Tuesday, December 31, 2019
Sals Enlightenment in Mexico in Jack Kerouacs, On the Road
In A Mexico Fellaheen from Lonesome Traveler, Jack Kerouac describes crossing the border between America and Mexico: Its a great feeling of entering the Pure Land, especially because its so close to dry faced Arizona and Texas and all over the Southwest B but you can find it, this feeling, this fellaheen feeling about life, that timeless gayety of people not involved in great cultural and civilization issues (22). Mexico is at once close to America and yet distinct from it, a Pure Land removed from the fallout of Spenglers crumbling Western civilization. By acknowledging its primitive innocence, Kerouac calls attention to the difference between the ideal of freedom and pastoral harmony represented by Mexico and the reality ofâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦In Mexico, the hot climate, the drugs, and the fiery fever Sal contracts allow him to attain a measure of spirituality by purifying or essentially burning away what blurs his vision. He becomes able to see with a clarity of percepti on that evokes Emerson in its spirituality: all egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball. I am nothing. I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God (1075). Sals recovered ability to see all purely, transparently, allows him to understand and accept the contradictions and complexity that he finds in Mexico, and subsequently, he is able to understand and accept what he calls the impossible complexity (303) of Deans life. Once he can accept Dean with all his faults as a new kind of American saint (39), he is in a better position to understand America itself and to accept the complexity of the countrys postwar condition with its nuclear and communist paranoia, and its rampant consumerism. The novel seems to suggest that, if individuals could be made aware of their own spirituality, and accept complexity as a condition of modern culture, contemporary America could recover some of the timeless gayety that Kerouac refers to in Mexico Fellaheen. By an Emersonian act of self-reliance, people could better understand and accept the world as it is if they could better understand themselves. As Sal describes the steps that lead to his ownShow MoreRelatedEssay on Jack Kerouacs On the Road and Allen Ginsbergs Howl3843 Words à |à 16 PagesJack Kerouacs On the Road and Allen Ginsbergs Howl Works Cited It was a 1951 TIME cover story, which dubbed the Beats a ââ¬ËSilent Generation, ââ¬â¢ that led to Allen Ginsbergââ¬â¢s retort in his poem ââ¬ËAmerica,ââ¬â¢ in which he vocalises a frustration at this loss of self- importance. The fifties Beat Generation, notably through Jack Kerouacââ¬â¢s On the Road and Allen Ginsbergââ¬â¢s Howl#61482; as will here be discussed, fought to revitalise individuality and revolutionise their censored society which seemed to
Sunday, December 22, 2019
Disease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Essay
Disease trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Dana Riddle HCA/240 April 20, 2013 Brian Eigelbach University of Phoenix Disease trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services The current age composition of the United States population according to the 2010 Census was 308.7 million people on April 1, 2010. There is an increase of 9.7 % since 2000. The data shows that the male population grew 9.9%, which is more rapidly than the female population, which was 9.5%. Out of 308.7 million people, 151.8 were male and 157 million were female. People under the age of 18 were 112.8; people of age 45-64 were 81.5 million. The 40.3 million people of the 308.7 were age 65 and over (Howden, Meyer, 2011). According to University of Phoenixâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦High cholesterol causes build up called atherosclerosis and this narrows ones heart arteries which causes heart attack, angina, or even sudden death. Hypertension can harden and thicken ones arteries. This makes the vessels that blood travels through narrow, therefore not enough blood flows through the heart to the rest of the organs in the body. Dia betes and obesity can also contribute to heart disease and you must learn how to control your weight and blood glucose (Heart Disease, 2011). When the blood supply to you brain decreases and oxygen is not delivered it could cause a Stroke. The brain cells die within minutes if oxygen is not delivered to the brain tissue. If you a suffering a stroke you should seek immediate medical attention. Immediate treatment is critical because it can lessen brain damage and possible problems. In order to avoid having stroke you have to control your cholesterol, blood pressure, and smoking. Strokes can be prevented and treated. (Stroke, 2011). If you start taking care of yourself early in life health complications related to aging can be reduced. Two examples for reducing health complications related to aging are, stop smoking and lose excess weight. You can prevent heart disease, depression, high cholesterol, fatty liver disease, type 2 diabetes, other kinds of cancer and osteoarthritis by losi ng excess weight (Obesity, 2011). When you stopShow MoreRelatedDisease Trends And The Delivery Of Health Care Services1703 Words à |à 7 Pages Disease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Brittany Bigger HCA/240 11/30/2014 Disease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services In the health care field, there are many different findings and discoveries happening each day. While population in the world increases, there are more developments of bacterial disease being discovered. Looking back at our countryââ¬â¢s past, many of the diseases we have now wasnââ¬â¢t thought of back then nor was a threat to peopleââ¬â¢s lives as big as itRead MoreDisease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services1866 Words à |à 8 PagesDisease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services The health care delivery services have changed dramatically over the years, this service has made some major improvements since it began. Within todayââ¬â¢s health care system advancements have been made to prolong life expectancies and a personââ¬â¢s quality of life. As everyone knows the cost of providing health care is expensive and not always easy to accomplish. The cost, accessibility, along with the quality of care is a challenge that theRead MoreDisease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Essay1457 Words à |à 6 PagesDisease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Final Project Axia college 1/15/2012 Many health care professional have great concerns about the growth of the aging population, chronic disease and the epidemic of obesity, and how will the United States healthcare system prepared for this continuing epidemic. The fact that the aging population along with obesity epidemic is a global healthcare concern, many health caresââ¬â¢ professional is baffled about how to address the growing epidemicRead MoreDisease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Essay1821 Words à |à 8 PagesFinal Project Disease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Ana Vega HCA 240 January 29, 2012 Itta Aswad Disease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services It is amazing how much the health care delivery services have changed and improved over the years. Today, the health care systems have advanced by prolonging life expectancy and quality of life. Though, providing health care is not cheap and easy to do. Cost, accessibility, and quality is a challenge that they face inRead MoreDisease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Essay1814 Words à |à 8 PagesFinal Project Disease Trends and the Delivery of Health Care Services Melinda Schimmel HCA/240 4/14/2013 Pukar Ratti Aging The aging population is also known as demographic aging and is described as the shift in age distribution. The current population trend in the United Sates is the working age group comprised of people ranging from ages 20-65 years old. Over the next forty years, the population is expected to be made up mostly of the retired age or people over the age of 65 and theRead MoreDemographics And Diseases Trends May Influence The Delivery Of Health Care Services1701 Words à |à 7 Pagesessay about, ââ¬Å"Demographics and Diseases Trends likely to influence the Delivery of Health Care Services.â⬠Starting with the age group population in the United States at ten to twenty years, then obesity, and then the future to adapt to the health care services. However, the factors that can identify are the environment support and change of trends. In the passage, the writer will talk about aging obesity, and the future of the health care provided. The common diseases examples that will be listedRead MorePolitical and Economic Trends in Human Service Delivery Essay1335 Words à |à 6 Pagesand Economic Trends in Human Service Delivery Economic and political events relate to current trends in the human service field with the intentions of meeting the growing needs of people everywhere. High financing requirements provide clients with services in various areas, which are critical to their well-being. Unfortunately, this task is becoming harder by the day to contend with, and the client suffers when quality care is unavailable. According to ââ¬Å"Human Services in a Time of EconomicRead MoreInpatient Outpatient Hospital Care1106 Words à |à 5 PagesHospitalization To Ambulatory Care Services (2010) from the Researchomatic. Retrieved on 09/05 , 2014 noted ambulatory care Sensitive situation are those for which good outpatient care can possibly avert the need for hospitalization, or for which early intervention can avert difficulties or more critical disease Although hospitalization rates are leveraged by socioeconomic components for example scarcity . I will discuss and compares inpatients care and ambulatory care on bases of scope andRead MoreStrategic Marketing Management And Tactics951 Words à |à 4 PagesMarketing Management and Tactics in the Services Industry Strategic Healthcare Serviceââ¬â¢ Management ABSTRACT Healthcare is a service industry and broadly includes hospitals, health technologies and people i.e. skilled doctors and nurses. Healthcare organizations are complex, diverse in nature and need to improve quality while maintaining optimum cost. Patient is the customer hence healthcare service quality is nothing but perceived satisfaction by patient. Prevalent trends in healthcare industry i.e. emergingRead MoreFuture Trends in Health Care1337 Words à |à 6 PagesFuture Trends in Health Care HCS/533 November 29, 2010 Future Trends in Health Care Personal face-to-face communication is and will continue to be the foundation of the patient- physician relationship. Electronic communication between caregivers and patient through telephones web-sites and e-mail are forcing medical staff and physicians to rethink the way they provide care to the patients, the accessibility to on-line health and wellness information. Home monitoring systems, personal health
Saturday, December 14, 2019
Bound Man Free Essays
