Insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Insurance - Essay Example A certain level of risk is assumed to be accepted given the risk appetite of the management relating to a particular risk. Risk limitation is considered as the blend of risk acceptance and avoidance such that the company designs its portfolio of risk components and considers as to which risk component needs to be accepted or avoided. Risk transfer is the most common risk management technique such that the risk component is transferred to third party. The most common example is insurance in which the risk is transferred to insurance company against the premiums that the insurance company charges from the business. For different home styles, the most appropriate policy is the special policy called as HO-3. This policy insures all main perils except earthquake, flood, nuclear accident and war. Through insurance coverage, one gets deep coverage up to 100% of the replacement cost of home. The home content that insurer generally covers is between 50 to 75% of the property’s value. As far as the tax implications are concerned on obtaining an insurance policy of any type, it is important to note that any loan obtained to purchase the insurance policy is not regarded as taxable income. However, in case of lapse of policy or the surrender of the policy in favor of the insurer, the amount of loan becomes taxable and it will entitle the policyholder to pay tax on the loan amount. Similarly, if the interest paid on that loan is from out of pocket, it will not be tax deductible and thus result in higher tax consequences. As far as the personal finance plan is concerned, in short-term, insurance on automobile, cellular phone etc. will be needed as these things are frequently replaced with the newer models or versions etc. For medium-terms based needs, insurance policies such as health/disability or home policies will be preferred. For long-terms insurance needs, life insurance policies will be included in the financial plan. Savings and

Personal Classroom Management Plan Essay Example for Free

Personal Classroom Management Plan Essay My personal philosophy of classroom management of a preschool or elementary school settings that it requires several things first, of all you have to have patience, determination, and motivation. You have to be flexible, careful in planning, and being very consistence. You have to be prepared and ready to manage your classroom from day one. Classroom does not come well-managed you have to mold yourself and your assistant to help your classroom be well-managed. I present myself as a democratic model because it helps you with the parents, and the community beside the students that everyone gets involve to help make the school and the students safe and keep them under control. This is when I would use Wong’s Model because it helps you manage your classroom from the very first day of school. This would help me prepared myself for  what’s to come and how I would implement my lessons and rules for the classroom as well as the students. You come up with a technique to teach the kids and go over it repeatedly. Especially the ages that I teach because they are young from ages 2 1/2to 4 years old so, you will have to implement it more than once. I would also use the Win-Win Discipline as well, because if you have students in you classroom that is constantly gives you problems or have trouble listen you cause this method to help meet the deeper needs of the students and respond to the causes of misbehavior in addition to eliminating interruption in the classroom. I want to help my students not call them out or label them as a problem child or student. This is just a portion of my philosophy to help me manage my classroom in a better why. These resources were very helpful and I hope to use it in my classroom to get a positive feedback. EDU – 450 Classroom Procedures Program of Study: Early Childhood Education Procedure 1: Entering the Classroom Objective: To create a classroom environment that is conducive to learning the moment class begins. When procedure will be introduced, modeled, and practiced and its frequency: Teacher will introduce the procedure on the first day of school. Teacher will model the procedure at the beginning of class for the first week of school. Students will practice this procedure a few times the first day until satisfactory. Teacher and students will repeat when reinforcement is needed or when new students join the class. Assessment and Feedback: Teacher will watch for the students that follow the steps correctly and will positively reinforce the students. Procedure Steps or Activity: 1. Walk in quietly (entering a new zone) 2. Put things away (backpack, coats) 3. Ask to go to a center (blocks, housekeeping) etc.  Procedure 2: Preparing for Circle time Objective: To optimize time for instruction and create a classroom environment that is conducive to learning. When procedure will be introduced, modeled, and practiced and its frequency: Teacher will introduced the procedure the first day of school. Teacher will model the procedure at the beginning of circle time for the first week of school. Teacher will practice the procedure the first couple of days until satisfied. Teacher and students will repeat when reinforcement is needed and as we get new students. Assessment and Feedback: Teacher will watch for the students that follow the steps correctly and will positively reinforce the students. For the students that is not doing it correctly, teacher will redirect them into doing so. Procedure Steps or Activity: 1. Teacher will turn off light to let them know how much time they have until clean up. 2. When the time is up, Teacher will clap hands twice. 3. Teacher will inform the students that it is clean up time. 4. Teacher will sing a song (It’s time to put the toys away). 5. When students are done cleaning, they will go to the carpet quietly. Procedure 3: Fire Drill Objective: The students will already know what to do during a fire drill. When procedure will be introduced, modeled, and practiced and its frequency: Teacher will introduce the procedure on the first day of school. Teacher will model the procedure at the beginning of class for the first week of school. Teacher and students will repeat when reinforcement is needed or when new students join the class. Assessment and Feedback: Teacher will watch for students that follow the steps correctly and will positively reinforce the students. Procedure Steps or Activity: 1. Teacher will sound a bell alarming the students that it is a fire drill. 2. The students will line up quickly at the exit door. 3. Teacher will gather all the necessary items. 4. Teacher will lead the students out to safety on the emergency exit. 5. Teacher will do a head count on students. 6. Teacher and students will stay in the safety zone until someone comes and let them know it is all clear and safe to go back into the building. Procedure 4: Preparing for Recess Objective: To optimize time for instruction, and the students would know what to do during recess time. When procedure will be introduced, modeled, and practiced and its frequency: Teacher will introduce the procedure on the first day of school. Teacher will model the procedure at the time of recess for the first week of school. Students will practice this procedure a few times the first week of school until satisfactory. Teacher and students will repeat when reinforcement is needed or when new students join the class. Assessment and Feedback: Teacher will watch for the students that follow the steps correctly and will positively reinforce the students. Procedure Steps or Activity: 1. Teacher will turn the light off alarming the students how much time they have until cleaning up the centers. 2. When the time has come, the teacher will clap her hands three times. 3. Students will begin to clean up their centers. 4. Once students are done, they sit on the carpet. 5. Teacher will call on students one by one to put on coats. 6. When it is time, teacher has the students to line up to go outside. Procedure 5: Preparing for Lunch Objective: To optimize time for instruction, and the students would know what to do during lunch time. When procedure will be introduced, modeled, and practiced and its frequency: Teacher will introduce the procedure the first day of school. Teacher will model the procedure before lunch time for the first week of school. Teacher  will practiced the procedure a few times the first day until satisfactory. Teacher and students will repeat when reinforcement is needed or when new students join the class. Assessment and Feedback: Teacher will watch for students that follow the steps correctly and will positively reinforce the students. Procedure Steps or Activity: 1. Students comes in from outside, they take off their coats. 2. Students are then to sit down on the rug. 3. Teacher will call 3 to 4 students over to wash their hands. 4. Students are to return to rug. 5. Teacher will call students to table when lunch is ready. Rules and Consequences Part One: 1. Come to class prepared and ready to work. 2. Have a winning attitude. 3. Everyone deserves respect. 4. Use kind words at all times. 5. Do your very best. 6. Have fun while you learn. The consequences for every action is that for the first, offence is the students will get a verbal warning and I will talk with them about there behavior, the students will know that we do not tolerate that type of behavior. Second offence is that I would call their parents to have a parent teacher conference to speak with them about their child behavior in the classroom. Create a plan on what we can do together as a team so it would not happen again. Third offence is that the students will be sent to the office and probably would be suspended for a day out of school. If it  is the third offence and they forget their homework I would call the student parents and explain the situation of their child and would have the student take 10-15 minutes from recess time to make their work up. As a teacher will let the students know what type of behavior that I tolerate in my classroom on the very first day. I will print out a copy of the rules for the students to put in their agenda, and one for the parents to keep at home. Once we have practiced the rules for the classroom, I would have the students to recite it aloud once a week to earn extra points. Communication I would communicate with my parents through newsletter. Through a newsletter the parent will know what their child is doing weekly. The newsletter will have the lesson that we would learn for the week, any important announcements, and what important meetings or announcement that is up coming. I would also communicate with the parents through phone by letting them know each week how their child is doing, what they have accomplished so far, and if they need help in any subject. Finally, I would communicate with my parents through email, because every parent do not have a phone, so if they have a computer they can also see what their child is doing and what we have cover so far. I will have a tutorial set up for parents that need help with different lesson to be able to help their child be successful and excel further in their education. Student Engagement Strategies The teacher must use varied viewpoints, theory ways of knowing, and methods of inquiry in teaching subject matter concepts. First, one way the teacher can engage strategies is to simply the lesson for the students and give them an opportunity to help find themselves as well as the answer. Second, you can use comics and graphic novels to engage young boys more than girls, into reading. Images are powerful, so young boys are very interested in it. The teachers can develop a complex discussion from a simple idea and help stimulate student’s critical thinking. Finally, teachers must engage students in generating knowledge and testing hypotheses according to the methods of inquiry and standards of evidence used in the discipline. I would use this image when I am teaching circle time or morning session. This  is teaching the students there ABC’s, days of the week, and colors with shapes, just to name a few. I would use this image when I want the students to ask questions quietly and not all at one time talking over each other. I would post this in my circle time area reminding them what to do when they have a questions to ask. Professionalism To be professional with each of the following: with students, parents, co workers and administrators is to be able to multi task. Inspire the trust of your clients of your students and parents. First, impression from the first day of school year is very important. Dress like a professional. Teachers should arrive at work looking the part. Always be on time, if you arrive 10 to 15 minutes before work is being on time. You will have time to prepare and go over your lesson before your class starts. Follow procedures and the protocol expected at your school. Professionals embrace the corporate identity and values and model these for the clients in this case, the children they teach. Take charge of your classroom, you have to let the students know from the very first day of school what you want from them and the rules and consequences for their actions. Take pride in the process and product. Professionally presented to your supervisor your notes and handouts. Never miss a dead line, try to be on time with your assignments, and do not way until the very last minute. Treat your colleagues and supervisors with respect. Model respect for authority for your students and gaining their respect will be much easier for you. Be passionate, positive, and enthusiastic about your work. A professional teacher will not create negativity in a staff room or engage in mindless gossip and the spreading of dissent. Take interest in every child. To better you get to know your students, the more influence you have on your students the better their attitude will be toward your subject and on their lives. Consult parents, having them involve  with you for the support of the students and the school the better it will be. Support your colleagues and school management walk the talk. Put the needs of the institution above your own. You are one person in a group of professionals who share a common goal and vision. In dealing with my strengths of my students and parents, we need to be passionate, open minded, and honest. You have to let parents know in anyway that you are there for them. You get the parents involve with the students education and as what they have questions about. As for co- workers, you just be respectful to one another. Keep the gossip to yourself and stay away from negativity. For administrators you have to be professional at all times, by dressing appropriate, being on time, have and open- mind. The area that I can improve in is being more open- minded, by letting my students be more involved in help planning the lesson and activity in the classroom. Let the parents be more involved by asking questions for example: what would they like to see more from their students in the classroom settings. Set up computer tutorial classes for the parents that do not know how to work the computer. The importance of being professional is a multi-task, because you have to be professional in many different ways, dress appropriate have people person skills, be polite, be a quick thinker and have individuals that are able to demonstrate professional attitude both in the office and in the field.

