Literature review including a research methodology, Objectives and Dissertation

Literature review including a research methodology, Objectives and research. Tobic (Internationalization) - Dissertation Example The University of Bradford is one organization that seeks to go the international way as a way of expanding its market share with the added advantage of increasing its profits among other benefits. However, there is a high risk associated with the internationalization of organizations evident in the number of organizations that have failed in the process. Some of the main challenges associated with internationalization is the complexity of the process of going international, the high costs involved and the complexity of managing internationalized entities. Objectives of the Study 1. To determine how feasible it is for the University of Bradford to internationalize 2. To determine the key issues that the University of Bradford will have to deal with in its internationalization 3. To establish the best strategy that the University of Bradford can adopt to successfully go through the internationalization process Research questions In achieving the objectives of this study, a number of q uestions will have to be answered. The following are the research questions for this project. 1. How feasible it is for the University of Bradford to internationalize? 2. What are the key issues that the University of Bradford will have to deal with in its internationalization process? 3. What strategies can the University of Bradford adopt in its bid to go through the internationalization process? 4. ... Reasons behind the Internationalization of Organizations Most economies thrive on the notion of imports and exports. Penetration into the foreign market is one of the major reasons why firms are venturing into internalization (Taylor, Walker and Beaverstock, 2002). In the 21st century, a lot of firms and businesses have been involved in international markets. Companies have been looking for ways to maximise their productivity and profitability by tapping into markets other the ones in their own home base of operations. There are different theories that have been formulated to explain the increase in international activities among different firms all across the world (Gankema, Snuif and Zwart, 2000). The absolute cost advantage is an internationalization theory that propagates the idea that institutions and firms should specialize in those products in which they have a sure advantage. This theory was popularised by Adam Smith and it implies that if a company can make a product without having to spend a lot in terms of costs per production unit (Welch and Welch, 1996). This view supports the idea that companies that have a comparative advantage do not have to have an absolute advantage to prosper in a market. Companies therefore internationalize so as to gain from comparative advantage (Taylor, Walker and Beaverstock, 2002). The prospects of new markets are another major driving force for internationalization. Internationalization opens up many opportunities for business, big and small. Advances in technology have led to the development of production techniques which ensure that companies can mass produce (Vahlne and Nordstrom, 1993). As a result, many of these companies have ventured into the international scene in search of new markets in which to sell

The Four Causes of Aristotle Essay Example for Free

The Four Causes of Aristotle Essay Aristotle, being the first historian of philosophy, categorized his predecessors according to how they’ve answered the central questions of the human mind – the question of the first principle of all things. It is otherwise known as the Four Causes. He defined science as knowledge through causes. This doctrine of causes is scattered in different Aristotelian treatises but have its highlight in his book Metaphysics. This principle of causality is an essential part of Aristotelian thought. In his mind, Aristotle argued that events happen for a cause which will explain its origin, end and the way it came to be. For him, â€Å"everything that comes to be is due to causes.† He criticized his predecessors for their not having clearly explained the why of this, that, and so on. Chance, mythology or fortuitous events are not sufficient enough to solve the problem of cosmology. These causes are divided into four distinct types. He developed this principle from the standpoint of being. For this reason, the basic Aristotelian division is between actual and potential causes, contrary to the traditional division made by the scholastics between intrinsic and extrinsic. As for the actual cause, there is the formal, efficient and final causes and for the potency only the material cause; in the traditional scholastic division, material and formal causes made up the intrinsic cause while the remaining two makes the extrinsic cause. Each of these causes can be shortly defined as follows: 1.Material Cause is the constitutive element from which something is made from. 2.Formal Cause means the form of something, â€Å"it is what determines its essence to be what it is† 3.Efficient Cause is the being who made that something. 4.Final Cause is that for what sake something exists, â€Å"it is what constitutes the perfection of the being† . In other words, it is the purpose of that being. The final cause is the summation of all other causes; it is where every other cause can be founded. â€Å"‘Cause means (1) that from which, as immanent material, a thing comes into being, e.g., the bronze is the cause of the statue and the silver of the saucer, and so are the genera to which these things belong. (2) The form or pattern, i.e., the definition of the essence, and the genera which include this (e.g., the ratio 2:1 and number in general are causes of the octave), and the parts included in the definition. (3) That from which the change or the resting from change first begins; e.g., the adviser is a cause of action, and the father a cause of the child, and in general the maker of a cause of the thing made and the change-producing of the changing. (4) The end, i.e., that for the sake of which a thing is; e.g., health is the cause of walking† As mentioned earlier, Aristotle classified earlier philosophers by what kind of cause is their philosophy. We can classify Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes, Heraclitus, Anaxagoras and Empedocles in the material cause. These philosophers, though differing in opinion of the primary principle of all things, emphasized the constitutive element of everything. Thus, they are rightly to be numbered in the material cause. The water of Thales, the air of Anaximenes, fire of Heraclitus, the atoms of Leucippus and Democritus, the Homeomeries of Anaxagoras, the four elements of Empedocles and the apeiron of Anaximander (â€Å"†¦ he [Anaximander] said that the principleand the constitutive element of the things that exist is the apeiron. He was the one who first designated the material principle of all things by this name† ) are all primary element of everything for these philosophers, may it be by some other cause or not. For the formal cause, we can only classify only three pre-Socratic thinkers, Pythagoras, Parmenides and Anaxagoras. By formal cause, we mean that it pertains to the form of everything. Let us try to briefly examine each of these philosophers: The Pythagoreans have thought that the first principle is Numbers; their idea of Numbers is different from ours. For them, numbers have resemblances from everything. â€Å"Musical harmony for example, could be reduced to a set of numerical relations. Natural phenomena followed an order e\which could also be measured numerically – the duration of the year, the seasons, the length of the day, etc.† Parmenides, on the other hand, thought of the â€Å"being† as the principle of everything. â€Å"One statement alone expresses the road to follow: being is† . His being is univocal; it can only be apprehended by the intellect. He denied the existence of change, therefore, making his being as something permanent, unchangeable, immovable. It cannot cause something for it will mean to cause a change, thus, we cannot classify being as an efficient cause. Rather we classify it to the formal cause for his being underlies everything, it is actually in everything. Lastly, Anaxagoras, though numbered earlier among the material philosophers, can also be classified in the formal cause. Because of the multiplicity of substances, he concluded that the first principle (in his case his Homeomeries) must, in a way, embody all things in itself. We can also enumerate Anaxagoras and Empedocles in the efficient cause. Let us examine how this had happened. Alongside his Homeomeries, Anaxagoras added another principle, the Nous (Intelligence). It is important to bear in mind, that the Nous is separated from matter. It merely starts the cosmic movement from where everything starts to differentiate from one another. Its movement determines the diverse proportion of Homeomeries in each thing. Thus making reason â€Å"deus ex machina† â€Å"’The Intelligence ordains everything that is brought into being – those things that existed in the past and exist in the present and exist no longer, those that exist in the present and those that will exist in the future.† Empedocles is another philosopher with an efficient cause. Because of the influence of Eleatic philosophy, he is forced to search for another cause besides the material principle in order to salvage the world of phenomena. He put Love and Hate as the efficient cause that unites and separates the four elements. While love brings forth together, hate separates. There is a perpetual alteration of dominance between those two; this cycle dictates corruption and generation. â€Å"Things never cease to change, sometimes uniting with one another through Love; and at other times, separating themselves from one another through the divisiveness of Discord† The final cause: the most important of all the causes. In this category we can classify the sophists and Socrates. They have put man as the measure and end of all things. The final cause is for man. Sophism ushered a new era in philosophy as a whole, this age turned to man for the first time. Everything belonged to man. Though sophism had been degenerated into â€Å"apparent wisdom† , with it still came the time where man has been the focus of philosophy. His end and his goodness is the final cause of everything. Protagoras, most famous of the sophists argued that man is the one who determines everything, even truth. This relativism of Protagoras is because he based his knowledge exclusively on senses which are constantly subjected to change. This can be summarized on his words in the introduction of On Truth: â€Å"Man is the measure of all things – things which exist insofar as they exist, things which do not exist insofar as they do not exist.† Socrates, the one who â€Å"called philosophy from heaven†; is the foremost philosopher of the final cause. For him the most important thing is for the benefit of the human soul, ergo, knowing the good. For him the soul is the center of moral life. He identified virtue as knowledge, the mainspring of all other virtues. For him, only in ignorance does one commit sins. In Socratic thought, human dignity has been raised that all things are for the good of his soul. These four causes of Aristotle gave a very clear view of the improvement of ancient Greek Philosophy, from its coldest principle for all things to the warmest humanistic approach. I am in a position with Aristotle concerning these causes. As for me, the causes clearly demonstrate the history of Greek Philosophy from the pre-Socratics up to Socrates.

