A South Affican Investment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

A South Affican Investment - Essay Example They argue that this profit would then be used to help move blacks into positions of management. Indeed, CalTex could show that they had moved 40% of their black work force into positions once only held by whites. They also showed that their operations had moved blacks into 22% of their lower management positions. They also were paying a higher than average wage to their black workers, resulting in improved living conditions. The argument against the utilitarian benefits of CalTex continuing to refine oil did not negate the political realities of South Africa. None of their black workers were able to unionize, vote or even travel into â€Å"white† areas without special permission. The negation of these basic human rights counteracted any good that CalTex was providing to the black community through job opportunities, improved wages or slight upward mobility. Building the plant would give tax revenue to the government and imply cooperation with the regime. I believe that it is more important for the corporation to not expand because without basic human rights, a better job doesn’t really make life much better. I believe that as a stockholder I should have voted for CalTex to suspend operations in South Africa. This first proposition was the best way to set a good example of moral corporate governance. I would know that I would surely lose money if the other stockholders voted with me, but I would feel better about the future profits of the company. CalTex is an international company and pulling out of South Africa would not have a long-term effect. The refinery could have been sold and the corporation could have withdrawn. As to the second proposition of not selling to the military, I believe that I would not have voted for this proposition. The simple fact is that South Africa had passed a law specifically against such actions. My feeling is that if a corporation is going to do business in a given country, they should obey the laws

Major Component Agencies of the Dhs Essay Example for Free

Major Component Agencies of the Dhs Essay This paper will discuss what are the major component agencies of DHS and their primary functions. Major Component Agencies of the DHS Major agencies of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are; The Directorate for National Protection and Programs, The Science and Technology Directorate, The Office of Health Affairs, The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U. S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), The Office of Investigations, The Office of Detention and Removal Operations, The Federal Protective Service, The Office of Intelligence, The Office of Intelligence and Analysis, The Office of Operations Coordination, The Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, The Transportation Administration (TSA), The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), The Citizenship and Immigration Services, The Coast Guard, and The Secret Service. Their Primary Functions The Directorate for National Protection and Programs has five divisions that work to advance the DHS’s risk-reduction mission. The primary development and research arm of the department belongs to the Science and Technology Directorate. The Office of Health Affairs coordinates all medical activities to ensure appropriate preparation for the response to incidents having medical significance. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident, administers the National Flood Insurance Program, and prepares the nation for hazards. The CBP prevents terrorists and their weapons from entering the United States. They are responsible for protecting U. S. borders, while simultaneously facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel. The largest investigative arm of DHS is ICE. They are responsible for identifying and shutting down vulnerabilities both in the nation’s borders and in economic, infrastructure security, and transportation. The Office of Investigations investigates a wide range of international and domestic activities that violate customs laws and immigration and threatens national security. The department who is ensures the departure from the United States of all illegal aliens through the fair enforcement of the nation’s immigration laws is the Office of Detention and Removal Operations. The Federal Protective Service is responsible for securing, ensuring a safe environment, and policing in which federal agencies can conduct their business at more than 8,800 federal facilities nationwide. Collecting, analyzing, and disseminating strategic and tactical intelligence data belongs to the Office of Intelligence. The Office of Intelligence and Analysis is responsible for using information and intelligence from multiple sources to identify and assess current and future threats to the U. S. The responsibility for monitoring the security of the U. S. on a daily basis and coordinating activities within the department and with governors, law enforcement partners, DHS advisors, and critical infrastructure operators in all fifty states and more than fifty major urban areas nationwide falls under the Office of Operations Coordination. The Domestic Nuclear Detection Office works to enhance the nuclear detection efforts of federal, tribal, states, territorial, and local governments and the private sector and to ensure a coordinated response to such threats. This department protects the nation’s transportation systems. In addition, agents also inspect air carrier operations to the United States, fly air marshal missions, assess security of airports overseas, and training overseas security personnel is TSA. The FLETC provides career–long training to law enforcement professionals to help them fulfill their responsibilities safely and proficiently. The Citizenship and Immigration Services is responsible for the administration of immigration and naturalization adjudication functions and the establishment of immigration service’s policies and priorities. This department is also consider a military department, which protects the public, the environment, and U. S. economic interests in the nation’s ports, along the coast, on international waters, on its waterways, or in any maritime region as required to support national security. Finally, we have the Secret Service who protects the president and other high-level officials and investigates counterfeiting and other financial crimes, identity theft, computer fraud, including financial institution fraud, and computer-based attacks on our nation’s financial, banking, and telecommunications infrastructure. Final Thoughts The Department of Homeland Security was activated in January 2003 from the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to help combat terrorism after the September 11 attacks on the United States. An outline is provided of what happened when the DHS was formed. Our lives in the United States as we knew it, has forever been changed since 9-1-1. We still have a long way to go to become more aware and secure, but it is not impossible. There are still many loopholes to tackle, red tape to cut, and the lack of proper equipment and training which still needs to be addressed on a continuous basis. On March 1, 2003, the DHS absorbed the Immigration and Naturalization Service and assumed its duties. By doing this, it divided the enforcement and services functions into two separate and new agencies: ICE and Citizenship and Immigration Services. The investigative divisions and intelligence gathering units of the INS and Customs Service were merged forming Homeland Security Investigations. Additionally, the border enforcement functions of the INS, including the U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S. Customs Service, and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service were consolidated into a new agency under DHS: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (Creation of DHS, n.d.). References Creation-department-homeland-security, n.d. Retrieved on 1215/2012 from http://www.dhs.gov/creation-department-homeland-security Peak, K. J., 2012. Policing America challenges and best practices. Retrieved on 12/15/2012 from Chapter Two, Pages 44-48.

Annotated Bibliography: Drug Delivery Mechanisms

Annotated Bibliography: Drug Delivery Mechanisms LITERATURE REVIEW Nyol et al., had presented thesis on among all dosage forms tablet is the most popular dosage form existing today because of its convenience of self administration, compactness and easy manufacturing; sometimes immediate onset of action is required than conventional therapy in many cases. So that to overcome these drawbacks, immediate release dosage form has emerged as alternative oral dosage forms. Immediate drug release dosage forms disintegrate rapidly after administration with enhanced rate of dissolution tablets .The objective of this work was to explain about immediate release tablets. P. Rohini et al., Developed oral disintegrating tablets of Rosuvastatin by superdisintegrants addition method by direct compression technique using sodium starch glycolate, croscarmellose sodium, lycoat Rs 720 and cross povidone in different concentrations. All the formulations were evaluated for disintegration, hardness, friability, dug content and dissolution study. The best release formulation was compared with the marketed product of Rosuvastatin. Bheemeswara rao k et Al., The objective of this study was to develop immediate release film coated tablets of Rosuvastatin by wet granulation method. Different formulations were made by using various concentrations of superdisintegrants ployplasdon XL-10 and granulating fluids like water, isopropyl alcohol and butyl hydroxyl toluene. Opadry pink was used as film coating material. The prepared tablets were evaluated for the physical characteristics, invitro dissolution and stability. Mayank Bansal., et.al.Zaltoprofen is a nont concentran-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDs) with powerful analgesic action on inflammatory pain. The purpose of this research work was to formulate an immediate release tablet of Zaltoprofen for the treatment of pain and inflammation, by using superdisintegratnts such as Croscarmellose sodium and different grades of microcrystalline cellulose. Immediate release tablets of Zaltoprofen were prepared by direct compression method using superdisintegratnts such as Croscarmellose sodium and different grades of microcrystalline cellulose in different ratios. Sodium starch glycolate was added to aid disintegration. Murdochet al., 2005 :( Escitalopram (Cipralex ®, Lexaproâ„ ¢), the activeS-enantiomers of the racemic selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) citalopram (RS-citalopram), is a highly selective inhibitor of the serotonin transporter protein. It possesses a rapid onset of antidepressant activity, and is an effective and generally well tolerated treatment for moderate-to-severe major depressive disorder (MDD). Pooled analyses from an extensive clinical trial database suggest that escitalopram is consistently more effective than citalopram in moderate-to-severe MDD. Mishra DN et al., 2005: Formulated rapid disintegrating oral tablets of valdecoxib using super disintegrating agents such as crosspovidone, croscarmellose sodium, sodium starch glycolate. The results showed rapid disintegration with use of cross caramellose sodium at low concentrations.   Chaudhari PD et al., 2005: Formulated fast dissolving tablets of famotidine by using croscaramellose sodium and crospovidone as superdisintegrants. Famotidine was initially masked for its bitter taste by preparing solid dispersion with eudragit E100. Compressed tablets containing different concentrations of super disintegrants showed disintegration time between 11 to 26 seconds. Invitro release was about 92% to 1005 at the end of 12 minutes. Schreimer T et al., 2005: Investigated about the mechanism of immediate drug release from solid oral dosage forms. They found that starch and cellulose substances favoured the matrix disintegration and the generation of effective dissolution surface of the drug substances. They developed a mathematical model suitable for the characterization and optimization of immediate drug release by the choice and modification of excipients. Stanifort John N et al., 2004: Studied that microcrystalline cellulose excipients having improved compressibility whether utilized in direct compression, dry granulation or wet granulation and possess excellent disintegration and dissolution properties when exposed to gastrointestinal fluid. Emily R et al., 2004: Citalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, is used as a neuroendocrine probe in human subjects to assess serotonin function as reflected in prolactin and plasma cortisol release. Citalopram is a racemic mixture of equal proportions of the S(+) and R(−) enantiomers. Inhibition of serotonin reuptake and, consequently, antidepressant activity is associated, almost exclusively, with the S(+) enantiomers (â€Å"escitalopram†). Shirwaikar A et al., 2004: Carried out formulation of fast dissolving tablets of granisetron hydrochloride using super disintegrants by direct compression method, formulation containing crospovidone and croscarmellose sodium displayed shortest disintegration time compared to other disintegrants. Shimizu T et al., 2003: Performed the formulation study of lansaprazole fast disintegrating tablet by MCC, low substituted hydroxyl propylcellulose and cross povidone as binders and disintegrants respectively. Formulation showed rapid disintegration of tablets in mouth (not more than 30 seconds). Larry Augsburger L et al., 2002: Studied about characterization and functions of super disintegrants. In recent years, several newer disintegrants have been developed called superdisintegrants and these disintegrants may be organized into three classes based on their chemical structure (such as SSG, crospovidone and croscaramellose sodium). It was concluded that these would be used at lower levels than starch and any possible adverse effect on fluidity would be minimized.   Bi YX et al., 1999: Evaluated rapidly disintegrating tablets prepared by direct compression method using excipients MCC, lactose, croscaramellose sodium and erythritol. Within the optimal region, the minimum tensile strength was 5kg/cm2 while the maximum disintegration time was 15 seconds. The method described here was useful for the preparation of rapidly disintegrating tablets. Chetan N. Yeole et al., Formulated and evaluated paroxetine immediate release tablets. Paroxetine is a selective serotonine reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) used in treatment of depression. Paroxetine immediate release tablet have been prepared by direct compression method. Effect of various fillers and disintegrants were also explored. MCC and DI-Tab were used as directly compressible fillers. In order to obtain acceptable product several trials were conducted. Various pharmacopoeial evaluations of the formulations were conducted including weight variation, hardness, friability, disintegration time and dissolution. Final selection of formulation was done on pharmaceutical equivalence of developed formulation to that of marketed one. Rishikesh et.al. Studied Immediate Release Drug Delivery Systems. Oral administration is the most popular route for the systemic effects due to its ease of ingestion, pain, avoidance, versatility and most importantly patient compliance. Tablets or capsules are most popular among all dosage forms existing today because of its convenience of self administration, compactness and easy manufacturing; however in many cases immediate onset of action is required than conventional therapy. By using MCC, DI-TAB, CCS, SSG like excipients we will achieve the immediate release. Syed azeem.et.al Studied immediate Release Drug Delivery Systems. Tablet is the most popular among all dosage forms existing today because of its convenience of self administration, compactness and easy manufacturing; however in many cases immediate onset of action is required than conventional therapy. To overcome these drawbacks, immediate release pharmaceutical dosage form has emerged as alternative oral dosage forms. There are novel types of dosage forms that act very quickly after administration. The basic approach used in development tablets is the use of superdisintegrants like Cross linked carboxy methyl cellulose, Sodium starch glycolate, Poly vinyl pyrrolidone etc. which provide instantaneous disintegration of tablet after administration. Immediate release liquid dosage forms and parenteral dosage form have also been introduced for treating patients.

