Othello †English Exam Essay

Othello is a tragedy written by Shakespeare in 1602. The main character, Othello is a popular general in the town of Venice. He falls for the young Desdemona and all goes well for a while, until Othello promotes Cassio instead of Iago. This causes Iago to become jealous and he plots a malicious plan to make Othello unhappy. He manipulates different people into getting them to do what they want; Emilia who is Iago’s wife steals a handkerchief for him. The handkerchief plays an important part in the play as Othello gave it to Desdemona as a token of his love. Desdemona treasures the handkerchief but mistakenly leaves it behind one day; this is when Emilia steals it. Once Iago has the handkerchief his entire plan falls into place. He puts the idea that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio in Othello’s head, and then places the handkerchief on Cassio. At first Othello is so in love with Desdemona that he thinks nothing of it, but once he sees that Cassio had the token of love he gave to her, he thinks differently†¦ After being left heartbroken, he confronts Desdemona and eventually suffocates her to death. The innocent Emilia comes in to find her mistress murdered, she then reveals the truth that Iago was behind all the lies which is when Iago comes in and kills her. Othello then kills himself out of guilt. A soliloquy is like a monologue as it is a paragraph spoken on stage alone; however it is just a short speech. A Soliloquy is about what a character is doing or thinking or it could just be about what is happening in the play at that time. In ‘Othello’ Iago is the character that says most of the soliloquies, he talks about his plans to undermine Othello and how he can predict everyone’s reactions. Directly before Iago’s first soliloquy, Roderigo and Iago talk about going to war in Cyprus and Iago manipulates Roderigo into doing what he wants by persuading him that Desdemona will tire of Othello eventually and she will then fall in love with Roderigo. He does this because he knows that Roderigo is in love with Desdemona; however he knows that Othello and Desdemona are happily in love and would never tire of each other. In Act 1, Scene 3, Iago’s first soliloquy is about what he plans to do, he explains that by telling Othello lies he will get exactly what he wants. This is for Othello to be unhappy. He also explains that by doing this he will get Cassio’s job therefore he will be killing two birds with one stone. In this soliloquy he mentions a rumor,’ ‘twixt my sheets, /he’s done my office. ‘ by this he means that he thinks Othello has slept with Emilia but he doesn’t know if it’s true or not. This is the only line in the play that suggests a reason behind Iago’s plans and why he hates Othello so much. However by using the word ‘office’ to refer to his wife, Emilia Shakespeare gives the audience the impression he doesn’t care for her much. I also know this as he uses her later in the play to make his plans against Othello work out; he also kills her at the end of the play. Iago then goes onto say, ‘I know not if’t be true/yet I, for mere suspicion in that kind, / will do as if for surety. ‘ Iago is saying, even though he doesn’t know if it’s true or not, he’s going to get back at Othello anyway. Therefore he could just be using this as an excuse for his plans, as this would make the audience see him not as evil but as unhappy and wanting revenge which would make them sympathetic for him. However, as this seems like a cover for his for his evil plan, again it is clear that he doesn’t really care about Emilia. Shakespeare gives Iago the line, ‘He holds me well, the better shall my purpose work upon him. ‘ I think that Shakespeare does this to show that because Iago thinks very highly of himself Othello will too, and never suspect that he is telling him lies, and that he will always trust him. He also uses the word; ‘purpose’ which seems like he is trying to the audience, this is what he has to do, like it is his purpose to bring Othello down. Shakespeare also shows that Iago hates Othello by undermining him, for example Iago says, I hate the Moor. ‘ By using the term, ‘moor’ this is being racist, however a Shakespearean audience would not have seen this as racism as it was not widely recognized in those times. However Iago knew that by saying this it would be an insult to Othello. He then goes on to say, ‘Will be as tenderly led by the nose as asses are†¦ when he says this he is referring to Othello as a dumb animal, this is called Animal Imagery, by doing this a Shakespearean audience would see him as more of an animal and therefore this would lessen their respect for him. Iago is saying that because Othello is so dumb and trustworthy of Iago, he will do exactly what Iago wants him to. He will be easily tricked into thinking that Desdemona is having an affair. The last two lines of the soliloquy are,’ I have’t. It is engendered. Hell and night / must bring this monstrous birth to the world’s light. These two sentences stand out because they are a rhyming couplet unlike the rest of the soliloquy. The rhyming couplet, ‘Night’ and ‘Light’ could make you think of a number of different things, for example opposites, comparing the good characters to the bad characters. It could also be a representation of Othello and Desdemona referring to their skin color, emphasizing how different they are. All these things would make the audience think more deeply into how different some of the characters in the play are, for example Iago and Othello or Desdemona and Emilia. The word ‘engendered’ means created and when Iago says this he is talking about his sneaky plan to bring Othello down. By saying this, the audience will think he has just thought of his plan at this point, however he had actually already come up with his plan. He also says the line, ‘monstrous birth to the world’s night. ‘ first of all by using the word, monstrous it stands out because this is quite an angry word however he says this in a calm manner, however because of the type of word he uses it could lead the audience to think about how each of the characters that Iago is betraying may feel after Iago’s plan has taken place. In Act 3, Scene 3 the most important part of the play takes part, and that is when Iago receives the handkerchief from Emilia who has stolen it from Desdemona. Without this Iago’s plan would not work as Othello seeing the Handkerchief that he gave to Desdemona as a token of their love in Cassio’s hand is what leads him to believe that she has been unfaithful. Iago’s soliloquy from Act 3, Scene 3 is about what he plans to do now he has the handkerchief; he also mentions how important it is and that without it his malicious plan would not work. This particular soliloquy is also written as a poem, I know this because the beginning of each line has a capital letter, ‘ And Let Him find it. ‘ Shakespeare does this because it makes the soliloquy stand out from the rest of the play. This is probably one of the most important and effective soliloquy from the play as it tells you a lot about Iago’s character. Iago’s first line of the soliloquy is, ‘I will in Cassio’s lodging lose this napkin, / and let him find it. In other words Iago is saying he is going to slyly place the handkerchief in Cassio’s room so he will find it yet never know that it was Iago who placed it there. This is a vital part of Iago’s plan because by planting the handkerchief on Cassio, Othello will see that he has it and automatically think that Desdemona gave it to him, if he didn’t do this then Othello would never believe that Desdemona has been having an affair. This wouldn’t have a dramatic effect on the audience as they would already expect Iago to say this from the first soliloquy in Act, 1 Scene 3. Iago then goes onto say, ‘Trifles light as air/ are to the jealous confirmations strong’ which basically means that even though the handkerchief is a small insignificant object that would – normally – make no difference what so ever, if Iago is careful and he uses it at the right time. Everything will fall into place and his plan will work out perfectly. By, ‘ Jealous confirmations strong’ he means that because Othello is slightly jealous to begin with, once he sees the handkerchief in Cassio’s hand and is tricked in to think they’re having an affair, he will be even more jealous. The next line of the soliloquy is, ‘As proofs of holy writ:’ Iago is saying that he is certain that the handkerchief will definitely do something, and he is using religion to back himself up. Shakespeare does this on purpose as a Shakespearean audience would immediately believe Iago, religion was an important thing in those days there for if Iago uses this to back up his plan, and they would also think it is important too. Shakespeare ends the soliloquy with the line, ‘ Burn Like mines of sulfur. I did say so. this is simile, it is used to describe exactly how Othello will react to the constant lies he is being fed without realizing, he will start to believe everything Iago tells him. The way he says, ‘I did say so. ‘ makes him sound like he has a very high opinion of himself, almost like he is describing himself as god-like. I think he is also referring to what he said before, when he says that he hates Othello. Through out ‘Othello’ Shakespeare wrote Iago’s soliloquies about his devious plans to undermine Othello, to do this he used religious imagery which is when you say something about religion to symbolize something else. In Othello religious imagery is used when Iago talks about creating his plan, ‘Hell and night’ by saying hell he could be referring to the devil which makes me think of Iago as he is evil and devious. He also says in Act 3 Scene 3, ‘I did say so’ by saying this it is almost as if he is describing himself as god-like. Shakespeare used religious imagery because it has the potential to change a Shakespearean audience’s mind about the story. It would attract them more than it would a modern audience. All through the play, soliloquies are used to let you know what is going on inside the character’s mind. Iago’s soliloquies help the audience understand Iago’s character; it also helps them realize his motives for everything he does during the play. There are a few different reasons behind Iago’s devious plans. We see this through the two soliloquies from Act 1 Scene 3 and Act 3 scene 1. Shakespeare uses a lot of dramatic irony in his plays through all the soliloquies which are spoken. The strongest piece of dramatic irony used in the play is that the audience know exactly what is happening, for example Desdemona is innocent and that it is Iago who his twisting things and telling lies. Where as Othello has no idea, he thinks that Iago is trustworthy and that Desdemona is guilty of having an affair. Dramatic irony is exciting and it makes the audience feel like part of the story. Throughout the play, Shakespeare uses irony to add humor, suspense and tension. Overall soliloquies have a drastic impact on the play as not only do they explain what characters – mainly Iago – are thinking, but they also create an atmosphere in the audience. Soliloquies make the audience guess what it going to happen next in the play, and because there are so many of them it also gets their attention. Another reason why soliloquies have a good impact on the play is because it makes it more interesting having just one person on stage talking to themselves or the audience instead of having two or more people having a conversation between them selves.