Causes for World War One

Causes for World War One Connor Sweeney Q1) The incitement of World War One was the result of different factors set in motion by various political situations with many believing Germany pursued war for aggressive reasons. Additionally, historians illustrate that Germany pursued war as a solution to domestic issues such as the rise of socialism. Many historians believe that Germany pursued war through aggressive means such as policies and diplomatic decisions. Between 1890-1914, Germany adopted a new aggressive foreign policy that focused on territorial expansion called Weltpolitik. The German Foreign Minister, Bernhard von Bà ¼low once said Only a successful foreign policy can help to reconcile, pacify, rally, unite. Germany, as a result of this new policy, required a new larger naval fleet in order to push their expansionist ambitions which in turn threatened Britains status as the worlds colonial power. Consequently, Germanys Navy Laws of 1898 and 1900 upset Britain and sparked the Naval Race, a race to build the largest and most advanced naval fleet which in turn deteriorated Anglo-German relations. As a result, Britain entered into alliances with France in 1904 and Russia in 1907 respectively, creating what was known as the Triple Entente, meaning war with one nation could escalate into a European conflict. Additionall y, Germany pursued foreign interest in Morocco, in what was to be known as the Moroccan Crisis, where he publicly announced Germanys backing of Moroccos independence. This was during the time France was hoping to colonise Morocco with British backing through the Anglo-French Entente and thus Germany hoped to disrupt this relationship, feeling that it posed a threat to Germanys world influence. Towards the end of the 19th century, Germany was undergoing rapid mass industrialisation with coal and steel production increasing. As a result German society was beginning to politically shift as mass urbanisation began with many flocking to cities to work, where there were greater inequalities between the growing working class in the cities and the rural aristocrats in the countryside.   Discontent spread as workers working long hours for poor pay and conditions led changes for greater democracy and rights. This led to a rise in Socialism within German society that challenged the conservative and traditional Kaiser Wilhelm and the German government. This rise in socialist views was exhibited by the rise of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who, representing the growing working class, pursued social and political change. By 1912 the SPD had 110 seats in the Reichstag as opposed to 35 seats in 1890. The German government and the Kaiser saw the SPD as a dangerous threat and would no t let them the opportunity to govern despite their majority in the Reichstag. As the SPD grew, the right-wing parties in the Reichstag on whom the Kaisers government relied were losing support.   Thus the Kaiser introduced Sammlungspolitik, a domestic motion to support Weltpolitik. This was to ensure political and domestic unity in rallying together Germanys social elites (landowners, new industrialists, and the army) and encouraging patriotism and loyalty to the Kaiser and the government whilst encouraging opposition to socialism. Q2) As Europe entered the period of June August 1914 it became a diplomatic hotbed known as the July Crisis. The July Crisis coins the political and diplomatic situations following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, a close ally of Germany. The assassin, Gavrilo Princip, was a member of a Serbian terrorist organisation fighting for Slav Independence from Austria-Hungary. Thus Austria saw this as a direct attack from the Serbian government and as a result sent them an uncompromising ultimatum or war. Germany saw this as an opportunity to push their expansionists aims and gave Austria their full backing. This Blank Cheque, as it was known, became a key step into outbreak of the war as with Germanys full backing, Austria could push on into war with Serbia.   Germany with their issue of the Blank Cheque believed Austria was ready to ignite an immediate and rapid war against Serbia despite their wariness of Russias Dual-alliance with Serbia, potentially escalating the war into a European conflict with the Franco-Russian Alliance causing France to support Russia. However, Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg, the German Chancellor, thought should a European war occur, that it was better to happen in 1914 than years later when Russia would be at a greater military capacity.   Although Serbia agreed to meet some of the demands of Austrias ultimatum, it did not fulfil all the terms and Austria with the blank cheque of Germany behind them, declared war on Serbia on the 28th July.   During these last few days in July, the European political situation heightened to breaking point with Tsar Nicholas signing motions for plans to both partial and general mobilise the Russian troops despite firm warnings from Germany. On the 29th July 1914 there was telegram exchanges between the Tsar and the Kaiser regarding the newly erupted war in the Balkans. Kaiser writing Of course military measures on the part of Russia would be looke d upon by Austria as a calamity we both wish to avoid[i], showing Germanys unrelenting stance. This was followed up by the Tsars reply I hope from all my heart that these measures wont in any way interfere with your part as mediator which I greatly value.[ii]. From these telegrams both the Tsar and the Kaiser conveyed an unwavering stand that illustrates an inevitability between both nations involvement in the Balkan war. As July drew to a close, events accelerated towards war with Austria-Hungary ordering general mobilisation on the 30th July 1914 with Russia doing the same. News spread to Berlin and by the 1st August Germany had declared war on Russia and started general mobilisation, activating the Franco-Russian Alliance which meant that Germany on the 3rd August declared war on France.   Part of Germanys military strategy against France was the Schlieffen Plan that involved marching through Belgium, a neutral country. In order to help protect Belgian neutrality, Britain had n o choice but to declare war on Germany on the 4th August and so Europe was plunged into war. Q3) There are many varying interpretations on who was responsible and culpable for the origins of WW1 with two of the main differing theories being from historians Fritz Fischer and Christopher Clark. Fischer takes the stance that sole responsibility for the war lies with Germany while Clark on the other hand, looks at the origin of the war as a collective responsibility where all nations must take a share of the blame. Fritz, on one hand, believes that Germanys pursuit of war was just a progression of their vast, expansionist aims. He claims that Germany, in the interest of becoming a global great power, was ready to launch WW1 and that once the war had started, its aims were precise and pre-determined especially in areas of territorial gains in Central and Southern Europe. Furthermore, Fischer believed that it was domestic factors that drove Germanys foreign policy as opposed to the orthodox view that it was external factors. At this time Socialism threatened the old, traditional empirical German society while industrialisation/urbanisation had caused growing inequalities between social classes which Fischer believed the Kaiser and the government wanted to resolve this through the pursuit of war. Fritz thought Germany was actively pursuing war to solve their domestic problems at home and fulfil their expansionist aims in one swoop. In this, he believes the blame lies solely at the step of Germany. On the other hand, Clarks thesis believes that a collective responsibility must be placed on all nations There is no smoking gun in this story; or, rather there is one in the hands of every major character[iii]. Clark states that the outbreak of the war was an accumulative result of political situations and diplomatic manoeuvres that metaphorically stumbled into a war. There is significant evidence to support this thesis such as Russias and Germanys unwavering relentlessness to get involved in the Austro-Serbian conflict as exhibited by the Willy-Nicky telegrams. Personally, the Fischer thesis provides the more convincing theory as it is supported by more significant evidence. In my opinion, Germanys adoption of Weltpolitik, an expansionist policy, forced other nations into alliances such as Britain who formed alliances with France following the Naval Race that was subsequently caused by this policy. Additionally, this aggressive foreign policy led to diplomatic manoeuvres such as the blank cheque to Austria Hungary, a promise of full support, that with its absence may have avoided the Austro- Serbian conflict that started the war. It seemed that Germany manoeuvred themselves into a position where war was inevitable in order to progress their expansionist aims and although many nations must take their share of the blame, it is in my opinion that Germany must take sole responsibility for the outbreak of World War 1. [i] The Willy-Nicky Telegrams, July-August 1914, Kaiser to Tsar (29th July 1914), History A: German Foreign Policy 1890-1914, Pg. 40. [ii] The Willy-Nicky Telegrams, July-August 1914, Tsar to Kaiser (30th July 1914) History A: German Foreign Policy 1890-1914, Pg. 40. [iii] Christopher Clark, The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914(London: Harper Collins,2012). http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/kaiser-wilhelm-of-germany-and-czar-nicholas-of-russia-exchange-telegrams http://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/germanys_blank_cheque_to_austria-hungary

Christof Koch and the Theory of Consciousness Essay -- Consciousness

Consciousness was first described and introduced by Sigmund Freud and Friedrich Nietzsche (Crick & Koch, 2001). It has been described as a realm of the mind that controls human behaviour. However consciousness is not accessible to conscious introspection, self-examination or a source of knowledge. On the contrary, Christof Koch, a neuroscientist collaborator of Francis Crick, describes unconsciousness as any neuronal activity that does not give rise to conscious sensation, thought or memory (Crick & Koch, 2001). Though unconsciousness differs in many different ways to consciousness, it works in a waking state that deals with cause and effect and the logical spontaneous processes in order to process information. On the contrary unconscious mind is associated with involuntary activities that form connections with thoughts, ideas and reflections, which unconsciousness also has the capability for multi-tasking. Therefore, as Koch explains, unconscious puts humans is an â€Å"online† mode, allowing us to override our instinctual ‘offline’ programming. Scientists and philosophers have different understanding and explanations for consciousness, as it used to be observed from a philosophical point of view only. However, the advancement of technologies in understanding brain from a computational, bio-molecular and cognitive and behavioural approach, consciousness is being studied from a neuroscientific approach as well. Therefore neuroscientists have difficulties in verifying and understanding its existence, for example, Dennet believes consciousness is the evolved capacity for self-knowledge that gives us the subjective experience. Where as Francis Crick looks at from a completely neuroscientist view that one should look at Neural Correlates ... ...Natural Correates of Conscouness (Cambridge, Mass:MIT Press, 2000) NCC. Retrieved 29th of December 2011 Reagan, Leslie A., et al, ed (2007). Pavlov Children Medicine's moving pictures. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press. p. 285. Retrieved 7th of December 2011 Scheff, Thomas Ph.D. 2009. Emotional/Relational World. Psychology Today. www.psychologytoday.com. Retrieved 2nd of December 2011. http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/lets-connect/200909/the- emotionalrelational-world Shear, J., Explaining Consciousness – The Hard Problem (Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 1997) (and Journal of consciousness studies 1995) Tsuchiya & Koch. (2009) Tsuchiya, Naotsugu. Koch, Christof. The relationship Between Consciousness and attention. Chapter 6. The Journal of The Neurology of Consciousness. www.klab.caltech.edu. Retrieved in the 2nd of December 2011.

