Scripts and Counterscripts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Scripts and Counterscripts - Essay Example The four distinct scripts merge into one dominant script evident throughout in the society, authorities and the press. This comprehensive script is widely acceptable; it is almost impossible to live without. They rule us every day and give a false sense of security, thus free of all threats. It promises false security, tells us that if we are safe then we are happy. Homelessness or residue of anger and insanity is fruits of war and destruction of the environment. This script challenges us via sales promotion, hearsays and ideologies that are pleasant to hear and affords us happiness. The safety illusion given to us by this script is deficient of critical reflection. He strongly states that although, they assure hums, safety and happiness, the scripts are dehumanizing leading people towards a false comfort zones. The scripts make us overlook the need to depend on the Creator and deny us true peace and personal satisfaction (Peter, 1976). He depicts the script as a complete failure, a stand he argues many people would not support. He adds that there is no happiness or safety attributable to the script and that more insecurity and unhappiness will arise from them. His closing remarks on the script are that, â€Å"the key to personal and spiritual wholeness lies in rejecting the script†. This article is a true representation of how to manipulate and indecisive human behavior. Through the use, of scripts and counter scripts, we are able to discern how humans react to different, influential factors. In the scripts, humans are victims of illusions of the world, which they totally believe to a point of even overlooking the true, reliable source of their help (explained in the elusive theory). I personally agree with Brueggemann, on his alternative script argument that, darned often we still are in crisis of enlightenment about the Creator. We shy off when expressing people’s thought about God acting in their midst for

Tribulation Period Essay Example for Free

Tribulation Period Essay Tribulation is a period of time when God will bring on his judgment to the world. According to the prophecies of the Book of Revelation and the Book of Daniel, it will consist of 7 years. This 7 year period is divided into two. The first half is known as the period of Great Sorrow and the next half is known as the Great Tribulation. In the beginning of the first half, the church will be saved from the wrath of God by the event known as the Rapture. In this event, Jesus will descend from heaven and deliver all Christians to the Lord. For those who will be born and become Christians after the Rapture will live through the tribulation period.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The great tribulation will take place when the Antichrist is announced in the temple. The earth will then suffer three wraths, Wrath of the Lamb, Wrath of the Satan and Wrath of the Father. Wrath of the Lamb refers to the wrath of the Christian’s savior Jesus Christ. According to prophecies, rocks from the mountains will befall on man as they cry. Right after the Wrath of the Lamb, the earth will suffer the Wrath of the Satan after he is stripped off with his access on the throne of God. Satan will be sent to the earth after being barred in the heavens. Basing on the interpretation of Revelation 12:7-12, Satan and his angels will be cast into the world tempting Christians to sell their souls. Finally, the world will taste the Wrath of the Father.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   During the aforementioned period, the earth will suffer extreme confusion for there will reign the church of the antichrist. There will be a false messiah who will deceive people and only those who have strong faith who will be able to distinguish the false messiah with the real messiah. In addition, Satan and his angels will be lurking on earth and mingling with people influencing them to exchange their souls with his angels promising salvation.

Essay on the Two Types of Pride in Pride and Prejudice -- Pride Prejud

Two Types of Pride in Pride and Prejudice      Ã‚  Ã‚   In the novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, there is a stark contrast between the pride displayed by the characters Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy and Mr. Bennet. Austen demonstrates the importance of possesing the "correct" pride and makes this the main theme throughout the novel.    Pride may be considered as either an attribute or flaw. To posses pride as an attribute is to have self-respect, honor, and integrity. To posses pride as a flaw is to demonstrate arrogant or disdainful conduct and haughtiness. Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy posses pride as an attribute while Mr. Bennet posses pride as a flaw. Darcy is responsible for his sister, himself, his estate, and his family name. He takes pride in these things and does anything he can in order to protect them. But Mr. Bennet who is responsible as a father of five daughters, a husband, and the holder of reputable conduct in the family, does not take pride in his family or his responsibility; Mr. Bennet instead ridicules the members of his family and in turn does not control their unruly actions.    Mr. Darcy, the leading male character in the novel, possesses an ancient family name, magnificent estate, and a sizable fortune which may seem to contribute to his pride. But later on in the book, we learn that he is a generous master to his servants and tenants and a loving brother to his young sister Georgiana. He is responsible for so much: his sister, his family name, and his estate, Pemberley. Although seen as excessively proud in a negative way, Charlotte Lucas defends Darcy by saying that a man of his wealth and family background has a right to be proud.    Darcy cares dearly for his younger sister, Georgiana. As... ...arcy family name and protects it with a hawk-like manner. He takes his responsibility as the landowner, brother, and master very seriously. On the other hand, Mr. Bennet lets his family do as it pleases and almost does not care. The reputation of the Bennet family is blemished by the behavior of its members because the head of the household, Mr. Bennet, lacks the pride to protect it.    Works Cited and Consulted: Austen, Jane.   Pride and Prejudice.   Ed. Donald Gray.   New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1996. Jane Austen Info Page. Henry Churchyard. U of Texas, Austin. 23 Nov. 2000. <http://www.pemberly.com/janeinfo/janeinfo/html>. Poplawski, Paul.   A Jane Austen Encyclopedia.   Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1998. Reidhead, Julia, ed. Norton Anthology of English Literature vol. 7, 2nd ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2000.   

Othello, in Love? Essay

Was the relationship of Desdemona and Othello true love? Throughout the entire, through secrets and lies and murder even until the end one of the biggest questions that arose was the vitality of Othello Desdemona’s love. Although some readers of Othello have argued that Othello and Desdemona’s love was true, a closer examination of the way she shows empathy for him when he tells her stories reveals that he is only in love with the attention she gives him because it alleviates his own personal insecurities. By examining the abruptness of Othello’s jealousy and judgment of Desdemona’s possible infidelity, it is revealed that he has deeply rooted insecurities. After Iago tells Othello of the possible infidelity that has occurred, Othello immediately starts to get jealous and angry. He begins to admit some of the insecurities he has, â€Å"Maybe because I’m black and I don’t have nice manners like courtiers do, or because I’m getting oldà ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ . The insecurities that Othello has directly relate to the abruptness of his jealousy. Othello believes that he is lesser because he is â€Å"black† and â€Å"old†. Of course he, an ugly, old, outsider cannot compare to the young and beautiful Desdemona. He compares his self image with her image and automatically believes that he is not worthy of her. This terrible self image forces him to believe what Iago has told him even without proof. The abruptness of jealousy proves Othello has insecurities. If it was true love Othello would not have been so quick to assume that Iago’s claims of infidelity were true. An examination of the way Othello becomes intrigued by Desdemona because of her undivided attention toward the stories he told shows that the attention she gives him alleviates his insecurities. When Othello is in the court room talking to the duke, trying to prove his love for Desdemona, he mentions that â€Å"She loved me for the dangers I had pass’d, and I loved her that she did pity them†, Othello clearly says that Desdemona’s interest in him only derives from the fact that she is intrigued by the stories of his adventurous past and Othello’s interest in Desdemona derives from the fact that she loves his stories. Othello clearly understands that Desdemona loves him for his previous adventures and not for a romantic reason. Othello uses Desdemona’s fanaticism as a way to alleviate his insecurities. By Desdemona complementing Othello, it makes him feel better and wanted. It distracts him from his insecurities therefore Othello’s â€Å"love† isn’t true. He thinks that he is in love when truly the feelings he has are that of fulfillment of what is lost by his insecurities. Othello being driven into madness has less to do with Desdemona’s possible infidelity but more to do with her no longer being there to alleviate his insecurities because of her shift from undivided attention to Othello to her undivided attention to Cassio in attempt to get him his job back. Before Cassio was fired Desdemona devoted all of her time to Othello and wanted to be with him constantly, when he was sent to war she even wanted to go with him â€Å"So that, dear lords, if I be left behind a moth of peace and he go to the war, the rites for which I love him are bereft me, And I a heavy interim shall support by his dear absence. Let me go with him†. She couldn’t stand to be away from Othello and this made him feel wanted and his insecurities were intern alleviated. This all changed once Cassio lost his job though. Desdemona pledged to get him his job back, â€Å"Do not doubt that. Before Emilia here I give thee warrant of thy place. Assure thee, if I do vow a friendship, I’ll perform it to the last article. My lord shall never rest; I’ll watch him tame and talk him out of patience†. This new devotion to Cassio meant that Othello was no longer receiving the same attention and his insecurities were no longer being alleviated. When she was no longer alleviating his insecurities and there was no purpose for her. When he realized this he was overwhelmed with jealousy. He not only wanted to kill Cassio for taking away the one who solved his problems but he wanted to take away her as well, â€Å"Oh, that the slave had forty thousand lives! One is too poor, too weak for my revenge†¦ Damn her, lewd minx! Oh, damn her, damn her! Come, go with me apart. I will withdraw to furnish me with some swift means of death for the fair devil†. If Othello was in love with Desdemona as a person and not just the attention she gives him then it would be safe to say that the love they shared was true but because he felt as though the only solution was to kill her proves that their relationship was not true love. Othello is only in love with the attention Desdemona gives him because it alleviates his own personal insecurities. Desdemona distracts Othello from his insecurities and makes him feel better and wanted. When Desdemona no longer alleviated the insecurities he had his only course of action was to kill Desdemona and Cassio. If their love would have been true he would not have been so quick to make the decision to kill Desdemona.