Olympic rent-a-car company Essay

SUMMARY Olympic is a US rent-a-car company facing some changes in the market it operates. A competitor company (Enterprise) is changing its loyalty program. Olympic managers have to evaluate the impact of those changes and to take actions in order to respond correctly to those changes without losing market share and if possible taking advantage of the situation. The aim of this study is to evaluate those changes and to propose a recommendation to respond to these market changes. MARKET SUMMARY The car renting industry in US is a $24 billion industry dominated by 4 big players, Enterprise, Hertz, AVIS and Olympic with the following market revenue shares: Enterprise is the dominant player with 50% share ($12 billion) followed by Hertz with 24%, AVIS with 14%, Olympic with 7% and the other 5% are shared by smaller players. This business is heavily dependent of the overall state of the economy and since the global crisis of 2008 were there was a 6,5% break in total revenues, the revenues are recovering since 2009 growing between 2 and 3% every year. This revenue growth is due to the growth of prices rather to the growth in the number of clients. There are 2 big markets for the rent-a-car business, the Airport rentals and the Local rentals. The airport rentals contribute with 50% of the total revenue ($12 billion) and are divided into leisure and business clients. Costs are higher due to fees paid to the airports that consist in 10% of the revenue plus the fixed fees for counters. The local renting contributes with the other 50% ($12 billion) and the main clients are insurance companies. The counters are located at car dealerships and repair shops. Enterprise and Hertz are the main players in this market and Enterprise has more than 50% share. This industry is heavily influenced by the adaptation of the car fleet to demand and between 2008 and 2012 in response to the global crisis the total number of rent-a-car cars was diminished by 0,5%. CUSTOMER ANALYSIS In 2012, 27% of US adults (proximately 59.400.000 people) rented a car and the main renters were the business travelers. In 2012 airport market, 20% of the travelers were business travelers and gave origin to 80% of the revenue and the other 80% of travelers were leisure travelers and represent 20% of the revenues. Usually business travellers pay more than leisure travellers. This is mainly because leisure travelers pay smaller per day charges as they travel in lower revenue days, do preplanned trips and to loyalty program redemptions. Business travelers tend to earn points in business travelling and to spend those points in leisure travelling. Across this industry, Rent-A-Car companies tend to use loyalty programs to develop relationship between costumers. Each company has it’s own program but they are all very similar. The customer earns points depending of the number of days they rent the car and they also receive free upgrades. The earned points can be claimed and exchanged for rental days. In 2013 Enterprise changed the way their customers gain the loyalty program points. Customers that received points based in the number of days of usage now receive points based on the money they spend. This means that they earn more points faster. Usually clients don’t have any kind of restriction to participate in loyalty programs. Anyone that rents a car can be a member depending on the number of days they rent, as consequence people are members of several loyalty programs as they rent in different companies. The rental loyalty programs are not really differentiating rental companies they are a perk for customers. In 2012 10% of Olympic customers were members of Olympic medalist program and these customers provided 21% of the revenues. They paid for 3.996.000 days and claimed 375.000 free days. This means $323.400.000 of revenue come from members of Olympic medalist program, to this revenue we have to subtract the fixed costs, the free days cost and the program advertising costs ($28.000.000). The fixed cost is 20% of $21 ($4,2) multiplied by the total rental days and equal $1.575.000 and the free days cost is equal to $7.629.552. This gives an economic value of $233 per Olympic medalist program customer. The regular customers represent 79% of revenues that translate into $1.216.600.000. The total rental days for these customers are 24.681.000 and these days represent a cost of $103.660.200 (24.681.000 x $4,2). There are also the advertising costs of ($108.000.000 – $28.000.000 = $80.000.000). Subtracting to $1.216.600.000 the variable costs and the advertising costs we end with $1.032.939.800. Dividing this value by the total number of regular customers (11.052.000) the economic value of the regular customer is obtained and equals to $93. The conclusion is that loyalty program clients  still have a big economic influence in the revenue structure. COMPANY ANALYSIS Olympic is one of the four biggest rent-a-car companies in the US with a share of 7% of revenues witch is the smallest share of this group. The company as chosen to be a follower and has always priced lower than Hertz. It has 464 rental locations and a fleet of 108000 cars that remain in the company for 8 to 18 months. The income per car is slightly below de industry average and the reason for this maybe the dominance of airport counters that bring more costs to the company than a local counter. Olympic has seen an improvement on its revenues for the last 4 years and in table 1 we can see an increase of the net profit from a loss of $15 million in 2008 to a profit of $32 million in 2012. The main reason for these results is the company flexibility to adapt its car fleet to demand (table 2) as well as the adaptation of the number of counters the company has (table 3). RECOMMENDATION The recommendation is that Olympic rent-a-car doesn’t follow the Enterprise strategy. About 1,45% of the total rental days of 2012 involved free days and a free day reward costs about $21 to cover the fixed costs and the payment to the franchisee. Of the 108000 cars fleet each car was rented about 232 days per year. With this data we can calculate the total rental days. Total rental days are equal to 108.000 x 232; this means 25.056.000 rental days per year.  The 1,45% of the total rental days give us the total free days per year in 2012 this percentage represents 363.312 free days that multiplied by the cost of a free day ($21) will give us the cost of all the free days in 2012. The total cost for the free days is equal to $7.629.552. If Olympic decides to match the Enterprise offer, the number of free days will increase to a value between 1,65% and 1,95% of total rental days this means a number of free days between 413424 and 488592 and an increase of free days per year between 50.112 and 125.280 days, this means an increase in cost of the programs free days of $1.052.352 to $2.630.880 (1 million to 2,5 millions increase of free days cost per year). Considering that the demand will not increase a lot this means a net decrease of 3 to 8% of total profits. This decrease is significant for a company that has a small operating margin of 15,8%. The way Olympic responds to the enterprise initiative will be decisive in the profitability of the company. Matching the enterprise offer will lead to an increase in the costs and no increase in market share is guaranteed. Since no great increase in demand is predicted, following the Enterprise strategy would simply represent a 3 to 8% reduction in profits, Olympic cannot afford this reduction due to the narrow operating margin. Beside this, the fleet of Olympic rent-a-car is very well adapted to de demand and implementing no blackout days would probably let some Olympic medalist clients unsatisfied. Enterprise has a huge fleet and available cars this means that it can afford not having blackout days. The increasing usage of the Internet to compare prices and to book services will diminish the loyalty programs importance and effectiveness. Third party consolidators the online price comparisons and bookings bring a greater relevance to prices the rent-a-car companies practice. This will affect the companies’ loyalty programs effectiveness. By focusing on price, customers will chose a rent-a-car company by the price of the service taking to a second plan the loyalty programs benefits. This means that Olympic should focus on global cost reduction in order to keep lowering the prices and therefore gain advantage over the competitors. In the future the company  that has the lower prices will dominate the market. One other market tendency is the reduction of business travelling and the growth of internet based communications. This means that in future rent-a-car companies will have less business travellers, at this moment these clients are the heavy users of loyalty programs, and the leisure clients will gain weight on the revenue share. Olympic should maintain their loyalty program essentially due to the economic value of the loyalty programs customers ($233) much greater them the regular clients ($93) and improve the program by offering other kind of benefits that could improve the market penetration of the program. Some of these benefits could be faster pick up and drop off time for the program customers. Along the way the company could evaluate their loyalty program customers economic value and adapt to the expected decrease of loyalty program importance by reducing free rental days and using the savings of this reduction on rental price reduction. Since loyalty programs don’t benefit business companies Olympic offer the chance to this kind of customer to choose between the loyalty program benefits or a decrease in price. This should attract more large companies business maintaining the small and individual share. To reduce the cost structure Olympic should also try to gain market in the local business dominated by Enterprise and Hertz, this would help to avoid the large costs associated to the operation in airports. This way Olympic could gain market share of a market dominated by 2 companies, maintain their business market share threatened by the teleconferencing trends (shift to insurance) and to improve the global cost structure by taking advantage of the lower costs associated to this kind of counters.

