By the time he was thirty, Syd Kessler was a millionaire many times over, the epitome of the poor kid making good. But inside him, a hollowness was taking hold, and later, in middle age, he fell seriously ill. In the dark days of a long recovery, Kessler explored the Kabbalah and the discoveries of quantum physics, developing a system of moral principles from the truths of how the universe began and operates. His set of principles -- from Big Bang to Moral Cause and Effect to Selfless Selfishness to Closure and Energy -- are revolutionary. They will heighten your sense of self and purpose and transform your relationships in every part of your life.

How would you like to live within a system that removes the shackles and chains of taxation of any kind, forever. That offers free healthcare and medication for all citizens. That guarantees substantial retirement benefits so seniors can retire in luxury and not have to worry about where their next meal or prescription is going to come from. Under Shauna McKay's perfect system, free education is available for all who are willing to do the work. Minimum wage is high, and every American citizen is entitled to substantial funds, thereby eliminating poverty in the U.S. A newly elected government with infinite funds provides for its people. Provides the funds for immediate development of alternative fuels and clean up of our environment, space exploration, and anything else that we could imagine. It's time that we do the right thing, relieve the human race of its burdens and suffering, end the wars, and bring peace to the world. Sound too good to be true? Well, it is very simple, and it will work. All it requires is for the people of America to unite, demand it, and make it happen--and The Perfect System will tell you how.

Don't worry -- the Kesslers know that parents aren't perfect. But they do believe that imperfect parents can raise their children on the foundation of a perfect system: the laws of nature, in particular the principle of causality -- that every action causes an equal and opposite reaction. The Kesslers show parents practical ways to teach their kids -- from infancy to young adulthood -- that negative actions cause negative results, and positive actions cause positive results, equipping them for happy and fulfilling lives at home and beyond. They also show parents how to avoid "the love ambush" -- the "you don't love me anymore" line used by children -- by letting their children know their role is not to receive love from them but to keep them safe.

It's time to move our assessment practices from the 1950s to the century we're living in. It's time to invest in our teachers and local school leaders instead of in more tests. It's time to help all students understand how to unleash their strengths and gain a sense of themselves as learners capable of choosing their own paths to success. In The Perfect Assessment System, Rick Stiggins calls for the ground-up redevelopment of assessment in U.S. education. Speaking from more than 40 years of experience in the field—and speaking for all learners who hope to succeed, the teachers who want them to succeed, and the local school leaders whose aspirations for success have been thwarted by assessment traditions—Stiggins maps out the adjustments in practice and culture necessary to generate both accurate accountability data and the specific evidence of individual mastery that will support sound instructional decision making and better learning in the classroom. He addresses Assessment purpose—how (and why) to clarify the reason for every assessment and the users it will serve. Learning targets to be assessed—how to make sure we focus on the right competencies and set consistent definitions of success. Assessment quality—how to ensure every assessment, at every level, is an excellent one. Communication of assessment results—how to share information in ways that best support diverse purposes. Assessment impact—how to link assessment to truly productive, universal student motivation. We have not yet begun to explore assessment's true potential to enhance both school quality and student well-being. Stiggins kicks off this critical conversation and charts a course for a new system that promises much higher levels of student success at a fraction of our current testing costs. The door is open for assessment reform; here is a bold plan for getting it right.

This study presents a semantic framework for analysing all aspectual constructions in terms of the event state distinction, and describes the grammatical expression of aspectual meaning in terms of a theory of grammatical constructions. In this theory, grammatical constructions, like words, are conventionalized form-meaning pairs, which are best described not only with respect to their intrinsic semantic values, but also with respect to the functional oppositions in which they participate.