Writing A Paper Takes Patience and Time

A good piece of writing job is never easy to do. Writing is not as simple as it looks. There are too many things to think about even before a person would start writing. The first task of a writer is to think of a subject or topic that he or she is interested in writing about. He or she would then have to do researches to know if there will be sources to back up the paper. Next, the writer should make an outline to make his or her ideas organized, which would help the the whole paper to make sense. After making an outline, the writer can start with the writing process and make a first draft. Everyone should remember that they should never be satisfied with just a first draft because there are still many things to do after writing this draft. Usually, papers take too long to be written because writers tend to spend too much time thinking and deciding what topic to write about. However, once the writer knows what to write about, everything is expected to go smoothly. A lot of time and effort goes into researching about the chosen subject. At times, problems would be encountered when the writer finds out that there are only few sources that he or she can use. Researching requires a person to go to the library, conduct surveys, or search the Internet. All of these things take up time, which is why writers should allot enough time to write their papers. Or else, if unavoidable circumstances arise, it might be too late to do anything. Making an outline will make one's ideas flow continuously without awkward transitions from one topic to the next. A good writer also knows that to be able to produce a sensible paper, he or she has to follow a schedule because this would lessen the chances of cramming. A paper will always look as if it is rushed so having a schedule is better than to receive a failing mark. Before even beginning to write the first draft, writers should think of their audience. This is the people they intend to talk to through their work. Writers should know how knowledgeable their audience are about the topic being talked about so that no one will get confused and effort would not be wasted. Knowing who the audience will be also contributes to the ease of writing because the writer will know how extensive he or she needs to get on the paper to be able to communicate with the audience. Writers should readily accept that first drafts really do have mistakes. This is why they are called drafts. Not all writers can perfect a writing job the firs time around because it is hard to concentrate on thinking what to write and think about the grammatical structure of the whole paper at the same time. Drafts are meant to have mistakes and writers should always remember to make room for improvement. Writing takes time because writers should make sure that what they are writing about makes sense. They should be able to write sensibly and continuously without gearing off the topic or focusing on one aspect of the paper that other topics are being left out. After making a draft, writers should revise their papers and have them proofread by someone who has knowledge on the subject or someone who has the authority to do so. Revising will correct mistakes and make sure that the whole paper is complete in terms of ideas. Allowing somebody else to read the paper would help produce an unbiased opinion about the areas of the paper that need improvement. Revising would take time because checking for mistakes can take into two forms: one is for grammatical mistakes, and two is for the content errors. One cannot check for both at the same time. After having the first draft revised and proofread, the writer should follow the suggestions and comments by the other person and apply the corrected mistakes on the next paper. This process is repeated until the time comes when both the writer and the editor are satisfied with the work. Aside from these things, writing does take time because of the writers. It is known that writers cannot force themselves to write whenever they do not have the proper inspiration to do so. There are those who can write only at a certain time of the day. There are those who has to have a something before or during writing that without it, they will not be able to function. This is because writers need to be in the right state of mind and at the right moment to be able to come up with a good paper. This is opposed to other types of work where people can start and end their jobs at designated times. Writing does take a lot of patience and time but this is only because writers want to make sure that they bring out the best piece of writing to their audience. It does take a while and writers need to go through several processes but these efforts would pay off when they see the results of their work.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner - Questions

'The Maze Runner' by James Dashner - Questions The Maze Runner by James Dashner was first published in 2009Publisher: Delacorte Press384 pages The Maze Runner is a young adult post-apocalyptic science fiction novel that reminded me of by Orson Scott Card. The Maze Runner is the first book in a trilogy, so it has a resolution to the main problem of the book, but there are still many problems left unresolved. Use these questions to work through the novel and discuss what you think James Dashner is trying to say. Spoiler Warning: These questions contain details from the novel and talk about the end of the book. Finish reading the book before looking on. Why do you think WICKED put the kids in the Maze? Do you think it was an effective way to find the smartest and most resilient?Even though Thomas does not remember it, he and Teresa had a role creating the Maze. Do you think that makes him guilty? Does he owe something to the other boys?What was the point of sending Teresa into the Maze?Was Gally good or bad? Why do you think the scientists used him?Throughout the book, Thomas and the other boys have more questions than answers. The reader, too, does not know what is happening. Did you like how this produced suspense? Were you satisfied with the answers provided in the end?In the final memo from Wicked, they refer to Group B. Who do you think that is?If the world truly is in catastrophe, do you think the means can justify the ends of saving the human race? Even if it means enslaving or killing children? Is it possible, as Teresa thinks, that WICKED could be good?Did you guess that the maze could be a code? Do you think the kids ever would have tried to escape through the Griever Hole if the end had not been triggered? Do you think you will read the next two books in the series to find out what happens?Rate The Maze Runner on a scale of 1 to 5.

The Qing Dynasty

The Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty, also known as the Manchu, ruled the Imperial China between 1611 and 1911. Not only did the dynasty perfect imperialism in China, but also went on to extend the borders of China during the 267 years (Historical Legacies). After witnessing numerous successes in the 18th century, the Qing dynasty began to experience both internal and external problems that led to its disintegration in the 19th century.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Qing Dynasty specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Western pressure, economic debacles, overpopulation, revolts, a complicated governance system, the rise of Sun Yat-Sen, and peasant upheavals are some of the changes that made it difficult for the Qing dynasty to respond to confrontations of the 19th century and effectively reform China. The court’s decision to cut-off China from the rest of the world led to a decline in radicalism in technological developments and e nhancements, thus preventing it from becoming a world superpower. The cut-off made it easier for Europeans to conquer China and other less fortunate nations, making China fall under European colonization. The extraordinary invasion of their nation infuriated the Chinese, who demanded immediate evacuation of their land. The Europeans took advantage of the situation to demand compensation for their efforts, and they ended-up reaping Chinese land and tones of silver. When they went to war in the 1800s, Europeans effortlessly overcame the resistance by the Qing navy and army. Foreign advancements and attacks continued from countries like France, Britain, Germany, and Japan. The isolation policy by the colonial court proved to be a great undoing for the Qing dynasty. Attempts by some organizations like Boxers to apply guerilla tactics in repelling the Europeans were futile given the superior nature of weapons that the Europeans possessed. Of great surprise was the Boxers’ rebellio n to the ruling Qing dynasty. The opposition by the Chinese peasants weakened the dynasty, such that it was unable to address the challenges of the 19th century and reform China as well. Historical Legacies held that â€Å"†¦massive peasant uprisings†¦Ã¢â‚¬  distorted the plans of the Qing dynasty to effectively reform China. These numerous internal and external wars provided a weak platform for the Qing dynasty to counter the 19th century’s challenges and reform China. Clearly, the focus to guard their borders against invasion by foreigners coupled with the inferior weapons made it difficult for the Qing dynasty to address numerous challenges that it faced in the 19th century. Moreover, the exclusion of China from the rest of the world brought backwardness in improvements, which resulted in inability to face the challenges, such as control by foreign nations.Advertising Looking for essay on asian? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15 % OFF Learn More The perception by the imperial court that European technologies were ‘evil’ also made the Qing dynasty to lag behind in technological advancements. According to the radicals, the challenges of the 19th century, such as invasion by the Europeans required modern technologies. China failed to industrialize at a time other nations were engaging in mass production of products using machines during the Industrial Revolution. Corruption and mismanagement of funds by officials within the imperial court system brought difficulties in the way the Qing dynasty responded to challenges of the 19th century. The imperial treasury became bankrupt, and was unable to counter any challenge due to inadequate financial power. The radicals believed that the root cause of the weakness of the Qing dynasty emanated from the inefficient systems of the imperial government. In addition, the doubling of the financial expenditures of the Qing dynasty resulted in weak financial conditions, as income remained constant. From the economic perspective, practices by the Ching ruler and the doubled expenditures resulted in a weak economic foundation. An example of a failure that emanated from this situation is the inability to expand the system of law courts to the district level. Apart from corruption and embezzlement of funds, dissatisfaction by the Han people on the ruling system of the Manchu brought disunity within the greater Qing dynasty. Historical Legacies attests that â€Å"Unity was inherently fragile, hence the perpetual fear of break-up in Chinese history.† Disunity was a great impediment to resolving challenges that the empire faced in the 19th century. Apparently, there was an amendment of the extravagant law of the Qing dynasty and establishments of the most comprehensive cultural ruling. These cultural rulings were Confucianism, which was a set of ethical beliefs acquired from the teachings one of the Chinese scholars called Co nfucius. Actually, the most important belief was in learning and practicing the ways of Dao who they believed to be their God. The Han Empire had several dictators who made people to experience extreme hardship in their lives during the periods that these tyrants ruled the Empire. Evidently, Liu Bang known as Lee Guang founded the Han dynasty, and went on to exasperate his subjects in various ways. Since he was the military leader and even defeated his rivals, he employed force on the subjects. When the Opium war began, the ordinary Han Chinese had little interest in defending the dynasty; this disloyalty exposed the loss of the Mandate of Heaven by the ruling dynasty.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Qing Dynasty specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The decentralization of the political system, at the same time, devolved corrupt and selfish individuals who worked for their own benefits against the interests of the d ynasty. Evidently, decentralization produced disloyal Chinese subjects at the grass-root levels. With autonomous administrations, the provinces went on to declare independence from the imperial Machu court simultaneously. The disloyalty infiltrated the military through numerous reforms. This made it difficult for the Qing dynasty to get full protection assurance from the military. Regional military forces did not support the Manzhus, as they were sensibly autonomous of the Pecking’s control. From this aspect, Qing’s dynasty attempts to reform China met rebellion from the disloyal subjects. Qing dynasty also lacked competent leaders or officials to carry out the reforms needed to counter the 19th century’s challenges. Insincerity of leaders in promoting reforms made the dynasty to lag behind in the reform process that was taking place in key nations across Europe and Asia. Empress Dowager messed with the ruling of the empire when she channeled military funds to b uilding of a grand Summer Palace. With no funds to develop the Chinese military, the dynasty was unable to marshal enough and competent troops to face foreign armies who were invading the territory. Her leadership style influenced key government administrators to a mass wealth at the expense of the cries of starving commoners who could be significant in the fight against external control from the Europeans. Dishonesty among the government officials and the Empress shifted the attention of the Qing dynasty to personal gains, with little or no attention to the commoners. The Qing leadership maintained high levels of unethical practices, such that focusing on challenges that faced the country became a tertiary affair. Maintaining the huge Chinese population also proved to be a great problem for the Qing dynasty. With little resources to sustain the population, the Qing dynasty could not pay attention in reforming the country. This internal problem shifted the focus of the Qing dynasty from addressing challenges like pressure from foreigners and issues of foreign immigrants. China remained weak for the last 100 years, and with the huge population, the dynasty could not offer quality health care and education. High illiteracy levels contributed to the inability of the Qing dynasty to address challenges of the 19th century that required expansive knowledge. In line with this, the negative perception of the western culture made the dynasty to go slow on adopting modern education systems (Historical Legacies 321). The education system concentrated on training for the Imperial Examinations, and not to learning aspects that enhanced rational thinking and autonomy, as propelled by the western education. Reforms of the 19th century had immense connections with modern education, which the Qing rulers opposed its implementation. Empress Cixi is one ruler who did not understand why one should go through the education system. During such periods, concubines were easily endors ed to succeed their predecessors. Qing dynasty’s inability to embrace modern education worked against its reform programs in China.Advertising Looking for essay on asian? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More From internal problems to external dynamics, the Qing dynasty was not able to address the issues that it faced in the 19th century resulting in its fall. Corruption, disloyalty, radicalism, insincerity, lack of modern education system, and overpopulation are the factors that made it difficult for the dynasty to focus on solving the problems of the 19th century and reform China. Even though the Qing dynasty succeeded in other areas, it failed to handle key issues that could have reformed China. â€Å"Historical Legacies.† Some Historical Pointers. 321 – 2014 – Module 2

