Assessing The Occupational Competence in the Work Enviroment Essay

C. In carrying out assessment of occupational competence, I would ask myself: How effective was my assessment and feedback? Was there anything I didn’t anticipate? How did I deal with it? What went well? What could I improve? If I had to change anything what would I do differently? I would ask the learner what they intend to do and how they are going to achieve it, get them to tell me what tools they are going to use to get the desired look and why they will be using them, also what products are going to be used (if any). Once they have finished the assessment I will ask them how they think it went and then give them my feedback. My feedback will start with a positive e.g. well done for keeping within the time scale. And then tell them if the assessment was achieved or not and if not how they  could work towards achieving it. I will finish with another positive and setting a new target with a new date. By keeping a reflective journal on my experiences and thoughts it would help me with my future development and give me useful practice in self-evaluation. D. To maintain the currency of own expertise and competence relevant to own role in assessing occupational competence, I will need to keep my knowledge and skills up to date in order for me to be an effective and credible assessor. I will need to maintain continuing professional development and I will have to keep up to date with relevant government legislations, awarding organisation regulations, policies and organisation procedures related to assessment and quality assurance. I will also need to keep up to date with new developments in vocational training and teaching. I will attend further training courses to keep my cpd up to date and keep a log of it. I will attend standardisation meetings to show that I am keeping my assessors qualification up to standard required by the governing bodies. OUTCOME 4 Be able to plan the assessment of occupational competence. B. To plan assessment of occupational competence based on the following methods: Observation of performance in the work environment – I would observe the learner by their performance making sure the criteria is covered. This would be done through one to one with the learner. I would make sure start and finish times were set and make sure the service provided is going to meet the standards requirements. Any documentation would have to be filled in, signed and dated and new targets would be set. Examining products of work – I would check that the work of the learner has been carried out in the correct and professional way and the end result has the desired look and finish. Questioning the learner – I would initially ask the learner what their plan of action is and how they are going to achieve it, if more criteria needed to be met I would ask more questions to give them the opportunity to try and meet the level required. Discussing with the learner – I would make sure the discussions were relevant to the outcomes and assessment criteria, I would discuss the units that need to be covered and how we could use one visit to cover more than one unit (holistic approach). I would also discuss the amount of time needed for the process and dates and times of visits. I would make it clear to the learner what I would expect from them for a competent assessment. Use of others (witness testimony) – As an assessor you would need to be a professional in hairdressing with x number of year’s experience. You would need to be familiar with the national standards and carrying out observations, you would document all that has been observed but could not enter into the candidates log book. Looking at learner statements – The learner would have documented extra evidence. This would be a write up on underpinning questions when a range has not quite been met. This could also be a write up on a hair style that was achieved, explaining how they went about getting the achieved look. Insufficient evidence – If a learner hands back their assignment but has not met the criteria covered, they would be told there was insufficient evidence to complete the assignment. They would be asked to add the required evidence making the assignment achievable. Recognising prior learning – This would be when a learner has completed a unit in another qualification within the set time of the national standards. I would check their certification for proof of this and get the learner to take the test of under pinning knowledge so they would not have to do the same unit again. I would be able to document this in the learners log book with a RPL form, the form would need to be signed and dated from the achieved date on the certificate. C. To plan the assessment of occupational competence to address learner needs and current achievements. In my assessment plan I would identify any specific need that the learner may have e.g. Dyslexia (I would check with the relevant department within the training establishment to see what help could be offered to the learner i.e. extra time given for assignments and written tests). I would then agree the level and extent of their current knowledge and skills. D. In assessment planning meetings wherever possible I will always try to take a holistic approach. If one unit is being taken I would identify how many outcomes and criteria might be met, I would do this by using the assessment methods of: Observation, Examination of products of work and questioning. As an assessor, work to holistic assessment principles will maximise opportunity and save time and cost. If I have arranged to be observed assessing competence, examining products of work and questioning, I could discuss with my assessor whether I could be observed carrying out an assessment planning meeting during the same visit. This could be a follow on planning meeting with a learner who is ready to go on to the next stage of their assessment. Bilingualism Dealing with Bilingualism would first have been established at the initial assessment; the learner’s first language is not English so as an assessor I would have to find the best way of communication. This could be in using an translator (electronically or a dictionary) There would have to be a certain amount of English vocabulary on the learner’s behalf to have been able to pass the testing that is initially done before acceptance of the course. Skills testing A skill testing is a practical observation of a set skill task that has been set by the assessor. The assessor will tell the learner what is required and give the learner a set time to get the task achieved. This can be used to check the learner’s capabilities. MAINTAIN LEGAL AND GOOD PRACTICE REQUIREMENTS WHEN ASSESSING VOCATIONAL SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING UV30566 TRACEY HEARNE OUTCOME 4 To evaluate my own work in carrying out assessment of vocational skills, knowledge and understanding I would ask myself: Did the learner understand what needed to be done to meet the criteria? Was the feedback clear enough for the learner to understand? Were assessments marked and returned within the timescale? By asking myself these questions I can evaluate my own work with the evidence that I have recorded. D. Take part in continuing professional development to ensure current expertise and competence in assessing vocational skill, knowledge and understanding. In taking part of ‘cpd’ this is to keep my knowledge up to date, and to maintain new skills whilst assessing. I need to be able to prove how I have been doing this. I need to show certificates I have gained in courses I have attended. Keep a record of hours worked/shadowed. Made regular visits to relevant websites. (www.habia.org) Reading relevant publications (Hairdressers Journal (HJi). Keeping a log of all my attendance and participation in events and activities will be my record of ‘cpd’.

Proper Role of Government

Describe the government and domestic environment of the country where your company is headquartered, then describe the international environment. Outline what organizations you may be associated with. (Example; WTO, OPEC, etc. ) Examine the 1st  country of International growth you outlined in your 10 year vision. Why did you strategically select that country? In what ways will your company contribute to the foreign country’s economic development? Are there any political concerns associated with expansion into this country? Why or why not? How do you plan to develop a good working relationship with the foreign country?Government Regulation on Media in AmericaPut together a SWOT analysis for your company. (This is considered an exhibit) Put together a PEST Analysis (exhibit) for the country you identified as the country into which your initial global expansion will take place. While maintaining its relationship with the United States, Japan has diversified and expanded ties wi th other nations. Having good relations with its neighbors can be a vital interest. Japan extended significant economic assistance to the Chinese in various modernization projects and supported Chinese membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO). AIG† Japan contains in depth information and data about the company and its operations. The company contains an overview, business description, financial ratios, SWOT analysis, key competitors, key facts, key employees, locations and branches as well as information on products and services. The SWOT analysis the company profile can be crucial for the industry executives and anyone looking to gain a better understanding of the company’s business. So, the SWOT Analysis utilizes a wide range of primary and secondary sources.As learned from reading the chapters and from the PowerPoint slides, SWOT is an abbreviation for the internal Strengths and Weaknesses of a firm and the environmental Opportunities and Treats facing that f irm. SWOT analysis is a widely used technique through which managers create a quick overview of a company’s strategic situation. The technique is based on the traditions that an effective strategy derives from a sound â€Å"fit† between a firm’s internal resources (strengths and weaknesses) and its external situation (opportunities and treats). A good fit maximizes a firm’s strengths and opportunities and minimizes its weaknesses and threats.Accurately applied, this simple assumption has powerful implications for the design of successful strategy. AIG (American International Group) is one of the world’s leading insurance and financial services organizations, with operations in more than 130 countries. With a market capitalization of like $200 billion, AIG is like in the top ten most company in the world. AIG’s subsidiaries are leading providers of retirement services, financial services and asset management around the world. The group was th e second largest insurance group in the world after China Life Insurance.SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) Location| Types of Factor| | Favorable| Unfavorable| Internal| Strength * Global leading provider of financial services * Expanding global reach * Diversified product portfolio and new product development * Corporate advertising and brand building sponsorships| Weaknesses * US residential mortgage market exposure * History of regulatory investigations * Declining cost efficiencies | External | Opportunities * Acquisitions * Growth in asset management industry| Threats * US recession and volatility in financial markets * Industry consolidation|Japan has faced a number of external challenges over the long term, most of which relate to the rising importance of China and the associated threat to Japan's pre-eminent political and economic position in the Asia region. The country's long-term outlook is also strongly influenced by its demographics. Current trends indicate that the rate of decline in the working-age population will outpace that in the population as a whole. On the positive side, in 2021-30 Japan will see an increase in its rate of GDP growth per head to 1. 7% a year, from around 1% a year in the first two decades of the century.Productivity growth will also accelerate in the latter part of the long-term forecast period. The environment has some current issues with the air pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life. Japan is one of the largest consumers of fish and tropical timber. | 2012-20| 2021-30| 2012-30| Growth and productivity (% change; annual av)| Growth of real GDP per head| 1. 5| 1. 7| 1. 6| Growth of real GDP| 1. 0| 1. 0| 1. 0| Labour productivity growth| 1. 9| 1. 8| 1. 8|