Can schools effectively improve students’ self-regulatory skills? Essay

INTRODUCTION Overview of the Study Self-regulation is the key mediator between genetic predisposition, early experience, and adult functioning. This paper argues that all the key mechanisms underpinning the enduring effects of early relationship experiences interface with individuals’ capacity to control (a) their reaction to stress, (b) their capacity to maintain focused attention, and (c) their capacity to interpret mental states in themselves and others. These three mechanisms function together to assist the individual to work closely and collaboratively with others. If self-regulation can be influenced by experience at young age, then there is a window of opportunity in early childhood to strengthen skills that will be important for multiple domains of competence. Purpose: In this study we will look at the origins of self regulation in early childhood when many of the tools for good adaptation are shaped by interactions between children and their environments. We will examine (through qualitative research) how a specific school program can provide the infrastructure for building efficient self-regulatory skills in children. The program being studied is called Youth Empowerment and is run by a Art of Living, a non-profit educational organization, that provides stress management techniques to increase learning abilities as well as self regulatory coping skills for academic achievement and daily living. Here it will be analyzed how self-regulation is enhanced in children before and after participating in the Art of Living programs to see what impact the course has. At the same time we will study self-regulation of a similar group of children, not participating in the course, for comparison as our control group.   Background of the Study The work on self-regulation as a whole strongly suggests that these skills are extremely important for the development of competence. They begin to emerge in early childhood, and are shaped by a child’s experience as well as his or her disposition. A cranky baby may elicit different care from a parent, and a parent’s behavior may increase or decrease an infant’s proneness to distress, such that both parties influence the quality of their relationship. Their relationships in turn can then help or hinder the development of self-regulation. (Ann S. Masten, J. Douglas Coatsworth.,1998). For example, children with insensitive, unresponsive care givers do not have these emotionally supportive experiences. They may repeatedly become overwhelmed by their emotions since at early ages self-regulatory abilities are limited. Difficulties with emotional self-control may be contributing to the non-compliant, impulsive, aggressive and/or regressive behaviors we see in some children in early childhood settings. (Sharne Rolfe, 2004)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This may be one example of how the brain is shaped by experience in these early years. Moreover, if self-regulation can be influenced by experience, then there is a window of opportunity in early childhood to strengthen skills that will be important for multiple domains of competence. Children who have trouble directing their attention or controlling their impulses may not do well on IQ tests or in the classroom or may not learn to comply with rules as readily or get along well with peers. Hence, self regulation may be a factor in predict not only academic achievement but other aspects of competence as well, such as rule-abiding behavior. For example, the findings of a recent study (A. Fabes, Nancy Eisenberg., 1992), supported the conclusion that socially competent and popular children coped with anger in ways that were relatively direct and active and in ways that minimized further conflict and damage to social relationships. The ability to make a successful transition to and through college is one of the most important challenges faced by adolescents and young adults. Researchers have clearly demonstrated the significance of self-regulation skills in such academic contexts. Collectively, they paint the self-regulating learner as someone who is meta-cognitively sophisticated. Someone who can assess the requirements of the learning task at hand, and who can identify and deploy the appropriate learning strategies; the self-regulating learner is someone who is able to make appropriate attributions for success and failure, and who readily accepts responsibility for his or her own learning (Pintrich & DeGroot, 1990). However, while studies have begun to specify how features of students’ immediate learning environments affect the development and use of self-regulation skills, relatively little attention has bee n paid to the role of the family context in fostering or impeding the development of these skills. Studies that have addressed this topic for elementary school age children have found that parental support for autonomy is positively related to children’s self-reports of autonomous self-regulation (Grolnick & Ryan, 1989), and that these parenting practices are predictive of children’s adoption of an intrinsic academic achievement motivational orientation (Ginsburg & Bronstein, 1993). Past methodologies have not â€Å"scored† well with the academic demands placed upon students, as demonstrated by New York City’s 50% four-year graduation rate. In the past educators and social workers have attempted to change the student’s external stress factors to increase their academic performance, (e.i. federally funded school lunch programs, school social workers and psychologists). Although all of these programs serve to alleviate a student’s risk level for failure, it is the student’s perception and reaction to his environment, his coping skills, which determine the impact stress factors will have upon his performance.The Art of Living Youth Programs provides skills to improve these factors through stress management, human values, and service. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE According to recent experiments in public schools in   New York City, the Art of Living Youth Programs provides such-self-regulatory skills to improve these factors through its multi-pronged approach to effectively eliminate stress, violence, aggression, and lack of academic interest in today’s youth . One   key approach is the stress management technique called Sudarshan Kria Yoga ( SKY). SKY (Sudarshan Kriya Yoga) stress management practices use breathing techniques to lower the stress level in students and enable them to increase their learning abilities as well as coping skills for academic achievement and daily living. How SKY practices may help to create the ideal mental state for learning is currently being studied. In a recent analysis of SKY techniques, Dr. Richard P Brown, Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry for Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Patricia L Gerbarg, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor in Psychiatry at New York Medical College have proposed a neurophysiological model to explain how yoga breathing stress management techniques may impact the nervous system. They state, †Although the scientific exploration of   SKY by Western medicine is in its infancy, these breathing techniques have the potential to relieve anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and many stress-related medical illnesses. In addition, they may provide new approaches to the treatment of behavioral disorders of children, attention deficit disorder, violence, alcoholism, and the rehabilitation of prisoners.† After undergoing the program, children demonstrate enhancement of creative skills, improved memory and concentration, development of leadership qualities and healthy emotions, clarity of mind as well as improved interaction with their peers. (Art of Loving, 2007) Indeed, recent research supports such findings. In a study on the said subject (Nagendra, et al, 1989), it was noted within a group of mentally challenged children that there was a highly significant improvement in the IQ and social adaptation parameters in the yoga group as compared to the control group. One can only deduce that meditation not only creates a shift to happier, more positive attitudes in students, but also increases critical learning skills. In summary, current research on children’s abilities to regulate emotions and social interactions shows that children who enter school with significant problems in self-regulation, or who have impaired learning abilities have a substantial disadvantage for meeting the developmental tasks of middle childhood. Intervening early to encourage self-regulation may be an important strategy for future interventions, although we need to know more about these processes to inform such efforts. Hypotheses The hypothesis of the study is that children participating in the Art of Living Youth programs improve their self-regulatory skills.   Changes in self-regulatory skills will be estimated through questionnaires. If the hypothesis is indeed valid, it would strongly suggest the importance of the Art of Living program, not just to current well-being of the children, but also to their future balance and emotional stability. METHOD Procedure   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The process of research to be utilized aims to prove the hypotheses noted above which states that children participating in the Art of Living Youth programs improve their self-regulatory skills. Instrumentation Data is to be collected by questioning the students themselves as well as parents and teachers, both before they start the Art of Living course and after they have finished the program.   The questionnaire is going to be the same but taken at different time periods to record any improvements. The questionnaire is to be based on the â€Å"Self-Regulation Questionnaire† (SRQ) (Brown, Miller, & Lawendowski, 1999) but adjusted to fit the age group in question.  Ã‚   The original adjusted questionnaire is included in Appendix A.   Each question is to be answered on a scale from one to five depending on how much the subject agrees with the question statement.  Ã‚   Several studies show that the low SRQ scores are correlated with alcohol-related consequences, drug use, drinking after driving and tobacco smoking, all of which can be associated with low self-esteem.   (Brown, 1994) (Brown, Baumann, Smith & Etheridge 1997) The Sample [Respondents] The participants will be recruited from a New York based School participating in the Art of Living project.   The teachers of the relevant classes will explain the study to the parents and sign them up.   As the Art of Living courses are held annually it’s difficult to do repeated experiments, however the same questionnaire will be presented to a group of students not participating in the course at same time to see if there are any factors (seasonality, community sentiment etc) that are effecting self-regulation, not the Art of Living course. DATA PRESENTATION AND RESULTS All results will be processed in Excel and the hypothesis tested individually for the different groups: children themselves, parents and teachers.   We will collect data both for students participating in the Art of Living classes and from a control group that does not participate.  Ã‚   The hypothesis will be testing by analyzing if the difference in SRQ score is statistically significant for the participants of the Art of Living course from when they begin until the course is over.   The results will be compared to the control group to see how different the results are. DISCUSSION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To present further explanation of the matter, the researcher aims to implement different issues that are related to the situation being discussed. With the utilization of the results presentation and the explanation that has been used to introduce the presentations, the proof that is needed to identify the practicality and the truth behind the hypotheses of the study shall be given clarity. Understandably, through the validation of the informations presented within the study, the idea of increasing self-regulation among young learners would become much acceptable for actual learning application among early-childhood learning institutions. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION To end the research, a six-point summary shall be used to present the major features of the study that is most implicative and influential to the society today with regards the issue of depression. Most likely, the conclusive statements that could best support this study would be much of that of the features of the study as to how it aims to face the issues of the matter in a more actual process. 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The integrated approach of yoga: a therapeutic tool for mentally retarded children: a one year controlled study. Journal of Mental Deficiency,Research, 33, 415–421. Brown,J.M. ( 1994).Alcohol involvement and self-regulation in male alcoholics. Unpublished Dissertation,University of New Mexico, Albuquerque. Dissertation, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.    Brown, J. M., Baumann, B. D., Smith, C. D., & Etheridge, S. L. (1997, July, 1997). Selfregulation,extroversion, and substance abuse among college students. Paper presented at the Research Society on Alcoholism, San Francisco, CA    Brown, J. M., Miller, W. R., & Lawendowski, L. A. (1999). The Self-Regulation Questionnaire. In L. VandeCreek & T. L. Jackson (Eds.), Innovations in clinical practice : A source book (Vol. 17, pp. 281-289). Sarasota, FL: Professional Resource Press.   Ray Doktor ( 1996) Attachment Theory, Neurobiology, and Psychopathology, from http://www.wholeminds.com/web/index.php?module=article&view=9   