George Frederick Handel :: essays research papers

George Frederick Handel   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  George Frederick Handel was born on February 24, 1685 in Halle, Germany. One of the greatest composers of the late baroque period (1700-50) and, during his lifetime, perhaps the most internationally famous of all musicians. Handel was born February 24, 1685, in Halle, Germany, to a family of no musical distinction. His own musical talent, however, expressed itself so clearly that before his tenth birthday he began to receive, from a local organist, the only formal musical instruction he would ever have. Although his first job, beginning just after his 17th birthday, was as church organist in Halle, Handel's musical tendencies lay elsewhere. Thus, in 1703 he traveled to Hamburg, the operatic center of Germany; here, in 1704, he composed his own first opera, Almira, which achieved great success the following year. Once again, however, Handel soon felt the urge to move on, and his instincts led him to Italy, the birthplace of operatic style. He stopped first at Florence in the autumn of 1706. In the spring and summer of 1707 and 1708 he traveled to Rome, enjoying the backing of both the nobility and the clergy, and in the late spring of 1707 he made an additional short trip to Naples. In Italy, Handel composed operas, oratorios, and many small secular cantatas; he ended his Italian visit with the stunning success of his fifth opera, Agrippina (1709), in Venice. Handel left Italy for a job as court composer and conductor in Hannover, Germany, where he arrived in the spring of 1710. As had been the case in Halle, however, he did not hold this job for long. By the end of 1710 Handel had left for London, where with Rinaldo (1711), he once again scored an operatic triumph. After returning to Hannover he was granted permission for a second, short trip to London, from which, however, he never returned. Handel was forced to face his truancy when in 1714 the elector at Hannover, his former employer, became King George I of England. The reconciliation of these two men may well have occurred, as has often been said, during a royal party on the River Thames in 1715, during which the F major suite from Handel's Water Music was probably played. Under the sponsorship of the duke of Chandos, he composed his oratorio Esther and the 11 Chandos anthems for choir and string orchestra (1717-20). By 1719 Handel had won the support of the king to start the Royal Academy of Music for performances of opera, which presented some of Handel's greatest operas: Radamisto (1720), Giulio Cesare (1724), Tamerlano (1724), and Rodelinda (1725).

Flextronics Case Analysis

Flextronics Case Analysis Team Member: Kerry Cunningham, Feng Hu, Tian Tian, Shuo Zhang Nov. 5th 1. Cause of McCuster’s Dilemma Several organizational factors haves contributed to McCuster’s dilemma: First, the Flextronics’s decision makers failed to appropriately evaluate the ability and condition of the organization in bidding for Xbox project and assigning tasks. While it is enticing that this project would bring about good reputation as well as substantial financial gain, decision-makers should consider more than financial benefit1.Managers are paid to make good decisions not risky decisions or conservative decisions1: Flextronics decision makers was too optimistic about the project so that they promised Microsoft the IT solution Flextronics did not have yet despite the fact that it was Flextronics first global project and first foray into sophisticated software. This promise has put Flextronics in risks since now it has trouble coming up with the IT solution .Although group and external pressures (social, political, economic) impact the alternatives we select and biases we have in decision-making1, in Flextronics case, Flextronics could gain cutting edge and good fame from the succeed of the project, and many parties are closely watching this project, decision makers still needs to be objective when making decisions While Xbox project needs the two facilities designated to work closely, decision makers assigned the project to Mexico facility and Hungary facility, two groups that are both geographically and relationally distant.This decision has led to ineffective communication between the two facilities. Second, Flextronics’s CEO’s over stress on culture decentralization and the fact that Flextronics’s acquisition led to culture acquisition caused lack of communication1 and trust1 between facilities. Lack of Communication has led to different systems in two facilities. The two plants function separately and have the ir own respective cost control, this leading to conflict about which system to adopt.If the Hungary facility has communicated with the headquarter about which system to adopt in the first place, the headquarter would probably have suggested Hungary facility to adopt Datasweep like Mexico facility did, and Flextronics would not have this dilemma at all. Now that the facilities are having problem in switching system, they still refuse to trust each other’s system, they are even unwilling to communicate with each other about the system. This lack of trust and communication has worsened Flextronics’s situation. 2.Criteria in Decision Evaluation The most prior criterion in decision evaluation is whether the ultimate decision enables Flextronics to make profits in the long run. Since profit enables enterprises to survive and developlast. Profit is also the reason for the establish profit oriented enterprises. However, in individual tasks such as Xbox project, the priority ma y be developing cutting edge and enhance reputation rather than financial gain, but this project would be valueless if it cannot bring about financial benefit in the long run.The second most important criterion is customer satisfaction. In this case, customer satisfaction means whether Flextronics produces Xbox in good quality, right quantity, with reasonable price, and in timely manner. Flextronics also needs to meet Microsoft’s requirement in system adoption and production control. As Microsoft is an important customer and the project’s success could bring about substantial benefit for Flextronics, it is important to stick to the contract with Microsoft. Another important criterion would be whether the ultimate decision leads to good team work.Now that the Hungary facility and Mexico facility have inconsistency in production and refuse to compromise, decision makers need to come up with a solution to involve the two facilities in close cooperation, which is the key t o success in launching Xbox in two markets at the same time. As good teamwork in Xbox would lead to enhanced work efficiency and good example for future projects, it is important for decision makers to let the two facilities willingly reach an agreement. 3. Actions to Take In order to satisfy the criteria mentioned above, Mr. McCusker should take the following actions before he reaches a decision.First of all, in order to make sure the company can benefit from this project, he need make comprehensive analysis on every aspect including costs, potential profit, customer satisfaction and future influences on market share of all those three possible scenarios. The first decision alternative is putting Datasweep in both Mexico and Hungary. This fits to both the philosophy of Mark, the CEO of Flextronics and the requirement of Microsoft. Moreover, Datasweep is a scalable solution over Visual Factory, thus facilitating future projects on a global view.On the other hand, the cost is a big i ssue. Besides, the uncertainty to operate the new system may disorder the normal operation for Hungarian for a period of time. Well, decision-makers should consider more than financial benefit1. As this is a global project, McCusker should view it as a whole. If this solution does meet the criteria of the company, those two branches should share the total cost and profit. Furthermore, the Mexico factory should send some engineers who are familiar with Datasweep to Hungarian to make it operate well as soon as possible.Because the Xbox will be built first in Mexico, there is still some time for Hungary to adopt the new system. In this case, Flextronics will become more and more global-orientated and get ready for tremendous future projects. However, there is still some uncertainty exists, because the management team in Hungary is self-important. They are quite unwilling to switch and would only do so if the CEO commanded. They may have some psychological issues which will have bad eff ects on carrying on the project. The second one is to set up Visual Factory in Mexico.It will save a lot of money, which is a big issue in this industry. This system has been well self-customized by the Hungarian team and they believe that they have already discovered and fixed most of the bugs. But the fatal defect is that Visual Factory has no credibility outside of Hungary. It is extremely hard to convince Microsoft and the executives and IT team of Flextronics to trust this new system. Moreover, because of the build of Xbox starting from Mexico, time is another critical issue. The third option is allowing each branch uses their own software system. This will benefit both plants without any risk.Nevertheless, there is also a fatal drawback of this option that is it can hardly meet the basic requirement of Microsoft for a single software platform. What’s more, it lacks global synergies which will be a barrier for Flextronics to develop in the long run. The second action McC usker should take is talking to Michael Marks, the CEO of Flextronics, putting all three options and all the pros and cons of them according to the comprehensive analysis and asking for his advice and even help. In this case, this is indeed needed, though it is not recommended to refer to boss for help.Because this is a global project which need close cooperation of the big two branches, it’s hard for McCusker, the project manager, to deal with those senior executives. Furthermore, Humphrey Porter, president of Central Europe, and his team even claimed that they would switch to Datasweep only if Michael Marks ask to do so as an order. In this case, without the approval of Michael Marks, it’s useless for McCusker to reach any decision. The third one is to hold a conference with all the key people including Humphrey Porter, Matt Ryan, Jim McCusker, Mike Webb, Robert Dykes and Michael Marks.Because one of the biggest problems of Flextronics is lack of communication, this conference will help those key people in this project to know the situation better and build trust and familiarity among them1. After they consider and discuss all the pros and cons of every option face to face without any communication barrels, they stand a good chance to reach an optimal decision. A good teamwork among different branches would also benefit a lot for the future development of Flextronics as a global company.

Classical vs Romantic Essay

The classical period in music spans from 1750 to 1820, a period of musical change after the Baroque and Rococo periods and its eventual transition to the Romantic period. This era in music produced most of the well known composers, prominent of which were Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Joseph Haydn, among others.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The shift from the Baroque and Rococo musical styles also coincided with the formation of classicism, an artistic movement that also involved painting, literature, and architecture. The Baroque era of music mainly utilized polyphonic harmony in composition – a style which involves two main themes or melodies, which creates an elaborate hearing experience because of many different instruments playing unique themes. An example of which is Johann Sebastian Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier which is a collection of piano pieces specifically arranged for the piano, utilizing every major and minor chords. The contrapuntal polyphony of these pieces have two different melodies for the left and right hands, creating harmony at the same time. On one hand, the classical movement utilizes a homophonic – a style that is above chord accompaniment and emphasizes on melody, tone, form, and balance. Melodies are more refined, elegant, and expressive, utilizing dynamics (pianissimo, mezzo forte, etc.) along with a balanced formal structure. The classical period also developed the sonata, symphony, concertos, serenades, among other instrumental music during that time. The Romantic period on the other hand, is a movement that expands the form of classical composition that enhances expressiveness and appeals to the emotive aspect of the listener. Although identified as a Romantic period, the era does not emphasize on romantic love per se, but it is used as a prevalent theme in composition. There is little difference between the classical and romantic periods because both utilize the same structure in composition, but only vary with the use of themes. In terms of expression, the romantic period is much more expressive compared to classical pieces.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert, prominent classical masters, produced music for both eras, with their works employing a smooth transition of change regarding themes and melodies into the Romantic period. Schubert’s violin compositions are generally associated with the Romantic era while Beethoven mastered the use of chromatic and homophonic harmonies to stress fiery and elegant themes in most of his works.

