The Stinson Shipping Company

I think the Systems Theory Model is the most applicable in determining and explaining how everything went wrong at the Stinson Shipping Company. To begin with, the environment was extremely hectic. Tom Murphy was under considerable pressure to deliver the goods on time amidst the increase in business over the past three months. I think that it is quite possible that his supervisors had a â€Å"Git-R-Done† philosophy and Tom felt he had to adopt the same mentality to be a success in the position. There may have been some training issues as well because Tom should have known that the mixing of caustic lye and Hydraulic fluid would be dangerous; instead he was more concerned about weather the fork lift could lift the load. Both problems needed to be considered because it was really the combination of the two that caused the disaster. The Hydraulic fluid leaking caused the fork lift to fail which in turn caused the pallets to fall resulting in the caustic lye mixing with the Hydraulic fluid. There was really a failure to communicate on all ends. The equipment Manager, Mike Morello, jury rigged the fork lift and was no where to be seen. I would think at the least they all would have been observers making sure to spot for anything that could go wrong. When Bill Jefferson, noted drops of hydraulic fluid on the dock floor, he should have stopped and walked over to Tom instead of just waiving at him. The interaction of people machine and environment was dire but their was a breakdown. Even though information was collected, I don’t think the risks were really weighed out. I think the risk they were most worried about was should they risk holding up the shipment? Ultimately, he decision that Tom made was wrong, but still the accident could have been avoided had Mike stood his ground, The two of them supervised the loading, had Bill done a better job of communicating. Now Bill is covered with the chemical and being rushed to the hospital. This visit should have and could have been avoided. An investigation into the accident would help HR professionals to communicate the breakdown to management and enable them to set and enforce policy to prevent this from happening again in the future. Advanced training in Chemical reactions for all dock loaders and supervisors is important as well. When a company has the motto â€Å"Safety First† than safety trumps any other pressure or work related task. If this is mode of operand’e than the employees feel secure in making the right decision without the fear of retaliation from management.

Philosophy of Education

My philosophy of education is based on the ideas that I have about education that are framing my critical goals as an educator at this moment. As a teacher I believe that it is important to be aware of the individual needs, strengths and abilities of each of my students. With this awareness, I will be able to challenge each student in what Vygotsky calls their â€Å"zone of proximal development. † At the same time, I will use this information to help build the self-esteem of each child, by creating experiences in which he or she will be successful while growing as a learner. Further, I believe that as a teacher I should focus on the whole child and not just teaching a particular subject matter. As a result I do believe that I should divorce their academic lives from their personal lives. Therefore I will utilize methods and strategies that caters to the child’s interpersonal, social and emotional needs. As a teacher at the elementary level I recognize that I should strive to help my students make interdisciplinary connections. Not only should the various subject areas be connected, but also what the child learns in school must have some relevance or importance in the child's experience of the world. One of my primary goals as a teacher is making sure that students are questioning the phenomena in their worlds, and learning to analyze and think critically about their worlds. This goal holds important for any discipline area, be it science, math, social studies or language. I will strive to create a safe classroom environment which is conducive to learning, where students may take risks and be supported by their peers and teacher. I will also strive to At the same time, it is my responsibility to ensure that my lessons are not limited to the child's direct experience but is striving to give each child a broader global view. In addition I see multiculturalism, as a process that consumes the classroom and should be embraced by the teacher. Rather than simply being an additive item in the classroom, multiculturalism should consist of critical and analytical thinking and building multiple perspectives on the worlds. Finally, children need to be active and involved in the classroom, instead of being passive receptacles of knowledge. They should be constructing knowledge and involved in activities that engage all of their senses and modalities. Therefore, in my planning I try to ensure that that lessons are geared at allowing students to take responsibility for their learning. Aha Moment! Throughout the early stages of my teaching practicum experience, all of my assessors kept on singing the same tune; plan more activities for your students; get them involved. Though my lessons were well planned, they lacked student centred activities and as a result I noted that my students seemed very quiet, docile and lacked interest in what I was trying to teach them. Upon reflection of my lessons I realized that I could do much more to make the teaching –learning experience more meaningful and fun for the students. I then decided to take a different approach towards my lesson planning. Instead of planning lessons that were teacher centred, I began to make the focus of my lessons be the students; as it rightfully should. From the moment that I began to plan lessons that were more student centred, I noticed a drastic change in my students’ behaviour, demeanour and their general response as the lesson progressed. My first aha moment came during a science lesson on the five senses. Throughout that lesson, from start to finish the students were actively engaged in building their own knowledge (add something about schemas here) The students were excited, energetic, they came alive and were very eager to learn more about the topic. After the lesson was finished the students wanted to know when the next science class was going to be and what they would be doing. It was then that I realized that I had the students where I wanted them to be; captivated and engrossed in what was happening in and around the classroom. It was as if all of their senses had been awakened to the teaching-learning experience. Through my ‘aha’ moments I was reminded of the old adage which says we remember 10% of what we hear, 15% of what we see, 20% of what we both see and hear, 40% of what we discuss with others, 80% of what we experience directly and 90% of what we attempt to teach others. Philosophy of Education My philosophy of education is based on the ideas that I have about education that are framing my critical goals as an educator at this moment. As a teacher I believe that it is important to be aware of the individual needs, strengths and abilities of each of my students. With this awareness, I will be able to challenge each student in what Vygotsky calls their â€Å"zone of proximal development. † At the same time, I will use this information to help build the self-esteem of each child, by creating experiences in which he or she will be successful while growing as a learner. Further, I believe that as a teacher I should focus on the whole child and not just teaching a particular subject matter. As a result I do believe that I should divorce their academic lives from their personal lives. Therefore I will utilize methods and strategies that caters to the child’s interpersonal, social and emotional needs. As a teacher at the elementary level I recognize that I should strive to help my students make interdisciplinary connections. Not only should the various subject areas be connected, but also what the child learns in school must have some relevance or importance in the child's experience of the world. One of my primary goals as a teacher is making sure that students are questioning the phenomena in their worlds, and learning to analyze and think critically about their worlds. This goal holds important for any discipline area, be it science, math, social studies or language. I will strive to create a safe classroom environment which is conducive to learning, where students may take risks and be supported by their peers and teacher. I will also strive to At the same time, it is my responsibility to ensure that my lessons are not limited to the child's direct experience but is striving to give each child a broader global view. In addition I see multiculturalism, as a process that consumes the classroom and should be embraced by the teacher. Rather than simply being an additive item in the classroom, multiculturalism should consist of critical and analytical thinking and building multiple perspectives on the worlds. Finally, children need to be active and involved in the classroom, instead of being passive receptacles of knowledge. They should be constructing knowledge and involved in activities that engage all of their senses and modalities. Therefore, in my planning I try to ensure that that lessons are geared at allowing students to take responsibility for their learning. Aha Moment! Throughout the early stages of my teaching practicum experience, all of my assessors kept on singing the same tune; plan more activities for your students; get them involved. Though my lessons were well planned, they lacked student centred activities and as a result I noted that my students seemed very quiet, docile and lacked interest in what I was trying to teach them. Upon reflection of my lessons I realized that I could do much more to make the teaching –learning experience more meaningful and fun for the students. I then decided to take a different approach towards my lesson planning. Instead of planning lessons that were teacher centred, I began to make the focus of my lessons be the students; as it rightfully should. From the moment that I began to plan lessons that were more student centred, I noticed a drastic change in my students’ behaviour, demeanour and their general response as the lesson progressed. My first aha moment came during a science lesson on the five senses. Throughout that lesson, from start to finish the students were actively engaged in building their own knowledge (add something about schemas here) The students were excited, energetic, they came alive and were very eager to learn more about the topic. After the lesson was finished the students wanted to know when the next science class was going to be and what they would be doing. It was then that I realized that I had the students where I wanted them to be; captivated and engrossed in what was happening in and around the classroom. It was as if all of their senses had been awakened to the teaching-learning experience. Through my ‘aha’ moments I was reminded of the old adage which says we remember 10% of what we hear, 15% of what we see, 20% of what we both see and hear, 40% of what we discuss with others, 80% of what we experience directly and 90% of what we attempt to teach others.

