Empress Wu’s rise to power is interesting

There is A Confucian dogma that pushes women ruling as â€Å"unnatural† (Empress Wu Zetian, 2008).   However, in China there lived one woman who rose to power. Wu Hou, also called Empress Wu Zetian, ruled China during the Tang dynasty, the only female to do so (2008). While some depict Empress Wu’s regime as autocracy, it could not be denied that she ruled China effectively, preserving the country’s diplomatic relationships with other nations (Hucker, 1975, p.143). Empress Wu’s rise to power is interesting. The Tang dynasty is described as a time when women experienced some freedom, at a time when women were not limited to being subservient (Empress Wu Zetian, 2008). It was a period where women became part of cultural and political endeavors (2008).   Wu came from a noble family and thus was taught music, how to write and read Chinese classics (2008).   Her father was one of Emperor Kao- tsu’s supporters while her mother descended from the Sui royal family (Safra, 2002, p.90). When she was 13 years old, she was sent to Emperor Tai Tsung’s court to be a servant (2008). Soon, Wu became Emperor Tai Tsung’s favorite concubine. When the emperor died, Wu was removed from the palace, as customary (Hucker, 1975,b p.142). The emperor’s son, Kau-Tsung became the emperor at age 21 (2002). However, the new emperor, as fate would have it, was also enamored with Wu, giving him sons (Empress Wu Zetian, 2008). Wu soon became the emperor’s favorite concubine and soon was hungry for power. Rumors have it that that Wu killed her own child and blamed Empress Wang (Kau- Tsung’s wife) of the crime (Walsh, 2003).   Kau-Tsung believed Wu and married her, making her the new empress (2008). Five years into their marriage, the emperor was struck with stroke and soon gave power to Empress Wu. When Emperor Kau-Tsung died, Empress Wu used her power to renounce the new emperors, her sons and by 690, Empress Wu was crowned as the Emperor of China (Walsh, 2003). She ruled China until 705 (Hucker, 1975, p.142). Empress Wu soon began her campaign to uplift the women in a relatively men-dominated environment. She ordered scholars to write biographies of prominent women (Empress Wu Zetian, 2008). She also saw to it that her mother’s clan was given high positions in the political arena (2008). The new empress favored religion and symbolism. Rituals were changed during her reign (Safra, 2002, p.90).   Names of officials were even altered, and the emperor or empress, in her case, was dubbed with the new title â€Å"Heavenly Emperor† (p.90).   Empress Wu manipulated the government to follow her, employing informers and agents (p. 90). She made Buddhism as the preferred state religion (Empress Wu Zetian, 2008). Empress Wu was able to engineer the Buddhist scripture into building a Ming T’ang or â€Å"Hall of Light†, a shrine to Heaven as depicted in the Classics (p. 90). She was even able to convince every prefecture to create a temple which alludes to Wu being an incarnation of Buddha (p.90). The empress’ given surname ‘Wu’ was also exploited. Everyone who had the same surname as the empress was exempted from paying taxes (p.90). In 690, Empress Wu changed the dynasty from T’ang to Chou (Safra, 2002,p. 90). She had become China’s female ruler. During Empress Wu’s reign, China was in the midst of foreign battles.   Despite being depicted as a dictator, Empress Wu was instrumental in China’s diplomatic relationships. Together with Kao-Tsung, Wu mediated in the Korean Civil War (Hucker, 1975,p.143). At that time, Koreans were able to dominate in the Korean state of Silla, they acknowledged Wu’s reign (p.143). When Empress Wu was 80 years old, her power had started to diminish. She was finally abdicated and the T’ang dynasty was restored (Safra, 2002,p. 91). Empress Wu is truly an interesting leader. For one, she is female. At a time when males where dominating the political arena, she rose to power. It is remarkable especially since Asian culture tends to be patriarchal and for a female to rule and succeed, that is exceptional. True, Empress Wu’s reign was plagued with intrigues and scandals.   She was a dictator, a usurper and while this is not new to some leaders, it is still rather surprising to find a woman who is such. That is not to say that only men can be dictators. Women can also be dictators but sometimes they simply do it subtly. Empress Wu was shrewd and she let the world knew it.   It is even shocking to discover that she may have murdered her own child just to fulfil her desire to become empress. Although this was never confirmed, the thought of parent harming his/her child is disturbing. It is something that people read in newspapers or see in the television now but to think that it happened way before it has become a norm, to say the least, it truly startling. Stories of leaders conning people to get what they want is normal, albeit wrong. This just goes to show that even during those times; power and greed were already present and destroying individuals. On a positive note, Empress Wu was one who paved the way for women empowerment. She used her position to uplift the status of women in her country.   It is interesting to know during a time when women were thought to be subservient; there rose a woman who wanted to change the norm. Leaders, regardless of gender, can learn something from Empress Wu- good traits and bad ones. References Empress Wu Zetian (2008). Retrieved 17 February 2008 Hucker, C. (1975). China’s Imperial Past. An Introduction to Chinese History And Culture. California: Stanford University Press. Safra, J. (Ed.). (2002). China. The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol.16, pp.90-91. Walsh, J. (2002). The Empress Wu Hou- China’s Only Female Ruler, Retrieved 17 February 2008, from http://www.suite101.com   

How do religious believers respond to challenges posed to them by scientists? Essay

Challenges to religious belief started around the time of the renaissance, before this the Church had almost complete control over people’s views, although criticisms were present. Since the only literate people were generally monks or priests for a considerable amount of time, challenges to religion were dismissed. However gradually times changed and with them so did attitudes. Although there were other arguments of a more philosophical and theological nature beforehand Galileo’s idea of heliocentricity was one of the first arguments to challenge religion in a way it had never been challenged before; scientifically. The idea that our world was the centre of the universe that is to say the geocentric view had been held since the time of Aristotle. This idea implies that the world is not the most important thing, just another component in the vast universe; this was the beginning of science opposing religious ideas. Presently there are many challenges to the existence of a creator specifically the Judeo Christian God who is responsible for the account of the creation of the world in Genesis. One of the major arguments against Genesis is Darwin’s theory of evolution. It says that contrary to the story of Genesis, humans evolved from apes and were not made, as we are now, on the 6th day of creation. Christians react very differently to this theory. Some choose to ignore it completely arguing that science can make mistakes and evolution is still only a theory. They might say that if God is all powerful, nothing is impossible and we cannot see the bigger picture. Other Christians present theories such as irreducible complexity and intelligent design; these are usually more liberal Christians. Some might say that the two ideas can be united saying that one asks how while the other, religion, asks why. On the matter of Creation itself there are many controversies. A young earth creationist would believe that the account of Genesis is completely true and that the earth is between 6000 to 10,000 years old. They would dismiss any scientific ideas perhaps saying that they can’t disprove God or maybe choosing to remain ignorant of scientific theories. If a scientist challenged this view using fossils as evidence, a young earth creationist may argue that God had put them there deliberately to test our faith. Some Christians and religious believers would say that we are not supposed to know everything because we wouldn’t understand and its part of God’s plan, they might say that if God had intended us to know then he would have included it in the Bible or the Holy Scripture belonging to the believer. Religious believers that belong to Islam methodically reject Darwin’s theory of evolution and often refuse to discuss it. However Koran has a similar creation story to the Bible and therefore the same problem of days. Many Muslims claim this is figurative and that days is supposed to mean period of time and therefore wriggle out of one of the challenges to their belief. Earlier while talking about evolution intelligent design and irreducible complexity were mentioned. These are popular responses by more liberal Christians to problems created by science. Intelligent design is a modern extension of the teleological argument; it argues that processes such as evolution are best explained by an intelligent cause and not just a random occurrence of mutations. It is therefore quite a popular compromise for Christians, it doesn’t contradict science and seems to unite the two; science is true but God made it happen. Irreducible complexity is an idea by Michael Behe, an American biochemist. He says that certain organisms are irreducibly complex that is to say that if you follow the evolutionary chain back far enough, you come to a point where it cannot be broken down anymore, the whole thing, however simple, has to exist simultaneously. Behe uses the example of a mousetrap saying that without any one part it could not function. Behe is widely criticised and slated by scientist because he is filling gaps in scientific theory with God using little or no concrete evidence, some say he has created a â€Å"God of the gaps.† Some more liberal Christians often present the Yom argument in the discussion of creation. The word day is used in Genesis but it was translated from the Hebrew word â€Å"Yom† which means any period of time from 24 hours to an indefinite span of time. Science clearly says that the entire universe was not made in an earthly week, using Yom as a period of time means that Genesis no longer has to say that the universe was made in a week, more just 6 stages. This can end the conflict of timescale to a certain extent.

Social anxiety Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Social anxiety - Research Paper Example With all the interaction and communication skills, still they find problems while interacting with the society because of the lack of confidence and they cannot deliver in time. Social anxiety also gives very negative effects to a person in regards to the interpersonal skills because when an individual will not meet the people and society, the inter personal and communication skills will not be nurtured and it will in turn augment the problems that are playing a key role in the social phobia of the individual. People going through the phobia of social anxiety always think that they are being judged by other people in the negative way and this is the main cause of the depletion of the self confidence from their personality (Crozier and Lynn, 185). Social anxiousness does not go away except proper diagnosis and tot cause identification of the problems and this is to be done at the first priority. As long as the diagnosis will not be done effectively, the person going through this phobi a will never be able to get rid of the social anxiety because this is a kind of problem that is increase in a very expositive way. Social anxiety is faced by the victims in almost all the day to day activities. When they go out to buy something, they will not be able to interact with the shopkeeper because they will think that other people around them are being judgmental about them. While making a phone call, in college, workplace and markets they feel themselves short of the self confidence to talk and interact with the fellow human beings. No matter how hard they try to get rid of the social anxiety, they always find them facing the same problem. The main reason behind this phenomenon is the lack of awareness about the social anxiety. There was a time when people did not take it as a proper isease and problem and overlook it by saying it a normal habit that can be taken off by normal day to day practices but after the modern research and proper scientific findings, people are rea lizing the gravity of the social anxiety and full fledge researches are being made in order to find out the ways to solve this problem as early as possible. According to a study, the social anxiety is very common among the people and every human being experiences the social anxiety at one stage or the other. The normal percentage of people who face the problem of social anxiety is almost 14% to 15 % of the people. There are many misconceptions spread in among the masses about the social anxiety and this is because of the lack of awareness and less education. Many people believe the introverts to be victim of social anxiety. This is not true from scientific and societal perspectives. An introvert is not a victim of social phobia rather He prefers to spend time without any company. That is the part of normal behavior. If someone prefers to work alone just because of the fact that he cannot concentrate on the work in the noisy environments then He will never be considered as socially a nxious. Social anxiety is different from being less talkative and interactive. Social anxiety comes into play when a person really feels an internal pressure while interacting with people. For example an introvert might prefer to do less interaction with people just because it is not natural way of going