Research Essay Essay Example

Research Essay Essay Example Research Essay Essay Research Essay Essay Essay Topic: The Glass Menagerie â€Å"Reading is neither neutral, nor natural. † How does your context as a reader influence your reading of The Dreamers? Reading is neither neutral, nor natural. Readers are constantly positioned to make their own ideas and opinions of different texts based on their own understand and connecting of their personal context. In Jack Davis’ The Dreamers the descriptions of the tribal family in the first scene provide a strong, central reading that while I would accept, the earlier generations from those times would challenge the mutual reading of the harmonious tribal family. The different generations of past and present times would also have many contrasting views on particular characters such as Worru. Additionally, the study of past texts, such as The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams and Coonardoo by Katherine Suzanne Prichard, allows me to comprehend the meaning behind the symbol of alcohol in The Dreamers and how it is a representation of escapism for people in degrading ways of society. In the beginning of The Dreamers by Jack Davis, we are described a scene of a tribal family walking, relaxed, across an escarpment with children happily singing songs of cultural meaning, relaying their innocence and happy family-based futures: â€Å"Dawn. We hear the distant echoing of children singing a tribal song. A tribal family walks slowly across the escarpment silhouetted against the first light of dawn. The central, prominent reading brought forward by Davis’ descriptions and symbolism of the melodious, peaceful tribal family is one I accept because of Davis’ way of showing the harmonious nature of the aboriginal culture and way in their environment, in the world they know. However, the white generations of the 1980s would contrast and challenge this communal reading because of their own racial attitudes and beliefs of Aboriginals. To the whites of the 1980s, Aboriginals were filthy and worthless individuals and therefore the white society audiences were unable to cope with and respect the cultural identity and way of life of Aboriginals. These confrontational views of The Dreamers show how reading is not neutral. Every generation is different, therefore they all respond to particular readings inversely due to their own personal context. This reinforces that reading is not neutral. Worru is a character in The Dreamers who is exceedingly diverse from the members of his family. Worru is the representation of Davis’ views of his own complicated culture and aboriginal context. Worru is desperately trying to hold onto his Nyoongah (aboriginal) culture that within him has ‘survived civilisation’ through reminiscing about life before white settlement and his language: â€Å"I walked down the track to where the camp place used to be and voices, laughing, singing, came surging back to me. In Act One Scene One, Worru sings of his past, something that is all but real now that he is going through a lost as a result of living in a suburbia-dominated world. Through the study of Coonardoo by Katherine Suzanne Prichard, I am able to see that the aboriginal generational views would be ones of sympathy and empathetic understanding, as aboriginals would be able to relate heavily with Worru, knowing just how much they lost because of the dramatic change in the way they wanted to live. On the contrary, a white audience of the same era wouldn’t be able to understand how aboriginals couldn’t adapt to such a â€Å"easy† lifestyle, and be unable to connect to the Aboriginal background and estrangement of their race. Readers who have read more texts than most are able to see and understand how changed contexts but parallel themes are cooperative in identifying symbols. Through my reading The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams and The Dreamers has allowed me to understand the symbol of alcohol and its meaning of escapism in both plays respectively. Tom Wingfield from The Glass Menagerie drinks constantly, trying to escape the horrors of the Great Depression in America. He drinks to forget his issues and withdraw from a pitiful reality. This reading allows me to understand the reasoning behind why, in The Dreamers, Worru, Peter, Eli and Roy all drink constantly – using money needed for food and other essentials: â€Å"The full bottle is now nearly empty. The heat and the alcohol are taking their toll. † The characters drink alcohol to also escape from the cultural oppression of white society and the failing ways of aboriginal life. They see alcohol as the only way to forget what has been done to them, as it is an influential depressant, and using it to disengage from a reality that would see the complete deprivation of the aboriginal way – a way they cherish. An informed reading is not something that just comes naturally, it must be taught and learnt over the reading of numerous texts, therefore reading is not natural. In Conclusion, readings are mostly advanced through a readers own individual context and experiences. My interpretations on a tribal aboriginal family were analogized by the white generations of the 1980s view on aboriginals, establishing that reading is not neutral. The diverse generational views formed unlike perspectives on who would sympathise with the hostility of the aboriginal race, my own background through the study of the other texts Coonardoo, The Dreamers and The Glass Menagerie has given me a purer understanding of how alcohol embodies escapism for people in contemporary society. All these factors have established my view that reading is neither neutral, nor natural.

Reagan Essays - United States Presidential Inaugurations

Reagan Essays - United States Presidential Inaugurations Reagan I am going to talk of controversial things. I make no apology for this. It's time we asked ourselves if we still know the freedoms intended for us by the Founding Fathers. James Madison said, We base all our experiments on the capacity of mankind for self government. This idea? that government was beholden to the people, that it had no other source of power is still the newest, most unique idea in all the long history of man's relation to man. This is the issue of this election: Whether we believe in our capacity for self-government or whether we abandon the American Revolution and confess that a little intellectual elite in a far-distant capital can plan our lives for us better than we can plan them ourselves. You and I are told we must choose between a left or right, but I suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There is only an up or down. Up to man's age-old dream-the maximum of individual freedom consistent with order or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism. Regardless of their sincerity, their humanitarian motives, those who would sacrifice freedom for security have embarked on this downward path. Plutarch warned, The real destroyer of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations and benefits. The Founding Fathers knew a government can't control the economy without controlling people. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. So we have come to a time for choosing. Public servants say, always with the best of intentions, What greater service we could render if only we had a little more money and a little more power. But the truth is that outside of its legitimate function, government does nothing as well or as economically as the private sector. Yet any time you and I question the schemes of the do-gooders, we're denounced as being opposed to their humanitarian goals. It seems impossible to legitimately debate their solutions with the assumption that all of us share the desire to help the less fortunate. They tell us we're always against, never for anything. We are for a provision that destitution should not follow unemployment by reason of old age, and to that end we have accepted Social Security as a step toward meeting the problem. However, we are against those entrusted with this program when they practice deception regarding its fiscal shortcomings, when they charge that any criticism of the program means that we want to end payments.... We are for aiding our allies by sharing our material blessings with nations which share our fundamental beliefs, but we are against doling out money government to government, creating bureaucracy, if not socialism, all over the world. We need true tax reform that will at least make a start toward I restoring for our children the American Dream that wealth is denied to no one, that each individual has the right to fly as high as his strength and ability will take him.... But we can not have such reform while our tax policy is engineered by people who view the tax as a means of achieving changes in our social structure.... Have we the courage and the will to face up to the immorality and discrimination of the progressive tax, and demand a return to traditional proportionate taxation? . . . Today in our country the tax collector's share is 37 cents of -very dollar earned. Freedom has never been so fragile, so close to slipping from our grasp. Are you willing to spend time studying the issues, making yourself aware, and then conveying that information to family and friends? Will you resist the temptation to get a government handout for your community? Realize that the doctor's fight against socialized medicine is your fight. We can't socialize the doctors without socializing the patients. Recognize that government invasion of public power is eventually an assault upon your own business. If some among you fear taking a stand because you are afraid of reprisals from customers, clients, or even government, recognize that you are just feeding the crocodile hoping

Business ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business ethics - Essay Example However, the absence of these health professional in over-the-counter prescription and the advertisement of this drugs as created a new challenge that ought to be confronted. There are even cases where these advertisements have been found to pressure health professionals to prescribe particular drugs that might as well be less effective and dangerous. This idea intrudes in the relationship between patients and medical practitioners, thereby, interfering or even impeding the therapeutic process. Additionally, prescription advertising is not educational, instead it is inherently misleading if the omission of crucial information on drugs in its features is anything to go by. This therefore demonstrates just how dangerous consumer marketing of prescription drugs is and why it should be prohibited (Jeffrey, 2004, p. 21). II. What do you think is the most effective means to market a drug that is chemically and theoretically identical to its competitors? What do you think is the most ethica l way to market such drugs? Pharmaceutical products are those chemicals that improve the health of human beings, although in certain instances they can cause serious side effects to certain people who might be allergenic to these chemicals. Normally, producer of medical drugs compete both in terms of advertisement as well as prices, up to a point where advertisement and prices reach an equilibrium point (Harold, 2004, p.44), a point at which people are free to make choices based on their capability. This leaves the choice of drug administration in the hands of the physician. At times it is even the patient who is left with the decision of expressing his/her preference for one drug over the other and particularly if he/she has been exposed to some form of advertising. I strongly believe that a sale promotion involving packaging is not a bad idea to market a homogenous drug. Presentability of a drug can make all the difference in a contest pitting two theoretically and chemically iden tical with another already in the market. In fact, because the drugs are similar chemically and theoretically, one can focus on the cleanliness and hygiene of the drug through packaging the drug in a fashion that demonstrates hygiene and cleanliness to weather the competition. III. In what ways might a consumer suffering from a medical condition be less than fully free in making choices about medications? What psychological conditions undermine consumer autonomy? In most instances, patient fear of health deterioration leads to pharmaceutical inertia i.e. resistance to making any changes in their medicine regimens, which may also emerge due to unwillingness to use medication since they is no guarantee of improvement as one has no idea that it is going to improve the condition. This is one of the factors that put patients at the mercies medical practitioners or medical adverts in cases where the medical practitioners might not be available for whatever reason. Lack of proper medical a wareness might impair a patient’s decision concerning the medication to take. A patient might as well be in a state that makes him/her unable to make rational decision concerning the medication to take. Mostly, these are extreme case of sickness like stroke-induced coma or patient in vegetative state and therefore unable to even communicate. Psychologically affected

The Industry and Ethanol Producing Firms Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Industry and Ethanol Producing Firms - Essay Example Due to equilibrium in demand-supply of maze and production of ethanol, and subsidies, farmers producing maze were getting good prices till 2014. However, with withdrawal of subsidy in 2016, firms getting subsidy lost some of the incentives that is bound to affect their profitability. Since the demand for gasoline is always going to be there and is ever increasing with no substitute product available, as such there shouldn’t be any external business threat to firms producing ethanol. However, to sustain their profitability, they would be looking to reduce production costs or pass on the increase in prices to their consumers. At the same time, by reducing their production cost they can be more competitive in the market. Thus in the new scenario, only those ethanol producing firm would be profitable who would be able to keep their costs down and be more competitive in pricing. Another scenario for the firms can be to operate at lower per unit profit but doing volume sales to incr ease their gross revenue. For an individual firm, lower ethanol costs will mean higher sales. The industry is likely to witness the exit of small ethanol producing firms. It is assumed that gasoline production won’t be affected due to the withdrawal of subsidy on ethanol production. Therefore, the demand for ethanol would be hardly affected. As such, there won’t be any reduction in the production of ethanol. There are a large number of farmers producing maze and there are no barriers to selling maze to any of the ethanol-producing firms. Further, there is no big entry cost involved in maze production farming.