Balanced Scorecard

Since the Market downturn in October 2007, a challenging set of economic events has been rocking the financial services industry and AXA equitable has since experienced major changes to keep the company competitive. A well-developed balanced scorecard is what AXA Equitable needs in order to remain a worldwide leader in the financial services industry. In the past, management have believed that the factors critical to the success of a company were based solely upon financial measures; this is why the Balanced scorecard was developed. The BSC has gained increasing popularity as an effective management tool that aligns employee actions and goals with corporate strategy since first being introduced in 1992 (Davis Albright, 2004). Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton proposed the balanced scorecard (BSC). The Balanced scorecard is a widely recognized tool to support decision making at the strategic management level which improves the satisfaction of the strategic objectives (Kaplan Norton, 1992). The BSC provides feedback on internal business processes, performance, and market conditions in order to review the trategy and future plans and  Large U. S. companies, such as General Electric and Federal Express, and non-profit and public organizations have implemented the BSC approach (Creamer Freun, 2010). According to the module, â€Å"financial measures are inadequate, however, for guiding and evaluating the journey that information age companies must make to create future value through investment in customers, suppliers, employees, processes, technology, and innovation (Baltzan, Phillips, Haag 2010). The balanced scorecard deals with a proposed model that embraces both financial and non-financial aspects to measure performance of an organization in the financial services industry (Wu, Tzeng, Chen, 2009). The  balanced scorecard[pic](BSC) is a multi-criteria evaluation concept that highlights the importance of performance measurement, and it recognizes that performance measurement should be incorporated in both of financial and non-financial measures; it captures not only a firm’s current performance but also the drivers of its future performance (Tseng, 2010). The balanced scorecard would be a positive force for AXA Equitable as it is a vital part of an overall strategy to become and remain an industry leader. Since times can be unsettling and while no company is immune from the challenges of a volatile market, management should strive to identify the factors that are critical to the success of the company. AXA Equitable needs to implement the measures listed on the balanced scorecard to achieve the company’s critical success factors. This will strengthen the company and continually improve AXA Equitable’s ability to manage through turbulent market conditions when necessary. The Balanced scorecard has four main parts. The balanced scorecard is developed along the four well-known perspectives of Financial, Customer, Internal Business Process, and Learning and Growth Performance, which, at any point in time of measurement, characterize the current status and future potential of organizations (Craig Moores, 2010). The financial perspective includes the measure of an organizations financial performance. For instance, it measures revenue growth, shareholder’s value, assets under management, and cash flow. This perspective links the company to its shareholders with main attention to the question: â€Å"How do we look to our shareholders and those with a financial interest in the organization? † Financial goals include achieving profitability, maintaining liquidity and solvency both short term as well as long-term, growth in sales turnover and maximizing wealth of shareholders (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The customer perspective includes the measure of an organizations market share, customer satisfaction, customer retention, customer referrals and value added activities. This is the second external oriented perspective that takes a look at the organization’s customers, who are the crucial factor for financial success generating revenue by buying products and services. The question is: â€Å"How do our customers perceive us in term of products, services, relationships and value-added? † (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The internal process perspective includes the measure of an organizations productivity, research and development, customer complaints and returns, and operational speed. This Measure focuses on the internal processes that will have the greatest impact on customer satisfaction and achieving an organization’s financial objectives. Firms should decide what processes and competencies they must excel at and specify measures for each of them (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The learning and growth perspective includes the measure of an organizations turnover ratio, hiring goals, education and training of new and existing employees, and number of new and improved products or services. This perspective identifies the infrastructure that the organization must build to create long-term growth and improvement. Intense global competition requires that organizations continually improve their capabilities for delivering value to customers and shareholders. Thus the question remains: â€Å"To achieve our future vision, how will we continue to improve and create future value for our stakeholders? † (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The best way to measure AXA Equitable’s financial performance is the shareholders value. This shows the value that the shareholders perceive AXA Equitable to be worth. There is strong evidence that the balanced scorecard is an effective strategic management tool that leads to improved shareholder returns (Crabtree DeBusk, 2008). The primary objective of management should be maximizing its shareholder’s value. Since the turbulent economy, AXA Equitable shareholder value is back on the up rise again. This can be seen with the stock price. AXA Equitable stocks, just like most other companies, were not immune to the highly volatile market conditions; However with the market getting back together, the stock price is gradually rising again. The management decisions at AXA should be geared towards maximizing the wealth of AXA Equitable shareholders, which means increasing the value of shares owned by existing shareholders. A good measure of AXA Equitable’s superiority over its competition would be the ability to generate consistent and high total returns that it gives to its shareholders over time. Major company issues will exist with AXA Equitable if management interests are not aligned with those of shareholders. When managers pursue self-serving behavior rather than the maximization of shareholder wealth, several symptoms may become apparent: low stock returns, below-average operating performance, and suboptimal investment decisions. The likelihood of company problems is higher when managerial incentive systems do not coincide with shareholder wealth maximization (Manry Stangeland 2003). It is very important that AXA Equitable management put the interest of the shareholders first. Research suggests that firms with management that pursues its own interests at the expense of shareholders will perform comparatively worse than firms with management whose interests are aligned with shareholders (Manry Stangeland 2003). When a company like AXA Equitable is able to generate wealth for its shareholders year after year, it is able to differentiate itself from the competition and creates better value for its shareholders. Investors who purchase AXA Equitable shares hope that the returns they get on their investments would be higher than what they could get from putting those funds in a risk-free savings account. This shows that the investors are definitely willing to tolerate more risk of ownership in AXA Equitable because of the chance of making higher returns. Assets under management are a measure of the total market value of client assets with the company. AXA as a whole has 1. 46 trillion dollars in assets under management, making it the 13th largest company in the world. One of the biggest advantages of having assets under management as a critical success factor on the balanced scorecard is that focus on increasing the total value of assets under AXA demands continuous efforts and improvement by the management and employees of AXA. This financial measure is not only obvious to AXA management and employees but also those outside the company, i. e. the public. Ranking organization like Fortune 500, use the figures for assets under management as a financial success measure to rank companies against their competition and industries. Constantly increasing the sale of financial products or services is a very important aspect of a company especially one in the financial services industry. AXA Equitable offers a wide range of financial products and services like fixed income investments, equity investments, individual retirement accounts, education planning accounts, life disability insurance and annuities to its clients. The products or services is used to address their needs and help shape their financial futures. The sale of AXA Equitable’s financial products or services is crucial in measuring the financial success of the company. The product or services sale is exactly how the company makes money and becomes profitable. Employees of AXA Equitable earn production credits after each sale of its products or services. Production Credits are the total amount of compensation that AXA Equitable pays to its employees in form of commission for the sale of its products or services. The total amount of production credits earned by each employee is the best way AXA uses to measure employee performance. The Production credits can also serve as a measure of financial performance that AXA Equitable uses as a requirement for other benefits other than commission for its employees. Benefits such as medical plan eligibility, stock options, stocks appreciation rights, AXA Share plan and AXA Equitable Advantage. AXA Equitable should strive for consistent and positive investment results for its investment portfolios. This is very important to a company that deals with attracting new prospects and retaining existing clients. An AXA Equitable client, for example, with a portfolio with poor investment results will not remain with the company if that client can get better results with other financial companies outside of AXA Equitable. AXA Equitable financial advisors manage the managers. Portfolio managers manage the investment portfolios and financial products inside AXA Equitable. Those managers are in turn, managed by the financial advisors that make these investment portfolios available to the clients. The portfolio managers are responsible for picking the equities and bonds available in each portfolio, making changes and the investment results for the portfolios they handle. Clients can benefit from a professional allocated portfolio of AXA Equitable funds that delivers automatic diversification, risk management benefits, quarterly rebalancing, and consistent investment results. The customer perspective section of he balanced scorecard cannot be effective if customer satisfaction is not the number one focus. The first and most important rule for any company in the financial services industry is that the client is of the utmost priority. Financial advisors should learn to put the interest of their clients first before any other interests. Companies in a service industry should understand that customer satisfaction is a great measure of performance. Banks and other companies that deal with providing financial services to the public must first put more emphasis on customer satisfaction, and then on financial return. These companies must ensure that their customers remain loyal to them and develop new markets to attract new customers (Wu, Tzeng, Chen, 2009). A crucial part of maintaining client satisfaction is understanding the clients and their needs. AXA Equitable and its advisors are responsible for making financial recommendations and providing its clients with financial products and services, and financial education to address their needs and help the clients create the retirement of their dreams. AXA Equitable should take sending out client satisfaction surveys to every client on the anniversary date of purchasing a financial product or service very seriously. This Client Satisfaction Index survey is a true measure of customer satisfaction and has helped the company identify the key drivers of client satisfaction. AXA Equitable uses this survey to get client feedback on their financial products and the level of service that their advisors showed the client throughout the year. Value added activity is an important way a company can separate itself from the competition. Companies in the financial services industry primarily offer financial products or services to their clients. Why would a client want to use AXA Equitable’s products and service versus another financial company like American International Group (AIG)? What can AXA Equitable offer that client that no other company can? For example, every financial advisor is required to provide the clients with a contract after every sale of a financial product or service. This contract usually contains copies of signed forms and prospectus. It is better to hand deliver these contracts instead of mailing it to the clients. AIG, a major competition for AXA Equitable, usually sends out thank you cards and client referral forms after every new sale of the company’s financial product or service. This is very effective because it showed that AIG appreciates the client and their business. Value added activities can be as simple as remembering a customers’ favorite drink. Whatever the activity is, managers must find a way to capitalize upon it, as doing so will enable them to gain a competitive advantage. AIG uses this service-oriented strategy to get additional referrals and establish relationships with their clients. BSC is an effective performance measurement tool in performance improvement, which positively affects service quality (Ghani, Said, Laswad, 2010). Exceeding client expectations is another critical success factor on the balanced scorecard that AXA Equitable and its employees should incorporate. When this strategy is taken seriously and done correctly, the clients are satisfied; they stay with the company longer, purchase additional financial products or services and most importantly, refer others to the company. Customer satisfaction offers an immediate, meaningful and objective feedback about clients’ preferences and expectations (Mihelis, Grigoroudis, Siskos, Politis, Malandrakis, 2001). AXA Equitable has provided several tools like eRelationship ® for its financial advisors for client contact. The eRelationship ® platform is a good way for the advisors to have continuous contact and build strong relationships with their clients all year long. For example, doing the simple things like remembering and sending out birthday cards, wedding anniversary cards, seminars invitations, could go a long way in building and maintaining credibility, trust and satisfaction with the clients. When the financial advisor is compassionate and is always willing to help, the clients can now see the true value of the advisors. AXA Equitable needs to generate clients constantly to be successful in the financial service industry. To be successful in this business, the financial advisors have to constantly be in front of their clients. Activities that drive the success of AXA Equitable financial advisors include prospecting and meeting new clients, number of appointments set, running appointments and appointments closed. AXA Equitable uses to 5-3-1 weekly matrix to guide our advisor activities They will be successful every week if they can have five prospecting visits, run three client appointments and sign up one new client†. Internationale Nederlanden Groep (ING), another major competition in the financial services industry uses a performance management strategy to keep track of employee activities. The financial advisors are required to submit their performance goals, development plans, and action plans at the beginning of every quarter to their managers. At the end of the quarter, performance reviews are conducted by the managers to measure the activities and production of the financial advisor. The balanced scorecard will help enhance communication between the client and the organization to ensure favorable organization performance (Wong, Lam, Chan, 2009). The internal business process perspective measures efficiency and productivity level within the company. During the client appointments, after the recommendations have been presented to the client, how quickly and efficiently can AXA Equitable provide the financial products or services needed to the client? This can be done with a software called eDox ®. eDox ® is an online database software that the financial advisor carries with him to every appointment with clients. eDox ® contains information about every product that AXA Equitable offers to its clients as well as links to products from other companies that AXA Equitable advisors can also offer to its client. Intra-industry trade (IIT) has been central to increasing the variety of products available to consumers (Moshirian, Li, and Sim. 2005). eDox ® also serves as a tool that top management uses to send out memos, journals, sales ideas, and information on new product launches to every employee of the company. When the client agrees to go ahead with the advisors recommendation and get the financial products; all the applications and forms necessary to make the sale can also be found on eDox ®. A continual review and constant improvement of eDox ® would be very important to keep productivity levels high to become an industry leader. AXA Compliance department is faced with the task of keeping AXA Equitable and its financial advisors compliant with the governing rules made by the Security and Exchange Commission. The Security and Exchange Commission set rules, regulations and guidelines that govern all the companies in the financial services industry. The SEC draws up new regulations periodically that sometimes make business very difficult in the financial services industry, for example, the 90-24 transfer rule, which involves more documentation for transfers of funds between one financial companies. Meeting these guidelines and standards set by the Securities and Exchange Commission is important to eliminate client complaints, trading malpractice, and negative internal and external audit for AXA Equitable Growth within a company like AXA Equitable does not always have to mean more profits because it is in the financial services industry. To become a leader in this industry, the financial company would have to hire more financial advisors to acquire more clients, which in turn leads to more productivity within the company. AXA Equitable should set hiring goals for its managers each year that the company expects to be met because an increase in the number of financial advisors every year will cause an increase in the amount of business written in that year. AXA Equitable and other companies in the financial service industry are constantly rolling out new financial products or services to keep pace with market volatility and unlimited client needs. The companies equip these products with better features and benefits to make them more attractive to the clients and stand out from the competition. AXA Equitable should be committed to providing its financial advisors with the resources necessary to build a lifelong career. Companies facing intensive competition also have a greater impetus to find ways to differentiate their products and services from those provided by competitors, this frequently results in a greater number of product and service lines and differentiation sought through increased customization of products and services in order to meet specific customer desires. (Guilding and McManus, 2002). The Learning center at AXA Equitable is set up to train and support new and experienced financial advisors. For example, when a new financial advisor is hired, the advisor is required to take some necessary courses on AXA Advisors Virtual University (AAVU) to learn everything about the company, its policies and financial product or services. American International Group (AIG) is another company that has a similar new employee development strategy. AIG developed a New Branch Employee Orientation Program where new employees receive online orientation sessions that include information about AIG, as well as company policies and benefits. AXA Equitable should require additional sessions for training and development for their financial advisors. These sessions should include experiences and accomplishments of experienced licensed financial advisors to keep the all other financial advisors motivated and knowledgeable about everything going on with the company and the industry as a whole. Introducing a balanced scorecard in an organization and implementing the critical success factors identified on it will not be an easy task. When firms develop a  scorecard they often start with a strategic performance measurement system which includes a set of financial and non-financial measures. Afterwards, the cause and effect relationships between the different (sets of) measures are developed further to translate the firm strategy to operational activities (Wiersma, 2009). AXA Equitable’s Management and employees will have to cultivate a change initiative. The increasing use of balanced scorecards is changing the way top managers run their companies. When envisioning a firm’s future development, they no longer focus chiefly on monetary success indicators in the financial area, Instead balanced scorecard is designed to complement financial measures of past performance with their measures of the drivers of future performance (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). Companies need to address issues to help assess competition in their industry. The Balanced Scorecard is generally implemented at the corporate, business unit, and individual level, and also becomes a powerful tool for the directors to monitor the implementation of the corporate strategy.