The Importance of a Communication Strategy to the HR Practitioner Essay

The Importance of a Communication Strategy to the HR Practitioner Planning And Manging Organisational Change - Essay Example Human Resource Development professionals play a central role in the accomplishment of organisational culture change. This is reflected in the five steps to cultural change suggested by Ulrich (1997). These include defining and clarifying the concept of culture change; articulation of the reasons for culture change being central to business success; defining a process for assessing the current culture, the desired future culture, and the gap between the two; identifying alternative approaches to creating culture change; and building an action plan that combines several approaches to organisational culture change. The critical success factors necessary for building an action plan for implementing culture change consist of the following measures: leading change by the organisation first identifying a sponsor for the culture change effort, creating a shared need among the employees by explaining the requirement for organisational change, shaping a vision by communicating the desired outc omes of the culture change, mobilizing commitment by identifying key stakeholders to support the desired culture change, transforming organisational systems and frameworks, monitoring progress, and making the change last through reinforcement techniques (Ulrich, 1997). Beer and Nohria (2000) argue that the two opposing theories of organisational change are Theory E based on the creation of economic value and Theory O pertaining to the building of organisational capabilities for the long term. The two theories strengths and weaknesses are related to every dimension of the change process, including motivation, leadership, and compensation issues. The...This paper has critically reviewed the transforming of organisational culture, and the importance of communication strategies in the management of organisational change and culture by human resource development personnel. Several relevant models and theories were examined. Theory E of economic value and theory O pertaining to the buildi ng of organisational capabilities for the long term were found to be best utilized in an integrated form. The Social Identity Theory believes that individuals develop an identity within their organisation, which is comparable in its characteristics and influence to identification with other social groups. The Communication Accommodation theory developed to clarify the relationship between identity, context and communicative behaviour, helps to explain organisational communication within and between groups in the firm. Lewin’s model related to unfreezing, moving, and refreezing, as three steps in organisational change was found to be an effective technique which continues to be popular. Cameron and Quinn’s theory of Competing Values Framework states that the best way to communicate the future organisational culture is by the change leaders explaining illustrative cases to employees of the organisation. This article makes a conclusion that a strong conceptual and empirical understanding of organisational change was based on two communication theories: Programmatic and Participatory.

Case study week5 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Week5 - Case Study Example This is a person who fits perfectly in the multifaceted requirements. Many of the job candidates might have the right education and experience but lack an innovative attitude or even experience. Therefore, the tech companies are looking for a person who meets all these requirements. This is to ensure that they remain competitive in the market. This aspect is also relevant to other non-tech companies. This is because it ensures that the business remains competitive in the market (Anders,  2011). As a way of spotting talent, I would suggest that the company puts up an innovation contest. The selected candidates would be given an opportunity to develop something new which is not in existence in the market. This will enable the panel to assess the creativity of the candidates selected. Based on the results, it would be easy to select the best employee who will fit in the organization. In addition, it would enable the organization to note whether those with education qualification are also creative or

Mitigation of Earthquakes in Mega Cities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Mitigation of Earthquakes in Mega Cities - Essay Example Although earthquake is a natural phenomenon that cannot be averted, we can take some precautions in order to mitigate the destructive potential of its aftermath. The invention of Richter scale has enabled us for computing the magnitude of earthquakes. Today, it is possible to identify frequently earthquake occurring places and the intensity of every earthquake. Modern facilities such as earthquake alarming systems are some of the advancements in this area. However, lack of improved infrastructural deterrence techniques often affects the effectiveness of disaster prevention in mage cities. According to census reports published by Government of Maharashtra (2000) in 1991, 60% of the registered buildings in Mumbai were made up of non-engineered materials such as informal masonry. It is important to note that Mumbai is categorized under seismic zone 3, which indicates the high vulnerability to the occurrence of devastating earthquakes. The earthquake history of Mumbai reflects that large number of earthquakes occurred across different parts of the city during the last century and even in the last two years. Severe losses had not been reported until 1967 when one attacked Koyna region of Mumbai with a magnitude of 6.3. Large number of buildings was destroyed at this calamity. Damages of such sorts can be avoided to a large extent only if the city employs geotechnical guidelines for the disaster prevention. The Earthquakes and Megacities Initiative (EMI) reports that â€Å"poor governance structures, lack of awareness, and poor professional standards and ethics† are some of the major impediments for disaster prevention in mega cities (cited in Wenzel, 2006).

Pilando Golf Resort Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pilando Golf Resort - Essay Example There are usually some bookings during lunch hours especially on weekends and during dinner hours. The hotel serves a range of dishes due to the diverse nature of the clientele. Besides serving food to guests and other recreational facilities, the hotel offers golf tournaments to its clientele. My experience at the facility as a volunteer exposed me to the various operations of business and the relations with guests at the facility. The experience at the resort exposed to various processes that relate to businesses. An important aspect of the business involved the development of a range of strategies including communication skills. Good communication skills are important in handling of the customers. Customers are different are usually relate to workers in different ways. In the hospitality industry, it is necessary for waiters to develop good communication skills in order to attract and retain the clients. Pilando Golf Resort has a very strong work ethic. Workers are usually motivat ed to provide their best services in order to attract and retain the clientele. The management also helps the workers to develop key skills that are necessary for proper handling of the guests. Usually, the management handles most of the issues that concern the welfare of the guests. The organizational structure of the resort involves a team of managers at the top, followed by supervisors, and finally the workers. The top-level management usually handles decision-making at the resort. Various departments coordinate to ensure the smooth running of the facility. Some of the departments include customer care department, finance department, planning department, and many others. Each department operates according to the mission and vision of the business.

How EEOC and rehabilitation act define interacting with others as a Essay

How EEOC and rehabilitation act define interacting with others as a major life activity under the americans with disability act, how Supreme Court precedent def - Essay Example ecord of such impairment; or (C) being regarded as having such an impairment.5 The EEOC defines "a mental impairment" as "any mental or psychological disorder, such as mental retardation, organic brain syndrome, Bi-Polar Disorder II, emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities,"6 for purposes of the ADA.7 Thus, the question becomes whether this impairment substantially limits a major life activity.8 Interacting with others is listed as a major life activity in the EEOC's Compliance Manual: "Mental and emotional processes such as thinking, concentrating, and interacting with others are other examples of major life activities."9 This listing is significant insofar as the Appellate Court accords "great deference to the EEOC's interpretation of the ADA, since it is charged with administering the statute."10 Although, the EEOC provides a list of examples of major life activities that does not include interacting with others,11 this list is not exhaustive, and courts have routinely recognized major life activities not included in the EEOC regulations.12 Interacting with others is analogous to the major life activities enumerated by the EEOC because it is an essential, daily activity.13 It is not possible to exist in our society without interacting with other people. "Interacting with others, by any definition, is a required precursor to an individual's ability to work, to love, to re produce, and to function on a day-to-day basis in modem society."14 Furthermore, interacting with others is no more difficult to define than caring for oneself, a widely recognized major life activity.15 B. Judicial pronouncements of the Supreme Court and applicable jurisprudence supports the view that "interacting with others" is a major life activity As social human beings we come into contact with each other on a daily basis and that contact involves the use of abilities such as seeing, listening, talking, communicating and walking.16 These abilities have been described by ADA as "major life activities". As previously stated, the EEOC has prepared a list of abilities that constitute major life activities and they are: "...functions such as caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working."17 These lists of abilities

Wireless Networking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Wireless Networking - Essay Example Individuals with desktop computers connected to Wide Area Networks (WANs) and Local Area Networks (LANs) in their places of work may need to be connected while away, which is literary impossible with the concept of wiring. Here is where wireless networking comes in. A wireless network is a system that receives and transmits radio signal through the air from one point to another. The term wireless network often refers to a Wi-Fi or 802.11 networking, from the protocols that control the wireless network concept (Kumar, Manjunath & Kuri 2). Wireless networks are consistently proving their worth in today’s world, with coverage of important services like FM radio, AM radio, satellite television, broadcast television, and satellite internet, which all form a basic part of our lives. The history of wireless networking discovery takes us back to 1888 when Heinrich Herz discovered the first radio wave. In the years that followed, other scholars were further developing the radio frequen cy concept. Marconi was the first known man to successfully transmit and receive a message using radio waves in a distance of two miles, labeling him the â€Å"father of radio†.... The resultant second generation WLAN was upgraded and was four times faster, with an operational speed of 2Mbps. Further developments led t the design on the third generation WLAN, which are in use currently (Kumar, Manjunath & Kuri 23). The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) 802 committee in 1990 set up the 820.11 Working Group that would be the foundation of the WLAN standard. Among the specifications of the standard was an operating frequency of 2.4GHz ISM band, and consequently approved the IEEE 802.11 to be the first WLAN standard with frequency of between 1and 2 Mbps. Building a wireless network will require an access point, which receives and sends radio signals, as well as acting like a repeater. Another vital device required in all the devices in the wireless network is the wireless network card. A desktop computer usually has an internal card, and may or may not have antennas. Notebooks have a PCMCIA extension slots for the card, if not installed from t he manufacturer. There are two basic forms of configuration for a wireless network: infrastructure and Ad-Hoc. An infrastructure wireless configuration constitutes more than one access point connections to an already existing single wireless network. This will enhance the sharing of resource among the devices in the network, like the internet and printers. Here, a computer acts like a hub that provides connectivity for the other computers in the network, hence connecting a wireless LAN to a wireless LAN (Kumar, Manjunath & Kuri 54). On the other hand, an Ad-Hoc wireless network configuration connects one device directly to another device on the network, hence the common reference to peer-to-peer network. All devices can connect directly to each other, but there must be one that is

Role of Youth Essay Example for Free

Role of Youth Essay Lack of participation of the youth in community development and family integration may lead to poor skills and characteristics. Community development helps the youth a lot in working their skills, building their character and communicating with others to have a good relationship. Family integration makes the youth more confident c Generally, this topic focuses on the lack of participation of the youth in community development and family integration. Specifically, this topic aims to show these problems; * Lack of communication and awareness of opportunities (Felix, 2003) * Turf issues among organizations competing for youth participants (Felix, 2003) * Lack of diversity, and adultism or the systematic mistreatment of young people simply because of their age. (Felix, 2003) * Youth fear of speaking out (Felix,2003) * Lack of time (Sherrod, Flanagan, Youniss, 2002) * Not being sure of the benefits of their contributions (Israel, Coleman, Ilvento, 1993) As youth are brought into community organizations and civic roles that they have traditionally been excluded from, they can participate in local decision-making at multiple levels. This collaboration leads to skill enhancement, confidence building, and ownership that prepare them as they navigate toward adulthood. All of these can be achieved through participating in activities that pursue community development and family integration. Lacking of participation is seen form the youth. Lack of participation in family integration and community development may lead to a lot of conflict in the society. Communication is the best way to build a relationship with the community and with the family. In this way, the youth can easily participate and contribute to the developments made by the community. The family will serve as a great motivation for the you th to participate well and be efficient in helping developing one’s community. The specific problems points out different pursuits. In the first problem, lack of communication and awareness of opportunities, the reason that this problem occurred is because of the extreme rapid change in the modern civilization, in contrast to modern societies, tend to increase parent-youth conflict, for within a fast changing social order the time interval between generations. Inevitably, under such a condition, youth is reared in a milieu different from that of the parents; hence the parents become old-fashioned, youth rebellious, and clashes occur which is closely confined circle of the immediate family, generate sharp emotion. This conflict will only subdue to not communicating with parents because avoiding arguments with their parents. Another problem that hinders the youth in progressing and doing their role as youth is lack of time. The youth now a days tend to spend their time in paying video games, watching television Parent-youth conflict thus results from the interaction of certain universals of the parent-child relation and certain variables the value of which are peculiar to modern culture . the universals are the basic age or birth cycle differential between parent and child. The decelerating rate of socialization with advancing age, the rsulting intrinsic differences btween old and young on the physiological, psychosocial and sociological planes.

