Georgetown Leave super alone Shane DellaVedova deserves his jail term, but stripping him of his superannuation is unjust (''Rocket thief may lose his army super'', October 2). The super is deferred, earned salary. It is a right and a working condition, not a privilege to be removed. This also removes the right of a partner to make any claim on superannuation in the event of a divorce. It reminds me of Morris Iemma's political stunt of legislating to deprive Milton Orkopoulos of his parliamentary super. Keith Parsons Newcastle The facts, fallacies and workings of TAFE It is good to see the Herald's coverage of the plight of NSW TAFE generating letters. Having been a counsellor in TAFE for 30 years I think two significant issues are being overlooked: the fallacy that TAFE exists to make money and the disgraceful treatment of its parttime teachers.

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Germany shut 9/11 plotters mosque

German police have shut a mosque in Hamburg frequented by suicide hijackers from the September 11, 2001 attacks and suspected of recruiting jihadists, authorities say. An affiliated cultural centre called Taiba was also banned. "Hamburg must not become a cradle of violent Islamists," the city-state's chief interior affairs official, Christoph Ahlhaus, told reporters on Monday. Advertisement: Story continues below "We closed the Taiba mosque today because young men were converted to religious fanatics there. "A purported cultural association shamelessly exploited the freedoms of our democratic state under the rule of law to recruit for holy war behind the scenes." Three of the September 11 hijackers including their ringleader Mohammed Atta, who piloted the first plane into New York's World Trade Centre, met regularly at the mosque before moving to the United States. The prayer house was known as Al-Quds until two years ago. Authorities said it served for several years as a recruitment centre for fellow jihadists, including accomplices of the hijackers, and offered logistical and financial assistance to Islamic militants. Twenty police officers searched the mosque and homes of the association's leaders in the early-morning raid and confiscated funds from the group. "We have finally put an end to the spectre behind the walls on Steindamm," said Ahlhaus, referring to the street where Rosetta Stone the mosque is located. The mosque, with about 45 members, was still the main meeting point for Islamic extremists in the city, according to Hamburg authorities. A group of 10 men from the mosque travelled to Pakistan or Afghanistan in March last year, probably to attend militant training camps, security officials said. At least one of the men joined the radical Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan in Pakistan and later appeared in a German-language propaganda video for the group in which he called for Muslims to take part in holy war. "The association continuously promoted jihadist, aggressive and anti-democratic ideology and religious views in recent years," Ahlhaus said. "We do not tolerate organisations that are levelled against the constitutional order and the idea of understanding between cultures in an aggressive, militant way. "But I underline that these measures are not targeted against the majority of the peace-loving, law-abiding Muslims in Hamburg." Ahlhaus said the association had a sophisticated program of courses, sermons, seminars and online publications to whip up hatred of "non-believers". Germany, which opposed the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq but has some 4,500 troops in Afghanistan, has beefed up security and surveillance in response to the threat of attacks on its own soil. In March, four Islamic militants, including two German converts to Islam, who dreamed of mounting "a second September 11" were jailed for a thwarted plot to attack US soldiers and civilians in Germany.

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