Causes and Effects of College Dropout Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Causes and Effects of College Dropout - Essay Example A. Lack of motivation One of the primary reasons why there are many cases of college dropout is due to the lack of motivation. Nearly half of young adults drop out of college because classes seem to disinterest them. As a result, they find no motivation to study; this triggers young people to drop out of college since they find no need to be in class (Feldman & Newcomb 291). This may result from the youth spending time with friends who may not have any interest in school work or classes. The friendships of other students who do not like classes always lead to high chances of college dropout. Students may lack interest in school work since it may be demanding and they cannot be able to handle the pressure of academics. The lack of motivation may also result from the lack of inspiration to work hard in class (Miller 23). In most cases, this leads to discontent with schoolwork; consequently, such youths may drop out of school. Moreover, feeling unmotivated may result from the belief of the young adults that school is boring. As a result, the young person may refer to school as irrelevant and a place where they learn nothing. In addition, the graduation requirements of a school may lead to lack of motivation by the students.... Students may lack interest in school work since it may be demanding and they cannot be able to handle the pressure of academics. The lack of motivation may also result from the lack of inspiration to work hard in class (Miller 23). In most cases, this leads to discontent with schoolwork; consequently, such youths may drop out of school. Moreover, feeling unmotivated may result from the belief of the young adults that school is boring. As a result, the young person may refer to school as irrelevant and a place where they learn nothing. In addition, the graduation requirements of a school may lead to lack of motivation by the students. Therefore, students who fail to achieve the college requirements may be forced to quit since they cannot meet the required standards. B. Employment Another cause of high cases of college dropout includes securing employment while still in college. Students who get decent jobs while studying may prefer to quit college and concentrate on the job, which the y prefer more than education. In the initial stages, such students may combine schoolwork with the job they have. However, after sometimes, they realize that the job gives them more benefits than education (Miller 24). As a result, they find it being more preferable to work than to study. After they start working, they may not be able to leave their job since they need the money they earn from the job. In some instances, they may realize that working will enable them to have a better lifestyle than studying. Dropping out of school because of getting employed may result from poverty back at home. Most students who drop out of school to secure employment include those from poor backgrounds. Their parents may be struggling to get

The impact of Leadership Style on Employees Performance Research Proposal

The impact of Leadership Style on Employees Performance - Research Proposal Example The continuously evolving and turbulent business situations have made it necessary to steer an organization in the right direction to achieve higher performance. Although a number of factors influence the success and continuity of an organization, the role of leadership is found to be critical in this aspect. Leadership effectiveness is considered to be a key requirement in every organization for being successful in the present undertakings and also for ensuring continued success and competitiveness in the future (Manning & Curtis, 2003). Exceptional organizational performances are often mapped back to the presence of dynamic leadership within the company. Also, leadership effectiveness in enhancing organizational performances is often considered to be the result of skillfulness in a business. The quality of leadership in an organization is one of the most significant determinants of the level of performance of the organization (Lussier & Achua, 2004). Thus, the research topic seems to be highly relevant and contextual for study in the modern business world. It is important to understand the terms such as leadership, leadership style and performance to conduct the proposed research. Leadership in an organization is a component that is inclusive of a number of strategies that can be used in the organization. Goleman, Boyatzis, and Mckee (2001) stated that leadership behavior is found to play an influential role in enhancing motivation, job satisfaction, and work quality. On the other hand, the performances of the employees are the building blocks of an organization. These also form the foundation on which the overall performance of the organization rests. Performance is identified by Cunningham and McGregor (2000) to be a multidimensional aspect that is aimed to achieve goals and is significant for an organization in achieving its strategic objectives. Figure 1. Five levels of hierarchy of performance excellence. Adapted from â€Å"Trust and the