The Bound Man by Ilse Aighinger The thing that I found most compelling in the story ââ¬Ëââ¬ËThe Bound Manââ¬â¢Ã¢â¬â¢ was that the man was not worried about being released from the rope, rather he wanted to be bound and with that disadvantage he learned to adapt with it and live life as if he wasnââ¬â¢t bound at all. The reason why I find his situation and his own reaction to it so compelling is because while I was reading the story, I was putting myself in his situation and I would not of thought to react in such a way as he. In the beginning, where the man had awoken from his sleep to find that he was bound, he found happiness in that situation. We will write a custom essay sample on Bound Man or any similar topic only for you Order Now Through out the story there were people who were amused by his situation, but also had sympathy in which the bound man was completely against; he took that situation and made it seem like it was not a problem, that perplexed me. ââ¬â But still I find it all truly compelling. â⬠His arms were tied to each other but not to his body, and had some free play too. This made him smile. â⬠pg. 68-69 Even though his arms were not tied to his body, I felt myself becoming uncomfortable. To wake up bounded, I would see no good in that situation besides still being alive. Not only was he bounded, he was outside and woke up to flies around him which made the situation even worse. I read this story and put myself in his position; I could only contradict all his actions. My perspective comes from me not being an outside person whatsoever. I come from a family that if decided, we even go camping or to a national park, we donââ¬â¢t go in tents we rent out a cabin, lodge or a hotel. I wasnââ¬â¢t raised to be an outside person or to even like animals, so when I think of waking up to flies and being tied up outside I think of myself going crazy, screaming for help. It amazed me however, to see that someone can wake up in the position the bound man was in, without crying out for help. It seems carless to me, carless about lifeâ⬠¦ But also so brave and courageous because through his situation he built strength and adapted to being bound, something I wouldnââ¬â¢t of ever been capable to do. â⬠These antics amused the bound man because he could have freed himself if he had wanted to whenever he liked, but perhaps he wanted to learn a few new jumps firstâ⬠pg 73. The bound man was amused by the antics the people in the circus tried in order to set him free. There was many cases that the man could of freed himself, but he didnââ¬â¢t. He wanted his body to get used to these ropes and he was going to make the best out of his situation and learn from it. To my surprise, the bound man had ran into a wolf and was able to protect himself, even with being limited to movement. This man was powerful. The fact that he found a way to take action and be positive with being bound and refused to free himself, gained him a lot of power. He was the victim at first because he was robbed and bound, but he became the one in power by overcoming it, and not letting it stop him from anything. In my opinion, the ones who can overcome huge obstacles in life are truly the ones with the most power and strength. When I think of bound ââ¬Ëââ¬ËMANââ¬â¢Ã¢â¬â¢ I think of strong and fearless. Men are believed to have a lot of pride and to not show their weaknesses; they want to be looked at as superior, and in the story I think the bound man was superior. People were interested in him and his life, but didnââ¬â¢t understand his purposed. I tend to appreciate people who are very positive because it changes my perspective on how I live my life. I often feel like I react off of little things, and make small situations bigger then they are. When something goes wrong, I feel like everything is wrong and nothing can be fixed. As an example. Last week my shoulder was dislocated, I felt helpless and I had 2 feet and another arm that could be used. With just my one arm not being able to function like it normally can, I was upset and angry and acted like the whole world was over. I didnââ¬â¢t do anything besides taking pain medication and lay in my room. This story brought about a different perspective on how I reacted to my shoulder. I could of been happy that at least my shoulder was put back in place, and that it was a minor issue and would be back to normal soon. But I am a dramatic person, and Iââ¬â¢ve never looked at the good side of things, which is something I wish I did. As a result to the man being bound he became powerful. The condition the bound man was in and the actions he took during, gained him strength. I do believe that there is a consequence to everything you do. Whether it be good or bad, is how you react upon the situation. At the end of the story when the circus proprietor decided that telling the people in the village the bound man had killed a wolf, he though that there would be a good consequence out of doing that; to ââ¬Ëââ¬â¢revive the triumphs of the summerââ¬â¢Ã¢â¬â¢. He was wrong, his actions lead to the bound man having to prove his superior. And because people did not believe in his superior he was forced to prove himself by being in a cage with a wolf. Not only did he kill the wolf, but he was no longer one with his rope. The proprietors wife did not believe in the bound mans power, so she cut him free of his rope while he was in the cage. The consequence of her actions lead to there being no point in killing the wolf, the man was now unbound and he no longer had a purpose. So he shot the wolf instead. Without his bound the man felt weak, and blood rushed to his feet. Her actions not only lead to the death of the wolf, but soon to the death of the man himself. ââ¬â The way that the bound man saw his situation had a consequence as well. It gained him power, and he learned to do new thing with just a little amount of movement, and with that I felt the story was compelling. Reading this story changed my whole perspective on how I react to certain things. It made me think that it would be so much easier in the long run if you just see the bright side of bad situationsâ⬠¦ But also, to not have so much pride that you feel you must prove yourself to others, because that itself, can lead to bad consequences. 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Friday, December 6, 2019
International Business Fletcher International Exports
Question: Discuss about theInternational Businessfor Fletcher International Exports. Answer: Introduction In current state of international business, the rise of the ethical business has become much significant. The growth of the business ethics has the steady growth with the rise of the international business. According to Sidani (2015), the emergence of advanced technologies like internet has transformed the international business much viable. The study will focus on the maintenance of the international business ethics in special reference with the case scenario of Fletcher International Exports Pty Ltd. It is a family company that supplies the Halal Slaughtered Sheep and Lamb meant from Australia to North African and Middle East Countries (Fletchint.com.au 2017). Background of the Company Fletcher International Exports is the family owned company that supplies the Halal Slaughter Meat from Australia to the countries of North Africa and Middle East. The company is located in different locations in Australia, such as Western Australia, New South Wales, Narrikup, and Dubbo. The company has the vast capacity of slaughtering, processing and directly marketing the slaughtered meats over 4 million every year. The company even has the adequate and wide knowledge in regards to the trading and working with both the region and government. The region has even consistently comprised almost 25-33% of the business as far as the revenue is concerned (Buywesteatbest.org.au 2017). Mission of the Business It has been observed that Australia has the scope to export the beef and Halal Meats to the Middle East and North Africa. However, the restriction from the government is controlling the slaughter system and the exporting process of the slaughtered meats to other countries. However, the exporting business of the slaughtered meats would be beneficial enough in increasing the economic value of the Australian country (Buywesteatbest.org.au 2017). Moreover, the direct exporting with Middle East and North Africa will also consider a greater scope to grow in this business. Therefore, the company is focusing on minimising the issues related to the trade barriers and the government approvals. The mission of the company is to establish the legalised business by targeting other countries even. The company also aims at promoting the future growth in an efficient way. Managing Country Risks It is to be indicated that the business expansion is justified if the foreign countries have been offering the higher profit. In order to undertake the international business process, some of the major obligations are also much concerned (Tan Ko 2014). The case scenario is also ensuring the recognisable country risks in order to export the Australian Halal slaughtered meat to the Middle East and North African countries. However, as per the case scenario, some of the country risks are identified. These identified risks are discussed further: Australia is a Christian country with a minimal amount of Muslims. Hence, the restrictions come from the government in exporting the Halal Slaughtered beef and lamb to the other countries (Kolk 2016). The Australian farming sector is also facing some of the recognisable risks in technical and trading aspects. The legalised documents are necessary from all embassies in Canberra except Saudi Arabia. It is necessary to pay almost 250% tariffs in Morocco to export beef and sheep meat. In order to export the meat to Turkey, the tariff rate will be 225% (Farouk et al. 2014). The limited expiry on the chilled beef and sheep meat is also restricting the export business for the Australian business. The trouble with the food security is also one of the major concerns. Conclusion Most of the risks that Fletcher International Exporting is facing are concerned with the restriction of the Australian government in exporting the halal slaughtered meats to the different countries. Being a Christian country, Australian government does not permit the Australian firms to deal with the Islamic food cultures. However, apart from such risks, the barriers in the tariff rates and trading aspects are also creating more obligations for the company. However, eliminating these risks would consider fair dealing with the Middle East and North African countries for which Australian firms would be able to avail the opportunities in ensuring the economic growth. References Buywesteatbest.org.au, 2017. Fletcher International WA - Buy West Eat Best. [online] Buy West Eat Best. Available at: https://www.buywesteatbest.org.au/blog/great-southern/fletcher-international-wa/ [Accessed 25 Apr. 2017]. Enderle, G. 2015. Exploring and conceptualizing international business ethics.Journal of Business Ethics,127(4), 723-735. Farouk, M. M., Al-Mazeedi, H. M., Sabow, A. B., Bekhit, A. E. D., Adeyemi, K. D., Sazili, A. Q., and Ghani, A. 2014. Halal and Kosher slaughter methods and meat quality: A review.Meat Science,98(3), 505-519. Fletchint.com.au, 2017. Home - Fletcher International Exports. [online] Fletchint.com.au. Available at: https://www.fletchint.com.au/ [Accessed 25 Apr. 2017]. Kolk, A. 2016. The social responsibility of international business: From ethics and the environment to CSR and sustainable development.Journal of World Business,51(1), 23-34. Patrucco, A. S., Scalera, V. G., and Luzzini, D. 2016, July. Risks and governance modes in offshoring decisions: linking supply chain management and international business perspectives. InSupply Chain Forum: An International Journal(Vol. 17, No. 3, pp. 170-182). Taylor Francis. Sidani, Y. M. 2015. 14. Work ethics in GCC countries: current challenges and the road ahead.Handbook of Research on Islamic Business Ethics, 275. Tan, B., and Ko, S. 2014. An evolutionary logic towards the convergence of international business ethics.Society and Economy,36(4), 493-510
Friday, November 29, 2019
Timothy Ojiribe Essays (197 words) - Eastern Shore Of Maryland
Timothy Ojiribe 09/16/08 Freshman Exp. Founder's Day Convocation Today was a day of rejoicing and of happiness because it was the 122nd birthday and Founder's day Convocation of University of Maryland Eastern Shore. It was a commencement that showed who's who within the UMES world and their accomplishments. It gave an appearance of intelligence and years of hard work. Through the Convocation, they had many speakers who told a little about themselves and gave positive motivation to us, the students. It started off with Dr. Charles Williams, Vice President for Academic Affairs, who took the place of Dr. Thelma Thompson, our presiding President. He Introduced all of UMES' alumni and Speakers along with listening to UMES' Wind Ensemble. He also interested us with Some statistics that enlightened us about how and where UMES' funding comes from. Among the speakers who talked where Mr. Frank White, Mr. Jay Parker, who gave a saying from the illustrious author, Dr. Suess, and many more. Mrs. Dianna Rogers-Ford talked about how she came up from people feeling she was special case to her coming up as the person she is today. These speakers were giving a first hand look at the rags-to-riches theory and how any body can accomplish anything along with the full welcoming of UMES' Convocation.