Personal Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Personal Leadership - Essay Example It was not enough, so I took a Gallup strength test as well. According to the Gallup strength test (Garcia, 2012) my top five strengths were responsibility, connectedness, belief, restoration and adaptability. I also scored a 36 out of 50 on the emotional intelligence assessment, which showed that I was empathetic and self-aware of my surroundings. My social intelligence assessment also helped me understand that I have the ability to persuade and motivate people. My leadership course made me understand that all strengths have its respective shadows (Northouse, 2014). For example, if I find my strength in my belief, it can also make me narrow-minded and bad opinionated towards the beliefs of others. Moreover, it might also make me start believing in something that holds no true ground. Therefore, all of my strengths have their respective weaknesses that I need to take care of in order to become the best of the leader that I can. My strength of connectedness can also lead me to start thinking too deeply about different matters of life instead of leaving them as it is. I may be responsible but my weakness lets me take on more than necessary responsibilities on my head in order to please and try out others. Similarly, my ability to adapt to situation also causes one of the most difficult weaknesses, my failure to plan on time. The leaders that I have seen in my life have been those that have extraordinary confidence. By observing them I have understood that a leader that has the capacity to lead himself. They are typically capable with their time, their assets, and with their personnel. I accept that gratefulness presupposes obligation. A decent sample of this is the point at which some person drops some change on the ground, I accept that a grateful individual, and thus, a capable individual, will get the change. We have all seen somebody that simply carries on as though they had not in any case perceived

Health of Family Business' Consultant's Report Essay

Health of Family Business' Consultant's Report - Essay Example It took a time to establish a brand name in the competitive market. Still this a room for improvement in the operational and strategic issues and activities. Organizational structure is not clearly defined among the employees. There are no clear-cut hierarchy levels. When there are no managerial levels then defiantly there is a lack of role clarity among the employees. The customer base is segmented into different segments and then company may design different product lines in order to attract any particular segment. The Apparel store do not have a marketing department rather there is only a marketing manager who himself focus on all the marketing demands and then make strategic plans to fulfill that particular demand. Form marketing point of view the Apparel store is doing well as compare to the competitive businesses. Nevertheless, the Store may face certain challenges regarding their financial matters. Overall Zara apparel store is working in a good condition. There is a five-year plan to extend the branch of the Apparel Store in the next cities also. Zara Apparel store should focus on the distribution strategy because the customers are facing certain delivery problems. Zara Apparel Store is a local famous clothing family owned business, working successfully for the past decade in the local operational area. The famous person of the locality started this clothing business in 2001. The store was a small one at the time of inauguration but now the operations are so widen that it covers a major portion of the local market. In the next 5-7 years, the owners have a plan to expand the operational serving area into the near geographical boundaries. The owners of the family owned business Zara Apparel Store have also a planning to make an extension in the product lines of the business. Currently the business is serving a major portion of the customer market by offering desired

Literal Comprehension - Reading Strategies Essay

Literal Comprehension - Reading Strategies - Essay Example Each page and chapter may encompass a tedious load for the student hence command in the subject of discussion is key and rivets a methodological loom involving a number of steps. There is a myriad of textbook reading systems, many of which have three stages in common: a pre-reading stage, a reading stage and a post reading stage. Exposing learners to these systems empowers them to culture a system of critiquing issues, strategic approach to reading and establishing a student centered textbook study system. A proper reading system should entail the learner combing through a given text to unearth its gist. Skimming through the titles and sub headings to decipher issues of uttermost interest, problems highlighted and queries posed. Desist from overemphasis on analysis of pieces. This is encouraged to jumpstart the learners’ innate prowess to overcome torpor and gain impetus for reading. The major discrepancy between an excellent student and poor students is the mode of study. Inadequate students highlight points in textbooks and hope that they will be able to comprehend it later while excellent students use a learning system. A study system enables the student to filter the key ideas under test, and provides a way of settling them through generation of solutions The main difference between good students and poor students is the way they study. Poor students read their textbooks, underline, and hope that the significant points stick in their memories. Good students use a study system. A study system helps you choose the key ideas that are likely to be on a test, and it gives you a way to memorize them. There are many study systems. Some students outline chapters and memorize their outlines. Some students make chapter summaries. But the most efficient study system of all is SQ3R, which stands for Survey, Question, Read, Recite, and Review. SQ3R was designed for textbook reading, and it is

Week eleven forum Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Week eleven forum - Term Paper Example Surrealist desires includes our primordial want for sex, fame, fortune and other instincts which when taken into excess are considered base. Thus, advertising such as the one employed by Carls Jr which is supposed to be a wholesome product has to associate with "sexism" when it used Terry Crews sexy innuendos to communicate subtly that the product is delectable and improve Carls Jr position in the market. The list goes on, employing the same surrealist principle of appealing to our subconscious desires. The approach is so effective that even products that could kill could have patronage. The classic example is the cigarette Marlboro which employs an absurd advertising (before it was banned) under the slogan "Marlboro Country which is really nothing except to depict an Alpha male stature that anyone who will not smoke Marlboro are considered as "others" and therefore inferior, less sexy and

Designating English as the official language of the United States Research Paper

Designating English as the official language of the United States - Research Paper Example More than with the English people, the English language has come to be regarded as synonymous with the American people. There is, in fact, some truth to this. Given how well-regarded the American people are for their general fluency in the English language, it is not altogether surprising that some have begun to consider it as being the USA’s national language. In fact, Feder (2007) has noted how at least 28 American states have come to consider the English language as their official language, while a survey by the US Census Bureau (2007) shows how over 225.5 million American citizens actually regard it as their only language. Another, earlier report from this same source (2000) pegged this number as 231.7 million. Specifically, 86% had been shown to claim the English language as their mother tongue, while 96% attested that they spoke English very well. The remaining 14% whose first language is not the English language serve as proof that while American English is the predomin ant language in the United States, it is far from being the only spoken language there. At the same time, though, the overwhelming majority of fluent English speakers residing in America all but dictated that that particular language would be considered the de facto national language of the United States of America. ... Thanks in part to British trade and colonization, the English language spread not only to America, but also to other parts of the world. The huge British population at the time also helped; by 1921, the then-British Empire was slated to have at least 470 million people – easily a quarter of the entire global population. Since then, both variants of the English language have diverged, evolving and developing on their own. Today, American and British English are said to differ on points including, but not limited to, spelling, grammar, punctuation and expressions. Crystal (1997) has noted that over 66% of all English speakers living worldwide reside in the United States. This being the case, it should no longer be surprising that, as mentioned above, the American variant of the English language has come to be considered as the USA’s de facto national language. That is, while the federal government itself has not issued any directives as to the USA’s national langua ge, 28 out of all 50 states have already adopted American English as their respective official languages. American English is known for possessing greater homogeneity than the variant spoken in England (Lass, 1990), and is mostly rhotic in nature. Certain letters are pronounced and enunciated differently between the two languages, and there are even sounds that are exclusive to one of them. All in all, certain words have begun to be spoken and pronounced differently depending on whether American English or the Queen’s English is being used. Spelling has also been known to deviate between the two variants. Among the most triumphant examples of these are certain words which may or may not be spelled certain letters such as mold/mould, honor/honour, realize/realise, and others. Additionally,

How E-Commerce Began Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

How E-Commerce Began - Essay Example It could share business information ranging from shipment to invoices. In 1979, Americans came up with a system ASC X 12. It shared business information on the electronic network platforms. In 1980s, institutions and firms used USENET networks and transmission control protocol & internet protocol (TCP/IP). It involved the use of a computer terminal and packet-switched technology to connect modems and internet. Later in 1980s, a computer service firm provided e-mail and chat room services to its clients. In 1990, researchers from European Organization for Nuclear initiated a web-based tool referred to as hypertext that could through a web browser (Marc, 2004, p. 10). Technological advancement and internet popularity among businesses took center stage in 1994, when HTTP security protocols came operational. It enabled fast and persistent access to the internet. In the year 2000, several business companies in the western world had their representation on the World Wide Web (www). It was a year when business used e-commerce as the purchase and sale of services and goods via the internet. The set back e-commerce encountered was on the fall out of dot-com whereby many businesses vanished on the web. However, other companies and retailers saw the importance of e-commerce and immediately put their presence on the web. By 2005, a large platform of e-commerce in the form of business-to-business and business- to -consumer had a turnover of more than 700 billion dollars (Alan & Steven, 2001). E-commerce is pivotal in today’s digital world; consumers can get a range of products swiftly and comparing prices at a click of a mouse. Internet provides a platform for consumers without expensive campaign. Internet companies like EBay and Amazon enjoy transactions on the net. Nevertheless, what are the drivers that make e-commerce a success? To date, companies use e-commerce to lower operating costs and increase revenue in

E-Marketing Strategy-Business Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

E-Marketing Strategy-Business Report - Essay Example This means heavy investments in inventory and maintenance of the stores. Naturally this makes the end product costlier. In the second model there is no need for an inventory and shipments can be made from the factory maintained central warehouse or other distribution points at lower cost. This is essentially E-Marketing that is less expensive and has a greater reach. Online business has also become a trend with customers preferring this mode for ease of access and ease of payment. Electronic market places allow companies to present their firm and their products on a especially dedicated internet platform. They offer public authorities the possibility to get an overview of the market. Simple forms of electronic market places could be compared with electronic business directories. Combined with an e-catalogue electronic market places can also become a platform that allows public authorities to order products. It is thought that extending business online just means launching a website about the products and/or services of the company. However a successful e-marketing initiative for extending business online the behaviour of the target audience is important. The design of the website has to be appealing; the Content needs to be useful, Search Engine Optimization are necessary for quick access and the features and technology deployed should be easy to use. Once the site is up and running several strategies are to be executed to drive traffic to the site regularly such as; linking with other sites, advertising where necessary, submitting to search engines, etc. Last but not the least there is need to maintain updated and relevant information on the site to retain the interest and loyalty of the customers. E-commerce, although an integral part of extending business in this century, is not something that can be achieved without devoting a decent amount of time and effort. And unless executed with expertise, it is likely to flounder in the abyss of cyber space.