Examining Practice Of Price Discrimination Economics Essay

Examining Practice Of Price Discrimination Economics Essay Perfect competition is the most efficient market structure because, in the long run, each firm in the market will be producing at its minimum average cost, or per-unit. This means that consumers get desired goods and services at the lowest possible prices, and also that the firms are economizing on societys scarce resources to the greatest extent possible. What is the difference between the concepts of diseconomies of scale, and the law of diminishing return? (4 marks) Law of diminishing return occurs in the short-run when one factor is fixed. If the variable factor of production is increased, there comes a point where it will become less productive and therefore there will eventually be a decreasing marginal and then average product. When long-run average total cost rises as output increases, there are said to be diseconomies of scale. a. Sally owns a ceiling fan company. Last year, she sold 1000 ceiling fans at $50 each, and each fan cost her $20. Before going into the ceiling fan business, she worked as a fan-dancer at $25,000 a year. She used her own money to buy the fans by withdrawing the money from her savings account where it was earning five percent annual interest. Calculate Sallys economic profit and her accounting profit. Should Sally continue with her ceiling fan business? Explain. (6 marks) If her economic profit is at least zero, Sally should stay in business. Her TR = $50,000 and her total accounting cost is $20,000, for an accounting profit of $30,000. She forgoes interest on savings of $20,000 (.05) = $1,000 as well as forgone earnings of $25,000. This leaves $4,000 in economic profit, so she should stay in business. Bob Edwards owns a bagel shop. Bob hires an economist who assesses the shape of the bagel shops average total cost (ATC) curve as a function of the number of bagels produced. The results indicate a U-shaped average total cost curve. Bobs economist explains that ATC is U-shaped for two reasons. The first reason is the existence of diminishing marginal product, which causes it to rise. What is the second reason? Explain your answer. Assume that the marginal cost curve is linear. (4 marks) Average fixed cost always declines as output rises because fixed cost is being spread over a larger number of units, thus causing the average total cost curve to fall. a. Provide two circumstances in which monopoly may offer efficiency advantages over competition. (4 marks) A monopolist might be better positioned to exploit economies of scale leasing to an equilibrium which gives a higher output and a lower price than under competitive conditions. As firms are able to earn abnormal profits in the long run there may be a faster rate of technological development that will reduce costs and produce better quality products for consumers. This is because the monopolist will invest profits into research and development to promote dynamic efficiency. Explain the practice of tying and discuss why it is controversial. (5 marks) Tying is the practice of bundling goods for sale. It is controversial because it is perceived as a tool for expanding the market power of firms by forcing consumers to purchase additional products. However, economists are skeptical that a buyers willingness to pay increases just because to products are bundled together. In other words, simply bundling two products together doesnt necessarily add any value. It is more accurately believed to be a form of price discrimination. Describe the source of tension between cooperation and self-interest in a market characterized by oligopoly. Use an example of an actual cartel arrangement to demonstrate why this tension creates instability in cartels. (5 marks) The source of the tension exists because total profits are maximized when oligopolists cooperate on price and quantity by operating as a monopolist. However, individual profits can be gained by individuals cheating on their cooperative agreement. This is why cooperative agreements among members of a cartel are inherently unstable. a. If the average total cost curve is falling, what is necessarily true of the marginal cost curve? If the average total cost curve is rising, what is necessarily true of the marginal cost curve? (5 marks) When average total cost curve is falling it is necessarily above the marginal cost curve. If the average total cost curve is rising, it is necessarily below the marginal cost curve. Describe the difference between average revenue and marginal revenue. Why are both of these revenue measures important to a profit-maximizing firm? (5 marks) Average revenue is total revenue divided by the amount of output. Marginal revenue is the change in total revenue from the sale of each additional unit of output. Marginal revenue is used to determine the profit-maximizing level of production and average revenue is used to help determine the level of profits. Describe the process by which the market for capital and the market for land reach equilibrium. As part of your description, elaborate on the role of the stock of the resource versus the flow of services from the resource. (6 marks) Equilibrium in the markets for land and capital are governed by the value of marginal product for these factors relative to their supply. One difference between these markets and the market for labor is the distinction between rental value (flow) and purchase price (stock). This difference is reconciled by noting that in efficient markets, the purchase price should reflect the value of the stream of services provided by the land or capital (or the sum of rental values appropriately discounted). a. List and explain two conditions necessary for firms to be able to successfully practice price discrimination. (2 marks) Differences in price elasticity of demand between markets: There must be a different price elasticity of demand from each group of consumers. The firm is then able to charge a higher price to the group with a more price inelastic demand and a relatively lower price to the group with a more elastic demand. By adopting such a strategy, the firm can increase its total revenue and profits. To profit maximize, the firm will seek to set marginal revenue = to marginal cost in each separate (segmented) market. Barriers to prevent consumers switching from one supplier to another: The firm must be able to prevent market seepage or consumer switching defined as a process whereby consumers who have purchased a good or service at a lower price are able to re-sell it to those consumers who would have normally paid the expensive price. This can be done in a number of ways, and is probably easier to achieve with the provision of a unique service such as a haircut rather than with the exchange of tangible goods. Seepage might be prevented by selling a product to consumers at unique and different points in time for example with the use of time specific airline tickets that cannot be resold under any circumstances. Explain how each of the following industries practices price discrimination: (6 marks) restaurant Restaurants sometimes have childrens menus. It can be profitable if adults who come to restaurants with children are, on the average, more sensitive to prices on menus than adults who come to restaurants without children. Children often do not value restaurant food and service, and often waste a large part of their food. Parents know this and do not want to pay a lot for their childs meal. If restaurants treat children like adults, the restaurants may lose customers as families switch to fast-food restaurants. If this explanation is correct, then restaurants price discriminate. airline Airlines charge different prices for seats on the same plane, depending on when the ticket was purchased, how long the traveler will be staying at the destination, etc. Of course, the cost of operating the plane is independent of these variables. Hairdresser A hairdresser may charge a lower price to children than to adults. The reason they do this is that they believe children to have a differing elasticity of demand to adults. In other words, the price needed to maximize revenue from children is not the same as the price needed to maximize revenue from adults. By charging different prices they will maximize revenue from both groups Calculate the total revenue without price discrimination as well as with price discrimination, and complete the table with your calculations. (4 marks) Price Qd TR TR (with perfect price discrimination) 30 0 22 10 220 220 14 16 224 304 10 24 240 464 7 38 266 562 Briefly describe the characteristics of each of the following market types. Give an example of each market type. (8 marks) pure competition The goods being offered for sale must all be the same. The buyers and sellers must be so numerous that no single buyer or seller influences the market price. Buyers and sellers are price takers. An example would be the wheat market. Monopoly A monopoly is a market in which there is only one seller and the seller sets the price of the product, given the demand curve for that product. An example would be a local cable television company. Oligopoly An oligopoly is a market in which there are only a few sellers, and the sellers do not always compete aggressively. An example would be airline routes. monopolistic competition Monopolistic competition is a market containing many sellers offering slightly different products. Because the products are not the same, sellers have some ability to set price. An example would be the software industry. Use the graph below to explain why a profit-maximizing monopolistically competitive firm must operate at excess capacity. Why is a perfectly competitive firm not subject to the same constraint? (6 marks) Competitive firms do not face downward-sloping demand. The graph shows the firm choosing a level of production in which the intersection of marginal revenue and marginal cost occurs at an output level where average total cost is decreasing. This profit-maximizing output level is less than the efficient scale (minimum of average total cost) and therefore the firm is said to be operating at excess capacity. If the monopolist depicted in the graph below sets a price of $10 and sells 100 units, the corresponding marginal revenue is $5 and marginal cost $3. What recommendation regarding price and quantity would you give this monopolist? Explain your answer. (6 marks) Since MR exceeds MC, recommend an increase in output. Greater sales will require a price reduction. So reduce P below $10 and increase Q above 100. The marketing division of a firm has measured demand for its product and reports that it is Q = 24 P, where Q is units and P is price per unit in dollars. The cost is given in the table below. Complete the table and determine the profit-maximizing level of output for this firm. (6 marks) As indicated in the table below, the optimal output is Q = 5, where MR = MC = 5.80. Output Total Cost Price Revenue Profit 0 10 24 0 -10 1 18 22 22 4 2 20 20 40 20 3 22 18 54 32 4 25 16 64 30 5 29 14 70 41 6 34 12 72 38 7 40 10 70 30 8 48 8 64 16 Define the following terms and explain their importance to the study of economics. (9 marks) barriers to entry Barriers to entry make it difficult or impossible for other firms to enter an industry, thus allowing monopoly to continue to exist. Some examples of barriers include legal restriction on entry, patents, control of scarce resources, large sunk costs, technical superiority, and economies of scale. Patent A patent is a government-granted legal monopoly given to the inventor of a new product or process. During the life of the patent, the firm has a protected monopoly position. Thus, it serves as a barrier to entry. natural monopoly A natural monopoly is an industry in which advantages of large-scale production make it possible for a single firm to produce the entire output of the market at lower average cost than a number of firms each producing a smaller quantity. Most natural monopolies are regulated utilities.