3 Types of Parenthetical Problems

3 Types of Parenthetical Problems 3 Types of Parenthetical Problems 3 Types of Parenthetical Problems By Mark Nichol 1. The survey found increasing demand for customer experiences that are difficult, if not impossible to deliver with legacy systems. Writers sometimes carelessly neglect to close a syntactical door after opening it. In this case, â€Å"if not impossible† is a parenthetical interjected into the main clause, so a comma must follow as well as precede it: â€Å"The survey found increasing demand for customer experiences that are difficult, if not impossible, to deliver with legacy systems.† 2. Similar to the Internet in the 1990s that transformed business models to adopt e-commerce and new ways of working, cryptocurrencies and blockchain have the potential to disrupt in ways not even imagined. There is only one Internet, but this sentence implies that more than one exists, and that the one in question transformed business models in the manner described, but the reference to transformation is parenthetical, and nonessential to the main clause, so it should be set off with a comma as a parenthetical by preceding which, which replaces that to signal the nonrestrictive nature of the parenthetical: â€Å"Similar to the Internet in the 1990s, which transformed business models to adopt e-commerce and new ways of working, cryptocurrencies and blockchain have the potential to disrupt in ways not even imagined.† (The comma that separates the subordinate clause, â€Å"Similar . . . working,† from the main clause, â€Å"cryptocurrencies . . . imagined,† doubles as the parenthesis-closing punctuation mark.) 3. Three board members, John Doe, former CEO of World Wide Wickets; Jane Smith, CEO of Global Tetrahedron; and James Jones, executive director of the Church of the SubGenius; voted against the measure. The series of names and job titles is parenthetical to the main clause, â€Å"Three board members voted against the measure.† However, the punctuation marks that open and close the parenthetical do not match, and all the semicolons are problematic because they syntactically cut off â€Å"voted against the measure† from the rest of the sentence. The simple solution is to replace the overkill semicolons with commas because the sentence structure precludes confusion about the corresponding names and titles: â€Å"Three board members, John Doe, former CEO of World Wide Wickets, Jane Smith, CEO of Global Tetrahedron, and James Jones, executive director of the Church of the SubGenius, voted against the measure.† Alternatively, if the writer insists on using semicolons, splice the two parts of the main clause into one uninterrupted statement as a setup to a list that follows a colon: â€Å"Three board members voted against the measure: John Doe, former CEO of World Wide Wickets; Jane Smith, CEO of Global Tetrahedron; and James Jones, executive director of the Church of the SubGenius.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Compared "to" or Compared "with"?The Parts of a WordTypes of Ignorance

Q1 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Q1 - Assignment Example However, the insurance companies will have to provide coverage to every individual, without limit even to those with pre-existing health conditions. This process has been termed unconstitutional by US state supreme courts, arguing that the Americans should not be forced into health care coverage. Whether or not the bill solves the issue of health care as a privilege depends on the general implication of implementing the bill. The bill is likely to throw away individual mandate if implemented. What this means for the healthcare industry is that the pricing policies in the industry are prone to enormous changes that may not end up favoring the end user of the health insurance. Individual mandate provides a constant and a large pool of insurance coverage purchasers. In this regard, repealing the individual mandate is likely to increase American health insurance premiums. It is important to point out that the Americans who will be without insurance cover will opt to make use of emergency rooms as their healthcare procedure. As a result, the accrued costs from emergency rooms procedure will be shifted to the insured. The law’s purpose is to extend health insurance coverage to the American community. However, the law is prone to failure in the context of the high insurance premiums. This bill therefore, and the resultant law therein may not solve the health care issue as anticipated. The new health care bill has taken ethical and legal turns, with its applicability and benefit to the American society questioned. The Americans are expected to be health insured by the year 2014. Violation of this law will attract penalties as outlined in the law. However, the entire process has been termed unethical, because the law seeks to force people to comply. Freedoms of choice are hereby violated. The insurance companies will also be forces to cover all individuals, those with pre-existing

Adult Development and Adult Learning Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Adult Development and Adult Learning - Article Example It is, therefore, worthwhile to note that the characteristics of development of adult learners need to  influence  the strategies of teaching and  learning  that are under implementation. This article provides an overview on the various aspects of adult development, how they affect adult learning, and the major issues surrounding adult development. The article also explores the theories of adult learning including andragogy, self directed learning, and transformational learning. Adult development Growth is the  physical  change that results from an increase in cell size or numbers. Growth can be quantitatively measured using the  growth  indicators such as  weight, height, dentition, and the size of bones. On the other hand,  development  can be defined as a modification or change in the capacity if an individual to  function, or the  process  of skill  progress  or enhancement. It is the  capacity  of an individual to  adapt  to his surroundin g environment and, therefore, regarded as the behavioral growth  aspect (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2010). The characteristics of adult development are in the forms of physical, cognitive, social and emotional domains present in an  individual’s lifespan. There are three stages of life that  occur  in adulthood which include young, middle and older adulthood. These stages have characteristics that are unique and are  evident  in every stage of the four human development domains. For instance, the developmental characteristics of older adulthood include social characteristics such as loss of key family members and  significant  friends, prioritizing engagements and social activities, and beginning of transition to retirement. The physical aspects of  growth  include slowing down of reaction time, increase in the  instance  of chronic disease, decline in the sensory systems and physical abilities. Emotional development  is signified  with an increase in attem pts to maintain personality traits along with reflection, ability to resolve conflict by applying  integrity  instead of despair. The  last  domain  is cognitive development whereby an individual develops memory lapses, slower learning abilities, or mental abilities sufficient for accomplishing their daily chores (Jarvis, 2004). Maturation  is  mainly  characterized  nervous system changes and the brain, and aids in the stimulation of cognitive and physical or motor skills. The patterns of maturation are  innate  and programmed in the genetic code. During adulthood, people experience  various  challenges that affect their ability to go about their daily duties.   Development begins in a  concrete  or straightforward manner, and proceeds to the complex mechanisms. Problem solving and reasoning abilities  are inspired  from the  language  and development of cognitive skills. For instance, the ability to  classify  or  relate  similar ite ms implies the acquisition of cognitive skills. Concrete thoughts  are usually manifested  in the initial  level  of thinking which describes or gives a  functional  relationship between two subjects. Further advancement in the development of cognitive skills is manifested by a more complex or advanced  understanding  of the comparisons  being made, as well development of a high  capability  of classifying objects (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2010). Issues surrounding adult development and their influence on adult learning Development  is categorized  as a continuous process in which the development of an  individual  signifies  addition  of new skills to the ones already acquired, thus forming a basis for further

Examine protocols for the interview process Essay

Examine protocols for the interview process - Essay Example Each applicant is given a time slice to respond to the questions asked. Behavioral interview- It is based on discovering how the applicant behaved in the past employment. This interview method depends on the assumption that the past experience and performance will most probably predict the future performance of the prospective employee. In this type of interview, the employer already has in mind the kind of skills needed for the job and will therefore ask questions to determine whether the candidate has those skills. The success of any applicant will depend on the precedent behaviour. Working interview- This is where the interview involves the applicant being given a task to perform and watched with a view of determining ability to perform such a task. Information is then gathered, analyzed and a final decision arrived at based on the findings. Stress interview- This is a case where some interviewers intentionally try to induce stress with a view of establishing interviewee’s ability to withstand stressing situations. This can be done by using several approaches for instance, by not accepting something said by the applicant as true or by firing questions to the applicant. Open-ended interview -This type of interview uses an open ended question that requires a more comprehensive response along with an explanation and justification from the interviewee. It eliminates direct responses such as yes or no, right or wrong. Before appearing for any interview it is worthwhile to research some facts about the company on areas such as company operations, markets and challenges facing the company. Some of the vital information needed may include among others; the goods or services sold or offered the number of branches and offices, existing markets and its potential room for expansion. This gives the interviewee confidence to face the interviewers and answer questions as

Protecting Online Privacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Protecting Online Privacy - Essay Example And they should take care to protect it from spreading discriminately online. Protecting their privacy online will ensure that they are not leaving their personal information open to abuse (Australian Government). In an open environment any one can have a taste of the matter. The people have a general right to be granted access to the personal information that organizations and agencies hold about them (Australian Government). But such persons are less aware of the fact that their information may be used for the various purposes including the resource to earn money by scammers, spammers or phishers etc.. To avoid discrimination people should know their right. They have diversity of sources to know about their right to protect their personal information, which they have supplied to a range of companies for countless reasons. The more a person knows about his/her rights, the easier it will be for him/her to safeguard his/her privacy (Australian Government). But they are less aware that the companies have taken their consent in their agreement section that their information may be used for their business purposes. Most of them are even not aware what they have signed for. Many credit agencies have gathered information from other agency for handsome amount without the consent of the customer and sold them for their commercial use. There are instances where people don't know about their right and importance of their privacy. They commit such a nuisance that they defame their personal image. For example, the persons, specially crazy girls and even curious women who are interested in publishing their personal information including photograph on internet on free hosting websites, are not aware of the fact that their identity is revealed to the world and they may fall a prey to the world of the prohibited by pornographers. Their ignorance can easily give opportunities, putting themselves in various troubles, to them to earn handsome money out of their clandestine materials. Several examples can be sited to show that the delicate information provided on Internet can make such a big harm to the people that they may even take their life as the compensation of the fault. In early September, a web developer took an apparently real advertisement placed online by a woman looking for a sexual liaison and posted it on the Seattle "casual encounters" section of the Craigslist bulletin board, according to press reports. There were 178 responses to the phony sexual solicitation, many of which included compromising photos. The developer then posted all the responses on a public website, including photos, email addresses and other personal information -- where anyone could view them. (Wharton). Another case of taking the advantage of using the personal matter for the use of Internet shows the wild nature of misuse of the information. A young woman in Seoul was on a subway train with her pet dog when the animal relieved itself on the floor. The woman did not clean up the mess, angering other riders, and the woman herself reportedly became surly as tensions escalated. Using a camera phone -- at 99%, South Korea has the highest camera-phone penetration in the

Strategic Management Process (SLP) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategic Management Process (SLP) - Essay Example A Mission Statement, on the other hand, gives a description of the things an organization is going to do and why. It outlines the â€Å"primary objectives† as well as the purpose of the organization in question. Unlike Vision Statement which focuses on the outsiders, a Mission Statement primarily concerns itself with the internal organization. It outlines the most crucial measures for the organization’s success, and as such, its main audience is the organization’s leadership team as well as stakeholders. However, Vision Statement also touches on an organization’s purpose, but this is only as far as the organization’s values as concerned and not â€Å"bottom line measures.† It shows the organizational values and purpose (Rothwell, 2010). There are five criteria I believe are very crucial in devising a Mission Statement. First, the Mission Statement should clearly describe the things an organization is going to do and why. I think this criterion is very important, since it is what defines the organization’s reason for existence, at least to the workers and the stakeholders. As such, it gives the concerned parties the motivation to work hard towards achieving their common goals. The Mission statement should also be oriented towards giving productive results. It is through the results, which should be realistic, that an organization can work clearly knowing what it targets to achieve. This keeps all stakeholders focused on achieving the particular goals. In addition, the statement should include not only the organization’s goals but it should also capture the people who are to work towards achieving the said goals. This is important because it not only sets clear targets for the organization but also make s the various stakeholders to own the goals, a factor that is very vital for improved performance within the organization. The statement should also be concise, but one that covers everything in its own scope. This is not only easy to read but