Research paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Research paper - Essay Example Type III, commonly called Cyclothymia, is a less severe form of this condition. The person undergoes cycles of mild mania and/or depression. At times, when undetected, it could progress to either the type I or II variant. Bipolar disorder is a chronic illness and it significantly affects the lifestyle of the patient on a social and professional basis, and quite often impairs their cognitive functioning. Depression is the phase of BD that represents the greatest challenge in management of the disorder. Undetected or prolonged depression and delirium is a frequent cause of suicide, and thus it is imperative that this condition be dealt with sensitively. The depression: mania ratio in bipolar disorder is 1:3, which tells us that the patient spends more time in an all-time low (Galvez, Thommi, & Ghaemi, 2011) . Heredity and Statistics: The possibility of inheriting BD from a previously diagnosed parent is 86-90% and studies over the past 11 years have shown that 9% of unipolar depressive patients were diagnosed as having BD. The suicide rate in these patients is almost 17 times higher, as compared to the general healthy adult population (Rapoport, Basselin, Kim, & Rao, 2009). In addition to being a social burden, BD has equal implications on personal finances and world economy. Within the USA itself, the treatment regimen spans from $12000 for a single episode of this syndrome, to a whopping $62K for patients who have to be aggressively managed with drugs and other therapy. Typically, symptoms of BD appear by the average age of 22 years, but are recognized and diagnosed with a lag period of almost 10 years. Even after commencement of therapy, the subject may remain symptomatic for a significant period of time, which makes it essential to continually monitor and adjust the treatment protocol (Nivoli et al., 2011). It has been reported that more than 66% of patients have a minimum of one close relative that has been diagnosed with either unipolar or bipolar depressio n, thus linking it to heredity (Nivoli et al., 2011). Characteristics and symptoms of people with Bipolar Disorder: Symptoms of varying degrees and intensities can be observed in this syndrome. The most common observation in Type I BD is extreme mood fluctuations. The highs include excitement, overly enthusiastic behavior, boundless energy, megalomaniac tendencies, generous thoughts and a surge in confidence levels. The lows that one typically experiences are prolonged periods of depression, irritability, sleep deprivation and a general feeling of loneliness, often accompanied by phases of crying for trivial or no apparent reasons. It is very common to have feelings of being incomplete, inadequate and worthless, which eventually culminates into thoughts and ideas of suicide. The hallmark of this disorder is the frequent cycling between the high and lows, namely the mania and depression, by virtue of which this disorder is detected. Social Challenges: Needless to mention, social stig ma is commonly encountered by people, who are aware and informed that they are suffering from this syndrome. Such subjects consciously modify their behavior, in order to reduce the instances of being rejected or discriminated. In the mild to moderate symptoms in Type

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria - Essay Example The problems that exist in the available data for ABR is the fact that the reported cases are just approximations as given by various national summary tables which are able to give only a rough estimate of the real burden of illness. Thus there is no great precision in these figures and the real number of infections and deaths are therefore definitely higher than the figures provided. This problem can be overcome by doing studies in limited settings such a single hospital or a cluster of hospitals where the actual figures are taken (WHO, 2014). Resistance can be tackled by using antibiotics only on prescription by a certified health practitioner, completing full treatment dose, even after healing and avoiding sharing of antibiotics with other people or taking leftover prescriptions. The methods that have little impact are the ones that are single and isolated interventions such as prescription and dispensation of the right drugs without much education to the patient. These studies lack accuracy since the data used is only estimates. An appropriate study should be done in a limited setting and should be conclusive taking into account the cost and specific type of resistance witnessed and by what particular bacteria (WHO,

First Generation College Motivational Support Systems Dissertation

First Generation College Motivational Support Systems - Dissertation Example They are also given a fair idea of the academic and co-curricular outcomes that are expected from them to make them progress to the next level, which is the university level. However, most often than not, students at the college are not able to meet their ascribed pass marks. A new trend of modern research has suggested that one key condition that determines the rate of success that could possibly be achieved by a student at the college is the generational factor of enrolment (Goodman, 1986). What this means is that as to whether a student is a first generation college student or non-first generation college student is an important factor in determining the rate of success that will be achieved. With this, it has been argued recently that first generation college student face the worse chances of failure in their college prospects (Finn, Nybell and Shook, 2009). It is for this reason that it is important that first generation college students be given all needed attention and guidanc e that is aimed at minimizing their risk of possible failure at the college level. Indeed, even though improved college enrolment is a positive sign of a well equipped and functioning educational system in a country (Eurelings-Bontekoe, Diekstra and Verschuur, 2005), it is important to note that student aspiration do not end with college admissions and that most students enter college with bigger hopes and dreams than merely being called college students. Ultimately, the student would want to pass college and continue to the highest point of education but for this to be possible, there must be effective support systems put in place. Considering the motivational support system in most colleges as a very vital and instrumental scheme to assisting in the quest to minimizing the risk of possible failure associated with the first generation college student, the researcher seeks to undertake the present study with the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of these motivational support s ystems in various colleges. Indeed, this is a generalized purpose that will be expanded through a number of research areas. These research areas shall be referred to specific objectives as they define the present task that the researcher ought to achieve in order to achieve the larger and collective purpose that has been spelt out. Among the specific objectives of the study are the following: 1. To identify the factors that cause academic output differences between first generation college students and non-first generation college students. 2. To examine the components of first generation college motivational support systems used in various colleges across the country. 3. To critically assess the role of motivation to the academic success rate of First Generation College students. 4. To analyze factors that account for academic failures among First Generation College students. 5. To devise a model of First Generation College motivational support system that can be used effectively a cross colleges to bring about improved rates of academic success for first generation college students. Research Question The following research questions are set to serve two major purposes in the proposed study. In the first place, the research questions are going to be the basis on which secondary data are going to be collected for the study. It would be noted that the collection of secondary data shall be made

Students-Teachers Friendship on Facebook Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Students-Teachers Friendship on Facebook - Essay Example It is worth noting that nowadays teens are making friends with everyone whom they find in face book or whoever requests them to be friends without being cautious of the possible harmful implications of such friendship. Teachers are adults charged with the responsibility of guiding young minds towards success in life. They act as role models to their students and whenever they decide to send them a friend request they are most likely to accept. On the other hand, students are most likely to find a teacher’s profile in the process of surfing and send a friend request. However, as adult’s teachers should give some ethical consideration due to some special reasons. A shocking discovery from schools that allow access to face book in schools indicates that about 60-70% of teenagers below the age of fifteen years have access to adult social networks including their teachers’. These children are too young to access these sites bearing in mind the nature of content that i s normally posted. This paper will focus on the main reasons as to why teachers should avoid being friends with students in face book. Body Privacy When teachers and students become friends, their privacy is compromised. This is because students will access teachers’ private information and content that is not fit for their consumption. Therefore, teaching and learning becomes a difficult venture as respect is compromised. Harassment If the relationship between the teacher and the student is not good, face book can act as a good ground for harassment and this applies for both students and teachers. Socialization through face book platform can create good environment for teachers and especially male teachers to harass female students sexually for example requesting sexual relationships and this often deteriorates class performance Intimidation Some students might see a teacher’s face book friendship intimidating .As a result they may become hesitant to accept their requ est for friendship mainly because they would not like their teachers to be privy to their conversations with their peers. At the same time they may fear saying no to a teacher’s friend request for fear that they will offend the teacher and negatively affect the teachers’ treatment of them Age appropriation Since teachers are adults, there may be postings from friends on their face book page regarding their adulthood status that does not concern students, the content in this case would be inappropriate for their students to read or review because it is deemed to compromise teacher’s privacy. Expectations Face book friendship between teachers and students changes the expectations of both parties .A learner who is a friend to teacher on face book will expect to be treated in a special way from the rest by the friend teacher. The teacher may also expect a student to post what regards to class work in their face book walls which would have otherwise be reserved to cl ass work this changes the expectations of everyone thus leading to a misunderstanding Prejudice As much as teachers try not to allow outside knowledge affect their treatment of students, technology will still have subliminal effect. A friendship between students and teachers on face book may compel a teacher to view a student in a whole different way in class than it was before. This creates an environment where students will fully be understood hence meaningful academic performance. Today’s situation where teachers are friends with students on face book is undisputable fact that requires urgent solution. If a teacher hasn’t given this situation some consideration then it is the right time to do so. The simplest resolution is to make a personal guiding

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria - Essay Example The problems that exist in the available data for ABR is the fact that the reported cases are just approximations as given by various national summary tables which are able to give only a rough estimate of the real burden of illness. Thus there is no great precision in these figures and the real number of infections and deaths are therefore definitely higher than the figures provided. This problem can be overcome by doing studies in limited settings such a single hospital or a cluster of hospitals where the actual figures are taken (WHO, 2014). Resistance can be tackled by using antibiotics only on prescription by a certified health practitioner, completing full treatment dose, even after healing and avoiding sharing of antibiotics with other people or taking leftover prescriptions. The methods that have little impact are the ones that are single and isolated interventions such as prescription and dispensation of the right drugs without much education to the patient. These studies lack accuracy since the data used is only estimates. An appropriate study should be done in a limited setting and should be conclusive taking into account the cost and specific type of resistance witnessed and by what particular bacteria (WHO,

Students-Teachers Friendship on Facebook Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Students-Teachers Friendship on Facebook - Essay Example It is worth noting that nowadays teens are making friends with everyone whom they find in face book or whoever requests them to be friends without being cautious of the possible harmful implications of such friendship. Teachers are adults charged with the responsibility of guiding young minds towards success in life. They act as role models to their students and whenever they decide to send them a friend request they are most likely to accept. On the other hand, students are most likely to find a teacher’s profile in the process of surfing and send a friend request. However, as adult’s teachers should give some ethical consideration due to some special reasons. A shocking discovery from schools that allow access to face book in schools indicates that about 60-70% of teenagers below the age of fifteen years have access to adult social networks including their teachers’. These children are too young to access these sites bearing in mind the nature of content that i s normally posted. This paper will focus on the main reasons as to why teachers should avoid being friends with students in face book. Body Privacy When teachers and students become friends, their privacy is compromised. This is because students will access teachers’ private information and content that is not fit for their consumption. Therefore, teaching and learning becomes a difficult venture as respect is compromised. Harassment If the relationship between the teacher and the student is not good, face book can act as a good ground for harassment and this applies for both students and teachers. Socialization through face book platform can create good environment for teachers and especially male teachers to harass female students sexually for example requesting sexual relationships and this often deteriorates class performance Intimidation Some students might see a teacher’s face book friendship intimidating .As a result they may become hesitant to accept their requ est for friendship mainly because they would not like their teachers to be privy to their conversations with their peers. At the same time they may fear saying no to a teacher’s friend request for fear that they will offend the teacher and negatively affect the teachers’ treatment of them Age appropriation Since teachers are adults, there may be postings from friends on their face book page regarding their adulthood status that does not concern students, the content in this case would be inappropriate for their students to read or review because it is deemed to compromise teacher’s privacy. Expectations Face book friendship between teachers and students changes the expectations of both parties .A learner who is a friend to teacher on face book will expect to be treated in a special way from the rest by the friend teacher. The teacher may also expect a student to post what regards to class work in their face book walls which would have otherwise be reserved to cl ass work this changes the expectations of everyone thus leading to a misunderstanding Prejudice As much as teachers try not to allow outside knowledge affect their treatment of students, technology will still have subliminal effect. A friendship between students and teachers on face book may compel a teacher to view a student in a whole different way in class than it was before. This creates an environment where students will fully be understood hence meaningful academic performance. Today’s situation where teachers are friends with students on face book is undisputable fact that requires urgent solution. If a teacher hasn’t given this situation some consideration then it is the right time to do so. The simplest resolution is to make a personal guiding