2014 Scholarship Essay Contest Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

2014 Contest - Scholarship Essay Example Besides, students at Wayland Baptist University are also sensitive to people from diverse backgrounds. They show respect and integrity by treating people from diverse backgrounds and indeed everyone, with care, kindness and compassion. That way, they become trustworthy and dependable for whatever duty they are called to serve because they do it from the bottom of their hearts. Other values that exemplify students at Wayland Baptist University are excellence and innovation. By understanding that every duty is a service unto the Lord God, students give their best to achieve excellent results. They also commit themselves to make effort to improve the world around them through innovation and research. That way, they come out as responsible members who are sensitive to the people and environment around them. Such values not only enable students to acquire positive attributes required in life, but also enhance their spiritual development. Upon completion of my degree program at Wayland Baptist University, I will use the knowledge and attributes gained to do the following. First, I will use the knowledge and attributes gained to improve the community through being a community watchdog. From wherever disposition of life the Lord God shall grant me, I will use that platform to ensure that justice prevails in the society. That is to imply that I shall not hesitate to rebuke evil and corruption of human beings in the society. Human beings become corrupt before God when they advance their own self-interests at the expense of others. They oppress the widows and the orphans as well as the weak. They do not give the full measure of what others deserve to get in various bargains of life. As long as I shall be privy to such information, I will rebuke such deeds to promote fairness, justice and ethical behaviors. I will also share the positive teachings I have learned at Wayland Baptist University with others in the community so

Advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Advertising - Essay Example They used Spanish for Argentina market, English for US and German language for advertising in Germany, although rest of the Ad had the same symbols and logo throughout globally. The tag lines were entirely different as they were too solely tell the story about the particular country such as tagline or message for Argentina was â€Å"change the day, start within†, tagline for Germany â€Å"give (offer) yourself a break†, whereas for US market they opted tagline as â€Å"make the smart choice† Nescafe followed the emotional appeal for Germany and Argentina, and Ad had rational appeal for the United States market. For Argentina they show what would be one life without have a Nescafe coffee to start his/her day in a dramatic way with loads of vivid colors. For Germany campaign they drew the feeling of coolness, relaxing and calmness, they basic idea was to let know that after having Nescafe coffee they will be relaxed, this was clean and clear Ad, they showed a female is holding steaming Nescafe coffee mug. The coffee is sprinkled with the crushed coco bean or cinnamon with a brew down there. So it is not a busy Ad that will overpower the stimuli of viewer, this simply uses the psychological effect and an emotional appeal that those hands are of beautiful cool and calm mother who is relaxing after house chores or is back from office. As United States Ad is concern it was a rational ad campaign as it was in reference to an argument with Starbucks. It had to show that Nescafe is a better product. It just changed the copy and the mug, rest of the Ad was same with the message of â€Å"Make a Smart Choice†, jus to make sure viewer doesn’t jumble up with the Starbucks. Nescafe totally ruled with the global advertisement. All it need was a kick in fewer markets and they grew the financials. Nescafe have grown in different cultures and have advertised itself the way that particular country required.

Modern World History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Modern World History - Essay Example Explorer Christopher Columbus discovered the western hemisphere and established the foundations for the modern global economy. The voyages of Columbus that led European Conquistadors to the western hemisphere, the Middle East, and other regions were referred to as the Columbian exchange. Discovery of the Americas was the first step in a process that led to the spread of civilization throughout the world and expanded global trade network. The Columbian exchange involved a series of population movements including the spread of nomadic peoples across Central Asia. Following the death of the prophet Muhammad, Islam also spread outside the Middle East.Opening up of the Americas was beneficial in that there was the introduction of the horse, the cow and various grains that increased food production in the Americas. The cultivation of potato, corn, and manioc can all be traced back to the Western hemisphere. The Columbian exchange led to increased economic well-being of the Americas.The Col umbian exchange also had negative consequences associated with it. Some observers were of the view that it led to harsh colonial exploitation and the spread of virulent diseases that devastated local populations. The Spanish economy was distorted because vast amounts of gold and silver were imported leading to price revolution. Whatever shortcomings that were associated with the Columbian exchange, it is undeniable that it was beneficial to the world since it heralded modernization.

Why I want to be a nurse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Why I want to be a nurse - Essay Example Nurses were looked down upon but with the development of the human mind, it has been realized that it is a very noble profession where a person lives with a cause and purpose of serving other people. It is for this reason that I have actually been influenced by the fact that I should opt for this career and work towards improving the health status of the world by becoming an integral part of the healthcare system. I have always been interested in this field, particularly after my exposure to the hospitals when I came across nurses and realized the fact that how important they are for the field of medicine. My exposure to this field has made me aware of the fact that I would truly want to devote my life for the purpose of providing the best health for the patients. The example of Florence Nightingale serves as an inspiration to me. She was a woman who was devoted to her work despite of the difficulties that she had to face and the criticism that she received. She worked day and night to save precious human lives and worked in very difficult conditions. Seeing her example, I have realized that I would also want to dedicate my life to help people who will actually be able to live in a better way because of my work. The aim of this field is itself very inspiring to me.

Housing segregation in the us Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Housing segregation in the us - Research Paper Example Gotham (2000, p. 13) found out that while housing subsidy housing programs created a situation for a great number of white families to buy â€Å"new† housing units in suburban areas, African American families were only able to buy â€Å"existing† homes in â€Å"racially transitional neighborhoods† in the inner city. Gotham (2000, p. 13) interpreted his data to mean that his research corroborated research that showed that the â€Å"market-centered† focus of federal housing policy has created obstacles to the â€Å"ability of African Americans to accumulate wealth through home ownership and reinforced racially segregate housing patterns.† For Gotham, the culprit is Section 235 of the 1968 Housing Act that â€Å"was designed to shift the focus of federal housing policy away from dispensing aid to local housing authorities for building public housing to providing direct supply-side subsidies to the private sector to stimulate home ownership for nonwhit es and the poor† (2000, p. 13). Taking off from the work of Oliver and Shapiro (1995), Gotham argued (2000, p. 14) that the operation and implementation of the United States 1968 housing program is an example of the â€Å"racialization of state policy.† Citing the study of Massey and Denton (1993), Gotham (2000, p. 15) specifically pointed out Kansas City as one of the United States’ prime examples of â€Å"hypersegregated metropolitan areas due to the high degree of segregation in housing patterns on a range of indices.† Gotham (2000, p. 16) blames the â€Å"segregative effects of federal housing policies and programs, and private real estate activity† for the hypersegregation. In addition, Gotham said (2000, p. 17) â€Å"the various economic and political dimension of housing-related activities have been conducted through an organized and interconnected system of racial discrimination.† At the same time, Gotham (2000, p. 17) also pointed out racial discrimination was

Telecommunication in Health Care Research Paper

Telecommunication in Health Care - Research Paper Example The use of free space to transmit this information from the transmitter to the receiver is called wireless communication. However, the communication industry has developed to take place to more than two people. This editorial looks at the telecommunication industry in the nursing sector, the advantages, disadvantages, and importance of telecommunication in health care. According to Antai-Otong (2007), telecommunication has over the years developed to be part of the health industry. In the recent years, telecommunications have advanced to the extent that cinematographic and digital data can be conveyed to and from faraway locations around the world. It involves taking care of medical patients by giving them the required medical care in order to recover. In most cases, the nurses are nondependent health professionals and follow recommendations given by doctors. However, they both use given medical equipment to provide these essential services. One of the most used equipment is the tele metry monitoring. This involves the monitoring and analyzing of data, which is received from a long distance. It also encompasses monitoring the heart activities of patients in hospitals. In addition, Telemetry  monitoring is also used to the manner in which info is received from spacecraft and orbiting satellites. Telemetry  monitoring functions the same way as cardiac monitoring with the exception being that the patient is close-fitted with a transmitter that sends the information to the hospital area in which the  telemetry  monitoring occurs. The use of telemonitoring in hospitals has various advantages as well as disadvantages in the medical sector. One of the main advantages is that it allows the patients to get around and move around the hospital but within the transmitters range (Mastrian, 2011). This is more advantageous to patients that are confined to hospital beds and allows the gadget to monitor their heart activities while making movements. However, this techni que is faced by certain controversies and most health professionals are against its use. One of the main reasons is that the gadget is often overused. However, the use of telemonitoring technique has been of high value to some patients mainly those undergoing a somatic  rehabilitation process. This is because it allows patients whose recovery relies on movement to follow that recovery efficiently, without their medical doctors partaking to give up the aptitude to monitor their heart. Ball (2010) notes that telecommunication in the nursing sector has various advantages as well as disadvantages. One of the advantages is that electronic communication has been an advantage to nurses across the world through lending them the privilege to communicate to patients, which enable them to identify the real course of the patient’s problem. In addition, it enables quick diagnose of the patients problem thus saving time for the nurse and the patient.  Moreover, telecommunication has en abled quick response of the nurses to the patients in the emergency segments of hospitals such as the ambulance response unit. In addition, the modern health equipment has been of great advantage to nurses since they are able to track down the medical records of patients in hospitals. This has been facilitated by the proper and modernized health keeping records that is recommended by the federal government. This in turn enables the nurses to identify the right medication of patients and identify various side