Plato has Stronger Reasoning than Aristotle Essay examples -- Philosop

Plato and Aristotle Nearly all humans have the goal to live a virtuous and happy life. Two of the world most acknowledged philosophers, Plato and Aristotle, had their own views on this central issue. Plato supported the understanding view; he believed understanding is the key to living a virtuous life. Aristotle supported the habit and action view; he believed that individuals become virtuous by continuous moral actions. By and large both philosophers have a good standpoint; but in my judgment one has a stronger line of reasoning. Plato supports the view of understanding over custom and tradition. He believes that individuals should acquire the knowledge to understand something and then start performing the action. Plato says that once someone understands the good then he or she will do it; he says â€Å"...what we desire is always something that is good† (pg.5). We can understand from this that Plato is saying individuals want to do good for themselves; we perform immoral deeds, because we don’t have the understanding of the good. The lack of knowledge and understanding w...

Lic of India

India’s Leading BFSI Companies 2008 Life Insurance Corporation of India Yogakeshema, Jeevan Bima Marg, P. B. No. 19953, Mumbai – 400021, Maharashtra Tel: 91 22 66598547; Fax: 91 22 22817253; Email: [email  protected] com; Website: www. licindia. com History Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) was formed in Sep 1956 after the Parliament of India passed the Life Insurance Corporation Act in Jun 1956.The company was created with the objective of spreading life insurance more widely, especially to reach all the insurable people in the rural areas and provide them with adequate financial cover at a reasonable cost. Apart from its corporate office, LIC had five zonal offices, 33 divisional offices and 212 branch offices in 1956. The nature of life insurance contracts being long-term coupled with the need to provide a variety of services during the term of the policy, LIC re-organised itself by opening a number of new branch offices.After its re-organisation, servicing functions were transferred to branches which were converted to accounting units. other cities. LIC has also launched Satellite Sampark offices in order to provide easy access to its policy holders. The company had 340 such offices as on Mar 2008. LIC also provides housing finance through LICHFL. It has also formed an asset management company known as LICMF AMC. The corporation has also extended its operations to the international arena; through various JVs and subsidiaries it operates in as many as nine countries.T S Vijayan Chairman D&B D-U-N-S ® 65-005-6716 IRDA Registration No Business Segment Life Insurance Key Information (As on Mar 2007) Total Income (Rs mn) NPE (Rs mn) Policy Holders Branches Employees Agents No of Policies Issued No of Claims Received No of Claims Settled Solvency Ratio (%) Management Chairman T S Vijayan Managing Directors D K Mehrotra Thomas Mathew T A K Dasgupta 1,744,405. 7 1,277,822. 6 212. 6 2,048 113,710 1,103,047 38,229,292 13,257,345 13,258,205 1 . 50 512 Products & ServicesLIC offers a wide array of insurance products to its customers such as insurance plans, pension plans, unit-linked plans, special plans and group scheme. During FY08, the company introduced certain new products such as Profit Plus, Fortune Plus, Jeevan Akshay, Jeevan Amrit & Amulya Jeevan. As of Mar 2007, total number of agents of the company stood at 1. 1 mn while the total number of policies issued was 38. 2 mn. The premium earned by the company reported a growth of 41% in FY07 when compared to the previous year.During the year, the company insured 34. 28 mn individuals for the first time, taking the ratio of first insurance to total business to 89. 61% for number of policies. Operations As on Mar 2008, LIC had 2,048 fully computerised branch offices, 109 divisional offices, eight zonal offices apart from its corporate office. LIC’s network connects all the branches through wide area network. The company also has tie-ups with certain banks and se rvice providers to offer on-line premium collection facility in select cities.Besides, ECS and ATM premium payment facility to its customers, the company has also commissioned IVRS and information centres at Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, New Delhi, Pune, amongst Key Highlights †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ 97. 11%ofmaturityclaimsaresettledonorbeforetheduedate. InFY08,LIChassettledover13. 9mnclaims,amountingtoRs372. 06bn. ThetotallifefundofLICstoodatRs6866. 16bnasonMar31,2008. ThetotalnumberofIn-Forcepolicieswasover233mnasonMar31,2008. AsonMar31,2008,LIC’stotalassetsvaluedatRs8038. 2bn. TotalincomeincreasedtoRs2063. 6bnbytheendofFY08,showingagrowth rate of 18. 3%. 137

Certificate program & education

My employment in the field of education may be coincidental but is probably attributable to my quest for learning and advancing knowledge in all aspects of my life. Additionally, I believe in the notion that no matter what a businessman’s product is, this person is definitely in the education business.To succeed, the individual must constantly educate his customers on the many advantages of doing business with him, train them on how to use the product efficiently as well as effectively and therefore make never-ending improvement in their lives. It is against this background that I would wish to apply for an admission to University of Colorado to pursue a Certificate in Leadership Studies.My decision to settle for this certificate program was mainly informed by several reasons. Firstly, a teacher is definitely a leader and the program would help me expand my knowledge in leadership skills. This knowledge, I believe, would be helpful in my Junior Reserve Officer’s Trainin g Corps (JROTC) classes.The certificate would complement the values of citizenship, service to my country, personal responsibility as well as accomplishments, the very virtues that the JROTC program wishes to instill into every American through teaching which is my career.Additionally, I believe in the process of continuous evaluation, improving on my weak areas and carrying on the desirable virtues for the sake of my country and humanity at large, which I in turn pass over to my students. With the dynamic nature of education, I take it as my responsibility to be abreast with the most current knowledge.Leadership Studies and other related courses such as Conflict Resolution Management are therefore becoming increasingly important, more so for those in social responsibilities. In this bid, the University of Colorado’s Certificate Program would make me a better teacher by equipping me with more knowledge and leadership skills that are inclined towards my career as a teacher.Tho ugh I have a degree in Business Administration, I must say that the future looks bright although I have not reached the epic. I would wish to purse a Masters in Education after this certificate. This would career-wise place me in a better position and I would even be better equipped to serve humanity at a position which is much higher.In addition, it would ensure an increased remuneration and package that would transform both to my personal growth as well as that of my family. As such, a certificate in Leadership Studies would form a good foundation for a Masters as all are inclined towards the field of education and would also be part of my greater continuous improvement personal policy.My decision for a certificate in Leadership Studies at Colorado University was further informed by a critical analysis based on accruing costs and benefits. Apart from the great reputation that the University of Colorado holds in the world of Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps, I was loo king a local university that could offer me a Certificate that carries international recognition, and at a pocket friendly price.Whether on distance learning mode or otherwise, to me, Colorado university appeared as the most viable option, more so for a veteran like me.Moreover, I consider education as the asset that does not build dreams but also ensures their realization. It is the asset that that rekindles hope, as through it, a bright future is foreseen. Irrespective of age, education turns a weak person to an energetic one while confidence within an individual is built through educational accomplishments. Through education, one not only understands themselves but also discovers their potential, grabs opportunities and is therefore able to pursue success into its greatest heights.  As a conclusion, I wish to make a worthy contribution to my life and humanity at large, and only through education can I secure the chance to do so. It also bears noting that through this certificat e, I wish to open up my mind and expand my horizons in all aspects, and this remains my objective as I place my application for consideration into admission to Colorado University.

buy custom The Ease of Falling into Unhealthy Diet Habits essay

buy custom The Ease of Falling into Unhealthy Diet Habits essay Modern lifestyle is largely to blame for the failure by members of our society to adhere to a healthy diet. Instead, they have lapsed into a lifestyle that encourages fast food and overconsumption of sugar. Ours has become a lifestyle entirely devoted to the pursuit of money and pleasure with complete disregard for personal health and future prospects. It is a society that is so ignorant and indifferent to the catastrophic effects of regular intake of unhealthy diets; so much that some of the negative effects have gained significance as national crises. Obesity which has increased to a point of causing panic especially among children is one such catastrophe. Obesity has been blamed for the rise in obesity-related conditions like diabetes and insulin resistance thus putting a strain on our resources (Lustig, 43). Continuous consumption of unhealthy diet is also to blame for other conditions like strokes, which result from accumulation of cholesterol and failure to take vital nutrients like vitamins. Generally, it is easy to fall into an unhealthy diet due to the constraint of time, resources and the social setting of each individual. A typical day in the life of a working citizen contains several activities which are always competing for the attention of that individual. Most people live in suburbs far from their offices or factories and one has to wake up early in order to make it to work on time. This individual is expected to prepare breakfast depending on the duties each spouse plays in the household. This might be compounded by children who need to be prepared for school. It is easy to just ignore the advice of professionals which calls for a balanced diet and instead partake of foods which are easy to prepare and take lesser time to consume. This is just the beginning of an ordinary day and other meals are likely o be met with the same approach where lack of time pushes these people into a culture of unhealthy living. Most people are likely to give their children money which will likely end up in the counters of fast food joints. The demand imposed by firms on their employees to deliver certain work quotas under tight deadlines makes it impossible to allocate adequate time for food preparation or even time to worry about the lifestyle they have adopted. By the time these individuals get home, they are exhausted and cannot be expected to be in the right frame of mind to worry about the eating patterns of their family. The recession succeeded in highlighting the plight of most people within our society. This concern was financial constraint most people face due to high living standards, low wages and high debts due to many obligations. Such debts include mortgages, student loans, and credit card debts among others. But economists have made it clear that the cost of foodstuffs is unyielding and the cost of buying an adequate and balanced diet for a family is a considerable expense. Add this to the cost of cooking gas and the labor required to prepare this food and most people are likely to forego this option for cheaper junk food. Some might be willing to incur the lengthy time necessary to prepare healthy foods but face budget constraints due to low wages or lack of employment. These families or individuals will choose foods which are cheaper not knowing that such usually contain lesser nutrients. Their failure to take healthy diets is not their fault but an institutional failure which denies them this fundamental right by failing to provide them with decent incomes to cater for their needs. In addition, the social setting of any given society determines the attitudes and behavior of individuals. Developed societies have adapted a consumerism culture which drives people to consume more and more without any regard to the impact of their actions. A debate which has emerged in recent times is whether the impact of high fructose sugar syrup which is widely used to sweeten foods and drinks has fueled the consumerism of unhealthy food products. This sweetener has been proven to be sweeter than conventional sugar and has been accused by some lobby groups of causing addiction and hence increasing consumption of junk foods and such drinks (Lustig, 21). While many including governmental institutions have been calling for restraint in consumption of unhealthy diets, members of our society seem to be ignoring this advice and opting to continue their unhealthy eating habits without care or worry. Indulging in passive leisure is also a major cause of junk food intake as people prefer to order takeout food rather than prepare it themselves. Although some foods are packaged and advertised as healthy, the reality is very different (Beck, 1). It is necessary to point out that no one is singularly responsible for increased consumption of unhealthy diets. Several factors intervene to influence the attitudes and actions of members of a society. Many factors still remain important if a true understanding of the problem is to be achieved. These include advertisements, legal requirements for food processors and availability of certain food products. What is clear is the need to address this issue since an unhealthy diets lead to obesity and other health related conditions. To continue ignoring this issue is to keep compounding the problem and doing more harm to an already strained health sector which can be alleviated through prevention rather than cure. Buy custom The Ease of Falling into Unhealthy Diet Habits essay