Law & Social Control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Law & Social Control - Essay Example Further in the article Marx (1981) outlines the theories connected with the role of authorities in establishing the deviance which he calls â€Å"ironies†. Marx (1981) describes situations in which social control generates rule-breaking behavior and divides them into escalation, nonenforcement and covert facilitation. In discussing these types of social control, Marx (1981) uses mainly examples from criminal justice to make his point. In escalation, authorities unintentionally trigger rule-breaking by taking enforcement actions. The best example to depict the escalation type of situation is police involvement in family conflict. Police interference in interpersonal conflicts seems to lead to further violence, acting as â€Å"a breeding ground† for aggressive and provocative response. In nonenforcement, authorities contribute to deviance in more indirect way than in escalation. Here institutions prefer not to take enforcement actions and by this they intentionally permit rule breaking. Marx (1981) says that nonenforcement is the most difficult to identify, because this strategy is illegal and authorities often try to hide it. An example is given by the informant system, which is a major source of nonenforcement, though it plays crucial role to many kinds of law enforcement. Called a form of institutionalized blackmail, the informant system helps informants to avoid prison, or to receive reduced sentences. However, the informant source assists the police in arresting criminals which will not be caught with other means. Covert facilitation represents taking deceptive enforcement actions through which authorities intentionally aid rule breaking. Marx (1981) calls this passive nonenforcement. Social control agents may infiltrate into certain structures and buy or sell illegal goods, victimize others or seek prostitutes in a tourist disguise. Covert facilitation

Baby-Boomer Parents And Their Gen Y Children Essay - 1

Baby-Boomer Parents And Their Gen Y Children - Essay Example This problem has not been fully addressed yet because some people are taking for granted how technology negatively affects their families. These generations must find ways to bridge this gap without necessarily contradicting their interests and preferences in life. Without resolving this gap, generation clashes can result in family conflicts and unhappiness. Gen Y children and Baby Boomer parents can use technology as a bridge that can strengthen family ties through using it to develop better learning and communication strategies. Gen Y children use technology to do multitasking, while Baby Boomer parents employ technology to supplement their activities, but most of the latter prefer doing things the traditional way, and this difference in how technology is used can lead to a strong communication gap between them. Gen Y children depend on technology to do several tasks at the same time, which makes them great multitaskers (Cekada, 2012, p.41), while Baby Boomers do not like doing many things altogether (Cekada, 2012, p.43). Baby Boomers clash with their children who prefer finishing tasks their way, while the former want them to do things the way they used to. Because of these differences in how they see their responsibilities, Gen Y children may overlook that their parents do tasks in a different way, thereby making them impatient in dealing with the latter. Gen Y people tend to expect â€Å"immediate responses,† while their parents may want to talk things through, or to demand their own responses in t heir own time and terms (Cekada, 2012, p.42). Instead of achieving clear communication, the result is miscommunication because of conflicting communication expectations. Because of these problems, Gen Y children should not expect their parents to speak and act the way they do and the same goes for the latter, and instead, they should set aside time doing family activities that they can both enjoy to strengthen their ties. If Baby Boomers see cellular phones for calling than data services, for instance, Gen Y children can help them use smartphones, where they can maximize their data services for their communication needs (Kumar & Lim, 2008, p.570).

Working Conditions in the 1900 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Working Conditions in the 1900 - Essay Example Following the high commercialized trade on slaves in European nations and America, the white settlers and colonialists had an ease in employing and commanding what they wanted in their workforce; and were highly discriminated. The situations were exceptionally harsh for the blacks. The reconstruction period in early 1900 undermined the working and living environments of the blacks. Black codes were used to proclaim the white supremacy. Treatment further exceeded to black’s right to exercise their voting right, intermarriages, unemployment in other vital sectors and being exposed to high levels of punishments (Murrin et al, 2011, pg, 465). Â  Despite such working conditions in early 1900, working conditions began to change and improve for the typical laborer organized mannerism. Trade unions were established and were used to increase workers count as well as to increase their wages (LaWarne, 1975, pg). The Congress also amended some clauses of the constitution in preference to changing the black codes that undermined the blacks (Murrin et al, 2011, pg 465). Â  It is expected by many workers that some conditions are effectuated to improve and provide a good and conducive environment. A managerial proper system is one of the major changes today being made. This is to ensure and strategize a proper working, organizational structure that prioritizes workforce conditions. Time should also be considered, and extra wages should be implicated in overtime hours. For senior workers, should also be allocated allowances to meet the unbecoming demands they meet while encountering their work.

Contract law course work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Contract law course work - Essay Example given in webster’s Third New International Dictionary, which can be applicable is â€Å"a public administrative agency or corporation having quasi-governmental powers and authorized to administer a revenue – producing public enterprise†. This dictionary meaning of the word â€Å"authority† is clearly wide enough to include all bodies created by statute on which powers are conferred to carry out governmental or quasi governmental functions. But Sec-6(3) is a bit ambiguous on this point. According to the text of the judgment in the House of Lords case ‘YL v Birmingham City Council [2007] UKHL 27’ â€Å" Section 6(3)(b) extends the definition of public authority to cover bodies which are not public authorities but certain of whose functions are of a public nature, and it is therefore likely to include bodies which are not amenable to judicial review. Section 6(1) of the Act said that â€Å"it [was] unlawful for a public authority to act in a way which [was] incompatible with †¦Ã¢â‚¬  any of these rights. The section did not contain any comprehensive definition of â€Å"public authority† but subsection (3)(b) said that a â€Å"public authority† included â€Å"any person certain of whose functions are functions of a public nature†. However subsection (5) said that: The effect of all this is that an act (or an omission) of a private person or company that is incompatible with a Convention right is not unlawful under the 1998 Act (it may, of course, be unlawful under ordinary domestic law) unless the person or company has at least some â€Å"functions of a public nature†; but even if that condition is satisfied the private person or company will not have any liability under the 1998 Act if the nature of the act complained of was private. The argument is based on the alleged similarity of the nature of the function carried on by a local authority in running its own care home and that of a private person running a privately owned care home proves too much. If every contracting

Californian Wine Clusters Essay Example for Free

Californian Wine Clusters Essay Identify the players in the Californian wine cluster, who are they? Main players are growers, vineyard owners, wineries and automated processing facilities. Moreover, there are many supporting players such as bottle, cork and barrel producers, CAGR, Research and Education Institutions which are addicted to improve wine production and services, Distribution Channels to business and direct customers, Bank for financing, Tourism Clusters for presenting, Government, wine magazines, restaurants and bars, food cluster, U.C Davis, producers of equipment which are used in production of wines and grapes. As types of those equipment, fertilizers, labeling machines, trucks, scissors, etc. can be listed. Government role is important, because taxation, production regulations, supports for exporting and production quotas all are in hand of government. What are the reasons behind the Californian wine cluster success? Two key factors in success of Californian wine cluster are price and taste. Those two are decision making factors for consumer. Firstly their price is cheap, because Californian wineries’ yield amount is high, tax amount for a bottle is low, production efficiency in the mean area is high, labor cost is low, there is no production quota by government and they are using automated systems for wine production which is more efficient. Those are the reasons that present low price opportunities. Taste comes with wisdom of years in production. Research facilities, wine production and gourmet schools, good quality grapes, fine barreling materials and supporting spices in wine make Californian wines’ taste better and better in years. As support elements, Californian Food and Tourism clusters are helping wine cluster as brothers and sisters. Food cluster has many different kind of best chefs and restaurants which serve very best of dishes with wines which mixture of taste calls for new customers. Tourism cluster brings new possible customers to food cluster and wine cluster. Wine tasting tours and winery tours are big chances for presenting Californian wines to the rest of the world. Beyond all of those, California is in one of the strongest countries and  government, trade unions, institutions, powerful people give support to wine clusters in presenting, producing and transporting. Other big competitors as Italy and France are stricken about regulations and taxation which bring Californian wine’s success. How is the situation regarding the wine industry in France, Italy, Australia, Chile? In competition, Italy, France, Australia and Chile are main actors against California, and old big players are France and Italy. In exporting, France takes the lead and Italy takes the second row. They are the closest ones to EU consumers which are main consumers and they are old player. Over passing decades, Australian and Californian wines have kept the quality up and caught France and Italy. As a result, especially French and also Italian wine price levels remained high besides of California and Australia. Also, French government put regulations for production amount and taxation. Australia is a very fast growing wine producer and their price level and quality is very fine. Besides, many farmlands turned into vineyards and consumption level is demanding day by day. Also government supports export and regulates wine sided. Furthermore, they are very close to Asia which is a growing business in wine sector. Chile has a lower consumption and production according to Australia and California, but their price level is low and taxation and regulations are helpful in terms of improving production and growing wine business. Their wines are carton packed and acidic, and also those give the opportunity of cheap wines. If you were the governor of California, what would you do about the wine cluster? Regarding wine clusters, firstly I probably offer some marketers to market premium products with better price, and create better brands. I would try to open gourmet, chef and wine expert schools, also more research institutions for not also wine production but also their materials and grape species. I push tourism sector to create especially wine tasting and winery visit tours. Moreover, placing wine and best brands into Californian advertisement  campaigns. Reason behind all of those, Californian wine needs presentation, awareness and marketing, moreover good labeling and better brand image in minds. So, to create all class of brands from premium down to simple versions, they need premium marketing advises and campaigns.

