Quality of Life

What will/is affecting your quality of life at Glamorgan University?

castle.eiu.edu, 2012

What will/is affecting your quality of life at Glamorgan University?
I came to the UK from India in the end of August 2012 to study at the University of Glamorgan. This was not my first time in the UK but before when I was in the UK, I was only on a holiday. I spent the first month at my sister's house in London. There, I always had help in doing things. Even in India, I hardly did any of my own work like washing clothes and utensils, cleaning my room and other daily chores. After I came to the University, firstly I had to look for accommodation and once that was done, I had to live by myself. I have never stayed alone before. It felt a bit different in the beginning but now I am getting used to it. It is difficult to do all your own work and at the same time also do your coursework. This is one of the changes I have faced in my life since I have come to Glamorgan University. Another change has been the food. I really miss my mother's hand made food. Since coming here I have not had much of the Indian food. The food on campus and in the neighbourhood is good but for me, nothing can replace the food my mother prepared for me. Furthermore, the climate has been a major change. In India, it is mostly hot and humid but here it gets really cold. I am not used to wearing so many layers of clothing. These are a few effects to the quality of my life after coming to Glamorgan University.


Reference:

EIU (2012) University of Glamorgan [Online]. Available at: http://castle.eiu.edu/~edabroad/programs/glamorgan.php (Accessed: 13 December 2012).

Class System & Welfare System

1. Class System

Try to find out where the word 'POSH' comes from.

The word 'POSH' is heard a lot. It is mainly used referring to the higher society people. According to Oxford Dictionaries (2012):

The story goes that the more well-to-do passengers on ships travelling between England and India used to have POSH written against their bookings, standing for 'Port Out, Starboard Home' (indicating the more desirable cabins, on the shady side of the ship). Unfortunately, this story did not make its appearance until the 1930s, by which time the term had already been in use for some twenty years. Added to this, the word does not appear to have been recorded in the form 'P.O.S.H.', which would be expected if it had started life as an abbreviation.

2. Welfare System

1. In India, the retirement age in the Government sector is 58 whereas in the Private sector it is 60 and it is the same for both men and women.
2. An old age pension service is available for people who are too old to work. This depends on the salary they received while they were working and the number of years they have worked.
3. There are no benefits available for the unemployed in India.
4. All the mentioned benefits do exist in India.
5. There are several social workers and social organisations in India. These are well known to the people as they always create awareness among the people.
6. There are several charities in India such as Help Age India, C.R.Y., HEAL and many more. These charities collect money from fund raisers, some go from door to door spreading awareness and accepting donations from anyone willing to donate.
7. There is no service similar to the Citizens Advice Bureau in India but, counselling services are provided to the needy.
8. There is no service similar to the NHS in India but, the Government hospitals provide cheaper services for the poor. The increasing poverty and corruption in India has made it difficult for these hospitals to keep giving cheap services.
9. Family doctors in India are also well paid. They charge per visit and the the charges are more for home visits.

Reference:

Oxford Dictionaries (2012) What is the origin of the word 'posh'? Available at: http://oxforddictionaries.com/words/what-is-the-origin-of-the-word-posh (Accessed: 7 December 2012).

Law & Order

On 23 November 2012, all the students in the IFP cohort were doing presentations in pairs on the recent London riots. We had to mainly talk about the causes and effects of these riots. I am going to be giving brief notes of each of these presentations by my fellow students. They are as follows:


1. Ayo and Timi

Period: 6-9 August

Facts:
rampant looting
3100 arrested
3443 crimes across London
5 died & 16 injured
property worth 200 million damaged
police action blamed

Reference:

Guardian, 2011
BBC, 2011



2. Amal and Joy

Intro:

personal view – unaware
research

Causes:

death of Mark Duggan
economic & political conditions
claim of harassment by police

Period:

started 4/8/2011
some claim ended on 10/8/2011 some claim 15/8/2011

Consequences:

over 1500 arrested
destruction of shops/malls
cars burnt
innocent people
terror

Conclusion:

caused destruction & death of people
biggest destruction ever in London

Reference:

bbc.co.uk (2011)
londonriots.org.uk.com (2011)
Workers Solidarity Movement (2011)



3. Feji and Ishan

Definition

Introduction

Causes:

disagreement between 2 or more
law
oppression

Causes of riots in UK:

welfare dependence
social exclusion
lack of fathers
spending cuts
weak policing
racism
gangster rap and culture
consumerism
opportunism
technology & social networking

Facts:

rampant looking & arson attacks
3100 arrested

Reference: BBC, 2012



4. Happiness and James

Introduction: 6/8/2011 in Tottenham

Image: places of riots (map)

Causes:

Mark Duggan (29 yrs)
shot by police
economic situation

Occurred: Tottenham & spread – Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham…

Aftermath:

property destroyed worth 200 million
rioters arrested
rioters had criminal records

Conclusion: properties destroyed & arrests were made

Reference:

BBC, 2011
Cooper, C. and Nicholls, A. (2011)