Comparing A Dolls House and Oedipus Rex Essay -- comparison compare c

Comparing A Doll's House and Oedipus Rex Ibsen's drama "A Doll's House", serves as an example of the kind of issue-based drama that distinguishes Ibsen from many of his contemporaries. The play's dialogue is not poetic, but very naturalistic, and the characters are recognizable people. Given the sense of modernity which the play possesses it seems unusual to compare it to a Greek tragedy produced more than two-thousand years previously. On closer examination however, there are certain similarities between the way in which "A Doll's House" is plotted and a tragedy such as Oedipus Rex. Both "Oedipus" and "A Dolls' House" depict disastrous events that occur to two very different characters. At the start of Oedipus, we encounter a hero who is almost universally adored. Oedipus is a popular king who by the end of the play will be reduced to the lowest level possible. Classically the tragic hero began a piece as a man of high position since this made his demise all the more tragic. That the tragic centre if Ibsen's play is both female and not particularly birth is a distinct departure from the classical condition of tragedy. Ibsen has moved many concepts of the genre and placed them in a domestic setting. In order to see the way Nora can be viewed as a true tragic heroine it is useful to examine some of the concepts which Greek tragedy frequently made use of. In both plays the trouble that befalls the lead characters are due to their own actions Oedipus commits a series of huge mistakes the significance of which are not really understood until it is too late. In "A Doll's House", Nora borrows a sum of money, an action that will tear her family apart. The idea that the tragedy of a play begins with a hug... ...2-838. O'Brien, Michael J. Introduction. In Twentieth Century Interpretations of Oedipus Rex, edited by Michael J. O'Brien. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968. Segal, Charles. Oedipus Tyrannus: Tragic Heroism and the Limits of Knowledge. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1993. Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. Transl. by F. Storr. no pag. Available http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/browse-mixed new?tag=public&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&part=0&id=SopOedi "Sophocles" In Literature of the Western World, edited by Brian Wilkie and James Hurt. NewYork: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1984. Van Nortwick, Thomas. Oedipus: The Meaning of a Masculine Life. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1998. Watling, E. F.. Introduction. In Sophocles: The Theban Plays, translated by E. F. Watling. New York: Penguin Books, 1974.

Therapy Session Experience Review Essay -- Family Therapy, Family Coun

Our first session with the Smith family was very informative. The first 20 minutes of the session were the most noteworthy because of our effectiveness joining with the family and the depth of information we gained. This achievement is due, in part, to having all four of the Smith’s participate in the session. Pinsof (as cited in Sprenkle, Davis, & Lebow, 2014) believes that having the entire family involved in the therapy sessions from the beginning gives the therapist a clearer understanding of the system and â€Å"a more accurate understanding of the problem maintenance structure† (p.39). As the Smith family entered the therapy room, Regina’s tension was evident before the session officially began. As they were about to sit down, she quickly moved between George and Rob. During the session, I observed George making faces, rolling his eyes, and whisper comments to Rob. Rob would respond by making jokes about hurting George or threatening physical gestures; pu nching his fist into the palm of his other hand or moving a finger across his throat in a slashing motion. Afterward Rob would smile at Theresa and me and shrug his shoulders but George would act as though he hadn’t participated in the exchange. Regina and Kevin did not acknowledge George's behavior but would sigh or frown at Rob’s. This interaction would not have been observed if the entire family hadn’t attended. The session began with a brief introduction of everyone in the room which was followed by an ice breaker activity. During a previous classroom demonstration, markers were used as an ice breaker with a young family (D. Baker, personal communication, March 18, 2014). It was a simple action that created a connection so I adopted the practice. According to Patterson, ... ...: Race, culture, and gender in clinical practice (2nd Ed.). New York, NY: Guildford Press. Patterson, J., Williams, L., Edwards, T. M., Chamow, L., Grauf-Grounds, C. (2009). Essential skills in family therapy (2nd Ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Press. Strengthening Families, (2014). Mormon.org. Retrieved from: http://www.mormon.org/values/family. Sprenkle, J., Davis, S. D., Lebow, J. L. (2009). Common factors in couple and family therapy: The overlooked foundation for effective practice. New York, NY: Guilford Press. Taibbi, R. (2007). Doing family therapy: Craft and creativity in clinical practice (2nd Ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Press. Walsh, F. (2008). Spirituality, healing, and resilience. In M. McGoldrick and K. V. Hardy (Ed.), Re-visioning family therapy: Race, culture, and gender in clinical practice (2nd Ed.) (pp. 61-75). New York, NY: Guildford Press.

Cookies and Internet Privacy :: Internet Private Cookies Essays

Cookies and Internet Privacy What is a Cookie? â€Å"Netscape's Client Side State definition:Cookies are a general mechanism which server side connections (such as CGI scripts) can use to both store and retrieve information on the client side of the connection. The addition of a simple, persistent, client-side state significantly extends the capabilities of Web-based client/server applications.†Kington, Andy, Andy’s HTTP Cookie Notes, Available from http://www.illuminatus.com/cookie_pages/ [modified 6 June 1997, cited 14 March, 1999] In English, this means that webservers can create web pages that will customize from user to user. By saving these preferences on your computer, the web page can reload appearing to your chosen options. This is accomplished by retrieving the cookie, through your browser, when you access the web page. Where cookies and privacy clash The problem with privacy begins with the cookie revealing personal information that you do not wish to be available. â€Å"Your browser is probably revealing more than you might want: which computer you are coming from, what software and hardware you are using, details of the link you clicked on, and possibly even your email address.† Junkbusters, How Web Servers' Cookies Threaten Your Privacy, [Online], Available from http://www.junkbusters.com/ht/en/cookies.html, [written 11 December, 1998, cited 14 March, 1999] By receiving this information, the webservers could sell it as part of an advertising database resulting in both electronic and paper junk mail. Legislative action has been enacted to curtail the illegal use of personal information. "The WWW offers a wide variety of communication, information and interaction. Cookies provide for necessary customization. But the Internet is not outside the law. Existing regulations, targeted at protecting personal information, limit the use and application of cookies. Current cookie usage violates such norms. Content providers continuing to use cookies that violate these regulations and browser producers unwilling or incapable of bringing their products into accordance with these laws both risk legal liability. It should be their concern to avoid legal action; and it should be our concern to safeguard our privacy." Mayer-Schoenberger, Viktor, "The Internet and Privacy Legislation: Cookies for a Treat? ", West Virginia Journal of Law and Technology, [journal online], Available from http://www.wvjolt.wvu.edu/wvjolt/current/issue1/articles/mayer/mayer.htm, [cited 14 March, 1999] Another possibility of potential privacy violition is cookies retreiving information from other locations on your hard drive. â€Å"The safety of personal information stored on the user's hard drive has also been of concern in the cookie debate.

Outsourcing Product Distribution the Right Way Essay

Chain online magazine Aug. 2, 2000 For Internet companies that cannot afford to buy and store their inventory or hire an internal logistics staff, outsourcing the product distribution function can be either a smart business decision or a disaster. Success or failure in distribution depends on how carefully and continuously you manage this function to make sure your distribution partners are doing the job that is expected. When distribution is not a core competency for your company and you do not have the resources to make it one, outsourcing the function can help your company grow by allowing you to focus on your mission-critical activities. There are two types of outsourcing that are common among start-ups – traditional distribution and drop ship fulfillment (DSF). Traditional distribution outsourcing involves hiring a third party to store and distribute your products through its national or international distribution network; this party provides the staff, warehouses, distribution center and transportation fleet. The second type of outsourcing, DSF, has grown in parallel with B2C retailing over the Internet. With DSF, a start-up company sells a product, charges the customer, generates a purchase order, and sends the PO to the manufacturer or supplier, who then fulfills the order by shipping the product directly to the customer. Since the start-up never possessed the product, the company does not incur any of the costs associated with storing or purchase the product. Many Internet start-ups have adopted this streamlined business model. Unfortunately, companies need to be careful when choosing an outsourcing partner. Outsourcing is not a panacea – if your third-party distributor’s procedures and performance are not carefully monitored, you risk permanently alienating the customers you have worked so hard to attract. The key to a successful outsourcing relationship includes understanding the process, specifying objectives, establishing internal procedures for evaluating performance against objectives, and deploying systems that help to manage the function effectively. Watching Costs and Service If the manufacturer or distributor, which may be the same company, fulfills the customer’s order correctly, everyone is happy. However, in most cases, there are problems in one or more of these key areas:  · Customer service – Another company may be distributing your products, but ultimately you are responsible for the customer relationship. True, your company does not have direct control over the distribution process, but the customer only cares about receiving the product – not who sent it or how it got there. If something goes wrong, you are responsible and must do what is necessary to correct the situation. Shipping costs – Most manufacturers are setup to ship truckloads or pallets of products, not multiple orders of a single product. There are also manufacturers that require you to purchase more products you need, others set ridiculously high prices for the service, and some simply will not ship the orders. In some cases, start-ups are â€Å"kitting† a number of products, not because it adds value for the customer, but because it pushes the dollar value of their order above a threshold where the manufacturer will agree to DSF the products. Profitability – Shipping costs directly affect your bottom line. Many start-ups are passing along the manufacturer’s shipping costs to their customers, raising the price of their products and putting themselves at a disadvantage in a competitive market. If the start-up does not pass along the entire cost, the shipping expense cuts into the profitability of every transaction. Getting Automated Help Successfully managing a third-party distributor requires establishing internal monitoring processes and requiring that specific employees are responsible for this function. These employees should also be responsible for developing and deploying computer systems to help automate the management function. Here are five critical requirements for your outsourcing relationship with your distributor:  · Establish measurable standards for distributor performance.  · Conduct periodic performance reviews.  · Visit distributor sites to check security procedures (only if the start-up owns the inventory).  · Monitor customer feedback and satisfaction levels.  · As sales volume grows, periodically revisit the decision to outsource the distribution function. The right computer system can improve your ability to manage the distribution function in three areas:  · Communication – To allow you to automate communication with your suppliers and manufacturers, you must establish a back-end system. This means that you should not rely just on basic email, generated by an employee, to track orders. For example, you send the supplier an email to check on a backlogged product, someone then emails you back with a response, and finally you re-key the information into your system – imagine a handful of employees checking 500 products. To be more efficient, you need a system that will scale this function as your volume expands and will use automated email, fax, Web portals and/or EDI to communicate order information.  · Visibility – You must know if a product is available before it is sold, and you cannot know this until you view your supplier’s inventory to find out how much product you have been allocated and what is available. To do this, you need an application that provides you with visibility into your supplier’s inventory tracking system. Track and Trace – Customers want to know the status of their order: When was it shipped, where is it now, and when will I get it? If you want to retain customers, you need to be sure your computer system helps you manage returns, exchanges and refunds efficiently. A consulting organization that specializes in distribution and transportation can help you setup effective internal processes and, if necessary, build and deploy the computer systems you need to manage an outsourced distribution function for maximum benefit. Part of a consultant’s value can be in the area of knowledge transfer, educating your organization on how the distribution and transportation function works at the macro level and helping you set realistic expectations. In the final analysis, outsourcing the distribution function can make perfect sense for your small company – but only if you remember not to outsource the responsibility of keeping your customers happy.