Childcare and Education Unit 4

child Unit 4 – Assignment| Michelle Pieh| | Children & Play| | Rebecca Myring| 11/16/2009| | Introduction Play is the main way in which children learn and therefore play affects all aspects of a child’s development. Valuing children’s play: Props should be encouraged. Allow the use of their own experience. Own interests. Playing on their own should be encouraged. Work in a way that suits them. Adult encouragement to be engagement. Play as a way of communication. Recreate familiar themes. Transport resources to where they wish. Learn best when they are enjoying themselves. Allow for time and space. Facts about play: Through play children learn about their world. Play is considered to be a primary need of children. The stages of play change as a child grows older. The characteristics of play change as different stages of development are reached. All children go through the stages of play as they grow develop. Children develop at different rates therefore some children may take longer to go through a particular stage. D1/D7) Setting 1 – Zoo adventure play area Setting 2 – Park Setting 3 – Beach Setting 1 – A zoo adventure play area is an enclosed area containing play equipment. D7) It has wheel chair, pushchair/pram access. It has a variety of facilities ranging from a cafe with outdoor seating area for adults to sit and watch their children play to toilet facilities for all. In the play area there is specialised staff for children that have disabilities so they can help them join in with any games that are going on. The play area where the children can play has a safe outside area where children can play without parents worrying about the children getting hurt. The area is animal themed and the toys outside are animal shaped and patterned such as a swing in the shape of a lions mane and is yellow and orange to show it is a lions mane. A slide is in the shape of a zebra’s tongue the top of the steps is the head and the handles are the mouth opened wide and the slide is the tongue. Setting 2 – A park is an enclosed area where children can play without parents having to worry about their child going out of the park onto a street near a main road. There may be different parts in the park that are specially designed for each age range. For example: Babies/small children there may be a soft play area, bucket swings that a child can be harnessed into, small low sit on toys and a small slide. Aged 6 -10 children there may be a bigger slide, seesaw, roundabout, swings, small trampolines, climbing frames and tyre swings. Teenagers there may be basketball courts, tennis courts, football nets, running track, climbing wall/ abseiling wall, golf course, wire swings, zip wire, a weather pitch for all sports and a big trampoline that has a net around it to keep them safe whilst jumping. Setting 3 – The beach is a large area containing sand and water. The children like making sand castles. They also like feeling the different textures e. g. Water and sand mixed together. The children also have a chance to have a donkey ride. D7) There are also ramps for access for wheel chairs, push chairs/ prams. On the beach there needs to be parental supervision. D2) Age range for zoo – between 18-24 months to 16years Stage of play for the zoo is spectator aged between 18 months – 24months to 4 years and co – operative play for aged 4+ children. Age range for park – 2 years to 16 years Stage of play for the park is spectator 24 months to 4 years and co –operative for aged 4+ children. Age range for beach – 2 years to 16years Stage of play is spectator 24 months to 4 years and co –operative for aged 4+ children. Co – operative play is where children play together with shared goals. Play can be quite complicated and children are supportive. D3) The type of play that goes on is: Zoo – physical play Park – pretend play Beach – discovery play Zoo – At the zoo children would be involved in physical play. They would do this by finding different equipment to play on. Using all the different equipment they would exercising which would form their muscles, stamina, balance and Co-ordination. (Tassoni P, Hucker K, 2005, Pg 163) Park – At the park they would find different equipment to play on. They would pretend to act out things and pretend that they are other people. This will enable children to use their imagination and develop their own imaginative ideas. (Walker M, Beaver, M Brewster, J Neaum, S and Tallack, J 2008 Page 195) Beach – They would discover sand and water. They would also discover mixing sand and water. They may find shells, crabs, star fish and jelly fish. D4) Zoo is physical play – An example of a zoo play area would be playing on the monkey bars which would be developing their gross motor skills. This will develop whole body and limb movements, co-ordination and balance. Walker M, Beaver, M Brewster, J Neaum, S and Tallack, J 2008 page 194) Park is pretend play – An example of pretend play at a local park would be a child playing on a climbing frame that has a wheel on it and they are pretending it is a ship/boat, aeroplane/helicopter. Beach is discovery play – An example of a beach would be discovering different shells, sea life, boats, and textures of sand by building sand castles. Mixing sand and water together to make sand pies. Developing knowledge and understanding of the world. D5) Beach discovery play and Maria Montessori theory. The main points of Maria Montessori’s theory are: Children pass through particular development stages. This is the essential for the child to be able to learn. * Montessori developed a structured education programmed based on these stages, including a number of specially devised pieces of equipment that encourage children to develop certain skills. * Limited emphasis is placed on counting, reading and writing these will follow once the basic social and emotional development has taken place. * A Childs natural will to learn should be encouraged to foster a lifelong motivation for learning. * Children should be encouraged to work alone. Montessori felt the best learning occurred when children were focused, silent and completely absorbed in a task. * Montessori did not believe in free play and did not encourage children to develop their own ideas –play needed to have a learning focus. (Garhart M C, 2000, Pg 21-37) Maria Montessori believed that children learn by doing practical activities and by playing outdoors. D6) Setting 1 – zoo adventure play area * In the adventure play area with children aged 18-24 months to 16 years, an obstacle course could be arranged to include either a route over a high climbing frame or a lower route through it. The risks would be bumping into others, slipping and falling. I have chosen this activity as it will allow children to understand risks e. g. heights, bumping of the body parts. The challenge would be learning their limitations. Setting 2 – park In the park with children aged 2 years to 16 years, a park play area could be set up in the shape of a trim trail to include a variety of apparatus that provide challenges. The risks would be bumping into others, slipping and falling. The risks that the children will learn to understand are bumping into other children, slipping on play equipment and falling off of play equipment. The challenge that they might have to overcome is to see how high they can swing on a swing whilst feeling comfortable. Setting 3 – beach On the beach with children aged 2 years to 16 years, provide activities e. g. digging and making sand castles which challenges them to be sensible when handling the sand. The risk would be getting sand in their/other people’s eyes, risk of drowning in the sea, risk of being bitten by crabs and getting stung by jelly fish. The risks could be getting sand in their eyes, getting bitten by animals and drowning in the water. The challenge they will have to vercome is learning about what can happen if they touch certain animals. C1/D7) Setting 1 – zoo adventure playground Challenge and risk activity chosen in (D6) was obstacle course. Resources that would be used: * Climbing frame with monkey bars, lower and higher side. * Tunnels. * Under and over bars. Health and safety equipment: * Safe area. * Helmet. * Knee pads and elbow pads. * Safety mats, non slip floor. * Supervision. * Appropriate footwear, clothing. These resources have been chosen because: For children’s own welfare and safety. They allow children to achieve the learning outcomes that have been planned for. They meet individual children’s needs- D7. Provides different levels of play for age range and ability. Setting 2 – park Challenge and risk activity chosen in (D6) was trim trail. Resources that would be used: * Apparatus e. g. swings, balance walking logs, climbing nets, tyres, swinging logs. Health and safety equipment: * Safe area. * Knee pads, elbow pads. * Helmet. * Supervision. * Appropriate footwear and clothes These resources have been chosen because: For children’s own welfare and safety. They are appropriate to age range and stage of development of the children. They meet individual children’s needs – D7. Setting 3 – Beach Challenge and risk chosen in (D6) was digging sandcastles. Resources that would be used: * Spade. * Bucket. Health and safety: * Clean area. * Safe area. * Goggles. * Supervision from parent’s/carers. These resources have been chosen because: Encourages exploration. Encourages open minded play. They meet individual needs – D7. B1) Giving children activities that challenge them and make them understand risks by: Build’s up resilience as they become more aware of challenges that they will experience in the future and it will help them to become more comfortable, confident when faced with the kind of challenge. Bruce D. Perry M. D. Ph. D Professor of Child Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences). Develops an awareness of potential hazards. Younger children's awareness of hazards is further raised through staff's gentle reminders, for example, prior to activities, such as cooking. Children benefit from individual towels and soap dispensers, which reduce the risk of cross? infection. To, ensure that the risk of potential hazards is minimised. Children also develop confidence and self-esteem because staffs build positive, trusting relationships with them. (Ofsted Creche report) Prevents boredom. As young children don't understand time the way grown-ups do but boredom is not always a bad thing, it can also get children thinking creatively and can pay to take a more active role in preventing boredom. (Sanders, M. R. ; Christenson, A. P. (1985). Pg’s 13, 101-117). Builds confidence. As they do the activities again again they will have confidence in doing the activity as they will know how to do it. Potential learning opportunity such as they learn that you have to follow instructions to get to the end product. Provides mental stimulation. E. g. helps children to function for longer. Maria Montessori developed a method for young children, which was rooted in the senses and involves manipulating everyday objects and following highly structured activities that engage children but rarely allow them to fail. Develops essential life skills. E. g. money, telling the time, addition/subtraction and measurements etc. Activities that provide children with a challenge and risks: Climbing frame – know their own limitations but not put off but to overcome it and be determine. Hopefully next time they won’t climb as high and only go half way so they learn from previous times. B2) Adult led sessions are often used to introduce children to exploration and investigation through play. This helps them to develop their own play agenda and ideas. Children appreciate adults who help to keep their play flowing as long as they don’t take over. How they would do this? Exploration: Involve them in activities. E. g. Building Sandcastles, Finding sea shells and stones. Encourage them to learn about new things. For example colours, numbers and letters. Plan activities that relate to children’s experiences. E. g. Places were on holiday. Encourage activities that encourage exploration. E. g. Making ice or jelly. Offer a variety of activities. E. g. collage making, beading or outdoor play. How they would do this for investigation: Provide equipment. E. g. Bucket and spade or binoculars and magnifying glass. Provide plenty of time. To allow children to finish the activity so they get the whole potential. Present activities that allow solving problems e. g. floating and sinking. Allow the children to work together. So they can work as a team member and listen to other children’s ideas and try to solve things together. Introduce new subjects and topics. To help develop further knowledge. A1) Name of theorist wrote about in D5 was Maria Montessori. Maria’s main ideas and theories are: Children pass through particular developmental stages. This is essential for the child to be able to learn. Montessori developed a structured education programme based on these stages including a number of specially developed pieces of equipment that encourage children to develop certain skills. Limited emphasis is placed on counting reading and writing. Children should be encouraged to work alone. To encourage confidence in what they think. Montessori did not believe in free play and did not encourage children to develop their own ideas. Influences on today’s practice: There are many Montessori schools throughout Europe usually privately run. The method promotes a carefully planned environment that neither allows children total freedom nor imposes activities on them. Some nurseries follow the plan completely and purchase Montessori equipment and use her theories with a flexible programme. (Garhart M C, (2000) Page 21-37) What difference (if any) might there be if the adult was aware of this theory? If the adult was aware of the theory the adult would be aware of discovery play and be able to plan activities in more depth. They will also be aware of the benefits of discovery play. How do you think the theory will affect an adults understanding of children’s play? They might think that something that the child is playing is not discovery. So this might not give the children as many opportunities. A*) The role of the adult in providing activities and supporting children’s play is to provide relevant resources to enable children to do specific activities e. g. ard making needs – card, glue, sticking things/materials. An adult also sets out a play area for the children to play in. Adults make suggestions to widen the children’s knowledge and to support them when playing. Adults should also ask the children questions to develop their understanding. The adult considers the children’s needs e. g. provide activities for different levels of needs â€⠀œ (D7). I had no idea that there was so much to play. I had no idea that there was a lot of planning towards play and how play was actually structured rather than just giving a child a toy and telling them to play. I am now more confident in advising children when they are playing. I am now in a better position as I would be able to extend opportunities by asking the child questions. I have learned all the different stages and types of play. The types of play are:| The stages of play are| Creative play. | Solitary aged 0-2 years. | Pretend play. | Spectator aged 2-2 and a half years. | Physical play. | Parallel aged 2 and a half – 3 years. | Manipulation play. | Associative – 3 – 4 years. | Discovery play. | Co – operative aged 4+ years. | Bibliography websites used www. teachingexpertise. com http://nationalstrategies. standards. dcsf. gov. uk www. ofsted. gov. uk Www. raisingchildren. net. au Bibliography books used Tassoni P, Hucker K (2005) Planning Play and the Early Years 2nd Edition. Oxford – Heinemann (Page 163) Walker, M Beaver, M Brewster, J Neaum, S and Tallack, J (2008) Child care and Education CACHE Level 2 Cheltenham; Nelson Thornes LTD (Page 195) Garhart M C, (2000) Theories of childhood—an introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erickson, Piaget and Vygestsky. Redleaf Press – Yorkton (Page 21-37) Sanders, M. R. ; Christenson, A. P. (1985). A comparison of the effects of child management and planned activities training across five parenting environments. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, Pages 13, 101-117. Professional People Bruce D. Perry, M. D. , Ph. D. , is the Thomas S. Trammell Research Professor of Child Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine; and Chief of Psychiatry, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas.