Safeguarding the Welfare of Children

Safeguarding the Welfare of Children A protection and safeguarding the welfare of children is defined as protection against bad behaviour, ensuring that would not affect the childs health or development, and also ensuring that children grow up in a safe environment and effective care. Child protection is to ensure and promote the welfare. It is also an alert mechanism for child neglect and abuse. Legislative framework is there to protect children. There are a lot of laws, guidelines, policies and procedures. All this is designed to ensure the childs welfare. So, let`s discuss the Basic Law. But first you need to know that the legislative framework has three sections. The first is a learning and development requirements. The second is an assessment. The third section is the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Here is a brief overview of framework. One of them is the Children Act 1989. This law was introduced to attempt to streamline the laws affecting children. They emphasized the priority importance of the principle. This means that the childs welfare is paramount when decisions made for his/her education. We are working to safeguard children in 2006 to confirm the exact commit the Agency and service work together in order to reduce the risk to threaten the well-being of the child. The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 is designed to work with vulnerable groups and in particular at what has been done. Statutory guidance documents are produced by each relevant government departments in order to explain the responsibilities that are different for illegal language. They serve to explain to anyone who works with children and to more accurately indicate their responsibility to protect children from abuse. Policies and procedures give annual review setting out the duties of an employee on child protection. It also provides training for everybody at work who relates to the setting. The obligation is to inform the Independent Safeguarding Authority about any human concerns with the settings and t hreatening for children. They give the order to work with the Local Safeguarding Board. It also provides a procedure including the assessment of the risks by ensuring that the policy is working in practice. The Criminal Records Bureau check all adults who have uncontrolled access to children under 18 years of age. This system checks all who want to work with children or an old people or persons who are otherwise classified as vulnerable. They can provide information about a person with a criminal history or who had to pay for a criminal conviction is ended. This information is gathered from several sources and compared CRP which has granted the applicant to disclose knowledge or information. The Independent Safeguard Authority presents contradictory vetting and barring scheme which requires anyone who works or volunteer with children and vulnerable adults to register with the ISA. The child exploitation and online protection centre is focused on combating the sexual exploitation of children and runs think u know internet security scheme. The NSPCC helps defeat of cruelty to children in different ways. They provide such assistance to children as child line services to families and children, tips for adults and professionals, carry out research and consultation services. So there are a lot of laws, guidelines, procedures and policies ensuring the welfare of a child. This is the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety regulations in 1999 which includes first aid, emergency procedure, injuries, accidents and illness and Control of Hazardous Substances. As well as data protection act 1998, disability discrimination ANCT disability in 1995 and 200 in 2004, raced Relations Amendment Act 2000, the Children Act 2004, working together to safeguard children. As you can see it is include all legislative frameworks and cooperate with the best welfare and protection of children. All settings must realize Early Years legislative framework f or child welfare, safety, and security and road Obstruction ensuring even not happened events that they are not going to happen. Child protection is more important. It ensures the safety of children, learning and development. However, our problems exist. There are four different forms of abuse. They are physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse and neglect. Physical abuse or injury is to engage the coincidence someone deliberately endangering the child. This can take different forms of injuries. Bruising occurs from being slapped, punched, shaken or squeezed. Cuts may occur from scratches, bite marks, a torn frenulum. Fractures such as skull and limb fractures can be a result from being thrown against hard objects. Burns or scalds range from cigarettes, irons, bath or kettle. Often a particular injury can be readily explained, but we have to disclose that if a child has bruises that show some pattern of an object such as dental records or iron stamp. Also look out for behavioural disturbances such as aggression. Another form of abuse is emotional abuse. This happens when a child consistently faces threaten ing ill-treatment from an adult. It can be verbal, mocking, ridiculing and insulting abuse of a child. It is difficult to establish common forms of abuse, but signs of emotional abuse include withdrawn behaviour, attention seeking, low self-esteem, stammering and stuttering, telling lies, tearfulness. Emotional neglect means that the children do not receive love and affection from adults. They are often left alone. Neglect occurs when an adult cannot give a child what he needs to develop physically. Often adults are leaving children unattended. Physical neglect signs are being underweight, unwashed clothes, poor skin tone, matted hair, being constantly tired, hungry and listless or lack of energy. Also often you can see the signs such as health problems and low self-esteem. Sexual abuse is when the adult uses children for sexual purposes. This can be anal intercourse or inclusion of watching pornography. This means that the child is encouraged to sexually intimate behaviour or oral sex, masturbation or the fondling of sexual parts. Sexual abuse may include signs such as bruises or scratches as non-accidental injury or physical injury, itching or pain in the genital area, wetting or get soiling themselves, low self-esteem and lack of confidence. There may also want to be treated like a baby or have poor sleep or eating patterns. A bullying usually includes deliberate hostility and aggression, a victim who is less powerfull than bully, an outcome which is always painful and distressing. Bullying can be physical, such as pushing, kicking, hitting, pinching or any other forms of violence. Verbal bullying can be such as name-calling, sarcasm, spreading rumours, threats. Emotional: excluding, tormenting, ridicule, humiliation. Racist: racial taunts, graffiti, gestures. Sexual preference: unwanted physical contact, abusive comments, homophobic abuse. Cyber: sending up messages, emails and cell phone messages. There is a case when children need urgent medical assistan ce. It includes bouts, scalding, burns, electric voltage, poisoning, fainting, concussion, bouts of bleeding, fractures, bouts of asthma, respiratory, diabetes. They should go to the doctor if the children have a high temperature more than 24 hours, a persistent cough, pain above the eyes, sore throat or ear pain. Joint disease signs and symptoms include facial colour change, temperature change, behavioural changes- calm, upset, complains about pain, coughing and sneezing, rash, lethargy, diarrhoea or nausea. Statutory requirements are to encourage the protection and welfare of all children. For this everybody are working with a lot of authority in order to achieve the best results for child welfare. Evaluate the safety of children in Early Years settings. So as I said there are many structures, which are doing its best for the childs welfare and security. It is important to share information with the right people. RIDDOR is reporting injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences regulations 1995. If an incident occurs at work that is serious enough to keep an employee off work for three or more days, employers will need to fill in the relevant paperwork and send the report to the health and safety executive. They may investigate serious incidents and give advice on how to improve practice if needed. Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work regulations 1999 provides instructions on how to use the equipment and identifies a function. They ensure that throughout the employee environment is safe and does not contain a risk to health or well-being of the staff and users. Data Protection Act 1998 implementation of an appropriate system for coll ection, storage and access to essential information about children and families when required by regulations. Protection of Children Act 1999 regulates who can work with children and under what conditions. All employees who have direct contact with children must have a Criminal Records Bureau disclosure enhances. The Human Rights Act 1998 includes illegal lever public powers violate the human rights covenants. The main line is equality for policies and practices. Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and 200 in 2004 disability Key Impact Is that all training opportunities are flexible and available with respect to each childs individual needs. Race Relations Amendment Act 2000 requirement is to monitor and record all racist incidents. The Children Act 1989 includes requirements for premises, quality of care and staff. This gives the individual child welfare. Communicate to the Children Act 2004 is to ensure the childs best Interests. RIDDOR is an institution. The authority concerned sh ould be notified of such cases as death, Major Injuries, Top Seven days Injuries, Dangerous Occurrences and occupation illnesses. Lets talk about a healthy balanced diet. In England the school trust fund has been formed to ensure schools adopt the 14 nutrition based standards and five food groups. The Eat well plate is prepared in accordance with government guidelines for healthy nutrition. It is based in five groups. This is the bread, rice, pasta and other starch foods. The second group include fruit and vegetables. The third group is milk and dairy products. The fourth group is meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein. And the fifth group consists of food and drinks high in fats or sugar. Seven Nutrients are protein, which grows body and is good for the brain, skin and blood. Another is the carbohydrates that provide energy. Fat provides energy and will store a body if eaten too much. Minerals build the bones and teeth, including calcium, iron and fluoride w hich are found in a large food. Next is water and it makes up two thirds of the body`s weight essential for children to drink. And last are vitamins. They help to maintain a healthy body. It is advisable to use the less sugar and salt and food additives in food as well as snacks. Nutrition is important in order to grow because we should get energy and heat the battle against infections, heal the body, make healthy function of brain, good assurance body functions and develop good eating manners to prevent bad digestion, concentration and alertness. There are religious or cultural beliefs that cannot eat certain foods. The Hindu group do not eat beef, and may be vegetarians. Muslims do not eat beef or pork products or seafood. Meat is being prepared by halal method. Christians may eat fish on Fridays. Jews may not eat pork or shell fish. Food is produced by the method of Kosher. There are also health needs that may affect how the products are prepared or which products can be eaten. V egetarians do not eat meat or meat products. Vegans do not eat animal products. Restrict celiac gluten is found in wheat barley, rye. Sensitive to allergies often cannot eat nuts and milk. Reactions to allergies can be such as vomiting, difficulty in breathing, swelling of lips and tongue, rash usually found on the chest back limbs, tightness in the throat or Itching, diarrhoea, wheezing, anaphylactic shock. Unhealthy diet threatens child obesity, failure to thrive, poor immune system, recurrent infections, nutritional anaemia, underfeeding. A higher risk of developing diabetes heart attacks, dental decay and osteoporosis. And unfortunately but common eating disorders found in children and young people. This is anorexia and bulimia nervosa. They have profound implications on the development of the child self-concept and self-esteem. There are requirements that should be followed in the environment to ensure the safeguarding and welfare of children. There are many physical conditions that are hazards to the health, safety and security. It includes lighting, temperature, rest facilities, ventilation, toilet facilities, etc. So practitioner has to make sure that he or she is aware of settings, health and safety and security procedures before starts work. Take account of individuals` needs, wishes, preferences, and choices, while ensuring your own roles and responsibilities in relation to health and safety. Seek additional support to resolve health and safety problems where necessary. Report issues to the appropriate people and minimise risk. Safeguarding agencies help is many different ways. There are lots of help for children and us. Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is the responsibility of the local authority, working in partnership with other public organisations, the voluntary sector, children and young people, parents and carers, and the wider community. A key objective for local authorities is to ensure that children are protected from harm. Other functions are housing, sport, culture and leisure services, and youth services. Health professionals and organisations have a role to play in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. The general principles are to aim to ensure that all affected children receive appropriate and timely preventative and therapeutic interventions, ensuring that all health professionals can recognise risk factors and contribute to reviews, enquiries and child protection plans, as well as planning support for children and providing on-going promotional and preventative support through proactive work. Professionals who work directly with children should ensure that safeguarding and promoting their welfare forms an integral part of all stages of the care they offer. The police recognise the fundamental importance of inter – agency w orking in combating child abuse. They involve social work colleagues. The police are committed to sharing information and intelligence with other organisations and should be notified as soon as possible where criminal offence has been or is suspected of being committed. Probation services supervise offenders with aim of reducing re – offending and protecting the public. Early years services such as children ` s centres, nurseries, child minders, pre-schools, playgroups and holiday and out- of- school schemes – all play an important part in the lives of large numbers of children. Everyone working in early year`s services should know how to recognise and respond to the possible abuse and neglect of a child. Let`s talk about the importance of personal hygiene. Children should be encouraged to wash their hands before meals and snack time. Children should be discouraged from eating off the floor. Using cutlery allows the child to learn table manners and will lessen the chan ce of the transfer of germs from the hands to the mouth. Teaching the correct principles of hygiene should begin at as early age as possible. It will help to prevent the spread of infections and diseases that can damage the digestive tract, respiratory tract and the external features of the body. Children will follow the example from the adults so they should lead by example. Maintaining correct hygiene will allow the child to be independent and will lessen the likelihood of bullying if they are kept clean and tidy and do not suffer from associated complaints. There are some good methods to reward positive behaviour such as providing reward charts or stickers, giving the child extra responsibility, acknowledging the repeat behaviour, praising the behaviour and providing undivided attention to the child.