Morpheus the God

The Greek god, Morpheus, also known as ‘He who forms', is the Greek god of dreams. The Greeks believed that he shaped and formed dreams for mortals. Morpheus played an important role as a god; he was the leader of the Oneriroi tribe. The tribe was made up of himself and his three brothers, Icelus, Phobetor and Phantos. The Oneriroi were a well-known tribe and had the duty of creating dreams for humans. They were often asked to create dreams to warn mortals of danger and future experiences.This was especially important in the case of kings, queens, heroes and heroines, such as Queen Penelope and Agamemnon. Icelus was the creator of dreams of reality and truth. Phobetor represented fearsome and alarming dream, playing a role in dreams in the form of an animal. Phantos, as you may notice by his name, created dreams of fantasy; these were often the most strange and unrealistic dreams of all. He would appear in dreams as inanimate objects, such as earth, rocks, water and plants. Mor pheus, the leader of the tribe, was the vital dream creator, appearing as humans in a dream.Unlike his brothers however, Morpheus could simply send thoughts and objects into dreams, without having to play a role in them himself. The Oneriroi lived at the coast, on the seashores. Morpheus, during his lifetime, is said to have lived in a dark cave, filled with poppy flowers. Morphine, a well-known painkilling drug, which is derived from poppy flowers and induces a dream-like state, is named after Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams. Morpheus’s uncle is Thanatos, the God of Death. His grandparents are Nyx, Goddess of Night and Erebus, God of Darkness.Morpheus was said to be romantically involved with Iris, the Goddess of the Rainbow. As a god, Morpheus possesses the natural powers & abilities of an Olympian god such as immortality, omnipresence, vast strength, and the potential to do magic such as the ability to shape-shift, to teleport and to manifest objects. As the God of Sleep he makes mortals and other gods fall asleep in his â€Å"sleep blanket†. However, even he is not immune to falling asleep in this blanket, as seen in the episode Hercules and the All-Nighter. Morpheus also appears to bring the night by dragging his blanket across the sky.

Effects of world economic politics to Australia Essay

World political economy can be defined as a political process of interaction between countries in world transform local phenomena in to global perspective. Mostly, this interaction comes up as integration of sovereign state for economic benefit based on trade and commerce. In Australian context, world political economics is interaction between Australian-nation and the rest of world. World political economy is the transformation of the Australia-nation phenomenon into global perspective. This interaction has been promoted in rationale of giving Australian-nationals a form of interaction with the world which in most cases in commercial, foreign investment, migration of man power, capital flow as well as sharing of technology. On other hand, world political economy interactions allow Australia partners in trade to be able to get in Australia and do business freely. These have been achieved through liberalization of market which has been achieved through Australian authorities negotiating with its trade partners for a more regulated trade. In a nutshell World political economy to Australia can be viewed in perspective of globalisation which has positive and negative impact in Australian economy. Globalisation is world political economics which seeks for integration of the whole world in commerce, communication as well as transport networks across the world. Theoretically, globalisation has been viewed as a way of economic empowerment but its aftermath is marked with economic crisis. In Australia, unemployment crisis is a good example of result of world political economics in the name of globalisation. World political economic has been in existence for long time but it major impact can be traced after the Second World War. This was after realisation of importance of world peace giving reasons to have international integrations. Integration took economic perspective where countries would interact in commerce an aspect which resulted to concept of globalization. This was supported by many countries, where Australia became to part of this economic integration. Bretton Wood conference after World War II came up with institutions which would oversee the world political economic and Australia government became a member of these institutions. These institutions included; International monetary fund (IMF) and World Bank designed to foresee development in world. Other organisations on basis of world political economy which Australia-nation is members are; General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), and World Trade Organisation (WTO). These organisations influence world political economics through trade negotiations, pushing for market liberation, aimed at reducing the cost of doing business and promotion of a more integrated economic growth in world. World political economy championing for globalization has resulted to a lot of change in Australia-nation hurting the economy and the welfare of the common man. Adoption of globalisation policies by Australian government has resulted to rapid change in technology making education system not to meet employment requirement and fleeing of employment through cheap imports among others (Krisztina 2006). World political economy base on globalisation has not resulted well for Australia. Globalisation in the world economic has winner and losers. It can be said that Australia has come out of globalisation crusade as a loser, getting to the current unemployment crisis. The negative side of globalisation as a result of world political economies had led Australia to be in more problem than before. Before embracing in totality the world political concept of globalisation, Australia was rich country endowed with a lot of natural resources but freed them as per globalization concept of mobility of natural resources. Losing of resources in the name of mobility of resources has resulted to the current problem of unemployment. Unemployment problem facing Australia today can be blamed on world political economy policy of globalisation which has squeezed people of Australia employment through liberated market. World political economics championed opening country’s borders allowing other countries to trade freely. This has resulted to Australia opening to imports resulting to loss of employments and promoting employment of foreign countries through consuming their products. Rationale behind implementation of globalisation in the Australian economy as influence by the world political economics was the purported ‘advantages’ of market liberalisation. Proponent of world integrated economy argued that globalisation would result to increase welfare to the consumer in world. Integration of world trade would result to increase range of choice for good and service. Elimination of trade barriers means allowing imports in the country giving local people a chance to be able to choice from local manufactured commodities a well import. Local producer would have a chance to trade their commodities in the export market with ease hence promotion of employment and development in the country. Aftermath of this would be specialization since the trading partners will only be able to produce and compete efficiently. â€Å"The trade policy breakthrough started to take place in 1973, when the government executed its 25 percent across-the-board tarrif reduction. Even though general reductions in protection were precluded in 1982, the ‘opening process’ was continued in the late 1980s, when a four-year program in nominal tariff rates was introduced for most imports. This four year program was extended until 1991: by this time general tariffs were to be phased down to 5 percent† (Krisztina, 2006 pp. 13). World political economy would provide world wide financial markets. Australia being member of world political institution meant it could be able to source for finance for government projects. It also gave citizen a chance of participating and trading in world foreign exchange and speculative markets. Globalisation would result to a major global market where there would be freedom in exchange of good as well as capital. This was seen as a benefit by the policy maker and proponents of integration of world economy. World political economics viewed integration as important vehicles to bring governments together through trade and be able to regulate each other to avert any threat to world peace and abuse of human rights. Exchange of expatriates and technology would be very easy through integrated economy and political world. It would as help countries to be able to share telecommunication infrastructures reaping advantages resulting from free flow of information. These are the rationale behind adoption of globalisation concept in Australian nation. This concept has injured the country’s welfare through loss of employments greatly (Davidson, 2004). Although there may be economic benefit of world economic integration, globalisation always has taker and loser. Market liberalisation has resulted to be problematic to Australian economy. Australia-nation has come out of world political economies like a loser instead of gaining. In the wake of globalisation resulting from world political economy has influenced changes in Government export Promotion Policy (GEPP) adjusting various policies on exports and imports. â€Å"GEPP is generally considered as variably significance part of the government’s overall trade policy. There are a number of GEPP definitions describing GEPP from fairly different perspectives, ranging from the GEPP describing of the Organisational for Economic co-operation and development (OECD) focusing only on the extra-cost-bring nature of export promotion tools† (Krisztina 2006 pp. 3). Changes in export as well as import policies have impacted negatively to Australian employment structures. GEPP mainly deals with promotion of the exports through strategising on improvement of export market support instruments. It also brings policies to promote export through giving tax incentives to export so as to influence flow of goods and services for export. GEPP policies results to formation of job opportunities since increase export mean increase in production of real goods which need human resource effort. This means that increase export means creation of more employment. On the other hand when the country experiences an influx of imports the employment opportunities as well as growth are at risk. Imports compete with locally manufactured good making the local production to reduce. Low production translates to reduced need of man power for production of real good hence reduced employment.

Buenavista Plywood Corporation

Buenavista Plywood Corporation The Problem The problem confronting Mr. Antonio Garcia, the Plant Superintendent of Buenavista Plywood Corporation is how to deal with the absentee rates of the employees from Bohol such that the production of the plant will operate at capacity, with adequate workforce and the interests of the company and employees be served. Objectives More specifically, the problem resolves itself into the following objectives which Mr. Garcia has to achieve in the course of action he has to take: 1. To maintain a stable and reliable workforce; 2.To protect the company’s reputation by avoiding confrontation with formal union groups; 3. To address production problems and costs; 4. To meet the rated capacity of the plant; 5. To safeguard the long-run profitability and stability of Buenavista Plywood Corporation. Situational Analysis The Buenavista Plywood Corporation was organized in Cagayan de Oro City in 1950 by the Santiago Family. Don Jose Santiago, the prese nt head of the family, was well qualified to carry the traditions of this prominent family. The Santiagos have been involved in politics in nearby Bohol, the ancestral home.They had been pioneering industrialists in the plywood business. Don Jose had been an early advocate of local processing of lumber as opposed to the shipping of log abroad. VISTAWOOD, the trademark chosen for their plywood, was one of the first export plywood production in the Philippines. Late in the fall of 1960, at a time when the plant was operating at capacity, working three shifts a day, some representatives of a national labor organization gained the allegiance of a large group of workers to establish a union at VISTAWOOD.Over the period of several months, the union activists who were assigned to the logging concessions left the company at their own initiative. These events marked the end of any organized activity at VISTAWOOD. As a matter of general policy, management preferred to hire people from Bohol a nd even tolerate some irregularities due to this peculiar working arrangement, than to risk another confrontation with formal union organizations. In fact, Don Jose soon began to rely on political leverage this group of workers afforded him in his election campaigns in Bohol. Late in 1967, VISTAWOOD was facing serious production problems.Rated capacity and management profit goals had not been attained for several years. Fierce competition in the export market and decreasing selling prices, coupled with new duties being levied by importing countries had aggravated the situation. It was apparent to management that the only source of improvement would have to be the production function. Costs of operating the plant had been steadily rising without no accompanying rise in production volume. Mr. Antonio Garcia was brought to VISTAWOOD Superintendent in the hope that he could bring some improvements in the plywood plant.Discovering the absentee rate of the plant, Mr. Garcia began to exami ne this and other related problems at VISTAWOOD. It became increasingly clear that: (1) production was low and highly erratic and (2) one of the main causes of this gloomy situation was the unstable and unreliable workforce. The absentee rates fluctuated between 50% during Monday and Saturday nights and 30% during the rest of the week. Daily production was so adversely affected by this shifting workforce, that Sundays had to be regarded as regular work days but with higher labor costs. Mr.Garcia was convinced that the plant could be run on a six-day schedule and meets the rated capacity if an adequate workforce could be maintained in the ratio of 3:2. Decision Framework Constraints Given the problematic framework on situation described, Mr. Garcia now had to decide what to do with the problem on the imported workers from Bohol. The fluctuating absentee rates of these employees has resulted to serious problems such as the unstable, unreliable and inadequate workforce unable to meet t he rated capacity at the plant and resulted to low and highly erratic roduction. Rated capacity and management profit goals had not been attained for several years. Aside from the fierce competition in the export market, decreasing selling prices, and rising production costs, imported workers from Bohol have created greater problems. Increasing the production volume through having an adequate stable workforce is the only solution to the problems faced by the company. And that would mean to fire those workers from Bohol who have absentee problems. These people create greater inefficiencies for the company.However, this will risk the company to face formal union organizations. And these would mean putting the company in bad public image ore reputation. Retaining the employees from Bohol will protect the company’s reputation but the absentee rates of these employees affect production costs and volume. And if not addressed will result to financial ruin for the company. Mr. Garcia is therefore caught in a seemingly difficult dilemma and has to formulate a decision which would both safeguard stability and profitability at the company and at the same time, protect the reputation of the company.DECISION ALTERNATIVES The following choices are open to Mr. Garcia: 1. Fine the employees from Bohol who have absentee problems but spell ruin on the company’s reputation; or 2. Retain the employees from Bohol but creates problems on the production costs and volume and eventually spell financial ruin to the company. RECOMMENDATION The first alternative to fine employees from Bohol is preferable given the following considerations: 1.It will decrease absentee rates of employees and having a stable and reliable workforce will result in meeting the rated capacity and volume of the plant. 2. It will dissociate political expediency from management decisions. 3. Mr. Garcia could talk to the workforce from Bohol to avoid establishing a union at VISTAWOOD. CONCLUSION Firin g the workers from Bohol will address production problems of the company and insure the long-run stability and profitability of VISTAWOOD. Such a course of action, therefore, would achieve all the objectives set out earlier in the present dilemma.