Charter and public schools in the United States of America

Charter and public schools in the United States of America Introduction Charter and public schools in the United States of America are facing a myriad of challenges stemming from external and internal pressure. Externally, both public and charter schools are required to perform well during examinations. Anderson and Holder (2012) carried out a longitudinal study to investigate the ten years annual reports of the two local charter schools in the United States of America.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Charter and public schools in the United States of America specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The study utilized information from various sources, such as document analyses, site visits along with various and numerous interviews. The findings of this study revealed that the two schools under study received a lot of feedback regarding its administration, curriculum and evaluation. CER (Center for education reform) describes a charter school as an innovative public school that is accountable to pupils/students outcomes as well as developed into offer programs that are modified to meet the desires or needs of the community they serve. In the year 1992, a first charter school was opened in the city of Saint Paul within the state of Minnesota. Presently, there are at least 4,100 charter schools in the United States of America, which accommodate more than 1.2 million students (Bailey, 2009). The District of Columbia and 42 states in the U.S. have laws, which are associated with the charter school. In every charter school, there is a board of governors that are responsible for making critical decision in regards to the school. Besides, there are also sponsors in charter schools who play an integral role in monitoring as well as approving application to ensure that there is success in this school. Statement of the Problem The core reason why charter schools were initiated was to increase the academic option in the public school system. Peebles (2004) defin es curriculum as the entire issues that take place within the school. They include interpersonal link, guidance, extracurricular activities as well as academic work. Peebles further points out that curriculum entails cultural dissonance, academic expectation of the parents, teachers’ support as well as experience in addition to instructional leadership. Peebles carried out a case study to examine four issues associated with curriculum in the Marblehead charter school.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The issues explored included cultural dissonance, academic expectation, teacher training and experience as well as instructional leadership. Peebles also asserts that, in order for the charter schools to develop, they must move via various critical stages. These stages encompass pre-operational phase, operational phase as well as institutional operational stage. A s pointed out by Anderson and Holder (2012), operational and pre-operational activities have the capacity to impede the opening of charter schools and as such, great focus should be directed to them in the course of the beginning phases of the charter schools development. The director of Marblehead charter school placed more focus on the survival of the school, such as curriculum development, development as well as staff and instruction supervision. Background of the Problem The desire to perform well is putting a lot of pressure on both, charter and public schools to constantly review their curriculum in an effort to compete effectively. Skilton-Sylvester(2011) opine that present day principles and managers of public and charter schools are required to constantly monitor and evaluate efficacy of their curriculum, review and implement new strategies and tactics in order to improve the performance of students in schools. Autonomy as well as teachers leadership are critical tenets in the development of a school’s curriculum. Several studies have demonstrated that inexperienced teachers do not contribute enough to the development of a school curriculum. Purpose of the Study Charter and public schools in the United States of America have to combat a number of challenges because of external and internal pressure. Externally, both public and charter schools need to show good results during examinations. Internally, some schools have inexperienced teachers and poor curriculum that does not enhance performance of students. Developing a comprehensive and effective curriculum in both charter and public schools will provide a platform for these schools to perform well in examinations.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Charter and public schools in the United States of America specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More As noted by Peebles (2004), an inexperienced and poor teacher has the potential to unconstructively affect the outcome of students even after the students have left the class. In the process of defining a curriculum, it is critical that teachers possess a detailed apprehension of approaches for assessing the outcome of students, techniques for assessing curricula as well as instructional delivery and the content of the curriculum. Besides, when developing a curriculum, teachers should be given sufficient time to plan, to create, to adopt and to assess the curriculum. Numerous studies have revealed that one of the reasons why students migrate from one school to another is attributed mainly to students poor academic performance. Most parents who are not contented with grades of their children received during the process of studying at school are more than wiling to transfer their children to another school. The significance of the Problem Students have different abilities in a given or particular classroom. We can hardly have a one-size lesson package which can fit all students in the class. Learning procedures and abilities differ across the classroom. As a result, there is a need for a lesson tailored to fit a specific group of students with a common liability or problem. The lesson must address these needs for effectiveness and benefits of the students. At the same time, the needs of students are divers. This means that teachers should tailor their teaching profession in a specific way in order to meet specific needs of the students. The teacher in this case faces a challenging task of ensuring that he or she has the needed and required skills for some particular needs. Differentiated instruction is an area in the teaching profession which is harnessed for providing specific needs to students. Given that students have specific needs that must be catered for by differentiated instructions, there is the need for developing an area for students professional development for the differentiated instruction. In this paper, differentiated instructi on for students with difficulties in learning the English language in a mathematics class will be addressed and looked at. Mathematics Learning in English Language Mathematics is a core subject in all disciplines. The subject is a must-learn for students in various disciplines. Mathematics is majorly taught in English. This is because of the ease with which the language is used in relation to mathematical expressions. The United States of America, the United Kingdom, and some countries in Africa use English in mathematics classes. At the same time, the United Kingdom and the United States of America have non-English speaking population who are schooling in the same. As a result, mathematical textbooks used in this setting are written in the English language. The same text books are used in African countries in the mathematical curriculum.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Teachers in training colleges are taught in English and as a result, they infer the same to students in English. At the same time, there is no discrimination in education settings. Consequently, students are huddled together in the same learning environment irrespective of their ethnic backgrounds (Bender, 2002). Students who have English as their second language find it hard to cope with in a mathematics class as they are faced with two tasks that ought to be accomplished simultaneously. The first task entails learning the English language, whereas the second task involves learning mathematics itself. Due to this, the students who have the English language as their second language struggle to grasp concepts in mathematics class. This happens due to the fact that when the lessons are delivered, teachers do not discriminate students but deliver the lesson with an assumption that they are grasping the concept irrespective of the language deficiency. Given that teachers cannot speak an d learn the first language for every student in class, there is a need for them to offer differentiated instruction to students in this area. Differentiated instruction is vital to students with learning disabilities as teachers are trained to give instructions with a generalized idea on the same (American Institutes for Research, 2010). Differentiating Mathematical Instruction for English Language Learners Mathematics classes have normally diverse students. The common diversity is seen in terms of ethnic backgrounds. In a mathematics class, about 30% of the students are normally the English language learners. As a result, they differ in the learning abilities, facilities, and styles. The English language learners find it hard to cope with the material in this class. The purpose of differentiation in a mathematics class is to teach the victimized students with the aid of myriads of techniques and strategies that address their deficiencies. This implies that the main focus is on the teacher. The teacher is supposed to come up with strategies in order to implement the differentiation instruction. In this case, the teacher is supposed to be equipped with professional techniques needed to address this issues (Tomlinson, 1999). In this project, the professionalism involved in differentiation mathematical instructions for the English language learners are going to be discussed and highlighted. The Objectives The purpose of differentiating the mathematical instructions for the English language learners is to make the lesson of mathematics comprehensible for all students in the class. Through this concept, the students are supposed to achieve the needed mathematical concept despite their language barriers. As a result, the teacher is supposed to ensure that the students express the numbers or concept used to solve a certain mathematical expression in writing or orally. This involves ensuring that the lesson is not given as it is written in the books but rather is made for the students (Glencoe, 2005). Assessment Methods Before implementing as well as also during and after implementing the strategies involved in the learning process, the teacher is supposed to make an assessment of the class and students in order to identify the needs of the students. There are several methods that can be used. The first method is examination of the records. In this case, the teacher is supposed to carefully examine or review the test score of the students in previous mathematical tests. He or she is also supposed to check the daily assignments and the wording used in the students’ books. Assessment should be done at the beginning of the term or the period the teacher has taken over. Assessments can also be done through a one-on-one talk with the student in case the class is small. In addition, assessment can also be done through testing a learning style inventory that can work best to the students. This is possible through ascertaining the topic that best suits the students (American Institutes for Research, 2010). For this case, the students should be given topics, such as algebra and statistics. Assessment should also be assessed for their progress. This should be done through the skills levels, learning style and thinking skills among many other issues. At the end of every period, the teacher should give the students some projects and evaluate the same to see the extent to which they have grasped the concept (Baker, Gersten, Lee, 2002). The Strategies Making Expressions Banks The strategy consists in making the use of diagrams that show expressions and phrases that are helpful in the English language learners’ (ELLs) study of mathematics. This occurs because when the words used by a teacher are accompanied by diagrams and illustrations, they help the ELLs understand various mathematical concepts and have the memory stick accordingly. The Use of Manipulative Tools These are gadgets that a teacher should employ in the cours e of teaching in order to ease understanding. These manipulative tools are made to help the students come up with physical illustrations which comprise the mathematical expressions. Having a student come up with a physical mathematical model by himself or herself will boost his or her confidence and motivate them to understanding the mathematical concept easily and qucikly (Scholastic Instructor, 2010). Modify a Teacher Talk and Practice Wait Time The teacher should not engage in a lot of talking without giving time to ask questions. Also, when asking a question, some time in order to generate answers should be given to the students in the class. Writing the question on the board helps a lot as well as it helps to stress the most major concepts in the mathematical language (Scholastic Instructor, 2010). Eliciting Nonverbal Responses The English language learners are in most cases used to nonverbal communication. As such, the teacher should be keen to notice their understanding of co ncepts by simply observing their behavior and reactions while teaching (Scholastic Instructor, 2010). The Use of Sentence Frames The English language learners understand sentence frames quite well in their English language. Therefore, the use of such statements while expressing mathematical concept will foster the students understanding. Design Different Questions and Prompts at Each Proficiency Level Asking question gives students a chance to express and confirm their understanding of the subject. Also, it helps the teacher know if the concepts taught in the class having been grasped or not. The Use of Prompts to Support Student’s Responses The use of prompts to support student’s responses entails giving a certain way of answering a question to the English language learners. Such prompts help them to be confident while expressing their answers during the lesson Consider Language and Math Skills When Grouping Students Interacting in a group level gives students an oppo rtunity to learn new ideas as well as overcome difficulties which they might have had in understanding some mathematical concepts. Therefore, grouping students with different abilities together helps their learning to a great extent. Those people who support the education for the ELL suggest that common core academic standards should be implemented with an aim of raising achievement for the English learners. Education sector should pay more attention to the non-performers to improve their performance in all the subjects and area of study. Screening of the students performance to identify their weaknesses could contribute positively to their performance in the end. The Arizona system of assessment should also be evaluated to improve its effectiveness on the assessment of the student’s performance. Since the study identified that the non-ELL performed better in math than non-ELL, more emphasis should be put on their system of education and the curriculum to equalize the perform ance of both groups. Utilize Partner Talk In the course of teaching, the teacher should allow discussions between the neighboring students, which breaks the monotony of the teacher talking alone and also contributes to building trust between the students, being very vital in the process of studying in class. Encourage Choral Responses from Students To encourage choral responses from students helps a sector of learners who hardly speak out to answer a question or ask one. In a choral response, therefore, they are able to gain confidence as well as get the right pronunciation of the mathematical concepts (Scholastic Instructor, 2010). Implementation of the Plan When setting out the plan, the teacher is supposed to ensure that the room is well arranged in a way that it can quickly be rearranged for the next lesson. The teacher should then issue materials in a properly arranged manner to be used for the study. Materials such as drawings tools, computers, textbooks, and audio materials a mong many others should be provided (Allsopp, 2008). When everything is ready and arranged, the lesson should start. Leadership Principles The teacher is supposed to display some qualities or principles vital for the implementation of the plan. The first principle is patience. The teacher should be patient with the students and give everyone time to express their own ideas. The next principle should be willingness. The teacher should develop a parent heart and be willing to always help his or her students any time. At the same time, the teacher should maintain professional methods and never deviate from the topic or give up on it because of the difficulties involved. When teaching, the teacher should be honest with his or her students and avoid showing divided favors. Key players in the Plan Since this is a school setting, various players should be involved for the success of the plan. First of all, the parents should be involved by all means. They are supposed to provide the needed funds and materials for the success of the plan. Teachers should also be involved. They should mark the needs of the English language learners and be ready to be called for extra lessons. The teacher leaders should ensure that materials are availed on time. The staff should also be willing to help in any way possible. The students should be willing to be helped and always help each other (Allsopp, Kyger Lovin, 2007). Mathematics is often regarded as a foreign and quite hard subject to grasp to most students unlike the other subjects taught at school or college. Particularly, in the case of English Language Learners (ELLs), mathematics to them is a major challenge. For a teacher, as a result, it is hard make the students fully understand the math language, as such, a lot of efforts are required to acquire math concepts in the oral and written form. References Allsopp, D. H., Kyger, M. M. Lovin, L. H. (2007). Teaching mathematics meaningfully: Solutions to reaching struggling learn ers. Baltimore, MD: Brookes Publishing. Allsopp, D., Kyger, M., Lovin, L., Garretson, H., Carson, K. Ray, S. (2008). Mathematics dynamic assessment: Informal assessment that responds to the needs of struggling learners in mathematics. Teaching Exceptional Children, 40(3), 6-16. American Institutes for Research. (2010). Differentiated Instruction for Math. Web. Anderson, D. L., Holder, K. C. (2012). Accolades and Recommendations: A Longitudinal Analysis of Monitoring Reports for Two Charter Schools Serving Native American Students. Journal of School Choice, 6(2), 184-208. doi:10.1080/15582159.2012.673967 Bailey, M.J.H. (2009). The Introduction of Religious Chapter Schools: A Cultural Movement in the Private School Sector. Journal of Research on Christian Education, 18, 272-289. Baker, S., Gersten, R., Lee, D. (2002). A synthesis of empirical research on teaching mathematics to low-achieving students. The Elementary School Journal, 103, 51-73. Bender, W. (2002). Differentiating ins truction for students with learning disabilities. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. Glencoe. (2005). Differentiating instruction in the Mathematics classroom. Web. Scholastic Instructor. (2010). 10 ways to help ells succeed in Math. Scholastic Instructor. Web. Skilton-Sylvester, P. (2011). Eyes on the Curriculum: How One Charter School Resisted Test-Driven Pressures. Dissent (00123846), 58(4), 52-58. Tomlinson, C. (1999). How to differentiate instruction in mixed-ability classrooms. Alexandria , VA: ASCD.