Summary and Critical Analysis of Multi-objective Decision Making Term Paper

Summary and Critical Analysis of Multi-objective Decision Making - Term Paper Example This term paper discusses the subject of multi-objective decision making problems, that require a set of criteria prior to implementation. First, it is clear that objective functions must be normalized. That is, objective functions must have the same physical meaning to all the stakeholders involved, which likewise means that units and scales used in the measurement of these function must be consistent. Next, the appropriate principle of optimality must be chosen. The principle of optimality sets the properties of the optimal solution and answers in such a ways that the optimal solution bests all other possible solutions. Third, the researcher states that the priorities of objective functions have also to be considered. It is imortant to understand that different objective functions have different importance and thus, higher priority must be given to more important objective functions. Based on these considerations, this term paper provides a critical analysis of a multi-objective de cision making model, which covers economics and managerial applications of a company. A summary of the model were presented by the researcher of the paper, and its strengths and weaknesses were also highlighted. In conclusion, the researcher of this term paper analyzed the final portion of the study. This term paper also presents an outline of a possible research project, that will be concducted and that will involve both multi-objective decision making process and analysis as well as multi-objective decision making model to view.

Strategic Management Process (SLP) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategic Management Process (SLP) - Essay Example A Mission Statement, on the other hand, gives a description of the things an organization is going to do and why. It outlines the â€Å"primary objectives† as well as the purpose of the organization in question. Unlike Vision Statement which focuses on the outsiders, a Mission Statement primarily concerns itself with the internal organization. It outlines the most crucial measures for the organization’s success, and as such, its main audience is the organization’s leadership team as well as stakeholders. However, Vision Statement also touches on an organization’s purpose, but this is only as far as the organization’s values as concerned and not â€Å"bottom line measures.† It shows the organizational values and purpose (Rothwell, 2010). There are five criteria I believe are very crucial in devising a Mission Statement. First, the Mission Statement should clearly describe the things an organization is going to do and why. I think this criterion is very important, since it is what defines the organization’s reason for existence, at least to the workers and the stakeholders. As such, it gives the concerned parties the motivation to work hard towards achieving their common goals. The Mission statement should also be oriented towards giving productive results. It is through the results, which should be realistic, that an organization can work clearly knowing what it targets to achieve. This keeps all stakeholders focused on achieving the particular goals. In addition, the statement should include not only the organization’s goals but it should also capture the people who are to work towards achieving the said goals. This is important because it not only sets clear targets for the organization but also make s the various stakeholders to own the goals, a factor that is very vital for improved performance within the organization. The statement should also be concise, but one that covers everything in its own scope. This is not only easy to read but

Postgraduate Education Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Postgraduate Education - Personal Statement Example This way I laid the foundation stone for my future career. My immediate future at university was admission to information management course. This step looks like a movement away from my plans. It is not the case! Information and management have become an integral part of any profession; even medical specialists are not excluded although they deal with their patients and are not involved in any other business. Therefore, the professionals dealing with business, accounts, finance and public are in real need of developing excellent skills in information and management. People, who have not received any formal education in a specific field, usually, can learn related skills through their daily experiences while being at work places. But strengthening of knowledge and enhancing understanding of any subject area demands living in an academic environment for quite some time. The importance of a good academic institution in the development of personality and guidance towards a specific direction can never be excluded. Prior to as well as during my university course work, I could find some opportunities to get working experience in my chosen field at the national and international levels. The work I have been involved in has strong associations what I have been learning at university and learnt at my schools. In fact, during these shorter periods of internship I could get orientation related to the practical work of my area of interest. I learnt about working environment of professional organizations, applied my knowledge and skills to carry out prescribed tasks and assessed my abilities to work in such environments. My stay at these organizations provided me a chance to practice what I had learnt in my class rooms; I analysed the information related to the clients using my statistical skills and based on these analyses suggested actions as appropriate as possible. I had a chance to improve my interpersonal communication skills, apply proper negotiation expertise, and develop proficiency in documentation and record keeping. The discussion sessions I had with my senior colleagues especially of the bank staff enriched my knowledge and improved my insight in the subject to a substantial level. In reality, It was a combined effect of taught courses, my short experience in various but related environments and encouraging feedback from my senior colleagues which boosted me up and compelled me to think for higher studies in finance (MA finance & investment), (MSc finance) (MSc accounting & Finance) (Msc investment), think for higher studies in economics and bankging (MSc int economics, banking). Moreover, I could also find an opportunity to talk and discuss with some of the alumni of school (name of the school) who liked the idea of applying to this business school (name of the school) and were optimistic about my admission to the programme (name of prog). Applying to a postgraduate degree course at your business school at the moment seems an appropriate decision. Based on my experience either at my academic institutions or at some professional organizations I reach to the conclusion that I must continue my studies in such a wonderful institution because I find myself to fulfil all the requirements of the course. At postgraduate level a combination of

Diversity management programs Essay Example for Free

Diversity management programs Essay Diversity in the workplace is an important aspect of the workplace, which if not followed, could lead to a society that doesn’t have respect for different cultures. It is important to develop diversity management programs, were aspects of diversity such as religion, different cultures due to outsourcing, age, women and single parents, disabled team members, flexible work hours, are discussed which will lead to redesigning jobs to better fit the individual. When developing a conceptual framework for such programs to be implemented, it is important to view how lack of diversity in the workplace has affected other countries around the world besides America. According to Begum (2005), social care organizations in the United Kingdom are affected greatly by lack of diversity amongst there staff. Information, in the United Kingdom, is not distributed fairly to the population, is distributed on a socio economic basis. It is important for social care organizations to become diverse in their workforce, if they are to embody the essence of the communities that they serve. Studies have indicated that gender and culture diversity create barriers to effective interactions and hinder employee performance (Managerial Issues, 2000). When outlining a possible course of action to take when implementing diversity management programs within employee workforces, we could include information on how lack of diversity in the workplace has affected countries like the United Kingdom. People tend to feel more comfortable working in groups with people who share their ideals and beliefs, which is something I think we are all guilty of at times. I think it is important when outlining the possible courses of action to take when implementing diversity management programs, that employees share their different ideals and beliefs in an open environment. I think that employees sharing their different ideals and beliefs help the workforce grow, and the company they work for as well. Michael Bird (2007), a college professor at De Vry University in South Florida, has implemented a diversity management program in which he has developed a five step program in order to ensure that his team succeeds. Michaels five step program required, these students to one, understand and define diversity, to understand the organizations value and necessities, effectively manage the resistance towards, evaluate our overall teams performance, and last of all use the experiences shared to improve or groups management techniques. Flex management should be implemented in order to ensure that people feel like they are assets to the company, and are taken care of properly. During the development of a conceptual framework for a diversity management program, teambuilding exercises have proven to be the most effective. It is important for the employees to have different cultural backgrounds and different beliefs, in order that they may share those with the corporation in which they work. I think that when different cultures, different peoples with different ideas and beliefs, come together and share their ideas, truly inventive things can take place within the corporations they work in. America is a melting pot of different cultures and beliefs, which is what makes our country unique and truly produces unique individuals, tolerant of other peoples beliefs, with truly innovative ideas. One great way to go about instituting diversity management programs within the workplace would be to organize groups within the workplace that shared similar beliefs, and have them share their beliefs as a whole, and attempt to implement any new ideas obtained. The next step after instituting diversity management programs is to organize employees that share the same ideals, and discuss their shared ideals, and find common ground. In order for the employees participating in a diversity management group to share their ideas and implement them on a level on which they all agree, it is important that the employees learn to work together and respect each others ideals. With a proper management support, workers can have the proper training in order to train our employees to be more culturally sensitive. It is important that management is effective in their approach to dealing with culturally diverse issues. By training our employees and diversity management, they will benefit greatly. Although most of these successful companies the United States show’s significant efforts to include people with disabilities in a diverse workforce, there is still room for improvement. I hope that by implementing this diversity management program within the workplace, policies can be enforced specifying what is meant by diversity, in terms of race or gender, and also provide more information pertaining to those employees that have disabilities. With everybody’s help, we can be certain that we can implement this new diversity management program within the workplace, and that this program will be a success.

The Impact of Stalin on Russia and the Russian People Essay -- Papers

The Impact of Stalin on Russia and the Russian People Joseph Stalin was born to a poor family in the province of Georgia in 1879. Stalin's real surname was Djugasvili; he adopted the name 'Stalin' whilst in prison as he felt the translation 'Man of Steel' would help his image. Stalin joined the Bolshevik party as a young man and soon became an active member organizing bank raids to gain money for party funds; this led to Stalin's imprisonment a number of times. Stalin first met Lenin in December 1905 in Finland and was quite surprised to see him as an ordinary man unlike the person he had imagined. In 1918 Stalin was made Commissar for Nationalities of the Bolshevik party, then in 1922 he became General Secretary. This made Stalin very powerful, particularly when soon after his appointment Lenin was hospitalised to have 'Dora Kaplan's bullet' removed. The operation was unsuccessful and left Lenin paralysed down his right side. Joseph Stalin then became Lenin's mouthpiece. The initial effects of this was the rise of Stalin to become the leader of the Communist party in Russia, this then resulted in Stalin going down in History as a brutal dictator and mass murderer. In 1924 Lenin died and most people presumed Trotsky who had formed the Red Army and who had been Lenin's right hand man would become Lenin's successor. If Stalin had not been around Trotsky probably would have become the leader of the Communist party. Stalin was seen as dull by the intellectual elite of the Communist party and probably not very intelligent or well educated, however, they all made a fatal mistake in assuming that he was stupid. Stalin outmanoeuvred Trot... ... modernised Russia. The workers who did not offend the state were better off than under the reign of the tsar. Russia's military forces were benefiting from her industrial growth and whilst Stalin retained power there was a stable government. People gained better access to education and medical care. However millions had died in the famine after the failed experiment of Collectivisation. Stalin did make Russia into a great power but there was an enormous price to pay for it. Millions of people were starved or murdered under Stalin's brutal rule. Stalin led Russia with an iron fist. The long-term effects of this were the only reason people idolised Stalin was because they were too frightened to do anything else and Stalin's influence lived on through Krushtov and Brezhnev, they too would not allow any senior opposition.