Food mart Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Food mart - Essay Example Because the order quantity that he desired was not available at the closest store possible, Foodmart cannot be considered to have ripped Todd off by not having the correct amount of chocolate sauce on stock. Todd may not have been aware at the time, but Todd entered into a contract with Foodmart that contained several terms and conditions. This is not a special case; every customer who purchases items online need to be aware of all the fine details of the contract that they are entering into. For Foodmart’s online order contract, the customer cannot purchase items that were advertised for cheaper in print. In addition to this stipulation, the online sales contract states that orders placed online can only receive inventory that is available from the closest store in terms of location. Thus, Foodmart cannot be held accountable as they laid out all the terms and conditions in their online contract. If the customer chooses not to take notice of this, then it is solely the custome r’s responsibility and the company at hand cannot be held responsible. If the company chooses to reimburse Todd then that is their choice, but they have no legal obligation to do so. It may be to the company’s benefit to reimburse him once because he may prove to be a long-term customer. The benefits in this case may outweigh the negatives so it may be best to give Todd the benefit of the doubt this time only. If he is in a similar situation again, then Foodmart should advise him that there is nothing that they can do for him. Foodmart should try to avoid such a situation in the future by making its customers aware of the terms and conditions of any contract. This would avoid legal issues down the road and it would give assurances to a customer that everything will be done through legal means. Foodmart could make it easier for customers by writing its terms and conditions in simple and easy to understand words so that

Discussion Questions VI Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Discussion Questions VI - Essay Example Market segmentation is a division of the population of consumers into identifiable segments. So within each segment are people with shared characteristics. This makes it easier to identify their needs and wants and identify market opportunities, as the purpose of a segmentation system is to target consumers better. This can affect the product, price, promotion and place in the marketing strategy. One of the determinants of the effectiveness of such an approach is the homogeneity of the segment in terms of consumer behavior. â€Å"The process by which managers make decisions about segmentation in the international consumer market† (Craft, 2004) is therefore an important part of the strategy of segmentation. Segmentation can be made along geographic, demographic, economic, technological or cultural lines. Multinational and global market challenges in any segment must be faced with strategic planning considerations. We shall discuss these in relation to segmentation based on cultural differences and analyze product branding, advertising and promotion for different cultural segments with rationale and examples. A segmentation system based on culture divides consumers according to their customs and traditions, language, beliefs, values, religion, and so on. Subcultures can also be a consideration for further precise segmentation. These aims affect strategic planning considerations involving â€Å"market demographics, sales channels, operational implementation, and adaptable approaches to niche markets currently being served or targeted.† (Bauman, 2002) Planning enables the decision makers to see greater opportunities arising out of the non-traditional core markets. It also makes them evaluate their core competencies, skill sets, product development, competitive advantages, and so on. This then also has implications â€Å"for functional tasks such as the sales planning and advertising† (Dix, 2002) and product branding. Product branding in China presents a

Coffee And The Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Coffee And The Environment - Essay Example Pros of Coffee To the farmers, large-scale production of coffee resulted to fear trade. In Brazil, investments in coffee production began in 1970.Coffee production dramatically changed the lives of the thousands of small-scale farmers in Brazil. Production of coffee leads to deregulation, privatization and liberalization of agricultural production process in growing of coffee. Therefore, it leads to high production of coffee in the country (Cleland, P. 11). Value of Pros According to Masood Sadiq, and Tauseef Sultan coffee is one of the greatest sources of antioxidant. The Authors have also stated that black coffee, without milk or cream, has a low-calorie count (364).The calorie count of black coffee is two calories. However, only two cups of black coffee would be beneficial and taking more than two would be introducing a high level of caffeine in the body. In addition, other health benefits that are associated with drinking coffee are it protects against type II diabetes, liver cancer, and Parkinson disease. Cons of Coffee Coffee farming has several cons to the environment. The first problem associated with coffee farming is soil erosion. According to the author, countries like in Brazil have faced a significant challenge in coffee farming because of soil erosion. Most of the farms in Brazil and the crops were grown along the slope. It maximizes soil erosion has the water quickly moves down the slope carrying way the top soil. The soiled water also pollutes the available water bodies.

Principles of leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Principles of leadership - Essay Example Some is derived from brute force, some from moral leadership. The truth is that leadership values of the past can easily be transferred to the present and to the future. Furthermore, leadership principles in one field—for example, politics or the military—can be transferred to another field such as business. A useful book on this subject is called Power Ambition Glory by Steve Forbes and John Prevas. In it they discuss many ideas about leadership and its role throughout history. They talk about how it has changed and how it has remained the same. In this book the authors describe the tactics and travails of a number of people such as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Xenophon. These mens lives have lessons for us today but also in a way parallel the lives of some of the most significant business leaders of the 20th and 21st centuries. Business leaders and generals and political leaders all lead high stress lives. Many people depend on them for everything and their decisions have enormous impact. It is therefore very useful to understand what works and what doesnt. The main thing is that leadership values have not changed much over the years and can generally be applied to almost any adventurous scenario. An adventure by nature is an endeavour that involves risk and the potential fo r great loss. In such situations you need a leader by your side to help take care of business. That is the same if you are crossing the Alps to attack Italy or if you are negotiation a big business deal which merge two very large multi-national companies. One of the best things about this book is how it covers so much ground so quickly. It provides an excellent overview of a number of historical periods and places. This part was a very exciting read. I knew little about Xenophon for example and his style of leadership. That was a model which is not often written about. This general style is very important: so many

Organizational Communication Issue of Toyota Research Paper

Organizational Communication Issue of Toyota - Research Paper Example But apologies regarding how the whole situation of information shared and communication with public has been done came much later. Toyota through press releases responded to the government, NHTSA’s queries and through this releases it tried to defend itself by refuting the claims made by Toyota users regarding the possible cause of faults in the vehicle. But in spite of this, Toyota had to pay a $16.4 million fine to NHTSA in USA on April 19, 2010. It was found out that Toyota face media scrutiny which leads to increased confusion of stake holders and their criticism and questions. Toyota’s failure to respond to the public and government in transparent way and it denied the problem until asked to take actions (May 100-107). An important function of organization is communication during crisis time. A crisis can cause financial loss, decreased confidence of stakeholders and buyers purchase intentions from the organization. To handle the communication training should be given to the spokesperson. To Lerbinger, Feran-Banks and Coombs, attention should be placed on media relation in crisis time. This was important for Toyota which gave late and vague response in media regarding recall of vehicle. Communication should include pre drafted messages from top management and news releases which can be used during crisis. Corporate Leadership Council  and Business Roundtable  supported the use of these templates. PR personnel will play a key role in drafting these messages. A separate website can be created for a crisis situation or a section in existing website could be devoted to deal with these. Stakeholders and media turn up to internet during crisis situation. Taylor and Kent in 2007 persuaded the use of internet during organizational crisis. Quick response by informing the media and stakeholders about the cause and nature of crisis from the side of organization is very necessary or

The benefits and drawbacks of digitalisation in educational sector Essay

The benefits and drawbacks of digitalisation in educational sector - Essay Example Some of these changes are positive whereas others are negative. This paper analyses the literature available through secondary research to know more about the benefits and drawbacks of information communication technology or digitalization in educational sector. Benefits of Digitalisation in Educational Sector Computer based technologies are normally used at the current educational sector which help the students and teachers to communicate and share information digitally. Word processing software like Microsoft Word and spread sheets like Microsoft Excel helps students immensely in creating instant documents and solving problems. Spelling checkers, dictionaries and readymade computer programs are available nowadays for corrections and calculations. Presentation software like Microsoft PowerPoint helps both teachers and students to express their views in a clear manner so that the mutual communication between the teacher and the students could be improved. Databases like Oracle, MS Ac cess etc help teachers to maintain digital records of students in a structured manner. In short, most of the curriculum functions are heavily dependent on the information communication technology at present. Internal and external networks like Local Area network (LAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN) are used specifically by schools and colleges to communicate each other. Interactive digital television (iDTV), as a relatively easy way to use technology, brings many challenges and opportunities into the field of education, i.e. formation and utilization of learning via TV, called t-learning. T-learning has many characteristics (i.e. technological or pedagogical aspects) that differentiate this type of education from other well elaborated... There are many drawbacks also associated with the digitalization of educational sector. Digitalization is an expensive act for educational sector. This paper outlines the problem of global digitalisation. This research is necessary to know more about the merits and demerits of digitalization in educational sector.The digital technology incorporated in educational sector should be user friendly. Otherwise teachers and students may stay away from it. Younger generation adapts more easily with the digitalization process in educational sector than the older generation. The world is getting digitalized more and more as time goes on. The introductions of computers, televisions, mobile phones and internet have created a digital culture which affects every segment of human life at present. The difference in culture between the current world and the world couple of decades before can be identified easily. It should be noted that the communication technologies a couple decades before was depen dent on analogue technology whereas it is heavily dependent on digital technologies at present.Creation of media rich environment in schools and homes is another advantage of digitalization of educational sector. Media plays a vital role in enhancing the quality of education. Students get substantial knowledge from media while they watch educational programs. Internet, email, televisions, tablets and mobile phones help students immensely in acquiring proper knowledge in their educational topics.