An Explanation of Unicode Character Encoding

An Explanation of Unicode Character Encoding For a computer to be able to store text and numbers that humans can understand, there needs to be a code that transforms characters into numbers. The Unicode standard defines such a code by using character encoding. The reason character encoding is so important is so that every device can display the same information. A custom character encoding scheme might work brilliantly on one computer, but problems will occur when if you send that same text to someone else. It wont know what youre talking about unless it understands the encoding scheme too. Character Encoding All character encoding does is assign a number to every character that can be used. You  could make a character encoding right now. For example, I could say that the letter A becomes the number 13, a14, 133, #123, and so on. This is where industry-wide standards come in. If the whole computer industry uses the same character encoding scheme, every computer can display the same characters. What Is Unicode? ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) became the first widespread encoding scheme. However, its limited to only 128 character definitions. This is fine for the most common English characters, numbers, and punctuation, but is a bit limiting for the rest of the world. Naturally, the rest of the world wants the same encoding scheme for their characters too. However, for a little, while depending on where you were, there might have been a different character displayed for the same ASCII code. In the end, the other parts of the world began creating their own encoding schemes, and things started to get a little bit confusing. Not only were the coding schemes of different lengths, programs needed to figure out which encoding scheme they were supposed to use. It became apparent that a new character encoding scheme was needed, which is when the Unicode standard was created. The objective of Unicode is to unify all the different encoding schemes so that the confusion between computers can be limited as much as possible. These days, the Unicode standard defines values for over 128,000 characters and can be seen at the Unicode Consortium. It has several character encoding forms: UTF-8: Only uses one byte (8 bits) to encode English characters. It can use a sequence of bytes to encode other characters. UTF-8 is widely used in email systems and on the internet.UTF-16: Uses two bytes (16 bits) to encode the most commonly used characters. If needed, the additional characters can be represented by a pair of 16-bit numbers.UTF-32: Uses four bytes (32 bits) to encode the characters. It became apparent that as the Unicode standard grew, a 16-bit number is too small to represent all the characters. UTF-32 is capable of representing every Unicode character as one number. Note: UTF means Unicode Transformation Unit. Code Points A code point is the value that a character is given in the Unicode standard. The values according to Unicode are written as hexadecimal numbers and have a prefix of U. For example, to encode the characters we looked at earlier: A is U0041a is U00611 is U0031# is U0023 These code points are split into 17 different sections called planes, identified by numbers 0 through 16. Each plane holds 65,536 code points. The first plane, 0, holds the most commonly used characters and is known as the Basic Multilingual Plane (BMP). Code Units The encoding schemes are made up of code units, which are used to provide an index for where a character is positioned on a plane. Consider UTF-16 as an example. Each 16-bit number is a code unit. The code units can be transformed into code points. For instance, the flat note symbol â™ ­ has a code point of U1D160 and lives on the second plane of the Unicode standard (Supplementary Ideographic Plane). It would be encoded using the combination of the 16-bit code units UD834 and UDD60. For the BMP, the values of the code points and code units are identical. This allows a shortcut for UTF-16 that saves a lot of storage space. It only needs to use one 16-bit number to represent those characters. How Does Java Use Unicode? Java was created around the time when the Unicode standard had values defined for a much smaller set of characters. Back then, it was felt that 16-bits would be more than enough to encode all the characters that would ever be needed. With that in mind, Java was designed to use UTF-16. The char data type was originally used to represent a 16-bit Unicode code point. Since Java SE v5.0, the char represents a code unit. It makes little difference for representing characters that are in the Basic Multilingual Plane because the value of the code unit is the same as the code point. However, it does mean that for the characters on the other planes, two chars are needed. The important thing to remember is that a single char data type can no longer represent all the Unicode characters.