Monday, November 25, 2019
Independence Day of India Essays
Independence Day of India Essays Independence Day of India Essay Independence Day of India Essay Independence Day of India Respected teachers and my friends, I wish you a happy Independence Day. India became independent on August 15, 1947 A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the newâ⬠¦India discovers herself again. J. L. Nehru On the eve of Indiaââ¬â¢s independence, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru famous speech ââ¬Å"Tryst with Destinyâ⬠marked the beginning of a free India with words symbolizing hope and triumph. India got its independence from the clutches of British rule on 15th August 1947. It was this day when Indiaââ¬â¢s tricolor flag was unfolded by Pandit Nehru on the barricades of the Red Fort at Delhi. Each and every patriotic soul watched with excitement and paid tribute to thousands of martyrs who sacrificed their lives for Indiaââ¬â¢s freedom. The Independence Day of India is a moment of delight and grandeur but to achieve it the nation had to put up a long battle for over two centuries against the British Empire. At last on 3rd June 1947, the last British Viceroy of India, Lord Mountbatten of Burma, declared the separation of the British Empire in India into India and Pakistan. The announcement was made under the terms of the Indian Independence Act 1947. Significance of Independence Day The significance of the Independence Day in the existence of a nation is of greater value. The day is much more than merely celebrating the anniversary of Indiaââ¬â¢s free statehood. On this day India attained a major part of Asian subcontinentââ¬â¢s 562 extensively spread territories besides British owned states. 5th August 1947 symbolizes the victory of Indian patriotism which the nation got after uncertain yet brutal struggle from the repression of the British colonialism. The British, who oppressed India for centuries had primarily arrived to initiate business but steadily captured the entire government of the nation. They educated the Indians and in the process generated enthusiasts who werenââ¬â ¢t hesitant in helping them expanding their regime. Men and women from all over India joined hands and fought for Indiaââ¬â¢s freedom. Many were acclaimed while others contribution went unnoticed. However, praise wasnââ¬â¢t what they desired for. It was the dream of free and autonomous India which motivated them to walk the path of struggle unselfishly. Neither did they battle for their region nor for their natives, but for India and Indians. At the time of growing communal and caste conflicts, it becomes significant to remind us that the people who laid the foundation of free India has always dreamt of an integrated nation. Hence, it is our duty to live and sustain their dreams, the sole reason for which Independence Day in India is observed. It is a day to pay a mark of respect to our saviors because of whom we are breathing an air of freedom which does not have the elements of exploitation and repression. Independence Day celebrations in India Independence Day is considered as a national holiday in India. The arrangement begins a month before the D-day and the roads are embellished with ribbons and Indian flags. Flag-hoisting ceremonies are executed all over India by state governments. However, the chief event is conducted in the capital city of India, New Delhi where the Prime Minister of India unfurls the tricolor at the barricades of Red Fort which receives a salutation of 21 guns, and addresses the nation with his speech. The Prime Ministerââ¬â¢s speech holds major importance as it pays tribute to the great souls who sacrificed their lives for nationââ¬â¢s independence and reveals the achievements of the nation during the past year beside discussing significant issues and proposing steps for further growth. A vibrant parade exhibiting Indiaââ¬â¢s cultural multiplicity, emblematic portrayals of the nationââ¬â¢s developments in science and technology, a collaborative parade of Indiaââ¬â¢s armed competencies by the three forces and patriotic skits and dramas by school children are an integral part of the Independence Day festivities. On this day the skyline of the capital city gets sprinkled with innumerable multicolored kites. People indulge in kite flying competitions and children cheer aloud elevating the spirit of the day.
Thursday, November 21, 2019
Organizational Behavior in the Workplace Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Organizational Behavior in the Workplace - Essay Example 3). While these three steps aim to improve a product, they also compel the manager to learn about organizational behavior. Organizational behavior refers to ââ¬Å"the study of factors,â⬠which influences employee behavior, as well as the factors that affect the response of the organization towards the behavior displayed by the employees. In reality, employees have positive and negative experiences in the workplace environment that may affect their motivation (George & Jones, 2012, p. 3). This situation makes it necessary for managers to develop organizational behavior tools, which may be taken up in the short term, and long term; tools that hopefully may mitigate the negative, and increase the positive experiences of employees in the workplace environment (George & Jones, 2012, p. 4). The manager has to begin at the individual level, and apply short term organizational behavior tools that will help unveil an employeeââ¬â¢s personality. Personality inventories may be conducte d to gauge the personality of an employee. In this method, the reaction of employees regarding statements that are in line with personality dimensions will be asked that will reveal their level of agreement or disagreement (Ashraf, n.d., p. 157). An assessment centre can also be developed that will guide employees in their career choices (Folsom & Boulware, 2004, p. 21). These tools will help the manager in developing motivational strategies that are in keeping with the preferences of the employees. Personality inventories and the evaluations done in the assessment centre are usually administered for a short period. After the individual level, organizational behavior tools that are intended to address issues at the group level have to follow, and be implemented for a long period. After the process of personality evaluation and enhancement, the manager has to focus on work motivation, and this has to include all employees. One way to enhance employee motivation level is by building q uality circles. Quality circles refer to ââ¬Å"semi autonomous work groupsâ⬠comprised of employees from the same work areas who regularly gather to talk over issues connected with their work responsibilities (Ashraf, n.d., p. 158). Constant communication is imperative to build a socially-dynamic workplace environment. The manager should encourage subordinates to form quality circles to inspire employees to engage themselves in activities that will help them connect with other employees and the company. It will be hard on the part of the managers to implement changes if employees do not fully trust them or the organization. Trust is something that can never be bought through extravagant rewards, or through flowery words. The trust of the employees to the capacity of the managers in dealing with the happenings within the organization is essential to keep them motivated and to retain them for a long period. As one of the foundations of an organization, the manager has to take pa rt in shaping ââ¬Å"a culture of trustâ⬠(Pride, Hughes, & Kapoor, 2013, p. 203). This is an effective big picture strategy that if applied will bring positive transformation in the workplace environment. When there is a culture of trust, rapport is increased, and the relationship between the manager and employee becomes better. One way to build the trust of employees
Wednesday, November 20, 2019
Strategic Management and Business Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4
Strategic Management and Business Policy - Essay Example Example of Consolidated Industry: Energy industry is an example of consolidated industry. In Karachi, energy is only supplied by Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) and the company has the ability to set prices according to their own will. On the other hand, in case of fragmented industry there are huge numbers of medium and small sized enterprises and no organization has the ability to set prices. In this type of industry prices are set by market forces. The organizations in this industry experience perfect competition. There are no or very few entry barriers in this industry, this means that companies can enter and exit the industry whenever they want to. If an organization wants to operate in this kind of industry, it has to change itself with changes in technology and environment. Examples of fragmented industry includes: food, juice, clothing, health care, and dry cleaning industry. In Pakistan there are more than 250 juice producing companies in the juice
Monday, November 18, 2019
Theme Duality in My Papa's Waltz Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Theme Duality in My Papa's Waltz - Essay Example The initial reading may make people comment that y Papa's Waltzis simply a delightful childhood incident a tender moment between father and son. While another interpretation is the that the boy in the poem is being abused by his father that is the child ancesunwillingly. Whether the poem is a about a positive or negative relationship between a father and son, Roethke goal as an author is clear. He wanted to write a poem in which the reader can just as much part in determining the theme as the author. Meaning and theme of any piece of literature is partly determined by the author and also by the audience. y Papa's Waltzexemplifies the situation in which personal and past experience determines the ultimate theme. Due to the various discussions over the meaning of the poem, the reader neglects the grace and skill of the writing. Roethke creates this split meaning poem by skillfully using a number of literary elements. Roethke in y Papa's Waltzemploys the use of contrasting images, allit eration,and meter to create the poem's dual theme. y Papa's Waltzis poem about a ancebetween a father and child. Roethke uses the metaphor of the waltz as a way to show the relationship between a father and child. The waltz is a dance between two people, like all dances someone must lead and someone must follow. This is true in all parent child relationships. The drunk father and son dance in the poem knocking over items, bumping into things while the mother looks on disapprovingly. The father dances the son right into the bed. However, the poem is not that straight forward. There are several components of the poem which are not light hearted or fun. It is obvious that t
Saturday, November 16, 2019
Tesco Assessing The Impacts Of Ebusiness Information Technology Essay
Tesco Assessing The Impacts Of Ebusiness Information Technology Essay This paper presents research findings expounding on the relative impacts of e-business technologies when integrated into an organization. The key objective of the study is to determine that how the adoption of innovative technological applications serves to be beneficial or detrimental to the business world and more specifically to the business sector. The recent trade practices require embracing newer technologies as they offer instant access and exposure to consumers and keep 24/7 connectivity to management resources. The positive aspect of e-commerce technology and social networking tools, is to provide users with the ability to communicate both synchronously and asynchronously i.e. via emails, video conferencing, chat and blog forum services. There has been a considerable amount of research conducted on several organizations for the adoption of innovative technologies and the general findings reveal that entrepreneurs often lack the skill, time or money to implement technology up grades. Followed by these key study points highlighted in this paper, assessments are done to gain the insights on the impacts of deploying new web based technologies and social networking techniques. The research has been conducted in 3 phases to determine the consequences of e-business practice of Tesco, a leading supermarket of UK. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 4 TESCO: COMPANY PROFILE.. 4 ONLINE MARKET SHARE 5 PRODUCT RANGE .. 5 COMPETITORS. 5 TESCO: AN OVERVIEW OF E-BUSINESS PRACTICE.. 5 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES 6 RATIONALE OF INVESTIGATION 7 LITERATURE REVIEW.. 8 ADOPTION OF E-BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIES. 8 LIMITATIONS TO ADOPTION. 9 CHAPTER II METHODOLOGY 10 RESEARCH QUESTIONS.. 11 SAMPLING TECHNIQUES RESEARCH DESIGN.. 11 PHASE I.. 12 PHASE II. 12 PHASE III.. 13 PROTOCOL FOR DATA COLLECTION.. 14 ASSOCIATED RISKS TO DATA COLLECTION 14 VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY OF DATA.. 14 MEASURES TO ENSURE DATA PROTECTION. 15 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS. 15 DETRIMENTAL EFFECT OF STUDY.. 15 INFORMED CONSENT.. 15 PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY 16 CHAPTER III RESEARCH FINDINGS. 16 CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF RESULTS FINDINGS.. 17 RECCOMMENDATIONS. 19 IMPROVE THE WEBSITE.. 19 REVIEW WEB TRAFFIC. 19 EXAMINE THE COMPETITIVE STRATEGY. 19 CORRECTIVE MEASURES BASED ON FEEDBACK.. 