Litteracy narritve Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Litteracy narritve - Essay Example Hence, this paper explores how my impression on reading and writing have been influenced and affected by reading the Sherlock Holmes stories. First, through Sherlock Holmes stories I learned how to read and write in English. English is not my first language, and thus, I had to learn English as I was growing up. My greatest breakthrough in English was in high school when I discovered Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes. For instance, my interest in understanding fully the detective stories prompted me to improve my vocabulary. Initially, I was only able to read the shorter stories such as â€Å"A Scandal in Bohemia† and â€Å"The Red Headed League.† However, these did not have Sherlock Holmes, as the very first story Doyle wrote where he introduced Sherlock is A Study in Scarlet, which is a novella-length work. I first read the opening chapters of A Study in Scarlet just to see how Sherlock and Dr. Watson meet. However, the story really intrigued me, and I could not wait to finish the whole narrative. To ensure full understanding, I would often read the story with a dictionary, looking up difficult words that I wo uld encounter. For example, one particular part of A Study in Scarlet describes Sherlock playing the fiddle, and that the music he played was â€Å"sonorous and melancholy† (Doyle 16). I distinctly remember ignoring these words during my first reading attempt of A Study in Scarlet, but I eventually looked at the definitions in the dictionary when I made a serious attempt to finish the novella. Thus, I was able to expand my vocabulary, which made me realize how reading literary work in a particular language is helpful in improving reading and writing in that language. Second, from the Sherlock Holmes stories I learnt the importance of logical organization and unity in a written work. A large part of what makes the detective genre so interesting is not only the mysteries, but also, how these mysteries are solved. While some of

Faith and Hope in Business Essay Example for Free

Faith and Hope in Business Essay Faith in business is having trust and confidence in whatever you set out to do, regardless of circumstances or condition, such as economic recession or an entitys ability to continue as a going concern. Faith in business is some fixed points of reference for business leaders to stay ethically and professionally. Faith in business is like a compass for many CEOs. For Ford Motor Company, Episcopalian is the compass for Henry Ford. For Whole Food, Buddhism is the compass for John Mackey. Hope in business is the belief that things will get better, whether the financial data or evidence indicates it will or not. Hope in business is like a road in the world; there was never a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into existence. The difference between faith and hope in business is that hope always looks to the future, while faith is now. Moreover, hope is a subset of faith. Entrepreneurs must have hope to have faith, but they don’t have to have faith to have hope. Faith always inspired entrepreneurs to do fearless action, but hope doesn’t do that. Faithful business does not always aim at profit; one of the most typical examples of this is Chick-fil-A, a company that has been well known for operating on Christian principles and values. To honor the biblical teaching to rest on the Sabbath, Chick-fil-A always closes on Sundays, thus forgoing one of the highest revenue days of the week for the restaurant industry. Another typical example of faith in business is the operation of the Grameen Bank Project, which object was to extend banking facilities to poor locals in rural Bangladesh. On the other hand, hope in business can be just simply that entrepreneurs hope their entities could make an acquisition in the future, such as Google hope to acquire Linux and replace Chrome OS to have their own official OS exclusively for PCs and combine it with all the Features and Design of Chrome OS to become more powerful than ever.