The way it goes :: essays research papers

In 1940, George Santayana looked back on his forty years in America, and remarked morbidly: "If I had been free to choose, I should not have lived there, or been educated there, or taught philosophy there or anywhere else."1 He had come to Harvard in 1882 when it was in the middle of its most dynamic transformation; he succeeded both academically and socially as an undergraduate, and, in the company of William James and Josiah Royce, he became one of the most prominent and well-recognized participants in perhaps the greatest department of philosophy that ever existed. Yet Santayana found something horribly wrong with the changing University. He worried that the mass movement towards practicality and specialization, which he equated with President Charles William Eliot's attempts to make Harvard a nationally-recognized institution, was draining the university of the aestheticism and humanism that had made higher education worth pursuing. He saw in Harvard's atmosphere of excessive materialism and utilitarianism an ailment of American society as a whole, an ugly new trend that had separated the national "will" from imagination, and rendered the intellect irrelevant. Unlike most other critics of the new university, the academic and cultural environment was so intolerable to Santayana that he decided to escape it altogether. He left for Europe in 1912, and although he would continue to write about America until his death in 1952, not once did he return. Academia is still not at rest. The public's widespread admiration for higher education once prevalent in the postwar era has begun to reverse itself, and between harsh budget cuts on the one hand and Alan Bloom's vicious denunciation of the university on the other, the future of higher learning in America may look as bleak to the prospective graduate student as it ever has in recent history. Crisis, however, is nothing new to the American university, and Bloom is not the first to warn of the "collapse of the entire American educational structure,"2 which, at last observation, was still standing. The very revolution in education that gave the university its modern, recognizable form found itself confronting similar forecasts of gloom and doom at the turn of the century. Along with the adoption of the free elective system and specialization of knowledge that came to be the staples of higher learning there emerged a small but vocal force determined to curtail the excesses of utilitarianism and abstract research. Known as the "advocates of liberal culture," these men reacted to an institution they believed had lost its sense of purpose, and their opposition, like today's, was testament to the growing and deeply felt fragmentation of the university. The way it goes :: essays research papers In 1940, George Santayana looked back on his forty years in America, and remarked morbidly: "If I had been free to choose, I should not have lived there, or been educated there, or taught philosophy there or anywhere else."1 He had come to Harvard in 1882 when it was in the middle of its most dynamic transformation; he succeeded both academically and socially as an undergraduate, and, in the company of William James and Josiah Royce, he became one of the most prominent and well-recognized participants in perhaps the greatest department of philosophy that ever existed. Yet Santayana found something horribly wrong with the changing University. He worried that the mass movement towards practicality and specialization, which he equated with President Charles William Eliot's attempts to make Harvard a nationally-recognized institution, was draining the university of the aestheticism and humanism that had made higher education worth pursuing. He saw in Harvard's atmosphere of excessive materialism and utilitarianism an ailment of American society as a whole, an ugly new trend that had separated the national "will" from imagination, and rendered the intellect irrelevant. Unlike most other critics of the new university, the academic and cultural environment was so intolerable to Santayana that he decided to escape it altogether. He left for Europe in 1912, and although he would continue to write about America until his death in 1952, not once did he return. Academia is still not at rest. The public's widespread admiration for higher education once prevalent in the postwar era has begun to reverse itself, and between harsh budget cuts on the one hand and Alan Bloom's vicious denunciation of the university on the other, the future of higher learning in America may look as bleak to the prospective graduate student as it ever has in recent history. Crisis, however, is nothing new to the American university, and Bloom is not the first to warn of the "collapse of the entire American educational structure,"2 which, at last observation, was still standing. The very revolution in education that gave the university its modern, recognizable form found itself confronting similar forecasts of gloom and doom at the turn of the century. Along with the adoption of the free elective system and specialization of knowledge that came to be the staples of higher learning there emerged a small but vocal force determined to curtail the excesses of utilitarianism and abstract research. Known as the "advocates of liberal culture," these men reacted to an institution they believed had lost its sense of purpose, and their opposition, like today's, was testament to the growing and deeply felt fragmentation of the university.

Lazarillo de Tormes and the Swindler

/*Class. Project 1*/ import java. io. BufferedReader; import java. io. FileReader; import java. util. StringTokenizer; import java. io. *; import java. math. BigDecimal; import java. util. *; /** * * @author: Huma UmmulBanin Zaidi * @Project:Project1, Data Structure. * Running program looks like: This program finds sum or product of a LARGE numbers of integers. Enter as many integers > 0 as you would like. Enter the numbers: 1 3 5 7 7 5 3 1 Please select the number of one of these options: 1. Sum the numbers in the list 2. Multiply the numbers in the list Your choice: 1Answer is: 16 Exiting program†¦ */ public class Project1 { //public class ReadFile { // Read lists of numbers from a specified text file. public static void main(String[] args){ if(args. length == 0) System. out. println(â€Å"No file specified. â€Å"); else { FileReader theFile; BufferedReader inFile; String oneLine; int s; try{ // file not found exception must be caught theFile = new FileReader(args[0]); inFi le = new BufferedReader(theFile); while((oneLine = inFile. readLine()) ! = null) { String numbers[] = oneLine. split(â€Å",†); // † † for space s = 0; for (int i=0; i= 0 ){ Node cur = new Node(); cur. setData(Integer. valueOf(n. remainder(d). intValue())); n = n. divide(d); node. setpNext(cur); node = node. etpNext(); } } public void mainLoop() { int numbers = 0; // Used to store numbers read in Node pHead = null; // head of linked list Node pTemp; // used in new node creation while( numbers ! = -1) { if (numbers ! = -1) { pTemp = new Node(); // Insert at head of list pTemp. setData( numbers); // store the number pTemp. setpNext( pHead); // set the â€Å"pointer† pHead = pTemp; // reset the head of the list } }//end while( number†¦ }//end of mainLoop //} public LargeNumbers AddNumbers (LargeNumbers n) { /public static void main(String[] args) { //System. out. println(â€Å"Addition of two numbers! â€Å"); LargeNumbers sum = new LargeNumbers(); sum. head. getpNext(). setData(this. head. getpNext(). getData()+n. head. getpNext(). getData()); int b = 0; int a = 0; int sum1 = a + b; System. out. println(â€Å"Sum: † + sum1); //} return sum; } public static void AddNumbers(LargeNumbers a, LargeNumbers b) { int n1 = 0; int n2 = 0; int sum1 = n1 + n2; System. out. println(â€Å"Sum: † + sum1); //} } public String toString(){ String str = â€Å"†; Node temp = head. getpNext(); while(temp! = null){ str += (temp. etData() + † â€Å"); temp = temp. getpNext(); } //end while return str; } // end toString public LargeNumbers Multiply (LargeNumbers n) { int mul1; int mul2; public static void main(String args[]){ try{ Multiply mul= new Multiply(); int multiplication; BufferedReader object=new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(System. in)); System. out. println(â€Å"Enter number:†+† â€Å"); mul. mul1=Integer. parseInt(object. readLine()); mul. mul2=Integer. parseInt(object. readLine()); System. out. println(â€Å"Width is =†+ mul. mul1); System. out. println(â€Å"Height is =†+ mul. mul2); multiplication = mul. mul1*mul. ul2; System. out. print(â€Å"Multiply number is=†+ multiplication); } catch(Exception e){} } } } /*class. node*/ public class Node { // For simplicity sake assume we only store an integer in each node private Integer data; private Node pNext; // Default Constructor public Node() { data = 0; pNext = null; } // Fully Qualified constructor public Node(Integer data, Node pNext) { this. data = data; this. pNext = pNext; } // get and set methods public void setData( Integer data) { this. data = data; } public Integer getData() { return this. data; } public void setpNext( Node nextNode) { this. Next = nextNode; } // return a reference (the address) of the next node public Node getpNext() { return this. pNext; } // toString allows printing a node public String toString() { return( â€Å"† + this. data); } }//end class Node /*data. text */ 9 4 31,415,926,535 2 0 1,234,567,890 1,734,792 131 1,506,033,005,018,000,029 1,992 23,571 100,000,002,750,004,128,293,702,150,000 9,999,999 9,999,999,999,999,999,999,999,999,999 31,415,926,535 31,415,926,535 3,276,765,535,021 271,828,128,450,945 112,233,445,566,778,899 99,887,766,554,433,221,100 198,719,881,989,199,019,911,992,199,319,941,995 141,421,356