Berlioz Bicentennial Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Berlioz Bicentennial - Essay Example With Currie sounding each drum, mallet, or "metal" to an ever-repeating rhythmic figure, various orchestral soloists and ensemble groups simultaneously define the melody or motif. Torke's expressed goal is to use these devices to get the listener "grooved into a rapturous state". Except for parts of the marimba movement, I was chiseled into an unrelentingly bored state. In this work, Torke commits an unpardonable sin: most of his forces go unheard. Specifically, the full string complement, the full wind complement, and the harp are seen busily sawing, blowing, and plucking away with only occasional audible evidence of their presence. The listener hears only the trumpets and trombones vying for attention with Currie's fearsome forward phalanx. The audience did give hearty applause at Rapture's conclusion and reportedly bought considerable numbers of its Naxos CD recording during intermission. In my view, however, they were sustaining a collective placebo effect from Torke's pre-performance address to them regarding the "sexual rapture" and related concepts. Like the 12-tone music of nearly a century ago, Rapture needs to be studied not merely heard to be appreciated.

Geology of Puerto Rico Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Geology of Puerto Rico - Research Paper Example These rocks are overlain by younger  Oligocene  rocks to recent  carbonates. There are also othersedimentary rocks that are part and parcel of the geology of Puerto Rico. Typically, the Northern Oligocene to the rather recent carbonates is composed of Most of the caverns  and  karst  topography. The geology of Puerto Rico has made it very mountainous from the way the island was formed. There are also seventeen lakes in the island which are all manmade and fifty rivers (Otis, 2005). The island’s formation, topography, hydrography and climate make up Puerto Rico’s current geologic composition harmoniously; showcasing the natural beauty of the island. This paper seeks to analyze the geology of Puerto Rico from concepts of its formation, topography, hydrography and climate. Puerto Rico is strategically placed between the  Caribbean  and  North American plates, just at the boundary. As a result, there is deformation that is occurring to the island ion the present day due to the interactional stress between these plates. The results of these seismic events include geological hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis and landslides. Looking into the structure of Puerto Rico, the Jurassic rocks are the oldest rocks (Meyerhoff, 1933). These rocks are mainly found at  Sierra Bermeja  in the southwest part of the island and are about 185 million years old. They are believed to have originated from the Pacific Ocean  realm and constitute the bulk of the oceanic crust. In the Jurassic period, the main body mass (the Pangaea super continent) was split into two. This led to the formation of two land masses. On the North was Laurasia and to the south was Gondwana. As a result, the continental climate was transformed from dry to humid due to the presence of more cost lines. This was the first process of the formation of Puerto Rico. The land masses were pushed from the ocean overlying on top of each other thus forming hilly and mountainous landscape. The

Health and social care media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Health and social care media - Essay Example In addition to that, I will also identify and describe different techniques for presenting information in the media while analyzing how the different ways in which information is presented influences the attitudes and behavior of people. Furthermore, I will also explain the ways in which information may be used to influence the attitudes and behavior of people in relation to health and social care. In order for a message about health care and social change to reach the targeted audience media is used in many forms to accomplish this goal. Imagine for example the importance of television when it comes to launching a campaign about the care of terminally ill people. Or take for example, the campaign about raising money for health care issues such as solving the cancer problem for the children at Saint Luke's Hospital. In addition to using the TV other forms of media proved efficient when it came to raise awareness about the healthcare issues and the social changes. Such forms of media are print media which usually comes in forms of brochures, pamphlets, direct mail, books, etc. Radio media is again an important source of making people conscientious about health care issues and the social change. Less used are the outdoor forms of media such as billboards, although in some cases billboards are also used to raising awareness among people. Returning to the launching of print c... , first of all the launching of the campaign is meant to improve the ways in which advocacy about such health issues is used in order to better the patient's conditions. Furthermore, through the commission of the pocket guides the media who launched the campaigns hoped to "help hospital staff to understand better the needs of vulnerable older patients and their families and perhaps to appreciate more fully the importance of taking a person-centered approach." Additionally, the launching of the campaign had another purposed of raising awareness about the need for the people of 65 years of age or older to receive better quality care podiatric care in order to reduce the risk of falls, and the also meeting the needs and understanding the role of older careers. Regards the attitudes toward the health care issues such as depression, the launching of the campaign has promoted a "concept of 'successful ageing' developed at the Nuffield Institute for Health, the report calls for improved health and care services to improve older people's quality of life through meaningful activities, socializing and help in adjusting to loss." It is obvious that the launching of the campaign in forms of guides, pamphlets, brochures, etc has raised the awareness among the people about the health issues and the social change of the older people; not only it has raised the awareness, but through that I had proposed solutions to improving or eliminating the existing health care issues. In conclusion, we notices so far the information relevant to health and social care usually reach the public domain through some sort of campaign in which media is involved, The forms of media used, ad we have seen previously are TV, radio, and in the case that we studied print media had prove to be the most

Fords Control Mechanisms Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Fords Control Mechanisms - Essay Example About one hundred years ago, demand could be easily matched to supply particularly in the rural agricultural areas, and the existence of production and consumption was in a closed loop supply chain, therefore, goods were predominantly manufactured and used as required. The just-in-time approach to manufacturing adopted by Ford presents a return to this form of relationship between the production and consumption phase that was present before the industrial revolution where consumers gave specifications of what they wanted before the process of production could begin. Henry Ford, who came up with the assembly line JIT approach used in the manufacture of Ford cars, had an awareness of this form of a rural tradeoff as he hailed from a small community whose main activities involved agriculture. The beginning of the economic business philosophy adopted by Ford and the main aim for JIT manufacturing was mainly informed by the recognition that increasing the wages of factory employees leads to increased rates of productivity. Initially, Ford was simply assembling the cars and not manufacturing them, as the parts were produced by external shops, however, they were not made to be highly tolerant necessitating that the company shapes and fits them before they could come together appropriately. The company lacked control in terms of the quality of parts in the supply stream as well as the incoming flow of materials that came from external sources. There were no control mechanisms in place to arbitrate the inconsistencies in the manufacturing and assembly processes.

Religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 10

Religion - Essay Example The idealized, spiritualized essence of God can be comprehended only by refined minds, bent on spiritualism, and only after sustained effort. To the vast majority of mankind, the visible manifestation of God goes a long way towards focusing the inner mind and thoughts on Divinity. This initial, primitive belief that God is only present in that particular picture, or only in that particular form, can, with spiritual growth, metamorphose into the realization that God is an all-pervading, formless entity. Visible forms can be justified as symbolic, spiritual aids to the realization of God. One of the basic tenets of Christianity is the belief that God sent his only son, Jesus Christ, to earth, as the Redeemer to deliver sinful humanity from eternal damnation. Jesus took upon himself the collective sins of humanity and accepted his martyrdom on the cross as the expiation of these sins. This belief probably arises from the primitive belief that the deities must be placated through sacrifice, and the shedding of blood is a prerequisite for absolution. This sacrificial offering, be it the ox of the ancient Romans, or the lamb of the Jews, must be the purest and most perfect to serve the purpose. In this context, the pure, sinless Jesus constitutes the perfect sacrifice in the eyes of God. This ‘substitution theory,’ according to which Jesus’ vicarious punishment redeemed humanity, has a major flaw. If one concedes that Jesus’ punishment has indeed absolved humanity from sin, does it follow that man is now free to sin without having to face the c onsequences of his actions? If Jesus has obtained a prior, blanket absolution for all sinners, this is something in the light of a ‘license to sin’ with impunity. This poses a problem to the acceptance of the substitution theory. The word ‘Christ’ means the ‘Anointed One,’ or the

Fords Control Mechanisms Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Fords Control Mechanisms - Essay Example About one hundred years ago, demand could be easily matched to supply particularly in the rural agricultural areas, and the existence of production and consumption was in a closed loop supply chain, therefore, goods were predominantly manufactured and used as required. The just-in-time approach to manufacturing adopted by Ford presents a return to this form of relationship between the production and consumption phase that was present before the industrial revolution where consumers gave specifications of what they wanted before the process of production could begin. Henry Ford, who came up with the assembly line JIT approach used in the manufacture of Ford cars, had an awareness of this form of a rural tradeoff as he hailed from a small community whose main activities involved agriculture. The beginning of the economic business philosophy adopted by Ford and the main aim for JIT manufacturing was mainly informed by the recognition that increasing the wages of factory employees leads to increased rates of productivity. Initially, Ford was simply assembling the cars and not manufacturing them, as the parts were produced by external shops, however, they were not made to be highly tolerant necessitating that the company shapes and fits them before they could come together appropriately. The company lacked control in terms of the quality of parts in the supply stream as well as the incoming flow of materials that came from external sources. There were no control mechanisms in place to arbitrate the inconsistencies in the manufacturing and assembly processes.