Pop :: Essays Papers

Pop It is 6:59 in the morning on a nice fall day. The sun is out; the leaves have already begun falling and the temperature is in the mid 50s. It is Saturday and the weekend is already looking bright. A minute later there is an alarm clock blast and Richard quickly turns it off. His room is always cold but for some reason that’s the way he likes to sleep. It could be the middle of winter and he will have the fan on. He sits on the edge of his bed, puts his glasses on and stays there for a few minutes—patiently waiting for the cobwebs to leave his tired, aching head. Finally he gets up and gets dressed, putting on a pair of clean, faded jeans, a T-shirt and a zippered hooded sweater. Richard then proceeds to go downstairs to the kitchen, where his wife of 47 years, Vera, already has pot of coffee brewing. The strong, rich aroma has quickly enveloped the room. â€Å"Dick, did you sleep well last night?† Vera asks. As Richard reaches for the medicine cabinet, he re plies, â€Å"No, all night long my allergies felt like a locomotive was running through my head.† Richard starts swallowing some pills, some for his allergies and some for his diabetes, slightly throwing his head back with each pill as if to insure it would go down quickly. Richard talks to Vera for a few more minutes, small talk, nothing much. He is a man of few words. He walks outside to feed his horses. The air is crisp and as he strolls he can hear the crunching of leaves beneath his feet. In the barn, the sun is shining through the cracks in the roof. This makes him feel good and alive, knowing it is a great day to view the country on horseback. Richard comes back in the house, sits down at the kitchen counter and starts watching the news. â€Å"Hey Dick, do you want to wake Michael and ask him if he wants to go with us to Darrell’s for breakfast?† â€Å"Yeah, I’ll just finish my cup of coffee.† It is now close to 8 o’clock and Richard goes and wakes Michael and asks him. Michael replies, â€Å"No, Pop, I’m tired and I have a football game later.† As Michael is saying this, he reaches over to make sure his alarm clock is off, and as he does, his sleeve comes up on his arm, clearly showing a tattoo.

Essay --

Not surprising that The Magic Flute has been staged by contemporary innovative directors- it’s craziness makes it ideal for being a director’s medium. Modern opera criticized for being boring or whatever, but here are three directors who, although they faced criticism themselves, approached opera with fresh perspective and with a desire to change what they felt where stiff conventions that no longer Richard Wagner was supremely interested in the music of other composers, both that of his contemporaries and those who had influenced the operatic stage before him. As an opera composer and librettist himself, he listened to the offerings of other composers carefully, forming his opinions with even more caution. In his anaylsis of Mozart’s work, Wagner credited the composer with â€Å"creating true German opera† Modern music critics continue to scratch their heads when considering Wagner’s gushing remarks on Mozart. In a review posted to the Flos Carmeli Arts Blog on February 26, 2010, Steven Riddle describes Mozart as a German composer who writes music that is â€Å"flexible, nimble, light and lovely†, while Wagner’s is â€Å"like a beautiful bludgeon- slow and ponderous†. While they possess little similarities in style as composers, it was not simply Mozart’s music that enamored Wagner. The Magic Flute inspired Wagner with its characters and their keen development, as well as Mozart’s clear voice as an interpreter of the drama within the music. He praised Mozart for his ability to create a genre that was unlike any previously seen in the German Opera. The Magic Flute was an opera that lived between Opera Seria and Opera buffa (both common in German opera at the time), but also contained many musical styles of the ornate Italian opera. ... ...e gaps caused by heavy editing to the libretto. He gave voice only to the most important characters, Pamina and Tamino, Papageno and Papagena, the Queen of the Night, Sarastro and Monostatos. Particularly bold was his cutting of the Three Ladies and the Three Spirit Children, who he deemed merely mechanisms of exposition and magic. What Brook yearned to create where characters who were true individuals as opposed to singers in a pageant of the superfluous. His work with the Queen of The Night particularly reached this goal. While she is clearly the villainess of Flute, Mozart’s music gives her a complexity that Brook highlighted. Her revenge aria, in which she mourns the loss of he daughter to Sarastro, is mostly known for it’s treacherous colatura. In Brook’s Flute, the aria began softly and tenderly, reaveling the bevered mother underneath the evil Queen.

Essay --

Simon Bolivar is one of the most powerful and influential figures in the history of Latin America, a hero who led the movement for independence for several Latin American nations, a military and political leader with his own personal story full of tragic and dramatic moments. During his lifetime he helped to liberate people of Venezuela, Colombia, Perà º, Ecuador and Bolivia from Spanish domination, played a big role in foundation of Gran Colombia and setting the principles of democracy. Even though Bolivar was not very well-known around the world, he was always held in respect among people in Latin America and remembered as a man who had an authority and power. Bolivar’s integrity, high moral standards, and perseverance in the face of overwhelming odds made him a role model to many people. Simon Bolivar is a brave character whose leadership and risks turn against him when he least expects it. Bolà ­var's dream had always been to cause an American Revolution-style federation among all the newly independent republics in Latin America, where with a new government set up solely to recognize and support the rights of the individual. Gabriel Garcia Marquez in his book â€Å"The General in His Labyrinth† changes or â€Å"twists† a little the representation of the Latin American hero. First of all, Marquez never really references Simon Bolivar by his name, but only as â€Å"The Liberator†. His idea behind the book was to change the traditional heroic portrayal of Simon Bolivar and show an old man who is suffering through his illness and mental exhaustion. This dark brooding story covers the last 7 month of Simon Bolivar’s life. South American Liberator has spent many years in opposition to Spanish presence, he swept the Spaniards from their former colonie... ...the nations, commits actions that he regrets about later in his life. His whole life he is haunted by the guilt of ordering summary executions of former comrades, his fall from power, and the depression of perceived failure. And in the final and most significant scene of the story, just before he dies, Bolivar finally sees the truth: â€Å"The headlong race between his misfortunes and his dreams was at that moment reaching the finish line. The rest was darkness.† It’s a book that lends itself to a lot of contemplation – about history and the men who make it and what happens to every man when their glory is past. This story about Bolivar is about one way in which such men live the last days – things which are not easily recorded in history since we like to remember our heroes unblemished and perfect. This story is about when each one of us becomes human and all too mortal.