Comparison and Contrast of the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution Essay Example

Comparison and Contrast of the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution Essay Example Comparison and Contrast of the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution Essay Comparison and Contrast of the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution Essay A Comparison and Contrast of the Articles of Confederation and The Constitution To understand what the benefits and drawbacks  Ã‚  were, it is important to compare and contrast the positions in which the documents differ. I believe that they are thus: 1. Taxation The articles allow the congress to levy taxes on each state which means that the taxation burden has to be readjusted within each state among its populace and taxation is not equal Federally whereas in the constitution, the Congress levies taxation individually according to the position of each taxpaying individual making it equal across the board. . Justice there is no central justice system via the articles, there is no system of Federal Courts, each state handles its own courts and justice system and it causes problems with fugitives and inter-state criminal/civic legal issues especially as interstate extradition involved too much red tape hampering justice. This is not the case with the Constitution as it creates a F ederal Court System. 3. Trade The Congress regulates interstate trade whereas with the Articles, there is no existing provision for interstate trade regulation. . Amendments a unanimous 13/13 vote between all states must be imposed in the Articles while in the constitution, the rule of the majority or 2/3 of the Congress allows for amendment. 5. Representation each state in the Articles received 1 vote, 1 voice in the Congress but with the Constitution, representation in the lower house is according to the population of the state (dependent on district divisions) and each state gets 2 Senators. 6. Military the Congress cannot draft military manpower in the Articles it is up to each State to send troops whereas the Constitution allows for Federal Drafting creating a truly national Armed Forces. 7. Interstate Disputes The Articles had a complicated interstate dispute system, literally, each state can declare war on each other whereas the Constitution has a central interstate dispute management system as the Federal Courts handle arbitration. . Sovereignty Legislation The Articles declare that each state is Sovereign and a vote of 9/13 is needed to make a bill a law whereas the Constitution declares that there is one Supreme Law and Supreme Court in the nation and for a bill to be law, 50+1 in each house is what is necessary along with the approval of the Executive Office (President). Opinion/Review The biggest drawback for each of the representatives in the Continental Congress in terms of adopting the constitution and doing away with the Articles is convincing their once sovereign states to submit to one unifying rule of law and leadership that encompasses and is above all State law and rule. Federal means centralization and to adopt to these laws, to make them uniform across the board was a hard task. While the representatives had to convince each other and agree to a consensus that they will do away with each of their States own system of legal, judicial and administrative standards to conform with a universal system, they have had to convince their populace and the politics of doing so is enormous with pressure coming from all sides questions of power and who holds it is something that a lot of people fear and unsure about being unfamiliar with the ways of the other states as well as their politics. Imagine the European Union today the Articles of Confederation is like the EU constitution each country is sovereign. Now imagine them giving up each of their countrys complete independence to be part of a bigger whole, a bigger nation. It is a difficult task economically, socially and politically. Personally though if I lived during this period of history I would have shared the ideals of the colonist American Identity and I would have seen and understood how fully interdependent each state was to each other having shared one history as a British Colony. I would have fully supported the creation of a bigger, singular entity although I would feel a sense of insecurity on how it will pan out in the long run as there is a distinct difference in views and lifestyles between the Northern states and the Southern States. This is where, I think the Constitution triumphs over the Articles. I believe the Lockean principle of equality and I would have thought that to create an independent separate nation from the British Empire was right. The constitution empowers the citizens of the new American nation giving them a unified sense of governance and identity. Word Count: 759 References: (Web) usconstitution. net/constconart. html http://ocw. usu. edu/university-studies/u-s-institutions/comparison-of-constitution-and-articles-of-confederation  Ã‚   usconstitution. net/consttop_arti. html http://avalon. law. yale. edu/18th_century/artconf. asp http://home. earthlink. net/~gfeldmeth/chart. art. html Attachment(s):

9 Mistakes to Avoid When Writing a Complaint Letter

9 Mistakes to Avoid When Writing a Complaint Letter Being on the receiving end of malpractice, unfair treatment, inadequate services, or just plain incompetency in todays consumer marketplace is enough to make even the calmest personality react in anger. We pay for a service- either through our hard-earned money or taxes- and we expect to get that service, as it is advertised. When the reality of the ordeal falls far short of expectations, the first course of action most will take is to file a formal complaint- commonly in the form of a complaint letter.What a complaint letter isIn the simplest of terms, a complaint letter is a method to file a formal complaint against a service provider, whether a company or an individual, in hopes of resolving a problem. It can be used as a first step in a legal process involving potential lawsuits or as a simple way to inform a manager if an employee acted in a derogatory, offensive, or incompetent manner. It is a clear statement of the events that occurred, when and where they occurred, and attach ed to it should be accompanying evidence- much like a police report would have.What a complaint letter isntA complaint letter is not an opportunity for you to swear, threaten, or make blanket accusations. It is not an opportunity for you to berate anyone; make racist, misogynistic, or vulgar remarks; or suggest who should be hired and who should be fired. It isnt even an opportunity for you to vent your frustrations or air out your feelings over the situation, although it might be a good avenue for both.9 mistakes to avoidSince the point of writing a complaint letter is to have your concerns addressed fairly and quickly, here are 9 mistakes to avoid if you want your complaint letter to work.Dont be vague or leave out details. The best (and most effective) complaint letters are those written in a clear, concise manner, without rants, getting off topic, or vague hints. If you believe an employee acted in an unscrupulous or disrespectful manner, say so, then explain why you believe thi s. Basically, cut to the chase. State the exact date when the incident occurred, where it occurred, and the time it occurred- or at least, as close to the exact time as you can remember.Dont make unreasonable demands. Stating that you want an employee fired immediately is an example of an unreasonable demand. There are legal processes an employer must go through in order to fire an individual, or that employer might risk getting involved in a lawsuit. So, any demands you make contrary to those processes will not be met. You will also come off as presumptuous more than professional when you make unreasonable demands. Keep in mind that it is not your place to have this employee fired or otherwise disciplined- rather, it is your place to inform the employers or business owners of the employees actions and let them decide what the best course of action is. If you are unhappy with that course of action, or feel that it is not the best one the business owner or manager could take, it is y our choice to no longer frequent that place of business.Dont assume the reader is responsible. Depending on the channels through which complaints are handled in a particular organization, it is highly likely that the person who will be reading your letter is different from the person responsible for the problem or the incident. This will obviously vary according to each companys policy. If you make this assumption each time, it will help you to use the right language and tone and act as a sort of buffer against over-reacting to the incident. This is especially true if you are complaining about the actions of an employee- actions that are likely unknown to the managers or the business owners. In such cases, it is best to not jump to any conclusions about the business until the business owners or managers are made aware of the issue. If it is only a rogue employee acting out or not following company protocol, blaming the entire business enterprise for those actions will make you seem less professional in your observations.Dont write words that are angry, sarcastic, or threatening. Beyond the fact that these approaches are unprofessional, they can also prevent your complaint from reaching the right person. Many companies have policies in place allowing expletive-loaded complaints to be ignored as a way to protect their employees from abusive treatment from customers. Such approaches can also be potentially illegal, and any complaint taken as a personal threat to someones life or property can be turned in to the police for possible prosecution. You dont want a complaint letter to land you in legal trouble, so its best to avoid any semblance of threats against someone. If you must make threats, then threaten to take your business elsewhere, or threaten to let your social media followers know about the incident. All of this can be leverage you use within your letter to get your complaint processed.Dont leave out proof. If the reason for your complaint has to do with words used by an employee, youll need to show proof of that communication and of the words being used. If it occurred on social media, take a screen shot of the employees response and include that with your complaint letter. If the communication occurred by e-mail, have a copy of the e-mail attached. If the incident occurred in person, get a witness statement from someone who observed the interaction. If by phone, its unlikely that youll have recorded the conversation, although most companies do this already. Request that they review their records as documentation. Whatever the form of communication that was used during the incident or exchange of money for services, find a way to document it to provide evidence for your complaint.Dont forget to include copies of all relevant documents. This is particularly important if your complaint is the result of receiving fewer services or items than what was originally agreed upon when you ordered. Have copies of all relevant documents such as receipts, warranties, work orders, project proposals, service descriptions, or catalog descriptions. If you received an inferior product or service, have photographic proof of it and attach it to your letter. Even the most reasonable complaints can lose their argument if you leave out the proof. When someones job is at stake, they are likely to go into defensive mode and say or do anything they possibly can to keep their job. In such cases, it becomes your word against theirs if you fail to provide copies of the relevant documents involved.Dont leave out your name and contact information. For your complaint to be properly handled, the involved parties need to know how to reach you by phone, e-mail, or both. If you have an account number, be sure to give them that information, as well. In many situations, it is likely that someone will want to call you or meet with you to speak personally about the incident.Dont just stamp it and mail it- send it by certified mail. By sending your complaint letter via certified mail, you will have a way to track its receipt in case the situation escalates to a lawsuit or prosecution. Certified mail also requires a recipient signature, so you have written proof stating who received the complaint and when they received it.Dont have grammar mistakes or typos. Leaving grammar mistakes, punctuation errors, or typos in your complaint letter could potentially have an impact on how that letter is received and what is done about your complaint. Ideally, a complaint should be a complaint, whether demonstrating English skills or not. However, this is often not the case, so dont allow these fixable problems to potentially reduce the effectiveness and the voice of your complaint.While we all hope our consumer experiences, and experiences with government-provided services, go smoothly- life is not always smooth or easy. In cases where you believe you have been treated unfairly, have not been given the services you paid for, or have otherw ise been the victim of malpractice and/or abuse, a complaint letter is a powerful option to get something done about it.Sample complaint letterDear Sir/Madam,I am writing today to bring to your attention the poor dog-sitting service I received from your company on August 25, 2017. I have been a client of your service for almost two years, and up until now, have had no negative incidents occur. I trust from my experience that this particular incident is not the standard of how you conduct business, nor the standard of pet care I know your business seeks to provide its clients.On August 25, 2017, I returned home around 7:30 PM to find my dog roaming free in the front yard, with no caretaker in sight. As you can imagine, I was horrified, as I live near a busy highway, with traffic flowing in both directions and many dangers for a loose animal (and drivers!).When I managed to call my dog to me and to secure her, I entered my home to find Karen, the dog-sitter your company sent over, on her phone, chatting casually. To my knowledge, she was completely unaware of my dogs exit and my return. It wasnt until she took her earbuds out that she addressed the situation at all.I asked for an explanation and Karen said that she accidentally left the door slightly ajar after she went outdoors to retrieve her earbuds from her car. I find this to be irresponsible for a pet caretaker to do, as well as dangerous for all involved. What if someone else had come into the house while I was away?I am concerned about the level of nonchalance I felt from Karen, in that she didnt seem too upset at the fact that she left the door ajar in the first place. I got the feeling that she thought I was overreacting.I trust that youll take care of this situation and let her know that your clients expect a higher standard than this from Pet Sitters, Inc. Due to the great experiences Ive had from previous pet sitters youve sent, I will assume this is not your companys common practice, and request a different sitter to be sent to my house next time I order pet sitting services from you.Thanks for your time and attention to this matter. If you need to reach me for further clarification, or to ask additional questions related to this incident, please feel free to do so. My phone number is [insert phone number here].Best,Your Name