Youth Unemployment in UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Youth Unemployment in UK - Essay Example According to the report, which defines youth as the age between 16 to 24 years, individuals claiming allowances for jobseekers rose from 5,300 to 1.6 million in October 2011. In general, the rate of youth unemployment has gone just past twenty percent, the highest ever recorded since 1992. Some economists have attributed these results to the reeling effects of the 2009 recession to the increase in the number of youths leaving school or university. That is the convectional belief. The government of UK blames the rise in unemployment on the deteriorating job market and the effects of the euro-zone debt crisis. Chris Graylin, employment minister, gave a statement blaming the euro-zone troubles for increasing unemployment rates. Graylin called for the government to help the youth through schemes such as the government initiated work experience and work program that have placed several people out of benefits into workplaces. Lord Oakeshott, a Liberal Democrat, dismisses the ministerâ€⠄¢s view blaming the government policy of cutting spending as reason behind the rise (Shimer, 2010:45). He says that the government has been cutting its spending budget too fast and too far, pushing the rate of borrowing and unemployment high. The recent employment scheme adopted by the government, the New Deal, has the objective of reducing the long-term unemployment rates among older workers and youths. The scheme includes employment training and employment subsidies for the participants. There is need to define unemployment in order to understand the issues of youth unemployment. According to International Labor Organization, unemployment is actively searching for economic employment/ work without success. Some economic critics claim that there are jobs for the youth; it is only that the youth are not willing to work hard and are unreliable. A recent feature in the Telegram by Alasdair Palmer concerning the recent report by ONS, the author of the feature gives an example of emplo yer from a fruit grower company complaining about the lack of English recruits in the region’s labor market (Palmer, 2011:21). The fruit grower has 300 workers in the farm, and only one is English. According to the fruit grower, the jobs are there but the English are not willing to drop the unemployment benefits they enjoy and some request to be paid cash. The author goes ahead and gives another industry where Briton youths are unemployed: bars and restaurants. According to the author, Britons youths are unreliable and rude to customers. An analyst would most likely advocate for abolition of minimum wage or temporary imposition of moratorium on it to create more employment opportunities. Nevertheless, this has not been any successful, at least in research. A research by Institute of Fiscal Studies indicates that the minimum wage system has no direct effect to the level of unemployment. The report raises concerns that withdrawal of the benefits upon taking a job and reduction of the minimum wage rate would result to inability of people to live on the offered amount sustainably (Boeri & Ours, 2008:44). According to Dr Jonathan Wadsworth from London School of Economics, the youth do not lack employment because they are work shy or because of the minimum wage. According to him, the employees are not willing to employ them. Older people already in work positions have accepted pay cuts and pay freeze in order to maintain their jobs. This means that most employees have managed to maintain their job position, resulting to the low rate of unemployment that resulted from the recession. Despite this, the result means that employers have not been absorbing new employees who are traditionally youth. Such policies are the causes of

Canadian Funding for Highways Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Canadian Funding for Highways - Case Study Example Although this alliance dates back in the history but still it represents a strong case for the betterment of the transport industry. As CTA is a coalition of regional trucking associations it represents an extensive cross-section of the trucking industry. There are about some 4,500 transport vehicles, owned re-operators, and industry suppliers who fall under this alliance. CTA has worked in lobbying on national and international policy, as well as authoritarian and governmental issues that affect trucking. The other industry that has had problems is the railway industry. The freight industry along with the domestic highway vehicles has suffered from the deficit making them incompetent in their respective industry. Regardless of a very old policy on nationwide transportation the federal authority was proficient in completely setting it aside for the cause of reduced spending in the 1990s. This was achievable because the national transportation policy did not correctly identify the role of governments in the provision or administration of transportation infrastructure. As the national decentralization of infrastructure was done during the 1990s and as inter-modal transportation has developed, the financial responsibilities between the public and private sector have become vague. Important transport accountability areas, such as airports or marine ports have been changed to private or non-profit organization. While others have been able to create entirely new economic responsibilities for the local body; for example, the movement from rail to road has augmented the provincial role in goods transportation. Dating back to 1994, the federal curriculum review amplified the financial stress on regional and municipal infrastructure. In the mean time, provinces also decentralized local transport infrastructure to municipal and provincial bodies. This reforming of transportation has produced a hefty infrastructure deficit that needs consideration by all levels of government. Addressing the requirements of transport infrastructure can be managed in a more improved manner if the financial tasks, with suitable revenue streams, can be clearly outlined for all levels of the governing body in national transportation policy and supporting legislation. A major reason for the inability of the national transportation policy is the breach between policy, legislation and execution. A widespread scheme of bridging this gap is the connecting of transportation policy and legislation to a venture approach or program funding. The most memorable example of this is the American model where central funding is coupled for compliance with rules and policies. For instance, highway subsidy eligibility depends on achieving the set environmental standards that replicate national policies. As a fact the Canadian policy is

African Migration Essay Example for Free

African Migration Essay The African origin of early modern humans 200,000150,000 years ago is now well documented, with archaeological data suggesting that a major migration from tropical east Africa to the Levant took place between 130,000 and 100,000 years ago via the presently hyper-arid Saharan-Arabian desert. The path out of East Africa leads across North Africa, through the Nile corridor, and across the Red Sea, or across the Indian Ocean and the strait of Bab el Mandeb to the Arabian peninsula and beyond to Eurasia. Most of this interconnected landmass of the so-called Old World, the continental area encompassing Africa, Europe, and Asia, received migrants from East Africa by about 1. 5 million years ago. This migration was dependent on the occurrence of wetter climate in the region. Whereas there is good evidence that the southern and central Saharan-Arabian desert experienced increased monsoon precipitation during this period, no unequivocal evidence has been found for a corresponding rainfall increase in the northern part of the migration corridor, including the Sinai-Negev land bridge between Africa and Asia. The major feature of world populations through time is their increasing numbers. It is likely that many early human migrations resulted from the pressure of such demographic increases on limited food resources; disease, drought, famine, war, and natural disaster figure among the most important causes of early human migrations. Approximately 100,000 years ago, the first migrations of Homo sapiens out of their African homeland likely coincided with the ability to use spoken language and to control fire. Over the next 87,000 years humans migrated to every continent, encompassing a wide variety of natural environments. The Americas were the last continents to be reached by Homo sapiens, about 13,000 years ago. Why these earliest migrants left Africa to colonize the world is a complex, important question. The answer is likely to be found in a web of interrelated factors centered around human behavior, specifically behavior selected to reduce risk and increase the individuals’ fitness for survival. Calculated migration must have resulted from information sharing, alliance building, memory, and the ability to negotiate— all skills that necessarily accompanied increasingly complex social and cultural groups. The increasing complexity of existence inevitably led hominids out of Africa, resulting in a global distribution of diverse human groups. Increasing population may have prodded the migration of some groups. Armed with the attributes of culture, the distinctive, complex patterns of behavior shared by human groups, humans eventually adapted to and conquered virtually all global environments. Whatever the nature of human origins, whenever or wherever human societies and cultures first appeared, the peopling of our globe has been a product of migration from place to place. Given the small numbers of people and the vast distances they traversed, and considering their technologically limited modes of transportation, the movement of people around the globe seems miraculous. The examples of global colonization described below depended on interactions between people and between people and their environments. Gradually, sometime during the Middle Stone Age (perhaps 100,000 to 200,000 years ago), distinct patterns of interaction among humans and between them and the landscapes in which they lived emerged. Because the distinctive physical and social environments to which humans adapted were themselves constantly changing, cultures too continually changed. That early humans acquired technological and social skills can be inferred from widespread evidence of their material culture—stone tools and utensils, carved figurines, rock and cave art, and the like, dating from about 40,000 years ago—which has been found in most parts of the globe. The development of language unquestionably furthered the social and technological evolution of humans and facilitated systems of reciprocity and social exchange. For example, the division of labor in food production and the exchange and transportation of goods and products were greatly expedited by speech. Being able to assign different tasks to different individuals furthered cooperation and fueled the processes of social and cultural evolution. http://www.learner.org/courses/worldhistory/unit_readings_3.html http://www.learner.org/courses/worldhistory/unit_overview_3.html