Slaves no more Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Slaves no more - Essay Example The feeling of the black and white communities in the Richmond area and in other southern states of the USA is captured by this essay (Guelzo 36). Moreover, the essay captures the confusion of the black people concerning their freedom. For instance, one black slave commented that they had celebrated the Emancipation about twelve times yet they still worked for the white folks. The essay explores the domination of the white people in the actions and thoughts of the black slaves in Richmond. In this essay the author tries to argue that although the Negroes feel that they are free they still feel that this may not be true. The confusion created by the American Emancipation Declaration creates a panic for all residents in Richmond. For instance, a black nanny who was working for a white master is overjoyed with the Emancipation news. However, she is still afraid of her master and when she disobeys her master she is disciplined by her grandmother. In most instances, the author advances the argument that the Emancipation agreement brought about a feeling of freedom to blacks (Woog 88). Nevertheless, blacks in Richmond and other places such as Yorktown feel that they are not absolutely free. Fear still prevailed among the black community in Richmond and they only felt free when the American soldiers were around them. The author tries to bring out the irony brought about the freedom enjoyed by the blacks under the Emancipation Declaration. Even though, black people in Richmon d felt free when the declaration was declared they felt insecure and confused after the Yankees left their town (McComb 54). In my own view I think this essay tries to capture the first moments that occurred after the Emancipation Declaration followed by its implementation by the American forces then. Black slavery in the United States was savagery and thus it had to be ended by the government of the USA. The Emancipation Declaration in my own view gave blacks the strength and heart

Earthquake in Japan Essay Example for Free

Earthquake in Japan Essay On March 11, 2011, the most powerful earthquake ever recorded hit Japans eastern coast. It killed hundreds of people as it made its way through the streets and fields, sweeping away boats, cars and homes. Its magnitude was 8.9, releasing a 23-foot tsunami and then provoking more than 50 aftershocks for hours. This horrific event resulted in the loss of thousands of lives and devastated entire towns. The amount of damage caused by the earthquake and resulting tsunami was excessive, with most of the damage being caused by the tsunami. Thousands of families were left without electricity. Many nuclear and conventional power plants went offline after the earthquake. Cell phones and landline services suffered major disruptions so many people weren’t able to communicate with their relatives across the country. Japans transportation was also affected. Expressways were damaged; cars and trucks were swept away by the tsunami and railway services cancelled. The earthquake was caused by an uplift of the sea floor, where the Pacific tectonic plate slides beneath the plate Japan sits on. This motion pulls the upper plate down until the stress builds up enough to cause a seismic event. Tons of miles of crust ruptured along the area where the tectonic plates meet. Since the earthquake occurred at a very shallow depth, much of its energy was released at the seafloor, therefore causing the tsunami that devastated Japan and causing chaos among the Japanese community. Even though Japan was said to be â€Å"prepared† for a natural disaster such as a tsunami by building protective walls, the large size of the water surge was completely unexpected. The tsunami walls were built based on much smaller tsunami heights recorded in the past. To the surprise of the Japanese people, the tsunami simply washed over the top of the seawalls, collapsing some in the process. The tsunami also caused a number of nuclear accidents. Many electrical generators were taken down, and at least three nuclear reactors suffered explosions due cooling system failure. The tsunami waves overtopped seawalls and destroyed diesel backup power systems, leading to severe problems such as large explosions and radioactive leakage. It has been almost a year since the devastating 9.0 earthquake and tsunami destroyed coastal communities in northern Japan killing more than 15,000 people. What struck me the most about this tragedy is the reaction of the Japanese community and picturing what it would have been like to be present at that moment. I can simply imagine the terror in people’s faces trying to survive and doing everything they could to save their families and themselves. Even though thousands of people died, those who lived through this horrible experience can count with our total support and help from those who could not do anything at the moment and simply watched as Mother Nature, once again, did its job.

Management Essays McDonalds Restaurants and Management Strategic Management and Operations