20 CONCLUSION 20 BIBLIOGRAPHY CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION This paper is intended to highlight some the consequences of integrating e-business technologies within an organization and study the relative impacts with respect to the companys growth pattern and fiscal benefits attained by the e-business practices. For the purpose of identifying the relative advantages or disadvantages associated to the utilization of e-business technologies, Tesco has been chosen as the subject which has a prominent presence as the leading supermarket across the globe and specifically in UK. The incorporation of e-business technologies are seen as a reality for many organizations and are considered as a vital element of a business plan. The immediate benefits to an organization are in terms of cost savings, efficiencies and enhanced profitability that can be clearly observed at every stage in the supply chain. Adopting e-business technology is no longer a competitive advantage, but a normal business process, without which an enterprise is unlikely to survive in the new economy (Dave, 2001). With the commencement of year 2000 a number of dot-com companies were established however, with a continuously evolving trends of the contemporary business practices a majority of companies are failing to and therefore, the investors have become extra cautious to invest money into electronic ventures. The study encompasses the relevant limitations and hurdles of adopting the e-business techniques and furthermore analyses the integral aspects and impacts of e-commerce practices within the selected organization. TESCO: COMPANY PROFILE With its mass penetration of approximately 90% within the UK retail market alone and having an annual turnover of more than 1 billion, Tesco is generally recognised as the worlds largest online grocer. Tesco has been launched in various other countries and with its strong international presence it is diversifying into non-food categories as well. Tesco began to offer online services in 1995 which was based on consumers orders generated via local Tesco store using the internet (Mohorovice, 2000). To extend its e-business operation further, Tesco also launched its own Internet Service Provider (ISP) i.e. Tesco.net, for the purpose of creating an effective link between internet access facilities and the online delivery services; providing their consumers with a greater choice of ISP. The initial investment for the commencement of online service was relatively small as a network of existing stores, warehouses and distribution centres were already in place (Griffith, 2002). In order to ef fectively integrate the online service throughout the UK, an estimated amount of approximately à £25 million was spent by the company (Griffith, 2002). 1.1.1 ONLINE MARKET SHARE The overall online market share of the leading supermarkets has been illustrated in Table: 01; Tesco 27.1% Asda 10.1% Sainsbury 6.9% Waitrose/Ocado 4.2%. 1.1.2 PRODUCT RANGE Food Ranges: Milk, eggs, butter and all grocery items Non-food Ranges: Books, DVDs and Electronic products Others: Dieting clubs, flights and holidays, music downloads, gas, electricity etc. 1.1.3 COMPETITORS According to the Nielsen/Netrating audience panel for September 2007 for the top UK supermarkets shows the lead of Tesco, offline market share is in brackets from TNS which monitors the household grocery purchasing habits of 25,000 demographically representative households in the U.K as illustrated in Table: 02; Tesco 30.9% Asda 16.9% Sainsbury 16.4% Waitrose 332,000 Morrisons 225,000 1.2 AN OVERVIEW OF E-BUSINESS PRACTICE There is an increasing demand of e-business technologies as the consumers today prefer to utilize online services for shopping due to lack of time or extremely fast paced life and the launch of Tesco.com online service has served as the most simple and convenient way of shopping for consumers who are willing to pay a little extra for their groceries to deliver at doorstep and saves time. The orders once received are further processed online and the information is instantly passed on to the nearest stores. By developing the e-commerce and e-business practices, Tesco has extended its leading position in grocery home shopping since the foundation of tesco.com and has grown registered customers up to more than 750,000 with online orders up to 60k per week giving sales of over 5 million pounds (Palmer, 2005). To maintain the accuracy of the online orders, Tesco has maintained staff to gather the items in accordance with those specified in the online order list and then the groceries assem bled at a delivery point to be distributed to households within a given area. A number of timeslots have been made available for delivery of online orders and consumers are directed to ensure the availability of someone to collect the requested stuff. The payment process is also convenient and most of the payments are collected online. To keep the consumers updated with the information on prices, all items are marked with their status of availability and sell-by date. A close substitute is added in case where a product is out of stock. The online sales in just the first half of the year 2007 were 748 million, a 35% year-on-year increase, and profit increased by 62% to 54.7 million (Palmer, 2005). Further to add value to its e-business technology, sophisticated software has been formulated to manage the collection and delivery of the goods to customers. It is also important to note that a number of marketing benefits are also associated with the incorporation of e-business practice w ithin the business. Moreover, a database is maintained to extract valuable information about the products higher in demand and those which require specific types of marketing and promotion; can be identified. Feedback on satisfaction rates and responses of consumers to new offers or products can also be pulled out through this database. In addition to this, the database helps to horn the online strategy and deliver an added-value service to customers by effectively responding to their needs. Tesco has an active customer base of 850,000 and more than 250,000 orders are completed each week (Griffith, 2002). 1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES This research aims to enhance the understanding of acquiring e-business technologies and their utilisation and thereby assess the basis for improved business competitiveness. The theme is based on one of the largest retail store in UK i.e. Tesco, illustrating the impacts of e-commerce techniques implicated in regional, historical and economic contexts of the retail businesses (Yoruk and Radosevic, 2000). With continuously evolving global trends a need has been develop for the transition of business practices in order to achieve a knowledge-based economy by stimulating innovation and improved access to advanced research and development practices and e-business technologies. The proposed paper aims to study the relative impact of innovative internet technology encompassing the business practices of Tesco within UK. The investigation is based on how the innovative use of business networking and advanced e-commerce solutions encourage and support the Tesco to play a leading role in the a dvancement of a cutting edge trade society (Yoruk and Radosevic, 2000). At the same time the research expounds on addressing the related competitive challenges to this largest retail store of UK, in absorbing and developing new-fangled social networking culture. The study design is fabricated to expound on the impacts pertaining to Tesco benefiting from the e-xploitation of science and technology in order to develop closer links with new markets and consumers of the region. The theme of the overall exploration is to develop an understanding of how e-business technologies enable Tesco to broaden and deepen their consumer acquaintance and leverage business culture of excellence. 1.4 RATIONALE OF INVESTIGATION With the passage of time e-connectivity and social networking practices are becoming obligatory for the success of businesses and followed by the observations it can be suggested that the adoption and implementation of the internet connectivity, e-commerce practices and social networking technologies by retail stores offer a great potential for creating new markets, new organisational forms, and new ways of working in the knowledge-driven economy. The motors of economic growth with their loose organisational structures and often fuzzily defined organisational roles and relationships perceived as fruitful milieus for innovative activities (De, 2000). All e-commerce networks have significance for innovative activities and the extent and the nature of overlap between social networks is especially important bearing heavily on the extent to which cooperation can be produced over large sectors of the economy. Business groups are based on social linkages whether its cultural similarity, inf ormal link or an everyday contact. The need for adopting e-techniques and social networking arises in situations where economic advantage can be achieved for the group members of a business. To understand the ability of firms to respond to the fast-changing environments of the business world the approach of e-business technologies within business development process is important which can provide suitable insights into the structure and dynamics of local economies(Palmer, 2005). Although the bulk of the effort in innovation is to be done by the firms themselves, the difference between national and regional patterns of technological development highlights the importance of external economic and non-economic factors that encourage creative interactions between all parts of the society, leading the economy into virtuous circle of technological development (Rogers, Ghauri and George, 2005). Considering the significance of e-commerce and e-business activities within the business environm ent, this study has been conducted to expound on the subject matter and thereby present effective measures and recommendations to further enhance and overcome the limitations to adopt e-business practices. 1.5 LITERATURE REVIEW A community can be more willing to adopt a certain technology when it can offer some beneficial package through which an existing human need can be fulfilled. The e-business technology is capable to offer enhancements to communication that improves networking and also sufficient enough to make needed knowledge resources more readily accessible; and this is what makes it striking for the retail sector (Goode and Stevens, 2000). It is also interesting to note that those that have been most successful in fulfilling specific market needs, or niches, also encounter competing technology vendors which can also be the case in any other situation. 1.5.1 ADOPTION OF E-BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIES The e-business technologies offer additional benefits in the productivity of an organization and furthermore, a peripheral vision is offered to integrate within the business successful community building devices like Face book, twitter and MySpace and these possess a vital niche within the lives of their consumers and the communities that they tend to form. Astoundingly, the e-business networks which are the main selling product offered by these community building devices, is mostly formed outside of the e-environment before an electronic communication takes place (Rogers, Ghauri and George, 2005). Interestingly the e-business activities and these social networking platforms are not just for the purpose of fun instead they offer a means for advertising potential business practices. The social networking websites were formerly utilised by young however, the technologies that link individuals are no longer limited to the younger age groups and their significance has been realised hence , the models are now designed to serve as an interactive tool which can help diffusion into target markets (Fildes, 2002). In addition to these social websites an alternative niche is provided by a business focussed solution termed as Linkedin that offers the professionals and businessmen from diversified backgrounds with an ability to form business networks and maintain searchable contact information that can be further utilised for trade purposes (Goode and Stevens, 2000). These highly successful e-business technologies provide elementary communication and collaboration environments via text and sometimes via audio channels within specified limitations. Much better and enhanced communication and collaborative environments are provided by certain recent innovations as for example, Skype, which is not web based but offers a range of telecommunication devices and by utilising the IP connectivity it offers call and video conferencing options that can be very useful for swift business activities. All these e-business activities and social networking websites within their own capacities offer a platform for the organizations like Tesco to further enhance and develop their businesses with an unlimited access and exposure of consumers globally. 1.5.2 LIMITATIONS TO ADOPTION Research from the European Commission (2002) constitutes that when it comes to introduce technological advancements especially e-business technologies to the retail industry, they face certain problems as statistics suggests that the smaller retailers are less likely to familiarise themselves with e-commerce techniques. This does not necessarily means that by the enlargement of size or by integrating specific regulations or policies will solve these problems. Reliable, stable and open business environment is what retail industry will benefit from and therefore policies encouraging this along with liberalisation of ecommerce practices and the interoperability of internet solutions, and easier access to finance through horizontal policy initiatives are likely to succeed in tandem with retail-specific initiatives (Goode and Stevens, 2000). The competitive or environmental pressure that compels a retailer to adopt e-business technologies tends to result in sustained and improved profitab ility of an organisation. In accordance with another study by (Robertson, Lockett, Brown Crouchley, 2007) it can be observed that among the retailers their poor perception towards computer based technologies limits adoption as small retailers or organizations have limited finance or support to engage with state of the art web based technologies that would enhance communication. When larger companies adopt the e-business technologies it is interesting to note that positive network external effects can be achieved which can also be thought of as word of mouth effects (Frambach Schillewaert, 2002). The significance of words spread within general public is highly recognised within the business world and organizations do realise that the adoption of techniques which can broaden the horizon of their trade can be extremely beneficial. The e-commerce technologies offer the same by providing the business owners with all ingredients to attain better chances of success. As for example the ne twork externality effects were particularly important in the success of fixed line and mobile phone adoption as an additional subscriber leads to an increase in the utility of all existing and future subscribers thereby augmenting the eventual success of the technology (Fildes, 2002). The