Adult learning: second languages

Adult learning: second languages The effect of age on adult’s rate of achievement in learning second language 1 Abstract This study investigated the effects of age on adult’s rate of achievement in learning second language in the case of grammar,and pronunciation. Age is one of the most important and affective factor which causes many differences in both second and first language learning. When the brain is more developed so it is better for learning second language and also adult ´s capacity for learning and memory is higher than children. Results show that adults are able to produce grammatically correct sentences compared with children but as they become older they get into some problems in communication. Asher and Price figured out a fact that the younger a child had been when entering the United States, the higher the probability of a native like accent(Asher and Price, 1967, p. 83). Introduction It is very important that older people have the ability to learn a second language, especially English because the technology of our society is going to change rapidly base on English. Learning a second language will cause them a better opportunity such as employment, studying in abroad, having a better social contact and so on.What is the relationship between age and rate of learning second language?There are numerous findings about the relative abilities or inabilities of language learners of different age. Do children learn language faster? Is it impossible for adults to achieve fluency? This paper studied the effect of age on adult’s rate of achievement of grammar,and pronunciation in learning second language. The hypothesis is that older learners are more successful than younger in some cases, not all cases.Although different type of classes(teachers-centered class and student-centered class and other characteristic will effect it but there are not our main concern in thi s study. Review of literature This article provides a selective overview of theoretical issues and empirical findings relating to the question of age and the rate of aadult†²s second language acquisition. Many empirical researches were done on the rate of second language learning and overviews of this research can be found in Asher and Price(1967), Susan Oyama (1982), Fathman (1989), Falasca (2001),Dekeyser (2002), Dunkel and Pillet (2008), Johnson and Newport (2008),and Bista (2008). Methodology This paper studied the effect of age on adult’s rate of achievement of grammar,and pronunciationin learning second language. This research was done by studying previous related research which is done by famous researches. Information gathered from articles , books and internet sources. This paper has collected the best papers related to the effect of age on adult’s rate of achievement of grammar, and pronunciationin learning second language. the following pages review more than 10 studies that are theoretically and practically studied the relationship between age and on adult’s rate of second language acquisition. Adults as learners There are many definitions of the adults as learners ,different authors focus on different perspectives. Knowles (1980), forexample, identified the following characteristics of adult learners: †¢ adults are autonomous and self-directed; they need to be free to direct themselves †¢ adults have accumulated a foundation of life experiences and knowledge that may include work-related activities, family responsibilities and previous education †¢ adults are relevancy-oriented; they must see a reason for learning something †¢ adults are more problem-centered than subject-centered inlearning †¢ adults are motivated to learn by internal factors rather thanexternal ones ( MerriamCaffarella, 1999,p 65) Grammar Many of adult second language learners pay more attention on learning grammar ,they believe in the significant relationship between grammatical accuracy and effective communication. They pay much attention to grammar because of doing office work and studying in abroad. They think by having proficiency in grammar part they will have a better social acceptance by native speakers. Adults are more aware of grammar points which they are using, that†²s why they can get these points and use them. Huangdid a research and in his study 118 Mandarin-speaking immigrants in the United States and 24 English native speakers as the baseline comparison group participated. The grammar knowledge estimated by a grammaticality judgment task. The findings showed thatthat post-puberty learners acquire second language better than pre-puberty learnersespecially in grammar part.His findings showed the method of teaching, amount of instruction and also length of residence have significant effects on learning grammar. Results revealed that adults had less difficulty in adapting to task. They are faster and made fewer mistakes, this will cause them to learn faster. And children made more mistakes at the early stages of learning. Asher and Price ( 1967) have carried out an experiment with96 students from the second, fourth and eighth grades of a school and 37 undergraduate students from a college. The subjects did not have any previous knowledge of Russian, the targeted language. After three short trainings conducted in Russian language, the results showed that the eight graders performed significantly better than the second graders and the fourth graders. They also noticed a consistently positive relationship with advancing age because of above average mental ability of the adults (p.76). A study which is done by Robert Dekeyser(2002)suggested:adult learners are more successful in learning grammar than the early-age learners(p.14). Learning grammar is sometimes abstract, that†²s why it is hard for children to get the point. Most of the time, children memorize it.The findings show that grammar is somehow boring for adults but they get to this conclusion that learning grammar is necessary and effective. Adults are more reliance on writing and they know about the value of grammar in writing, so they get it more serious. Pronunciation Researchers of SLA interested in assessing phonological skills of learners suggest a common belief that younger learners acquire a native like accent in the target language. Dunkel and Pillet compared the proficiency in French between elementary school pupils and beginning students of French from the university. They found that the younger learners’ pronunciation was better than that of the older ones. However, in both written and aural tests, the university students had better performance than the younger ones.(Bista,2008, p.8) Asher and price examined acquisition of pronunciation of 71 Cuban immigrants to California. The subjects were of aged groups from seven to 19 years. The majority of them had been in the United States for about five years. They concluded that â€Å"not one of the 71 Cuban subjects was judged to have American native pronunciation† (Asher and price, 1967, p. 83). They also figured out a fact that the younger a child had been when entering the United States, the higher the probability of a native like accent. In the study which is done by Susan Oyama (1982) 60 maleItalian immigrants were studied .They were at the age of 6 to 20 when they had come to the united states. Susan Oyama pointed out that the age is an important factor in order to have a native like accent. She declared that the younger the better in having an acceptable accent. She also pointed out her results about listening comprehension as follows: †¦those subjects who began learning English before age 11 showed comprehension score similar to those of native speakers, whereas later arrivals did less well; those who arrived after the age of 16 showed markedly lower comprehension scores than the native (Oyama, 1982, p. 23). Susan Oyama suggested (1982):The young learners are considered fluent in communication of the second language and achieve native like accent .Learners after the age of puberty do not acquire native like accent of a second language but have complex learning pattern.Research suggests that children and adults L2 learners pass through different developmental states ( p 12). Johnson and Newport ( 2008) found: native-like language abilities and the performance levels are lower in older children than younger in a study of forty-six Chinese and Koreans speakers(p.13). In another study, Fathman (1989) tested oral proficiency in English on 20 children and 20 adults in a formal setting in Mexico. Their finding also brought a similar conclusion that the children scored better in English pronunciation than the adults but the adults scored better than the children in syntax(p.32). Learning and technology As we know adults are more capable to use technology in order to improve and using technology can help learners to study faster, especially adults. Integrating technology in instruction for adult Englishlanguage learners may offer the flexibility to extend that available in a formal program and thus increase opportunities for language and literacy learning(Cummins, 2007, p. 26). Adult learners access to online learning more than others. Online learning is entirely Internet-based. This opportunity ables English learners to learn anywhere,any time. Electronic tools and internet which is used in teaching and learning motivate students to learn and become actively independent learners, this will happen for adults more than children. As we know adults have more problem in communication but internet can provides learners with opportunities to reinforce their learning skills, self-assessment, and their communication with the world. Some other effects of aging on learning: 1.as people become older they eyesight will become weak and this will affect the capacity for learning of the adults 2.changes in nuclear family roles,changes in other family roles and changes in work roles will affect on adults learning(Falasca, 2001, p.3) 3.Motivation to learn: Adults can be ordered into a classroom but nobody can force them to learn. Any adults who see a need or have a desire to know a new thing seems more successful. Conclusion A group of researchers including Singleton and Oyama believed that the young learners have higher learning potentiality than the adults whereas Johnson and Newport, Dekeyser, Asher and Price, opined the opposite. Thus the results of this study in general support that younger adults are better learner especially in pronunciation and there is a high level of opportunity to achieve to native like accent but we should consider that the amount of repetitions and also the length of resistance have much effect on having native like accent, on the other hand older adults are better in understanding grammar. When the brain is more developed so it is better for learning grammar, this is because of the fact that adult ´s capacity for learning and memory is higher than children . The findings showed that that post-puberty learners acquire second language better than pre-puberty learners especially in grammar part. In learning grammar, there is a consistently positive relationship with advancing age because of above average mental ability of the adults. Learning grammar is sometimes abstract, that†²s why it is hard for children to get the point. Also all of the tools which is available in the market, sources which is available in the internet, and software can help a lot older adult than younger adult in learning second language. We should consider that the main problem of adult is that in most cases they can not become lifelong learners.Age is not everything in second language learning. However, factors related to the age, for example the learning opportunities, the motivation to learn, individual differences, and learning styles, are also important determining variables that affect the rate of second language learning in various developmental stages of the learners. References: Asher, J. J., Price, B. S. (1967). The learning strategy of a total physical response: Some age differences. Child Development, 38, 1219-1227. Bialystok,E.(1997).The structure of age: In search of barriers to second language acquisition. Second language research,13(2),116_137. Bista,K.(2008).Age as an effective factor in second language acquision. The journal of English for Specific Purposes World.Issue 5 (21).Retrieved fromwww.esp-world.info/Articles_21/Docs/Age.pdf Birdsong, D. (2006). Age and second language acquisition and processing: A selective overview. Language Learning, 56 (1), 9-49. Cummins, J.(2007). Cognitive/academic language proficiency, linguistic interdependence, the optimum age question and some other matters.Working Papers on Bilingualism, 19,197-205. DeKeyser, R.(2002).The robustness of Critical Period effects in second language acquisition. Studies in second language Acquisition,22(4),499-533. Fathman, A. (1989). The relationship between age and second language productive ability. Issues in second language research. London:Newbury House, 15-23. Falasca,M.(2001).Barriers to adult learning.Australian Journal of Adult learning.Volume56,number3,November2011. Retrieved from http://www.ajal.net.au/barriers-to-adult-learning-bridging-the-gap/ Johnson, J. S., Newport, E.L.(2008).Critical Period effects in second language learning: The influence of maturational state on acquisition of English as a Second Language. Cognitive Psychology. 21,60-99. Klein, W. (1986).Second language acquisition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Oyama, S. (1982).The sensitive period and comprehension of speech. In Krashen, S., Scarcell, R. Long, M. (Eds.), Issues in second language research. London: Newbury House, 39-51 Singleton, D. (2002).The age factor in second language acquisition (2nd ed.). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.