Employment Communication Essay Example for Free

Employment Communication Essay Employment communication is the communication between employees in an organization which is said to be the most essential aspect that should be put into consideration for a better coordination among the taskforces within an organization, this means that the employees are put in a position to communicate with their employers either in a formal way or informal way to pass information. Through this the employees are enabled to express their grievances, health matters, working environment and legal matters through communication to their employers. A healthy and supportive work environment is found to be the most crucial factor in creating robust employment relationships. Discussion Individuals with strong employment relationships tend to have helpful and friendly co-workers, interesting work, assess their workplace as both healthy and safe, are supported in balancing work with their personal life, and have reasonable job demands. High levels of employee trust and commitment are linked to perceptions that their employer cares about them. If the employees are not satisfied with these aspects then they can call for a meeting with the managerial personnel and this is said to be a formal way of communicating with the authority. (Palmer and Akin, 2006) Communication is also used in the delivering of the resources needed to do the job well this can be done through the provision of training, equipment and information thus indicating to employees the firm’s commitment to employees needs who therefore required to accomplish their tasks. Resources are also likely to make workloads more manageable and enable workers to be more productive in their duties. Through training one can communicate to the employees on what is expected to be done to accomplish their tasks and the policies required to accomplish all tasks. (Dale, 2001) Employment relationships clearly matter for individuals and employers. The strong employment relationships positively influence job satisfaction, skill use and development, workplace morale, and worker absenteeism. In general, strong employment relationships contribute to the quality of work life and the performance of the organization to be of high esteem. On the other hand, perceived problems with pay and job security are more important influences on willingness to work effectively than it is for the strength of employment relationships (Palmer and Akin, 2006) Strong employment communication is associated with the more effective use of human resources and skills. The employees who have strong employment communication have more opportunities in their job to develop and use their skills and abilities in a free environment that they have ways of expressing their thoughts and feelings. This supports the creation of human capital that is so important for both individual well being and healthy organizations goals. . (Yeung, 1997) In this case we find that this communication is usually affected by many factors such as the organizational change which is said to may affect the employees negatively bringing up informal way of expressing their disapproval. Downsizing and restructuring are associated with reduced levels of trust, commitment, communications and worker influence. The employees may down their tools in protest or may also resist change through strike. The changes should be effectively communicated before they are put in place so that the employees are not caught unaware of the changes being effected. Employers or the authority should take charge to convince the employers on the benefits the changes will put in place from the existing organization structure, policies and procedures. (Yeung, 1997) Conclusion There are several ways to address this communication problems being experienced between the employers and employees, but first we have to create an employment relationship that addresses this issues. Employment relationships must be created so that communication is enhanced. The strength of employment relationships matters for individuals. This puts trust, commitment, communication and influence on their list of job selection criteria hence there is not much that individual workers can do short of changing employers or becoming self employed to improve their work environment. Those employees in weak employment relationships desire better communication fairness, respect, recognition, and a more supportive work environment. They also need more opportunities for meaningful input and participation. These are the issues they want employers to address first. The employers have no doubt that creating a supportive and healthy work environment nurtures positive employment relationships. This entails looking into the physical, social and psychological aspects of the workplace everything from workloads to respect and the resources needed to do an effective job. The most important issue is how the work is organized. Trust is associated with restructuring and downsizing also low levels of commitment. Most workplaces are organized to give more scope for participation so as to have stronger employment relationships. The content of the job is also an important issue especially providing skilled and interesting tasks so that the goals of the organization can be effectively communicated. Policies and measures should be put in place to address this communication issues so that the employee’s grievances or conditions can be addresses at ease. With policies the employee’s issues will certainly reach to their employers who will know how to address them than going to extreme reactions like calling for strikes or the workers having to lay down tools. The strict consequences or measures put in place will also prevent them from resolving the issues in a violent way but do it in a formal way. For example employees may face a sack from work if he goes contrary to this ways of addressing the issues. A relational perspective on work points toward the goal of creating cohesive, prosperous, and personally supportive workplaces and communities through effective communication means. We can therefore conclude that defining characteristics of a good job, the qualities of trust, commitment, communication and influence is important means for employment relationship between the employer and his employee. Thus both formal and informal ways should be set up to ease communication and flow of information in employment is an organization or business.