existing relationships between the retailers and the consumer markets also tend to hinder in adoption of the innovative technologies. There is a specific load or pressure within everyday business practice and the knowledge that is required to carry out routine activities through technological means is absent in most of the business environment unwilling to become a part of modern trade practices. The inability to deal with the recent technological environment tends to compromise the credibility with business partners and leaves sensitivity amongst the workforce that the business environment is less dynamic. On the other hand, in some instances there are numerous of consumers without internet capabilities or those who do not feel secure to utilise advance e-business techniques; also see their credibility compromised in terms of other retailers. Furthermore, industry, market scope, competitive pressure and external technological support are considered to be factors that influence r etailers willingness to adopt e-business technologies. The adoption of advanced technologies is greatly influenced and also dependent upon the industry in which the retailer operates (Levenburg et al. 2006, Raymond 2001). Processing of information is carried out by the service industry and therefore, much of their functions rely on the information systems. Retail industries are increasingly reliant upon the point-of-sale systems for the transfer of goods. Manufacturing industry rely more on technological systems. It has been observed by a study that the ecommerce practices vary not only across sectors i.e. across Standard Industrial Classification codes but also within constituent sub-sectors (Fallon and Moran, 2000). CHAPTER II METHODOLOGY The research methodology incorporates the use of both primary and secondary data including exhaustive literature review, interviews and observations based on studying the obtainable research data. The study expounds on observing a radical intent to utilise the development of innovative networking technologies as part of retail processes however, certain limitations make it difficult for the owner managers. The contemporary business practices and market trends has established that by implicitly adopting social networking techniques wider level of transformations within an organization can be obtained (Fink, 2007). To obtain a better picture the study needs to obtain a theoretical understanding of how economic costs and lack of technical knowledge become two of the most important factors that hinder in growth of social networking technologies in small organisations. The research methodology involves observation of theoretical data, data collected through interviews and analysis of mark et activities, validated research procedures and investigative strategies upon the area under discussion. The method used in this research is to evaluate various technological, organisational, and environmental aspects that facilitate or inhibit adoption or diffusion of social networking technologies and thereby identifying the relative impacts on an organization. 2.1 RESEARCH QUESTIONS The core element of this dissertation is to determine the upshots of implementing e-business technologies within Tesco and studying in detail how it affected the organization with a particular emphasis on the business practices. The objective is to assess the overall business activities and growth pattern of Tesco to find out the impact of the innovative networking technology and also elicit the views of significant participants of the organization. The five main objectives of this study are; To establish how e-business technologies are acquired, absorbed and utilised within Tesco to gain competitive advantage; To study the relative impacts of e-business technologies when applied to a retail organization particularly within Tesco; To investigate enablers and constraints that influence e-business practices within a wider context embracing all the regional, social and economic factors; To adopt a methodology, influenced by data collected from the active respondents and theoretical groundings for investigating Tescos e-business practices; To utilise a research design incorporating users of e-business technology such as the owners, managers and administrators of Tesco, to gather valuable views and comments about the relevant consequences. 2.2 SAMPLING TECHNIQUES RESEARCH DESIGN The recruitment and designing of sample required the random selection of the study population that is acquired from the 500 employees working on various levels within Tesco, located in Central London. The additional information about the organization was supplemented by the retail stores online website. The sample was designed to develop and benchmark the present scale of adoption of e-business technologies among the allocated sample of Tesco located in the Central region of London. The design of sample was tailored at diverse echelons. A brief semi-structured questionnaire was distributed and the interviews were tape recorded and transcribed verbatim for the assessment of relative impacts of e-business technologies. A back up staff for taking notes in writing and recording was made available to the interviewers, where applicable. The interviews were conducted on the basis of discretion; hence the sample store, market participants and the respondents are kept unidentified. Initially 500 active employees were engaged in the study functioning at various levels within the organization that include owners, managers, IT administrators, support staff and also some regular consumers. The sample is further categorised in accordance with their level of maturity i.e. depending on their status of commencement, stability and innovation. At the outset, the interviews were conducted in each firm and the respondents were selected from senior management team. The interviews were based on open-ended questions with in-depth interrogation in which the flexibility was maintained on the focus, follow-ups and probes clarifications to pursue the emerging themes (Alvesson and Skà ¶ldberg, 2000). The duration of interviews lasted between one and one-and-a-half hours session. The research has been conducted in three phases; each phase is discussed in detail as under: 2.2.1 PHASE I For understanding the existing research exhaustive literature and systematic reviews were carried out. Review was based on investigating how social networking has been adopted and integrated in small firm and thereby identifying their relative impacts. The exhaustive literature study also examined the association between the use of social networking technology and small firm growth. These reviews helped to identify major themes within previous research and the details contained within the papers highlighted concerns with social issues, absorptive capacity and policy support that enable the transfer and development of social networking technologies within business practices. Gaps include sector bias, lack of research on the situated nature of technologies, factors that mediate the adoption of new systems of organising, and how relational competence and social skills influence firm growth (Alvesson and Skà ¶ldberg, 2000). An in-depth study was carried out of relevant literature presen t in books, newspapers, articles and renowned academic journals. 2.2.2 PHASE II The research survey was administered during the period in between February 2010 and March 2010 and the investigation was focussed on studying the relative consequences of integrating e-business technologies within UKs leading retail, Tesco. A smaller canvassing team of 5 interviewers were trained to administer the telephonic survey and approximately 500 employees of Tesco were contacted via telephone. The inclusion criteria as set in accordance with the research methodology allowed the survey information to be collected from the owners, managers, IT managers or from employees and people of similar stature by the canvassers. Certain regular consumers were also considered as respondents and accepted as per the inclusion criteria. A response rate of approximately 18% was received through the outbound calls that helped to achieve about 90 completed forms. It is important to note that problems of sample selection and response bias can lead to results that are difficult to extrapolate to l arger populations. In this case two types of bias were encountered. Firstly, regional bias arose due to the over collection of surveys from the upper management and too few from the lower management. Secondly, the survey contained too few surveys administered to the consumer base of the organization. Both imbalances were corrected using a weighting process called rim weighting (Alvesson and Skà ¶ldberg, 2000). All results generated for this document are weighted implying that the results reflect the general picture to be found in the organization. 2.2.3 PHASE III The third phase of the research methodology is designed to understand the need for incorporating e-business technologies within the potential retail market and assessing how entrepreneurs would utilise the technology to gain competitive advantage, and finally investigating the limits of the e-business technology when put into practice. In order to gain deeper insight into the need for e-business technology within the retail store, qualitative interviews were conducted on 500 employees of Tesco selected from different departments within the organization. The interviews were conducted on the upper management and directorship level or with IT decision makers of the companies (Fink, 2007). The research encompasses the incorporation of e-commerce and e-business techniques for selling products from a broad range of departments of Tesco including food products, healthcare products, sports, groceries, electronic products and home accessories. To acquire a rich background of company informati on there were about 10 stores enlisted for interview via cold calls to the database collated during the enterprise survey and further 5 stores were enlisted through general contacts. Respondents were asked to illustrate the nature of the retail business practice in order to gain insight into the role of e-business technology in the company. Details were collected regarding the trade practice of the enterprise to identify the level of operation i.e. local or international, furthermore, investigations were made about the current level of networking technologies in use and the mode of communication between employees, suppliers and customers were also studied. 2.3 PROTOCOL FOR DATA COLLECTION The target study population is comprised of actively participating members and employees including owners, directors, managers, administrators and IT staff of Tesco. An aggregated set of data collected through authenticated annual reports of the organization to determine the growth patterns after the adoption of e-business technologies. Renowned economic journals, newspaper articles and books are used for compilation of authentic data. An open ended brief survey questionnaire was distributed to the respondents in order to collect valuable comments and meetings to discuss and accumulate annotations of relevant stakeholders. ASSOCIATED RISKS TO DATA COLLECTION There are certain practical difficulties that hinder in the collection of data that eventually result in delaying the research procedure. Due to the indulgence of human objects there are chances of missed appointments, absences due to illness that might account for the down gradation of the research process. Effective time management by pre-evaluated questionnaires cut short and transcribed interview sessions and appropriate theoretical observations are required to anticipate research obstacles in timely manner (ESRC, 2010). 2.4.1 VALIDITY AN
Wednesday, November 13, 2019
Human Breast Milk Essay -- Health, Human Milk
Introduction Human breast milk is uniquely suited to our biologic needs and remains the best source of nutrition for the human infant (Kunz et al , 1999). It provides the necessary support for the developing immune system (Goldman et al., 1994 ; Garofalo and Goldman, 1999). The powerful anti-infective qualities of breast milk are measured by decreased infant mortality in developing countries where exclusive breastfeeding is the norm (Scariati et al, 1997 ; Ball and Wright, 1999). The human breast milk is composed of about 6% carbohydrates, about 4% fats, about 1% proteins and about 89% water. The composition of human milk is very different than artificial milk or "formula". Most artificial breast milk products use bovine milk as a substrate. The latter has more proteins and less lactose when compared to human milk (Kunz, et al ,1999). Lactose levels correlate well with brain size across species. Given their large brain size, it is not surprising that humans have a higher concentration of lactose in their milk than any other species (Newton, 2004). From the Islamic religion point of view, although it is recommended to prolong adequate lactation for up to two years, Prophet Mohamed pointed that the milk of the pregnant women is harmful for the infants and strongly advised that pregnant mothers should never breastfeed their infants. The aim of this study was to compare milk composition in lactating pregnant and lactating non-pregnant mothers in order to know to what extent could pregnancy affect milk composition, and how this could be reflected on both child development and health. Subjects and Methods I- Subjects This study was carried out on 64 urban healthy lactating females attending the Outpatient... ...urs in the cerebrum and 60% of this tissue is lipid (Newton, 2004). Stopping breastfeeding , should pregnancy occurs, to avoid its adverse effect on the nursed infants may expose them to many hazards as gastroenteritis and malnutritional diseases. And so , it is our responsibility to strongly advice against pregnancy during lactation so that the newly born receives the best nutritional support to ensure its full physical and neurological development. This is what exactly recommended by the Islamic religion to prolong adequate lactation, up to two years, to face infant's requirements and at the same time to avoid pregnancy on top of lactation with its bad effects on both the nursed infant and the fetus. It is hoped that further works will be done to study the effect of pregnancy on other milk constituents that could also possibly affect the nursed infant.