Free Essays on The Wingfield Way

The Wingfield Way Tennessee Williams’ play The Glass Menagerie gives readers a look into a truly dysfunctional family. At first it could seem as if their lives are anything but normal, but Amanda’s â€Å"impulse to preserve her single-parent family seems as familiar as the morning newspaper† (Presley 53). The Wingfield’s are a typical family just struggling to get by. Their problems, however, stem from their inability to effectively communicate with each other. Instead of talking out their differences, they resort to desperate acts. The desperation that the Wingfields embrace has led them to create illusions in their minds and in turn become deceptive. Amanda, Tom, and Laura are caught up in a web of desperation, denial, and deception, and it is this entrapment that prevents them, as it would any family, from living productive and emotionally fulfilling lives together. Amanda Wingfield’s life has not ended up as she would have wished. She states, â€Å"I wasn’t prepared for what the future brought me† (Williams 720). According to Delma E. Presley, â€Å"If Amanda appears desperate, she certainly has a legitimate reason† (37). First of all, she has a daughter, Laura, that is dependent upon her for everything. She is afraid that Laura will end up a â€Å"little birdlike [woman] without any nest- eating the crust of humility† for the rest of her life (Williams 700). She also has a son, Tom, who goes to the movies almost every night, or so he says. Amanda knows that the â€Å"movies don’t let out at two A.M.† (Williams 703). When he finally does come home, Tom is â€Å"stumbling† and â€Å"muttering to [himself] like a maniac† (Williams 703). Amanda desperately fears that he is beginning to take after his father’s ways. She is caring for â€Å"a fragile menagerie c omposed of two children† (Presley 24). The desperation of her situation leads her to become controlling, and she takes t... Free Essays on The Wingfield Way Free Essays on The Wingfield Way The Wingfield Way Tennessee Williams’ play The Glass Menagerie gives readers a look into a truly dysfunctional family. At first it could seem as if their lives are anything but normal, but Amanda’s â€Å"impulse to preserve her single-parent family seems as familiar as the morning newspaper† (Presley 53). The Wingfield’s are a typical family just struggling to get by. Their problems, however, stem from their inability to effectively communicate with each other. Instead of talking out their differences, they resort to desperate acts. The desperation that the Wingfields embrace has led them to create illusions in their minds and in turn become deceptive. Amanda, Tom, and Laura are caught up in a web of desperation, denial, and deception, and it is this entrapment that prevents them, as it would any family, from living productive and emotionally fulfilling lives together. Amanda Wingfield’s life has not ended up as she would have wished. She states, â€Å"I wasn’t prepared for what the future brought me† (Williams 720). According to Delma E. Presley, â€Å"If Amanda appears desperate, she certainly has a legitimate reason† (37). First of all, she has a daughter, Laura, that is dependent upon her for everything. She is afraid that Laura will end up a â€Å"little birdlike [woman] without any nest- eating the crust of humility† for the rest of her life (Williams 700). She also has a son, Tom, who goes to the movies almost every night, or so he says. Amanda knows that the â€Å"movies don’t let out at two A.M.† (Williams 703). When he finally does come home, Tom is â€Å"stumbling† and â€Å"muttering to [himself] like a maniac† (Williams 703). Amanda desperately fears that he is beginning to take after his father’s ways. She is caring for â€Å"a fragile menagerie c omposed of two children† (Presley 24). The desperation of her situation leads her to become controlling, and she takes t...

The Ellis Study Review Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Ellis Study Review - Assignment Example Afterwards, the post-positivist, constructivist, interpretivist, and critical inquiry perspectives given by various scholars would be compared with the personal analysis of Carolyn Ellis with regards to her article. The story was about the death of the sibling of Ellis from a plane crash. Using ethnographic, literature writing, autobiographical and sociological, the author wanted the audience to experience what the author experienced through the reading. The story started with the family background of the author wherein she told about the humble beginnings of their family as her parents were manual laborers until they started a construction business that became popular in Virginia. She then shared some details about her siblings Art, Judy and Rex (Ellis, 2005, p. 250). Afterwards she focused on narrating her closeness with her brother Rex regarding how they quarreled and cared for each other (Ellis, 2005, p. 251). Tragedy then came in 1982 when Rex was killed in a plane crash as he p lanned to visit his sister in Florida. He died at the age of 29. Before the accident, they talked about going to Washington as the author fixed the gifts for their parents. Rex even joked around as he bragged about his sister being a professor to his friends (Ellis, 2005, p. 252). Ellis was then shocked when her elder brother Art called and asked about the plane crash headlined on the news. At first, they thought it was another airplane, but it was really the flight where Rex was included (Ellis, 2005, p. 253). The siblings then asked the airline about the plane accident and they also watched the news to know about the rescued survivors. Ellis was then supported by her partner Gene with his daughter Beth (Ellis, 2005, p. 254). They waited for the confirmation as they still expect Rex to be one of the survivors (Ellis, 2005, p. 255).at three in the morning, a confirmatory phone call occurred as Rex was declared to be dead. The siblings then went to the house of their parents where th ey conducted the funeral of Rex (Ellis, 2005, p. 256). When the coffin and body of Rex was brought to the house, the mother of the author collapsed and stayed in the hospital as Art and the author stayed in the funeral to cater the needs of hundreds of visitors (Ellis, 2005, p. 257). The friends of Rex then arranged a party to commemorate him. Despite of the efforts to put a happy atmosphere, still seriousness overwhelmed the people in the party for the lost of Rex. Afterwards the family went to the room of Rex and got some of his mementos and even saw a dildo that they jokingly said to be the ones used by Rex to tickle his girlfriends. Art then planned to sell the stuffs of Rex in an auction. Then the author visited their mother at the hospital who did not want to go home as she felt safe in the hospital. With that, the author reenacted in her mind how Rex met his death (Ellis, 2005, p. 258). The author then met Rex in her dream and told him that he is already dead. After that drea m, she did not dream of Rex again. The use of fiction or story in analyzing social science is a good way to project how experimental ethnography can effectively tackle a particular topic filled with emotions for a powerful understanding (Ellis, 2005, p. 259). Traditionally, social sciences had tackled various topics objectively wherein the scientists are just observers and they are not part of the picture. The article written by the author went against the traditional form as she made use of her own

Sony Integrated Marketing Communications Case Study

Sony Integrated Marketing Communications - Case Study Example The 2008 fiscal year of Sony ended in the month of March and the audit reports show that annual sales that were made by Sony in the year of 2008 equaled about $US90bilion which is a great amount. The number of employees that Sony has equals to about 190,000 people located in the manufacturing factors and in the offices all around the world. Sony is one company which has gained the success that it truly deserves and it has been known that it is one of the companies that is public in nature. It has got hold on the shares in four of the major stock exchanges in the worlds which include the stock exchanges based in New York, London, Tokyo and Osaka. In addition to this Sony is the brand with has about 1006 of the total subsidiaries located on an international scale (Squire, 2001, p. 22). The marketing orientation evolved the ideology of marketing providing the newer way of thinking to people. It included the point that the customers or the consumers are the entities who are much more important than the profitability as customers are the stakeholders for the organizations. It is being said that the marketing is still evolving and the better changes are seen in the field of the marketing these days. It is said that these days are the days when the evolution of marketing has entered into fourth stage. The fourth evolutionary stage of the marketing is known as the personal marketing orientation and this is the one that is considered to be the better approach as compared to ones in previous (Abramson, 2003, p. 44). The fourth stage is the one that makes the point that the individual based marketing is the key to the successful marketing and by proper utilization of this stage and with proper understating this is the way that can be used to reach the customers on an individual basis. The marketing thereby can be done on an individual basis which seems to be a better and an integrating marketing approach (Shaw, 2005, p. 93). Since the start of the term of marketing, it has been seen that changes have been occurring in the field of marketing leading to the strategic approach being adopted by the marketers in many ways. The marketing that has been recognized in previous times as the business approach has been to make more and more of the profits has now changed to the one that has been to attract more and more customers so as to gain the view point of the product or the firm itself (Hollensen, 2008, p. 11). The main responsibility of the marketers based at Sony is to expand the brands name across the borders a bit more. It

Regional Attitudes and American Identity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Regional Attitudes and American Identity - Essay Example I actually agree with the findings in the article regarding this matter. The issue behind this is that the regional attitudes found in this region being related to what the American identity is. There are two interesting things that caught my attention regarding this matter. First, it might be interesting to note that the idea of the American identity in the southern states is actually very exclusive to culture of the earliest settlers of this area of the United States, specifically the settlers originating from Great Britain and those from Northern Europe. Any other cultural diversity from this would be viewed as an outsider and would not be completely or comfortably integrated. The second interesting fact is that southern states are not aware that the United States is actually composed of different ethnic groups that share land with but have different cultures. It is sad a note that the tendency for white supremacist thinking tends to swing towards discrimination and

Marketing In Harvard Style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Marketing In Harvard Style - Essay Example Individuals are exposed to tens of thousands of advertisements in a single day.With all these numerous advertisements being bombarded at a single buyer,marketers craftily design their campaigns in consideration to the consumer's processing of these stimuli in order to make a purchase decision. In doing so, they keep in mind what is called consumer perception or "the process by which an individual selects, organizes, and interprets information inputs to create a meaningful picture of the world" (Kotler 2005). It is irrefutable that each individual processes stimuli differently because of personal differences. Thus, perception varies among individuals who perceive the same thing. This is due to three perceptual processes known as selective attention, selective distortion, and selective retention.Selective attention refers to the ability of the consumers to notice and to be attracted only be advertisements which appeal to them. With all massive amount of advertisement each day, customer s are only captivated by those which are relevant to them. It is found out that the advertisement which catches customers' attention are those stimuli which represents their current need, those which they anticipate, and those whose deviation are large in relation to the normal size of stimuli (Kotler and Armstrong 2001). For example, an ad which features beauty products which inhibits oil production will irrefutably attract one who is searching for one. Likely, if the ad is placed in a health and beauty specialist, the customers are expected to notice. And lastly, bigger discounts are more likely to be taken note of than smaller ones. The next process is called selective distortion which refers to "the tendency of customers to twist information into personal meanings" (Kotler 2005) and interpret them according to their needs. It should be noted that the different background of the consumers enables them to interpret advertisements in their individual ways which is influenced by their social class, employment, and others. Lastly, selective retention refers to the customers' remembering of their selected products' good points while forgetting that of the competitors' products advantages (Lynch 2003). As a marketer, advertisements are usually designed according to their intended market. Companies make advertisements which appeal to a specific target market by using celebrities, colors, and dramatic effects which will likely attract them. Offering huge discounts are also other ways of capturing their attention. However, in selective distortion, there is nothing much that a marketer can do in order to influence buyers. Selective retention is facilitated by repeating the messages that they intend the buyer to learn. The key in advertising still, is the marketers' understanding of customers which will perceive and experience them. Question 2. 1. A reference group "consists of all groups with a direct (face-to face) or indirect effect on all people's attitudes or behaviors" (Kotler 2005). 2. The four types of reference groups include primary groups, secondary groups, aspirational groups, and disassociative groups. Primary groups which are those which have a direct influence on the person because of his continuous and informal interaction with them including his family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. On the other hand, more formal relations which require less continuous interaction like religious groups, trade associations, and professional are called secondary groups. Aspirational groups are those which the individuals aspires to have membership of while disassociative ones represents those which have values or beliefs that a customer finds unacceptable (Kotler and Armstrong 2005). 3. Customers associate themselves with reference groups because of their want to be acceptable to the people within the group, they