Emergent Literacy Support in Early Childhood Education Essay

26 preschool teachers and 8 preschool administrators drawn from 8 preschools in Kasempa and Solwezi districts constituted the sample. A total 680 preschoolers were part of the classroom environments in which naturalistic observations were conducted. The data were collected through questionnaires for preschool teachers, designed to capture preschool teachers’ knowledge of emergent literacy and classroom practices. Questionnaires were also administered to preschool administrators and these were designed to capture the schools’ profile on their teachers, philosophy on literacy instruction and availability of teaching and learning materials. For the naturalistic observation of actual classroom sessions, data were gathered with the aid of a Classroom Literacy Checklist. Further data were collected using semi-structured follow-up interviews to fill in any gaps from questionnaires and observations. The findings were that all the preschools investigated had low literacy support as a result of limited language and literacy opportunities for the children and paucity of learning and play materials. Lack of the preschool teachers’ appreciation of emergent literacy rendered them unable to fully provide environments and practices that support emergent literacy. INTRODUCTION Background: The concept emergent literacy was introduced in 1966 by a New Zealand researcher Marie Clay in her doctoral thesis entitled Emergent Reading Behaviour but the term was coined by William Teale and Elizabeth Sulzby in 1986. The term was used to describe the behaviours seen in young children whereby they imitate adults’ reading and writing activities, even though the children cannot actually read and write in the conventional sense. The development of the emergent literacy perspective can be traced from the reading readiness perspective. In the four decades since Clay’s introduction of this term, an extensive body of research has expanded the understanding of emergent literacy. According to current research, children’s literacy development begins long before they start formal instruction in elementary school; it begins at birth and continues through the preschool years even though the activities of young children may not seem related to reading and writing. Early behaviours such as â€Å"reading† from pictures and â€Å"writing† with scribbles are examples of emergent literacy and are an important part of children’s literacy development. With the support of parents, caregivers, early childhood educators, and teachers, as well as exposure to a literacy-rich environment, children successfully progress from emergent to conventional literacy. In other words their growth from emergent to conventional literacy is influenced by their continuing literacy development, their understanding of literacy concepts, and the efforts of parents, caregivers, and teachers to promote literacy. It proceeds along a continuum, and children acquire literacy skills in a variety of ways and at different ages. Children’s skills in reading and writing develop at the same time and are interrelated rather than sequential. Educators can promote children’s understanding of reading and writing by helping them build literacy knowledge and skills through the use of engaged learning activities. As children are moving into conventional literacy, they pass through different periods of development in their efforts to become successful readers, just as they did at the emergent level. Over the past ten years, the concept of emergent literacy has gradually replaced the notion of reading readiness. Consequently, it has a significant impact on the way the teaching of literacy in early childhood programmes is approached. The theory of emergent literacy developed from research in the fields of child development, psychology, education, linguistics, anthropology, and sociology. It has virtually redefined the field of literacy and made educators, teachers, and parents aware that the term reading readiness no longer adequately describes what is happening in the literacy development of young children (Teale, 1986). Research conducted on emergent literacy indicates that support to children’s emergent literacy in early childhood education facilitates easy literacy development in children. Parents, caregivers, and teachers need to ensure that young children are exposed to literacy-rich environments and receive developmentally appropriate literacy instruction. Such environments and experiences have a profound effect on children’s literacy development by providing opportunities and encouragement for children to become successful readers. Thus a preschool should be an environment that supports the  continuation of emergent literacy. In order for a preschool to promote the continuous emergence of literacy, it must be an environment where there is a high variety of authentic literacy activities. It must also be an environment that affords learners opportunities to engage in purposeful literacy activities which are acknowledged as valid literacy behaviour. In the Zambian context emergent literacy is a fairly new phenomenon. Its practice is dependent on what teachers know and believe about it and this also is dependent upon the training that preschool teachers undergo. Against the background of emergent literacy, the concern of early childhood educators should be â€Å"valuing the knowledge children have than with replacing it by highly dubious and narrow models of what literacy is and how it functions† (Hall, 1989: viii). Little is known regarding literacy teaching in preschools in Zambia. This study, therefore, attempted to find out the extent to which classroom practices in preschools in Zambia, with special reference to Kasempa and Solwezi, support the continuation of emergent  literacy in children. Statement of the problem: Although the theory of emergent literacy has been in use for over four decades, it is not known to what extent emergent literacy is appreciated and supported in early childhood education in Zambia. While research has been conducted in other parts of the world, there has been no investigation into its practice in Zambia’s preschools. Thus the problem that was being investigated was that we do not know the extent to which classroom practices in Zambian preschools, and with particular reference to Kasempa and Solwezi, support the continuation of emergent literacy in children. Objectives: This study sought to achieve the following objectives: (i) To ascertain preschool teachers’ knowledge of emergent literacy in children. (ii) To establish the extent to which the classroom environment supports the continuation of emergent literacy. (iii) To establish what literacy instruction programme is in place and the extent to which it supports emergent literacy. (iv) To find out teaching and learning materials that are available in preschools and the extent to which they support emergent literacy. (v) To establish classroom literacy practices that obtain in preschools and the extent to which they support emergent literacy. Significance of the study: The significance of this study was premised on the fact that it focused on one critical area of education namely early childhood education. While a lot of research has been done on the basic and high school sectors of education in Zambia, very little has been done on preschool education. It is indisputable that good early childhood education is a precursor to the other levels of education. This study sought to investigate the extent to which classroom literacy practices in early childhood education in Zambia support the continuation of emergent literacy. Such a study has not been explored before in Zambia. This study, therefore, is significant in that it might provide valuable data on early childhood teachers’ knowledge of emergent literacy and the extent to which classroom practices support the continuation of emergent literacy. It is hoped that such data might be useful to policy makers such as the Ministry of Education and preschool curriculum des igners. In this way, it might provide data on which future curricula for early childhood educators’ training can be based. It is also hoped that the study will stimulate further research into emergent literacy practices in Zambian preschools, which is currently lacking. METHODOLOGY Research design: This study was qualitative as the researcher sought to interpret his observations and the respondents’ views to establish the extent to which practices in the target preschools support the continuation of emergent literacy. However, the study also employed some quantitative elements in the design. The study was also naturalistic because there was no systematic manipulation of any process during observation. Rather the researcher observed live classroom practices in the preschools as the teachers and learners went about with their activities. Sample size: The sample for the study was drawn from eight preschools in the  two study areas, namely Kasempa and Solwezi Districts in North-western Province. The sample size comprised 26 preschool teachers and 8 preschool administrators. 680 preschoolers were part of the classroom environments where the naturalistic observations took place. The sample structure for the preschool teachers is presented below as Table 1: Highest Qualification Males Female Total Untrained Certificate Diploma Primary Certificate Totals Teacher’s (Table 1): Sample Structure for Preschool Teachers in the Study Areas 5 Sampling techniques: Samples were chosen on a non-probability basis on the understanding that respondents would be available, easy to access and ready to participate in the study. As such and convenient and purposive samplings were used. This is because the researcher selected samples according to what was logistically convenient and feasible. Bearing in mind the period in which the study was to be undertaken, the preschools that were selected were those that were not in hard-to-reach areas. This was in line with Ghosh (2006) who says convenience sampling is used when the universe is not defined and when administrative limitations make it difficult for the researcher to randomly select samples. Since purposive sampling is used to target a group of subjects a researcher believes to be reliable for a study (Kombo and Tromp, 2006), in this study it was used to select the eight schools in the study area. The use of this sampling technique was aimed at ensuring that only well-established preschools were targeted. Data collection: Three instruments were used to collect data. The Classroom Literacy Checklist was used as a classroom observation instrument. It was used to check for classroom practices in terms of literacy-richness of the environment, reading practices, variety of literacy activities, authenticity of literacy activities and teachers’ usage of children’s knowledge of literacy. It was adapted from other literacy observation checklists such as the KS1 Format and the National Centre for Learning Disabilities 2004 Literacy Environment Checklist developed by Groover J. Whitehurst (Ph.D.). These observation instruments are designed to assess whether literacy environments in preschools provide a range of quality literacy experiences and a print-rich environment which are important factors in the facilitation and support of literacy learning. Two types of questionnaire were used, one for teachers and the other for administrators. The questionnaires for the teachers sought to elicit information on their training and knowledge of emergent literacy. The questionnaires for the administrators sought to elicit information on the school profile, instructional materials and the school’s ethos on literacy development. Questionnaires were given on the first day of research at each preschool. The idea was to give respondents three to five days of answering the questionnaire, based on findings from the pilot test. Interviews were conducted with teachers and administrators as follow-ups to help fill in gaps or clarify any matters from 6  questionnaires and observations. For the teachers these were done soon after each observation. For administrators these were conducted at least twice in each school, one of which was on the last day of the research at each particular preschool. Data analysis: Since this study was mainly qualitative, data analysis (particularly preprocessing) began during the data collection stage. During lesson observations the researcher made class profiles by recording the children’s level, age range and enrolment. The researcher was also doing a dairy on each lesson observed. Another thing the researcher did at this stage was to ensure that the data were internally consistent. For example, the researcher would make follow-ups with informants to clarify any contradictions and gaps in the questionnaires or interviews. Data preparation then followed and this included summarizing and organizing the data according