Monday, November 11, 2019
Ethics and Abortion Essay
Nicky was 18 when she started dating with James. They had unprotected premarital sex. After a few weeks, she found out that she was pregnant so she asked an advice from her doctor. She wasnââ¬â¢t ready for a baby yet. She still had her ambitions in life and she didnââ¬â¢t want to give up her social life. So she and James decided to abort the baby (ââ¬Å"Real Life: Abortion (Nickyââ¬â¢s Story),â⬠2003). Yes, you read it right. In this time of one-night stands, premarital sex and unwanted pregnancies, abortion has become a common resort from responsibility. Abortion is the removal of an embryo or a POC (Product of Conception) from the uterus. Basically, there are two types of abortion: the spontaneous abortion and the induced abortion. Spontaneous abortion is the type that is caused by accident and/or by natural cases. It can also be caused by environmental factors. On the other hand, induced abortion is caused by human action. It is further categorized into therapeutic and elective. Therapeutic abortion is the act of removing the fetus from the uterus for reasons of safety and/or survival in the part of the mother, to preserve the motherââ¬â¢s health, to terminate pregnancy that would result in a child born with congenital disorders, and to selectively reduce the number of fetuses to lessen health risks regarding multiple pregnancies. Meanwhile, elective abortion is the kind of abortion performed for any other reason. There are two different but parallel theories regarding abortionââ¬âthe consequential theory and the deontology theory. The consequential theory believes that an act is morally right if and only if it contributes to the common good(Williams, 1973. ). It outrightly supports abortionââ¬âmay it be therapeutic or elective. In therapeutic abortion, if the mother life is at risk in having the pregnancy, then the consequential theory allows for such action. If having a baby destroys a personââ¬â¢s future career, then abortion is okay. Consequential theory denies that moral rightness depends solely on the anything other than the consequences (B. Hooker, 2000). Nonetheless, what makes this morally wrong is not the abortion itself but the consequences it may bring to the mother such as emotional trauma. Consequential theory ignores all morally relevant factors to the consequences as opposed to whatever the circumstances there may be(Mill, 1861). However, deontology theory asserts otherwise. Deontological ethics or duty-based ethics does not consider an act as good or evil per se but classifies the action as it is being performed or on the process of performing devoid of prejudice or pre-established ethical principles. It judges morality by evaluating the nature of the actions and the will of the person involved rather than what is achieved(Kay, 1997). It is also known as nonconsequentialism. Deontological judgment depends on the object or original nature of the act. It typically involves two important elements, prerogatives and constraints. Prerogatives deny that one should always choose the option with optimistic consequences and constraints place limitations on the actions that the person may do in order to bring about his own personal good. Thus, from the deontological parlance, abortion, because it takes away life, upsets natureââ¬â¢s way of creation, and denies the natural capacity of a woman to give birth, is objectively and intentionally malicious, although it could be justified in extreme cases which would merit for an exception. These two theories, in essence are different but somehow, they are compatible with each other. They do not really contradict each other, rather, they are analogous. Analogous theories are truly and essentially different but necessarily contradictory with each other in principle but they could have similar effects or conclusion per application that is why they are analogousââ¬âpartly the same, partly different. In the present society, most women view abortion consequentially. They justify abortion by consequences it may cause. Letââ¬â¢s take Nickyââ¬â¢s situation as an example. Nicky believes that the abortion of their baby is right mainly because it was not yet the right time for them to have a baby. If she were to continue with her pregnancy, what would have happened? She would have lived a miserable lifeââ¬ânot having a job or a career and tied down with a baby. What if her boyfriend James left her? Could she find another man who would readily accept her despite her past? There were lots of things to be consideredââ¬âschool, financial stability, and emotional stability. These and a lot more questions ran through Nickyââ¬â¢s mind before she decided to go with the abortion. Obviously, it is not easy to try to confuse oneââ¬â¢s conscience. But if we look at it closely, it is a matter of rights. Womenââ¬â¢s rights. Everybody makes mistakes. Nicky did a mistake by engaging in unprotected sexual intercourse with her boyfriend. Nevertheless, continuing the pregnancy could also be a mistake. Abortion, when we look at its consequences, is not a mistake. According to the Womenââ¬â¢s Rights, ââ¬Å"women have the right to bodily integrity and autonomyâ⬠. Whether or not the woman decides to resort to abortion of the fetus inside her body, it is her right to decide on that. Aside from that, women also have the right to parenthood and marriage. Women who have committed abortion should not be discriminated by the society. True, it is not such a nice image but hey, women are humans. Women have rightsââ¬âequal rightsââ¬âand dignity(ââ¬Å"2006,â⬠Human Rights Watch).
Friday, November 8, 2019
People like Us Social Class in America Web Assessment essayEssay Writing Service
People like Us Social Class in America Web Assessment essayEssay Writing Service People like Us: Social Class in America Web Assessment essay People like Us: Social Class in America Web Assessment essayHow does social class matter? This issue has been widely discussed in our society. For many years, it has been a common assumption of many experts, including sociologists, economists, historians and political scientists that social class really matters a great deal. Social class does exist in America today, because many Americans realize that income and job, family background, education, attitudes and behaviors, aspirations, and even individual appearance can mark any person as a member of a particular social class.à Actually, the most important indicators of social class are income, occupation and education. It is necessary to combine these indicators to identify some hidden process that may affect human interpretation of the role of social class. The PBS website provides many examples that point out to the fact that social class really matters in human life. The PBS website, People Like Us: Social Class in America, asses ses class differences in various styles of living and various living standards as a fundamental hallmark of todayââ¬â¢s society. Although some sociologists suggest that social class no longer exists in our society and does not affect peopleââ¬â¢s lives, it would be wrong to accept the ââ¬Å"death of social class.â⬠We identify different classes in our society, including middle class, working class, upper class, etc. Undoubtedly, social class can be very hard to identify, much harder than racial differences, but in many cases, social class can be regarded as the major predictor of an individualââ¬â¢s financial and educational opportunities. In the final segments ofà the documentary People Like Us: Social Class in America, the authors represent Anderson High School in Austin, Texas as an effective microcosmic example of the so-called social segmentation that has the potential to be extended throughout the macro level.Besides, many Americans would agree with the ideas of Peter Berger that can be found in his Invitation to Sociology first published in 1963, ââ¬Å"different classes in our society not only live differently quantitatively, they live in different styles qualitativelyâ⬠. As a matter of fact, people are treated differently because of different social classes. William Domhoff analyzes capitalist class as a social class and as a ruling class in todayââ¬â¢s society.I cannot but agree with these ideas. I have experienced class differences in my life and know that social class plays an important role in the lives of all Americans. Those people who live in Park Avenue penthouses differ from the residents of Appalachian trailer parks and bayou houseboats, as well as from the residents of suburban gated communities. They have different lifestyle choices, different opportunities and different preferences in their lives. The documentary People Like Us: Social Class in America helps to better understand the impact of social class on huma n life and identify the existing differences between social classes. In fact, American citizens are aware of class distinctions, which cause inequalities of opportunity. I agree that Americans classify each other, paying due attention to the effects of our inherited social class, including individualsââ¬â¢ self-perceptions and expectations.Thus, race, ethnicity, education, income and other factors make the arrangement of social distinctions in our society more complicated. This fact means that social class does exist in American society today. à Moreover, most Americans realize the meaning of class, placing emphasis on the role of social and economic conditions, power, income, job, race, religion, self-image and attitudes, and many other factors.
Wednesday, November 6, 2019
Product Update Introducing The NEW And Improved ReQueue!
Product Update Introducing The NEW And Improved ReQueue! Attention social automation lovers! Based on your feedback Weve made some serious improvements to your favorite social automation tool Introducing the NEW and improved ReQueue! AKA the refreshed version of the only social automation tool with built-in intelligencenow with added control, more flexibility, and even better visibility into your entire social schedule! Watch this quick demo.Or keep on readin for the full breakdown! Introducing The NEW And Improved ReQueue from @NEW! Placeholder Groups Sometimes, straight automation just doesnââ¬â¢t cut it (and you need a bit more more control).à With our NEW Placeholder Groups, you can create custom sharing schedules for specific groups by selecting the day, time, and sending frequency that works best for you! Here are a few examples of when using a Placeholder Groupà would come in handy: For your #TBT campaign Taco Tuesday promotion Or even a #MotivationMonday campaign! The best part of using a Placeholder Group? You stay in control and can set your own sharing schedule (while still enjoying the perks of automating your social strategy). Stay in control and can set your own sharing schedule with ReQueues Placeholder Groups inOrganize ReQueue based on what matters to you Now you can prioritize the order of your ReQueue groups within your settingsâ⬠¦. AND use drag + drop to quickly move social messages from one ReQueue group to another. (!!!)