Group Packaged Tours And Individual Tours Tourism Essay

Group Packaged Tours And Individual Tours Tourism Essay In the recent past, the world has been through a fast paced transformation of lifestyle and preferences. This has been marked by tremendous changes in the way people spend on leisure and recreation especially on tourism. Likewise, many economies have been facing hard economic times forcing creativity and cost saving strategies to take toll in the delivery of goods and services. Specifically, tourism is a very ancient activity which ranges from field executions, adventure tours, special-interest tours, regional or city tours, fully escorted tours and group tours (Fay, 2002). Despite all these forms of tourism, harsh economic times have led to emergence of package tours which are holidays where a variety of services are paid for once and for all. Basically the costs are inclusive of all necessities that a person on voyage may find essential. Such tour packages come with services such as accommodation, transport, tour guides, insurance, transfer costs between sites, entrance fees paid t o warders at scenic attraction sites, tickets to events and meals. The costs also vary depending on time schedules or number of days to be spends on tour sites, ability and willingness to pay for the goods and services. To this end we discover that tourism is a recreation activity which is conducted at a persons convenience therefore it is a leisure activity. Tourism being a leisure activity, it is worth noting that over a short time frame the consumer behavior is bound to be irregular pegging on the fact that expenditure on recreation is seasonal if not cyclic. In this paper, there is need to establish fundamental differences between group packaged and individual tours, their merits and demerits, and finally try to integrate the two forms of tourism for the sake of saving costs. Consumer behavior entails the study of processes used by individuals, organizations and groups of buyers to acquire and dispose services, products, goods, ideas or experiences in order to satisfy human wants. Human wants are psychological therefore buyers are guided by social anthropology as well as economics. Through the study of consumer behavior, marketing managers are better placed to make subtle decisions regarding market segments they wish to exploit. In addition, comprehending the behavior pattern of customers will fashion strategic managers with essential data necessary to facilitate decision making. This research is double faced since it provides comparisons between group tours and individual tours while at the same time exploring strengths and possible bottlenecks associated with both forms of tourism. In a nutshell fundamental elements of individual consumers are brought to light since they are dictated by behavior variables and demographics. In the end, the research will establish if the psychology of a consumers is dependent on friends, family, society, class or reference groups. The behavior of customers is so dynamic since buyers patterns are literally unpredictable, it therefore requires a distinction in the roles played by consumers ranging from being a payer, a user or a buyer of a product. By so doing a researcher will have an easy time predicting consumer patterns of clients and establishing relationship marketing techniques; this is a very powerful asset used in the analysis of consumer behavior because it establishes a keen interest in redefining the meaning of marketing. On the other hand relationship marketing emphasizes on the need for rediscovering customers while placing a greater importance on the need to retain current customers, manage customer relationships, customize and personalize a one to one marketing approach. Tour Packages and their Applicability to Consumer Behavior Today there are many types of tourism packages basing on the suitability, convenience, cost and affordability. Researchers have established that these many packages have emanated from the need for service providers to meet the varied desires and needs of customers. Tour agents and brokers find it prudent to design various packages and assign them with respective cost element which makes these packages affordable depending on the willingness of the customers to spend. While other customers will want a customized and economic tour package, extravagant or fun loving customers will prefer a prestigious treatment during their voyage. The packages can be broken down further into; first, special interest tours which are excursion focused on a specific area of interest for instance sports, arts, agriculture, and culture (Wang Hsieh Huan, 2000). Secondly, adventure tours which are sight sees designed to encourage customer participation for a period of time that has been agreed upon by the tour agents. It is based on the customers gaining firsthand experience of the trip depending on their physical capabilities. This package is more enjoyable if practiced in groups since it entails physical activities thus encouraging bonding and socialization. Examples are mountain climbing, diving, skiing, diving and cycling (Solomon, 2004). Thirdly, there are regional or city tours. They last for a span of one day within which the tour participants have to visit areas of interest within specific places in the city. The places visited could be religious, cultural, and historical and the tour agents have to provide the tourists with meals and refreshments as stated in the package agreement. Down the list is group tours which follow a pre-arranged or fixed schedule. This type of a tour is specific on the number of participants required making it very tricky for the organizers to establish the needs of each and every customer in the group. On the other hand, tour agents would want to capitalize on the large numbers in order to increase their profit margins or else they might go at a loss for entangling themselves in unprofitable group tour arrangements. The number of people in a group will definitely be limited to the mode of transport being used and availability of accommodation facilities. It also entails accompaniment by tour guides who may divide the groups into sub groups to ease movement and save on time which is a cost determinant. Finally is the fully escorted tour where a traveler is offered security by a specialized security firm. It is an expensive type of tour since it entails offering of personalized services for instance security against hostility since most of these tour packages are educational in nature, the tour guides or escorts are more often than not authentic inhabitants of a place (Shell, 2009). They are therefore equipped with knowledge on history and cultures making them expensive. On the other hand they are very resourceful making them a preferred choice for the lovers of fully escorted tours. The consumer behavior under each of this classification is very unpredictable because most of the customers decisions is influenced by affordability, family, culture and above all, by the spirit of adventure. Methodology According to secondary data collected by a group of consumer behavior analysts; eight people were sampled basing on the social welfare function and assumptions of anonymity, decisiveness, anonymity, neutrality, monotonicity, homogeneity, unanimity and Pareto optimality (Schwartz, 2004). The results collected by this group of researchers will be helpful in elucidating the main points on consumer behavior analysis. With the understanding that marketing is a special program designed by an organization to satisfying customers needs, the productive system employed by tourist firms is regulated beginning from production levels in such a way that it will market services offered by the firm and increase profitability. The marketing managers often design strategies that maximize on revenues while cutting down on costs and expenditures. In the research it was discovered that tour agents dealing in group package tour enjoy economies of scale because they pay for services in bulk. Likewise a strategic manager could conduct a parallel research similar to that undertaken by consumer analysts in Hong Kong. The research could emphasize on the comparison of the stimulus listed in the consumer behavior black box model shown below (Schiffman Kanuk, 2007). In considering the stimulus listed in the black box model, it will act as a research tool or a guided questionnaire which limits the researcher on the scale of coverage in terms of establishing consumer behavior in relation to tourism and the motive behind how consumers spend their incomes leisure and recreation. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS BUYERS BLACK BOX Marketing Stimuli Environmental stimuli Buyer Characteristics Decision process Buyers response Product Price Place Promotion Economic Technological Political Cultural Demographic Natural Attitudes Motivation Perceptions Personality Lifestyle Knowledge Problem recognition Information search Alternative evaluation Purchase decision Post-purchase behavior Product choice Brand choice Dealer choice Purchase timing Purchase amount A diagrammatic representation of the black box model (Foxall, 2005) The model shown above identifies the interaction between stimuli, decision processes, consumer characteristics and responses as portrayed by consumers during the research. Using the model, consumer behaviors can be noted depending on the stimuli for instance interpersonal and intrapersonal stimuli. The model is a reflection of the black box theory which attempts to explain behavior of consumers in service related industries such that marketing managers use these stimuli to draw relationships between them and consumer response (Kuester, 2012). In addition the black box model encloses buyers psychology and characteristics which are the main determinants of consumer responsiveness. Under this section, the researcher established that tourists are driven by conscious judgment of the both group package and individual tours hence establishing a fair ground for rational decision making. Findings As it was reported by Heung Chu (2000) in a Chinese Journal; Important factors affecting Hong Kong consumers choice of a travel agency for all-inclusive package tour, a sample research was conducted in Hong Kong which is a very big city boasting of being among the best metropolitan cities in the world. Although the sample population of one city cannot be a representative of the consumer patterns portrayed by tourism industries around the world, it would be wise to use the report on Hong Kong since the city is fast paced and employees get exhausted due to long working hours with little time to rest. Given such working environments, employees get some times-off to relax (LeBlanc, 2002). It was established that most people prefer all inclusive group package tours to individual tours. The services are provided by tourism agencies that can be found through online platforms such as company websites. According to the findings collected using an open ended questionnaire it was discovered th at tourists have different needs and expectations. The needs could be ranked in a descending chronology starting with price, itinerary, accommodations, meals, transportation, departure date and time, hotel facilities, reputation and last on the list is brand of travel agency. The needs portrayed by the consumers influence how customers purchase packages for their tours. The group of consumer behavior analysts observed that out of the eight customers that were sampled from Hong Kong city to fill in the questionnaires, six of them identified price to be the number one determinant of consumer behavior. It therefore becomes evident that customer needs are limited by the size of their wallets hence some customers may prefer going for a group package tour rather than individual tour not because they desire to but because they are limited by their income or budget. This is where the need for integrating group package tours with individual tours so as to satisfy customers who have a desire of individual tour but want to also look for the benefit of lower price and lower hassle which group packaged tour could offer. It is after prices have been considered that other factors in the needs bracket are made too surface which means that they are not as essential as price factors. Only four correspondents stated to care about the itinerary drafted by the travel ag ents. On the same note four other customers supported accommodation mattered while touring because they could opt for adventure group package tours so that they can pitch tents in the wild and spend the night in company of other tourists (Heung Chu, 2000). Only three people considered modes of transportation as a determinant in deciding between group package and individual tour. They stated reasons such as maintaining their reputation and class which makes it evident enough that in our situation, transportation is but a secondary determinant in determining customer behaviors. Moving down with our analysis on the needs of customers and how it determines their selection of a suitable tour package, it becomes imminent that only one person would have issues with hotel facilities. The customer in question is after luxurious offers which can be best offered by under the fully escorted individual tour package since they can proffer spa and hot spring services which is a luxury. The main factor behind these findings is that customers have varied attitudes, motivations and perceptions and this influences their tour consumption behavior. Pros of Group Package Tours Group package tours are cost saving because they travel agencies buy the packages in bulk therefore they can compete for services in the tourism industry for instance hotels and scenic site. In addition, the agencies enjoy economies of large scale or impulsive buying of packages thus their rates can be discounted or subsidized (Dellaert Ettema Lindh, 1998). The benefits can trickle down to customers through subsidized prices. The same effect is spread to meals making them affordable. Secondly, the operators take the bigger part of responsibility that could otherwise have been passed on to the tourist in the case of individual tour. In the event that something goes amiss then the operators or agencies involved will be charged with the responsibility of solving problems on behalf of the tourists. Group package tours are time saving and convenient since the agents deal with making travel and accommodation arrangements. This saves on time an individual tourist could spend putting in place orders and booking appointments with several services providers. From the outward aspect people traveling in groups will socialize along the way. Besides, people traveling in groups are assured of quality since tour operators have specialized in analyzing customer behavior hence they are away of tour companies offering best services and they are able to establish areas that would be fascinating to the tourists. Some advantages will also be accrued by the travel agents who take the initiative of organizing group package tours at affordable rates. Agents get paid 10% commissions for their job. Cons of Group Package Tours To some extent, group package tours are inflexible because tourists have to follow a given schedule and wait for schedules regarding travel, because it entails a collection of many people. Also, travel agents find it tricky to organize and control groups especially during off peak seasons when the number of people willing to go on tours is below breakeven point. The operators may also be faced with challenges beyond their control but they will have to bear the brunt of angry group tourists who might not be willing to understand. Pros of Individual Tours Some countries attach a more personal touch to tourists using individual tour option. China is an example of a country where individual tours are cheaper and a ticket to receiving special treatment such as personal care, sense of control, handy services and time flexibility (Engel Blackwell, 2006). Moreover, a tourist opting for private tours is bound to enjoy flexibility of schedules since he or she could have the opportunity of doing exactly what they want to do unlike in a group tour where everything is fixed and hard to negotiate. In addition, a family with children should think of using private or individual tour since the parents can plan events that will be perceived relevant to both age groups involved. Cons of Individual Tours Private tours are expensive in relation to group packaged tours because of the bulk involved. Whereas the latter enjoys economies of large scale buying of goods and services, the former has to go through the hustle of paying for each and every individual services hence it is expensive. Conclusion From the above comparisons the research established that consumer behavior is key in weighing the best option between group packaged tours and individual tours (Kotler Bowen Makens, 2003). To find the best alternative to integrate individual and group package tours, then agents will have to work out a strategy that will work to the advantage of both groups. This means that an agent may have to prepare new rates and schedules which allow tourists interested in having a taste of both travel and tour arrangements gain maximum benefits from both arrangements. It would be prudent for the costs to be the average of individual tour costs and that of group packaged tours. Therefore a person undertaking the third option should be ready to incur costs at a personal level. The agents will also be responsible for providing only the services agreed upon while neglecting the other services at the expense of the tourist. For instance, assuming someone was interested in the integrated option, he or she will be free from the scheduled group tours thus this will be the perfect opportunity to visit places of ones choice. Under the integrated option, the tourist will have to be pay consult with the travel agent for transport, insurance and accommodation services so that they enjoy subsidized group rates whereas they can determine places to visit on their own while paying for entry fees. The integrated option would be the best option for customers who want to satisfy the desire for individual tour but want to also look for the benefit of lower price and lower hassle which group packaged tour could offer. Practical Application of the Research Much weight of this paper is laid on the aspect of analyzing consumer behavior in relation to tourism and recreation industry. It is based on updated and current information relating the current state to tourism statistics. It lays out a learning outcome fashioned with knowledge on factors influencing buyer behavior. This information is essential to a marketing manager who may be interested in studying the consumer behavior in the tourism and recreation industry for the sake of control management of future forecasting. The study emphasizes that theories of motivation are very applicable in influencing customer behavior towards liking for any of the two forms of tours; group package tour and individual tours (Deaton Muellbauer, 2008). Most customers are guided by motivation which inevitably implies that tourists have a liking for fascination and nature. A strategic manager in conjunction with the marketing manager should strive at using advertisements to create psychographics in the minds of the consumers. All this can be done in a bid to influence or motivate customers into anticipating for such a tour. Travel agents would major their advertisements towards making people to appreciate group packaged tours so as to win a certain segment of the consumer market. In short a manager who approaches the market with caution and intensive analysis of consumer needs will understand the psychology that guide decision making in tourists and capitalize on it during peak seasons. A manager may therefore make us e of Maslows hierarchy of needs to deterring the social class and consequently the motivation behind customers selection among the two classes of tourism. Looking at this report from the customers point of view, a customer who reads this report is bound to justify why he or she tends to behave in a certain way. Mostly, a travel agent will want to create advertisements that motivate customers by driving their instincts into wanting to visit a place, regretting a certain events, nostalgia or fantasies. All this are suitable strategies that can be molded into an individuals perception of holidays. On the other hand, this report may consumer educate consumers on the decision buying process applicable in the tourism industry. According to Burke Resnuk (2001), the stages start with arousal or recognition of need, it then develops into a nagging interest or want, the customer then identifies an alternative assessment of substitute decision choices. These stages finally induce a customer into either group packaged or individual tours.