Procrastination: Anger and Unrealistic High Expectations

Procrastination Part 2: The T-method: * Benefits of overcoming procrastination * Peace of mind * Feeling and strength and purpose * Healthy feeling of being in charge * 4 reasons of procrastination * Difficult * Task is too hard * Tend to avoid difficult things * Time consuming * No time available * Lack of knowledge/skill * Don’t want to make mistakes * Will wait until they have learned how, then will start task * Fears * Everyone knows you screwed up * 4 complex reasons * Perfectionism * Unrealistic high expectations Must go right completely * Long on criticism, short on praise * High dissatisfaction and frustration * Should, must, out to , have to * Resolve by reassurance and praise what you have done * Anger and hostility * Angry with professor so you put off the work * Resolve by seeing how actions will look in long run * Low frustration tolerance * Situation un-fair * Whining, complaining * Put off till you feel better about doing the work * Resolve by getting help, and learn to postpone desires * Self-downing Minimize ability to succeed * Hard to accept praise * Seek to be less successful * Resolve by practicing accepting compliments, find out why you feel uncomfortable with success Questions: 1. What are the 4 complex reasons for procrastination? 2. How can you resolve self-downing? 3. Unrealistic high expectation is an example of what reason to procrastinate? Questions: 4. What are the 4 complex reasons for procrastination? 5. How can you resolve self-downing? 6. Unrealistic high expectation is an example of what reason to procrastinate? Summary:When you overcome procrastination you have peace of mind, feeling of strength and a feeling of being in charge with of your life. There are 8 reasons of procrastination and they are its difficult, time consuming, lack of knowledge, fears, perfectionism, anger, low frustration tolerance, and self-downing. Summary: When you overcome procrastination you have peace of mind, feeling of strength and a feeling of being in charge with of your life. There are 8 reasons of procrastination and they are its difficult, time consuming, lack of knowledge, fears, perfectionism, anger, low frustration tolerance, and self-downing.

Irish Culture

Struggles between different national, cultural, and religious identities became known as â€Å"trouble times† in Northern Ireland. The fighting began as far back as 1921, and did not reach an agreement, called the Good Friday Agreement until May 22, 1998. The Protestant’s considers them self British and supports the United Kingdom, or Unionist. While the Catholics, which are in the minority only by 44%, considers thierself to be Irish. The Catholics want a united Ireland and most are nationalist. â€Å"The latest version of â€Å"the troubles† in Northern Ireland was sparked in late 1968, when a civil rights movement was launched mostly by Catholics, who had long faced discrimination in areas such as electoral rights, housing, and employment. This civil rights movement was met with violence by extreme unionists and the police, which in turn prompted armed action by nationalists and republicans. Increasing chaos and escalating violence led the UK government to deploy the British Army on the streets of Northern Ireland in 1969 and to impose direct rule from London in 1972. † (Archick, 2013) Trying to come to a resolution in Northern Ireland the government signed the peace treaty known as the Good Friday Agreement, it transfer the power from London to Belfast where the two parties, Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive Committee, or the Nationalist and Unionist would share power. Reference Archick, K. (2013). Northern Ireland: The peace process. Retrieved from http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RS21333.pdf BBC News. Northern Ireland: The peace process. Retrieved from BBC News. (2006, January 27). Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4072261.stm Irish Culture Struggles between different national, cultural, and religious identities became known as â€Å"trouble times† in Northern Ireland. The fighting began as far back as 1921, and did not reach an agreement, called the Good Friday Agreement until May 22, 1998. The Protestant’s considers them self British and supports the United Kingdom, or Unionist. While the Catholics, which are in the minority only by 44%, considers thierself to be Irish. The Catholics want a united Ireland and most are nationalist. â€Å"The latest version of â€Å"the troubles† in Northern Ireland was sparked in late 1968, when a civil rights movement was launched mostly by Catholics, who had long faced discrimination in areas such as electoral rights, housing, and employment. This civil rights movement was met with violence by extreme unionists and the police, which in turn prompted armed action by nationalists and republicans. Increasing chaos and escalating violence led the UK government to deploy the British Army on the streets of Northern Ireland in 1969 and to impose direct rule from London in 1972. † (Archick, 2013) Trying to come to a resolution in Northern Ireland the government signed the peace treaty known as the Good Friday Agreement, it transfer the power from London to Belfast where the two parties, Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive Committee, or the Nationalist and Unionist would share power. Reference Archick, K. (2013). Northern Ireland: The peace process. Retrieved from http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RS21333.pdf BBC News. Northern Ireland: The peace process. Retrieved from BBC News. (2006, January 27). Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4072261.stm