Monday, November 4, 2019
Effects of poverty on malaria in the rural areas of India Research Paper
Effects of poverty on malaria in the rural areas of India - Research Paper Example The approach of irrigation is causing desertification of the fertile land. There are huge investments made by the central and state government towards developing alleviation programs of poverty. Such an approach has not been able to make the rural areas self reliant but in turn has increased the economic dependency amongst the daily wage workers. In the urban areas there are preventive measures taken by the government so that such diseases do not affect public health but on the contrary the rural areas malaria is linked with poverty majorly due to lack of accessibility towards proper health care facilities and due to environmental degradation. The specific problem that has been identified in this particular context is that malaria is causing huge number of deaths in the rural India. Though the government is taking initiatives but it is not being able to safeguard people from such diseases. The problem area for this research study is that there needs to be proper measures implemented in rural India or else the rate of such disease would be high with every passing year. The major aim of the research study would be to highlight the relationship between the poverty and malaria and even to bring forward certain cases that would depict how some operations that are performed on rural land are leading to increase in the number of death rates caused by malaria. This research study would be important for the audience as it would portray the real scenario of rural India and even outline the major reasons behind why such a disease is not been able to eliminated from the area. The study would even help to analyze the direct relationship between poverty and malaria and the efforts that should be made so that such a disease can be discarded from the root level. The research question for this study would be ââ¬â ââ¬Å"How does poverty in rural India has a direct relation with the major public health disease malaria?â⬠This research question is aligned with the
Saturday, November 2, 2019
Summary Of The Elements Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Summary Of The Elements - Essay Example The work of Abu Nasr has the significant contribution to the prevailing geometrical artwork of the Islamic culture such as those found in the wood art, tiles and much more. As noticed, the Islamic Scholars and mathematicians so far are involved in Mathematics with significant influence of their prevailing culture. Islamic culture had adapted mathematics, particularly geometric influence because it can be associated with it in the first place, especially in the face of artworks and everyday living. It is therefore of significant consideration that Islamic geometers did not eventually engage in mathematics just for the sole purpose of intellectual stimulation, but definitely in order to provide something for the continuing body of knowledge, especially the one that was founded by Euclid, the Euclidean geometry. The Euclidean Geometry has eventually provided a great influence on the Islamic Scholars, particularly the geometers. The Muslim geometers were able to provide the contribution in the formulation of concepts, or even extending the basic concepts of Euclid on geometry. As a result, the Muslim geometers were able to also provide ways to integrate the concept of mathematics and geometry in their arts, and in general, in their culture. From the above point of view, it is evident and so it is clear to say that Muslim geometers had significant contributions to the growing body of knowledge of geometry. The fundamental output associated with their learning of the mathematical concepts.
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Street art and subculture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words
Street art and subculture - Essay Example Street art subcultures symbolize some amazingly imaginative and improvisational practices in every dayââ¬â¢s life. According to (Toby et al 4), street artists represent a challenge for visibility, its regulation in public places, and policies that bounder the art and artistââ¬â¢s legitimacy. However, the street artists continue fighting for their right while developing with a resistance. Nevertheless, their art represents some hybrid artwork with generative logic of mix making it one-step ahead of the cultural police hailing from any jurisdiction. Earlier in the days, street art seemed like a ghost trying to project its repressed dreams and fantasies on the street walls. According to Snyder (36), most cities illegalized the practice arguing that it defaced private property. However, many of the artists could argue that the art gave a better image or beautified the cityscape. This scenario raises the question whether this makes graffiti or street art an illegal movement. It also raises the question on whether graffiti only becomes art if placed in galleries. Graffiti has been around for many years, and evidence lies in the Roman architecture. The original objective of the street work and graffiti was to inform the public about political and social problems arising within the region. This method made it a silent but highly effective means of protest against the increasing problems in the society. The street art may seem utopian, aggressive, or juvenile, but most artists started it with a lot of empathy for the city.
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Decision-Making Case Study Essay Example for Free
Decision-Making Case Study Essay The current grave state of the economy has had a significant impact on health care across The United States. Massive budget cuts, reduced services, and limited access to care significantly have affected Medicaid patients. Hennepin County Clinic (HCC), a facility that provides health care to Medicaid patients, is dealing with an additional 15% budget cut that will force management to make decisions about which services must be changed or eliminated while still meeting the basic needs of the clients. Stemming from consumersââ¬â¢ increased demands for enhanced quality of care and greater accountability from health care organizations, leaders must engage in decision-making that incorporates evidence from well-conducted research whenever possible. The Informed Decisions Toolbox (IDT), a process of evidence-based decision-making, involves six steps in the decision-making process (Rundall, et. al, 2007). While every step is consequential, step two, the process of gathering evidenced-based sources of information, is the most important tool in decision-making. The IDT plays an important role in increasing organizational accountability, facilitating knowledge transfer within a facility, and contributing to a questioning organization. Step One The first step in the IDT is formulating a question or questions behind the decision. This is done in such a way that will increase the likelihood of uncovering useful research studies. As a manager, one must discover what information is needed to make the best decision. When investigating the needs of Medicaid clients and deciding which clinical services to change or eliminate, it is vital to research information regarding the various services used by these patients. The manager must ask several questions. Do individuals enrolled in Medicaid have unique health needs that differ from the larger population? What are the services most utilized within HCC at any given time? In what ways will service cuts and elimination of resources à affect the clients? What services can be outsourced to other facilities that accept Medicaid? Can the current physician staff be reduced, and the use of nurse practitioners and physicianââ¬â¢s assistants be implemented? Step Two After the questions are formulated, step two involves identifying credible sources of information to answer these questions. In an age of abundant technological resources, a large percentage of sources may be found on research-based websites, bibliographic databases, online academic and peer-reviewed journals, books or other publications, and government reports, to name a few (The Center for Health Research, 2011). It may also be helpful for the manager to locate internal information available within the clinic that will tailor to the unique needs of HCC. While the IDT mainly focuses on evidenced-based sources of information, the manager may also utilize supportive colloquial knowledge from and opinions of colleagues, employees, patients, and other health care professionals (Rundall, et. al, 2007). Steps Three, Four, and Five Steps three through five take the collected research and evaluate its accuracy, applicability, and ââ¬Å"actionability.â⬠First, step three emphasizes the accuracy of the research presented. The manager must question if the research is of high-quality, originates from a credible source, presents complete and balanced viewpoints, and comprises reliable and valid measurements (The Center for Health Research, 2011). Step four highlights the applicability of the research. The manager must ask if the research is relevant to his or her question at hand and whether or not it applies specifically to HCC. Step five focuses on the ââ¬Å"actionabilityâ⬠of the research. The manager needs to know how the research is going to be implemented and who exactly is going to do it. Step five also pertains to the implications and importance of the research studied (The Center for Health Research, 2011). Step Six Finally, step six allows the manager to look at his or her organizationââ¬â¢s needs and values to determine if the research fits the context of its unique situation. The manager must question if the collected research is adequate to make a useful decision and if there is a single best option, multipleà practical options, or even inadequate evidence to make a decision (The Center for Health Research, 2011). Most Valuable Tool Although every step in the IDT has much significance and step one builds the foundation on which to define the problem at hand, the tool that would be the most valuable is step two, identifying credible evidenced-based sources of information. Health care workers who provide care based on knowledge from evidenced-based studies deliver significantly better care and produce better outcomes (Melynk Fineout-Overholt, 2005). Because of this, the process of identifying these studies is vital to the survival of an organization. The knowledge discovered during research can be a valuable source of strength to the organization by combining it with the unique employee and patient opinions and preferences. This process of searching for information can also contribute to organizational growth through the sharpening of knowledge and skills of decision makers. With regard to HCC, step two is very valuable in deciding which clinical services need to be eliminated primarily because locating appropriate research studies is the foundation of finding the solution to the question. Through the selection of evidenced-based articles, the manager can compare and contrast how other organizations dealt with budget cuts and the solutions they implemented. Accountability Utilizing the IDT greatly affects organizational accountability. Hospital organizations and clinics have to function according to the strict rules and regulations of such agencies as JCAHO and CMS, and at the same time, respond to the ever increasing needs demands of consumers for improved quality of care (Rundall, et. al, 2007). These added pressures force management to make comprehensive, precise, and influential decisions that they cannot formulate with personal knowledge and experience alone. Because of this, management needs to apply the best evidence available in making these consequential decisions. Knowledge Transfer Knowledge transfer aims to deliver research-based information and guarantee its availability for future members within an organization (Pentland Forsyth, 2011). Within health care facilities, it is important for newfoundà research evidence to be transferred into clinical practice and policy development. Management and decision makers must communicate clearly to the health care team and make them aware of decisions that are made and how the decisions will affect them. Team members are encouraged to share their understanding with others to expedite knowledge transfer within the facility. Knowledge transfer facilitates shared intelligence, improved employee performance, higher levels of innovation within the organization, and economic growth (Rundall, et. al, 2007). Questioning Organization The IDT affects an organization in a number of positive ways. Most important, it allows the decision-maker and the health care team to reflect on what was learned, what questions still need to be asked, and what should be done differently next time, which is critical to innovation (Buchen Rowley, 2000). Building a questioning culture within an organization inspires team members to search for answers within evidenced-based research studies and improving the lines of communication among members as well. Conclusion The IDT is an exceptional set of tools that assists management and decision-makers in utilizing evidenced-based research in confronting and responding to pressing questions that significantly affect an organization. The IDT plays an important role in increasing organizational accountability, facilitating knowledge transfer, and contributing to a questioning organization. In the case of HCC, the manager utilized the IDT by formulating questions to determine which clinical services to change or eliminate based on the various health care needs of Medicaid clients. The manager identified various credible sources of information to answer these questions, which has been determined the most valuable tool within the IDT. The research evidence was examined to determine its accuracy, applicability, and ââ¬Å"actionability.â⬠Finally, the manager assessed to see if the collected research was both adequate and met the specific needs of HCC, which is what the IDT was designed to do. References Buchen, I, Rowley, L. (2000). The questioning culture: Perpetual state of the art. Performance Improvement, (39)5, 26-30. Melynk, B., Fineout-Overholt, E. (2005). Evidence based practice in nursing and healthcare. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams Wilkins. Pentland, D., Forsyth, K. (2011). Key characteristics of knowledge transfer and exchange in healthcare: integrative literature review. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 67(7), 1408-25. Rundall, T., Martelli, P., Arroyo, L., McCurdy, R., Neuwirth, E., et al. (2007). The informed toolbox: Tools for knowledge transfer and performance improvement. Journal of Healthcare Management, 25(5), 325-341. The Center for Health Research. (2011). The informed decisions toolbox. Retrieved from http://www.toolbox.berkeley.edu/overview.