to categories. At the final stage the  researcher sought to make interpretations of the questionnaire responses, obs ervations and interview responses. FINDINGS This study sought to find out the extent to which classroom practices in preschools support emergent literacy. The study relied mainly on naturalistic observations of live classroom sessions but this was complemented by questionnaires and follow-up interviews. Below is a discussion of the specific findings, divided into five sections, each discussing the findings in relation to each of the five objectives of the study. Preschool Teachers’ Knowledge of Emergent Literacy: The study has revealed that none of respondents had ever heard of the term ‘emergent literacy’. In spite of this, the findings have also revealed that all the respondents have noticed elements of emergent literacy in children when they just enter preschool. The study has further shown that respondents have high awareness levels of children’s emergent literacy behaviours. However, the study has also revealed that generally, the respondents’ appreciation of the children’s emergen t literacy was very poor. One area major area where this was evident was with regard to knowing how to reinforce children’s display of emergent literacy (for 7  example if a child got a book and began to turn pages or if a child stood up and began to ‘read’ around the room). This apparent disparity between the respondents’ high awareness of emergent literacy behaviours and their low appreciation of emergent literacy can be attributed to the respondents’ training. It was clear that preschool teachers are not taught about emergent literacy, hence the respondents did not regard emergent literacy behaviours as a developmental stage in literacy learning. Generally all the respondents tended to subscribe to the reading readiness perspective. In relation to the purpose of the study, these findings suggest that preschool teachers in the study areas cannot provide the necessary support to children’s emergent literacy if they are ignorant of emergent literacy as a developmental stage in children’s literacy learning. Preschool Classroom Environment: This study has revealed that the classroom environments in the study areas have low literacy support. It has also established that the most common aspects of literacy support were the alphabet frieze and month and day names. This effectively means that the environments were not print-rich. The study has further revealed that the preschool teachers had low knowledge levels of how a preschool environment ought to be. In cases where the respondents revealed high knowledge levels, there was a gap between this knowledge and what was obtaining in the classrooms. The findings established that this was due to paucity of resources and having proprietors/managers who were ignorant of preschool education. These findings suggest serious implications on children’s literacy development. First because preschool teachers and proprietors/managers tended to have low appreciation of what a preschool environment ought to be, they cannot provide the requisite envir onment that fully supports the continuation of emergent literacy. Secondly, because preschool children in the study areas have little exposure to a literacy-rich environment, they may not easily progress from emergent to conventional literacy. Preschool Curriculum: This study has revealed that the study areas do not seem to have any clear philosophy regarding literacy instruction. As such the preschools did not have clear literacy instruction programmes. The study has also established that there is no common syllabus for preschools in Zambia. Preschools were using whatever they could lay their hands on. These findings show that it is difficult to measure the schools literacy instruction success when issues of syllabi are vague. Literacy Instruction Materials: This study has revealed a paucity of teaching and learning materials in the study areas. The most commonly available instructional materials are flashcards, charts and building blocks. The study has established that there is a lack of a variety of reading books, workbooks, literacy objects for pretend play, and generally playthings. In view of the paucity of literacy instructional materials in the study areas, there is less support to children’s emergent literacy as children do not have sufficient interaction with a variety of literacy objects. The other implication is that with the paucity of play things, the children spend less time on play related activities and do more of formal learning. Classroom Literacy Practices: This study has revealed that using music is a practice widely employed in all the eight preschools. However, the study has also established that preschool children in the study areas have limited reading experiences. In almost all cases children seldom handle reading books as this is reserved for Reception or Grade 1 levels. This is because teachers do not see this as necessary since the children cannot read in the conventional sense. Further children are rarely read to and hardly engage in shared book reading. It has also been found that there are hardly any independent activities for c hildren not working with an adult. More formal learning as opposed play-related learning has been found to be a common practice. The implication of these findings is that preschool teachers in the study areas are not using developmentally appropriate activities to teach literacy to the preschoolers. CONCLUSION By analysing the classroom practices, preschool teachers’ knowledge of emergent literacy and the environments in the study areas, this study has established that the practices in the eight preschools do not provide sufficient support for the continuation of emergent literacy. A number of factors have militated against high support for emergent literacy. The first factor is the preschool teachers’ lack of knowledge/appreciation of emergent literacy. This has arisen from the nature of training that preschool teachers undergo in Zambia. Coupled with this is the fact that some of the preschool teachers currently serving in schools have not undergone formal training. In this study almost a third of them were untrained. The other factor is lack of resources to construct appropriate structures for  preschools and furnish them with requisite materials. This has been compounded by the fact that preschool education in Zambia is privately run and as such the Government has had n o stake in it. The third fact is the very fact that Government has had no stake in preschool education. This has led to lapses in the registration of preschools and lack of serious and constant monitoring of preschools. As such there is no quality assurance in the provision of preschool education. The results of this study are significant in two main ways: the results have indicated the need for capacity-building preschool teachers in the area of emergent literacy. The results have also demonstrated the need for Government’s keen participation in preschool education. As regards the need for capacity-building preschool teachers, the study has demonstrated that while preschool teachers may notice emergent literacy behaviours among preschool children, they cannot unwittingly provide the necessary scaffolding to emergent literacy if they do not have sound knowledge of the phenomenon. This, therefore, means that emergent literacy must be part of preschool teachers’ curriculum. The need for government’s keen participation in preschool education arises from the fact that most of the inadequacies noted are a result of lack of stringent regulation and monitoring of preschool education. Stringent regulation will ensure that only individuals/institutions meeting the minimum standards are allowed to run preschools. On the other hand, constant monitoring will ensure that high standards are maintained in preschools. Another key way Government needs to participate in preschool education is through provision of grants or instructional materials. It is commendable that preschools are now falling under the Ministry of Education which has expert personnel to oversee the running of education provision in general and preschool education in particular. There is, however, need to come up with a directorate responsible for preschool education. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to acknowledge the valuable contribution of the many people without whom the demands of this research would not have been met. First I pay tribute to my academic supervisor Dr John Simwinga who provided the much needed counsel, guidance and criticisms from the proposal stage right through the completion of this thesis. Thank you for your confidence in me and giving me latitude throughout this academic journey. May God continue to lift you in your academic pursuits. I also wish to thank Mr D.C. Nkosha for having inspired my interest in emergent literacy which led to my pursuing this study. I thank lecturers Mr G Tambulukani and Mr S.B. Hirst for making useful comments at various stages of the study; all lecturers on the NOMA (Norwegian Masters) Literacy Programme for sharpening my academic faculties. Special thanks go to all the participants in Kasempa and Solwezi districts who made it possible for me to undertake the study at no cost. I extend my thanks to all my colleagues on the course with whom I worked well. Notable among them are Ms Mary-Grace Musonda, Ms Georgina Njapau and Mr Benson Kamangala. My gratitude will be incomplete without expressing my indebtedness to my wife for tolerating my academic appetite and for her continued understanding, support and perseverance and remaining a pillar in our home during my long periods of absence. I remain grateful to the girls Tionge and Peggy for enduring my absence and remaining good children while I was away. I am grateful to my employers for granting me paid study leave yet again, without which it would have been impossible to pursue my master’s programme. I shall remain forever grateful for the NOMA scholarship granted to me through the University of Zambia. To God be the glory for the great and many things He has done for me. REFERENCES Barton, D., 2007. Literacy – An Introduction to the Ecology of Written Language. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Bergen, D., 2001. Pretend Play and Young Children’s Development. ERIC Digest, ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education  Bredekamp S. (ed.) 1987. Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth Through Age 8. Washington, DC: NAEYC. Freeman, E.B., and J.A. Hatch 1989. â€Å"Emergent Literacy: Reconceptualizing Kindergarten Practice.† Childhood Education, 66, 21-24. Ghosh B.N., 2006. Scientific Method and Social Research. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers. Gunn, B., D. Simmons and E. Kameenui, 1994. Emergent Literacy: Synthesis of Research. University of Oregon Hall, N., 1989. The Emergence of Literacy. London: Hodder and Stoughton Harste, J.C., V.A. Woodward and C.L. Burke 1984. Language Stories and Literacy Lessons. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Educational Books. Hiebert, E. H., 1988. â€Å"The Role of Literacy Experiences in Early Childhood Programs.† The Elementary School Journal, 89 (2), 161-171. 12 Hiebert, E. H. and J.M. Papierz, 1990. â€Å"The Emergent Literacy Construct and Kindergarten and Readiness Books of Basal Reading Series.† Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 5 (3), 317-334. McMahon, R., 1996. â€Å"Introducing Infants to the Joy of Reading.† Dimensions of Early Childhood, 24 (3), 26-29 Morrow, L. M., 1990. â€Å"Preparing the Classroom Environment to Promote Literacy during Play.† Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 5, 537-554. Morrow, L.M. (ed.), 1995. Family Literacy: Connections in Schools and Communities. New Brunswick: International Reading Association Serpell, R., L. Baker and S. Sonnenschein, 2005. Becoming Literate in the City – The Baltimore Early Childhood Project. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Sonnenschein, S. L. Baker, R. Serpell, D. Scher, S. Fernandez-Fein and K. Munsterman, 1996. â€Å"Strands of Emergent Literacy and Their Antecedents in the Home: Urban Preschoolers’ Early Literacy Development.† National Reading Research Centre: Reading Research Report No. 48 Teale, W, and E. Sulzby, 1986. Emergent Literacy: Writing and Reading. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation. Teale, W. H. and E. Sulzby, 1987. Literacy Acquisition in Early Childhood: The Roles of Access and Mediation in Storybook Reading. In D. A. Wagner (ed.), The Future of Literacy in a Changing World (pp. 111-130). New York: Pergamon Press. Van Kleeck, A., 1990. Emergent Literacy: Learning about Print before Learning to Read. Topics in Language Disorders, 10 (2), 25-45. Wilson, N and S. McLean, 1994. Questionnaire Design: A Practical Introduction. Newtown Abbey: University of Ulster Press.