The Problem of Teen Alcoholism in the United States Essay -- Drinking

From pastures to unsupervised blowouts at home, the social calendars of most teens are full of alcohol. Other drugs rise and fall in popularity from generation to generation, but alcohol never really goes out of style. From being worshiped by the ancient Babylonians to being forbidden to teenagers, alcohol has caused many problems. Today, drinking is the drug of choice by teens and causes most wrecks and deaths today. To understand alcohol people must first know the history of alcohol, the effects of teen drinking, and the solutions to teen drinking.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alcohol has been all around the world for centuries and has become a custom of people all over. No one knows for sure who discovered alcohol, but we know how different types of alcohol are made. Just as well, no know knows when alcohol was discovered. There are no records of the discovery or discoverers of alcohol. Although historians do know alcohol ?was used by primitive people and recorded as early as 10,000 years ago in the Neolithic period and by European civilization?(Milgram 22). As early as 5000 B.C., the ancient Babylonians brewed, the process of making beer, their beer in religious temples because it was considered a gift from God. Beer is an alcoholic beverage made by fermentation of cereal grains such as, wheat, rye, corn, or barley; beer contains 3 to 6 percent alcohol. Besides the ancient Babylonians, the ancient Egyptians drank beer. The Egyptians called their beer hek, which was made from barley bread. The bread was crumbled into jars, covered with water, and allowed to ferment. The Egyptian pharaohs blessed this beer in the honor of the goddess of nature, Isis. Egyptians handed out free jugs of beer to peasant workers, and by no surprise drunkenness was a common problem in ancient Egypt (Nielsen 13).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The strongest alcohol drinks are called liquors or spirits. An Arabian alchemist named Geber discovered liquor in the eighteenth century A.D. Geber made liquor by distillation, burning away the impurities that formed in wine during fermentation and isolated the remaining liquids. As a result, the concentrated liquid had a higher alcoholic content, which was ?mainly flavored alcohol and water?(Milgram 65). Arnaud de Villanueva discovered liquor in Europe 500 years later, when he made brandy. Arnaud claimed that brandy would cure all humanity?s diseases, prolong life, maintain youth, a... ...o 21 in Mexico and Canada, it would help cut down on teenage drinking. Everyday teenagers drink, despite the many dangers and risks that they are taking every time they drink. Throughout history and probably in the future, alcohol will be the leading drug of choice for teenagers. On the other hand, teenagers in turn are becoming better educated about themselves and the risk of alcohol. Work Cited ?Alcohol Education Program For Minors.? Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 1994. Mothers Against Drunk Drivers. Drinking Driving and Other Drugs. Homepage. 20 June 2001. Milgram, Gail. Coping with Alcohol. New York: The Boston Publishing   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Group1987. NCADD. Youth, Alcohol, and Other Drugs. Homepage. 20 June 2001.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ?Net Biz Mentor.? Underage Drinking. Homepage. 20 June 2001.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nielson, Nancy. Teen Alcoholism. San Diego: Lucent Books, Inc., 1990. O?Brien, Robert, Morris Chafetz, Sidney Cohen. Understanding Alcohol And Other Drugs. Vol. 1. New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1999.

Philosophy of Music Education Essay -- Music Instrumental Essays

Philosophy of Music Education Music is a basic part of everyday life. What makes music unique is its ability to create an emotional response in a person. A music education program should develop the aesthetic experience of every student to its highest potential. Aesthetics is the study of the relationship of art to the human senses. Intelligence exists in several areas, which includes music. The concept of aesthetics allows us to see into ourselves, which in turn helps the development of the intelligences. Not only are these intelligences brought up greatly in music education, but they can be transferred to other areas as well, allowing students to grow more through their other subjects. My philosophy of music education is committed to offering a comprehensive program of Music Education to all students, at all levels who want to participate in musical study. The emphasis will be upon daily music education as it is developed in the classroom, through performance, and in the belief that students best learn to understand and appreciate music by active involvement in music. The job of a music educator is to foster an environment where everyone can succeed in music. Students have the ability to grow and to be a part of a team through their participation in group activities. We must encourage the growth of students within our music education program, not just as musicians but also as individuals.Instrumental Music For Special Learners This article ...

American News Media

Being two of the top newspaper publications in United States, New York Times and the Washington Post have been maintaining such competition through the years that evermore raises the quality of American journalism. Raising the bar can have fatal consequences as this requires an even greater pressure, and involves politicking among themselves and their contenders not to mention maintaining its integrity as institutions.This is a fact that the major media companies are aware of, and therefore take such precautions to avoid them damage and at the same time bring them profits and glory. Being representatives of the most powerful country in the whole world, they can easily become prey to the critics as they are constantly being examined under the microscope. And this is when the media’s generals take their positions in the field, taking whatever risks to gain them the lead. The Washington Post’s story on the Watergate Scandal is probably one of the best investigative stories in the recent decades.It was the story that would have not been published without the blessing of its executive editor Benjamin Bradlee who chose to oversee the investigations being run by his writers Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein rather than stay away from the dangers and pressure brought about by the frenzied situation. His trust on the amount of impact of the story won him the gamble. The evidences dug in the story later on contributed to President Nixon’s eventual resignation.After three more decades came the tragedy that shook the world- and the moment the New York Time’s executive editor Howell Raines had been waiting for, successfully commandeering his team of journalist amid the chaos of the September 11 bombing. The stirring portraits and stories of the publication delivered a powerful emotional blow to its readers across the country and helped shape the people’s minds in supporting Bush’s war against terror as they believe that it will bring justice to the dreadful acts of the country’s enemies.His aggressive leadership has brought many changes in the organization despite the criticisms he had received. These are only two of the cases of media’s great battles won, two of the battles that will not have been won without the fortitude and confidence of Bradlee and Raines, for otherwise America will have been seeing a different picture. Today, there has been a growing number of critics since Bush’s failing war on terror with accusations that the media is being used by Bush to spread his propaganda.The public watches and waits for the media’s next move as it enters a new stage. It has also been very influential in the last few decades since the advent of cable television and the internet which allowed them to serve a wider range of audiences and sequentially earn them more profits. It involves itself with war, controversies, scandals, clashes in political beliefs, religion and all the other things vital to people just to be able to deliver what the people need to know that journalists are sometimes even dubbed ‘muckrakers’.The Watergate scandal is probably one of the most unforgettable triumphs of American news media when the investigative reportage from Washington Post’s Woodward and Bernstein triggered public outbursts which largely contributed to President Nixon’s resignation. It proudly displayed its power and steadfastness to America and to the rest of the world. And it is these media’s capabilities that make it one of the most successful industries in America, earning billions of dollars per annum from advertisements alone.But their prominence nonetheless comes with a price. And such sentiments are a lot common nowadays since Bush failed to capture Osama Bin Laden in Al Qaeda followed by his unpopular war in Iraq. Although media has played a large part in both these wars, people still remain skeptical on its real agenda. Most people be lieve that the media is only being used for propaganda.First, it should have been able to expose the truth and determine if Iraq was indeed capable of manufacturing weapons of mass destruction. It is quite arguable if media should even be blamed for it, for the people might simply be too disillusioned to even consider media’s side. American media is being put under more pressure as Bush also struggles to answer every question on why he failed, why he continues to fail and what he will do to avoid future mishaps.