Classroom Management Plan Essay Example for Free

Classroom Management Plan Essay I will provide the right environment for all students to learn. I will generate energy, ideas and opportunities to foster student achievement. I will motivate learners to high academic achievement. I will care for, love and understand my students. I will center my decision making about curriculum around my students. I will never feel that I cannot better myself as a teacher. My Philosophical Beliefs About Teaching In evaluating my philosophy for my future teaching career, I have been very seriously considering my values and beliefs about discipline, my own management style and the social goals for my students. As organization is one of my top priorities as a student, I will strive to be as organized as possible when I start my career. My goal is to organize the logistics of my classroom so that I can make my classroom student-centered instead of teacher-centered. I value the education process, and young minds and new ideas never cease to intrigue me. I am committed to making my classroom a safe and challenging environment and engaging my students through the curriculum as well as getting to know them and interacting with them one-on-one. I believe that meeting the needs of my students is a very crucial part of my classroom. I want them to be comfortable with the other students, as well as me, so that there can be meaningful discussions and interactions. Talking will be common place in my classroom, along with group work. I want to encourage all students to participate in class so that they can learn from each other as well as me. I want to have a democratic and equitable classroom so that students can learn. I want to be a fair as I can be, so the students trust me. I feel that I have a very patient and calm attitude with my class. I ask students about their life outside of class and feel that they respond in class even more, knowing that someone is paying attention to them. I want them to feel comfortable asking questions of me. I think my attitude towards the students is not overbearing or authoritative. I do not believe in forcing the students to do anything. I want to work with them in all circumstances so that we can achieve together and they do not feel like I am spoon-feeding them information. I want students to be a part of their learning. I want to motivate students to learn and keep their interest by using engaging curriculum. I want to involve students in rules about the classroom as well as what curriculum they would like to study. I believe if students feel they are involved in the workings of the classroom, they will be more motivated to engage in the class and in turn, learn. In order to be as organized as possible, the structure of my classroom will be variable, allowing me to change parts of my plan from year to year. I realize that this management plan is a work in progress and what I value now as important points to address in my first management plan may eventually come easily to me with experience and other issues of management may require more attention than those I have addressed. In order for my classroom management plan to be effective it needs to align with my beliefs and values. Therefore, I have chosen the theories and practices that reflect my personal teaching style. There are numerous beliefs and practices that serve as the foundation on which I am building my classroom management plan. I believe that the teacher and students should work cooperatively together in order to create a safe and inviting classroom. Linda Albert’s Cooperative Discipline theory emphasizes that the teacher and students should work together to make class decisions. Albert recommends informing and involving the students’ parents in class decisions as well. This can be accomplished by implementing what Albert refers to as the Three C’s: connections, contributions, and capabilities. I agree with Albert that the classroom should be safe and free of threat for all students. The classroom should be a place that the students feel welcome. If the students are contributing to the class, they will feel as if they are an asset to the class. Finally, I believe that the teacher and students should work together because it is essential to developing a community of learners. I believe in creating a code of conduct cooperatively as a class. This belief coincides with Linda Albert’s Cooperative Discipline as well. A class code of conduct indicates how students are expected to behave instead of how they should not behave. Albert states that the teachers and students should work together to determine consequences for when a student does not follow the class code of conduct. When the students are involved in the determining the consequences, Albert feels the students are more likely to follow them because they are connected to them. I believe that having a class code of conduct in the classroom allows the students to know how they are expected to behave. The students will be more likely to remember what is expected of them because they were involved in creating the expectations. Therefore, the students feel as if the expectations are reasonable and can be met. I like that the teacher is not telling the students how to behave. I feel that students should play an active role in the classroom, and that students are capable of making good decisions. I will be sure to place the code of conduct in a visible spot in the classroom so the students can refer back to it. I believe in using â€Å"I-messages† to communicate my feelings to the students. This practice is introduced by Thomas Gordon in his theory of Discipline through Inner Self-Control. â€Å"I-messages† allow the teacher to share their personal opinion with the students in a non-threatening way. On the other hand, â€Å"you-messages† blame the students for their behavior which causes the students to become defensive. I believe that the teacher should have open communication with students, but in a positive way that creates a safe environment. This method could be taught to the students as well in order to help them solve conflicts. I believe that teachers should encourage their students. William Glasser refers to teachers who provide encouragement to their students as â€Å"lead teachers†. Glasser states that teachers should not try to force information into their students. This makes common sense to me because who likes to be forced to do something. I agree with Glasser that the students’ motivation to learn resides within themselves. It will be my job as a teacher to spark their interest to learn. Therefore, as a teacher I will need to create engaging activities, and be there to provide support to the students as necessary. I believe in creating a sense of community in my classroom. Alfie Kohn mentions that classrooms should be â€Å"learning communities in Beyond Discipline. A classroom should be a place where the students feel cared about and are encouraged to care about others. Eventually, the students will begin to feel connected to one another and see themselves as part of the whole class. I believe that in order for my classroom to be an effective learning environment the students need to feel comfortable. A sense of community will encourage my students to be active participants in class matters. I believe that the teacher should teach â€Å"life skills† to the students so that they can be successful not only in the classroom, but in life as well. Kagan, Kyle, and Scott’s Win-Win Strategies promote the use of â€Å"life skills† in the classroom. They refer to â€Å"life skills† such as self-control, anger management, good judgment, and empathy. These theorists believe that if the students require these skills they will be able to live more successfully. I believe that teachers are responsible for preparing students for life so this theory matches my belief. After my students leave my classroom, I want to see them succeed in life. I am strong believer that one needs to be the change that one wants to see in the world so I will model these â€Å"life skills† for my students. I believe that a teacher should handle behavior problems privately. If the teacher must get involved, Glasser believes that the teacher should do so in way that does not punish the student. I am going to take this one step farther, and say that the teacher should talk to this student in private about his/her behavior. Hopefully, the student and I will be able to determine a longterm solution for the behavior problem. I believe that students should be taught procedures in order to maximize their learning and show them responsibility. The Wong’s Pragmatic Classroom Management Plan supports this belief. Harry and Rosemary Wong state that most students will act responsibly if taught the procedures to do so. They believe students’ achievement is affected by how well the procedures are laid out and taught to them. I agree with Harry and Rosemary Wong that procedures are an important aspect of a classroom. I believe that procedures provide students with a structure that lets them know what is expected of them. This will help cut down on disruptions if the students are not confused about what they are supposed to be doing. Management Plan Goals Having the right environment for all students to learn. The ability to manage childrens behavior. Students will have a complete understanding of the classroom rules. Keep parents involved and â€Å"in the know† of their child and the classroom. Instructional strategies will be taught to the best of my ability. Physical Environment The importance and variety of a properly designed early childhood classroom cannot be over-emphasized when providing a learning environment for children. I will provide in my classroom safe and orderly spaces, filled with a variety of materials that will make the classroom more satisfying for both the teacher and the children. Furthermore, well-designed areas will decrease the number of conflicts that may arise. Quite naturally, any space must accommodate all the activities it will be required to house. Therefore, when making my classroom environment safe and orderly, I must make accommodations to have certain spaces to be multipurpose. It will be very important to make sure these areas, as well as other areas in the classroom, are filled with a variety of materials organized into appropriate activity areas. Clearly defined interest areas will allow young children to work best in small groups where they can learn to relate to other children, establish friendships, and solve problems together. The use of low furniture in these areas will allow me to see into all areas while at the same time giving children a sense of privacy. Use of low furniture also helps define work spaces that help children concentrate because they will not be distracted by other activities taking place in other areas. These different areas will be defined by what activities will be taking place in them. For example, I will have such areas as: dramatic play, art area, building area, science/sensory area, game area, and quiet area. I will also make sure to provide an area where children can relax and be alone with friends. This space will have large pillows, beanbags, and carpet. This so called â€Å"soft area† is very important for young children because it is important to their mental health and it promotes positive behavior because children who spend long hours in a group environment need time to themselves where they can rest. When it comes to supplies and materials in the room, they should be displayed on low shelves where children can reach what they need. This helps promote independence because the children will be responsible in getting materials out and putting them away. When displaying materials on shelves they must be in the area where they will be used. I will place labels and pictures showing where each object belongs. Logical grouping of materials promotes their appropriate use. Labeling the place for each object helps children maintain a clean and orderly environment. When it comes to the teacher’s supplies and materials, I will keep them up and away from the children so that they cannot access them. When the children walk through the door, they will be hit with all different colors coming from the pictures and posters on the walls. I hope to have a room with big windows that allow for natural lighting. The pictures I will have on the wall will be displayed on the children’s eye level, thus children will take better notice. I will also display the work of the children. Displaying their original artwork shows them respect and value for their hard work and effort. One last important thing to me, when it comes to the physical environment of my classroom, is that I will make sure the classroom materials will reflect the cultural richness of our society, the backgrounds and life experiences of the children, and people with different abilities. Children need materials they can relate to through past experiences, before they are asked to learn new concepts. A respect for diversity is important for identity and self-esteem. Behavior Management Many disputes and conflicts can be prevented by careful planning and with positive adult support. There is always a reason behind children’s behavior. Misbehavior is usually directed at achieving one of four goals: revenge, power, attention, and/or feelings of adequacy. I know I can’t force a child to change his or her way of behaving, I can only change the way I behave with the child. My ultimate goal in behavior management and child guidance is not to manage children’s behavior, but to help children manage their own behavior. I am aware that conflict situations provide important learning opportunities for children. Therefore, when it comes to classroom management, I will not deprive the children these opportunities to learn problem-solving skills. My role as a teacher in children’s conflicts is to de-escalate them when the children can no longer work out their problems by themselves. When I communicate with the children in my classroom I will use â€Å"I† statements instead of â€Å"you† statements. I will use gentle body language and make sure that I listen to both sides of the issue. I will try to focus on the present and future of the child’s behavior instead of past behavior. Also, I will focus on the child’s behavior and not the child. Most importantly I will keep in my mind the needs of each child and their best interest when it comes to fixing their misbehavior, and not focus on my best interest. My classroom rules will consist of four basic principles. Those four basic principles will be caring, honesty, respect, and responsibility. I believe any rule thought up by a child can fit into one of these four basic principles. For example, if a child is not keeping their body to themselves, they are not respecting the other child’s space. That is why I will not have a list of rules in my classroom, but rather have these four principles posted in my classroom where every child will see them. Therefore, when a child is not following the rules I will state what they are doing wrong and how it relates to one of the four principles. When it comes to classroom management and discipline, I will not use punishment, but logical consequences. There are two types of logical consequences. They are naturally occurring consequences and imposed consequences. Naturally occurring consequences usually occur when the problem belongs to the individual on whom the consequences fall. For example, Sally leaves her coat out on the playground and when she goes back for it, the coat is gone. I then say to her, I am sorry that it is gone and tell her it is her responsibility to keep track of it. Imposed consequences often occur when a behavior creates a problem for another person who then must impose consequences in order to change the behavior of the individual creating the problem. When I impose logical consequences on the children in my classroom I will try to keep certain things in my mind. Such things as being a consultant in helping the child solve his or her own problem. Keep the burden of the solution on the child and not me while implying that the child is capable of solving his or her own problem. I must also tie the time and/or place of the misbehavior to the consequence. These are just a couple of ways I will try to manage children’s behavior in my classroom. Parent Communication One of the most vital parts of teaching children and managing a classroom is communicating with their families. There is no one right way to communicate with parents, therefore as a teacher, I have to utilize many different methods to communicate with parents to build rapport. One of the first methods I am going to use is a parent board. On the parent board will be pictures of the activities the children have been doing and other information such as the weekly curriculum and things the children have to bring from home to school. I will have the parent board on a table where there will also be a notebook where parents can leave me messages, and where I can leave them messages. I will also have monthly newsletters to the parents that I will set out on the parent table. Another way I will communicate with parents is by having parents come into the classroom and be a classroom helper. I would try to get every parent to come into the classroom at least one time during the school and spend the day with their child or at least a couple hours. This would help me to get to know the parents of the children I teach and this would give me a good chance to build rapport with the parents so that communication will be made easier. Some of the most basic methods I will use to help me communicate with parents are by use of the telephone. I will call parents when need be and make sure that they know they can call me when needed. Finally, the last way I will communicate with parents is by talking to them face to face. Things I know to remember when talking to a parent are to first approach them with a smile or pleasant look and then introduce myself if I have not ever done so in the past. I will always try to start out the conversation with the parent with something positive about their child. If I were communicating with the parent because of a problem their child is having in my class, I would first tell them the issue at hand and then offer some possible solutions. I then would tell them what I want their role to be after I let them talk about what solutions they have. If they need to further talk to me I would offer them other times they can talk to me. I also would give them other possible people to talk to if they feel that they need to. When communicating with a parent I want them to feel that they can ask me questions about their child’s education or other issues they might have. If I can’t answer their questions, I will flat out tell them I don’t know the answer, but I will find out. I also will make sure not to make promises I can’t keep. If need be, I will always make myself available for a teacher-parent conference when scheduled ahead of time Instructional Strategies and Methods When it comes to instructional planning in my classroom I am going to start with the Pennsylvania Academic Standards. The reason I am going to start with the standards is because in the classroom the students are working towards a goal, and those goals should be set higher than the standards. If I do not teach my students to at least the level of the Pennsylvania standards, then I have not set the goals high enough for my instructional planning. If I set goals for my instructional planning, that gives me a start in what direction I need to go in my lesson planning. The second step I am going to take in my instructional planning is assessment. I have to measure the progress of achieving my goals by doing assessments of my students. Two kinds of assessment I will be doing are what you would call summative assessment and diagnostic assessment. The summative assessment will be tests, examinations, final projects, or other things depending on grade level of the students. These types of assessments will tell me if the students are learning the objectives and making progress towards meeting the goals. On the other hand I will use diagnostic forms of assessments when it comes to planning on how far I have to go to get my students to reach the goals or in meeting the standards. I will use diagnostic assessment at the beginning of the school year and before I begin each new unit. The third step in my instructional planning is planning for the long-term. My long-term plan will be as simple as planning my year end academic goals and group those goals into some discrete units to make sure that I cover my long-term academic goals. When it comes to the delivery of my lessons, I am going to keep it as simple as possible. Even though there are many different formats of lesson plans I can use, there is one general way I can make all the different types of lesson plans fit me. Using the following format to teach my lessons will help my students obtain the goals and objectives of my lessons. The format I will use is to first introduce the lesson. Then have an opening to the lesson, which is when I will tell the students what they will learn and why it is important. Next, I introduce the new material and teach it to the students. Afterwards, I allow time for guided practice and then independent practice. These two areas are where I make some informal assessments to check to see if the students learned the objectives. Last, but not least comes the closing. This is where I stress the connection of the lesson and check the students understanding by doing some type of assessment, usually a summative form of assessment. Schedules and Routines. When I go to a class, I like to see a schedule of what we are working on for the day. I believe that all students should be given this courtesy of knowing what is going to be happening during the school day by reading a daily schedule of the day’s activities. I will always have the schedule posted at the front of the class, each day updating any changes in the schedule. In addition, I will list the specifics of the day: for instance, what we are working on that day in math. I have seen schedules that list the basic outline of the day: math, language arts, social studies, lunch and science. I would like to take the schedule one step farther and include some details about the day and what will be happening. Not only are daily schedules helpful for students to see what is happening during a given school day, but my daily schedule will allow me to evaluate my the activities in my classroom, assuring that the type and variety of activities are appealing to different types of learning situations. Also, I want to find a good balance between teacher directed instruction, independent work and cooperative group work. Repetitious activities can sometimes impede the school day as it may evoke comments such as â€Å"We’re doing this again? † However, having routines in which students can predict what will happen can ease the transition from the bus, car or the walk to school to the classroom. To be specific, I will have a beginning of the day routine and an end of the day routine, so that I maintain consistency each day and convey the message that in our class, we use all of our time together to learn and we do not like to waste time. For my start of the day routine, I will play music as the students walk in. I will play quiet music that sets the tone for the day: a warm and relaxing learning environment where we are safe and ready to learn. I will have a welcome message posted on the board with a list of housekeeping items to do before we get settled for the day: sharpen pencils, turn in homework, put coats and backpacks away. In addition to this everyday welcome, I will have a list of activities that students can work on from previous days of school, including plenty of options to accommodate those that have finished all of their work. Also, I will greet my students as they enter the classroom, talking to each student as they get settled for their day, ensuring that I get to see each student and have contact with each one first thing in the morning. At the end of the day, I will take the last ten minutes to wrap up the day. I will post an end of the day wrap up list on the overhead for students to use a guide to get ready to go home. I will have mailboxes with the days handouts in them and my students can collect these handouts and place them in their â€Å"take home† folder. Then I will ask groups to get their backpacks and put away all of their materials. I will ask that they clear off their desks and the area on the floor around their desks so that the custodian does not have to clean up after us. As the students line up to go home, I will have my goodbye salutation: a piece of poster paper with four types of goodbyes: a handshake, high five, or smile. The students can pick any combination of these goodbyes when the leave. I want to have this goodbye so that I can be sure to have contact with each of my students before they leave for to go home. In doing this, I want to convey to my students that I care about them and I want to wish them a safe trip home and tell them that I look forward to seeing them tomorrow. By having structured routines for the beginning and end of the day, I will be setting the tone for the school day. For the beginning of the day, I want to imply that we structure our mornings so that we can get off to a good start with our minds and materials ready for the day. At the end of the day, I want to bring the day to a close with daily routine to ensure that my students understand that every part of our school day together is as valuable as any other part. Individualization In order to promote individualization and responsible behavior, I will implement a job chart where students will have jobs throughout the week. I will have paper passers, overhead cleaners, board erasers, recyclers, lunch duty, and line leaders. I will introduce these jobs on the first day of school and assign jobs to random students. Emphasizing the importance of the jobs will enhance the students’ desire to have the job to demonstrate their responsible behavior. I will have a policy stating that any student who cannot demonstrate responsible behavior and reliably complete their job will have to give up their job title and a different student will get their job. I have seen such a job system in another classroom in which I worked and this system was very successful in creating a sense of responsibility among students. Reflection As I complete my management plan, I feel that I am fully prepared to teach tomorrow. However, I know that that is not the case. My management plan will forever be growing and changing. My management plan focuses on the students’ needs in my class. By organizing many structured components of the school, I am attempting to prepare myself for any discipline problems that may occur. I will organize many aspects of my class before the year starts, but I will also sit down with my students during the first weeks of school and have discussions about rules and expectations to determine what they need from me and from each other. While I know that some misbehavior will occur in my classroom, I am instituting this plan to assist me in dealing with these issues as they occur. I believe classroom management is the key that unlocks the ability for children to learn and in creating an environment where children feel safe. I will set high expectations and encourage my students to succeed. Finally, my classroom management will not only be about creating a good rapport with the students, but creating a rich and engaging curriculum. | | | | | | | | | | | | References Albert, Linda, Pete DeSisto, and Linda Albert. (1996) Cooperative Discipline. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service. Web. Guillaume, Andrea M. (2004). K-12 Classroom Teaching: A Primer for New Professionals. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Merrill/Prentice Hall. Print.