Restorative Justice and Young Offenders Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Restorative Justice and Young Offenders - Essay Example (Luna 2003) This inclusive process of penology is preferred as a medium for dealing with the causes and effects of crime in the community. (Luna 2003) Restorative justice views crime as an offence against an individual (or individuals) and the community and is thus a departure from the traditional norm in penology where the state assumes the role as the one whose prohibitions has been breached. The locus of dealing with crime and its effects under restorative justice is thus communal in nature. Consequently, Marshall (1995) has observed that restorative justice gives "recognition of community, rather than criminal justice agencies as the prime site of crime control" (p.1) Marshall (1999) also asserts that restorative justice is founded on principles which include "making room for the personal involvement of those mainly concerned (particularly the offender and the victim, but also their families and communities); seeing crime problems in their social context; a forward-looking (or preventative) problem-solving orientation;" and "flexibility of practice (creativity)" (p.5). One of the areas of the criminal justice system that restorative justice is showin... (Thames Valley Police, 1999) McGarrell (2001) observes that in the US, emphasis on issues of youth violence and school safety due to school shootings, have diverted attention from an important area of concern like delinquency among the very young. Writing in 2000, Puzzanchera et al, had indicated through available statistics that 16 percent of youth below the age of 13 arrested by police were referred to juvenile courts. What is more worrying is the fact that 60 per cent of youth between the ages of 10-12 referred to juvenile courts re-offended and thus appeared before the courts more than once. (McGarrell, 2001) Snyder and Sickmund (1995) have also observed that 80 percent of youth who are referred to juvenile courts for a second time are likely to offend again and thus appear before the courts again. Though the incidence of child delinquency that precipitates this early involvement with the criminal justice system are generally not serious crimes, the risk of child offenders progressing to more serious crimes in the future is very high - two out of three time higher than for offenders who start offending at a later stage in life. (Loeber and Farrington, 2000) Consequently, "early involvement in status offenses and delinquency is a stepping stone in a pathway to serious, violent, and chronic offending". (McGarrell, 2001 p.1) With such a high incidence of offending and re-offending, the criminal justice system dealing with youth crime definitely needs a system that can stem the tide of this chronic re-offending rate among the youth and the promise that restorative justice is showing in this direction is encouraging. As is evident in the introductory segment of this literature review, restorative justice can be used widely in the criminal justice system to deal

RaceEthnicity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

RaceEthnicity - Essay Example Immigrants and their children cross lines of wealth, neighborhood, education and profession. For example, a recent study of first year students at the University of Toronto showed that more than half identify themselves as non-white by race. Approximately 40 percent are Asians. Only about one third came from homes where English is the only language spoken. Toronto and Vancouver stand out as the most culturally and racially diverse cities in Canada, although the cultural mix in other Canadian cities also exist in varying proportions. (About Canada) In 1971, the federal government announced its policy of multiculturalism. It challenged all Canadians to accept cultural diversity, while encouraging them to participate fully and equally in the Canadian society. Many urban English-speaking Canadians supported the policy, looking at it as a timely recognition of pluralism. When the policy was announced, the Canadian ethnic mosaic was still very much dominated by those of European heritage and was designed to recognize their contribution to Canada. As immigration to Canada from the developing world increased, the multiculturalism policy had to deal with the concerns of visible minorities. These new and emerging communities were more concerned about the elimination of racial prejudice and discrimination. They wanted to ensure equal access to jobs, housing and education. (About Canada) The public education sector f... Classrooms are evolving in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, as the majority of new Canadians, some 250,000 of them annually, take up residence in these cities. (Drummond and Lacey, 2007) A holistic approach to education is required in the light of the most recent controversies in Herouxville, Quebec, some 200 kilometres northeast of Montreal, resulting from the passage of a controversial code of behavior aimed at potential Muslim immigrants. Last February 11, six women, accompanied by a handful of male and female Muslim students, appealed in Quebec for changes to the so-called "code of life," which lays out societal norms for Herouxville. May Haidar, one of the women, said "It's apparent there is a misconception and a wrong view of Muslim women, so we want to open a dialogue to let them (the non-Muslim Canadians) know us and, of course, we want to know them." (Moore, 2007) Andre Drouin, the town councilor behind the code of behavior for immigrants, said the residents in Quebec are eager to welcome the visitors and prove that they are not racists. But Drouin was unrepentant about the code and said it will stay put. The debate over accommodation of ethnic, cultural and religious minorities continues to rage in Quebec and its Premier Jean Charest has named a special commission to study the issue. The Canadian Islamic Congress considered filing a human rights complaint against the Herouxville council. (Moore, 2007) The controversial five-page immigrants' code, passed by the Herouxville town council in January, says a person's face should not be covered, except at Halloween, and that children should sing Christmas songs in December. It informs

Marketing In Harvard Style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Marketing In Harvard Style - Essay Example Individuals are exposed to tens of thousands of advertisements in a single day.With all these numerous advertisements being bombarded at a single buyer,marketers craftily design their campaigns in consideration to the consumer's processing of these stimuli in order to make a purchase decision. In doing so, they keep in mind what is called consumer perception or "the process by which an individual selects, organizes, and interprets information inputs to create a meaningful picture of the world" (Kotler 2005). It is irrefutable that each individual processes stimuli differently because of personal differences. Thus, perception varies among individuals who perceive the same thing. This is due to three perceptual processes known as selective attention, selective distortion, and selective retention.Selective attention refers to the ability of the consumers to notice and to be attracted only be advertisements which appeal to them. With all massive amount of advertisement each day, customer s are only captivated by those which are relevant to them. It is found out that the advertisement which catches customers' attention are those stimuli which represents their current need, those which they anticipate, and those whose deviation are large in relation to the normal size of stimuli (Kotler and Armstrong 2001). For example, an ad which features beauty products which inhibits oil production will irrefutably attract one who is searching for one. Likely, if the ad is placed in a health and beauty specialist, the customers are expected to notice. And lastly, bigger discounts are more likely to be taken note of than smaller ones. The next process is called selective distortion which refers to "the tendency of customers to twist information into personal meanings" (Kotler 2005) and interpret them according to their needs. It should be noted that the different background of the consumers enables them to interpret advertisements in their individual ways which is influenced by their social class, employment, and others. Lastly, selective retention refers to the customers' remembering of their selected products' good points while forgetting that of the competitors' products advantages (Lynch 2003). As a marketer, advertisements are usually designed according to their intended market. Companies make advertisements which appeal to a specific target market by using celebrities, colors, and dramatic effects which will likely attract them. Offering huge discounts are also other ways of capturing their attention. However, in selective distortion, there is nothing much that a marketer can do in order to influence buyers. Selective retention is facilitated by repeating the messages that they intend the buyer to learn. The key in advertising still, is the marketers' understanding of customers which will perceive and experience them. Question 2. 1. A reference group "consists of all groups with a direct (face-to face) or indirect effect on all people's attitudes or behaviors" (Kotler 2005). 2. The four types of reference groups include primary groups, secondary groups, aspirational groups, and disassociative groups. Primary groups which are those which have a direct influence on the person because of his continuous and informal interaction with them including his family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. On the other hand, more formal relations which require less continuous interaction like religious groups, trade associations, and professional are called secondary groups. Aspirational groups are those which the individuals aspires to have membership of while disassociative ones represents those which have values or beliefs that a customer finds unacceptable (Kotler and Armstrong 2005). 3. Customers associate themselves with reference groups because of their want to be acceptable to the people within the group, they

RaceEthnicity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

RaceEthnicity - Essay Example Immigrants and their children cross lines of wealth, neighborhood, education and profession. For example, a recent study of first year students at the University of Toronto showed that more than half identify themselves as non-white by race. Approximately 40 percent are Asians. Only about one third came from homes where English is the only language spoken. Toronto and Vancouver stand out as the most culturally and racially diverse cities in Canada, although the cultural mix in other Canadian cities also exist in varying proportions. (About Canada) In 1971, the federal government announced its policy of multiculturalism. It challenged all Canadians to accept cultural diversity, while encouraging them to participate fully and equally in the Canadian society. Many urban English-speaking Canadians supported the policy, looking at it as a timely recognition of pluralism. When the policy was announced, the Canadian ethnic mosaic was still very much dominated by those of European heritage and was designed to recognize their contribution to Canada. As immigration to Canada from the developing world increased, the multiculturalism policy had to deal with the concerns of visible minorities. These new and emerging communities were more concerned about the elimination of racial prejudice and discrimination. They wanted to ensure equal access to jobs, housing and education. (About Canada) The public education sector f... Classrooms are evolving in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, as the majority of new Canadians, some 250,000 of them annually, take up residence in these cities. (Drummond and Lacey, 2007) A holistic approach to education is required in the light of the most recent controversies in Herouxville, Quebec, some 200 kilometres northeast of Montreal, resulting from the passage of a controversial code of behavior aimed at potential Muslim immigrants. Last February 11, six women, accompanied by a handful of male and female Muslim students, appealed in Quebec for changes to the so-called "code of life," which lays out societal norms for Herouxville. May Haidar, one of the women, said "It's apparent there is a misconception and a wrong view of Muslim women, so we want to open a dialogue to let them (the non-Muslim Canadians) know us and, of course, we want to know them." (Moore, 2007) Andre Drouin, the town councilor behind the code of behavior for immigrants, said the residents in Quebec are eager to welcome the visitors and prove that they are not racists. But Drouin was unrepentant about the code and said it will stay put. The debate over accommodation of ethnic, cultural and religious minorities continues to rage in Quebec and its Premier Jean Charest has named a special commission to study the issue. The Canadian Islamic Congress considered filing a human rights complaint against the Herouxville council. (Moore, 2007) The controversial five-page immigrants' code, passed by the Herouxville town council in January, says a person's face should not be covered, except at Halloween, and that children should sing Christmas songs in December. It informs

Community Colleges vs College Universites- Compare Contrast Essay Example for Free

Community Colleges vs College Universites- Compare Contrast Essay When graduating high school many students are concerned with choices they have to make as to which college they would like to attend. Some may have more options than others that have to be considered as far as their lifestyle, current jobs, other responsibilities they may have, personality and their academic goals. Choosing a college can be quite difficult. You can either decide on a college university or the local community colleges in your area. Community colleges are smaller than universities. Students will find them to have fewer enrollments which mean smaller classroom sizes. They have a better chance of getting hands on learning, asking more questions and learning course material better. Community colleges have strong advising systems and the advisers know their students well. The courses are usually taught by professors unlike some universities whose courses may taught by grad students. Small colleges as these do not offer near as many courses or academic programs as universities. Tuition at community colleges are so much more cheaper than universities, you may have tuition as much as $3,500. 00 to 5,500. 00 at community colleges versus $30,000. 00 to $50,000. 00 at universities and that itself is a great deal to consider. Another great thing about attending a local community college in your area is that most people can drive back and forth from their own home. They do not have to worry about dorm cost or finding apartments to rent when going away to college universities. College Universities may be for you if you’re interested in having much more degree programs to choose from, if you’re a go getter, not afraid to speak up for yourself and take advantage of opportunities. You may also want to attend a university if you are ready to get away and adventure out from your hometown and meet a whole new diversity of thousands of people. If attending a university you can expect a much higher number of students than a community college. Universities have a wide range of majors and class courses. They tend to have better stocked libraries for all of your researching needs. A lot of students choose universities because of the more programs that are offered and they feel when graduating from a university it looks a lot better having a diploma from a university than community college when applying for a job you have majored in. They also like the fact that there are many activities and a large number of sporting events. They also have a chance to break free and are not tied down at home with their parents. Succeeding at a university requires knowing what areas or subjects you are interested in and motivated about pursuing. Class sizes can contain up to hundreds of students and with that many people in one classroom it can be very hard to keep focus, ask questions and get hands on learning like you can at community colleges. Some students love the environment and find it exciting with that many students but on the other hand others feel depressed and overwhelmed because they may not be able to ask questions and find out the exact information they need to learn. Students who attend universities can be ready to hit the books hard each week and be sure to have a lot of study time. Professors are going to expect a great deal of their students and pile a lot of work on them at one time because they are considered as top-notch schools and they want their students to be well educated and really know the material. It can be very stressful for students who work jobs while in college but they have to make money and support themselves some way or another. Even though universities require a lot of work, students still find time to participate in extracurricular activities such as student organizations or community services. Some even join fraternities and sororities. Universities are likely to have great athletic teams and have a NCAA Divisions with games that are on television. Students love to support their college by wearing school colors on game day and attending all of their games whether they are home or away. Students enjoy the tailgating and party time that comes along with the games, too! Students will either live on the college campus or just a short distance off campus. Most students who stay in dorms have roommates. Some may know their roommates and others may be complete strangers and it can be very uncomfortable for them until they learn who and what kind of person they are. You must expect to sleep in the same room as your roommate, share the bathroom and have no privacy. It’s takes a lot amount of time to get from one place to another on a college university campus because of the number of students. You can expect a rush during lunch hour and a timely wait. There will also be very long lines when trying to register for classes and buying books. It’s up to the person where they choose to attend college. Community colleges and Universities can be very similar but again it’s a whole new world especially when living on a University Campus.