Saturday, October 26, 2019
Mathematics in the Primary School
Mathematics in the Primary School Innumerate school children cost the taxpayer up to à £2.4bn a year. In 2007, Sir Peter Williams the then chair of the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education (ACME), was commissioned to consider and make his recommendations in response to the teaching of mathematics in early years settings and primary schools, with a view to assessing and improving upon the current practices of mathematics teaching in early years settings (EYS) and primary schools (Adonis 2007). By examining the available evidence, drawing from the best practice nationally and internationally and by working closely with the teaching profession, the Williams final report was published in June 2008. By means of 10 recommendations the report identifies methods by which children in primary schools and early years settings can acquire a greater understanding of mathematics, and a greater appreciation of its importantance with relation to a successful progression through life during and after their school career is over. Through a high-quality curriculum and excellent teaching (Williams, 2008, p61), children should have confidence and feel comfortable with the concept of Mathematics within their day to day lives. In the following, I will explore the implications of the ten recommendations outlined in the Williams Report and will conclude with some reflection on the value of the report and the likely impact it will have on me as a trainee teacher. Recommendation 1 Considers the entry requirements necessary for Initial Teacher Training (ITT). GCSE Grade C mathematics continues to be the mandatory minimum requirement level. However the report argues that grade B in GCSE maths is desirable with the long-term ambition of the government initiative the Training and Development Agency for Schools(TDA), being for all Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) graduates to have reached Masters-level accreditation. However, this is currently deemed inadvisable given the possible risk of falling enrolment of trainee teachers A higher priority is given to teaching experience through teaching placements to increase the students pedagogical knowledge, Williams (2008, p7) states that, a combination of deep subject knowledge and pedagogical skill is required to promote effective learning, a view supported by the research body Mathematical Knowledge in Teaching (2007/2008). The evidence of good grounding in these two fundamental attributes shows; taken together they constitute a necessary condition to progress learning for all children up to the end of Key Stage 2, which prepares them well for Key Stage 3 ((Williams, 2008, p10). The only currently acceptable route to raising mathematical understanding is through properly funded and rewarded continuing professional development (ibid p 12) Q14, Q15, Q19, Q25a,b,c,d Recommendation 2 Local Authorities (LAs) are to continue to up-skill and increase the numbers of their Mathematic Consultants. A continued extensive budget is to be set aside by the Government for local LAs to implement this following the recommendations made by the Primary National Strategy (PNS) (via the National Numeracy Strategy (NNS)), and in partnership with the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM). This funding to be used to develop and track refresher Continued Professional Development (CPD) courses for all LA consultants, evidence being that since the introduction of the NNS, a transformation in the way mathematics is taught can be strongly correlated with the increase in the attainment levels of primary school children (ibid p 16). Q14, Q15, Q18, Q19, Q20, Q25a,b,c,d Recommendation 3 Every school should have at least one mathematics specialist present (or have access to one), whose initial objective is to raise standards and narrow attainment gaps. By utilising the highly-trained (circa) 400 LA Mathematic Consultants to their fullest, a phased proposal is given to have a Mathematical Specialist present in every school which will re-enforce the importance of mathematics within schools and enhance and allow flexibility for CPD provisions available to all teaching and support staff. Small and rural schools benefitting from pooled resources wherever possible. Many of these specialists could be sourced from Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) trained to a higher mathematical level through their ITT providers, and all specialists to be monitored by their respective head teacher. Q14, Q15, Q19, Q20, Q25a,b,c,d Recommendation 4 The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) is to commission a set of materials which will help early years practitioners understand the effect of childrens development as shown through their mathematical mark-making. The resulting report supports the introduction of childrens mathematical graphics (Worthington, M/ Carruthers, E, 2003), at the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). The EYFS adheres to the principles of the central importance of creativity and critical thinking in early learning and development (Mark Making Matters, 2008, p2). By giving practitioners the tools to support and challenge a childs thought process through encouragement and understanding of the young childs mark-making, along-side open ended discussion (sustained shared thinking (Williams, 2008, p34)), the children will become confident and competent communicators, both orally and on paper, in all six areas of learning and development. (Mark Making Matters, 2008, p2) In relationship to mathematics, by encouraging a child to mark-make from a very early age, when children realise that marks can be used symbolically to carry meaning [] they begin to make marks as tools to make their thinking visible (ibid p3). Through drawing the child may develop their concepts in relationship to problem solving, reasoning and numeracy. The importance of the Early Years Practitioners taking the time to observe, listen and analyse childrens mark making in order to understand, praise and enrich the childs achievements (ibid p3), is affirmed. However, I must agree with the importance of a young childs mathematical understanding being developed through imaginative play and effective mathematical learning for children in this age group needs to be predominantly social in nature (Williams, 2008, p36). Q15, Q18, Q19, Q20 Recommendation 5 The forthcoming review of the EYSF in 2010 is to consider the inclusion of time and capacity which Williams feel were omitted when the statutory early learning goals set out in the Statutory Framework for EYFS: Learning and Development Requirements (DCSF 2006) were first developed. By using these two extra concepts along with those already required i.e., shape, space, measures along with the use of correct mathematical language, it would enable the child to apply their mathematical knowledge in practical and active ways (Williams, 2008, p36), whilst also enhancing the childs understanding of problem solving. The responsibilities of effective pedagogy for this remit falling to local authorities, leaders, managers and head-teachers. Q14, Q15, Q19, Q20, Q25a,b,c,d Recommendation 6 The DCSF is to continue to increase the amount of graduate practitioners going into Early Years Settings (EYS). The Childrens Workforce Development Council (CWDC) (2010), states High quality early years provision can have a significant impact on childrens development, performance at school and their future life chances (CWDC, 2010, Areas of Work- Early Years) and the early years workforce must be well qualified. (ibid) With reference to the Effective Provision of Pre-School Education (EPPE, 2004), the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS, 2005) and the evaluation of the Neighbourhood Nursery Initiative (NNI, 2000), it recognises the importance of having a good proportion of trained teachers on the staff. The recommendation being for one graduate early years professional per setting by 2010 and with provision for two graduates per setting in disadvantaged areas. A member of staff having Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and a Graduate Early Years Practitioner who has a specialism in working with early years children could have the most benefit to most childrens development and learning. Standards could also be raised with additional funding given to implementing CPD within the Early Years Workforce where mathematics is given essential priority. It should however be noted that EYFS provisions are currently very erratic throughout the UK. Q14, Q15, Q18, Q19, Q20, Q25a,b,c,d Recommendation 7 Engaging the full understanding and commitment of participating children and their parents/carers before the onset of intervention, paying special attention to the integration of intervention in the class room and in a home-school partnership through official home-learning activities. Where research is undertaken, it is proven that the inclusion and understanding of parents/carers before the onset of intervention is paramount in guaranteeing programme success, and parents/carers could support their childs learning progress through official home-learning activities. Equally, children who understand exactly the nature of the programme show genuine delight in their progress and the importance of this factor should not be under estimated for a successful programme (Williams, 2008, p55). In terms of the integration of intervention, the DCSF National Strategy Standards (PNS) (1998) cites; Intervention is not just about additional out-of-class provision. It also includes reviewing what happens in class to make sure it is appropriately tailored to the needs of the children. Q14, Q15, Q18, Q19, Q20 Recommendation 8 The Wave 3 Intervention programme from The Every Child Counts (2008) initiative; a partnership between government, businesses and the charity Every Child a Chance (2007) aims to enhance achievement for approximately 5%-10% of children nationally who are failing to master the basics of numeracy (Adonis, 2007). Adonis (2007) states; there is no single cause of under-attainment and therefore no single answer'(ibid) It is best to summarise the implications, logistics and recommendations of wave 3 intervention in Year 2 as follows:- Intervention should be led by a qualified teacher on a 1: 1 teacher pupil ratio. The benefits of working in pairs or small groups should also be explored. The childs class teacher should be given responsibility to decide whether intervention is necessary. Investigation into of the efficacy of using video tapes for assessment and training should be undertaken. Diagnostic tools should be developed to aid teachers with assessment before intervention and monitor progress after leaving the programme, using for example, Assessing Pupils Progress (APP) and the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP). Intervention should ideally last for one term and be completed by the end of Key Stage 1. Where it is deemed that a child is in need of intervention for both literacy and mathematics, it is imperative that mathematics be given equal standing to literacy. A wide range of (potentially costly) multi-sensory resources should be made available, for example, Numicom and the interactive whiteboard, to enable the teacher and child to select the appropriate aid to their specific issue. CCD programmes should be developed for the teacher as intervention specialist and for LA intervention specialists. Currently there is only a small cohort of intervention specialists available. Combining the roles of intervention specialist and mathematics specialist should be considered through the pooling of resources wherever possible to limit cost implications. Teaching Assistants could be further trained to lead less intensive wave 2 and 3 interventions. A longitudinal study is to be carried out over the next 10-15 years to assess the success of the programme. Q14, Q15, Q18, Q19, Q20, Q25a,b,c,d Recommendation 9 and 10 Refer to the importance of continued building on the currently solid curriculum, with more prominence being given to use and application (Williams, 2008, p60) of Mathematics across all subjects and to give renewed focus to oral and mental mathematics. Q14, Q15, Q18, Q19, Q20, Q25a,b,c,d Conclusion In conclusion, the above discussion has demonstrated the key features of the Williams Report and has reflected on the implications of the report for EYP, strategies for intervention and the roles of the curriculum, training, accreditation, head-teachers and the family. I have demonstrated how the Williams Report has both drawn on existing regulations, recommendations, policies and practice but crucially, identified the weaknesses in existing legislation. For me the key strengths of the report lie in its emphasis on the role of teacher pedagogy and practice and the shared responsibility of the LAs with schools, in particular the head-teacher, and with the parent/carer. A key recommendation is being pro-active and understanding that every child matters. I feel the weaknesses of the report relate to its over-emphasis on high-levels of formal accreditation, which do not reflect an individuals natural gift to teach and which may jeopardise future recruitment. Of course, the question remains what the effect of recent government changes and the very real and imminent threat of public sector cuts will mean for the practical implementation of the Williams report recommendations.
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