Rhetorical Analysisi of a Technology

The internet has become the new recreational area of the present and upcoming generations. Discourse communities have evolved greatly over time allowing users to redesign computer mediated communication. Each discourse community is made possible by the use of unique commonplaces where shared values and goals are identified. Active. com facilitates communication among athletes in our nation. Their community emphasizes competition, healthy nutrition and training. Through the use of this discourse community, athletes can take part of a team outside the local environment.In 1998, the Active Network began as an online registration site for tournaments. The company mission is â€Å"to enhance the life of individuals worldwide through technology and marketing solutions that enable and encourage participation† (Dave Alberga). The network now process more than one million transactions of events each year (â€Å"Hystory†). Registration, sales, and donations are processed online w hich allows for paperless transactions, making for a more cost effective and environmentally friendly option.According to journalist S. Marks comment on this discourse community, â€Å"It's among the Web's best tickets to sports and fitness event registration, fitness advice, and more†. In the case of a charity event and fundraisers, members habitually make a decision to participate for the sole cause of serving. This allows members to support a certain event of interest in which they might not be physically participating in, but might offer their support through donations and promotional support through online networking. Members of Active. om may take advantage of numerous tools offered to assist in enhancing athletic performance and improving overall health and fitness. Diet plans are customized for specific fitness and performance goals. There are also various fitness calculators included, ranging from those that calculate Body Mass Index (BMI) to pace rate and maximum he art rate. More in dept nutritional and training support is available through customized programs tailored to an individual’s current status and goals. However, these supplemental services are not free of charge.Training advice, tips and moral support is provided without a fee among the discourse community. The operators of the website provide members with daily advice which may be linked on other discourse community feeds such as Facebook or Twitter. Newsletters are also available via e-mail providing updated information on training trends, athletic event, nutritional and injury prevention tips. There is also advice for other outdoor activities such as camping and fishing which further encourages physical activity and well being.The shared goals of the discourse community: competition, healthy nutrition, and training ultimately form the foundation for overall wellness achieved through physical activity. Online training logs are ideal for logging and tracking fitness and athle tic performance when working towards a goal or seeking overall improvement. The website is fashioned in such manner as to persuade the community to take part in sports and to seek further resources available through subscriptions for sale which are upgraded versions of the free tools offered.Provided that a member desires to have unlimited access to the vast benefits offered by Active. com, it can be acquired at the monthly rate of $9. 99/plus tax. The site is a strong athletic community which uses related advertising as a means to promote the discourse community shared goals and values. The services for sale may be of benefit to novices or athletes who have hit plateau and are seeking expert guidance for reaching their goals, otherwise the free services should suffice member’s needs. The online community unites professional athletes, beginners and fans from different parts of the nation.Users can create their own blogs which provides fans with the ability to keep track of pr ofessionals’ athletes within the community. Others that aspire to become professionals can be discovered by trainers in the same manner. The discourse community endows its members with valuable insight, including updated information, tips, and testimonials by expert coaches, trainers and professional athletes within a specific sport of interest. Members of the community value physical fitness, many of them inspiring to reach and maintain a certain level wellness.Therefore, advice from experienced athletes within the same field of interest is particularly valued within the community. Information shared among members is comprised of tournament instructions, fundraisers and charity events. When users begin a blog page, they often describe and elaborate on their personal experiences, achievements and obstacles encountered during their passionate involvement in a particular sport or activity. Language plays a crucial role in communicating among members when considering the diversi ty in sports lingo and terminology. The lingo used by the members of the discourse community might encourage individuals hat are familiar with the terminology to join and interact with other likeminded individuals. On the other hand, those who are unfamiliar with the sports lingo may be a bit hesitant in joining the discourse community. BMI, fartlek and ratio numeration used to denote training intervals are examples of sports lingo found in this discourse community. However, Active. com does offer various glossaries, articles and newsletters which allow for familiarization of specified terminology. Beginner and â€Å"newbie† selections are available for those just getting started within a particular sport.Members of the discourse community are encouraged to use sports lingo while active members of the site, this facilitates transition from novice to intermediate and so forth. People of the discourse community may browse for a team to join, a sports camp or retreat to register for or simply network with people nationwide with similar athletic interests. Millions of members visit Active. com each year to learn improvement techniques of the sport practiced and explore the website as this offers infinite number of activities available for members (â€Å"Our Communities Connect People with Things they Love to Do†).The benefits of the discourse community includes a facilitated activity calendar for athletic events where athletes are able to record times of previous competitions making their performance trends available for viewing by other community members. Members involved in this discourse community have the ability to create an online identity by creating a profile. Users are allowed to describe their interest on their profiles and write their plans which are referred to as their â€Å"status†. Blogs created by each member have the potential to inspire and motivate the rest of the community to reach and achieve their fitness/athletic goals.T he discourse community shapes the identity of users by allowing them to identify with the context of the web page at the same time the users fit into place in blogs and tournaments of their level of training. By uploading video format and pictures, members may generate a dynamic space allowing communication through a more visual means. Members of the community typically upload pictures of themselves, as well as, pictures of previous competitions in which they participated in. Occasionally, some people will upload pictures of their children participating in sports.The site is welcoming to people of all body types, genders and racial/ethnic groups. Profile pictures of members as posted vary from the very athletic physique to the not so athletic. Fans are capable of following blogs by bookmarking members or creating online friends. The friendship created among users often resembles that of a coworker which post and answer each other’s blogs. If a member is interested on having a closer friendship, private messages can be sent to arrange for chatting or other activities.The users are allowed a display name or real name along with a picture or an avatar character representation. A URL web address is provided which can be accessed by members and nonmembers of the community. The language of the discourse community is to be understood among its like minded members of the community. Common places regarding to the role of each member in the community plays are described on the website. Each member is assigned a level according to points accumulated, mimicking recognition given to professional athletes by assigned nicknames coined by fans and coaches.The lowest level is called â€Å"rookie† with zero starts, and the highest level is called â€Å"we’re not worthy† which has five starts. The starts and points are awarded by initiating posting and by replying helpful answers. The points can be interchanged by prizes to include free training subsc ription from the site. The website operates under appropriate vocabulary etiquette. Comments, posts, and blogs that do not attach to the agreed etiquette behaviors are erased by the operators of the website. The primary commonplace of the discourse community is the logo of the website followed by the common place of each particular group.Due to the wide variety of sports that the website offers, the names of the sports are displayed as a list to avoid confusion among disciplines. The main page of the website displays several pictures and related links to associated articles while the member’s and groups profiles have a plain white background with one or two pictures. People’s reasons for participating in an online community may vary from person to person. Some reasons may include convenience, a broader community network which includes participants of all levels and practicality of services and tools offered online.People functioning under unusual agendas might benefit from the online space as they have the conveniences of simply logging in from any available computer with internet connectivity. This kind of convenience allows for staying current with blog friends, as well as keeping up to par with current community news and online feeds (Uwe Matzat). Members who belong to an athletic team may communicate, plan and schedule an event through this network of communication. This kind of discourse community may also be the perfect motivational tool for a novice of prospective athlete.People of all walks of life may find inspiration and support from this community since it is comprised of a diverse target population. The social status of the target audience is primarily middle class to upper class and the age targeted might vary according to articles, blogs, and groups that member belong to. For example, a mother of a family might find joy reading articles related to getting her children more involved in outdoor activities that involve the whole family , such as camping. In the same manner a teenage boy may find it more appealing to participate in group events such as marathon running.Residential and non-residential training camps are available for children and adult alike. A residential training camp consists of lodging for training session lasting more than one day, whereas non-residential involves a one day session. This unique social form of networking allows for athletes of all levels to come together in sharing advice, anecdotes and experiences related to a common athletic interest. The website ideology shapes people to be better athletes and eat healthy as the affinity group ideology is based on competition, healthy nutrition and training. Enthusiastic and inspirational individuals are found within the numerous communities which promote and support physical activity and wellness through participation in the various existent sports.Works CitedDave Alberga. â€Å"About Active Network†. 2008. Active Network. Accessed Oc tober 15, 2010 from http://mediakit. activenetwork. com/About_Active_Network. htm â€Å"History†. 2010. Active Network. Accessed October 15, 2010 from http://www. activenetwork. com/about/corporate-overview/history. htm Susan J Marks. â€Å"Clicks and misses†. 2002.Bloomer Business Week. Accessed October 16, 2010 from http://www. businessweek. com/technology/content/apr2002/tc20020419_3319. htm â€Å"Our Communities Connect People with Things they Love to Do†. 2010. Active Network. Accessed October 15, 2010 from http://www. activenetwork. com/online-communities. htm Uwe Matzat. â€Å"Reducing problems of sociability in online communities: Integrating online communication with offline interaction†. 2010. American Behavioral Scientist. Accessed October 16, 2010 from http://www. umatzat. net/matzat_ABS. pdf

Women’s Emancipation in the 21st Century

Name: Lola Purba SCN: 1223420 Subject: Writing Teacher: Ms. Jane Persad Women’s Emancipation in The 21th Century â€Å"†¦When you educate a man you educate an individual, when you educate a woman you educate a whole family†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Johnetta B, Cole wisely stated. Cole’s quotation draws an analogy that it is more important to educate women, because educating women means educating the members of family. For this purpose, women deserve education as men; likewise, women want to be treated equally as men. Thus, women’s emancipation has gained the same rights and opportunities as men to get the equal chances in life.The 21th century emphasis on women’s emancipation has caused an increase in women’s education, independency and workforce integration. Women’s liberation has brought them to obtain equality in education. The equal opportunity in education means that women have the same prospects as men to extend education up to high degree. M ark J. Perry (2010), professor of economics and finance in the Flint Campus of the University of Michigan, writes that women earned more doctoral degrees than men, 50. 4 % to 49. 9 % respectively.In other words, he explains that the number of women who reached doctoral degrees is fairly higher than men; however, it shows that women have a future prospect of high degrees education. This means that, the chance for women is not only having education but also obtaining high level education is widely open. Thus, women’s equality has broadened their opportunities to get better education. To be free from old social limitations and customs also allows women to attain independency. Women’s independency indicates that they have their own rights to choose what the best for their lives.Independency can be implemented by permitting women to take part in every chance in society. An example of independent woman in Indonesia was Raden Ajeng Kartini, the Javanese aristocrat, who was bo rn in 1879, in a small town on the northern coast of Central Java (one of the Indonesian provinces). She was the pioneer of women’s equality in Indonesia. She fought for women’s independency and symbolized the struggle against Dutch colonial arrogance. She protested against the conventional thoughts, which women were more likely staying at home and raising children.Later on, she provided schooling for women in Java because she wanted all the women could require education, and become independent, even though women were not allowed to be self-determining. As a result, her movement has enlightened womanhood in Indonesia to be independent. Her ideas and her actions have been a source of inspiration for the emancipation movement in Indonesia. Wide opportunity of education for women has made broad opportunity to implement the knowledge in the workplace. Women also have rights to be equal and actively involved in the workplace.For instance, in the recent days, they are truste d to have some important positions, such as presidents, parliament members, lawyers, or other jobs which are commonly dominated by men. Moreover, many organizations are seeking top-management positions, such as senior executive and decision-making roles to be taken by brilliant women. Hence, what are the benefits having more women in top-management positions? Initially, integration between work and family lead them to have good management. Secondly, the empathetic and ability-to-listen characters direct them in managing teams, mentoring and developing trust among the members.Thus, these abilities have led women to incorporate their knowledge in the place they work. To conclude, achieving education, being independent, and integrating their knowledge in workplace are the clear proofs of women’s equality in 21st century. Emancipation era has allowed women to be well-educated, independent and well-cooperated people. In the future, there will be more women’s domination enga ged in every chance in society. Isn’t it amazing to have more ‘super women’ with their brilliant ideas to make the world situation better?

Marketing Management of BMW Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Marketing Management of BMW - Coursework Example This research is being carried out to evaluate and present marketing concepts and customer segmentation at BMW in Munich. At the next level, the use of appropriately customized techniques of customer segmentation has helped the organization to keep its customers loyal, a rather difficult target if taking into consideration the level of competition in a global automotive industry. Keeping organizational sales high is considered as a key priority for marketers worldwide. However, often, the responses of the public to the marketing techniques used by organizations are not the expected ones. Usually, the reason is the fact that these techniques are not aligned with the customers’ needs. It is proved that existing marketing strategies of BMW are similar to those used by most firms in the automotive industry; still, BMW has managed to create a unique brand image which, combined with marketing techniques for securing customer loyalty, has offered to the organization a significant adv antage towards its competitors. Meeting the customers’ needs is a key role of marketing. These needs are also described through the terms wants and demands. These three terms have the similar role: to show the willingness of customers to acquire a product/ service. According to Stokes and Lomax the role of the three terms can be made clear through the following explanation: ‘in case that sufficient people want a product/ service then marketing has to match this demand with the supply of a product that meets this need’. This means that in the context of marketing the terms customers’ needs, wants and demands have the similar meaning; simply, each one of them reflects a different aspect of customers’ desire to acquire a product/ service. On the other hand, Doyle and Stern make the following distinguish in regard to the above terms: a need is something that it is absolutely necessary for covering basic human needs; food is such need. When the desire of a customer is made specific, then the term ‘want’ should be rather used. Asking for ‘a burger of a particular fast food brand is a want’