Business Analysis Techniques for Strategic Planning

Business Analysis Techniques for Strategic Planning Through a strategic planning an organization defines its strategy, or direction, and decisions making on allocating its resources to practice this strategy such as its capital and people. There are various business analysis techniques that are used in strategic planning such as SWOT, PEST, STEER and EPISTEL. The strategic planning, which indicates the future course of an organization, is the formal consideration involves three key questions; these questions mainly refer to what an organization does, who it deals to and how it excel. Another integral question can be phrased as how to beat competition (Bradford Duncan, 2000). The development of this business strategy is of great importance for organization as the whole structure of organization depends on it. An authentic business strategy development needs an appropriate analysis of the organization and its environment. This analysis must be executed at an internal and external level in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses o f internal environment (organization) as well as threats, opportunities of the external environment. Different factors are assessed in this regard including the economy markets, competition, supplier markets, labor markets, regulatory environment and Technology. Marketing plans and strategies are the tools that are used as helpful in understanding the goals of the business and to develop the activities to achieve them. Strategic Models and tools are employed by marketing participants to analyze marketing decisions. The 3Cs, the corporation, the customer and the competitors, can be employed when beginning a strategic analysis to get a broad understanding of the strategic environment. Different organizations often use it to convey strategic positioning of their market mix. In order to form a market plan to practice a defined strategy, 4Ps, the product, the price, the place and the promotion, can be used. Marketing theories provides the solution for achieving the marketing goals throug h procedure. The basic theory of marketing revolves around Target Audience, Proposition and Implementation. Organizations sum up their objective and goals into mission and vision statement. They are used to formulate objectives and goals. Every organization follows particular organizational ethics, which meant to show how ethically internal or external stimuli are responded by them. Organizational ethics also expresses the values of an organization to its employees and other entities irrespective of governmental and regulatory laws. Organizational Ethics is interdependent with Organizational Culture. Organizational Culture deals with the beliefs and personal and cultural values of an organization, Psychology, attitudes and experiences. This culture is defined as a collection of norms and values shared by group of the people in the organization and the way they interact with each other and with the stakeholders outside organization (Hill and Jones, 2001). A core competency is definit e factor that is seen as being central to the way it by a business, or its works and employees. It carries out three key criteria, it provides consumer benefits, it is not easy for competitors to imitate and it can be leveraged many products and markets. Competitive advantage takes place when an organization acquires and develops an attribute and combination of attributes that allows it to outperform its competitors. A timetable for the implementation of a strategy shows the timing for the each steps of the plan that is pursued to implement the strategies accordingly. The effectiveness, efficiency and economy have to be evaluated so that the success of the timetable can be estimated throughout the implementation of planning and strategy. This paper examines and assesses the different business models, development of strategic planning, its implementation and evaluation of the effectiveness and efficiency of implementation of the timetable of strategic planning of an organization. The chosen organization is Marks Spencer (MS). Marks Spencer is chosen because it is an important and major British retailer, with over 895 stores in more than 40 territories worldwide, over 600 domestic and 295 international stores (MS International Stores MS website, February 2009). It is also the biggest clothing retailer in the United Kingdom, as well as being an up market food retailer, and the 43rd largest retailer in the world as of 2008. (Wal-Mart remains largest global retailer, according to Deloitte survey). Its domestic stores also sell both food and clothing; it has started the store expansion into other ranges including furniture, home ware and technology. In 1998 it was the first and only retailer to make a pre-tax profit of over  £1 billion (BUSINESS | Marks Spencer profits top expectations. BBC News, 1998). The business assessments of such organization of such a big range and with glorious history will definitely be a remarkable addition in the study of business management and business strategic planning. In general terms provide examples (4to 6) and briefly explain them of theories and principles that underlie strategic planning? Every organization comes into being with a strategy, which is called an organizational strategy and aims to provide a guideline to guiding member of the organization. Since the future survival of an organization depends on its strategy, therefore, every organization is commenced with their own strategy. This strategy involves business strategy mainly focusing on development and progress of the organization including internal and external factors as well. An organization needs to analyze the strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities that the organization could face while developing strategy, political, economic, social, and technological environment other socio-cultural, ecological, and regulatory factors and environment, informatics, and legal matter are also as important to be analyzed as above factors. For this purpose, therefore, organizations summarize these strategies into their mission, vision and values, which illustrate their business strategy. Provide in outline form, using a diagram a framework which would enable your choice organization to develop its strategy in general terms? The preparatory phase of a business strategic plan relies on planning. At the first, business plan includes Analysis of the Current Situation and Marketing Plan Strategy and Objectives. Marks Spencer requires having analysis of the current situation including past year. This analysis includes analysis of Business Trends, Market Analysis, Competitive Analysis, Market Segmentation, Marketing-mix, SWOT analysis, Positioning analyzing perceptions and Sources of information. Marketing plan Strategy and objectives for next year should also be analyzed including Marketing strategy, Desired market segmentation, Desired marketing-mix, TOWS-based objectives as a result of the SWOT, Position perceptual gaps and Yearly sales forecast. Describe and critically evaluate a small range (3 to 5) of models tools and techniques that could be used to develop marketing for your chosen organization? There are many Marketing strategic models and tools employed to analyze marketing decisions. In order to find a broad understanding of the strategic environment the 3Cs can be used by Marks Spencer. This 3Cs model points out that focus should be on three key factors for success. Three main players must be considered when planning a strategy for business: Corporation, Customer and Competitors. These 3Cs can sustain a competitive advantage in a strategic triangle. From a corporation point of view, strategies are needed to maximize the strengths of a corporation relative to the competition in the area of function that are critical to achieve the success. The corporation does not have to exceed in every function in order to win. If it can achieve decisive edge in one key function, it will ultimately be able to progress its other functions which are now average. In case of swiftly rising wage costs, it is an important decision for company to contract out a major share of its assembly ope rations. If the competitors are not able to shift production so swiftly to vendors and subcontractors, the outcomes difference in cost structure and in the companys ability to cope with demand fluctuations can have integral strategic implications. The cost-effectiveness can be improved by adopting three ways. At first, reduction in the basic cost, exercise greater selectivity such as products offered, orders accepted and functions performed and share certain important functions with other business of corporation and other organization. Since clients and customers are the base of strategy therefore the basic goal is to be of customers interest rather than of the shareholders. This segmentation appears from a trade-off study of marketing costs versus market coverage. There always appears to be a point of reducing returns in the cost versus coverage relationship. The task of the organization is to optimize its range of market coverage, geographically and channel wise. Competitors are l ikely to be scrutinizing the market in similar ways in fierce competition. The effectiveness of a given first strategic segmentation will tend to decline over an extended period of time. It is useful to pick a small group of customers in such situations and reexamine what it is that they really want. A market segment change takes place where the market forces are changing the distribution of the user-mix over time by affecting demography, distribution channels, and customer size, etc. This kind of change is meant to be the allocation of corporate resources to be shifted and the ultimate level of resources committed in the business to be changed. The strategy based on competitor can be built by looking at possible sources of diversities in functions including purchasing, engineering, design, sales and servicing. The power of image and capitalizing on profit and cost structure differences are the ways to achieve the differentiation. I mage can be the merely source of positive differen tiation when performance of product and form of the distribution are difficult to differentiate. In capitalizing on profit- and cost structure differences, firstly, the difference in source of profit may be oppressed, from new products sales etc. Secondly, difference in the ratio of unchangeable costs and changeable costs may also be oppressed strategically. A company with lower unchangeable cost ratio can lower prices in a lazy market and hence gain market share. Another strategic tool that can be useful for Mark Spencer is Porters 5 Forces Model. Porters 5 Forces Model is structural analysis of the market. It rather focuses view of analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of a Market Segment through analyzing the different threats prevail in the market. It is a framework for the business strategy development and industry analysis. It draws upon industrial organization economics to develop five forces that determine the competitive intensity and in the result attractiveness of a market. Porters 5 Forces Model Structureurl.png The Threat from the potential new entrants Profitable markets that submit high returns attract the new firms. Its consequence is many new entrants, which ultimately decrease profitability for all firms in the industry. The profit rate will constantly fall unless the new entrants are not blocked. This is also known as perfect competition. New entrants can be blocked by the existence of barriers in the form of copyright etc. Attractive segment is the one in which barriers for entrance is high while barriers for exit are low. Thus only few new firm ca enter and only non-performing firm can exit easily. Economies of product difference also make an opportunity for small firms to enhance their businesses thus large firms who have their product out in the market in high price, products of low price can affect them. Marks Spencer has been going through the same situation. Brand equity, which refers to the effects of marketing or consequences that accumulate to a product with its brand name compared with those that would increase if the same product did not have the brand name (Leuthesser, Kohli and Harich, 1995). The threat of substitute products or services The existence of products outside of the sphere of the common product boundaries boost the inclination of customers to switch to substitute including relative price performance of substitute, buyer switching costs, perceived level of product differentiation, number of substitute products available in the market, ease of substitution. Information-based products are more flat to substitution, as online product can easily replace material product. There are many reason cause customers to switch to substitute of the product such as substandard product, and reduction in quality of the product. Increase in the features of the product develops the competitive market. Marks Spencer by increasing the features of its products can make the customers stick with their product. The Bargaining power of customers or buyers The customers bargaining power is also defined as the market of outputs such as the efficiency of the customers to put the firm under pressure; it also affects the sensitivity of customers to price changes. Customers concentration to firm concentration ratio, degree of dependency upon existing channels of distribution, bargaining leverage, specifically in industries with high fixed costs, customers volume, customers switching costs relative to firm switching costs, information availability for customers, ability to backward integrate, availability of existing substitute products, customers price sensitivity and differential advantage and uniqueness of industry products are the actors that increases the bargaining power of customers. Large number of supermarkets will provide better opportunity for the potential customers to reach thus it will decrease the bargaining power of the customers. The Bargaining power of suppliers The suppliers bargaining power is also defined as the market of inputs. Suppliers of materials, components, labor and services such as expertise to the firm are source of power over the firm, when there are a few substitutes. Suppliers may possibly refuse to work with the firm or charge excessively high prices for unique resources. Despite the fact that supplier switching costs is relative to firm switching costs, and degree of differentiation of inputs, impact of inputs on cost or differentiation, presence of substitute inputs, supplier concentration to firm concentration ratio, employee solidarity like labor unions and supplier competition and ability to forward vertically integrate and cut out the buyer and Competition among the existing suppliers mainly reinforce the factor. Number of suppliers across Britain will rather diminish this factor for Marks Spencer. The competitive rivalry within an industry For most organizations, the major determinant of the competitiveness of the industry is the intensity of competitive rivalry. Sustainable competitive advantage by innovation, competition between online and offline companies; click-and-mortar -v- slags on a bridge, Level of advertising expense, Powerful competitive strategy and the visibility of proprietary items on the Web all these factor define the competitive rivalry within an industry (Rainer and Turban, 2009). The situation of competitive rivalry is hhigh because there are majorly three rivals of Marks Spencer that provide it a competitive advantage and change its strategic planning. State a variety 7 to 10 of general and marketing strategic options which have been used or are available to the organization of your choice and evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of four of these