Management Essays McDonalds Restaurants and Management Strategic Management and Operations McDonalds Restaurants Management Introduction Strategies are important for all businesses, irregardless of the products or services that they offer. Through strategic management and operations, companies are able to integrate new and effective means of running their respective businesses. In turn, these strategies results to increased profit or sales, stable market position and greater levels of customer loyalty. In the fast food industry, certain business strategies are also being developed and applied so as to achieve similar effects. In this report, the impact of some business strategies in actual businesses will be analyzed. The case study provided was about McDonalds and how the company has evolved to be successful in the British market. In addition, the case discussed the problems that McDonalds have been encountered throughout the years, specifically in terms of being considered as a company which offers unhealthy foods. Primarily, the main goal of this paper is to determine the business strategy of McDonald to sustain their competitive advantage in the global market. Overview of the Company McDonald’s has a rich history that started out in 1954. The company was put to the spotlight by Ray Kroc. Throughout the years, marketing ideas have poured through and helped the company become one of the most renowned fast food brands globally. The trademark design for the fast food was carefully studied and it came with a happy clown character known as Ronald MacDonald (McDonald, 2008). The Big Mac and the Egg Muffin have been some of McDonald’s most innovative products. In terms of marketing, the happy meal approach was also a creative as it entices children to eat at MacDonald’s because of the toys they can get. Today, McDonald’s is also on the Internet bandwagon, providing information to people all over the world with a click of a mouse (McDonald’s Corporation, 2008). McDonalds restaurants offer a substantially uniform menu, common in the usual fast foods. This includes hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, French fries, salads, milk shakes, desserts, and ice cream sundaes. The company’s top sellers, and can also be considered as innovative ones, include the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder with Cheese, the Filet-O-Fish and Chicken McNuggets. Recently, the company has added a number of new nutritional products. This includes the Salads Plus products i.e. Garden Side Salad and the Grilled Chicken Flatbreads (McDonald’s Corp. UK, 2008). Uniformity continues in McDonalds restaurants operating in the US, UK and certain international markets that are open during breakfast hours and offer a full or limited breakfast menu. Breakfast offerings include the Egg McMuffin and Sausage McMuffin with Egg sandwiches, hotcakes, biscuit and bagel sandwiches and muffins. Also, McDonalds tests new products on an ongoing basis and sell a variety of other products during limited-time promotions. In the fiscal 2003, McDonalds generated revenues of $17.1 billion, an increase of 11% on the previous year. Operated Restaurant business unit posted revenues of $12.8 billion in fiscal 2003, compared with $11.5 billion in 2002 and $11 billion in 2000 and represents approximately 75% of the companys net sales. On the other hand, the Franchised and Affiliated Restaurants business unit posted revenues of $4.3 billion in fiscal 2003, compared with $3.9 billion in 2002 and represents approximately 25% of the companys net sales. The geographic are of Europe accounts for 37%, second to the 39% total revenue in the US. The customer target of McDonald’s is usually children or young people. In fact, McDonald’s already entered the children’s wear market. The new McKids products include footwear, videos, toys and casual clothes. Soon to be released worldwide, it is an attempt to redefine McDonald’s image partly due to heightened concerns about the rising levels of obesity amongst consumers, particularly in the US and the UK. Strategies of McDonald McDonalds is one of the famous food chain all throughout the world known by both the child and adult alike. It has increased it sales despite some issues being raised against the company. To further increase sales on the business and improve its performance, business strategies are done by person in-charge. It is in this stage wherein the company would improve what they lack thus making prospective customers to keep on coming back and ask for more. It is said that McDonald has been able to use various strategies to uplift and sustain their competitive advantage in the market. Part of its business strategy is its plan to phase out its Super Size French fries and soft drinks as it tries to create a healthier image for itself. The Super Size option is to be phased out in an attempt to slim down its menu amid increasing concerns and issues being raised about obesity (Crouch, 2004). The company is also planning other menu changes, such as switching to a cinnamon roll and a sausage burrito as its core breakfast offering, while bagels would become an optional item. The company also has to stop selling its 14 ounce McDonald’s Fruit n Yogurt Parfait and replaced it with a smaller-sized version of the product (Crouch, 2004). All these changes in the menu are part of its strategy to provide a range of choices that support a balanced lifestyle. The company has also added that the simplified core menu would be rolled out to its entire restaurant. Furthermore, using the national rollout of its â€Å"made for you† platform as the opportunity to re-evaluate its core brand attributes, the company has quietly formed a global brand strategy task force that is looking for â€Å"long and hard† at the essence of the Golden Arches (Howard, 1999). The group which will be led by new vp-brand strategy has been meeting for several months and is anticipated to put forward its findings in fresh consumer messages by mid-2000. The slow-build will allow stores to work through an expected learning curve for the new cooking system and avert major miscues as it attempts to deliver on the promise of hotter, fresher foods made to order (Howard, 1999). The group also is evaluating all elements of the brand from menu, service, and restaurant dà ©cor to brand icons Ronald McDonald. Even though domestic sales have turned to healthy 5% level, the said company is rethinking how to sustain growth in the face of both national and regional rivals.In the past, the company’s marketing strategy has been criticized for being short-term focused and there has been no over-arching umbrella strategy. With that, the charge is to bring continuity and consistency to the brand strategy piece. Strategies in other areas of the organization is also made like the three-wheeled vehicle that is used to collect discarded cups and burger wrappings from the neighbourhood around the restaurant and the provision of good services to customer which naturally begins and commences with hiring the right kind of people (Livesey, 1999). Staffs are encouraged to smile, be optimistic and treat customers particularly with respect, tell them what a person wants and follow up on the performance and reward their behavior. The restaurant’s bathroom is not spared. Issues are raised on the concerns about the said restaurant to be dirty and unhygienic. Customers want a clean area especially the bathroom to make they feel comfortable. Strategies like this should also be applied (Livesey, 1999). McDonald’s has developed three strategies for sustaining the competitive advantage. These are customer convenience, customer value, and optimal operations. Together with the digital strategies, it will help create new and bold ideas for the company. The stores are characterized by the operations team as miniature manufacturing facilities. With its goal in improving the suite of its manufacturing systems (inventory control, production planning, financial control, and point-of-sale order entry) that supports the store, the team has developed ways of improving its overall operations. Aside from offering hamburgers and French fries, the current trend in McDonald’s extends in serving as a family retreat, and as a community center for senior citizens. The means for the former one are its extensive indoor playgrounds and promotional toys, while the invitational plays of bingo are for the latter one. As this trend continues, an extension of more service-oriented technologies is needed. They can conduct studies and surveys to better know which among the different alternatives serves the company’s objectives the best. These might include robots taking orders instead of humans, automated processes of food production, and the like. To achieve customer convenience, one of their key initiatives is on the improvement in the speed of new stores’ opening. To answer this, the â€Å"day in the life† scenario was developed for site developers that described the optimal toolset and the collaborative environment they would have with them as they scouted for locations. Rather than choosing individual tools, they should think about the tools on the horizon-geographical information systems, global positioning satellites, new media such as teleconferencing, and the expanding flow of information through public networks like the Internet. The adherence of the company to put WIFI technology in their stores for instance has also become one of the attractive forces for customers. For the achievement of customer value, focus should remain on real-time information flow that allows instant corrections of the menu and prices in response to customers’ preferences, competitive environment, and even the ingredients’ global commodities market. Specific Situation Strategy McDonald’s has been recognized as a highly flexible corporation. This company feature has been evidenced by its vast product differentiation. This is one of the company’s major strategies in entering foreign markets. Teriyaki burgers in Japan, McPork Burgers and McTempeh in Indonesia, McSpaghetti in the Philippines and McLox Salmon sandwiches in Norway are some of the concrete examples of McDonald’s ability to modify its products based on international tastes and preferences which they also done with their British market. While minor product changes are required for these countries, vast changes would have to be done for Britain’s case. Modifying the product or service is one example on how foreign firms are able to distribute their goods effectively in diverse markets. Another is by modifying the businesses’ marketing mix in order to fit global resources to local market conditions. In order to do this, multinational companies can transfer their developed global brands into a new market by means of changing their products’ formulation, prices or packaging. This in turn will increase the products’ appeal to both consumers and retailers. Doing this globalization strategy however, naturally requires considerable investment. Still, this will make multinational companies at par with the local companies. Another possible localization strategy is by developing new resources that are market-specific. This strategy is done when the multinational company acquired some local brands, marketing them along with their global product brands (Arnold, 2003). As McDonald’s typically serve beef burgers and non-spicy food items, the company would have to drastically change its menu for the Britain market to provide healthier menus for British people. For instance vegetable salads and chicken kebabs were also served to cater to the health conscious population. These are some of the many changes that McDonald’s did in order to gain entry to the Britain market. In addition to product differentiation, regulation of the products’ prices is also a top priority. Effective promotions and advertising were also integrated into the company’s international strategy. One of these tactics include the company’s promotional offers of various items like Internet cards, concert tickets, CDs, T-shirts, caps and international trips . This promo had been done as the company collaborated with other organizations including Coca-cola, Sony, MTV, and General Motors. Painting contests for children were also conducted by McDonald’s. Furthermore, the advertising strategies of McDonald’s had been focused on building an image of family comfort. Rather than just being an ordinary fast food that serves quality meals, McDonald’s intends to appeal to the market by building a fast food image where families can get together, enjoy and relax. Overall, the international strategy of McDonald’s for Britain has been effective. In general, the focus of these strategies was the customers. Customers play a significant role to a business’ success or failure. Being an important business element, meeting the needs and preferences of the consumers is the utmost priority of almost all businesses. McDonald’s has clearly shown the importance of this concept by adapting to the Britain culture, its people and their tastes. By reaching out to the British market, McDonald’s was able to successfully establish itself in Britain. Despite the success of McDonald’s in Britain, it is important to consider that the cultural background and preferences of its market continues to change. New markets in the country will eventually emerge. Considering the strict competition within the food service industry, McDonald’s should then implement new strategies so as to reach out to the new markets. Perhaps, one of the most significant initial steps for the company is constant conduction of consumer studies.Strategic recommendation Through this strategy, McDonald’s can be updated with the latest market trends and identify new market segments. Changes in food preferences can be obtained through consumer research. Furthermore, this strategy can significantly help in increasing the company’s market scope in the country. Another important strategy that McDonald’s should do so as to address emerging markets in Britain is through enhanced advertising and promotions. This can be done through the implementation of the integrated marketing (IMC) approach. McDonald’s employs a number of ways on how to promote its products in Britain. Aside from television commercials and printed advertisements, the company also uses the Internet and various promotional offers for advertising purposes. In order to optimize the functions of each promotional media, McDonald’s can use the IMC Strategy. IMC enables interactivity, which in turn allows the counter flow of information. Through IMC, companies in the food service industry, such as McDonald’s, will be able to combine core strategies with other forms of communication to gain more marketing advantages and generate better business effects. IMC is the strategic coordination of multiple communication voices. Its aim is to optimize the impact of persuasive communication on both consumer and non-consumer such as trade and professional audiences by coordinating such elements of the marketing mix as advertising, public relations, promotions, direct marketing, and package design (Moore and Thorson, 1996). While traditional means of marketing like advertising is one way in nature, the integrated marketing communication approach permits users to do several functions, including receiving and altering information or images, forward inquiries, respond to these questions, and the most important of all, make purchases (Moore and Thorson, 1996; Moore, 1993). One important aspect of this integrated approach is the resulting effect of a more enhanced means of brand building. In the case of internet marketing, integrated marketing communication will allow food service companies to maximize the use of the internet in building bands by incorporating other marketing means. The effect of which will lead to enhance product promotions and better net sales. The IMC approach has been beneficial to several companies as it helps in identifying the most useful and appropriate methods in communicating and establishing good customer relations, including good relationships with stakeholders like the employees, investors, suppliers interest groups and the public in general. During the 1990s, the introduction of the integrated marketing communications has been one of the most important developments in marketing, which continued on up to the present. From here on, the IMC approach is being applied by large and small companies alike, and has been well-known among companies marketing consumer goods and services, including business to business marketers. Using this strategy, McDonald’s may maximize the use of mass media, direct and online marketing. In order to maximize the purpose of the IMC strategy, the official website of McDonald’s may be enhanced and integrated as well. The internet have changed the ways companies create, design and implement their whole business and marketing plans as well as their programs for marketing communications. In order to promote their product lines, companies, from large multinational enterprises to small local companies, are developing certain web sites, complete with vital information that will help enhance customer relations or attract potential consumers. In terms of the promotional mix, the internet is a capable medium of doing more than just advertise. Through this medium, McDonald’s may offer other means of sales promotion through coupon, sweepstakes or contests online. Moreover, the internet may be used to perform, personal selling, public relations as direct marketing more efficiently and effectively. The official website of McDonald’s Britain is actually well-made and attractive. It offers complete product details along with product pictures, which serves as an effective marketing tool. As Britain’s are very particular about the ingredients used for their food, the website also discusses the different ingredients included for the products it produces. Other services offered by the food company like parties are also included. In this website, the food items offered by the company are described as delicious, healthy, hygienic and refreshing. In addition, these food items are always served with a â€Å"smile†, implying the company’s quality service (McDonalds Britain Official Website, 2005). With these major advertising elements, McDonald’s could use the same elements for its commercials, print ads and other promotion channels. By doing so, the company can create a more distinct and definite brand that the Britain market can easily remember. In this case, this is where the IMC approach comes in. The coordination of different media channels can then help in making a more established McDonald brand in Britain, resulting to higher market support, market growth and sales. In addition, McDonald also considered the use of cost leadership and product differentiation strategy which also allows the companies to enhance their products as well as develop new ones based on market demands and needs. By means of new product development, generation of ideas that are different and unique among competitors becomes possible. Thus, by means of new product development, industries are able to overcome cutthroat competition. Increasing the companies’ market coverage is yet another effect of developing new products for the customers like what McDonald’s have done with their British branches. Creating something that is unique to the market place increases the possibility of catching the interest of other potential consumers. This in turn increases the market coverage or diversifies the target market of the company. For McDonalds, people are its most important asset (McDonald, 2008). This is because customer satisfaction begins with the attitudes and abilities of employees and committed, effective workers are the best route to success. For these reasons, McDonalds strives to attract and hire the best, and to provide the best place to work. In fact, McDonalds is so active and successful in newly emerging markets that other companies will sometimes use the golden arches as a valuable indicator of future growth markets. Conclusion McDonald’s has been successful in operating within the food service industry through efficient strategies and quality standards which enables them to gain competitive advantage. As evidenced by its international market growth, McDonald’s has already been efficient in gaining entry even in the most challenging markets like Britain. Through its strong sense of quality service and customer satisfaction, McDonald’s was able to offer its products to the Britain market. Products were modified to suit the British taste and preferences; affordable prices were implemented; effective promotions and offers were done. These are some of the strategies involved in the company’s business strategy which allowed McDonald’s to gain the Britain support. Despite these successes, the company should take into consideration the growing level of competitiveness in the food service industry. In Britain, several foreign fast food chains offering similar products are also being supported by the Britain consumers. Constant strategic change is then necessary to ensure that the company would sustain their competitive advantage. In conclusion, McDonald’s has been successful because of the value the company gives for its customers. Hence, despite the controversial beginning of McDonald’s in Britain, the company managed to adapt to its people’s cultural needs. Indeed, McDonald’s is a learning organization, one that is willing to learn and open to change. Reference Arnold, David (2003). Strategies for Entering and Developing International Markets. In Mirage of Global Markets, The: How Globalizing Companies Can Succeed as Markets Localize. Financial Time Prentice Hall, 2003. Crouch, A. (2004). Fast-Food Business Strategy. The Raw Prawn Blog Howard, T. (1999). The Over-Arching Strategy-McDonald’s Global Brand Strategy Task Force. Brandweek, November 8, 1999 Livesey, S. (1999). McDonald’s and the Environmental Defense Fund: A Case Study of a Green Alliance. The Journal of Business Communication, Vol. 36 McDonald’s Corporation (2008). About McDonald’s/McDonald’s History (online). Available at: http://www.mcdonalds.com/corp/about.html. Retrieve April 28, 2008 McDonald’s Corporation UK (2008). Eat Smart/What’s On/Good News (online). Available at: http://www.mcdonalds.co.uk/ Retrieve April 28, 2008 Moore, Jeri Esther Thorson (1996). Integrated Communication: Synergy of Persuasive. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Moore, Jeri (1993).. Building brands across markets: Cultural differences in brand relationships within the European Community. In D. Aaker A. Biel (Eds.), Brand equity and advertising. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Boundaries in Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus, Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Havel’s Temptation :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays

Boundaries in Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus, Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Havel’s Temptation With every trip around the sun, the human race continues to push forward. Frontiers begin to fade, the horizon becomes less of a mystery and more of a pastime and the greatest challenge seems to be finding areas where advancements can still be made. Since we have become so good at extending boundaries, the question of whether or not an un-crossable boundary even exists becomes especially relevant. Indeed it is easy to think that there may be nothing that humans are incapable of achieving. For centuries, however, literature has been very imaginative while still holding on to the notion that at some point, crossing boundaries results in trouble. It might be said that in works of this type a distinction is made between pushing limitations and overstepping boundaries. In such literary works as Christopher Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Vaclav Havel’s Temptation, the main characters push boundaries farther than they have been pushed befo re inevitably causing negative consequences for the characters and the people that surround them. The work entitled Dr. Faustus centers around the character thus named who aims solely to lift every limitation and exceed every boundary he encounters. From the very opening of the play after the chorus in the first scene, Dr. Faustus explains his dissatisfaction with the boundaries he has already met: Is not thy common talk found aphorisms? Are not thy bills hung up as monuments, Whereby whole cities have escaped the plague, And thousand desperate maladies been eased? Yet art thou still but Faustus, and a man. Couldst thou make men to live eternally, Or, being dead, raise them to life again, Then this profession were to be esteemed. (19 – 26) This excerpt reveals that Faustus, although he has had much success and is widely recognized for it, yearns for further discovery, a limitless experience, a power that physically is beyond him. Later in the same scene, he clearly states his solution to this quandary, â€Å"A Sound magician is a mighty god. Here Faustus, try thy brains to gain a deity† (63 – 64). In order to achieve this for even a limited time however, he must exceed natural human boundaries. In his search for a means to do so, he forms a new boundary, namely the loss of control over his soul, in scene 5 through a contract with Lucifer.

Analysis And Interpretation Of Henry

Over time he becomes more and ore jealous, since his wife appreciates the doll more than him and therefore he decides to get rid of the doll. There are many themes in the story, such as marriage, jealousy and childish behavior. The genre is very comical as there is an exaggeration of the turmoil that can OCCUr in a marriage. It can be seen that it is a short Story by: There are few persons It is a sudden beginning/ in medias rest It is a short story It has an open ending, because it leaves the reader in uncertainty.Living with his wife and the doll Henry, the narrator becomes more and more jealous and starts hating both of them, especially Henry with his well-bred smile. He is very aware of the fact that his wife loves and appreciates Henry the doll more than him and that Henry is better looking than him, which he himself says, â€Å"In our tiny kitchen he towered above my puny height of five foot nothing. He looked handsome and smart with his green vinyl suit and firm jaw† (I I. 13-14 p. 2). You can tell by her tone when she speaks with her husband that she does not love and appreciate her husband as much as she loves and appreciates Henry.This is also seen in the quote â€Å"HERE, LET ME DO IT. You're 3 p. 2)†. She says that he is useless, which she also mentions several times through the story. The following quote shows that the wife appreciate Henry more because she buys better gifts to the doll Henry compared to what she buys to her husband: â€Å"At Christmas, my wife bought me a set of kitchen skewers and a potato-peeler. Henry got a checked cap, a long tartan scarf and a smart pair of driving gloves† (II. 3-4 p. 3). By this you can see how much more the wife appreciate the doll rather than her husband.In this short story, there is an omniscient first-person narrator, as the narrator acts as a first-person narrator and because he knows about his fife's feelings, this can be seen in the following quote â€Å"My wife screamed with hatr ed†(al. 10 p. 3). In this quote it can be seen that he describes the way and the feeling his wife had when she screamed. It can also be seen in the quote â€Å"She gazed with admiration as the figure slowly grew to full size† (II. 12 p. 2). In this quote he knows about her feelings, as he describes how she gazed as the figure slowly grew to full size.The narrator seems to be mentally unstable, because he has a childish behavior. This can be seen in the quote â€Å"He had a triumphant smile upon his lips† (II. 21 p. 4). He attaches the doll human-like behavior, when he mentions the triumphant smile, which he does several times. This makes him very depressive, because he has a negative view on life, which can be seen by all the many negative adjectives he assigns his wife. He is afraid of being alone and abandoned; therefore he does not leave her in the beginning, even though she treats him badly.The narrator has a subjective interpretation of reality, because ther e is an exaggeration of the turmoil that can occur in the marriage. The main purpose of buying Henry is to use it to frighten off muggers- the wife mentions. It is going to sit beside the wife when she is driving, but Henry has gained more importance, since the wife acts like Henry is her new husband. At some point it becomes too much for her husband and that is why he wants to get rid of Henry. Eventually when his wife sees what he has done, she begins crying.At some point he hears her crying and then he repairs Henry, â€Å"Moved by her hysterical cries, I ran for my puncture kit and made a hasty repair. After much huffing and puffing at the pump, Henry was restored to his full 13-14 p. 3). The author has a humorous style of writing, which makes the text entertaining. An example might be the episode where the wife explains that she bought Henry to frighten off muggers, when she is driving. Here occurs a humorous comment from her husband â€Å"l smiled. My wife frighten off mugge rs without the help of a dummy† (II. 7 p. 2). The use of humor is also a way of distancing oneself from painful experiences. His own wife frightens the narrator; â€Å"l decided to wander round for a bit. Didn't want to be there when she discovered that he was missing. I smirked to myself. She was crazy about Henry. She would kill me if she knew what I had done† (II. 5-7 p. 4). The atmosphere in the couple's house, is unstable and filled with jealousy, because it seems like they are getting divorced. You would also expect that they would be getting a divorce in any moment. At Christmas, my wife cap, a long tartan scarf and a smart pair of driving gloves† (II. 34 p. 3) â€Å"He deserves them,' she said, ‘you're just useless! † (II. 5 p. 3) â€Å"A great surge of anger rose up in me. How I hated them both† (II. 6 p. 3) From the quotes above, it can be seen that the mood in the house is hateful. The reason they are together is not because they lov e each other, but because their title as a aired couple. Their relationship becomes more and more hateful when the man makes it worse by adding Henry human characteristics.