Denim Finishing Company Case Essay

Mrs. Kelsey Bowser using the ABC method decided to use the number of garments as the cost driver of the change-over costs. Nevertheless, I argue that this was not the best possible choice. I will try to defend my point using the following example. Let’s assume that Guess Who Jeans demands 600, not 500 garments per shipment. Although the number of garments changes, the total change-over costs would stay the same, because no additional retooling of the machine would be necessary. The whole change-over process takes 3 hours regarding if the number of garments is 200, 500 or 800. Furthermore, let’s strictly theoretically assume that the company is able to achieve some extra capacity and one batch is now composed of 150 garments instead of 100 garments. Still, although the total number of garments would vastly increase, the change-over costs would be altered only partially. The opportunity cost measured as a lost contribution margin would slightly increase, but the out-of-po cket costs would stay the same, as the wages of the employees and supplies costs will not change. Thus, it is clear that the number of garments is not the proper cost driver for the change-over costs. In my opinion the number of shipments would be a much better cost driver for the change-over costs. Regarding the number of garments or the number of batches Guess Who Jeans demands every shipment requires the change-over costs to be incurred twice. For instance, if 99 shipments were made, the total change-over costs would equal $351 * 198 = $69,498, because two change-overs ($702) would not have to be undertaken. Thus, the number of shipments clearly drives the analyzed costs. Unlikely the previous example with the number of garments per batch increasing to 150, the number of shipments fully ‘drives’ the change-over costs. Every time the number of shipments rises or falls, the change-over costs change by the full amount of the two per-changeover costs which properly reflect the real situation. Using such a cost driver may be problematic when the allocation of the chang e-over costs is analyzed. Nevertheless, I argue that those cost should be solely allocated to the propriety denim finishing. The demand for the stonewashing services exceeds the company’s capacity. Thus, if the Guess Who Jeans’ offer was declined, the company would use the whole capacity for stonewashing. However, if the offer was accepted the stonewashing processes would be somehow ‘interrupted’ by the propriety denim finishing. Each ‘interruption’, and therefore each shipment would require incurring the change-over costs twice. No factor connected with stonewashing ‘drives’ those costs. Regarding the number of batches or garments used in the stonewashing process each shipment necessitates the cost of $702. Therefore, I believe this cost should be associated with every shipment done by Guess Who Jeans. In Appendix A I present the product profitability analysis using the number of shipment as the cost driver. Moreover, Mrs. Kelsey Bowser claims that the change-over costs should be treated as product-sustaining costs. Nevertheless, I believe her opinion is wrong. I believe these costs should be on the batch level in the cost hierarchy. Hence, I believe the initial analysis undertaken by Mrs. Bowser was correct, although the cost driver she selected was improper. Product-sustaining level costs could be defined as ‘activities that are needed to support an entire product line but are not performed every time a new unit or batch of products is produced’ [Hilton 2010]. Although the first part of the definition applies to the change-over costs, it is clearly not the case when the second part of the definition is concerned. The change-over costs have to be incurred every time the shipments is delivered and the propriety denim finishing has to be done. Therefore, I believe these costs should be rather placed as the batch-level costs in the cost hierarchy. Batch-level costs are believed to ‘arise from activities performed once for each batch or lot of products’ [Zimmerman 2011]. Since the change-over costs need to be incurred every shipment, placing them at this level in the hierarchy seems reasonable. 2. It is clear that before accepting the proposal several nonfinancial issues have to be considered in order to make a reasonable decision. First, the management should think how accepting the Gues Who offer would affect the relations with the other clients. Since Guess Who requires the Denim Finishing Company not to offer the particular type of finish to other customers, it is very likely that relations with other firms will worsen. The Denim Finishing Company has been cooperating with many companies for a long time. Therefore, those companies may dislike the fact that the new client receives the special treatment, while such benefits could not be observed in their case, even though they have been the customers for ages. Consequently, the Denim Finishing Company’s reputation may shrink and furthermore the firm may lose some of its customers that it had long term relations established with. Accepting the Guess Who offer, as mentioned before, would require the Denim Finishing Company to offer the certain time of finish exclusively to Guess Who. Hence, the firm would be prohibited from providing other companies with this service. Before making the decision it should be analyzed if that could lead to potential losses in the future. For instance, although cooperating with Guess Who may be beneficial, the potential gains from offering that type of finish to other clients could be higher. If so, the Denim Finishing Company should rather provide the service to other firms. Naturally, before making such a decision it has to be determined if other firms would require the Denim Finishing Company to offer the service exclusively to them, like it is the case for Guess Who. Offering exclusive service to one company may result in other companies’ (not only potential clients as mentioned in the previous paragraph, but also current ones) demands for exclusive treatment. If other clients, especially those who have been cooperating with the Denim Finishing Company for a long time, realize that it is possible to receive such a special treatment, they would likely claim for it too, as it could give them a competitive advantage over other firms in their industry. Thus, the Denim Finishing Company would undoubtedly face a big problem. It theoretically could increase the prices for the firms that demand exclusive service, but it could lead to losing those clients. Accepting or declining the Guess Who offer may also result in potential conflicts within the firm that have to be considered. For instance, Bruce Farrand who is against the offer may be so determined in defending his point of view that if the offer is accepted, he will decide to terminate his employment. However, he might be so valuable for the company that the gains from the cooperation with Guess Who would not compensate for the value added by Mr. Farrand. Moreover, some other conflicts could arise in the company after deciding either. Before making the decision it would also be recommended to analyze the potential influence the service offered to Guess Who could have on the machine. Since providing the finish would require constant and often retooling of the machine, it could negatively affect the lifetime of the machine. What is more, it is possible that the quality of services done by the machine would shrink because of those often changes. Hence, the satisfaction among clients could diminish and the high cost of purchasing new machine would have to be incurred soon. It also cannot be forgotten that the current demand exceeds the firm’s capacity and some of its clients already use services provided by other companies. Thus, if the Denim Finishing Company’s has even less time for stonewashing, these clients can shift to competitors. Finally, it should be estimated what potential nonfinancial benefits could cooperating with Guess Who bring to the Denim Finishing Company. Guess Who is considered to be a company that offers innovative and premium products. Thus, being an important business partner of such a firm could have a positive impact on the Denim Finishing Company’s reputation. Consequently, it could attract new clients and encourage more companies to cooperate with the Denim Finishing Company. Moreover, successful cooperation with Guess Who Jeans could lead to extending the business relations with that company. For instance, it could outsource more of its production to the Denim Finishing Company. 3. If I were Tom Corcoran, I would undoubtedly have a few questions for the controller. First, I would ask about all the problems mentioned in the two previous questions. As mentioned before, I believe that Mrs. Bowser did not place the change-over costs at the right level in the cost hierarchy. Hence, I would like to get to know why she decided to treat them as product-sustaining costs, while there are a lot of arguments supporting the idea to treat them as batch-level costs. Furthermore, the cost driver chosen by Mrs. Bowser is highly doubtful. I would require the explanation how and to what extent in her opinion the number of garments ‘drives’ the change-over costs. Since I believe the number of garments is not the right cost driver, I would ask Mrs. Bowser for some other type of profitability analysis, such as the analysis presented in Appendix A. The analysis presented at the meeting by the controller could be misleading. Both Exhibit 3 and Exhibit 4 present data that is in my opinion inaccurate. Moreover, as it was analyzed in the second question accepting or declining the offer could lead to multiple nonfinancial outcomes that may play a significant role on the company’s profitability. Hence, I would ask if such factors have been analyzed and if so, what possible impact they may have. I also believe that Tom Corcoran would be most interested in the total profit his company would have under both scenarios. Analyses presented at the meeting, as valuable as they might be, do not contain such information. For instance, they do not include the facility-sustaining costs that the Denim Finishing Company has to incur. Hence, it would be recommended to present Tom Corcoran with the yearly profit the firm may earn. Moreover, I would ask Mrs. Bowser about the accuracy of her assumptions in Exhibit 4. She estimates that the costs of the proprietary process, as well as the price paid by Guess Who Jeans wi ll not change during the year. However, it may not necessarily be the case. The analysis relies on historical costs that may not be appropriate for the future estimations. Thus, I would like to know if Mrs. Bowser took that aspect into account. Another question would regard the overhead rates of the batch- and unit-level costs. The rates were estimated when only stonewashing was done. However, accepting the offer from Guess Who Jeans would require retaining from using the machine for 600 hours. This could likely result in different overhead costs and consequently different overhead rates. The batch-level utility cost can be particularly problematic. It is ‘driven’ by the machine hours and as previously mentioned the machine is not used for 3 hours before and 3 hours after the shipment. Furthermore, the case makes it unclear whether drying is also performed by the Unit #4. The per-garment utilities cost includes 3 hours for washing and 3 hours for drying. However, when the change-over is undertaken, the washing is not performed, because the machine cannot be used. Therefore, during the change-over the utilities cost is possibly lower. This is especially important for the opportunity cost analysis. Since the case is lacking information explaining the problem, if I were Tom Corcoran I would like to clarify it. Finally, I strongly believe that it would also be necessary to ask Mrs. Bowser about the facility-sustaining costs. Such costs are ignored in the controller’s analysis. Nevertheless, they still affect the company’s profitability. Hence, I would like to get to know how big those costs are. Moreover, the facility-sustaining costs could also be somehow influenced by the possible cooperation with Guess Who Jeans. For instance, the security or insurance costs could rise, since the service is supposed to be offered exclusively to that particular client. Therefore, the analysis of the capacity-sustaining costs would also be useful. To sum up, if I were Tom Corcoran I would have many doubts about the controller’s analysis. I would probably ask her to prepare yet another presentation that includes my suggestions. However, if I were to make the decision, I probably would accept the Guess Who Jeans’ offer. The analysis in the Appendix A, although it does not include nonfinancial factors and may not properly reflect all the costs, clearly shows that such a scenario leads to increased profits. 4. Activity-based costing is undoubtedly a useful tool that could help the management to make the optimal decision. It is much more accurate that the traditional costing systems. Distinguishing various activities and determining cost drivers relating to them helps to more precisely allocate the costs. Using one cost driver for all the amount of the overhead could create the situation where the indirect costs are not really ‘driven’ by the particular cost. For instance, although direct labor hours might to some extent determine the value of the overhead, the influence may only be partial, especially regarding certain products. Using various cost drivers for various activities largely eliminates this problem. What is more, selecting particular cost drivers for respective activities enables ‘taxing’ certain activities. This internal tax system gives an incentive to reduce certain costs and therefore improve the company’s efficiency. For instance, if machine labor hours are chosen as a driver for the production activity there is an impulse to lower the number of machine labor hours which consequently results in decreased value of overhead, lower costs and higher profits. Under Activity-Based Costing the share of costs allocated directly to the products increases. Thus, the company better understand where its overhead costs go to. It enables the firm to identify the products that are not profitable and undertake relevant actions, such as decreasing costs, raising the price or withdrawing the product. However, the cost hierarchy helps to make such decision regarding not only particular products, but also batches and product lines. This undoubtedly allows making decisions that are more profit-maximizing. Moreover, in the ABC the practical capacity is used. Therefore, it is possible to determine the unused capacity. Diminishing the unused capacity is definitely helpful in maximizing the profits of the company. Hence, Activity-Based Costing provides the management with the information necessary to make optimal decisions. To compare, the traditional costing systems do not give such a possibility. However, the ABC method also has some flaws that may result in making a non-optimal production decision. Some of those disadvantages could be observed in the previous questions. First, the system is believed to be complicated. As noticeable in the first question choosing the proper cost driver for the particular activity might be problematic. Selecting the wrong driver could lead to biased results and consequently the decision that is not profit-maximizing. Furthermore, trying to maintain the cost hierarchy may also be difficult, as shown in the example of Mrs. Bowser from the Denim Finish Company. The results when the costs were determined as the batch-level where completely different than when they were analyzed to be product-level. Thus, such easily made mistakes could result in a non-optimal decision. Furthermore, as it could be seen in the second question Activity-Based Costing does not include any nonfinancial measures. Thus, even though pure financial values may show that a particular decision is profit-maximizing, it might not necessarily be the case. Other factors, such as e.g. loss of reputation could actually result in decreased profits. Finally, the ABC method requires gathering data from the whole company, often through interviews. Hence, there is a relatively big possibility that collected data is not perfectly accurate. To sum up, the Activity-Based Costing method is quite reliable tool in making optimal production decisions, especially compared to the traditional costing systems. However, the system has to be carefully planned and implemented, because any mistakes could lead to inaccurate results. Choosing the wrong cost driver and improper assignment of the costs in the cost hierarchy may result in undesired errors. Furthermore, as useful as the ABC is, the management cannot rely solely on financial values provided by the method. Before making the decision all nonfinancial factors have to be considered. Only such a consideration combined with the information supplied by the properly designed and applied Activity-Based Costing system can lead to the optimal production decision. 5. The marginal costing analysis may undoubtedly be a useful tool in making an optimal decision. However, it has to be used carefully, because some of its suggestions may be misleading. This could also be observed in the analysis presented by Mrs. Bowser. The concerns are somehow parallel to the questions raised before. First, the marginal costing analysis does not include any nonfinancial factors. Hence, although the particular activity may seem profitable, it might not necessary be true. Second, the analysis is based on the historical, not the actual costs. The actual costs and price that Guess Who Jeans would be required to pay may differ over the time. Similarly, the application of the overhead depends on the estimates rather than the actual values. Thus, over or underabsorption may happen. Moreover, as mentioned before, after accepting the offer the overhead rates could change. Thus, the costs provided by the controller in the analysis might be inaccurate. As pointed out in the previous question the case is lacking the information about the possible decrease in the utilities costs during the change-overs. If that was true, the opportunity cost associated with the lost contribution margin on sales of 70,000 stonewashed garments would considerably increase. Considerably, the incremental profit from accepting the new offer would diminish. Another problem with Mrs. Bowser’s analysis, as well as with all the marginal costing analyses is that they do not include the costs that do not change with the unit volume. However, such costs could also influence the decision. Although the analysis presented by the controller shows that accepting the offer would be highly profitable, the figures would not look so vastly appealing if the amount of capacity-sustaining overhead was included in the Exhibit. Furthermore, the presented analysis is only a short-term one. Nevertheless, before making a strategic management the management also has to cons ider the long-term perspective. The analysis shows that in the certain year the incremental profits from accepting the Guess Who Jeans’ offer would equal some particular value. The analysis only includes one year though. In the following years the profits could be lower and thus declining the offer could actually be a better decision. For instance, imagine that Guess Who Jeans needs the propriety denim finishing services for its new products that are just to be introduced to the market. The client may expect the high demand for the new product in the first year. However, in the following years the demand for the product, and consequently for the Denim Finishing Company’s services may shrink. Finally, the marginal costing analysis includes only one-case scenario. It assumes that the projected and the actual number of shipments will be equal. However, it is not certain if that will happen. If some unexpected events happen the marginal costing analysis will not properly reflect the real situation. It cannot be forgotten that the marginal costing analysis is a simple and straightforward tool that can support the decision making. It is particularly useful when two products or divisions are to be compared. Moreover, it can give the management the basis for analyzing the opportunity cost of declining the Guess Who Jeans’ offer. However, the marginal costing analysis should be used carefully. I believe it should be treated as a supportive instrument for decision making rather than the major source of information. Hence, if the controller alter a few things, the analysis could help to make the optimal, profit-maximizing decision.