Journey to the West Essay Example for Free

Journey to the West Essay Growing up, we all had our favorite stories. My personal favorite was the Harry Potter series; I spent hours and hours immersed in those books. For a lot of Chinese children however, the story they grew up with was called Journey to the West, or XiYouJi. This story was written by Wu Cheng’en, an author who lived during the 16th century in the Ming dynasty. A very famous piece of literature, it is considered one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese Literature. The novel starts by telling the story of SunWuKong, who was born from a rock. He went on to learn 72 polymorphic transformations and becomes super powerful, powerful enough to challenge the Taoist Gods. The story goes on to tell about SunWuKong’s great rebellion against heaven, where he basically goes around and beats up everyone in the sky by himself. Eventually however, his arrogance leads to his downfall, and the Buddha manages to trap him under a mountain for five hundred years. The story then jumps to the introduction of Tang XuanZang, who is instructed by the Gods to go east to India on a pilgrimage and retrieve the Buddhist Sutras. After setting out on his journey, Xuan Zang bumps into SunWuKong who is still trapped under a mountain. With the help from the gods, Xuan Zang frees SunWuKong and takes him on as a disciple. He also meets a pig named ZhuBaJie and an ogre named ShaWuJing. Together, the 4 of them walk west towards their eventual goal of LeiYingSi. Along the way, they encounter nine thousand nine hundred eighty one hardships, including crossing treacherous rivers, fighting off monsters who want to eat XuanZang, and battling through a mountain of fire. The majority of the book describes their journey from the Tang Capitol, all the way to LeiYingSi. Once they arrive at their destination, they retrieve the sutras and return to China.