Product Branded product helps in capturing market as it creates an identity of the firm with that brand. Marks Spencer has been selling out branded product but there is no single of theirs, because owning the brand can exceed the sell of that product. The advantage of owning a product as a brand is that it allows the customers to identify the organization with a particular name. While mostly brand products are supposed to be accessible for everyone as a result of its price. Price Price is another factor that is integral for Marks Spencer. Determination of price that depends on the market situation very much affects the market situation for the firm. An affordable Price of the product can be more successful for the firm. Affordable price offer of the Marks Spencer will allow to everyone to access them easily thus it will generate demand of the products if it could not maintain the supply and demand of the products it will have to suffer in the market. Place The place of selling also makes a difference in the marketing strategy of a firm. Since e-commerce has been so much in practice Marks Spencer can start e-commerce through which it can sell out its products online. Besides this, variety of distribution outlets can also be an option for Marks Spencer as it is a good promotion tool of the product. Placing the products in every distributions outlet may lead the firm to the low market level due to its order of supply. Promotion Promotion of the products must be designed in the way Across the Line. Across the Line promotion of the product provide the opportunity to access the customers at any length. Promotion of the products Across the Line will cost the firm highly as promotion across the line requires in order to meet the promotion target. People Work force or staff must be well trained and professional because a well trained work force increase the productivity of an organization. Marks Spencer is the 43rd largest retailer if it hires professional and trained work force it will definitely hit its economy. Process The standard of the services offered must be of good and must be integrated with customer support. Physical Evidence Physical evidence of a firm especially like Marks Spencer does matter. The overall environment of the firm can provide a pleasant impression on others and results in good sell. Who are stakeholders in the organization of your choice and state the three major ones of these. What affect have or could the major stakeholders have on the strategy that the organization has or could introduce. What considerations should be taken into account to ensure that the three major stakeholders can contribute to the development of the organization strategy through some form of participation? There are number of group of stakeholders of Marks Spencer: employees, customers, shareholders, suppliers, local communities, pressure groups and local and national government. All these above directly or indirectly influence the Marks Spencer in its strategy making. Employees, who are direct stakeholders of the organization, want secure jobs, well and good pay and fair treatment with all employees. Customers, also a direct stakeholder of the organization, want high quality, good service, and good choice of products. Shareholders look for growth and profit. These direct stakeholders can affect the strategies of the organization. If employees are not satisfied or if feel that they are not enough benefits from the offered strategy they can strongly resist it by so many act of barriers such as resignation or boycott from service. Organization understands that in order to keep the customers stick with product it is important to provide them quality products and services in affordable r ate. The customers who want quality product in affordable price with good services would also reject the strategy if found it not in their favor by rejecting the product or switching to another substitute. Shareholders, who are back bone in the economy of the Marks Spencer, possess the shares of the company; organization will want them to have profit so that the stay with them in the business. Thus there will not be any strategy which in any way annoys the shareholders. The contribution of employees, customers and shareholders is equally important for organizations interest. This contribution by them can part in the development of the organizations strategy through expressing their expectation from the organization. These expectations are not just to be of their favor but in the favor of the organization as well because their benefits and profits are interlinked with the success of the organization. In a laymans language define the term vision, mission statement, objective and value and go to provide professional definitions of these giving the source of these. Every organization comes into existence with a definite purpose which is called objective of the organization. This objective varies from organization to organization such as profitable organization and non-profitable organization. The organization expresses its objective through vision, mission statement. Vision: Vision is the intended or desired future statement of an organization or enterprise in terms of the fundamental objective and strategic direction. Vision refers to a long term view, describing how the organization would like the world in which it operates to be. A vision statement provides the organization with an inspiration that is the basis for all the organizations planning. It explains what an organization wants to do. Mission: Mission is the fundamental purpose of an organization or an enterprise, concise describing the reason of existence and path to achieve its Vision. It also draws a future picture of the organization. Values: Values can be defined as the beliefs of an organization shared among the stakeholders of an organization. Values are the means of driving the organizations culture, ethics and priorities. The vision statement is a realistic, credible, and attractive future for an organization (http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/ndu/strat-ldr-dm/pt4ch18.html). Mission statement broadly describes the presence of an organization present capabilities, customer focus, activities, and business makeup (Glossary, Strategic Management: Concepts and Cases by Fred David). Provide the vision and mission statements and strategy of your chosen organization and explain how the effectiveness if these can be measured. Marks Spencer has defined its Vision, Mission statement and Values as follows: The Vision Statement The standard against which all others are measured. The Mission Statement Making aspirational quality accessible to all. The Values Quality, value, service, innovation and trust. Marks and Spencer has followed a value price strategy from its origin. Since Marks Spencer has focused on middle class customers, it has continued with the value pricing strategy. Although its most of suppliers have been Britain, which has higher textile manufacturing costs than other developing nations, Marks Spencer was able to maintain its value by developing strong economic bonds with its suppliers. Through its economies of scale in buying, MS has been able to require manufacturers to adhere to strict quality standards and to bargain lower prices for its customers (De Nardi-Cole, 1998). The standard against which all others are measured, as a vision statement thoroughly conveys the objective of the organization, as the organization has set up the standard as an objective of the organization to achieve. It is promoting inspirational standard of the organization in term of products, service, and quality and price. This vision has greatly affected the organization output as a consequence of achieving its objective through this vision. The mission statement of Mark Spencer revolves around its marketing strategy telling about the price of the products that are affordable enough to be accessed by everyone. Values of the organization describe the standard quality and value of products and services following innovation and trust of the customers. Define the term organizational g12 cultural and ethical values and explain the culture and ethical values of the organization of your choice. Organizational culture is an idea which illustrates personal attitudes, experiences, psychology, beliefs and values and cultural values of an organization. It is defined as the specific set of values and norms shared by people and groups in an organization. The organizational culture as well as ethical values is also known as beliefs and ideas about the kinds of goals of the organization and ideas about the appropriate kinds and standards of behavior members of the organization use to achieve these goals. From organizational ethical values develop organizational norms, guidelines, and expectations that prescribe appropriate kinds of behavior by employees in certain situations and control the behavior of organizational members towards one another (Hill, and Jones, 2001). Organizational Ethics refers the way an organization ethically responds to an internal or external stimulus. Organizational ethics and the organizational culture are interdependent. Although, it is similar to both org anizational culture and business ethics on the micro and macro levels, organizational ethics is neither Organizational culture, nor is it alone business ethics which includes corporate governance and corporate ethics. Organizational ethics express the values of the organization to its employees and to other entities irrespective of governmental and regulatory laws. The organizational culture of Marks Spencer is characterized as a reflection of taken for granted fashion the attitude that is shared by the all members of the organization. The basic assumptions and beliefs operate unconsciously among the members and also exist at the organizational level. The assumptions and taken for granted fashion have taken its roots from the basis of the success of organization. Marks Spencer strictly follow code of ethics, a detail document of the ethical codes, in order to get on with its internal matter. The document contains the responsibility of all belong to Marks Spencer and Behavior for customers, colleagues, shareholders and environment have been explained. Besides, there are policies about workplace and Business (MarksSpencer, Code of Ethics, 2010). Explain the term core competencies and critical success factor and state whether these are necessary to the success of the organization of your choice. Has the organization of your choice amended its strategy in response to changes in the current business and economic climate? A core competency is a particular factor that an organization looks as being integral to the way it, or its works, and employees. It performs three key criteria: provides consumer benefits, not easy for competitors to imitate and can be widely leveraged to many products and markets. A core competency can take many forms, such as technical or subject matter know-how, a dependable process and close associations with customers and suppliers. It also includes product development and culture, such as employee dedication. The core competencies are specific strengths relative to other organizations in the industry which supply the fundamental basis for the provision of added value. Core competencies are the organizations collective learning, and involve the way to coordinate different production skills and incorporate multiple flows of technologies. It is an involvement, a communication, and a strong commitment to working across organizational boundaries. Core Competencies of Marks Spencer The core competencies are vital for the existence of Marks Spencer; it is in its sourcing methods, gave it the power to deliver high value, reliable, consistent quality, investors and customers has trusted it, its quality of management was ranked very high, consequently feeling of what good for Marks Spencer was good for the Nation and epitomized the most honest face of commerce. Since the revolutionary change in the business world, Marks Spencer had to suffer a lot. After the crisis of 1999, Marks Spencer has remarkably amended its strategies in terms of products, customers, price and marketing strategy. As a result of e-commerce revolution Marks Spencer amended its strategy and started e-commerce which ultimately changed its marketing strategy. A large number of the same product in the market caused the Marks Spencer to adopt a differentiation way such as own brand products and Premium brand appearance. Since there are so many products out there in the market that is decreasing the sell of Marks Spencer, due to the threat of the substitute product Marks Spencer has reviewed its prices of the product in order to create competitive advantage. Explain how your organization has responded to change in its environment and consider whether this response has effective The change in the product price from Marks Spencer creates a competitive advantage fro it and it is much effective for the organization. The enhancement in the place of its firm can also be beneficial in the way that it is in the access of as many people as targeted. All these response to the environment from Marks Spencer could provide it some space to restore its position in the market. List what you would consider to be the major functional area in generally and discuss the three major functional areas of organization of choice and why this is so. Every business have work within certain functional areas, among them there are few general major functions performed in all businesses including finance and accounts, production and operations, administration and IT support, human resource, marketing and sales, customer services, and research and development. The major functional areas of Marks Spencer are sales and marketing, human resource and administration and IT support. They are the major functional areas of the organization because Marks Spencer is a retailer of goods, its business growth very much depends on the sales and marketing, human resource (the people and the staff serve the organization can make difference in the growth of the organization) and administration and IT support make the business process smooth and successful. Since the competition is so tough in the market, Marks Spencer must improve their major functional areas. How have the three major functional areas in organization been developed to provide it with a competitive advantage? Efficient and good sales and marketing strategy can play an important role to develop a competitive advantage for the organization. Decrease in the price by change in the marketing strategy increases the competitive advantage for the organization. Human resource is such a function that works as a back bone for an organization, skilled and trained human resource of the Marks Spencer can provide a competitive advantage through inputting the best to serve the organization. Administration and IT support has come out as one of the vital function of the organization since organization has initiated e-commerce, it can efficiently perform as support to e-commerce to give competitive advantage to the organization. Discuss how a timetable for the implementation of a strategy could be developed around key milestones. The implementation of a strategy roadmap needs a time table that defines milestones in weekly, one month, three month, and six month intervals. Implementation milestones should be established and communicated to all key business partners, the board of directors, stakeholders and investors, customers, and employees, from day one. The best timetable and milestones focus on at least the following dimensions: customers, competitors, finance, communications, and culture, intellectual property, globalization, governance, leadership, investors, marketing, partners, information technology, products, sales, processes and policies and space and inf