Leadership And Service Improvement Management Essay

Leadership And Service Improvement Management Essay The study of leaders and leadership has led to many competing theories which attempt to distill the essence of great leadership into its component parts, to allow others to acquire some of these attributes, and become more effective leaders. The very earliest theories on leadership tended to assume that leaders were born, and that leadership was not a skill, or set of skills that could be acquired. The overall impression was that Great Men had inherited leadership qualities from their ancestors, which would make them effective leaders when placed in positions of authority (Kirkpatrick and Locke 1991). This is not a very helpful way to look at leadership, and does nothing to assist students of leadership in their efforts to become better leaders themselves. It is not, though a great leap from identifying natural leaders to identifying which parts of their character or personality mark them out from others. This underpins the Trait theories of leadership. Trait theory was studied extensively in the mid part of the 20th Century, and had a wide range of results. Kirkpatrick and Locke (1991) explain that trait theory made no assumptions as to the origins of the traits studied, but simply highlighted the differences between leaders and non-leaders. In 1974, Stodgill published the results of his studies of leadership theory, and identified 22 traits and skills which are present to varying degrees in the individuals studied. This did not show how individuals could become better leaders, but, the identification of leadership as a skill has been vital in the subsequent development of leadership training. He himself ultimately concluded that A person does not become a leader by virtue of the possession of some combination of traits. (Stodgill 1948 cited in Levine 2008) McGregor (2005) looked at leadership behaviours as relating to underlying traits or world views. They examined the ways in which managers and leaders approached a task, and tried to understand the motivating factors. McGregror (1960) felt there were two major theories of human motivation which lay behind the actions of the leaders he studied. His theories were labelled X and Y. Theory X assumes that the average human being inherently dislikes work, and therefore must be coerced to perform at the required level. The motivating factors here are extrinsic. Theory Y assumes that work is a natural part of life, as much as is play or rest, and intrinsic motivation is key. This intrinsic motivation can be viewed as an expression of the Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow 1943) The work of McGregor informed the production of methods to map leadership behaviours. Blake and Mouton (1964) plotted concern for production against concern for people. This produces a helpful framework for mapping behaviours, but it is rather passive in form, and seems mainly useful for reflection or critique, to inform future endeavours. It does not necessarily inform leaders of what behaviour is best suited to the group they are working with at a particular time. Action centred leadership was proposed as a leadership model by Adair (1973). His time in the Army and work as a trainer at the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst led him to develop a model that considers three domains; Task, Team and Individual. He argues that each domain requires the attention of a leader, but the relative importance of each will vary. The relationship of these domains is represented by a venn diagram: Task needs Team maintenance needs Individual needs This model then details the areas a leader should address in each domain: Task: Practical managerial concerns, for example creating a plan, monitoring performance Team: Facilitating group working by agreeing standards of behaviour, resolving group conflicts etc. Individual: Ensuring individuals are performing as well as possible by supporting through challenges, allocating work according to strengths etc. There is considerable overlap and interaction between each of these domains, and it is argued that attention to each domain is required for a balanced team. The key feature of this model which made such an impact was providing a practical framework which allowed leaders to combine some of the softer skills of leadership with more managerial traits of time management and task focus. Situational / Contingency Theories of Leadership The studies of leadership discussed above have all looked at leaders and leadership behaviour and described them, allowing leaders to analyse their behaviour. The theories above, over time have been developed to include a degree of dynamism, but were initially descriptive exercises. It was the recognition that there was not necessarily on right way of leading that prompted thinking about the possibility of adaptive styles of leadership (Schermerhorn 1997). The study of leadership in different situations and settings, and the observation that the most effective style of leadership changed with respect to situational variables led to situational leadership models. The earliest described was the Contingency Model (Fiedler 1964). This model relies on a self-rated scale to determine a preferred leadership style. Fiedler then studied working conditions, and described them through three variables: Leader-member relations how willing team members trust and will follow a leader Task structure: how well defined a task is, or if it follows a standard procedure Position Power: the extent of the rewards and punishments a leader has available. Through his studies, Fiedler constructed a visual guide to represent his findings about which type of leader was most effective given the situational variables. The model states that leaders with high LPC scores should work with teams where the situation is moderately favourable. The more task focused leaders will be more effective in situations which are either very favourable or unfavourable to the the leader. This model has been studied extensively and has received both criticism (Ashour 1973) support (Strube and Garcia 1981). A major source of controversy in this model is the LPC. One important point to note is that Fiedler felt leaders would find their behaviour difficult to alter, and organisations should therefore pick the correct leader for a given team. This is in contrast to other models which suggest leaders should be adaptable. The Hersey-Blanchard (1969) model of situational leadership looks at a different variable in the team context; the maturity of followers. The underlying assumption is that a leader should adopt a style of leadership which reflects the needs of the team. This is in direct contrast to Fiedlers (1964) assertion that organisations should pick leaders given the favourability of the situation. In this model, a two by two grid which is very similar to the Blake Mouton (1964) Managerial Grid, is used to describe four leadership styles: S1: Telling (low relationship, high task) S2: Selling (high relationship, high task) S3: Participating (high relationship, low task) S4: Delegating (low relationship, low task) There is an accompanying scale which rates the team a leader is concerned with: M1: Low competence, and low commitment M2: Low competence, and high commitment M3: High competence with low/variable commitment M4: High competence and high commitment The M score for maturity of the team members was developed over time, and was later divided to reflect job and psychological maturity (Hersey and Blanchard 1982). Job maturity is the ability or capacity to perform the task in hand. Psychological maturity indicates motivation. The model has received criticism from a theoretical standpoint, and from empirical research. Graeff (1983) claims that the maturity scale is invalid, as it classifies workers who have skill and are unmotivated (M3) as more mature than those who lack skill but are dedicated to a task(M2). He also argues that the additive nature of job and psychological maturity in the model is invalid. He supports this view by suggesting that in tasks where skill requirements are low, motivation has a much greater importance. One study into the model concluded that, because high follower maturity did not obviate the need for supervision, their results lent very little support to the model (Cairns et al 1998). This study though had methodological flaws, a skewed population, and did describe some support for aspect of the SLT model. The practical application of this model relies on the ability of the leader to determine the maturity of their followers, and reflect this in their leadership style. Perhaps the most important aspect of the model is the recognition that leadership styles are not fixed, and leaders can change their approach to suit a given team or individual. In modern healthcare settings, there has been a change in the nature of teams. There is no longer a stable, small, hierarchical team. Instead, teams form and disperse on an almost shift-by-shift basis. To lead effectively in this environment, it is necessary to be adaptable, and be able to support team members to realise their potential. The models described above illustrate that there is no one best way to lead a team. Instead, by appreciating the different situations, individuals and tasks involved, leaders stand a better chance of forming teams which can cope with the varying demands of the modern NHS. Perhaps Goleman (2000, p.4) has argued this most eloquently through his work which revealed that the most effective leaders do not rely on only one leadership style; they use them seamlessly and in different measure depending on the business situation. Service Improvement Methods: The literature describes a large number of service improvement methods which have been applied in some form to healthcare settings. Most service improvement methodologies that have been implemented in healthcare have been adopted from industry, where the driving force is to maximise profits for shareholders. The adoption of industrial techniques for service and quality improvement has often met with a degree of resistance from the medical profession (Moss and Garside 1995) and from the health sector as a whole. This has been attributed to the professional nature of healthcare, which involves large numbers of autonomous, independent practitioners who often place independence of clinical decision making at the heart of their operating values. (Degeling et al 2003) Recently though, there has been a recognition within the medical profession of the need to drive up standards in healthcare, and to focus on overall quality of care, rather than just direct clinical activity. Included in most definitions of quality is efficiency of healthcare delivery. This focus on efficiency is built on the growing recognition that publicly funded healthcare systems need to be accountable for the expenditure they make. (Donabedian 1988) It is in the context of increased demands for efficiency, increasing burden of chronic disease, and ever increasing expectations from the users of the health services that service improvement tools have started to be implemented on a wider scale than ever before. Systematic approaches to service improvement have been in existence for a long time. Taylor published his Principles of Scientific Management in 1911 after many years of employing what are now known as time and motion studies to various industrial processes. His approach was much criticised for giving too much power to managers, and its use was even banned by the American Senate in defence establishments for relying too heavily on command and control leadership (Mullins 2005a). However, his methods produced great improvements in efficiency, and he made an argument about systems which is still valid today: The remedy for this inefficiency lies in systematic management rather than in searching for some unusual or extraordinary man.