The influence of parents on their childs choice of career

The influence of parents on their childs choice of career Prior to the Industrial Revolution, work revolved around the sector of agriculture. Most of the economy, at this point in time was based on the farms owned and operated by the families themselves. Therefore, this required that all of the family, being grandparents, parents, children and nieces, gather together and work in the family farm in order for them to surivive. As Mifsud (2004), stated in her dissertation Parental influence on adolescents in career choice, jobs were a matter of destiny and children entered the same type of occupation as their parents or grandparents. However, all of this changed with the rise of the modernization in Malta, were social and economic changes took place. One major cause that marked these social and economic changes was technology (such as the progression in communication), which accordingly, affected every aspect of daily life: stability of the family, work, marriage, leisure and value of education (Olsen Cooper, 2008). One noticeable influence of these changes was predominantly on work. With this revolution, people, particularly young people, were endowed with the opportunity to choose from a great deal and diverse career occupations that became available outside the family sector. Due to this, unlike traditional societies, work roles became separated from the basis of inheritance or kinship position and thus young people were no longer constrained to work with the family and to follow their parents footsteps (Mifsud, 2004). Eventually, education developed, in such a way as to complement the needs of the modern societies (Cassar, 2004; p. 33). As a result of this, Maltese children today are obliged to attend school between the ages of 5 to 16 years old. Therefore, unlike previous years, todays children are faced with the challenge of competing with other students of the same age in order for them to achieve the best educational qualifications. This will present opportunities for them to choose the best, rewarding and satisfying careers from the wide range available. Apart from educational qualifications there are other social contexts that influence the decisions of adolescents in what career to choose. These are ones personality, socioeconomic status, parents and peers, schools, and gender (Santrock, 2001). Throughout this assignment I will be focusing particularly on the influence of parents on adolescents choice of career. During this period, apart from peers, the parents are the most influential peop le in their lives (Berk, 2007; p.345). Despite the fact that children are not expected to continue on their parents footsteps, the influence of parents has survived (Gravina, 2005). This influence is clearly seen from the very high level of commitment that Maltese parents have with regards to their children (Abela, 2000; p. 97-8). Today parents are being both directly and indirectly influential in what careers their children pursue. This influence begins at an early age, when parents, sometimes indirectly, model a particular behavior and attitudes in relation to their work in front of their children. This influence goes on to the type of schools parents choose for their children, what options their children choose to study at a secondary level, and whether or not their children should continue school. Throughout this assignment I will refer to these factors one by one and establish what kinds of influence the parents have on their children. Parents as role models From an early age, children observe other peoples behavior and in turn try to be like them by imitating them. These people are often referred to as role models. Due to the diverse occupations that exist today, children are confronted with different role models. As Sharf (2002; p.168) argued, Adults are important role models for children in learning about the world of work. Key adult figures that serve the best example to the child in learning about the work life are parents. Children whose parents work, see, hear and observe their parents talk about the jobs they have. Due to this, children acquire knowledge, values, perceptions and aspirations in correlation to their parents jobs. Moreover, Trice and Tillapaughs (1991, cited in Sharf, 2002; p.168) found that childrens aspirations to their parents occupations are influenced by their perception of how satisfied their parents are with their own work. In other words, parents influence what career their childrens choose by the way they talk about work at home, their overall satisfaction and pride in their work, and one must not forget also the position and payment of their work, which in the long run affect the family status. According to Berk (2007; p.455), higher SES (Socio-Economic Status) parents are more likely to give their children important information about the world of work and to have connections with people which can help the young persons obtain a high-status position. Apart from this, highly ed ucated parents will have higher expectations on their childs future careers. This is confirmed by a study carried out by Bezzina (2008) in her dissertation Career Barriers encountered by students in a female secondary school. She found out that those students, whose parents work in sectors that are considered to be of a low status, aspired less professional jobs than those students whose parents work in professional sectors. From my experience I believe that children, whose parents are of a certain level of education and jobs, push their children to achieve more. My father, who is now retired, worked at an important position in the Dockyard whereas my mother was a housewife. Unlike my father, my mother finished school early (at secondary level). Due to this when I was at secondary level myself, I didnt quite find support from my mother, in the sense that when I found homework difficulties I had either to wait for my father to come home from his late shifts (because he worked also pa rt-time at that time) or try and solve it myself, which was quite difficult. Because of this my parents began sending me to private lessons. I also remember that my parents never pushed me to achieve high marks. That I pass from the exams was quite enough for them. I am not saying that they would not have been satisfied if I came first at class or form; however they never really put the pressure on me to achieve the best of the marks. On the other hand, now I am quite aware of what I lost. When I go to my aunts house, I always see her pushing and encouraging her children to do not only their home work but also extra work. My aunt is a Mathematics teacher herself, and since she is deeply acquainted to what is happening in schools and outside the school, she pushes her children a lot, to achieve a lot. Indeed the marks my cousins obtain are quite surprising. The eldest daughter of my aunt is indeed now at University taking up the course of engineering. This experience I have described directs us to the next argument I will make: when adolescents perceive their parents to have high educational expectations, adolescents are likely to have higher aspirations for themselves. These parents are also more likely to offer tangible assistance for instance assistance in school work, and finance which in the long run influence whether the child continue studying for a high status position. When talking about parental influence, one has to keep in mind however that there are parents who do not work, or are not satisfied with their work life. Moreover, some families in Malta live in poverty just because the parents do not earn enough money to support the family. In my first year at university, I did some voluntary work with two children who were at that time staying at the YMCA. The family of these children was living in a state of poverty and both parents were illiterate. Due to this, these children were not given the opportunity, like other children of their age, by their parents to learn at least the alphabet or the clock. They werent even able to communicate with me clearly in Maltese. I used to ask myself what will happen to them once they finish secondary school? What kinds of job will they have later on in their life? This kind of situation reduces vocational choices and many adolescents living in poverty do not believe they have much of a choice (Kaplan, 2004; p. 437). Apart from this, there may be some students who are required to start working at an earlier age in order to help in the family finances. Due to the lack of educational qualifications they may have, they end up doing jobs which offer a low salary. Conger and Peterson (1984, cited in Coleman Hendry, 1990), state that it is important to make clear that the influence of parents on career choices will not be determined only by the nature of role model but also by the degree of warmth and affection experienced by adolescences in their relationship with their parents. Parent-child relationship Anne Roe (1957) is a person in the field of Career Development who investigated and gave considerable importance to Parental Influence on the choices of careers. She argued that the parent-child relationships play an important role in occupation selection (Santrock, 2001; p.442). She wanted to show that people in certain occupations have a common background in terms of the way they were raised (Sharf, 2002; p.308). In order to do so, she classified three types of parent-child relationships: Concentration on the child, Avoidance of the child and Acceptance of the child. When the relationship is of concentration on the child, the parents encourage dependence and request perfection. When the parents avoid the child they will be either rejecting or in the worst case neglecting him/her. In the relationship where parents accept the child, parents encourage independenceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and create a tension-free environment (Sharf, 2002; p.318). This warm supportive parent-adolescent tie, per mit young people to explore ideas and social roles that foster autonomy, predicting high self-reliance, work orientation, academic competence, and favorable self-esteem (Berk, 2007; p.413). This kind of relationship provides also emotional support which is very much needed in times (adolescent times which is stressful) like this. These parental attitudes bring about certain types of personalities in the child (Sharf, 2002; p.319) and promote values, such as independence and freedom, which in the long run help in the choice of career. According to Roe, Individuals who have warm and accepting parents are likely to choose careers that include work with peopleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ By contrast individuals who have rejecting or neglectful parents are more likely to choose careers that do not require a good personality or strong social skills (Santrock, 2001; p.442). Anne Roes theory has been criticized a lot. Despite this, Sharf, (2002, cited in Gravina, 2005) believes that Roes theory of parent-child relationship provide interesting perspectives of parental influence on the career choice of children. In addition to this, he also states the importance of the child-parent attachment theories when discussing parental influences. Attachment theory According to Berk (2007, p.196) attachment is the strong affectionate tie we have with special people in our lives that leads us to feel pleasure when we interact with them and to be comforted by their nearness in times of stress. Traditionally attachment was the foundation of the infant-mother relationship. However, contemporary theorists like Bluestein (1995) indicated the importance of continuous and secure relationships between parent and child till late adolescence, when career exploration is a major activity (Sharf, 2002; p.325). This is supported by many researches which show the importance of parents to respond sensitively to their children in order to promote higher motivations in schools and better decisions with regards to careers (Berk, 2007). In having a secure attachment with their parents, adolescents identify themselves more with their parents and by doing so they will involve their parents more in decisions and choices. They are also more likely to listen to their pa rents opinions. In other words, in these well-functioning families, teenagers remain attached to parents and seek their advice, but they do so in a context of greater freedom (Berk, 2007; p.414). Choice of childs education It is not only when adolescents are to choose their careers that their parents directly intervene. Parental influence begins from an early age, when parents deicide which schools their children should attend to. In a study conducted by Zammit (1984, cited in Mifsud, 2004) parents were asked what job they would like their son or daughter to take, and most of them stated that they would like their children to do something better then themselves. Unfortunately, sometimes this poses a problem because in doing better than themselves, some parents might mean doing what they aspired and couldnt achieve at their age in time. For instance the mother who did not get into medical school and the father who did not make it as a professional athlete may pressure their youth to achieve a career status beyond the youths talents (Santrock, 2001; p.442). As a result of this, parents, even if they cant afford it, send their child to a private school because they have the mentality that by doing so thei r children would obtain more. Such parents view the private schools as better than others (Cassar, 2004; p. 43). Some people may also opt to send their children to private lessons for extra work. I am not saying that this is completely wrong but as David Elkind (1981, Cited in Santrock, 2001; p.441) argues todays parents are pressuring their adolescents to achieve too much, too soon. The education of the children is becoming more and more dependent upon what parents want their children to achieve rather than on the childrens abilities and efforts (Cassar, 2004; p.42). This influence of parents in their children education might have both advantages and disadvantages. One advantage might be for instance that it pressures children positively. This pressure encourages students to do well and at the end of the day achieve high status occupation. On the other hand, many children view this pressure negatively and instead of succeeding, they fail in achieving high status positions. However, all of this depends also on the kind of relationships parents have with their children. Notwithstanding all these revelations, it cannot be said that all parents in Malta seek to assist in their offsprings future (Cassar, 2004; p,45). Optional subjects The influence of parents on adolescence career choice continues from the choice of school to the choice of subjects that they are expected to choose at the secondary level. Many parents are quite aware that these choices will mostly determine what career their children might pursue in the future. As Sultana (1992) said, once these choices are made, it is impossible to turn back and start again on a different path. At the time when adolescents are to choose their optional subjects, they are at the phase of development. Part of this development involves striving for autonomy- a sense of oneself as a separate, self governing individual. Teenagers strive to rely more on themselves and less on parents for decision making (Berk, 2007; p.413). I remember when I was going to choose the subjects at from two and I wanted to choose Art as one of my options. My parents at first couldnt accept the fact that I was going to choose art. Their main concern was that it is difficult to find a job that requires skills in Art. At that time I wasnt kind of looking at the future since I was more interested in what I liked. My mother wanted me to choose computer studies, the reason being that it opens a lot of career paths. One can imagine how much we fought on this. At the end of the day my parents accepted, and I chose art. Nowadays when I look back I wish that I listened to what my parents told me and involved them more in the decision making process, because ultimately I couldnt continue on art. Despite this, Bezzina (2002, cited in Cassar and Cutajar, 2004; p.45) found that students main source of help in subject choice was the parents. I think that at times parents influence is vital and many adolescents today are to some extant seeking their parents more for advice. As already stated, this also depends on what kind of relationship the child has with his/her parents. Further education Parents who influence their children from a young age continue to influence their children later on in life when they finish secondary school and are faced with a major life decision: the choice of a suitable work position. Due to this, adolescents have to choose whether to continue studying or not. Very recently I was talking to my mother and she explained to me that when she was an adolescent, many of her friends were expected by their parents to begin working once they finish secondary school, in order to help with the family finances. Today this situation changed and now parents are giving more value to education (we have to keep in mind however those low SES families). With this competition taking place at schools and with the new careers that are becoming available (such as careers in relation to information technology), many parents expect their children to continue on with their education. Here we see that parents continue to influence their childs decision on career even til l post secondary level. In a research conducted by Bezzina (2001, cited in Cassar and Cutajar, 2004; p.45) parents perceive that their influence is important, and they make it a point to exert their influence in one way or another. In some cases this influence is beneficial to the child, especially if the relationship between the parent and the child is a good one. The parents might provide adequate guidance such as to consider other options for example to attend Junior Lyceum instead of ITS in order to obtain more educational qualifications and have more possible paths to follow. However parents who influence the child in a demanding way will be interfering with the childs decisions. Methodology A particular hypothesis that I established from the literature review and my experience about parental influence is that, parents, today, influence their children in career choice. Since I am a curious person, I wished to determine whether such hypothesis is true in practice and in general. In order to do so, I carried out a study amongst adolescences who are now attending post-secondary school. The method I utilized for this study was quantitative and my main instrument was a close-ended questionnaire. The questionnaire is made up of 14 questions. In the first part of the questionnaire, participants were asked general questions about their age, career choice, and school sector and about private lessons. Following these, the questions become more personal. The students had to: answer questions such as parents school level and current occupation, rate their parents satisfaction with their job and how they perceive themselves to be happy in their career and to rate their relationship with their parents. In the last part of the questionnaire participants were asked to list those persons or factors that influenced them the most in the choice of optional subjects and career. My main intention in doing these questions was to explore whether a co-relation between these factors (such as parents satisfaction with current job and how participants think they are going to feel with their job) exists which determines, in the long run, whether or not parents influence their children in their choi ce of career. I distributed these questionnaires to ten students; by which I could gather a small representative data. The age of the students varied from 16- 17 years of age. A reason why I chose this age group is that by this time, they would have already chosen whether to continue studying or not and thus are more aware of what career they want to pursue. Although I did not take a large sample, the results from these questionnaires helped me a lot. By doing this study, I will now be able to prove whether the arguments, literature and experiences described in the assignment are true. Results and Discussion In this part of the assignment, I am going to examine the sections that I tackled earlier on in the assignment with the results I found from the questionnaires. I will be linking some of these sections together, in order to make sense of the results I obtained. Influence of Parents During this period, apartfrom peers, the parents are the most influential people in their lives (Berk, 2007; p.345). Although in many cases peers are of great influence, what I particularly found from this study is that when it comes to choice of subject and career, adolescents are more influenced by their parents. Following parents, in my results, the school is shown to be the next influential sector of adolescents when making a choice. Both friends and others (a term which I referred to in my questionnaire and which participants identified them as being teachers and siblings), are shown to influence adolescents particularly on equal level. This support an argument I made in the assignment that Despite the fact that children are not expected to continue on their parents footsteps, the influence of parents has survived (Gravina, 2005). Parents as role models No. of Participant Choice of Career Occupation Level of Satisfaction Mother Father Parents 1 Architecture Secretary Architecture 7 2 Engineer Teacher Engineer 7 3 Lawyer Housewife Lawyer 6 4 Manager Housewife Manager 8 5 Accountant Housewife Accountant 7 6 Doctor Nurse Accountant 9 7 Accountant Housewife Accountant 7 8 Psychologist Teacher Psychologist 8 9 Accountant Clerk Accountant 8 10 Teacher Teacher Teacher 9 Results of questions 2, 9, 10, 11 12 This study illustrates first of all the variance of careers between both genders. One noticeable result shown in the above table is that the majority of the mothers occupations revolve around caring profession: housewife, nursing and teaching. Although I didnt make reference of gender in my assignment I believe that this is of great influence on children in their career choice. I believe that those adolescents, particularly females, whose mothers work in professions not considered to be feminine, will serve as a role model for their children in choosing careers which might seems unattainable due to the gender stereotypes. In my assignment I argued that children today are not expected to continue on their parents footsteps. However, from the data that I gathered I observed that every participants choice of career is somehow related to at least one of the parents occupation. Participants number 1, 3, 5, and 7 chose a career exactly like the father. However, only one of the participants, participant number 10 chose a career like the mother. The other participants 2, 4, 6, 8 and 9 chose a career that has, at least to some extent, some characteristics found in their parents occupation. For instance participant number 8 opted to become a psychologist. Her parents are both teachers. Both professions are considered to be caring professions. From the ratings of parents satisfactions and the participants perceived level of satisfaction of their future job, I observed that those participants that rated their parents satisfaction lower than how they perceive their satisfaction to be with their future career, have mothers who are unemployed and work as housewives. Despite this, all participants expect for participant number 4, rate their level of satisfaction as equal as or better than those of their parents. In my opinion this strengthen the findings made by Trice and Tillapaughs (1991, cited in Sharf, 2002; p.168) that childrens aspirations to their parents occupations are influenced by their perception of how satisfied their parents are with their own work. Parent-child relationship No. of Participant Choice of Career Close with Parents 1 Architecture 7 2 Engineer 8 3 Lawyer 7 4 Manager 9 5 Accountant 7 6 Doctor 9 7 Accountant 10 8 Psychologist 8 9 Accountant 8 10 Teacher 8 Results of question 13 In this study, I tried to determine whether parent-child relationship affects what the adolescents opt for a career. Anne Roe, as stated earlier wanted to show that people in certain occupations have a common background in terms of the way they were raised (Sharf, 2002; p.308). She focused on Concentration on the child, Avoidance of the child and Acceptance of the child. In order to identify whether such parental behavior towards the child affects what the child chose as career, would have been difficult, because it is not ethically right to go on about and ask strangers what type of relationship they have with their parents. As an alternative to this I asked the participants to rate how close they feel with their parents. The result show that all of the participants feel somehow close to their parents. Since the study is on a small scale, I will take one particular occupation that is somehow common in the study: Accountant. What I found from the results is that participants who chos e Accounts as a career, rate their relationship with their parents differently. In addition to this, when one study in depth such an approach, one have to take into consideration also the child-parent attachment. Parents level of education I wanted to study this issue particularly because I believe from my experience that children, whose parents are of a certain level of education and jobs, push their children to achieve more. No. of Participant Choice of Career Level of Education Mother 1 Architecture Secondary 2 Engineer Tertiary 3 Lawyer Post-secondary 4 Manager Post-secondary 5 Accountant Secondary 6 Doctor Tertiary 7 Accountant Post-secondary 8 Psychologist Tertiary 9 Accountant Post-secondary 10 Teacher Post-secondary What I found interesting in this study is that actually, some fathers and mothers have similar education level. It is very difficult to determine a conclusion of whether parents level of education influence career choice or not, since the research is based on a small scale number. However, what I could identify is that none of the participants parents have low educational level such as primary level, thus I think that by and large all of the participants were encouraged to continue studying and pursue a professional career. Conclusion It seems from the small scale study I carried out, the theories I described and the arguments I raised throughout this assignment, that parents are still influential. Many students seek help from their parents when they are to choose something important as this of career. Unfortunately, sometimes not all parents are knowledgeable enough to give their children the best information they need with regards to the choice of career. Due to this I believe that students must seek either a guidance teacher or a counselor. They must seek for this guidance from the very beginning, when they are to choose their optional subjects. Still, I believe that the majority of the students do not seek for this help. Some students might be shy to go to a guidance teacher or counselor; some students might be discouraged by parents to do so and other view the time with these people such as guidance teacher and counselor as a loss of time. Due to this, students must be aware of the importance of the assistanc e these people may give them. An effective way in helping them become aware of this is throughout the PSD lesson by the PSD teacher. Appendix