Paper VS Electronic Media Essay

Paper vs. Electronic Media: Work Efficiency and Environmental Impact Hirohito Shibata; Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd., 6-1 Minatomirai, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 220-8668, Japan Abstract Table 1. CO2 emissions per unit quantity for each product This presentation quantitatively compares paper and  electronic media from the perspectives of CO2 emissions and work efficiency. Should we reject paper out of hand based on  environmental considerations? Can electronic reading devices replace paper books for leisure and work? I discuss these issues based on various analyses and experiments. Product Introduction Although the paperless office has been repeatedly dismissed  as a myth [1], since 2008, the consumption of office paper in Japan has actually declined. With the advent of electronic reading devices such as Apple’s iPad and the Amazon Kindle, the idea of the paperless office is back in the spotlight. How seriously should we take this second coming of the paperless office? What will happen to paper? What are the relative merits of paper and electronic media? My colleagues and I at Fuji Xerox are currently at work on a research project that seeks to answer these questions. This presentation consists of two parts. The first part  compares paper to electronic media from an environmental  perspective, comparing CO2 emissions generated by paper vs. electronic media (e.g., computer displays, projectors) for reading or reference work. I also compare work efficiency for paper vs. computer displays. The second part compares paper books and  electronic reading devices (e.g., iPad, Kindle) and discusses whether  electronic books might actually take the place of paper books. This paper is a brief report and addresses only the results of these specific analyses and experiments. Standard PC Specifications Desktop High-Performance Desktop PC 17-inch Display 19-inch Display Notebook PC Projector Printer CPU: Intel Core Memory: Less than 4GB CPU: Intel Core Memory: More than 4GB TFT TFT Resolution: More than 1290Ãâ€"800 Electro Photo A3 Printers CO2 emissions per unit quantity 49.60 g/hour 98.42 g/hour 23.36 g/hour 26.34 g/hour 27.59 g/hour 163.58 g/hour 2.58 g/sheet Environmental Impact: Paper vs. Computer Displays CO2 Emissions Table 1 presents CO2 emissions per unit quantity for each  product. This data is based on figures for life cycle CO2 emissions for each product obtained in November 2010 from the website of the Japan Environmental Management Association for Industry [2]. Figure 1 compares CO2 emissions associated with each medium when reading an eight-page document. Reading from  paper generates CO2 emissions only at the time the document is printed. In this case, the hours spent reading do not affect CO2 emissions. On the other hand, when we read from displays, CO2 emissions increase in proportion to the time spent reading. For extended reading sessions, CO2 emissions tend to be lower for paper; for reading many short documents, CO2 emissions tend to be lower with computer displays. NIP 27 and Digital Fabrication 2011 Figure 1. CO2 emissions associated with reading Figure 2 compares CO2 emissions for each medium for the case of a ten-page document shared in a meeting. If we deliver this document on paper, CO2 emissions increase in proportion to the number of individuals attending. If we use a projector and a single notebook PC, the number of participants doesn’t affect CO2 emissions. In general, if we are sharing documents for a large meeting, CO2 emissions are lower when we use  projectors than when we distribute on paper. When we share short documents in small groups of two or three, CO2 emissions tend to be lower when we distribute documents on paper. Technical Program and Proceedings 7 of key words in text when using paper and when using computer displays. Reading from paper was 6.8% faster than reading from displays. There was no significant difference between the media in the recognition test of key words. Paper allows faster reading without loss of understanding. Figure 2. CO2 emissions associated with meeting documents Work Efficiency The analyses of the previous section assume equal work efficiency for all media. However, efficiency may actually vary with different media. Lower work efficiency means longer  working hours, which in turn can mean higher CO2 emissions,  since elements of the workplace infrastructure (e.g., ventilation and lighting) need to run longer. I’ll describe three experiments that compare reading performance for each medium. The first experiment examines how different media affect  proofreading when the goal is to detect contextual errors. Figure 3 presents reading speed and percentage of errors detected when using paper vs. computer displays. Reading from paper was 11.9% faster than reading from the displays. There was no significant difference between media in percentage of errors detected. Figure 3. Reading speed and the percentage of errors detected in proofreading to detect contextual errors (N = 20) Figure 4. Reading speed and scores for a recognition test of key words when reading with frequent page turning (N = 18) The third experiment involved cross-reference reading for  multiple documents [4]. Figure 5 compares reading speed and  percentage of errors detected when using paper vs. computer  displays. Reading from the paper was 23.2% faster than reading from displays. Moreover, more errors were detected (a difference of 11.5%) with paper than with computer displays. In both speed and accuracy, paper was superior to displays in cross-reference reading. Figure 5. Reading speed and the percentage of errors detected in crossreference reading for multiple documents (N = 24) The second experiment looked at reading when the task  required frequent switching back and forth between pages [3]. Figure 4 compares reading speed and scores for a recognition test 8  ©2011 Society for Imaging Science and Technology Discussion Comparisons of CO2 emissions from paper and electronic  media indicate that the nature of a task determines which is more eco-friendly. The three experiments here point to the superiority of paper for different reading tasks: proofreading, reading with frequent movement back and forth between pages, and crossreference reading for multiple documents. Clearly, this is hardly an exhaustive listing of all tasks that involve reading. Still, the results suggest paperless work is not always the most eco-friendly work style. Paper should not be rejected out of hand on environmental grounds. Rather, we should select paper or electronic media depending on the specific task. Figure 7 compares task completion times and accuracy  (percentage of correct answers) for each medium in an experiment involving  scanning a manual to find answers. Subjects performed this task 38.6% faster with the paper book than with the iPad and 60.2% faster than with the Kindle. Of the five media, paper books were fastest for scanning text for answers. Work Efficiency: Paper vs. Electronic Reading Devices Reading fiction As a typical example of reading for leisure, I evaluated  electronic reading devices such as iPad and Kindle for reading fiction. Figure 6 shows reading speed with a paper book, an iPad, a Kindle, and a notebook PC. For reading that did not involve  moving from one page to the next, I found no significant  difference in reading speed among the four media. For reading that required page turns, I found that reading from the iPad was as fast as reading from paper books, but that reading from the Kindle was slower than reading from paper books. This suggests that the iPad is just as suited as paper books for tasks like reading fiction. Figure 7. Completion time and percentage of correct answers when scanning text to locate answers to questions (N = 20) Discussion Figure 6. Reading speed: Paper book vs. electronic media (N = 26) For reading fiction, our experiment showed iPads and paper  books offered equal reading speed for reading with and without page turns. This suggests that the current generation of electronic reading devices is perfectly suitable for reading for leisure, at least from the perspective of efficiency. Clearly, other factors such as cost, weight, and design will also determine whether such devices gain widespread acceptance for this purpose. Paper books proved the fastest of all five media in the  experiment involving scanning text to find answers to questions, the reading task ranked as the second most common in the study by Adler et al. Moreover, as discussed above, the current  generation of electronic reading devices remains poorly suited for cross-reference reading, the reading task ranked as the most common. These results suggest that the electronic reading devices currently available do not adequately cover the wide range of reading tasks required for knowledge work. Reading to answer questions Trademarks Adler et al. [5] observed various work-related reading tasks in actual work situations and assigned each instance to one of ten categories. Among the most frequently observed tasks was crossreference reading using multiple documents. Clearly, the current generation of electronic reading devices does not permit crossreference reading. These devices do not allow us to view multiple documents at the same time, and their form factors are too cumbersome to overlap or otherwise move frequently. For this reason, I evaluated these devices for the second-most common task in the study by Adler et al.: scanning text to answer questions. Microsoft and Windows are trademarks or registered  trademarks of Microsoft Corporation Adobe Reader is trademark or registered trademark of Adobe Systems Inc. iPad is trademark or registered trademark of Apple Inc. Kindle is trademark or registered trademark of Amazon.com Inc. NIP 27 and Digital Fabrication 2011 References [1] Abigail J. Sellen and Richard H. Harper, â€Å"The myth of the paperless office,† The MIT Press, (2001). Technical Program and Proceedings 9 [2] [3] [4] [5] 10 Web site of Japan Environmental Management Association for  Industry, http://www.jemai.or.jp/ecoleaf/index.cfm. [in Japanese] Hirohito Shibata and Kengo Omura, Effects of paper on page turning: Comparison of paper and electronic media in reading documents with endnotes, Proc. HCI International ’11, (2011). Hirohito Shibata and Kengo Omura, Effects of paper in moving and arranging documents: A comparison between paper and electronic media in cross-reference reading for multiple documents, Journal of the Human Interface Society, 12, 3, pg.301, (2010). [in Japanese] A. Adler, A. Gujar, B. Harrison, K. O’Hara, and A. J. Sellen, A diary study of work-related reading: Design implications for digital reading devices, Proc. CHI ’98, pg.241, (1998). Author Biography Hirohito Shibata received his MS in mathematics from Osaka  University (1994) and his PhD in engineering from the University of Tokyo  (2003). He is currently a research scientist at the Research and Technology Group, Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. Research interests include cognitive science and human-computer interactions. His current research involves investigations of the strengths and weaknesses of presentation media from cognitive perspectives. He is a member of Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), The Information Processing Society of Japan (IPSJ), The Japanese Society for Artificial Intelligence (JSAI), and Human Interface Society (HIS).  ©2011 Society for Imaging Science and Technology