(Taylor 1911) Total Quality Management This approach to systematic improvement was developed by Deming during his work with Japanese manufacturers in the aftermath of World War II. He was initially concerned with teaching statistical control methods to Japanese manufacturers to improve efficiency. However, he adjusted his teaching to focus on the process, rather than individual performance, and emphasised the need for good management and a collective push for optimisation. He published his recommendations for industry, government and education, which set out his 14 points for management in the seminal work Out of the Crisis (Deming 1986). TQM is more than a technique or set of tools for improvement, and can be described as a way of life for an organisation as a whole, committed to total customer satisfaction through a continuous process of improvement and involvement of people. (Mullins 2005b) TQM has been utilised in healthcare since the early 1990s, and aspects of it are increasingly being employed today. It is often the tools associated with the approach which are used, rather than the wholesale systems change originally described, and this lack of clarity regarding the true nature of what is called TQM has contributed to a lack of clear evidence of benefit. (Øvretveit and Gustafson 2002) Where the whole package of TQM has been implemented, results have been mixed, but there are numerous examples of where certain elements have shown benefit. The most commonly employed techniques derived from TQM are statistical control methods, and the PDSA cycle. Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) Alongside his work on TQM, Deming is credited as being one of the key proponents of the PDSA (or PDCA) cycle. This cycle of learning, implemented as a quality improvement tool had been taught by Shehwart (1939) whilst Deming was working with him. Deming took this knowledge to Japan and it formed part of his work on TQM (Hossain 2008). The cycle reflects Kolbs learning cycle (1973), and is a tool for testing changes, and reacting to the results. It can be seen as either a standalone tool for change, as part of a larger system of change, or as a key part of a philosophy for wide-scale change across an organisation.(Cleghorn and Headrick 1996) The PDSA cycle consists of four parts: Plan: The objective of the test must be defined, and a method of data collection must be incorporated. Do: The planned change to a process is carried out, with concurrent data collection Study: The data is analysed, compared with predicted outcomes, and a summary of learning is produced. Act: The conclusions from the data are utilised, and used to inform the next plan. The underlying rationale for the PDSA cycle lies in systems theory. Systems theory implies that small scale changes within a system can create large results. The PDSA cycle is useful for testing small changes, and reflecting on the effects before either applying them across a whole system, or making further changes (Berwick 1998). When linked together, PDSA cycles can be used to drive up quality. This approach of multiple linked cycles and this approach of multiple linked PDSA cycles is used in the Model for Improvement, the rapid cycle model of change, and the collaborative approach (Langley et al 2009, 1992; Institute for Healthcare Improvement 2003). In contrast with small PDSA schemes within a team or organisation, the collaborative approach uses multiple PDSA cycles within separate organisations, whilst aiming for improvement in a shared area of care: The PDSA model, when used within the model for improvement, or as a chain of cycles within a single team is a clear, simply understood, but powerful tool for implementing change, and improving quality. Its strength lies in its ability to be applied to small scale changes, but achieve significant results. From an organisational point of view, the relatively small amount of resource which is required to test each hypothesis makes this model very attractive. Processes can be studied with little disruption of everyday activity, and if the results are not favourable, learning can continue without significant loss to the organisation. In clinical processes, the PDSA cycle is an excellent tool for testing hypotheses, especially where evidence may be lacking and inaction seems inappropriate, but action without reflection sees un-wise (Berwick 1998) The smaller, more local focus of PDSA cycles, and small resource requirements make this model particularly accessible to staff of all levels, and as the engagement of frontline staff, and in particular doctors has been shown to be a key factor in the success of change in the healthcare setting, this is a major strength. (Greenhalgh et al 2004 and Øvretveit 2005) The incorporation of the PDSA cycle into wider schemes of change management brings additional complexity, and also invites additional problems. There have been varied results in the implementation of the collaborative approach within healthcare as a service improvement tool. Some studies report great success (Monteleoni and Clark 2004; Schonlau et al 2005) while others (Newton et al 2007) found that there were difficulties using the same model. The major difficulties identified were lack of adequate resources, the conceptual difficulties associated with the model, and poor leadership. A recent review concluded that there is currently no evidence about the long term results or cost effectiveness of collaboratives compared with other models. (Øvretveit 2002). Toyota Production System (TPS) / Lean One approach to service improvement which is being applied with growing enthusiasm within the NHS is Lean. Lean thinking and theory emerged from studies of the manufacturing processes at Toyota. The term was first used in the late 1980s and the approach grew in stature after the publication of The Machine that Changed the World (Womack et al 1990). Lean was not originally a single tool or approach, but instead was a philosophy to which all members of an organisation aligned themselves. This whole systems approach is probably now better recognised at the Toyota Production System (Liker 2003). The success of Lean/TPS has led to a proliferation of schemes which fall under the umbrella of Lean thinking but do not necessarily hold to the original principles. The TPS was developed in the 1950s in Japan, and was first published in English in 1977 by Sugimori et al. The system has been studied extensively, but many organisations, despite implementing the principles behind the TPS, have not achieved the efficiencies and quality that Toyota exhibit. (Spear and Bowen 1999). There have been many attempts to reduce the TPS to a method which can be applied in many settings, but as Sutherland and Bennett (2007) state, such a complex process cannot be adequately documented. They suggest that instead, to understand the system, one must learn from mentors, much like a child learns and forms habits from their parents. Liker (2003) sets out 14 principles of the TPS, but for the purposes of this assignment, three will be examined: 1. The thorough elimination of waste (muda) 2. Jidoka or the primacy of quality 3. Kaizen continuous incremental improvement Ohno (1988) identifies 7 wastes (muda) which should be eliminated from any system. These are: Overproduction production of more than is required for immediate use Delay / Waiting any delay between the end of one process, and the start of another. Unnecessary transportation of materials Overprocessing using more energy than required for a given process, or exceeding the agreed specification Excess inventory any raw materials or work in progress in excess of customer requirements. Motion any unnecessary movement of workers, eg. reaching / stretching. Defects any process or work that results in unacceptable goods These wastes have immediate equivalents in most healthcare settings, and underpin a lot of the efforts in healthcare which are labelled as Lean. From these definitions many techniques for identifying waste have been developed. The NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement (NHSIII) has developed a series of products known as the Productive Series which use the elimination of waste to improve healthcare. The tools used in the productive series are often taken directly from industry (NHSIII 2007), and include some elements which date back as far as the Scientific Methods described by Taylor (1911). Jidoka is defined by Toyota (2010) as automation with a human touch. When applied to a manufacturing context, this emerges as the principle that a process should continue unless a defect is noted. Once that defect has been detected, work should stop until the problem is solved. This principle ensures in manufacturing that if a machine or worker detects a problem, or a process issue, the line is stopped, a solution introduced and, vitally, incorporated into the standard workflow. In this way, the defect should not arise again. The early detection of defects on a production line, and the empowerment of workers to raise the alarm if defects occur also reduces waste. It is unfortunate that, although many principles of the TPS/Lean system are implemented in healthcare, it is often this concern for detecting problems and creating solutions which are incorporated into standard work which fails to be introduced. One reason cited for this area failing to be implemented is that clinical care c annot stop, in in this respect, clinicians feel methods for producing widgets cannot be applied to the art of healing (Wilson et al 2001). There are examples of where this concept has been introduced, into the healthcare environment, with clear evidence of improvements (Ballà © and Rà ©gnier 2007), but a recent paper argues that more could be done (Grout and Toussaint 2010) Kaizen is the culture of continuous, incremental improvements to a system (Imai 1986). This cultural philosophy of scientific experimentation, conducted at the lowest possible level in the organisation, is held up by Spear and Bowen (1999) as one of the key elements of the success of the TPS, and as a key stumbling block for others who seem unable to replicate Toyotas success. This philosophy, combined with other unwritten rules combine to create a community of scientists, who engage in experimentation to solve problems. These problems are often on a small scale, and the process closely follows the PDSA cycle. When this principle of widespread, incremental change is adopted across an organisation, with recognition of the value of tacit knowledge, it is possible for a learning organisation to emerge (Howells 1996). In conclusion, there are many approaches to leadership and service improvement which are being used in the healthcare setting today. Use of an adaptive model, which allows a leader to change management style depending on the team they are leading, and the task in hand, is most appropriate for leaders of modern medical teams, in a large part due to the very flexible nature of the teams involved. The application of industrial quality improvement techniques to healthcare has great potential, and successful trials have been conducted. However, a common feature discussed in analyses of obstacles to implementation is the engagement of medical professionals. Through the use of effective leadership, and engagement of these key stakeholders, it is possible to lay the foundations for a learning organisation. A learning culture which is open to the possibilities of change through quality improvement strategies will ultimately be the most fertile environment in which to implement change for a be tter quality of care.