Barclays’ Internal and External Customers :: Business Management Studies

Barclays’ Internal and External Customers Barclays offers a wide range of services to both internal and external customers. Internal customers are member of staff/colleagues that work in an organisation. Examples of internal customers in Barclays include: Small Business Managers, Customer Relations Team, telephone operators, Financial Planning Managers, Customer Service staff, Counter staff, Accountants, Consumer Relations Team, and Relationship Managers. External customers are the majority of individuals who lives in the local areas. Examples of external customers of Barclays include: disabled people, elderly, foreign people, parents, couples, widows, divorcees and students (from schools, colleges, and universities). Internal customers Barclays has number of internal customers who works for them, and also does banking with them. About 5% of accounts belong to Barclays’ staff. It is very important for Barclays to have internal customers because, without them, the financial organisation will have difficulties to meet the needs of external customers. For example, if you image the organisation as an iceberg, only 1/10th is above the water (the external customer), but 9/10th is hidden below the water (internal customers) which, is supporting external customers. This good example of importance of internal customers was extracted from the following website: www.citysun.ac.uk/newonline/customercare/task1/intro.htm. So, if you remove the bottom half of the iceberg (internal customers), top half of the iceberg (the external customer) will sink- in the other words, the whole organisation will come to an end. It is important for Barclays to treat their internal customers in the same way, as they treat their external customers. The advantages of having internal customers to employees: * Better working conditions * Better job satisfaction * Less stress * Having the ‘feel good’ factor * Being part of a good working team The advantages of having internal customers to the organisation: * Less waste and stoppages * Improved communications * A happier workforce * Fewer problems * Increased customer loyalty * Better service to external customers The advantages of having internal customers to the external customers: * A higher, sustained level of service * Faster responses times * Knows that the organisation cares As a result, internal customer care is based on good manners, knowing where your job fits in, working efficiently with colleagues, working as a member of a team, and respecting colleagues’ needs and rights. Organisations, such as Barclays believe that, there are three kinds of attitudes and behaviours towards colleagues that would be essential for quality internal customer care: 1. Caring for colleagues- this would include: making individuals feel good- this will help them to work better, they would become more cooperative, responding reasonably to their needs, and accepting a sense of shared responsibility 2. Cooperating with colleagues- this would include: can get things

The Role of Human Resource Management Related to Sexual Harassment in t

The Role of Human Resource Management (HRM) Related to Sexual Harassment in the Hospitality Industry Table of Contents Introduction 1 The Role of Human Resource Management (HRM) related to Sexual Harassment in Hospitality Industry 2 The Important Efforts of Human Resource Management (HRM) to Overcome Sexual Harassment in Hospitality Industry 4 Conclusion 6 References 7 Introduction â€Å"In May 2011 former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn was arrested for sexual assault employees in the hotel Sofitel New York† (ehotelier.com, 2013). The quote above shows an interesting case to study related to sexual harassment in the hospitality industry. A sexual harassment case was begun when Strauss-Kahn was a managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would have been arrested caused by presumptive that he raped a 32-year old hotel employee at the Sofitel Hotel in New York. According to the hotel employee, the event began when Strauss-Kahn emerged from the bathroom and suddenly did sexual assault in the room at the Sofitel hotel in New York's Times Square. Then Strauss-Kahn left the hotel after the sexual harassment. But a few hours later, police arrested Strauss-Kahn on the Air France flight, 10 minutes before the plane was to fly to Paris. New York’s court prosecutor demanded Strauss-Kahn with three counts: two charges of first-degree sex offenses, one count of first-degree attempted raped and first-degree sexual abuse. In the end, the case of sexual harassment made by Strauss-Kahn ended by agreeing the payment of money to hotel employee at the Sofitel New York Hotel with secret in number. This case is certainly a challenge that must be faced by the company due to such events either directly or indire... ...com News Archives. [ONLINE] Available at: http://ehotelier.com/hospitality-news/item.php?id=P20921_0_11_0_C. [Accessed 09 March 2013]. Sofitel Maid in Strauss-Kahn Scandal | ehotelier.com News Archives. 2013. Sofitel Maid in Strauss-Kahn Scandal | ehotelier.com News Archives. [ONLINE] Available at: http://ehotelier.com/hospitality-news/item.php?id=P20921_0_11_0_C. [Accessed 09 March 2013]. Sabitha, M., (2008), â€Å"Sexual Harassment Awareness Training at Workplace: Can it effect Administrators' Perception?† JOAAG, Vol. 3(2): 1-16. Willness, C.R., Steel, P. and Lee, K. (2007), â€Å"A meta-analysis of the antecedents and consequences of workplace sexual harassment†, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 60, pp. 127-62. Worsfold, P., & McCann, C., (2000), â€Å"Supervised Experience and Sexual Harassment,†International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality, Vol. 12(4): 249-255.