Compare and contrast the 1963 and 1990 version of ‘Lord Of The Flies’ Essay

In this essay I will be compare and contrast the 1963 and the 1990 version of ‘Lord Of The Flies’. I will be exploring the two films to see which is better at helping students to understand the central theories of Golding’s original novel. Peter Brook’s version was made in 1963, had a British cast and was filmed in black and white. He took an assembly of schoolboys to the Caribbean island of Vieques for three months and then got them to act out the book with very little direction from Brook himself. This may be because he wanted the film to look realistic and not staged. Harry Hook’s American, technicolour version was produced in 1990 and included characters who were not in the original novel. There are a number of differences between the two films. In the ‘Lord Of The Flies’ novel, Golding makes sure that no adults are present, aside from the dead parachutist. However in the 1990 version, a fatally ill pilot is present amongst the children. We are also never told about the boys’ homes or past in the book, whereas in Hook’s version the boys gossip about Jack’s military record and the time he drove off in an army car. At the beginning of Hook’s version, the boys are all members of the Sea Cadets and therefore are familiar with each other whereas in Brook’s version, the boys are meeting each other for the very first time. Nearing the end of the 1963 version, the chants used at Simon’s death are from the original novel, ‘kill the pig, cut his throat, spill his blood’. Conversely in Hook’s version they recite chants that are remembered from their training at the Cadets. The beast is a major theme in Golding’s original novel. It is the manifestation of the boys’ innermost fears of the evil that resides inside themselves. The video versions treat the beast in different ways. In Hook’s version the idea of a beast is introduced through Jack as he is telling stories around a campfire. In Brooks’ version, the little boys with the birthmark introduces the beast, saying he has seen a monster in the jungle. Both films portray Ralph as a good-looking, tall boy. This is why the children warm to him and elect him leader, whereas Jack, whose is ‘ugly without silliness’, is overlooked. This is an issue in everyday life where good-looking people are more socially accepted than ugly people. An example of this is how magazines always display attractive models. Towards the end of both films, Ralph is being hunted like a pig as the boys set fire to the island hoping to corner him. As soon as he reaches the beach the naval officer appears, showing a sign of authority. At the beginning of both films Ralph is admired by the boys, but slowly loses respect through his inability to offer the same fun as Jack does. This shows that children overlook maturity and responsibility when there is an option to have a good time. Jack is represented in the same way in both films. He shows anger and impatience from the start of the film. When he fails in his attempt to challenge Ralph for leadership, his thirst for power overflows as he sets up his own tribe. His tribe is of a dictatorship nature and refer to Jack as the chief, obeying his every command. Hook’s film shows Jack turning savage faster, wearing more face paint than in Brook’s version. Piggy’s unfortunate quality are the subject of the other boys’ scorn; his asthma, fatness and poor eyesight, with his glasses being a visual symbol. They are symbolic of man’s insight or lack of it, where there are no rules of society to control behaviour. Piggy is not afraid to express his opinions, but is never taken seriously because he is fat, short sighted and has a different accent. These qualities add up to someone who fails to fit in with the rest of the boys. Ralph, however, is tall, fair, and good-looking, speaking in a cultured way (the same as the others). Nevertheless Ralph does not possess the real brains that Piggy does, which causes his downfall and lets Jack get away with murder. From this, one is led to believe that humans are shallow and fail to look beyond the visual exterior of man. Simon is depicted as the silent boy in both films. He is likened to Jesus and is killed, just as Jesus died on the cross. The new technology available in 1990 made Hook’s version gorier. Simon never finds the courage to express his thoughts and emotions, and therefore is looked upon as an outsider like Piggy. The human mind needs to be constantly nurtured to prevent it from turning against others. Children need a higher figure to maintain peace and harmony, ensuring them that their biggest fears are in fact figments of their imagination (for example monsters under the bed). When there is no higher authority, undeveloped minds do not think of others. They do not live their lives considerately. Instead, they act on their instincts and are quick to blame an outsider for their own fears. This is how the beast becomes an issue on the island, as even the older boys begin to doubt their common sense. Rather than rationally thinking the problem out, the boys begin to fear this imaginary beast. The only boy that realises the truth is Simon, who understands that the beast is the boys’ inner fear, physically manifested. Authority is also a major issue in both films, more so in Hook’s version, where the boys lose sight of civilisation quicker. The conch is symbolic of the law and is used to call order in the beginning. However as the boys are replaced by their savage primitive selves, the conch loses all significance. The smashing of the conch shows the crumbling of the walls of society. The two films are aimed at similar audiences, both children and adults alike. Brooks’ version was appropriate for its time and so lacked the elements of the modern film. Hook’s version showed effects that were relevant to modern times, which made it more appealing to children in society today. The language in both films had to be different to appeal to the target audience. For example, in Brooks’ version Piggy calls Jack and his tribe, ‘a pack of painted niggers’. This would be deemed as racist in society today. In the same way, Hook’s version uses words of profanity that would have been unacceptable in 1963. Both directors have used different technical effects in their film versions of the novel, such as camera angles, music, make up/costume, photography/lighting and direction. Brooks used music at the crucial points of the films. When Simon died, religious music was played to make the audience think of holy things. Brooks’ version contained not much stage direction, as he wanted the film to appear realistic and not staged. However there were not many camera angles. More mid shots and less angle shots were taken. In 1963 there wasn’t the technology to filter light. Brooks’ version used make up well. The savages were easily distinguishable from Ralph’s group, and the war paint on Jack’s tribe was realistic, as if natural. The music used in Hook’s version was sincere and genuine. The music was dramatic and the mood changed throughout the film. At the start it was jolly as the boys were only just discovering the island, whereas near the end the music was reflective upon all the destruction the boys had caused. At the time of Simon’s death, a low, mournful type of music was played while as Piggy died, silence reigned. This gave the audience the impression that the death of Piggy symbolised the complete destruction of civilisation. It gave them a chance to think about how the boys had gone from mindless games to murder. Stage direction were used in accordance to the novel and was therefore noticeably better. Due to technology a wider variety of camera angles were used. There were many close-ups of the war paint on the savages, truly showing how society had crumbled. Mid shots signified the passing of time. Subjective shots were taken during Ralph’s chase, which led to the effect that Ralph was the only sane boy left being chased by savage brutes. In Hook’s version the lighting was clear. He was able to control the amount of light he wanted cast onto each individual scene, which was not possible during the time of Brooks’ film. The fact that the film was in colour added to the effect on the costume and the blood on the hunters. The effects mentioned above help us to understand and interpret the novel. They tell us about time passed on the island and the gradual deterioration of the boys’ sense of law and order. I have concluded that Brooks’ version of the film would be more helpful for students of the text. His film was made only nine years after the book was published and therefore used the same language of the period. Hook’s version was made in 1990, and was vastly different. Society had greatly changed in forty years. The language used was completely different. The American actors meant that the vocabulary used was different from the novel. This film contained many characters that were not in the original novel, which could have led to confusion for students studying the text. Brook’s version showed more relevance to the script. The events occurred in the same sequence as the book. Children of today would have found Hook’s version more entertaining, seeing as there was more blood, gore and profanity. However it would not aid them in the study of the text as much as Brook’s version could.

Independence for women Essay

Independence of women Speaking of women’s independence, people will think of the image that women determined to fght with men in workplace. This is widely recognized in our life. In fact, the independence not only mean argue with men in the career, it’s about women find their own position or not. So independence is a self-understanding because it may decide you can get more personal benefit from the economic, ideological or social, and it will make you have a good attitude and new values. Women should be economically independent, and then they have qualified to talk about respect or quality. In order to make a living, unmarried women can’t put hopes on marry the rich men. Many girls who always rely on rich men, over time, those men may feel tired. Because of economic problems, the girls’ boyfriend will have contradiction with you. If there are more and more conflicts, your feeling will fade. Moreover, Women should keep their own Job or still have economic source when they married. In â€Å"chocolate† movie, Josephine because of her identity has problem. She had to rely on her husband. His husband thought her life was saved by him. So he hit and humiliated her all the time. She can’t get respect or equality in her family. Ideology determines women’s behavior, so only being able to form their own opinions, it will make you behavior gets more approval from others. Women’s behavior is their expression of ideology. People often said, wonderful thinking, wonderful life. In â€Å"chocolate† movie, the heroine has her own opinions. She always did everything according to her ideas. Finally she got more attention and help people change old opinions. Besides, Ideology affects women’s relationships with others. Even some men like give women suggestions or ideas. If women have different mind to share with them, they may be amazed at women’s thinking, and also will praise women. Social independent make women adapt to social development and change, and it leads you have more improve. Women easy to lost goal or mind in the constantly changing society. Women can’t expect someone can give you ideas. In â€Å"the namesake† movie, the heroine’s husband always stays with her, and helps her figure out problems. When she lost her husband, she didn’t know how to continue the rest of live. Social independence can attract more attention from others. In â€Å"chocolate† ovie, because of the leading lady was good at independent living, it makes people pay attention to her. Finally, they found, it leads their life to good direction. Therefore, it won more respect and love for her. All in all, women independence doesn’t mean completely dependent on others, it is women’s self-understanding because it can get more benefit, and it will get more love and attention from other people. So, economic, ideological or social independent is necessary for women. At the same time, I hope every woman have ability to independently, and they can play more and more important role in social life, including myself.