Inclusion and Diversity Essay

The professional role of the class teacher is continually changing. It has long been expected that teachers should effectively accommodate all children regardless of their needs, with strategies and practice differing within and between settings to ensure that all children learn. However, recently more specific and detailed guidance has emerged that focuses on understanding the range of children’s needs (Hanko 2003). Instead of expecting children to ‘come up to standard’ or otherwise be segregated, an emphasis is now on schools to adapt and be flexible in order to accommodate, fully integrate and include every child (Tassoni 2003). Every Child Matters (ECM) details how it is the legal responsibility of the class teacher to ensure its five outcomes ensure inclusive pratice for all pupils. Evidence of this is apparent within the Early Years Foundation stage (EYFS), where meeting and understanding the diverse needs of children is highlighted. Based on the Childcare Act (2006), the EYFS aims to provide every child with the best possible start in life and with support to fulfil their potential (DCSF 2008b). The statutory guidance states: ‘Providers have a responsibility to ensure positive attitudes to diversity and difference – not only so that every child is included and not disadvantaged, but also so that they learn from the earliest age to value diversity in others and grow up making a positive contribution to society’ (DCSF 2008:9). Having such an understanding enabled me during my placement experience, to be particularly objective and critical with regards to how well the class teacher raised attainment and met the classes’ diverse needs. During the experience particular attention was played to the teaching strategies’ and practice in place within the setting, the learning environment and how the class teacher personalised learning. For the benefit of this assignment many of these observations regarding the inclusion of diverse needs were focused on two specific children, one of whom was identified as having a Special Education Need (SEN). A child has a special educational need if he has a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made for him (Education Act 1996). This is the case for the observed child as his disability hinders him from making use of educational facilities that are generally beneficial to children of the same age (Appendix 1). Whilst the second child was learning English as an Additional Language (EAL) as he came from an Eastern European background and had recently moved to the country and school. Like the child with SEN he required additional support to ensure understanding during the school day as well as making him and his peers aware of cultural diversity and how this was valuable to society (Appendix 2). This critical review will begin by reflecting on inclusive teaching practices and strategies to meet diverse needs. As the observed class was a foundation stage class, a significant strategy seen to be effectively used was that of ‘play’ and its various multifaceted and multifunctional forms. It could be seen through observation that all barriers of communication between children were removed, as they played freely and interactively together. Both the child with EAL and the observed child with SEN had developed ways of communicating with other children in the class to ensure that they were fully included, the majority of which time was without the aid or support of the class teacher or teaching assistant. Interestingly this idea of play is deep routed in historical theory, with the observed practice relating significantly to the beliefs of Vygotsky. He emphasised how play creates a zone of proximal development, where children behave beyond their age and above their daily behaviour (Vygotsky 1978). He believed that play makes children become more confident enabling them to experiment with language and their bodies in ways that perhaps they would not have done, had they not been engaged in play. Such an understanding significantly relates to observations of both observed children (Appendix 3). Perhaps these observations are not surprising, as play has more recently been recognised as being vital to children’s all-round health and wellbeing. It provides opportunities for first-hand experiences that underpin their understanding of and engagement with the world; it facilitates social development and cultivates creativity, imagination and emotional resilience (Daily Telegraph 2007). It is therefore not surprising that it significantly underpins the Early Years framework with the EYFS highlighting its importance to all areas of development (DCSF 2008:7). Within play, the class teacher had also effectively selected and chosen toys, resources and materials that were culturally diverse in the hope that children would appreciate and accept this as the norm (Appendix 4). Such practice has been researched by theorist Lindon, who highlights the importance of children seeing themselves and their family reflected in play resources, visual images and books (Lindon 2001). She also believed that good practice included reviewing the messages given by all your resources and the experiences offered as it is part of the class teachers’ role to extend young children’s understanding beyond their own backgrounds (Lindon 2001). Practice within the setting reflected her beliefs as the class teacher gave the Eastern European child, chances to share with the class things that they did in their family. As his English was not advanced he often showed pictures and brought in things that he had received from church. Not only does such practice support the beliefs on Lindon, but it also helps the class teacher meet inclusion guidelines from the National Inclusion statement which highlights the importance of teachers being aware of the different experiences, interests and strengths pupils bring with them to school and how they should plan their approaches to teaching and learning so that pupils can take part in lessons fully and effectively (DfE 2008). As the observed child was being encouraged to share his experiences one is able to see how this guidance is being achieved. This leads one to explore other strategies that encourage diversity. In particular a model of best practice put in place a different approach to teaching children from diverse backgrounds due to the particularly high numbers of children learning EAL (Appendix 5). In this setting, professionals encouraged cultural diversity by allowing, when necessary, children to use their home languages. Support for this belief has been seen within the Plowden Report which also embraces the child centred philosophy (Bourne 2001). Similarly research by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO 1953) supports this view, reporting that the home language is the best medium for instruction and for literacy development and should be used for as long as feasible. An explanation for this would be that because the home language facilitates subject learning and literacy development it is the means through which ‘a child absorbs the cultural environment’ (UNESCO 1953:47). It is through using this language that the school believed its children were going to learn most, as they have a greater understanding of what they are being taught. However, the placement setting chose to meet children’s diverse needs differently. Instead they did not separate the child with EAL but instead often supported him by differentiation, much of which involved informal methods of recording and learning. Particular provision which supported his Eastern European culture was a whole class ‘Ourselves’ topic that was covered for a whole term. During this time he was encouraged to bring in objects or photographs of things from his culture to share with his peers (Appendix 6). Legislation which supports this practice can be found within the Every Child Matters framework, which recognises the importance of preparing all children to live in a diverse, multi-ethnic society (DfES 2004). One could argue that the observed setting achieves this by recognising every child’s differences and their individual contributions to the class. Similar support also emerges for within the National Curriculum framework, which also highlights the importance of responding to pupils’ diverse needs, in particular the document details how teachers need to be aware of the different experiences, interests and strengths pupils bring from their range of diverse backgrounds (DfEE 1999). Having observed the very differing practice in two settings, one is able to make a judgement as to which appears to be most effectively catering for the diverse needs of its pupils. One would be inclined to argue that teaching children from an Eastern European background in their home language, isolates them and does not create an inclusive environment, and instead draws attention to their differences. It could also be argued that their social development is likely to suffer, as interaction with peers is likely to be limited to those who were able to speak their home language. As a trainee teacher one would be inclined to believe that the most effective way would be to recognise pupils differences and value their contributions, whether that be through discussion and by recognising difference, through demonstrations and visitor or the showing of differences and traditions. It could therefore be concluded that the provision within the placement setting effectively achieved this. Having explored and evaluated the effectiveness of a variety of inclusive teaching strategies, one becomes interested in analysing other ways that the class teacher is able to meet pupil’s diverse needs. This leads one to explore how the learning environment can be used to enhance such practice. In becoming familiar with the Early Years statutory framework it becomes apparent that the learning environment plays an important role, and as a result has been made one its main principles, known as ‘Enabling Environments’. The government document highlights how ‘The environment plays a key role in supporting and extending children’s development and learning’ (DCSF 2008). To put it simply the document encourages class teachers to use the learning environment to meet the diverse needs of all children. At the placement setting the arrangement of the physical environment was particularly important, especially for the focus child with SEN whose physical impairments needed catering for. Had the classroom not been arranged effectively, his level of involvement and interaction with adults and children would have been affected (NAEYC 1991:43). During my time at the setting I observed numerous adaptions to the environment to suit his individual needs, these adaptions included the use of a chair for him during whole class sessions, large spaces between tables so he could walk around the classroom with ease and as the he was smaller than the majority of children in the class all equipment and resources were checked at the start of the term to ensure that they were accessible to him (Appendix 7). Such adaptions as those described warrant support from researchers Salisbury & Smith (1993) who encourage spatial accommodations that make it possible for children with special educational needs to participate in the classroom (Salisbury & Smith 1993). Similar support can also be found within the SEN code of practice, which describes how schools may need to use specialist equipment, approaches and adapted activities for some children to ensure that they are fully included (DfES 2001). As well as these adaptions made for the child with SEN, similar adaptions were put in place to include and meet the diverse needs of the Eastern European child who could speak very little English. Perhaps the most noticeable of these was the classroom’s printed resources which reflected the Polish language spoken by the focus child as well as the English language and a picture that could be universally understood by all. Such practice not only satisfies recommendations within the SEN code of practice, in similar ways to adaptions made for the focus child with cerebral palsy, but it also meets guidance set out within the more recent document Removing Barriers to Achievement: The government’s strategy for SEN (2004). It details how teachers must make provision that enables individuals to participate effectively in the curriculum and assessment activities (DfE 2004). One could argue that the described practice reflects this as the hild is being encouraged to learn by being given the same opportunities as the rest of the class as oppose to being disadvantaged by his inability to understand labels and displays around the room. Having said this, models of best practice take this inclusion one step further and highlight areas where the observed setting could be more thorough and significantly improve their practice. Provision in place at these settings included extensive bilingual websites, parent classes and translated letters (Appendix 8). Such practice finds support from researcher Cummings (1991) who believes extensive adaptions and changes to a learning environment are necessary if settings are to be inclusive. Having said this, it could be argued that the smaller adaptions that the placement setting had made, were also going some way to meeting his beliefs, despite them not being to the extent of the models of best practice. To further strengthen this argument is the practicality of implementing adaptions such as translated letters and bilingual websites as they require bilingual skills, time and money that many schools do not have access to. As a result one would be inclined to believe the observed placement settings attempts to be diverse and inclusive met current legislation sufficiently without placing unnecessary pressures on the class teacher’s role. As well as the physical learning environment being important when supporting children with diverse needs so is the emotional learning environment, which involves ensuring that children enjoy and want to achieve at school. Such beliefs are reflected within the Every Child Matters document, with one of its desired outcomes, being that of ‘enjoy and achieve’ (HMSO 2004). In order that children are motivated to learn it is important that the work is set at a level that is suitable for them, that it is achievable, but also a challenge. According to NASP, Children are naturally curious; they want to explore and discover. If their explorations bring pleasure or success, they will want to learn more (NASP 2003). To relate this to attainment, if children experience success and achievement in their work they want to take this further and are motivated to learn. This is where the use of differentiation is particularly effective, as work can be set at more achievable levels so that all children are able to experience success (Appendix 9). The importance of this has been highlighted by government, claiming that differentiation ‘helps the school to meet the learning needs of all pupils’ (DFE 1994). This has also been reinforced within the National Curriculum and within the EYFS which both indicate that meeting the individual needs of all children is central to their beliefs (DCSF 2008; DfEE 1999). Similarly the study of differentiation by Westwood (1997) recognises its benefits particularly when catering for those who have a barrier to learning. During my placement experience it was evident that both the child with EAL and the child with SEN were having their needs met using differentiation on a daily basis (Appendix 10). Despite seeing both focus children react positively to the differentiation in place, on a couple of occasions; comments were made towards them about their work being easier. Such observations support the belief that when differentiation is not done effectively, it can create segregation within the classroom (Hart 1992). By meeting one set of National Curriculum and Early Years inclusion guidelines, obstacles may be put in place, preventing the reaching of others. For example in meeting the diverse needs of all through obvious differentiation they may actually point out the differences between children and make certain children feel excluded (DCSF 2008; DfEE 1999). As a trainee teacher, one could attempt to build on the observations made, taking the positive strategies that were seen, such as the different methods of recording pupils work and build on this so that the more negative aspects could be minimised. In particular segregation and exclusion could be reduced by changing the differentiated groups regularly, according to pupil progress and between subjects. This would potentially make it more difficult for children to understand that they are grouped and being given work according to ability. This leads one to analyse how assessment can be used to help class teachers cater for children’s diverse needs. As the range of needs within a class is evident, even from just focusing on two pupils with additional needs, the importance of individual assessment is obvious if these individual needs are going to be catered for. This importance has been recognised within the Primary National Strategy which details how assessment for learning is the process of seeking and interpreting evidence for use by teachers to decide where the learners are in their learning, where they need to go and how best to get there (DfES 2004a: 13). The placement setting managed to achieve this through observation, which appeared to be particularly successful for the children with SEN and with EAL, as they had difficulty with communicating their ideas and responses (Appendix 11). This use of observation for assessment is support by theorist†¦ who believes that†¦. Using this theory and the observed practice during placement, as a trainee one would want to implement similar practice so that all children’s needs are catered for and this is not just limited to those that have the ability to communicate their ideas. When focusing on the personalisation of learning, the focus child with cerebral palsy had a number of additional measures in place for him that ensured his inclusion in the mainstream classroom. Unlike all children with SEN, his disability meant that he had been given a statement of Special Educational Needs and as a result he benefitted from a one-to-one teaching assistant for a number of hours a week. Not only does this form of support cater for his specific needs but it also put him at the centre of this learning. An idea initially detailed within the Plowden Report (1967). The report put forward ideas originally investigated by Piaget, recommending child-centred education and discovery learning to be used to integrate children following Piaget’s belief that all children learn at different rates and was in favour of waiting until they were ready to move onto a further stage or schema (Piaget 1965). One would therefore argue that it is from research such as this; that the quality of teaching and learning has improved for many children they are now encouraged to develop at their own rate and pace. Having said this, the argument is not one sided, with some researchers believing that Piaget’s theory of school readiness was impractical in practice. For example in a class with thirty children, is it realistic for the teacher, to know the exact state of readiness for every child, and to set individual work? On a practical level, this is not possible; suggesting Piaget’s theory is unrealistic. It is not feasible for the child with SEN to always have work set at his own individual level; however during the few hours that he is given one-to-one support more challenging work and activities that he would not be capable of tackling alone are addressed, Physical Education being one of these areas (Appendix 12). Such practice meets recommendation within the Strategy for Special Educational Needs (2004) which details that successful inclusion is determined by the quality of their experience; how they are helped to learn, achieve, and participate fully in the life of the school (DfE 2004:25). One could argue the way that the extra support is used within the setting improves the quality of children’s experiences. Support within literature comes from Vygotsky (1978) believing adults not only support children but also encourage progression through ‘scaffolding’. In his view it is not only important to focus on what children can do unaided and within their capacity but also what they can do with adult support (Gindis 1998). Development is dependent on learning and through learning they develop. Learning should be matched to the child’s level of development but should also take them beyond it’ (Duffy 1998:92). Though formal and informal observations completed by the one-to-one assistant and the class teacher, they are able to see what the child is capable of without support and then build on this during his one-to-one time. This personalisation of learning for the child with SEN is also met through his Individual Education Plan (IEP) which is used to support his individual learning needs (Appendix 13). Support for such practice was not only seen from the parents of the focus child and the class teacher (Appendix 13) but can also be seen within government legislation, both within the Education Act (1996) and the SEN Code of Practice (2001), which highlight the importance of identification and assessment of pupils with special educational needs (DfES 2001). Putting in place an IEP is one way of achieving recommendations within the SEN Code of Practice which details how schools should match provision to children’s SEN in response of their individual needs (DfES 2001). The implementation of his IEP demonstrates inclusion as the class teacher uses his targets to direct his learning and set him goals to achieve, in a similar way that his peers are achieving their early learning goals. Despite the placement setting appearing to use IEPs successfully some research exists to dispute them, particularly regarding their involvement of parents. According to Rock (2000) in some cases parents feel that educational programs have already been determined before they are involved in their child’s IEP meetings and therefore they may not agree with the progress and the direction of the development being encouraged. Such a claim, disputes initial reasoning for such practice being put in place as legislation emphasised integrated practice with parents so that they had an opportunity to plan the most appropriate program for their children alongside the professionals (Friend 2005; Goldstein & Turnbull 1982; Martin et al 2004). However if this research is to be used to form an argument against the success of IEPs, its validity most be investigated. One could argue that Rock (2000) appears to be bias as she is an SEN teacher whom appears to have lost faith in the education system. She appears to be putting into question the effectiveness of the IEP program because of individual cases that were not successful, rather than judging each case individually. In addition to this her research appears to be based on only a very small number of cases, leaving one to question whether her research is to generalising and judgemental. Having taken both of these points into consideration research one would be inclined to dismiss this research on the grounds that it is not valid enough to create an argument against IEPs. Instead one would be better to judge the success of IEPs based on the practice seen on placement. Having gained an understanding of how parents can support class teachers in meeting the diverse needs of children, attention is turned to other outside support that my also aid teachers in providing effective provision. In particular is the support available to cater for the diverse needs of pupils, like the focus child with EAL. The Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG) is a government scheme ran via the Department for Children Schools and Families (DCFS) allocated on a need based formula to all Local Authorities (NALDIC 2010) (Appendix 13). Support of this kind was investigated during the placement however it was made clear because they did not have high numbers of children learning EAL that they were unable to access this support. One could argue that no matter how many children the school have to cater for that have EAL, they still need provision to meet children’s diverse needs and for this reason they should all have access to this government support. Research conducted by Sure Start supports this, as they believe, there is a lack of access to expert support for developing good practice in equal opportunities and cultural awareness (Sure Start 2004). In the case of the EMAG expertise is available however for work to be carried out more widely additional funding needs to be allocated (Sure Start 2004). Using Lincolnshire as an example, research from Sure Start shows how only a small number of settings have had access to this grant, meaning those benefiting from Government support is very limited. However one could assume that if settings are lucky enough to have access to this type of support, it would enable class teachers to provide even better provision than that seen during the placement experience. Having analysed research, legislation, literature and my placement experience throughout this assignment, one begins to conclude what provision most successfully allows class teachers to inclusively meet the diverse needs of pupils. Play is a particularly valuable strategy which can effectively cater for a diverse range of needs. Resources, toys and book can also be incorporate into play to encourage children’s acceptance of diversity. The physical and emotional learning environment also plays a vital role, as it motivates learners and helps removes barriers to children’s learning. The learning environment was analysed in depth when focusing on the needs of two children within the placement setting. Provision showed how the class teacher met the needs of the child with a physical impairment by arranging resources at a lower level, by giving him a chair to sit on as oppose to the carpet and create more free space around the room for his of access. Similarly classroom displays and labels reflected the home language of an Eastern European child so that he had equal opportunities to understand and access these resources as his peers. Other suggested strategies as seen in models of best practice included bilingual websites, parent classes and translated letters so families of EAL children can actively support the setting in meeting children’s diverse needs. Other strategies that class teachers may use to personalise leaning include differentiation, one-to-one teaching and IEPs, however all of these have faced an element of dispute, whether that be on the grounds that they are based on traditional theories or that modern researchers have proven more updated theories.