Living with Strangers Essay

To top the essence of discomfort off, Hustvedt states that â€Å"On the subway, I found myself in intimate contact with people I didn’t know, my body pressed so tightly against hem, I could smell their hair oils, perfumes and sweat. † (p. 1, l. 4-16) This closeness is something that most of us, Hustvedt as well, saves exclusively to boyfriends and close family – This exclusiveness only survives because of the ‘Pretend it isn’t happening’-rule. Throughout the essay Hustvedt takes us down her memory-lane of New York, where she tell us the things that can describe exactly why her view on urban living is how it is. The ‘Pretend it isn’t happening’-rule seems to be the most visible theme in the essay. To an outsider taking a stance against something that is clearly wrong seems logical, if not almost necessary. Whereas Hustvedt says that in New York that is uncommon and almost illogical behavior, because of the possible outcomes when someone is asked to stop whatever they felt they had the right to do. This is allowed because of the aforementioned rule. To explain her point further Siri Hustvedt exemplifies it for us. Hustvedts’ husband had witnessed a man stepping on the subway with a lit cigarette, another man confronted him politely by stating that it’s illegal to smoke on he subway, the smoker had then replied â€Å"Do you wanna die? To much luck the smoker had to get off the subway at the next stop, which resulted in a quick ending to the affairs, but Hustvedt points out that this couldVe ended much, much worse. Siri Hustvedt almost attempts to Justify the ‘pretend it isn’t happening’-rule, by showing the dangers ot not pretending. Hustvedt points out that New Yorkers barely even notice that they’re doing it, it’s such a custom reaction to these situations that in the urban cities you’re raised with them – Just as you’re raised with table manners. To exemplify this Siri Hustvedt mentions her daughter, Sophie, who has adapted to the behavioral pattern already as â€Å"she feigns deafness when the inevitable stray character comes along and tries a pickup. † (p. 2, l. 80-81) and that her daughter has been â€Å"refining the frozen, blank expression that accompanies the Pretend law. † (p. 2, 1. 76-77) In the same example Hustvedt explains that her daughter often gets hit on and some of these admirers are more stray than others. One day Sophie had experienced a man who had been shamelessly staring at her, but when he stepped ff the train and the daughter didn’t, the man had thrown himself against the window and yelled â€Å"l love you† at her. Sophie had felt embarrassed and frightened, but the man next to her had commented â€Å"It looks like you have an admirer†. To this Siri Hustvedt explains that â€Å"His understatement not only defined the comedy inherent in the scene; it lifted my daughter out of the solitary misery that comes from being the object of unwanted attention among strangers. † (p. 3, l. 92-94). This example turns the essay towards a new point-of-view, whereas the reader started out ith having a sense of displeasure and discomfort towards urban living, Hustvedt turns the entire essay around in the end where she enlightens us that urban living is not all that bad: â€Å"Nevertheless, compliments, insults, banter, smiles, and genuine conversations among strangers are part of the city’s noise, its stimulus, its charm. † (p. 3, l. 102-104) in this quote, Hustvedt points out to us that isn’t not only incredibly dull, if urban life only revolved around â€Å"pretending it’s not happening†, but that is it almost down-right impossible. She also states that because of this rule, those who break it make a turning point to everyday life and it’s those people who make urban living all the more charming. Siri Hustvedt mentions that â€Å"Sometimes a brief exchange with an unknown person marks you forever, not because it is profound but because it is uncommonly vivid. † (p. 3, l. 112-113) and to end the essay she mentions a moment 20 years earlier in her life, where a homeless man had called her beautiful and asked her to dinner, and when she politely said ‘no’, he then had grinned and aid â€Å"Lunch? This example not only supports her statement that it has indeed marked her forever, but it almost seems like what then wouldVe seemed rather creepy – now is a little comical and it probably even lifts her spirit when thinking about it. l, for one, believe that the statement is as true as anything can be. It’s not always the deep conversations you have with your family and closest f riends that mark you, it’s the sudden situations; because they’re not forced and that makes them all the more real and therefore deep. I may not live in a true urban city like Copenhagen or New York, but the ‘pretend’-rule is everywhere – and because of that all of the times that it’s broken may seem a little odd or even scary at first can make the rest of one’s day all the more interesting. A sudden compliment, a smile to a stranger or even a short conversation with someone about why the train is delayed – yet again. It gives one time to reflect over the minor things in life and sometimes it may even remind you Just how little you actually are – in a good way, of course.

The Intellectual and Institutional Development of Globalization Research Paper

The Intellectual and Institutional Development of Globalization - Research Paper Example The states now share center stage with international entities like the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and World Trade Organization. Treaties among states create these international organizations. The WTO, World Bank, and the IMF have been main players in the formation and managing of the modern world economy. These financial institutions have become major targets of the anti-globalization bodies. They are resented and are seen as imposing Western capitalism on unstable states without monitoring the social impacts of their activities (Zweifel, 2006). There are concerns among many countries over their economic sovereignty. Sovereignty is defined as the complete and exclusive control of all people and property within a territory. Key aspects of power, be it political, ideological or economic must be focused within the nation-state. Globalization has challenged the pre-eminence of nation-state, the mounting presence, and increasing responsibilities of non-nation-state actors in overall governance. Economic power becomes decoupled from the nation-state and is, therefore, essential in the progress of 21st century universal control. Global organizations such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), World Bank, and International Monetary Fund were developed to promote post-war reconstruction and economic development. Economically stable governments and corporations advocate for neoliberal policies and free-market solutions of international trade and debt-based finance. These are considered as the routes to poverty cutback support the functions of these organizations. Within the aggressive universal framework, third world nations are left with little choice other than to conform to the pre-set neoliberal program. Consequently, these states are often left with a weak economy and mounting debt. According to Peet (2003), the aim of International Monetary Fund (IMF) is to guard international fiscal stability, particularly by keeping a cap on inflation. This is achie ved through pressuring countries to limit public spending. Furthermore, it maintains fiscal stability by making disbursements to nations with balance of payment issues, stimulates growth and employment. Such countries are granted loans and credits to settle their debts and readjust the adopted economic policies so that they are not exposed to further financial crises in the future. Each year, the IMF sends economists to each of its member countries to assess individual nation’s economic condition. The economists examine macroeconomic conditions, exchange rate, monetary and fiscal policies, and other related policies, such as trade policy, labor policy, and social policy. The aim of this research is to give an external check on state’s fiscal decisions that might have an impact on the global economic system. WTO was formed in 1995 and acted as a forum for negotiating international trade agreements. Additionally, the organization aims to lower tariffs and non-tariffs bar riers in order to increase international trade. The World Bank original mandate is to provide long-term loans for reconstruction and fund multimillion-dollar infrastructure projects in developing countries. The loans are given in phases to make sure that the borrowing nations move forward with the development reforms. Loans are settled for long periods depending on the nature of the

Sources of Communication Inputs and Their Influences in Daily Life Essay

Sources of Communication Inputs and Their Influences in Daily Life - Essay Example The only thing in this world that is constant is change. This is a pretty well known saying which existed as long as I can remember. Looking back 50 years and more from today, I can recall how we used to tackle in class about how people have lived centuries ago. Today, the upsurge of developments in technology has an undeniable effect on how organizations function within and with other institutions. For an organization, its success and failure greatly depends on how the organization was structured to work. The drive to improve peoples living pattern is still the same drive or factor which triggers international firms to globalize their operations and with that, today's latest technology makes the company's and consumers life easier It enable companies to reduce cost by using powerful equipment and machineries while consumers can have easier access to the newest products in the market. One of the first innovations of technology was the mainframe system and it was during the 1960's that computers and such started to impart in organizations and firms. The classic ways of hierarchal management systems started to disintegrate during these times. Through technological change, globalizing the operations of an international company could put up a plantation where they can reduce their labor cost. Not denying the fact that different people from different countries have different tastes, international companies could also personalize their products according to the consumers or markets preferences without eliminating their standards and trademark. Before, information control was basically handled by those in managerial positions in a linear manner according to rank. With these systems of technology, information was handled as such that company transparency is relatively existent for those who can get hold of certain information. The onslaught of developments in technology has triggered organizational structure alterations. These changes can be illustrated by considering two key variables: the location of information and the location of decision rights in the organization (Brynjolfsson E. and H. Mendelsson). With the innovative technological systems today, important information can now possibly be available to all employees or workers in an organization at all level. Before, information handling and privilege was limited to the persons that directly handle them. Now, the responsibility of handling information is left to information technologists or technicians. The technicians then put data or information into databases which are accessible to all components of the organization For example, an organization can have a website, regularly maintained and updated by professional information technologists. Here, employees, managers and customers alike, can log on to the website and access whatever information they needed. Furthermore, having websites is also a great advantage since helpful feedbacks are easier to get from both customers and employees. The growing need for technology innovations paves way to strengthening certain industries in a corporate world; like data management services, computer engineers, information technologists, software designers or engineers and so on and so forth. Although there are still organizations or companies that are hesitant to use information techn